Written by MICKEY GOOCH, JR.
Starring STAR AMERASU, OLAMIDE ASANPAOLA, LEO JASPER DAVIS, MICKEY GOOCH JR., JOE REGELBRUGGE, SAMUEL SELMAN, WALKER STOVALL, and JASON YANTO
Directed by SAM LAFRAGE
AMT Theater • 354 W 45th Street, New York, NY 10036
Previews Begin May 31, 2026 • Opening Night June 5, 2026
Limited Engagement Through June 21, 2026
NEW YORK, NY: Thursday, April 23, 2026 b— Star Amerasu joins the cast of Mickey Gooch, Jr’s Silverback Mountain, directed by Slam Frank's Sam LaFrage, with musical direction by Jaz Koft, choreography by Nico DeJesus, and music arrangements and copyist work by Bryan Blaskie, a twisted comic adventure about love, identity, and survival, set against the absurd collision of gay culture and anti-gay persecution. SILVERBACK MOUNTAIN will play a three-week limited engagement at Off-Broadway’s Theatre AMT Theater (354 West 45th Street, New York, NY 10036). Performances begin Sunday, May 31, and continue through Sunday, June 21. Opening Night is Friday, June 5 (8 p.m.). Tickets are $25-$85 and available at www.SilverBackMountainPlay.com. \u200b
Mickey, a 43-year-old New York artist with a chronic fear of commitment, and his boyfriend Andy, a high-achieving architect with a bottomless appetite for drama and a cheeseburger without the cheese, have been together for five years. Andy wants more, specifically, monogamy. Mickey wants space. And somewhere in the middle of that argument, they end up on a gorilla trekking trip to Uganda.
But when their relationship—and their identities—are unexpectedly exposed, the trip spirals into something far more dangerous than a breakup. Suddenly, it’s up to a disgruntled drag queen waitress and a coked out twink from Brooklyn to help save them from a situation neither of them saw coming.
SILVERBACK MOUNTAIN is a chaotic adventure that blends screwball comedy, a love story, and a jailbreak into a musical romp. Featuring gay mountain people, a gorilla named Undatee, and Wendy Williams, the play explores the courage it takes to genuinely say "I love you" in a world that constantly tries to silence it.
The production stars Mickey Gooch Jr. (Film: How to Be Single) as Mickey, Star Amerasu (Film: Elliot Page’s After Hours (2024); Stage: \u200b Jeremy O. Harris’s NORF) as Miss Jackson, Olamide Asanpaola (Stage: U/S Slam Frank) as Tumaini / Others, Leo Jasper Davis (Stage: The Legend of the Chalk Circle and Treasure Island) as Mamadu / Others, Joe Regelbrugge as Andy, Samuel Selman as Mustafa /Others, Walker Stovall (Stage: Slam Frank) as Marty, Jason Yanto as Kai / Others, and \u200b Understudies: Kahlil S. Harvey (Mamadu, Mustafa,Tumaini, Miss Jackson), Jackson Whittier (Mickey, Kai), and Collins Rush (Andy, Marty).
The production features scenic design by Josh Oberlander, costume design by Sarah Lockwood, lighting design by Coby Chasman-Beck, sound design by Brandon Hilfer, projection design by Zack Lobel, and props design and set dressing by Sean Frank. Production management by Kyle Daniels, stage management by Julie Cai, assistant stage management by Jaden Cavalleri and press and marketing by Kampfire Films PR.
Website: SilverBackMountainPlay.com
\u200b@silverbackmtn
MICKEY GOOCH JR. (Playwright) is a New York–based actor, producer, and writer working across theatre, film, and television. As a producer, he was part of the producing team on The Trial of the Chicago 7, the Academy Award–nominated and Golden Globe–winning film written and directed by Aaron Sorkin. He also served as a co-producer on the Broadway musical The Heart of Rock and Roll, which ran in Spring 2024.
As an actor, Gooch has appeared in studio and independent films, including How to Single, The Clapper, and Deported. His work often centers on complex, flawed characters, blending dark comedy with emotional realism.
Across his work on stage and screen, Gooch brings an actor’s sensibility to producing and a producer’s perspective to performance, with a focus on character-driven storytelling grounded in lived experience, vulnerability, and humor.
SAM LAFRAGE (Director) is an award-winning director, writer, and Artistic Director of Ragtag Theatre Company. His productions of Rapunzel and Cinderella have toured the East Coast, with Cinderella winning the Off-Broadway Alliance Award for Best Family Show after a sold-out run. Time Out New York hailed it as “New York’s most over-the-top take on Cinderella!” while Out Magazine called it “A Must-See.” Both Rapunzel (OBA nominee) and Cinderella (OBA winner) ran Off-Broadway at the SoHo Playhouse, McGinn/Cazale Theater, and Theatre Row, and have since been produced by eleven companies and universities in five states. Additional credits include: Snow White (Playwrights Horizons), Hansel and Gretel (Barrington Stage), Dome (Pace University), Sassy Cinderella (Sharon Playhouse), Jack and the Beanstalk (Barrington Stage), and The Substance (Laurie Beechman). He served as Assistant Director/Drag Consultant on Douglas Carter Beane’s To Wong Foo and teaches Devised Theatre at Barrington Stage Company. Sam is currently the director of the Off- Broadway hit Slam Frank, which Ben Brantley of The New York Times called “the most important new show around.”
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