(RED BANK, NJ) -- The award-winning Two River Theater is proud to spotlight its ongoing commitment to new plays and musicals with more commissions supporting some of today's most compelling theater makers. Commissioned artists in 2026 are Tony® Award-nominee Joe Iconis (The Untitled Unauthorized Hunter S. Thompson Musical at La Jolla Playhouse), whose TRT commission, Be More Chill, premiered at Two River prior to its Broadway run, and playwright Iraisa Ann Reilly (A Bodega Princess Remembers... at Ensemble Studio Theatre), whose work has been featured in Two River's Crossing Borders/Cruzando Fronteras Festival.
They join Christopher Anselmo and Jared Corak (Fountain at NAMT, The Pout-Pout Fish), Alex Lin (Chinese Republicans at Roundabout Theatre Company), Mayte Natalio (Broadway's How to Dance in Ohio and Suffs), and Christina Pumariega (¡VOS! at Two River Theater) who have received recent commissions from Two River Theater.
Two River's commissioning and New Work development program is led by Artistic Director Justin Waldman, Associate Artistic Director Dennis Chambers, and Literary Manager Fiona Kyle.
"It is a privilege to deepen our relationships with extraordinary writers, thinkers, and makers through Two River's robust commissioning program," says Artistic Director Justin Waldman. "Each of these artists bring different lenses of experience and storytelling that will resonate with our audiences in New Jersey and throughout the country. A commission is a labor of love and a commitment from the theater and the artist, and we can't wait to see what each of them will create."
Two River has a strong track record of commissioning, developing, and premiering new work by leading theater artists. This past season, TRT's commission of The Monsters by Ngozi Anyanwu (Good Grief at Center Theatre Group and Vineyard Theatre) premiered in a co-production with Manhattan Theatre Club and earned a Lucille Lortel Award Nomination for Outstanding Play, a New York Times Critic's Pick, The Blanche and Irving Laurie Foundation's Theatre Visions Award, and an Edgerton Foundation New Play award. During the 2026-27 season, the show will be produced at theaters across the country, including The Geffen Playhouse, Berkeley Repertory Theatre, and La Jolla Playhouse, demonstrating the lasting impact and national reach of Two River's commissioning program. Other Two River commissions that have received their World Premieres in Red Bank include Hurricane Diane by Madeleine George, Your Blues Ain't Sweet like Mine by Ruben Santiago-Hudson, and The Hombres by Tony Meneses.
Two River's commissioning program exemplifies the theater's commitment to the holistic ecosystem of new plays, musicals, and experiences. Each commission receives $15,000, access to institutional developmental support, including dramaturgy practice and reading and workshop opportunities, access to Two River's staff, residency in Red Bank, space in TRT's Center for New Work, Education, and Design, and an enduring commitment to their artistry. The theater's current full list of artists under commission include Christopher Anselmo and Jared Corak, Jaclyn Backhaus, Jessica Hagedorn, Joe Iconis, Joe Iconis and Joe Tracz, James Ijames, Alex Lin, Mayte Natalio, Eliana Pipes, Christina Pumariega, and Iraisa Ann Reilly.
CREATIVES BIOS:
Christopher Anselmo (he/him) is a songwriter and playwright from Central Jersey (it exists!). His musicals include Fountain (O'Neill NMTC, NAMT), Atlantic (Edinburgh), Fable (NYMF) and the NYTimes Critic's Pick adaptation of The Pout-Pout Fish, which premiered at the New Victory Theater in 2019 and continues to tour the nation with TheaterWorksUSA. His latest musical Princess Kay Of The Milky Way has received development through Rhinebeck Writers Retreat and the Johnny Mercer Writers Grove at Goodspeed Musicals. He has been named a finalist for the Larson Grant and Kleban Prize alongside collaborator Jared Corak. In addition to his work as a writer, he served as associate to composer Jeanine Tesori on projects such as the Tony Award-winning Kimberly Akimbo. Member of ASCAP, Dramatists Guild and the BMI Advanced Workshop. Northwestern alum.
Jared Corak (he/him) is a Brooklyn-based writer and lyricist. His musicals include the New York Times Critic's Pick adaptation of The Pout-Pout Fish, which premiered at the New Victory Theater in 2019 and continues to tour the nation with TheaterWorksUSA; Fountain, which was selected for the O'Neill's 2023 National Music Theater Conference and NAMT's 2023 Festival of New Musicals; and Princess Kay Of The Milky Way, which has received development through Rhinebeck Writers Retreat and the Johnny Mercer Writers Grove at Goodspeed Musicals. He is the recipient of the BMI Foundation's Ellen Schwartz Award for Outstanding Literary Merit in Lyric Writing and the Jean Banks Award. With collaborator Christopher Anselmo, he has been a finalist for the Larson Grant and Kleban Prize. When he is not writing musicals, he works on the CBS TV show "FBI."
Joe Iconis is a Tony Award®-nominated musical theater writer and performer. He is the recipient of the Ed Kleban Award, Jonathan Larson Award, and Richard Rodgers Award. His show The Untitled Unauthorized Hunter S. Thompson Musical, directed by Christopher Ashley, has played the Signature Theatre in Washington D.C. and La Jolla Playhouse. Other shows include Be More Chill (with Joe Tracz) which played Broadway, London, and Tokyo after originating at Two River Theater in Red Bank, NJ. Joe is the author of Love in Hate Nation (directed by John Simpkins), Broadway Bounty Hunter (with Lance Rubin and Jason SweetTooth Williams), Bloodsong of Love, Punk Rock Girl! The Black Suits (with Robert Maddock), ReWrite, and many more. His work has been produced by La Jolla Playhouse, Ars Nova, Theaterworks USA, Urban Stages, Barrington Stage Company and his music has been heard on NBC's "Smash" and "Riverdale". Joe's annual Christmas Extravaganza (produced by Jennifer Ashley Tepper) is in its sixteenth year, and he frequently performs his concert act at the Laurie Beechman Theater and 54 Below, where he is the current Artist-in-Residence. His albums on Ghostlight Records include the 44-song retrospective Album (Joe Iconis & Family), Two-Player Game (with George Salazar), and many cast recordings. Joe is hugely inspired by Robert Altman, Dolly Parton, The Muppets, and the Family of artists he frequently surrounds himself with.
Alex Lin is just a girl from Jersey. Lin's plays have been seen and developed at Roundabout, Second Stage Theater, New York Theatre Workshop, Manhattan Theatre Club, Primary Stages, Rattlestick, the O'Neill, New Harmony, Two River, South Coast Repertory, Fault Line, Ojai, Cape Cod Theatre Project, Playwrights Realm, Central Square Theater, and Theater Mu. She has been a guest lecturer at Carnegie Mellon University, Rutgers University, and Union College. As an actor, Lin has appeared at NYTW (I've Got a Sinking Feeling...), the Actors Theatre of Louisville (The Wolves), New Victory (In the Land of Mauve and Gold), Fault Line (Ãn Chõi), Hudson Valley Shakespeare Festival (Julius Caesar, The Cherry Tortured), Ma-Yi (The House of Billy Paul), Commonwealth Shakespeare (Henry VI Part III, Richard III), Amphibian Stage, Ojai, Rattlestick, and Cape Cod Theatre Project (barren). Lin is a recipient of the Elizabeth George Foundation Commission, Manhattan Theatre Club Sloan Initiative, and the Working Theater inaugural playwright residency. Lin is a Susan Smith Blackburn Prize finalist, Stavis Award winner, two-time Kennedy Center Paul Stephen Lim Award winner, Weissberger Award nominee, BMI Bookwriting Fellow, Rattlestick Van Lier Fellow, and Colt Coeur Resident Artist. Juilliard.
Mayte Natalio is a Dominican-American movement based performer, choreographer and director, born and raised in New York City. Her professional training started at the LaGuardia H.S. for the Performing Arts and SUNY Purchase (BFA). She has performed and toured with the Parson's Dance Company, Camille A. Brown and Dancers, Kyle Abraham's A.I.M, Darrell Moultrie, Mylene Farmer and Kanye West. Favorite TV and Film credits include "The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel" (Amazon), "The Get Down" (Netflix), NBC's Jesus Christ Superstar Live, Ma Rainey's Black Bottom (Netflix) and "Harlem" (Amazon). Favorite regional credits include Stagger Lee and Hair (Dallas Theater Center) and Aida (Ogunquit Playhouse). Off-Broadway credits include the Drama Desk winning immersive show Queen of the Night and Third Rail Project's The Grand Paradise. Most recently Mayte was featured as Rosie Perez in Hippest Trip-The Soul Train Musical. Choreography credits include The Winter's Tale (Public Works/ DTC), Red Speedo (Juilliard), Runaways (NYU), Into the Woods (Barrington Stage), Love in Hate Nation (Two River Theater), Measure for Measure (Public Theater/Mobile Unit), Hair (The Old Globe) Pippin (UArts), Pyer Moss's Haute Couture Show for Paris Fashion Week 2021, Kiss My Aztec (Hartford Stage), The Tattooed Lady (Philadelphia Theatre Company), Another Rose (Virgin Voyages), How to Dance in Ohio (Syracuse Stage and Broadway), Suffs (Broadway), and Urinetown (City Center Encores). Mayte received the 2024 Douglas and Ethel Watt Critz's Choice Chita Rivera Award.
Christina Pumariega acts and writes. Often simultaneously. She performed in the World Premiere of her play ¡VOS! at Two River Theater. ¡VOS! was developed at the Ojai Playwrights Conference and received the Edgerton Foundation New Play Award. She performed in her play Vidas Privadas, inspired by Noël Coward's Private Lives, at New York Stage and Film and TRT. She is a 25/26 member of Center Theatre Group's LA Writers' Workshop. Other plays include Labor (Leah Ryan honorable mention), Joan Dark (Denver Center for the Performing Arts Summit), Harbor Girls, and Her Math Play (EST/Sloan Grant). She is currently under commission by Manhattan Theatre Club/Alfred P. Sloan Foundation, DCPA and Two River. TV writing credits include Disney+ and NBC. She directed and acted in her horror-lore film Auteur, featuring the work of Oscar, BAFTA and Emmy-winning special effects makeup artist Brian Sipe. Acting on and Off-Broadway and in television and film, Pumariega has cross examined Coach Taylor, made out with the Fly and set a Cuban pharmacy ablaze in a corset. MFA, NYU Graduate Acting Program.
Iraisa Ann Reilly (She/Ella) is a writer, actor and educator originally from New Jersey. She recently appeared Off-Broadway at Ensemble Studio Theatre in her one-woman show A Bodega Princess Remembers La Fiesta de Los Reyes Magos, 1998, a co-production with Ensemble Studio Theatre, The Lucille Lortel Theatre, and Latinx Playwrights Circle. Prior to the New York production, Bodega Princess was produced in Philadelphia by Simpatico Theatre Company, and won the Barrymore Award for Outstanding New Play, 2025. As a playwright, her work has been developed and recognized by Teatro del Sol, Soho Rep, Atlantic Theatre Company, La Jolla Playhouse, Two River Theater, Arkansas New Play Festival, Bay Area Playwright's Festival, Theatre Exile, The New Harmony Project, Texas A&M University, Michigan State, Sol Project, Simpatico Theatre Company, Latinx Playwrights Circle, Art House Productions, Repertorio Español and the Yale Drama Series. She is currently a part of Roundabout Theatre Company's Underground Residency, and under commission with Arden Theatre Company. As an educator, Iraisa Ann is an adjunct professor of Dramatic Writing at NYU Tisch and is a teaching artist with Roundabout Theatre Company and ESPA Primary Stages. MFA Dramatic Writing from NYU. BA Theatre and English from the University of Notre Dame.
Two River Theater's 2025/26 Season Sponsor is Hackensack Meridian Riverview Medical Center.
Two River is funded in part by public support through the New Jersey State Council on the Arts, the New Jersey Economic Development Authority, the New Jersey Office of Homeland Security and Preparedness, funding through a grant from the New Jersey Department of State, the State of New Jersey, and the Monmouth County Board of County Commissioners. Private support includes American Theatre Wing, Courtyard by Marriott, Edgerton Foundation, Grunin Foundation, Merrill G. & Emita E. Hastings Foundation, Jewish Federation in the Heart of New Jersey, The Blanche and Irving Laurie Foundation, MacMillan Family Foundation, Manasquan Bank Charitable Foundation, Mary Owen Borden Foundation, Molly Pitcher Inn and The Oyster Point Hotel, Monmouth University, OceanFirst Foundation, Open Heart Yoga, The Shubert Foundation, The Stone Foundation of New Jersey, and Visiting Nurse Association of NJ Health Group, and other generous funders.
Award-winning Two River Theater, located in Red Bank, New Jersey, is where bold stories inspire imagination and connection. Each season, the theater produces a mix of new plays, reimagined classics, and musicals, along with new work development, education programs for young people, and community engagement events that bring people of all ages together. Across its 80,000-square-foot campus, more than 20,000 students, families, and theater lovers experience Two River's acclaimed productions each year on its two stages: the 343-seat Joan and Robert Rechnitz Theater and the flexible 110-seat Marion Huber Theater. The theater also houses state-of-the-art scenic, costume, and property shops. Two River has launched productions that have reached international audiences, including Be More Chill by Tony Award®nominees Joe Iconis and Joe Tracz—the theater's first Broadway production—which went on to play in London's West End and Japan. Recognized by USA TODAY as one of the "10 Great Places to See a Play," Two River Theater is led by Artistic Director Justin Waldman and Managing Director Nora DeVeau-Rosen.
