CRUMBS FROM THE TABLE OF JOY to Open Crossroads Theatre Company 47th Season

Crossroads Theatre Company is launching its 47th season with, Lynn Nottage's "Crumbs from the Table of Joy." The play is directed by Nataki Garrett, a brilliant educator, artistic leader and winner of the prestigious Doris Duke Artist Award.

Crumbs from the Table of Joy is a story told through the lens of seventeen-year-old Ernestine Crump who is growing up and navigating the social and political tensions of 1950's Brooklyn. Following the passing of their beloved mother, Ernestine and her sister, Ermina, must cope with their loss, the family's move from Florida, the disruption that comes with the introduction of progressive Aunt Lily, and their father's sudden marriage to Gerte, a white German immigrant, amidst the social and political tensions of the Great Migration.

The cast for this production is headed by Enih Agwe, a multi-facetted young actor, recipient of the 2024 New York Theater Festival Best Actress award for her role in The Merchant of Curamo. She will take on the role of the seventeen-year-old protagonist, Ernestine Crump, through whose eyes, the story of growing up and navigating the social and political tensions of 1950's Brooklyn is told.

The cast of Crumbs from the Table of Joy includes Gabriyèl Barlatier (Ermina Crump), an actor/filmmaker who trained at The Royal Academy of Dramatic Arts and has been featured on a number of projects for Netflix, Apple TV and Amazon Prime. Jamil A.C. Mangan (Godfrey Crump), is an award-winning actor who has appeared in an impressive list of productions including Lynn Nottage's Pulitzer Prize-winning play Ruined, as well as Lost Boys Found in Whole Foods, Ma Rainey's Black Bottom, and What Would Jesus Do?, Which earned him an AUDELCO Award for Best Supporting Actor and Best Ensemble for August Wilson's Women. Cloteal Horne (Lily Ann Green) wears many hats - she is an Actor, Creative Producer, Educator, Facilitator might be a familiar face to viewers of television's Grey's Anatomy. Her stage credits include,The Steadfast (Slant Theatre Project); Dirty Blood (Billie Holiday Theatre), Fires in The Mirror, Solo performer (Long Wharf/Baltimore Center Stage). Lee Alexandra Harrington (Gerte Schulte) is a graduate of Carnegie Mellon University. Her long list of stage credits includes A Christmas Story (Lexington Theatre Company), A Man of No Importance (CSC), Into the Woods (Roundabout), Hi, My Name is Ben(Goodspeed), and Man of La Mancha (Shakespeare Theatre).

The production has also assembled an eclectic crew of talented professionals, among them is Nadir Bey(set design), a Kenan Fellow at The Kennedy Center, nominated for the Helen Hayes Awards for his work on The Rainmaker. Xavier Pierce (lighting design) has received numerous nominations for his work, including a Tony nomination for Fela in 2010. He has worked with some of the leading local, regional, repertory theatres in the country, as well as touring companies. New York based Kathy Runuva (sound design) has an MFA in sound design from the Yale School of Drama. She has been consistently adding to her resume, expanding her body of work and experience on Trouble in Mind (Hartford Stage), Bernarda's Daughters (The New Group), Amani (National Black Theatre), just to name a few in her long list of credits. Nicole Jescinth Smith (costume designs) moves easily between film, television and stage projects. She has worked on a variety of stages in New York, including the Metropolitan Opera and was recently Costume Designer on the HBO pilot, The Chair Company, a comedy series premiering this year, created by Tim Robinson and Zack Kanin, and starring Tim Robinson. Carmelita Becnel (production manager) has worked with theater icons Horton Foote, Edward Albee, Athol Fugard, Anna Deavere Smith, and August Wilson. She is currently Production Stage Manager at the Lewis Center for the Arts at Princeton University. Norman Small (stage manager) has worked on several critically acclaimed productions including David Mamet's American Buffalo, which received 4 Tony nominations. Norman is the recipient of the Off-Off Broadway Review Award (OOBR), for Excellence in Theatre, and The President's Volunteer Service Award (PVSA).

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