Berkeley Rep Announces Changes to the 2021/22 Season

Berkeley Repertory Theatre announced today the critically acclaimed play Dana H. written by Lucas Hnath will replace Cambodian Rock Band and run this summer Friday, June 3- Sunday, July 10. Cambodian Rock Band has been moved to the 2022/2023 season. The world premiere musical Goddess, originally slated to run this spring, will run Friday August 13- Sunday September 25.

Dana H. is the astonishing true story of Dana who was held captive - trapped in a series of Florida motels, disoriented and terrified - for five months. Told in Dana's own words and reconstructed for the stage by her son Lucas Hnath (A Doll's House Part 2, The Christians), and directed by Les Waters, this innovative work shatters the boundaries of the art form and our understanding of good and evil. Winner of the Lucille Lortel Award for Best Solo Show, Dana H. also received a rave review from The New York Times when it played at the Lyceum Theater in the fall of 2021. And Vulture Magazine called it "breathless and brilliant."

"As has been true for many of our fellow arts organizations across the country, the Omicron variant has wrought havoc with our ability to construct, rehearse and perform our planned productions, says Berkeley Rep's Artistic Director Johanna Pfaelzer. "In order to best support these two wildly ambitious upcoming shows, and honor the visions of these creative teams, we have made the tough decision to move Goddess a couple of months later, and to shift Cambodian Rock Band to next season. I am grateful to the artists involved for their flexibility, and delighted that our audiences will still be able to experience these projects that we have all been eagerly anticipating. It's thrilling to be able to bring Les Waters' critically lauded production of Lucas Hnath's groundbreaking Dana H. to Berkeley Rep later this spring. Most importantly, it has been a joy to begin to welcome people back to the theatre, and we are looking forward to sharing these stories with audiences over the next several months."

The world premiere musical Goddess, with a book by award-winning playwright Jocelyn Bioh (School Girls; Or, The African Mean Girls Play), a score by composer Michael Thurber, and conceived by director Saheem Ali is the story of a young man who returns home to the coastal city of Mombasa, Kenya to marry his fiancée and step into his family's political dynasty. But when he visits Moto Moto - a steamy afro-jazz club and the stomping ground of his youth - he finds himself drawn to a mysterious new singer. Inspired by the myth of Marimba, who created beautiful songs from her heartbreak, Goddess is infused with contemporary romance, ancient magic, and the irresistible vibes of African, jazz, and R&B music. Saturday, August 13- Sunday, September 25

Cambodian Rock Band is Lauren Yee's darkly funny, electric new play with music, tells the story of a Khmer Rouge survivor returning to Cambodia for the first time in 30 years, as his daughter prepares to prosecute one of Cambodia's most infamous war criminals. Backed by a live band playing contemporary Dengue Fever hits and classic Cambodian oldies, this thrilling story toggles back and forth in time as father and daughter face the music of the past. Directed by Chay Yew, this intimate rock epic about family secrets is set against a dark chapter of Cambodian history.

Cambodian Rock Band was developed in The Ground Floor: Berkeley Rep's Center for the Creation and Development of New Work. Dates will be announced later.

Tickets for Dana H. will be on sale to the general public on Friday, March 25 at berkeleyrep.org or by calling 510-647-2949.

Dana H. by Lucas Hnath is adapted from interviews with Dana Higginbotham conducted by Steve Cosson.

The Berkeley Rep production of Dana H. is in association with the Broadway producers, Matt Ross, Sally Horchow, Dori Berinstein.

The world premiere of Dana H. was produced in 2019 by Center Theatre Group, Los Angeles, California and first presented in New York in 2020 by Vineyard Theatre.

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