Zay Harding and More to Star in THE ROPE AND THE CROSS at Jamaica Performing Arts Center

Zay Harding- host of The Visioneers With Zay Harding on CBS- will make his New York stage acting debut in Jamaican playwright Easton Lee's classic religious epic The Rope and The Cross, which returns to the city for a Gala Holiday Performance on Easter Sunday, April 5.

Harding joins Jamaican acting legend Oliver Samuels for the one night only special event, to be presented at The Jamaica Performing Arts Center (JPAC) in Jamaica Queens starting at 7pm as an exclusive staged reading concert production. The show will be preceded by a complimentary Caribbean Cuisine Easter Reception courtesy of The Door Restaurant at 5:30 pm.

The play was last performed in New York in Rockville Center, Long Island during Easter 2019 as part of its Fortieth Anniversary celebration.

Broadway World award winner David Heron will serve as producer and director of the production, through special arrangement with the estate of late playwright Easton Lee.

Set in rural Jamaica and ancient Jerusalem, Lee's sweeping epic breaks with traditional presentations of Christ's passion, humanizing Jesus and Judas as modern day Jamaican men- young, angry and determined to overturn the status quo to create an equal and more just society for the world they live in. But when the authorities around them intervene with deceptive and divisive tactics, the two youthful rebels tragically discover that the autocracy will stop at literally nothing to prevent change we can believe in.

Harding- whose acting credits include appearances on FX TV's American Horror Story, ABC's Mistresses and Hawaii Five-O on CBS- appears as the High Priest Annas, whose manipulative interactions with Jesus and Judas play an integral role in the events that ultimately lead to the cross. Harding's popular environmental adventure series The Visioneers With Zay Harding on CBS is currently in its second season, achieving record breaking ratings for 2025. Other hosting credits include Globe Trekker on PBS and Digging For The Truth on History Channel. He has also appeared onstage in productions such as Camelot at The American Conservatory Theater (A.C.T.) among others.

Three time Actor Boy Award winner Oliver Samuels will play the role of the Shepherd Narrator, who engages with the audience and guides them through the immortal story across both past and present. His resume includes over sixty theatrical productions and such film projects as The Mighty Quinn, featuring two time Academy Award winner Denzel Washington, and Great Moments in Aviation with Academy Award winner Vanessa Redgrave.

Producer - director Heron- who won the 2023 Broadway World Award (Rhode Island) for best supporting actor as Caliban in The Colonial Theatre's The Tempest- is especially excited to be working with both Samuels and Harding on stage for the very first time.

"Zay and Oliver are both brilliant actors and they will be playing roles unlike anything they have done before." Heron says. "Zay is currently making waves as the charismatic host of The Visioneers, but he returns to his theatre roots in The Rope and The Cross, going to places emotionally where he has not been seen in years. And surrounded by a stellar cast including Oliver and others, they will all create an experience to remember."

Additional casting for The Rope and The Cross will be announced shortly.

The Rope and the Cross is presented in association with The Jamaica Tourist Board, Mesidor PLLC, Results Promo and Marketing, The Door Restaurant and IMC Media.