TIN CHURCH

Follow Us:

Tin Church runs about 90 minutes
with no intermission      

Inspired by recurring nightmares and an old Tin Church, Parrish weaves a sultry southern spell that begs the question, can the wheel of generational trauma ever truly stop spinning? Or are families destined to repeat life's tragedies again and again? 

The Magnolia smells sweet on the evening breeze, and then it falls and sours, like a secret kept too long.

Tin Church is an unsettling, Southern Gothic exploration of generational trauma and the secrets families keep. The dream and waking world collide in this intensely dark comedy where demons come out to play in the low country south. ​

Mary (Marguerite Stimpson) is the oldest of three sisters. It seems she has escaped her small southern town and the monotony of it all for the big city life. 

Mildred (Virginia Wall Gruenert), her mother, has a successful marriage, a big family and an even larger front porch. She spends her days stirring up the sweet tea and gossip.

Younger sisters Linda ( Christina Perry) and Sue (Lilly Tobin) are well woven into the intricate quilt of secrets this family keeps. One remembers. The other spends her days and nights trying to forget. 

Through a maze of memories, letters, dreams and the waking world, Tin Church takes us on a thrilling psychological exploration of things unsaid. Is Mildred as perfect as she insists? Did Mary truly escape after all? What is the secret that binds them?

Cast

Creative Team

Meet the Company

Virginia Wall Gruenert

Mildred

Virginia Wall Gruenert is co-founder and Executive Artistic Director of off the WALL Productions. A native of New York City, Virginia grew up in Bogota, New Jersey. She has studied acting, voice, and movement in New York (Maria Wida, Arthur Storch, Jaques Chwat), in London (National Theater, Bristol Old Vic), and in Los Angeles with the legendary Stella Adler. Acting credits - NYC: What Kind of Woman (Nancy Manocherian’s the cell), Shaken & Stirred (Theater 54), ‘Tis Pity She’s a Whore (Perry St. Theatre), Camelot Revisited (Theater for the New City). Syracuse Stage: The Adding Machine, Ah, Wilderness!, Saturday, Sunday, Monday, Kennedy’s Children, among others. Villanova Master’s Program: Watt (adapted from Samuel Beckett’s novel and directed by Charles Van Buren). off the WALL: Shaken & Stirred (Various), Edward Albee’s Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf? (Martha); Season’s Greetings…! (Jocelyn); Agnes of God (Martha Livingstone); ‘night, Mother (Thelma); The House of Yes (Mrs. Pascal); The Other Place (Julianna); Well (Ann); Ghosts (Mrs. Alving), Byhalia, MS (Celeste); Hoard (Viv); What Kind of Woman (Nora). Virginia is a proud member of The Dramatists Guild of America, Inc., The League of Professional Theatre Women, International Center for Women Playwrights, and Actors’ Equity Association.

Marguerite Stimpson

Mary

Marguerite has appeared in the Broadway productions of The Elephant Man (also West End) and Butley. Other theater credits include King John at Shakespeare on the Sound, Transfigures at WP Theatre, Desperate Writers, The Elephant Man at Williamstown Theatre Festival, Tragedy: A Tragedy at Berkeley Repertory Theatre, Pericles at the Shakespeare Theatre D.C. and the Goodman Theatre, Butley at the Huntington Theatre, and Antigone at A.R.T. Select television credits include “FBI: International”, “Lioness”, “The Blacklist”, “Little America”, “Billions”, “Blue Bloods”, “Law and Order: SVU”, “30 Rock”, and “The Onion” (Huffington Post Best Comedy Video). Marguerite can be seen in Eighth Grade (Golden Globes 2019) and many independent films.

Christina Perry

Linda

Christina Elise Perry is a film and theatre actor and producer of dozens of productions Off-Broadway. Highlighted theatrical roles include: NYC Premiere SIX CORNERS by Emmy-nominated Keith Huff as Amanda. Sam Shepard's SIMPATICO as Rosie and FOOL FOR LOVE as May, Critically acclaimed CHASING THE RIVER, and WAIT UNTIL DARK as Susan (NYIT Nominee for Best Actress in a Leading Role). Film: HOW I SPENT MY SUMMER VACATION with In the Garage Productions, Award Winning short, IN THE DARK ROOM. Training: New York Conservatory for Dramatic Arts; School for Film and Television. Perry thanks her family and the 'Sisu' her grandparents instilled within her. @christinaperryperry

Lilly Tobin

Sue

Lilly Tobin is honored to be a part of this world premiere. Select Credits: How the Grinch Stole Christmas at Madison Square Garden; The Cottage (Dierdre) Engeman, Marvelous Wonderettes (Suzy) Flat Rock, Dial M For Murder (Maxine) East Lynne, Chicago (Roxie) GVT. Other credits: McCarter, Ogunquit, Walnut Street, Maine State, Argyle, NCT, TriArts, Fulton, Riverside. TV: “Michael & Michael Have Issues” Comedy Central. Wagner & LAMDA Graduate. Thank you Robyne for creating complex roles for women. Dedicated to my late Grandmothers Phyllis & Jane. www.lillytobin.com

Robyne Parrish

Creator & Director

Born in Ohio and raised in the Carolinas, Robyne Parrish has lived and worked as an Actor/Director/Playwright in NYC for the better part of twenty years. This is her first commissioned play and her first full length world premiere. Parrish and Off the Wall have a storied past, collaborating on multiple projects, notably Sarah Kane's 4.48 Psychosis , Andrea Lepcio's Looking for the Pony , and The Zero Hour by Madeline George. Parrish cites she's been greatly influenced by playwrights Williams, Lett s, McNally, Nottage, Shepard and Shanley, " I have a great deal of admiration for Shanley and have since my college years. I'd say Shanley was instrumental in making my childhood desire to be in New York a reality, by bringing the community into focus and allowing his characters to take huge risks and speak deep secret truths. As Actor/Playwrights, Tracy Lett s and Sam Shepard always inspired me to embrace the multi -hyphenate within. They wrote rich and deeply emotional characters, like Nott age and McNally. And of course, Williams, a prolific southern Playwright who was known for using his familial relationships as inspiration for his storytelling ."

Amelia Heastings

Stage Manager

Amelia is thrilled to be a part of the Tin Church team! Select Credits: Shakespeare & Company - Three Tall Persian Women (World Premiere), Dear Jack, Dear Louise; Hamlet 2023, Golda’s Balcony 2023, 2024; Interlochen Shakespeare Festival - Comedy of Errors; Walk With Amal- The Ghosts of Carrie Furnace; Pittsburgh Public Theater - Murder on the Orient Express, The Tempest; Pennsylvania Shakespeare Festival - Much Ado About Nothing; Greenbrier Valley Theatre - Mountain Home Christmas, Frankenstein

Alex Magallanes

Assistant Stage Manager

Alex (They/Them) is a proud first-generation Mexican-American Stage Manager. Past credits include National Tour: 𝘋𝘦𝘢𝘳 𝘌𝘷𝘢𝘯 𝘏𝘢𝘯𝘴𝘦𝘯 Regional: 𝘓𝘦𝘴 𝘔𝘪𝘴𝘦𝘳𝘢𝘣𝘭𝘦𝘴, 𝘋𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘮𝘨𝘪𝘳𝘭𝘴, 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘓𝘪𝘵𝘵𝘭𝘦 𝘔𝘦𝘳𝘮𝘢𝘪𝘥, 𝘍𝘪𝘥𝘥𝘭𝘦𝘳 𝘰𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘙𝘰𝘰𝘧, 𝘞𝘢𝘪𝘵𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘴 (The Muny) 𝘍𝘦𝘯𝘤𝘦𝘴 (Shakespeare & Company) 𝘓𝘪𝘵𝘵𝘭𝘦 𝘙𝘦𝘥, 𝘈 𝘔𝘪𝘥𝘴𝘶𝘮𝘮𝘦𝘳 𝘕𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵'𝘴 𝘋𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘮 (Pennslyvania Shakespeare Festival) 𝘙𝘢𝘨𝘵𝘪𝘮𝘦 (Piedmont Opera). UNCSA. Love to my family and my cat. @magallanesmanages

Marie Laster

Scenic Designer

Marie Laster is a scenic designer based in New York City and Philadelphia. Scenic design credits include What the Constitution Means to Me (Arden Theatre), one drop cool (Moxie Arts NY & WP Theater), Chicken & Biscuits (TheatreSquared), All My Mothers Dream in Spanish (Azuka Theatre), Ghetto Gods in Divineland (Passage Theatre), Sandblasted (Theatre Horizon), Untitled (Barrymore Scenic Design Nomination - Inis Nua Theatre). Marie received a Bachelor of Architecture degree from Philadelphia University and enjoys channeling her creative energy through the scenic design process. marielasterdesign.com

Juliette Louste

Lighting Design

Juliette Louste (born in 1988, in France) is a dancer and choreographer, teacher and improviser, as well as technician, technical director and light designer. She studied choreography at the Institut del Teatre in Barcelona, and began to work professionally in the stage world in 2007. After graduating in 2012, she spent a few years living wherever she was working, leading her to places such as Europe, Canada, South Africa, Brazil, Japan, United States and Iceland, where she worked for the first time in 2013. Since 2016, she is based in Reykjavík where she is working as technician for several venues such as Tjarnarbíó, Borgarleikhúsið and Þjóðleikhúsið, light designing numerous shows, technical director of 3 festivals (Reykjavík Dance Festival, Reykjavík Fringe Festival and UNGI), as well as dancing and choreographing. among other for theater pieces. She co-founded PerKinBa in 2009, and Dulmáni in 2019. She is also running Juliette Louste Company since 2012.

Farid Vargas

Sound Design

Farid Vargas began his career in Mexico City, focusing in live engineering for live jazz. After working aboard Norwegian Cruise Lines as an audio engineer for Broadway musicals such as Six! The Musical and Burn the Floor, he moved to New York City. He’s continued his career off Broadway working as an A1 and Production Sound for The Public and St Ann’s Warehouse on Manahatta, The Hunt, Grenfell and The Ghost of John McCain. He’s excited to make his sound design debut with Tin Church.

Adia Victoria

Musician

Adia Victoria is an American singer and songwriter. In addition to playing and writing music, she also writes poetry. Victoria has described her music as "gothic blues". It incorporates elements of rock, blues, punk rock and country music. Victoria has described her music as "gothic blues". In August 2021, Victoria released Magnolia Blues as the lead single from her upcoming third studio album A Southern Gothic. Jon Freeman of Rolling Stone described the song as "an eerie, acoustic-guitar-driven tune that expands to thick bass and a ghostly orchestra of strings and banjo." A Southern Gothic was released on September 17, 2021. https://adiavictoria.fancollab.com/

Goddur

Graphic designer

Goddur (Gudmundur Oddur Magnusson) is a Visual Artist / VisCom Designer now research professor at Iceland University of the Arts. His research work has been on the history of the Icelandic visual Language with more than 30 years of experience in teaching graphic design and as free lance graphic designer. He is educated in fine art in the 70’s with many fluxus artists like Dieter Roth, Hermann Nitsch and Robert Filliou. He graduated in design and photography from Emily Carr University of Art & Design, Vancouver, B.C. 1989. His work has been presented in publications like Graphic Design for the 21st Century (2003), North by North - Scandinavian Graphic Design, Die Gestalten Verla, Berlin 2002 & 55°North - Contemporary Scandinavian Graphic Design, Laurence King Publishing (2002)

Jamibeth Margolis

Casting Director

Jamibeth Margolis, CSA is a professional casting director based in New York City. She was with Johnson-Liff Casting, Cameron Mackintosh, and Margolis-Seay Casting and is now out on her own as a freelance casting director and owner of Jamibeth Margolis Casting And Productions. Previous credits include the Broadway and National Touring Companies of such hits as Les Miserables, The Phantom Of The Opera, Miss Saigon, Cats, and Jane Eyre as well as two dozen other shows on Broadway. She currently casts for Off-Broadway, National Touring Companies and shows for prominent regional theaters and all of the major theater festivals in NYC. She is proud to have cast Harmony by Barry Manilow and Bruce Sussman this past season on Broadway. Her casting office is dedicated to the development of new plays and musicals. Jamibeth won an Artios Award for her casting of Fiddler On The Roof In Yiddish at Stage 42 (directed by Joel Grey). Thank you to the Robyne, Ginny, Hans and the team for this opportunity. Member: Casting Society Of America www.jamibetharts.com

Multimedia

off the WALL Productions (OTWP)

OTWP established by Hans and Virginia Wall Gruenert in 2007, is a non-profit 501 C3 and formerly Carnegie Stage’s Resident Professional Theater Company, working under contract with Actors Equity Association.

In the past 18 years, OTWP produced 76 shows,  including World premieres and Regional premieres .

OTWP's mission is to create a more conscious and compassionate community, while providing a living wage for all artists, and to encourage and support the admiration of all arts and artists by providing a home in which live theater, dance, music, and comedy can be presented, while nurturing, challenging, inspiring and empowering women theater artists from our area and beyond to collaborate as playwrights, directors, technicians, and actors, explore new ideas, and develop new works.

   Viva Holding ehf

ViVa Holding is a dynamic live theater and dance performances producer based in Iceland. We work closely with off the WALL productions (NYC) to bring you unique and captivating shows that will leave you spellbound. Our passion for creativity and innovation is reflected in every performance we produce.