Rehearsals are underway for Elevator Repair Service's upcoming NYC premiere of Ulysses, presented by Off-Broadway's Public Theater as part of the 2026 Under the Radar Festival.
The play, which premiered at Fisher Center at Bard last year, presents Joyce's epic text abridged, with a run time of two hours and 40 minutes. John Collins is directing, with co-direction and dramatrugy by Scott Shepard. The cast includes Dee Beasnael, Kate Benson, Maggie Hoffman, Vin Knight, Scott Shepherd, Christopher-Rashee Stevenson, and Stephanie Weeks.
Performances will begin January 13, 2026, ahead of a
January 25 opening night in the Public's Martinson Hall. Check out
rehearsal photos for the production, which will continue through
February 15, in the gallery below.
Vin Knight and Scott Shepherd
Stephanie Weeks, Vin Knight, and Kate Benson
John Collins, Dee Beasnael, Scott Shepherd, and Stephanie Weeks
Christopher Rashee-Stevenson, Vin Knight, and Scott Shepherd
Maggie Hoffman, Christopher Rashee-Stevenson, Vin Knight, and Scott Shepherd
Company of Ulysses
Christopher Rashee-Stevenson
Scott Shepherd and Maggie Hoffman
Christopher Rashee-Stevenson and Dee Beasnael
Scott Shepherd, Stephanie Weeks, and Kate Benson
Evan-Zimmerman-for-MurphyMade.jpg)
The production will also feature scenic design by dots, costume design by Enver Chakartash, lighting design by Marika Kent, sound design by Ben Williams, projection design by Matthew Deinhart, and prop design by Patricia Marjorie. Maurina Lioce will be the production stage manager, and Kelsey Vivian will be the stage manager.
“The Public has been ERS’s biggest and most consistent partner over the last 15 years, and we are thrilled to be continuing this collaboration,” said Collins, also ERS' artistic director, in an earlier statement. “Ever since Gatz premiered in New York in 2010, The Public has been a home for us, and we can’t wait to bring Ulysses to the Martinson.”
"Ulysses is a whirlwind tour through the hilarity and heart to be found in this novel notorious for its difficulty," added Shepherd. "Clock hands spin and text flies up the wall as we try to keep up with Joyce’s mad-genius experimentations. The world of Ulysses is so vast and varied every reader finds different points of kinship. What we keyed into most, maybe, is the dedicated irreverence it uses as a delivery vehicle for its profound sincerity. The whole thing, you could say, is an enormous, elaborate joke—meant in all seriousness.”
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