By Psalmayene 24
Directed by Reginald L. Douglas
september 7 – october 8, 2023
Abraham Lincoln’s head is missing. Chance, a Black performance artist, has surreptitiously removed it from the Emancipation Memorial—a Capitol Hill statue of Lincoln standing over a formerly enslaved man—and now it’s in his white liberal neighbor Adam’s shrubbery. This act of protest unleashes an absurdist chain of events when Adam knocks on Chance’s door, leading the two men and Chance’s wife, Brenda, down a path that questions how the symbols of our past impact our present. With sharp humor, hijinks, and a palpable love for DC, Helen Hayes Award-winning playwright Psalmayene 24’s searing new comedy explores race, memory, and the often privileged act of forgetting.
By Dominique Morisseau
Directed by Stori Ayers
october 27 – november 19, 2023
Sara is an enslaved rebel turned Union spy. Sandra is a tenured professor at a modern-day university. Despite living 160 years apart, their parallel struggles unite them across time. Celebrated American playwright, MacArthur Fellow, and two-time Tony Award nominee Dominique Morisseau (Ain’t Too Proud, Skeleton Crew) forges into brand new modes of storytelling in this breathtakingly fierce examination of history, race, and the women who stand on the frontlines of freedom, no matter the cost.
By Rhiana Yazzie
Directed by Ken-Matt Martin
march 28 – april 21, 2024
It’s 1985 in Washington, DC and two women are trying to steer their futures—Nancy Reagan from the White House, orchestrating her husband “Ronnie’s” political career according to daily astrological trends, and Esmeralda, a Navajo mother advocating for her community. Their worlds converge over an unbelievable discovery—Nancy has a direct familial connection to Pocahontas. Strange history collides with 80s nostalgia in this epic story that cuts through the veneer of shoulder pads, neon, and Van Halen with irreverent heart and deep empathy. Award-winning playwright Rhiana Yazzie makes her East Coast premiere with a very DC play about ancestry and ambition.
By Brian Quijada
By Nygel D. Robinson
Directed by David Mendizábal
may 16 – june 9, 2024
History meets hip-hop in this groundbreaking theatrical experience that explores the often-untold stories of enslaved people in the United States who sought freedom in Mexico, rather than looking north. Brian Quijada and Nygel D. Robinson use live-looping to create a musical in real time, telling a unique story of the Underground Railroad that led south, highlighting the power of Black and Brown unity.
CATALYST SERIES
(Dates for Catalyst Series readings, workshops, and public events will be announced at a later date)
Trish Vradenburg New Play Commission
The cohort of artists supported by this program to advance the work of women writers grows with the announcement of 2023-2024 recipient Paige Hernandez, acclaimed DC-based playwright, performer, and director and winner of the inaugural Victor Shargai Leadership Award. Through the commission, Hernandez will begin the development of a new theater piece that will bring her unique perspective and array of talents to the Mosaic stage.
AMERICAN/PALESTINIAN
With support from the MAP Fund, Mosaic has commissioned acclaimed Palestinian artist Amer Hlehel to create a solo performance piece inspired by the universal struggle for belonging that will be directed by award-winning new play director Chay Yew. Using interviews with Americans of different races as a foundation, Hlehel’s new play approaches identity through the eyes of an outsider and encourages thoughtful conversation about American race relations, the Palestinian/Israeli conflict, and an urgent need for greater understanding.
Reflections on Home: A Celebration of Immigrant Voices
Mosaic expands its legacy of providing a platform for international voices with the 2023-2024 Catalyst New Play Festival, Reflections on Home: A Celebration of Immigrant Voices. In partnership with Restless Books Immigrant Writing Lab, Mosaic will convene a diverse group of writers to reflect on what home means to immigrant communities. Reflections on Home will feature a series of panels, public presentations of works-in-progress, and playwriting workshops, offering audiences global perspectives on what it means to be an American today and deepening Mosaic’s commitment to building cross-cultural connection through theater.
H Street Oral History Project Festival
The multi-year arc of the H Street Oral History Project culminates with the H Street Oral History Project Festival. Using Washington, DC’s H Street corridor as a source of inspiration and preservation, local playwrights Lady Dane Figueroa Edidi, Gethsemane Herron-Coward, and J.J. Johnson have written new plays inspired by interviews with residents past and present. Staged readings of these new works will be the focal point of the festival, which will also include music and food, H Street NE neighborhood walking tours led by Justice Walks, and panel discussions curated in collaboration with the DC History Center.
The H Street Oral History Project is generously underwritten by Humanities DC and the Eugene M. Lang Foundation.
High School Playwriting Contest
Mosaic continues its work to uplift and inspire the next generation of great playwrights through its High School Playwriting Contest. Open to 9th-12th grade students in the Washington, DC metro area, including Montgomery County, Prince George’s County, and Northern Virginia, the contest culminates in a public reading of the winning submissions held at a branch of the DC Public Library and led by a director and working actors.
I am so excited to share Mosaic’s ninth season of thought-provoking, cross-cultural work with you. This year’s lineup offers the magic of theatrical storytelling that pushes boundaries of form, asks bold questions with empathy and curiosity, and re-examines our shared history with loads of humor and heart. These are can’t-miss stories that must be experienced live and in person with our DMV neighbors!
We begin with Monumental Travesties by DC’s own superstar artist Psalmayene 24. Inspired by the Emancipation Memorial in Capitol Hill, this world premiere comedy asks who gets to remember what and why, and offers a provocative reflection on our city that is at once hilarious and insightful. Next, Mosaic will produce Confederates, the latest play by two-time Tony Award nominee and my dear friend Dominique Morisseau. It is an honor to welcome this preeminent voice in American theater to our stage for the first time.
Rhiana Yazzie’s Nancy transports us back to 1985 for an epic story that speaks volumes to our current day conversation about American identity. Sparked by a little-known piece of history—Nancy Reagan’s direct genealogical connection to Pocahantas—Rhiana’s play is bursting with bite, empathy, and imagination. The season culminates with the world premiere of the form-defying musical Mexodus by Brian Quijada and Nygel D. Robinson, featuring hip-hop and a live-looped score created before your eyes by these two theatrical powerhouses. I promise you, you’ve never seen anything like this!
The 2023-2024 Season proudly declares that Mosaic is a home for fearless ideas, innovative storytelling, and the next great American play—and we’re saving a front row seat for you.
Reginald L. Douglas,
Artistic Director
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Contact the Box Office at 202.399.7993 ext. 501 or boxoffice@atlasarts.org