PROVIDENCE, RI: Trinity Repertory Company begins its 61st season with POTUS: Or, Behind Every Great Dumbass Are Seven Women Trying to Keep Him Alive by Selina Fillinger. This raunchy comedy runs September 5 – 22 and October 10 – 27, 2024 in Trinity Rep’s Dowling Theater. Tickets are available for purchase in person at the Ticket Office on 201 Washington St., online at trinityrep.com/potus, or by calling (401) 351-4242.
“There is no more suitable time than this very moment for Selina Fillinger’s biting and hilarious comedy, as it pulls back the curtain on the women working behind the scenes at the White House,” director Curt Columbus said. “It’s a raucous, bawdy ride that will leave you thinking while you laugh.”
POTUS runs on its own September 5 – 22, then in rotating repertory with Ms. Holmes & Ms. Watson – APT 2B by Kate Hamill October 10 – 27. While the plays differ in comedic style and story, both humorous pieces center women’s voices.
ABOUT POTUS
Many of us are dreading the 2024 election, regardless of political beliefs. Why not look your fears dead in the eye and laugh at them with POTUS? When a presidential PR nightmare evolves into a global catastrophe, it’s up to seven women in the commander-in-chief’s inner circle to do damage control. That is if they don’t drive each other off the rails first through a chaotic cocktail of increasingly absurd antics. Delightfully raunchy and uproariously funny, POTUS is a naughty political farce that’ll have you rolling in the aisles!
POTUS opened on Broadway in 2022 and earned three Tony Award nominations. It has since been produced frequently across the United States. Trinity Rep’s production will be the play’s Rhode Island premiere.
THE CREATIVE TEAM AND CAST
Selina Fillinger is an LA-based writer and performer. Her other plays include The Collapse, Something Clean, Faceless, and The Armor Plays: Cinched/Strapped. Selina wrote for the third season of Apple TV+’s “The Morning Show;” she’s developing a feature with Chernin Entertainment/Netflix and a pilot with Hunting Lane/Hulu.
Curt Columbus has been Trinity Rep’s artistic director since 2006. Recent credits include Becky Nurse of Salem, Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street, Tiny Beautiful Things, Macbeth, and Ragtime.
POTUS’ creative team includes scenic designer Collette Pollard, costume designer Shahrzad Mazaheri, lighting designer Dawn Chiang, sound designer Megumi Katayama, fight & intimacy coordinator Rocio Mendez, and dialect coach Rebecca Gibel. The ensemble cast features resident company members Jackie Davis (Margaret) and Rachael Warren (Jean), Brown/Trinity Rep MFA Program in Acting students Tay Bass (Dusty) and Sara States (Chris), returning guest artists Rachel Dulude (Bernadette) and Jenna Lea Scott (Stephanie), and Deb Martin (Harriet) in her Trinity Rep debut.
Trinity Rep’s 2024-25 Season is sponsored in part by the Rhode Island State Council on The Arts (RISCA) and Providence Tourism Council. Southwest Airlines is the Official Airline of Trinity Rep.
ABOUT TRINITY REPERTORY COMPANY
Rhode Island’s Tony Award-winning theater, Trinity Rep has created unparalleled professional theater for and with its community since its founding in 1963. Trinity Rep strives to facilitate human connection and has been a driving force behind the creativity that fuels and defines the region for more than 50 years.
Trinity Rep is committed to reinventing the public square and inspiring dialogue by creating emotionally stimulating live productions that range from classical to contemporary and innovative education programs for all ages and abilities. Its annual production of A Christmas Carol has brought families together for more than four decades and made memories for nearly two million audience members.
Trinity Rep’s 2024-25 Season runs through June 2025, and includes productions of POTUS: Or, Behind Every Great Dumbass are Seven Women Trying to Keep Him Alive, Ms. Holmes & Ms. Watson – Apt. 2B, A Christmas Carol, Someone Will Remember Us, La Tempestad – The Tempest, and Blues for an Alabama Sky. Subscriptions are on sale now. For more information, visit Trinity Rep’s website at www.trinityrep.com.
AT A GLANCE
POTUS: Or, Behind Every Great Dumbass Are Seven Women Trying to Keep Him Alive
By Selina Fillinger
Director – Curt Columbus
Scenic Designer – Collette Pollard
Costume Designer – Shahrzad Mazaheri
Lighting Designer – Dawn Chiang
Sound Designer – Megumi Katayama
Dialect Coach – Rebecca Gibel
Stage Manager – Polly Feliciano
Assistant Stage Manager – George Finley-Pile
Cast – Featuring resident company members Jackie Davis and Rachael Warren, Brown/Trinity Rep students Tay Bass and Sara States, and guest artists Rachel Dulude, Deb Martin, and Jenna Lea Scott. The understudies for this production are Lorraine Guerra, Jennifer Mischley, Luyuan Nathan, and Mary Potts Dennis.
POTUS Opening Press Night | Wednesday, September 11, 2024 at 7:30 pm
Invitations and RSVP instructions to come
Pay What You Wish – Thursday, September 5 at 7:30 pm
Neighborhood Nights – Patrons can receive 20% off tickets for the 6:00 pm evening performance on the following Sundays:
September 15 (Kent County residents using discount code KENT at checkout)
September 22 (Washington County residents using discount code WASHINGTON at checkout)
October 13 (Bristol & Newport County residents using discount code BRISTOL or NEWPORT)
All Sunday evenings (Providence County residents using discount code PROVIDENCE)
Open Caption Performances – October 23, 24, 25, and 26 at 7:30 pm; and October 27 at 12:00 pm
Sensory-Friendly Performance – Wednesday, September 18 at 7:30 pm
Masked Matinee Performances – September 18 at 2:00 pm and September 22 at 12:00 pm
Ticket Office – (401) 351-4242; 201 Washington Street, Providence, RI 02903
Group Sales – (401) 453-9238; discounts for groups of 10 or more
Website – trinityrep.com/potus
Season Sponsors – Rhode Island State Council on the Arts (RISCA) and Providence Tourism Council
Official Airline of Trinity Rep – Southwest Airlines
