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Fearless new theatre. Made in NC.Join OdysseyStage for the NextAct Festival 2025, a three-day celebration of bold new plays by North Carolina playwrights. From November 7–9, the PSI Theatre at the Durham Arts Council will host four staged readings, each followed by a talkback with the playwright and cast.
FESTIVAL LINEUP:
Ophelia’s Swan Song https://www.facebook.com/share/1BPp48YESE/
by Kristin Lundberg | Directed by Katrina Tarson
Friday, November 7 | 7:00 PM ✨ Talkback follows
Elizabeth Siddal—the Victorian painter, poet, and muse best known as Shakespeare’s Ophelia—steps out of the margins to confront her life, legacy, and voice in this lyrical, haunting new play.
Featuring: DJ Brinson, Mark Werdel, Mary K. Rowland, Catherine Kelly Johnson, Amelia Lumpkin
A Midlife Summer’s Dream https://www.facebook.com/share/1CfDNpS67R/
by Charlotte Howard Runde | Directed by Katrina Tarson
Saturday, November 8 | 2:00 PM ✨ Talkback follows
Twenty years after A Midsummer Night’s Dream, the marriages once blessed by magic are fraying. Shakespearean romance collides with Groucho Marx–style wit as old spells unravel and new chaos takes hold.
Featuring: Tori Grace Nichols, Mark Werdel, Catherine Kelly Johnson, Amelia Lumpkin, Bobby Kaufman, Jose Rondon, Jr., Lea Chicosky, Seoyoung Hu, Dustin Britt
Snow https://www.facebook.com/share/17RQBWjuPc/
by Ellen W. Kaplan | Directed by Juliana Valente
Saturday, November 8 | 7:00 PM ✨ Talkback follows
As floodwaters rise and a rare snowstorm looms, seven women gather in coastal Maine to confront estrangement, faith, doubt, and survival in a world on the brink.
Featuring: Mark Werdel, Mary K. Rowland, Catherine Kelly Johnson, Amelia Lumpkin, Lea Chicosky, Jean Jamison, Seoyoung Hu, Katie B
Hello, Armadillo https://www.facebook.com/share/1Fjfo4Zzxh/
by Elizabeth Leach | Directed by Morgan Piner
Sunday, November 9 | 2:00 PM ✨ Talkback follows
When Beatrix’s daughters leave for college, she feels unmoored—until an unexpected connection with her neighbor, and a glimpse into an alternate reality, forces her to reckon with desire, regret, and love.
Featuring: Tori Grace Nichols, Bobby Kaufman, Jose Rondon, Jr.
Festival Closing Toast
Sunday, November 9 | 5:00 PM | Free & open to all
🎟 Tickets: $14 single | $27 Festival Pass
👉 our.show/nextact
Fearless New Theatre. Made in NC. OdysseyStage.
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Event Venue & Nearby Stays
Durham Arts Council, 114 Morris St, Durham, NC 27701-3230, United States
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