POTUS to Open at Berkeley's Live Oak Theater This Fall

The Royal Underground Theatre Company will present Selina Fillinger's POTUS: Or, Behind Every Great Dumbass Are Seven Women Trying to Keep Him Alive, running September 11-26 at Live Oak Theater in Berkeley, California.

Anna Oglesby-Smith will direct the production, making her Royal Underground debut with the political farce about seven women attempting to contain a crisis sparked by the President of the United States.

In POTUS, one careless mistake by the commander-in-chief sets off an escalating catastrophe behind the scenes at the White House. As the situation spirals, the seven women surrounding the President are tasked with protecting his reputation, managing the fallout and preventing the machinery of government from collapsing.

Fillinger's comedy uses the conventions of farce to examine power, gender, institutional absurdity and the women tasked with cleaning up the mistakes of powerful men.

Oglesby-Smith said she was drawn both to the play's political satire and to the way Fillinger reimagines a theatrical form traditionally centered around male characters.

“Historically, farce has centered on a masculine hero, placing their mistakes, ambitions, and misadventures at the heart of the comedy,” Oglesby-Smith said. “Playwright Selina Fillinger boldly subverts that tradition by placing seven women at the center of the chaos.”

She continued, “Although the President sets the events of the play into motion, it is the women around him who drive the story, navigating an increasingly absurd crisis with intelligence, resilience, and humor.”

The Royal Underground production will emphasize the theatricality and physical comedy of Fillinger's script while examining the play's questions about political competence, gender and institutional power.

The cast will feature Asoula “Jasmine” Avegalio as First Lady Margaret, Michele Rabkin as Chief of Staff Harriet, Karla Acosta Ormond as Press Secretary Jean, Jules Weiss as presidential secretary Stephanie, Raven Douglas as journalist Chris, Hannah Martinez-Crow as presidential mistress Dusty and Nicole Naffaa as the President's sister Bernadette.

The creative team includes producer Jerianne Banson, assistant director and production designer Courtney Sutherland, Costume Designer Maggie Brennan, sound designer and fight choreographer Enrico Banson, lighting designer Colin Moglifesky, production stage manager Hayley Kennen and intimacy coordinator Angelina LaBarre.

Michael Carlos and Maggie Carpenter will serve as assistant stage managers, with Carpenter also serving as assistant Costume Designer.

POTUS premiered on Broadway in 2022. The comedy earned three Tony Award nominations, including two nominations for Best Performance by an Actress in a Featured Role in a Play.

Royal Underground Theatre Company began as a nomadic San Francisco theatre company before establishing a creative home at Fort Mason's Southside Theatre. The company has since renewed its focus on providing Bay Area performers opportunities to take on ambitious theatrical work while creating professional-level productions through a volunteer ensemble.

POTUS: Or, Behind Every Great Dumbass Are Seven Women Trying to Keep Him Alive will run September 11-26 at Live Oak Theater, located at 1301 Shattuck Ave. in Berkeley.

Performances will take place Fridays and Saturdays at 8 p.m. and Sundays at 2 p.m., with an additional 2 p.m. performance on Saturday, September 26. A post-show cast and creative team talkback will follow the 2 p.m. performance on Sunday, September 20.

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