Amber Heard, Brandon Flynn Join Jeremy O. Harris Play ‘Spirit of the People’(EXCLUSIVE)

Lío Mehiel also joins cast of Williamstown Theatre Festival premiere.

Amber Heard Brandon Flynn
Courtesy image/Hunter Abrams

Amber Heard, Brandon Flynn and Lío Mehiel have joined the ensemble cast of the world premiere production of Jeremy O. Harris’ “Spirit of the People.” Directed by Katina Medina Mora, “Spirit of the People” is being presented as part of the 2025 Williamstown Theatre Festival.

The trio of actors join previously announced cast members such as Tony Award nominee Ato Blankson-Wood, Tony Award nominee James Cusati-Moyer, Amandla Jahava, Emma Ramos, Julian Sanchez, Zachary Booth and Tonatiuh.

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Heard’s films and television work includes “Aquaman,” “Zombieland,” “Pineapple Express” and Stephen King’s “The Stand.” Flynn starred in Netflix’s “13 Reasons Why” and also appeared this spring in the Off-Broadway hit “Kowalski.” Mehiel was the star of the Sundance breakout film “Mutt.

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The festival is now in its 71st season and has undergone a shake up. The festival’s artistic decisions are being overseen by what is being called the Creative Collective, a new collaborative leadership model. It’s led by Harris, along with actor, model, and co-founder of the online book club “Library Science,” Kaia Gerber and her co-founder Alyssa Reeder, entrepreneur and producer Alex Stoclet, and dancer and member of American Theatre’s “2023’s 6 to watch,” Christopher Rudd. In an interview with Variety last February, Harris said he was motivated to reimagine the summer stock festival along the lines of Coachella or Lollapalooza.

“The American festivals that work the best and that people are most thrilled by are our music festivals,” he said. “They do a really good job of creating a sense of community. And that’s something that summer stock theater has let slip over the last few decades.”

The chance to debut a new work by Harris, who is riding high on the success of “Slave Play” and the film “Zola,” has led to more interest in Williamstown, but it’s not the only attraction. Billed as W71, the festival is a being described as a “multi-disciplinary theatrical eruption” that “investigates and celebrates” the work Tennessee Williams. As part of that effort, Williamstown is reviving “Camino Real,” one of Williams’ more polarizing later works, as well as “Not About Nightingales,” one of his lesser-known early plays.

Many of the other performances this season are original works like “Spirit of the People.” They include “The Things Around Us,” a solo musical created and performed by Ahamefule J. Oluo and produced by Roya Amirsoleymani, as well as “Many Happy Returns,” a dance piece co-created and choreographed by Monica Bill Barnes and co-created and written by Robbie Saenz de Viteri.

According to the official description, “Spirit of the People” “confronts uncomfortable truths about land and what it means to destroy it.” Harris said the show is a departure from his previous work.

“I wanted to challenge myself,” he told Variety. “The play is half in Spanish, and I don’t speak Spanish. The play has a significant level of prose within it. I’m not a prose writer. I’m trying a lot of different things.”


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