Harlem Stage Presents The Lifeboat
Created by American Physical Theater
Actors: Akiko Aizawa, Gideon Berger, Craig Bannister, Mario Brufau, Yo-EL Cassell, Hassiem Muhammad, Myla Pitt, JoAnna Rhinehart, & Suzanne Temple
Vocalists: Catherine Russell, Judith Spears Mutunga, Joe Buck, and Meredith Suttles
Pianist: Cecilia Coleman
Written and directed by Arthur Yorinks
Lighting by Joey Moro
Projections by Yana Biryukova
Costumes by Iris Abbott
Sound design by Arthur Yorinks
Audio by Ricardo Fernandez
Production Stage Manager – Ed Fitzgerald
Tai Lee – rehearsal assistant
Set Construction by Paul Kobyluch
Poster Art by Meaghan Elyse
Produced by Alyce Dissette
Music, The New School, Michael Feinstein’s Songbook Academy and YoungArts, as well as teaching master classes and private students.
Special thanks to Robert Altman, Barbara Cummings, Dale Fuller, Wendall Harrington, Meaghan Elyse Lueck, Stu Margulis, Mike O’Brien, Rita Putnam, Rob Southerland, Tyler Thomas, Lissa Toole, Todd Weinstein, Jedediah Wheeler, Ania Yorinks.
Arthur Yorinks (Writer & Director) has written and directed for opera, theater, dance, film, and radio and is the author of over forty acclaimed and award-winning books, including Hey, Al, a children’s book, which earned the Caldecott Medal in 1987. In addition to his literary career, he is considered one of the leading figures in the reinvention of audio theater. Yorinks, working in the performing arts for decades, has collaborated with composers such as Philip Glass, Robert Moran, and Edward Barnes, film directors such as Michael Powell, stage directors Richard Foreman, Andre Serban, Jim Simpson, and Ruben Santiago-Hudson, actors such as Bill Irwin, Sigourney Weaver, Tony Shalhoub, Frances McDormand, Peter Gerety, Reg E. Cathey, Linda Powell, Danny Burstein, Rebecca Luker, Francis Jue, Jay O. Sanders, Lois Smith, Adam Driver, Maryann Plunkett, Annette O’Toole, David Hyde Pierce, Brandon Dirden, Jennifer Van Dyck, Mandi Masden, Kianne Muschette, Dana Ivey, Aedin Moloney, F. Murray Abraham and many more, and dance companies such as Pilobolus and Hartford Ballet. His work has been produced at The Kennedy Center, the Flea Theater, The Greene Space, Tribeca Performing Arts Center and other theaters around the country. Yorinks founded APT after working with a group of gifted physical actors for over two years and started this journey to define this uniquely American artform – American Physical Theater.
Joey Moro (Lighting Designer) is a New York based designer, who designs lighting, projection, and scenery. Joey has designed over 150 productions in NYC, regionally, and abroad. Recent Lighting: Where Women Go, (HERE) Misery, (Dorset Theatre Fest) What the Constitution Means to Me (Hangar Theatre) La tragédie de Carmen, (Stony Brook) Romeo and Juliet (NAATCO) Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, Choir Boy, (Le Petit Light/Set) The Rape of Lucretia, (Boston Lyric Opera.) Joey’s company Moro Media creates video systems for on/off Broadway, museums, and installations. MFA Yale School of Drama. Joey is concurrently a Professor of design at Berklee NYC, of projection design at Yale Drama, and of lighting design at NYU Tisch. www.joeymoro.com www. moro.media
Yana Biryukova (Projection Designer) is a video artist and theatre designer based in NYC. Her theatrical designs include collaborations with Krymov Lab NYC, Hartford Stage, Resident Ensemble Players, Barrington Stage Company, Mason Holdings, Miami New Drama, Westport Country Playhouse, Red Bull Theater, Yale Repertory Theatre, Yale Opera, Irish Repertory Theatre and many more. Proud member of USA 829. MFA: Yale School of Drama. yanabiryukova.com
Iris Abbott (Costume Designer) is elated to continue working with Arthur Yorinks at APT. She has been sewing for as long as she could hold a needle in her hand and designed her first show at 19 years old. Iris mainly works as a freelance scenic artist and costume designer but is a multiskilled theater technician who may also be found backstage fiddling with lights, running a sound board, or pulling ropes. She loves nothing more than helping create worlds for audiences to step into and forget about the rest of their life.
Ricardo Fernández (Sound) is a free-lance sound engineering professional who has worked in recording studios and live venues in the New York area. He has done extensive work in sound effects and music editing, both for tv and theater. He was the Senior Technical Director for The Greene Space at WNYC for over a decade.
Ed Fitzgerald (Production Stage Manager} has been a professional stage manager for 51 years, working on Broadway (Da, A Little Family Business, The Tap Dance Kid, Carrie: The Musical, The Violet Hour), National Tours, off-Broadway (Manhattan Theatre Club – 22 productions, The Best of Friends, Tick, Tick...Boom), off-off Broadway, and in major theatres throughout the country (BAM, Baryshnikov Arts, ART, ACT, Ahmanson Theatre, Mark Taper Forum, Geffen Playhouse, Spoleto USA, Walker Arts Center) and overseas (London, Berlin, Singapore, Seoul, Avignon, Strasbourg). He has been associated with the Pick Up Performance Co. for 34 years. He is very pleased to be working on another Arthur Yorinks production after last year’s Dreams: 12 Variations
Alyce Dissette (Producer} is a producer of performing, visual, film, and digital arts who has worked in a wide range of venues and projects from staff member in the Metropolitan Opera Presentations Department to former Executive Producer of the PBS national series, Alive from Off Center, and on digital media projects with the Voyager Co. She has worked with hundreds of artists including filmmakers Charles Burnett, Julie Dash, Francois Girard, visual artist James Turrell, author Art Spiegelman, and in the performing arts, Sir Richard Alston, Mikhail Baryshnikov, Karin Coonrod, Ain Gordon, David Gordon, Philip Glass, Nona Hendryx, John Kelly, Urban Bush Women, Brenda Way, Robert Wilson, and Arthur Yorinks. She has served on the Board of Directors for Dance/USA and Alliance of Resident Theatres/New York. She is currently the Producing Director of American Physical Theatre.
Akiko Aizawa (APT Co.) is a New York based theater actor. She appeared in shows such as; The Bacchae (BAM), A Rite (with Bill T. Jones/ Arnie Zane Co.), Falling & Loving (with STREB), American Document (with Martha Graham Dance Co.), the Trojan Women (Getty Villa), bobrauschenbergamerica (ART), Radio Macbeth (Public Theater) and Culture of Desire (NYTW), all directed by Anne Bogart. Other credits: Hanjo (dir. Leon Ingulsrud), Suicide Forest (dir. Aya Ogawa), Sleep (dir. Rachel Dickstein), and Dionysus (dir. Tadashi Suzuki). Membership: SITI Co. Emeritus Artists, One Year Lease Theater Co., and APT Performing Co. Akiko is originally from Akita, Japan.
Craig Bannister (APT Co.) is a Native New Yorker. Has been in the theater and dance scene in many capacities for many years. Working in the American Physical Theater artform has been a refreshing take on storytelling.
Gideon Berger (APT Co.) is a director, actor, and mime. He grew up touring with the Chameleons Mime Theater, eventually discovering that he could speak and act at the same time. He went on to study directing at Bard College, going on to direct and write avant-garde theater all over New York State, including adaptions of King Ubu, Cowboy Mouth, and his own Yuppie Mime Musical. He began translating his experience directing theater to film, writing scripts, directing music videos, documentaries, and shorts, culminating in the creation of his debut feature, The Tannery. His film acting credits include Hell House LLC Origins: The Carmichael Manor, I Think I Live Here, and The Tannery. Currently, he is writing new scripts and directing work in collaboration with productions in New York, Paris, and Los Angeles.
Mario Brufau (APT Co.) was born in El Salvador. Dancer, actor, performer and jeweler. He was a member of the American Mime Theatre (19902024). Former member of “Theatre Frederick” (1981-1985) from Belgium. Previously he was with Ballet Folklorico de El Salvador (1978-80). Mario is bilingual in English and Spanish. He is happy to be a part of APT.
Yo-EL Cassell (APT Co.), hearing impaired with nerve deafness, discovered movement as a way to express his inner landscape at a young age. This sparked a lifelong journey to make movement accessible as a dancer, choreographer, director, and educator across various mediums, including theatre, opera, and film. A Boston-based artist, he is Head of Movement at Boston University’s College of Fine Arts School of Theatre and Artistic Director of InMotion Theatre. His work has been featured at venues like The American Repertory Theatre and SpeakEasy Stage Company, earning acclaim, including an ERNE Award nomination. Creator of the J.O.Y. Technique, he emphasizes a Journey of Youth mindset in his teaching. His greatest gift is the birth of his son, Keaton. Cassell is thrilled to be a member of APT.
Hassiem Muhammad (APT Co.) is a graduate of The University of North Carolina School of the Arts and is excited to make his American Physical Theater debut! Regional credits include: The Tempest, for which he received a 2023 Helen Hayes Award (Round House Theatre), The Three Musketeers (Cleveland Playhouse), Shoebox Picnic: Route 1 (Alabama Shakespeare Festival), and SWEAT (Pioneer Theatre Company). Television credits include: Madam Secretary, FBI, and Blue Bloods. Hassiem is represented by Red Letter Entertainment, and HCKR Agency. Instagram: @hassiemmuhammad. Website: www.hassiemmuhammad.com
Myla Pitt’s (APT Co.) recent film credits include Mincemeat Manor and Masterpiece written and directed by Tony award winner Michael Aronov. She recently appeared on the LaMama stage in NYC in American Rot – an exploration of the aftermath of the Dred Scott decision. Directing credits include The Blue Room by David Hare at The Queens Theatre in the Park, Jump Man: A Mario Brothers Musical (winner of Best Musical) at the NYC Fringe Festival. Myla co-directed The Danube with Estelle Parsons at the Actors Studio where she is a Lifetime Member and most recently, she directed We’re Gonna Laugh to sold-out audiences at the Secret Theatre and Close Your Eyes at The Hudson Guild. Myla teaches Pilates and yoga and is a private acting coach. She also is the moderator for the Playwright-Directors unit at the Actors Studio.
JoAnna Rhinehart’s (APT Co.) 35-year career thrived in New York City, with TV credits on Late Night with Seth Meyers, Law & Order: SVU, Blue Bloods, Blindspot, Elementary, As the World Turns, Damages, The Following, and Hack. Film credits include Sweet Taste of Freedom, My Sun, My Moon Hold On (2017 Sundance FF), Double Negative (Best Actor Award at Vision FEST15 NY). Plays include: My Fair Lady at Lincoln Center and after a successful run on Broadway, the 1st National Tour, The Tempest, Last Days of Judas Iscariot, Hurt Village, The Bluest Eye, Our Town, among others. A Lifetime Member of The Actors Studio. Member of NY Women in Film and Television. AREmanagement.net/ Alison Rinzel, Jeb Bernstein mgrs. IG jorhinehart2
Suzanne Temple (APT Co.) is thrilled to be a part of APT’s historic introduction season. A former member of the American Mime Theatre’s performing company, she has a background in dance and enjoys comedy and music.
Catherine Russell (Vocalist) is a native New Yorker, born into a musical family. Her father, Luis Russell, was a legendary pianist/composer and bandleader, and Louis Armstrong’s long-time musical director. Her mother, Carline Ray, was a pioneering multi-instrumentalist and vocalist with the all-female Swing orchestra “The International Sweethearts of Rhythm” in the late 1940s. After graduating from the American Academy of Dramatic Arts in 1980, Catherine began recording and touring as a backup singer. She worked with many artists including David Bowie, Cyndi Lauper, Jackson Browne, Paul Simon, Rosanne Cash, Michael Feinstein, and Steely Dan with whom she still works. Her solo career started in 2005, and she has released nine solo albums since 2006. Two of her albums, Harlem On My Mind and Alone Together earned Grammy nominations for Best Jazz Vocal Album. Catherine as taught at Berklee College of Music, The New School, Michael Feinstein’s Songbook Academy and YoungArts, as well as teaching master classes and private students.
Our Commitment to the Planet
Harlem Stage’s values are rooted in ensuring a sustainable planet. Because we see climate change as one of the most pressing issues of our time – an issue that disproportionately impacts Black and Brown communities across the globe - we will continue to honor environmental initiatives both in our operations and programming. Our efforts in using less paper, transitioning to LEDs in our tech and operational spaces, and leaning into digital communications, we have reduced our carbon footprint by 2.5 tons this 2024 – 2025 season alone. Finally, we are proud to work with artists, such as Bebe Miller, who will explore the dynamic and thriving ecology of forests, as necessary to a sustainable planet, as part of our Spring 2025 E-Moves Festival.
HARLEM STAGE BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Ronald K. Alexander
Angela Glover Blackwell
Jenna Bond
Jamila Ponton Bragg
Jamie Cannon – Vice President
JoAnn K. Chase
Hugh Dancy and Claire Danes
Dr. Indira Etwaroo
Courtney F. Lee Mitchell – President
Channing Martin
Larry McRae
Rebecca Robertson
LaChanze Sapp-Gooding
Mark Thomas – Treasurer
Tamara Tunie
Heather Wagoner
Blair Washington
Michael Young – Secretary
HARLEM STAGE LEADERSHIP
Dr. Indira Etwaroo, CEO & Artistic Director
Deirdre May, Chief Content Communications Officer
Margaret Hunt, Development Lead
Jelani Buckner, Innovation Business Management Director
HARLEM STAGE TEAM
Acey Anderson, Facilities and Maintenance Associate
Lamont Askins, Operations Manager
Katie Burk, Graphic Design
Devin Cameron, Light and Projections Designer
Bethany Cintron, Community, Education, and Social Initiatives Manager
Franny Ruth Daleo-Clark, Content Communications & Development Intern
Denzel Fields, Programming and Administrative Associate
Julianna Friedman, Associate Director of Individual and Foundational Giving
Deniz Kofteci, Social Media & Website
Shanté Skyers, Director of Development
Karlvy Smith, Strategic Planning Senior Manager
Timmy Torinus, Production Intern
Saúl Ulerio, Technical Director
HARLEM STAGE USHERS
Julian Norales
Steven Sterling
Linda De La Rosa
Trinity Bell
Joshua Screen
Andy Garcia
HARLEM STAGE TECHNICAL CREW
Clarence Taylor, Shop Steward
David Barrett
Orlando Alvarado
Julio Collado
VENDORS
Das, IT
Lutz & Carr/Chris Bellando, Accountants
Aon/Albert G. Ruben Company (NY)/Claudia Kaufman, Insurance
Dwight Johnson Design, Gala
G&A Partners, Human Resources
Madison Consulting Group, Matt Lawrence
Manchester Benefits, Greg Martin
Squire Media & Management, Public Relations
Marc Millman, Photography
Hollis King, Photography
Ncheng, LLP
Walker International Communications Group
HARLEM STAGE FAMILY OF SUPPORTERS
Endowment
Fan Fox & Leslie R. Samuels Foundation
Leonard and Sophie Davis Fund
Rockefeller Brothers Fund
Public
National Endowment for the Arts—Chair, Maria Rosario Jackson,PhD
New York State Council on the Arts—Chair, Katherine Nicholls
The New York City Department of Cultural Affairs—
Mayor Eric Adams and Commissioner Laurie Cumbo
The New York City Council—Councilmember Shaun Abreu and Councilmember Yusef Salaam
Manhattan Borough President– Mark Levine
Upper Manhattan Empowerment Zone
Foundations
Altman Foundation
Louis Armstrong Educational Foundation, Inc.
Bloomberg Philanthropies
Columbia Community Service
Joseph and Joan Cullman Foundation for the Arts
The Leonard and Sophie Davis Fund
The Fan Fox & Leslie R. Samuels Foundation
Francena T. Harrison Foundation Trust
Ford Foundation
Harkness Foundation for Dance
The Hearst Foundations
Howard Gilman Foundation
The Jerome Foundation
Jewish Communal Fund
The Diana King Memorial Fund Presented by the Charles and Lucille King Family Foundation
Lambent Foundation/Tides Foundation
Lucille Lortel Foundation
MacMillan Family Foundation
(Foundations
continued)
Mellon Foundation
Mertz Gilmore Foundation
Metzger-Price Fund
Miranda Family Fund
The Pierre and Tana Matisse Charitable Foundation
Pilot House
Rockefeller Brothers Fund
Ruth Foundation for the Arts
The Scherman Foundation, Inc.
SHS Foundation
The Shubert Foundation
The Thompson Family Foundation
The Leonard and Robert Weintraub Family Foundation
Corporations
BET Networks
Broadway Cares/Equity Fights Aids
JoAnn Chase Company
Consolidated Edison Company
The Interpublic Group of Companies
Manhattan Beer Distributors
SESAC
West Harlem Development Corporation
INDIVIDUAL SUPPORT
Randy Adams
Lisa Arrindell
Bernard Aronson
L. Kelly Atkinson Jr.
Roland Augustine
Neal Baer
Catherine Baker-Pitts
Stephany and Simon Bergson
Robert D. Bielecki Foundation
Angela Glover Blackwell*
Patricia Blanchet
Richard Buery
Mary Schmidt Campbell
Gayle Capozzalo
Geoffrey Canada
William and Patrice Cannon
Jamie Cannon*
JoAnn Chase*
Barry Cohen
Paul and Caroline Cronson
Hugh Dancy* and Claire Danes*
Indira Etwaroo, PhD*
Joni Evans and Susan Bird
Laura Flanders and Elizabeth Streb
Alex Gansa
Stuart and Karen Gelwarg
Laura Greer
Sharon Hall
Ruth and Stephen Hendel
Leon Henderson
Kinshasha Holman Conwill
William Holtzman
Winnie Holzman
Debra James
John Josephson and Carolina Zapf
Simon Kahn
Jenette Kahn
Michael Kantrow
Michael Kenny
James King
Steven Kirkpatrick
Daniel Klaus
Brad Learmonth and Jon Gilman
Courtney F. Lee-Mitchell*
Kenny Leon
Paul Levitz and Jeanette Cusimano
Jim Lewis
Loida Lewis
Jeanine Liburd
Karen Lipkind
Carey Lovelace
Richard Massey
Gay McDougall
Sherman and Chris Meloni
John Metzner
Kelly Myers
Lynn Nottage
Estelle Parsons
Richard D. Parsons
Marguerite Pitts
Will Pitts
Stan Ponte
Maxine and John Potts
Adam Richman
Dee Dee Ricks
Golda Rosheuvel
Terri Prettyman Bowles
Rebecca Robertson*
Gretchen and Jamie Rubin
Judy Rubin
Ted Snowdon and Duffy Violante
Beth and Jason Spector
Mark Thomas*
Teri & Lloyd Trotter
Tamara Tunie
Reginald Van Lee
Blair Washington*
Carrie Mae Weems
Fran and Barry Weissler
Greg Williamson
Carol Wood Moore
Michael Young*
*Board Members
The above list reflects gifts received between July 1, 2024 and January 23, 2025. Donations under $1,000 are greatly appreciated but not acknowledged publicly. If your name has been omitted or misprinted, please accept our apologies and contact Associate Director of Individual and Foundational Giving, Julianna Friedman at jfriedman@harlemstage.org
MAJOR GIFTS
Altman Foundation
Bloomberg Philanthropies
Ford Foundation
The Hearst Foundations
Howard Gilman Foundation
Jewish Communal Fund
The Diana King Memorial Fund Presented by the Charles and Lucille King
Family Foundation
Lambent Foundation/Tides Foundation
Mellon Foundation
Pilot House
The Thompson Family Foundation
The Leonard and Robert Weintraub Family Foundation
The above list reflects gifts of $100,000 and above. Donations under $99,999 are greatly appreciated but not classified as a Major Gift at Harlem Stage. If your name has been omitted or misprinted, please accept our apologies and contact, Associate Director of Individual and Foundational Giving, Julianna Friedman at jfriedman@harlemstage.org
