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Final Casting and Extension Announced for “What the Constitution Means to Me”

FINAL CASTING IS SET FOR L.A. ENGAGEMENT OF

HEIDI SCHRECK’S “WHAT THE CONSTITUTION MEANS TO ME” THE TONY-NOMINATED PLAY EXTENDS AN EXTRA WEEK AT CENTER THEATRE GROUP/MARK TAPER FORUM DUE TO OVERWHELMING EARLY DEMAND

Local Student Jocelyn Shek Joins Tony Nominated Maria Dizzia and Original Broadway Cast Members Mike Iveson and Rosdely Ciprian at the Mark Taper Forum January 12 – February 23, 2020

Center Theatre Group Announces Theatre Access For L.A. Initiative Adding $15 Student Rush to Existing Programs Helping to Make Theatre Available to All Audiences

As a Special Celebration of the United States’ 232-Year-Old Constitution 232 $25 Tickets Will Be Available in the Extension Week

As final casting is being announced, the engagement of playwright Heidi Schreck’s “What the Constitution Means to Me” at Center Theatre Group/Mark Taper Forum is already being extended by a week due to overwhelming early sales. The Tony-nominated play, originally scheduled to run January 12 – February 16, 2020, will now continue until February 23, 2020.

Tickets for the extension week will go on sale Thursday, December 12 at 10 a.m. and, to make sure as many people as possible can see the production, Center Theatre Group has partnered with several local law firms to launch a new funding initiative titled Theatre Access for L.A. Under this initiative, Center Theatre Group is adding $15 student rush tickets (a limited number available for students 25 and under with a valid student ID) and 232 $25 tickets in the extension week (in honor of the United States’ 232-year-old Constitution) to the existing FreePlay program (free tickets at a preview performance for people 25 years of age and under) and $15 TodayTix lottery (made available for all evening performances) in an effort to make theatre available to every audience. For more information, visit www.CenterTheatreGroup.org/Constitution.

It was also announced that the cast of “What the Constitution Means to Me” will include a Los Angeles high school freshman Jocelyn Shek who is making her stage debut. Rotating in the role with original Broadway cast member Rosdely Ciprian, Shek will perform opposite Tony-nominated actress Maria Dizzia and original Broadway cast member Mike Iveson. Ciprian, Dizzia and Iveson’s casting was previously announced.

Playwright Heidi Schreck’s boundary-breaking play breathes new life into our Constitution and imagines how it will shape the next generation of Americans. Fifteen year old Heidi earned her college tuition by winning Constitutional debate competitions across the United States. In this hilarious, hopeful and achingly human new play, she resurrects her teenage self in order to trace the profound relationship between four generations of women and the founding document that shaped their lives.

Schreck’s timely and galvanizing play, directed by Oliver Butler, became a sensation off-Broadway last fall before transferring to Broadway where it received two Tony Award nominations among countless other accolades. The New York Times hailed “What the Constitution Means to Me” as “not just the best play to open on Broadway so far this season, but also the most important.”

Initially announced for a 12-week engagement on Broadway, “What the Constitution Means to Me” was extended twice and fully recouped in its Broadway engagement, shattering box office records at the Helen Hayes Theater, for a total run of 24 weeks. “What the Constitution Means to Me” officially opened March 31, 2019 after beginning preview performances March 14, and played its final Broadway performance on August 24, 2019.

“What the Constitution Means to Me” had a record-breaking limited engagement run at the Eisenhower Theater at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, D.C., where it played 15 performances immediately following the conclusion of the Broadway run, from September 11 through September 22, 2019.

“What the Constitution Means to Me” features scenic design by Rachel Hauck (“Hadestown”), costume design by Michael Krass (“Hadestown”), lighting design by Jen Schriever (“Eclipsed”) and sound design by Sinan Refik Zafar (“Hamlet”).

“What the Constitution Means to Me” was commissioned by True Love Productions. This production originated as part of Summerworks 2017, produced by Clubbed Thumb in partnership with True Love Productions.

The national tour of “What the Constitution Means to Me” is produced by Diana DiMenna, Aaron Glick, Matt Ross and Level Forward & Eva Price.

Heidi Schreck’s play “Grand Concourse” was a finalist for the Susan Smith Blackburn Prize and winner of the Stacey Mindich Lilly Award. Other plays, including “Creature,” “There Are No More Big Secrets” and “The Consultant,” have been produced by Berkeley Rep, Long Wharf, Page 73, Seattle Public Theatre, New Georges, Rattlestick Playwrights Theater and more. Heidi’s television writing includes “I Love Dick,” “Billions” and “Nurse Jackie.” She is developing a TV series with Amazon based on Patricia Lockwood's “Priestdaddy.” As an actor she’s performed at Berkeley Rep, Roundabout, MTC, Playwrights Horizons, Shakespeare in the Park, Clubbed Thumb, Two-Headed Calf and on “Nurse Jackie,” “Billions,” “Law & Order: SVU” and “The Good Wife.” Winner of two Obies, a Drama Desk Award and the Theatre World Award.

Center Theatre Group, one of the nation’s preeminent arts and cultural organizations, is Los Angeles’ leading nonprofit theatre company, which, under the leadership of Artistic Director Michael Ritchie, Managing Director Meghan Pressman and Producing Director Douglas C. Baker, programs seasons at the 736-seat Mark Taper Forum and 1600 to 2100-seat Ahmanson Theatre at The Music Center in Downtown Los Angeles, and the 317-seat Kirk Douglas Theatre in Culver City. In addition to presenting and producing the broadest range of theatrical entertainment in the country, Center Theatre Group is one of the nation’s leading producers of ambitious new works through commissions and world premiere productions and a leader in interactive community engagement and education programs that reach across generations, demographics and circumstance to serve Los Angeles.

The Theatre Access for L.A. initiative supports Center Theatre Group’s efforts to reach an audience that reflects the diverse makeup of Southern California and the communities we serve. A gift to this fund helps us provide access to underrepresented community members and to create a more inclusive theatre through subsidized ticket offers, innovative audience engagement and education projects, and more. Lead funding for Theatre Access for L.A. is provided in partnership with the following local law firms: by Glaser, Weil LLP; Hansen, Jacobson, Teller, Hoberman et al.; and Jeffer Mangels Butler & Mitchell LLP.

Tickets are available online at CenterTheatreGroup.org, by calling Audience Services at (213) 628-2772 or in person at the Center Theatre Group Box Office (at the Ahmanson Theatre at The Music Center in Downtown Los Angeles). Tickets range from $25-$175 (ticket prices are subject to change). The Mark Taper Forum is located at The Music Center, 135 N. Grand Avenue in Downtown L.A. 90012.

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December 11, 2019