Dust of Egypt: The Sojourner Truth Story

Karin Abarbanel- Playwright pursued her training as a playwright at the T. Schreiber Studio and Theater’s new playwrights program led by Mick Casale, an award-winning playwright and instructor. Karin created Dust of Egypt in a workshop setting and the T. Schreiber Studio and Gene Frankel Theatre both mounted staged readings of the play. Karin currently has several dramatic projects in development, including a screenplay, Mr. Wilde Goes West, about the infamous Oscar Wilde; and Walt and Private Hathaway, a play based on an event in the life of Walt Whitman. Karin’s nonfiction is published by Penguin Random House, Henry Holt, and McGraw-Hill. Her debut novel, a children’s fantasy tells the story of a young tree whisperer.  Karin brings an extensive corporate marketing background to her creative endeavors.

Rhonda PASSION Hansome- Director is an AUDELCO Outstanding Pioneer Honoree who’s directed Melba Moore’s Sweet Songs of the Soul at the Bermuda Festival, New Federal Theater (AUDELCO Award Best Solo Performer), and the National Black Theater Festival. She has directed over 40 productions, including Saviour (Dwyer Cultural Center), Another Man’s Poison (Peter Jay Sharp Theater), T’was The Night Before Kwanzaa (Black Spectrum and Billie Holiday Theaters), Real Black Men Don’t Sit Crosslegged On The Floor (New Federal Theater. She directed Stevie & the Infinite Scroll in the inaugural class of Writing & Design for the Musical Theater Masters Program at Berklee NYC; Dust of Egypt in the New York Theater Festival (Best Actress Award, Best Director/Best Play Nominee). She directs for the New Federal Theater Playwright Workshop and the Frank Silvera Writers Workshop. Rhonda PASSION Hansome has directed performances in the Houston and Newark Airports, the National Arts Club, and the Museum of the City of New York. Her memberships have included Lincoln Center Theater Directors Lab, Women’s Project Directors Forum, SDC, and Tribeca Performing Arts Center Writers-In-Performance Lab. She enjoyed 5 years as Artistic Director of the NJPAC Young Writers Workshop. Follow her on FaceBook: @Rhonda Hansome Comedy, Twitter: @RhondaHansome, IG: @rhondafull, Tik Tok: @lobehold100

EMANI BRIELLE SIMPSON- Producer is the founder of the production company, The Real Artists LLC (TRA), whose mission is to create an inspirational environment where artists can hone their crafts, thrive and network to build a career out of their passions. Emani is passionate about bringing artists together and collaborating on new works. She is a proud Line Up member for Breaking and Entering Theater Collective. Some of her recent credits include: SERIALS at The Tank (producer/host), Holes in the Shape of my Father at The Tank. (stage manager), Night Witches produced by PickPocket Project (deviser), Loneliness Was a Pandemic at Theater Lab (production stage manager), Project Sankofa in the Broadway Bound Theater Festival (director), WAAFRIKA 123: A Queerly Scripted Tragedy produced by the National Queer Theater (stage manager), Pecong at BMCC/CUNY (stage manager), Dust of Egypt: Sojourner Truth’s Story at the Sheen Center for Thought and Culture (producer), and Francois & The Rebels: A Punk Rock Musical at the Public Theater (stage manager). Instagram: @short_mani @therealartists_ @serialsnyc @bethtrco

There will be no intermission.