Cast Announced for Geffen Playhouse Production of “Man of God”

CAST ANNOUNCED FOR GEFFEN PLAYHOUSE PRODUCTION OF “MAN OF GOD”

WRITTEN BY ANNA MOENCH AND DIRECTED BY MAGGIE BURROWS

FEATURING SHIRLEY CHEN, CAMRYN KIM, NATASHA LIU, ALBERT PARK AND JENAPHER ZHENG

PREVIEWS BEGIN MARCH 3 - OPENING NIGHT IS MARCH 12

LOS ANGELES (January 23, 2020) – Geffen Playhouse today announced the full cast for its production of Man of God, written by Anna Moench (Mothers, Birds of North America) and directed by Maggie Burrows (Spacebar, Damsels). Man of God had its world premiere in January 2019 as an East West Players production at the David Henry Hwang Theatre at the Union Center of the Arts in Los Angeles.

The Geffen Playhouse cast features Shirley Chen (Krista, Beast Beast) as Samantha, Camryn Kim (It Was Nice) as Jen, Natasha Liu (Synchronic, Here and Now) as Mimi, Albert Park (Vietgone, Where the Mountain Meets the Moon) as Pastor and Jenapher Zheng (Seize the King, Kentucky) as Kyung-Hwa.

During a mission trip to Bangkok, the four members of a Korean Christian girls’ youth group discover that their revered pastor has hidden a camera in their hotel bathroom. Samantha is personally wounded that Pastor would do this to her. Jen is worried about how this might affect her college applications. Mimi’s out for blood, as usual. And Kyung-Hwa thinks everyone needs to have lower expectations for men. Their communal rage and disillusionment fuel increasingly violent revenge fantasies amidst the no-holds-barred neon bubblegum sex-tourism mecca of Bangkok. Man of God is a funny feminist thriller about that moment when girls realize the male gaze has been watching all along—and decide they’re definitely gonna do something about it.

Previews for Man of God begin Tuesday, March 3, in the Audrey Skirball Kenis Theater at Geffen Playhouse. Opening night is Thursday, March 12, and the production will close Sunday, April 12.

MAN OF GOD

Written by Anna Moench
Directed by Maggie Burrows

Previews: Tuesday, March 3 – Wednesday, March 11, 2020
Opening Night: Thursday, March 12, 2020
Closing Night: Sunday, April 12, 2020

CAST

Shirley Chen as Samantha
Camryn Kim as Jen
Natasha Liu as Mimi
Albert Park as Pastor
Jenapher Zheng as Kyung-Hwa

PRODUCTION TEAM

Scenic Designer Se Hyun Oh
Costume Designer Denitsa Bliznakova
Lighting Designer Lap Chi Chu
Original Music & Sound Design by Jonathan Snipes
Fight Director Thomas Isao Morinaka
Production Stage Manager Samantha Cotton
Casting Director Phyllis Schuringa, CSA

PERFORMANCE SCHEDULE

Monday No performance
Tuesday – Friday 8:00 p.m.
Saturday 3:00 and 8:00 p.m.
Sunday 2:00 and 7:00 p.m.

LOCATION

Audrey Skirball Kenis Theater at Geffen Playhouse
10886 Le Conte Avenue, Los Angeles, CA 90024

TICKET INFORMATION

Tickets currently priced at $30.00 - $120.00. Available in person at the Geffen Playhouse box office, by phone at 310.208.5454 or online at www.geffenplayhouse.org. Fees may apply.

Rush tickets for each day’s performance are made available to the general public 30 minutes before showtime at the box office. $35.00 General/$15.00 Student

COLLEGE AUDIENCES

Through a variety of events and other opportunities, the Geffen Playhouse welcomes college students to experience the live storytelling presented on our stages. We are proud of our association with UCLA’s School of Theater, Film, and Television, and open our doors to all college students throughout Los Angeles. More information is available at www.geffenplayhouse.org/college.

ABOUT THE ARTISTS

Anna Moench (Playwright)
Anna Moench is an award-winning playwright and screenwriter. Her plays include Mothers (Playwrights Realm 2019), Man of God (East West Players 2019, InterAct 2020), Birds of North America (BETC 2017, ThrownStone 2019, Theatre With A View 2019), and Sin Eaters (Local Theater Co. 2020). She is currently the 2019/2020 Page One Playwright in Residence at The Playwrights Realm and has received fellowships from the New York Foundation of the Arts, the Jerome Foundation and the Van Lier Foundation. Her awards include the Paul Stephen Lim Playwriting Award from the Kennedy Center, Boulder Ensemble Theater Company’s Generations Award, and East West Players’ 2042: See Change Award. She is an alum of UCSD’s Playwriting M.F.A. program, the Emerging Writers Group at Public Theater, Youngblood at EST, and the Jam at New Georges. Anna is a writer on Severance (Apple TV+) and the recipient of a Gerbode Special Award in the Arts commission for a new play that will be produced at Magic Theater in 2022.

Maggie Burrows (Director)
Maggie Burrows is a theater and film director living in New York City. She has developed work with Playwrights Horizons, New York Theatre Workshop, Williamstown Theatre Festival, EST, The Tank and Geffen Playhouse in Los Angeles. She received her B.A. from Yale University where she was a nominee for the Sudler Prize for Excellence in the Arts. Maggie has served as an Associate Director for Bartlett Sher, Phyllida Lloyd, Dan Sullivan, James Bundy, Davis McCallum, and Daniel Aukin. She is a member of the Lincoln Center Directors Lab, the inaugural 2018-2019 BOLD Resident Director at Northern Stage, and the recipient of the 2018 Boris Sagal Directing Fellowship at Williamstown Theatre Festival. Most recently, Maggie curated a female director-driven reading series called Publicreads, completed her first narrative short film titled Condolences, and directed a GOTV video for Michelle Obama’s When We All Vote Organization.

Shirley Chen (as Samantha)
Shirley Chen is an award-winning actress who received the “Best Acting in a Narrative Short” recognition at SXSW 2018 for her role in Krista. Her television credits include ABC’s Speechless (2017), Disney XD’s Gamer’s Guide (2016), and NBC’s Parenthood (2014). When not acting, Shirley moonlights as a Harvard student, studying History & Literature with a focus in Asian-American Studies and minor in Theater, Dance & Media. As a freshman at the university, Shirley became one of the first six women cast in the Hasty Pudding Theatricals, America’s oldest theatrical group with a nearly 200-year-long history. Shirley stars as the female lead in Beast Beast, based on the short Krista, which will premiere at Sundance Film Festival 2020. Shirley is represented by KMR and Gem Entertainment Group.

Camryn Kim (as Jen)
Camryn Kim is thrilled to be making her professional debut in Man of God at the Geffen Playhouse. She first discovered her love of acting while taking on the ever-complex role of “Munchkin” in a local production of The Wizard of Oz and chose to nurture this passion by attending the Orange County School of the Arts (OCSA). Upon graduating in 2017, Camryn entered the Drama B.F.A. program at NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts and spent a year training with the Atlantic Acting School. She is now back in Los Angeles, ready to utilize her artistic voice as a catalyst for change and tackle works that are bold, thought-provoking, and inclusive. Camryn would like to thank her family, friends, and manager Laura Hersh for their unwavering support and positivity: thanks for tagging along on this wild ride because we’re just getting started! Cheers!

Natasha Liu (as Mimi)
Natasha Liu is originally from Richmond, Virginia. She is elated to be making her Geffen Playhouse debut! Selected theater credits include Cocks Crow (Ojai Playwrights Conference & East West Players: Counter Culture Series), Gob Squad: Creation (Pictures for Dorian) (REDCAT), The Hotel Play (Playwrights’ Arena/Center Theatre Group), Cino Nights (Rising Phoenix Repertory). Film and television: Synchronic (TIFF), Here and Now (HBO), Speechless (ABC), Cobra Kai (YouTube Originals), Future Cult Classic (SYFY). Her work as an art model has been featured internationally; highlights include Art Basel Hong Kong (performance art) and New York Fashion Week SS18 for Candice Cuoco & Vanessa Simmons. Education: Interlochen Arts Academy, USC – B.F.A. Acting program, Upright Citizens Brigade (Advanced Study Improv). @natashatinaliu

Albert Park (as Pastor)
Albert Park is thrilled to make his debut at the Geffen Playhouse. Select credits: Where the Mountain Meets the Moon (South Coast Repertory); Cambodian Rock Band (City Theatre Company/Merrimack Repertory); Yoga Play, Jade Heart, A Man, His Wife, and His Hat (MOXIE Theatre); Vietgone (East West Players, LA Drama Critics Circle Award Nominee, Stage Scene LA Awardee); Soul Fire (Playwrights Project); The Oldest Boy (San Diego Repertory Theatre); All’s Well That Ends Well, The Winter’s Tale (The Old Globe); The Car Plays (Moving Arts/La Jolla Playhouse, Craig Noel Awardee); Extraordinary Chambers (Mo’olelo Performing Arts Company, Craig Noel Award Nominee); The Odd Couple, Lend Me a Tenor (North Coast Repertory Theatre); Golden Child (Chinese Pirate Productions); Flower Drum Song, BFE (SDAART/La Jolla Playhouse); Yellow Face (Mo’olelo Performing Arts Company). Albert is represented by CESD. He is eternally grateful to Jenny, Felix, Henry, and Coral.

Jenapher Zheng (as Kyung-Hwa)
Jenapher is an actor, writer, gamer, and visual artist with her Acting M.F.A. from CalArts. She is proud to be making her debut at Geffen Playhouse. Her theater credits include La Jolla Playhouse’s Seize the King; East West Players’ Kentucky; Wuzhen Theatre Festival’s Fantomas; South Coast Repertory’s reading of Tokyo Fish Story; and The Old Globe’s reading of The Great Leap. She starred in the short Following Jamie, which screened nationwide at festivals such as Asian World, HAAPIfest and Silicon Beach. Elsewhere, she plays Dr. Victoria Kureze in the Niantic AR game Ingress, is a host on PanGeekery podcast, is editor/creative developer for Kwento Comics, and volunteers with The LadyParts Collective.

OPENING NIGHT SPONSORS

Audi of America
City National Bank
Fellow
Hint

ABOUT GEFFEN PLAYHOUSE

Geffen Playhouse has been a hub of the Los Angeles theater scene since opening its doors in 1995. Noted for its intimacy and celebrated for its world-renowned mix of classic and contemporary plays, provocative new works and second productions, the not-for-profit organization continues to present a body of work that has garnered national recognition. Named in honor of entertainment mogul and philanthropist David Geffen, who made the initial donation to the theater, the company was founded by Gilbert Cates and is currently helmed by Executive Director Gil Cates, Jr., Artistic Director Matt Shakman and Board Chair Howard Tenenbaum. Proudly associated with UCLA, the Geffen maintains extensive education and community engagement programs, designed to involve underserved young people and the community at large in the arts. www.geffenplayhouse.org

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IMAGES CAN BE DOWNLOADED HERE FROM THE GEFFEN PLAYHOUSE WEBSITE

MEDIA CONTACT

Zenon Dmytryk
Geffen Playhouse

310.966.2405