Geva Theatre comedy wins Obie Award

ROCHESTER, N.Y. — Geva Theatre’s upcoming comedy production, Russian Troll Farm, and its director won an Obie Award on Monday.

The 66th Obie Award, the highest honor for off-Broadway Theatre, celebrates outstanding innovation in the theatre industry. You can see the full award show from Monday here.

The play’s director, Elizabeth Williamson, joined Geva Theatre as the artistic director last year ahead of its 50th anniversary season. The New York Times listed the original virtual production of Russian Troll Farm as both a critic’s pick and best theatre of 2020.

The play is about employees at the infamous Internet Research Agency tasked with manipulating social media to advance the Russian agenda. The play’s writer, Sarah Gancher, said she became fascinated by the internet trolls who made fake accounts, wrote fake news, and crafted memes leading up to the 2016 election to “make Americans feel divided and hopeless.”

“Trolls spend all day making up characters, writing dialogue, staging fights, triggering strong emotions. Then I realized, ‘wait a minute, they’re playwrights,’ she said.

The play’s in-person world premiere will run from Tuesday, Feb. 28 through Sunday, March 26 at Geva. You can get tickets here. You can watch the acceptance speech below.