The Lucky Ones premiered in New York on Maand extended through April 28, 2018. Z Space collaborated with Ars Nova and piece by piece productions to develop The Lucky Ones, a prequel to Hundred Days.

Hundred Days is now on a national tour including La Jolla Playhouse, Straz Center, and Adrienne Arsht Center. Hundred Days received a Drama League nomination for Outstanding Production of a Broadway or Off-Broadway Musical and Lucille Lortel nominations for Outstanding Musical and Outstanding Lead Actress (Abigail Bengson). Following the extended world premiere at Z Space, Hundred Days completed a successful run at the 2017 Under the Radar Festival and opened off-Broadway in November 2017 at New York Theater Workshop. Z Space produced the world premiere of Hundred Days, a musical memoir by Abigail and Shaun Bengson, in February 2014, and served as the artistic home of The Bengsons, providing space, resources and artistic support beginning in 2011. Weightless was remounted and presented by A.C.T.

Z Space then took Weightless to the Public Theater’s prestigious Under the Radar New Play Festival in New York in January 2019. Z Space and Encore Theater Company commissioned Weightless and developed the show over multiple years, with a world premiere in March 2018. The production was nominated for 7 Theatre Bay Area awards, including best World Premiere Play, Best Overall Production, and Best Direction (Lisa Steindler). Z Space produced a staged reading of Ripped by Rachel Bublitz in October 2018 as part of its annual Problematic Play Festival, continued developing the script with Bublitz, and produced the world premiere play in May 2019. Here are some notable works that were developed in-house at Z Space: The new works that Z Space produces aren't limited to a particular genre or theme. Each has its own unique adventure, but they all contain the same commitment to discovery and theatrical excellence. The bottom drops out as Abigail is unable to stop the unyielding clicks from Johnson’s sticks as Abigail’s retelling of their story gives way to the moments that maybe they don’t want to remember.Eschewing traditional theatre models with fixed seasons and subscription packages, Z Space chooses to remain flexible, to focus on an artist’s unique needs, and to facilitate the time and resources necessary to develop each project fully. It’s an effect that gives way to horror as tragedy strikes the couple. A click of Johnson’s drumsticks matched with a flash of lights capture each memory. One high point is a montage of Abigail and Shaun as they attempt to stretch out days as long as they possibly can by taking mental pictures of all of their adventures together. Through them, and with Stiff’s direction and especially Jackie Fox’s lighting design (she also designed the set), the concert feel elevates to something significantly more magical as it takes the audience inside the minds of Abigail and Shaun during a tumultuous time in their relationship. Phan is charming as a reserved Shaun, and Modaff an absolute powerhouse as Abigail. The musical explores a simple question: Faced with someone you love potentially only having 100 days left to live, what do you do?Įmilie Modaff with Grace Bobber, Royen Kent, Brennan Urbi and Lucas 'Looch' Johnson in Kokandy Productions' 'Hundred Days.' (Evan Hanover photo / HANDOUT)īut this show isn’t just a concert, it’s a love story, with Modaff and Phan at its center. But more deeply, it follows the effects of Abigail’s deep-seated grief, spawning from childhood trauma and death of those close to her, on their relationship. The story follows Abigail and Shaun falling quickly in love and marrying after three weeks. “Hundred Days” presents a musical memoir of its creators, Shaun and Abigail Bengson, who wrote the music and lyrics as well as wrote the book alongside Sarah Gancher. But now that we’re finally able to gather, perhaps a story like “Hundred Days,” one that reminds us that, despite the inevitability of death, grief doesn’t have to be suffered alone is the perfect story for the moment. Kokandy Productions was set to open the Chicago premiere of “Hundred Days” back in March 2020, before the pandemic. Before readily available vaccines, many had to face down that grief alone, unable to even be around family members as they spent their last moments in crowded hospitals. That’s never felt more true than when looking at the ever-rising death toll resulting from COVID-19. Grief has touched the lives of us all at one point or another.

Hundred days musical