The Heart Sellers

The Heart Sellers is a play by American playwright Lloyd Suh which follows two Asian women who have immigrated to the U.S. amid the Hart-Celler Act in the 1970s. The play premiered at Milwaukee Repertory Theater in 2023 and is set to make its New York premiere Off-Broadway at MCC Theatre in 2027. The play was named among the top ten most-produced plays in the U.S. in 2025–2026 by American Theatre Magazine.

Plot

The play follows a chance encounter between two immigrant strangers, Luna and Jane, during Thanksgiving 1973. The pair decide to spend the holiday together at Luna's apartment and bond over their shared experience with isolation and unfamiliarity in the U.S. The title is a play on the name of the Hart-Celler Act, which removed de jure discrimination against Asian-Americans during the era of the play.

Production history

2023 Milwaukee premiere

The play made its world premiere in 2023 in a regional production at Milwaukee Repertory Theater, running from February 7 through March 19 in the Stiemke Studio Theatre. Directed by Jennifer Chang, the production starred Nicole Javier as Luna and Narea Kang as Jane.

The production received critical acclaim, with the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel praising the play as "stunning" and "breathtaking", along with Urban Milwaukee, which lauded the show as "smartly audacious and stirringly theatrical." For the play, Suh won the 2024 Steinberg/ATCA New Play Award.

2024 Sarasota production

The play was next produced at Florida Studio Theatre in Sarasota, Florida in 2024 from December 11, 2024 to February 23, 2025. Kate Alexander served as director, featuring Rona Figueroa as Luna and Michelle Heera Kim as Jane. Sarasota Magazine lauded the play as "as timeless as it is both universal and yet deeply personal", with specific praise to Luh for the depth of his characters.

2024 Minneapolis production

The Guthrie Theatre in Minneapolis, Minnesota produced the play in 2024, running from December 14, 2024 to January 25, 2025. The play was directed by May Adrales and starred Jenna Agbayani as Luna and Juyeon Song as Jane. The Stages of MN praised the production, singling out Adrales' "light touch" in her direction and calling the play "surprisingly warmly touching."

2025 Chicago production

The play was produced at Northlight Theatre in Skokie, Illinois in 2025, running from January 23 to February 23, 2025. The production was directed by Helen Young and starred Aja Alcazar as Luna and Seoyoung Park as Jane. Chicago Reader called the play "urgent and poignant," praising both performers, and Around the Town Chicago similarly praised the show as "sincere and quite humorous." For her performance, Park was nominated for a 2025 Jeff Award for Performer in a Principal Role - Play.

2025 Palo Alto production

Later in 2025, TheatreWorks Silicon Valley produced the play, running from April 2 to 27, 2025 in a co-production with Aurora Theatre Company and Sacramento’s Capital Stage. Jennifer Chang returned to direct, along with both Nicole Javier and Narea Kang, reuniting from the world premiere production in 2023. In a review, The Almanac praised the "sensitivity" of Suh's writing and the performances as "an unexpected, melodious treat."

2025 Costa Mesa production

Chang, Javier and Kang would go on to reprise their roles once again in a production of the play later in 2025 at South Coast Repertory in Costa Mesa, California. The production again received positive reception, with Stage and Cinema praising Suh's "light, sweet tone" and the two actress' performance as "captivating and luminous." '

2027 Off-Broadway production

In 2026, MCC Theatre named the play as part of its 2026-27 season, set to open in January 2027. Directed by May Adrales, who previously directed it in Minneapolis, the cast has yet to be announced.

Cast and characters

Accolades

2023 Milwaukee production

2025 Chicago production

2025 Palo Alto production