January 28, 29, February 4, 5, 11, 12 at 7:30pm
January 30, February 6, 13 at 2:00pm

​Due to the marked increase in Covid cases in our area, BHCT has chosen to require masks at all upcoming events. 

Ten explorers. Four boats. One Grand Canyon. Men on Boats is the true(ish) history of an 1869 expedition where a one-armed captain and an insane yet loyal crew set out to chart the course of the Colorado River. Inspired by John Wesley Powell’s actual travel logs, Backhaus’s nimble and ingenious script is provocative, laugh-out-loud theatre, performed by a diverse cast who infuse America’s historic myths of male conquest with a sly blast of satire. Adult Situations and Adult Language

​Join us for a talkback with the cast and crew!

Meet the Men on Boats Cast and Crew on February 12th!
​On February 12th participate in a talkback with Men on Boats directors, Joanna Lawler and Rodger Hartley, as well as the rest of the cast and crew! With...FREE WINE!

"This show is playful, satirical, and often hilarious. By calling for other voices to tell the story of these “men on boats,” Jaclyn Backhaus allows us to include perspectives we don’t usually get.  It’s also a fantastic opportunity for our actors to portray characters they wouldn’t normally get to play. The effect is an exuberant reminder of theater’s power to tell stories in new, delightful, and thought-provoking ways." - Joanna Lawler

"Jaclyn Backhaus has done a remarkable thing in writing a mordantly funny satire of the American colonial project while still showing real affection for the individuals enmeshed in it, and an admiration for their grit on a perilous and fantastic adventure. The Men on Boats are neither heroes nor villains, and you cannot help but love them." - Rodger Hartley

Jaclyn Backhaus

Playwright

Jaclyn Backhaus is a playwright, cofounder of Fresh Ground Pepper, and new member of The Kilroys. Her plays include Men On Boats (New York Times Critics’ Pick, Clubbed Thumb, Playwrights Horizons, published by Dramatists Play Service), India Pale Ale (Manhattan Theatre Club, recipient of the 2018 Horton Foote Prize for Promising New American Play), You Across From Me (co-written with three other writers for the Humana Festival), Folk Wandering (book writer and co-lyricist with 11 composers, Pipeline Theatre Company), and You On the Moors Now (Theater Reconstruction Ensemble), among others. She was the 2016 Tow Foundation Playwright-in-Residence at Clubbed Thumb and she is currently in residence at Lincoln Center. Backhaus holds a BFA in Drama from NYU Tisch, where she now teaches. She hails from Phoenix, Arizona, and currently resides in Ridgewood, Queens with her husband, director Andrew Scoville and their son Ernie.

Men on Boats Cast

Abby Simmons

Frank Goodman / Mr. Asa

Bernie McFarling

Oramel "O.G." Howland / The Bishop
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Arika Beals

John Colton Sumner

Gwendolyn Beals

George Young Bradley

Jen Heuerman

William Robert Hawkins

Jonasia Nance

Andrew Hall / Tsauwiat
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Jenna Green

John Wesley Powell

Lily Crooks

Seneca Howland

Marcia Kahler

Walter Henry "Old Shady" Powell

Seth Kahler

William Dunn

CAST
John Wesley Powell: Jenna Green
William Dunn: Seth Kahler
John Colton Sumner: Arika Beals
Oramel "O.G." Howland / The Bishop: Bernie McFarling
Seneca Howland: Lily Crooks
Frank Goodman / Mr. Asa: Abby Simmons
George Young Bradley: Gwendolyn Beals
Walter Henry "Old Shady" Powell: Marcia Kahler
William Robert Hawkins: Jen Heuerman
Andrew Hall / Tsauwiat: Jonasia Nance

CREW
Directors: Joanna Lawler and Rodger Hartley
Stage Manager: Rebecca Myers Kapelewski
Artistic Consultant: Maddy Meadows
Scenic/Lighting Design: Rodger Hartley
​Costume Design: Abby Simmons
Props Design: Heidi Dehn