FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
Cohesion Theatre Company Presents Two Plays in Repertory:
La Llorona By Cecelia Raker & The Orphan Sea By Caridad Svich
Directed by Susan Stroupe
BALTIMORE – January 29, 2018. Cohesion Theatre Company is proud to announce the third production of their 2017/2018 season and their first ever repertory production. Continuing to explore the season theme of “E Pluribus Unum,” the shows in repertory will utilize the same
diverse cast to tell two seemingly very different stories, La Llorona by Cecelia Raker and The Orphan Sea by Caridad Svich. Despite the plays’ notable differences, it is the hope of Cohesion that these stories in conversation with one another will inspire discussion and thought long after
leaving the theater.
“The Cohesion Rep is both a challenge and a joy,” said director Susan Stroupe. “To stage two full-length plays with the same cast is a huge undertaking, but it also allows our ensemble and audience a rare gift of seeing two works of art in conversation with each other. In many ways,
they are very connected: both re-imagine important and old mythologies from American culture, both confront the narrative of gender in those mythologies, and both paint a vivid view of the land around them.”
“Individually, they compliment each other wonderfully,” Stroupe adds. When widely diverse young women get thrown together on a school project about the local urban legend, La Llorona, they get much more than they bargained for after a horrifying, teary and murdering ghost enters their lives. La Llorona, with her irreverent, haunting advice and constantly changing stories, seems intent on steering them away from her fate, but is she just luring them to a watery, weeping demise? Funny, irreverent, and a little creepy Cecelia Raker’s La Llorona brings legends to life and looks at the real impact they have on the futures they shape.
Caridad Svich’s The Orphan Sea is a reimagination of the story of Penelope and Odysseus from The Odyssey. A tale about love and migration, it presents us with what we lose when we are forced onto new shores, but also the strengths we bring with us, and the memories we can't put down. In an open and poetic format the play is the story of the many transformations that humans have undertaken as they moved from shore to shore. This is a tale told in poetry, movement, and song, and provides an immersive and thought provoking experience as it
expands on the ideas of cultural narratives and their power through reflecting on geography, memory, and community.
Though the plays differ in tone and style, both stories observe the way myths, legends, and histories impact us today, and how we, in turn shape them. “La Llorona, while set in culturally-unique New Mexico, is a powerful and relatable narrative of teenage girls grappling with identity and haunted by history. The Orphan Sea is an image-rich epic poem-play that traverses time, space, and gender, all in the frame of Penelope and
Odysseus' epic long-distance relationship from The Odyssey.” Stroupe said. “A diverse, versatile ensemble of nine actors and an incredible team of designers have taken on this challenge, and I can’t wait for audiences to witness their amazing work.”
Opening night for La Llorona is Thursday, March 22 at 8pm. Opening night for The Orphan Sea is Thursday, March 29 at 8:30pm. Following opening night the shows will run Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays at 8pm and Sundays at 7:30 pm with select Saturday matinee performances at 2:00 pm. The performances run from March 22 through April 15, 2017.
Tickets are $20 for Adults and $15 for students and seniors and can be purchased online at www.cohesiontheatre.org
Special industry night performances will be held Thursday, April 5 at 8pm for La Llorona and Thursday, April 12 at 8pm for The Orphan Sea. Tickets for all artists will be just $10.
Cohesion performs in “The Fallout Shelter” at United Evangelical Church (923 S. East Avenue, Baltimore, MD 21224) at the corner of East Avenue and Dillon Street in Canton. Patrons should enter the space through the grey doors on East Avenue. For more information about the
2017/18 Season at Cohesion Theatre Company, visit www.cohesiontheatre.org
SHOW DETAILS:
The Repertory runs March 22 - April 15, 2018
Directed by Susan Stroupe
Performances Thursdays - Saturdays at 8pm
Sundays at 7:30pm
Weekend Matinee performances at 2pm
La Llorona
By Cecelia Raker
Opening March 22 at 8pm
Dates: March 22, 23, 24, 25, 31* and April 5, 6, 8, 14
Industry Night: Thursday, April 5 at 8 PM
The Orphan Sea
By Caridad Svich
Opening March 29 at 8:30pm
Dates: March 29, 30, 31, and April 1, 7, 8*, 12, 13, 15
Industry Night: Thursday, April 12 at 8 PM
*Indicates Matinee performance
The Fallout Shelter at United Evangelical Church
923 S. East Avenue, Baltimore, MD 21224
Tickets $20, or $15 for Students and Seniors
www.cohesiontheatre.org/tickets
Cast:
Emily Sucher – Rachel/City
Mani Yangilmau – La Llorona/Odysseus
Jonathan Jacobs – Gatekeeper/Penelope
Laura Malkus – Mom/Penelope
Mia Ybarra – Molly/City
Chara Bauer – Gatekeeper/Odysseus
Natanya Washer – Maria/Penelope
Mika J Nakano – Gatekeeper/City
Christian Gonzales – Gatekeeper/Odysseus
Production Team:
Susan Stroupe – Director
Betse Lyons – Stage Manager
Abby Cady – Dramaturg/AD
Helen Garcia-Alton – Lighting Designer
Meghan Stanton – Sound Designer
Jessica Rassp – Set Designer/ Technical Director
Elizabeth Ung – Costume Designer
Brad Norris – Fight Choreographer
