SheNYC Arts Unveils 2025 Festival Lineup Of 8 New Full-Length Shows
The festival will take place at Classic Stage Company from July 14-27, 2025, presenting eight original full-length plays and musicals.
By: Chloe Rabinowitz May. 05, 2025
SheNYC Arts has revealed the selected shows for the 2025 SheNYC Summer Theater Festival, which will showcase and promote works by women, trans, and non-binary playwrights. The festival will take place at Classic Stage Company from July 14-27, 2025, presenting eight original full-length plays and musicals.
After eight years at the Connelly Theater, SheNYC Arts was notified in 2024 that they would not be allowed to renew their contract with the theater unless they complied with strict censorship rules limiting shows that tackle topics such as abortion and gender identity. Refusing to comply, they were forced to find a new venue, and are excited to begin a new chapter at Classic Stage Company.
"While we were disappointed to part ways with the Connelly Theater, we're embracing this change as an opportunity for growth and evolution," said Danielle DeMatteo, Founder and Artistic Director of SheNYC Arts. "Classic Stage Company's beautiful space and warm community will allow us to enhance the festival experience for both artists and audiences. This year's festival represents our ongoing commitment to addressing gender inequity in theater by providing a platform for underrepresented voices."
The 2025 SheNYC Summer Theater Festival will feature four original full-length musicals: The Last Piece by Shreya Jha, Next Year in Connecticut by Sarah Rossman (Book & Lyrics) and Sequoia Sellinger (Music), The Garden Bridge by Jill Ohayon (Book & Lyrics) and Andy Li (Music), and Wilderness! by Rona Moriah and Olivia Berkson (Music/Additional Lyrics).
The Festival will also present four new full-length plays: The Word of the Day by Cori Diaz, Mommy by Molly Kate Babos, Goatman by Jen Jarnagin, and Pas de Trois by Aaliyah Warrington.
The 2025 SheNYC Summer Theater Festival is honored to be sponsored by the Jonathan and Rae Corr Family Foundation, whose generous support has been instrumental in making this year's festival possible. "We are honored to support this incredible organization and their 2025 Festival. It's a privilege to help these talented artists bring their stories to life through bold, original, self-produced works that reflect the diverse voices of women and femme creators, told through their own unique lens." said Rae Corr, president of the Jonathan and Rae Corr Family Foundation.
In addition to the New York festival, SheNYC Arts is previously announced the 2025 SheLA Summer Theater Festival, which will present four new shows by West Coast-based women and non-binary playwrights. The Los Angeles festival will showcase The Great Tikka Tour by Aditi Pradhan, ÉLÉPHANT by Eva MeiLing Pollitt and directed by Akia Squitieri, BACCHANALIA by Regan Lavin and new musical The Tears of La Llorona (Las Lágrimas de La Llorona) - book, music, and lyrics by Celeste Moreno. The SheATL and SheDFW Festival shows will be announced in the coming weeks.
Since its founding in 2015, SheNYC Arts has been at the forefront of fighting for gender equity in the arts and entertainment industry. Their theater festivals in New York, Los Angeles, Atlanta, and Dallas-Fort Worth provide crucial opportunities for playwrights to self-produce their work for paying audiences.
About the Festival Shows
The Last Piece by Shreya Jha
When Andrew suddenly reappears in his ex-wife Amara's life after a new diagnosis of Alzheimer's disease, they begin to re-hash their memories of their 20 year marriage to reconnect to their past and stall Andrew's decline. They find themselves growing closer again - until Andrew begins to forget her. Amara is left to reckon with her unresolved feelings surrounding their split and make an incredibly difficult decision. The Last Piece highlights the withstanding bond of love and how much of ourselves are made up of the fragile memories we hold.
Next Year in Connecticut by Sarah Rossman (Book & Lyrics) and Sequoia Sellinger (Music)
Welcome to seder with the Stablemans, featuring forbidden romance, Brisketgate, a dog shiva, an Exodus tap dance number, and hey, this might be the year that Elijah (the prophet) shows up! A musical love letter to dysfunctional families, Next Year in Connecticut! explores how mental illness hijacks family systems, transforming relationships and redefining normalcy. With the Stablemans, boundaries are negligible, and laughter and disaster go hand in hand.
The Garden Bridge by Jill Ohayon (Book & Lyrics) and Andy Li (Music)
The Steinburgs, a Jewish family from Vienna, arrive in Japanese-occupied Shanghai in World War II -- one of the only places that would accept Jewish refugees without visas. Forced into the city's poorest neighborhood, they find themselves living next door to the Yes, a Chinese family which has suffered its own share of loss. Despite language barriers, scarcity of resources, and the constant threat of violence, the two families fight to survive and develop relationships with one another in ways that will change them all forever. Against all odds, they're able to form a new community against the backdrop of of a barbaric war.
Wilderness! by Rona Moriah and Olivia Berkson (Music/Additional Lyrics).
Mari, Beth, Cass, Julia, and Nadia would never be friends in most circumstances. But when they find themselves stuck with each other in a failing wilderness therapy program for teens, they must navigate the ups and downs of their internal struggles and interpersonal relationships, all while learning how to make fires and properly poop in the woods.
The Word of the Day by Cori Diaz
Twenty-five-year-old Nicolet Diana is known for winning the International Linguistica, a spelling competition as rigorous as the Olympics. But after a world famous linguist is found dead, Nicolet is put under under house arrest, and is convinced someone is communicating with her through her local newspaper's word-of-the-day segments. Concerned she may be a danger to herself, the police send in Magdalena, a hairstylist turned crisis counselor...who happens to be Nicolet's ex-girlfriend. Set against a backdrop of obsession, manipulation, and linguistic prowess, The Word of the Day is a powerful examination of toxic devotion, manipulative power dynamics, and the dangerous allure of words.
Mommy by Molly Kate Babos
Struggling actress Amy loves her daughter Tatum. She just wishes Tatum wouldn't act like she wanted Amy dead. When Tatum's new Best Friend Briar starts to see Amy as a surrogate mother figure, a twisted, jealousy-driven competition drives them all to the brink.
Goatman by Jen Jarnagin
Nothing kills a romantic getaway like a dead parent. When Steph's estranged mother dies unexpectedly, her brother, Dan, crashes her couples trip with her partner, Rosie, to scatter their mom's ashes in the Appalachian mountains. There, they are presented with an unusual method for coping with their grief: They can leave all of their problems and sorrow behind for an idyllic life in the mountains. All they have to do is turn into goats.
Pas de Trois by Aaliyah Warrington
It's Summer. 1518. And the people of Strasbourg are...comfortable in their sanctimonious society. But newcomers Theodore Troffea and his wife, Manon, challenge their social rules, especially after one hot July day when Manon begins manically dancing in the streets with no indication that she will stop.
When others follow suit and bodies begin to fall, Manon's new neighbors become her witch hunters overnight. As her humanity is brought into question, Manon is forced to reckon with the reason she began dancing in the first place.
Comments
 | |||
Best Costume Design - Live Standings | |||
| |||
| Vote Now! |
Videos