By Suzanne Ordas Curry
I went to see the World Premiere of John Patrick Shanley‘s Mountain Girl in previews before Opening Day November 6, 2026 at 154 Theater in New York City. The theater was full with younger and older theater-goers and I knew it was already sold out for opening night. It’s no wonder the crowds came out as John Patrick Stanley is a Pulitzer Prize, Academy Award and Tony-winning playwright who is still creating works of art into his seventh decade. The play is a co-production between Axial Theater and Nylon Fusion.
The story is one of intense, bizarre relationships. There is the main relationship between the mother and daughter, the daughter and her husband and through dialogue only other relationships in their pasts. The play begins in their Brooklyn apartment, and ends in Colorado.
Right off the bat, in the intimate setting of the theater the production quality stood out. I was pleasantly surprised and happy that there were several changes of scenery. The set design was just enough to distinguish between the different acts of the play and locations and sometimes it was quite ambitious given the scope of the production.
Right off the bat, in the intimate setting of the theater the production quality stood out. I was pleasantly surprised and happy that there were several changes of scenery. The set design was just enough to distinguish between the different acts of the play and locations and sometimes it was quite ambitious given the scope of the production.
The acting was superb. In this 3-hander all actors became their characters flawlessly. Sophie DeMornay-O'Neal exuded the craziness of this lost girl who did not know what she wanted to do with her life and had to recoup, recharge and reinvent herself after a disappointing life and a tumultuous relationship with her mother. And her husband.
Mountain Girl's mother was played by Tonya Cornelisse. She was flawlessly convincing as a scholarly, yet Bohemian writer engrossed in her own troubles, easily placing blame but smart enough to ponder her own choices. I especially liked the fact that with only three in the cast, one of them was an older woman.
We met Joey Welsh, who plays the husband, in the first act. This character was harder to figure out. Though his wife was not exactly adhering to her vows, as a man and a struggling writer I would not call him a stand-up guy either. Joey did a great job portraying this mixed-up millenial.
The play of course is as it is by John Patrick Stanley is a joy to hear. The dialogue is rich and the characters are full bodied. The story has its twists and turns. This play is engaging, interesting and keeps you listening. As these characters are larger than life the end is not always predictable. We do get our answer though on what the title means.
About the Production:
Two work-in-progress presentations of Mountain Girl were held in Los Angeles in 2022. The play was subsequently developed during a five-day workshop in Paris in the spring of 2025, concluding with an informal presentation for invited guests. NylonFusion Theatre Company and Axial Theatre's production at 154 Theatre marks the world premiere.
Produced by Three-Time Daytime Emmy-Award winner Cady McClain, Mountain Girl’s creative team includes Elizabeth Chaney (Set Design), Andy Evan Cohen (Sound Design), Lucky Pearto (Lighting Design), Janet Mervin (Costume Design), Karli Fisher (Stage Manager) and Daniel DeMello (Press Representative).