PROGRAM 8

Effigy by Nicholas Bompart

1983 by Taiwo Aloba

Dead Man Walking by Ali Keller

Playwright: Nicholas Bompart is an actor, director, writer, and musician from Forest Hills, New York. He began acting at the age of five and he continued in the theater up until the present time.  He has written and acted in more than fifteen short films.  These films were screened at multiple national and international film festivals and won extensive laurels including awards for Best Horror Film, Best Direction, Best Screenplay and Best Actor.  Nicholas has authored and directed theatrical plays and starred in many Off-Broadway productions. His plays received accolades and were selected for the Rogue Theater Festival, CHAIN Theater Festival, Strawberry Theater Festival and others.  He has received favorable media reviews and he was referred to as “a new up and coming artist” and “someone to watch” for upcoming work. Nicholas earned a B.A. in Theater Arts from Pace University. Nicholas also sings opera and has performed at Carnegie Hall. He can be reached at: NTBWorking@gmail.com

Director: Stefania Papadopoulos has a BA in Theater Arts from the City College of New York, studied Comedy Improv at UCB in NYC and Directing and Storytelling at Theater of Changes in Athens, Greece. She holds many directing and acting credits. She is currently working on co creating a full length show called Sherry's Bop that will go up in December 2022. ‘Sherry’s Bop’ played as a one act at the Player’s theater in June 2022. Her upcoming full length show 'Idols' will play as Teatro LaTea in October 2022 as part of the New York Theater Festival. 'Idols' the one act version was directed by Stefania at the 13th Street Repertory Theater (2020) and at the Producers Club (2021). Previous work directed at the Chain Theater is ‘Latebar’ in March 2022. Stefania's main focus in theater is to tell stories that make sense of the world she sees around her. Stefaniapapadope@gmail.com

Stage manager: Tay Mary Schmitt (Rehearsal Stage Manager/ Props Mistress) has been in and out of the theatre game since age 18. From creating burnt chicken props...wrangling late comers into busy musicals ….stage managing in a public park filled with flashers ...dealing with rude and inebriated patrons...this girl has seen it all plus some. Companies: Barrington Stage, Queens Shakespeare, Hudson Warehouse, Secret Theatre, La Muse Venale. BA: Theatre and Drama (Queens College). Thank you to my higher powers for their guidance and support!

Anna: Dalita Getzoyan is excited to be returning to Anna in Effigy. NYC Credits include Idols (Anna) at the Producers Club and LATEBAR (Bartender) at the Chain Theatre. Other favorite credits include Carrie: The Musical (Susan Snell), Seussical (Gertrude McFuzz), The Producers (Ulla), All Shook Up (Natalie/Ed), and Shrek: The Musical (Fiona). Ms. Getzoyan studies acting with Karina Arroyave of The Blacklist and voice with Doug Jabara. She holds a Bachelor of Music degree in Flute Performance from University of Rhode Island and a Master of Arts degree in Clinical Mental Health Counseling and Music Therapy from Lesley University.

Sofia: Lily Filippatos is a recent graduate of the William Esper Studio, where she studied the Meisner technique after earning a Bachelor of Arts in Theater from UMass Amherst. Lily played Mara in the exciting new work Refugee at international theater festival Joakim Interfest in Kragujevac, Serbia. She is a company member of the Isadora Duncan International Dance Institute, and most recently had the honor of portraying Eleonora Duse in Le Figlie di Prometeo at the Teatro Duse in Asolo, Italy. Lily wholeheartedly believes in the healing power of art, viewing her work as a means to spread love and justice.

Alex: Benny Wilkinson is just beginning his acting career and you may have seen him in the Garden Players' most recent production of Your Turn. Benny is an aspiring playwright and he is currently writing a musical called The Fly. He wrote, starred in, and produced the short film The Seizing of the Tree Fortress and its subsequent sequel. You could watch him in the collaborative project Kitchen Magic in this year’s Astoria Film Festival. Benny is on his middle school’s debate team, loves cats, and enjoys playing tennis. He can be reached at SawdustBenny@gmail.com.

Andrew: Patrick is thrilled to be a member the cast and working with such a wonderful creative team. He is also appearing in Love’s Labour’s Lost at Open Air Theatre 315 July 28-August 13. He would like to thank Anna for all her support.

Sergei: Anthony Santoro  Tony is pleased to reprise the role of Sergei having done it previously in a 2021 production of the play (then titled Idols).  Tony has had a lifelong interest andrelationship with the arts as actor, musician, writer (author and critic.) Tony currently lives in Queens NY and works as an adjunct English teacher at several area colleges. As he nears retirement, his plan is to emigrate somewhere.

CAST AND CREW BIOS

Fedly Daniel (President) is a Haitian American actor, writer, and artist based in New York City. His works in the theater include Diffractions Theatre's "The Bald Soprano", The WhiteListed Theatre Company's "Lost in Space", Concrete Timbre's "Un Lieu de Vie", "Keys", and "Voyage de Ouf", as well as Underlord’s “Bloodshot”. 

Keidy Barrientos (Special Adviser) studied English and Theatre at the University of Scranton. She is a polyglot, fluent in four languages including Spanish, French, and Arabic. She is an actress and content creator based in New York.

Nnaemeka Okeke (Campaign Adviser) is known for his work on “Your Worst Nightmare” (2019). Born in Lagos Nigeria he is better known by his stage name, Okeke. A Honolulu native and University of South Carolina alumni Okeke always seeks to tell a story in any role he is in. 

Taiwo Aloba (Playwright and Director) is a New York-based writer and director originally from Nigeria. She was educated at Lagos State University in Lagos, New York Film Academy in New York, and Southern New Hampshire University in Manchester, New Hampshire. She has sung in an ensemble, written books, and ran a marathon on Coney Island. 

Jenna Kole (Set Designer) is a New York-based artist originally from Connecticut. Jenna’s thankful to Taiwo and Chain Theatre for this opportunity!

Ali Keller (writer)

Ali Keller is an award-winning producer, writer, and dramaturg. She is the Executive Producer and Founder of Ali Keller LLC, an Affiliate Dramaturg with Beehive Dramaturgy, a Producer with New York Picture Company, and Artistic Producer at Theatre ARTaud. She is passionate about producing dark and funny stories that need to be told on stage or on film. Select Musical Theater Credits: BLOOD/SWEAT/TEARS (The Workshop Theater Intensive, The Tank LIMEFEST, HARP Theatricals), …THE F*CK AM I DOING? (NYMF, The COW Community, Brighton Fringe Festival). Select Theater Credits: Standards (The Dramatists Guild), (un)conditional (Judson),  CHRISTEN THE PLACE (IRT Theater, Alt Eller Ingenting). Her full-length plays have been a Semi-Finalist for SPACE on Ryder Farm, The Mitten Lab Residencies, and ESPA Drills at Primary Stages. Select Film: TO HAVE & TO HOLD (City Artists Corps Grant Winner, Best Performances Romance & Relationship Film Festival, Atlanta Film Festival Best Script Semifinalist), SEVEN FISHES (Best Short Film Katra Series World Webfest Mania, Social Impact Film Festival), BANDIT (Winner of LA Screenplay Fest) Select Theater & Film Production: LADY DAY AT EMERSON’S BAR AND GRILL (Broadway), BEST WORST THING THAT EVER COULD HAVE HAPPENED (Netflix), SWEENEY TODD (Lincoln Center/Creative Arts Winner). @alikeller47 (instagram) www.alikellerplaywright.com  

Daniel Gaymon – Director

Daniel began training as a performer at the age of 9 in Columbia, SC. Since beginning his professional career, he has performed in musical theatre shows such as the Broadway revival of “Cats”, the national tour of “Hamilton” and back to Broadway in Disney’s “The Lion King.” His credits also include performing in Carrie Underwood’s “Something In the Water,” Sara Bareilles’s “Fire,” and the film “La La Land.” Since the summer of 2020, Daniel has gone on to direct and produce the LGBTQ+ web series “Neighbors” as well as produce, co-write, and lead act his own short film “Every Right” and direct a short play “Dead Man Walking” in NYC.

Ellis Charles Hoffmeister (Jack)

Ellis is an actor, dancer, comedian, director, and playwright. For the past four years, he has been studying at HB Studio in multiple disciplines, after receiving his BFA in Modern Dance from the University of Utah, where he choreographed his own work alongside performing in pieces by Sidra Bell and Twyla Tharp among many others.  He is a stand-up comedian who currently performs in both New York and Los Angeles, and he spent many years working in the film industry in New York on commercials, short films, and feature films. He was most recently the Art Director for the short film Seven Fishes, which is currently winning awards on the film festival circuit, and his last directing venture was House on Fire by Ali Keller for the ‘Me and My Mask’ monologue competition. Ellis had a reading of his play, Family Games, in HB Studio's 2021 HB Playwrights Reading Series, and he recently performed at Theatre for the New City in their Lower East Side Festival of the Arts in May. Ellis performed in a reading of Ali Keller's Blood/Sweat/Tears through Harp Theatricals in June and is delighted to be performing in Dead Man Walking. He thanks the entire creative team for all of their brilliant work on this piece. @ellishoffmeister (Instagram)

Michael J Poyntz (Peter) 

Michael (he/they) is a classically trained actor, comedian, and producer based in New York City. Theater: The 56th Annual Rudolph…, Much Ado About Nothing (Producer’s Club), A Series of Inelastic Events (AHAP), Puppet Master (LaMaMa). Film/TV: Let The Right One In (Showtime), The Flight Attendant (HBO), HOMESICK (Alan Mendez), to have & to hold (Ali Keller LLC), UCB’s Innovation Inc. (Alpha), PTA (Workshop), among others. After graduating Muhlenberg College with a degree in Theater and Computer Science, Michael studied improv and sketch at the Upright Citizen’s Brigade theater with instructors like Shannon O’Neil, Billy Merritt, Toni Charlene, Joel Spence, and many more. He performs improv, sketch, and standup at venues like QED Astoria, West Broadway, and the Producer’s Club. When he’s not performing, he’s behind the camera at companies like Zipline Media, JARS Media, Image Media, and The Crop Shoppe. To mom, dad, meg, and mazy: ilyttmab. www.michaeljpoyntz.com @mikejpoyntz (Instagram)