Adam Strauss' BEFORE I FORGET to Premiere at The Marsh San Francisco
Before I Forget plays November 9 – December 13, 2025.
By: Chloe Rabinowitz Sep. 25, 2025
The Marsh San Francisco will present a World Premiere from Adam Strauss, Before I Forget, a ferociously funny true tale about the impossibility of getting life right, told by a man trying to outrun his genes, his past, and his Google search history. Ancient Greece, artificial intelligence, Alzheimer’s disease, and open relationships all collide in a wildly inventive odyssey through memory, mortality and meaning. Directed and developed by Jonathan Libman, produced by Carl Ford, and starring Adam Strauss. Before I Forget plays November 9 – December 13, 2025.
Before I Forget follows the oft-extended Marsh run of Strauss and Libman’s previous hit The Mushroom Cure, which was hailed by The New York Times as "mining a great deal of laughter from disabling pain" and Chicago Tribune as "arrestingly honest and howlingly funny." Strauss and Libman’s previous works have received awards such as New York Fringe Festival’s Overall Excellence Award for Solo Performance and The Eddy Award for Best Solo Show in San Francisco.
ABOUT THE CAST AND CREATIVES
Adam Strauss (Playwright/Performer) is a New York-based writer and comedian. He is the writer and performer of The Mushroom Cure, an autobiographical solo show about his attempt to treat his severe OCD with psychedelics, and Something Is Wrong With Adam Strauss. The Mushroom Cure premiered at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival, had its West Coast premiere at The Marsh San Francisco, and went on to extended runs in New York, Chicago, and Los Angeles. The Mushroom Cure was named a Critics’ Pick by Time Out New York and praised by The New York Times for “mining a great deal of laughter from disabling pain.” Strauss has won the New York Fringe Festival’s Overall Excellence Award for Solo Performance, The Eddy Award for Best Solo Show in the Bay Area, and was a winner of the Leffe Beer Craft Your Character Competition. Strauss also shares his experience recovering from OCD at conferences, universities, and on podcasts. As a stand-up comedian, he performs regularly at clubs across the U.S.
Jonathan Libman (Director/Developer) is a New York-based writer and director focused on new work. He developed and directed The Mushroom Cure by Adam Strauss which premiered at the Edinburgh Fringe and went on to acclaimed runs in New York, Chicago and The Marsh San Francisco. A member of The Actors Studio Playwrights/Directors Unit, he has directed projects featuring Chazz Palminteri (A Bronx Tale), NEA recipient David Libman, Guggenheim Fellow Christina Masciotti, and Dramatist Guild Fellow Nicole Pandolfo. His directing credits include productions for The Wild Project, The Collective NY, Nylon Fusion Theatre Company, Inspiration Point and Ripple Effect Artists. As a playwright, his full-length works include Accidents Waiting to Happen featuring Tony Award Best Featured Actress in a Play winner Kara Young and Please Leave the Light On.
Carl Ford (Producer) is a writer, director, producer, and acting coach. He co-founded the Susan Batson Studio and previously ran Black Nexxus, where he developed talent including Adepero Oduye (Pariah, 12 Years A Slave) and Angelique Zambrana (Precious). As a filmmaker, he directed Real With Me and Free Richard, and co-produced 30 Beats, which was distributed by Lionsgate. His short films have screened on BETJ, IFC, and at numerous festivals including LA Shorts Fest and the Roxbury Film Festival. He has worked with Miramax, Island Pictures, Orion Classics, and Forty Acres and a Mule as a producer and unit production manager. Ford has also directed theater in New York, Los Angeles, and the UK, and coached artists including Brandy, Pharrell, and Anthony Minghella.
Videos