The Maids

Produced by The Seeing Place Theater
Written by Jean Genet
Directed by Erin Cronican and Brandon Walker

Nominations: Outstanding Revival of a Play; Outstanding Actress in a Lead Role - Gaia Visnar; Outstanding Ensemble: Erin Cronican, Christine Redhead, Gaia Visnar

About the Seeing Place Theater
The name "The Seeing Place" is the literal translation of the Greek word for theater (theatron): ". . . the place where we go to see ourselves." The Seeing Place is an actor-driven company dedicated to exploring the intersection between the actor's voice and the playwright's words, by reinterpreting masterful works live and in the moment to make them relevant, visceral, truthful, and accessible to a modern audience. We live up to our name by engaging our community in a vivid conversation about what makes us human. Connection. Learning. Humanity. That's what theater is all about.

About The Maids
Two sisters, maids to a wealthy society woman, act out fantasies of class, love and revenge while the lady of the house is out on a romantic rendezvous. As their games intensify, the incipient violence escalates as they await Madame's return.

What first attracted you to The Maids?

Erin: When choosing to produce and direct this show, we were struck by the feminist and classist themes that are highly relevant in society today. Plus, it's a show that would heavily promote three talented actors in our theater company - seeing plays with an all-female cast is a rare and exciting treat.

Christine: Good Content.

Gaia: I was always intrigued by the play and wanted to really work on it as it's so bizarre and seems non-sensical.

What was your favorite part of work on this production?
Erin: I loved having conversations with patrons in our lobby after the play who found the play resonant and important. It was also wonderful diving into the play dramaturgically with the cast and creative team.

Christine: Learning how to approach the script in a different way. It changed my perspective.

Gaia: The organic approach of The Seeing Place Theater, really exploring the humanity and drives of the characters.

What was the most challenging part of this experience for you?
Erin: How deep the play goes! We gave ourselves two months of dramaturgical and rehearsal time and we still felt like it was just skimming the surface of what was possible. That's what's so beautiful about well-written plays.

Gaia: Really diving into the characters and their reality, coming to terms with their suffering and trapped situation - which is the source of the games they play. Also, it is a very heavy show, and the nature of the theater company is to go all in, so we really had to dive into the ugly, painful and uncomfortable as well.



What was the most noteworthy part of this production?

Erin: It was wonderful working with so many fierce females in this production - from our director (me), to the cast, to our stage manager and lighting designer.

Gaia: The process with The Seeing Place is always very much in the hands of the actor - we weren't really directed, just placed into the frame of the show, so we had to figure out what we are doing by ourselves and new reality was created on stage every night.

What was the best part of working with this company of artists?

Erin: Their commitment to the creative process was inspiring.

Gaia: As mentioned before, the nature of their work - really diving into the core of the character's complex psychology and human behaviour, as it comes out, not as we think it should.

Did you gain any insight or learn anything new through this experience?

Erin: I discovered how much resilience I had, and how strong that made me. Many people did not know that I was going through chemo for stage IV cancer while we were in production. To be able to come to the theater each night was a challenge in itself, and I learned that the audience can give back to you as much as you give to them. I count myself very lucky that I had the play to focus on while going through treatment.

Gaia: Yes, I got a much better understanding of the play and the character of Claire. I've learned that all the weird things that seemed absurd and out-of-the-blue for me when I was reading the play are rooted in normal, basic human emotions.

What does it mean to you to receive this nomination?

Erin: It means a lot to know that this production made a difference to our audiences, and to the Indie Theatre community. It inspires us to keep going with this kind of work.

Gaia: I am very honoured and humbled by the very unexpected nomination - as an artist, I am focused on doing my work and never think of a reward other than performing what I've been working on. It is nice to be recognised for something you've invested in so much.

Worse Than Tigers

Produced by The Mill in association with New Ohio Theatre
Written by Mark Chrisler
Directed by Jaclyn Biskup

Nominations: Outstanding Set Design - Matthew Carlin; Outstanding Sound Design - AJ Surasky-Ysasi; Outstanding Actor in a Lead Role - Braeson Herold; Outstanding Actress in a Lead Role - Shannon Marie Sullivan; Outstanding Premiere Production of a Play

About The Mill
The Mill makes artistically adventurous, boldly theatrical, and politically aware theatre.

About Worse Than Tigers
Olivia and Humphry have a safe, comfortable, enviable life. Their condo is well-adorned with fancy knick-knacks, their social media presence is meticulously groomed, and they never fight. Or laugh. Or kiss. Or talk very much. Unexpectedly, Olivia’s lover-- id-driven Officer Kirk Patrick --shows up, trailing a man-eating tiger which takes up residence right outside, threatening to devour anyone who opens the door. Tigers may be dangerous, but there might be something worse inside.


What first attracted you to Worse Than Tigers?

Jaclyn: Mark's writing is brilliant. The first act feels like Ionesco and the second like Albee.

Braeson: The complexity of the role brought out a fear in me I hadn't experienced in a while. I felt a personal obligation to explore that.

Shannon: I had worked with Jaclyn Biskup before (director of Worse Than Tigers) and was excited to get back in the room with her. I was particularly interested by the relationship of Olivia and Humphrey: their history, their secrecy, and ultimately the expelling of their deepest truths.

Matthew: I had worked with Jaclyn before and she had reached out about bringing me on board as a designer. After reading the script I really liked the style of the piece and its absurdist nature.

AJ: The whole conceit of the "tiger" in the show was really interesting, knowing that given the constraints we were facing, the sound design was going to play a big role in helping to define that character in the show and how the actors would interact with it.

What was your favorite part of working on this Project?

Jaclyn: Wonderful team!

Braeson: My favorite part would have to be the creative partnership with my co-star, Shannon Marie Sullivan. She never wavered, in rehearsal or performance.

Shannon: My favorite part of this production was getting to play with Braeson Herold. Getting to know him, trust him, and riding the absurd and deeply emotional wave created by Mark alongside him.

Matthew: Our design palette was tight and specific, so it was challenging, but overall it really helped to drive the themes of the piece home to the audience.

AJ: For most of the show, the tiger is just outside of the playing space (just behind one of the doors onstage), so the sound is fairly one-dimensional, and we just get to hear the tiger prowling outside for the most part, but the tiger enters into the house where the main characters live in the middle of Act II. When the tiger comes in, all hell breaks loose, and we're in blackout while we hear these sounds of destruction coming from all sides as we introduce sounds through the surround speakers for the first time in the production. It was a big sequence to build and get everything place spatially in the system, but I think was really effective once we got there.

What was the most challenging part of this experience for you?

Braeson: The text was the most challenging, because it veered from farce to realism within moments. The play explores the chaos within a failing marriage... and it's a comedy! It was a process to connect the dots, for sure.

Shannon: Worse Than Tigers is a buffet of theatrical genres. It all comes together in the end (when, in fact, everything falls apart) but justifying the moves from one world into the next was a challenge, especially in the beginning. But it was the kind of challenge that thrills and drives an actor.

Matthew: Getting everything done with a tight budget and small staff

AJ: Probably the transitions. I feel like transitions always tend to be tricky since you're trying to provide some of the glue to bring together the different scenes and weave the stories, but with this one we went through a number of iterations of the transitions until we landed on things that worked for us.

What was the funniest thing that happened during this production?

Braeson: The play is called Worse Than Tigers... throughout the show we hear several roars. One night, we had a roar that scared an audience member, she screamed as loud as the tiger!

Did you gain any insight or learn anything new throughout this process?

Braeson: I learned that instincts can get you far, but trust is what truly creates a memorable experience.

What was it like to work with this company of artists?

AJ: There's just a lot of heart between all these folks. What I mean is as we were going through rehearsals, and got into tech, everybody was always game to try things, and we could have conversations between departments where we working through difficult moments in the show. Things weren't always easy, but it felt like there were people in the room you could talk to and have conversations with to try and figure things out when we got stuck, and that was really invaluable through the process.

Jaclyn: They are just an incredible group of talented people!

What does receiving this nomination mean to you?
Jaclyn: We are honored to be included in this amazing group of artists.

Braeson: It means the world, honestly. What I set out to create with Humphrey was so personal to me. Knowing others were able to witness that, in a memorable way, will stay with me for a long time.

Shannon: To be recognized for my work by other performers and theatrical artists is a great honor. This play dug deep in to my bones. We all gave our time and hearts to this production because we love the theatre and I am very proud to have been part of it.

Matthew: This is extremely exciting for me, as it's my first nomination of any kind for my work since graduating from Undergrad!

AJ: It's really exciting to be nominated. You know, there's a lot of shows where you burn the midnight oil, and you stress, you tweak, and you try to get things just right, and so to have that work be recognized in some way is really quite special

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Eight Tales of Pedro

Produced by The Secret Theatre
Written by Mark-Eugene Garcia
Directed by Rodrigo Ernesto Bolaños

Nominated for: Outstanding Actor in a Featured Role - Federico Mallet; Outstanding Original Music - Luis D'Elias

About The Secret Theatre
The Secret Theatre strives to provide New York City and surrounding communities with inexpensive, but high-caliber performances, to expand the horizons of patrons young and old alike who would normally not venture outside of the main borough. As a venue for assorted live entertainment, particularly classical theatre, as well as new works, comedy, and musicals.

Photos by Hunter Peress

About Eight Tales of Pedro
Two sets of storytellers, some now and some in the 17th century, cross a country - risking everything for a new life. As they tell their tales, their lives and plots combine and intertwine into the same conclusion.

What first attracted you about working on Eight Tales of Pedro?

Federico: Working with an all Latino cast telling a story that invites the audience to be empathetic with the Latino experience in the US in contentious times and accomplished it by also finding humor and joy in it.

Luis: The opportunity to develop a score in an unconventional way, plus working on an original Latin American work

What was your favorite part of the production?

Federico: The people. They were incredibly welcoming and that for me is one of the main (if not the main) characteristics of the Latino community.

Luis: The cast and crew. It was like a family, and there was this collaborative spirit where everyone felt invested in the work. Truly amazing group of humans.

What was your biggest challenge of this experience?

Federico: Very quick changes from character to character and switching from very light humor to the heavy stuff. You want to make sure those two land how they’re supposed to.

Luis: Listening. My work was an underscore that adapted to the play. It involved equal parts composing, and improvising to the rhythm of the performances, which involved a lot of listening tp the performer of each piece. The music became an active ingredient, but it could not overshadow the actor. So, it was like scoring a film in real time, which made it really organic.

What part of you did you bring to the production that changed what was presented to the audience?

Federico: I was the only actor in the production whose first language was Spanish, that brought the opportunity to expand the language and jokes of the show.

Luis: The way we let the music interact with the actors, as if it were another performer, felt pretty innovative. Something I think helped us connect was having me, the composer/guitarist, be part of the warm up exercises before each show and rehearsal. It's a level of cohesion that really benefited the presentation of the piece.

What was it like working with this company of artists?

Federico: Their warmth, love and joy for what they do. How welcoming they are. How willing they are to play.

Luis: A production team that feels like a family, especially one that is really trusting, and that allows each artist to bring what they know best to the table, trusting everyone comes from a place of shared respect and dedication towards the play and the subject matter.

Did you gain any insight or learn anything new from this experience?

Federico: I learned a lot of about the immigrant experience in the US (first generation/ second generation), and also a lot about folklore in different parts of Latin America.

Luis: New possibilities regarding composing a score and accompanying a theater play by listening and reacting to the actors and performers.

What does receiving this nomination mean to you?

Federico: It doesn’t happen often that I decide to do a play just because of my love for it. I loved the script instantly and my gut told me to do it no matter what the outcome. It’s good to know that that can pay off. It’s also special because sometimes I wonder how I fit in within the industry.

Luis: Truly an honor, but also a recognition towards this approach that connects actors and musicians into an organic unit, which I believe has endless potential for new and innovative theater experiences, not only for the audiences, but also for the performers involved.

Make sure to check out The Secret Theatre on Twitter - @secrettheatreny

The Harrowing of Hell

Produced by American Theatre of Actors in association with Collectio Musicorum, Inc. Written by Aonymous
Translated & Directed by Jeff Dailey

Nominations: Outstanding Actor in a Featured Role - Connor Chaney; Outstanding Performance Art Production

About American Theatre of Actors
The mission of the American Theatre of Actors is to promote the development of new playwrights, directors and actors, to revive works from the past, and to provide a creative atmosphere in which to work, without the pressures of commercial theatre.

Photos b J. Dailey

About The Harrowing of Hell
Sometime in the 13th century, an anonymous author wrote a short play detailing the events of the Harrowing of Hell, when, after dying, Jesus went to Hell to rescue all the prophets imprisoned there. This play, one of the first ever written in English, was so popular it survives in multiple sources, but it had never been performed in the United States. Newly translated into modern English, the play explains how Jesus vanquished Satan, and then released Adam, Eve, and others from their hellish imprisonment. Also on the program was another medieval play, "The Fall of the Angels," dating from the 14th century, which shows how Satan came to be cast into Hell in the first place, along with a performance of "The Soliloquy of Satan," by the 20th century American poet Elliott Blaine Henderson.

What first attracted you to The Harrowing of Hell?

Connor: I love classical plays, and it's a rare opportunity to work on a piece both classical, and a world debut!

Jeff: The process of translating the original text into modern English and then giving the first performance ever in North America.

What was your favorite part of working on this production?

Connor: Immersing myself in the medieval mindset and attempting to articulate their worldview onstage.

Jeff:  Working with the actors on both the language and the theology of the play.

What was the most challenging part of this experience for you?

Connor: Wrapping my brain around the rhythm and structure of the language was sometimes very challenging. It's a mode of thinking neither contemporary nor Shakespearean!

Jeff:  Making a 13th Century play accessible to a modern audience.

What was the funniest or most ironic thing that happened during this process?
 

Connor: It turns out dropping a cloth on someone accurately in much more challenging than one might think.

Jeff: God was nominated as Outstanding Actor.





 Did you gain any insight or learn anything new while working on this production?

Connor: I've gained a new appreciation for poetic language, and perhaps permitted myself a little leniency in tackling roles I consider unapproachable (like God).

What did you want the audience to come away with after watching The Harrowing of Hell?

Jeff: An understanding of a different historical time and the theology that was a part of everyone's life back then.

What was it like working with this company of artists?

Connor: I loved the diversity of perspectives and approaches the company brought to the table. I can't remember the last time I've worked with such a differentiated group.

Jeff: They all took a leap of faith to devote weeks of their lives into a production unlike anything they had done before. They agreed to learn not only their lines and blocking, but the tremendous backstory of medieval life and theology.

What does receiving this nomination mean to you?

Connor: This is the first tangible recognition I've received in this city as an actor, and I find that quite gratifying.

Jeff: Recognition that texts from centuries ago still speak to us.

The Fantastical Dangerous Journey of Q

Produced by Rebel Playhouse in association with 14th Street Y
Book by Ric Averill
Music & Additional Music by Dax Dupuy
Directed by Sarah Sutliff

Nomination: Outstanding Actor in a Lead Role - Milo Longenecker

About Rebel Playhouse
The Rebel Playhouse is a non-profit, educational theater company that produces productions for children and families based on stories that break traditions and challenge normative thinking, and offers classes designed to foster creative development. By rebelling against established stories, we ignite children's imaginations so they can learn to create their own stories by thinking outside of the box and uphold our mission to Empower, Educate, and Entertain our audiences.

About The Fantastical Dangerous Journey of Q
The story of Q, an upper elementary student struggling with gender and identity issues, who faces the daily difficulties of preoccupied parents, bullying peers, and communication with challenging teachers... but with a bag of tricks shared by Q's neighbor Nix, everyday objects grow and are endowed with powers that allow Q to face larger than life threats head on! This new hour-long musical features song, dance, and puppetry.


What first attracted you to The Fantastical Dangerous Journey of Q?

Sarah: This piece was commissioned from playwright by Ric Averill by Rebel Playhouse and the development process was overseen by myself as Rebel Playhouse Artistic Director. I had long been interested in developing a work for children that explored gender fluidity and showed the experience of a non-binary child being forced to exist in a binary observing world. I wanted to take the commonplace and ordinary and make it extraordinary and even dangerous.

What was your favorite part of working on this production?
 
Milo: Getting to play an elementary schooler was very playful and freeing! I laughed my butt off every single day which really helped me get through some of the more difficult and vulnerable aspects of the process. And it meant so much to me to play a trans kid, having been a trans kid who didn't see anyone like me represented in media growing up.

Sarah: Milo (the incredible performer in the role of Q) was an absolute delight to work with. He gave incredible insight and care in the development of Q and created a protagonist that had profound depth and vulnerability.


What was the biggest challenge you faced during the production?

Milo: Reliving the pain and loneliness of growing up trans and feeling misunderstood by my parents, peers, and teachers - even those who "meant well".

Sarah: Although we had two non-binary performers and a non-binary dramaturg and stage manager, the majority of the cast and creative team was cisgendered. It was a delicate balancing act to create a safe space for our team and create a culture of listening and correction, while working under a very limited rehearsal period. I am eternally grateful to the incredible team assembled for this piece for their honestly, openness, and willingness to

 
What was the most meaningful part of this process for you?

Milo: One day after the show this kid came up to me--super shy--to ask if I was a boy or a girl. I told them "neither"! And their dad thanked me profusely and said they had a lot to talk about after seeing the show. That was just the best feeling in the world to make gender diversity part of a story they could enjoy and relate to. Now they will always know there are more than 2 ways to have a gender and will hopefully never levy shame at themselves or others for exploring the expansiveness of their own identities.

Sarah: This was my first experience as artistic director (and Director) building a piece from scratch with a playwright. That in and of itself is quite an experience! Two readings, a residency and workshop production later, and our world premiere run at The 14th Street Y felt very much like a first child. What a roller coaster! Playwright Ric Averill, Musical Director Christina Bottley, Puppet Designer Rosa Douglas and Dramaturg Mak Morin are all true professionals and delights to work with and made this Fantastical adventure feel truly magical.

What did you want the audience to walk away with after seeing The Fantastical Dangerous Journey of Q?

Sarah: I want audiences to come away with a recognition of how entrenched in the binary our society is and how that must be challenged. The current structures of education, public spaces, and even casual interactions create uncomfortable and, yes, even dangerous circumstances for many individuals. This experience of the world is foreign to many cis people who can comfortably exist in it, so I wanted to create a visceral sense of danger and fear accessible to all.

What was it like working with Milo?

Sarah: Milo is smart, punctual, vulnerable and playful. He is not afraid to speak his mind, or challenge ideas in the name of making his character and work stronger. I had seen him in a production a full year before “...Q” and I remember thinking he would be so phenomenal in the title role. I was beyond pleased when Milo submitted for an audition and even more so by the dedication and passion put into the rehearsals and performances.

What does receiving this nomination mean to you?

Milo: As a trans/nonbinary person being recognized for playing a trans/nonbinary character, it's not only an honor for me as an artist, but a step forward in representation for the world of independent theatre and Off-Off-Broadway that I can only hope will trickle up to larger stages and platforms and allow trans voices to be amplified across our industry.

Sarah: I am so moved and honored that the It Awards saw in Milo’s performance exactly what we were all hoping the audience would see. This is our third nomination for a relatively new company, and we couldn’t be happier at this recognition.