Independent Arts News Reporting "The Castle" the Hit Off-Broadway Play that offers a First-Hand look at the lives of four Formerly Incarcerated New Yorkers and their Re-entry into Society
Reported on Friday, October 23, 2026.
Pictured Above: The Castle. Photo Credit: Contributed.
NEWRSOOM POST: NEW YORK, NEW YORK
To play a special performance Sunday, November 15 at 2PM at The Castle, 625 W. 140th street, NYC
Proceeds benefit The Fortune Society supporting successful reentry from incarceration and promote alternatives to incarceration
New York, NY — The Castle – the hit Off-Broadway play that offers a first-hand account of life in and after prison – will play a special matinee on Sunday, November 15 at 2PM at the site that inspired it, The Fortune Society’s The Castle, (625 West 140th, NYC). Tickets are $25 and are now available at donate.fortunesociety.org/
Inspired by the supportive housing residence run by The Fortune Society in upper Manhattan, The Castle offers a searing, first-hand look at the lives of four formerly incarcerated New Yorkers and their re-entry into society. Conceived and directed by David Rothenberg, Founder of The Fortune Society, the cast for The Castle includes Vilma Ortiz Donovan, Philip Hall, Ervin Hunt and Casimiro Torres – all of whom tell real-life stories – some personal – of their re-entry experience. The Castle officially opened at Manhattan’s New World Stages in April, 2008, after a long development process, and went on to run successfully Off-Broadway for over a year. Beyond New York theaters, Rothenberg and rotating casts of Fortune community members have taken the production on tour to prisons, universities, churches, and community organizations across the country.
“I love that my personal story – my hurt and pain, my hope – as reflected in this play, can help people heal,” says Vilma Ortiz Donovan, one of the plays creators and original cast members. “It gives me great joy to share my experience with others who aspire to find what I have found through my experience with Fortune Society.”
“When I return to Rikers island to perform this play, it is difficult seeing people going through what was once my life,” says Casimiro Torres, one of the plays creators and original cast members. “Sharing my story with audiences, as an actor, gives me a glimpse of my past and reassurance of who I am today …a taxpayer.”
“People tend to have a stereotyped notion of who’s incarcerated,” says Rothenberg. “I think when they see people presenting their lives or being creative, they have to reconsider their preconceived notion. The Castle is moving. The Castle is eye-opening. And on November 15, The Castle returns to the place where it all started.”
Founded in 1967, The Fortune Society has advocated on criminal justice issues for more than five decades and is nationally recognized for developing model programs that help people with criminal justice histories become assets to their communities. Fortune offers a holistic and integrated “one-stop-shopping” model of service provision, including discharge planning, licensed outpatient substance use and mental health treatment, alternatives to incarceration, HIV/AIDS services, career development and job retention, education, family services, drop-in services, and supportive housing, as well as lifetime access to aftercare. For more information, visit www.fortunesociety.org.
