SEVEN DAYS OF WORK CREATED
BY TNB2S+ ARTISTS FOR TNB2S+ ARTISTS
AT THE SUSAN & RONALD FRANKEL THEATER
AT THE ROBERT W. WILSON MCC THEATER SPACE
OCTOBER 5 - 11, 2026
Coinciding with LGBTQ+ History Month, the fifth annual Breaking the Binary Theatre Festival is our largest yet, bringing together ten teams of transgender, non-binary, and Two-Spirit+ (TNB2S+) playwrights, directors, dramaturgs, stage managers, and performers (yes, even in roles written for cis folks!) to develop and showcase work created entirely by and for TNB2S+ artists.
Limited complementary tickets are available NOW:
Festival casting is by The Telsey Office / Charlie Hano, CSA.
Esmé Maria Ng (they/he/she) is Festival Producer.
Is Perlman (they/them) is Assistant Producer.
MY H8 LETTER TO THE GR8 AMERICAN THEATRE
MONDAY, OCTOBER 5, 2026 at 7PM
by Zaza Diana Oh (they/them)
directed by Miranda Haymon (they/she)
Creative Consultant: Mei Ann Teo (they/them)
Stage Manager: Alisha Simmons (they/them)
featuring Alex Lugo (they/them), Bianca Leigh (she/her), b (they/them), Carl Clemons-Hopkins (they/he/anything with respect), Cheeyang Ng (they/them), Dani Martineck (they/he), Dom Martello (they/she), Mei Ann Teo (they/them), Sagan Chen, T Mitsock (she/her), TL Thompson (they/them)
Zaza Diana Oh's MY H8 LETTER TO THE GR8 AMERICAN THEATRE centers on a writer, musician, and actor who confronts the Gr8 American Theater. Through ranting, laughing, singing, pleading, evoking history, making fun of, calling out, and deeply loving, our protagonist gives us a play-by-play critique of theatre – its diversity panels, fundraising galas, playbills, white leads, Shakespeare, and more. It is a fierce, joyful, relentless h8-filled love-fest that generously invites all of us to take a look at the institution to which we’re so devoted. Zaza Diana Oh was a pillar of the BTB community; following their passing last year, Breaking the Binary Theatre is proud to present this reading in their honor.
TWITCH
TUESDAY, OCTOBER 6, 2026 at 7:30PM
by Liliana Padilla
directed by Jack Ferver
starring Joslyn DeFreece (she/her)
Pam searches obsessively for her missing son, accompanied by a twitch no one else can see. Searching for her son, Pam follows clues to the pound, computer store, a missing person’s group, airport, and other crevices of her splitting psyche. In tracking her son’s vanishing steps, she also chases hope. TWITCH was previously developed as part of the inaugural Breaking the Binary Theatre Festival in 2022. This new, solo version of the piece premiered at this year's Edinburgh Festival Fringe, where it was named "a show worth seeing" by Vogue.
THE MAGICALLY RE-IMAGINED HISTORY OF J.K. ROWLING
WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 7, 2026 at 7:30PM
Book, music, and lyrics by Jaime Jarrett (they/he)
directed by Emilio Ramos (he/they)
Music Director: Jack Cline (they/he)
Stage Manager: Dot Scuotto (they/she)
Guitarist: Will Shishmanian (he/him)
featuring Evie Schuckman (they/them), Hennessy Winkler (he/him), Jesse James Rose (she/they), Marti Cummings (they/them)
In the turbulent summer of 2020, Oliver, a transgender man, and his eleven year old daughter, Georgie, have been in lockdown in their tiny apartment for three months. The only thing holding the two of them together? Harry Potter. So when J.K. Rowling publishes an essay spreading dangerous rhetoric about the transgender community, Oliver cannot imagine taking the books away from Georgie— or himself. He magically travels into Rowling’s past: first in an attempt to prove the author’s morality, and then to attempt to alter her history— and transform her into the brave person he desperately needs her to be. With songs that explode events from Rowling’s life, and a book that incorporates verbatim text from her interviews, THE MAGICALLY RE-IMAGINED HISTORY OF J.K. ROWLING explores the interconnectedness of art, artist, and audience, and the consequences their entanglement brings.
GLITZ, GLAMOUR, GIRLS: A Variety Show
THURSDAY, OCTOBER 8, 2026 at 7:30PM
directed by Noax (they/them)
Stage Manager: Nat Kelley DiMario (they/them)
Music Director: George Luton (any pronouns)
starring the dolls of CATS THE JELLICLE BALL: B Noel Thomas (she/her), Garnet Williams (she/they), Kya Azeen (she/her), Leiomy (she/her), and Tempress Chasity Moore (she/her)
featuring special guests Bryson Battle, Kalyn West (they/them), Nora Schell (they/them)
Come one, come all! Join Breaking the Binary Theatre as we celebrate the five dolls of CATS: THE JELLICLE BALL–B Noel Thomas, Garnet Williams, Kya Azeen, Leiomy, and Tempress Chasity Moore–as they reunite for the first time since the show’s closing for a dazzling variety show not to be missed.
Cecilia Gentili’s
RED INK
FRIDAY, OCTOBER 9, 2026 at 7:30PM
developed and directed by Nic Cory (he/him)
starring Qween Jean (she/her)
God won't give up on Cecilia Gentili. Unfortunately, neither will the devil. Follow a young trans girl as she navigates the hilarity of rural Argentina in the 1970’s. Part stand-up, part camp, and (almost) all true, Cecilia Gentili's RED INK is an irreverent romp in the search for faith while trans. RED INK was awarded a Special Recognition at the 26th GLAAD Media Awards. This performance of RED INK marks the debut of Tony Award-winner Qween Jean in the role of Cecilia.
Cecilia Gentili passed away in February 2024 to continue watching over us in spirit. We continue to keep this work alive in honor of her.
our chronicle
SATURDAY, OCTOBER 10, 2026 at 1PM
by DJ Hills (they/them)
directed by Will Davis
Dramaturg: Samuel Yates (they/he)
Stage Manager: Eli Gutierrez (he/they)
featuring Hennessy Winkler (he/him), Reed Northrup (he/him)
Structured as a short story collection for the stage, our chronicle follows two brothers on an epic river journey, as they age from 14 to 92, intercut with scenes from their lives that shape the people they become.
BOIDS
SATURDAY, OCTOBER 10, 2026 at 3:30PM
by reid tang (they/he)
directed by Kedian Keohan
Stage Manager: Angie Salazar (they/she)
featuring Che Kabia (they/them), Ema Zivkovic (they/them), Futaba (he/him), Ishmael Gonzalez (they/them), Jonny Beauchamp, Kyr Siegel (he/him), Sagan Chen
Five men go to men's group to be taught how to be a proper man—by a woman. Fortunately, gender isn't real.
BOIDS is a Breaking the Binary Theatre commission.
BEFORE THEN, THERE’S NOW
SATURDAY, OCTOBER 10, 2026 at 5:30PM
by Ianne Fields Stewart (she/they)
directed by N’yomi Allure Stewart (she/her)
Dramaturg: Deziré Michael (they/she)
Stage Manager: Alisha Simmons (they/them)
featuring Carmen Lobue (they/them/Bue), essence lotus (she/her), Fatima Jamal, Gigi Gatekeeper (they/she), Ianne Fields Stewart (she/they), Jayae Riley Jr. (she/they), Mariyea (she/her), Marquise Vilsón (he/him), travis l. tate (they/them)
Five years from now, during the last hour and a half before the nationally mandated Tigerpox lockdown, seven Black Trans people find comfort and safety in a new home and each other. A sweet utopic relationship blossoms against the backdrop of our world's terrifying future. In this new home, some want to nest, some want to run, and one of them, Leo, is trying to hide. As they set the foundation for their final home, Leo's grief becomes unavoidable. In Act Two, we flash back to NOW as Leo is on a porch in the Deep South. With the help of Them, she faces what hurts and heals because Before Then, There's Now.
SPIN
SATURDAY, OCTOBER 10, 2026 at 8PM
by Jake Brasch (he/they)
directed by Sivan Battat (she/they)
Stage Manager: Skylar Back (they/them)
Dramaturg: Genevieve Simon (he/they)
featuring Barsha (she/they), clew (they/them), Hari Nef (she/her), Jax Jackson (no pronouns), Jess Barbagallo (he/him), Nora Brigid Monahan (she/they), Sabrina Wu (they/them), Taylor Trensch (any pronouns)
What do a birthday party clown, an ornithologist, a rabbi, a park ranger, a grief counselor, a goat cheese enthusiast, and a flock of critically endangered Barn Owls have in common? Turns out, a hell of a lot. Jumping wildly through time, SPIN charts the lives of a group of lost souls, slowly revealing the strange, invisible threads that bind them together.
CELEBRATE: A COLLECTION OF COMMISSIONED SCENES AND MONOLOGUES
SUNDAY, OCTOBER 11, 2026 at 5PM
co-conceived by L Morgan Lee (she/her) and George Strus (they/them)
directed by L Morgan Lee (she/her)
Stage Manager: Jude Brandt (they/them)
featuring work by Chris Bush (she/her), D.A. Mindell (he/him), Dante Green (they/she/he), Esmé Maria Ng (they/he/she), Rob Madge (they/them), Jen Silverman (they/them), Jordan Ramirez Puckett (they/them), Kit Yan (they/he/she), Nora Brigid Monahan (she/they), Sasha Velour (she/they), Sharifa Yazmeen (she/her)
featuring JJ Maley (he/they), Julie J, L Morgan Lee (she/her), Murphy Taylor Smith (she/her), Nora Schell (they/them), TL Thompson (they/them)
Since the inaugural Festival in 2022, Tony Award-nominee L Morgan Lee and BTB’s Founding Artistic Director George Strus have joined forces to commission over 50 short scenes and monologues. These pieces have been published in partnership with Broadway Licensing/Concord Theatricals to create more material specifically for the TNB2S+ community. Join us for the grand finale of the fifth annual Breaking the Binary Theatre Festival to celebrate this year-long collaboration by highlighting some of the greatest hits from the four published collections: OVERHEARD, BLISS, DARE, and LIMITLESS.