Posts in theater
"Circle Forward" a Semi-Finalist for 2023-2024 Princess Grace Award

Although it was not selected for the award/fellowship, I’m very proud to have written one of the few plays selected as Semi-Finalists for the 2023-2024 Princess Grace Award in Playwriting/Fellowship at New Dramatists. With the subjective nature of the selection process of these organizations, it means a lot to me to have the play get to this level of competition, and every acknowledgment is appreciated and taken as great encouragement!

I continue to develop (and hopefully improve) this play which was originally written as part of the Playwrights Union “February New Play Challenge,” was selected for Antaeus Theatre’s Lab Results Reading Series, and which will be workshopped at Gulfshore Playhouse’s New Works Festival in September 2023.

Synopsis for “Circle Forward": Seventeen years after the loss of her young husband from cancer, Mia meets a teenager, Ethan, who believes he is the reincarnation of her late husband. When Ethan and his mom Lexi come to Mia's house for lunch, Mia must face her doubts, her past, and the whole truth.

A big thank you to the Princess Grace Foundation and New Dramatists for this recognition. Onwards!!

"Circle Forward" Selected for Gulfshore Playhouse New Works Festival 2023!

I am over the moon excited to have my play Circle Forward selected for the Gulfshore Playhouse New Works Festival this September. I’ve had the pleasure of working with this extraordinary LORT-D theater before, when they produced the world premiere of my play Miss Keller Has No Second Book in 2018.

With the talented folks they are assembling (including director Jeffrey Binder), I can’t wait to bring my play to the table. The week’s workshop will conclude with a reading that is open to the public on Saturday Sept 16, followed by a Q&A with the audience.

Synopsis of Circle Forward: Seventeen years after the loss of her young husband from cancer, Mia meets a teenager, Ethan, who believes he is the reincarnation of her late husband. When Ethan and his mom Lexi come to Mia's house for lunch, Mia must face her doubts, her past, and the whole truth.

More info about the festival here in the BroadwayWorld press release. For Gulfshore Playhouse tickets, click here.

FREE! New Musical Reading May 21!

Please join me for the first reading of my new musical “The Sunny Survival Caravan!” on Sunday May 21 at 2:00 p.m. at Atwater Village Theatre 3269 Casitas Ave, in Los Angeles. Tickets are FREE but you’re encouraged to R.S.V.P. through THIS LINK. The reading is part of the “First Peek” Reading Series by the L.A.-based Playwrights Union.

SYNOPSIS of “The Sunny Survival Caravan!”:
Fifteen years after the collapse of civilization, a misfit traveling band of musicians perform their relentlessly cheerful nostalgia show as they travel from settlement to settlement, throughout a decimated not-so-united states, sometime in the post-apocalyptic, climate-ravaged, accordion-filled future.

Darla, Gabriela, Razz, Chester, and Banger have managed to tour what's left of the former United States for over a year – no small feat in these difficult times. Their optimistic message and varied song stylings are wildly popular, and they’ve even rigged up an old stationary bicycle to an old battery to have some amplification and lighting, thanks to some strings of old patio and Christmas lights. When the newest and youngest member of the band, Evvie, joins them, she challenges their determination to perform only the most upbeat odes to nostalgia.

By the show’s hopeful end, we see that the healing power of music can lift us up by gathering us all together, even during the darkest times.

Cast to be announced soon. Please come out and support new theater!

Directing "Guardian Angels" One Man Show on January 29!

My dear friend (and former acting teacher from NYC) Brian Delate has written a compelling one-man show which I have the honor of directing.

“Guardian Angels” is being presented as part of the Whitefire Theater’s Solofest 2023, in North Hollywood (13500 Ventura Blvd).

In 1973, after returning home from the Vietnam war, a single event changed the course of Brian's life.

Please join us on Sunday January 29 at 7:00 p.m. for the premiere of "Guardian Angels." Tickets are $25 (BUY THEM HERE!) and the show runs an hour. Thanks for supporting live theater and new work!

Reading of "The Escape Thingy" at SDS Festival of New Plays Sept 22 & 23!

So thrilled to be included in the inaugural Festival of New Plays at South Dakota State University! My play “The Escape Thingy” will have two reading performances: Sept 22 and 23.

The festival “celebrates the work of emerging playwrights while offering opportunities for students and the audience to engage in the development of new works.” I’m honored to be included alongside playwrights Caridad Svich, Amy Tofte, and Kristen Benjamin.

In “The Escape Thingy,” two very different couples meet in an "Escape Room" game night, each needing very different types of escape. The clock is literally ticking as they attempt to solve the puzzles, decide what reality to believe, and weigh the risks of unlocking the door to the dangerous world outside.

Can’t wait to visit Brookings and work with the director and cast there! For more info, click here.

Final LIVE Tapings of NPR Quiz Show "Says You!" Sept 8 and 10!

Please join me for the final “Says You!” tapings for live audiences in Seattle, WA on Thursday Sept 8 and San Francisco, CA on Saturday Sept 10!

This NPR comedy/trivia show has been beloved for 25 years, and producer Laura Sher has arranged these final two tapings in two of the cities that have loved us best. I’m honored to be sharing the stage with the Says You! All-Stars, including Carolyn Faye Fox, Murray Horwitz, Barry Nolan, Joyce Kulhawik, and Tony Kahn!

In Seattle, we’ll be performing/recording at the recently renovated Town Hall starting at 6:30 pm on 9/8. Seats still available HERE!

In San Francisco, look for us at the beautiful Herbst Theatre at 5:00 p.m on 9/10. Seats still available HERE!

Hope to see you there (but if you can’t make it, you can always find the edited shows in a month or so, wherever you find your podcasts, or at SaysYou.net)!

Semifinalist in the 2022 Lanford Wilson New American Play Festival

So proud that my play “Call Time” is a Semifinalist in the 2022 Lanford Wilson New American Play Festival. The festival honors new American plays that provide dynamic performance opportunities for college-aged actors.

In “Call Time,” a group of misfit drama kids break into their abandoned high school auditorium in search of one last night of connection, hope, rhymes, and Fritos. This 90-minute, 7-character play was originally written as part of the Playwrights Union New Play Challenge in 2019, and was a Semifinalist in the 2019 Ashland New Play Festival. It’s available to read for members of New Play Exchange.