Colt Coeur Reveals New Executive Producer and Fall Benefit Honorees

On the cusp of an exciting double world-premiere season, Colt Coeur is thrilled to announce their new Executive Producer, Heather Cohn. Heather brings rich experience in the NYC theatre landscape - having served at institutions ranging from Flux Ensemble to En Garde Arts, New York Theatre Workshop, Disney Theatrical and TCG. She will continue her work as a dynamic force behind innovative works that drive industry change as she collaborates with Founding Artistic Director Adrienne Campbell-Holt and the greater Colt Coeur community.

Additionally, the company will be celebrating two champions of powerful, original theater on Thursday, October 12th at their annual Benefit Bash. The company will honor business leader RoAnn Costin, and actor/writer/director Ato Essandoh. Both have been part of the Colt Coeur community for over a decade and Ato developed and performed in Colt Coeur’s world premiere of Fish Eye, opposite Betty Gilpin and Joe Tippett. He can currently be seen opposite Keri Russell on “The Diplomat” (Netflix).
Tickets and info available here: https://secure.givelively.org/event/colt-coeur-theater-company-inc/colt-coeur-2023-benefit-bash

The first premiere of Colt Coeur’s 2023-2024 season will be Bite Me.  WP Theater (Lisa McNulty, Producing Artistic Director; Michael Sag, Managing Director) and Colt Coeur (Adrienne Campbell-Holt, Artistic Director) announced earlier this week that David Garelik (Long Day’s Journey Into Night at the Geffen; The Good Muslim) and Malika Samuel (Harry Potter and the Cursed Child; WP’s Our Dear Dead Drug Lord) will star in the world premiere of BITE ME by award-winning playwright Eliana Pipes (Dream Hou$e, Hoops), directed by Rebecca Martínez (The Comedy of Errors, WP’s Sancocho). BITE ME will begin performances at WP Theater (2162 Broadway at 76th St.) on September 23, ahead of an official opening night of Thursday, October 5. The limited engagement runs through October 22. Tickets are on sale now at wptheater.org.

Nathan is ditching class when he stumbles on Melody crying in a storage closet - he’s a white boy with family money and dangerous habits, she’s the lone Black girl on campus, excelling academically and grappling with feelings of isolation. They form an unexpected bond and it’s not long before the heat between them boils over. Bite Me explores the drama (and trauma) of trying to fit in at high school, and the unfinished business waiting for them at their reunion a decade later. This captivating dark comedy dares to explore the raw undercurrents of youth, and the unspoken truths that bind us.

Joining Martinez on the BITE ME creative team are scenic designer Chika Shimizu; costume designer Sarita Fellows; lighting designer Lucrecia Briceno; and sound designer Tosin Olufolabi. The stage manager is Caren Celine Morris. Casting by Kelly Gillespie, C.S.A.

Heather Cohn (she/her) is thrilled to be joining the Colt Coeur company as Executive Producer. Heather is a producer, director, fundraiser, ensemble artist and activist. She co-founded Flux Theatre Ensemble in 2006 and with Flux has produced over 30 full productions, including 18 world premieres. As a Creative Partner with Flux, Heather learned the nuanced art of ensemble theatre practice and consensus-based decision making. She also helped launch Flux’s Living Ticket program, removing all financial barriers to attendance.

Most recently, Heather served as the Executive Director for En Garde Arts where she proudly commissioned and produced Andrea Thome’s Fandango for Butterflies (and Coyotes) and guided the organization through the Covid-19 pandemic. She has also worked with Epic Theatre Ensemble, New York Theatre Workshop, The Pearl Theatre, Theatre Communications Group, and Disney Theatrical. As a director, Heather directed world premieres by Johnna Adams, Erin Browne, Kevin R. Free, Kristen Palmer and Corinna Schulenburg; and has assisted Austin Pendleton and José Zayas.

Heather has served on several not-for-profit boards including the League of Professional Theatre Women (LPTW), where she co-chaired the Task Force for trans inclusion. She is also a leader of the Racial Equity Committee at the Academy for Excellence Through the Arts and serves as a member of the School Leadership Team. She is a graduate of Vassar College, where she majored in Latin American Studies and spent time living in Cuba and Chile. And most importantly, she’s a proud mom to Mercena.

RoAnn Costin (she/her) is the founder and president of Wilderness Point Investments, a private equity company that focuses on investing in early and expansion stage consumer non-durable product and retailing companies. Ventures in which Ms. Costin has invested and sits or has sat on the board of directors include Lululemon Athletica, Genuine Health International, 2020 Onsite Optometry and Sarah Flint, Inc. Ms. Costin began her career in 1981 working for State Street Research and Management, Co. She was the first woman investment analyst, portfolio manager and partner in the firm. In 1989, Ms. Costin joined the Putnam Companies as a member of the Quality Growth group, and in 1992 she founded and was president of Reservoir Capital Management, a firm specializing in quality growth equities investments. Prior to her career in business, Ms. Costin worked in government at the federal and local levels. She received an MBA from Stanford University and a BA in Government, cum laude, from Harvard University, where she was an All-American in swimming and crew. She currently serves on the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, American Repertory Theater and Codman Academy Charter School.

Ato Essandoh (he/him)
Born on a Saturday, late July in Schenectady New York, the first child of Ebow and Monica Essandoh did not have an official name. Ghanaian custom dictated that the new parents wait a week before divining a name during a traditional ceremony. Seven days hence, "Baby Boy Essandoh" became Ato Essilfi Brakutu Essandoh. "Ato" meaning Saturday born, "Essilfi" after his grandfather, a beloved school teacher in Ghana, and finally "Brakutu" a designation meaning "warrior."
While studying Chemical Engineering at Cornell, Ato was dared by his college sweetheart to perform in a play. Years later, Ato still marvels at the experiences and opportunities that have been afforded to him since that fateful performance at Cornell. Ato’s career has blossomed over the years with memorable turns in movies such as “Garden State,” “Blood Diamond,” and “Jason Bourne.”  On TV Ato has had the fortune to play a great variety of roles.  His favorites include a Civil War doctor in BBC America’s crime series “Copper;” a blues singer in HBO’s music industry drama “Vinyl;” and an astronaut in Netflix’s space saga “Away.” Currently Ato stars as “Stuart Hayford” in Netflix’s hit drama “The Diplomat.” Ato has been a Colt Coeur company member since 2011, when he developed and starred opposite Betty Gilpin, Joe Tippett and Katya Campbell in Lucas Kavner’s Fish Eye. 

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