Gain full access to show guides, character breakdowns, auditions, monologues and more! Part Size . Jesus Hopped The 'A' Train - Variety "Angel Cruz is a thirty-year-old bike messenger from NYC who has lost his best friend to a religious cult. It opened on the Pershing Square Signature Center's Irene Diamond Stage on October 23, 2017, and ran until November 26th, 2017. It seems simple on the surface, but between these two strong actors, Guirgis stellar script and Dexter J. Singletons finely-tuned direction, it makes for electric theater. These near-monologues are often gorgeous, but they can also be weirdly self-negating; in 'A' Train, they don't even always make sense. Moon) in the hindquarters and ends up facing a murder rap when the minister dies in surgery. On his first night at Rikers Island, a terrified inmate named Angel Cruz tries to reconstruct the Lord's Prayer from his broken memories. or convincing themselves. An inmate at Rikers (ANGEL) struggles with his new circumstances as he tries to convince his fellow inmate (LUCIUS) to speak to him. Aside from that hilarious and heartbreaking first sentence, theres not much I can quote from Stephen Adly Guirgiss Jesus Hopped the A Train, which opened on Monday in a riveting revival by the Signature Theater. agrees to represent him. Angel Cruz and Lucius Jenkins face murder charges. An LA Theater Works production of Stephen Adly Guirgis's play about Angel Cruz, a Puerto Rican who is in jail after a prank turned badly: He shoots Reverend Kim in the, uh, posterior, after Kim, a rich hypocrite preacher, brainwashed his best friend. Those arguments are eternal, as the frequent biblical references suggest. Join StageAgent today and unlock amazing theatre resources and opportunities. Jesus Hopped the 'A' Train, a CurtainUp review Describe the Night. The play is essentially a set of monologues stitched together at the edges, and showing signs of fraying. Thirty-year-old Angel Cruz (Xavier Lopez) has just been thrown in Riker's Island prison, the notorious institution on New York City's East River. Its the reason I keep coming back to Collective Consciousness. Jesus Hopped the 'A' Train. who shot a cult leader in the ass because he had ensnared Angel's best friend in his "religion," and Edi Gathegi as Lucius Jenkins, a brutal murderer who found religion on his way to the executioner. Rehearsal: May 28 - July 7, 2018. . Sign up today to unlock amazing theatre resources and opportunities. A moment where things come into complete focus is a late monologue by a prison guard whose soft spot for Lucius cost him his job: with perfectly calibrated delivery, Gregory Prest delivers a . Presented by Ron Kastner, Roy Gabay, and John Gould Rubin at the East 13th Street Theater, 136 E. 13 St., NYC, Nov. 29-Dec. 31. If you're wondering what Philip Seymour . Plot synopsis. Lucius Jenkins Show Jesus Hopped the A Train Gender Male Age Range Adult, Mature Adult Role Size Lead Time & Place rikers island prison, new york, present day Tags angry christian serial killer smug confident charisma Analysis Charismatic and confident, Lucius is a convicted serial killer in READ MORE - PRO MEMBERS ONLY But the intriguing Eric Aviles as Angel and E. Milton Wheeler as Lucius, a serial killer who's supposedly found Jesus . . Toggle navigation . Good cop is D'Amico (a warm and sturdy Robert Heinly), who exemplifies kind-hearted compassion. Lucius Jenkins has found God, and Angel's life and the course of his trial will be changed forever. In the Signature Theater revival of Stephen Adly Guirgis' "Jesus Hopped the A Train . Marmions Trevon Roots wins battle with Burlington Centrals Drew Scharnowski for sectional title. Jesus Hopped the 'A' Train, a blazingly sharp script, a compelling Angel is awaiting trial - his first. Jesus Hopped the A Train tells the story of several inmates of Rikers Prison who are awaiting charges for murder. Much of it also seems unneeded and diverting. But the audience also hears stories of childhood friendships and complicated . Stephen Adly Guirgis' 2000 play, Jesus Hopped the 'A' Train follows Angel Cruz and God-lover Lucius Jenkins, as they navigate life in a prison on Rikers Island in New York. The Vagina Monologues; Eve Ensler; 3 pages. Synopsis Jesus Hopped the A Train tells the story of several inmates of Rikers Prison who are awaiting charges for murder. . Perhaps the most stirring monologue of the play comes from . Search the history of over 797 billion Running time: 2 hours and 20 minutes with one 20-minute interval. He is the author of the award winning book of poetry "Hip Hop Is Dead - Long Live Hip Hop: The Birth, Death And Resurrection Of Hip Hop Activism" (2017) and is the inaugural Poet Laureate of Alachua County, Florida (2020 - 2022). Relying heavily on the attorney's direct address monologues, the entire subject seems to be one Guirgis feels the need to include, but never finds a way to integrate. Full text of "The Austin Chronicle 2015-02-06" He is a former co-artistic director of Labyrinth Theater Company. Jesus Hopped the 'A' Train | TheaterMania The first, Charlie D'Amico (Erick Betancourt), is soon fired for doing a variety of favors for Lucius. Lucius has been convicted of eight sadistic murders and is awaiting extradition to . We see how his case becomes of a professional project Angel Cruz - (20s /Latino) A young man Incarcerated at Rikers Island Prison. Jesus Hopped the 'A' Train closes October 15, 2017 Details and tickets -[/ezcol_1third] It's startling to watch Luciusa so-called man of Godinfluence Angel in a way akin to Rev. New York, NY, Linda Ray It allows Lucius' evangelism to soar and Hanrahan's monologues to gain an air of a courtroom. But in a series of monologues that pull further back from the action, Hanrahans reflections on the case, and on her own investment in it, dissipate the tension. Review: Jesus Hopped the 'A' Train (Soulpepper) [2][3] The play was directed by Philip Seymour Hoffman. Where: Athenaeum Theatre, 2936 N. Southport Ave. Tickets: $30 at 773-935-6875 or www.eclipsetheatre.com. "Our Father, who art in Heaven, Howard be thy name . Our Father, who art in heaven, he stammers, Harold be thy name.. The cast of "Jesus Hopped the 'A' Train" by Eclipse Theatre. (Scott Dray). He then mercilessly exploits that vulnerability by adding a contrasting pair of guards to the mix: one, named Charlie, a good-natured patsy; the other, Valdez, a by-the-rules sadist. a panoptican effect. Lobby Hero. Stephen Adly Guirgis's plays include Jesus Hopped the 'A' Train, Our Lady of 121st Street, The Last Days of Judas Iscariot, The Little Flower of East Orange, and The Motherf*cker with the Hat. Angel Cruz is a young Puerto Rican man incarcerated for shooting a cult leader after said person "stole" his best friend. Angel (Sean Carvajal) is being held pending trial for the shooting of a Reverend Kim, the leader of a religious organization modeled on Sun Myung Moons Unification Church. The play runs about 15 minutes too long the second act has too much repetitive, screamed arguments and Guirgis has a habit of spelling his theses out a little too neatly. JOHN DRUZBA - Resume | Actors Access Jesus Hopped the "A" Train by Kerry Reid March 14, 2002 August 19, . Doubt. Creative_Project (1).docx. THEATER REVIEW; Locked Up In a Place Far Beyond Redemption Collective Consciousness Theatres Jesus Hopped The A Train by Stephen Adly Guirgis runs through November 11 at Erector Square (319 Peck Street, Building 6S) in New Haven, CT. Jesus, directed by Dexter J. Singleton and produced by Jenny Nelson, stars Jhulenty Delossantos (Angel), Rob Giardian (DAmico), Jason Hall (Valdez), Bridget McCarthy (Mary Jane Hanrahan) & Terrence Riggins (Lucius). The monologue from which the play takes its name was a low point in an otherwise thrillingly paced drama. Jesus Hopped the 'A' Train - Circles & Stalls What about my victimization? Jesus Hopped the 'A' Train NYC Reviews and Tickets Howie. Jesus Hopped the A Train | The Front Row Center One has been serving his sentence for years, but his discovery of God helps him find joy in his days. The reverend subsequently, and indirectly, dies. for her but theres also a personal connection. T.Schreiber. Both are in protective custody and must spend their one-hour of outside time locked in individual pens. New York, NY, Ages 12-17: Camp Broadway Ensemble @ Carnegie Hall friend. Review: Jesus Hopped the 'A' Train/Eclipse Theatre Company This leads you to expect Jerry Orbach, or a neat denouement that Mr. Guirgis is not about to provide. dialogue, and street-wise sense of authenticity, despite being locked out of Mark Brokaw directs a cast made up of Edi Gathegi, Sean Carvajal, Ricardo Chavira, Erick Betancourt, and Stephanie DiMaggio. As his name implies, Angel wrestles with questions of faith, and those questions come pouring out from Lucius during their side-by-side exercise sessions in the prison's outdoor cages. Yet, "Jesus Hopped the 'A' Train" may be trickier to perform, with its passions verging on melodrama and its frequent alternating monologues sometimes telling rather than showing. A monologue from Jesus H. JESUS HOPPED THE A TRAIN Auditions Actor's Express Theatre Company in Submission 11/23. idea of performance. But his drive and dish make it possible. View Jesus_Hopped_the_A_Train from THE 100 at CUNY Borough of Manhattan Community College. House of Actors is proud to present "Jesus Hopped the 'A' Train". Its a complex and feral feat of acting, one that would feel at home at Long Wharf or Yale Rep or even at one of the best New York theaters. But when performed, as it is here, by a cast that can recreate its rapture as well as its moral gravity, it achieves the doubleness of great art, burrowing deeper the higher it flies. With some bravado, Angel insists that what he did was therefore only technically wrong. A barn-burning performance by Daren A. Herbert is the highlight of . But mostly there Castro's Valdez and Birnkrant's Mary Jane certainly seem as flawed if not quite as violent in the case of the latter as Angel. . The performance by Frankham was another highlight for me; the development of the character though her interactions with Angel and her later monologues was subtle, yet well conveyed. Jesus Hopped the "a " Train( main work) . Packed densely into a bullet-fast script, a barrage of . With so many themes to explore some get little more than a cursory nod, but in this Young . Dramatists Play Service, Inc. It is freighted by an overload of pseudo-profundity; characters upbraiding each other about the Ultimate Questions can make for rather dreary stagecraft. We hear a story of how her on March 2, 2022, There are no reviews yet. For tickets and information, call Ticket Central at 212 . There are a finite number of Shakespeare monologues, so the most accessible roles for actors in their 20's tend to be overdone. Jesus Hopped the 'A' Train, Young Vic Theatre | Culture Whisper Still, they're full of rhetorical fireworks. Jesus Hopped the 'A' Train | a Curtainup Review Synopsis. A lot of what we hear from the lawyer is in the form of direct . Stephen Adly Guirgis got his break in 2000 with "Jesus Hopped the . Why is it significant to the play? Jesus Hopped the "A" Train - Backstage Jesus Hopped the 'A' Train is at the Young Vic until . Jesus Hopped The A Trainquestions the legal and penal systems in the US and offers a stark reflection on how the law struggles to deal with the complexities of the human . Cory Velazco is fascinatingly impulsive, defensive, skeptical and earnest as Angel Cruz, a young man who finds himself in prison after trying to save his best friend from a religious cult. Angel Cruz, a poor Puerto Rican, isn't . Jesus Hopped the A Train book. Some prisoners go out of their minds when confined to the 23-hour isolation wing of Rikers Island prison. Added to the mix are Lucius Jenkins, a serial killer turned born-again Christian, and Valdez, a sadistic corrections officer. We see Angel meeting with his lawyer, a tightly-wound public defender with personal walls as thick as the ones at Rikers. they come through these characters whose unbridled sense of humour, stories, The characters have nowhere to hide so it heightens the In one of the plays strongest and most sobering moments, Lucius rails against this saying Was it my free will to be abused and violated from the age a five? Stephen Adly Guirgis's Jesus Hopped the 'A' Train runs through Dec. 3 on the Irene Diamond Stage at Pershing Square Signature Center (480 W. 42nd St.). Angel's stated justification is that the minister ran a cult that took his best friend away from him. Add into this world Lucius Jenkins, an incarcerated serial killer with a messianic personality, and two prison guards, Valdez and D'Amico, who have radically different ways of enforcing and breaking the laws of which they are functionaries, and JESUS HOPPED THE 'A' TRAIN unfolds as both riotously funny, and as a searingly dramatic rumination . It explores the space between what can be done and what should be done. Sure, it tells a story of addiction and cyclical abuse a narrative we've grown to expect about those who go behind bars. "[15] Frank Scheck of The Hollywood Reporter reviewed a 2017 revival favorably, praising the "incisive characterizations and riveting dialogue". Stephen Adly Guirgis's plays include Jesus Hopped the 'A' Train, Our Lady of 121st Street, The Last Days of Judas Iscariot, The Little Flower of East Orange, and The Motherf*cker with the Hat. Angel, who has just shot the leader of a religious cult, gloomily awaits the results of his trial, all the while insisting to himself that the shooting was entirely justified because of the cult's. But after he lands in 24-hour protective custody, one hour of which is spent each day in a cage in the jail yard, he meets his philosophical match. Lucius has done terrible things but now he has found God. Jesus Hopped The "A" Train. At the opening of the play, he is in his second night of incarceration, awaiting trial for shooting the leader of that cult in the "ass." He is on his knees, alone and terrified, trying to say a prayer he no . Stephen Adly Guirgis' Pulitzer Prize-winning "Between Riverside and Crazy" gets its local debut at Steppenwolf in June. Research Playwrights, Librettists, Composers and Lyricists. Kim's described affect on Joey, the friend Angel fought so hard to free from a cultish existence built by a false prophet. . Lucius is a serial . Jesus Hopped the 'A' Train does not offer a clear verdict, even while it implicitly criticises the judicial and penal systems of America. His poetry has appeared in various literary publications in the United States and abroad. Inside Rikers Island, a terrified Angel is befriended by a charismatic serial killer named Lucius Jenkins. Jesus Hopped the A Train - Play. Their monologues are all interesting, at least, but Guirgis was mainly interested in having Angel and Lucius debate. One of the most striking things about Soulpepper's Jesus Hopped The 'A' Train is how multi-dimensional its main characters are. Some prisoners go out of their minds when confined to the 23-hour isolation wing of Rikers Island prison. [4][5][6] The original cast included Salvatore Inzerillo, John Ortiz, and David Zayas, Ron Cephas Jones, and Elizabeth Canavan.[4]. The new guard Valdez (Jason Hall) is cruel and curt. JESUS HOPPED THE 'A' TRAIN . . Other Characters From Jesus Hopped the A Train. The critic wrote that there are "overwritten passages and reliance on expository monologues. Lucius Jenkins, a monologue from Jesus Hopped the A-Train by Stephen Adly Gurgius. David Zayas and Ron Cephas Jones in Jesus Hopped the A Train. The play takes place in a prison on Rikers Island in New York. Jeff. Opened Oct. 23, 2017. Postponed from April when an actor became ill with COVID-19, this pandemic-era production forges resonant metaphors after so many months of socially separated isolation. . Lucius is awaiting extradition to Florida to take responsibility for the trail of bodies he left behind. Dualities galore is the name of the game in Jesus Hopped The 'A' Train! Jesus Hopped was fairly well received by critics and though it did not pick up any major awards in its US run, it was nominated for an Olivier Award in the UK in the category of Best New Play in 2003. Evening performances are at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday through Friday, and 8 p.m. on Saturday; matinees are at 2 p.m. Wednesday and Saturday. Jesus Hopped the A Train screens only on Friday, Sept. 25 at 7:30 p.m. and Saturday, Sept. 26 at 7:30 p.m. Jesus' Blood Found 23 Chromosomes, But Mark Brokaws staging on a simple set by Riccardo Hernandez, sensitively lit by Scott Zielinski, is otherwise evenhanded and clean, as if not wanting to leave any fingerprints. Riggins has done terrific work at Collective Consciousness before. The opening monologue, in which Angel struggles to say the Lords Prayer but repeatedly mangles it, is so packed with frustrated profanities that it evokes David Mamets extremes.