SCHOOL GIRLS; OR, THE AFRICAN MEAN GIRLS PLAY - Round House Theatre
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PRESS CONTACTS:
Jasmine Jiang, 240.670.8798
JJiang@roundhousetheatre.org
Anna Mills Russell, 240.644.1386
ARussell@roundhousetheatre.org
ROUND HOUSE THEATRE KICKS OFF HOMECOMING SEASON
WITH REGIONAL PREMIERE OF OFF-BROADWAY HIT COMEDY
SCHOOL GIRLS; OR, THE
AFRICAN MEAN GIRLS PLAY
September 18 – October 13 in newly renovated Round House Theatre
Bethesda, Md. (August 5, 2019) – Round House Theatre begins its 2019-2020 Season with
Jocelyn Bioh’s School Girls; Or, The African Mean Girls Play, directed by Associate
Artistic Director Nicole A. Watson. School Girls runs September 18 – October 13, 2019.
Press night is Monday, September 23, 2019. Please see below for complete program
details and ticket information.
Fresh off two sold-out, extended Off-Broadway runs, Jocelyn Bioh’s award-winning comedy
follows a group of schoolgirls vying for the title of Miss Ghana 1986. Pretty, popular
Paulina is the queen bee of the Aburi Girls Boarding School, but her reign is threatened
when the pageant recruiter is more interested in Ericka, the new transfer student from
Ohio with a “more universal and commercial look.” Inspired in part by the real-world
controversy surrounding the 2011 Miss Universe Ghana pageant—where a fair-skinned,
American-born woman went on to win the title—School Girls; Or, The African Mean Girls
Play is an exploration of colorism and teenage ambition that’s “funny and fast
paced…[with] bouncy, juicy dialogue” (Vulture).
The first production in the newly renovated Round House Theatre, School Girls; Or, The
African Mean Girls Play is also the first of two shows in the Homecoming Season directed
by Associate Artistic Director Nicole A. Watson. “This play is all the things,” says Watson.
“It’s joyful, it’s youthful, it’s heartbreaking. I love how Jocelyn has taken Mean Girls, which
is its own major cultural touchstone for teenagedom, and combined it beautifully with the
experiences of her mother and other women in her family who grew up in Ghanaian
boarding schools.”
1Watson adds: “This play is not what some people might expect a story set in Africa to be.
It’s not a poverty story or a white savior story. It’s a hilarious comedy about being a
teenager, and that’s the fun of it. After all, who doesn’t remember the “mean girls” at their
own school, or the experience of trying to fit into a group while also figuring out how to be
an individual? But this comedy is also complicated and rich, and I’m excited for audiences
to dig a little deeper into the politics that are being highlighted. School Girls is about
young women at an all-girls school in Ghana, but it’s also about how Western beauty
standards—which are miles and miles away from them—are reaching out to affect young
women everywhere.”
The cast includes Moriamo Temidayo Akibu (She a Gem and How to Catch a Star at The
Kennedy Center), Shirine Babb (Antony and Cleopatra at Folger Theatre, Harry Potter and
the Cursed Child on Broadway), Debora Crabbe (As You Like It at The Keegan–Helen
Hayes Award, Lead Actress in a Musical), Theresa Cunningham (previously in Caroline, or
Change), Kashayna Johnson (Junk at Arena Stage, She a Gem at The Kennedy Center),
Jade Jones (Into The Woods and The Wiz at Ford’s Theatre), Awa Sal Secka (previously in
Caroline, or Change), and Claire Saunders (Marry Harry at York Theatre, NY).
The all-female cast is joined by an all-female creative team that includes Dialect Coach
Kim James Bey, Dramaturg Gabrielle Hoyt, Scenic Designer and Round House Theatre
Resident Artist Paige Hathaway, Costume Designer and Round House Theatre Resident
Artist Ivania Stack, Lighting Designer Martha Mountain, Sound Designer Tosin Olufolabi,
and Resident Stage Manager Che Wernsman.
Tickets may be purchased by calling 240.644.1100, ordering online at
RoundHouseTheatre.org, or in person at the box office. Round House Theatre is located at
4545 East-West Highway, one block from Wisconsin Avenue and the Bethesda station on
Metro’s Red Line.
ARTIST INFORMATION
Jocelyn Bioh (Playwright) is an award-winning Ghanaian-American writer and performer
from New York. Her plays include School Girls; Or, The African Mean Girls Play (Kilroy’s
List, 2016; CTG; MCC Theater; Lortel Award Winner; OCC John Gardner Award Winner;
Hull-Warriner Award Winner; Drama Desk Nomination; Drama League Nomination; Off-
Broadway Alliance nomination); Nollywood Dreams (Cherry Lane Mentor Project, 2017;
Kilroy's List, 2015), and African Americans (Produced at Howard University, 2015;
Southern Rep Ruby Prize Award Finalist, 2011; O'Neill Center Semifinalist, 2012). Jocelyn
conceived and wrote the libretto for The Ladykiller’s Love Story (music and lyrics by
CeeLo Green) and Goddess (book writer). She has also been a staff writer for the Netflix
2TV shows Russian Doll and Spike Lee’s She's Gotta Have It. Jocelyn received her MFA in
Theatre/Playwriting from Columbia University. She is under commission with Manhattan
Theatre Club, Williamstown Theatre Festival, Second Stage, and Atlantic Theater
Company, and is a resident playwright at LCT3. As an actress, Jocelyn's credits include: In
the Blood (Signature Theatre; Drama Desk nomination, Best Featured Actress), Everybody
(Signature Theatre; Lucille Lortel Award nomination, Best Supporting Actress, 2017), Men
on Boats (Clubbed Thumb at Playwrights Horizons), The Curious Incident of the Dog in the
Night-Time (Broadway; Tony Award Winner for Best Play, 2015), An Octoroon (Soho Rep;
Obie Award Winner for Best Play, 2014), Booty Candy (Wilma Theater), Seed (Classical
Theatre of Harlem; AUDELCO Award Nominee), and Marcus; Or the Secret of Sweet (City
Theatre). She also originated the role of "Topsy" in the world premiere of Neighbors (The
Public Theater; AUDELCO Award Nominee). FILM/TV acting credits include: Ben is Back
(Black Bear Pictures), Russian Doll (Netflix) Blue Bloods (CBS), The Detour (TBS), The
Characters (Netflix), and One Life to Live (ABC).
Nicole A. Watson (Director) is the Associate Artistic Director at Round House Theatre,
returning this season after directing A Doll’s House, Part 2. Select credits include the
world premiere of the opera Approaching Ali at Washington National Opera at the Kennedy
Center; Lynn Nottage’s Sweat and Robert Schenkkan’s The Great Society at Asolo
Repertory Theatre; Dominique Morisseau’s Skeleton Crew at Baltimore Center Stage;
Daniel Beaty’s Mr. Joy at Cincinnati Playhouse; Colman Domingo’s Dot at Playmakers
Repertory Company; Kevin R. Free’s Night of the Living N-Word at New York International
Fringe Festival, world premiere; Kara Lee Corthron’s Welcome to Fear City and Johnna
Adam’s World Builders at CATF, world premiere; Katori Hall’s The Mountaintop at Kitchen
Theater Company; and a workshop of the new musical Gun and Powder at Theater Latte
Da. She has been a guest director at A.C.T’s Conservatory (Las Meninas), Smith College
(Our Lady of Kibeho), North Carolina School of the Arts (The Piano Lesson and Joe
Turner’s Come and Gone), New York University (Born Bad; Milk Like Sugar; Ti-Jean and
His Brothers), and Long Island University (Twelfth Night). She was a 2015 Artist in
Residence at the Drama League a 2013 Drama League Directing Fellow and the 2011
recipient of the League of Professional Theatre Women’s Josephine Abady Award. She is a
New Georges Affiliated Artists, an alum of both the Lincoln Center Directors Lab and the
Women’s Project Directors Lab and a member of the Stage Directors and Choreographers
Society (SDC). BA: History, Yale. MA: NYU Gallatin School of Individualized Study.
CAST INFORMATION (ALPHABETICAL)
Moriamo Temidayo Akibu (Gifty) is excited to begin their Round House journey with
School Girls. Temidayo is an actor, deviser, and collaborator based in Washington, DC and
New York. Some of their favorite credits include She a Gem and How to Catch a Star at The
3Kennedy Center; The Ruby Sunrise at Shakespeare Theatre Company; The Interstellar
Ghost Hour at Longacre Lea (Helen Hayes Nomination, Supporting Actress); Isms: A
Tragicomedy at Mosaic Theatre Company of DC; The Burst at The Keegan Theatre; Love
and Information at Forum Theatre; and Coffeehouse Chronicles #124 with Ping Chong +
Company at La MaMa ETC in New York. Film and TV credits: Minnesota Nice and
TERPvision. They hold a degree in Theatre from The University of Maryland. Instagram:
@temidayoma.
Shirine Babb (Eloise Amponsah) is thrilled to make her Round House debut. Favorite DC
credits include Antony and Cleopatra at Folger Theatre; Measure for Measure at the
Kennedy Center. Broadway: Harry Potter and the Cursed Child (u/s and performed
Hermione). Off-Broadway: Napoli Brooklyn at Roundabout Theatre; Macbeth at the Lincoln
Center with Ethan Hawke; Around the World in 80 Days at The New Theatre; Aliens with
Extraordinary Skills at The Women’s Project Theatre; Trickle at Ensemble Studio Theatre.
Favorite regional credits include Disgraced (Critic Circle Award Nomination) and Antony
and Cleopatra (Theatre Circle Award Nomination). Television: Iron Fist; Blue Bloods;
Madam Secretary; I Love You…But I Lied. Shirine received an MA from East 15
Conservatory, UK and an MFA at The Old Globe/PTAP.
Debora Crabbe (Mercy) is thrilled to be making her debut on the Round House stage. DC
credits include As You Like It at The Keegan Theatre (Helen Hayes Award, Outstanding
Lead Actress in a Musical); Shear Madness at The Kennedy Center; The Cat in the Hat at
Adventure Theatre; Amazing Grace at the Museum of the Bible; The Dog in the Manger at
We Happy Few; 19: The Musical at Through the 4th Wall; and Distracted at Arcturus
Theatre. Film credits include african-americans, Adapt, and Saviors.
Theresa Cunningham (Headmistress Francis) is excited to return to Round House after
appearing as the Washing Machine in Caroline, or Change. DC credits include Nina
Simone:Four Women at Arena Stage; Wiley and the Hairy Man at Imagination Stage; A
Raisin in the Sun at Compass Rose Theatre; Once On This Island at Olney Theatre Center;
Ain’t Misbehavin’ at Riverside Theatre; The Color Purple (Helen Hayes Award) at Toby’s
Dinner Theatre. Regional credits include I Dream with Musical-Dramatic Arts; Smokey
Joe’s Café at Atlanta Lyric Theatre; Three Sistahs at Horizon Theatre; Member of the
Wedding and Seussical: the Musical at Springer Opera House; True Story of the 3 Little
Pigs and Tallulah and Hattie at Theatre in The Square; Heartbeats at Aurora Theatre.
Kashayna Johnson (Paulina) is thrilled to be making her Round House debut in School
Girls; Or, The African Mean Girls Play. She was recently seen as Jacqueline Blount in Junk
at Arena Stage. Other credits include the world premiere of She A Gem at the Kennedy
4Center; For Colored Girls at Theater Alliance (Helen Hayes Nomination, Supporting
Actress); Milk Like Sugar at Mosaic Theater; Romeo and Juliet at Prince George’s
Shakespeare Theater Festival; Stick Fly at Port City Playhouse; How We Got On at Forum
Theatre; Dark House at Capital Fringe Festival. Short film credits: Liberty’s Hollow, 5
Afternoons. Kashayna is a proud graduate of the Theatre Lab Honors Acting Conservatory
and a MIO (’14) BADA alum at Magdalen College, University of Oxford. Instagram:
@Shayla_vie
Jade Jones (Nana) is honored to make her Round House debut. DC area credits
include Into The Woods, The Wiz (Helen Hayes Nomination), and 110 in The Shade at Ford’s
Theatre; Macbeth at Shakespeare Theatre Company; Elmer Gantry at Signature
Theatre; Sweeney Todd at Rep Stage and Olney Theatre Center; Love and Information at
Forum Theatre; Once On This Island (Helen Hayes Nomination) at Creative
Cauldron; Jazzed and Jaded (solo cabaret), As You Like It, Cat On a Hot Tin Roof, and
HAIR (Helen Hayes Nomination) at The Keegan Theatre. Jade received a BFA at Ferrum
College. Instagram: @LittyOfficial
Awa Sal Secka (Ama) is excited to be back at Round House, where she previously
appeared in Caroline, or Change (Helen Hayes Nomination, Supporting Actress in a
Musical). Other DC area credits include Blackbeard and Jesus Christ Superstar at
Signature Theatre; Into the Woods and The Wiz at Ford’s Theatre; Cinderella and You’re a
Good Man, Charlie Brown at Imagination Stage (Helen Hayes Nomination, Supporting
Actress in a Musical for both); James and the Giant Peach and How I Became a Pirate at
Adventure Theatre; Me...Jane: The Dreams & Adventures of Young Jane Goodall at the
Kennedy Center; and Avenue Q at Olney Theatre Center. Regional credits include Aida at
ArtsCenter. Awa received her A.A. in Theatre Performance at Montgomery College.
Claire Saunders (Ericka) is ecstatic to make her Round House debut in School Girls; Or,
The African Mean Girls Play. Off-Broadway credits include Marry Harry at York Theatre;
Errol and Fidel at NYMF, Peter Jay Sharp Theatre; Taming of the Shrew at NY Classical
Theatre. Regional roles include Gladys in Skin of Our Teeth; Orange Girls in Cyrano
starring Peter Dinklage; #8 in The Wolves; Daughter in Pirates of Penzance; Vanessa in In
the Heights. TV/Film: Tell Me a Story (CBS); The Good Cop (Netflix); The Intern (Warner
Bros); That Night The Night (Goocher Prod). Claire is a proud Carnegie Mellon alum.
thesaunderscollective.com Instagram: @clairesaundy
CREATIVE TEAM INFORMATION
Kim James Bey (Dialect Coach) Kim is happy to be returning to Round House with a past
credit of the Helen Hayes awarded production, Once on This Island. Select additional
5credits include at Arena Stage with Turn Me Loose; Ruined; The Piano Lesson et. al. For
Mosaic Theatre she has coached Queens Girl in Africa; Blood Knot; A Human Being Died
That Night; and Unexplored Interiors. This past spring at Everyman, Kim reprised her work
on Queens Girl in the World and Queens Girl in Africa. At Woolly Mammoth, The Octoroon;
and The Convert. And with Signature on The Scottsboro Boys. She also has additional
work at Studio and Adventure Theatre. Kim is a Certified Associate Teacher of Fitzmaurice
VoiceworkÒ. She is Professor of Theatre Arts at Howard University.
Paige Hathaway (Scenic Designer) is thrilled to return as a Resident Artist with Round
House after designing A Doll’s House, Part 2; How I Learned to Drive; The Book of
Will; and Or,. Other DC credits include Ain't Misbehavin', John, and The Gulf at Signature
Theatre; the Queens Girl Rep at Everyman; South Pacific, Thurgood, and Godspell at Olney
Theatre Center; and Familiar at Woolly Mammoth. Regionally, she designed Jerome
Robbins’ Broadway and A Chorus Line at the Muny in St. Louis; A Midsummer Night’s
Dream at the Arden in Philadelphia; and Sweat at Asolo Repertory Theatre in Sarasota.
Paige is a member of USA 829. She received her BFA from the University of Oklahoma and
her MFA from the University of Maryland. paigehathawaydesign.com Instagram:
@paigehathawaydesign
Gabrielle Hoyt (Dramaturg) is thrilled for her fifth season at Round House, where she has
contributed to every production for the past four years, including the world premieres
of Ironbound and Miss Bennet: Christmas at Pemberley. She also works on the Equal Play
commissioning program, seeking to amplify underrepresented voices in theatre. In
addition to her role at Round House, she is a freelance director and dramaturg who
focuses on new plays and non-traditional rehearsal processes. She recently directed Ali
Viterbi’s Period Sisters and a reading of Stefani Kuo’s Little Stubby Wings Like She Glued
Them On at HEREArts in New York, as well as readings of In Every Generation at the
Barrow Group and the San Diego Jewish Arts Festival. Past productions have gone up at
Rorschach Theater’s Klecksography Festival, 24-Hour Plays: Nationals, the Cape Cod
Theatre Project, and Yale University.
Martha Mountain (Lighting Designer) is pleased to continue her association with Round
House after designing Nixon’s Nixon, Once on This Island, and Our Town. She designs
extensively around the region for diverse companies including the Kennedy Center,
Adventure Theatre, Imagination Stage, Theater J, Theater Alliance, Everyman Theatre,
Theatre of the First Amendment, Wolf Trap Opera Company, Folger Theatre, Le Neon
Theatre Company, and Opera International. Martha serves as resident lighting designer for
Bowen McCauley Dance. She has taught lighting design at George Mason University and at
6the University of Maryland, and is a member of United Scenic Artists, Local 829 (IATSE).
She received her MFA from Northwestern University and her BA from William & Mary.
Tosin Olufolabi (Sound Designer) is a sound designer, deviser & performer who is working
at Round House Theatre for the first time. Her sound design credits include She Sings
Light, Hatpin Panic, and Shakespeare’s Worst with Capital Fringe; Antigone at Catholic
University; Gloria at Woolly Mammoth Theatre Company; God is Dead & April is Getting
Married with Three Muses; Peepshow with dog & pony dc; Abortion Road Trip and Soldier
Poet with Theatre Prometheus; and Lela & Co. with Factory 449. Assistant sound
designing credits include Baggage at Gallaudet University; Anatole and Davy Copperfield
at Imagination Stage; Still Life with Rocket at Theater Alliance; and Proof at Olney Theatre
Center.
Ivania Stack (Costume Designer) is delighted to return to Round House Theatre, where
she is currently a Resident Artist. Her work has been seen at many regional and DC area
theatres including Arena Stage, Woolly Mammoth Theatre Company (Company Member),
Seattle Repertory Theatre, Ford’s Theatre, Kennedy Center Family Theatre, Center Stage,
Everyman Theatre, The Second City, The Contemporary American Theatre Festival,
Signature Theatre, Imagination Stage, Olney Theatre Center (Associate Artist), Studio
Theatre, Theater J, Constellation Theatre, Andy’s Summer Playhouse, Pointless Theatre,
Synetic Theatre, Forum Theatre, Theatre Alliance, Rorschach Theatre, The Karski Project,
Metro Stage, and Gala Hispanic Theatre. She has an MFA in design from the University of
Maryland, College Park.
Che Wernsman (Resident Stage Manager) is in her fourth season at Round
House. Previously she managed Handbagged (off-Broadway, Bethesda), Oslo; Gem of the
Ocean; Small Mouth Sounds; The Legend of Georgia McBride; “Master Harold”…and the
Boys; The Book of Will; How I Learned What I Learned; Or,; Caroline, or Change; Miss
Bennet: Christmas at Pemberley; on the SM team for Angels in America: Parts I and II.
Also at RHT - Father Comes Home from the Wars: Parts 1,2&3; Beauty Queen of Leenane;
The Little Prince; A Prayer for Owen Meany; and Once on this Island. DC/Baltimore region:
Imagination Stage, National Theatre, Kennedy Center, Folger Theatre, Shakespeare
Theatre, Theatre J, Mosaic, Studio, Everyman, Rep Stage, Center Stage, and
Olney. Bachelor of Science - Virginia Tech.
PRODUCTION INFORMATION
School Girls; Or, The African Mean Girls Play
By Jocelyn Bioh
Directed by Nicole A. Watson
7CAST LIST:
Kashayna Johnson as Paulina*
Claire Saunders as Ericka*
Awa Sel Secka as Ama
Jade Jones as Nana*
Debora Crabbe as Mercy*
Moriamo Temidayo Akibu as Gifty*
Theresa Cunningham as Headmistress Francis
Shirine Babb as Eloise Amponsah*
* - Round House Theatre debut
WHERE:
Round House Theatre, 4545 East-West Highway in Bethesda (one block from Wisconsin
Ave. and Metro’s Bethesda station). For directions, parking, and public transportation info,
visit RoundHouseTheatre.org/Visit-Us/
ABOUT THE PLAY:
“Here she is, Miss Ghana…” Pretty, popular Paulina longs to hear those words, and she’ll
do whatever it takes to seize the crown. But the queen bee of the Aburi Girls Boarding
School didn’t count on her reign being threatened. Ericka arrives from America and
immediately challenges the ruling class with Western sensibilities and imported beauty
products. With hilarity and insight, Jocelyn Bioh’s award-winning comedy dissects how
“mean girls” are created—and cured. Fresh off two sold-out, extended Off-Broadway runs,
this “ferociously entertaining morality tale”(Hollywood Reporter) is sure to strike a chord
with anyone, anywhere, who has ever been a teenage girl, raised a teenage girl, or met a
teenage girl.
DATES AND TIMES:
School Girls; Or, The African Mean Girls Play runs from September 18 to October 13, 2019.
Performances are Tuesday through Thursday at 7:30 pm, Friday and Saturdays at 8:00
pm, and Saturday and Sunday matinees at 2:00 pm.
TICKETS:
Tickets can be purchased by calling 240.644.1100, ordering online at
RoundHouseTheatre.org, or visiting the box office. Available ticket discounts include:
• Free Play – free tickets for all High School students throughout the DC- Metro area:
Round House wants to make attending our shows an integral part of a Montgomery
County education. To that end, we have a unique program: Play It Forward. With
Free Play, all High School students throughout the DC-Metro area can reserve a
free ticket to the performance of their choice during the 2019-2020 Season. For
details and information, visit RoundHouseTheatre.org/Free-Play or call
240.644.1100.
8• On the House – new community ticket access program: Round House’s next step to
remove barriers that can make it difficult for some members of our community to
experience our work is On the House, which provides complimentary group tickets
to 501(c)(3) nonprofit organizations and community-serving organizations with a
501(c)(3) fiscal sponsor. For more information, visit RoundHouseTheatre.org/On-
The-House or email Community@RoundHouseTheatre.org.
• Pay-What-You-Can performances: Wednesday, September 18 at 7:30 pm, and
Saturday, September 21 at 2:00 pm. PWYC tickets go on sale in person at the box
office one hour prior to curtain. Cash and exact change only. Limit of 2 tickets per
order. PWYC tickets are subject to availability.
• Age 35 & Under, Military, and Veterans: Patrons under 35, active duty military
personnel, and veterans qualify for a $10 discount off the single ticket price. Single
Ticket fees do not apply for 35 & Under. Discounts can be redeemed in person at
the box office, or by calling 240.644.1100.
• 2-For-1 Tuesday: For our Tuesday, October 1 and October 8 performances, all seats
are buy one, get one free. Tickets can be purchased in person at the box office,
online, or by calling 240.644.1100, while supplies last.
• Group Sales: Groups of 10 or more can save 10% off the single ticket price and are
exempt from single ticket fees. These tickets must be reserved and purchased in
advance by calling 240.644.1100 or emailing GroupSales@RoundHouseTheatre.org.
ABOUT ROUND HOUSE THEATRE
Round House Theatre is one of the leading professional theatres in the Washington, D.C.
area, producing a season of new plays, modern classics, and musicals for more than
40,000 patrons each year at our theatre in Bethesda. Round House has been nominated
for more than 181 Helen Hayes Awards and has won 37, including four Outstanding
Resident Play Awards and the Charles MacArthur Award for Original New Play in 2016.
Round House’s lifelong learning and education programs serve over 4,000 students each
year at its Education Center in Silver Spring and in schools throughout Montgomery
County. Cornerstone programs include Play It Forward, which provides free tickets for
teens and college school students, the year-round Teen Performance Company, which
culminates in the student-produced Sarah Metzger Memorial Play, Summer Camp for
students in grades K-12, and a full slate of classes for Adults & Youth.
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