Cleveland Public Theatre presents

TEST FLIGHT 2025 (Part One)

Featuring workshop productions by Northeast Ohio artists as part of CPT’s New Play Development Program

February 6 – February 22, 2025

Cleveland Public Theatre (CPT) announces the return of its quintessential play development series, Test Flight, back with ten up-and-coming Northeast Ohio playwrights. This year’s event will be featured in two parts with part one running February 6 through February 22, and part two running May 22 through June 7, 2025.  New this year, we decided to present workshop readings where actors will perform with scripts in hand for the productions being workshopped in week one (Feb. 6-8).  This enabled us to extend the opportunity to a few other playwrights whose work is in an even earlier stage of development.  The other plays will be staged and might have minimal sets, lighting, costumes, etc.

Test Flight is generously sponsored by Mellon Foundation, The Nord Family Foundation and John P. Murphy Foundation.

The first cohort of playwrights/projects include the following:

WEEK 1: February 6-8

**Curtain Call: No Exit
Producer, Playwright & Director, Producer: Day Ash

Curtain Call: No Exit is a horror comedy that tells three different stories from very different points of view. These are situations where characters find themselves without an exit. Whether it’s psychological, physical or metaphorical, finding their way out of things can be a scary journey.

**Handlebar Brakes
Playwright: Cole Tarantowski
Producer & Director: Yuval Tal

When Private Paul Bailey rushes into a WWI medical camp with his injured friend in tow, three soldiers and a medic care for them overnight. While the four deduce that the soldier is dead, Bailey remains oblivious. After all, they’ve been talking all day and night.

The Ascension of Jordan L. Wells During the Total Lunar Eclipse of 2017
Writer: Dylan Todd Brown
Producer, Director: Kyra Cutsail 

The Ascension of Jordan L. Wells is a psychological horror that explores the thin line between belief, sacrifice, and the unknown. During a camping trip under the 2017 total lunar eclipse, unraveling secrets and rising tensions force friends to confront their deepest fears—and the consequences of their choices.

These plays will be performed as readings with actors performing with scripts in hand.

WEEK 2: February 13-15

Experts in a Dying Field

Written and directed by Jonathon Morgan
Produced by Mindy Childress Herman 

A play about being fungi and being fun guys. It’s interactive, a little weird, and ends with a sing-along of Queen’s 1978 classic, "Fat Bottomed Girls." 

WEEK 3: February 20-22 (A Double Bill)

Poems of An Angry Feminist
Produced and conceived by Fatima Matar 

Poems of an Angry Feminist is a thought-provoking, multimedia performance, bringing together poetry, music, dance, and imagery. With a strong feminist voice running through her poems, award-winning poet Fatima Matar gives a moving performance on themes of sexism, misogyny, domestic violence, sexual harassment at work, and social justice. Interested in capturing the human experience, Fatima’s poetry also touches on her experience of migration, belonging, motherhood, loss, and depression. “Fatima’s performance has been described as powerful, profound, moving, spellbinding, and poignant. “

The Stars Made Me Gay: Queer Anthology Vol. 1
By Lauren Lash
Directed by Kate Smith
Produced by Jeannine Gaskin 

The Stars Made Me Gay: Queer Anthology Vol. 1 by Lauren Lash is the debut installment of the Queer Anthology Project, a powerful collection of monologues and scenes crafted from interviews with members of the LGBTQIA+ community. This first volume shines a spotlight on the voices and experiences of bisexual/pansexual, lesbian, and transmasculine people, capturing their heartfelt stories of identity, resilience, and the search for belonging. Through these narratives, The Stars Made Me Gay offers a moving exploration of queer longing and the quest for community.  

Test Flight 2025 (Part Two)

May 22 – June 7, 2025

Featuring:

Unhinged: Burlesque Play on Modern Dating Struggles by Issa Vybe Productions

Grandeza Presented by Teatro Público de Cleveland Written & directed by Ernesto Luna Camargo and produced by Alejandro Martinez

The Nanny Project: You Can't Over Love Anything by Rev. Dr. Felicia V. Black, presented by Sankofa Sol Arts Inquiry Collective, produced & directed by Courtney L. Black

Future NeverLand by Josiah Brit. produced & directed by Jimmie Woody

Tickets will be on sale by the end of February 2025.

TICKET & SHOW INFORMATION

Presented Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays at 7pm in CPT’s James Levin Theatre, located at 6415 Detroit Avenue, Cleveland, OH 44102, in the heart of the Gordon Square Arts District. 

EVERY TICKET is “Choose What You Pay” starting at $1 and can be purchased here, or through the CPT Box Office at 216.631.2727 ext. 501.