(Via Emily Owens; Megan Hill Photo credit: Maria Baranova.)
OPEN by Crystal Skillman
Directed by Jessi D. Hill
Starring Megan Hill
Press Previews July 10 & 11
Opening Saturday, July 12
July 8 – 27 at WP Theater
Midnight Theatricals in association with The Tank and The Flying Carpet Theatre Company will present the Off-Broadway Premiere of Crystal Skillman’s award-winning play OPEN , a spellbinding story of love, loss, and the impossible, directed by Jessi D. Hill (The Ask at wild project; Small at 59E59), and starring Drama Desk Award-nominee Megan Hill (Eddie and Dave with Atlantic Theater; Do You Feel Anger? at Vineyard Theatre) at WP Theater (2162 Broadway, New York, NY 10024), July 8-27. Open is a recipient of the WP Space Program and a New Georges Supported Production, produced with a grant from Fiordellisi Williams Family Foundation.
A woman called The Magician appears to pantomime a myriad of tricks, but there’s no illusion. Her act reveals she is attempting the impossible—to save the life of her lover, Jenny. Open is a magic act that reveals itself to be a resurrection. The clock is ticking, the show must go on, and, as impossible as it may seem, this Magician’s act may be our last hope against a world filled with intolerance and hate. Sometimes the only magic we have is hope.
Returning to the role she originated, Megan Hill stars as The Magician, under the direction of Jessi D. Hill. The show’s 2019 sold-out run at The Tank earned a New York Times Critics’ Pick, with Elisabeth Vincentelli writing: “Kristen [The Magician] executes magic tricks because she is the one who needs to believe. The miracle this lovely show pulls out is that by the end, she does — and so do we.”
OPEN’s run will include a magical series of pre-show acts with magicians who inspired the piece and post-show talkbacks about the power of magic in the LGBTQIA+ community, featuring those who have played The Magician in Broadway Licensing productions across the country. Post-show events will include a showing of a new piece by Lily Ali-Oshatz, who debuted in the European tour of Open.
“We are so thrilled to welcome Lab Alum Crystal Skillman to the WP Space Program with her (literally) magical play Open,” said WP Theater Producing Artistic Director, Lisa McNulty. “Directed by fellow Lab Alum Jessi D. Hill and performed by the absolutely delightful Megan Hill, it’s the nicest homecoming ever!”
“It is so fitting that we have a chance to share Open with WP’s wonderful audiences this summer,” said playwright Crystal Skillman. “Open has such a playful and magical way of telling a story of true love. As LGBTQIA+ rights continue to be threatened, I wrote Open in response to our current times. The response globally to Kristen’s journey that I’ve experienced across the world, and the response to seeing a female magician on stage, has made it clear how impactful this show could be. WP has a long history of producing groundbreaking work. Director Jessi D. Hill and I are honored to be a part, especially as alumni of the wonderful WP Lab program which helped us both greatly in our careers.”
“We at The Tank are overjoyed that OPEN will soon be thrilling New York audiences at WP Theater,” said Meghan Finn, Artistic Director of The Tank. “We are over-the-moon that after its highly successful European premiere, the show will be shared here at home where this work is more vital than ever.”
“We first partnered with Crystal Skillman on Midnight’s Virtual Reading Series at the beginning of the pandemic, when theater — and everything else — closed,” says S. Asher Gelman, Artistic Director of Midnight Theatricals. “Five years later, we couldn’t be more proud to partner with her again to help bring her magic back to the stage — on the most fitting of titles, Open.”
The creative team will include Lighting & Scenic Design by Sarah Johnston (When We Went Electronic at The Tank; Bengal Tiger at the Baghdad Zoo with NYTW), Sound Design by Emma Wilk (Dog Man: The Musical at New World Stages; Everything’s Fine at DR2), Costume Design by Madeline Wall (Jack of Cups with Experimental Bitch; Mad Cool at FRIGID Fringe), and Magic Consultant Rachel Wax (Daryl Roth Creative Spirit Award-winner; Speakeasy Magick at the Mckittrick Hotel). The Production Stage Manager will be Sydney Golden with Consulting Producer Megan E Carter.
Performances are schedule on:
Tue July 8 at 7:30pm (Preview)
Wed July 9 at 7:30pm (Preview)
Thu July 10 at 7:30pm (Press Preview)
Fri July 11 at 7:30pm (Press Preview)
Sat July 12 at 3pm (Press Preview)
Sat July 12 at 7:30pm (Opening Night)
Sun July 13 at 3pm
Tue July 15 at 7:30pm
Wed July 16 at 7:30pm
Thu July 17 at 7:30pm
Fri July 18 at 7:30pm
Sat July 19 at 3pm & 7:30pm
Sun July 20 at 3pm
Tue July 22 at 7:30pm
Wed July 23 at 7:30pm
Thu July 24 at 7:40pm
Fri July 25 at 7:30pm
Sat July 26 at 3pm & 7:30pm
Sun July 27 at 3pm
The performance will run approximately 60 minutes, with no intermission.
Tickets ($20-$60) will go on sale Monday, May 12. For more information and updates, please visit www.opentheplay.com.
Crystal Skillman (Playwright) is an internationally award-winning dramatist. Plays include NYTimes Critics’ Picks CUT, GEEK, OPEN as well as KING KIRBY, co-written with Fred Van Lente about the life of Marvel’s co-creator, artist Jack Kirby, which is now a podcast series on Broadway Podcast Network. Her new play commission THE ROCKET MEN will receive a National New Play Network Rolling World Premiere at three NNPN theatres around the country in their 2025-2026 seasons starting this fall (Phoenix Theatre, Indianapolis; Synchronicity Theatre, Atlanta; Angels Theatre, Nebraska). During the slow-down of the pandemic Crystal’s plays made their international debut with RAIN AND ZOE SAVE THE WORLD. The play premiered in Jermyn Street’s season in the UK with Drew & Dane Productions, who have also optioned MARY AND MAX, which she is the bookwriter of, for Broadway. Featuring music by noted composer Bobby Cronin, the musical is based on animator Adam Elliot’s award-winning film. Shortly after, OPEN (featuring Lily Ali-Oschatz) debuted in the Onstage festival in Italy. This year Crystal’s first graphic novel has just come out from Rocketship Entertainment; she has previously written for Wondery Kids, Adventure Time comics, and Marvel comics. She is a proud alum of the WP Lab, Soho Rep Writer/Director Lab, and Youngblood at EST, where she is a member. She is represented by Brian T. Sherman (IPEX Artists Agency). www.crystalskillman.com Instagram @crystalskillman
Jessi D. Hill (Director) (she/her) Recent: SMALL (2024 Drama Desk and Outer Critics Circle Nominations), THE ASK by Matthew Freeman at wild project. New York: NYTW, Public Theater/ Joe’s Pub, Playwrights Horizons, Primary Stages, LAByrinth, Rattlestick, Women’s Project, 59E59, P73, New Group, Keen Company, LaMama, Clubbed Thumb, Ensemble Studio Theatre, wild project, Musical Theatre Factory, The Acting Company, Barrow Group, New Dramatists, Playwrights Realm, New Georges. Regional: Old Globe, George St. Playhouse, A.R.T, People’s Light, Contemporary American Theatre Festival, Diversionary, TheatreSquared, Orlando Shakes and others. International: Edinburgh, London, New Zealand, Berlin, Hamburg, Brussels, Ukraine and Rome. She currently teaches directing at Fordham and Barnard. MFA Directing: Yale. www.jessidhill.com
Megan Hill (The Magician) is a Brooklyn-based actor and writer. As an actor, she has originated roles in the world premieres of Zoe Geltman’s A(U)NTS; Sandy Rustin’s THE SUFFRAGETTE’S MURDER; Ramiz Monsef’s THE ANTS; Leah Nanako Winkler’s THE BRIGHTEST THING IN THE WORLD and KENTUCKY; Crystal Skillman’s OPEN and CUT; Amy Staats’ EDDIE AND DAVE; Mara Nelson Greenberg’s DO YOU FEEL ANGER?; Rob Askins’ HAND TO GOD; Joshua Conkel’s THE SLUTS OF SUTTON DRIVE and LONESOME WINTER (which she also co-wrote); and Joshua Conkel and Matt Marks’ THE HOUSE OF VON MACRAME. Megan was nominated for two Helen Hayes awards for her work in POTUS at Arena Stage. She also received a Drama Desk Award nomination and was named one of the Best Comedic Performances of the Year by The New York Times for her portrayal of David Lee Roth in EDDIE AND DAVE. Her play THE LAST CLASS: A JAZZERCIZE PLAY has enjoyed runs in New York, DC, and Seattle. BFA Acting/Original Works: Cornish College of the Arts. MFA: ART/MXAT IATT at Harvard. www.meganhill.net Instagram: @meganhillwhat
WP Theater, now in its 47th Season, is the nation’s oldest and largest theater company dedicated to developing, producing and promoting the work of Women+ at every stage in their careers. For almost five decades we have served as leaders at the forefront of a global movement towards gender parity, and the example we set and the artists we have fostered have grown into a robust and thriving community of artists in theater and beyond. WP Theater received a 2018 Lucille Lortel Award, a 2019 Obie Award, and a 2020 Drama Desk Award, all for Outstanding Body of Work, recognizing WP’s unique place and vital work in the theatrical landscape.
The WP Space Program is an initiative to offer discounted space at WP Theater’s home @ 76th and Broadway and to provide affordable producing options for our artistic community. Our goal for the Space Program is to provide subsidized space to mission-aligned individual artists and small budget not-for-profit companies ($300,000 or less) who might otherwise not be able to produce because of the financial constraints of renting performance space. https://wptheater.org/
Midnight Theatricals is a Tony-nominated production company dedicated to developing and showcasing innovative, diverse storytelling worldwide. Its inaugural production, Afterglow, originally slated for a two-month run in the summer of 2017, extended six times and finally closed after a record-breaking year and a half run Off-Broadway. Afterglow continues to thrive with runs across North America, London, Madrid, Mexico City, Buenos Aires, and plans for Australia in 2026. The play will return to New York City for its tenth anniversary production in 2027. Other notable works include Scarlett Dreams starring Andrew Keenan-Bolger, safeword (both by S. Asher Gelman), and the cult favorite slasher cheerleader musical We Are The Tigers. At the beginning of the pandemic, the company pioneered a virtual reading series featuring Tony nominee Eva Noblezada and Reeve Carney. Award-winning dance films include The Greatest City in the World and the internationally recognized In Memoriam. Additional work includes Hir in London, Pulitzer Prize finalist Here There Are Blueberries with Tectonic Theater Company, On Your Feet National Tour, Velour: A Drag Spectacular at La Jolla Playhouse, and the Broadway productions of The Last 5 Years and Pulitzer Prize-winning Fat Ham, which received five Tony nominations, including Best Play. Midnight Theatricals is also a producer on the upcoming Noam Ash film Bookends, starring Oscar-winner F. Murray Abraham. www.midnighttheatricals.com
Founded in 2003, The Tank is an Obie Award-winning, multi-disciplinary non-profit arts presenter and producer, which provides a home to emerging artists working across all disciplines, including theater, comedy, dance, film, music, puppetry, and storytelling. Led by Artistic Director Meghan Finn, Managing Producer Molly FitzMaurice, and Director of Artistic Development Johnny G. Lloyd, The Tank champions emerging artists engaged in the pursuit of new ideas and forms of expression. In doing so the company removes the economic barriers from the creation of new work for artists launching their careers and experimenting within their art form. From the company’s home with two theaters on 36th Street, The Tank serves over 3,000 artists every year, presents 800 to 1,000 performances, and welcomes an average of 36,000 audience members annually. The company fully produces a curated season of 8-12 theatrical World or New York premieres each season. In addition to a 2020 OBIE Award for Institutional Recognition celebrating our Extraordinary Support of Emerging Artists, The Tank has been honored with 6 Drama Desk nominations for our co-produced work, and an official New York City Council proclamation. Recent work includes hit productions of Midnight Coleslaw Tales from Beyond the Closet!!! by Joey Merlo (2024), Invasive Species by Maia Novi (2023), Joan of Arc in a Supermarket in California by Chloe Xtina (2023), Mahinerator by Jerry Lieblich (2023), New York Times Critics’ Picks Simon and His Shoes (2022), Taxilandia (2021, 2023 OBIE Award), OPEN by Crystal Skillman (2019), Red Emma & The Mad Monk by Alexis Roblan (2018), and The Offending Gesture by Mac Wellman (2016); as well as Drama Desk award-nominated productions The Hunger Artist (2018), The Paper Hat Game (2017), the ephemera trilogy (2017), Ada/Ava (2016) and youarenowhere (2016). https://thetanknyc.org/
The Flying Carpet Theatre Company Incorporated in 2003, Adam Koplan (Founding Artistic Director) created The Flying Carpet Theatre Company (FCT) after spending formative time training at Playwrights Horizons in New York City and at Ecole Jacques Lecoq in Paris. Over nearly 20 years, The Flying Carpet Theatre Company has created and/or premiered 20+ original plays including early works by artists who continue to shape the American Theatre such as Robert Lopez (Avenue Q, The Book of Mormon, Frozen) and Geoff Sobelle (All Wear Bowlers, The Object Lesson, Elephant Room). We have performed our shows in our home bases of New York, NY and Atlanta, GA and have toured nationally to 15 states, and internationally to Amsterdam, Edinburgh, Dublin, Prague and Rome. We generate new theatre that uses American historical stage traditions — physical theatre, dance, circus arts, vaudeville, puppetry, stage magic, cabaret performance, autobiographical storytelling, live music performance, and more — to tell stories about big ideas. American entertainment history reflects the best and worst of our society, and we utilize this tension to investigate flashpoints in our culture. By rooting our work in age-old theatrical forms, we pursue innovative theatrical experiences that connect us to our basic human need for telling stories while inspiring essential, complicated and deep discussion. We are committed to delighting, inspiring and challenging audiences by making performance art in collaborative, communal, non-hierarchical creative spaces and bringing our transformative theatre to communities across the globe. https://flyingcarpettheatre.com/
OPEN is a participant in New Georges’ Supported Productions program, in which New Georges provides mentorship and an institutional platform to its affiliated artists who are producing their work independently.
