Presented by the Lewis Center for the Arts’ Program in Theater & Music Theater
Graveyard Shift
A House of Bones Theater Company Production
Run Time
Approximately 2 hours, including a 15 minute intermission.
Program Notes
Setting: A graveyard in the House of Bones universe
Time: A mix of trying times not unlike our own
Content Advisory
The production deals with death and dying and uses some strong language. The production uses theatrical haze and fog, intense strobe and flashing lights, and loud music/sounds.
Special Notes
Please silence all electronic devices including cellular phones and watches, and refrain from text messaging for the duration of the performance.
Accessibility
Although the production is designed so that the audience can move among the cast onstage throughout the performance, wheelchair accessible and companion seating is available for anyone at any point throughout the performance.
Wallace Theater is an accessible venue with an assistive listening system. The performance on Friday, November 14, will feature open/live captioning (CART). Visit our Venues and Studios section for accessibility information at our various locations. Students in need of access accommodations are invited to contact the Lewis Center at 609-258-5262 or email LewisCenter@princeton.edu at least one week in advance of the event date.
Cast
Chapter: Nick Pham GS
Verse: İnci Analı GS
Gravedigger: Jack Thompson ’27
Wisp, Child of Whisper: Kenzie Schwabe ’29
Coryphaeus A: Amaya Kelegedara GS
Coryphaeus B: Eli Edge ’29
Greek Chorus: Chris Twiname
Grave Wave Radio DJ (Pre-Recorded): Ash Baudelaire ’26*
Breaking News Announcer (Pre-Recorded): Matthew Cooperberg ’26*
Voice of Gargoyle (Pre-Recorded): Matthew Cooperberg ’26*
Bird-in-Flight (Pre-Recorded Video): Eden Reinfurt ’28 of Princeton Aerial Arts Club
Goffman Choir (Pre-Recorded): Nick Pham GS, İnci Analı GS, Jack Thompson ’27, Kenzie Schwabe ’29, Amaya Kelegedara GS, Chris Twiname, Ash Baudelaire ’26*
with Select Members of Princeton Playhouse Choir: Jenna Mullin ’27*, Ethan Green GS, Cass Kim GS
Production Team
Playwright & Dramaturg: Ash Baudelaire ’26*
Director: Matthew Cooperberg ’26*
Intimacy and Fight Director: Jacqueline Holloway
Choreographer: Ash Baudelaire ’26*
Lighting Design: Jenna Mullin ’27*
Sound Design: Ryan Gao ’28*
Co-Set Designers: Ash Baudelaire ‘26* and Matthew Cooperberg ’26*
Stage Manager: Ash Baudelaire ’26*
Assistant Stage Manager: Lucy Grunden ’27*
Scenic Artist: Carlyn Perlow
Stitchers: Tara Moriarty, Raven Reid ’28, Charlotte Young ’27, Naomi Gage ’29
Run Crew: Morgan Taylor ’27*
Student Design Mentor: Ryan Gonzalez ’26
*denotes a student minoring in the Program in Theater & Music Theater
Faculty Advisors
Chesney Snow, Co-Producer
Shariffa Ali, Faculty Project Mentor
A Note from the Project Proposer
First and foremost, there is no end of gratitude that I can extend to the Lewis Center for the Arts, my fierce and formidable Matthew, our fearless cast, crew, and design team, the Keller Center, my heart Branden, and to you reading this. Yes, you specifically. It’s a humbling thing as a playwright to bring a narrative from page to stage, and I’m so grateful we can share this moment of theater together.
Graveyard Shift began as a question: what does the beginning of the end look like? From there, Matthew and I spent the past year mapping the foundation of what would become the House of Bones universe; a haunting place where horror, tragedy, and absurdity all crawl out of the same grave. What you’ll see tonight is the first pulse of that world, where the fear of death becomes the very impetus for living.
Every House of Bones play is catalyzed by a sociological issue embodied in theatrical form. In Graveyard Shift, that form is a frightening and slightly sassy Gargoyle—brought to life through an incredible multi-departmental effort—and grounded in Max Weber’s The Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism and Alfred Schütz’s Phenomenology of the Social World.
At its heart, Graveyard Shift is about the defiance of living. Each character resists death by outliving it in spirit—through community, devotion, creation, or sheer absurdity. They cling to their callings, insisting on meaning even as their context for the world around them decays. Much like how we live versions of our own lives, they each carry their own vision of what comes next; however tortured, hopeful, or hilariously misguided. In their struggle to live fully, tangled in the conflicting perspectives of others, they reveal the strange, beautiful truth that nobody truly dies—they simply cease to exist.
As the Co-Founding Artistic Director of HOBTC alongside Matthew, and the Playwright & Dramaturg of Graveyard Shift, we are so proud and excited to be sharing this show with all of you.
— Ash Baudelaire
Project Proposer, Playwright & Dramaturg
A Note from the Director
Ash and I began working on Graveyard Shift together about a year ago. We wanted to figure out how we could introduce House of Bones Theater Company’s universe in an exciting way, and so we parsed through many elements of the world until we settled on what would become this show. It was a joy to be able to work with Ash as she was writing the script, being able to ask questions and shape my directorial vision of the project as the playwright was shaping the story.
Graveyard Shift is not a show about death. It is a show about what it means to end, and consequently, to begin. Where do we draw the finish line? What happens when we pass the finish line, but the race goes on? How do we give meaning to the objective nothingness of ending? Every character is made to endure these questions, and none of them approach and conclude in quite the same way. Some with comedy, some with tragedy, and some with fear.
This is part of the reason why the show is staged as it is. Ending is such a large and amorphous concept that both the way that you choose to position yourself, and how the world is positioned around you can minorly or majorly change your takeaways. Did you see someone’s face as they threatened another, or did you see the face of the person being threatened? Did you catch a half-glimpse of both, or were you looking somewhere else?
As the Co-Founding Artistic Director of HOBTC alongside Ash, and the Director of Graveyard Shift, we are so proud and excited to be sharing this show with all of you.
— Matthew Cooperberg
Director
Special Thanks
Special thanks to Seth Mellman, the Keller Center, Princeton Aerial Arts Club, and Princeton Playhouse Choir!
About House of Bones Theater Company
Graveyard Shift is a production from House of Bones Theater Company (HOBTC), an interconnected gothic theatrical universe where the absurd gets thrillingly dark. HOBTC, an entrepreneurial start-up by Baudelaire and Cooperberg, creates horror tragicomedies that aggrandize human complexity to reimagine theater for the streaming generation. Fusing spooky carnival vibes with heavy metal, dark cabaret, the sociological imagination, and vintage Americana, HOBTC is designed to offer a wickedly entertaining journey through the macabre. Normally recorded from onstage, these live performances of Graveyard Shift let you slip into the camera’s place; a demo of theater reimagined for digital distribution. Our theater isn’t live – it’s Undead.
Read more about House of Bones start-up story as a Princeton 2025 eLab Summer Accelerator team.
Follow House of Bones on Social Media
- HouseofBonesTC on YouTube — Check out a short video puzzle with clues about the show!
- HouseofBonesTC on Instagram
- HouseofBonesTC on TikTok
Land Acknowledgement
This Production has elected to not use a traditional land acknowledgment, as they are often performative and empty. Made to signal our values, yet not functionally improve the lives of native people. We must move beyond words and reckon with our history and engage in action that meaningfully supports tribal sovereignty, cultural preservation, and reparative justice. As a university community, we must champion the further development of Native American and Indigenous studies at Princeton. To students, we urge you to take courses in the field. We push Princeton to go beyond acknowledging its position on unseated Lenape land, and we encourage you to consider how you can give your time, money, land, or tangible resources to indigenous people and organizations in your community. 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) at Princeton University, Natives at Princeton and Princeton Indigenous Advocacy Coalition.
Lewis Center for the Arts
Acting Chair: Stacy Wolf
Executive Director: Marion Friedman Young
Director of Program in Theater and Music Theater: Jane Cox
View a list of Program in Theater & Music Theater faculty & guest artists
For a look at all the people working behind the scenes to bring you this event, view a 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 list of LCA Supporters
