Artistic Statement
CATHERINE FILLOUX (Playwright/Librettist) is an award-winning French Algerian American playwright and librettist who has been writing about human rights for many decades. Filloux’s plays and libretti have been produced in the U.S., internationally, and are widely published, anthologized and written about. Catherine’s new trilogy of plays about the environment includes “Olivia,” “Medusa,” and “Deep Time,” developed as part of The Olivia Project at a variety of theaters in New York City. Her new play “Trip of a Lifetime” about Usha Vance is being developed with Hypokrit NYC. Filloux’s epistolary play “Third Person,” about youth and war, recently premiered at CultureHub in New York City, and her new opera “Allegra & the Cello, in Movements” (composer, Julia Schwartz) will premiere in New York City in 2026. Her play “How to Eat an Orange” was commissioned by INTAR, with the premiere at La MaMa in New York City. Her new play “White Savior” was nominated for The Venturous Play List.
Other work includes: Filloux’s livestream web drama “turning your body into a compass” at CultureHub, NYC; “whatdoesfreemean?” at Nora’s Playhouse, NYC; “Kidnap Road”, La MaMa, NYC; “Selma ‘65”,
NYC and U.S. tour; “Luz” at La MaMa and Looking for Lilith in Louisville, KY. “Dog and Wolf”
(59E59 Theaters/Watson Arts, NYC and “Dog and Wolf” Community Outreach Project.); “Killing the
Boss” (Cherry Lane Theatre, NYC); “Lemkin’s House” (Rideau de Bruxelles, Belgium; McGinn-Cazale
Theatre & 78th Street Theatre Lab, NYC; Kamerni teatar 55, Sarajevo, Bosnia); “The Beauty Inside”
(New Georges, NYC and InterAct, Philadelphia; and translated into Arabic for a workshop at ISADAC in
Rabat, Morocco; and produced in Northern Iraq, in Kurdish by ArtRole.) “Eyes of the Heart” (National
Asian American Theatre Co., NYC); “Silence of God” (Contemporary American Theater Festival
[CATF], WV); “Mary and Myra” (CATF and Todd Mountain Theater, NY); “Arthur’s War” (commissioned by Theatreworks/ USA, NYC); “Photographs From S-21”, a short play produced throughout the world; “Escuela del Mundo” (commissioned by The Ohio State University, Columbus and Ohio tour.)
Filloux is the librettist for four produced operas: “New Arrivals” (Houston Grand Opera, composer John Glover); “Where Elephants Weep” (Chenla Theatre, Phnom Penh, Cambodia, composer Him Sophy) broadcast on Cambodian national television and on Broadway on Demand; “The Floating Box” (Asia Society, NYC, composer Jason Kao Hwang) an Opera News Critic’s Choice and released by New World
Records. Catherine is co-librettist with composer Olga Neuwirth for the opera “Orlando”, premiere at the Vienna State Opera and the 2022 Grawemeyer Award winner. “Orlando” is the first opera by a woman composer and woman librettist at the Vienna Staatsoper and recently premiered in Berlin at the Komische Opera. Filloux’s new musical “Welcome to the Big Dipper” (composer Jimmy Roberts, co-book writer John Daggett) premiered Off-Broadway at the York Theatre in New York City and the original Off-Broadway cast recording is by StarVista Music; it was a National Alliance for Musical Theatre finalist.
Catherine has traveled for her plays to conflict areas including Bosnia, Cambodia, Guatemala, Haiti, Iraq; and to Sudan and South Sudan on an overseas reading tour with the University of Iowa's International Writing Program. Filloux was invited to Belfast, Northern Ireland for the Henry Smith Artist in Residence
Programme with The Derry Playhouse. She served as a Juror on the first all-women jury for Sarajevo’s MES
International Theater Festival and developed the Oral History Project “A Circle of Grace” with the Cambodian Women's Group at St. Rita’s Refugee Center in Bronx, NY. Filloux was Playwright Facilitator for the International Playwright Retreat at La MaMa Umbria in Italy and was a Fulbright Senior Specialist in Morocco and Cambodia. She received her French Baccalaureate in Philosophy with Honors in Toulon,
France, and her M.F.A. at New York University, Tisch School of the Arts, Goldberg Department of Dramatic Writing. A speaker and activist, Catherine is the cofounder/co-director of Theatre Without Borders and is featured in the documentary film “Acting Together on the World Stage." www.catherinefilloux.com
Other work includes: Filloux’s livestream web drama “turning your body into a compass” at CultureHub, NYC; “whatdoesfreemean?” at Nora’s Playhouse, NYC; “Kidnap Road”, La MaMa, NYC; “Selma ‘65”,
NYC and U.S. tour; “Luz” at La MaMa and Looking for Lilith in Louisville, KY. “Dog and Wolf”
(59E59 Theaters/Watson Arts, NYC and “Dog and Wolf” Community Outreach Project.); “Killing the
Boss” (Cherry Lane Theatre, NYC); “Lemkin’s House” (Rideau de Bruxelles, Belgium; McGinn-Cazale
Theatre & 78th Street Theatre Lab, NYC; Kamerni teatar 55, Sarajevo, Bosnia); “The Beauty Inside”
(New Georges, NYC and InterAct, Philadelphia; and translated into Arabic for a workshop at ISADAC in
Rabat, Morocco; and produced in Northern Iraq, in Kurdish by ArtRole.) “Eyes of the Heart” (National
Asian American Theatre Co., NYC); “Silence of God” (Contemporary American Theater Festival
[CATF], WV); “Mary and Myra” (CATF and Todd Mountain Theater, NY); “Arthur’s War” (commissioned by Theatreworks/ USA, NYC); “Photographs From S-21”, a short play produced throughout the world; “Escuela del Mundo” (commissioned by The Ohio State University, Columbus and Ohio tour.)
Filloux is the librettist for four produced operas: “New Arrivals” (Houston Grand Opera, composer John Glover); “Where Elephants Weep” (Chenla Theatre, Phnom Penh, Cambodia, composer Him Sophy) broadcast on Cambodian national television and on Broadway on Demand; “The Floating Box” (Asia Society, NYC, composer Jason Kao Hwang) an Opera News Critic’s Choice and released by New World
Records. Catherine is co-librettist with composer Olga Neuwirth for the opera “Orlando”, premiere at the Vienna State Opera and the 2022 Grawemeyer Award winner. “Orlando” is the first opera by a woman composer and woman librettist at the Vienna Staatsoper and recently premiered in Berlin at the Komische Opera. Filloux’s new musical “Welcome to the Big Dipper” (composer Jimmy Roberts, co-book writer John Daggett) premiered Off-Broadway at the York Theatre in New York City and the original Off-Broadway cast recording is by StarVista Music; it was a National Alliance for Musical Theatre finalist.
Catherine has traveled for her plays to conflict areas including Bosnia, Cambodia, Guatemala, Haiti, Iraq; and to Sudan and South Sudan on an overseas reading tour with the University of Iowa's International Writing Program. Filloux was invited to Belfast, Northern Ireland for the Henry Smith Artist in Residence
Programme with The Derry Playhouse. She served as a Juror on the first all-women jury for Sarajevo’s MES
International Theater Festival and developed the Oral History Project “A Circle of Grace” with the Cambodian Women's Group at St. Rita’s Refugee Center in Bronx, NY. Filloux was Playwright Facilitator for the International Playwright Retreat at La MaMa Umbria in Italy and was a Fulbright Senior Specialist in Morocco and Cambodia. She received her French Baccalaureate in Philosophy with Honors in Toulon,
France, and her M.F.A. at New York University, Tisch School of the Arts, Goldberg Department of Dramatic Writing. A speaker and activist, Catherine is the cofounder/co-director of Theatre Without Borders and is featured in the documentary film “Acting Together on the World Stage." www.catherinefilloux.com
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Catherine Filloux
Artistic Statement
CATHERINE FILLOUX (Playwright/Librettist) is an award-winning French Algerian American playwright and librettist who has been writing about human rights for many decades. Filloux’s plays and libretti have been produced in the U.S., internationally, and are widely published, anthologized and written about. Catherine’s new trilogy of plays about the environment includes “Olivia,” “Medusa,” and “Deep Time,” developed as part of The Olivia Project at a variety of theaters in New York City. Her new play “Trip of a Lifetime” about Usha Vance is being developed with Hypokrit NYC. Filloux’s epistolary play “Third Person,” about youth and war, recently premiered at CultureHub in New York City, and her new opera “Allegra & the Cello, in Movements” (composer, Julia Schwartz) will premiere in New York City in 2026. Her play “How to Eat an Orange” was commissioned by INTAR, with the premiere at La MaMa in New York City. Her new play “White Savior” was nominated for The Venturous Play List.
Other work includes: Filloux’s livestream web drama “turning your body into a compass” at CultureHub, NYC; “whatdoesfreemean?” at Nora’s Playhouse, NYC; “Kidnap Road”, La MaMa, NYC; “Selma ‘65”,
NYC and U.S. tour; “Luz” at La MaMa and Looking for Lilith in Louisville, KY. “Dog and Wolf”
(59E59 Theaters/Watson Arts, NYC and “Dog and Wolf” Community Outreach Project.); “Killing the
Boss” (Cherry Lane Theatre, NYC); “Lemkin’s House” (Rideau de Bruxelles, Belgium; McGinn-Cazale
Theatre & 78th Street Theatre Lab, NYC; Kamerni teatar 55, Sarajevo, Bosnia); “The Beauty Inside”
(New Georges, NYC and InterAct, Philadelphia; and translated into Arabic for a workshop at ISADAC in
Rabat, Morocco; and produced in Northern Iraq, in Kurdish by ArtRole.) “Eyes of the Heart” (National
Asian American Theatre Co., NYC); “Silence of God” (Contemporary American Theater Festival
[CATF], WV); “Mary and Myra” (CATF and Todd Mountain Theater, NY); “Arthur’s War” (commissioned by Theatreworks/ USA, NYC); “Photographs From S-21”, a short play produced throughout the world; “Escuela del Mundo” (commissioned by The Ohio State University, Columbus and Ohio tour.)
Filloux is the librettist for four produced operas: “New Arrivals” (Houston Grand Opera, composer John Glover); “Where Elephants Weep” (Chenla Theatre, Phnom Penh, Cambodia, composer Him Sophy) broadcast on Cambodian national television and on Broadway on Demand; “The Floating Box” (Asia Society, NYC, composer Jason Kao Hwang) an Opera News Critic’s Choice and released by New World
Records. Catherine is co-librettist with composer Olga Neuwirth for the opera “Orlando”, premiere at the Vienna State Opera and the 2022 Grawemeyer Award winner. “Orlando” is the first opera by a woman composer and woman librettist at the Vienna Staatsoper and recently premiered in Berlin at the Komische Opera. Filloux’s new musical “Welcome to the Big Dipper” (composer Jimmy Roberts, co-book writer John Daggett) premiered Off-Broadway at the York Theatre in New York City and the original Off-Broadway cast recording is by StarVista Music; it was a National Alliance for Musical Theatre finalist.
Catherine has traveled for her plays to conflict areas including Bosnia, Cambodia, Guatemala, Haiti, Iraq; and to Sudan and South Sudan on an overseas reading tour with the University of Iowa's International Writing Program. Filloux was invited to Belfast, Northern Ireland for the Henry Smith Artist in Residence
Programme with The Derry Playhouse. She served as a Juror on the first all-women jury for Sarajevo’s MES
International Theater Festival and developed the Oral History Project “A Circle of Grace” with the Cambodian Women's Group at St. Rita’s Refugee Center in Bronx, NY. Filloux was Playwright Facilitator for the International Playwright Retreat at La MaMa Umbria in Italy and was a Fulbright Senior Specialist in Morocco and Cambodia. She received her French Baccalaureate in Philosophy with Honors in Toulon,
France, and her M.F.A. at New York University, Tisch School of the Arts, Goldberg Department of Dramatic Writing. A speaker and activist, Catherine is the cofounder/co-director of Theatre Without Borders and is featured in the documentary film “Acting Together on the World Stage." www.catherinefilloux.com
Other work includes: Filloux’s livestream web drama “turning your body into a compass” at CultureHub, NYC; “whatdoesfreemean?” at Nora’s Playhouse, NYC; “Kidnap Road”, La MaMa, NYC; “Selma ‘65”,
NYC and U.S. tour; “Luz” at La MaMa and Looking for Lilith in Louisville, KY. “Dog and Wolf”
(59E59 Theaters/Watson Arts, NYC and “Dog and Wolf” Community Outreach Project.); “Killing the
Boss” (Cherry Lane Theatre, NYC); “Lemkin’s House” (Rideau de Bruxelles, Belgium; McGinn-Cazale
Theatre & 78th Street Theatre Lab, NYC; Kamerni teatar 55, Sarajevo, Bosnia); “The Beauty Inside”
(New Georges, NYC and InterAct, Philadelphia; and translated into Arabic for a workshop at ISADAC in
Rabat, Morocco; and produced in Northern Iraq, in Kurdish by ArtRole.) “Eyes of the Heart” (National
Asian American Theatre Co., NYC); “Silence of God” (Contemporary American Theater Festival
[CATF], WV); “Mary and Myra” (CATF and Todd Mountain Theater, NY); “Arthur’s War” (commissioned by Theatreworks/ USA, NYC); “Photographs From S-21”, a short play produced throughout the world; “Escuela del Mundo” (commissioned by The Ohio State University, Columbus and Ohio tour.)
Filloux is the librettist for four produced operas: “New Arrivals” (Houston Grand Opera, composer John Glover); “Where Elephants Weep” (Chenla Theatre, Phnom Penh, Cambodia, composer Him Sophy) broadcast on Cambodian national television and on Broadway on Demand; “The Floating Box” (Asia Society, NYC, composer Jason Kao Hwang) an Opera News Critic’s Choice and released by New World
Records. Catherine is co-librettist with composer Olga Neuwirth for the opera “Orlando”, premiere at the Vienna State Opera and the 2022 Grawemeyer Award winner. “Orlando” is the first opera by a woman composer and woman librettist at the Vienna Staatsoper and recently premiered in Berlin at the Komische Opera. Filloux’s new musical “Welcome to the Big Dipper” (composer Jimmy Roberts, co-book writer John Daggett) premiered Off-Broadway at the York Theatre in New York City and the original Off-Broadway cast recording is by StarVista Music; it was a National Alliance for Musical Theatre finalist.
Catherine has traveled for her plays to conflict areas including Bosnia, Cambodia, Guatemala, Haiti, Iraq; and to Sudan and South Sudan on an overseas reading tour with the University of Iowa's International Writing Program. Filloux was invited to Belfast, Northern Ireland for the Henry Smith Artist in Residence
Programme with The Derry Playhouse. She served as a Juror on the first all-women jury for Sarajevo’s MES
International Theater Festival and developed the Oral History Project “A Circle of Grace” with the Cambodian Women's Group at St. Rita’s Refugee Center in Bronx, NY. Filloux was Playwright Facilitator for the International Playwright Retreat at La MaMa Umbria in Italy and was a Fulbright Senior Specialist in Morocco and Cambodia. She received her French Baccalaureate in Philosophy with Honors in Toulon,
France, and her M.F.A. at New York University, Tisch School of the Arts, Goldberg Department of Dramatic Writing. A speaker and activist, Catherine is the cofounder/co-director of Theatre Without Borders and is featured in the documentary film “Acting Together on the World Stage." www.catherinefilloux.com