THEATER FOR THE NEW CITY
Executive Artistic Director, Crystal Field

Presents

ASTORIA

November 5, 2026 – November 22, 2026
Thursday, Friday, Saturday at 8:00 PM, Sunday at 3:00 PM

Tickets – $20, Students & Seniors $15
Run time: 90 minutes
CINO THEATER

THEATER FOR THE NEW CITY
155 First Avenue (between 9th and 10th Street)
New York, NY 10003
Directions

During their weekly dinner conversations at his grandmother Helen’s apartment, Michael, a writer, chronicles the family history. But when Gram breaks her hip Michael must face facts: it is time to move her to a nursing home.

As Michael prepares Helen, Walter, his estranged father, shows up. They confront old issues. Otto, Helen’s bachelor neighbor, a Greek waiter, provides comic relief while Venus, Michael’s girlfriend, complicates the mix with her demands for a commitment.

ASTORIA takes place in Helen’s long-time apartment in Astoria Queens. There we also meet Mr. Kodura, her upstairs neighbor, in the midst of a mid-life crisis, and a young blind cellist who lives across the courtyard.

It’s the story of Michael’s seeking resolution to the traumas in his family’s history by shaping them into a play. Can he recreate the past with the present changing around him and demanding his intervention.

CAST
*David Leeper (Michael)
Mary Ruth Baggott (Venus/Blind Cellist)
ReW Starr (Helen)
*Steve Hauck (Walter)
Gary Ray Bugarcic (Otto/Mr. Kodura)
*AEA

PRODUCTION
Playwright: Richard Ploetz
Director: Mark Finley
Production Manager: Devorah Shubowitz
Stage Manager: Mathew Seepersad
Sound Design: Joshua J. Groth
Set Design: Mark Marcante and Lytza Colón
Light Design: Joshua J. Groth