2021 One-Act Summer Festival
Tickets are $15 in advance online and $18 at the door
All performers are vaccinated. All audience members must provide proof of vaccination to enter. Everyone must be vaccinated in order to lift the social distancing limits for theaters. You can provide proof through the Excelsior Pass app or a hard copy of your Vaccination card. There will be no refunds if you are unable to provide proof of vaccination.
Excelsior Pass: https://covid19vaccine.health.ny.gov/excelsior-pass
VIRTUAL TICKETS FOR THE LIVE STREAMING DATES ARE $15
There will be no rewind or fast forward during the live presentation.
To celebrate the end of this amazing festival all Livestreams will be available again Friday Aug 13th at 6pm - Sunday Aug 15th at 11:45pm
Sponsored by
Audience Choice Encore #1 (MAINSTAGE) 8pm Sat 8/13
By Your Side
Binge
GoodBadUgly
Down the Fox Hole
AUDIENCE CHOICE ENCORE #2 (STUDIO THEATRE) 8pm Sat 8/13
The Key
One Act of Kindness
20th Anniversary
AUDIENCE CHOICE ENCORE #3 (MAINSTAGE) 8pm Sat 8/13
The Gospel of Efunroye
Start with I Do
Toxic Norse-culinity
Ruby of Elsinore
Program 1 (mainstage)
GOODBADUGLY
Written and Directed by Robyne Parrish
Synopsis: Everyone makes mistakes. We are human. We lie, we betray, we melt down. We listen to the warring voices in our heads.We have a choice. Quit, or move through to the next lesson. To die or to be reborn. What would you choose?
CAST
Woman: Tara Troy
Good: Morgan Goodman
Bad: Ashley Greaves
Person on Street/Subway Passenger/ Man/Authority 2: Tim Zimmermann
Person on Street/Subway Passenger/ Man/Authority 2: Grant VanderVoort
Person on Street/Subway Passenger/ Waitress/Authority 1: Sarah Ceballos
Doctor: Sarah O’Donnell
The unassailable tower
Written and Directed By Joe Jatcko
A play about falling in love and out of towers. A lost fellow and a mysterious woman meet in a wood. Have they met this way before? He’s sure they have, while she has no memory of it...or anything else for that matter. But, these questions will have to wait, there are towers to climb.
Her: ROSE LANE SANFILIPPO
Him: JOE CARSON
Bios
JOE JATCKO, Writer/Director
Joe is a Brooklyn-based writer, director, and teacher. His debut, The High Captain, an inebriated political satire, has played in New York, Los Angeles, and Portland, and won the Encore Producers Award. In addition to The Unassailable Tower, his other credits included Mustache the Musical, a children’s musical with a sneaky message about tolerance, and Alone in the Universe, an oxygen-deprived sci-fi love story premiering in fall 2021.
ROSE LANE SANFILIPPO, Her
Rose is a graduate of the Lee Strasberg Theatre and Film Institute at New York University's Tisch School of the Arts. She sharpened her improv and sketch writing chops at the UCB Theatre in Hell's Kitchen, and when she does drama...hoo boy. How'd she get so damn good at living truthfully under imaginary circumstances, you might ask? Two years of meticulous study with legendary acting coach Anthony Abeson. She wrote, produced, and stars in the upcoming web series What's W.H.A.T.
JOE CARSON, Him
Joe is a graduate of the Experimental Theatre Wing at New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts. While at NYU, Joe was the lead in En Folkefiende, a modern take on the famous Henrik Ibsen play. Joe also had the honor of playing Henry Harry in Brilliant Traces and Jerry in The Zoo Story. While at ETW, Joe studied with the great Kevin Kuhlke, Rosemary Quinn, Terry Knickerbocker, and Andy Arden-Reese. In addition to his theatre training, he studied film acting at Stonestreet Studios in Chelsea. Joe wrote, directed, produced, and stars in the upcoming short film One Minute to Midnight.
Ruby of Elsinore
by Bruce Kane Directed by David Wenzel
Synopsis: An attentive hairdresser with a plethora of tongue-in-cheek comments for her customers, who happened to be the protagonists of William Shakespeare’s Hamlet
Starring:
Jessica Angeline- Ophelia Skyler Easterborrke- Ophelia
Lindsey Wayne- Understudy/Ensemble
Jourdan Taylor- Hamlet
Keith Keyes- Ghost
Irma Cadiz- Ruby
Matthew Brent- Claudius
Bruce Kane (playwright) is a California based playwright whose comedies have been presented in over 600 venues in 22 countries. His play “Ruby Of Elsinore” was a winner of the All Ireland One Act Play Competition. He is the creator of the much performed series of plays featuring Justin Thyme, a hard boiled detective who investigates crimes in such literary masterpieces as Hamlet and MacBeth among others. Kane has also written and produced for American television and film.
David Wenzel (Director) As an actor, Mr. Wenzel has appeared in several Theatre productions Off-Broadway in NYC, as well as Film, TV, and daytime serials including Ray Donavan, Rescue Me, One Life To Live, All My Children, Guiding Light, Another World, Evil Lives Here, Who Killed Jane Doe, Wild Crime premiering on ABC Fall 2021, OLD DOGS, The Hustler. David Wenzel is also an Award Winning Producer/Director for such films as Hamlet/Horatio, Echelon 8, Preying For Mercy, The Hostage! David has worked with such notables as Brad Pitt, Leonardo Dicaprio, Anthony Hopkins, Fisher Stevens, Scott Rudin, Jace Alexander, and the great Oscar Winning Cinematographer Emmanuel “Chivo” Lubezki & Oscar Winner Gordan Willis. https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0921173/ www.davidwenzelactor.com
Irma Cádiz (Ruby Irma Cádiz) is a New York City based actress. Having studied under the late Yvonne Suhor at Art's Sake studios, Irma was introduced to the Meisner Method which she fell in love with. Currently, Irma is an active member of the Chelsea Repertoire Theater under James Price where she continues to develop her craft. She has also studied under notable coaches Ronnie Marmo and John Pallotta. Irma has recently been cast as a series regular in the award winning web series pilot: Peri- Street & also plays a series regular in “The New York Effect '' web series which was one of HBO’s NYLFF2020 official selections for new media. Irma is excited & considers it a priviledge to be performing in The Chain Theater's 2021 One Act Festival! In addition to performing in the arts, Irma can be found on Instagram running her "Support Group for Latinas who Can't Dance."
Jessica Angeline (Ophelia) Jessica Angeline is a true Southern Belle; born and raised in South Carolina. She left home at 16 to live abroad and study in France and Italy respectively. Upon her return, Jessica settled in Savannah, Georgia to pursue acting and modeling. Life brought her to Boston and tonight is Jessica's Off Broadway New York debut. Jessica has been training to perfect her craft since she was 13 years old with various industry coaches around the country. She is trained in film, theatre, and voice acting. She is represented by Engage Artists Agency in Los Angeles and managed by Bruce Kivo in New York City. Jessica is seeking to join the SAGAFTRA union as soon as possible and is ready to relocate to the New York City area. Her joys in life are her faith in God, her family, world languages, and travel.
Skyler Easterbrook (Ophelia) Skyler Easterbrook is so excited to be working with such an awesome cast and crew. No stranger to classic work, Skyler recently worked with EgoPo Classic Theater on Nocturne, and more contemporary work such as The Wolves. In her free time, Skyler enjoys all things Disney and looks forward to being a part of one of their next live-action films!
Shari Linick (Gertrude) Shari Linick was born and raised in Boston, Massachusetts. Shari was always performing in plays and shows in school, having been a performer since coming out of the womb. She officially got her start in comedy and improv at the age of 18. It was her talent, wit and clever impressions that led her to perform at comedy venues in and around New England, and eventually securing a role as Viola in Joey and Maria’s Wedding for many years. Shari was accepted to the American Academy of Dramatic Arts in NYC, where she further expanded her craft to television, film, voice-over work, and especially her love of theater. She has performed in shows at the Producer's Club and NYC's Manhattan Repertory Theater, and seeing she can't afford therapy, continues doing comedy - having done shows all over, and among other venues has been featured at the New York Underground Comedy Festival twice. As a member of SAGAFTRA, her credits include My Crazy Love, Drifters, and American Whisper. Shari has Epilepsy - never letting it get in the way, she'd like to put an end to the stigma attached to it, and hopes to inspire those with it, especially performing arts, to never ever stop chasing their dream. As Shari puts it "I have Epilepsy but it doesn't have me". Shari continues to divide her time between Boston and New York, and the one thing she loves more than eating, sleeping and performing are animals.
Matthew Brent (Claudius) Matthew Brent was born in Philadelphia PA. He has been acting for 8 years now and has won Best Actor in the Playhouse West Philadelphia 21 Day Film Festival 2018. He enjoys the art and the ability to tell a story. In addition to performing, he is co-owner for a company that is building an app that is helping minimize police brutality called Cavalry App. His website is actormatthewbrent.com. You can follow Cavalry on Instagram @thecavalryapp.
Jourdan Taylor (Hamlet) Couldn't be more honored to be a part of this cast of phenomenally talented actors. Born in NYC he's always had a love & deep respect of the arts & it's artists, with dreams of Broadway in his back pocket. Such previous projects include East Lynne, Jesus Christ Superstar, La Malinche to name a few. He's been cast in the upcoming production of It's A Wonderful Life in December directed by Robyne Parrish.
Keith Keyes (Ghost) Keith Keyes is an actor and comedian who started out over two decades ago doing stand up comedy, then went on to work in several dozen productions in theatre and film. He currently can be seen as ‘Ghost’ in the short play ‘Ruby of Elsinore’.
Lindsey Wayne (Understudy) Lindsey is a New York based actor happy to be participating in live theatre once more! Favorite credits include The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee (Logainne Schwartzandgrubenierre), Spring Awakening (Martha), Young Frankenstein (Ensemble), and touring as a Tour Actor/Director with Missoula Children’s Theatre. She sends her thanks and appreciation to all who have supported and encouraged her, especially the past year and a half! Enjoy!
McKenzie Patterson (Virtual Stage Manager) McKenzie is based in Knoxville, Tennessee and has had an interest in acting since she was a teenager. McKenzie began taking classes with David Wenzel earlier this year and looks forward to growing her knowledge and network through experience as she begins her journey into the acting universe.
Kiss Me
Written and Directed by Robyne Parrish
Synopsis: One starry night by a lakeside two souls find common ground.
She- Brooke McHugh
He- Tim Zimmermann
He- Grant VanderVoort
Brooke McHugh is originally from The Bay Area. She studied at studio ACT and moved to New York to attend the William Esper Studio’s 2 year program, which she completed in 2020. While there she studied the Meisner technique, movement, voice, and Mask work. Recently she began attending classes with the playwright of Kiss Me, Robyne Parrish. Last year she married her longtime partner Nick. They live in Brooklyn with their 3 year old dog Louise. Most importantly she has an intense religious devotion to the work of John Cassavetes, Gena Rowlands, Viola Davis, Kim Stanley, Tennessee Williams, Emma Goldman, John Malkovich , and Nina Simone.
GANT VANDERVOORT joins the cast of GOODBADUGLY and Kiss Me: Grant is making his Chain Theatre debut in both Kiss Me & GOODBADUGLY. Favorite roles include D'Artagnan in The Three Musketeers and Demetrius in A Midsummer Night's Dream. Grant is a personal trainer in NYC and loves playing fetch with his dog Harley in Central Park, although Harley is still learning the “bring it back” part of fetch. Thanks to Jane Simmons, Mom, Dad and of course Halrey.
Program 2 (Studio THeatre)
BROKE DOWN DRONE
Synopsis:
Broke Down Drone is about two cousins from the West Side of Chicago as they dream of a better life for themselves, pinning their hopes on an old drone that has long since failed to fly.
Cast/Crew names:
G. Riley Mills (Gary) - Playwright
Willie (Prince Roc) Round - Anthony/Playwright
Max Thomas - Devontae
Anthony Moseley - Director
G. Riley Mills (Playwright) is an award-winning writer, actor and producer. As an actor, he was featured in 35 Miles from Normal which premiered at the Sundance Film Festival and The Home Coming for Worldwide Pictures. He has appeared on television in ER and Early Edition and onstage at Steppenwolf Theatre Company. His play Lift Every Voice, (co-written with Prince Roc) was recently published by Dramatic Publishing and his play The Hundred Dresses was produced at the Atlantic Theatre Company in New York City. Mills is the co-author of the book, The Bullseye Principle, and was named to Inc. Magazine’s list of “Top Leadership Speakers of 2018." He presented his TEDx session "Are We Killing Communication?" at the Shanghai American School in Shanghai, China. He served as a communications consultant for the Royal Household at Buckingham Palace as well as for the MSNBC program "All In America: Chicago" which won a 2018 Emmy. Mills recently produced the film Bed which will premiere at the 2021 Fantasia International Film Festival in Montreal. He has twice won the Joseph Jefferson Award for Best New Work.
Anthony Moseley (Director) is a Chicago-based producer and theatre-maker who has led numerous projects known for creative innovation and social change. He has been the Artistic Director of Collaboraction in Chicago since 1999 using theatre as a tool to cultivate empathy, dialogue and action around Chicago’s history of racism and oppression. Notable work include creating and producing the Sketchbook Festival (2000 - '16), Peacebook (2016 - '21) and serving as a Producer on Sandra Delgado's La Havana Madrid in a 2019 co-production with Teatro Vista at the Den Theater. As a writer/director he created Crime Scene: a Chicago Anthology (and its' 4 subsequent productions and city-wide tour for over 25,000 audience members), This is Not a Cure For Cancer, Connected and A Blue Island in the Red Sea. The pandemic led Collaboraction to establish its own Together Network where it produced over 50 videos including Lift Every Voice by G. Riley Mills and Willie Round, Oh Colonizers by Carla Stillwell (in post production), as well as monthly Zoom shows Crucial Connections and Becoming: Unlearning White Supremacy (seen here nationally on CBS with Norah O'Donnell). Anthony was also the MC for Kidzapalooza at Lollapalooza and Austin Kiddie Limits in 2019. He also is the creator and MC of Collaboraction's Dome of Dance and has been featured in The Beast on screen with Patrick Swayze, Ramin Bahrani's At Any Price on screen with Zac Efron and at the Goodman Theatre in the world premiere of Massacre or Sing To Your Children by Jose Rivera, among other numerous screens, stages and dance floors. He is currently working on the 6th annual Peacebook and Moonset Sunrise, a theatrical exploration of racial healing in Chicago to premiere in May '22. Broke Down Drone premiered at Peacebook 2019 directed by J. Nicole Brooks and it was adapted from Mills and Rounds' full length piece Mud Life. Let Hope Rise.
Willie “Prince Roc” Round (Anthony and Playwright) is a songwriter, playwright, videographer, mentor and hip-hop artist hailing from the West Side of Chicago who has performed across the country and opened for Grammy Award-winning artist Lil Wayne as well as Grammy-nominees Gucci Mane and Ralph Covert. Round does extensive outreach in the North Lawndale neighborhood in Chicago (also known as “The Holy City”) and has mentored inner city youth as part of the College Mentoring Experience as well as his own youth movement called MUD LIFE (Motivating the Urban to be Determined). He holds a BA in Communications Radio and Television Broadcasting from Central State University. He recently performed in Her Honor: Jane Byrne at Lookingglass Theatre and his play, Lift Every Voice, (co-written with G. Riley Mills) was recently published by Dramatic Publishing.
Max Thomas (Devontae) was raised on Jimi Hendrix, Rick James, & Soy Milk. He was destined to be a comedian.. His Chicago credits include Kenan Thompson Presents The Ultimate Comedy Experience; NBC Break Out Comedy Festival; 2018 Bob Curry Fellow (The Second City); Dutchmasters (Jackalope Theater); In The Blood (Red Tape Theater); Jitney (Congo Square Theater); Othello (Chicago Shakespeare Theater). Max studied at The School at Steppenwolf, Second City Chicago & British American Drama Academy (B.A.D.A.) When he is not acting he is performing stand-up & spoken word improv with his team PREACH. He thanks family, friends, & James Baldwin for reminding him he is not alone.
One act of kindness
By Juan Ramirez, Jr.
After her car breaks down on the side of the road, Ema decides to walk only to find Amila, a forgetful orange seller. When she asks for directions, she doesn't get the answers she wants. Whether it's good directions or bad directions, life's got a way to put you exactly where you need to be.
CAST
Cristy Reynoso
Angela Reynoso
BIOS:
Cristy Reynoso is a Dominican actor and writer based in New York City. Her previous theatre credits include: Sailing Stones (Willy, 2018 Downtown Urban Arts Festival, Don Juan (Isla, Dixon Place), Honor Among Thieves (Rosey, 2017 Downtown Urban Arts Festival performed at The Cherry Lane Theatre. Film credits include: Palace (Christy), an NYU thesis project based in Singapore, where she was also an acting member for the NYU Play Lab. She produced and starred in the short noir film Homme Fatale, which won the award for Best Use of Required Elements, part of the Bronx 48 Film Challenge and made its TV debut on Bronxnet. The film was also selected for the Concourse Film Festival. She is a Co-Founder of R & R Productions, producing stories that give voice to the voiceless. As producer, her film Alone With My Demons was selected as part of the Inwood Art Works New York City Quarantine Film Festival and won Best Bronx Film. The film was also selected for the Concourse Film Festival and the Mott Haven Film Festival. She is a member of the Bronx Repertory Company, trained with HB Studios and is a graduate from Lehman College with a B.A. in Theatre. She is one of the creators and is also starring in the web series #30s which will premiere in 2022. www.CristyReynoso.com
Angela Reynoso is a Dominican actress based in New York City. Her recent credits include "Radial Gradient", part of the Lime Arts Productions 20 by 20 Fringe this past May. She also starred in the awarded Best Bronx Film as Jada in "Alone With My Demons" by Juan Ramirez, Jr, selected for the 2021 Naked Angels Film Festival, 2020 NYC Quarantine Film Festival, Concourse Film Festival, and Mott Haven Film Festival. She completed the Intensive Ensemble workshop with Labyrinth Theatre Company this summer. Angela will star in an off-off Broadway show, The Love Hate Club written by Juan Ramirez, Jr for the Broadway Bound Theatre Festival this October. www.TheAngelaReynoso.com
Juan Ramirez, Jr. is a Borinqun-Chapn-Bronx internationally produced and award-winning playwright, monologist, director, screenwriter, filmmaker, poet and producer. Notable works include Calling Puerto Rico (Second Round Austin Film Festival, Miranda Family Voces Latinx Finalist with Repertorio Espaol, 2020 BAPF Finalist and a recipient of the 2019 BRIO Award) Ridin Shotgun (Best Play at Downtown Urban Arts Festival), Say Less (2021 Downtown Urban Arts Festival) The American Dream (NAV Playwrights Festival, BBTF) and Stroke of Madness (Ingenio Milagro, Cimientos). His horror short Alone With My Demons won Inwood Art Works NYC Quarantine Film Festivals Best Bronx Film. Hes a founder of The PlayPen Collective and R&R Productions with his wife Cristy Reynoso. Hes a Dramatist Guild member, 2020-2021 Dramatist Guild Fellow, NYC LatinX Playwright Circle member, an ATG PlayLab member and a teaching artist with Art Defined. He received his BA from Lehman College and his MFA in Dramatic Writing from NYU Tisch. Awarded the Bronx Council New Works grants, stay tuned for his play titled A Love Letter To The Bronx. www.JuanRamirezJr.com @AJuanManShow
Program 3 (Studio THeatre)
the key
by James Kenna
Synopsis: In this solo-show, a young man recounts a series of events swirling around a pivotal night, alcohol, and a key. From the passenger seat of a car, J inhabits the characters of his mother and father to weave a hilarious, haunting, and intimate story. “The Key” investigates the ugly parts of ourselves we lock away and the moments when they escape.
Directed by Gracie Fojtik
Starring James Kenna
Gracie Fojtik (Director): Gracie Fojtik is San Francisco-based Actor, Writer, Director, Producer, and Teaching Artist. Gracie has performed at Williamstown Theatre Company (community works), participated in readings with Middle Voice at Rattlestick Playwrights Theatre and Primary Stages, and studied with the Moscow Art Theatre. Gracie is currently beginning her third and final year as a M.F.A. acting student with A.C.T., working as a teaching artist in San Francisco, and is a co-creator of an in-house (no literally, in-house) production company with her roommates during the pandemic called gnut house productions. Gnut House wrote, produced, and acted in multiple shorts all to be released in 2021. Her most recent collaborative creations, The Garden Will Not Crumble, and Routine were shown at A.C.T. in 2021. Gracefojtik.com @graciefojtik
James Kenna (Writer/Actor): James is a New York City-based Writer, Actor, and Educator. Recent writing includes: Beowulf: Her Story" (The Subtext). The Garden Will Not Crumble (ACT Skyfest, short film). "Italian Rose: A Solo Show" (Ars Nova Research Grant). "The Key: A Solo Show" ( Grand Prairie Fine Arts Academy, 2020). On stage, he has performed at Ithaca's Hangar Theatre, The Drama League, The Edinburgh Fringe Festival, New York's Symphony Space, and in BroadwayWorld's hit new Web-series Rachel Unraveled. James is a current writer with Dreamweavers writer lab. James graduated from Fordham University in 2019 with a B.A. in Theatre: Performance and an award for distinguished achievement. James is represented by UIA Talent Agency.
Velvet Determination
By Cynthia Shaw
Synopsis: A musical story-telling journey about wrong notes, hard knocks and the keys to success. In this autobiographical show Cynthia endures music-hating neighbors, flamboyant teachers AND a falling piano. These and other obstacles confront this naive, wide-eyed young classical pianist who tackles the Big Apple! Live classical piano. “Best Festival Debut”/United Solo, “Best Solo Show”/Pittsburgh Fringe.
Cast: Cynthia Shaw
Peter Michael Marino, director
BIOS:
Cynthia Shaw, pianist, singer and actor, lives in Brooklyn, NY. She was born and raised in Pueblo, Colorado and moved to New York to attend the esteemed Manhattan School of Music. Since graduating, she has dedicated her life to music and acting. She has musical directed over 30 regional and off-Broadway shows and acted in New York City and regional theatres. MUSICAL HIGHLIGHTS include: backup vocals for Paul McCartney (Carnegie Hall) and Björk (Riverside Church), singing with the New York Philharmonic when they won three Grammy Awards and playing piano for Garrison Keillor and The Prairie Home Companion at Town Hall and on NPR. ACTING HIGHLIGHTS: Mrs. Winemiller (Summer & Smoke, Terry Schreiber, director), Liz Fuller (Me and Jezebel, Kentucky Repertory Theatre), Arkadina and Ranevskaya (Mr. Chekov and Mr. Porter, Medicine Show Theatre) and many other Off-Broadway theatres in New York. Her film work has been presented at Cannes Festival Corner, The Film Society of Lincoln Center, The Soho International Film Festival and The Big Apple Film Festival, to name a few. Her one woman show, Velvet Determination, won 2018 “Best Festival Debut” at NYC’s United Solo Festival and many other awards in the festival circuit. www.velvetdetermination.com www.cynthiashaw.us
Peter Michael Marino is a New York City native who has worked extensively as a producer, director, developer, writer, teacher, and performer whose work has been seen on five continents. Pete is a member of The Dramatists Guild, AEA, SAG-AFTRA, The Indie Theater Fund, and a graduate of the Commercial Theater Institute. His production company PM2 Entertainment has presented festivals and original comedy works everywhere from NYC to Australia, Canada, and the UK. Pete is regarded as one of the first American artists to pioneer online, live, interactive performances during the pandemic. He’s streamed LIVE performances of his solo shows Desperately Seeking the Exit and Show Up, Kids! for nearly 11 months online. He is a subject of an early pandemic piece by Peter Marks in the Washington Post. Pete is also the author of a controversial piece for Medium on what theater is. It’s satire, people. https://www.petermmarino.com/
PROGRAM 4 (Studio THeatre)
corpus christi
by Tony Pennino
It is Saturday. Joshua lies in his tomb having been crucified the day before. Lucifer Morningstar arrives to prepare him for his resurrection. These two old friends take the opportunity to talk, argue, share a drink, and dance. But will Joshua accept his eternal reward or return to a world wracked by war, poverty, environmental catastrophe, and plague?
Directed by Tony Pennino
CAST
Karl Knapp
Jamison Monella
Karl Knapp ( Lucifer Morningstar ) is excited to be working with the Chain Theatre for the first time. A graduate of the Neighborhood Playhouse of Acting here in NYC, he enjoys acting both in theater and film. Some previous credits include Drones & Christ Detained both written and directed by Anthony P. Pennino. He also played John Proctor in The Crucible. He wishes to extend a Thank You to everyone at today’s performance.
Jamison Monella (as Joshua) is a New York based actor, model, and playwright. He holds a Bachelor of Arts in Theater Performance and Art History from Juniata College. He is ecstatic to be back on stage as theater is making its return to the world! Other New York credits include Dorian in (The Picture of) Dorian Gray, Creon in Citizen Cyborg, Pat in Drones, and as Max in Death of a Bachelor (also playwright). International credits include Danny in American Western (Int’l Dublin Gay Theatre Fest) and Hamlet in Hamlet (Edinburgh Fringe).
Anthony P. Pennino (playwright/director) is the author of numerous plays including Chokehold, Of Privilege and Property, and Christ Detained. He was twice awarded a fellowship from the New Jersey Council on the Arts. A professor of literature, he also authored a monograph on the British theatre in the 1980s, which was published by Palgrave Macmillan UK. He holds an MFA from Columbia and a PhD from the University of London.
DEAD WIVES DANCE THE MAMBO
By Desi Moreno- Penson
Synopsis: Twin sisters find themselves in a strange netherworld as they search for their mother. Will the charismatic mambo dancer they encounter prove to be their savior? Or will they be forced to dance the Mambo against their wills?
Directed by KM Jones
Sound Mix by Jorge Olivio
Performed By
Mateo Moreno
Yessenia Rivas
Arelis Torres
BIOS:
Desi Moreno-Penson (Playwright) is an award-winning NYC based Latina playwright whose plays have been developed/produced at Ensemble Studio Theater (EST), INTAR, MultiStages, Perishable Theater (Providence, RI), Henry Street Settlement, SPF-Summer Play Festival, terraNOVA Collective, The Downtown Urban Theater Festival (DUTF) @the Cherry Lane, Urban Theater Company (Chicago), Teatro Coribantes (San Juan, PR), among others. Her new play, Without Water/Sin Agua is currently part of the Fighting Words Script Development Program with Babes With Blades Theater Company in Chicago. Her play, Beige is the winner of the 2016 National Latino Playwriting Award sponsored by the Arizona Theater Company; received Honorable Mention on The Kilroys List 2017; Finalist for 2018 Bay Area Playwrights Festival, 2016 Eugene O’Neill National Playwrights Conference, 2017 New Works Festival @Kitchen Dog Theater (Dallas, TX); Semifinalist for 2016 Princess Grace Award; selected for the inaugural list of 50 Playwrights Project’s Top 8 Best Unproduced Latinx Plays 2017, and was nominated for the 2017 Mentor Project @the Cherry Lane. Her plays, Ghost Light, Devil Land, Lazarus Disposed, and 3 To a Session: A Monster’s Tale, are published by Broadway Play Publishing; a ten-minute play, Spirit Sex: A Paranormal Romance, was selected for the short plays anthology, “Best Ten- Minute Plays of 2010,” and a scene from Comida de Puta is included in an anthology featuring plays written by Latinx playwrights, “Scenes for Latinx Actors: Voices of the New American Theater,” both published by Smith and Kraus. Her short play, Reconcile, Bitch will be included in an upcoming short plays anthology “Best Ten- Minute Plays of 2020,” published by Applause Theater and Cinema Books in the fall 2021. MFA in Dramaturgy and Theater Criticism from Brooklyn College; Member, Dramatists Guild, SAG-AFTRA, and the Going To The River Writers Unit (GTTR) @the Lark New Play Development Center in NYC. Desi lives in The Bronx with her wonderful husband, Anthony, and their cat, Choo-Choo.
KM Jones (Director) is a Theatre Director and Producer. KM is currently on The Board of Directors of LPTW (League of Professional Theatre Women) for the 2020-2021 season; and the Associate Artistic Director for Planet Connections Theatre Festivity. Recent Streaming Directing Projects include Genesister and Monkey Mary both written by Desi Moreno-Penson; American Slavery 101 (2nd Place for The Nuyorican Poets Cafe 2021 Online Festival) written by Nia Akilah Robinson; Emergency Kit, He Watered Plastic Plants, and 84736 all written by Raymond Goode; and Don't Drink The Hatorade by Carmen Lobue. KM is also an Alumni of St. John's University and The American Academy of Dramatic Arts in New York City.
Arelis Torres (Mariana) is a Puerto Rican actress based in New York City. Since making her move here three year ago, she has performed in various off-off Broadway shows including A Christmas Carol. Her recent roles include Linda Summers/Alecto in a Zoom Production of Rough Magic; and she played the role of Lucia in Papi as part of the Nuyorican Poets Café 2021 Online Theater Festival. Her role in Dead Wives Dance The Mambo will be her first production back on stage since 2019. She is thrilled to be a part of this play and to perform at The Chain Theatre One Act Festival!
Mateo Moreno (Vicquez/Fight Choreographer) is a NYC based actor/playwright whose latest play Within Our Walls just received an in-person developmental workshop at the 14th Street Y. His play Pitch was recently published as part of the play anthology “We’re Not Neutral: Reset Series 2020,” and is now available to purchase on Amazon. His other playwriting credits include No Hablo Español: MixTape of a Mexi-Can’t, Broken Pieces, Bohemian Valentine, Happily After Tonight. Recent acting credits: ‘Art’, Not-Knowing, Pride & Prejudice, The Rite-ing on the Wall, The Enemy of the People, Krampus Search 2020, Dead Wait: A Journey into Afro- Existentialism, Canary in a Cage (workshop). Mateo also reviews films for “The ArtsWire Weekly” and is a proud ensemble member of Rising Sun Performance Company. Current projects include the play Moonwalker and performing children’s theatre with Rising Sun at various parks across NYC. Please get Vaccinated and take care of each other. #BlackLivesMatter #StopAsianHate www.Mateo- Moreno.com www.TheArtsWireWeekly.com .
Yessenia Rivas (Selina) is a Mission, TX native currently living in Manhattan. She received her B.S. in Theatre from Tufts University and recently received her M.F.A. in Acting from the Actors Studio Drama School. She starred in the short film Let's Play Dead Girl (2014) and was awarded Best Supporting Actor Award at the My Final Shot Production Film Festival. She also starred in Buy This Button (2016) which was accepted into The Women in Comedy Film Festival. Most recently she played the role of Jess in Greater Fools (2018), and originated the roles of Irene in La Gota Fria (Thalia Spanish Theatre) and Magpie in We Three (Theatre East), and Exit II Theatre Company performing Dog Sees God: Confessions of a Teenage Blockhead in the role of Marcy. Yessenia has studied ballet, pointe, contemporary, folklorico, flamenco, tap, salsa, hip - hop, gymnastics and jazz. She has studied with South Texas Ballet, Balet de Monterrey, NCSA summer session, STEPS on Broadway and most recently has been taking lessons with Joffrey Ballet and Broadway Dance Center. In addition, she has starred in multiple music videos since arriving in New York.
Music includes: Africando - Betece, Epidemic Sound, Lara's Horror Sounds.
Program 6 (Mainstage)
BINGE
by Samantha Fairfield Walsh
Synopsis: Max and Angie, two white friends from college, are binging a true crime show when Angie recounts a story she heard on a podcast about a roast in the 1990's where Ted Danson roasted Whoopie Goldberg in blackface. As they try to return to their TV binge session, they can't help but to continue 'having the hard conversations' about how blackface is bad and they'd never do such a thing but also how it's easy to hold people accountable for past racist behavior except when it's not.
Cast and Crew:
Samantha Walsh - Playwright
Christopher Diercksen - Director
Eden Neuendorf - Angie
Alexander Fellows - Max
John DeSilvestri - TV
Beth Lake - Sound Design
Samantha Fairfield Walsh is a New York based playwright and multi-disciplinary artist. Her full length plays include The Mountain (Finalist, Chain Theater Playwriting Lab 18'), Break (Staged Reading, Team Awesome Robot, 19', Semi-Finalist Play Penn 20'), Ether (Semi-Finalist Unicorn Theatre New Play Reading Series 20'), The Things We Say (First Fridays, The Barrow Group 21'), Should You Find Yourself Prepared (Semi-Finalist National Playwrights Conference 21'), The Visible, Salem!, and The Sunshine State. Her short plays include The Body (Pussyfest 18'), I'm Gonna Vote (ESPA Detention Series 18'), BINGE (Chain Theater One Act Festival, 21'), Miles (ESPA Detention Series 19'), and Should (ESPA Detention Series 19'). She graduated with a BFA in Acting from the University of Florida and has spent her years in New York as a performer and artist developing new work.
Christopher Diercksen is a Director and Dramaturg of new work. They are the artistic director of Team Awesome Robot, a collaborative theater initiative. Past Team Awesome Robot credits include: Break, by Samantha Walsh; Let's Do That Hockey by Madhur Shekar; That True Phoenix by Daniel John Kelley; Rush by Callie Kimball. Christopher is an alum of The National Theater Institute and Albright College. www.teamawesomerobot.com
Alexander Dean is an actor, improviser, and marketer based in Brooklyn, New York. He has received training from the Magnet Theater, Upright Citizens Brigade, Theater Emory, and the Yale Summer Conservatory for Actors. Previous credits include Richard III in Richard III and Celia in As You Like It at Theater Emory. He spent the past year performing virtually with co-star Eden Neuendorf in their improv duo show, Little Weasel. This is Alexander’s NYC stage debut. Eden Neuendorf is an actor, producer, and improviser making her NYC stage debut. She spent many years working in the SF Bay Area before relocating to NYC. She has performed professionally in 20+ productions with companies such as Eugene O'Neill Festival, TheatreWorks, Custom Made, and many more. She's the former Associate Producer and Casting Director for Bay Area Children's Theatre where she dove into her passion for new play development.
John DeSilvestri has provided voice-over for animation, live events and video games. He recently lent his voice to a new attraction opening at Universal Studios Beijing, and continues to work with The Hanford Challenge as a narrator. www.johndesilvestri.com, Twitter: JohnnyDVoices, Insta: JohnnyDVoices
Down the fox hole
By Blake Merriman
Synopsis: An absurdist and farcical examination of the relationship between fearful, struggling Americans and populist, demagogic pundits. "Down the Fox Hole" is a play that shows us the hyperbolic messaging patterns that escalate negative emotions and manipulate people into antisocial action. A fun and satirical piece that is equal parts Chris Durang and Ryan George.
CAST
Alexander Stine as “A”
Blake Merriman as “B”
Zach Sherry as “C”
CREW
Joshua Warr – Co-Director
Valentine Aprile – Co-Director
BIOS:
Joshua Warr (Co-Director): Stupid F**king Bird (13th Street Theatre); Pizza Man (13th Street Theatre); Brilliant Traces (WorkShop Theatre [now the Chain Theatre]), Orion (Theatre Row/Studio Theatre), Lady Gay: All of Me (Feinstein's/54 Below), The Blue Djinn (The Wild Project), An Infinite Ache (Access Theatre), Tape (Abingdon Theatre/Dorothy Strelsin). Film: Haywire. Joshua is the founder of Art of Warr Productions.
Valentine Aprile (Co-Director) is an award winning artist in multiple disciplines including painting, dance-theater creation/direction, and filmmaking. Her eclectic arts education includes The University of the Arts (PA - BFA in Painting and MA in Arts in Education with a focus on interdisciplinary methods), The Art Students League of New York, Nimble Arts (VT - aerial arts), The Maggie Flanigan Acting Conservatory (NY), and various dance studios in Philadelphia and New York. She is currently based in New York working on multiple projects and painting. Her paintings have been published in American Art Collector-April 2019, LINEA (published by The Art Students League of NY), and Create! Magazine. Her past work with Art of Warr Productions includes Brilliant Traces (assoc. dir.), and Stupid Fucking Bird (movement dir.). Valentine is so pleased to be back to work, in person, with this talented team. Member - NAEA, NAWA, PoetsArtists, Portrait Society of America, Audubon Artists, The Warr Room https://www.valentineaprile-artist.com/ Rizzle.tv sponsored content - https://rizzle.tv/u/valentineaprile Instagrams - @valaprile @valtheseries @vandoactorservices IMDB - http://www.imdb.me/valentineaprile
Alexander Stine (A): Host and Producer of the Dungeons & Dragons 5E Podcast The Floor is Dungeon. TV: Mindhunter, Orange is the New Black, The Affair, TURN: Washington’s Spies, Mysteries of Laura, Boardwalk Empire. Film: Wild Men, The Incoherents. Theatre: King Lear w/ Austin Pendleton, Servant of 2 Masters, Knight of the Burning Pestle, Macbeth, Stairway to Hell. BA: Theatre - University Northern Colorado.
Blake Merriman (B): Favorite theatre credits include Aaron Posner’s Stupid F**king Bird (13th Street Theatre), Cindy Lou Johnson’s Brilliant Traces (The Workshop Theater), Matthew McLachlan’s ORION (Theater Row), Anthony P. Pennino’s A Thousand Deaths (FringeNYC), and Ben Holbrook’s Alone with Friends (Fundamental Theater Project). TV: HBO’s Crashing. FILM: The Graduates (Amazon) and Drinking Games (now available on iTunes). Blake trained at Northwestern University, the School at Steppenwolf, and the Maggie Flanigan studio. For more, visit BlakeMerriman.com.
Zachary Sherry (C): Zachary Sherry is an actor and writer excited to be playing C in Down the Foxhole. Trained with Florida State University and Maggie Flanigan Studio. Zach would like to thank everyone involved with the show! www.zachsherry.com
Stand naked in the river of shame
by Evan Edwards
Synopsis: Love and Redemption. Everyone wants one or the other. That’s why Franklin, a dying old man, returns to his favorite childhood spot to face the ghosts of his past. But after being haunted by it for sixty years, will he finally be able to deal with the trauma that sent him running in the first place?
Aaron Lee Battle (FRANKLIN) is an actor/singer who has performed on off-Broadway, in Northern Europe and Istanbul Turkey. Aaron is a Bistro Award winning cabaret performer. I'm pleased to once again to be involved in project with the Chain Theater.
Ido Gal (CALEB) is a New York-based actor and producer. Originally from Palo Alto, Ido performed in productions in San Francisco and San Jose before receiving his acting training from the University of Southern California. Since graduating, Ido has performed for the Kingsmen Shakespeare Festival, Columbia University Stages, Audible Studios, and on-camera in numerous independent short films. Ido is excited and thrilled to be back on stage for The Chain Theater One Act Festival!
Callie Stribling (she/her) is a Manhattan based stage manager. Previous credits include Abnormal (Theatre Row), Friendly's Fire (Rising Sun Performance Company), Spring Awakening (the Secret Theatre), and various other shows, readings, and festivals around the city. With many thanks for all the support and hard work that has kept the lights on in our theaters the past year and a half, even the purchase of this ticket.
Evan Edwards (WRITER/DIRECTOR) is a polyonymous multi-ethnic, multi-hyphenate theatre professional and member of DG, AEA and AGVA. As Steven Hamilton, he earned a Bachelor of Arts in English and Theatre from Niagara University. His works include the full-length book musical McGurk’s Suicide Hall, a fictional account of actual events, for which he won the Great Performances Fellowship and the Playlight Featured Musical Award. His play Members of the Choir was chosen for the Broadway Inclusion Project, NYC, Ready for my Close- up premiered at London’s AAUK E-plays Vol 3: Renewal, Falling was seen at WildFlower Theatre’s virtual opening gala and two of his monologues Tonsil Hockey with the Help and Independent thinking were featured at the Prince William Sound College Monologue Workshop. His full-length drawing room farce, Mixed Messages, is in development with American Theatre Group PlayLab, a professional space for BIPOC and Queer playwrights to develop works for the stage. EvanEdwardsAEA.org
Booker Vance (YOUNG GUY) is a 24-year-old actor and writer from Chicago, Illinois. He is a rising third year MFA student at The New School of Drama and a graduate of Morehouse College and the British American Drama Academy (BADA). Booker has performed in theatrical productions such as Hamlet, God of Carnage, The Piano Lesson, Romeo & Juliet, Milk Like Sugar, Saturday Night/Sunday Morning and The Colored Museum. He also guest starred in The Next Big Move pilot and is set to recur on Away From Home, an upcoming web-series from VOX Films.
FUNCTION
by Duncan Pflaster
Synopsis: Dr. Rodgers is brought in to interview Cody, an android, to determine his humanity. But the questions she poses to him are not necessarily leading where she thinks they are.
Heather Lee Rogers (Dr. Rodgers) is a proud fixture of the NYC indie theatre community. Favorite roles include Nurse Constance in the serial-theatre soap opera It's Getting Tired Mildred, Richard II in This England w/Strange Harbor, Pentheus in The Bacchae w/Dysfunctional Theatre, Ase in Peer Gynt w/Gorilla Rep, Hermione in The Winter’s Tale w/Hudson Warehouse, Mariah in The Douchegirl Play w/Cross-Eyed Bear, and a murderer in the Miss Jane Periwinkle mystery series on Governors Island w/Dysfunctional Collective. She also does film projects and voice overs. heatherogers.com Wes Bourland (Cody): Wes grew up in Fredericksburg, Texas and would love to meet you if you know where that is. Previous credits include Cleansed (Robin), subUrbia (Jeff) and a lot of musical theatre. Wes also directs (most recently the NY premiere of The Walls), writes, music directs, arranges, and moonlights as a bass player. Love to Allison and Sourie.
Duncan Pflaster (Playwright): Duncan has won awards for many of his plays, especially The Underpants Godot, The Empress of Sex, and 1460 Sketches of your Left Hand. His film Strapped for Danger and its sequel can be found on the Internet. www.duncanpflaster.com
Aliza Shane (Director): Aliza is grateful to be back. THANK YOU, DUNCAN. Aliza is a director, playwright and producer. Aliza was Co-Artistic Director of 3 Voices Theatre which produced multiple staged reading events, as well as Mein Uncle, an absurdist fairytale about the seeds of inhumanity, written and directed by Aliza. Also written/directed by Aliza: Are You There Zeus? It’s Me, Electra, (PCTF Awards), The Imaginary Invalid: By Prescription Only (PCTF Awards), and The Three Sillies, (NYIT Award). Credits include: NYC Fringe, Cross-Eyed Bear Productions, Spotlight On Fest, The Dirty Blondes, COTE, The Bechdel Group, Project Y, Abingdon Theatre, Urban Stages, and more. Krystal KC Wilson (Stage manager): Krystal is excited to be back in a theatre after a long time away focusing on producing and working on films. She’s ready to have a great show and hope you enjoy.
Program 7 (mainstage)
closure
by Melissa Maney
Synopsis: Years after their relationship ended, Liam and Allie are meeting for the first time. While Liam tries to reconcile the relationship, Allie explains why they didn’t – and still wouldn’t – work out. Will Liam ever get closure? Or will he refuse to let the relationship go?
Cast:
Killian Lock: Liam
Evelyn Carvera: Allie
Director/Playwright:
Melissa Maney
Melissa Maney (Director/Playwright) is a graduate from The New School for Drama. She has produced work at Theater Row, Theater for The New City, The Tank, The Barrow Group Theater, The Gene Frankel Theatre, and more.
Killian Lock (Liam) is thrilled to be back on stage after the apocalypse, and doubly so to be performing the work of Melissa, and acting across from Evelyn. Trained at AMDA, Killian is primarily a stage actor, but can be seen in the short films MIROR and To Be The Best (both can be found on Youtube).
Evelyn Carvera (Allie) is a New School for Drama graduate who has participated in many works and projects with The Skeleton (Rep)resents, such as, The Great Vanishing prts. I, II, and III (Abbie), Myth Me In Manhattan (Persephone), Absolution (@Maryofmagdalala), and Explore Modern Myth prt. II (The Thespis/Jesus, Fin, Dinah).
Entr’acte
By Anthony Fusco
Synopsis: A tete-a-tete between an actor and an acting coach crosses the line when one of them exposes information that can ruin a professional relationship between them.
CAST
Chad Tyler.......................................................Patrick Bentley
Jackson Cline...................................................Richard Avery
BIOS:
Anthony Fusco (Playwright/Director) Anthony began playwriting as a hobby until he self produced his first 60 minute, 6 male, choreographed performance art piece titled Confessions Of A Bad Boy. This piece was presented at the Duplex Cabaret, The Wings Theater, as well as The Producers Club in NYC. His work has been presented at The Strawberry One Act festival several years, The Summer/Winterfest, Manhattan Rep, as well as the Bad Theater festival in NYC. He has won for Best Director two times at play festivals in NYC. His play Fixation made the top 4 best plays in 2015 at the Strawberry One Act Festival. He was the Artistic Director of his first online zoom LGBTQ short play festival back in February/March 2021. His 90 minute production titled Stoned To The Wall will be on the mainstage at the Chain Theater Sept 14-19. He wants to thank everyone involved with the Chain Short Play Festival for the opportunity to present his short one act drama ENTR’ACTE in this year’s festival. His credits include, Stoned To The Wall, Entr’acte, Reawakening, Psychic Café, A Night At Stonewall, Crossing Verrazano, Confessions of a Bad Boy, Sole Mates, and Lame Ducks. Triangletheatre@gmail.com or IG #playwright58.
Chad Tyler (Patrick Bentley) CHAD TYLER is a D.C. native and member of SAG AFTRA and serves on its National LGBT Actor’s Committee. Leading - "Limited Engagement: A Comedy About Death" - NYC Winter Fest (Hudson Guild Theater), "Private Eyes”- Journeymen Theater Ensemble (Church Street Theater), "Madman William" (Actual Reality Theatre Company) Supporting - "Three Card Stud" (The Wilton Theater Factory), "The Stinky Cheese Man & Other Fairly Stupid Tales" (Adventure Theater), "Jill Kills Vol.’s 1 & 2:Ladykiller/Bloodlust" (1st annual Capital Fringe Festival), "Watching Lotus Flowers Blossom" (Spotlighter’s Theater), “My Boyfriend The Stripper" (Source Theater), "An Awful Night at the Hotel Taiga" (Classika Theater); "Last Call", "Say You Love Satan" & "Alberta Clipper" (multiple Source Theater Summer Festival’s), "As You Like It" (Folger Shakespeare Library).Chad also understudied in Lady Windermere’s Fan (Shakespeare Theatre Company @ The Landsburgh). He also performed in play readings at Kennedy Center, Washington Shakespeare Co. & MetroStage. He also performed in live improvisational murder mysteries with WhoDunIt2Go & The Dinner Detective.
Jackson Cline (Richard Avery) Selected Stage: At the Stroke of Midnight, Schoolhouse Rock Live Too!, Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day, Bullies in the Hall. Audiobooks: Remember Me This Way, 30 Minutes or Less. Podcast: The Ensemblist. Website: www.JacksonCline.com. Instagram: @all.that.jax.
What Happened to Peter’s Peter
Written and Directed by Wil Hart
Synopsis: “When two federal agents interrogate a dangerous insurrectionist, their loyalties are put to the test”
Wil Hart . . . . . . . . . Writer/Director
Luis Feliciano . . . . . Peter
Arielle Leger . . . . . . March
Riley McMillan . . . . June
Wil Hart (writer/director) Wil Hart’s plays include The First Man (New Natives Theatre Company), Raspberries (New York Summerfest), Hunt (Secret Theatre), Imagination (No Frills Theatre Collective), Come In Peace (Bad Theater Fest), and Fortress & Weasel (Fifth Avenue Theatre, tbd October 2021). His short play, Hunt, was published as part of the Act One: One Act Anthology.
Luis Feliciano (Peter) Luis Feliciano is an Actor, Writer, and Director. When he isn’t taking the stage (or telling other people what to do/say on stage) he is a Math Adjunct at Hunter College where he teaches frightening subjects such as Algebra and Calculus 1. Recent Credits include: The In Between of Fullness (Ensemble Member), Perception (Writer), and Eurydice (Director). Follow the journey on Instagram: @Leezusprime
Arielle Legere (March) Arielle Legere is an actor, teaching artist, and stage manager. She graduated from the American Academy of Dramatic Arts in 2014. Arielle is an artistic associate at Mile Square Theatre. Recent credits include The Devouring (Paradise Club), Dr Faustus, All’s Well That Ends Well, & Macbeth (Hudson Shakespeare Co), The Garden of Rikki Tikki Tavi (MST). Arielle is so happy to be creating live theatre again! Much love to the cast & crew, and a big thank you to the organizers of this festival.
Riley McMillan (June) Riley McMillan (she/they) is an actor, writer, and artist from Scotland and is beyond thrilled to be returning to live theatre! Recent credits include: stage: Lady in ‘The Sisters’ (Soho Shakespeare Co.), Helen in ‘Perfecting The Kiss’ at the DC Fringe; TV/Film: ‘JO’ (runner up in ‘Shedirected’ contest), ‘The Food That Built America
Program 8 (Studio THeatre)
20th Anniversary
by Marcus Harmon
Synopsis: Set 20 years after the September 11th attacks, two ex police officers meet to remember their friend and reveal much more about themselves and the world around them.
Marcus Harmon is a playwright, actor, and singer from Columbus, Ohio. This is his first one act play and first play shown on stage. He was selected as a recipient of the Dramatist Guild Foundation award and this year's NYFA (New York Foundation for the Arts) grant for playwriting.
Hartley Erickson is from Sandy Spring, Maryland. He has studied at the William Esper Studio here in Manhattan. He will be making his New York stage debut as part of the 2021 Chain Theater One Act Festival.
Marcos Luis is a graduate of Northwestern University. He has been seen in national commercials, tv, & film. He is a podcast Host @OneMicNite and is happy to return to stage again in NYC. @MarcosLuis
Real class act
by Matt and Ariel Sanders
Synopsis: Circus performers playing a small town stop for a drink at the U Drop Inn and find the waiter is a performer who suddenly quit the circus and disappeared.
Cast:
Devin Carey (Hilda) is excited to make her Chain Theatre debut in a Real Class Act! She received her degree in Theatre from the University of Southern California and currently studies under Scott Freeman. Previous Off-Broadway credits include An Unimagined Love, Missing Layla and Magnum Opus. She has also appeared on TV's Homicide City.
Billy Gillen (Artie) is a graduate of AMDA and The National Theater Institute. His most recent credits: "This is Our Youth", "The Last Caddoan", "Richard III", "Hamlet" and "The Seagull". Billy made his directorial debut in "God of Carnage" this past April, at the Vino Theater in Brooklyn. He'd like to thank everyone involved at The Rogue Theater Festival and John DeBenedetto for this opportunity.
Emmy Kuperschmid (Cassie) is an NYC-based actor and writer on a mission to make people feel less alone. Favorite credits include Dave Malloy's Beardo (Pipeline Theatre Company), How To Make A Woman’s Advocate (YPF @ the Eugene O’Neill Theater Center), As You Like It (Rogue Players), and The Mad Ones Lab with Kerrigan & Lowdermilk. You can find her on Instagram @emmykupe or on her website, EmmyKuperschmid.com.
Dustin Pazar (Pete) is thrilled to finally be back on stage once more! He was most recently seen playing Orlando in The Rogue Players’ production of As You Like It. Favorite past roles include Henry IV (Henry IV Part One), Caliban (The Tempest), Simon Stride/Spider (Jekyll and Hyde), Tommy Albright (Brigadoon), and John Merrick (The Elephant Man). Alumnus of Boston College (Theatre BA). Thanks to his family, friends, and beautiful fiancée.
Director:
John DeBenedetto has directed numerous plays at various venues in NYC. He holds an MA from Hunter College. He is very pleased to be working again on a play by Matt and Ariel Aliza Sanders.
Playwrights:
Matt Sanders and Ariel Aliza Sanders live and write in Brooklyn, New York. Their short plays have been produced in various New York City venues, several directed beautifully by John DeBenedetto, and one in London.
Program 9 (mainstage)
old habits die hard
Written and Directed by Carly Wilkins
Synopsis: Kate and Liz have recently moved in together. Liz has been acting strangely around Kate ever since the move. Kate feels something is wrong in the relationship but doesn't quite know what. Things are only complicated by a surprise house guest Liz brings home.Cast:
Cast/Crew List and Bios:
Katie Jay Hopkins (Liz) - Katie Jay Hopkins is an actor, singer, dancer, writer, and axe throwing enthusiast based in Brooklyn, NY. Katie holds a BFA in Musical Theatre from Missouri State University. Some of her favorite credits include Amelie in the regional collegiate premiere of Amelie, Anne Egerman in A Little Night Music, and Envy in Infernal: A Rock Musical, which is making its live theatre premiere in NYC this fall. She is currently a member of Theatre68. To check out more about Katie visit katiejayhopkins.com.
Lauren Messina (Kate) - Lauren Messina is an actor, singer, and writer originally from Buffalo, NY. She graduated from Baldwin Wallace University for theater performance and directing, and has taken classes with Stella Adler and UCB in the city. She can be seen on TV in Blue Bloods, and in indie films Dharma Furniture and Mariposas. Theater work in Buffalo and Philadelphia includes Pop Diary of a Gay Man, Godspell, and Over the Tavern. Lauren would like to thank her family, friends, and her partner Lydia for their support! Find out more about Lauren at laurenomessina.com.
Carly Wilkins (playwright/director/sound designer) - Carly Wilkins is an actor, writer, and director. She's originally from New Jersey but she has been a proud Brooklnite for a few years. She has her BFA in Performing Arts from Hofstra University. This is not Carly's first time working with the Chain Theatre. She has acted, produced, and stage managed in this space and is happy to be here again as a director. Carly is also an active member of Theatre 68. Thank you to my amazing cast and the Chain Theatre for making this all possible! Yay to live theatre!! For more about Carly visit carly-wilkins.com.
REQUIEM IN THE OLIVE GARDEN
by Shea Grant
Requiem in the Olive Garden is a one act play that examines the way families act in moments of grief. The show watches a family in an Olive Garden after the funeral of a loved one. Girl (Raina Soman) spends time making sense of the eulogies, while others recount memories and spend time together.
CAST
GIRL- Raina Soman
PAM- Alana Markel
MALE COUSIN- River Knight
AUNT 1- De’Ana Chess
AUNT 2- Drew Pitts
DRUNK MOM- Vikki Werner
COWORKER- Benny Kardesch
COWORKER 2- Ryan Murray
EVIL COUSIN- Lisha Payne
PRIEST- Kyle Brier
CREATIVE TEAM
Shea Grant
Esther Kohl
Limbos Woodland
Written by Steph Prizhitomsky
Synopsis: The woods of Saint Virgil’s Cemetery seem to go on forever. Unknowingly trapped, Robin, a ghost hunter from 1984 enters the cemetery looking for the spirit of her sister but finds Kaya instead, a runaway from the year 1954. The two reluctantly join forces to find a way out, crossing paths with a group of trouble making friends and one lost boy, wandering alone.
Kaya: Nina Celedonio
Robin: Steph Prizhitomsky
Leo: Daniel Lee
Sam: Julia Fein
Willow: Jules Fitzgerald
Jamie: Andres Reyes
Program 10 (mainstage)
by your side
by Charly Wenzel
Synopsis: An old Chinese immigrant woman on the Lower East Side of New York City is immersed in an imaginary birthday party for her late husband. She is yanked back into reality by the frantic knock on her apartment door by a young Black man looking for a place to hide. She grants him refuge and despite their apparent differences they gradually form a bond through their shared feelings of not belonging, having both experienced loss and the inability to control their circumstances.
This play is inspired by the true love story between an African American soldier serving in the Navy and a young girl growing up in Singapore in the 1970s.
CHARLY WENZEL is a German actress, dancer, choreographer, writer, director and award winning filmmaker. She won multiple awards for her experimental films “Global Tides”, “Licht”, “Schein”, “PAUSE” and “Faces”, which were screened at film festivals worldwide. Charly was the Artistic Director of her own company Charly Wenzel & Dancers, she was the Associate Artistic Director of Naganuma Dance and she worked as the Rehearsal Director for Bodystories: Teresa Fellion Dance. She worked as the choreographer for several recording artists and she choreographed for a number of dance films and music videos. Charly was a member of the Bavarian State Opera Ballet in Germany and she performed with Silver Glass Productions, Shadowbox Theater, Naganuma Dance, Keila Cordova Dances, Bodystories, LolaLola Dance Theater, Morningside Opera, Soul Movement and others. She was a performer in the Bessie award winning production “Then She Fell” by Third Rail Projects. “BY YOUR SIDE” marks her playwriting and directorial debut in theatre and she couldn’t be more thankful for the wonderful cast and crew that have joined her for this special occasion! More information at www.charlywenzel.com.
NANCY YAO is thrilled to be a part of the cast. During the pandemic, Nancy was in Nina Ki’s digital production of Somethings Never Die. Previously, Nancy’s lead roles include Eling in David Henry Hwang’s Golden Child, Miss Julie in August Strindberg’s Miss Julie, and Betty in David Ives’ The Sure Thing. Nancy is committed to writing plays about the Asian American experience. She was an early member of the Here and Now Theater Company based in LA.
NYA YEANAFEHN is an actor, writer, and comedian based out of New York. He has performed all over New York City, Los Angeles, and London. He’s appeared in short films and web series such as Hotline and Uninspired. Nya was accepted and attended the LAByrinth theatre company’s 2021 Summer intensive ensemble, studying with Stephen Adly Guirgis, David Deblinger and others.
KEVIN HOBAICHAN For my brother.
FERNANDO ROCKENBACH is a Brazilian actor. Always showing an immense love for the performing arts, he has been in small plays ever since he was a kid. During his teenage years, he took a break from theater and eventually graduated college with a degree in Architecture and Urbanism. He kept studying theater after graduation and performed in some plays in Brazil, mostly in the "theater of the absurd" style. Eventually, he moved to NYC to really focus and ground his abilities as an actor, training full time at HB Studio.
ROY CHANG is an all-around technician. He studied Entertainment Technology at New York City College of Technology. He has worked in such places as Henry Street Settlement, 59E59 Theaters, Theater for the New City and the Swedish Cottage Marionette Theatre.
CHARLY ZASTRAU is a German pianist and arranger, based in the Netherlands and has worked professionally in the international music and theatre sector for almost two decades. Zastrau tours up to 48 weeks a year having become an established and in demand pianist and keyboarder, musical director, composer and arranger. This has seen him work in a wide range of musical genres ranging from modern/experimental music ensembles to jazz groups to pop acts including jazz saxophonists Tineke Postma, Francesco Bearzatti, Benjamin Herman, Trombonist Nils Wogram and classical singer Claron McFadden. He performed with a.o. New York Downtown Icons Joey Arias and Justin Vivian Bond, punk legend Nina Hagen, the Tiger Lillies and many more.
LESLIE MARYCRUZ GUTIERRE is originally from Atlanta ,Georgia where she started off in Theatre, then moved to New York City to attend Makeup Designory. She’s very excited to be apart of the show! As well as her assistant GABRIELLE ELISE who came from Puerto Rico originally, began a career in Biology, then found her passion in makeup and attends Makeup Designory, as well.
sealed tight
By Laura Bowne and Lauren Dietzel
Synopsis: Kim is a chipper tupperware saleswoman just trying to land her first sale. Little does she know, her potential customer Martha is trying to keep a lid on a dark secret.
CAST
Laura Clare Browne - writer and KIM
Lauren Dietzel - writer, director, and MARTHA
Seann Morgan - CLIVE
Laura Clare Browne (writer/Kim) is an actress, writer, and comedian hailing from Eastchester, New York. She is a frequent collaborator with the Chain and she’s so thrilled to be returning to live performances at a theater she loves so much! Past credits include: Titania in A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Squealer in Animal Farm, and Mabel in The Queer Witch Conspiracy (The Seeing Place). She thanks Jimbles and Suze for their endless love, patience, and encouragement.
Lauren Dietzel (writer/director/Martha) hails from Pasadena, CA and is so excited to be coming back to live theatre! Favorite roles include: Cinderella in Into the Woods, Julia in The Two Gentlemen of Verona (Hofstra Shakespeare Festival), and Clown in The 39 Steps (Strongbox Theatre). Lauren also has a BFA from Hofstra University. IG: @laurendeetz. Check out her website LaurenDietzel.com. Thanks to Mom for the love, support, and multitude of fairy dresses and John Cleese for saying, “He who laughs most learns best!”
Seann David Morgan (Clive) is a writer and performer who’s very happy to be acting alongside some truly great people! Bringing a character like Clive to life is a responsibility not taken lightly. Seann’s hobbies include bingeing old movies and playing video games (please challenge me in Smash Bros.!) He’s also had the great opportunity of working in TV, assisting productions like Sesame Street and The Late Show with Stephen Colbert. Seann would like to thank Lauren, Laura, and his friends/family for helping him get out of COVID-related funk and back onto the stage. Enjoy the show everyone!
start with i do
By Mary Lauren
Synopsis:
A woman sits at a bar and desperately needs some whisky. It just so happens to be her wedding day, and she'd rather be anywhere else. Secrets are revealed, the past comes roaring back and the pressure is suffocating. Will Audrey join the sea of mediocrity or be washed out with the tide?
BIOS
MARY LAUREN (WRITER/DIRECTOR)
Mary Lauren is a Multihyphenate artist who loves to tell stories. She is the artistic director of Heart String Theatrical, whose cabarets have raised money for artists and organizations including the NAACP and ACLU. Her work has been seen Off-Broadway and regionally as a Director, Writer, Performer, Producer and Choreographer. She is a proud member of AEA, with a Bachelor of Fine Arts. Written works include; My Shadow and Me (Cape May Stage) and Start With I Do (Act One One Act Festival). She choreographed and was the lead dancer in the film, Dream of Spring which has been featured in festivals all over the world. It premiered at The Chain. Recent acting credits include: Louise, Gypsy (The Secret) Donna, Believers (The Workshop Theatre) Sarah, Sarah Was Mine (Cherry Lane) Helena, Midsummer (Mysterium) and Gertrude, Hamlet (Compass Rose). Directing/choreography credits include; Fabulous The Musical (Times Square Arts Center), Hair (The Secret Theatre), Seussical (The Secret Theatre) Thoroughly Modern Millie (The Music Room), and My Shadow and Me (Cape May Stage). Find Mary on IG @ MaryLaurenw on marylaurenonline.com.
ROMAN ALEC TREVINO (JONATHAN)
Roman Alec Trevino is thrilled to be working with Heart String Theatrical and The Chain. Stage: The Tempest (Dysfunctional Theater), Parting Shots (Mississippi University Of Women), The Real Life Adventures of Jimmy de la Rosas (Passage Theater). Film: Eyes Of God, Resentment, The Answer, Just Ten, Reasons To Love You, It’s Late. Audio: This American Wasteland, Somewhere In The Skies. Roman is a graduate of the Circle In The Square Theater School.
REBEKAH RAWHOUSER (AUDREY)
Rebekah Rawhouser (Audrey) is ecstatic to be in her first live theatre production since March of 2020! She has stayed busy in the meantime with such accomplishments as creating two children’s audiobooks for the Scout Books series, voice acting in several audio drama podcasts including Salem’s Ghosts: The Lynn Lady (for which she earned her first IMDb credit), and honing some mad sourdough baking skills. She also had the honor of taking part in several readings of new pilots, plays, and films created by her crazy talented friends. Favorite previous stage credits include Diana Goodman (Next to Normal), Mary Magdalene (Jesus Christ Superstar), and Gayle (Sunday On The Rocks). Special thanks to her amazingly supportive husband and kids, coach Tessa Faye, teacher Ted Wold, and writer/director extraordinaire Mary Lauren! Find Rebekah on IG @literallybekah ; www.rebekahrawhouser.com
MARY RUTH BAGGOT (CONNIE)
Select shows, Brokers [Web Series], Alana Stands Up, Alana [Short] Stupid F*cking Bird [LICA/Stripped Scripts], The Rubber Room [Artistic New Directions/WTco], Eat Dessert First; Sugar Plum; Lightning from Heaven [Workshop Theater Co], Psyche [Tongue in Cheek], Boy’s Life [The Seeing Place], and Reflections of a Heart [The Clurman Theater/Stepping Stone]. Circle in the Square, UCB. MaryRuthBaggott.com
RACHEL EMMANUELA FROST (JO)
Rachel is a graduate of the William Esper Studio conservatory and is thrilled to join the stellar cast of I Do as Jo. Post-pandemic she has performed in a short play at the Theater for the New City as part of the LES Festival of the Arts, and written, produced and acted in her own short film. Special thanks to David Newer & Rob McCaskill.
ROYLIN
by Aaron Huey
ROYLIN follows a young single mother as she picks up her prodigious son from soccer practice.
Cast and Crew/Names and Roles
ANITA: Zoleka Vundla
COACH CARR: David Wilson
BIOS:
PRODUCTION CONSULTANT: Leia Squillace is a theater director, producer, and artist activist whose work focuses on building and strengthening community and fostering radical humanization. She takes on projects that challenge her and her audience to find commonality and humanity where it is least expected or thought possible. She is Associate Director of Industry Initiatives for the Broadway Advocacy Coalition and the co-founder of Herd, a female-driven, environmentally sustainable theatre company. Go Blue! www.leiasquillace.com
AARON HUEY (writer/director) BIO: Aaron Huey is from Indianapolis and has played a range of roles including Ron in Insurrection: Holding History by Robert O'Hara, Platanov in Wild Honey, and Uncle Ivan in War by Swedish playwright Lars Norén. He likes playing dark characters and making them funny. Aaron wrote and directed two original, fulllength plays in school, and received an award for Distinction in Playwriting in 2018 for his play MEAT. Aaron also works as a creative director and manager in NYC. Other written works: COME GRACEFULLY INTO HIS LOVING ARMS (2019).
www.aaron-huey.com // @aaron.h.ue.y
ZOLEKA VUNDLA (ANITA): Zoleka Vundla is a voice actor from Johannesburg, South Africa. Her audiobook credits include Blossom's Queendom: Coming to Herself, The Onryō's Curse, Golden Dreg Army Book 1, and Golden Dreg Boy Book 4; all of which is on Audible. She recently worked with Penguin Random House to narrate I AM OPRAH WINFREY by Brad Meltzer. She would like to thank Aaron Huey, her family, and Chris for all the love and support! College: SUNY Purchase BFA Acting Instagram: @zovundla
DAVID WILSON (COACH CARR): David Wilson is from West Bloomfield, Michigan and a recent graduate from Fordham University's theatre program. Credits include: Airline Highway, Water by the Spoonful, Mr. Burns, Twelfth Night, We Are Proud to Present..., and more. In addition to acting, David is also an avid singer and violinist. David will begin training in NYU's grad acting program this fall. @david.wilson1399
TALENT CONSULTANT: Cole Fletcher
Program 11 (mainstage)
dead end kids
by Brian Leahy Doyle
Synopsis: It’s another quiet Sunday night at the U Drop Inn in Taos, New Mexico. Moe, the bartender, is polishing already polished glasses, while Miriam, the waitress, is thumbing through the pages of an illustrated Kabbalah. Mickey, the protagonist of our story, is gazing out the joint’s floor-to- ceiling plate glass window at a southwestern sky showing the first reds and purples of a glorious sunset and wondering if tonight will be different, if tonight Maude, the woman he once loved with a passion Dido felt for Aeneas, might just walk through the front door...
CAST IN ORDER OF APPEARANCE
Joshua Sher ............................................................................................. Moe
Charlotte Blacklock ................................................................................. Miriam
Will Poost ........................................................................................... Mickey
Charly Wenzel ....................................................................................... Maude
Choreography by Charly Wenzel
Dead End Kids was first performed via Zoom in KNOW Theatre’s 2020 Playwrights Festival
and was directed by Jeff Tagliaferro. The cast included Erik Fernandez (Mickey), Vito Longo
(Moe), Anna Simek (Maude), and Chloe Solan (Miriam).
U Drop Inn artwork courtesy of Greg Chianis, AIA.
Special thanks to Jonathan Mernit.
toxic norse-culinity
by Matt Mclachlan
Synopsis: After a recent raid on a foreign land, the Viking Sven visits his estranged friend Bretl, high on a mountain. When his welcome is not well met, Sven pleads with Bretl to witness his greatest treasure from his most recent raid: Kevin, a regular guy in torn jeans and a T-shirt who has helped teach the entire village of Vikings how to be better men, embracing their truth and abandoning their toxic notions of what a man should be. But can Bretl be convinced of Kevin’s words or will his anger towards Sven for a past wrong keep him set in his old ways?
Cast and Crew/Names and Roles:
Matthew McLachlan - Playwright
David Zayas, Jr. - Director
Alex Staub - Sven
Andrew Goebel - Bretl
Kirk Koczanowski - Kevin
Cast and Crew Bios:
Matthew McLachlan (Playwright) - Matthew McLachlan is a Dramatist Guild Member and current Artist in Residence with Abingdon Theatre Company. He was born in Scotland, raised in Florida, and currently survives in New York City. His published works A Collection of One-Acts & Other Things You May or May Not Enjoy and full-length play Orion are available now at The Drama Bookshop and on Amazon.
David Zayas, Jr. (Director) - David Zayas Jr. is a Director, Actor, Photographer. Originally from the Bronx, NY. Growing up around theater and film, he started becoming more involved, starting with photography. He later joined a theater company, and produced and directed 14 short films with them. Then directed “ The Head Hunter” by Mark Borkowski for a theater festival which got him a nomination for best director. He then joined the director program at the Actors Studio. Now he’s directing his own written short films among others that are in festivals right now such as “Santa Force” by Peter Collier. And “ Uptown Dave” by himself which won him best actor in a super short with the Chain Film Festival
Alex Staub (Sven) - Alexander Staub is a Comedian, Actor, TV Producer & Podcast Host. Originally from Boston, MA he grew up in the theater and then went on to Full Sail University to study film in Florida. Over the last 10 years he has been a tv producer for shows such as, Keeping up with the Kardashians, Housewives of New York, Live PD, America’s Got Talent and many more. When Alex isn’t working on TV he is the Co-Host on the “Men of Doozy Podcast” and performs Stand Up Comedy all around the country.
Andrew Goebel (Bretl) - is so excited to get to work on this hysterical piece. He is grateful to get to be in a physical space again working with such wonderful people. While the world was paused, Andrew kept himself busy by working with Planet Connections on their virtual pieces. He also has been working with Kimille Howard to start a company to bring the work of Black Actors and Playwrights to the forefront. Thank you to Erika for dealing with him and his family for always supporting him.
Kirk Koczanowski (Kevin) - Kirk Koczanowski is thrilled to be originating another role in one of Matthew McLachlan’s plays (Murder Play/Jack/The Artists Co-Op & Guardian/Derrick/TaDa! Theater). Kirk recently finished filming the lead role in the exciting new tv sitcom pilot “The Big Time”/Leaving Normal Productions, opposite Maitland Ward (Boy Meets World) and Brett Azar (Young Rock, Terminator). When not acting, Kirk enjoys producing his self-help/comedy podcast "Men of Doozy" with fellow co-star Alex Staub. He is so pleased to be back on-stage for the first time since playing the lovable Buddy The Elf in MTKC’s midwest premiere of “Elf: The Musical” pre-pandemic. Kirk is forever thankful to McLachlan for continuing to trust him to bring his work to life. Alumni: Maggie Flanigan Studio. Nebraska Wesleyan U. IG: @Kirk_Koz
Dead babies
by Shelby Pickleny
When Tara Knightley, a 22 year-old art student, returns home from college for spring break, she realizes that what she loves - nature and her brother, Elijah - are at odds - and there isn’t much she can do to make a difference. Dead Babies is a thrilling, experimental play that dares to reexamine the life we lead today, and the future we choose as its result.
Director Liz Bealko
Tara: Kat Olson
Elijah: Ted Gibson
Jake: Tyus King
SHELBY PICKELNY - PLAYWRIGHT Shelby could not be more excited (nor grateful!) for her piece, Dead Babies, to be gracing the Chain Theatre’s mainstage. Growing up in Central New Jersey, Shelby was surrounded by nature - both by trees and the sea - and feels deeply about environmental and social justice. Dedicated to making the industry more inclusive, Shelby will graduate with a BA in Theater Business from Pace University this Spring in order to continue the production of important and relevant art. Other work of hers includes: Cliffhanger (Tara) in The Players’ Theatre’s Short Play Festival, Robot Girlfriend (prod. PowerStation NYC), Untitled Document (prod. Pace University), and works as an associate producer on the PBS TV show Drive By History. Shelby would like to thank the cast for trusting this outrageous script, Reg for her (audio and nontechnical) support, Kirk & Christina of The Chain for their energy and encouragement, and, most importantly, Liz - for being her ride or die. Please consider further involvement with the WE ACT! organization (or another one of your choice!).
LIZ BEALKO - DIRECTOR Liz is very excited to make her New York directing debut with this hilarious and timely piece. She is a director, choreographer, and performer originally from Oklahoma, and her favorite acting credits include, The Drowsy Chaperone (Janet VanDerGraff), Xanadu (Melpomene), and The Last Five Years (Cathy). When she isn't performing, Liz is the associate producer at StrawHat Auditions. In 2017 Liz traveled to her small hometown and started a theatre program to create more opportunities for students in the performing arts. In 2018 that program received the R.I.S.E. America Grant through NBC and the Educational Theatre Foundation. She would like to thank her family for always being supportive, John Beier for being her rock and graphic artist in this production, her cast Kat, Ted, and Tyus for being up for anything, and knowing how important this funky show is, and finally her ride or die Shelby Pickelny. "I love being on this journey with you, and this is just the beginning!" Enjoy the show and Please Recycle!
TYUS KING - JAKE Hailing from Minneapolis, Minnesota, Tyus is elated to have Dead Babies be his first New York City production. Recently, Tyus graduated from a two year Film & Television acting program at the New York Conservatory for the Dramatic Arts. Prior to living in New York, Tyus has worked with various theatre companies in the Twin Cities area, such as: Sidekick Theatre, The Zephyr Theatre and The Gilbert and Sullivan Very Light Opera Company. His favorite activity in his downtime consists of drinking way too much coffee and re-reading his favorite book series “ The Hitchhiker's Guide The Galaxy”.
TED GIBSON - ELIJAH Ted Gibson (Elijah) is a University of Michigan BFA graduate who is excited to make his post-Covid debut in this hilarious, timely play. Thanks to Liz, Shelby, Tyus, and Kat for creating a supportive and exhilarating creative space and committing themselves to such a relevant, fun piece of theatre. Credits: Sense and Sensibility (Edward), This Is Our Youth (Dennis), Death of a Salesman (Bernard). Please check out the environmental justice group “WE ACT”!
KAT OLSON - TARA Katherine Olson is very excited to perform once again post pandemic for a live audience! Previous credits include EEEEEEEEE by Emily Abrams for the Rogue Theatre Festival. Regional: A Midsummer Night’s Dream (Triad Stage), Beautiful Star (Triad Stage), The Sky Game (Peppercorn Theatre). Film/TV: Oh Crappy Day! (Dagtype Films), Your Worst Nightmare (Investigation Discovery), A Dream in Static (music video feat. Earthside). She has a BFA in Acting from UNC Greensboro.
What Ifs and what is
by Carlos Joy
Synopsis: In What Ifs & What Is, Theo and Lucas reconnect for the first time since they broke up. After an innocent game of What Ifs relights a spark between them, they are forced to face their demons, and address the real reason why their relationship fell apart in the first place.
Ella Rivers- Director
Carlos Joy- Writer/ Theo
Joseph Mann- Lucas
Carlos Joy (they/them) is a NYC based actor and writer from Ponce, Puerto Rico. They graduated from the Stella Adler Studio of Acting in 2019, and has since performed in numerous plays including: Lies We Tell Ourselves (Labyrinth Theater Company), The Christmas Carol: A Queer Fantasia (Tier5 Theatre Company), Henry & Lucy (Little & Fierce Theatre Co.), Just a B’day Dinner (The Secret Theatre), Juntos (Artists in Residence). Carlos Joy’s 7 Minutes on Earth marked their playwriting debut, and went on to earn the overall first place at Team Theatre’s Fun Fab Feb Fest. Carlos is overjoyed to finally be back in theatre with this new play, and to be working with the most amazing humans. Instagram: @itscarlosjoy
Ella Rivers (they/she) graduated from the Stella Adler Studio in 2019. Since then she has assisted directed Ful Nabit by JThalia Cunningham and A Delicate Balance by Edward Albee with The Artistic Director of the Private Theatre, John Gould Rubin. As well as assisting on Clean House by Sarah Ruhl with Brad Raimondo at the Stella Adler Studio. She also directed the staged reading and American debut of Corvidae by John Campbell.
Joseph Mann is a New York based actor and a graduate of the Stella Adler Studio of Acting. He has appeared in numerous off off Broadway productions such as 'The Dungeon' by Enzo Gattuccio, 'Montrose Station' by Doug Hacket and '7 Minutes On Earth' by Carlos Joy. He is also currently in pre-production of a show he has written and will star in called 'A Life In His Shadow: A One Man Show Definitely Not About Robin Due To Legal Reasons '. Joseph has a goal of being cast as the Human Torch whenever Marvel remakes the Fantastic Four movies. So if you could start spreading the word he would be very appreciative. He is very excited to be performing in 'What Ifs & What Is' and happy to be working with great friends.