Ensemble Studio Theatre's 58th Season to Include NY Premiere and World Premiere

Ensemble Studio Theatre’s 58th season will kick off with the New York premiere of Beyond Words, written by Laura Maria Censabella and directed by fellow EST ensemble artist Colette Robert, running February 8, 2027-March 7, 2027, with an opening set for February 18.

Beyond Words is presented by EST with the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation as the EST/Sloan Project, a longstanding partnership that fosters new plays exploring science and technology. Censabella is a two-time EST/Sloan-commissioned writer, and an EST Ensemble artist, and the play was commissioned and developed by the EST/Sloan Project.

Inspired by the true life collaboration of Dr. Irene Pepperberg, and Alex, an African Grey parrot, Beyond Words is about Irene, a researcher at Harvard University, teaching Alex to meaningfully communicate and solve problems at the level of a five-year-old child.

The season will continue with the world premiere of Youngblood playwright Audley Puglisi’s lucky/bird, directed by Obie Award winner abigail jean-baptiste, running May 17, 2027-June 13, 2027, with a opening set for May 27. The Lucky make up a tight-knit community of Black folks with a murky past, who honor their shared history with a parade each summer. Louise, a pariah and three-time widow who raises peacocks on her front porch, is visited by a mysterious stranger on the eve of the parade.