PlayMakers Adds YOGA PLAY to 2021/22 Season

Today, PlayMakers Repertory Company at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill announced it will present Dipika Guha's "Yoga Play" during the 2021/22 season. The season kicks off November 10 in the storied Paul Green Theatre.

Due to commitments by playwright, Lauren Yee, PlayMakers will not produce the East Coast premiere of "Mother Russia" this season. Guha's biting, bubbly comedy joins a line-up that explores the resilience of family in all its complicated forms, friendships that transcend language, time, and space, and one man's connection to his community that helps him stand taller than he could alone.

"It is thrilling to be reopening our doors with The Skin of Our Teeth," said Producing Artistic Director Vivienne Benesch, "and I'm equally excited about all that's ahead. The plays we are producing are filled with the love, laughter, and curious exploration that we all need from the theatre right now. Dipika Guha's Yoga Play is a wonderful, smart, and laugh-out loud addition to our delicious and diverse season "

The season will shortly kick off with an all-Company production of Thornton Wilder's "The Skin of Our Teeth," an exuberant celebration of the cyclical nature of life, loss and survival, followed by Lydia R. Diamond's quietly powerful family dramedy "Stick Fly." Next, PlayMakers will stage the North Carolina premiere of Dipika Guha's biting, bubbly comedy "Yoga
Play," then Tracey Young's theatrical adaptation of "A Wrinkle in Time," based on the beloved novel by Madeleine L'Engle. The in-person season will end with August Wilson's bracingly honest theatrical memoir, "How I Learned What I Learned".

"Our season will be filled with the voices of a diverse group of visionary writers and helmed by five powerhouse women directors," noted Benesch. "We have consciously, as part of our commitment to center principles of access, equity, diversity, and inclusion in our work, chosen works written by, directed by, and featuring artists and artisans of Black, Indigenous, People of color and other underrepresented identities. Our five-show lineup starts a little later than usual, to allow us the safety and flexibility to work responsibly throughout the season and ensure that our audiences can feel confident coming back. From premieres to significant revivals, PlayMakers is ready and delighted, once again, to expand your imagination."

Productions will be staged live in the Paul Green Theatre, beginning November 2021. Face coverings will be required at all times while inside the Joan H. Gillings Center for Dramatic Art, until further notice. PlayMakers will continue to monitor and follow industry, University, and state regulations and will adjust safety plans accordingly to support the safety of our community and align with public health guidance.

2021-2022 Productions

"The Skin of Our Teeth" by Thornton Wilder. Directed by Vivienne Benesch.
Nov. 10 - 28, 2021
When you've been married as long as the Antrobuses-5,000 years!-of course your life will include run-ins with dinosaurs, mammoths, Plato, and even 80's fashion. This season celebrate Thornton Wilder's 125th birthday with "one of the smartest and friskiest and liveliest plays" (The New York Times) ever written and come along for a wild ride from the ice age to a post-apocalyptic daw

PlayMakers Repertory Company announces New Addition to 2021-2022 season, page 2

"Stick Fly" by Lydia R. Diamond. Directed by Kathryn Hunter-Williams.
Jan. 19 - Feb. 6, 2022
It was supposed to be a relaxing weekend, but when the LeVay brothers bring their new girlfriends to the beach house to meet the parents, mom's MIA and dad's acting weird. Family tensions erupt around the dinner table when old arguments about race, class and family expectations are served.

"Yoga Play" by Dipika Guha. Directed by Pirronne Yousefzadeh. (UPDATED]
Feb. 23 - March 13, 2022
Joan is the new CEO of Jojomon, an apparel giant whose reputation isn't as sterling as the fit of their bestselling yoga pants. Her plan to save the company - and her career - is super risky and requires her team to go well beyond the call of duty. This biting, bubbly comedy explores the search for enlightenment in a world determined to sell it.

"A Wrinkle in Time" by Madeleine L'Engle. Adapted by Tracy Young. Directed by Shelley Butler.
March 30 - April 17, 2022
Meg Murray is a short-tempered middle school math nerd. That will come in handy as she drags her brother off through time and space to find their missing father, save humanity, and maybe - just maybe - learn something about herself in this fantastical adaptation of the beloved novel by Madeleine L'Engle.

August Wilson's "How I Learned What I Learned". Directed by Tia James.
April 27 - May 15, 2022
From one of America's greatest playwrights comes this autobiographical journey through August Wilson's days as a young poet: his first few jobs, a stint in jail, and his encounters with racism, music, and love as a struggling writer. This heartfelt theatrical memoir charts one man's journey of self-discovery through adversity and what it means to be a black artist in America.

All performances will be presented in the 550-seat Paul Green Theatre inside the Joan H. Gillings Center for Dramatic Art on the campus of UNC-Chapel Hill.

For information about PlayMakers' 2021-2022 season, visit www.playmakersrep.org or call 919-962-7529.

About PlayMakers

PlayMakers Repertory Company is North Carolina's premier professional theatre company. For more than 40 years, the company has produced relevant and courageous work that tells stories from and for a multiplicity of perspectives to create transformational impact in our immediate and extended communities. PlayMakers is proud to be part of a 100-year tradition of playmaking at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. PlayMakers has been named one of the best regional theatres in America.

To post a comment, you must register and login.