Presented by the Lewis Center for the Arts’ Program in Theater.
Affecting Expression by Eliana Cohen-Orth ’21
Run Time
Approximately 100 minutes, with no intermission.
Content Warnings
Fog and haze, yelling/arguing, toxic relationships, throwing objects.
Special Notes
Please silence all electronic devices including cellular phones and watches, and refrain from text messaging for the duration of the performance. No video/audio recording, photography or flash photography permitted.
Cast
Matilda Hays: Rosemary Paulson ’23 *
Charlotte Cushman: Magdalena Poost ’23 *
Hatty Hosmer: Juliette Carbonnier ’24 *
Dramatis Personae: Sam Melton ’23
Production Team
Director: Eliyana Abraham ’23*
Set Designer: Emily Yang ’25*
Costume Consultant: Jules Peiperl ’17
Costume Facilitator: Keating Debelak
Lighting Designer: Angelica Qin ’23*
Sound Designer: Elliot Lee ’23*
Intimacy/Fight Director: Jacqueline Holloway
Stage Manager: Gabbie Bourla ’23
Assistant Stage Managers: TJ Rickey ’24, Zach Williamson ’26
Stitchers: Wyatt Kim, Gaea Lawton ’23*
Run Crew: Nicabec Casido ’24, Jeffery Chen ’25*
*denotes a certificate student in the Program in Theater
Faculty Advisors
Shariffa Ali, primary advisor
Tess James, Production/Design Mentor
Talkbacks
An audience talkback will follow the October 7 performance led by Dean of the College Jill Dolan, Professor of Theater Stacy Wolf, director Eliyana Abraham and playwright Eliana Cohen-Orth.
Director’s Note
Dear friends,
Thank you so much for joining us for Affecting Expression. I first encountered Affecting Expression, written by my dear friend, Eliana Cohen-Orth, while we were living together in a house during Fall 2020 and Spring 2021. I got to watch as it grew throughout the year, and eventually we read a complete draft aloud in the living room for the first time, with our own cohort of queer women artists/friends/housemates. I remember being struck by the richness and honesty within this story, and found myself deeply invested in the world of these characters, their relationships, and their art. I was moved as I reflected on how some of my own experiences, as a young queer female artist, were reflected so vividly within the walls of the characters’ home. Since that first reading, this play has evolved so much, and I am so grateful to be sharing it with you all now.
I feel that I cannot put into words the amount of gratitude I hold for every person who has dedicated themselves to this project, but perhaps I can begin by thanking my former housemates, Paige, Nora, and Hannah. You have all been so crucial in the development of this project from the beginning. Although you’ve not been part of this production process, I see you all in the words on the page, in the house in Rome, and in the very energy of this process. I cannot wait to share this show with you all now.
To the team, Gabbie, TJ, Zach, Angelica, Elliot, Emily, Jeffery, and Nicabec: thank you all for your endless dedication to this process. Your talents are what make this production whole, and I could not have asked for a better group of people to collaborate with. And to Gabbie, thank you for embarking on yet another theatrical journey with me. You have truly been by my side since the very beginning, and I cannot express how grateful I am to have you in my life.
To the cast, Maggie, Rosemary, Juliette, and Sam, thank you so much for sharing all of your brilliance with me, and bringing such gentleness and care into our rehearsal room. I am awestruck by your talents every day, and I am even more awestruck at the amount of love and joy each of you breathes into the room. Your performances are breathtaking, and I am so lucky to have had the opportunity to make something so beautiful with all of you. And to my amazing girlfriend, Sam, thank you for always being there to listen to me ramble, to bounce ideas off of, and to grow in this process with me – I love you.
Finally, to Eliana, thank you so much for trusting me with this play, and for sharing this beautiful story with the world. This play means so much to me, and I am so deeply honored to have worked on such a phenomenal piece, with such an incredible artist and friend. Thank you for sharing your brilliance with me. You are my greatest inspiration.
Now, please enjoy Affecting Expression. I can only hope that you all will find yourselves within the walls of this home, too.
Dearly,
Eliyana Abraham
Director
Land Acknowledgement
An estimated 10 million Native Americans lived in North America before the arrival of European colonizers. Many thousands lived in Lenapehoking, the vast homeland of the Lenni-Lenape, who were the first inhabitants of what is now called eastern Pennsylvania and parts of New York, New Jersey, Maryland, and Delaware.
Princeton stands on part of the ancient homeland and traditional territory of the Lenape people. In 1756, the College of New Jersey erected Nassau Hall with no recorded consultation with the Lenni-Lenape peoples.
Treaties and forced relocation dispersed Lenape-Delaware to Ohio, Kansas, and Oklahoma. We acknowledge the violence of settler colonialism and pay respect to Lenape peoples past, present, and future and their continuing presence in the homeland and throughout the Lenape diaspora.
For more information about ways you can engage with and support the Indigenous community on campus please visit the website of Native American and Indigenous studies (NAI), Natives at Princeton and Princeton Indigenous Advocacy Coalition.
Lewis Center for the Arts
Chair: Judith Hamera
Executive Director: Marion Friedman Young
Interim Director of Program in Theater: Brian Herrera
Producing Artistic Director, Theater And Music Theater Season: Elena Araoz
View a full list of the Program in Theater Faculty & Guest Artists
For a look at all the people working behind the scenes to bring you this event, view a full list of LCA staff members »
The programs of the Peter B. Lewis Center for the Arts are made possible through the generous support of many alumni and other donors. View a full list of LCA Supporters »
