Walter Schlinger's
Romeo and Juliet

Written and Performed By Sean Gordon

Directed By Dixie O'Connell

June 7th - 7:00 pm

June 10th - 7:00 pm

June 11th - 9:30 pm

June 14th - 7:00 pm

Developed in part with the Glow-Worm Writers & Readers Collective.

The Village

Stage Manager

Sadie Kalinowska-Werter

Costume Design

Ali Caruso

Set & Projection Design

Reed Gordon

Producer

Lainey Helmers

Bio's and Histories

SEAN GORDON (Writer/Performer) (he/him) is an actor and writer based in Brooklyn. His work focuses on blending old stories with new ideas. He was a three-time resident at the Phoenix Residency with the Shakespeare Academy @ Stratford and Mighty Quinn Foundation. He is also a co-founder of Glow-Worm Theatre Company. Other plays include: Temporary Dissonance (POV Festival selection), Chicken Sexer, and Joybutton. He can be seen in the web series “Why Try,” out now, and in the short film “Bird Flu,” out later this year. He’s a graduate of the Theater Arts Conservatory at Purchase College and has a Minor in Playwriting, in addition to being an avid reality TV fan. www.sean-gordon-actor.com (the website you're CURRENTLY on.)

DIXIE O'CONNELL (Director) (she/they) is a director and theater artist living in Brooklyn. Dixie hails from the Jersey Shore and is a graduate of the Theater Arts Conservatory at SUNY Purchase. Recent directorial credits include: Scott Pilgrim vs. The Shadow Cast at Wonderville, Rocky Horror Picture Show at Father Knows Best, Mirrorball with STRANGEGIRLZZ, and Walter Schlinger's Romeo and Juliet with FRIGID New York’s Little Shakespeare Festival. Dixie likes magical realism and believes in sitting in the dark with people, preferably strangers.

SADIE KALINOWSKA-WERTER fellow SUNY Purchase Theatre and Performance alumnus is thrilled to help bring Walter Schlinger’s Romeo and Juliet to NYC Fringe after stage-managing its previous iteration at Frigid’s Shakespeare Festival. They are also pleased to return to The Rat since directing Danny and the Deep Blue Sea last Summer

REED GORDON (Set & Projection Designer) is a recent graduate from SUNY Purchase. Past credits include, 'As You Like It' (Purchase, Scenic Designer) 'Judy's House' (Producer, Scenic Designer) and Eurydice (Purchase, Assistant Scenic Designer.)

ALI CARUSO (Costume Designer) is a Brooklyn based costume designer and seamstress with a BFA from SUNY Purchase. She is thrilled to be working with her wonderful friends on this production!

Playwright's Note

WSR&J was developed through many conversations with emerging artists across various mediums. Regardless of background or discipline, their stories were similar. They painted the picture of someone hungry, frustrated, ambitious, and perhaps even scared. The very first draft consisted of three distinct monologues by separate faceless characters. But what quickly became apparent was that these voices, much like my conversations with other creators, all spoke from the same place. I started imagining someone who desperately wanted to sound intelligent and important, but underneath it all was just a person who wanted to connect with others and be taken seriously. That amalgamation eventually formed into 22-year-old Walter Schlinger-- a character who interrogates the questions that face him and implores the audience to search with him. Walter calls his recitation “the workshop of a literary experiment.” And in one way, that’s true of the show itself. Through Walter, we see if Sincerity can be a source of entertainment value.

Playwright's Note

Founded in 2025, Two-Way Glass Productions is an independent production company with one goal: remember the audience. We seek to emphasize the ever-shifting relationship between spectator and spectacle. Whether it’s live performance or on film, stories aren’t truly told until they have a Watcher. Because of that, we see the audience as the final and perhaps most influential collaborator on our projects.

CLICK HERE TO READ THE TANK LAND ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

MEGHAN FINN, ARTISTIC DIRECTOR

MOLLY FITZMAURICE, MANAGING PRODUCER

JOHNNY LLOYD, ARTISTIC DIRECTOR
PETE BETCHER, TECHNICAL MANAGER

CONNOR SCULLY, MARKETING AND AUDIENCE ENGAGEMENT MANAGER
CLARA LIVINGSTON, OFFICE MANAGER

ARE YOU AN ARTIST? The Tank is committed to supporting the work of as many artists as we possibly can. We operate with open submissions, so you can email us and do a show. For info on how to submit a proposal, please visit thetanknyc.org/perform

THANKS TO OUR INDIVIDUAL DONORS With your support, we can continue facilitating emerging artists and new ideas for a good long time. By making a donation of any amount, you’ll help us help artists. To contribute visit thetanknyc.org/support

TANK BOARD Justin Krebs (President), Anthony Sunga (Secretary), Patrick Rousseau (Treasurer), Jenn de la Vega, Eric Krebs, JJ Lind, Josh Luxenberg, Tiffany Rea-Fisher, Jill Rousseau, Rachel Schweitzer, Emily Perkins-Margolin, Danielle King

TANK ADVISORY BOARD Wesley Chow, Emma McMullin, Gregory Rae, Rachel Schweitzer, Claire Silberman, Alex Timbers

2026 TANK INSTITUTIONAL FUNDERS

This program is supported, in part, by public funds from the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs in partnership with the City Council.

The Tank’s programming is made possible by the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of Governor Kathy Hochul and the New York State Legislature.