Marie, GODDAMN MARIE!, by Yolanda K. Wilkinson | a staged reading

After it's first reading in October, Marie, GODDAMN MARIE, by Yolanda K. Wilkinson returns to the EstroGenius stage for a second, staged reading.

In  1870s New Orleans, the Black and Creole women of the Pitot House made two African-American men Governor of Louisiana. Did they use politics or magic to do it?

Marie, GODDAMN MARIE! is a new play by Yolanda K. Wilkinson

“There is just so much hurt, disappointment, and oppression one can take... The line between reason and madness grows thinner.”

~Rosa Parks

Marie, GODDAMN MARIE! is a Magical Realist, Absurdist, Dark Comedy, Horror story about creole and black women and girls (age range from 10-70) striving to claim power and agency over their lives through political and supernatural means in 1870s New Orleans. They were able to install TWO African-American men into the office of Governor of Louisiana in the late 19th Century. This play blends genres. This play and its telling should be impossible. It attempts to deconstruct the prominent “-isms” (racism, sexism, colorism) and phobias (transphobia, homophobia, xenophobia) that still plague our society to this day.

WARNING LABEL: **This play includes derogatory language and content about racism, colorism, antisemitism, ethnicity, misogyny, transphobia, pedophilia, white slavery, sexual assault and rape. Some subject matter may be triggering for some.

Black and Creole women and girls have never been depicted like this on the American stage.

MEET THE CAST OF Marie, GODDAMN MARIE

MILA BESSON(Narrator/Stage Directions)

is a French and Italian actress, director and writer, based in New York City. She recently performed for the PhysFest and The Chain Theater Festival in 'Not My Circus' by Duncan Pflaster. She shot her first long feature 'Con Job' directed by Ian Niles.  She just received a prize as a lead role in Sapling, a drama picture to raise awareness on harassment. She will be a part of the upcoming play Mad Mystic for the Labyrinth Theater Company. She loves food. @mila_besson

Frank Pagliaro (Franklin and Josephine)has trained at UCB, the Double Edge Theatre Company, and the Stella Adler Studio of Acting, where he served as assistant director for a conservatory production of Gloria last June. Recent stage credits include Lucio (Measure for Measure - Curtain Call), Tom (Escape from Happiness - Stella Adler), and Tuzenbach (Three Sisters - Columbia University). At the end of January, he directed and co-produced a multilingual production of The Cherry Orchard at Under St. Mark's Theater. More recently, Frank appeared in the Chimp Cocktail sketch comedy show at The PIT.

Debra Khan-Bey* (Thea) is developing a solo-show she wrote and stars in, Alone with Nina

Simone. (Peabody Institute of Johns Hopkins University); She starred with Chazz Palminteri in

staged readings currently in development, The Spitting Image. (Ivoryton Playhouse);

Freedom Summer (TNC); Aunt Susan and Her Tennessee Waltz (TNC); Reflections on the Voices

of African American Women (Palace Theater); Speechifyin as Stacey Abrams (Theatre West);

White Woman, Black Boy, the lynching of Emmett Till, directed by Austin Pendleton (Theatre

Row); The Seagull opposite Austin Pendleton; Jeremiah Kipp’s hit film Slapface; Starred in and

produced her short film American Hunger. @debrakhanbey

Edwina Morales, (Danielle) native New Yorker and Stella Adler Conservatory graduate, also holds a Bachelors in Marketing from St. John's University. Previous roles: A Bright Room Called Day (Agnes) and The House

of Bernarda Alba (Amelia). Production Assistant on Seven Devils and a French Nun (Ron Bashford and

Carine Montbertrand) and Stage Manager for Chokehold (Tony Pennino and Tim Cusack).

Sarah Doneghy (Odette) is an actor, writer, and host of Mixed Messages – a show where guests discuss their personal Mixed-Race experience. Her one person show, Mixed Nut, played at the People’s Improv Theater and has been featured in Mixed American Life, iCelebrateDiversity, and Multiracial Media. Her writing on race and racism can be seen in The Washington Post, Vox, and Black Excellence. Sarah is thrilled to be participating in the reading of Marie, GODDAMN MARIE!

Jordan Tierney (P.B.S. Pinchback) Going on ten years working in New York City, Jordan's most notable credits include Perry Stewart in The Royal Family, Mercutio in Ampersand: A Romeo & Juliet Story and as Stinky Holloway in the Off-Broadway revival of the 1983 Broadway cult classic, Moose Murders. Most recently, he was featured in Parlor Tricks at The Wild Project. He is most honored to be a part of GODDAMN MARIE!

Marie Louise Guinier* (Marie)Recent screen appearances include ~ Indie films: STRIVE with Danny Glover; CONFESSION dir by Dayna Hanson; episodics: HIGH MAINTENANCE on HBO and The BEST MAN: FINAL CHAPTERS (season 2) dir by Malcolm Lee. Recent theater appearances include WE HAVE TO DO SOMETHING with the Morningside Players; CRESCENT CITY RE-BIRTH by Monique Pappas dir by Sabura Rashid at Theater for the New City and various virtual performances with both the Metropolitan Playhouse directed by Alex Roe and the New Federal Theatre, dir by JulieAnn Lucas.  Resume, media clips, reviews & awards at : www.resumes.actorsaccess.com/marielouiseguinier

To God be the glory.

Chris Wight (Cazelar and Mr. Pike) is an artistic member of Ensemble Studio Theatre, where appearances include the premier of Tennessee Williams’ Spring Storm with Peter Sarsgaard, the NY premier of David Ives’ Lives of the Saints, and the NYT Critic’s Pick Something Like Loneliness. He is also a Creative Partner with Flux Theatre Ensemble, appearing as Dog in their acclaimed production of Dog Act, and Hearts Like Fists.

Giovanna Brown (Mae) s a New York based actor, former burlesque performer and . After having an identity crisis she started taking acting classes as a tool to understand herself more. Through a transformation and exploration of self, acting manifested into a passion to tell stories and love aspects of humanity with the characters she plays. She has studied at the NYU Stella Adler program as well as the Lucid body House and the Juilliard extension program.

Archi Patel (Audrey)  is a New York based actor who comes from India.She is a sophomore at the College of Performing Arts in the The New School University. She is going to major in Drama.She trained at The Actor Prepares institute in Mumbai for a month.She has been training at The Juilliard School for last 2 years by taking scene study classes and performed in a showcase there as well.Her acting credits include college productions:Exercising Exit the King,Iphigenia Among the Taurians.

She is very grateful and excited to be a part of this wonderful project.

Yeauxlanda Kay (Yolanda K Wilkinson)* (Salome/Playwright) has performed at The Public Theater, Lincoln Center, Cherry Lane, Manhattan Theater Club, Classical Theater of Harlem, The National Black Theatre Festival and The New Black Theatre Festival with Suzan Lori Parks and Lynn Nottage. Her first solo play, Untitled & Unfinished, was in The Aspen Comedy Festival. She aired on The Peabody Award-winning, HBO Def Poetry Jam, (seasons

3 & 4). She was one of eight poet/actors to be in residence at Kennedy Center. Her solo play BIBLE STUDY FOR HEATHENS was nominated for a NYIT award for Best Solo Performance. Before the shutdown, she wrapped the first season of EXTRA ROOM, a new comedy web series due out in 2022.

She is the creator and host of THIS COULD BE US BUT YOU KEEP VOTING REPUBLICAN podcast, (PANDORA, APPLE, SPOTIFY).

She is the voice of “Salome” for Gideon Media’s podcast series ALMELEM. In Spring 2023, she was  accepted to Juilliard for Acting and Playwriting through the Extension Program.