(HOBOKEN, NJ) -- Mile Square Theatre, Hudson County’s leading professional theatre, presents Dominique Morisseau’s searing drama Pipeline. In the play, a mother’s hopes for her son clash with an educational system rigged against him. With profound compassion and lyricism, Pipeline brings an urgent conversation powerfully to the fore. Issues of class, race, parenting, and education in America come to the surface as we are left to question the structures that ultimately trap underserved communities. Performances run from September 11 through October 6.
Nya, an inner-city public high school teacher, is committed to her students but desperate to give her only son Omari opportunities they’ll never have. When a controversial incident at his upstate private school threatens to get him expelled, Nya must confront his rage and her own choices as a parent. But will she be able to reach him before a world beyond her control pulls him away?
“We are thrilled to produce this moving drama by Dominique Morisseau. It speaks to so much that is happening in America today, and we are honored to present Morisseau’s articulate voice on the MST stage,” says MST Artistic Director Chris O’Connor. “We’ve put together an incredibly gifted cast to render this moving story, and the production is in the very capable hands of Obie-winning director Kevin R. Free.”
Pipeline stars Malikha Mallette (Daredevil, House of Cards), Marcus Denard Johnson, (Titan Theatre Company), Chadwick Antonio Rawlings (MST’s 7th Inning Stretch), Jarvis Tomdio (Marvelous Mrs. Maisel), Jessica Darrow (Bitter Greens at 59E59 Theaters), and Annie McAdams (Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spikeat MST).
“Pipeline is an emotionally harrowing, ethically ambiguous drama that raises barbed questions about class, race, parental duty, and the state of American education.” —Variety
The creative team includes many MST resident designers; scenic designer Matthew J. Fick (The Net Will Appear), costume designer Natalie Loveland (It’s a Wonderful Life), lighting designer Jason Flamos (I and You), projection designer Joey Moro (Long Gone Daddy) and sound designer Frederick Kennedy.
Performances are September 11 through October 6: Wednesdays, Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays @ 8:00pm, and Sundays @ 3:00pm. Tickets are $15-40 • $18 students and seniors. Tickets are available at www.milesquaretheatre.org, or by calling 201-683-7014. Discount Parking available at The Harlow at 1330 Willow Avenue and at Little Man Parking at 1300 Jefferson Street.
Mile Square Theatre is located at 1400 Clinton Street in Hoboken, New Jersey.
MST Season Sponsorship: Advance Realty, Bijou Properties, Jet.com, Kearny Bank, The Rockefeller Group. Mile Square Theatre is supported by the Geraldine R. Dodge Foundation.
This program is made possible in part by funds from the New Jersey Council on the Arts/Department of State, a partner agency of the National Endowment for the Arts and by funds from the National Endowment for the Arts, administered by the Hudson County Office of Cultural & Heritage Affairs, Thomas A. Degise, County Executive, and the Board of Chosen Freeholders.
COMPANY BIOS:
MALIKHA MALLETTE (Nya), a Queens, NY native, is an actress and voiceover artist. Her stage credits include You Wouldn’t Expect, the award-winning NYC Fringe play, Colorblind’d and a revival of David Rabe’s In The Boom Boom Room. Her screen credits include work on Daredevil, House of Cards, Law & Order: SVU and Bull. Next up, you can see Malikha in the new Hulu series Wu-Tang: An American Saga and on Search Party on TBS. A former radio personality on NYC’s Power 105.1, Malikha has voiced over 100 TV and radio commercials and can currently be heard narrating the TV One crime series Fatal Attraction. Malikha is a proud graduate of Spelman College.
JARVIS TOMDIO (Omari) is a first generation Cameroonian-American actor from the Washington D.C. area, currently based in New York City. He cultivated his immense passion for the craft while training at the Acting Studio NY. Recent credits include Ray Donovan and The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel.
JESSICA DARROW (Jasmine) is an actor and voiceover artist from Miami, FL. Off-Broadway credits include: Bitter Greens (59E59 Theaters), The Grievance Club(Classic Stage Company). Other favorite roles: Lucy in You’re a Good Man Charlie Brown (Miami Stage Company) and Hermia in A Midsummer Night’s Dream(Shakespeare’s Globe). She studied at Mason Gross School of the Arts at Rutgers University as well as at Shakespeare’s Globe. Jessica also starred in the film “Feast of the Seven Fishes” directed by Robert Tinnell, premiering in theaters this November. Instagram: @itmejessdarrow website: jessicadarrow.com
MARCUS DENARD JOHNSON (Xavier) is a New York City based actor, director, and theatre education administrator originally from Atlanta, GA. Marcus is the newly appointed Artistic Associate at Titan Theatre Company, where he is also a member of the resident acting company. New York City: A Christmas Carol, The Tempest, Much Ado About Nothing, Richard III, Twelfth Night (Titan Theatre), Othello (Hudson Warehouse), Two Gentleman of Verona (Inwood Shakespeare), Henry V (Gallery Players), Love's Labor’s Lost (Hip to Hip), The Exonerated (The Secret Theatre), Much Ado About Nothing (American Bard), Regional: The Meeting (Ocean State Theatre) A Tale of Two Cities, Equus, To Kill a Mockingbird (Asolo Rep), The Wiz (True Colors). Directing: The Wiz, truth: The Testimonial of Sojourner Truth (Hope Summer Rep). Marcus holds an MFA from the FSU/Asolo Conservatory for Actor Training and a B.A. in Theater from Morehouse College. www.marcusdenardjohnson.com
CHADWICK ANTONIO RAWLINGS (Dun) has been acting in plays since his early youth. Most recently he has appeared in Theatre projects such as VtoX, A Soldier’s Play and Ain’t No Sunshine. He can also be seen in countless TV appearances as well as consistent modeling in fitness, fashion and business magazines. Chadwick is also an accomplished Martial Artist who instructs local youth and adults in the Afro-Brazilian art of Capoeira.
ANNIE McADAMS (Laurie) has worked regionally at the Intiman Theatre in Seattle (World Premiere of Smash by Jeffrey Hatcher) and at the Franklin Stage Company as Helena in A Midsummer Night’s Dream. New York City: Lydie Breeze (New York Theatre Workshop), Cruel and Barbarous Treatment (Culture Project). At Mile Square Theatre she appeared in Love of the Game, Fantasy League, God of Carnage, Core Values and Vanya, Sonia, Masha, and Spike. Annie is the Education Director for Mile Square Theatre and teaches at Drew University and Hudson County Community College.
KEVIN R. FREE (Director) is a multidisciplinary artist whose work as an actor, writer, director, and producer has been showcased and developed in many places, including FringeNYC, National Black Theater, The New Black Fest, The Moth Radio Hour, Project Y Theater, Flux Theater Ensemble, the Queerly Festival (of which he is now the curator), and The Fire This Time Festival, where he served as Producing Artistic Director for 5 years, winning an Obie for his work in 2015. Recent directing credits: The Last Five Years and Lady Day at Emerson’s Bar & Grill (Portland Stage); Topdog/Underdog (University of Arkansas); GLORY! (Dixon Place); The Fire This Time Festival 10th Anniversary World Premiere Festival; WINNER (Samuel French Off-Broadway Play Festival). Kevin just appeared as Dr. Frans in the World Premiere of Wink at Marin Theater Company. More at kevinrfree.com and my carl.com; Twitter and IG: @kevinrfree and @mycarlprod
CHRIS O’CONNOR (Artistic Director, Producer) Chris is Founding Artistic Director of Mile Square Theatre. In 2017, he received an Award of Excellence from the New Jersey Theatre Alliance for his leadership as Artistic Director of Mile Square Theatre. As an actor, Chris has performed in such theatres as Franklin Stage Company, Seattle’s A Contemporary Theatre, The Culture Project, Soho Rep, The Ahmanson, Gloucester Stage, Provisional Theatre of Los Angeles, The Bathhouse Theatre, Seattle Children's Theatre, City Theatre in Pittsburgh, where he originated the role of Peter in Craig Wright’s The Pavilion, and at Maltz Jupiter Theatre in Billy Elliot. Recent TV and film credits include Magic City, Burn Notice, and the new indie thriller Depraved. Chris has directed over 25 productions at MST and has directed at theatres and universities all over America, most recently at Franklin Stage Company where he directed Billy Bishop Goes to War. Other recent work includes The Complete Works of William Shakespeare Abridged at Lyric Repertory in Logan, Utah, and recently at Mile Square Theatre; I and You, The Garden of Rikki Tikki Tavi, Betrayal, Circle Mirror Transformation and the world premiere of Long Gone Daddy by Joseph Gallo. He played Vanya in last season’s production of Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike. Chris chairs the newly formed Hoboken Arts Advisory Board for the City of Hoboken. He is an Assistant Professor on the Theatre Arts faculty at Molloy College. Chris holds a BFA from Carnegie-Mellon University and an MFA from Rutgers University.
