Press release for our next big event in NYC - Voyage Theater Company Ukrainian Institute - Український інститут Center for International Theatre Development (CITD) Anna Khvyl Piotr Armianovski Ukrainian Institute of America
—For Immediate ReleaseContact: Charles C. Bales, 718-387-4257 / [email protected]
Voyage Theater Company to present
5000 Steps to Peace and Justice By Anna Khvyl & Piotr Armianovski
Thursday, November 6, at Ukrainian Institute of America
Voyage Theater Company invites you to a special one-night only staged reading of 5000 Steps to Peace and Justice by Ukrainian writers Anna Kyvyl and Piotr Armianovski.
Originally conceived as a soundwalk through the dunes of The Hague, 5000 Steps to Peace and Justice is an evocative theatrical journey. The narrator guides the audience through a landscape of personal memories of home, profound historical reflections of place, and deep meditations on the concept of a city of peace and justice.
5000 Steps to Peace and Justice will be performed by Marianna Staroselsky, who also serves as production dramaturg. The reading will be directed by Wayne Maugans, with sound design by Luke Hofmaier, videography by Susan Shaw, and stage management by Keri Landeiro.
5000 Steps to Peace and Justice is made possible in part by a grant from The Center for International Theatre Development (CITD). Building on the success of CITD’s LINKAGES programs in Poland and Hungary, LINKAGES: Ukraine was launched in 2024 to foster long-term connections between U.S. and Ukrainian playwrights. For 2025, LINKAGES: Ukraine will include 5000 Steps to Peace and Justice as part of a script exchange between New York City’s Voyage Theater Company and Theatre na Zhukakh in Kharkiv, a city that continues to endure heavy missile attacks amid Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
The event is supported by the Ukrainian Institute and by NYSCA-A.R.T./New York Creative Opportunity Fund (A Statewide Theatre Regrant Program). The Ukrainian Institute of America, a US charitable organization dedicated to preserving and showcasing Ukrainian heritage and culture, is pleased to host this theatrical reading, which includes a talkback with the artists and a wine reception.
5000 Steps to Peace and Justice is also presented in partnership with the Worldwide Ukrainian Play Reading Series, a global initiative launched by John Freedman in the wake of Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine. Soon after, Freedman began organizing the translation of new works by Ukrainian playwrights, many of which provided firsthand narratives of the war. CITD worked in tandem with Freedman as he recruited, encouraged, and aided hundreds of theaters around the world to mount readings of the plays.
These readings, including 5000 Steps to Peace and Justice, function as a platform for exploring Ukrainian national identity and resilience, a rallying cry of international support for Ukraine, and, specifically, an avenue for collecting donations for Ukrainian charities.
5000 Steps to Peace and Justice will be presented on Thursday, November 6 at 7pm at the Ukrainian Institute of America, 2 East 79 Street, New York, NY 10075.
RSVPs are required for this one-night-only event, as seating is limited.
Anna Khvyl is a Ukrainian sound artist, composer and researcher based in The Hague. Her work explores the role of sound in acts of commemoration and collective experience, creating temporary nomadic acoustic communities through site-specific performances.
Piotr Armianovski is a Ukrainian artist, performer and director from Donetsk, now based in Kyiv. His work explores memory, loss and social constructs of everyday life through video, performance and virtual reality.
Wayne Maugans is the founding artistic director of Voyage Theater Company, where he has directed eight mainstage productions and dozens of staged readings. Wayne holds a BFA in Acting from New York University and an MFA in Directing from CUNY/Brooklyn College, and is a member of the Lincoln Center Directors Lab and The Fence.
Dr. Marianna Staroselsky is a playwright, performer, poet, and psychological anthropologist who was a Jewish refugee from Kiev, Ukraine to Des Moines, Iowa as a child right before the Soviet Union dissolved. Having had to make sense of unfathomable things from a young age, Marianna tells dark absurdist fables for the confused, wounded child in all of us. She holds an MFA in playwriting from Columbia University and a PhD in Comparative Human Development from the University of Chicago. She is a recipient of the Tennessee Williams Fellowship and a National Endowment for the Humanities Fellowship. Her plays and operas have been performed in NYC, LA, and Chicago. She is an Adjunct Assistant Professor at the City University of New York.
Voyage Theater Company (VTC) presents new and unheralded plays and playwrights from around the world, creating opportunities for collaboration between theater-makers of diverse cultures. Their inaugural production, part of La MaMa’s 50th anniversary season, was the world premiere of “Obama 44” by Mario Fratti in 2012, followed by Aleksei Arbuzov’s “My Poor Marat,” performed in both Russian and English in 2013. VTC produced the world premiere of “Intermission” by Daniel Libman in 2014, the same year they launched the PARTS UNKNOWN Play Reading Series — free and open to the public — featuring new plays from around the world and new play translations. Additional productions include the New York premieres of “Sun” by Adrienne Kennedy and “Unveiled” by Rohina Malik; August Strindberg’s “The Pelican;” “Unveiled” at the South African National Arts Festival and Johannesburg 969 Festival; “The Mecca Tales” by Rohina Malik; “Tentacles” by Tessa Flannery, as part of the 2018 Frigid NY Festival; “Hope Hypothesis” by Cat Miller; and, most recently, “Don’t Look Back” by Adam Kraar. Artistic Director: Wayne Maugans; Executive Director: Charles C. Bales.
The Ukrainian Institute of America has been at the forefront of promoting Ukrainian culture and democratic values to the world for almost 80 years. Through its vibrant programs, the Institute
2 serves as a bridge between Ukraine and the American people, fostering cultural interaction, mutual understanding, and appreciation of shared values and goals. Located on Museum Mile in the heart of New York City in a National Historic Landmark building, the Institute is Where the World Meets Ukraine.
The Center for International Theatre Development (CITD) connects American theatre makers with their global counterparts, fostering solidarity and shared knowledge across diverse theatre cultures. Since its founding in 1990, CITD has worked with over 800 directors, playwrights, producers, and performers across 10 countries, focusing on East Africa, and Central and Eastern Europe. Over the decades, CITD’s multi-year exchange projects have resulted in international collaborations at nearly every major theater in the US.
The Ukrainian Institute is a state institution acting in the field of cultural diplomacy. The institution’s activities are aimed at improving the understanding and perception of Ukraine in the world and the development of its cultural ties with other countries. Established by the Government of Ukraine, the Institute operates under the administration of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.