Robin de Jesús, Katy Sullivan and More to Star in PRIDE PLAYS Programming

Initial casts have been revealed for Pride Plays 2025 in Washington, D.C., collaborating with Woolly Mammoth Theatre Company. Pride Plays 2025 will take place during Washington, D.C’s WorldPride celebration.
 
On the Mainstage, three-time Tony Award nominee Robin de Jesús will star as ‘Ned Weeks’ alongside Tony Award nominee Katy Sullivan as ‘Dr. Emma Brookner’ in Larry Kramer’s The Normal Heart, directed by Zhailon Levingston. The cast will also include Jake Loewenthal as ‘Felix Turner,’ Tom Story as ‘Mickey Marcus,’ Noah Israel as ‘Bruce Niles,’  James Whalen as ‘Ben Weeks,’ Baakari Wilder as ‘Hiram Keebler,”  Michael Mainwaring as ‘Craig Donner,’ and Ryan J. Haddad as ‘Tommy Boatwright.’
 
PONY, written by Sylvan Oswald and directed by Will Davis, will star O’Malley Sterman as ‘Pony,’ Holly Twyford as ‘Cav,’ Cam Shegogue as ‘Heath,’ and Jordanna Hernandez as ‘Marie.’
 
Novios, written by Arturo Luíz Soria and directed by Danilo Gambini, will star Yesenia Iglesias as ‘Gallo,’ Johnny Anthony as ‘Luiz,’ Matthew Elijah Webb as ‘Antoine,’ Danny Gavigan as ‘Vlad,’ and Carlos Castillo as ‘Micki.’
 
The Hotel/Makeda - A Baltimore Cycle Play, written by Lady Dane Figueroa Edidi and directed by Ibi Owolabi, will star Lady Dane Figureroa Edidi as ‘Genevieve Makeda Adams,’ Khalia Muhammad as ‘Claudia Adams,’ Michael Kevin Darnall as ‘Thomas Adams III,’ Zachary Myers as ‘Louise Brown,’ Joseph Webb as ‘Emmett Williams,’ and Steve Polites as ‘Jack.’
 
Fear & Wonder, written by Jason Tseng and directed by Emily Hartford, will star Jacob Yeh as ‘Jabez Huang,’ and Wilson Pezzuto as ‘Ryan Harris.’
 
Mother Mary, written by KJ Moran Velz and directed by Charlotte La Nasa, will star Julia Link as ‘Mary’ and Savia Barini as ‘Jo.’’
 
Casting for Pride Plays in Washington, D.C. is by Jorge Acevedo.
 
Additional casting will be announced shortly.
 
Pride Plays, a festival celebrating the rich tapestry of LGBTQIA+ experiences through the power of live theater, will kick off June 3rd at Woolly Mammoth Theatre Company.
 
The full line-up of Pride Plays 2025 in D.C. is as follows:
 

PONY

By Sylvan Oswald
Directed by Will Davis
Tuesday, June 3 and Thursday, June 5 at 7:30pm
On the Mainstage
 
When Pony, a formerly incarcerated trans guy, moves to a small rural town to start a new life, he quickly becomes entangled with its isolated community. He starts to fall for a waitress who is obsessed with a local murder; his social worker doesn’t understand him; and he is pursued by a young trans man who thinks Pony could be the father he always wanted. Amid this whirlwind of fear and desire, Pony must find the strength to confront the stories he's been told about masculinity, violence, and self-worth.

THE NORMAL HEART

By Larry Kramer
Directed by Zhailon Levingston
Wednesday, June 4 and Friday, June 6 at 7:30pm
On the Mainstage
 
Originally published in 1985 and celebrated in a passionate and eloquent 2011 Broadway revival, this definitive edition of Larry Kramer’s play features an updated version of the script, as well as notes on both the original production and the revival.
 
A searing drama about public and private indifference to the AIDS plague and one man's lonely fight to awaken the world to the crisis, The Normal Heart was based on Kramer’s real-life experience. Produced to acclaim in New York, London and Los Angeles, the play centers on Ned Weeks, a gay activist enraged at the indifference of public officials and the gay community. While trying to save the world from itself, Ned confronts the personal toll of AIDS when his lover dies of the disease.
 

NOVIOS

By Arturo Luíz Soria
Directed by Danilo Gambini
Tuesday, June 3 and Thursday, June 5 at 7:30pm
In The Rehearsal Hall
 
A motley crew of cooks hurl insults, grab ass, and compete to be the most macho en el calor of a gringo’s kitchen but, when a new dishwasher arrives rupturing the haze of machismo and sparking a love affair with Luiz, the youngest amongst them, Gallo, the head chef and guardian to Luiz, must do what she can to wrangle the men before the train goes off the rails, jeopardizing her whole operation. 

THE HOTEL/MAKEDA - A BALTIMORE CYCLE PLAY

By Lady Dane Figueroa Edidi
Directed by Ibi Owolabi
Wednesday, June 4 and Friday, June 6 at 7:30pm
In The Rehearsal Hall
 
Nearly a decade after World War II, Genieve Adams has made The Hotel Makeda one of Baltimore’s most celebrated destinations. But, even with all of its success, family secrets, the legacy of slavery, and familiar regret threaten to tear it apart. Can Gen protect her family and her business or will she be consumed by the shifting alliances of those she holds most dear. The Hotel/ Makeda: A Baltimore Cycle Play examines a business woman’s life as she navigates love, history, family, and systemic pressures and it invites us to reflect on what exactly do we mean by the American Dream. 
 

FEAR & WONDER

By Jason Tseng
Directed by Emily Hartford
Tuesday, June 3 and Thursday, June 5 at 7:30pm
In The Workshop Studio
 
In a forbidden love story, Jabez and Ryan, two boys of color, navigate a Christian summer camp together in the early 2000s. Their friendship quickly grows into a budding romance that they try to keep alive after returning home. Challenged by their parents, the hazards of landline phones, and their faith, they are forced to secrecy. Finding solace in each other and their shared love of music, theology, and Harry Potter; the reality of living in between two worlds threaten to keep them apart as they navigate their blossoming queer identities and teenage angst in their conservative faith communities.

MOTHER MARY

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