Phoenix Theatre Ensemble announces the world premiere of Topher Cusumano’s THE CULT PLAY which will begin previews on January 27 and will play through February 17 at The Paradise Factory Theatre at 64 East 4th Street (next door to La Mama) in NYC.

The Cult Play, a new dramedy by Topher Cusumano, follows The Soul Scouts, a religious cult run by Mama Pearl, a charismatic mystic. The group believes the divine rapture will be realized with the coming of the Goddess. However, Mama Pearl fears she’s losing control of the struggling group after the defection of a longtime follower. When Mae, a tech-savvy queer punk, begins the process of joining the group, she introduces Mama Pearl to the powers of social media, changing the course of the Soul Scouts’ destiny forever.

When asked why The Cult Play will speak to queer audiences, Stacey Raymond, who plays Mae said,
“I think The Cult Play will speak to queer audiences in a unique and rather poignant way. There’s a queer love story within the play and those characters are surrounded by a cult atmosphere which regularly imposes rules and messages of “how you’re supposed to be” on its members. As a queer person, to me that feels reflective of society’s messages at times towards the LGBTQ community, though clearly within a cult the agendas are on a much more concentrated level, of course. Throw in a rather screwy cult leader calling all the shots, and The Cult Play might look somewhat reminiscent of America today.”

Irene Lazaridis directs the 8-member cast headed by Lori Parquet as Mama Pearl with Layan Elwazani ,Ariel Estrada, Oscar Klausner, John Lenartz, Josh Moser, Stacey Raymond and Elise Stone.

When: January 27 through February 17; Wednesday-Saturday at 7:00 pm; Sundays at 2:00 pm
Where: The Paradise Factory @ 64 East 4th Street (Bowery & 2nd Avenue)
Tickets: $25 www.phoenixtheatreensemble.org/;