As previously reported, NYU Skirball is presenting The Classical Theatre of Harlem’s acclaimed production of Twelfth Night, winner of two 2022 AUDELCO Awards, running Saturday, February 11 – Saturday, February 19. The production is directed by AUDELCO Award-winner Carl Cofield, and features AUDELCO Award-winner and Tony nominee Kara Young, whose performance as Viola was cited as a “Best of 2022” by The New York Times.
The Classical Theatre of Harlem (Ty Jones, Producing Artistic Director) remounts its raucous, critically acclaimed production of Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night, continuing its mission to change the face of American theatre with ambitious sights set on mounting a first-class production. The show had an outdoor run in July 2022 at Harlem’s Marcus Garvey Park, playing to universally rave reviews. The New York Times called it “A shot of joy.”
This Twelfth Night engages with the global conversation around equity and inclusion and features a majority-Black team of artists lead by director Carl Cofield, CTH’s Associate Artistic Director alongside associate director and choreographer Tiffany Rea-Fisher, EMERGE125’s Executive Artistic Director.
The cast includes William DeMeritt*, Carson Elrod*, Kat Files+, Allen Gilmore*, Dennzyl Green+, Alisa Gregory+, Brynlie Helmich+, Madelyn LaLonde+, Anthony Lalor*, Zoë Lishinski, Cassandra Lopez*, Collin McConnell, Chivas Michael*, Othello Pratt, Jr.*, Christina Sajous*, Donathan Walters*, and Kara Young*.
The creative team includes director Carl Cofield, associate director & choreographer Tiffany Rea-Fisher, co-fight directors Rick Sordelete & Christian Kelly-Sordelet, scenic designer Riw Rakkulchon, costume designer Mika Eubanks, lighting designer Alan C. Edwards, composer & sound designer Frederick Kennedy, projection designer Brittany Bland, properties designer Samantha Shoffner, hair & make-up designer Earon Nealey, production stage manager Jessica Forella*, and stage manager Chris Steckel*.
* denotes member of Actors’ Equity Association + denotes EMERGE125 company member
The Classical Theatre of Harlem is an American theatre company that tells stories through the lens of the African diaspora. Established in 1999, CTH combines original adaptations, music and dance to present great classics of world literature and contemporary works that will stand the test of time. CTH also proudly provides theatre-based training and live theatre experiences to Harlem youth and their families through its arts education program, Project Classics. The organization incorporates other theatre-related programming, including Future Classics, Playwrights Playground and Revisited Classics, to engage new audiences, invest in artistic development and give exposure to emerging creators. cthnyc.org
TICKETS
Twelfth Night will play February 11, 14, 15, 16, 17 and 18 at 7:30 pm, with matinees on February 12 and 19 at 2 pm. Tickets begin at $60 and can be purchased online, by visiting the box office in person, Wednesday – Friday from 2:00 pm – 6:00 pm, or by calling 212.998.4941.
NYU Skirball is located at 566 LaGuardia Place at Washington Square, New York, New York 10012.
ABOUT NYU SKIRBALL NYU Skirball is NYC’s home for cutting-edge performance, artistic research, and discourse, holding close to James Baldwin’s dictum that “artists are here to disturb the peace.” NYU Skirball is located in the heart of Greenwich Village, historically a center of resistance, dissent and free thinking. Its programming reflects this history and embraces today’s renegade artists and companies, presenting works that aim to engage, provoke, and inspire audiences. The 800-seat theater, led by Director Jay Wegman, provides a home for internationally renowned artists, innovators, and thinkers and presents ground-breaking events ranging from re-inventions of the classics to cutting-edge premieres, in genres ranging from dance, theater and performance arts to comedy, music and film. NYU Skirball is located in the heart of Greenwich Village, historically a center of resistance, dissent and free thinking. NYU Skirball’s programing reflects this history and embrace’s today’s renegade artists and companies, presenting works that aim to engage, provoke and inspire audiences.
About The Classical Theatre Of Harlem
The Classical Theatre of Harlem (CTH) is an American theater company that tells stories through the lens of he African diaspora. CTH combines original adaptations, music, and dance to present great classics of world literature and contemporary works that will st nd the test of time. Since its founding in 1999, CTH has presented works ranging from traditional classical playwrights (Anton Chekhov, Euripides and William Shakespeare) to established 20th-century playwrights (August Wilson, Langston Hughes and Jean Genet) to new plays by merging playwrights. CTH also proudly provides theater-based training and live theater experiences to Harlem youth and their families through its arts education program, Project Classics. The organization incorporates other theater-related programming including Future Classics, Playwrights’ Playground, and Revisited Classics to engage new audiences, invest in artistic development and give exposure to emerging creators.
The company serves over 18,000 live audience members (pre-pandemic). Its new online offerings have drawn over 500,000 viewers. To learn more, visit www.cthnyc.org
LIA CHANG is a Chinese-American actor, a multi-media content producer, an award-winning filmmaker, and a photo activist and documentarian, who lifts up and amplifies BIPOC communities and artists and the institutions that support them.
Lia moved to New York from her home in San Francisco when she was 17 years of age and made her stage debut as Liat in a national tour of South Pacific with Barbara Eden and Robert Goulet. She spent many years working extensively Off-Broadway, including Signature Theatre’s revival of Sam Shepard’s Chicago. Her film work includes Wolf, New Jack City, A Kiss Before Dying, King of New York, Big Trouble in Little China, and The Last Dragon. The decades of being viewed by others through the narrow lens of “Asian actor” in the industry brought Lia to a turning point, and she picked up her camera, determined to create awareness by documenting the work and the lives of her BIPOC colleagues, resulting in the creation of thousands of photographs and pieces of video. Her photo archives are housed in the AAPI collection in the Library of Congress’ Asian Reading Room under “Lia Chang Theater Portfolio collection,1989-2011” and in the “Lia Chang Photography Collection” in The Billy Rose Theatre Division of the New York Public Library.
Lia’s awards include the 2000 OCA Chinese American Journalist Award, the 2001 AAJA National Award for New Media and the 2022 Prospect Muse Award. She is also an AAJA Executive Leadership Graduate, a Western Knight Fellow at USC’s Annenberg College of Communications for Specialized Journalism on Entertainment Journalism in the Digital Age, a National Press Photographers Association Visual Edge/Visual Journalism Fellow at the Poynter Institute for New Media, and a Scripps Howard New Media Fellow at the Columbia Graduate School of Journalism.
More recently, Lia co-founded Bev’s Girl Films, which makes films that foster inclusion and diversity on both sides of the camera. She executive produced and starred in the indie films Hide and Seek (AA Film Lab’s 2015 72 Hour Shootout Best Actress Nomination), Rom-Com Gone Wrong, and When the World Was Young (2021 DisOrient Film Audience Choice Award for Best Short Narrative).
Backstage Pass with Lia Chang 