The Hot Wing King

06/25/22 - 8/7/22

BY KATORI HALL
LOCATION VICTOR SHARGAI THEATRE
DIRECTED BY STEVE H. BROADNAX III
WINNER 2021 PULITZER PRIZE FOR DRAMA

It’s August in Memphis, time to crown the new Hot Wang King. Backed by his best friends and boyfriend Dwayne, who serve as his fry crew The New Wing Order, Cordell has a feeling that this is his year. But then a family emergency throws Dwayne’s nephew into the house on prep night, one of his crew starts messing with the seasoning, and suddenly Cordell’s future is in danger of going up in flames. Winner of the 2021 Pulitzer Prize for Drama, Katori Hall (The Mountaintop) has written a fresh and fierce comedy about the risk and rewards of celebrating who you are.

SHOW INFORMATION

Runtime: 2 hours and 10 minutes with a 15-minute intermission

Read the program.

In the interest of welcoming people with a wide range of needs and life experiences, Studio offers a bit of information on what you will encounter in the play.
Use this information as it is helpful to you.

Environment Warnings: This production of The Hot Wing King contains steam effects and loud noises.

Health and Safety
Masks and proof of vaccination are required for attending a performance at Studio. For more information about Studio's health and safety protocol click here.

The Hot Wing King is generously underwritten by Albert G. Lauber and Craig Hoffman.

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Multimedia

The Artists

Cast

U/S CORDELL & TJ

Joe Marshall

Joe Marshall is an actor and stand-up comedian born and raised in Washington, DC.  Selected theatre credits include Pass Over at Studio Theatre, A Raisin in the Sun and Fences at Virginia Repertory Theatre, and the Smithsonian National Museum of American History exhibition The Nation We Build Together. Joe regularly performs stand-up comedy in the DC area (DC Improv, Hotbed, DC Comedy Loft) where he produces and hosts a monthly show called Sonic Comedy Lab. He trained at the School at Steppenwolf in Chicago. On social media at @joelumberjack (Instagram).

(As of May 2022) 

U/S DWAYNE

Tundé Sho

Tundé Sho is an American Nigerian actor. He previously worked at Studio as an understudy for the character of Moses in Pass Over, directed by Psalmayene 24. He has heavy training and credits in classical and contemporary theatre and film, as well as a passion for cinematography and film editing. Born in New York, he lived his first seven years in Nigeria where he picked up his second language, Yoruba. He moved back to the United States to pursue his passion for acting and received a scholarship to the prestigious New York Conservatory for Dramatic Arts, where he studied the Meisner technique. 

(As of May 2022) 

U/S ISOM

Reginald Richard

Reginald Richard is an actor, director, and educator. His credits include the premiere of MUSEUM 2040 and Separate Rooms at 4615 Theatre Company, BLUE CAMP and Jeffrey at Rainbow Theatre Project, East of Eden at NextStop Theatre Company, The Tempest at Avant Bard Theatre, and The Great Society at Arena Stage. He made his directorial debut in the summer of 2020 with WANNABE at 4615 Theatre Company. He was recently named champion in the 10th-anniversary Monologue Madness competition in Washington, DC. He is a faculty member at the National Conservatory of Dramatic Arts. On social media at @scriptartist (Instagram) and @reginaldrrichard (Facebook).  

(As of June 2022)

U/S BIG CHARLES

Jonathan Mosley-Perry

Jonathan Mosley-Perry is an actor and musician. His theatre credits include Spunk at Signature Theatre, The Chicken Shack at Stage 52, A Christmas Carol and Julius Caesar at the North Carolina Shakespeare Festival, and In-Laws at the Carolina Theatre. Jonathan has appeared in the web series Room For Two, and in episodes of Growing up Fisher, Legit, Get Thee Behind Me, and Nuestro barrio. His film credits include One Penny, 15 Minutes, The Tunnel, Yesterday's Gods, and Leaving Home. He graduated from the Perpich Center for Arts Education with a concentration in Music and earned his BFA from North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University. 

(As of June 2022)

U/S EVERETT "EJ"

Jared Smith

Jared Smith is an actor, director, and writer. His theatre credits include a reading of Death and the King's Horseman at Shakespeare Theatre Company, Children of Killers and the 8x10 Play Festival at Al Freeman Jr. Environmental Theatre Space, and Spell #7 at Ira Aldridge Theater. Jared served as the assistant director for Fabulation at Mosaic Theater Company, and virtually directed A Raisin in the Sun during quarantine for the RCR Festival produced by Maya Shed. He is a recent graduate from Howard University’s Chadwick A. Boseman College of Fine Art. jaredalexandersmith.com 

(As of May 2022)

Production Team

SET DESIGNER

Michael Carnahan

Michael Carnahan’s previous credits include Skeleton Crew (Tony nomination) and Lackawanna Blues on Broadway; The Hot Wing King, The Piano Lesson, and The First Breeze of Summer at Signature Theatre Company; Skeleton Crew at Atlantic Theater Company; I and You at 59E59; and The Happiest Song Plays Last at Second Stage. International credits include Charlie and the Chocolate Factory and Billy Elliot: The Musical at Atelier de Cultura in Brazil. Touring credits include Cheers Live On Stage and A Christmas Story: The Musical. Regional theatre credits include productions with Apollo Theater, Arena Stage, American Conservatory Theater, The Kennedy Center, McCarter Theatre, Williamstown Theatre Festival, Baltimore Center Stage, Actors Theatre of Louisville, Pasadena Playhouse, and Two River Theater. michaelcarnahandesign.com On social media at @Carnypics (Instagram) and @mike_carnahan (Twitter). 

(As of May 2022)

COSTUME DESIGNER

Ivania Stack

Ivania Stack (she/her) previously designed several productions at Studio Theatre including I Wanna F***ing Tear You Apart and Water by the Spoonful. Ivania designs for many regional and DC-area theatres including Arena Stage, McCarter Theatre, Woolly Mammoth Theatre Company (Company Member), Seattle Rep, Ford’s Theatre, Round House Theatre (Resident Artist), The Kennedy Center, Baltimore Center Stage, Philadelphia Theatre Company, Everyman Theatre, The Second City, Signature Theatre, Imagination Stage, and Olney Theatre Center. She has an MFA in design from the University of Maryland.

(As of June 2022)

LIGHTING DESIGNER

Alan C. Edwards

Alan C. Edwards was the associate to Jennifer Tipton on The Testament of Mary on Broadway. His work Off Broadway includes the world premiere of Harry Clarke (Lucille Lortel Award) at The Vineyard Theatre; Fires in the Mirror (Lucille Lortel nomination), Twilight: Los Angeles, 1992, and The Hot Wing King at Signature Theatre Company; the world premiere of Kill Move Paradise (Drama Desk nomination) at the National Black Theatre; and Bluebird Memories featuring Common for Audible Theater. Regional work includes Pipeline and Skeleton Crew at Actors Theatre of Louisville; Paradise Blue at Geffen Playhouse; Detroit ’67 at Chautauqua Theater Company; Twisted Melodies at Baltimore Center Stage; and Lights Out: Nat King Cole at the Geffen Playhouse in Los Angeles as well as its world premiere at People’s Light. He is a graduate of the Yale School of Drama, where he is also an assistant professor of lighting. alancedwards.com.

(As of June 2022)

SOUND DESIGNER

Curtis Craig

Curtis Craig is making his Studio debut with The Hot Wing King. This year he has designed the world premieres of Dominique Morisseau’s Confederates at Signature Theatre Company and Steve H. Broadnax III’s Bayard Rustin Inside Ashland at People’s Light, in addition to composing and designing The Three Musketeers at Cleveland Play House. He recently collaborated on the world premieres of Mud Row at People’s Light and Lauren Yee’s The Great Leap at the Denver Center for the Performing Arts. He has designed and composed a variety of shows for the Classical Theatre of Harlem, Syracuse Stage, Lantern Theater Company, Philadelphia Theatre Company, Actors Theatre of Louisville, Seattle Rep, Detroit Public Theatre, Chautauqua Theater Company, Dallas Theater Center, and the New York International Fringe Festival. His composition and sound design for the American premiere of Frankenstein will be exhibited at the World Stage Design Expo in Calgary, Canada. He is an Associate Professor of Sound Design at Penn State University. curtiscraig.com. 

(As of May 2022)

PROPS DESIGNER

Amy Kellett

Amy Kellett (she/her) is a freelance props designer; she is also a puppeteer, puppet builder, and scenic charge. Regional credits include Things That Are Round at Rep Stage; The Blackest Battle, Day of Absence, and Do You Feel Anger? at Theater Alliance; The Mamalogues at 1st Stage; Moon Man Walk at Constellation Theatre Company; An Act of God at NextStop Theatre Company; Dreamgirls at ArtsCentric; Visions of Love, Rite of Spring, Don Cristobal, and King Ubu at Pointless Theatre Company; Que Las Hay, Las Hay at GALA Hispanic Theatre; American Spies and Other Homegrown Fables, The Burn, Secrets of the Universe and Other Songs, The Late Wedding, and Peekaboo! at The Hub Theatre; The Three Musketeers and A Tale of Two Cities at Synetic Theater; the 2016 New Play Festival at YPT, and the 2022 Young Playwrights Festival at Baltimore Center Stage. 

(As of May 2022)

DIALECT COACH

Caroline Stefanie Clay

Caroline Stefanie Clay (she/her) is an actress, director, playwright, and vocal coach. On Broadway, she has appeared in Tony Award winning productions, including The Little Foxes, Doubt, The Royal Family, and Drowning Crow. She served as the dialect coach for the pilot episode of P-Valley by Katori Hall on Starz and is currently the dialect coach for the upcoming film Flint Strong written by Oscar-winning writer/director Barry Jenkins (Moonlight). A native Washingtonian, Caroline is a graduate of the Duke Ellington School of the Arts. She has a BFA in Theatre Arts from the University of the Arts and an MFA in Performance from the School of Theatre, Dance, and Performance Studies at the University of Maryland. She has taught acting intensives at Georgetown University, Howard University, Ford’s Theatre, Bowie State University, University of Maryland, and Duke University. She is an Assistant Professor of Acting at the University of Iowa, Department of Theatre Arts. 

(As of June 2022)

INTIMACY CHOREOGRAPHER

Raja Benz

Raja Benz (she/her) is a transgender, Filipina-American theatre educator, intimacy professional, and cultural consultant based in Richmond, Virginia. Recent credits include Daphne’s Dive at Signature Theatre and Seven Deadly Sins (Pride) with the Tectonic Theater Project. Raja is an assistant faculty member with Theatrical Intimacy Education, where she designed and teaches “Working with Trans and Non-Binary Artists”. Raja works full-time as the Community Engagement and Outreach Manager for the Richmond Triangle Players and holds a MFA from Virginia Commonwealth University, where she is the inaugural Post-Masters Teaching Fellow.  

(As of May 2022)

DRAMATURG

Adrien-Alice Hansel

Adrien-Alice Hansel (she/her) is the Literary Director at Studio, where she has dramaturged the world premieres of John Proctor is the VillainI Hate it Here, Queen of Basel,  No Sisters, I Wanna Fucking Tear You Apart, Red Speedo, Dirt, Lungs, and The History of Kisses, among others, as well as productions of White NoiseTender Age, Flow, Until the Flood, 2.5 Minute Ride, Cry It Out, Translations, Curve of Departure,  Wig Out!, Straight White Men, Hedda Gabler,  Jumpers for Goalposts, Bad Jews (twice), The Apple Family Plays, Invisible Man,Sucker Punch, The Golden Dragon, and The New Electric Ballroom, among others. Prior to joining Studio, she spent eight seasons at the Actors Theatre of Louisville, where she headed the literary department and coordinated project scouting, selection, and development for the Humana Festival of New American Plays. She is the co-editor of eight anthologies of plays from Actors Theatre and editor of 11 editions of plays through Studio. Adrien-Alice holds an MFA from the Yale School of Drama. 

(As of May 2022) 

PRODUCTION STAGE MANAGER

Ricky Ramón

Ricky Ramón is an Actor’s Equity member, originally from Pearsall, Texas. He has directed and stage managed over 60 plays and musicals at Adventure Theatre MTC, Atlantic Theater Company, Arena Stage, Signature Theatre, Theater Alliance, Rorschach Theatre, Imagination Stage, Woolly Mammoth Theatre Company, and Teatro Vivo.  Ricky earned an MEd in Arts in Education from Harvard University, an MFA in Acting and Directing from Texas Tech University, and an MA in Performance Studies from NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts.  He received a BA in Theatre and English from the University of Notre Dame. Ricky currently teaches theatre in the Department of Theatre Arts in the Chadwick A. Boseman College of Fine Arts at Howard University.  

(As of June 2022)

CASTING

Stewart/Whitley

STEWART/WHITLEY, Duncan Stewart CSA and Benton Whitley CSA, is a casting agency whose credits include Broadway and New York works: Paradise Square, Hadestown (Artios Award), Chicago the Musical, Rock of Ages, The Lightning Thief, The Great Comet of 1812, Elf, On the Town, Pippin, La Cage aux Folles, and the Radio City Christmas Spectacular. TV and Film credits include work with Netflix, 20th Century Fox, NBC, Lionsgate, and Disney Channel. West End/UK work includes Hadestown, Thriller Live, and projects with Menier Chocolate Factory. The firm has also worked with tours of Hadestown, Hairspray, Waitress, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Finding Neverland, Into the Woods, and We Will Rock You. Stewart/Whitley has worked with regional clients including American Repertory Theater, Berkeley Rep, Alley Theatre, Bay Street Theatre, For The Record, Theatre Under the Stars, Hollywood Bowl, McCarter Theatre, Signature Theatre, and Royal Caribbean Cruises. Stewartwhitley.com. On social media at @stewartwhitley (Instagram). 

(As of May 2022)

Press

A "funny, moving tale of Black gay friends and lovers"
Washington Post
The Hot Wing King is an incisive, hilarious, and heartfelt story
Theatrely
A sweet, spicy, and satisfying romp
Maryland Theatre Guide
A production to treasure
Broadway World
This production of The Hot Wing King is, as the phrase goes, hot, hot, hot
DC Theater Arts
This prize-winner excites the palate with flavors that truly kick
Metro Weekly

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