MEET THE CARTOZIANS

BY

TALENE MONAHON

DIRECTED BY

DAVID CROMER

WITH RAFFI BARSOUMIAN, WILL BRILL, ANDREA MARTIN, NAEL NACER, SUSAN POURFAR, TAMARA SEVUNTS

Based on a real story ... and a ‘reality’ story.

Part riveting historical drama, part scorching satire, Talene Monahon’s Meet the Cartozians pulls back the curtain on a startling chapter of American history you may never have heard. This bold, witty new play follows two sets of Armenian Americans: one man fighting for legal recognition in the 1920s, while a century later, his descendant fights for followers and a competent glam team. A wildly imaginative and deeply compelling story of culture and heritage, Meet the Cartozians asks who gets to belong — and at what cost?

Running Time: 2 hours and 30 minutes including a 20 minute intermission

Second Stage Theater’s programs are supported, in part, by public funds from the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs, in partnership with the City Council, and by the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of the Office of the Governor and the New York State Legislature.

The Season is supported by a grant from the Howard Gilman Foundation.

ARM Armenian Cultural Night Join us for a celebration of Armenian culture! In partnership with Noor Theatre, 2NDSTAGE is proud to host an Armenian Cultural Night in celebration of Meet the Cartozians on Tuesday, November 11. We welcome the broader MENA/SWANA community, and anyone interested in learning more about this vibrant and diverse culture to attend. Join us for traditional Armenian food and music in the lobby before the show and for a post-show talkback with members of the cast and community experts

^ 30 Under 30 Party Stick around after the show for complimentary drinks and snacks and chat with your fellow young theatergoers. For all productions at the Pershing Square Signature Center; open to 30 Under 30 buyers and Flip the Script subscribers.

* Across the Boards Join us after the show for a discussion with the creative team and learn how a 2ST production goes from page to stage.

(i) Insider’s Night An exclusive event for 2ST Subscribers. Join us one hour before for wine, hors d’oeuvres, and intimate discussion with one of the show’s designers.

OC Open Captioned Performance Text is displayed at the side of the stage in real time, including dialogue and sound effects from the production.

AD Audio Described Performance Using special audio equipment, commentary and narration is provided during the performance, guiding the listener through the show with descriptions of scenes, costumes, etc. in between dialogue or songs.

s Student Matinee

RAFFI BARSOUMIAN

Broadway: Les Liaisons Dangereuses. Off-Broadway: Translations (Irish Rep); Macbeth (CSC); Privacy, Pericles (The Public Theater); King Lear, Arok of Java (Exit, Pursued By a Bear). Los Angeles: Henry IV (Shakespeare Center of L.A.); Guards at the Taj (The Geffen Playhouse); Red Noses (The Actor’s Gang). Regionally: 3 seasons with the Oregon Shakespeare Festival; American Shakespeare Center; Actor’s Shakespeare Company; Stanford Summer Theater. Television: Seal Team (Paramount+); DC’s Legends of Tomorrow (CW); The Code (CBS); Shameless (Showtime); The Vampire Diaries (CW).

WILL BRILL

Will Brill won a Tony Award in 2024 for his role in Stereophonic. He’s known for standout performances in Fellow Travelers, portraying Roy Cohn, and fan-favorite roles in The OA and The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel. Film work includes Test Pattern and Not Fade Away. A Broadway veteran, he’s starred in You Can’t Take It With You, Oklahoma!, and Act One. Up next, Brill will star in Netflix’s The Whisper Man opposite Robert DeNiro and Michelle Monaghan & Being Heumann for Apple Studios.

ANDREA MARTIN

Andrea Martin is the recipient of the two Tony Awards for her work on stage and two Emmy Awards for her work on television. She has also been recognized by the Drama Desk, Outer Critics’ Circle, SAG-AFTRA, and Television Critics’ Association for her performances, and has been honored with a star on the Canada Walk of Fame. She received the Governor General’s Performing Arts Award for Lifetime Artistic Achievement in 2024.

NAEL NACER

Second Stage debut. Broadway: Prayer for the French Republic (MTC). Off-Broadway: The Orchard (BAC/Arlekin). Regional: Leopoldstadt (STC); Triumph of Love, A Doll’s House, Bedroom Farce, Our Town (The Huntington); Angels in America (Bedlam/CST); Winter's Tale, Macbeth, The Tempest (Comm Shakes); People, Places & Things, Small Mouth Sounds (SpeakEasy Stage); The Merchant of Venice (Actors' Shakespeare Project); The Ding Dongs (Kitchen Theatre); Tiny Beautiful Things, The Flick (Gloucester Stage); Intimate Apparel (Lyric Stage); Awards: Elliot Norton, IRNE. @naelnacer

SUSAN POURFAR

Most recently Susan Pourfar appeared on Broadway opposite Rachel McAdams in the Tony nominated play Mary Jane. Pourfar's performances Off Broadway have garnered her an Obie Award, a Theater World Award and the Clarence Derwent Award from Actors Equity. Susan has been in multiple acclaimed television series including: “Black Mirror,” “The Staircase,” “The Sinner,” “Manifest,” “The Loudest Voice,” “Scandal,” “Elementary,” “Ray Donovan,” and “House of Cards.” and will appear in the upcoming series “The Beast in Me.” Films include Manchester by the Sea directed by Kenny Lonergan, Journal for Jordan directed by Denzel Washington, In the Heights, Emelie, Baby Ruby, Rosemead and the upcoming indie Last Hand.

TAMARA SEVUNTS

Tamara Sevunts will be humble bragging about sharing the stage with these geniuses forever. Off-Broadway: Daybreak (Beckett Theatre), Your Alice (BAM), The Good Girl (59E59 Theatres) and Loose Canon (SoHo Playhouse). International: Your Alice (EdFringe), Black Garden (Théâtre de l’Opprimé, Paris). She is a graduate of the American Academy of Dramatic Arts and speaks six languages — though doesn’t plan on singing about it (yet). Most importantly: Tamara is oh-so grateful to Talene for writing this story.

BY TALENE MONAHON

Talene Monahon (Playwright) is a person of Armenian and Irish descent and a playwright of actor descent. Off-Broadway: The Good John Proctor (Bedlam Theater, The New Yorker’s “Top 10 Best Plays of 2023”), Jane Anger (New Ohio; 2022 Off-Broadway Alliance Best New Play Nominee), How to Load a Musket (Less than Rent; TheaterMania’s “The 10 Best Theater Productions of 2020”), and Frankie & Will (MCC). Regional: Trinity Rep, Shakespeare Theater of D.C., The Warehouse Theater, Maryland Ensemble Theater, and Peterborough Players. International: The Good John Proctor (Jermyn Street Theater, London, Off-West End Nominee–Best New Play). Her plays have been developed with SouthCoast Rep, Classic Stage Company, Lincoln Center, Clubbed Thumb, Northern Stage and LA Shakespeare. Talene’s work is published by TRW, and has also been featured in The Cincinnati Review and McSweeney’s. She teaches Playwriting at the Sewanee Writers’ Conference. Education: B.A. Senior Fellow, Dartmouth College. Talene was featured in the NYTimes 2023 list of "Rising Theater Stars."

DIRECTED BY DAVID CROMER

David Cromer (Director) New York credits include Dead Outlaw; Good Night, and Good Luck; The Antiquities; The Counter; I’m Almost There; Prayer for the French Republic; Camp Siegfried; A Case for the Existence of God; The Sound Inside; The Band’s Visit; The Treasurer; The House of Blue Leaves; Brighton Beach Memoirs; Nikolai and the Others; The Effect; When the Rain Stops Falling; Tribes; Adding Machine; Our Town; and Orson’s Shadow. For his work he has received a Tony Award, a Drama Desk, three Obies and three Lortels, and in 2010 he was named a MacArthur Foundation fellow.

Scenic Design: Tatiana Kahvegian
Costume Design: Enver Chakartash
Lighting Design: Stacey Derosier
Sound Design by Lee Kinney
Hair, Wig, and Makeup Design: Robert Pickens, Katie Gell
Voice and Dialect Coach: Gigi Buffington
Casting: Daniel Swee, CSA
Production Stage Manager: Kara Kaufman
Assistant Stage Manager: Narissa Agustin