Megan Ort And Josh Andrés Rivera Will Lead THE YELLOW WALLPAPER

On November 2-3, 2025, sister team Caitlin Ort and Megan Ort, along with Tony-nominated producer Sari Stifelman, will present a new play adaptation of The Yellow Wallpaper at Gibney: Agnes Varis Performing Arts Center.

Based on Charlotte Perkins Gilman's iconic short story, The Yellow Wallpaper centers on Jane, a 19th-century woman suffering from post-partum depression. She is prescribed "The Rest Cure," a treatment for so-called "female hysteria" that restricted patients to months of isolation. Confined in a room covered with yellow wallpaper, Jane begins to hallucinate that a woman is trapped inside the walls.

First published in 1892, Gilman's story sent shockwaves through the culture, launching a medical Me Too moment for women subjected to The Rest Cure. More than a century later, the work continues to resonate with the inequities in women's healthcare and bodily autonomy.

Director/choreographer Caitlin Ort was inspired to adapt Gilman's story after reading it in high school English class. With her sister and Broadway veteran Megan Ort (Sweeney Todd, Cats) playing the leading character, the Orts premiered The Yellow Wallpaper as a 40-minute dance-theater exploration at the 2018 NYC Fringe. The project now returns as a full one-act gothic horror with expanded scenes and newly developed nightmare sequences - it's a thriller, a tragedy, and a bit of a love story, too.

This fall, Megan Ort returns in the star role, and she will be accompanied by Josh Andrés Rivera (American Sports Story, The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes, Steven Spielberg's West Side Story) as Jane's husband, John. "We are thrilled to have Josh join the production," says Caitlin. "Through a modern lens, John is easily perceived as the villain, but I see The Yellow Wallpaper as a story about a couple trapped in the same flawed system, unable to imagine a way out."

Fresh off the historic run of John Proctor is the Villain, producer Sari Stifelman continues her focus on female-driven stories with The Yellow Wallpaper. "The Ort sisters are a force," says Stifelman. "Caitlin translates Gilman's words into a haunting and beautifully choreographed masterpiece, while Megan's embodiment of Jane will both terrify you and break your heart."

Performance Details:

• Dates: November 2-3, 2025
• Venue: Gibney: Agnes Varis Performing Arts Center, 280 Broadway (entrance at 53A Chambers)

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