Theater News

Right to Be Forgotten Announces World-Premiere Casting

Sharyn Rothstein debuts her new play about cyber privacy at Arena Stage.

John Austin stars in the world premiere of Right to Be Forgotten, directed by Seema Sueko, at Arena Stage.
John Austin stars in the world premiere of Right to Be Forgotten, directed by Seema Sueko, at Arena Stage.
(photo provided by Arena Stage)

Arena Stage has announced the complete cast and creative team set for the world premiere of Sharyn Rothstein's Right to Be Forgotten, running from October 11-November 10 in the Arlene and Robert Kogod Cradle. Deputy artistic director Seema Sueko helms the production.

The play is described as follows: "Filled with secrets, lies and political backstabbing, Right to be Forgotten centers around a young man's mistake that haunts him online a decade later. Desperate for a normal life, he goes to extraordinary lengths to cut himself off from his past. In a time when everyone has their own version of the truth and their own way of spreading it, who decides which truths get buried and which live forever online?"

The cast will feature John Austin (Arena's Kleptocracy) as Derril Lark, Guadalupe Campos (Arena's Native Gardens) as Eve Selinsky, Melody Butiu (Doctor Zhivago on Broaday) as Marta Lee, Rachel Felstein (Taffety Punk's Antigonick) as Annie Zahirovic, Shubhangi Kuchibhotla (Constellation Theatre's White Snake) as Sarita Imari, and Edward O'Blenis (Red Bull Theater's The White Devil) as Alvaro Santos.

The creative team includes set designer Paige Hathaway, costume designer Ivania Stack, lighting designer Adam Honoré, sound designer Andre Pluess, projection designer Shawn Duan, dialect and vocal coach Zach Campion, dramaturg Jocelyn Clarke, and stage manager Kurt Hall.

"Right to be Forgotten is a play about what happens when our humanity clashes with our technology," says Rosthstein. "The play asks the question: who should control memory on the Internet? It's a play I wrote because I had more questions than answers, and I hope everyone who sees the show will leave with a different opinion about the characters and their choices."