In August, 2025, we held a private reading of the first hour of our new play, Las Hijas de la Santa Muerte. 

Santa Muerte – a skeletal, rainbow-robed “folk saint” whose cult has grown from a handful of home altars in 2001 to roughly 12 million devotees across Mexico, the United States, and Central America – thrives precisely because she welcomes everyone the Church and the state exclude: LGBTQ people, migrants, cartel look-outs, sex workers, addicts, ex-convicts, the undocumented… Scholars now call hers “the fastest-growing new religious movement in the Americas.”

Our new play, Las Hijas de la Santa Muerte, sets this ultra-inclusive folk devotion against the judgmental apparatus of Church and state. Drawing on research, childhood memory, and the cinematic lineage of Melville’s Léon Morin, prêtre and Jodorowsky’s Santa Sangre, the play invites audiences to consider why an outlaw skeleton saint now commands a flock the size of a metropolis.

About Our Santa Muerte Reading Cast

Kaye Tuckerman (Sister Clara / Newscaster): led the North American tour of Mamma Mia! as Donna and appeared in Wicked and Natasha, Pierre & The Great Comet of 1812 in Shanghai.

Johnny A. Sánchez (Flaco / First Migrant): repertory cast member on MADtv and voice in Happy Feet and Happy Feet Two.

Ethan Herschenfeld (Father Phil / Second Migrant): performed at the Metropolitan Opera and Carnegie Hall and released the #1 iTunes comedy album Thug Thug Jew.

Yan Carlos Diaz (Santa María): appeared in Ragtime at Axelrod Performing Arts Center and In the Heights at Rubicon Theatre.

Blanca Del Loco (Pinta): profiled by Rolling Stone as a trans touring artist and announced to lead Jesus Christ Superstarfor Utopia as Jesus.

Kevin Matthew Reyes (John / Carlos): played Craig Bowker Jr. in Broadway’s Harry Potter and the Cursed Child and appeared on CBS’s FBI: Most Wanted.

Erwin Guerrero (Niña): performed in the New York Theater Festival and releases original music on Apple Music.

Eugenia Forteza (Linda): mezzo-soprano, founder of 360° of Opera, and writer for Classical Singer Magazine.

Xavier Reyes (Rubén / Peppino): played Angel in the first national tour of Kinky Boots and appeared in Lynn Nottage’s Clyde’s at PlayMakers Rep.

Thomas Vorsteg (Father Rodrigo): praised by The New York Times for a “fine” performance and appeared in UP Theater Co.’s Detained.

On Monday March 17th, 2025, we were happy to present an industry Actors Equity 29‑hour reading of our new play based on two key events in the career of the master builder—and destroyer—of modern New York, Robert Moses. Excerpts from the script were brought to life by a wonderful cast of Broadway veterans: Mitch Greenberg (Broadway: Fiddler on the Roof; recurring TV: Law & Order), Allen Lewis Rickman (A Novel Romance; Yiddle with a Fiddle), Brady Dalton Richards (Broadway: Harry Potter and the Cursed Child), David Edwards (Broadway: By Jeeves; 1st Nat. Tour: The Producers), Jennifer Barnhart (Sesame Street; Broadway: Avenue Q), Julia Cassandra (Broadway: Almost Famous; National Tour: Mamma Mia!), Karron Graves (Film: The Crucible; Broadway: Coram Boy), Kaye Tuckerman (Broadway: Summer: The Donna Summer Musical; Les Misérables internationally), Matthew Mucha (Broadway: Harmony; National Tour: Bandstand), and Roger Rathburn (Broadway: No, No, Nanette; Five O’Clock Girl). Thank you to everyone who participated—we look forward to further developing this work in the future. 

We presented our first AEA reading of “I HAVE FRIENDS,” a new play, directed by Bradly Valenzuela, on Saturday, February 22, 2025. The cast included Mia Danelle (FX’s “Mayans M.C.”), Natalia Vivino (2nd National Tour of “Wicked”), Leslie Alexander (Broadway’s “My Fair Lady”), David Edwards (Broadway’s “By Jeeves”), Pascal Arquimedes (Broadway’s “Clyde’s”), Sharaé Moultrie (International Tour of “Dreamgirls”), Tess Goldwyn (“OUR CLASS” at BAM), James Schultz (“How the Grinch Stole Christmas!” national tour), Mister Fitzgerald (HBO Max’s “The Penguin”), Caroline Rosenblum (NBC’s “30 Rock”), and Haley Clare Gustafson (Broadway’s “The Who’s Tommy”). Lucy Harrington served as Production/Director’s Assistant.

On October 26, 2024, "AGAINST THE WALL," a staged reading of Pablo Ceja's new play—adapted from his 2022 feature film of the same name—was presented at The Tank Studio in NYC. Produced by Lobsters International / Antigun Unit LLC, the production featured performances by Jalen Milton, Madison Kopec, Keith Weiss, Herut Ashkenazi, Jake Laurence, and Louis Courage, with direction by Emmie D’Amico and production by Shira Zionce.

On May 5, 2024, "The Irresistible Perry Paso," a new play by Pablo Ceja, was presented as a table reading at The Tank ATTIC in NYC, depicting a young man's rise to political power through manipulation and lies (not based on real events!). The reading featured performances by Hila Shats, Gil Charleston, Richard MacDonald, Chelsea Staples, Gil Ron, Gabriel Ethridge, Zoe Burger, Jessica Spector, Grace Mitscherlich, Alicia Kaplan, Jalen Ford, Vivian Belosky, and David Schmidt. Direction was by Sivan Raz.

On February 11, 2024, at The Tank, Shelby Cox directed a staged reading of Pablo Ceja’s “I Have Friends!” Cast included Vivian Belosky, Zoey Burger, Heather Bildman, Jalen Ford, Ana B Gabriel, Alicia Kaplan, Jasmine Louis, Richard MacDonald, Jess Pace, Patrick Saint Ange, Anuka Sethi, Nathaniel Tomb, and Lour Yasin.

On December 9, 2023, a staged reading of Pablo Ceja’s new play "I HAVE FRIENDS!" took place at The Tank, produced by Ceja with assistant producers Shelby Joelle Cox, Abigail Jensen, Liv Kirby, Rissa Lavilla, and First you Dream LLC. The cast featured Kimberly Tyler, Amilia Rozelynne Shaw, Dillon Siry, Raven Jeannette, Sahra Mellesse, Jessica Spector, DB Smith, Alessandra Ruiz, Andrea Marshall Money, Adam Lucas, Maxim Yutsis, Megan Walker, and Correy West.

In August 2023 at the Dramatists Guild in New York City, the satire "ARTISTS" was presented as a staged reading featuring Emma Immholz, Jonah Lione, Nicholas Bonaldi, Francis, Madeline, Brooke, Jason Quackenbush, Elizabeth Demetrios, James Noonan, Rissa, Jean Mary Zarate, Melina Rabin, and BreLynn Mellen. The diverse cast brought wonderful and varied performance styles to this new work-in-progress.

On April 15, 2023, "A CHERRY TREE," a new three-act play written and directed by Pablo Ceja, premiered at the Producer’s Club in New York City, telling the story of Kelly, a homeless addict who rediscovers her love of theatre at a remote arts center. Produced by LOBSTERS INTERNATIONAL / ANTIGUN UNIT LLC with Nick Gifford as production assistant, the cast featured Leah Eckardt, Michael Santoro, David Schmitt, Nzingtha Smith, Megan Hasse, Rose Kanj, Victoria Guthrie, Ian Charles Hayes, David Jackson Fine, Gil Charleston, Alexa Poller, and Christian Prins Coen.

On June 11, 2022, "Sitting by Yourself Under the Cherry Tree," a new four-act play written and directed by Pablo Ceja, premiered at the Producer’s Club in New York City. Produced by Lobsters International, the production featured performances by Alexa Ditaranto, Chaz McCormack, Chelsey Staples, Sabrina Iacobellis, David Schmitt, Jay Davenport, Shannon Dempsey, Jerome Girard, Tim Palmer, Elhajj Outland, Lisa Boyett, Janet Blazy, Gil Charleston, Stephanie Lloyd Ficarra, and Ekaterina Shilenko.