The Gambler is a tale of debauchery, inspired loosely by Dostoevsky’s novel of the same name. It follows two old women, Doris and Gertie, who bust out of the nursing home, only to spiral into a world of gambling and sin at the end of their lives. Creator-performers Rawya El Chab and Kelly Lamanna dance the line between absurdity and sincerity, posing questions about agency, addiction, and society’s relationship with the elderly. In a moment when the weight of mortality feels particularly heavy, these two clowns attempt to make sense of being alive.
TOUR
After a successful run at Loading Dock Theatre in 2022, The Gambler will inaugurate a regional touring program between The Exponential Festival and Baltimore performing arts center Le Mondo, offering New York City artists the chance to tour their work and engage in an artistic exchange, giving them the experience of building relationships with audiences outside of New York City.
The team behind The Gambler is honored to represent the Exponential Festival as its first touring production. As a team of international artists, we are keen to exchange culture between cities. It is as important to us as ever to continue gathering, finding creative bridges, and making space for comedy in bleak times.
WE NEED YOUR HELP
With initial funding from Exponential, The Gambler is on its way to a well-resourced production, but still needs your help! We are crowdfunding to raise an additional $3,000.
60% of the budget will go directly to artists! The remainder will go to production materials (i.e. cardboard, projector rental, paint, wigs, fake cigarettes, etc.) and touring costs (i.e. gas, lodging, meals, etc.)
All donations made to this campaign are tax-deductible!
MEET OUR TEAM
. Rawya El Chab (she/he/they) is a New York-based theater maker who amplifies voices from history and society's margins through performances that weave together archival research, poetry, and audiovisual technology. Her work investigates how personal narratives reflect and challenge power structures while envisioning pathways for transformation. Recent credits include Lula 19/85 & the Pearl of the Bekaa (2024) at La Mama Theater, The Gambler (2022) at the Loading Dock, and Epikoinonia (2023) at The Exponential Festival, The Meltdown (2021) at the Rattlestick Theater. Rawya is currently developing Crossing the Waters, scheduled to open at The Brick Theater, on December 5th 2025. The show is part of a trilogy examining the downfall of the left in Lebanon. @rawyaelchab
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Kelly Lamanna (she/her) is a theater practitioner of many hats, artistic and administrative. She has presented original work with The Brick Theater, Theater for the New City, FEAST, Primary Stages, and Dixon Place. Lamanna has worked as a producer, administrator, and assistant director with Target Margin Theater, Minor Theater, and Meta-Phys Ed. Since 2016, she has co-led an interdisciplinary project called Your Uncle Richard, where artists make new work inspired by one another in a chain of telephone. Connecting filmmakers to be inspired by chefs, dancers to inspire game developers, and neighbors to connect with neighbors.
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Leonie Bell (she/her) is a German-American theater artist from Berlin, based in New York. She produces much of her work as her free-form theater company LOCAL GRANDMA. In NYC, she has presented work at Target Margin Theater, Performance Space NY, BAM, The Whitney Museum, The Brick, Center for Performance Research, and other venues. Her work has been supported by Brooklyn Arts Council, Target Margin Theater, Mental Insight Foundation, NYSCA, Mr. Pancks’ Fund at the Chicago Community Foundation. Sound design awards: 2023 “Mix it Up” Sound Designer of the Year (Young Howze Theatre Awards), La Mama DesignFest 2020, Indie Shorts Awards Cannes 2021 (Phosphor). She is a recent alumna of the Clubbed Thumb Directing Fellowship, Mabou Mines Resident-Artist-Program, and BAX Upstart Program. Leonie also designs sound, directs new & old plays, and likes to collaborate. www.leoniebell.org
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Lianne Elsouki (she/her) is a Brooklyn-based theater maker, actor, and facilitator from Lebanon. Her practice explores how the patterns of the human psyche are intrinsically tied to and mapped out by collective histories and political realities. Lianne seeks to craft work that connects the individual to the collective, the psychological to the political, and the haunting to laughter. Lianne has performed in the 9-hour off-Broadway production One Night with Target Margin Theater, stage-managed The Gambler by Rawya El Chab and Kelly Lamanna with The Exponential Festival, co-created the virtual play Epikoinonia with the same festival, and performed in Leonie Bell’s SchmidtSmithSchmidt at the Brick Theater. She is currently developing The Suicide, a work in progress, with Tracy Chahwan and Lynn Hodeib. @liannesouki
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Jacqueline Scaletta (she/her) is a Brooklyn-based lighting designer. Select credits include: LOBSTER (The Tank), Swallows (La MaMa), Third Law (CultureLab LIC), ONE NIGHT (Target Margin Theater), The Vicky Archives (The Tank), Lula 19/85 & The Pearl of the Bekaa (La MaMa), The Factory (3 Dollar Bill), {in}tangible (Theatre Row), Galatea 2.0 (Brooklyn Art Haus), Ashkenazi Seance (Union Temple, The Brick, The Tank), Repeat Victimization (HERE Arts), MEDEA/BRITNEY (HERE Arts). jacscalettalighting.com.
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Cosette “Ettie” Pin (he/she/they) is an international, multi-disciplinary designer and artist based out of New York City, specialising in lighting, sound, projection, and scenic design for theatre and live performance. Off-Broadway: Stranger Sings! (Sound Design), The Big Reveal: Live Show! (Production Design, LaMama) Select design credits: Shedding a Skin (Sound & Composition, Nightwood), Oraculum (Production Design, Buddies in Bad Times), Velour: A Drag Spectacular (Video, Tectonic Theatre Project, La Jolla Playhouse), Third Law (Video & Sound, WWTNS?), Lula: 19/85 (Video & Scenic, LaMama), Box 4901 (Lighting, Buddies in Bad Times), Traces (Video, WWTNS?), A Winter’s Tale (Sound & Composition, NYSE), Orestes (Video & Scenic, University of Oxford), Children of Fire (Sound, Nightwood), Embodying Power and Place
(Sound & Composition, Nightwood), Every Day She Rose (Sound, Nightwood), Resident Designer (House of Velour), Resident Designer (Sister Sylvester); Awards: Craig Noel Award nomination for Velour: A Drag Spectacular, Dora Award nomination for Box 4901; Education: National Theatre School of Canada www.cosettepin.com
CREDITS
The Gambler Created + performed by Rawya El Chab + Kelly Lamanna Directed by Leonie Bell Stage Manager Lianne Elsouki Projection & Set Design by Ettie Pin Light design by Jacqueline Scaletta
Sound design by Omar Dewachi Illusion Design by Jesse Freedman Nic Adams (Co-Producer) Carly Bales (Co-Producer) The Exponential Festival (Co-presenter + Funder) Le Mondo (Co-presenter)
