SWAY

Social media influencers Shay, Teegan, and Paige are selected for an exclusive retreat at a new Spahn Ranch with the mega-popular, Charlie. SWAY, a queer, psycho-thriller comedy, dives into the fetishization of bodies & cults, the toxicity of the mental health industry, and the exploitation of the need for human connection on social media.

Read the current draft here.

DEVELOPMENT HISTORY

SWAY was developed and read at the HMBG Foundation’s National Winter Playwright’s Retreat in Grand Lake, CO in March 2020.

SWAY had an online reading on Zoom through Theater Zoomed to You on May 14, 2020. The reading was directed and dramaturged by Nina Roy. The reading featured Hawley Gould, Zoe Nebraska Feldman, Lily Cumberpatch, Terran Scott, and Henri Sudy.

A virtual reading was presented as a part of The Tank’s PRIDEFest 2020. The reading was streamed on July 17, 2020. The reading was directed by Henri Sudy. The cast included Danielle Truss, Zoe Nebraska Feldman, Amanda Kuo, and Amara Leonard.

A virtual workshop was presented as the finale of The Play Parade presented by the University of Texas-El Paso Ensemble. The workshop was streamed live on August 7, 2020. The workshop is directed by Isabelle Rivera and Fernando Romero. The cast includes Madison Bailey, Michaela Marymor, Astilia Chokanu-Wenholz, & Bailee Liana Rodriguez.

A virtual reading of the first 30 pages was presented as a part of the UNBOXED Series presented by Out of Bounds Theatre (based out of the UK) on October 2, 2020.

A virtual reading was presented as a part of OCCUPY THE STAGE 2020 presented by the National Women’s Theater Festival on November 6, 2020.

A virtual reading was streamed live on Facebook as part of the Telatuesday series from Telatulsa (OK) on February 23, 2021. The reading was produced by Tara Moses, directed by Alyssa Brown, and featured Danielle Truss, Jolie Cloutier, Maddie Easley, Maria Guadalupe Carmine Hernandez, & Henri Sudy.

SWAY was developed through The Workshop Theater’s Spring 2021 Intensive from May to July 2021.

A private reading was held for the EERS Series with Elephant Room Productions in July 2021.

SWAY had its first in-person reading as a part of the Rooftop Reading Series with the Breaking & Entering Theatre Collective in Brooklyn, NY in July 2021. The reading featured Nina Roy, Maddie Easley, Anna Zabel, Julia Crowley, & Natalia Uruza and was directed by Britt Berke.

SWAY had its second in-person reading on April 10, 2022, at The Tank in NYC as a part of THE INFLUENCER PLAYS series with Catherine Weingarten. The reading was directed by Daniella Caggiano. The reading featured Alison Ormsby, Zoe Nebraska Feldman, Kayla Zanakis, Madeline Easley, and Kaia Parnell.

SWAY was named a semifinalist for the Eugene O’Neill Theater Center’s 2022 National Playwrights Conference and a semifinalist for the 2022-2023 Princess Grace Award in Playwriting/Fellowship at New Dramatists.

SWAY had an industry reading presented by Broadway DNA at Open Jar Studios in Manhattan on November 17, 2022. The reading was directed by Daniella Caggiano and featured Zoe Nebraska Feldman, Alison Ormsby, Natalie Myrick, and Kayla Zanakis.

SWAY had a student production with the Jubilee Directing Lab at Wright State University on April 7, 2023. The production was directed by Atlas Kessinger with a cast featuring Devon Fruscione, Cate Lightbody, Atlas Kessinger, and Emma Massey. The creative team featured Sylvia Borderlois (Stage Manager/Lighting Designer), Sid Grohowski (Sound Design), & Anna Parsons (Stage Crew).

SWAY had its first workshop production with The Fled Collective at The Flea Theater from May 19-27, 2023. The workshop was directed by Daniella Caggiano and featured Stevie Jae Davis, Natalie Myrick, Karen Marulanda, Alison Ormsby, & Kayla Zanakis. The creative team featured Lauren DeLeon (Intimacy Direction), Leana Gardella (Fight Choreography), Emily Bubeck (Tech Stage Manager), Isabel Schwartzberg (Stage Manager), Jennifer Fok (Light Design), Zhang Yu (Costume Design), Karen Loewy Movilla (Scenic & Prop Design), Art Kopischke (Sound & Video Design), & Paige Esterly (Producer).

SWAY was named a finalist for the 2024-2025 Princess Grace Award in Playwriting/Fellowship at New Dramatists.

Workshop Production at The Flea Theater, May 2023

Workshop Production at Wright State University, April 2023

Reading with Breaking & Entering Theatre Collective, July 2021