Performances began July 11 for the New York premiere of Marcus Gardley's The House That Will Not Stand, a new play set in New Orleans in the early 1800s as power over the state is transferred from France to the United States. Obie Award winner Lileana Blain-Cruz directs the production at New York Theatre Workshop.
The cast is made up of Helen Hayes Award nominee Joniece Abbott-Pratt (Blindspot, Luke Cage), Juliana Canfield (He Brought Her Heart Back in a Box), Helen Hayes Award nominee Harriett D. Foy (Amélie), Helen Hayes Award winner Lynda Gravátt (This Flat Earth), Nedra McClyde (Marvin’s Room), Marie Thomas (Having Our Say), and Tony Award nominee Michelle Wilson (Sweat).
Inspired by Federico García Lorca's The House of Bernarda Alba, the play tells the story of a widow and her three eligible daughters, all free women of color, on the eve that Louisiana was passed over to the United States.
The House That Will Not Stand will officially open July 30 and is scheduled to play through August 12.
The creative team includes scenic designer Adam Rigg (The Mad Ones), costume designer Montana Levi Blanco (Red Speedo), lighting designer Yi Zhao (Pipeline), and sound designer Justin Ellington (Until the Flood), who also wrote original music. Movement is by Raja Feather Kelly (The Death of the Last Black Man in the Whole Entire World). The dialect and vocal coach is Dawn-Elin Fraser (Once On This Island). Terri Kohler (In the Blood) serves as stage manager.
