Aphasia

APHASIA

A play in verse written and performed by Marc J. Straus

Directed by Mara Mills

Produced by Jeremy Gratt, Studio Theater in Exile

The Chain Theatre, 3rd Floor

312 West 36th Street, NY, NY

October 9 - 11. Friday 7:00, Saturday 7:00 Sunday 3:00.

All Tickets: $40

For three performances only, acclaimed poet, playwright, physician and art collector Marc J. Straus will bring his deeply personal play in verse, APHASIA, to New York City from October 9 through October 11, 2026. As part of the Factory Series at the Chain Theatre 312 W. 36th Street, 3rd floor.

Written and performed by Straus, APHASIA is directed by Mara Mills, with stage production by Jeremy Gratt. The play was inspired by Straus’ mother, Dora, and the devastating stroke that left her unable to communicate with those around her.

Dora Straus awakens in an emergency room after suffering a massive stroke that has caused paralysis on her right side and aphasia. Although she understands everything happening around her, she cannot make herself understood.

A formidable, brilliant and fiercely competitive woman, Dora graduated from college as valedictorian at the age of 76. Now soundless and entirely dependent upon others, she is forced to confront her life, her relationships and her own mortality. Through a series of intimate soliloquies, Dora takes full stock of a life that was complicated, demanding and richly lived.

At times sad, funny and angry—but always unflinchingly honest—APHASIA gives voice to a woman who has lost the ability to speak.

Straus himself assumes the role of Dora, channeling his mother’s story through a series of poignant and lyrical reflections. In performing the role, he speaks both for her and to her, creating an intimate portrait of a mother as remembered by her eldest son.

“APHASIA is my way of honoring my mother by giving voice to the thoughts and feelings she could no longer express after her stroke,” said Straus. “Dora was brilliant, formidable and unforgettable, but she could also be deeply difficult. Writing and performing this play has allowed me to confront those memories honestly while preserving the full complexity of who my mother was. It is an act of remembrance, reckoning and, ultimately, compassion.”

ABOUT MARC J. STRAUS

Marc J. Straus is a renowned poet whose work has appeared in leading literary journals including The Kenyon Review and Ploughshares. He is the author of four poetry collections, three of which were published by TriQuarterly Books/Northwestern University Press.

Straus has received numerous honors, including the Robert Penn Warren Annual Award Lecture in the Humanities from Yale University and a residency at Yaddo. He is a former Chairman of Oncology and Professor of Medicine.

In 2011, he opened MARC STRAUS, a contemporary art gallery in New York City. He and his wife, Livia, are noted art collectors and founded Hudson Valley MOCA in Peekskill, New York, in 2001.

APHASIA is Straus’ second play. His first play, NOT GOD, has been performed in theatres across the United States, including Off-Broadway.