New Jersey Stage logo
New Jersey Stage Menu


National Premiere of "A Trojan Woman" comes to Luna Stage

originally published: 03/13/2024

(WEST ORANGE, NJ) -- Luna Stage is thrilled to announce the National Premiere of A Trojan Woman, a searing solo performance adapted from Euripides by Maplewood resident Sara Farrington, directed by Meghan Finn and starring Drita Kabashi. Performances run from March 15-24, 2024.

Commissioned by the The Interbalkan Festival of Ancient Drama, the play recently premiered at Theatro Attikou Aldous/Katina Paxinou Attica Grove Theater in Greece. As Farrington said, “We we had the great privilege of performing this piece as Euripides did, in an open air amphitheater in Athens.”

A Trojan Woman comes to Luna for a two-week run from March 15-24. It plays Fridays at 8:00pm, Saturdays at 3:00pm & 8:00pm, and Sundays at 3:00pm, with special midweek performances Monday March 18 at 8:00pm and an added matinee on Thursday, March 21 at 1:00pm. Tickets are $10-$40 at lunastage.org/trojanwoman.

Farrington adapted Euripides’ classic tragedy into a searing contemporary solo performanc. In a flash of modern warfare (Ukraine? Afghanistan? Vietnam? Poland? Hiroshima? Israel? Gaza?), a mother loses her child. She becomes a Trojan woman, compelled to embody every iconic character in Euripides’ classic play.

“I love the Greek tragedies and playwrights so much,” said playwright Farrington. Euripides’ The Trojan Women “was the first ever anti-war play. Everything Euripides was protesting in 415 BC still needs protesting now.”




Promote your shows at New Jersey Stage! Click here for info



“My version, A Trojan Woman, exists inside an act of modern warfare, specifically, an early moment in the Russian war against Ukraine that affected me deeply. Tetiana Perebyinis, 43 and her two kids, Mykyta, 18 and Alisa, 9, were killed as they fled on foot from their suburb of Irpin to Kyiv. The moment was photographed by Lynsey Addario of The New York Times and came to represent Russian brutality upon Ukrainian civilians,” said Farrington. “The ancient Greek part of this play exists inside that moment of attack and the performer's realization of it.”

A Trojan Woman performs in Luna’s intimate 50-seat studio theatre. It is directed by Meghan Finn, stars Drita Kabashi, and features lighting design by David Heguy. It is produced in assocition with TankNYC.

Post Play Conversations: Stay after the show on Monday, March 18th for a talkback with Montclair State University Professor Mary C. English!

Mary C. English is Professor and Department Chair of Classics and General Humanities at Montclair State University where she teaches Latin and Greek at all levels as well as courses in mythology, ancient drama, and theater history. Currently, she is co-editor of the Thornton Wilder Journal, published by Penn State University Press, a new peer-reviewed journal which she helped to launch in 2020. She also has written numerous articles and book chapters on the staging of ancient comedy and the reception of Greek drama by contemporary American playwrights. Her next book, The Spirit of Aristophanes, a volume she is co-editing with Dustin Dixon of Grinnell College, will be published by Edinburgh University Press later this year.

Luna Stage is a professional regional theatre dedicated to developing and producing vibrant plays about local and global experiences. Firmly rooted in New Jersey's Valley Arts District – a crossroads of cultures – Luna brings its communities together for artistic events that spark conversations and create understanding and change.

Luna received the JerseyArts People's Choice Award for Favorite Small Theatre in New Jersey and has contributed to the development of over 100 new works for the stage, many of which premiered at Luna and have gone on to be produced in New York, regionally, and internationally.

As producer, innovator, and educator, Luna is dedicated to eliminating barriers to participation and allowing all community members to nurture their own creativity and vision. Luna offers classes for children and adults, as well as opportunities for early-career and established theatre artists to develop and incubate new work.




Promote your shows at New Jersey Stage! Click here for info



All programs at Luna are pay-what-you-choose to support equity and access to professional arts experiences in our region.

FEATURED EVENTS

To narrow results by date range, categories,
or region of New Jersey
click here for our advanced search.


The

The Vagina Monologues

Thursday, February 13, 2025 @ 7:30pm
Grunin Center - Black Box Theater
1 College Drive, Toms River, NJ 08754
category: theatre


 

A

A Bronx Tale: The One Man Show Starring Chazz Palminteri

Thursday, February 13, 2025 @ 7:00pm
Bergen Performing Arts Center (bergenPAC)
30 North Van Brunt Street, Englewood, NJ 07631
category: theatre


 

Dunbar

Dunbar Repertory Company Presents "Two Trains Running"

Friday, February 14, 2025 @ 8:00pm
Middletown Arts Center
36 Church Street, Middletown, NJ 07748
category: theatre


 

Catching

Catching the Moon: The Story of a Young Girl's Baseball Dream

Friday, February 14, 2025 @ 7:30pm
The Historic Palace Theatre
7 Ledgewood Avenue, Netcong, NJ 07857
category: theatre


 

The

The Vagina Monologues

Friday, February 14, 2025 @ 7:30pm
Grunin Center - Black Box Theater
1 College Drive, Toms River, NJ 08754
category: theatre


 


 

EVENT PREVIEWS

American

American Theater Group presents "Purlie"

(RAHWAY, NJ) -- Broadway veteran Kenny Ingram will direct American Theater Group's (ATG) production of the exhilarating and Tony Award-winning musical Purlie, running March 6-23, 2025, at Hamilton Stage in Rahway. Gary Mitchell, Jr. will provide Musical Direction. Purlie is the 1970 musical adaptation of Ossie Davis's comedic play Purlie Victorious, which just completed a hugely successful revival on Broadway last season.



Bordentown

Bordentown Regional High School presents hilarious musical "Curtains"

(BORDENTOWN, NJ) -- The musical comedy murder mystery Curtains: School Edition, with music and lyrics by John Kander and Fred Ebb, and a witty, charming book by Rupert Holmes, will be presented February 21-22, 2025 at the Bordentown Performing Arts Center by the award-winning theatre students of Bordentown Regional High School.



Gateway

Gateway Playhouse to Showcase All of The Bard's Plays in "The Complete Works of William Shakespeare..."

(SOMERS POINT, NJ) -- Gateway Playhouse will showcase all of William Shakespeare's 37 plays – in just 95 minutes – in the hilarious "The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (Abridged/Revised/Again)" by Adam Long, Daniel Singer and Jess Winfield, who originally created the show for the Edinburgh Theater Fest in 1987. Since then, it has toured the world over, delighting audiences, whether connoisseurs of The Bard or perhaps barely remember one play from high school. This delightful show comes to the Gateway for one weekend only, March 7-9, 2025.



Kelsey

Kelsey Theatre to Host Staged Reading, with Orchestra, of New Musical by Lou DiPietro

(WEST WINDSOR, NJ) -- Kelsey Theatre, on the West Windsor Campus of Mercer County Community College (MCCC), will host a one-night only staged reading—complete with a nine-piece orchestra—of the inspiring new musical "It's Never Too Late," presented by Theater to Go on Thursday, February 20, 2025 at 7:30pm.



Dover

Dover Little Theatre presents "Misery" – A Thrilling Stage Adaptation of Stephen King's Classic Novel

(DOVER, NJ) -- Dover Little Theatre is thrilled to present Misery. Directed by Angel Fajardo, this production will captivate audiences with its intense performances, twisting plot, and psychological tension. Performances run weekends from February 21 to March 2, 2025.