Sacramento, California - Oct. 28, 2026: Capital Stage presents heartfelt dark comedy MY MAMA AND THE FULL-SCALE INVASION by Sasha Denisova. Inspired by the playwright's WhatsApp conversations with her mother in Kyiv during the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Called “Audacious and hilarious, ‘My Mama and the Full-Scale Invasion’ puts Ukrainian courage onstage” by DC Theatre Arts. Capital Stage Artistic Director Michael Stevenson (THE SOUND INSIDE, THE LEHMAN TRILOGY, KING JAMES) directs. The cast features the return of Jamie Jones* (UNSEEN, ARCHDUKE, HEROES OF THE FOURTH TURNING), Taylor Burris (AUGUST: OSAGE COUNTY), and Matt K. Miller* (THE LEHMAN TRILOGY, THE HUMANS, SWEAT). Performances run Nov. 18 - Dec. 20, 2026, at Capital Stage in Midtown Sacramento. Tickets and subscriptions are available now at capstage.org.

MY MAMA AND THE FULL-SCALE INVASION

by Sasha Denisova

Translated by Misha Kachman

Adapted by Kellie Mecleary

Directed by Michael Stevenson

November 18 – December 20, 2026

Sasha’s 82-year-old mother has lived in Kyiv her whole life. When Russia invades Ukraine in 2022, Sasha copes with her fears by imagining her mother in increasingly fantastical situations: strategizing with President Zelenskyy, striking Russian drones with jars of pickles, and even debating with God. Playwright Sasha Denisova was inspired by WhatsApp chats with her mother to write this darkly funny and deeply heartfelt new play.

“A study in the wonderful absurdity of a stubbornly resistant woman under fire.” –THE WASHINGTON POST

PERFORMANCE LENGTH: 90 Minutes, No Intermission

FEATURING: Jamie Jones*, Taylor Burris, Matt K. Miller*

*Member Actors' Equity Association

SPONSORED BY:

DAN BRUNNER

Sasha Denisova (she/her) is a playwright, a director, a writer, and a Ukrainian. Sasha was born in Kiev. She graduated from the Philology Department of Kiev Taras Shevchenko University. Sasha subsequently studied theater and worked at various theatre companies in Russia. While residing in Russia she studied documentary theater at the Theater. Doc company in Moscow, trained at Royal Court in London and graduated from the School of a Theater Leader, a program run by the Moscow Art Theatre School. She served as a deputy artistic director at the Mayakovsky Theater and as the chief dramaturg at the Meyerhold Center in Moscow, and she also taught documentary theater and screenwriting at the Moscow School of New Cinema. Sasha's play LIGHT MY FIRE was awarded Russia’s highest theatre prize, The Golden Mask, in 2012. As a playwright and director Sasha has produced more than 25 performances at Moscow stages, including THE DUSTY DAY, ALICE AND THE STATE, SFORZA, HOTEL CALIFORNIA, SEA. PINES, BATMAN VS. BREZHNEV, and HERMIONE. Sasha makes sharply social, political theater in which documentary material merges with magical and fantastical. She fled Moscow for Poland immediately after the outbreak of full-scale war in Ukraine. At the same time, all of Sasha’s productions in Russia were shut down. Since the beginning of the full-scale invasion she has written and staged 4 plays, all of them about the war: SIX RIBS OF ANGER, about the fate of Ukrainian refugees in Europe (first presented at Kommuna Warszawa in Poland); MY MOM AND THE FULL-SCALE INVASION (first staged reading: Barcelona, CCCV Museum of Contemporary Art with the support from the Artists at Risk initiative); THE HAGUE, an account of a tribunal against Putin and his gang that takes place in the imagination of a Ukrainian girl from Mariupol, which Sasha also directed at the Polish Theater in Poznan (February 2023) and at the Arlekin Players Theater in Boston (June 2023); and BAKHMUT, a story of two women who mourn the same man, an intellectual whom they had loved and who gave his life for his country.

THE DIRECTOR

Michael Stevenson has served as Capital Stage's Artistic Director since 2015. For Capital Stage, Michael has directed THE SOUND INSIDE, THE LEHMAN TRILOGY, KING JAMES, ARCHDUKE, HEROES OF THE FOURTH TURNING, GLORIA, THE LIFESPAN OF A FACT, ADMISSIONS, THE HUMANS, THE OTHER PLACE, SWEAT, THE THANKSGIVING PLAY, LUNA GALE, STUPID F##KING BIRD, HOW TO USE A KNIFE, DISGRACED, MR. BURNS, IDEATION, CLYBOURNE PARK, MAURITIUS, ERRATICA (World Premiere), and LES LIAISONS DANGEREUSES. He has directed at regional theaters including: B Street Theater, Lake Tahoe Shakespeare Festival, Orlando Shakespeare Company, Perseverance Theater Company, and Sacramento Theater Company.

WHAT:

Capital Stage Presents the Sacramento Premiere

MY MAMA AND THE FULL-SCALE INVASION

by Sasha Denisova

Translated by Misha Kachman

Adapted by Kellie Mecleary

Directed by Michael Stevenson

WHERE: Capital Stage Theatre

2215 J Street, Sacramento CA 95816

WHEN: November 18 – December 20, 2026

PERFORMANCE TIMES:

Wednesdays at 7pm

Thursdays at 7pm

Fridays at 7pm

Saturdays at 2pm

Sundays at 2pm

SPECIAL EVENTS:

Opening Night - (Reception w/cast & crew following performance)

Fri. Nov. 20 at 7:00pm

Wine Wednesdays - (Wine tasting with Di Arie Vineyards & Winery)

Wed. Nov. 25 & Wed. Dec. 9 from 6:00-7:00pm

Beer Friday - (Beer tastings with Oak Park Brewing Co.)

Fri. Nov. 27 from 6:00-7:00pm

Community Night (PWYW) - (Pay-What-You-Will)

Fri. Dec. 4 at 7:00pm

CapChats - (Q&A with artists)

Sun. Nov. 29, Thu. Dec. 3, Sun. Dec. 6, Sun. Dec. 13, Thu. Dec. 17

ASL Interpreted Performance -

Fri. Dec. 18 at 7:00pm

PERFORMANCE LENGTH: 90 Minutes, No Intermission

BOX OFFICE:

Hours: Tue. - Sat. 12:00 - 5:00 pm

Phone: 916-995-5464

Email: boxoffice@capstage.org

Website: capstage.org

TICKETS: $5 - $77 (Not including fees.)

Direct Ticket Link: https://capstage.my.salesforce-sites.com/ticket/#/events/a0STV000003U83F2AS

Show Webpage: https://capstage.org/the-plays/my-mama-and-the-full-scale-invasion/

WHO:

Playwright: Sasha Denisova

Translator: Misha Kachman

Adapter: Kellie Mecleary

Director: Michael Stevenson

Cast: Jamie Jones*, Taylor Burris, Matt K. Miller*

Artistic Director: Michael Stevenson

Managing Director: Liz Gray

Technical Director & Production Manager: Caleb Jones

Production Associate: Hailey Bowland

Stage Manager: Erika L. Placencia*

Assistant Stage Manager: Lydia Crist

Scenic Designer: Stephen C. Jones

Lighting Designer: Katie Alba

Projections Designer: Patrick O'Reilly

Costume Designer: Rebecca Redmond

Sound Designer & Engineer: Ed Lee

Properties Designer: Cassie Weissenberg

Dramaturg: Nicole C. Limón

Scenic Charge Artist: Samantha McLean Haas



*Member Actors' Equity Association | ^Capital Stage Apprentice

Capital Stage is a professional nonprofit theatre company in Sacramento, California, dedicated to creating transformative, thought-provoking theater experiences that challenge, inspire, and connect. Founded in 2005, Capital Stage presents six full-length, live theatre productions each year, as well as various concerts and special events in its Midtown Sacramento home at 2215 J Street. Capital Stage also offers apprenticeships to individuals seeking professional experience in theatre, performing arts classes to the public, and educational theatrical opportunities in association with CLARA, The Crocker Art Museum, and McGeorge School of Law. Named by The Sacramento Bee as “one of the most respected arts organizations in the region,” and “one of the area's hottest theatre companies,” by CapRadio, Capital Stage is a leader of cutting-edge quality theatre in Northern California.

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