THE COURTROOM to Stage Deportation Trial Benefit in Lexington Cathedral

Earendel Theatricals will present a one-night-only benefit performance of The Courtroom: A Reenactment of One Woman's Deportation Proceedings, an immersive staged reading of verbatim trial transcripts arranged by Tony nominee and Emmy-nominated Succession actor Arian Moayed. The event will take place on Saturday, October 17, 2026, at 7:00 PM in Hehman Hall at the Cathedral of Christ the King, 299 Colony Blvd, Lexington. All proceeds from the performance will directly support the Catholic Diocese of Lexington's immigrant legal aid fund.

The Courtroom tells the true story of Elizabeth Keathley, a Filipina immigrant who entered the U.S. on a K-3 visa. While applying for a driver's license at an Illinois DMV, she was inadvertently registered to vote. After receiving a registration card in the mail and voting in a midterm election, Keathley found herself facing deportation.

Constructed entirely from actual court transcripts, the play follows Keathley's harrowing journey from a Chicago immigration court to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit. The New York Times described the work as 'theater as civic meditation,' enlisting the audience as witnesses to America's complex immigration system.

'This play shows how, even for a person trying to do everything right, one mistake can risk the permanent dissolution of a family,' says director and producer Br. Christian Cole Matson, a monk of the Catholic Diocese of Lexington. 'The events of the play took place 14 years ago, in an environment in which, as Elizabeth Keathley's lawyer pointed out, immigration law must 'be construed in favor of the alien.' How much more difficult is it to keep a family together when an immigrant's criminality is now assumed, and naturalized mothers and fathers are being threatened with denaturalization and permanent separation from their families?'

The performance features a local cast led by Chelsea Russell (Lexington Theatre Company) as Elizabeth Keathley, Jeff Sherr (Stumbling Stones) as attorney Richard Hanus, and Jefferson Award winner Margo Buchanan* as Judge Craig Zerbe, and includes Sarah Vazquez, John Code, Donya DeLongoria Redwood, Lainey Vazquez, Malcolm Johnson, William Davidson, and Ayrial Thompson. Joy Lanceta Coronel (Actors' Theatre of Louisville, the Guthrie, Playwrights Horizons) also serves as cultural consultant for the production. (*Member, Actors' Equity.)

Following the performance, there will be a Q&A session with the director and representatives from the Catholic Diocese of Lexington, Community Response Coalition of Kentucky, and the New Americans Initiative to discuss how to support the immigrant community in Kentucky. Elizabeth Keathley's real-life attorney, Richard Hanus, depicted in the play by local public defender Jeff Sherr, will also be joining the Q&A.

Event Details

Saturday, October 17, 2026, at 7:00 PM

Hehman Hall at the Cathedral of Christ the King, 299 Colony Blvd, Lexington

Pay-what-you-will tickets starting at $1.00 are available online at https://courtroomlex.eventbrite.com/. Free tickets will be available at the door on the night of the performance, subject to availability. 100% of ticket income will benefit the Catholic Diocese of Lexington's fund for immigrant legal aid. (Donations to the fund can also be made by using the ticketing link and including 'DONATION' in the patron name.)

Founded in 2023, Earendel Theatricals is a theatrical production company based in Pike County, KY, telling stories of hope. Earendel brought Duncan MacMillan's Every Brilliant Thing to Lexington in December 2025 for a successful run at Antagonist Productions: https://earendelonstage.com.