TWO RIVER THEATER AND DEAF WEST THEATRE ANNOUNCE FULL CAST OF THE NEW MUSICAL ELEPHANT SHOES
Two River Theater and Deaf West Theatre are thrilled to announce the full cast of Elephant Shoes, the new musical with a soaring contemporary score and an immersive blend of spoken English, ASL, and stage technology. Elephant Shoes will run in the Joan and Robert Rechnitz Theater from June 4 through June 28, 2026.
The full cast includes Antoinette Lori Abbamonte (Curb Your Enthusiasm, Switched At Birth) as Laurie, Klea Blackhurst (Dolly: A True Original Musical, Everything the Traffic Will Allow) as Beverly/Mrs. Millner, Daniel Durant (Deaf West’s Spring Awakening, CODA) as Cy, Taylor Iman Jones (Six The Musical, Head Over Heels) as Roxy, Amy Keum (KPOP!, Honor Society) as Jenna, Remy Laifer (Fiddler on the Roof, New Amsterdam) as Bob, James Olivas (Evita, Deaf West’s American Idiot) as Chris, Siena Rafter (Runaways, Deep Blue Sea) as Simone, Hector Reynoso (Deaf West/LA Phil’s FIDELIO, Sweeney Todd) as Roy, Don Stephenson (The Producers, Titanic) as Wayne, and Raven Sutton (The Circle) as Liz.
In Elephant Shoes, Cy is a deaf tech developer who is brilliant at finding the words for everything, except the ones that matter most. So, when his best friend Chris falls for Roxy, Cy does what comes naturally: he becomes the voice behind every message, every perfect line, every moment that makes Roxy fall harder. The only problem? Cy is falling too. In a world where nothing gets lost in translation, Elephant Shoes asks what you do when the most important thing you’ve ever said isn’t yours to say.
Elephant Shoes is a new musical with a soaring contemporary score and an immersive blend of spoken English, ASL, and innovative stage technology, fully accessible in both languages.
The book is by Ivan Menchell (Bonnie & Clyde: The Musical, Chitty Chitty Bang Bang), music and lyrics are by Caroline Kay (Overnight, Daisy), and direction and choreography are by Jeff Calhoun (Newsies, Deaf West’s Big River). Elephant Shoes is presented by special arrangement with producers Kevin Ryan (Ragtime), Diane Scott Carter (Gypsy), Rob Acton (Ragtime), Mary Sullivan (Ragtime), and Deaf West Theatre’s DJ Kurs and Jeff Perri.
The creative team for Elephant Shoes includes Jeff Calhoun (Director and Choreographer), Colin Analco (ASL Choreographer), Meghann Zervoulis Bate (Music Supervisor/Director), Tom Kitt (Orchestrations), Tobin Ost (Scenic Design), Caite Hevner (Projection Design), Sarafina Bush (Costume Design), Annie Wiegand (Lighting Design), Daniel Lundberg (Sound Design), The TRC Company/Spencer Gualdoni, CSA and Claire Burke, CSA (Casting Director) and Artoro Porazzi (Production Stage Manager). Rico Froehlich and Abigail Peterson both serve as Assistant Stage Managers.
“Elephant Shoes is a story about the gap between what we feel and what we say, and how much can get lost in that distance,” says Deaf West Artistic Director DJ Kurs. “What excites me about this cast is that they don’t just perform across two languages, they live in the space between them. That space is where this show was born. I can’t wait to welcome audiences on June 4 to experience what happens when a story this intimate is told this expansively.”
“Building a World Premiere musical is the ultimate collaboration and to do so with this incredible team is a tremendous gift to Two River,” says Justin Waldman, Artistic Director. “It is a true honor to join forces with the renowned and venerable Deaf West Theatre to tell Ivan and Caroline’s stunning story, helmed by the Tony Award-nominated director, Jeff Calhoun. Elephant Shoes’ combination of American Sign Language, music, laughs, and poignancy is utterly unique and continues Two River’s tradition of bringing people together for world-class theatrical experiences right here in Red Bank, NJ.”
TICKET INFORMATION
For tickets and more information, visit: https://tworivertheater.org/
To see the full 2025/2026 Season programming visit: tworivertheater.org.
Plays, artists, dates, and ticket prices are subject to change.
SPONSORSHIP
Two River Theater’s 2025/26 Season Sponsor is Hackensack Meridian Riverview Medical Center.
Elephant Shoes is made possible through the generous support of an anonymous donor, Brian and Joanna Leddin, and Anne Marie Schultz.
Two River is funded in part by public support through the New Jersey State Council on the Arts, the New Jersey Economic Development Authority, the New Jersey Office of Homeland Security and Preparedness,, the State of New Jersey, and the Monmouth County Board of County Commissioners. Private support includes American Theatre Wing, Courtyard by Marriott, Edgerton Foundation, Grunin Foundation, Merrill G. & Emita E. Hastings Foundation, Investors Foundation, Jewish Federation in the Heart of New Jersey, The Blanche and Irving Laurie Foundation, MacMillan Family Foundation, Manasquan Bank Charitable Foundation, Mary Owen Borden Foundation, Molly Pitcher Inn and The Oyster Point Hotel, Monmouth University, OceanFirst Foundation, Open Heart Yoga, The Shubert Foundation, The Stone Foundation of New Jersey, and Visiting Nurse Association of NJ Health Group, and other generous funders.
Award-winning Two River Theater, located in Red Bank, New Jersey, is where bold stories inspire imagination and connection. Each season, the theater produces a mix of new plays, reimagined classics, and musicals, along with new work development, education programs for young people, and community engagement events that bring people of all ages together. Across its 80,000-square-foot campus, more than 20,000 students, families, and theater lovers experience Two River’s acclaimed productions each year on its two stages: the 343-seat Joan and Robert Rechnitz Theater and the flexible 110-seat Marion Huber Theater. The theater also houses state-of-the-art scenic, costume, and property shops. Two River has launched productions that have reached international audiences, including Be More Chill by Tony Award® nominees Joe Iconis and Joe Tracz—the theater’s first Broadway production—which went on to play in London’s West End and Japan. Recognized by USA TODAY as one of the “10 Great Places to See a Play,” Two River is led by Artistic Director Justin Waldman and Managing Director Nora DeVeau-Rosen.
Deaf West Theatre (Co-Producer, Elephant Shoes – DJ Kurs, Artistic Director, Jeff Perri, Managing Director): Committed to innovation, collaboration, training, and activism, Deaf West is the artistic bridge between the Deaf and hearing worlds. Founded in Los Angeles in 1991, Deaf West engages artists and audiences in unparalleled theater and media experiences inspired by Deaf culture and the expressive power of sign language, weaving ASL with spoken English to create a seamless ballet of movement and voice. Recent and past productions include a new production of Green Day’s American Idiot, in a co-production with Center Theatre Group; the groundbreaking production of Beethoven’s only opera Fidelio with the Los Angeles Philharmonic conducted by Maestro Gustavo Dudamel; a new play adaptation of Oedipus at the Getty Villa Museum directed and adapted by Jenny Koons; The Solid of Life of Sugar Water by Jack Thorne; Our Town, in a co-production with the Pasadena Playhouse; Edward Albee’s At Home at the Zoo, in a co-production with the Wallis Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts; Spring Awakening the Musical, which transferred from Inner-City Arts to the Wallis and then to Broadway (three Tony Award® nominations including Best Revival of a Musical); American Buffalo (Los Angeles Times “Critic’s Choice”); Cyrano, a co-production with the Fountain Theatre (Los Angeles Drama Critics Circle Award for Outstanding Production); Big River the Musical (Los Angeles Drama Critics Circle and Backstage Garland awards for Best Musical in its L.A. premiere, a Tony Award® nomination, and four Drama Desk Awards on Broadway); Pippin, produced at the Mark Taper Forum in a co-production with Center Theatre Group; Sleeping Beauty Wakes, also a co-production with Center Theatre Group, presented at the Kirk Douglas Theatre; Oliver! (Ovation Award for Best Musical) and A Streetcar Named Desire (Ovation Award for Best Play). In 2005, Deaf West Theatre was selected to receive the Highest Recognition Award by the Secretary of Health and Human Services for its “distinguished contributions to improve and enrich the culture lives of Deaf and hard of hearing actors and theater patrons.” To learn more visit deafwest.org