| Paco Bezerra Makes U.S. Debut with THE LITTLE PONY a t Torn Page, March 7-23 | Directed by Kimi Ramírez, Produced by Frank Hentschker | |
| Posted by: Official_Press_Release 10:34 am EST 02/21/24 | |
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| THE LITTLE PONY, a Drama Inspired by Real Events, Announces Cast and Creative team for its U.S. Debut Workshop Production, March 7-23, 2024 at Torn Page International hit play El pequeño poni by PACO BEZERRA, in his U.S. debut, with English translation by MARION PETER HOLT Produced by FRANK HENTSCHKER, Martin E. Segal Theatre Center, with Direction by KIMI RAMÍREZ, featuring MARISSA GHAVAMI and MONTGOMERY SUTTON The Little Pony by Spanish playwright Paco Bezerra is set to make its U.S. debut in a workshop production that also marks Bezerra's American debut. Inspired by the tragic bullying experiences of real-life children in North Carolina, the internationally acclaimed play will be performed at Torn Page (435 W 22nd St, New York, NY 10011) with a limited 3-week run, March 7-23, 2024. In this 75-minute two-hander, Marissa Ghavami* and Montgomery Sutton* play Irene and Daniel, parents grappling with the consequences of their ten-year-old son being bullied for bringing his My Little Pony backpack to school. Playwright Paco Bezerra explains: "I once read the news on Grayson Bruce, a 9-year-old boy from North Carolina, who in 2014 suffered several physical and verbal attacks as a result of carrying a My Little Pony backpack. He was forbidden to bring the backpack to the school and I couldn't believe it. What is better, to follow the views of the majority or to defend your own child's freedom of choice?" The Little Pony is also inspired by Michael Morones, a 11-year old boy who attempted suicide after experiencing severe bullying related to his love for the animated series "My Little Pony." Bezerra dedicates the play to these and other children "who, like them, have suffered insults and violence without anyone around them doing anything to prevent it." Worldwide productions of The Little Pony have played to great acclaim in Spain, China, Poland, Germany, Italy, England, Venezuela, Argentina, México, Uruguay, and Greece. The hit play has yet to have its full U.S. premiere. The Little Pony is written by Paco Bezerra, translated by Marion Peter Holt, directed by Kimi Ramírez, stage managed by Teresa Soroka, produced by Frank Hentschker, with designs by Hentschker and Soroka. *Equity Member appearing with permission of Actors' Equity Association without benefit of an Equity contract in this Off-Off Broadway production. This production is being presented in collaboration with The Martin E. Segal Theatre Center at the Graduate Center, City University of New York (CUNY) and in cooperation with Paco Bezerra, David Smedley, and Barbara Hagedorn Agency. The Little Pony will perform on Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays at 7:00 p.m. on March 7, 8, 9; 14, 15, 16; 21, 22, 23 at Torn Page, a private venue located in the Chelsea townhouse of acclaimed actors Rip Torn and Geraldine Page. Tickets are Pay What You Wish with a suggested donation of $33. Reservations are required and can be made at www.tornpage.org . Pay what you wish depending on your income. Tickets must be reserved one at a time. House opens 30m before the performance. Please do not arrive before the house opens. The anticipated running time is 75 minutes with no intermission. BIOS Paco Bezerra is one of Spain's leading contemporary dramatists. His awards include National Literary Drama Award in 2009, The Calderon de la Barca National Theatre Prize in 2007, and the Eurodram Award 2014. Bezerra's plays have been translated into several languages and are being produced all over the globe. He trained as an actor at William Layton Theater Laboratory Madrid and read Theatre Science and Dramaturgy at the Royal School of Dramatic Art of Madrid. Marion Peter Holt (1924-2021) was a renowned translator of contemporary Spanish and Catalan theatre. His translations continue to be staged internationally and by regional and university theatres throughout the United States. A member of the Real Academia Española since 1986, he was an emeritus professor of The City University of New York and visiting lecturer at the Yale School of Drama and Barcelona's Institut del Teatre. Dr. Holt's many translations include publications by The Martin E. Segal Center. The Center for the Humanities Programming Participants and Collaborators Frank Hentschker is Executive Director and Director of Programs at the Martin E. Segal Theatre Center (MESTC), an institute for theatre based at the Graduate Center, CUNY. He founded the acclaimed annual festival PRELUDE and initiated PEN World Voices Playwrights Series in partnership with the PEN America Center's PEN World Voices Festival of International Literature. He was Founder, Artistic Director, and Financial Administrator of the European student theater festival DISCURS and served as President of the Board of PAJ: A Journal of Performance and Art from 2005-2009. Dr. Hentschker has also edited several MESTC publications. Kimi Ramírez is a professor, playwright, performance poet, and critic with an M.F.A. in Playwriting and a Ph.D. in Theatre and Performance. They are currently affiliated with The City University of New York, Speranza Theatre Company, Macondo Writers Workshop, The Lucille Lortel Awards, and Talkin' Broadway. Dr. Ramírez is a member of The International Association of Theatre Critics and The Dramatists Guild. @drkimirami Teresa Soroka is an entrepreneur, artist, actor, and writer who loves theater, film and TV for their ability to express thoughts, emotions, feelings and experiences that bring our souls together. Early on, she won gold at the Far East Speech & Drama Festival for her Ewan McGregor monologue from Trainspotting. Her first dramatic performance was as Lord Capulet in Romeo & Juliet . Pushing boundaries, such as opening a rain gear and candy specialty store in NYC, has always been Teresa's thing. Currently she can be spotted in shows like Billions, And Just Like That, Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, and Fallout. Marissa Ghavami (they/she) is an Iranian-American, queer artist, advocate and creator. Recent theatrical roles include Khalilah, opposite Tony Winner KO (Karen Olivo), in a workshop of Siluetas, a new musical, Off-Broadway, and Jessie in Divine Riot's Cry It Out by Molly Smith Metzler. Film/TV highlights include starring in the feature film The Gift of Christmas (alongside Academy Award Nominee Bruce Davison), Paramount's Not Fade Away (with James Gandolfini), CBS's Without A Trace and singing on NBC's It's Showtime at the Apollo. Marissa co-produced the Sundance-premiering, theatrically released, BAFTA-nominated feature film Mass. Marissa is the Founder of the nonprofit Healing TREE (Trauma Resources, Education & Entertainment) and a Founding Company Member of Divine Riot. SAG-AFTRA, AEA. www.marissaghavami.com @marissaghavami Montgomery Sutton LONDON: Twelfth Night (Shakespeare's Globe); OFF-BROADWAY: A Midsummer Night's Dream (New York Classical Theatre); REGIONAL: Pericles, The Winter's Tale (Seven Stages Shakespeare Company); Shakespeare in Love (Shakespeare Dallas); Henry V (Cape Fear Regional Theatre); One Man, Two Guvnors (Florida Studio Theatre); Tomorrow Come Today (Undermain Theatre); Booth , Gruesome Playground Injuries (Second Thought Theatre); Trinity Shakespeare Festival; Theatre Three; Casa Manana; Uptown Players; Circle Theatre; Dallas Children's Theater; OFF-OFF-BROADWAY: Rude Grooms, American Bard Theatre, White Horse Theater Company, Metropolitan Playhouse. FILM/NEW MEDIA: 1865 , Trouble with Women. BFA, NYU (Atlantic Acting School); International Actor's Fellowship, Shakespeare's Globe. montgomerysutton.com |
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