Emily Bergl, Jonathan Penner To Star In Staged Reading Of Andrew Heinze's THE TRUST

The American Renaissance Theater Company will present a staged reading of Andrew Heinze's new play, THE TRUST, on Sunday, October 11, 2026, at 7:00 p.m. at Bank Street Theater, 124 Bank Street, New York City. Admission is free.

THE TRUST is a modern tragedy inspired by Shakespeare. The play dramatizes what can go catastrophically wrong in an American family despite the best intentions of an ethical but self-deluding parent.

The reading will be directed by Stan Zimmerman (The Diary of Anne Frank, Right Before I Go), and will feature Emily Bergl (Desperate Housewives, Shameless, and currently on Broadway in Just in Time), Jonathan Penner (Rude Awakening, The Naked Truth, Survivor), Eric Percival (My Purple Wig, A Snowfall in Berlin, The Bliss Option), Ben Hirschhorn (Room 1214, lead in Berkeley Rep's The Reservoir, West Coast premiere of Trayf at Geffen Playhouse), and Caroline Keegan Savage (The Last Days of Judas Iscariot, Ocean Walk, My Handiwork).

This marks the second collaboration between Zimmerman and Heinze. Zimmerman previously directed Heinze's play The Rimsky-Fogelman as part of the 2023 Summer Playwrights Festival in Los Angeles.

The reading also brings together two Gilmore Girls creatives. Zimmerman was a writer/producer on the series, while Bergl played Francie Jarvis, a classmate of Rory Gilmore at Chilton.

To reserve seats or for additional information, email artcorg@gmail.com or arheinze@gmail.com.