Center Players Presents “A Black And White Cookie”

FREEHOLD – Center Players will conclude its successful 2022-23 season with a Signature Series production of “A Black and White Cookie,” an insightful new play by playwright/novelist Gary Morgenstein. The comedic drama will run August 11 to 27 at Center Playhouse at 35 South Street in downtown Freehold.

Named “Best Play” in BroadwayWorld. com’s Regional Awards, “A Black and White Cookie” centers around Harold Wilson, a gruff, conservative African American in his early 70s who finally re-opens his Manhattan newsstand after the pandemic lockdown, but an exorbitant rent increase forces him to close after 30 years and retire. Enter Albie Sands, an eccentric white liberal in his 70s who persuades Harold to fight back. Overcoming their differences, Harold and Albie form an unlikely yet powerful friendship which shows there’s more that unites us than divides us.

Center Players’ Artistic Director Bernice Garfield-Szita will direct the play. She also directed the 2022 production of Morgenstein’s “A Tomato Can’t Grow in the Bronx,” which was awarded “Best Original Play” at the 2022 Perry Awards by the NJ Association of Community Theaters (NJACT).

After a sold out run at Center Playhouse, the production moved to Off Broadway in December 2022.

The cast features New Jersey actors Arthur Gregory Pugh, Jackie Kusher, Vince Fay, Jacynth Apora and Dale Genesis. Performances are Fridays and Saturdays at 8 p.m., and Sundays at 2 p.m. Tickets are priced at $28 to $30 and can be purchased at centerplayers.org or by calling 732-462-9093.

“We are thrilled to present another one of

Gary Morgenstein’s poignant, socially conscious plays,” noted Garfield-Szita. “His characters and themes are penetrating reflections of today’s world and offer insightful and amusing observations which make for great theater.”

Gary Morgenstein’s novels and plays have been featured in national media from the New York Times, Entertainment Weekly, Parade Magazine, the New York Post, Sports Illustrated and NPR. This summer, “A Black and White Cookie” will make its West Coast premiere in Los Angeles at Sky Pilot Theater. An award-winning playwright, Morgenstein’s stage dramas include His Perry Award-winning (Best Original Play) poignant dramedy A Tomato Can’t Grow in the Bronx is about a working-class family in the tumultuous 1960s, while Free Palestine tackles the threat to academic freedom, antisemitism and political bullying triggered by the firing of a Jewish social studies teacher. Morgenstein’s latest work is the romantic dramedy “Walking Charlie,” about a widowed owner of a door factory and a recent immigrant who’s fled Venezuelan oppression, brought together by a pug dog named Charlie. His seven novels include the critically acclaimed dystopian political thrillers “A Mound Over Hell” and “A Fastball for Freedom.”

Celebrating its 21st season at Center Playhouse, Center Players is a respected, award-winning organization, presenting high quality, engaging productions featuring local talent in downtown Freehold. In addition to their signature plays, the group also sponsors free play reading events and offers dinner and theater packages with several local restaurants. For tickets and more information go to centerplayers.org.