
The Real Ivanov will be performed without an Intermission
The Real Ivanov will be performed without an Intermission
The Real Ivanov will be performed without an Intermission
Setting: Late 19th-century Russia. A year passes between the third and fourth acts.
Setting: Late 19th-century Russia. A year passes between the third and fourth acts.
Setting: Late 19th-century Russia. A year passes between the third and fourth acts.
Content Warning: Recommended for ages 13+. Younger teens are encouraged to attend with a parent or caregiver. This production explores mature themes related to depression, hopelessness, and emotional distress.
Content Warning: Recommended for ages 13+. Younger teens are encouraged to attend with a parent or caregiver. This production explores mature themes related to depression, hopelessness, and emotional distress.
Content Warning: Recommended for ages 13+. Younger teens are encouraged to attend with a parent or caregiver. This production explores mature themes related to depression, hopelessness, and emotional distress.
Initiative Productions
with
with
Producer
Producer
Nina Korelitz
Matza
Nina Korelitz
Matza
Producer
Producer
Sam
Underwood
Sam
Underwood
Producer
Producer
Sara
Sugihara
Sara
Sugihara
Associate Producer
Associate Producer
Ashley M.
Cowles
Ashley M.
Cowles
Co-Producer
Co-Producer
Court
Coursey
Court
Coursey
presents
presents
directed & adapted by Laura Strausfeld
from Ivanov by Anton Chekhov
adapted by Laura Strausfeld
from Ivanov by Anton Chekhov
with
with
Sam Adegoke, Ivory Aquino, Spencer Aste, William DeMeritt, Elijah Guo, Aubyn Heglie, Jordan Lage, Sarah Long, Amelia Mason, Soph Metcalf, Brendan Titley, Sam Underwood & Kimberlee Walker
Sam Adegoke, Ivory Aquino, Spencer Aste, William DeMeritt, Elijah Guo, Aubyn Heglie, Jordan Lage, Sarah Long, Amelia Mason, Soph Metcalf, Brendan Titley, Sam Underwood & Kimberlee Walker
Set & Lighting Design
Set & Lighting Design
Jiyoun Chang
Jiyoun Chang
Costume Design
Costume Design
Ella Matza
Ella Matza
Sound Design & Original Music
Sound Design & Original Music
Brandon Bulls
Brandon Bulls
Assistant Director
Assistant Director
Evie Barenberg
Evie Barenberg
Production Stage Manager
Production Stage Manager
April Ann Kline
April Ann Kline
Assistant Stage Manager
Assistant Stage Manager
Miriam Hyfler
Miriam Hyfler
Props Artisan
Props Artisan
Tim Rempel
Tim Rempel
Casting Director
Casting Director
Jack Doulin
Jack Doulin
Casting Associate
Casting Associate
Emma Paoletti
Emma Paoletti
Production Management
Production Management
Five Ohm
Five Ohm
General Management
General Management
Regular People
Regular People
Advertising
Advertising
The Pekoe Group
The Pekoe Group
Digital Director
Digital Director
Julia Eden Fink
Julia Eden Fink
Web Design
Web Design
London Mahaley
London Mahaley
Press Representative
Press Representative
Everyman Agency
Everyman Agency
Legal Counsel
Legal Counsel
David Manella, Loeb & Loeb
David Manella, Loeb & Loeb

The Actors and Stage Managers employed in this production are members of Actors' Equity Association, the Union of Professional Actors and Stage Managers in the United States.
The Actors and Stage Managers employed in this production are members of Actors' Equity Association, the Union of Professional Actors and Stage Managers in the United States.
Adaptor & Director's Note
The Real Ivanov is a faithful but streamlined adaptation of Anton Chekhov's first play, Ivanov, written in 1887. It preserves almost every line and all of the major characters.
Seeing Ivanov almost thirty years ago changed my life. I sat on the edge of my seat waiting for this once charismatic and admired man to figure out what was wrong with him. I wanted to understand the reason for his despair and was stunned by the play's resolution. What was Chekhov saying about human suffering? How did he live his own life? I began reading everything by and about Chekhov and have never stopped.
The life-giving lesson I took from Ivanov is that depression can afflict anyone. If you've suffered from it, or are suffering from it now, you are not alone—and help is available.
Ivanov presents additional provocative questions: about antisemitism, masculinity, money, marriage, morality, and the ways we explain—and judge—one another.
The more I've watched and worked on this strange, funny, heartbreaking play, the more I've marveled at its whiplash. Chekhov interweaves comedy and tragedy because in real life they are constantly abutting one another. As he wrote, "let the things that happen on stage be just as complex and simple as in real life. For instance, people are having a meal, just having a meal, but at the same time their happiness is being created, or their wellbeing is being smashed."
Chekhov's goal was to portray human life as it is and, as he put it, "to present my case to the jury." The audience would decide what to think. The verdict on Ivanov is now yours.
- Laura Strausfeld
The Real Ivanov is a faithful but streamlined adaptation of Anton Chekhov's first play, Ivanov, written in 1887. It preserves almost every line and all of the major characters.
Seeing Ivanov almost thirty years ago changed my life. I sat on the edge of my seat waiting for this once charismatic and admired man to figure out what was wrong with him. I wanted to understand the reason for his despair and was stunned by the play's resolution. What was Chekhov saying about human suffering? How did he live his own life? I began reading everything by and about Chekhov and have never stopped.
The life-giving lesson I took from Ivanov is that depression can afflict anyone. If you've suffered from it, or are suffering from it now, you are not alone—and help is available.
Ivanov presents additional provocative questions: about antisemitism, masculinity, money, marriage, morality, and the ways we explain—and judge—one another.
The more I've watched and worked on this strange, funny, heartbreaking play, the more I've marveled at its whiplash. Chekhov interweaves comedy and tragedy because in real life they are constantly abutting one another. As he wrote, "let the things that happen on stage be just as complex and simple as in real life. For instance, people are having a meal, just having a meal, but at the same time their happiness is being created, or their wellbeing is being smashed."
Chekhov's goal was to portray human life as it is and, as he put it, "to present my case to the jury." The audience would decide what to think. The verdict on Ivanov is now yours.
- Laura Strausfeld
The Real Ivanov is a faithful but streamlined adaptation of Anton Chekhov's first play, Ivanov, written in 1887. It preserves almost every line and all of the major characters.
Seeing Ivanov almost thirty years ago changed my life. I sat on the edge of my seat waiting for this once charismatic and admired man to figure out what was wrong with him. I wanted to understand the reason for his despair and was stunned by the play's resolution. What was Chekhov saying about human suffering? How did he live his own life? I began reading everything by and about Chekhov and have never stopped.
The life-giving lesson I took from Ivanov is that depression can afflict anyone. If you've suffered from it, or are suffering from it now, you are not alone—and help is available.
Ivanov presents additional provocative questions: about antisemitism, masculinity, money, marriage, morality, and the ways we explain—and judge—one another.
The more I've watched and worked on this strange, funny, heartbreaking play, the more I've marveled at its whiplash. Chekhov interweaves comedy and tragedy because in real life they are constantly abutting one another. As he wrote, "let the things that happen on stage be just as complex and simple as in real life. For instance, people are having a meal, just having a meal, but at the same time their happiness is being created, or their wellbeing is being smashed."
Chekhov's goal was to portray human life as it is and, as he put it, "to present my case to the jury." The audience would decide what to think. The verdict on Ivanov is now yours.
- Laura Strausfeld
Cast
Cast Bios

Sam Adegoke (Borkin)
Sam Adegoke (Borkin)
Sam Adegoke (Borkin)
Born in Lagos, Nigeria, and raised in St. Paul, Minnesota, Sam Adegoke is an actor best known for portraying Jeff Colby on Dynasty, where he appeared for five seasons. He currently stars in Fight Night: The Million Dollar Heist, now streaming on Peacock, and co-produced and starred in the Spirit Award-nominated film This Is Not a War Story, now streaming on HBO Max. Additional film and television credits include Brooklyn Nine-Nine, Switched at Birth, Murder in the First, and NCIS: Los Angeles. Sam is honored to make his Off-Broadway debut with this production of Ivanov.
Born in Lagos, Nigeria, and raised in St. Paul, Minnesota, Sam Adegoke is an actor best known for portraying Jeff Colby on Dynasty, where he appeared for five seasons. He currently stars in Fight Night: The Million Dollar Heist, now streaming on Peacock, and co-produced and starred in the Spirit Award-nominated film This Is Not a War Story, now streaming on HBO Max. Additional film and television credits include Brooklyn Nine-Nine, Switched at Birth, Murder in the First, and NCIS: Los Angeles. Sam is honored to make his Off-Broadway debut with this production of Ivanov.
Born in Lagos, Nigeria, and raised in St. Paul, Minnesota, Sam Adegoke is an actor best known for portraying Jeff Colby on Dynasty, where he appeared for five seasons. He currently stars in Fight Night: The Million Dollar Heist, now streaming on Peacock, and co-produced and starred in the Spirit Award-nominated film This Is Not a War Story, now streaming on HBO Max. Additional film and television credits include Brooklyn Nine-Nine, Switched at Birth, Murder in the First, and NCIS: Los Angeles. Sam is honored to make his Off-Broadway debut with this production of Ivanov.
Ivory Aquino (Anna)
Ivory Aquino (Anna)
Ivory Aquino (Anna)
Ivory's credits include: Bryant Park Shakespeare/The Drilling Company (Juliet, Romeo & Juliet; Isabella, Measure for Measure; Lady Macbeth, Macbeth); “When We Rise” (GLAAD Award for Outstanding Limited Series & Best Actress nominee, POZ Awards); Us Versus Them (Best Actress nominee, New York Theater Festival); “Hot Angry Mom” (Emmy Award for Short Form Series & Best Supporting Actress nominee, British Web Awards); Chonburi International Hotel & Butterfly Club (Best Audio Theater Production, Drama League Awards); Film Independent Spirit Award nominees Lingua Franca & Lapsis; and DC's historic casting in Batgirl as the first openly trans character in a DC feature film. Summa cum laude graduate, Berklee College of Music. Member, The Actors Center. Upcoming: Tony Kushner’s A Bright Room Called Day; and Concessions in cinemas. Whew now that we're done with all the formal stuff, what Ivory really wants to give attention to is YOU… Thanks for taking yourself to the theatre today & for the next nice thing you do for yourself, you deserve it! "Dedicating this performance to anyone feeling different & out-of-place... you’re truly special & one-of-a-kind."
Ivory's credits include: Bryant Park Shakespeare/The Drilling Company (Juliet, Romeo & Juliet; Isabella, Measure for Measure; Lady Macbeth, Macbeth); “When We Rise” (GLAAD Award for Outstanding Limited Series & Best Actress nominee, POZ Awards); Us Versus Them (Best Actress nominee, New York Theater Festival); “Hot Angry Mom” (Emmy Award for Short Form Series & Best Supporting Actress nominee, British Web Awards); Chonburi International Hotel & Butterfly Club (Best Audio Theater Production, Drama League Awards); Film Independent Spirit Award nominees Lingua Franca & Lapsis; and DC's historic casting in Batgirl as the first openly trans character in a DC feature film. Summa cum laude graduate, Berklee College of Music. Member, The Actors Center. Upcoming: Tony Kushner’s A Bright Room Called Day; and Concessions in cinemas. Whew now that we're done with all the formal stuff, what Ivory really wants to give attention to is YOU… Thanks for taking yourself to the theatre today & for the next nice thing you do for yourself, you deserve it! "Dedicating this performance to anyone feeling different & out-of-place... you’re truly special & one-of-a-kind."
Ivory's credits include: Bryant Park Shakespeare/The Drilling Company (Juliet, Romeo & Juliet; Isabella, Measure for Measure; Lady Macbeth, Macbeth); “When We Rise” (GLAAD Award for Outstanding Limited Series & Best Actress nominee, POZ Awards); Us Versus Them (Best Actress nominee, New York Theater Festival); “Hot Angry Mom” (Emmy Award for Short Form Series & Best Supporting Actress nominee, British Web Awards); Chonburi International Hotel & Butterfly Club (Best Audio Theater Production, Drama League Awards); Film Independent Spirit Award nominees Lingua Franca & Lapsis; and DC's historic casting in Batgirl as the first openly trans character in a DC feature film. Summa cum laude graduate, Berklee College of Music. Member, The Actors Center. Upcoming: Tony Kushner’s A Bright Room Called Day; and Concessions in cinemas. Whew now that we're done with all the formal stuff, what Ivory really wants to give attention to is YOU… Thanks for taking yourself to the theatre today & for the next nice thing you do for yourself, you deserve it! "Dedicating this performance to anyone feeling different & out-of-place... you’re truly special & one-of-a-kind."
Spencer Aste (Lebedev)
Spencer Aste (Lebedev)
Spencer Aste (Lebedev)
Spencer Aste Most recently; “Law & Order: SVU”. The Curtain: Richard III. Initiative Productions: Ivanov. Axis Theatre (company member): Specimen (video), Twelfth Night. Baltimore Symphony Orchestra’s Midsummer Night’s Dream. Lincoln Center: Prokofiev’s Romeo and Juliet (New York Philharmonic). Other New York theatre: Spencer’s solo show, Wake Up with Bedlam Theatre; The Acting Company (company member); New York Theatre Workshop; Rising Phoenix Rep.; Fundamental Theatre Project; Storm Theatre; The Cell; MTC; MCC; Boomerang Theatre Co.; and La MaMa, among others. Films: “Taking Woodstock” (directed by Ang Lee); voice of Scratch (Little green army man) in “Toy Story”. Television: “The Blacklist“; “Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt”; “Boardwalk Empire”; “Royal Pains”. Web Series: “The Thing”, by Marc Palmieri. Spencer received his M.F.A. and B.F.A. in Acting. Much love to Erik.
Spencer Aste Most recently; “Law & Order: SVU”. The Curtain: Richard III. Initiative Productions: Ivanov. Axis Theatre (company member): Specimen (video), Twelfth Night. Baltimore Symphony Orchestra’s Midsummer Night’s Dream. Lincoln Center: Prokofiev’s Romeo and Juliet (New York Philharmonic). Other New York theatre: Spencer’s solo show, Wake Up with Bedlam Theatre; The Acting Company (company member); New York Theatre Workshop; Rising Phoenix Rep.; Fundamental Theatre Project; Storm Theatre; The Cell; MTC; MCC; Boomerang Theatre Co.; and La MaMa, among others. Films: “Taking Woodstock” (directed by Ang Lee); voice of Scratch (Little green army man) in “Toy Story”. Television: “The Blacklist“; “Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt”; “Boardwalk Empire”; “Royal Pains”. Web Series: “The Thing”, by Marc Palmieri. Spencer received his M.F.A. and B.F.A. in Acting. Much love to Erik.
Spencer Aste Most recently; “Law & Order: SVU”. The Curtain: Richard III. Initiative Productions: Ivanov. Axis Theatre (company member): Specimen (video), Twelfth Night. Baltimore Symphony Orchestra’s Midsummer Night’s Dream. Lincoln Center: Prokofiev’s Romeo and Juliet (New York Philharmonic). Other New York theatre: Spencer’s solo show, Wake Up with Bedlam Theatre; The Acting Company (company member); New York Theatre Workshop; Rising Phoenix Rep.; Fundamental Theatre Project; Storm Theatre; The Cell; MTC; MCC; Boomerang Theatre Co.; and La MaMa, among others. Films: “Taking Woodstock” (directed by Ang Lee); voice of Scratch (Little green army man) in “Toy Story”. Television: “The Blacklist“; “Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt”; “Boardwalk Empire”; “Royal Pains”. Web Series: “The Thing”, by Marc Palmieri. Spencer received his M.F.A. and B.F.A. in Acting. Much love to Erik.
William DeMeritt (Kosyk)
William DeMeritt (Kosyk)
William DeMeritt (Kosyk)
Broadway: The Skin of Our Teeth (Beaumont). Off-Broadway: Twelfth Night (Classical Theatre of Harlem, Yale Rep), The Death of the Last Black Man in the Whole Entire World (Signature Theatre), Coriolanus (TFANA). Regional: Henry 6 (Old Globe), Shane (Guthrie, Cincinnati Playhouse), Shakespeare In Love, Indecent, Merry Wives of Windsor (OSF), The Zionists (Miami New Drama, Barrington Stage), It’s a Wonderful Life (ASF), The Gradient (St. Louis Rep), We, The Invisibles (Humana Fest.), Sense & Sensibility (Dallas Theatre Center), more. International: October in the Chair & Other Fragile Things (Amsterdam Fringe Festival). Writer, Co-creator: Origin Story (NYIT Award, Best Solo Performance). Film/Television: The Normal Heart, The Noel Diary, Playing Sam, Our Son, the Floaters, “The Flight Attendant”, “NCIS: NOLA”, “The Outs”, more. Education: BFA Marymount Manhattan, MFA Yale School of Drama.
Broadway: The Skin of Our Teeth (Beaumont). Off-Broadway: Twelfth Night (Classical Theatre of Harlem, Yale Rep), The Death of the Last Black Man in the Whole Entire World (Signature Theatre), Coriolanus (TFANA). Regional: Henry 6 (Old Globe), Shane (Guthrie, Cincinnati Playhouse), Shakespeare In Love, Indecent, Merry Wives of Windsor (OSF), The Zionists (Miami New Drama, Barrington Stage), It’s a Wonderful Life (ASF), The Gradient (St. Louis Rep), We, The Invisibles (Humana Fest.), Sense & Sensibility (Dallas Theatre Center), more. International: October in the Chair & Other Fragile Things (Amsterdam Fringe Festival). Writer, Co-creator: Origin Story (NYIT Award, Best Solo Performance). Film/Television: The Normal Heart, The Noel Diary, Playing Sam, Our Son, the Floaters, “The Flight Attendant”, “NCIS: NOLA”, “The Outs”, more. Education: BFA Marymount Manhattan, MFA Yale School of Drama.
Broadway: The Skin of Our Teeth (Beaumont). Off-Broadway: Twelfth Night (Classical Theatre of Harlem, Yale Rep), The Death of the Last Black Man in the Whole Entire World (Signature Theatre), Coriolanus (TFANA). Regional: Henry 6 (Old Globe), Shane (Guthrie, Cincinnati Playhouse), Shakespeare In Love, Indecent, Merry Wives of Windsor (OSF), The Zionists (Miami New Drama, Barrington Stage), It’s a Wonderful Life (ASF), The Gradient (St. Louis Rep), We, The Invisibles (Humana Fest.), Sense & Sensibility (Dallas Theatre Center), more. International: October in the Chair & Other Fragile Things (Amsterdam Fringe Festival). Writer, Co-creator: Origin Story (NYIT Award, Best Solo Performance). Film/Television: The Normal Heart, The Noel Diary, Playing Sam, Our Son, the Floaters, “The Flight Attendant”, “NCIS: NOLA”, “The Outs”, more. Education: BFA Marymount Manhattan, MFA Yale School of Drama.
Amelia Mason (Sasha)
Amelia Mason (Sasha)
Amelia Mason (Sasha)
Off-Broadway debut! Amelia is thrilled to return to Ivanov for the third time, following previous productions at Royal Family Theater and in her home state of Vermont. Recent credits include White Elephant (Court Square Theater) and Start Then Next (New Circle Theatre). She studied theatre, dance, and sociology at Barnard College/Columbia University and trained at the British American Drama Academy in London. Love and gratitude to her family.
Off-Broadway debut! Amelia is thrilled to return to Ivanov for the third time, following previous productions at Royal Family Theater and in her home state of Vermont. Recent credits include White Elephant (Court Square Theater) and Start Then Next (New Circle Theatre). She studied theatre, dance, and sociology at Barnard College/Columbia University and trained at the British American Drama Academy in London. Love and gratitude to her family.
Off-Broadway debut! Amelia is thrilled to return to Ivanov for the third time, following previous productions at Royal Family Theater and in her home state of Vermont. Recent credits include White Elephant (Court Square Theater) and Start Then Next (New Circle Theatre). She studied theatre, dance, and sociology at Barnard College/Columbia University and trained at the British American Drama Academy in London. Love and gratitude to her family.
Elijah Guo (Lvov)
Elijah Guo (Lvov)
Elijah Guo (Lvov)
Elijah is thrilled to make his Off-Broadway debut!
Selected TV/film credits: Law & Order: SVU (NBC), High Maintenance (HBO), Patriots Day (CBS Films / Lionsgate), Power (STARZ), The Blacklist (NBC), and StartUp (Netflix/Crackle) opposite Adam Brody. Audio: Batman Unburied (DC/Spotify). Recent theatre credits include Birdigo (The Brick), Short Stack (Ma-Yi/Second Generation/La MaMa), and Love Among Dreamers (Broadway For All). He received his MFA from the American Repertory Theater / Moscow Art Theatre Institute at Harvard University, which was basically a Chekhov fever dream.
Elijah is thrilled to make his Off-Broadway debut!
Selected TV/film credits: Law & Order: SVU (NBC), High Maintenance (HBO), Patriots Day (CBS Films / Lionsgate), Power (STARZ), The Blacklist (NBC), and StartUp (Netflix/Crackle) opposite Adam Brody. Audio: Batman Unburied (DC/Spotify). Recent theatre credits include Birdigo (The Brick), Short Stack (Ma-Yi/Second Generation/La MaMa), and Love Among Dreamers (Broadway For All). He received his MFA from the American Repertory Theater / Moscow Art Theatre Institute at Harvard University, which was basically a Chekhov fever dream.
Elijah is thrilled to make his Off-Broadway debut!
Selected TV/film credits: Law & Order: SVU (NBC), High Maintenance (HBO), Patriots Day (CBS Films / Lionsgate), Power (STARZ), The Blacklist (NBC), and StartUp (Netflix/Crackle) opposite Adam Brody. Audio: Batman Unburied (DC/Spotify). Recent theatre credits include Birdigo (The Brick), Short Stack (Ma-Yi/Second Generation/La MaMa), and Love Among Dreamers (Broadway For All). He received his MFA from the American Repertory Theater / Moscow Art Theatre Institute at Harvard University, which was basically a Chekhov fever dream.
Aubyn Heglie (Understudy: Anna, Avdotya, Babakina, Zinaida)
Aubyn Heglie (Understudy: Anna, Avdotya, Babakina, Zinaida)
Aubyn Heglie (Understudy: Anna, Avdotya, Babakina, Zinaida)
Aubyn is delighted to join The Real Ivanov team. Past work includes Things I Know To Be True (U.S. premiere, Milwaukee Repertory Theater), A Bright Room Called Day, and most recently Titus 4 Tots (Ruckus New Works Festival). Aubyn is a founding member of the Bellwether Project, a theater and film collective that has created and produced work at Ars Nova ANT Fest, the Vineyard Arts Project, and ColLABo Residency at CMU. Big love to Shelley, Jeff, Rowan, and Javier. BFA, Carnegie Mellon University.
Aubyn is delighted to join The Real Ivanov team. Past work includes Things I Know To Be True (U.S. premiere, Milwaukee Repertory Theater), A Bright Room Called Day, and most recently Titus 4 Tots (Ruckus New Works Festival). Aubyn is a founding member of the Bellwether Project, a theater and film collective that has created and produced work at Ars Nova ANT Fest, the Vineyard Arts Project, and ColLABo Residency at CMU. Big love to Shelley, Jeff, Rowan, and Javier. BFA, Carnegie Mellon University.
Aubyn is delighted to join The Real Ivanov team. Past work includes Things I Know To Be True (U.S. premiere, Milwaukee Repertory Theater), A Bright Room Called Day, and most recently Titus 4 Tots (Ruckus New Works Festival). Aubyn is a founding member of the Bellwether Project, a theater and film collective that has created and produced work at Ars Nova ANT Fest, the Vineyard Arts Project, and ColLABo Residency at CMU. Big love to Shelley, Jeff, Rowan, and Javier. BFA, Carnegie Mellon University.

Sarah Long (Zinaida)
Sarah Long (Zinaida)
Sarah Long (Zinaida)
Sarah is thrilled to be revisiting Ivanov for a second time. She first appeared as Sasha opposite William Hurt in the Moscow Art Theater/Yale Repertory production over 30 years ago. Sarah worked extensively in regional theater and in NYC before spending time in Los Angeles doing television and film. Select theater highlights include Ring Round the Moon (Steppenwolf), Private Lives (Guthrie), Paddywhack (Longwharf), Hide Your Love Away (Actors Playhouse) and Hedda Gabler (Roundabout). Sarah most recently has been singing cabaret and producing a new musical, Fun at the Beach Romp-Bomp-a-Lomp!! in London. She attended Yale Drama School.
Sarah is thrilled to be revisiting Ivanov for a second time. She first appeared as Sasha opposite William Hurt in the Moscow Art Theater/Yale Repertory production over 30 years ago. Sarah worked extensively in regional theater and in NYC before spending time in Los Angeles doing television and film. Select theater highlights include Ring Round the Moon (Steppenwolf), Private Lives (Guthrie), Paddywhack (Longwharf), Hide Your Love Away (Actors Playhouse) and Hedda Gabler (Roundabout). Sarah most recently has been singing cabaret and producing a new musical, Fun at the Beach Romp-Bomp-a-Lomp!! in London. She attended Yale Drama School.
Sarah is thrilled to be revisiting Ivanov for a second time. She first appeared as Sasha opposite William Hurt in the Moscow Art Theater/Yale Repertory production over 30 years ago. Sarah worked extensively in regional theater and in NYC before spending time in Los Angeles doing television and film. Select theater highlights include Ring Round the Moon (Steppenwolf), Private Lives (Guthrie), Paddywhack (Longwharf), Hide Your Love Away (Actors Playhouse) and Hedda Gabler (Roundabout). Sarah most recently has been singing cabaret and producing a new musical, Fun at the Beach Romp-Bomp-a-Lomp!! in London. She attended Yale Drama School.

Jordan Lage (Count Shabyelski)
Jordan Lage (Count Shabyelski)
Jordan Lage (Count Shabyelski)
Jordan Lage is a founding member of the Atlantic Theater Company. He has performed in more than two dozen plays of fellow co-founder David Mamet’s on Broadway, off-Broadway & regionally including American Buffalo, Glengarry Glen Ross, Speed-The-Plow, Oleanna, Race, The Old Neighborhood, The Water Engine, The Woods, The Penitent, and his adaptation of Chekhov's Three Sisters. Other playwrights works’ at Atlantic include those by Craig Lucas, Quincy Long, Kia Corthron, Jez Butterworth, Peter Hedges, Simon Stephens, Howard Korder, John Patrick Shanley, John Guare, Terence McNally, Wallace Shawn, Ethan Coen, Shel Silverstein, Tom Stoppard, J.B. Priestley, Harold Pinter, Noel Coward, & Shakespeare. Select TV & film: Succession, Madam Secretary, Better Call Saul, The Looming Tower, Billions, Boardwalk Empire, Oz, Madoff, Ghost (2026), Salt, Michael Clayton, Body of Lies, World Trade Center, The Believer, The Spanish Prisoner, Homicide, Things Change.
Drama Desk, SAG, Barrymore awards.
Jordan Lage is a founding member of the Atlantic Theater Company. He has performed in more than two dozen plays of fellow co-founder David Mamet’s on Broadway, off-Broadway & regionally including American Buffalo, Glengarry Glen Ross, Speed-The-Plow, Oleanna, Race, The Old Neighborhood, The Water Engine, The Woods, The Penitent, and his adaptation of Chekhov's Three Sisters. Other playwrights works’ at Atlantic include those by Craig Lucas, Quincy Long, Kia Corthron, Jez Butterworth, Peter Hedges, Simon Stephens, Howard Korder, John Patrick Shanley, John Guare, Terence McNally, Wallace Shawn, Ethan Coen, Shel Silverstein, Tom Stoppard, J.B. Priestley, Harold Pinter, Noel Coward, & Shakespeare. Select TV & film: Succession, Madam Secretary, Better Call Saul, The Looming Tower, Billions, Boardwalk Empire, Oz, Madoff, Ghost (2026), Salt, Michael Clayton, Body of Lies, World Trade Center, The Believer, The Spanish Prisoner, Homicide, Things Change.
Drama Desk, SAG, Barrymore awards.
Jordan Lage is a founding member of the Atlantic Theater Company. He has performed in more than two dozen plays of fellow co-founder David Mamet’s on Broadway, off-Broadway & regionally including American Buffalo, Glengarry Glen Ross, Speed-The-Plow, Oleanna, Race, The Old Neighborhood, The Water Engine, The Woods, The Penitent, and his adaptation of Chekhov's Three Sisters. Other playwrights works’ at Atlantic include those by Craig Lucas, Quincy Long, Kia Corthron, Jez Butterworth, Peter Hedges, Simon Stephens, Howard Korder, John Patrick Shanley, John Guare, Terence McNally, Wallace Shawn, Ethan Coen, Shel Silverstein, Tom Stoppard, J.B. Priestley, Harold Pinter, Noel Coward, & Shakespeare. Select TV & film: Succession, Madam Secretary, Better Call Saul, The Looming Tower, Billions, Boardwalk Empire, Oz, Madoff, Ghost (2026), Salt, Michael Clayton, Body of Lies, World Trade Center, The Believer, The Spanish Prisoner, Homicide, Things Change.
Drama Desk, SAG, Barrymore awards.
Soph Metcalf (Avdotya)
Soph Metcalf (Avdotya)
Soph Metcalf (Avdotya)
Soph Metcalf (they / them / theirs) is a New York-based actor, singer, musician, and physical theatre artist. Favorite theatre credits include: Machinal (MTC), Else and Emma Went’s Three Sisters, Slaughter City (ART NY), King Lear (Santa Cruz Shakespeare), Twelfth Night (The Acting Company), The Tempest (Utah Shakespeare Festival). On-screen: I Am No Longer Here (Netflix), Mean Girl Murders (HBO), and the award-winning short films What Are We? and RIIS (AMC). They recently wrote, produced, and starred in the anti-AI short film After. They collaborate on new work, most recently with The Public, Working Theatre, Tectonic Theatre Project, Prospect Musicals, The Village, and Maker’s Ensemble. They have their MFA from UC Irvine and their BA from McGill University. Thanks to Metcalf fam squad, MC Talent, and my team at DGRW.
Soph Metcalf (they / them / theirs) is a New York-based actor, singer, musician, and physical theatre artist. Favorite theatre credits include: Machinal (MTC), Else and Emma Went’s Three Sisters, Slaughter City (ART NY), King Lear (Santa Cruz Shakespeare), Twelfth Night (The Acting Company), The Tempest (Utah Shakespeare Festival). On-screen: I Am No Longer Here (Netflix), Mean Girl Murders (HBO), and the award-winning short films What Are We? and RIIS (AMC). They recently wrote, produced, and starred in the anti-AI short film After. They collaborate on new work, most recently with The Public, Working Theatre, Tectonic Theatre Project, Prospect Musicals, The Village, and Maker’s Ensemble. They have their MFA from UC Irvine and their BA from McGill University. Thanks to Metcalf fam squad, MC Talent, and my team at DGRW.
Soph Metcalf (they / them / theirs) is a New York-based actor, singer, musician, and physical theatre artist. Favorite theatre credits include: Machinal (MTC), Else and Emma Went’s Three Sisters, Slaughter City (ART NY), King Lear (Santa Cruz Shakespeare), Twelfth Night (The Acting Company), The Tempest (Utah Shakespeare Festival). On-screen: I Am No Longer Here (Netflix), Mean Girl Murders (HBO), and the award-winning short films What Are We? and RIIS (AMC). They recently wrote, produced, and starred in the anti-AI short film After. They collaborate on new work, most recently with The Public, Working Theatre, Tectonic Theatre Project, Prospect Musicals, The Village, and Maker’s Ensemble. They have their MFA from UC Irvine and their BA from McGill University. Thanks to Metcalf fam squad, MC Talent, and my team at DGRW.

Brendan Titley (Understudy: Kosyk, Lebedev, Borkin, Count Shabyelski)
Brendan Titley (Understudy: Kosyk, Lebedev, Borkin, Count Shabyelski)
Brendan Titley (Understudy: Kosyk, Lebedev, Borkin, Count Shabyelski)
New York credits include Macbeth on Broadway with Alan Cumming, As You Like It, Measure for Measure, and All's Well That Ends Well for The Public, and the world premieres of Mat Smart's The Steadfast and Betty Shamieh's The Strangest. Favorite regional credit: returning to his hometown Milwaukee Rep for their production of Animal Farm. Favorite screen credits: his portrayals of the corn syrup loving "Miller Knight" in a Super Bowl Budweiser commercial and an unlucky-in-love Shakespearean Actor in Maggie's Plan. Brendan is also a professional D&D GM, running multiple campaigns since 2020. Love to the DA crew, TOS, and, of course, my amazing wife and fancy cat.
New York credits include Macbeth on Broadway with Alan Cumming, As You Like It, Measure for Measure, and All's Well That Ends Well for The Public, and the world premieres of Mat Smart's The Steadfast and Betty Shamieh's The Strangest. Favorite regional credit: returning to his hometown Milwaukee Rep for their production of Animal Farm. Favorite screen credits: his portrayals of the corn syrup loving "Miller Knight" in a Super Bowl Budweiser commercial and an unlucky-in-love Shakespearean Actor in Maggie's Plan. Brendan is also a professional D&D GM, running multiple campaigns since 2020. Love to the DA crew, TOS, and, of course, my amazing wife and fancy cat.
New York credits include Macbeth on Broadway with Alan Cumming, As You Like It, Measure for Measure, and All's Well That Ends Well for The Public, and the world premieres of Mat Smart's The Steadfast and Betty Shamieh's The Strangest. Favorite regional credit: returning to his hometown Milwaukee Rep for their production of Animal Farm. Favorite screen credits: his portrayals of the corn syrup loving "Miller Knight" in a Super Bowl Budweiser commercial and an unlucky-in-love Shakespearean Actor in Maggie's Plan. Brendan is also a professional D&D GM, running multiple campaigns since 2020. Love to the DA crew, TOS, and, of course, my amazing wife and fancy cat.

Sam Underwood (Ivanov)
Sam Underwood (Ivanov)
Sam Underwood (Ivanov)
Sam spent the last chapter of his acting career on television, playing numerous creeps and serial killers in shows such as “Dexter” (Showtime), “Fear The Walking Dead” (AMC), “Dynasty” (Netflix), and “The Following” (FOX) opposite Kevin Bacon. Before the psychopathic turn, he dreamed of being Gene Kelly as a kid and moved to New York from England to pursue a Broadway career. Stage highlights include Equus opposite Alec Baldwin, Hamlet, Candida, Dorian Gray, and Henry V.
Sam spent the last chapter of his acting career on television, playing numerous creeps and serial killers in shows such as “Dexter” (Showtime), “Fear The Walking Dead” (AMC), “Dynasty” (Netflix), and “The Following” (FOX) opposite Kevin Bacon. Before the psychopathic turn, he dreamed of being Gene Kelly as a kid and moved to New York from England to pursue a Broadway career. Stage highlights include Equus opposite Alec Baldwin, Hamlet, Candida, Dorian Gray, and Henry V.
Sam spent the last chapter of his acting career on television, playing numerous creeps and serial killers in shows such as “Dexter” (Showtime), “Fear The Walking Dead” (AMC), “Dynasty” (Netflix), and “The Following” (FOX) opposite Kevin Bacon. Before the psychopathic turn, he dreamed of being Gene Kelly as a kid and moved to New York from England to pursue a Broadway career. Stage highlights include Equus opposite Alec Baldwin, Hamlet, Candida, Dorian Gray, and Henry V.
Kimberlee Walker (Babakina)
Kimberlee Walker (Babakina)
Kimberlee Walker (Babakina)
Kimberlee Walker (she/her) is an actor, teaching artist, director, and writer. Select stage includes The Flood, (Lyric Theatre, Belfast, Northern Ireland); Fabulation, Or The Re-Education of Undine (Billie Holiday Theatre); Sheltered (the cell); A Midsummer Night’s Dream (New York Shakespeare Exchange); By The Way (Vanguard Theater); Come Back To Me (Shakespeare In Paradise Festival, Nassau, Bahamas); Year Of The Monkey (Delta Boys); Mary Stuart in rep with Could This Meeting Have Been an Email (Spicy Witch), Where You Come From (Rabbit Hole Ensemble). Film includes “Bad Apples”; “Ambrosia”; “Know Your Logic” and “The Orochi 8.” Upcoming: “LiT” She’s a founding member of Uptown Collective and one of the hosts of London Writers’ Salon’s Writers’ Hour. BFA in Acting from Ithaca College
Kimberlee Walker (she/her) is an actor, teaching artist, director, and writer. Select stage includes The Flood, (Lyric Theatre, Belfast, Northern Ireland); Fabulation, Or The Re-Education of Undine (Billie Holiday Theatre); Sheltered (the cell); A Midsummer Night’s Dream (New York Shakespeare Exchange); By The Way (Vanguard Theater); Come Back To Me (Shakespeare In Paradise Festival, Nassau, Bahamas); Year Of The Monkey (Delta Boys); Mary Stuart in rep with Could This Meeting Have Been an Email (Spicy Witch), Where You Come From (Rabbit Hole Ensemble). Film includes “Bad Apples”; “Ambrosia”; “Know Your Logic” and “The Orochi 8.” Upcoming: “LiT” She’s a founding member of Uptown Collective and one of the hosts of London Writers’ Salon’s Writers’ Hour. BFA in Acting from Ithaca College
Kimberlee Walker (she/her) is an actor, teaching artist, director, and writer. Select stage includes The Flood, (Lyric Theatre, Belfast, Northern Ireland); Fabulation, Or The Re-Education of Undine (Billie Holiday Theatre); Sheltered (the cell); A Midsummer Night’s Dream (New York Shakespeare Exchange); By The Way (Vanguard Theater); Come Back To Me (Shakespeare In Paradise Festival, Nassau, Bahamas); Year Of The Monkey (Delta Boys); Mary Stuart in rep with Could This Meeting Have Been an Email (Spicy Witch), Where You Come From (Rabbit Hole Ensemble). Film includes “Bad Apples”; “Ambrosia”; “Know Your Logic” and “The Orochi 8.” Upcoming: “LiT” She’s a founding member of Uptown Collective and one of the hosts of London Writers’ Salon’s Writers’ Hour. BFA in Acting from Ithaca College
Creative Team
Creative Team Bios
Laura Strausfeld (Adaptation & Direction)
Laura Strausfeld (Adaptation & Direction)
Laura Strausfeld (Adaptation & Direction)
Laura Strausfeld is a writer, director, lawyer, and Chekhov scholar. Her adoration of Chekhov began almost thirty years ago, when she saw Kevin Kline perform Ivanov at Lincoln Center.
Affiliated with Columbia University's Harriman Institute, where she was a Visiting Scholar, Strausfeld has spent decades studying Chekhov's life and work. She is currently writing How to Be Less Miserable, a book about what she learned from Chekhov.
Strausfeld has produced and hosted annual theatrical celebrations of Chekhov's birthday since 2010 in New York City, at venues including Symphony Space and City Winery. These performances have featured Chekhov-loving artists such as Rainn Wilson, Cynthia Nixon, and Joan Osborne.
Strausfeld’s previous directing and writing work includes Snatches, which received productions in New York, London, and Edinburgh and was adapted for radio by WNYC and BBC Radio 4; Henry V (Shakespeare in the Parking Lot); and The Real Vanya, her film adaptation of Uncle Vanya. She directed a staged reading of The Real Vanya at the Classic Stage Company, produced by the Harriman Institute, and filmed by Andrew Wonder.
In early 2027, she will host Symphony Space's Selected Shorts: How to Be Less Miserable to honor Chekhov's 167th birthday.
Outside the theater, Strausfeld is the founder and Executive Director of Period Law, the national legal nonprofit dedicated to ending the sales tax on menstrual products and making these products safe and freely accessible to everyone who needs them.
Laura Strausfeld is a writer, director, lawyer, and Chekhov scholar. Her adoration of Chekhov began almost thirty years ago, when she saw Kevin Kline perform Ivanov at Lincoln Center.
Affiliated with Columbia University's Harriman Institute, where she was a Visiting Scholar, Strausfeld has spent decades studying Chekhov's life and work. She is currently writing How to Be Less Miserable, a book about what she learned from Chekhov.
Strausfeld has produced and hosted annual theatrical celebrations of Chekhov's birthday since 2010 in New York City, at venues including Symphony Space and City Winery. These performances have featured Chekhov-loving artists such as Rainn Wilson, Cynthia Nixon, and Joan Osborne.
Strausfeld’s previous directing and writing work includes Snatches, which received productions in New York, London, and Edinburgh and was adapted for radio by WNYC and BBC Radio 4; Henry V (Shakespeare in the Parking Lot); and The Real Vanya, her film adaptation of Uncle Vanya. She directed a staged reading of The Real Vanya at the Classic Stage Company, produced by the Harriman Institute, and filmed by Andrew Wonder.
In early 2027, she will host Symphony Space's Selected Shorts: How to Be Less Miserable to honor Chekhov's 167th birthday.
Outside the theater, Strausfeld is the founder and Executive Director of Period Law, the national legal nonprofit dedicated to ending the sales tax on menstrual products and making these products safe and freely accessible to everyone who needs them.
Laura Strausfeld is a writer, director, lawyer, and Chekhov scholar. Her adoration of Chekhov began almost thirty years ago, when she saw Kevin Kline perform Ivanov at Lincoln Center.
Affiliated with Columbia University's Harriman Institute, where she was a Visiting Scholar, Strausfeld has spent decades studying Chekhov's life and work. She is currently writing How to Be Less Miserable, a book about what she learned from Chekhov.
Strausfeld has produced and hosted annual theatrical celebrations of Chekhov's birthday since 2010 in New York City, at venues including Symphony Space and City Winery. These performances have featured Chekhov-loving artists such as Rainn Wilson, Cynthia Nixon, and Joan Osborne.
Strausfeld’s previous directing and writing work includes Snatches, which received productions in New York, London, and Edinburgh and was adapted for radio by WNYC and BBC Radio 4; Henry V (Shakespeare in the Parking Lot); and The Real Vanya, her film adaptation of Uncle Vanya. She directed a staged reading of The Real Vanya at the Classic Stage Company, produced by the Harriman Institute, and filmed by Andrew Wonder.
In early 2027, she will host Symphony Space's Selected Shorts: How to Be Less Miserable to honor Chekhov's 167th birthday.
Outside the theater, Strausfeld is the founder and Executive Director of Period Law, the national legal nonprofit dedicated to ending the sales tax on menstrual products and making these products safe and freely accessible to everyone who needs them.
Jiyoun Chang (Scenic & Lighting Designer)
Jiyoun Chang (Scenic & Lighting Designer)
Jiyoun Chang (Scenic & Lighting Designer)
She is a lighting designer and occasional scenic designer working across theatre and opera. Her Broadway credits include Stereophonic, Jaja’s African Hair Braiding, The Cottage, KPOP, for colored girls who have considered suicide / when the rainbow is enuf, and Slave Play. Her work has been recognized with the Suzi Bass and Obie Awards, along with multiple Tony, Drama Desk, and Lucille Lortel nominations. In opera, she has designed Lucia di Lammermoor at Tiroler Festspiele Erl in Austria, Primero Sueño at The Met Cloisters, Il Trovatore at Houston Grand Opera, and Factotum at Lyric Opera of Chicago.
She is a lighting designer and occasional scenic designer working across theatre and opera. Her Broadway credits include Stereophonic, Jaja’s African Hair Braiding, The Cottage, KPOP, for colored girls who have considered suicide / when the rainbow is enuf, and Slave Play. Her work has been recognized with the Suzi Bass and Obie Awards, along with multiple Tony, Drama Desk, and Lucille Lortel nominations. In opera, she has designed Lucia di Lammermoor at Tiroler Festspiele Erl in Austria, Primero Sueño at The Met Cloisters, Il Trovatore at Houston Grand Opera, and Factotum at Lyric Opera of Chicago.
She is a lighting designer and occasional scenic designer working across theatre and opera. Her Broadway credits include Stereophonic, Jaja’s African Hair Braiding, The Cottage, KPOP, for colored girls who have considered suicide / when the rainbow is enuf, and Slave Play. Her work has been recognized with the Suzi Bass and Obie Awards, along with multiple Tony, Drama Desk, and Lucille Lortel nominations. In opera, she has designed Lucia di Lammermoor at Tiroler Festspiele Erl in Austria, Primero Sueño at The Met Cloisters, Il Trovatore at Houston Grand Opera, and Factotum at Lyric Opera of Chicago.
Ella Matza (Costume Designer)
Ella Matza (Costume Designer)
Ella Matza (Costume Designer)
Ella Matza (She/Her) is an NYC-based Costume Designer and Fine Artist working across theater, film and T.V. She is delighted to be working with Laura Strausfeld again on this new and improved production of Ivanov. Recent design credits include Ivanov (Royal Family Theater), Relative Minor (feature film), Faux Amie (Rhode Island International Film Festival), Come Home (Tubi), Arcade Animals, Poachers. Thank you to the brilliant team for making this show possible.
Ella Matza (She/Her) is an NYC-based Costume Designer and Fine Artist working across theater, film and T.V. She is delighted to be working with Laura Strausfeld again on this new and improved production of Ivanov. Recent design credits include Ivanov (Royal Family Theater), Relative Minor (feature film), Faux Amie (Rhode Island International Film Festival), Come Home (Tubi), Arcade Animals, Poachers. Thank you to the brilliant team for making this show possible.
Ella Matza (She/Her) is an NYC-based Costume Designer and Fine Artist working across theater, film and T.V. She is delighted to be working with Laura Strausfeld again on this new and improved production of Ivanov. Recent design credits include Ivanov (Royal Family Theater), Relative Minor (feature film), Faux Amie (Rhode Island International Film Festival), Come Home (Tubi), Arcade Animals, Poachers. Thank you to the brilliant team for making this show possible.
Brandon Bulls (Sound Design & Original Music)
Brandon Bulls (Sound Design & Original Music)
Brandon Bulls (Sound Design & Original Music)
Brandon Bulls (He/Him) Sound Designer & Composer based in NYC. Thrilled to be working with this dream team on The Real Ivanov. Recent credits include; Pepper Slit: Live In Her Living (East Village Basement), Well, I’ll Let You Go (Studio Seaview), The Tragedy of Coriolanus (Theater For A New Audience), Girls Really Listen To Me (Greenwich House Theater), Turning Tigers Into Pancakes (Dixon Place), The Lucky Ones (TheaterLab), N/A (Barrington Stage Company), NINA (TheaterLab), On Set With Theda Bara (The Brick). BA in Theater Arts, BM in Music Composition at University of the Incarnate Word.
Brandon Bulls (He/Him) Sound Designer & Composer based in NYC. Thrilled to be working with this dream team on The Real Ivanov. Recent credits include; Pepper Slit: Live In Her Living (East Village Basement), Well, I’ll Let You Go (Studio Seaview), The Tragedy of Coriolanus (Theater For A New Audience), Girls Really Listen To Me (Greenwich House Theater), Turning Tigers Into Pancakes (Dixon Place), The Lucky Ones (TheaterLab), N/A (Barrington Stage Company), NINA (TheaterLab), On Set With Theda Bara (The Brick). BA in Theater Arts, BM in Music Composition at University of the Incarnate Word.
Brandon Bulls (He/Him) Sound Designer & Composer based in NYC. Thrilled to be working with this dream team on The Real Ivanov. Recent credits include; Pepper Slit: Live In Her Living (East Village Basement), Well, I’ll Let You Go (Studio Seaview), The Tragedy of Coriolanus (Theater For A New Audience), Girls Really Listen To Me (Greenwich House Theater), Turning Tigers Into Pancakes (Dixon Place), The Lucky Ones (TheaterLab), N/A (Barrington Stage Company), NINA (TheaterLab), On Set With Theda Bara (The Brick). BA in Theater Arts, BM in Music Composition at University of the Incarnate Word.
April Ann Kline (Stage Manager)
April Ann Kline (Stage Manager)
April Ann Kline (Stage Manager)
April is excited to be a part of this thought-provoking, funny piece. Some NYC credits include: Irish Repertory Theatre (The Honey Trap, Philadelphia, Here I Come!, The Butcher Boy, Chester Bailey, The Streets of New York, The O’Casey Cycle, London Assurance, Candida); Peccadillo Theatre Company (Ceremonies in Dark Old Men); Gingold Theatrical Group (The Devil’s Disciple, Arms and the Man, Mrs. Warren’s Profession, Caesar & Cleopatra); Red Bull Theatre (Arden of Faversham, Tis Pity She’s A Whore, Dance of Death); My Life On A Diet with Renee Taylor at St. Clement’s Theatre; Pearl Theatre Company (A Taste of Honey, No Exit, You Never Can Tell); Naked Angels Theatre (This Wide Night); Ma-Yi Theatre Company (No Foreigners Beyond This Point, The Romance of Magno Rubio); Pan Asian Repertory (Rangoon, Kwatz: The Tibetan Project, Cambodia Agonistes). Favorite regional credits include: Penguin Repertory Theatre (Miracle on South Division Street); Bucks County Playhouse (Tommy & Me); Bay Street Theatre (Lend Me A Tenor, The Mystery of Irma Vep); Chester Theatre Company (The Retreat from Moscow, Skylight); Long Wharf Theatre (The Romance of Magno Rubio). April has also done various shows with the Juilliard School, the New School for Drama, and NYU programs. She is a proud member of Actors’ Equity Association. Love to my family and Marc.
April is excited to be a part of this thought-provoking, funny piece. Some NYC credits include: Irish Repertory Theatre (The Honey Trap, Philadelphia, Here I Come!, The Butcher Boy, Chester Bailey, The Streets of New York, The O’Casey Cycle, London Assurance, Candida); Peccadillo Theatre Company (Ceremonies in Dark Old Men); Gingold Theatrical Group (The Devil’s Disciple, Arms and the Man, Mrs. Warren’s Profession, Caesar & Cleopatra); Red Bull Theatre (Arden of Faversham, Tis Pity She’s A Whore, Dance of Death); My Life On A Diet with Renee Taylor at St. Clement’s Theatre; Pearl Theatre Company (A Taste of Honey, No Exit, You Never Can Tell); Naked Angels Theatre (This Wide Night); Ma-Yi Theatre Company (No Foreigners Beyond This Point, The Romance of Magno Rubio); Pan Asian Repertory (Rangoon, Kwatz: The Tibetan Project, Cambodia Agonistes). Favorite regional credits include: Penguin Repertory Theatre (Miracle on South Division Street); Bucks County Playhouse (Tommy & Me); Bay Street Theatre (Lend Me A Tenor, The Mystery of Irma Vep); Chester Theatre Company (The Retreat from Moscow, Skylight); Long Wharf Theatre (The Romance of Magno Rubio). April has also done various shows with the Juilliard School, the New School for Drama, and NYU programs. She is a proud member of Actors’ Equity Association. Love to my family and Marc.
April is excited to be a part of this thought-provoking, funny piece. Some NYC credits include: Irish Repertory Theatre (The Honey Trap, Philadelphia, Here I Come!, The Butcher Boy, Chester Bailey, The Streets of New York, The O’Casey Cycle, London Assurance, Candida); Peccadillo Theatre Company (Ceremonies in Dark Old Men); Gingold Theatrical Group (The Devil’s Disciple, Arms and the Man, Mrs. Warren’s Profession, Caesar & Cleopatra); Red Bull Theatre (Arden of Faversham, Tis Pity She’s A Whore, Dance of Death); My Life On A Diet with Renee Taylor at St. Clement’s Theatre; Pearl Theatre Company (A Taste of Honey, No Exit, You Never Can Tell); Naked Angels Theatre (This Wide Night); Ma-Yi Theatre Company (No Foreigners Beyond This Point, The Romance of Magno Rubio); Pan Asian Repertory (Rangoon, Kwatz: The Tibetan Project, Cambodia Agonistes). Favorite regional credits include: Penguin Repertory Theatre (Miracle on South Division Street); Bucks County Playhouse (Tommy & Me); Bay Street Theatre (Lend Me A Tenor, The Mystery of Irma Vep); Chester Theatre Company (The Retreat from Moscow, Skylight); Long Wharf Theatre (The Romance of Magno Rubio). April has also done various shows with the Juilliard School, the New School for Drama, and NYU programs. She is a proud member of Actors’ Equity Association. Love to my family and Marc.
Miriam Hyfler (Assistant Stage Manager)
Miriam Hyfler (Assistant Stage Manager)
Miriam Hyfler (Assistant Stage Manager)
Select credits: Dirty Rotten Scoundrels (The Barnstormers), How My Grandparents Fell in Love (NJ Rep/59E59 Theaters), Zack, Crooked Cross, Sump'n Like Wings, Partnership, Becomes A Woman, The Rat Trap, Chains (Mint Theater Company), King James, Sense & Sensibility, The National Pastime (Syracuse Stage), In The Heights, Rock of Ages, Beautiful (The Gateway Playhouse), hang, Time Stands Still (Shakespeare & Company), Shanghai Sonatas (Master Players Concert Series), On Blueberry Hill, Maz and Bricks (Origin Theatre/Fishamble), Three Small Irish Masterpieces, It's A Wonderful Life, Woman and Scarecrow (Irish Rep), author Directing author (La Mama), How to Break (HERE), Richard III, Henry V (New York Classical Theatre), Cymbeline, Capsule 33 (Barrow Street Theater), I Call My Brothers, The Sonic Life of a Giant Tortoise, Ludic Proxy (The Play Company), several seasons with Phoenix Theatre Ensemble, Pan Asian Rep, and New Century Theatre. Love to @orangefreddyg.
Select credits: Dirty Rotten Scoundrels (The Barnstormers), How My Grandparents Fell in Love (NJ Rep/59E59 Theaters), Zack, Crooked Cross, Sump'n Like Wings, Partnership, Becomes A Woman, The Rat Trap, Chains (Mint Theater Company), King James, Sense & Sensibility, The National Pastime (Syracuse Stage), In The Heights, Rock of Ages, Beautiful (The Gateway Playhouse), hang, Time Stands Still (Shakespeare & Company), Shanghai Sonatas (Master Players Concert Series), On Blueberry Hill, Maz and Bricks (Origin Theatre/Fishamble), Three Small Irish Masterpieces, It's A Wonderful Life, Woman and Scarecrow (Irish Rep), author Directing author (La Mama), How to Break (HERE), Richard III, Henry V (New York Classical Theatre), Cymbeline, Capsule 33 (Barrow Street Theater), I Call My Brothers, The Sonic Life of a Giant Tortoise, Ludic Proxy (The Play Company), several seasons with Phoenix Theatre Ensemble, Pan Asian Rep, and New Century Theatre. Love to @orangefreddyg.
Select credits: Dirty Rotten Scoundrels (The Barnstormers), How My Grandparents Fell in Love (NJ Rep/59E59 Theaters), Zack, Crooked Cross, Sump'n Like Wings, Partnership, Becomes A Woman, The Rat Trap, Chains (Mint Theater Company), King James, Sense & Sensibility, The National Pastime (Syracuse Stage), In The Heights, Rock of Ages, Beautiful (The Gateway Playhouse), hang, Time Stands Still (Shakespeare & Company), Shanghai Sonatas (Master Players Concert Series), On Blueberry Hill, Maz and Bricks (Origin Theatre/Fishamble), Three Small Irish Masterpieces, It's A Wonderful Life, Woman and Scarecrow (Irish Rep), author Directing author (La Mama), How to Break (HERE), Richard III, Henry V (New York Classical Theatre), Cymbeline, Capsule 33 (Barrow Street Theater), I Call My Brothers, The Sonic Life of a Giant Tortoise, Ludic Proxy (The Play Company), several seasons with Phoenix Theatre Ensemble, Pan Asian Rep, and New Century Theatre. Love to @orangefreddyg.
Evie Barenberg (Assistant Director)
Evie Barenberg (Assistant Director)
Evie Barenberg (Assistant Director)
Evie Barenberg is a Brooklyn-based comedian, actor, and writer. Since graduating with a BA in English from Barnard College, she’s been performing stand-up and improv around the city and hosts her own monthly variety show, Bumpy Night, at Pete’s Candy Store. She produced two shows in the 2026 ALab Theater Festival and her comedy duo Flannery & Evie will perform this month at Under St Marks Theater. Evie originated the role of Avdotya in this adaptation of Ivanov at the Royal Family Theater earlier this year.
Evie Barenberg is a Brooklyn-based comedian, actor, and writer. Since graduating with a BA in English from Barnard College, she’s been performing stand-up and improv around the city and hosts her own monthly variety show, Bumpy Night, at Pete’s Candy Store. She produced two shows in the 2026 ALab Theater Festival and her comedy duo Flannery & Evie will perform this month at Under St Marks Theater. Evie originated the role of Avdotya in this adaptation of Ivanov at the Royal Family Theater earlier this year.
Evie Barenberg is a Brooklyn-based comedian, actor, and writer. Since graduating with a BA in English from Barnard College, she’s been performing stand-up and improv around the city and hosts her own monthly variety show, Bumpy Night, at Pete’s Candy Store. She produced two shows in the 2026 ALab Theater Festival and her comedy duo Flannery & Evie will perform this month at Under St Marks Theater. Evie originated the role of Avdotya in this adaptation of Ivanov at the Royal Family Theater earlier this year.
Nina Korelitz Matza (Producer)
Nina Korelitz Matza (Producer)
Nina Korelitz Matza (Producer)
Nina Korelitz Matza is a Manhattan born and raised theater producer and podcaster. Producing highlights include several hit off-Broadway shows, including The Dead, 1904—an
immersive version of James Joyce’s The Dead, with the Irish Repertory Theater, and Fiddler on the Roof in Yiddish, directed by Joel Grey. She is also the Creator and Producer of the Listen More podcast, with Dr. Anne Marie Albano—in which a world-renowned clinician and a mother are in conversation about adolescent anxiety and depression. Nina holds an MBA from New York University and a BA in Art History and Italian from Connecticut College. She is a former member of the Board of Trustees of Ars Nova Theater company and a founding member of the Advisory Council of The New Victory theater, where she conducts an annual salon series of interviews with high-profile artists and intellectuals.
Nina Korelitz Matza is a Manhattan born and raised theater producer and podcaster. Producing highlights include several hit off-Broadway shows, including The Dead, 1904—an
immersive version of James Joyce’s The Dead, with the Irish Repertory Theater, and Fiddler on the Roof in Yiddish, directed by Joel Grey. She is also the Creator and Producer of the Listen More podcast, with Dr. Anne Marie Albano—in which a world-renowned clinician and a mother are in conversation about adolescent anxiety and depression. Nina holds an MBA from New York University and a BA in Art History and Italian from Connecticut College. She is a former member of the Board of Trustees of Ars Nova Theater company and a founding member of the Advisory Council of The New Victory theater, where she conducts an annual salon series of interviews with high-profile artists and intellectuals.
Nina Korelitz Matza is a Manhattan born and raised theater producer and podcaster. Producing highlights include several hit off-Broadway shows, including The Dead, 1904—an
immersive version of James Joyce’s The Dead, with the Irish Repertory Theater, and Fiddler on the Roof in Yiddish, directed by Joel Grey. She is also the Creator and Producer of the Listen More podcast, with Dr. Anne Marie Albano—in which a world-renowned clinician and a mother are in conversation about adolescent anxiety and depression. Nina holds an MBA from New York University and a BA in Art History and Italian from Connecticut College. She is a former member of the Board of Trustees of Ars Nova Theater company and a founding member of the Advisory Council of The New Victory theater, where she conducts an annual salon series of interviews with high-profile artists and intellectuals.
Sam Underwood (Producer)
Sam Underwood (Producer)
Sam Underwood (Producer)
Sam spent the last chapter of his acting career on television, playing numerous creeps and serial killers in shows such as “Dexter” (Showtime), “Fear The Walking Dead” (AMC), “Dynasty” (Netflix), and “The Following” (FOX) opposite Kevin Bacon. Before the psychopathic turn, he dreamed of being Gene Kelly as a kid and moved to New York from England to pursue a Broadway career. Stage highlights include Equus opposite Alec Baldwin, Hamlet, Candida, Dorian Gray, and Henry V.
Sam spent the last chapter of his acting career on television, playing numerous creeps and serial killers in shows such as “Dexter” (Showtime), “Fear The Walking Dead” (AMC), “Dynasty” (Netflix), and “The Following” (FOX) opposite Kevin Bacon. Before the psychopathic turn, he dreamed of being Gene Kelly as a kid and moved to New York from England to pursue a Broadway career. Stage highlights include Equus opposite Alec Baldwin, Hamlet, Candida, Dorian Gray, and Henry V.
Sam spent the last chapter of his acting career on television, playing numerous creeps and serial killers in shows such as “Dexter” (Showtime), “Fear The Walking Dead” (AMC), “Dynasty” (Netflix), and “The Following” (FOX) opposite Kevin Bacon. Before the psychopathic turn, he dreamed of being Gene Kelly as a kid and moved to New York from England to pursue a Broadway career. Stage highlights include Equus opposite Alec Baldwin, Hamlet, Candida, Dorian Gray, and Henry V.
Sara Sugihara (Producer)
Sara Sugihara (Producer)
Sara Sugihara (Producer)
Sara Sugihara is a choreographer, teacher, pianist and translator, and is now a producer for Sam Underwood. She taught and choreographed for companies and schools in France, Spain, Israel, Canada, Australia and all over the USA, and also worked in film and theatre production for over 20 years. She taught movement for the Atlantic Theatre summer school in Vermont and continues dancing at studios in New York while attending a lot of theatre, ballet, film, and classical music concerts.
Sara Sugihara is a choreographer, teacher, pianist and translator, and is now a producer for Sam Underwood. She taught and choreographed for companies and schools in France, Spain, Israel, Canada, Australia and all over the USA, and also worked in film and theatre production for over 20 years. She taught movement for the Atlantic Theatre summer school in Vermont and continues dancing at studios in New York while attending a lot of theatre, ballet, film, and classical music concerts.
Sara Sugihara is a choreographer, teacher, pianist and translator, and is now a producer for Sam Underwood. She taught and choreographed for companies and schools in France, Spain, Israel, Canada, Australia and all over the USA, and also worked in film and theatre production for over 20 years. She taught movement for the Atlantic Theatre summer school in Vermont and continues dancing at studios in New York while attending a lot of theatre, ballet, film, and classical music concerts.
Ashley M. Cowles (Associate Producer)
Ashley M. Cowles (Associate Producer)
Ashley M. Cowles (Associate Producer)
Ashley M. Cowles is an actor, writer, director, producer, and intimacy professional with Intimacy Directors and Coordinators based in New York. She studied at the Juilliard School, New York University, and the American Musical and Dramatic Academy in New York, where she acquired a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in Acting. Producing credits include “Company of Man” (AMT Theater), “Ivanov” (Royal Family Theater), “Company of Man” (New York Theater Festival), and “First Ladies and the Big White Lie” (Academic Tour).
Ashley M. Cowles is an actor, writer, director, producer, and intimacy professional with Intimacy Directors and Coordinators based in New York. She studied at the Juilliard School, New York University, and the American Musical and Dramatic Academy in New York, where she acquired a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in Acting. Producing credits include “Company of Man” (AMT Theater), “Ivanov” (Royal Family Theater), “Company of Man” (New York Theater Festival), and “First Ladies and the Big White Lie” (Academic Tour).
Ashley M. Cowles is an actor, writer, director, producer, and intimacy professional with Intimacy Directors and Coordinators based in New York. She studied at the Juilliard School, New York University, and the American Musical and Dramatic Academy in New York, where she acquired a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in Acting. Producing credits include “Company of Man” (AMT Theater), “Ivanov” (Royal Family Theater), “Company of Man” (New York Theater Festival), and “First Ladies and the Big White Lie” (Academic Tour).
Special Thanks
Scott Delacruz, Preston Whiteway, Savanah Sanchez, Jill Rafson, Cary Simpson, TheaterLab, Open Jar Studios, Royal Family Performing Arts Space, Jocelyn Eisenberg, Ed Neppl and Scott Mitchell, Dennis Aspland, Sydney Gordon, Eva Zazzali, Lisa Strausfeld, Zephyr Teachout, Andrew Wonder, Karen Hoffman, Eric & Ruth Nightengale, Dan Coleman, Alissa Quart
Scott Delacruz, Preston Whiteway, Savanah Sanchez, Jill Rafson, Cary Simpson, TheaterLab, Open Jar Studios, Royal Family Performing Arts Space, Jocelyn Eisenberg, Ed Neppl and Scott Mitchell, Dennis Aspland, Sydney Gordon, Eva Zazzali, Lisa Strausfeld, Zephyr Teachout, Andrew Wonder, Karen Hoffman, Eric & Ruth Nightengale, Dan Coleman, Alissa Quart
An invitation to continue the conversation
Though tonight’s play takes place long ago in a land far away, its themes continue to resonate today.
Though tonight’s play takes place long ago in a land far away, its themes continue to resonate today.
If this performance brings up thoughts, feelings, or questions, you’re not alone. That’s one of the gifts of gathering to experience stories together.
If this performance brings up thoughts, feelings, or questions, you’re not alone. That’s one of the gifts of gathering to experience stories together.
We hope those conversations, with yourself and others, will continue beyond curtain call. They’re a powerful way to better understand ourselves and each other.
We hope those conversations, with yourself and others, will continue beyond curtain call. They’re a powerful way to better understand ourselves and each other.
We’ve partnered on a companion resource page:
We’ve partnered on a companion resource page:
Thoughts? We'd love to hear from you.
Email us at therealivanovplay@gmail.com.
Thoughts? We'd love to hear from you.
Email us at therealivanovplay@gmail.com.







