Pulitzer Prize Winning Play "English" Opens TheaterWorks Hartford's 40th Season

Press release

Pulitzer Prize-Winning Play English Opens TheaterWorks Hartford’s Milestone 40th Season

In Partnership with Long Wharf Theatre, Directed by Arya Shahi

Runs October 2 - November 2, 2025

TheaterWorks Hartford, under the direction of Artistic Director Rob Ruggiero and Managing Director Jeff Griffin, and Long Wharf Theatre, under the Artistic Leadership of Jacob Padrón, announce a co-production of English by Sanaz Toossi, winner of the 2023 Pulitzer Prize for Drama. This powerful and timely play kicks off TheaterWorks Hartford’s landmark 40th season before it moves to Long Wharf Theatre on Southern Connecticut State University’s campus in January of 2026.

Winner of the Pulitzer Prize and nominated for the Tony Award for Best Play, English is a powerful exploration of how language shapes identity, belonging, and connection. Sanaz Toossi’s celebrated work reveals both the humor and heartache in finding one's voice.

“English Only” is the mantra that rules one classroom in Iran, where four adults are preparing for the TOEFL - the Test of English as a Foreign Language. Together with their teacher, they leapfrog through a linguistic playground that is a funny, stunning triumph about the universal foibles of language and miscommunication. English is a powerful exploration of how language shapes identity, belonging, and connection. Directed by Arya Shahi, this production runs October 2 - November 2, 2025 at TheaterWorks Hartford, before it moves to Long Wharf Theatre January 16 - February 1,

The cast of English includes Neagheen Homaifar (Selling Kabul, Scorched), Sahar Milani (Law & Order), Afsheen Misaghi (Succession), Anahita Monfared (For Her, Firefly Lane), and Pantea Ommi (Much Ado About Nothing), all of whom will be making their TheaterWorks Hartford debuts.

The creative team for English includes Sadra Tehrani (set design), Dina El-Aziz (costume design), Mary Ellen Stebbins (lighting design), Bahar Royaee (sound design), and Tom Kosis (production stage manager). Casting by Gregory Jafari VanAcker / Bass/Valle Casting.

“Our 40th anniversary season is a milestone we’re thrilled to celebrate with all of you. And what better way to begin than with this 2023 Pulitzer Prize-winning play, created with an extraordinary group of artists here in Hartford,” says TWH artistic director Rob Ruggiero. “At its heart, English is a beautifully simple story with a powerful message about language and how the words we use shape who we are. Its themes of identity and belonging will deeply resonate with our audiences. We’re especially excited to share this play in partnership with Long Wharf Theatre down in New Haven, making this moment even more meaningful.”

“English speaks to the theatre of this moment - urgent, resonant, and deeply human. Our partnership with TheaterWorks Hartford reflects the strength of regional collaboration, and we’re excited to see the play continue to grow when it arrives at Long Wharf Theatre on Southern Connecticut State University’s campus in January,” says Jacob Padrón, Long Wharf Theatre’s artistic director.

The performance schedule is Tuesdays - Saturdays at 7:30pm, Saturdays and Sundays at 2:30pm, with special performances Saturday 10/25 at 12pm and 4pm and Wednesday 10/29 & Thursday 10/30 at 1pm. The run time is approximately 100 minutes with no intermission. Tickets are priced between $25 - $70. All tickets can be purchased online at twhartford.org or by calling 860.527.7838.

Theater Week is back October 14 & 21! TWH is offering buy One Get One Tickets + FREE Pizza and Beer Tuesdays. Join TWH at 6:30 for Pizza and Beer + English + a Talkback with the cast and creatives. Thanks to the Greater Hartford Arts Council.

About the English Artists:
Sanaz Toossi (playwright) is an Iranian-American, Tony Nominated playwright from Orange County, California. Her plays include the critically acclaimed, Pulitzer Prize-winning English (co-production, Atlantic Theater Company/Roundabout Theatre Company) and Wish You Were Here (Playwrights Horizons; Williamstown/Audible, released 2020). She is currently under commission at Atlantic Theater Company (Launch commission; Virginia B. Toulmin Foundation grant), Roundabout Theatre Company, Williamstown Theatre Festival, Manhattan Theatre Club, South Coast Repertory and Oregon Shakespeare Festival (American Revolutions Cycle).

For television, Sanaz recently staffed on Invitation to a Bonfire (AMC), A League of Their Own (Amazon), and Five Women (Marielle Heller/ Big Beach), and sold an original idea, The Persians, to FX with Joe Weisberg & Joel Fields attached as Executive Producers. Sanaz is a member of Youngblood and the Middle Eastern American Writers Lab at the Lark, and an alum of Clubbed Thumb’s Early Career Writers’ Group. She was the 2019 P73 Playwriting Fellow, a recipient of the 2020 Steinberg Playwright Award, the 2022 recipient of The Horton Foote Award and, most recently, the 2023 recipient of the Best New American Play Obie Award. MFA: NYU Tisch

Arya Shahi (director) is an Iranian-American multidisciplinary artist. He is a co-founder of PigPen Theatre Co. He is the author of “An Impossible Thing To Say”, which garnered “Best Books of The Year” recognition from The Horn Book, CALIBA, and the New York Public Library, amongst others. He directed English, Sanaz Toossi’s Pulitzer Prize-winning play, at The Old Globe and assistant directed Knud Adams’ production on Broadway, which received five Tony Award® Nominations including Best Direction and Best Play. He co-wrote the music and lyrics of Water For Elephants on Broadway, which received seven Tony Award® Nominations including Best Musical.

Rob Ruggiero (Artistic Director at TWH) has been a part of TheaterWorks Hartford's artistic leadership for 30 seasons. He has directed over 70 shows, including TWH productions of Fun Home, The Sound Inside, American Son, The Legend of Georgia McBride, Constellations, Next to Normal, Relativity (with Richard Dreyfuss) and Christmas on the Rocks, which he also conceived. His Broadway credits include Looped (starring Valerie Harper in a Tony-nominated performance) and High (starring Kathleen Turner) which had its world premiere at TWH. He also conceived and directed the musical revue Make Me a Song: The Music of William Finn which moved off-Broadway and was nominated for Drama Desk and Outer Critics Circle Awards. Rob conceived and directed Ella, a musical about Ella Fitzgerald, which saw sold-out runs in 24 regional theaters and was produced as a National Tour. His work on plays and musicals has received multiple awards in Connecticut and around the United States. Rob regularly directs at Goodspeed Musicals where over his 16-year relationship he has directed many award-winning musical productions including A Chorus Line, and The Mystery of Edwin Drood. Internationally, he directed Fiddler on the Roof in Athens, Greece.

About the English Cast:
Neagheen Homaifar (Marjan), (she/her) is an Iranian-American actor. An honors graduate of Harvard University, her theater credits include English (Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park), Selling Kabul (Signature Theatre), and Scorched (ExPats Theatre). On screen, she has appeared on Me (AppleTV+), Killing It (Peacock), and The Resonant (Fox), and starred in Before Dawn, Kabul Time, and Lena-Waithe Produced short that premiered at Tribeca Festival and qualified for Best Live Action Short consideration at the 95th Academy Awards (now streaming on Hulu). Neagheen co-hosted the award-winning comedy podcast “Best Friends Back, Alright!” with Mythical Entertainment. She can be seen in sci-fi thriller, Site (Entelekey Media). www.neagheen.com | @neagheen

Sahar Milani (Elham) is a Lebanese-Iranian actress, singer, and musician based in Brooklyn. Recent NYC credits include Fouad of Nazareth (Noor Theatre), The Visitor (The Public Theater), Hound Dog (Ars Nova/PlayCo). TV: “Daredevil: Born Again” (Marvel, Disney+), “The Endgame” (NBC), “Let the Right One In” (Showtime), “Law & Order” (NBC). She is a member of the folk duo Yeller Tooth, and their EP “Temple Cabin Tapes” is available now across all music platforms. Much love and gratitude to my incredibly attractive bandmate and new husband, Cam. In loving memory of my Dad - my all-time favorite English-speaker.