Arena Stage has announced the cast and creative team for its upcoming production of Matthew Libby's Data. The new play will run October 31-December 15 at the Washington, D.C. venue. Margot Bordelon (The Lehman Trilogy) will direct.
The cast will feature Karan Brar (Jessie) as Maneesh, Stephen Cefalu, Jr. (To Kill A Mockingbird) as Jonah, Isabel Van Natta (John Proctor Is the Villain) as Riley, and Rob Yang (Succession) as Wang Tao (Alex). New York casting is by Taylor Williams Casting. D.C. casting is by Raiyon Hunter.
Data follows Maneesh, an entry-level programmer at Athena Technologies. Content with working in the low-stress environment of User Experience, Maneesh faces a crisis of conscience when he is transferred to the central Data Analytics team and learns the true nature of Athena's highly controversial and secretive work.
The creative team will include set designer Marsha Ginsberg (Lehman Trilogy), costume designer Beth Goldenberg (The Mother of Us All), lighting designer Amith Chandrashaker (Prayer for the French Republic), sound designer Mikaal Sulaiman (Fat Ham), composer Dan Kluger (Oklahoma!), stage manager Elisa Guthertz (Mother Road, Sanctuary City), and assistant stage manager Lauren Pekel (Fun Home).
“I am beyond thrilled to be collaborating with this dream team to bring the world premiere of Data to Arena Stage,” Libby said in a statement. “This play was born out of my experience coming of age in Silicon Valley, torn between the tech industry's glamour and its power—a tension that, as the past several decades have proven, creates the world we live in for better or worse.”
"Matthew Libby’s sharp political thriller brings a fresh take on the role humanity plays within our digital landscape that is prime for this vibrant, diverse political city,” added Arena Stage Artistic Director Hana S. Sharif. “The first time I read this script, I couldn’t put it down, and I cannot wait for D.C. audiences to be swept up in the tides and tensions of the inexorable expansion of Artificial Intelligence along with us.”
Visit ArenaStage.org for tickets.
