2025 Keen Teens Festival of New Work
Featuring world premiere one-acts by Kyle Bass, Alyssa Haddad-Chin, and Amy E. Witting
Directed by Michelle Chan, Karl Michael Iglesias, and Alex Tobey
With an all-star cast of New York City High Schoolers
May 16—18, 2025
Join us for the 19th annual Keen Teens Festival of New Work, featuring 3 world premiere one acts written specifically for today’s high schoolers, and starring 38 NYC teens!
Keen Teens is a unique educational program from the award-winning Off-Broadway theater, Keen Company. This free program for teens provides invaluable mentorship opportunities: working alongside professional writers, directors, and designers to rehearse and premiere new plays. By commissioning one-acts specifically designed for the high school stage, Keen Teens creates work that speaks to teens on their level, presenting a perspective which is as complex and multilayered as the students themselves. The 12-week program culminates in the Off-Broadway premiere of each new piece during the Keen Teens Festival of New Work at Theatre Row, and the subsequent publishing and licensing by Concord Theatricals.
Be the first to see the Off-Broadway debut of 38 young actors, and the premiere of work which will soon be produced on high school stages around the world!
Keen Teens is made possible through the generous support of The Axe-Houghton Foundation, The Marta Heflin Foundation, and our Keen Teens Ambassadors like you!
Run time is approximately 95 minutes without an intermission. All three festival plays will be presented at every performance.
All Tickets: $20
Performance Venue
Theatre Five in Theatre Row
410 West 42nd Street
New York, NY 10036
Between 9th & 10th Ave
Show Schedule
Friday May 16th at 8pm
Saturday May 17th at 2pm
Saturday May 17th at 8pm
Sunday May 18th at 2pm
Accessibility
For accessibility requests, please contact Managing Producer Ashley DiGiorgi at ashley@keencompany.org or 212-216-0963.
Content Warning
Keen Teens deals with modern teenage realities, including some strong language and political and cultural discussions — including race, police brutality, and a school shooting. Please note: one of the plays contains the sound of gunshots.
Explore the 2025 Festival Plays
The Door
By Amy E. Witting
Directed by Alex Tobey
On an ordinary Thursday in America, Ms. Miller’s AP Literature class is waiting for their teacher to arrive. When the unimaginable happens, each student is faced with a choice: stay in the fear of the known, or lean into faith and walk through. The Door is a story about the magic we find in each other, the resilience it takes to keep going, the beauty of letting go, and the hope that propels us forward under the most extraordinary circumstances.
Starring Jelisa Alexander, Madeline Cruz, Dereck Diller, Tai Duong, Sophia Furshpan, Angelina (Sky) Gomez, Gioliz Hernandez, Marsul Hoyte, Jasmine Mclean, Jacob Noel, Kiera O'Grady-Chabrán, Ruthie Seneviratne, Leora Vainer, and Bianca Vigilante
Assistant Director: Skylar Aryn
Assistant Stage Manager: Cassiel Fawcett
Teen Directors: Marsul Hoyte & Jasmine Mclean
[Redacted] Jr. The Musical; or One Thousand and One Lunch Periods
By Alyssa Haddad-Chin
Directed by Michelle Chan
It's tech week for the school musical! Energy is low and tempers are high. But when students discover and dissect the original story of Aladdin from the One Thousand and One Nights folktales, the fight for who should get the titular role is on. Throw in a genie, and chaos is inevitable! A fun and fast-paced comedy with heart, [REDACTED] JR. THE MUSICAL; OR ONE THOUSAND AND ONE LUNCH PERIODS explores the questions of representation, authenticity in storytelling, identity, and theater kid culture.
Starring Jay Avelluto, Amirah Clark, George-Jimmie Henry, Brandalise Idrovo, Yngrid Jimenez, Lina Liu, Aavani (Nini) Otero, Zosia Sinton, Amelia Zoya Szasz, Ryan Tan, and Linnéa Voisine
Assistant Director & Fight Director: Willow Hope Funkhouser
Assistant Stage Manager: Alex Church-Gonzales
Teen Directors: Alessandra Vignone & Viktoriia Yatsyshyna
The Floydians
By Kyle Bass
Directed by Karl Michael Iglesias
To commemorate the 5th anniversary of the police murder of George Floyd, a diverse group of teens has created a new religion around the BLM martyr. As they try to come up with the last verse of the final chapter of their sacred text (Floydians 9:29), division, shifting alliances, and the deeply personal threaten the group’s cohesion and tests their faith in the possibility of a just society and a hopeful future.
Starring Jaylenne Calo, Baldwin Cruz, Ria Joseph, Max Lobis-Green, Madisyn Martin, Lavelle Price, Angel Rodriguez, Annais Soto, Dasan Turner, and Ryan Lawson Wright
Assistant Director: Morgan Siobhan Green
Fight Director: Willow Hope Funkhouser
Assistant Stage Manager: Equiano Mosieri
Teen Director: Ida Footman Beckett
Learn more about our Keen Teens program and the perks of becoming a Keen Teens Ambassador!
Meet the Artists
Kyle Bass (Playwright)
Alyssa Haddad-Chin (Playwright)
Amy E. Witting (Playwright)
Keen Teens Education Director: Carrie Ellman-Larsen
Keen Teens Producing Director: Vernice Miller
Scenic Designer: Indigo Shea
Costume Designer: Brittani Beresford
Lighting Designer: Hayley Garcia Parnell
Sound Designer: Julian Evans
Props Supervisor: Peter Cavanaugh
Production Stage Manager: Sloane Fischer
Master Electrician: Paul Jones
Intern Teen Stage Manager: Serenity Facey
General Manager: Reed Ridgley
Production Manager: Eric Nightengale
Press Representative: Pete Sanders, DKC/O&M
House Manager: Jayden Garriga
House Manager: Destiny Rosale
House Manager: Craig Steeley Jr.
Production Photographer: Richard Termine
Graphic Design: Alan Buttar, Muse Graphic Design
Accountants: Kudisch, Oster & Company, LLC