GableStage and

Roz & Charles Stuzin Present

THE THANKSGIVING PLAY

by Larissa FastHorse

A Regional Premiere

Directed by Bari Newport

Starring Jeni Hacker, Stephen G. Anthony, Anna Lise Jensen, and Tom Wahl

November 18th – December 10th, 2023
Preview performance: Friday, November 17th

Streaming is available November 24 – December 10th

With generous
support from
Lydia Harrison

Opening Night Made Possible by
Marc & Robyn Abrams

Running Time: 1 hr. 30 minutes.
No Intermission.

Presented by arrangement with Concord Theatricals on behalf of Samuel French, Inc.

"Very, very funny… this clever satire is something for which to be truly thankful."

Larissa FastHorse is the first indigenous American woman to have a play on Broadway. This will be the regional premiere of Fasthorse’s shocking satire that “flips the bird” on one of America’s most prolific myths—the original thanksgiving meal. With provocative questions around erasure and authorship of history, this comedy asks how we proceed when steadfast assumptions are disrupted.

REVIEWS

“Very, very funny… this clever satire is something for
which to be truly thankful.”
– Hollywood Reporter

“FastHorse neatly sets up the tension between identity and the performance of identity — a tension she doesn’t resolve but upgrades over the course of the play to a full-scale paradox.” – The New York Times

“FastHorse, who is the first known Native American woman playwright on Broadway, mines comedy from the clash of her characters’ performative social consciousness with their extreme self-absorption.” – Variety

Pre-Show Talks

Resident Dramaturg Karina Batchelor or Producing Artistic Director Bari Newport will present dramaturgical presentations 30 minutes before each performance.

Post-Show Talkbacks

Immediately following the first Sunday and all Wednesday matinees, please stay for a robust conversation with the cast and artistic team.

Cast

Jeni Hacker is an actress, singer, dancer and choreographer based in Miami, Florida. Her work has been seen on multiple stages throughout South Florida. Recent credits at Zoetic Stage at the Adrienne Arsht Center for the Performing Arts include: Diana- Next to Normal, Mrs. Lovett- Sweeney Todd (Carbonell winner Best Actress-musical and Silver Palm Award) Helen- Fun Home (Carbonell winner Best Supporting Actress-Musical), Fosca- Passion (Carbonell winner Best Actress-Musical and Silver Palm Award) and Connie- After (Carbonell winner Best Supporting Actress). Other credits include: The Foundry: Jean- The Actors (Carbonell winner Best Supporting Actress), Mom-Grindr Mom (Carbonell winner Best Actress) TheatreLab: Anne- Everything is Super Great. Boca West Theater: Evelyn- The Camp (Carbonell Nominee Best Supporting Actress). Actors’ Playhouse: Choreographer-Once (Carbonell Nominee Best Choreography), Poppy- Noises Off, Aunt Sheila/Choreographer- It Shoulda Been You, Louise/Eve- Ruthless! The Musical. Other favorites: Our Town- Miami New Drama, Les Miserables-Maltz Jupiter Theater, The Most Happy Fella-Palm Beach Dramaworks.

Photo: E.G. Zenone

Stephen G. Anthony (Jaxton) is delighted to be making his return to the familiar confines of GableStage, having most recently appeared in the title role of Watson. Past GableStage appearances include: Dry Powder, Good People, Misery, The Lieutenant of Inishmore, James Joyce’s The Dead, and The Real Thing, among others. Other South Florida theater appearances include Jimmy Buffet’s Margaritaville, Million Dollar Quartet, Once, The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time, Hank Williams: Lost Highway and many more. In a career spanning five decades, Steve has performed on television, in film, theaters, and nightclubs across the country, from New York to California, with many stops in between. Special thanks to Bari Newport for the opportunity to return to GableStage, and to the late, great Joseph Adler for decades of friendship and incredible theater experiences. Steve would like to dedicate this performance to the memory of Joe, and to his amazing wife, Ann Kelly Anthony. Oh yes, and Wizzie and Rakki too!

Photo: David Genik

Anna Lise is honored to be making her first post-Covid return to the Florida stage. In 2016, Anna Lise relocated from NYC to Miami and performed across South Florida until March 2020. She received several accolades, including the 2018 Silver Palm Award, 2019 Miami New Times Best Actress, and 2019 Carbonell Award for her role as Francesca in The Bridges of Madison County at Slow Burn Theatre. She taught on faculty at New World School of the Arts and Area Stage, and coached privately. Following a year of pandemic-induced uncertainty, she shifted to a tech career as a Technical Program Manager at Quantum Metric. It is just as thrilling as it sounds. Thanks to Bari for the opportunity (and her GableStage debut!), and big love to old friends Steve, Jeni, and Tom, as well as new. As always: for Nicholas y los gatos (even if they don’t really get it).

Photo: Ted Ely

TOM WAHL has appeared at GableStage in The White Card, Ordinary Americans, Kings, Admissions, White Guy on the Bus (Carbonell nomination), The Legend of Georgia McBride (Carbonell nomination), and An Act of God. Tom has worked at The Kennedy Center (DC), Geva Theatre Center (NY), Capital Rep (NY), Blumenthal Performing Arts Center (NC) Flat Rock Playhouse (NC), Blowing Rock Stage Company (NC), and Harrisburg Opera (PA). In Florida at Palm Beach Dramaworks, Zoetic Stage, Actors’ Playhouse, City Theatre, Miami New Drama, The Vanguard, Red Barn Theatre, Waterfront Playhouse, Caldwell Theatre, Florida Stage and Mosaic Theatre. Film and TV credits include The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, New in Town with Renee Zellweger, Ace Ventura, Plato’s Run, Big City Blues and a recurring guest star as Hunt Pelham on ABC’s Moon over Miami. Tom is a recipient of Carbonell, Silver Palm, and Curtain Up Awards and is a proud union member of Actors’ Equity Association and SAG-AFTRA.

Photo: Jon Zimmerman

Creative Team

Carey Brianna Hart – Director

Frank J Oliva* – Scenic Designer

Karina Batchelor – Dramaturg

Marialexia Hernandez – Production Stage Manager & Costume Coordinator

Amanda Hernandez – Assistant Stage Manager

Ernesto Pinto – Lighting Designer

Joel Zishuk – Projection Designer

* Member of United Scenic Artists

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Photo: Conor Horgan

ABOUT THE PLAYWRIGHT

Larissa FastHorse

Larissa FastHorse (Sicangu Lakota Nation) is an award-winning writer and 2020-2025 MacArthur Fellow. Her satirical comedy, “The Thanksgiving Play,” made her the first known female Native American playwright on Broadway at the Helen Hayes under the direction of Rachel Chavkin. Her new plays in 2023 are “Wicoun” (Cornerstone Theater Company), “Democracy Project” (Federal Hall), “Fake It Until You Make It” (CTG Mark Taper Forum), “For the People” (Guthrie), and the national tour of “Peter Pan” (Networks).

Selected past plays include “What Would Crazy Horse Do?” (KCRep), “Landless” and “Cow Pie Bingo” (Alter Theater), “Average Family” (Children’s Theater Company of Minneapolis), “Teaching Disco Square dancing to Our Elders: a Class Presentation” (Native Voices at the Autry), as well as numerous productions of “The Thanksgiving Play,” making it one of the most produced plays in America.

Larissa created the nationally recognized trilogy of community-engaged theatrical experiences with Cornerstone Theater Company: “Urban Rez,” “Native Nation,” and “Wicoun.” She and her collaborator, Michael John Garcés, spend years on each project in an Indigenized community engagement process. “The engagement itself is the art form.” These projects have earned them national funding and an appointment to Arizona State University.

Larissa’s company with Ty Defoe, Indigenous Direction, recently produced the first land acknowledgment on national television for the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade on NBC and continues to consult for them. They also consult for the largest theater organizations in the country.

Larissa also writes in film and television, most recently as a creator for NBC, Disney Channel, Dreamworks, Muse, Netflix, and others. She is based in Los Angeles with her husband, the sculptor Edd Hogan, and represented by Jonathan Mills at Paradigm NY. She is especially honored to follow in the footsteps of the last known Native American playwright on Broadway, Lynn Riggs. hoganhorsestudio.com

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ABOUT THE DIRECTOR

Bari Newport

Bari joined GableStage as Producing Artistic Director in April 2021. She came to Miami from the Penobscot Theatre Company in Bangor, Maine, where she served as Artistic Director for nine seasons. Previously, she was artistic associate at the Alliance Theatre in Atlanta, artistic/literary manager at the Pasadena Playhouse, associate producer at Horizon Theatre and associate director of Florida Repertory Theatre.

As a producer, Newport has been responsible for the creation and stabilization of a wide range of artistic initiatives, including extensive work in new play development, education and community engagement. While leading Penobscot – which serves 40,000 people each season – Newport doubled the budget in eight years; produced five world premieres; created a partnership with the Penobscot Nation, with whom she developed two large-scale NEA-supported projects; and fully funded the company’s endowment. She kept her entire staff of 15 employed during the pandemic and produced an innovative season that included 17 newly commissioned digital projects. Her work as a director and actor has been seen at Horizon Theatre Company, Greenbrier Valley Theatre, American Stage, Cumberland County Playhouse, Florida Repertory Theatre, Sacramento Theatre Company, Westport Country Playhouse and the Williamstown Theatre Festival. She earned her BFA from the University of Southern California and MFA from the University of Iowa. Bari is a 20 year member of the Stage Directors and Choreographers Society and the Actor’s Equity Association.