Soho Repertory Theatre

Formation	June 1, 1975 (1975-06-01)
Type	Theatre group
Purpose	Avant-garde theatre [1]
Location	46 Walker Street, New York, NY 10013
Membership	--Directors-- Sarah Benson [2] [3] Cynthia Flowers Meropi Peponides [4] --Artists on salary-- Becca Blackwell Shayok Misha Chowdhury Stacey Derosier David Mendizábal Ife Olujobi David Ryan Smith Carmelita Tropicana Jillian Walker
Website	sohorep.org

The Soho Repertory Theatre, known as Soho Rep, ^[5] is an American Off-Broadway theater company based in New York City which is notable for producing avant-garde plays by contemporary writers. ^{[1] [6] [7] [8]} The company, described as a "cultural pillar", is currently located in a 65-seat theatre in the TriBeCa section of lower Manhattan. ^[9] The company, and the projects it has produced, have won multiple prizes and earned critical acclaim, including numerous Obie Awards, Drama Desk Awards, Drama Critics' Circle Awards, and a Pulitzer Prize. ^[10] A recent highlight was winning the Drama Desk Award for Sustained Achievement for "nearly four decades of artistic distinction, innovative production, and provocative play selection." ^{[11] [12] [13]}

Notable artists who have recently created work at the theater, often early in their careers, include: David Adjmi, César Alvarez, Annie Baker, Alice Birch, Christopher Chen, Jackie Sibblies Drury, debbie tucker green, Aleshea Harris, Lucas Hnath, Branden Jacobs-Jenkins, Daniel Alexander Jones, Young Jean Lee, Richard Maxwell, Nature Theater of Oklahoma and Anne Washburn.

The New York Times has described it as a "safer home for dangerous plays". ^[14] Critics note the “jaw dropping premieres” and “big plays in a small room” ^[15] as defining features of the theater’s programming. New Yorker theatre critic Hilton Als wrote about current director Sarah Benson:

Under her directorship I have never seen a boring production—a very rare thing, indeed. Her deeply individual sensibility is not compromised by needs other than those of the work at hand, and it’s that freedom, structured around shows that I may not agree with but always learn from, that distinguishes the SoHo Rep... Benson has imbued each work with a tough, unsentimental core; she’s also made the plays into distinct visual works that help us see the words.

— Hilton Als in The New Yorker ^[16]

In 2019 the company adopted a shared leadership model. ^[17] The three Directors of the theater who now co-lead the company are Sarah Benson, Cynthia Flowers and Meropi Peponides.

The company has an annual budget of around $2 million and employs a full-time staff of seven. In 2020, in response to the Covid-19 pandemic, the company put eight artists on salary for the 2020-21 season through the creation of a job creation program titled Project Number One referencing Federal Project Number One. ^{[4] [18]}

History

Soho Rep is a favorite venue to launch experimental new plays. Photo: New Jersey-born playwright Jackie Sibblies Drury.

The Soho Repertory Theatre company was founded in 1975 by Jerry Engelbach and Marlene Swartz. ^[19] From June through September 1975, they remodeled a former textile factory in SoHo. They wanted the space to feel "light and informal" so the audience would feel comfortable. ^[20] They produced their first play, Maxwell Anderson's Key Largo , on September 25. Their initial focus was on rarely seen classical plays, such as works by Aristophanes, Shakespeare, Molière, Jean Anouilh, Michel de Ghelderode, Eugene O'Neill and Samuel Beckett. ^{[19] [21]} By 1979, the company was sometimes producing two shows per night, allowing audiences to see both plays in succession on a Saturday night. ^[19] The founding duo produced more than a hundred plays until Engelbach left in 1989. ^[22]

Since its early days, the company's focus has shifted to contemporary avant-garde theatrical works. In 1981, after producing works from Shakespeare to Shaw, the company produced its first new play: Stephen Davis Parks' The Idol Makers. ^[23] Among the many new works presented were plays by Americans Len Jenkin and Mac Wellman.

After 1989, Swartz partnered with English director Julian Webber, and they worked together for the next decade until Swartz departed in 1999. ^[24] The company was run by Artistic Director Daniel Aukin from 1998 to 2006, and he produced new work by artists including Adam Bock, Young Jean Lee, Richard Maxwell, Melissa James Gibson, and María Irene Fornés.

Sarah Benson was appointed as Artistic Director in 2007. Around this time, the company transitioned from the smaller Off-off-Broadway model of less than 100 seats to an Off-Broadway contract, typically reserved for theatres with a 100-499 seat capacity. ^[25]

Benson and Flowers ran the theater together from 2012 until being joined by Producer Meropi Peponides in 2014. ^[26] In the last decade the company has taken on ambitious projects often winning awards and critical acclaim. ^{[27] [28] [29] [30]} One of Benson's first plays was writer Sarah Kane’s Blasted ^{[31] [32] [33]} which won the director an Obie Award. ^{[27] [34]} Benson's production of Branden Jacobs-Jenkins's An Octoroon won an Obie for Best New American Play and transferred to Theatre for a New Audience. ^[35] Taibi Magar's production of Aleshea Harris' 'Is God Is' re-opened Walkerspace in 2018 following renovations and won multiple Obie awards. ^[36] Benson directed Jackie Sibblies Drury's 'Fairview' which won the 2019 Pulitzer Prize for Drama and had an extended run. The company celebrates with an annual gala usually in the spring, sometimes on a rooftop. ^{[37] [38] [39]}

Performance spaces

During the forty-five years of its existence, the theatre has produced in several venues in lower Manhattan, often being forced to move because of issues with rent or city building requirements, and survived from time to time with help from city authorities and supporters. ^[40] Its first space in 1975 on 19 Mercer Street was in a converted hat warehouse, described by the founders as a "practical adaptation of the Shakespearean playhouse laid out in a modest modern space". ^{[19] [41] [42] [43]} In 1985, Bob Moss of Playwrights Horizons, assisted by the mayor's office and a grant from the Manhattan Borough President, helped them relocate to a 100-seat neo-classical theater attached to Bellevue Hospital. ^[44] While the theatre had a separate entrance from the psychiatric hospital, sometimes backstage their actors and writers rode the same elevator with patients, recalled playwright Mac Wellman. ^[45] After a year they moved to Greenwich Village, and stayed there until 1991, ^[46] when they found their present-day space at 46 Walker Street in Tribeca. Dubbed Walkerspace, the present theatre is only a few blocks from the company's original venue. ^[47] The company has been at this location except for a short period for building renovations, which had been paid for with a fundraising campaign as well as help from the city's building commissioner, Rick Chandler and Julie Menin. ^{[48] [9]}

Staff

• Marlene Swartz (1975–1995) - Co-Artistic Director ^[19]
• Jerry Engelbach (1975–1989) - Co-Artistic Director ^[19]
• Julian Webber (1990–1998) - Co-Artistic Director ^[49]
• Daniel Aukin (1998–2006) - Artistic Director ^{[50] [51]}
• Sarah Benson (2007–Present) Artistic Director ^{[25] [52]}
• Cynthia Flowers, Executive Director (2012–present)
• Meropi Peponides, Producer (2014–present)

Since 2019, Sarah Benson, Cynthia Flowers and Meropi Peponides have served as the Directors of the theater in a shared leadership model.

Dramatic productions

Season	Title	Playwright	Director	Awards	Producing Partners
1975–76 (Season 1)	19 Mercer Street
	Key Largo [21]	Maxwell Anderson	Jerry Engelbach
	The Master Builder [53]	Henrik Ibsen	Marlene Swartz
	Coriolanus	William Shakespeare	Jerry Engelbach
	The Congresswomen	Aristophanes, translation and music by William and Billie Snow	Marlene Swartz
	The Infernal Machine	Jean Cocteau	Michael Wright
	Anna Christie [54]	Eugene O'Neill	Marlene Swartz
	Heartbreak House [54]	George Bernard Shaw	Jerry Engelbach
	The Father [54]	August Strindberg, adapted by Jonathan Furst	Jonathan Furst
	Abelard and Eloise [55]	Ronald Duncan	Charles Conwell
	The Imaginary Invalid [56]	Molière, translation by Frances Kosbab	Marlene Swartz
	Bimbos in Paradise [57]	B. Prune	Michael Wright
	Private Lives [58]	Noël Coward	Jack H. Cunningham
	Candida [58]	George Bernard Shaw	Jerry Engelbach
1976–77 (Season 2)	Six Play Subscription Costs $12
	The Birthday Party [59]	Harold Pinter	Marlene Swartz
	Dracula [60]	Bram Stoker, adapted by Jerry Engelbach	Jerry Engelbach
	Faustus X Seven	Based on "Doctor Faustus," by Christopher Marlowe, adapted by Jerry Engelbach	Carol Corwen and Jerry Engelbach
	The Merchant of Venice [54]	William Shakespeare	Marlene Swartz
	Billy Liar [61]	Keith Waterhouse and Willis Hall	Jerry Engelbach
	Uncle Vanya [62]	Anton Chekhov, adapted by Marlene Swartz	Marlene Swartz
	Spring's Awakening [62]	Frank Wedekind, adapted by Carol Corwen and Mary Eileen O'Donnell	Carol Corwen
	Back to Methuselah [62]	George Bernard Shaw	Stephen R. Lieb
	What the Butler Saw [63]	Joe Orton	Marlene Swartz
	The Dock Brief [54]	John Mortimer	Steven Burch
	The Public Eye [54]	Peter Shaffer	Stephen R. Lieb
	Black Comedy [62]	Peter Shaffer	Frank Cento
	Under Milk Wood [62]	Dylan Thomas	Harrison Ewing
	July 2 and Thanksgiving	Stan Kaplan	Jerry Engelbach
	Rain	John Colton and Clemence Randolph, based on the novel by W. Somerset Maugham	Jack H. Cunningham
	Ghosts	Henrik Ibsen	Marlene Swartz
1977–78 (Season 3)	Misalliance	George Bernard Shaw	Trueman Kelley
	The Miser	Molière	Moshe Yassur
	Peer Gynt	Henrik Ibsen, adapted by Carol Corwen	Carol Corwen
	The Chairs	Eugène Ionesco	Jon Fraser
	Better Dead	Georges Feydeau, adapted by Jude Schanzer and Michael Wells	Jude Schanzer
	Cyrano DeBergerac	Edmond Rostand	Jerry Engelbach
	Poe in Person, one-man show	Conrad Pomerleau	Conrad Pomerleau
	Traveler Without Luggage	Jean Anouih	Marlene Swartz
	The Play's the Thing	Ferenc Molnár	Jack H. Cunningham
	Mister T	Michael Zettler	Stephen Zuckerman
	The Killing of Sister George	Frank Marcus	Marlene Swartz
	The Magistrate	Arthur Wing Pinero	Jim Milton
	The Four Little Girls	Pablo Picasso	Richard Gershman
	The Soho Theatre of the Air, an evening of vintage radio plays	Conceived and Adapted by Carol Corwen	Carol Corwen
	The Real Inspector Hound	Tom Stoppard	Timothy Brennan
	Philadelphia, Here I Come!	Brian Friel	Ron Daley
1978–79 (Season 4)	One Act Festival Opened Jan 5th, 1979. Cost: $10 for Festival Pass; $3 per show.
	Overruled!	George Bernard Shaw	Gene Santarelli	Villager Downtown Theatre Award for a commitment to the presentation of a program of short plays
	The Love of Don Perimplin and Belisa in the Garden	Federico García Lorca	Mary Ryder
	Only 10 Minutes to Buffalo	Gunter Grass	Alison Mackenzie
	Guernica	Fernando Arrabal	Mitchell Engelmeyer
	Action	Sam Shepard	Chris Silva
	Deathwatch	Jean Genet	Denise Merat
	If You Had Three Husbands	Gertrude Stein, adapted by Randy Knolle	Randy Knolle
	The Twelve-Pound Look	J. M. Barrie	Alison Mackenzie
	Richard III	William Shakespeare	Jerry Engelbach
	Miss Jairus	Michel DeGhelderode	Carol Corwen
	Dandy Dick	Arthur Wing Pinero	Gene Santarelli
	Inadmissible Evidence	John Osborne	Marlene Swartz
	The Knights of the Round Table	Jean Cocteau	Jerry Engelbach
	Amphitryon 38	Jean Giraudoux	Jude Schanzer
	The Servant	Robin Maugham	Marlene Swartz
	Fallen Angels	Noël Coward	Trueman Kelley
	October 12, 410 B.C. ( Thesmophoriazusae )	Aristophanes	Alison Mackenzie
	Requiem for a Heavyweight	Rod Serling	Richard Leighton
1979–80 (Season 5)	The Insect Comedy	Karel & Joseph Čapek	Trueman Kelley
	The Cannibals	George Tabori	Carol Corwen
	The Barber of Seville	Pierre Beaumarchais	Alison Mackenzie
	We Have Always Lived in the Castle	Hugh Wheeler, from the book by Shirley Jackson	Gene Santarelli
	The Silver Tassie	Séan O'Casey	Carey Perloff
	Twelfth Night	William Shakespeare	Stephen Brant
	The Second Man	S. N. Behrman	Jude Schanzer
	Feathertop	From a short story by Nathaniel Hawthorne, adapted by Truman Kelley	Trueman Kelley
	The Ugly Duckling	A. A. Milne	Trueman Kelley
	Brewsie and Willie	Gertrude Stein	Michael Bloom
	Homefires	John Guare	Michael Bloom
	Fairy Tales of New York	J. P. Donleavy	Jerry Engelbach
	The Caretaker	Harold Pinter	Marlene Swartz
	The Gamblers	Nikolai Gogol	Penelope Hirsch
	Old Possum's Book of Practical Cats	T. S. Eliot, adapted for the stage by Jonathan Foster, music by Elyse Goodwin	Jonathan Foster
	The Tricycle	Fernando Arrabal	N/A
	The Party	Sławomir Mrożek	N/A
1980–81 (Season 6)	Desire Caught by the Tail	Pablo Picasso	Jonathan Foster
	The Idol Makers	Stephen Davis Parks	Marlene Swartz	"Villager Downtown Theatre Award" for Directing
	The Streets of New York, also known as The Poor of New York	Dion Boucicault	Trueman Kelley
	Dark Ride	Len Jenkin	Len Jenkin
	Love in the Country	Book and lyrics by Michael Alfreds, music by Anthony Bowles	Anthony Bowles
	The Doctor and the Devils	Dylan Thomas	Carol Corwen
	Old Times	Harold Pinter	Jerry Engelbach
1981–82 (Season 7)	The Girl Who Ate Chicken Bones	Book by Stan Kaplan, music by David Hollister, lyrics by Stan Kaplan and David Hollister	Marlene Swartz
	One-Act Operas: The Audience Mr. Lion Miyako	Libretto by Glenn Miller, music by Royce Dembo	Scott Clugstone		Golden Fleece Ltd.
		Music and libretto by Linder Chlarson	Lou Rodgers
		Lou Rodgers	Lou Rodgers
	Nathan the Wise	Gotthold Ephraim Lessing	Jerry Engelbach
	Subject to Fits	Robert Montgomery, based on Dostoevsky's The Idiot	Barry Koron
	Barbarians	Barrie Keeffe	Peter Byrne	Featured Kevin Spacey
1982–83 (Season 8)	Fanshen	David Hare	Michael Bloom
	The Life and Death of Tom Thumb the Great	Henry Fielding, music by Anthony Bowles	Anthony Bowles
	Kid Twist	Len Jenkin	Tony Barsha
	Rape Upon Rape	Henry Fielding	Anthony Bowles
1983–84 (Season 9)	Under the Gaslight	Augustin Daly	Stephen Wyman
	Mandrake	Book and lyrics by Michael Alfreds, music by Anthony Bowles	Anthony Bowles
	Catchpenny Twist	Stewart Parker, music by Shaun Davey	Marlene Swartz
	The Wood Painting	Ingmar Bergman	Alan Wynroth
	Yes is for a Very Young Man	Gertrude Stein	Robert P. Barron
	The Business of Good Government	John Arden	Jerry Engelbach
	Bertha, Queen of Norway	Kenneth Koch	Steven Brant
	George Washington Crosses the Delaware	Kenneth Koch	Steven Brant
	The Dwarfs	Harold Pinter	Jerry Engelbach
	Lenz	Mike Stott, based on a fragment by Georg Büchner	N/A
1984–85 (Season 10)	Theater moves to Bellevue Hospital in January 1985
	The Crimes of Vautrin	Nicholas Wright, based on the novel by Honoré de Balzac: Splendeurs et Miseresdes Courtisanes	Carol Corwen
	Energumen	Mac Wellman	Rebecca Harrison
	Almos' A Man	Paris Barclay, based on Richard Wright's short story, The Man Who Was Almost a Man	Tazewell Thompson
	The Winter's Tale	William Shakespeare	Anthony Bowles
1985–86 (Season 11)	Theater moves to Greenwich House, 27 Barrow Street
	The Two Orphans	Cormon and D'Ennery (Les deux orphelines), original music by Marshall Coid	Julian Webber
	One Fine Day	Nicholas Wright	Tazewell Thompson
	The Grub Street Opera	Henry Fielding, new music by Anthony Bowles	Anthony Bowles
1986–87 (Season 12)	The Ragged Trousered Philanthropists	Stephen Lowe	Julian Webber
	Sergeant Ola and his Followers	David Lan	Tazewell Thompson
	The Mock Doctor	Henry Fielding, music by Anthony Bowles	Anthony Bowles
	Eurydice	Henry Fielding, music by Anthony Bowles	Anthony Bowles
1987–88 (Season 13)	The Racket	Bartlett Cormack	Michael Bloom
	The Girl of the Golden West	David Belasco	Julian Webber
	A Cup of Coffee	Preston Sturges	Larry Carpenter
1988–89 (Season 14)	The Blitzstein Project	Marc Blitzstein	Carol Corwen
	The Phantom Lady	Pedro Calderón de la Barca, translated by Edwin Honig	Julian Webber
	The Cezanne Syndrome	Normand Canac-Marquis, translated by Louison Denis	N/A
1989–90 (Season 15)	Limbo Tales	Len Jenkin	Thomas Babe
	American Bagpipes	Iain Heggie	Julian Webber
1990–91 (Season 16)	Theater is established at 46 Walker Street Julian Webber is hired as Co-Artistic Director (with Marlene Swartz)
	Native Speech	Eric Overmyer	John Pynchon Holms
	Yokohama Duty	Quincy Long	Julian Webber
	Two Gentlemen of Verona	William Shakespeare, adapted by Mark Milbauer and David Becker	Mark Milbauer and David Becker		Cucaracha Theater
	Hanging the President	Michele Celeste
1991–92 (Season 17)	7 Blowjobs	Mac Wellman	Jim Simpson
	Tone Clusters	Joyce Carol Oates	Julian Webber
1992–93 (Season 18)	Three Americanisms	Mac Wellman	Jim Simpson
	Cross Dressing in the Depression	Erin Cressida Wilson
	Mormons in Malibu	Wendy Hammond
1993–94 (Season 19)	David's Red-Haired Death	Sherry Kramer
	Terminal Hip	Mac Wellman
	Careless Love	Len Jenkin
	Dracula	Mac Wellman	Julian Webber	featured Tim Blake Nelson
	Hollywood Hustle	written and performed by Jeremiah Bosgang	Rob Greenberg
	Exchange	Yuri Trifonov, translated and adapted by Michael Frayn	Peter Westerhoff
	Swoop	Mac Wellman	Julian Webber
	Women Behind Bars	Tom Eyen
1994–95 (Season 20)	The House of Yes	Wendy MacLeod
	Skin	Naomi Iizuka
	Frank, Frank
	Titus Andronicus	William Shakespeare	Lester Shane
	Measure for Measure	William Shakespeare	Jared Hammond
1995–96 (Season 21)	Dark Ride (revival of 1981 production)	Len Jenkin	Julian Webber
	Wally's Ghost	Ain Gordon		OBIE, Playwriting
1997–98 (Season 23)	A Devil Inside	David Lindsay-Abaire	Julian Webber
	Fnu Lnu	Mac Wellman, original music by David Van Tieghem	Julian Webber
	How to Write While You Sleep [64]	Madeleine Olnek	Lisa Portes
1998–99 (Season 24)	Cowboys and Indians	Richard Maxwell and Jim Strahs	Richard Maxwell
	Quartet	Heiner Müller
	The Escapist	The Flying Machine
	Alice's Evidence	Ellen Beckerman
1999–2000 (Season 25)	R&D: Research & Development	new work development series featuring Mac Wellman, Richard Maxwell, and Maria Shron
	The Year of the Baby	Quincy Long, composed by Maury Loeb, based on a play by Stephen Foster	Daniel Aukin
	Hypatia	Mac Wellman	Bob McGrath
2000–01 (Season 26)	Cat's-Paw	Mac Wellman	Daniel Aukin
	Caveman	Richard Maxwell	Richard Maxwell
	Boxing 2000	Richard Maxwell
2001–02 (Season 27)	[sic]	Melissa James Gibson	Daniel Aukin	OBIE, Playwriting OBIE, Special Citation, Direction OBIE, Special Citation, Set Design
	Attempts On Her Life	Martin Crimp	Steve Cosson
2002–03 (Season 28)	Signals of Distress	created and performed by members of the Flying Machine; adapted by Joshua Carlebach from the novel by Jim Crace	Joshua Carlebach
	Molly's Dream	María Irene Fornés	Daniel Aukin	OBIE, Special Citation
2003–04 (Season 29)	Suitcase, or Those That Resemble Flies from a Distance	Melissa James Gibson	Daniel Aukin		True Love Productions
	The Appeal	Young Jean Lee	Young Jean Lee
2004–05 (Season 30)	Everything Will Be Different (later retitled A Brief History of Helen of Troy)	Mark Schultz	Daniel Aukin
	Frankenstein	adapted by Joshua Carlebach from the novel by Mary Shelley	Joshua Carlebach
2005–06 (Season 31)	Not Clown	Carlos Treviño and Steve Moore	Carlos Treviño
	Peninsula	Madelyn Kent	Madelyn Kent
2006–07 (Season 32)	Thugs	Adam Bock	Anne Kauffman	OBIE, Playwriting OBIE, Ross Wetzsteon Award
2007–08 (Season 33)	Sarah Benson begins tenure as Artistic Director Soho Rep. begins producing under Off-Broadway Equity Contract
	Philoktetes	John Jesurun, adapted from Sophocles' original	John Jesurun
	No Dice	Nature Theater of Oklahoma		OBIE, Special Citation
2008–09 (Season 34)	Blasted	Sarah Kane	Sarah Benson	OBIE, Special Citation, Direction [16] [65] [66] OBIE, Special Citation, Set Design, Drama Desk nomination
	Sixty Miles to Silver Lake	Dan LeFranc	Anne Kauffman	New York Times Outstanding Playwright Award
	Rambo Solo	conceived by Pavol Liska and Kelly Copper in conversation with Zachary Oberzan	Pavol Liska and Kelly Copper		Nature Theater of Oklahoma
2009–10 (Season 35)	Lear	Young Jean Lee, adapted from King Lear by William Shakespeare, choreographed by Dean Moss	Young Jean Lee
	The Truth: A Tragedy	written, composed, and performed by Cynthia Hopkins	DJ Mendel
2010–11 (Season 36)	Orange, Hat & Grace	Gregory Moss	Sarah Benson
	Jomama Jones * Radiate	performed by Daniel Alexander Jones, music direction by Bobby Halvorson	Kym Moore
	born bad	debbie tucker green	Leah C. Gardiner	OBIE, Special Citation, Playwriting OBIE, Special Citation, Directing
2011–12 (Season 37)	Elective Affinities	David Adjmi	Sarah Benson [16] [67] [68]	Featured Zoe Caldwell	Piece by Piece Productions and Rising Phoenix Repertory
	The Ugly One	Marius von Mayenburg	Daniel Aukin		The Play Company, John Adrian Selzer
	Uncle Vanya	Annie Baker, adapted from Anton Chekhov's original	Sam Gold		John Adrian Selzer
2012–13 (Season 38)	We Are Proud to Present a Presentation About the Herero of Namibia, Formerly Known as South West Africa, from the German Sudwestafrika Between the Years 1884–1915	Jackie Sibblies Drury	Eric Ting	OBIE, Direction	John Adrian Selzer
	Life and Times, Episodes 1–4	conceived by Pavol Liska and Kelly Copper in conversation with Kristin Worrall	Pavol Liska and Kelly Copper	OBIE, Special Citation	Nature Theater of Oklahoma, Burgtheater in Vienna, The Public Theater, John Adrian Selzer
	A Public Reading of an Unproduced Screenplay About the Death of Walt Disney	Lucas Hnath	Sarah Benson	OBIE, Performance (Larry Pine) [16] [68]	John Adrian Selzer
2013–14 (Season 39)	Marie Antionette	David Adjmi	Rebecca Taichman		John Adrian Selzer, American Repertory Theater, Yale Repertory Theater
	An Octoroon	Branden Jacobs-Jenkins; songs, score, and musical direction by César Alvarez, choreography by David Neumann	Sarah Benson	OBIE, Performance (Chris Myers) [69] [70] OBIE, Best New American Play [68]	John Adrian Selzer
2014–15 (Season 40)	generations	debbie tucker green	Leah C. Gardiner		The Play Company, John Adrian Selzer
	Winners and Losers	created and performed by Marcus Youssef and James Long	Chris Abraham
	10 out of 12	Anne Washburn	Les Waters		John Adrian Selzer
2015–16 (Season 41)	FUTURITY	lyrics and book by César Alvarez, music by César Alvarez with The Lisps	Sarah Benson	Lortel Award, Outstanding Musical [71] [72] [73]	Carole Shorenstein Hays, Ars Nova
	Revolt. She Said. Revolt Again.	Alice Birch	Lileana Blain-Cruz		John Adrian Selzer
2016–17 (Season 42)	Duat	Daniel Alexander Jones, with new music by Samora Pinderhughes, Bobby Halvorson, and Jomama Jones	Will Davis
	[untitled new play]	Jackie Sibblies Drury	Sarah Benson
	In The Blood	Suzan-Lori Parks	Sarah Benson		[68] [74]
	Samara	Richard Maxwell, with original music by Steve Earle	Sarah Benson	[68]	John Adrian Selzer
2017–18 (Season 43)	Is God Is	Aleshea Harris	Taibi Magar	American Playwriting Foundation Relentless Award 2016
	[studio]	Alice Birch, Narcissister, Carmelita Tropicana and Branden Jacobs-Jenkins, Kate Tarker, Becca Blackwell
	Fairview	Jackie Sibblies Drury	Sarah Benson	Pulitzer Prize for Drama 2019; Drama Desk nomination [75] [76] [77] [78] [79]
2018–19 (Season 44)	Thunderbodies	Kate Tarker	Lileana Blain-Cruz
	Passage	Christopher Chen	Saheem Ali
2019–20 (Season 45)	for all the women who thought they were Mad	Zawe Ashton	Whitney White
2021–22 (Season 46)	while you were partying
	Wolf Play	Hansol Jung	Dustin Wills
	Notes on Killing Seven Oversight, Management and Economic Stability Board Members	Mara Vélez Meléndez	David Mendizábal
2022–23 (Season 47)	Montag	Kate Tarker, with original music by Daniel Schlossberg	Dustin Wills

External links

• SohoRep.org Official website
• SoHo Repertory Theater at Internet Off-Broadway Database
• SoHo Repertory on NYC-Arts.org

References

1. Lefkowitz, David. Simonson, Robert. "Flying Distress Doesn't Hinder Flying Machine's Distress at Soho Rep". Playbill. September 30, 2001
2. Als, Hilton (October 13, 2014). "True Grit, the unsentimental vision of Soho Rep's director". The New Yorker. Retrieved June 11, 2015.
3. BWW News Desk (February 4, 2021). "LCT SPOTLIGHT SERIES Continues With Second Episode of LILEANA BLAIN-CRUZ IN CONVERSATION: ON DIRECTING". Broadway World. Retrieved February 21, 2021. ...Sarah Benson has been the Artistic Director of Soho Rep since 2008....
4. Helen Shaw (September 25, 2020). "At Soho Rep, a Revolutionary Idea: Put the Creative People on Salary". Vulture magazine. Retrieved February 21, 2021. ... Benson and the theater's other directors, Cynthia Flowers and Meropi Peponides ... they offered a cohort of directors, actors, designers, and playwrights a job: a true living wage ($1,250 a week) and health insurance....
5. The official website's "About" page now use "Soho", with a lowercase h, as do most articles from the New York Times
6. Brian Parks (May 18, 2009). "The 2009 Village Voice Obie Award Winners Announced". Obie Awards. Retrieved February 21, 2021. ...Special citations: Sarah Benson (director) and Louisa Thompson (set designer), BLASTED (Soho Rep)...
7. Staff writers (2016). "Sarah Benson: 2016 Vilcek Prize for Creative Promise in Theatre". Vilcek Foundation. Retrieved February 21, 2021. ... Artistic director, Soho Rep.... Theater; directing; avant-garde ... Sarah Benson grew up in a small village in England ... Like her father, Benson is a resourceful builder, and the American theatre is benefitting from her skilled craft....
8. Sparks, Cator. "An Evening With Soho Rep. The Broadway of the Avant Garde." HuffPost. May 4, 2011
9. 1 2 CARL GLASSMAN (February 7, 2018). "After Long Shutdown, Tribeca's Soho Rep Celebrates with a Reopening Night". Tribeca Tribune. Retrieved March 6, 2021. ... Soho Rep creative director Sarah Benson and theater supporters celebrate the newly legalized space, made possible by a revised certificate of occupancy and $300,000 in added safety measures.... Soho Rep filled its 73 seats Monday night, not for a performance but a celebration. ... Soho Rep, a cultural pillar in Tribeca for 25 years, would be dark no more...
10. The Pulitzer Prizes, The 2019 Pulitzer Prize Winner in Drama, Retrieved February 23, 2021
11. 59th Annual Drama Desk Awards, Soho Rep. at The 2014 Drama Desks, Retrieved February 23, 2021
12. Staff writer (2021). "Sarah Benson M.F.A. '04: Artistic Director, Soho Rep". Brooklyn College Foundation. Retrieved February 21, 2021. ...Sarah Benson has been the Artistic Director of Soho Rep. since 2007....received a Drama Desk nomination and an OBIE award for Sarah Kane's Blasted....
13. Bess Rowen (June 30, 2013). "Interview with Sarah Benson by Bess Rowen". Howlround. Retrieved February 21, 2021. ...Sarah Benson...During her time at Soho Rep, the theatre's work has been recognized with seven OBIE awards, four Drama Desk nominations and The New York Times Outstanding Playwriting Award.....
14. Alexis Soloski (January 31, 2018). "A Safer Home for Dangerous Plays". The New York Times. Retrieved February 21, 2021. ... Soho Rep, a downtown company with audacious taste in plays ... 46 Walker Street, which it had rented for 25 years. A round of lease negotiations had revealed building regulations at variance with the company's use of the space....
15. "Press & Awards". sohorep.org. Archived from the original on February 9, 2012. Retrieved July 1, 2023.
16. Hilton Als (October 13, 2013). "True Grit: The unsentimental vision of SoHo Rep's director". The New Yorker. Retrieved February 21, 2021. ...After emigrating to the States, in 2002, she got her master's degree in directing from Brooklyn College's stellar theatre program...
17. "Sharing the Load". Howl Round. March 2, 2021.
18. Playbill magazine, Dan Meyer, September 24, 2020, Becca Blackwell, Shayok Misha Chowdhury, Jillian Walker, More Hired to Create New Works at SoHo Rep, Retrieved February 23, 2021
19. Soho Rep: Converting a ground floor fabric warehouse. Theatre Crafts; Sep 28, 1979; New York Public Library Billy Rose Theatre Division, "Soho Repertory Theatre Ephemera"
20. Two New Soho Theaters Soho News; Sep 18, 1975; New York Public Library Billy Rose Theatre Division, "Soho Repertory Theatre Ephemera"
21. Soho Rep: Classics Backstage (Archive 1960–2000); Sep 5th, 1975; 16, 35; Entertainment Industry Magazine Archive pg. 20
22. Author credit: BWW, Broadway World News Desk. "The Soho Rep Book To Be Released". Broadway World. December 19, 2011.
23. Blau, Eleanor. "Weekender Guide; Friday; MISS SHANGE AT THE KITCHEN" (Web.). nytimes.com. Retrieved 2 November 2014. "The SoHo Repertory Theater at 19 Mercer Street doesn't normally stage new plays; it is known for producing rarely performed works by famous writers. However, starting tonight at 8, it will break with tradition to present the New York premiere of The Idol Makers by Stephen Davis Parks."
24. Ehren, Christine (February 4, 1999). "SoHo Rep Names Daniel Aukin New Artistic Director; Announces '99 Season". playbill.com.
25. Robertson, Campbell (September 14, 2006). "Arts, Briefly; 'Apple Tree' Is Headed For Studio 54". The New York Times . Retrieved November 3, 2014.
26. "Sharing the Load". March 2, 2021.
27. "Search the Obies". villagevoice.com. Retrieved November 14, 2014.
28. Brantley, Ben (December 18, 2011). "Privilege and Poison on the Upper East Side". The New York Times. The New York Times. Retrieved June 11, 2015.
29. Isherwood, Charles (May 10, 2013). "A Dream Is a Wish Your Id Makes". The New York Times. The New York Times. Retrieved June 11, 2015.
30. Brantley, Ben (May 18, 2010). "Do You Have a Mother? Then You Have Someone to Blame". The New York Times. The New York Times. Retrieved June 11, 2015.
31. Healy, Patrick (November 5, 2008). "Audiences Gasp at Violence; Actors Must Survive It". The New York Times. The New York Times. Retrieved June 11, 2015.
32. Patrick Healy (November 5, 2008). "Audiences Gasp at Violence; Actors Must Survive It". The New York Times. Retrieved February 21, 2021. ...Sarah Benson at Soho Rep, where she has directed Sarah Kane's "Blasted" ...No one was more disturbed by "Blasted" than its director, Sarah Benson, and the three cast members, yet they have found inventive ways to cope with the nightly torture sessions....
33. Caridad Svich (October 2008). "Getting Blasted: Sarah Benson with Caridad Svich". Brooklyn Rail. Retrieved February 21, 2021. ...It's been thirteen years since Sarah Kane's Blasted premiered...I sat down with Sarah Benson in September over tea in Soho ....
34. McElroy, Steven (September 12, 2010). "Broadway Bound and Also Unbound". The New York Times. The New York Times. Retrieved November 13, 2014.
35. Brantley, Ben (February 26, 2015). "Review: 'An Octoroon,' a Branden Jacobs-Jenkins Comedy About Race". The New York Times. The New York Times. Retrieved June 11, 2015.
36. "2018 Obies Winners and Performances". May 19, 2018.
37. Marc J. Franklin (April 10, 2019). "Go Inside Soho Rep's 2019 Spring Fête". Playbill magazine. Retrieved March 6, 2021. ... Off-Broadway theatre company celebrated its annual gala, hosted by Fairview's MaYaa Boateng, at Tribeca Rooftop April 8....
38. Bethany Rickwald (April 12, 2017). "Peter Sarsgaard, Gretchen Mol, and More Set for Soho Rep.'s Spring 2017 Gala: Actress Gloria Reuben and actor, director, and writer Tim Blake Nelson will host the event". Theater Mania magazine. Retrieved March 6, 2021. ... Soho Rep.'s spring gala is set to take place April 24 at the Lighthouse at Chelsea Piers. The event will honor director Leah C. Gardiner, playwright Melissa James Gibson, and scenic designer Louisa Thomspon....
39. Ben Brantley (June 17, 2018). "Review: Theater as Sabotage in the Dazzling 'Fairview'". The New York Times. Retrieved February 21, 2021. ..."Fairview," which won the 2019 Pulitzer Prize in drama...
40. Michael Paulson (April 24, 2017). "With Help From City, Soho Rep Will Return to Theater It Vacated". The New York Times. Retrieved February 21, 2021. ...Seven months after abruptly abandoning its longtime TriBeCa home, a small but prestigious Off Broadway theater said on Monday that it was moving back.... together they resolved the compliance issues ... Sarah Benson ... said she was relieved by the turnabout.
41. Sommers, Michael Soho Rep has 90 Days to Seek New Space Backstage; Apr 13, 1984; New York Public Library Billy Rose Theatre Division, "Soho Repertory Theatre Ephemera"
42. Soho Rep on the Move... Again Backstage; Jun 28, 1985; New York Public Library Billy Rose Theatre Division, "Soho Repertory Theatre Ephemera"
43. Soho Rep Finds New Home Backstage; October 26, 1984; New York Public Library Billy Rose Theatre Division, "Soho Repertory Theatre Ephemera"
44. Mitgang, Herbert (February 15, 1985). "Theater: 'The Crimes of Vautrin'". The New York Times. Retrieved November 3, 2014.
45. Soloski, Alexis (May 20, 2009). "Obies 2009: What's Your Worst Theater Experience?". Village Voice. Retrieved November 3, 2014.
46. Graves, Michael Soho Rep Finds New Home in Village; Opens Season with "Two Orphans" Backstage; February 14, 1986; New York Public Library Billy Rose Theatre Division, "Soho Repertory Theatre Ephemera"
47. Sommers, Michael. "THE NATURALISTS: A ROMANTIC TRIANGLE SHOOTS UP IN THE IRISH COUNTRYSIDE". New York Stage Review. SEPTEMBER 12, 2018
48. Paulson, Michael (April 24, 2017) "With Help From City, Soho Rep Will Return to Theater It Vacated" The New York Times
49. Gussow, Mel (April 15, 1992). "Theater in Review". The New York Times. Retrieved November 3, 2014.
50. Copage, Eric (October 31, 1999). "New Yorkers & Co.; New Role for Small Theater Troupes: Entrepreneur". The New York Times. Retrieved November 3, 2014.
51. Simon, Lizzie (May 1, 2012). "Reliving 35 Years at Soho Rep". The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved November 3, 2014.
52. Parks, Brian (September 26, 2006). "Englishwoman in New York". Village Voice. Retrieved November 3, 2014.
53. Two New Soho Theaters Soho News; Sep 18, 1975; New York Public Library Billy Rose Theatre Division, "Soho Repertory Theatre Ephemera"
54. Gilbert, Ruth (Mar 22, 1976). "In and Around Town". New York . Retrieved 17 November 2014.
55. Gilbert, Ruth (Apr 19, 1976). "In and Around Town". New York Retrieved 17 November 2014.
56. Gilbert, Ruth (May 3, 1976). "In and Around Town". New York . Retrieved 17 November 2014.
57. Gilbert, Ruth (May 10, 1976). "In and Around Town". New York . Retrieved 17 November 2014.
58. Gilbert, Ruth (Jun 21, 1976). "In and Around Town". New York Retrieved 17 November 2014.
59. Barry, Ann (ed.) (August 1, 1976) "Arts and Leisure Guide: Off Off Broadway" The New York Times . Accessed October 6, 2014
60. "Dracula Thrills". nytimes.com. November 5, 1976. p. 46. Retrieved November 2, 2014.
61. Gilbert, Ruth (June 27, 1977) "In and Around Town" New York . Retrieved 20 November 2014.
62. Martin, Raphael, ed. (2011). The Soho Rep Book: Thirty-Five Years of New York City's Big Small Theater(1st ed.). New York: On Stage Press.
63. Gilbert, Ruth (Feb 21, 1977). "In and Around Town". New York . Retrieved 20 November 2014.
64. Lefkowitz, David (May 22, 1998). "Last Chance To Write While You Sleep in Soho, to May 24". Playbill. Retrieved February 2, 2019.
65. Ben Brantley (October 9, 2008). "Theater Review 'Blasted': Humanity Gets Only a Bit Part". The New York Times. Retrieved February 21, 2021. ..."Blasted." Plays don't come any darker or harsher than the astounding drama ... By Sarah Kane ... directed by Sarah Benson...
66. John Del Signore (November 7, 2008). "Artistic Director Sarah Benson, Blasted at Soho Rep". Gothamist magazine. Retrieved February 21, 2021. ... Benson's flawless production succeeds in rendering's Kane's bitter world view with stunning clarity and courage....
67. Scott Brown (December 2, 2011). "Theater Review: Elective Affinities Is an Unsparing Night With the One Percent". Vulture magazine. Retrieved February 21, 2021. ...David Adjmi's fast, fanged one-act Elective Affinities — a nocturne for diva, sculpture, piano and townhouse — doesn't trip itself up with nuance...
68. Mervyn Rothstein (May 16, 2019). "Stage Directions: Soho Rep.'s Sarah Benson Reveals Fairview Secrets, Why Her Actors Don't Wear Characters As Masks, and More: The Fairview director uncovers how Act 2 of the Pulitzer Prize–winning play was made, her directing philosophy, and more". Playbill magazine. Retrieved February 21, 2021. ...Sarah Benson ... The dramaturgical work really lives in the design process for me....We tend to stage really, really fast. I learn by seeing scenes on their feet....
69. Ben Brantley (May 4, 2014). "Theater Review: Old Times There Are Not Forgotten". The New York Times. Retrieved February 21, 2021. ...The Octoroon ... Ms. Benson and their highly resourceful design team use pretty much every weapon in the arsenals of both theatrical demolition and good old, crowd-tickling showbiz.....
70. Staff writers (2014). "Best New American Play (Tie) An Octoroon". Obie Awards. Retrieved February 21, 2021. ...Octoroon ....
71. Charles Isherwood (October 20, 2015). "Review: 'Futurity,' in a Civil War Setting, Wishes for Today's Technology". The New York Times. Retrieved February 21, 2021. ... "Futurity," an odd and often beguiling show written by César Alvarez. ......Directed by Sarah Benson, artistic director of Soho Rep, ....
72. Playbill Staff (May 1, 2016). "FUTURITY, Guards at the Taj and Robber Bridegroom Earn Top Lucille Lortel Awards: The awards celebrate the best of Off-Broadway. Read the full list of winners here". Playbill magazine. Retrieved February 21, 2021. ...FUTURITY, an avant garde musical ... was named Best Musical ... 2016 Lucille Lortel Awards, honoring outstanding achievement Off-Broadway....
73. Robert Viagas (October 25, 2016). "Joe A. Callaway Award Winners Announced". Playbill magazine. Retrieved February 21, 2021. ... Joe A. Callaway Awards for direction and choreography Off-Broadway ... This year's awards (for work in the 2015-2016 season) were presented to Sarah Benson for her direction of Futurity, produced by Soho Rep and Ars Nova...
74. Ben Brantley (September 17, 2017). "Review: 'In the Blood' and the Singular Talent of Suzan-Lori Parks". The New York Times. Retrieved February 21, 2021. ... Directed with finely measured restraint and a dangerously relaxing sense of humor by Sarah Benson....
75. Staff writers (2019). "The 2019 Pulitzer Prize Winner in Drama -- Fairview, by Jackie Sibblies Drury: A hard-hitting drama that examines race in a highly conceptual, layered structure, ultimately bringing audiences into the actors' community to face deep-seated prejudices". Pulitzer. Retrieved February 21, 2021. ...Jackie Sibblies Drury and director Sarah Benson show us that nothing's funnier than "family drama."...
76. Alexis Soloski (January 30, 2019). "Who Needs a Super Bowl Ad? Skittles Ups the Ante With a Broadway Musical". The New York Times. Retrieved February 21, 2021. ... the director Sarah Benson, an artist best known for defiantly noncommercial work like "Blasted" and "Fairview." ... found the strangeness of the piece ... "genuinely creatively exciting." ...
77. Greg Evans (April 17, 2019). "Bryan Cranston, Adam Driver, Jeff Daniels & Laurie Metcalf Among Broadway's Drama League Award Nominees – Complete List: OUTSTANDING PRODUCTION OF A BROADWAY OR OFF-BROADWAY PLAY (list of nominees)". Deadline magazine. Retrieved February 21, 2021. ...Fairview ... Written by Jackie Sibblies Drury ... Directed by Sarah Benson ... Soho Rep...
78. Andy Lefkowitz (June 2, 2019). "The Prom, The Ferryman & More Win 2019 Drama Desk Awards". Broadway.com. Retrieved February 21, 2021. ...A full list of winners can be found below, in bold and preceded by an asterisk... Outstanding Director of a Play ... Sarah Benson, Fairview ...
79. Andrew Gans (May 20, 2016). "Zachary Levi and Megan Hilty Host 82nd Annual Drama League Awards Today". Playbill. Retrieved February 21, 2021. ...OUTSTANDING PRODUCTION OF A BROADWAY OR OFF-BROADWAY PLAY ... 10 Out Of 12 ... By Anne Washburn ... Directed by Les Waters ... Soho Rep ... Sarah Benson, Artistic Director; Cynthia Flowers, Executive Director...