STRANGE FISH
By Reid Pope
2023 Parity Development Award Winner
JOIN US FOR A WORKSHOP OF
STRANGE FISH by Reid Pope (they/them)
DIRECTED BY Jaye Hunt (they/them)
FEATURING T Mitsock (she/her) and Molly Johnson (they/them)
STAGE MANAGER Sky Back (they/them)
MOVEMENT COORDINATORS Amaal Saifudeen (she/her) and Sasha Gheesling (she/they)
FRIDAY, JUNE 20TH @ 7 PM
SATURDAY, JUNE 21ST @ 3 PM & 7 PM
Presented at Open Jar Studios
1601 Broadway (48th street between 7th and 8th Avenues)
Synopsis
On a cracked, weed-choked basketball court in 2009, two teens shoot hoops and kill time. Between bounce passes and awkward silences, they talk about hermaphroditic fish that change sex to survive.
A theatre piece about how we all started as little amoebas with one big eye and no anus—and (god willing) we’re all going back.
From the Playwright
Societal conversations about transness tend to skew conceptual. People forget about proof of gender variance in nature. I wanted to look at the history of this variance and explore how we can better understand transness and fluidity by using the sea as a guide. In making this piece, I hope to re-evaluate my relationship to my body and the things I’ve tried to taxonomize. The relationships I've fossilized. I hope it will help audience members, readers, actors, directors, and designers do the same.
About the Playwright
Reid Pope (they/them) is a comedian, playwright, and Jew (despite the ironic last name). Their work has appeared in The New Yorker, PAPER, and Vulture. They are the Co-Creator, Executive Producer, and Head Writer of Going Down, a trans-led comedy news show on Brooklyn public access, and previously created and ran the writer’s room for Late Stage, featured in Them, Jezebel, and Teen Vogue.
Reid’s short film Lesbian Jesus Is Pregnant With Vibes premiered at NewFest in 2024. Their play amino amino amino amino amino amino amino amino amino was shortlisted for the 2024 Yale Drama Prize by Jeremy O. Harris, and Holocaust Lit! was selected for Fault Line Theatre’s Irons In The Fire.
Follow @rpopegram | reidpope.com
B.A. Brown | M.F.A. NYU | New Georges Affiliated Artist
Jaye Hunt (they/them, Director) is a multidisciplinary theater artist. They have collaborated with playwrights on developing many new plays and have extensive experience serving as assistant director on both new works and works in the American theatrical canon. Their main focus is creating equity onstage and backstage. www.jayehunt.com
T Mitsock (she/her, MAX) Off-Broadway: Becoming Eve (New York Theatre Workshop). Regional: Dead House (Boston Playwrights’ Theatre). T has originated roles with Breaking the Binary Theatre, New York Theatre Workshop, Fault Line Theatre, Parity Productions, the New York Fringe Festival, and more. T’s playwriting has been developed by Breaking the Binary Theatre and named a semi-finalist by Fault Line Theatre’s Irons in the Fire series. In April 2025, T made her film festival debut starring in Egg by Jamie Kiernan O’Brien at the Wicked Queer Film Festival. T is represented by 1022m Management and was the sole recipient of the Bette Davis Prize from the Boston University School of Theatre. @tmitsock
Molly Johnson (they/them, LILA) is excited to be a part of this production. They’re terrible at writing bios but love theatre and art. If you’d like to know more about them, check out their Instagram, website, or say hello. Thank you for being here.
website: mollywattsjohnson.com
instagram: @molly.w.johnson
Sky Back (they/them, Stage Manger) is a theatre and television producer, manager and designer currently based in Brooklyn, NY. They are best known for their work as Executive Producer, Production Designer, and Stage Manager on Going Down with Ella Yurman, a trans and gen-Z led late night show. They’re happy to be returning to Strange Fish after stage managing its previous iteration last summer.
Sasha Gheesling (they/she, Movement Coordinator) is a Brooklyn based actor, producer, and filmmaker. They are the co-founder of Para Noir Pictures, an independent production company specializing in queer genre films. Their third short, No Glow, is on the festival circuit, with a feature adaptation in production. Acting credits include Last Week Tonight with John Oliver, Law & Order: SVU, Dear Edward, and The Crowded Room.
Amaal Saifudeen (she/her, Movement Coordinator) is a Brooklyn based director, intimacy coordinator, and playwright. She is unbelievably excited to be coordinating the basketball sequences in Strange Fish. A million thanks to Jaye and Reid for trusting Sasha and I to help build the physicality of this beautiful play. Additional thank you to Larry Darling, the NY Liberty, my parents, and the dolls.
Thank you to everyone who attended our readings on August 28th and 29th, 2024!
Reading at the Maker’s Studio at Chelsea Market, August 28th, 2024. Pictured (left to right): T Mitsock as MAX, Ashil Lee as LILA, and Riylan Mills as Stage Directions. Photos by Allison Stock.
AUGUST 2024 READING CAST AND CREATIVE TEAM
TEAM
Playwright: Reid Pope (they/them)
Director: Jaye Hunt (they/them)
Stage Manager: Skylar Back (they/them)
CAST
Ashil Lee (they/he) – LILA
T Mitsock (she/her) – MAX
Riylan Mills (she/her) – Stage Directions