Cast Set For La Daniella's GOOEY’S TOXIC AQUATIC ADVENTURE at the Bushwick Starr
The show is written and performed by La Daniella.
The Bushwick Starr will partner with ¡Oye! Group to present the world premiere of Gooey's Toxic Aquatic Adventure, written and performed by La Daniella (Get Your Pink Hands Off Me Sucka and Give Me Back (FKA Columbus Play), with music and lyrics by Ben Langhorst (Salty Brine's These Are the Contents of My Head) and directed by Sammy Zeisel (The Undercity at Culture Lab LIC).
Gooey's Toxic Aquatic Adventure is a new puppet musical about an orphaned sorta mermaid living in Newtown Creek in her search for family. Amidst the backdrop of a near apocalyptic Brooklyn bought by entertainment and tech giant G'wond'rLand Inc., Gooey spends each day escaping her putrid reality into a world of her own creation: a world in which she's perfect, beautiful and loved. But when her radio sends her on a journey to G'wond'rLand Theme Park, Gooey comes face-to-face with a streetwise rat, a severed arm, anthropomorphised toxic sludge, and a couple'a wiseguys who confront her with the truth about her dreams and how she came to be. Situated somewhere between Sweet Charity, The Sopranos, The Wiz, Pee Wee's Playhouse, and 80's body horror, GOOEY disgusts and delights in equal measure as it examines the difficulty of finding true belonging in a gentrifying New York City.
Recommended for ages 12+ (adult themes and strong language)
FEATURING: Amanda Centeno, La Daniella, Sushma Saha, Jon Schneidman, and León Ramos Tak
CREATIVE TEAM: Scenic Design: Cat Raynor, Costume Design: Hahnji Jang, Lighting Design: Kyle Stamm, Sound Design: Kathy Ruvuna, Puppet Design: Gaby FeBland, Props & Assistant Scenic Design: Jonathan Schatzberg, Music Director: Jon Schneidman, Choreographer: Maya Quetzali Gonzalez, Stage Manager: Sarah Jones, Assistant Stage Manager: Anica Acuña
Quotes from producing team Artistic Directors:
“I first encountered the beginnings of Gooey when La Daniella presented an early draft for the Starr Reading Series in 2023, and I was immediately interested in working on it, so I'm thrilled to be announcing the production for February 2026. This is a theatrical journey vividly bursting at the seams. It's a story about finding your tribe in a world you don't fit into and how to discover what is most important in life; love, community, and belonging. It's a New York play about how communities and dreams manage to survive the city's ever-changing landscape. It is hilarious, gross, and touching. It's My Fair Lady meets Pee Wee's Playhouse meets Frankenstein, meets The Toxic Avenger. Importantly, it's a New York story told by a New Yorker born and bred just blocks from our theater in Bushwick. It's personal, with tremendous heart, and it's a pure delight.
As always we are thrilled to be partnering with our trusted friends and partners, Oye Group. I thank them from the bottom of my heart for their continued partnership. I hope you will come join Gooey on her adventure and fall in love again with this city we live in; a complex place full of contradictions, but brimming with life.” - Noel Allain, The Bushwick Starr Artistic Director
“I met La Daniella in a production we both worked on in Manhattan back in 2014. We spoke briefly at the closing party and connected that we were both Bushwick Artists. Since then, I've been a big fan of her acting and writing. When the Bushwick Starr approached me to support their production of Gooey's Toxic Aquatic Adventure, we at Oye Group jumped at it and are excited to see this magical work happening this coming February 2026. Gooey is a new puppet musical packed with life and a mermaid letting their imagination keep them alive in a world that is not so bueno. Come have fun with a streetwise rat, a severed arm, anthropomorphised toxic sludge, and a couple of wiseguys, and enjoy the characters La Daniella has created to bring us joy in an ever-gentrifying Bushwick.” - Modesto Flako Jimenez, ¡Oye! Group Artistic Director
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