SEASON 39 | January 2027
The Trial: A Funhouse Mirror Reflection of Race in America
January 14 - February 6, 2027
ASL-Interpreted - Saturday, January 16, 2027- 8:00PM
Livestream - Thursday, January 21, 2027 8:00PM CT
“Industry night” - Wednesday, February 3, 2026 8:00PM –2-for-1 on Wednesday with donation of 2 cans of food for SAFE
The VORTEX is thrilled to present a fresh new version of one of Le Monde’s Top 100 Books of the 20th Century, The Trial by Franz Kafka. Adapted and directed by award-winning theatre artist Charles P. Stites, The Trial: A Funhouse Mirror Reflection of Race in America embraces the absurd intricacies of being Black in America.
One of Franz Kafka’s best-known works, The Trial tells the story of Josef K., a man arrested and prosecuted by an inaccessible authority for an unknown crime. Written in 1914-15 in Germany as World War I began, The Trial is considered a cornerstone of absurdist literature. Charles P. Stites has adapted the novel, bringing the story to life on stage for new generations. As part of the development of this new play, The VORTEX hosted a successful reading in 2025.
Like most theatre, this play will captivate the audience with humor, tension, and tragedy. In the current political environment, with masked agents swooping in to arrest people on the streets with no clear crime; in this era of the deliberate erosion of voting rights with the intentional dilution of Black voices; in this time when dissent is silenced by force – the plight of Josef K. is far more than entertainment. His fall is a warped reflection of the reality marginalized people face in the current iteration of oppression. Our goals are to engage audiences in thought, discourse, and action around issues of inequity and persecution in present-day America, and to bring audiences from around the state into our cultural district.
The award-winning cast stars Marc A. Pouhé as Joseph K. The cast also includes Florinda Bryant, Christopher Michael Brown, Rick Felkins, Bryan Headrick, Zac Carr, Milaka Falk, Kevin Gates, Rosalind Gates, Laura D’Eramo, and Charles P. Stites.
Directed by Charles P. Stites. The award-winning design team include Chad Salvata (Sound Design and Original Music) Ann Marie Gordon (Scenic Design), Amy Lewis (Lighting Design), Keelan Moses (Costume Design), Ivy Vidal (Hair/makeup Design), Bonnie Cullum, Producing Artistic Director. Katie Hamilton, Production Manager. Tamara L. Farley, Stage Manager. Jaimee Harmon-Taboni, Assistant Director. Morgan Smithwick, Dramaturgy.
The Trial: A Funhouse Mirror Reflection of Race in America is funded and supported in part by VORTEX Repertory Company, The Texas Commission on the Arts District Grant, The Shubert Foundation, and the City of Austin Economic Development Department. We are proud Core Members of the National New Play Network, Six Square-Austin’s Black Cultural District, ATX Theatre, and the Network of Ensemble Theatres.
Charles P. Stites (Writer/Director) is a graduate of The University of Texas at Austin and a veteran of the Austin theatre scene since 1989. He has received nineteen B. Iden Payne nominations as an actor, director, playwright, designer, and producer, winning for Outstanding Lead Performer in a Drama for Straitjacket: Variations on a Theme of Horror in 2021 and Best Featured Actor in a Comedy for Fools in 2002.
Marc A. Pouhé (Josef K.) is a versatile actor, writer, and filmmaker with a career spanning over two decades. He previously appeared at The VORTEX in Lisa B. Thompson's award-winning play Underground, which makes its 10-year anniversary production at The VORTEX in 2027 and who is celebrated for commanding lead roles in classical and contemporary theater. He has won many awards: Austin Critics’ Table, Bustin Award for Conspicuous Versatility, and B. Iden Payne. He holds a B.A. in Electronic Media and Theatre from Texas State University.
Bonnie Cullum (Producing Artistic Director) co-founded The VORTEX in 1988, creating and presenting hundreds of innovative productions. She earned an MFA in Directing (UT Austin) and a BA in Theatre (KU). Honored three times as Austin’s Best Director by the Austin Chronicle, Cullum also received four B. Iden Payne Awards for Best Director and three Critics’ Table Awards for Performance Park. She was inducted into the Austin Arts Hall of Fame in 2009.