Theater News

Royal Family Productions to Present Women on Fire: Stories From the Frontlines

Kathleen Chalfant, Ali Ewoldt, and Laila Robins will perform monologues that explore diverse American perspectives.

Ali Ewoldt joins Women on Fire: Stories From the Frontlines, a benefit presentation for Royal Family Productions.
Ali Ewoldt joins Women on Fire: Stories From the Frontlines, a benefit presentation for Royal Family Productions.
(© Tricia Baron)

Royal Family Productions will present a benefit staging of a new series of monologues entitled Women on Fire: Stories From the Frontlines. The evening is written, curated, and directed by Royal Family artistic director Chris Henry from stories told to her by a group of anonymous women. The performance will be held on March 18 at 6:30pm at the Royal Family Performing Arts Space.

Henry has collected women’s stories, and with them, she explores the "State of the United States" from different cultural, socioeconomic, and diverse perspectives. The all-female cast will be complemented with a modern dance element choreographed by Lorna Ventura. The reading will feature performances by Tony nominee Kathleen Chalfant (For Peter Pan on Her 70th Birthday), Ali Ewoldt (The Phantom of the Opera), and Laila Robins (Heartbreak House).

Henry offered the following statement: "One night, I was watching the news. For what seems like the millionth time since November 2016, I was devastated. It felt like this was never going to stop. The country that I knew, was being destroyed from the inside, and no one could do anything to prevent it. The rot that was always under America was bubbling to the surface. I felt so angry and hopeless, and I yelled, 'I’m going to set myself on fire in front of the White House.' My partner responded, 'Isn’t there anything more productive you could be doing other than self-immolation?' I decided to create a piece of art where women from all different points of view would be represented in a safe space. It seems like both sides are constantly screaming at each other and there is no real communication happening. I was lucky to have many women share their stories with me. The piece is just a start. A small pebble in a giant ocean of stories."

For tickets and more information, click here.