CPH Announces New Ground Theatre Festival 2021

Cleveland Play House has announced the return of the New Ground Theatre Festival, this season as the two-part virtual event Mapping New Ground on Saturday, May 15, 2021. Mapping New Ground is a celebration of Cleveland-inspired new play development at Cleveland Play House and features play excerpts written by five groundbreaking playwrights commissioned through the Roe Green Fund for New American Plays: George Brant, Vichet Chum, Jessica Dickey, Chelsea Marcantel, and Charly Evon Simpson. Tickets to Mapping New Ground are Pay What You Can starting at $5 and are available exclusively at www.clevelandplayhouse.com.

In 2020, CPH announced the commissioning of five playwrights to delve into Cleveland's past and present to create new stories for the future. Mapping New Ground will provide audiences with the opportunity to meet the five playwrights and get a preview of their plays in progress. Playwrights will dialogue with special guests and instrumental collaborators from Cleveland and beyond, offering a deeper look into the worlds of the newly commissioned plays, as well as the stories and people that inspired them. Additionally, CPH is thrilled to unveil an interactive component of Mapping New Ground, which can be experienced virtually or in-person.

Artistic Director Laura Kepley says, "In spite of the challenges from the pandemic, Cleveland Play House never stopped creating. Five new plays centered on Cleveland have been commissioned and developed over this year thanks to the Roe Green Fund for New American Plays. These five brilliant writers, working at the height of their creativity and talent, are deploying their vivid imaginations to tell stories inspired by the people, events, and spirit of our city." Kepley shares, "The name 'New Ground' takes on added resonance as we present this year's festival in a virtual format, allowing people all over the world to experience these Cleveland stories."

Hosts for Mapping New Ground include Artistic Director Laura Kepley, Literary Manager & Resident Dramaturg Rachel Lerner-Ley, and Artistic Associate Mekala Sridhar.

Mapping New Ground will allow audiences to explore and discover the rich stories and history within several Greater Cleveland communities and locations, including the Variety Theatre, Woodland Cemetery, Public Square, and the Cuyahoga River, among many others. An accompanying interactive experience is available for audience members in the form of a commissioned map that can be engaged with virtually or in-person. Commissioned Artist Sequoia Bostick has illustrated a custom map that features locations that served as inspiration for, or appear in the five Roe Green Fund Plays. Bostick is a Cleveland-based artist whose work has been featured in such publications as The Plain Dealer, Cleveland Scene, and Vagabond Comics. She also created the illustrations for The Christmas House, a film featured in CPH's December edition of Theatre Thursday.

Additional guests of Mapping New Ground include: Shayla Gordon, Johnny Joo, Jesca Prudencio, Afi Scruggs, Holly Witchey, and Mark Winegardner, all appearing in the live conversation with the five Roe Green Fund playwrights.

Roe Green is the Honorary Producer of New Ground Theatre Festival.

KeyBank is Presenting Sponsor of the 2020-21 Theatre Season at Cleveland Play House.

Additional funding for New Ground Theatre Festival is provided by Case Western Reserve University.