NY Classical Theatre and West Harlem Art Fund Join Forces to Present New “Classic” Theater On Governors Island This June

NY Classical is embarking on an initiative to develop original plays for production: "new visions" of what we call "classics." In 2022, they are presenting a series of developmental play readings as part of this New Visions program. These scripts come from some of this generation's most creative playwrights-each prompted by a brilliant story from the past.

"We can't wait to share fresh adaptations that span the centuries with you", said Stephen Burdman, Founder and Artistic Director of NY Classical Theatre. Director Savona Bailey-McClain believes "new narratives that reflect a diversity of people and cultures" are vital.

Playreading on Saturday, June 25, 2022 at 12 pm in Nolan Park, Building 10B on Governors Island.

A Medusa Thread by Candrice Jones

In the world of a purgatorial beauty shop, Medusa gives customers one last hair do before they transition to their after-life. According to the accents of the characters, Medusa's beauty shop, "Cathartic Moments," in The Mall of Purgatory seems to hover over the Arkansas-Mississippi Delta. It depicts mature themes including consent, assault, Mythology, and the hereafter.

Playwright, poet, and educator Candrice Jones is from Dermott, Arkansas. She writes love letters for and to women of the American South. Candrice is a VONA Playwriting alum and CalArts Critical Studies MFA recipient. She is the author of the full-length plays Crackbaby (2010 Wasserstein Prize Nomination) and FLEX (developed at the 2020 Humana Festival of New American Plays). She has been a resident fellow at Ground Floor housed by the Berkeley Rep, the Bay Area Playwrights' Festival, MacDowell's Colony of the Arts, and Djerassi's Colony of the Arts. Candrice lives and works in Minneapolis where she has received a 2019-20 Many Voices Fellowship and a 2020-21 Jerome Fellowship from The Playwrights' Center.

This program is supported, in part, by public funds from the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs in partnership with the City Council. NY Classical's programs are made possible by the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of the Office of the Governor and the New York State Legislature. This project is supported in part by an award from the National Endowment for the Arts. NY Classical's New Visions is made possible with support from the Howard Gilman Foundation.