***Theatre Preview & Fundraiser***

Ms. Sophie Divine Presents

By Andrea Davis

WOW Cafe Theatre 59 E 4th St (East Village - Btwn Bowery & 2nd Ave)
Thurs, Fri, & Sat - March 30, March 31, & April 1
@ 8pm
Purchase/Reserve Tickets at TheatreMania.com ($10)
In the space between life and death, Ms. Sophie Divine takes a young gay African American man named Damien on a journey that spans the events before his suicide attempt and confronts the bigotry of the church.

Featured Performers 
Piper Anderson
Vaughn Belcher 
Denise Collins
J. Michael Kinsey

Production Team
Directed by Andre Lancaster
Playwright/Producer Andrea Smith
Production Designers dj:ayden, Amy Kitzhaber, Elliot Lanes, and Casey Smith
Stage Manager Elliot Lanes

PRESS RELEASE ( download .pdf)
Ms. Sophie Divine Presents, a timely new  play and a response to the national trend of prominent black leaders using the pulpit to promote spiritual violence, will receive a staged reading performance at the  WOW Cafe Theatre in the East Village (59 East 4th St., Between 2nd Av & Bowery).  Written by Andrea Davis  and under the direction of Andre Lancaster, this staged reading with a  vibrant cast is set to go up Thursday, March 30th, Friday, March 31st, and Saturday, April 1st at 8pm.

"Damien's story is one that occurs again and again in almost every Black, Christian community, in some form. My hope is that placing the problem before the eyes of the community will make it even less ignorable, and will encourage the continuation of a conversation that has already become so crucial to the survival of a sense of unity within Black Christianity," says the show's writer Andrea Davis.

  Ms. Sophie Divine Presents is the story of a young gay black man's attempt to take his life after years of having felt rejected by his church  community. In the space between life and death, however, he meets Ms. Sophie  Divine, who takes him on a reflective journey that spans the events leading up to his suicide attempt, and confronts the bigotry of the church. After the staged reading, there will be a talk-back surrounding the play's themes of race, sexuality, and Christianity, particularly as it pertains to Black Americans.

 "When you have so-called leaders of the Black Christian Community like  Bernice King and Rev. Willie Wilson promoting a right-wing - or is it white wing? - homophobic and sexist agenda, it's imperative that believers and artists alike respond with ferocity and conviction," says Director Andre  Lancaster.  "This is what Andrea Davis has done with Ms. Sophie Divine Presents.  Whether you grew up in the church or not, whether you're in the church or you left the church out of protest, you'll identify with these  characters."

 "I'm going to be in attendance to this staged reading, because this type of reflection around issues within the black community needs to be  represented on stage - and it's people like us who can take this show to a bigger audience and national stage," says Playwright/Director/Singer-Songwriter Khalil Sullivan.


About WOW Cafheater:
Started as an international women's theater festival in October of 1980. WOW Cafheater is a women's theater collective which promotes the empowerment of women trans people through the performing arts. WOW serves as a platform for performing artists at all career levels and in all disciplines, empowering them to learn production skills as well as to develop their creative vision.