No Dominion Theatre Co. Spins Yarns at Merseles Studios in Jersey City

originally published: 05/22/2018



(JERSEY CITY, NJ) -- A weekend of back-to-back evenings of cutting-edge theatre takes place at Merseles Studios in Jersey City when Jersey City Theater Center (JCTC) presents Yarns, the latest production by No Dominion Theatre Co. from June 7-9. Yarns dares audiences to re-think the “women’s work” concept by drawing parallels between sex workers and fiber artists. The setting is a brothel where the women survive by turning tricks and creating warmth from the yarn that surrounds them, all under the watchful eye of a suspicious man who calls himself their protector.

Seamlessly blending various texts ranging from classic literature to interviews with prostitutes and garmenting industry workers, Yarns is surreal and filled with the unexpected. Actual yarn – the play’s core motif – is strewn, strung and spun throughout the play and the final act features an unforgettable burlesque performance. Yarns is an incredibly original work that explores the true meaning of female empowerment.

Yarns is a devised theatre piece developed through JCTC’s Theatre Residency Program, which enables emerging talent to bring to life new and thought-provoking theater. JCTC provides rehearsal space – as well as feedback and consultation – to emerging theatre companies to develop specific works of theatre. At the end of the residency process, JCTC presents the work at the black box theater in Merseles Studios.

“JCTC as an organization is committed to nurturing young theatre companies, helping artists to grow and develop new work and find new audiences,” said Olga Levina, Artistic Director, JCTC. “No Dominion is one of these companies, and it is a point of pride that they also happen to be from Jersey City and we were able to help them develop Yarns through our residency program. Yarns is very timely work that examines the role of women in society through eyes of history and literature.”

Yarns is being presented as part of Resistance, JCTC’s current thematic series – JCTC selects topics global in scope but relevant to the community – then explores the topic through theatre, readings, dance, performances and visual arts. Each performance of Yarns will be followed by a Talk-Back, a dialogue between the audience and cast members.

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“We are so excited to be making our JCTC debut with a piece that has been in-the-making for over two years,” added Kaitlin Overton, Managing and Producing Director, No Dominion Theatre Co. “ Yarns started as an idea one by one of our co-directors, Carrie, had after one of our other shows, which left us with a big bag of yarn. She thought we should save it, as she mentioned to me that she had learned how to crochet from a book called The Happy Hooker, so that's what started us thinking about this connection between fiber arts and sex work. This production has so much relevance and asks so many questions, especially in our current political climate, so we are excited to see how audiences will react and what connections it will bring up for them.”

The Jersey City-based No Dominion Theatre Co. was founded in 2015 by Michael Joel and Kaitlin Overton. The inaugural productions included One. Four. (Zero) and Departure which premired at the Solitude House in High Bridge, N.J. No Dominion’s incubator series, H.A.T.C.H. (Helping Artists to Create Here), launched in 2016, and serves as a stepping stone for artistic works that may be in any phase of the creative process. No Dominion also recently partnered with Growing in Jersey City, a Jersey City blog and news and lifestyle website, to present staged readings – “Theatre in the Heights” – in the Heights neighborhood of Jersey City. In addition, No Dominion recently presented the World Premiere of Rut by Chandy Bennett as part of the 2018 FRIGID NY Festival at the Kraine Theater, a follow up to their 2016 FRIGID debut, Help Me Out Here, written, directed by and starring the company’s two co-founders.

Yarns was created by Carrie O’Dell (Director/Writer), Adrienne Sowers (Writer), Chandy Bennett (Producer/Writer/Designer) and Michael Joel (Writer/Co-Director). Yarns cast: Josephine Cooper, Emily Cordes, Annie Fasino, Nicole Orabona, and Makayla Wilkerson.

PHOTO: Yarns, the new devised theatre piece by No. Dominion Theatre Co. premiers at Merseles Studios June 7-9. Photograph by Alex Gurevich.