Press

“Smartest of the city’s theatre troupes.”
– Bob Mondello, N.P.R.

“…a consistently thrilling company…aim high and always hit higher…
– The Washington City Paper

“They have that kind of energy that Steppenwolf became known for. Sort of just throwing themselves headlong into the platinum.”
– Jane Horowitz, N.P.R.

“…Earnest, intense, and actor-driven…..always imaginative.”
– The Washington Post

Women in Theatre Festival 2024

Rats aren’t usually a welcome sight in New York City, but you can’t help laughing at those currently infesting Theater 154 in the West Village.

Actually actors in fuzzy ponchos and masks, these rodents bring humor and fancy footwork to “The Pied Piper of Hamelin.” Written by Amina Henry and presented by Project Y Theater as part of the Women in Theater Festival, this adaptation has its furry pests perform ballet as they trash a playground. When the town sets out neck-snapping traps, the delighted creatures turn them into castanets for a flamenco number. (The production’s director, Michole Biancosino, choreographed the dances with the cast; Summer Lee Jack designed the costumes.)

The play also gives central roles to Hamelin’s children, played here by talented young adults. The juvenile characters’ earnestness and wry commentary contrast comically with the surrounding grown-ups’ venality.

Yet this “Pied Piper,” which has its final performances on Thursday, Saturday and Sunday at 7 p.m., remains a dark fable. Theatergoers may wish that it concluded with another clever twist. But those who are the recommended ages — 8 to 12 — may have already realized that adults (and especially politicians) can’t always be trusted.

– Laurel Graeber, New York Times

Women in Theatre Festival 7 2022

NY Times Top Theatre Pick
“…thanks to the festival’s directive to produce hybrid plays, its lineup could shift seamlessly to a virtual setting — from “Rigged” by Georgina Escobar and “#GirlPowerHour” by Kaaron Briscoe, which feature regular people seeking connection on digital mediums, to Amina Henry’s “Blackbox,” in which two actors must remember how to be onstage again. Eliza Bent’s “In Service of Memory” examines how forgetting can feel like medicine. And in the moving “Middle C” by Erin Mallon, a piano teacher comes to terms with how much she has learned from her favorite student.“
– JOSE SOLÍS, NY Times

“Five female playwrights… explore themes ranging from (but not exclusively) theatre itself, to social media’s influence on our culture, to the potential relationship between neurodivergence and music. It’s a lovely way to spend an hour and leaves you with a range of things to consider.”  –The Reviews Hub

“Women in Theatre Festival’s Two-Handers and Monologue Slam Pack a One-Two Punch.  With its Hybrid Two-Handers and Monologue Slam, the 7th Annual Women in Theatre Festival provides a platform for a range of women’s voices, perspectives, tones, and approaches that together also form suggestive interconnections. Any theater fan will find much to enjoy in this collection of short works.”  –Thinking Theater

Close (But Not Too Close!) A World Premiere Online Musical

Official Selection:  2022 New York Indie Theatre Film Festival

Nominated: 2022 Musical Production of the Year by The Young-Howze Theatre Journal

“A new musical created for theatre-lovers longing for that “live” theatre vibe”
– Broadway World

“This show sets a high bar for digital musicals from now on. It took what we knew about musicals and digital theatre and blew it wide open….It had everything that we had been missing in musical theatre: comedy, catchy music, and irreverence. With a small cast that packed a powerful singing punch.  It had us thinking about the digital theatre and musicals in a way that we never had before. Plus it had us doing something that we thought we would never do…For the first time ever we wanted more. We would love to know how they got the sound so good.”  – The Young-Howze Theatre Journal

Women In Theatre 2021 

Soup A World Premiere by Rachael Carnes
“This was everything that we were looking for in a short form play for Zoom. It was beautifully staged giving the actors a great frame to work and move around in while also giving us a sense of dynamics. They also use specificity to make the drama. – The Young-Howze Theatre Journal

Missing Ingredient A World Premiere by Colleen O’Doherty
“…Funny and touching … Playwright O’Doherty proved how much it’s cheating to just stage a zoom play in a kitchen because you have all of these props and all these places to go and all of this stage business that you can be busying yourself with. It completely grounds the play in a reality that …other plays on zoom just can’t. Kudos to director Chang for channeling the energy of the cast and letting them loose in the space.” – The Young-Howze Theatre Journal

Planet of the Grapes, A world premiere by Peter Michael Marino  

2021 Infallibles Award for Creativity at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival for its unwavering inventiveness perfectly embodies the triumph of creativity in the performing arts.

“Astonishing leaps of creativity, skillful storytelling and zany humour make for an unmissable hour.”  -FringeBiscuit, Scotland

The Three Musketeers 1941  A World Premiere by Megan Monaghan Rivas

“An evocative, thought-provoking new work that is imperative in today’s political climate…..an evening of strength, empowerment, and emotion.”  It has “audiences on the edge of their seats by the end of the play.  With a fast-paced plot and empowering message, Three Musketeers: 1941 is a must-see.”   –Broadway World

“An exhilarating theatrical experience”  –OnStageBlog NYC

“The production creates a palpable sense of constant tension, danger, and surveillance….a tightly written and skillfully staged thriller….a suspenseful and entertaining package.” –Culture Catch

Sleeping Beauty A World premiere by Amina Henry

“Amina Henry’s critique of gender roles and expectations is aimed squarely at younger audiences (but with a sense a humor that will keep the adults entertained as well). Sleeping Beauty offers a fun, empowering variation on its source in a colorful, comedic production perfect for ages six and up.This Beauty casts a beguilingly exuberant spell; don’t sleep on it.” -Thinking Theatre NYC

Truth/Dare  A World Premiere by Tori Keenan-Zelt

Nominated for an Innovative Theatre Award for Outstanding Original Script.

“Pulsates with restless, hormonal volatility.”  -NY Theatre Review

“Provocative and intimate…..The four actors are top notch….An impressive feat”

-Theatre that Matters

What Happened That Night, A World Premiere by Lia Romeo
“What Happened That Night is a not-to-be-missed part of the Women In Theatre Festival at IRT Theater. So take our advice and don’t miss it…This production has important things to say about the #MeToo movement.”

Trump Lear, by David Carl. 

A world premiere.

           “It’s quite damning.” -The New York Times

“A chaotically enjoyable one man show… a clear and apt roasting of a public figure who deserves every word”  – The Spectator (U.K.)

“A surreal, grotesque sendup of the Donald by brilliant American impersonator, David Carl.” -The Daily Mail (U.K.)

“Trump Lear manages to be both a fair rendering of an abridged production of Shakespeare’s Lear and an astute imagined conflict with the 45th president. Far from a gimmick, the meta-commentary of the show argue that Trump is poisoning comedy and art just as he does this show.”  – The Stage (U.K.)

Great Again: Test, by Crystal Skillman and In the Line, by Chiori Miyagawa.

“The Test is a play about division, fear, resentment, and picking sides, and what it takes in 2017 to overcome it all.” -Theatre in the Now

“A sweetly subversive and dreamlike tumble…While avoiding any overt political or social statements, In the Line touches on a timely and prescient feeling in our culture in 2017. It is the undercurrent of anticipation.” – Theatre in the Now

Gary Busey’s One-Man Hamlet (as performed by David Carl) A World Premiere by David Carl. 

“**** It’s crazy hilarious.” -TimeOut NY 

The Religion Thing, NY Premiere by Renee Calarco,
“Incisive, provocative play that comes to town courtesy of Project Y Theatre Company” – TimeOut NY Critics Pick! 4 stars
“Calarco writes with verve”  – New York Times

User’s Guide to Hell, featuring Bernard Madoff, World Premiere by Lee Blessing.
“Provides thoughtful and funny theater. It is a production well worth seeing, and considering, in this life.” – NYTheatre.com

LoveSick, or THINGS THAT DON’T HAPPEN, World Premiere.  Plays by Lia Romeo, songs by Tony Biancosino
“Sharp, funny, and relevant.” – Curtain Up
“Captivating, offbeat and clever.” – NYTheatre.com

The Revival, World Premiere by Samuel Brett Williams
“This is one of the best cast assemble for an Off-Off Broadway show in a long time, perfectly directed by Michole Biancosino…it’s certain to win over fans of good theater.” – NY Press
“What a perfect play for these times…an enormous tale and fortunate to have a cracker jack cast that is ready, willing, and more than able.” – NY Theatre Guide

FUBAR, NY Premiere by Karl Gadjusek
“The production pulses like an all-night Ecstasy-fueled rave.”
– The New York Times
“See FUBAR if you want to experience theatrical shock and awe.”
– Backstage NY