SIENA RAFTER (they/them)

January 3-30 2023

3B Development Series | ASL Creative

IN RESIDENCE: January 3-30 2023

T follows four clients, two therapists, and one ASL interpreter through 24 hours at an eating disorder clinic in Upstate New York. At the beginning of the play, we meet Sam on their final day of treatment, confronted with the harsh reality of whether or not they’re ready to re enter the real world. These questions are thrown dramatically into question as a lover and friend from their past appears, making them both question if what feels good is really what is healthy. From ballet dancing and spoken poetry, to cracking eggs and game shows, this disordered young adult fantasia explores the messiness of being young and sick, and what fighting for your own healing really looks like.

DIRECTOR: Zhailon Levington
WRITER: Siena Rafter
PRODUCER: Deaf West & JJ Maley

Siena is a proud graduate of LaGuardia High School’s Drama program and Brown University’s Theater Arts class of 2020. Broadway: Sam Gold’s King Lear starring Glenda Jackson (ASL team), Children of a Lesser God (Assistant Director to Kenny Leon).

As an actor: Off-Broadway/ Lincoln Center: Liz Swados’ Runaways (City Center’s Encores, Off-Center), Deep Blue Sea (Bill T Jones at the Park Avenue Armory), American Song Book Series. The Public Theater/Delacorte: Twelfth Night (written by Shaina Taub), Runaways, For the Love of Vinyl (Joe’s Pub), From Hair to Hamilton…Gala ’17. TV/Webseries: HBO’s Crashing, Don’t Shoot the Messenger, and Scholastic’s Dear America series.

IRT Theater is a grassroots laboratory for independent theater and performance in New York City, providing space and support to a new generation of artists. Tucked away in the old Archive Building in Greenwich Village,  IRT’s mission is to build a community of emerging and established artists by creating a home for the development and presentation of new work.

This program is supported, in part, by public funds from the New York State Council on the Arts and the New York State Legislature; New York City Department of Cultural Affairs in Partnership with the City Council; A.R.T./New York’s NYC Small Theatres Fund made possible with support from the Howard Gilman Foundation & support for ASL interpretation provided in part through funding from Access A.R.T./New York.

ACCESS: ***IRT is a fully wheelchair-accessible facility. Please reach out to Kori Rushton if you have any accessibility questions or concerns, krushton@irttheater.org ***