Brooklyn. February 2012. Photo: Dorit Avganim.

THE REPRESENTATIVES was a theatrical experiment, a nomadic new play lab, and an underground sensation, co-founded and led by playwright Stan Richardson and actor Matt Steiner. The two met in 2006 when Matt auditioned for an evening of Stan's plays at Dixon Place. At the time there was no model for writer-and-actor-driven play development and the Reps was born out of an urgent desire to share stories about what was happening right now. Between 2012 and 2017, Stan wrote 15 new roles for Matt and together they put up the plays--as fast as Stan could write them--in apartments, churches, and a hair salon. Over two-thousand audience members got to experience these radically-intimate showings, brilliantly realized by a handful of talented collaborators. Admission to the apartment plays was often a bottle of wine and every performance, even at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival, ended in a night of great conversations. These nights sparked scores of unlikely friendships, and that was perhaps The Representatives greatest achievement.

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private manning goes to washington

17 -27 August 2016: Edinburgh Fringe Festival.
29 November - 18 December 2016: Chelsea, Manhattan

Direction by Stan Richardson & Matt Steiner, design by Paul Hudson, sound design by Stan Richardson, projections by Thomas Kavanagh, dramaturgy by Jordan Schildcrout, stage managed by Zachary Tomlinson, co-produced by Donny Repsher, environment & afterparty by Lindsay Maiorana & Maren Lavelle, press by KPM Associates, photography by Jan Wandrag & Murdo MacLeod, poster & program design by Michael Constantine. Hosted by David Raleigh & Ricky Bahl. Performed by E. James Ford & Matt Steiner.A significant force in the movement to pardon Chelsea Manning, Private Manning was the Reps' last public presentation. The play is dedicated to the memory & legacy of Aaron Swartz. Check out our promo by Stan.

the rakes die

24 March - 3 April 2016: Union Square, Manhattan

Direction by Matt Steiner, sound by Stan Richardson, dramaturgy by Zachary Tomlinson, lighting by Paul Hudson, photography by Joshua Paul Johnson. Hosted by Adam Mizrachi & Elliot Garlock. Performed by Kahlilah Fleming, E. James Ford, Caitrin Kelly, Anne Richardson, Stan Richardson, Marquis Rodriguez & Matt Steiner. The Rakes Die was the third play in the Rakes trilogy, inspired by J.D. Salinger's Glass family, and the last apartment play by The Representatives.

veritas

21 October - 7 November 2015: Gramercy, Manhattan

The tragic events and aftermath of a secret gay witchhunt at Harvard in 1920.Direction & sound by Stan Richardson & Matt Steiner, environmental design & afterparty by Meg Stemmler & Lindsay Maiorana, lighting by Paul Hudson, costumes by Ashley Walch, dramaturgy by Jordan Schildcrout, ASL consultant Alexandria Wailes, stage managed by Liz Elise Richards, assisted by Jake Farnum & Kacey Gritters, marketing by Nicole Ofeno, press by KPM Associates, poster art by Michael Constantine, general manager Gwyn Osnos, production assistant Anthony Simon, photography by Jan Wandrag and Joshua Paul Johnson. Presented in association with The Olmsted Salon at St. George's Church. Performed by John Garrett Greer, Chris Harral, Daniel K. Isaac, John McGinty, DeLance Minefee, Luis Moreno, Marquis Rodriguez, Brendan Spieth, Matt Steiner, and Amir Wachterman.

cut the shit

22 July - 2 August 2015: Alphabet City, Manhattan

or "Struggle, Danger & Death," a dark entertainment about terror, marriage & martyrdom.Direction by Darren Katz, environment & afterparty by Lindsay Maiorana, sound by Stan Richardson, hospitality by Anthony Simon, Caleb Bell & Maren Lavalle. Hosted by Nelson Barretto at Ene Hair Salon. Performed by Zachary Clark, Jody Cook, Brooke Haney, Stan Richardson & Matt Steiner.

beddy tear

1 -5 April 2015: UWS, Manhattan

The pilot episode of a true-crime TV show shot live in front of a theatre audience, set in Missouri after the murder of Michael Brown.Direction & sound by Stan Richardson, video by Joshua Paul Johnson, environment & afterparty by Lindsay Maiorana, sound mixing by Kristel Ottis, lighting & video tech by Michael Kefeyalew and Erin Lemkey, house management by Caleb Bell. Hosted by the Center at West Park at West Park Church. Live cast: K. Nicole Helén, Anna O’Donoghue, Claire Siebers & Matt Steiner; appearing on film: Adiagha Faizah, Kat Puma, Mariah Ralph, Anne Richardson, Indika Senanayake. Special thanks to The Dig for use of "I Already Forgot Everything You Said." Check out our promo by Josh.

dead black temp

10 -21 December 2014: Williamsburg, Brooklyn

Childhood best friends, Jake, a Sony music exec, and Sully, a guerrilla filmmaker with MS, know they need to talk about the ever-widening gap between them but it takes, of all things, the death of Whitney Houston to reveal what's truly kept them apart.Direction & sound by Stan Richardson, environment & afterparty by Lindsay Maiorana, photography by Joshua Paul Johnson. Hosted by Ashton Applewhite & Bob Stein. Performed by Anna O’Donoghue, Marquis Rodriguez & Matt Steiner. Dead Black Temp was the seventh apartment play by The Representatives. Among the interactive elements of the production were a champagne toast with the audience and a Happy Birthday sing-a-long over red velvet cake.

of orient are

10 -21 September 2014: Gramercy, Manhattan

A trio of liberal activists escorting a group of aging cultural icons descend upon a scandal-ridden Midwestern college in this explosive satire of education, altruism, and the limits of wisdom.Direction & sound by Stan Richardson, environment & afterparty by Meg Stemmler & Lindsay Maiorana, photography by Joshua Paul Johnson. Hosted by The Olmsted Salon at St. George’s Church. Performed by Matt Hostetler, Claire Siebers & Matt Steiner. Check out this behind the scenes video by Josh.

tell

27 -29 May 2014: Williamsburg, Brooklyn

A dark tale of aspirational amnesia, intentional anonymity, and living life without the fine print.Direction by Matt Steiner & Stan Richardson, video by Joshua Paul Johnson. Hosted by ISA restaurant. The live cast included Nicole Helén & Anna O’Donoghue; the film cast included Maryann Durmer, Jenn Lyon, Annie Paul, Kat Puma, Matt Steiner & other members of The Reps community. A film-theater hybrid Tell was a Theatrical Portrait, a commissioned work inspired by a real life people and events.

the rakes progress

26 March - 6 April 2014: Financial District, Manhattan

Direction & design by Cedric Lamar, afterparty by Virginia Wilcox. Hosted by Daniel Rechelbacher & Zhauna Franks. Performed by Kat Heverin, Caitrin Kelly, Meg McQuillan, Kieran Mulcare, Stan Richardson, Matt Steiner, and Ben Vershbow. The Rakes Progress was the second play in the Rakes trilogy, inspired by J.D. Salinger's Glass family.

flooded with light

4 -15 December 2013: UWS, Manhattan

A time-bending play about zealotry, illicit love, and the costs of self-reinvention.Direction by Lee Sunday Evans, co-produced by Virginia Wilcox. Hosted by Chad Hoeppner & Hilary Kole. Performed by Hilary Kole, David Rosenblatt, Matt Steiner & Marguerite Stimpson. Flooded with Light was a theatrical portrait, a commissioned work inspired by a real life people and events. Check out this brief making-of video from Josh.

bazarov

9 -25 August 2013: UWS, Manhattan

A contemporary spin on Turgenev's FATHERS & SONS.Direction by Ben Vershbow, environment and afterparty by Meg Stemmler, theatrical design by Ben Vershbow, Scears Lee & Mira Veikley, choreography by Brendan Spieth. Hosted by the Center at West Park at West Park Church. Performed by Dorit Avganim, Kat Heverin, Roger Lirtsman, Claire Siebers, David Skeist, Matt Steiner, Ben Vershbow & Henry Vick. Bazarov was the first public workshop by The Representatives.

o happy happy aztecs

20 -31 March 2013: Hell's Kitchen, Manhattan

Two Midwesterners come to New York City with big dreams in this passionate love story of safety and convenience.Direction & design by Ben Vershbow, photography by Gregory Vershbow. Hosted by Peter O'Connor. Performed by Anna O’Donoghue, Matt Steiner & Dov Tiefenbach. O Happy Happy Aztecs was the fourth apartment play by The Representatives.

the rakes: an introduction

6 -16 December 2012: Williamsburg, Brooklyn

Direction & design by Ben Vershbow, afterparty by Meg Stemmler. Hosted by Jason Hill. Performed by Kelley Curran, Caitrin Kelly, Meg McQuillan, Kieran Mulcare, Stan Richardson, Matt Steiner & Ben Vershbow. The Rakes: an Introduction was the first play of the Rakes trilogy, inspired by J.D. Salinger's Glass family.

incredible things, awful things

20 -29 July 2012: Williamsburg, Brooklyn

A disenchanted banker at home with the flu has an eerily perfect second date with his soup-bearing paramour in this mysterious new drama about online matchmaking and the aftermath of WikiLeaks.Direction & design by Cedric Lamar, environment & afterparty by Meg Stemmler, photography by Carlos Arias & Meg Stemmler. Hosted by Meg Stemmler. Performed by Cedric Lamar, Stan Richardson, Matt Steiner & Virginia Wilcox. The Reps' second apartment play, Incredible Things, Awful Things is dedicated to the bravery of Chelsea Manning, the transgender activist, US Army private, and whistleblower convicted under the Espionage Act of leaking sensitive information to Julian Assange of Wikileaks.

ramona clay

13 -15 April 2012: West Village, Manhattan

A satire set against the backdrop of the New York Off-Off-Broadway scene in which two estranged sisters–twelve years apart (the younger, Ramona, is deaf)–reunite as the man who murdered their parents is set to be executed.Direction by Ben Vershbow, design by Dorit Avganim, dramaturgy by Shannon Deep, ASL consultation by John McGinty. Performed by Justin Blanchard, Sandra Struthers, Alexandria Wailes & Matt Steiner. Ramona Clay was a developmental workshop in partnership with the 3B Development Series @ IRT Theater, combining traditional hearing storytelling with scenes completely in ASL.

the lower lights

10 -18 February 2012: Columbus Circle, Manhattan

A dark comedy set about the deleterious effects of activism and the financial crisis on the erotic lives of two couples.Direction & design by Ben Vershbow, costumes & photography by Dorit Avganim. Performed by Roger Lirtsman, Tess Primack, Emily Simoness & Matt Steiner. The Lower Lights was the first apartment play by The Representatives.

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