(NEW YORK, NY) -- SoHo Playhouse is thrilled to announce the six finalists for the 2025 Lighthouse Series, running July 6–20, 2025. The Final Round includes Brody Went Missing by Matt Stephens; How to Build a Gate by Electra Artemis; Golem Owned a Tropical Smoothie by Ethan Crystal and Garrett Poladian; The Ghost of Bob Dylan Shows One of Us Greatness by Annie Stein; Hungry Women by Melissa Maney; and Hot Pussy Time Machine by Alexander J. Daniels.
SoHo Playhouse’s Managing Director Britt Lafield says, “We are amazed by the caliber of shows that have made it to our final round. There are multiple shows that I can seeing being a great success Off-Broadway and beyond. We can’t wait to see what they do with an expanded format. I think we will have a tough choice this year to pick a winner. If you like seeing amazing new work before they hit it big, I suggest you come down to Soho this July.”
Amazing works by NYC’s talented up-and-comers. A competition, first of its kind, specifically designed to showcase the best new talent and writers across the New York City area. From the 15 semi-finalists, our audiences have chosen six finalists. Round 2 begins July 6! Each night is built as an eclectic and diverse experience with themes and performances ranging from drama to comedy, and everything in between.
From this group an overall winner is picked to receive a full production at SoHo Playhouse in 2026. Come see tomorrow’s stars today!
SoHo Playhouse is located at 15 Vandam Street in New York City. Tickets are $31.50 (includes fees). Each evening’s run time is approximately 90 minutes. Schedule varies - for exact days and times, to purchase tickets, and for more info go to https://www.sohoplayhouse.com.
2025 Lighthouse Series Final Round
GROUP A - Performances on Sunday July 6 at 5:00pm, Monday July 7 at 7:00pm, Wednesday July 9 at 7:00pm and Thursday July 10 at 7:00pm.
Brody Went Missing by Matt Stephens. This is a road trip comedy play about Brody’s best friends, Angie and Doug. Brody is the coolest guy in Langstown. And he’s about to take over the most successful party store in town from his mother. He has it all. So Angie and Doug are understandably confused when he leaves a note telling them he’s leaving town forever. They hit the road to find answers, blasting tunes and meeting an eclectic cast of characters along the way.
Cast includes Ben Anderson, Ryan Barker, Andy Fitch, Florence Friebee, Marcus Haugen, Steve Malden, Janice McIntyre, Levi Penley, Scott Richey, Julia Scroeder, Matt Stephens, Richard Templeton, Carl Thompson and Liam Welsh.
How To Build A Gate by Electra Artemis and directed by Sydney Dennison. Liza, a sharp-tongued, sexually adventurous, computer scientist, is at the top of her game—until the AI assistant she’s building starts showing unsettling signs of self-awareness. As Liza juggles flirty texts from her hot neighbor and mounting pressure from her boss, she’s forced to confront a question bigger than any algorithm: What do you do when you make the thing that could replace you? How to Build a Gate is a fast-paced, irreverent exploration of power, responsibility and the limits of human control—blending dark humor and biting social commentary in a world where intelligence, artificial or not, is never truly neutral.
Cast includes Kate Low and Megan Piggott.
Production team includes Assistant Director Grace Terrano, Producer Ana Sophia Acosta, Dramaturgy Zora Squish Pruitt, Poster Design Sam Besca and Photo John Garan.
GROUP B - Performances on Friday July 11 at 7:00pm, Saturday July 12 at 7:00pm, Sunday July 13 at 5:00pm and Tuesday July 15 at 7:00pm.
Golem Owned A Tropical Smoothie by Ethan Crystal and Garrett Poladian. This play tells the story of Golem, a non-copyright-infringing creature who owns a non-copyright-infringing smoothie shop called Tropical Smoothie in Panama City Beach, Florida. His newest young employee, Ian, struggles to find the meaning in all this - until Smeegle, the Machiavellian CEO of Smoothie Kingdom, reveals his evil plan to drive Golem out of business forever. Determined to rewrite his destiny, Ian hatches a plan with his best friend Kyle and his older sister Gabby to save Tropical Smoothie. Can he do it? I don’t know. Maybe. But the point is, Golem owned a Tropical Smoothie.
Cast includes Jennifer Barnhart, Ethan Crystal, Julian Diaz-Granados, Carson Higgins, Lea Nardi, Garrett Poladian, SLee and Terrence Williams Jr.
Production team includes Producer Jonathan Hogue, Music Director/Orchestrator Stephen Murphy, Choreographer Ian Coulter-Buford, Associate Choreographer Tony M. Williams II, Assistant Choreographer Allie Beltran, Production Stage Manager Amelia McGinnis, Props Designer Samantha Tutasi and Puppet Consultant Jennifer Barnhart.
The Ghost Of Bob Dylan Shows One Of Us Greatness by Annie Stein and directed by Nicky Longo. In this play, Bob Dylan might still be alive, but that won’t stop his ghost from barging in on three music-obsessed friends and declaring that one of them will be chosen to ascend to rock-and-roll greatness. But what does it really mean to be “greatness material”? And what’s so great about greatness, anyway?
Cast includes Sam Colt-Simonds, Anna Davis, Branwyn Ritchie and Jack Teitelbaum.
Production team includes Stage Manager Liliana Patracuolla, Sound Design Ariana Cardoza, Lighting Design Alex Fetchko, Costumer Design Olivia Kierstead, Poster Design Amar Ahmad and Projection Design Keya Samant.
GROUP C - Performances on Thursday July 17 at 7:00pm, Friday July 18 at 7:00pm, Saturday July 19 at 7:00pm and Sunday July 20 at 5:00pm.
Hungry Women by Melissa Maney and directed by Iris Dukatt. If men went extinct, what would our world become? In 19th century Massachusetts, four women face the mysterious deaths of their town’s men. As repressed feelings about motherhood, gender, sexuality and hunger for agency rise to the surface, finally, it’s their turn to decide: what comes next?
Cast includes ChiWen Chang, Zoe Dean, Ming Peiffer and Bre Tomey.
Production team includes Stage Manager Patricia Roques, Creative Director Marissa Todd and Costume Consultant Siena Zoë Allen.
Hot Pussy Time Machine by Alexander J Daniels and directed by Engels Perez. This is an absurd, raunchy comedy about three friends—Genevieve, Frankie, and Mary—who accidentally discover that female pleasure can unlock the secrets of time travel. What starts as an attempt to reclaim control over their lives spirals into a chaotic journey through history. The play explores self-discovery and the ridiculous ways society misunderstands and suppresses female pleasure. It’s packed with over-the-top characters, satire, and chaotic humor that emphasizes and confronts male arrogance and societal taboos.
Cast includes Agnes Enkh, Troy Michael, Olivia Reburn and Zoë Tanton.
Production team includes Intimacy Coordinator Emmaline Morris, BTS Videographer Ryan Leshock and Promotional Designer Meg Aki.
Continuing in the spirit of the theater’s original tenant, Edward Albee and his Playwright Unit Workshop, SoHo Playhouse (Artistic Director Darren Lee Cole, Managing Director Britt Lafield) is committed to presenting the brightest and most talented artists from New York, with its Lighthouse Series, and around the world, with the International Fringe Encore Series, to give the theater-going audience of New York important stories told with unique style, and evolving what the concept of Off-Broadway Theater is in the 21st century.
