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GIRL POWER

Thrown Stone Announces its 2022 Season

Ridgefield - Thrown Stone’s fifth season features two new plays about friendship, competition, and coming of age in today’s world: Athena by Gracie Gardner, and Hysterical! by Elenna Stauffer. Athena, a 2018 New York Times Critic’s Pick, was originally commissioned and performed by the Hearth Theatre. Hysterical! by Elenna Stauffer had its premiere at FringeNYC 2016.

Both plays candidly and poignantly explore the absurdity, the agony, and the swagger of adolescence and athletics — from a girl’s point of view.

“I’m a big fan of Sarah DeLappe’s The Wolves, and when I read Athena, I felt an instant connection to the text,” said Thrown Stone Co-Artistic Director, Jason Peck. “It’s also about girls’ athletics and has the same kind of raw intensity — but I was particularly drawn in by Gardner’s sly humor and how she so deftly weaves the silliness and absurdity of everyday adolescence into the story.”

“We didn’t have to search far for a companion piece,” added Co-Artistic Director Jonathan Winn. “As part of our 2021 Ridgefield High School internship program, we asked interns Evelyn Carr and Liam Huff to read a new play every day. Getting their feedback on material under consideration was invaluable, but we didn’t expect it to yield such immediate results.”

“I stumbled across Hysterical! while searching for female-centered plays, particularly plays focused on young women,” said Carr. “It’s such an entertaining and informative piece of art and definitely stays with you long after it’s over.”

Both plays will be directed by Tracy Brigden. “After missing our chance in 2020, it’s wonderful to return to Thrown Stone to work on these two plays that so candidly center the lives of young women,” she said.

ATHENA
Mary Wallace and Athena are brave, and seventeen, and fencers, and training for the Junior Olympics. They practice together, they compete against each other, they spend their lives together. They wish they were friends.

Athena was a 2018 New York Times Critic’s Pick .

• Press Preview: July 14, 2022 at 8pm
• Opens July 15, 2022 at 8pm
• Closes August 6, 2022

HYSTERICAL!
It’s the Bandits’ best year EVER! Until… one by one, the cheerleading squad succumbs to a mysterious illness. As the traditional pecking order is upended, the girls’ relationships are tested. With a deceptively comedic first act, Hysterical! addresses serious subject matter, examining the vulnerabilities of teenage girls and the poignancy of life on the cusp of adulthood.

Hysterical! was a semifinalist for the Lanford Wilson New American Play Festival, the Hidden River Playwriting Award, and the Dennis and Victoria Ross Foundation Playwrights program.

• Press Preview: July 21, 2022 at 8pm
• Opens July 22, 2022 at 8pm
• Closes August 7, 2022

Tickets on Sale May 1
Both plays will perform at Ridgefield Conservatory of Dance, 440 Main Street, Ridgefield CT 06877. Tickets go on sale May 1, 2022 at 10am. Preview Performances: $30. Opening Night Performances (including food, wine, and festivities): $79. Fridays, Saturday Nights, and Sunday Matinees: $59, Thursday Evenings and Saturday Matinees: $49. Save $10 when you order before July 1. Purchase tickets and view the full repertory schedule at thrownstone.org/events .

Creative Team
Gracie Gardner, Playwright, Athena
Elenna Stauffer, Playwright, Hysterical!
Tracy Brigden, Director
Emmie Finckel, Scenic Design
Adam Lobelson, Lighting Design
Brenda Phelps, Costume Design
Kevin Mambo and Jason Peck, Sound Design
Roger Connor Jr., Production Manager
Richard Harrison, Technical Director
Jordan E. More, Stage Manager
Mark Silence, Fight Director
Mike Martin, Fencing Coach
Bianca Paolello, Cheer Coach
Jason Peck and Jonathan Winn, Producing Artistic Directors

Acknowledgments

With underwriting support from the Burry Fredrik Foundation.