Mister Halston is a new play exploring the life and times
of famed American fashion designer, Halston.
"Mister Halston dazzles…
a smart engaging look at the rise and fall of the fashion legend."
—PATRICK CHRISTIANO
Theater Life
“…beautifully crafted…mesmerizing…
effortless sophistication...”
—SUZANNA BOWLING
Times Square Chronicles
"...an electric and moving portrait
of the fashion icon…
fabulousness and pathos
in almost equal measure"
—MARK HOROWITZ
Dan’s Papers
“Nothing short of mesmerizing…
a captivating and heartbreaking
performance, doing justice to
the iconic designer's complexity.”
About Mister Halston
It is early spring, 1987, New York. Late afternoon, spilling into dusk. We are in the living room of the East 63rd Street apartment of famed American fashion designer, Halston. The journalist has arrived.
A one-person play written by Raffaele Pacitti, Mister Halston is a fictionalized version of the interview that led to a seminal New York Times article about the legendary designer.
Throughout the interview, we learn about varied aspects of Halston’s life and career. We meet the people Halston knew and loved, as well as the cultural figures who influenced him. We hear about the visionary work that not only gripped the fashion world for decades, but also helped shape the evolution of identity, gender politics, sexuality, and style—in America and around the world.
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MEET THE PLAYWRIGHT
RAFFAELE PACITTI
Playwright
Raffaele Pacitti (Member, DGA) is a playwright, producer and performer whose plays have received stagings and readings in both New York and Canada. His latest play, Mister Halston, explores the life and times of famed American fashion designer, Halston, set against the vibrant, tumultuous New York of the 1970’s and 1980’s. Mister Halston has received awards for Outstanding Script, Outstanding Actor, and the Audience Award at New York's United Solo Festival.
Select NY/Regional Theatre: The Tempest (Mill Mountain Stage), The Heiress (Shadow Lawn Stage), A Casual Gathering (Theatre for a New Audience).
Select Toronto Theatre: Pterodactyls (Mercury Theatre), Digging for Fire (Factory Theatre), Hamlet (Canadian Stage), Count Dracula (Rainbow Theatre).
Select Concerts: Bright Lights, Big City (Greenroom 42); Body and Soul (54 Below); Uninvited (The Metropolitan Room) Spring Fling, Don’t Misunderstand, Evening Lounge (Etc Etc Piano Room).
With years of experience as New York-based Art Director in the advertising, PR and media spaces, along with a varied background in both magazine design and publishing, Pacitti reveres the power of words and how they can affect perception. A passion for theatre, music and fashion, combined with these professional skills has proved to be a natural transition into the world of playwriting.
Raffaele holds a BFA in theatre from Toronto Metropolitan University (formerly Ryerson Theatre School) and has studied at the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Arts and the Royal Shakespeare Company.
BREAKING NEWS ON PAGE SIX
DONNA KARAN will exec-produce the new play about Halston in the Hamptons, Page Six has learned. We're told the design legend is behind "Mister Halston," which will go onstage from June 2 to June 21 at Bay Street Theater in Sag Harbor. Karan joins producer BRUCE ROBERT HARRIS in brining the show out east. "Halston defined modern American fashion," the DKNY star said. "Clean lines, pure shapes, liquid fabrics, a sexy attitude. He paved the way for what was to come." She added, "I saw the workshop last summer at Bay Street Theater and I liked it so much I wanted to get involved."
DEVELOPMENT TIMELINE
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Reviews and press to come.
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On September 7, 2025, Mister Halston was presented to a sold out audience as a special event at Fire Island’s BOFFO Festival. This proved to be a vital developmental step.
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On July 12, 2025, we were asked to participate in a Gala honoring benefactors Donna Karan and Christie Brinkley.
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Mister Halston kicked off the 2025 Bay Street Theatre's Title Wave Festival of New Plays on Monday, June 2 at 7pm at Bay Street Theater & Sag Harbor Center for the Arts. A Q&A with the actor, director and playwright followed the reading.
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A staged reading of the latest draft of Mister Halston held in a private home in New York City. This AEA-Approved Showcase Code was held for an invited audience of producers, potential investors and additional creatives.
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We were excited and elated to explore the expression and mood of this dynamic character. With the collaboration of a brilliant team, we were able to create a gallery of images that capture the complexity and drama of Halston.
Photographer MARC TOUSIGNANT
Stylist MARTIN GREGORY
Styling Assistant GRACE MCFADDEN YOUNG
Hair & Makeup EDUARDO JIMENEZ
Check out our Gallery page! -
Industry Staging as part of United Solo Festival. This AEA-Approved Showcase Code featured Ken Barnett (Broadway’s Fun Home, WonderfulTown, The Green Bird) and was directed by Kimberly Senior (Broadway's Disgraced).
Awards:Best Actor (Ken Barnett); Best Script (Raffaele Pacitti); Audience Award.
Goals: To get the piece on its feet (albeit with minimal staging) to explore how the piece would flow in a larger theatrical setting. To explore the intricacies of character and how he relates to audience. To examine all aspects of the story through intense dramatrugy.
Learnings: The piece resonates with audiences, whether they are familiar with the subject matter or not. There is a keen association with the character’s humanity. The piece was received with overwhelming positivity in its execution, content, style, and emotional connotations.
Producer and investor interest is ongoing.
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On-going rewrites and interviews with additional prominent figures. Additional research conducted to verify several plot-points and environmental details.
Goals: To revise script and condense certain passages. To clarify some historical details and character points. To enhance the overall audience experience and create a closer relationship to the main character.
Learnings: Some dramaturgy was needed and a physical production was required in order to workshop some passages and the approach to the overall story.
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Industry Reading featuring Mark H. Dold (Broadway’s The Inheritance) and Peggy Coffey.
Goals: To get a draft in front of an audience to examine how the piece would work in a theatrical context. There was no staging, simply two actors with podiums.
Learnings: Several passages needed to be re-worked and there were subsequent cuts and reconsiderations of some historical contexts. The overall perception was extremely positive and several producers made inquiries about future iterations.
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Initial research began. Interviews conducted by contemporaries of Halston’s as well as varied figures from the period. Intense examination of all aspects of Halston’s life and career and how he influenced his industry and milieu. Visits to several important institutions associated with Halston and archives associated with his work, including Fashon Institute of Technology in New York, Lipscomb University in Nashville, The New York Times Archives and many others.
Goals: To asses the overall life and career of the man in order to craft an emotional, theatrical and enticing experience.
Learnings: The figure of Halston is extremely enthralling, culturally relevant and theatrically exciting! The initial writing journey proves to be complex, shocking, enriching, invigorating, frustrating, thrilling, joyful, profoundly touching and much, much more!