HALEY RICE, in association with Messy Stars Productions, is pleased to announce Isaac Byrne’s reimagining of the classic Greek myth, The Minotaur and Theseus, THE LADDER, directed by Haley Rice.
The monster in this story is very real.
“Byrne can take the thread of an idea, the everyday pains of living in uncertain times, and spin it into a fierce yarn...there are moments that may shock you out of your seat.” - Woman Around Town, on Under The Dragon’s Tail
“Reminiscent of Sam Shepard...” - Offoffonline, On Under The Dragon’s Tail
“Isaac Byrne’s writing and direction show that theater can still be cerebral and gut-Wrenching.” - Theater is Easy, On Ophiology
“Superbly talented...wonderful monologues...delivered beautifully” - Stage Biz - Theater is Easy, On Ophiology
THE LADDER
The monster in this story is very real.
Written by ISAAC BYRNE
Directed by HALEY RICE
Starring JAMES JELKIN*, JUSTIN SENENSE*, REBEKAH RAWHOUSER*, KEN ORMAN, LUCY TURNER
TWO-WEEK LIMITED ENGAGEMENT
JANUARY 31 – FEBRUARY 15TH 2026
IRT THEATER
OPENING NIGHT IS SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 2, AT 7:30 P.M.
TICKETS ON SALE NOW
HALEY RICE, in association with Messy Stars Productions, is pleased to announce Isaac Byrne’s reimagining of the classic Greek myth, The Minotaur and Theseus, THE LADDER, directed by Haley Rice. THE LADDER will play a two-week limited engagement at IRT THEATER (154 West Christopher St, 3B). Performances begin Saturday, January 31st, and continue through Sunday, February 15th. Opening Night is Monday, February 2nd, 2026 (7:30 pm.) Tickets are $20 in advance here and $30 at the door.
The Ladder reimagines the ancient Greek myth of Theseus and the Minotaur as you’ve never seen it before, through fractured stories, competing truths, and the haunting aftermath of heroism itself. Big T enters the Labyrinth to slay the monster and free his people, but what unfolds is not a tale of clean victory. Instead, the play unravels how legends are built: through omission, manipulation, and the silencing of those whose stories complicate the triumph.
Shifting between the terror of the maze, the erotic bravado of conquest, and the raw devastation left in its wake, the play reveals the hidden costs of Big T’s rise to fame. Ariadne, the princess who gives him the means to survive the Labyrinth, is abandoned and erased from history. Sexy, scary, absurd, and unsettlingly funny, The Ladder is a blood-soaked, nightmarish, and psychologically charged dismantling of heroic mythology. It interrogates masculinity, power, storytelling, and survival, not to celebrate the monster-slayer, but to expose how monsters are made, remembered, and rewritten. This is man versus monster from the inside out: a savage, intimate look at glory, shame, and the stories we climb in order to survive.
The production stars James Jelkin* (Film/TV: Chicago PD, Dependence, The Job, Mordeo, Theatre: Transgression at HERE Arts Center), Justin Senense* (Film/TV: The Girl Who Left Home, Filling the Void, The Audition, Theatre: National Tours of Hair, Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat), Rebekah Rawhouser* (Film/TV: Cassie Kaleidoscope, 15 to Sunrise, Theatre: Primordial at The Tank), Ken Orman (Film/TV: Vindication, My Brother’s Wife, Love & Death, Theatre: By Design, Lone Star, Regional: Trouble in Mind, Our Town/Nuestro Pueblo), and Lucy Turner (Film/TV: Chains of Redemption, Calendar, Red Right Hand, The 1:38 Train, Shades of Scarlet, Theatre: Meet Cute). *Performing courtesy of Actors’ Equity Association. AEA approved showcase.
The Ladder features lighting design by David Aab, Sound Engineering by Josh Koback (Liilaa Records Studio & Co-CEO of Vrialto Inc), and costume design by Caycee Black (Season 19 of Project Runway on Bravo, Best New Designer in WWD, Lucky Magazine and Vogue UK.) The Production Stage Manager is Annie Sheehy. Publicity by Katie Rosin/Kampfire PR.
The Ladder plays the following schedule through Sunday, February 15th:
Jan 31st - 7:30pm
Feb 1st - 7:30pm
Feb 2nd - 7:30pm - Official Opening
Feb 6th - 7:30pm
Feb 7th - 7:30pm
Feb 8th - 2pm
Feb 9th - 7:30pm
Feb 13th - 7:30pm
Feb 14th - 7:30pm
Feb 15th - 2pm
Tickets begin at $20 and are available here.
Running Time: 95 Minutes
Instagram: @the_tales_of_hales
BIOGRAPHIES
Isaac Byrne (Playwright) In 2019, Isaac started writing plays, and their work has been produced in NYC at the Chain Theater—Letters to a Young Cosmonaut—and the Matthew Corozine Studio—Under the Dragon’s Tail. Lots of staged readings in NYC, at the Fusion Theater in Albuquerque, and the Theater Upstairs in Phoenix. Kira Mira, Dear was selected for the Top 30 OOB Sam French Short Play Festival. Isaac has also had three monologues selected by Smith & Kraus Best Men’s and Best Women’s Stage Monologues. The Ladder, a wild reimagining of the Theseus myth, is slated for production at IRT in NYC in January 2026. Before playwriting, Isaac spent roughly two decades in NYC directing new plays in various Off-Broadway venues and was even awarded the New York Innovative Theatre Award for Outstanding Direction twice. Productions they’ve directed have also been nominated for Drama Desk Awards, an Off Broadway Alliance award, 25 NYIT awards, and various other commendations. Isaac is a proud member of the Dramatist Guild. www.isaacbyrne.com
Haley Rice (director) is a NYC-based director, writer, and producer passionate about developing new work. Director credits: BAD EGG by Kirsten Kilburn (Theatre 4the People's Solo Show Festival 2025), Kira Mira, Deara by Isaac Byrne (Sam French OOB Festival 2025), Sperm Donor Wanted by T.J. Young (Theatre 4the People, 2024). Film: This Is Love?! (MSP, selections at Julien Dubuque FF and SoHo International FF). Proud to be asked by the late Ted Wold to direct his 2021 production of Sunday on the Rocks. She teaches WRITERS’ BLOCK, an 8-week online lab for writers to develop their work. @the_tales_of_hales
# # #
Listings Information:
Who: Haley Rice, in association with Messy Stars Productions
What: The Ladder by Isaac Byrne
Where: IRT THEATER (154 West Christopher St, 3B)
When: Saturday, January 31st - Sunday, February 15th
How: Tickets begin at $20 at https://www.eventbrite.com/e/irt-presents-haley-rices-production-of-the-ladder-tickets-1980266690980
If you’re telling yourself that this is just a story, you need to know: The monster in this story is very real.
