Studio Theatre Announces Cast For Lynn Nottage's CLYDE'S

From March 1-April 9, 2023, Studio Theatre will present a new production of Clyde's, the 2021 comedy by Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright and contemporary American theatre icon Lynn Nottage. Nottage's work comes to the Studio stages for the first time in this wry and wistful show, which a recent nationwide survey by American Theatre magazine found to be the most-produced play in the United States this season.

The show will introduce audiences to the formerly incarcerated staff members of a greasy truck-stop sandwich joint, as well as the fiery, ruthless proprietor, Clyde herself. As Nottage told the New York Times, Clyde's is "about community, healing, creativity, mindfulness, and forgiveness." The play opened on Broadway at the Helen Hayes Theater on November 23, 2021, a production that was nominated for five Tony Awards and five Drama Desk Awards, of which it won four. The Studio production will be helmed by New York-based director Candis C. Jones, making her Washington, DC directorial debut, and will be staged in Studio's newly-renovated Victor Shargai Theatre.

Originally announced for a four-week run, tremendous audience response has already prompted Studio to extend the run by one week. This production of Nottage's massively popular recent play comes on the heels of Studio's blockbuster Washington, DC debut of Sanaz Toossi's English, which has been extended for four more weeks of performances and will close on March 12.

No one would accuse Clyde of having a soft heart. Sure, she hires former convicts for the greasy kitchen of her truck-stop sandwich joint, but she knows what they owe her and holds that power tight. Her line cooks might be stuck, but their hopes haven't flickered out yet, fed by tentative connections and a fierce competition to create the perfect sandwich. Pulitzer Prize winner Lynn Nottage's sweet and savory comedy trades in wonder, Wonder Bread, and the healing powers of food.

Lynn Nottage is a playwright and a screenwriter. She is the first, and remains the only, woman to have won the Pulitzer Prize for Drama twice. On Broadway, Lynn's plays include MJ the Musical (Tony nomination), Clyde's (Tony nomination), an opera adaptation of her play Intimate Apparel (commissioned by and performed at the Met/Lincoln Center Theater), and Sweat (Pulitzer Prize; Obie Award). Her other work includes the musical adaptation of Sue Monk Kidd's novel The Secret Life of Bees at Atlantic Theater Company; Mlima's Tale at The Public Theater; By The Way, Meet Vera Stark (Drama Desk Nomination) at Second Stage and Signature Theatre Company; Ruined (Pulitzer Prize, Obie Award, Lucille Lortel Award) at Manhattan Theatre Club and The Goodman Theatre; Intimate Apparel (New York Drama Critics' Circle Awards for Best Play) at Baltimore Center Stage and Roundabout Theatre Company; and Fabulation, or The Re-Education of Undine (Obie Award) at Playwrights Horizons and Signature Theatre Company, as well as Crumbs from the Table of Joy; Las Meninas; Mud, River, Stone; Por'knockers; and POOF! She was a writer and producer on the Netflix series She's Gotta Have It (directed by Spike Lee) and a consulting producer on the third season of Dickinson (Apple TV+). Her many awards include a MacArthur "Genius Grant" Fellowship, a Steinberg Distinguished Playwright Award, a William Inge Theater Festival Distinguished Achievement in the American Theater Award, and she was an honoree at the inaugural Black Women on Broadway award ceremony. She is a graduate of Brown University and the Yale School of Drama, and an Associate Professor of Theatre at Columbia University School of the Arts.

Candis C. Jones is a New York-based theater director and former Washingtonian. Her selected credits include Cullud Wattah and Shadow/Land at The Public Theater, School Girls; or, The African Mean Girls Play at Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park, Detroit '67 at Signature Theatre, Celebrating the Black Radical Imagination: Nine Solo Plays at Williamstown Theatre Festival, 53% Of at the Alliance Theatre, Bitch at Page 73 Productions, Everybody at NYU's Tisch School of the Arts, The House of the Negro Insane at the Bay Area Playwrights Festival, Pipeline at Detroit Public Theatre, The Wolves at American Academy of Dramatic Arts, Brother Rabbit at the New Black Fest, Name Calling at The Kennedy Center Page to Stage, morning in America at Primary Stages, and TEMBO! at the Zanzibar International Film Festival. She recently served as the Associate Director of Dear Evan Hansen on Broadway. Candis's fellowships and awards include Women's Project Theater Lab, Drama League Director's Fellowship, and the 2016 Lilly Award. She is an alumna of Duke Ellington School of the Arts and New York University.

Dee Dee Batteast's (Clyde) recent regional credits include A Christmas Carol and Ohio State Murders at The Goodman Theatre; and Detroit '67 at the Clarence Brown Theatre, Virginia Stage Company, Illinois Shakespeare Festival, Farmers Alley Theatre, and Indiana Repertory Theatre. Television credits include Chicago Fire, The Shinning Girls, and Chicago Med. She is currently adjunct acting faculty for Ball State University's BFA program, where she teaches courses in beginning acting, auditioning, and one-person shows. She is also a proud alumni of Ball State (2007). In addition to acting, Dee Dee is a writer: her self-produced one-woman show No AIDS, No Maids enjoyed a successful run at the Capital Fringe Festival, where it received the Capital Fringe Honors for Favorite Show of Fringe and Favorite Solo Performance. Dee Dee received her MFA in acting from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where she spent three years as a company member of PlayMakers Repertory Company.

Kashayna Johnson (Letitia) is an actress, writer, and artist educator who is making her Studio Theatre debut. Her theater credits include School Girls; Or, The African Mean Girls Play at Round House Theatre; Junk at Arena Stage; She A Gem at The Kennedy Center; for colored girls who have considered suicide / when the rainbow is enuf at Theater Alliance; and Romeo and Juliet at Prince George's Shakespeare in the Parks. She can also be seen in season two of the Epix series Godfather of Harlem. Kashayna is a two-time Helen Hayes nominee who has trained with The Theatre Lab School of the Dramatic Arts (DC), British American Dramatic Academy (England), and most recently with Lena Waithe's production company Hillman Grad (LA), as a Class of 2022 Acting Mentee through their Mentorship Lab. On social media @ShayLa_vie (Instagram).

Brandon Ocasio (Rafael) is an actor and creator based out of Queens, New York, who is making his theatrical debut in Clyde's at Studio. Brandon can be seen on television in episodes of Blue Bloods, New Amsterdam, and Lioness. Brandon can also be seen in a national television commercial for Navy Federal Credit Union. On social media @brandonocasio (Instagram and Facebook).

Lamont Thompson (Montrellous) is making his Studio Theatre debut. Lamont currently resides in San Francisco but began his acting career in Atlanta with Jomandi Production Inc. He has worked in theatres all around the country including Cal Shakes, San Diego Repertory Theatre, Milwaukee Rep, Indiana Repertory Theatre, Penumbra Theatre, Mixed Blood Theatre, First Stage (Milwaukee), and The Robey Theatre Company. His most recent work was playing Memphis in Two Trains Running at The Marin Theatre Company. Lamont has also spent two decades working in television. Television credits include The Resident, The Upshaws, The Lincoln Lawyer, Miracle Workers, 68 Whiskey, Snowfall, and NCIS: Los Angeles. He is an alumni of the American Musical and Dramatic Academy. His performance is dedicated to all those who aren't "scared to make the hard choices" and to Miss Nadia, who inspires him every day to put happiness at the center of his choices.

Quinn M. Johnson (Jason) is a DC-based actor and artist. His theatre credits include Much Ado About Nothing, Our Town, and The Merchant of Venice at the Shakespeare Theatre Company (STC); Red at Theatre Artists Studio; The Glass Menagerie at Fountain Hills Theater; Mother Courage and Her Children, The Changeling, and The Bacchae at The Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (RADA), and Hedda Gabbler at The Academy at STC. Quinn is an alum of RADA and The Academy at STC. On social media @q.m.johnson (Instagram) quinnMjohnson.com.

Studio Theatre is a longstanding Washington cultural institution dedicated to the production of contemporary theatre. Over more than 40 years and 350 productions, the theatre has grown from a company that produced in a single rented theatre to one that owns a multi-venue complex stretching half a city block, but has stayed committed to its core distinguishing characteristics: deliberately intimate spaces; excellence in acting and design; and seasons that feature many of the most significant playwrights of our time. Studio is a values-focused organization that pursues artistry and inclusion, and brings characteristic thoughtfulness and daring to our efforts, onstage and off. The theatre serves nearly 75,000 people each year, including more than 1,000 youth and young adults through community engagement initiatives. Founded in 1978, the quality of Studio's work has been recognized by sustained community support, as well as 78 Helen Hayes Awards for excellence in professional theatre.

GENERAL INFORMATION

Location: The Victor Shargai Theatre at Studio Theatre, 1501 14th Street NW (northeast corner of 14th and P Streets)
Tickets: $50 - $95
Dates: March 1-April 9, 2023
Press performance: Sunday, March 5 at 2pm
Parking: Studio has a parking partnership with Washington Plaza Hotel at 10 Thomas Circle NW, three blocks south of Studio; patrons who park at the hotel's parking garage can purchase a $13 voucher at the box office. Street parking is extremely limited; arrive early to increase your options.
Metro Stops: Red Line: Dupont Circle, Orange/Blue Lines: McPherson Square, and Green/Yellow Lines: U Street/Cardozo
Accessibility: Studio's theatres are all wheelchair accessible; seats are available by reservation. Assistive listening devices are available for all shows at the Box Office. Call the Box Office at 202.332.3300 for more information.

Tickets and Subscriptions: 202.332.3300
Administration: 202.232.7267
Website: studiotheatre.org
Email: info@studiotheatre.org

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