APING JANE to Open at Tipping Point Theatre in Northville
Actor Katherine Banks will portray more than 25 human and animal characters in the one-woman show.
Tipping Point Theatre will kick off its 2026-2027 Season in late September, beginning with a developmental production of a new play, APING JANE by Aurora Real de Asua.
The play is a cheeky and wild one-woman show that explores the life and legacy of Jane Goodall through the perspective of the animals and people that influenced her brilliant work. Throughout the course of the play, the solo actress will transform into chimps, spiders, and humans both real and fictional. Meanwhile, the audience is the one who plays the role of Jane Goodall-perceiving the world and characters on stage the way that Jane would.
The timing and subject matter of this production comes at a relevant time for supporters of Jane Goodall-approximately one year since her passing in October 2025. As many will be reflecting on Jane's contributions to anthropology and primatology, audiences of APING JANE will be taking a step into her shoes and considering how an untrained secretary came to redefine our understanding of what it means to be human.
Those same audiences will be among the first to have experienced this play in-person. Originally commissioned by Greenhouse Theatre in 2018, APING JANE has been the subject of workshops and readings in 2020, but has not been officially performed for a live audience until now. As a developmental production, TPT's Artistic Director and production design team have been working with the playwright to revise, adapt, and elevate the script from page to stage.
On how the idea for this play came to her, playwright Aurora Real de Asua says, 'My love for Jane Goodall came from the fact that I come from a very scientific family where animals were revered as just as intelligent if not more so than our own species. So to see a woman who built her career on that premise, she became an idol of mine as soon as I learned about her. I always knew I wanted to write a play about her and this was my way of honoring my love for science and my love for Jane Goodall.'
Leading TPT's production of APING JANE is also the same artist that sought out this play, TPT Artistic Director Julia Glander.
'Last October, I was knee deep in reading plays for the next season,' says Glander, 'Although I wasn't intentionally looking for a play about Jane Goodall, I've always been drawn to her work and the news of her recent death was on my mind. However, I was intentionally seeking new plays from the playwright, Aurora Real de Asua, whose work I had recently discovered and was also drawn to. There it was-kismet-APING JANE. I thought our audience would love both the playful structure and the beloved subject of this wild, wonderful new play.'
Tasked with playing the role of every character, both animal and human is Katherine Banks, a Michigan-based professional actor that has appeared on local and national theatre stages, as well as TV and film.
'What makes this one-person show stand apart, is the actor is not only the heartbeat of Jane Goodall, but plays 25 other characters (both human and animal) with various dialects and physicalizations,' adds Glander, 'This makes it necessary for the actor to train like an athlete in body and mind. Katie is more than ready for this challenge having previously performed the solo show EVERY BRILLIANT THING by Duncan MacMillan. She naturally possesses the warmth and humanity necessary to breathe life into these characters, all the while connecting with the audience.'
ABOUT APING JANE:
Jane Goodall. You know the name, but with no formal scientific training, how did she redefine our understanding of what it means to be human? Narrated by the animals, the men, the scientists and her mother-those who understood her and those who questioned her. We celebrate and explore the life of Jane Goodall in a cheeky, one-woman safari of a play by Aurora Real de Asua. Welcome to the jungle, the city, and really everywhere-a few steps ahead and behind Jane at all times.
Showings of Aping Jane begin at Tipping Point Theatre on Sep 23 and run through Oct 18. Preview showings run Sep 23 - 25, for $25/ticket, and feature a post-show talkback with playwright Aurora Real de Asua and director Julia Glander following each performance. Standard showtimes begin on Sep 26, and tickets are available now for $48 each.
TICKET INFORMATION
Tickets for Aping Jane are available for purchase online, over the phone, or in-person by visiting www.tippingpointtheatre.com, calling the Ticket Office at 248.347.0003, or visiting the Ticket Office window located inside Tipping Point Theatre at 361 E. Cady St, Northville, MI 48167. Ticket prices range from $25 to $48. Tickets are subject to processing and facility fees. Discounts for seniors (62 and over), military, and students, are also available at time of purchase.
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