Erin Davie, Lesli Margherita, and More Set For NOISES OFF and DEAD GIRL'S QUINCEAÑERA at Barrington Stage Company

Barrington Stage Company has announced the casts and creative teams for its productions of Michael Frayn's uproarious backstage comedy Noises Off and for the world premiere of Phanésia Pharel's dark comedy, Dead Girl's Quinceañera.

NOISES OFF

Noises Off, directed by Gordon Greenberg (Broadway: The Heart of Rock and Roll, Irving Berlin's Holiday Inn) plays August 19-September 6, 2026 in the Boyd-Quinson Theater (30 Union Street), with opening scheduled for August 23.

Widely regarded as one of the funniest plays ever written, Noises Off takes audiences behind the curtain of a struggling theater troupe as everything that can go wrong does. As actors battle missed cues, slamming doors, misplaced props, and offstage romances, the line between performance and reality hilariously unravels in a whirlwind of perfectly timed chaos.

“This extraordinary company brings together some of Broadway's finest comic performers alongside remarkable stage veterans, and we couldn't be more excited to welcome them to BSC,” said Artistic Director Alan Paul. “Michael Frayn's brilliantly constructed comedy demands fearless actors with impeccable timing, and this cast is more than up to the challenge. Under Gordon Greenberg's inventive direction, audiences can expect an evening of nonstop laughter,” said Executive Director Greg Reiner.

The cast includes Erin Davie (BSC Debut; Broadway: Sunday in the Park with George, Grey Gardens, Curtains) as Belinda Blair, Abby Leigh Huffstetler they/them (BSC Debut; Regional: Burnout Paradise, Noises Off) as Poppy Norton-Taylor, Nehal Joshi (BSC Debut; Broadway: The Cottage, All My Sons, The Phantom of the Opera closing cast) as Garry Lejeune, Lesli Margherita (BSC Debut; Broadway: Gypsy, Matilda the Musical; West End: Zorro the Musical (Olivier Award)) as Dottie Otley, Orville Mendoza (BSC Debut; Broadway: Swept Away, The Heart of Rock and Roll) as Selsden Mowbray, James Joseph O'Neil (BSC Debut; Broadway: Take Me Out, Present Laughter) as Frederick Fellowes, Geoff Packard (BSC Debut: Broadway: Bandstand, Matilda the Musical) as Lloyd Dallas, Jennifer Sánchez (BSC Debut: Broadway: Real Women Have Curves, On Your Feet!, West Side Story) as Brooke Ashton, and Evan Alexander Smith (BSC Debut; Broadway: Back to the Future, Merrily We Roll Along) as Tim Allgood.

Director Gordon Greenberg makes his Barrington Stage Company directing debut following acclaimed Broadway productions including The Heart of Rock and Roll and Irving Berlin's Holiday Inn, as well as numerous heralded productions in London's West End and at leading regional theaters across the country.

The design team includes Sotirios Livaditis (Scenic Design), Todd Rosenthal (Co-Scenic Design), Izumi Inaba (Costume Design), Wheeler Moon (Lighting Design) and Connor Wang (Sound Design). Stage Manager is Anjee Nero. Assistant Stage Manager is Leslie Sears.

DEAD GIRL'S QUINCEAÑERA

Dead Girl's Quinceañera, directed by Melia Bensussen (Artistic Director, Hartford Stage), plays August 5-29, 2026 in the St. Germain Stage (36 Linden Street), with opening scheduled for August 9. Dead Girl's Quinceañera is a world premiere co-production with Goodman Theatre and Hartford Stage.

Equal parts mystery, coming-of-age comedy, and social satire, Dead Girl's Quinceañera is a darkly hilarious take on true-crime obsession, teenage bravado, and what happens when girls decide to stop waiting for answers.

“Phanésia Pharel has created a dark comedy that is as hilarious as it is deeply humane and bringing it to life requires artists with extraordinary range, fearlessness, and heart. We couldn't be more thrilled with this remarkable ensemble, whose talent, chemistry, and emotional honesty make them the ideal company to introduce audiences to this unforgettable new play,” commented Alan Paul. "World premieres thrive through collaboration, and we're proud to partner with Goodman Theatre and Hartford Stage to launch Dead Girl's Quinceañera,” added Greg Reiner. “By joining forces, we're able to invest more deeply in exceptional new work and give this exciting play the opportunity to reach audiences across multiple communities.”

When Maria disappears during her quinceañera celebration, her three best friends launch an amateur investigation of their own—interrogating suspects, spinning increasingly wild theories, and roasting one another along the way. As the mystery deepens, the girls discover that finding the truth may be more complicated than they ever imagined.

The production features Carmen Berkeley (Off-Broadway: Our Dear Dead Drug Lord, The Night of the Iguana), Ariana Burks (Broadway: Real Women Have Curves; National Tour: Suffs), Andrea Ferro (Off-Broadway: Last Stop on Market Street), and Jacqueline Guillén (Television: “The Equalizer,” “Orange is the New Black”), all making their BSC debuts.

Playwright Phanésia Pharel is a Haitian American playwright and screenwriter whose work has quickly emerged as one of the most exciting new voices in American theater. Following her Off-Broadway debut with The Waterfall at WP Theater, Dead Girl's Quinceañera launches a rare three-theater collective world premiere. Pharel's work has been developed by the Eugene O'Neill Theater Center, New York Stage and Film, Playwrights' Center, New Harmony Project, and numerous leading new-play organizations. She currently serves as the Playwriting Fellow at Emory University and is a member of the Obie Award-winning EST/Youngblood collective.

Director Melia Bensussen, Artistic Director of Hartford Stage and Artistic Director of the Eugene O'Neill Theater Center's National Playwrights Conference, leads the production. An OBIE Award-winning director and recipient of the Princess Grace Foundation's Statue Award for Excellence in Directing, Bensussen brings decades of experience developing and staging new plays.

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