Click HERE for production photos.
Click HERE for a preview of Mary Jane in The Saratogian.
Click HERE for a preview of Mary Jane in The Berkshire Eagle.
Click HERE for publicity photos.
MARY JANE Reviews So Far
Rarely in my theatergoing experience has less been as satisfyingly more as it is in Bridge Street Theatre’s affecting, delicately crafted production of Amy Herzog’s “Mary Jane,” a play about endurance, survival, connection and a single mother’s unconditional love for and commitment to a child in profound, life-threatening need … With Crossman at the center, this delicately calibrated production is filled with grace, warmth, compassion and the generosity of the human spirit.” Jeff Borak, Berkshire Eagle More…
“More than exceptional … Crossman is a powerful and poignant presence. The performances by all four [additional} women are rich and insightful … Zoya Kachadurian has sensitively directed this play about a very difficult human crisis. Her cast works well together as they wend their way through many emotional scenes. Her staging is fluid and the stage pictures are simple but replete with information and mood … A compelling and beautifully acted production.” Macey Levin, Berkshire On Stage More…
“Splendid … Some plays are like novels. They are complex, wide in scope and epic in nature. Others, like ‘Mary Jane’, are more like poems. They are gentle, mood evoking and intensely personal. Amy Herzog’s much-lauded play is a poem as it tells its story almost subliminally. Though seemingly a small meditation on caregiving, it tackles more profound questions about the fragility of life. ‘Mary Jane’ can be interpreted as a work about the beauty of love, resilience in living and the value of existing within a supportive community. It’s about optimism in the face of tragedy. It’s about Motherhood and Sisterhood.” Bob Goepfert, The Saratogian and WAMC More…
“Hauntingly resonant … A compelling, timely look at the strain of long-term care for a child … You’ll feel a lot of things — impressed, moved, disturbed, saddened and emotionally walloped … Played superlatively by Amy Crossman.” Steve Barnes, Times Union More…
“A joy to watch … Having known of Bridge Street Theatre for quite some time, this was the first opportunity to have experienced this gem in the heart of Catskill. While it may have been a first visit, rest assured it will not be the last.” Bill Kellert, Nippertown More…
“Superb … A structurally clever, at times very funny, agonizing exploration of caregiving, motherhood and faith in insurmountable circumstances … Thank you to Bridge Street for fighting the good fight and bringing this extraordinary contemporary play about caring for the most needy to Catskill. It’s another home run.” Patrick White, Metroland Now More…
“Fascinating … Kachadurian has kept the play as simple and straightforward as Herzog’s writing. Crossman delivers a performance that is amazing, free of excessive emotion, direct and open … A peculiarly heart-wrenching performance.” J. Peter Bergman, Berkshire Edge More…
Cast
Mary Jane – Amy Crossman*
Ruthie – Roxanne Fay
Sherry – Marianne Matthews*
Brianne – Renee Hewitt
Amelia – Clarissa Hernandez
Dr. Toros – Marianne Matthews*
Kat – Clarissa Hernandez
Chaya – Renee Hewitt
Tenkei – Roxanne Fay
Director – Zoya Kachadurian
Sets and Sound – Carmen Borgia
Lights – John Sowle
Costumes – Michelle Rogers
Stage Manager – Hannarose Manning
MARY JANE is a profound and heartbreaking new work from playwright Amy Herzog. Captivating, affecting and compassionate, Mary Jane is the story of a single mother caring for the daily needs of her chronically ill two-year old. Faced with seemingly insurmountable odds, Mary Jane (Amy Crossman) relies on unflagging optimism and humor, along with the wisdom of the women around her who have become a kind of makeshift family, to take on the challenges that each new day brings. But will inner strength and newfound friendships be enough to see her through when the walls start closing in?
A deeply moving portrayal of the day-to-day demands of caregiving, and a beautiful tribute to the strength and resilience of the human spirit when fueled by unconditional love. Winner of the Obie and New York Drama Critics Circle Awards for Best Play.
MARY JANE Facebook Comments
Just wanted to let you know how much the show affected me! I truly didn’t realize how much emotion was pent up until the lights went down and it was like a punch in the gut! Truly outstanding, devastating work, even though it took everything in me not to wake Frankie up when I got home and hug him.” Nico Ager
“Powerful ‘touch your heart’ show with a talented group of actors to appreciate! So pleased we had the chance to see this performance.” Diana Wellington
“I can’t even put into exact words what this play left me feeling. This show is a must see. Every character was so fully developed. I lost myself in the believability of the resilience to such an extent that I didn’t feel the fall until their bows. Thank you for this play! So worth the wait! … Such a beautiful production. Thinking today about the ways in which so many women navigate these really heavy things during our lifetimes yet still carry so much capacity for others. Always trying to make sure everyone else’s is comfortable often at our own expense. Is it because we’re capable, because society expects us to, or both?” Jeannine Trimboli
“This intimate play is populated with real humans, acted and directed with consummate skill, offering a moving, frustrating, unexpectedly funny and heartbreaking look inside a world we rarely see.” Eileen Schuyler
“Run, do not walk, to see it. Wonderful.” Flo Hayle
“BRAVA TUTTI.” M. Burke Walker
“A gorgeous play and supremely acted and directed. Bravo!” Lora Lee Ecobelli
“Wonderful play, a must see!” Debra Kelsey
“Deeply moving; great performances.” Susan Rosenthal Gies
Bios
Amy Crossman (Mary Jane) is an AEA actor, playwright, and sometimes clown. As an actor, she’s worked with Hudson Valley Shakespeare, The Shakespeare Theatre of New Jersey, Pennsylvania Shakespeare Festival, and Chenango River Theatre, among other places. Her solo show The Great Divide was first produced by Boomerang Theatre Company at HERE Arts Center in 2023, and again regionally at Bridge Street Theatre and Chenango River Theatre in 2024. She’s studied with a lot of kind and funny people including Judy Gold, Chris Bayes, Karl Bury, and Mark H. Dold. She loves Diet Coke, magic, the New York Yankees, getting a full night’s sleep, bread and therapy. www.amycrossman.com.
Roxanne Fay (Ruthie/Tenkei) is happy and grateful to return to Bridge Street. As an actor, Roxanne was honored with the 2022 Berkie Award (Berkshire Theatre Critics’ Association) for her portrayal of Mary Tyrone in the Bridge Street Theatre production of Long Day’s Journey Into Night, and she joined the summer 2022 season with the Prague Shakespeare Company (Czech Republic). In Florida, Roxanne was part of the original cast of OZ for freeFall Theatre. Roles there include Dr. Emma Brookner in The Normal Heart and Nurse Ratched in One Flew Over The Cuckoo’s Nest. Florida productions include The Sound Inside, Apples In Winter, The Beauty Queen Of Leenane, Love Bird, Doubt, The Tempest, Twelfth Night, As You Like It, Much Ado About Nothing and HIR. As playwright, Roxanne was named a 2016 Hawthornden Writers’ Fellow (in residence, Hawthornden Castle, Scotland). Her play, Thrice To Mine was created at Hawthornden and premiered in 2019 at Bridge Street Theatre. Roxanne has created work for the Dali Museum in St. Petersburg, including her first film, Breton And The Muse: A Midnight In Paris, a focal point of the Dali’s acclaimed exhibition coordinated with Le Centre Pompidou (Paris). Book versions of her works, Thrice to Mine and Upon This Rock: The Magdalene Speaks are available on Amazon.
Clarissa Hernandez (Amelia/Kat) is thrilled to be making their Bridge Street Theatre debut! Clarissa is a Mexican-American actor, improviser and stage combatant. Born in El Paso, TX, they now reside in New York where they studied at the Upright Citizens Brigade, HB Studio, MN Acting Studio, New York Combat for Stage and Screen and ARG Studio. Their favorite roles include Laertes in Hamlet, Simone in the Downtown Brooklyn immersive theater production of Money Heist, and Helena, a first-generation immigrant in Swans, a magical realism independent movie currently in post-production. More information can be found on their Instagram @explainsittall
Renée Hewitt (Brianne/Chaya) is thrilled to return to Bridge Street after playing Mariya in their production of Uncle Vanya. She is an over 30 year stage, film and voiceover actress seen in such leading stage roles as: Sarah Bernhardt/Bernhardt/Hamlet, Helen Bechdel/Fun Home, Ouiser/Steel Magnolias, Aldonza/Man of La Mancha, Kate Mundy/ Dancing at Lughnasa, Rona Lisa Piretti/25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, Annie Sullivan/Miracle Worker, Sugar/Tiny Beautiful Things, Slank and Fighting Prawn/Peter and the Starcatcher. Voiceover credits include: Ivy in Soulcalibur II and Epona Rhi in Mechwarrior III. Since moving to New York City 1 ½ years ago she has performed at Gallery Players as Beth in Constancy of Home in the Black Box New Play Festival and in Metamorphoses as Lucina, A and Mother. She was also seen as Gem in Timmy at Columbia University and as Mother in the staged reading of MiniMe at Open Jar Studios which will be fully produced December 2025 at Chain Theater, NYC. Renée currently studies voice and acting with Romana Mallory; studiomallory.com. I’m forever grateful to both Steven and John for the opportunities they have given me. ReneeJHewitt.com
Marianne Matthews (Sherry/Dr. Toros) is a native New Yorker who originally hails from Rosedale, Queens and later Manhasset, Long Island before settling in Manhattan after college. Today, she splits her time between her Manhattan and Hudson Valley homes. Some of Marianne’s proudest New York City performances include roles in the Off-Broadway premiere of Tennessee Williams’ Spring Storm (Theatre at St. Clements), Hamlet (Boomerang Theatre Co.), Towards Zero (Pulse Ensemble Theatre), Murder on the Nile (Pulse), and Shirley Valentine (Sanford Meisner Theatre), a one-woman comedic play. Regional Theatre credits include Muriel in The Fox on the Fairway (White Plains Performing Arts Center) and Ouiser in Steel Magnolias (Millbrook Playhouse). In the Hudson Valley she has appeared in Crazy Mary, Women of Manhattan, and Left. In May 2024, Marianne was featured in the role of scientist/suffragist Hertha Ayrton in a staged reading of The Half-Life of Marie Curie at the Consulate General of the Republic of Poland in New York. She also appeared in Wellness, Inc., a television pilot, which was an Official Selection of the 2022 SOHO International Film Festival. Marianne earned her MFA from The Actors Studio Drama School and is a member of Actors’ Equity Association.
Zoya Kachadurian (Director) Recently produced and directed a reading at Symphony Space in NYC of Voices from the Silenced by Martha Boesing and Victoria Rue starring Tyne Daly, Sharon Gless, Jane Curtin, Marsha Mason, Amy Irving, Christine Lahti, Rachel Ticotin and Christina Redd. She directed the world premieres of Wasabia by Wendy Herlich at Centenary Stage, and the critically acclaimed Apple Season by EM Lewis At NJ REP.. She also directed a video of her award winning-theatrical production of Georgia and Me, by and with Sarah Ford, and many new works for Manhattan Theatre Source’s Estrogenius Festival, and others for EST’s Octoberfest. In Massachusetts she directed The Ride (an original musical), The 39 Steps, King O’ the Moon, The Graduate, The Miracle Worker, Stones in his Pockets, An Inspector Calls and Stick Fly (Majestic Theatre in West Springfield); The Cocktail Hour (New Century Theatre) and a critically acclaimed Stones in His Pockets (Stoneham and Gloucester). She is a member of the Lincoln Center and EST Directors’ Labs, and LaMama’s International Directors’ Symposium.. She is a proud member of AEA, DGA and SDC. www.Zoyazk.com
* A member of Actors’ Equity, the Union of Actors and Stage Managers in the United States.