Welcome to The Workshop Theater’s 9th Annual “Out of the Hat” Festival!
61 ACTORS and 31 PLAYWRIGHTS
matched by random draw
CREATED 31 short PLAYS
Loosely inspired by the prompt “fire”
This year's festival will be performed over 6 nights (November 28, 29,30 and December 5, 6, 7) at AMT Theater, 354 West 45th Street (between 8th and 9th Avenues). All curtains will be at 7pm.
Choose the evenings you'd like to attend, or buy tickets to all 6!
Tuesday, November 28th
Latter Day Goddesses by Paul Buzinski with Dee Dee Friedman* and Lori Faiella*
Wrong Number by Laura Hirschberg with Maya Jeyam* and Ollie Corchado
Fatwood by P. Seth Bauer with Elizabeth Hayden* and Robert Bruce McIntosh*
A Thing With Feathers by Vincent Marano with Lucy McMichael* and Brian Onaghinor
Little America by Gary Giovannetti with Ann Talman* and Yeauxlanda Kay*
Wednesday, November 29th
Kindly, Burn So Kindly by Amir-Gabriel Gad with Danté Jeanfelix* and Jane Lincoln Taylor*
Housewarming by Eliana Theologides Rodriguez with Erik Kochenberger and Megan Lomax
Saving Face by J. Thalia Cunningham with Heather Massie* and Jill Melanie Wirth*
Burnt Bridge by Thalia Sablon with Alexis Cofield* and Emma Mueller
Burn Maybe Burn by Joe Burby with Laurie Schroeder Callen* and Robert Meksin*
Thursday, November 30th
Dancing Around a Fire by Blake Bonilla with Stori Ayers* and Erin Treadway*
Not a Mermaid by Dana Leslie Goldstein with Kayla Zanakis and Jolie Cloutier
Phoenix by Tracy Newirth with Wende O'Reilly
Dip by Marissa Joyce Stamps with Destini Stewart and Jackie Jenkins*
Dust to Dust by Jon Lonoff with Katie Braden and Annemarie Hagenaars
Modern Love by Alyssa See-Tho with Tracy Newirth* and Jeff Paul*
Tuesday, December 5th
Ready . . . Aim . . . by Alex Dmitriev with Ben Sumrall* and Natalie Mosco*
Torchpasser by M. D. Schaffer with Davion Dowdell and Vanessa Vivas
In the Wind by Jennifer Fell Hayes with Jody Prusan* and Anson Romney*
Too Late by Rose T.M. with James Armstrong* and Fred Velde*
Autumn Mix by Dan Caffrey with Karen Marulanda and Michael Ortiz
Wednesday, December 6th
I Hope You Have a Good Summer by Utkarsh Rajawat with Uma Paranjpe* and Nile Harris
Out In the Wash by Ashley Lauren Rogers with Yasmin Pascall and Nate James Shelton*
late nights in the park with jordan and jim by SMJ with Joseph Franchini* and Aja Downing
Fire Wall by Kari Swenson Riely with Ariel Blake and Mary Ruth Baggott
How to Start a Fire with Aliyah and Donna by Tyaela with Leslie Kincaid* and Sharahya Carter
Thursday, December 7th
The Last Burn by Laurie Graff with Joanie Schumacher* and Jason Howard*
The Unveiling by Michael Lazan with Margo Hammond* and Michael Gnat*
Second Flame by Mildred Inez Lewis with Dianna Martin and Jessica Carmona*
Bang Bam Thud by Aaron Coleman with Cecily Lyn* and Ethan Cadoff*
Twenty More by Liz Amberly with Emily Zacharias* and Charles E. Gerber*
*Equity Member appearing with permission of Actors’ Equity Association without benefit of an Equity contract in this Off-Off Broadway production.
Paul Buzinski has had many plays produced in and around NY, including DINNER PARTY, BLUEBERRY PANCAKES and SELECTION DAY. His One-Act PASTA DIVING JETER currently resides in the archives of the Baseball Hall of Fame. Associate Member of the Dramatist Guild.
Dee Dee Friedman – Stage: LOST IN YONKERS (National Tour), BEAU JEST (Off-Broadway), JEST A SECOND! (Coconut Grove Playhouse), HALF & HALF (Penguin Rep), DEUTERANOMALY (Bleecker St. Theater), PROTECTED (FringeNYC), SKIN DEEP (Foolish Theatre Co.), TARTUFFE (WorkShop Theater), MEPHISTO (Reverie Prods.), ORDER UP/WATCH TV (Harbor Theatre), THE AU PAIR-GIRL (Henry Street Settlement), CERTAIN SOULS (Algonquin), etc. Films: MARRIED TO THE MOB, ANOTHER WOMAN, SAFE MEN, SLEEPAWAY CAMP, MILLER’S CROSSING. Training: Lee Strasberg, Stella Adler, London’s Royal National Theatre.
Lori Faiella has appeared in many WorkShop productions including LOL, From the Top and American Thighs. Other New York productions include Stay Over, Life, Death & Baseball, and Priscilla's Neurosis, a Samuel French Festival Finalist. Currently she is working on audiobooks from her home studio and exploring other voiceover avenues. Thanks WorkShop for the opportunity to be a part of a new play!
Laura Hirschberg is a playwright/director/stage manager. She has participated in every "Out of the Hat" Festival the Workshop has produced! Laura's plays, including VERONA WALLS, FIRE THIEF, and HEART OF OAK, have been developed, workshopped, and produced by Harvard University, The Workshop Theater, The LAB Theater Project, Caps Lock Theater, the Frigid Festival, Everyday Inferno, Rising Sun Performance Company, and several others. Laura's monologues and plays have been published by Smith & Kraus and Applause Theatre & Cinema Books. Laura's plays to date have featured titans, Shakespearean characters, cowboys, superheroes, lady pirates, and the occasional talking whale. They also explore family, friendship, loyalty, love. And in one case, Big Foot. Visit New Play Exchange (newplayexchange.org) to explore more of Laura's work. For more information about Laura's latest projects, please visit www.laurahirschberg.com.
Maya Jeyam (she/they) is an Eelam Tamil-American performing artist with a passion for bubble tea, rewatching tv shows, and eyebrows. Bright Artists Management. More at www.mayajeyam.com. Insta: @mayajeyam
Ollie Corchado is a New York City based actor and is pumped to work on this festival! New York Credits: Aztec Pirates and the Insignificance of Life on Mars (Lone Star Media); King Lear (New York Classical Theatre); A Spider’s Web (Wet Paint New Play Festival); Counting Pedestals (Metropolitan Playhouse); Romeo and Juliet (Shakespeare Forum); My Father’s Heart (Wet Paint New Play Festival). Regional: Sweat (Ensemble Theatre Cincinnati); Romeo and Juliet (Pennsylvania Shakespeare Festival); Indian Head (Luna Stage); Peter and the Starcatcher (Milwaukee Rep. & Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park); A Christmas Carol (Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park).TV/Film: "The Blacklist" (NBC); “Bull” (CBS); “Blue Bloods” (CBS). Collective Member of Lone Star Media, ask him about it! Represented by U-Shin Kim at UGA.
P. Seth Bauer is the author of Early in the Mourning, Iphigenia, The Orchard Play, Over the Line, The Lysistrata Project, Dahlia, The Karma Cookie, The Tip, The Burglar of Suburbia, The Umbrella Play, and is the co-author of School Play which performed at Philadelphia Theatre Company, the National Constitution Center and on tour. His plays are published by Dramatists Play Service, Samuel French, Smith and Krause among others.
Elizabeth Hayden Actress, singer, producer, director, casting director and set designer, Elizabeth has been in movies, starred in musicals and sung with orchestras across the country. She’s performed her cabaret act in NYC & L.A. and spent several years casting and producing for film, television, Off-Broadway and Broadway, all while raising 3 incredible daughters. This year, she’s directed Casting Aspersions at NYC’s Urban Stages, starred in productions of Fallen Angels and The Constant Wife at NYC’s Out of the Box Theatre, performed her cabaret act in Urban Stages’ Winterfest Series, and is co-producing an new Broadway musical! Proud member of Equity.
Robert Bruce McIntosh Acting credits include leading roles Hamlet, Composure, Manly Men Doing Manly Things, The Suicide, Stealing Elvis and The Angry Young Man, a modern misanthrope. Rob teaches Acting and Playwriting at Repertory Company High School for Theatre Arts.
Vincent Marano – Member of The Workshop Theater for over 10 years, Vincent directed award-winning productions of Tim Nolan’s The Way Out (Fringe, 2002) and Acts of Contrition (Fringe, 2003). Directed his own critically acclaimed plays A Collapse (Fringe, 2006), note to self (manhattan theatresource, 2007) and Confirmation (Fringe 2009). His evening of one-act plays What I Meant Was… premiere at the Manhattan Theatre Source 2011. His short plays have been performed at the TestoGenius, Ingenius and Out of The Hat Play Festivals. He has been nominated for three New York Innovative Awards (NYIT) Best Short Script (My Baby – 2012, Artistic License – 2012), Best Full-Length Script (Light Narrow – 2014). Lights Narrow won for Best Direction in 2014. Vincent won the BRIO (Bronx Recognizes Its Own) Award for Playwriting in 2010 and 2023. An active member of Actor’s Studio and a co-producer of the ESTROGENIUS Women Theater Festival since 2014, Vincent is currently working on his first mystery novel.
Lucy McMichael (Dougherty in A Thing With Feathers) New York theater credits include: Primary Stages, Workshop Theater Company, Ensemble Studio Theatre, Abingdon Theatre Company, Theater for the New City, Urban Stages, 600 Highwaymen, and the cell. Film credits include:: Knife Point (Sundance), Dare (Sundance), The Christening of William Trumbull, Who She Was, Hard Boiled Eggs, and currently on the festival circuit: Overdue, What If I Were You, and The Choice.
Gary Giovannetti has had plays produced on three continents and has been published multiple times. He is a member of the Dramatists Guild.
Ann Talman is a 4-time Broadway veteran, actress, storyteller and documentary film maker. She made her stage debut in 1981 in the Broadway production of The Little Foxes with Elizabeth Taylor, portraying her daughter, Alexandra. Following the engagement, she toured with Ms. Taylor in the production for 18 months with stops in Ft. Lauderdale, Washington, D.C. (The Kennedy Center), New Orleans, as well as London’s West End. Her stage credits include Yours, Anne, The House of Blue Leaves, Carnival, Some Americans Abroad, and the Broadway revival of The Women. Motion pictures include: Serendipity, Limitless, and Wall Street. Television credits include: “Seinfeld,” “Ellen,” “Murphy Brown,” “The Street” and “Law & Order,” and a year on “General Hospital,” among others. She wrote, starred in and produced the multiple award-winning documentary film Woody’s Order!, based on her solo play about her lifelong dedication to her older brother Woody who lived a full life with cerebral palsy. It premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival. She has toured the country as a storyteller sharing her very personal and touching tales which she plans to compile for an upcoming book. www.anntalman.com.
Yeauxlanda Kay aka Yolanda K Wilkinson is called "charismatic and funny" by Theatermania and “smart” by The New York Times, has performed her work at The Public Theater, Lincoln Center and The New Black Theatre Festival with Suzan Lori Parks and Lynn Nottage. Her solo play, UNTITLED & UNFINISHED, was in The Downtown Urban Theater Festival, The Los Angeles Women's Theater Festival and The Aspen Comedy Festival. She was on Def Poetry Jam, (seasons 3 & 4/Peabody Award). Her play, MYTHOLOGY, debuted at the Nuyorican Theater and then on to a studio presentation at MTC. She wrote BUSHWHACKIN’ for the Kerry Campaign. She is a co-writer/artist in HISTORY OF THE WORD and UNION SQUARE PROJECT, which opened at Crossroads Theater and Genesis Playwrights' Festival, respectively. She was a poet/actor in residence at Kennedy Center. HUe was in the National Black Theatre Festival's Readers' Theatre. Her play INHERITANCE (now HEIRLOOMS) was in the Primary Stages' Playwright's Festival. THE STORY OF RON &HOTO was read at ESPA Studios and considered for a Sloan grant. She was a guest on John Fugelsang’s TELL ME EVERYTHING on SiriusXM to discuss her solo play BIBLE STUDY FOR HEATHENS (nominated for a NYIT award for Best Solo Performance) She was called “captivating” by New York Theater Review and a “masterful storyteller” by Theater Is Easy. She has been a New York Neo-Futurist since 2005. Her play A CASE FOR SECESSION, a modern day Romeo & Juliet, was read at Stella Adler Studio in July 2022. In spring 2023 she was accepted to Juilliard for Acting and Playwriting through the Extension Program.
Amir-Gabriel Gad (they/he) is a playwright, dramaturg, poet, and visual artist from Central New Jersey currently living in Philadelphia. This is their second OOTH with The Workshop Theater, and are so excited to be back! They collage themes of violence, joy, death, identity, concealment, magic, and uncanny nostalgia, unabashedly writing about mundanity and societal blind spots. Follow them @mirmulmir on all social media platforms, and read more of their work on New Play Exchange.
Danté Jeanfelix (He/Him) - Danté is a New York based actor and writer. This is his 3rd year participating in OOTH. He has been seen off-Broadway and regionally with credits including: Balls (OYL Theatre Co), The Tempest (CTH), Playing Hot (Pipeline Theatre Co). Some of his TV and Film Credits include: The Other Two (HBO Max), Law and Order (Season 21), Everything’s Trash (ABC Freeform) and Marvelous Mrs. Maisel (Final Season). He is a proud SAG-AFTRA and Equity member.
Jane Lincoln Taylor studied acting at Yale University and the Neighborhood Playhouse School of the Theatre, and then with the late, great Edward Moor. She has performed in theaters in New York, the Midwest, and throughout New England, and has acted in several award-winning independent films. AEA, SAG-AFTRA.
Eliana Theologides Rodriguez is a playwright and dancer whose plays include MARBLE ROOFTOP, EMMA HAS CHURCH (2023 Writers Intensive with Workshop Theater, 2021 Princess Grace Semifinalist, 2020 John Golden Award for Excellence in Playwriting), POOR QUEENIE (2021 Writers Intensive with Workshop Theater, 2021 Playwrights Realm Writing Fellowship Finalist, 2021 Goldberg Play Prize Finalist, 2020 Kennedy Center MFA & Undergraduate Playwrights Workshop), JUNIPERFECT (2021 commission with Adventure Theatre MTC), and INDIAN PRINCESSES (2023 Fellowship with Playwrights Realm, 2022 Workshop with Workshop Theater). She is currently a writing fellow with the Playwrights Realm and is under commission at South Coast Repertory.
Erik Kochenberger Actor, Writer, Director. Credits include: FBI: Most Wanted (CBS) , Sense and Sensibility (Cape Playhouse), The Great Gatsby (Ivoryton Theater), Rosie (Writer/Director)
Megan Lomax is thrilled to create with The Workshop Theater. She recently made her Broadway debut with the Tony award winning show Skin of Our Teeth at Vivian Beaumont. Other theater credits include: The Great Bluffer (New Perspective Theater) 24 Hour Plays: Nationals, Rosie Revere, Engineer (TheaterWorks National Tour) Kudzu (AL Shakespeare Festival). T.v: City on a Hill (Showtime).
J. Thalia Cunningham is a neurodivergent, invisibly disabled playwright, travel writer, and photographer. Her work has been produced, performed, and developed at the Actors Studio Playwright/Directors Unit, AND Theatre Company, Artemisia Theatre, Congo Square Theatre, Dayton Playhouse, Golden Thread, Hit & Run VII Short Comedy Festival, Living Room Theatre, New Jersey Repertory Company, Panndora’s Box, Pittsburgh Short Works Festival, Potpourri World Women Works, Red Fern Theatre, Rhinebeck Short Play Festival, Rhino Theatre, Rover Dramawerks, Short & Sweet Festival in Dubai, Australia, the Philippines, and Malaysia, Siena College, and the WorkShop Theater Company. Witch Camp was awarded the second place winner in the Henley Rose competition for female playwrights. Published by Smith & Kraus, Applause Theatre Books, and Next Stage Press. Member of the League of Professional Theatre Women, The WorkShop Theater Company; the Actor’s Studio Playwrights/Directors Unit; Education: BA, The Johns Hopkins University. Cunningham has traveled to around 130 United Nations destinations. She has written for national publications such as The New York Times Travel Supplement, Arthur Frommer, Diversion, and Specialty Travel Index. Her experiences include trekking with mujahedeen in Tora Bora, Afghanistan after sneaking over the Khyber Pass in a burqa; participating in West African voodoo rituals; crocodile hunting with spear-toting Papua New Guinea natives; and talking her way out of an arrest (erroneous) for prostitution in the tribal area of Pakistan, while Pakistani soldiers aimed the nostrils of their AK-47s at her own. Cunningham is grateful for continuous opportunities to enter intimate worlds of a broad spectrum of humanity. Her first-hand knowledge of people in crisis influences her work, allowing her to explore society’s most challenging issues and serve as catalyst for further reflection
Heather Massie is a NYC actor, writer, & producer. Originally from Virginia, Ms. Massie has always been fascinated by the sciences, especially Astronomy. She studied Astrophysics at the University of Virginia, and Theatre Arts at The Virginia Tech School of the Arts graduating Summa Cum Laude, Phi Beta Kappa, and Phi Kappa Phi. She has performed extensively in NYC and throughout the US. She now marries her loves of art and science by celebrating stories of women in science. She currently tours the world, with her 26x Award-Winning, Internationally Acclaimed solo show "HEDY! The Life & Inventions of Hedy Lamarr", which she premiered on Theatre Row in 2016. Heather is currently researching and developing the next in her trilogy of solo shows celebrating women in science, "Flying with Sally Ride! America’s First Woman in Space". She served as a Fulbright Specialist with her work to South Africa through the US State Department, World Learning, and the US Embassy South Africa. She has been sponsored by US Embassies in Zimbabwe, Sweden, and Iceland, and her work has also featured in Ireland, Northern Ireland, Canada, Italy, Finland, Ukraine, Egypt, Tunisia, Zambia, and many locations throughout the US. www.HeatherMassie.com
Jill Melanie Wirth is an actress/singer/writer. Off-Broadway: Kithless in Paradise. TV-Film: The Normal Heart (HBO). Solo Theatrical Concert: This is for You Daisy Ellington (92Y). Opera: Orphic Moments (Jazz at Lincoln Center). ANDTheatre Company: Sex Ed and Welcome to Playland! (co-written and performed with her husband, David Wirth). Jill has also performed at such prestigious venues as Carnegie Hall, Playwrights Horizons, BAM, Vineyard Theatre, York Theatre, NYMF, Westport Country Playhouse, and La Mama. Jill has worked under the direction of luminaries Tom O'Horgan, André De Shields, Patricia Birch, Ryan Murphy and Ted Sperling. Writer/Performer: Dramedies that examine end-of-life issues, historical topics, and sexual matters. JillMelanieWirth.weebly.com
Thalia Sablon “Born in Haiti and raised in Queens, New York, I have my mother’s tongue and a New York accent”. Thalia earned her MFA in playwriting at Rutgers University. As an artist, she is focused on creating work that challenges people's capacity for care and understanding. She loves diving into new work and loves a process-based collaboration. When she isn’t writing or producing she is trying hard to not wreak havoc around New York.
Alexis Cofield (she/her) is a Brooklyn based actor and writer. She graduated from NYU with a BFA in Drama and a Minor in Music. Since graduating, she has worked professionally in theatre, film and television. Alexis is represented by Bohemia Group and Stewart Talent. Recent credits: White Girl in Danger (Second Stage & Vineyard Co-Pro), ?!: New Works at The Brick (August 2023), Love in the Time of Crazy (Staged Reading), It Was Nice Meeting You (B&E PEA FEST). Upcoming: Grace (Short Film) directed by Natalie Jasmine Harris
Emma Mueller (she/they) is an actress, writer, producer, filmmaker, and teaching artist based in NYC. On screen, you can find her in “No Joke” on Amazon Prime and in short films including “Bloody Mary, Bloody Mary, Bloody Mary” & “Unusual Ceremonies (dir. Melina Nakos) & “Dentildo” (Dir. Natalie Feinstein). www.emmarosemueller.com
Joe Burby is an actor and director as well as a playwright. He also lends his voice to museum and tour audio guides in the US and Amsterdam and provides ADR for foreign films. He is the author of three plays for young actors, "Stone Soup", "Zephyr", and "The Jumping-est Frog of Calaveras County", based on the Mark Twain short story. Joe is a member of the Board of Directors of The Pied Piper Theatre of NYC (piedpiper.nyc)(joeburby.com)
Laurie Schroeder Callen has been a member of the Workshop since 2007 and enjoyed collaborating and playing with them ever since, especially in DAUGHTERS of the SEXUAL REVOLUTION, LULU BETT, and WINTER'S TALE. For 15 years her professional performing career and passion for the power of language have intersected with her career in developing communication skills for physicians and medical students. She trained at The Central School of Speech and Drama in London in Classical Acting and toured DEATH OF A SALESMAN throughout Europe, but her favorite stage role of all time is Lady Capulet in the ROMEO AND JULIET production where she met her husband, Philip.
Robert Meksin's credits include Off-Broadway: Pan Asian Repertory's "Memorial" (NY Times Critic's Pick); solo performance in Ripple Effect Artists' "2071: The World We'll Leave Our Grandchildren"; "The Canterville Ghost" (title role); workshops with Playwrights Horizons and Ensemble Studio Theatre. Regional: Great Lakes Theatre Festival; Cleveland Play House; Gretna Theatre; Virginia Shakespeare Festival; Greenbrier Valley Theatre; Playwrights Theatre of NJ. Appearances in various festivals, and in Off-Off-Broadway roles including: Buckingham ("Richard III"); Autolycus ("The Winter's Tale"); and Vanya ("Uncle Vanya"). Member of the WorkShop Theater and Ripple Effect Artists, and an artist-in residence with Titan Theatre Company. Bonafide & Emerging Artists. AEA/SAG-AFTRA.
Blake Bonilla (he/they/she) is a Filipinx-Costa Rican-American playwright from Lakewood, CA. He spent 5 years getting a B.A. in English (Creative Writing) from CSULB in the heart of southern California. They have made their professional stage debut in a reading of Alice Tuan’s Cock’s Crow at East West Players. Blake has also seen her work read at East West Players, after frequently taking classes from the prestigious David Henry Hwang Writers Institute. Blake’s plays reflect his views on gender, sexuality, race, maturity, and transgression. A lifelong musician, they have begun their path as a budding composer and writer for musical theater. They have recently graduated with an MFA in Playwriting from Columbia University. Blake is currently writing at the BMI Lehman Engel Musical Theatre Workshop as a Librettist.
Stori Ayers is a Storyteller. She's a New York--based Actor, Director and co-founder of [RARE] Lotus Productions. Originally from Washington, DC., she has a passion for stories that challenge social norms, ignite a spirit of activism and inspire future generations. Stori is an original cast member and producer of Dominique Morisseau’s Blood at the Root, winner of the Graham F. Smith Peace Foundation Prize for its promotion of human rights. She played Regina, childhood best friend of Tiffany Haddish, on the TBS hit series The Last O.G. starring Tracey Morgan. Other acting credits include: Travisville (Ensemble Studio Theatre, NYC); Jitney (Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park); Sweat (Northern Stage); A Raisin in the Sun (Indiana Repertory Theatre & Syracuse Stage); Detroit '67 (Signature Theatre, DC); The Glorious World of Crowns Kinks and Curls (Baltimore Centre Stage); Gem of the Ocean; Father Comes Home From the Wars Parts 1, 2 and 3 (Round House Theatre); Mud Row (Detroit Public Theatre); The Christians; Detroit '67 (Chautauqua Theater Company); Doubt; Barbecue; Love's Labours Lost; In the Red and Brown Water (Pennsylvania Centre Stage); Foster Mom (Premiere Stages); Yellowman (Anacostia Playhouse); Blood at the Root (National Black Theatre, Pennsylvania Centre Stage, Grahamstown Fringe Festival, Edinburgh Fringe Festival, Adelaide Fringe Festival) and An Adult Evening of Shel Silverstein; Voodoo, Sex, & Magic (Horizon Theatre).
Erin Treadway is a frequent collaborator with playwright/director Leegrid Stevens & their company Loading Dock. Her most recent roles with Loading Dock were: Jesse in War Dreamer (Wild Project, The Dock at Loading Dock) Kailey in A Peregrine Falls (Wild Project, developed with Workshop Theater) and Molly Jennis in Spaceman (Wild Project, Drama Desk Nomination for Outstanding Solo Performance), Miss Julie in Miss Julie, Asian Equities (The Dock at Loading Dock), Cleo in The Twelfth Labor (Gene Frankel Theatre), and Clara in The Dudleys! A Family Game, all by Leegrid Stevens. Other roles/projects include: Therese in The Hook (Arthur Miller premier with Brave New World), Sawyer in Larry Phillips’ Rise of Mediocrity, Mayo Methot in Reid & Sara Farrington's Casablancabox (HERE). Gertrude in Hamlet (LaMama). She is also a member of Workshop Theater and Brave New World Rep
Playwright and Lyricist Dana Leslie Goldstein has won the New England New Play Competition, Harold and Mimi Steinberg Playwriting Prize, Different Voices New Play Award, ACTF New Play Award, Henry Hoyns Poetry Fellowship, AWP Intro Award, Academy of American Poets Prize and numerous development grants. Her work has been seen at Manhattan Theatre Club, Cherry Lane, Culture Project, Women’s Project, The York, Theatre80, Theater for the New City, New Dramatists, Center Stage, BMI, Vineyard Playhouse, Pulse, Theater Row Theatre, Gene Frankel Theatre, The Barrow Group, Acorn Theatre, The Lark, Beckett Theatre, Neighborhood Playhouse, The Workshop Theater, Torn Page, Nuyorican Poets Café, Estrogenius Festival, Brave New World, Axial Theatre, Players Club of Swarthmore (PA), Ensemble Theatre of Chattanooga (TN), Clamour Theatre (FL), American Stage (FL), Left Edge Theatre (CA), PAN Theater (CA), Spooky Action Theatre (DC), Rainy Day Artistic Collective (Seattle, WA), Pacific Theatre (Vancouver, Canada), TischAsia (Singapore), Red Brick Theatre (England), Baggage Productions (Australia), at the Columbus Black Theatre Festival (OH), New York Musical Theatre Festival, on Ellis and Liberty Islands, at the U.N. and on Equity TYA tours. Dana is a librettist in the BMI Musical Theatre Workshop, a playwright member of PlayGround- NY, Brave New World Rep and The Workshop Theater, as well as an alum of the Playwrights Lab at Women’s Project. Dana holds MFA degrees in Playwriting and Poetry, both funded by full writing fellowships. Dana is a proud member of the Dramatists Guild. For more information, visit www.danalesliegoldstein.com. Agent: Michael Moore, Michael@MichaelMooreAgency.com
Kayla Zanakis is a DominiGreek actor, born and raised in Miami, and currently based in NYC. She was most recently seen in SMJ’s SWAY, at the Flea Theatre in co-production with The Fled Collective, where Kayla is a resident artist and actor. Kayla has performed at Radio City Music Hall, Caveat, Soho Playhouse, and more. Some of Kayla’s credits include No Mercy (DR2 Theatre), Poe’s Children (The Tank), and Richard III (Shanghai Theatre Institute Winter Festival). Kayla was a Semifinalist in NBC’s Nosotos Ya Tu Sabes Monologue Slam. Past Workshops: Quantum (Primary Stages) Yo-Ho, Legume (Artist Co-op), Command Center (Who What Where Productions), this old haunt (Fort Salem Theatre, Broadway World Best New Musical nomination) SWAY(Broadway DNA), and Their Great Magic (Boomerang Theatre). She will be in Aztec Pirates at the Chain Theater. BFA: NYU Tisch.
Tracy Newirth a company artist and Board Member of The Workshop Theater, Tracy’s New York stage credits include the Off-Broadway premiere of Kithless in Paradise by Molly Moroney (Polly Barrett), the Audelco Award-winning The Guest at Central Park West by Levy Lee Simon (Jennifer Engles), the critically-acclaimed Skin Deep by Jon Lonoff (Sheila Whiting) and the world premiere of the one-woman show DAPH! by Le Wilhelm (Daphne Dumas) at 59E59th Street Theaters. As a cabaret singer, she has performed her show I'm the Girl! at the historic Cheney Hall Theater as well as various NYC cabaret venues.
Wende O’Reilly (Shirley) Has been performing in and around NYC for…gulp…over 30 years. Favorites have included Reading Between the Lies, Savage in Limbo, Let Me Say This About That (with the fabulous Tracy Newirth!) and Pasta Diving Jeter. She has her B.A. in Theater from Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles and is a Graduate of the Neighborhood Playhouse, NYC. Thanks Tracella for such a fun role!
Marissa Joyce Stamps is a Black, Haitian-American, NYC-based Afrosurreal artist. She won the 2023 Princess Grace Playwriting Award, is a member of Clubbed Thumb's 2023-2024 ECWG, Mercury Store Fall 2023 Lead Artist, a New Georges Affiliate Artist, + was named a Finalist for NBT’s 2023 I AM SOUL Playwrights Residency. Recent: …Twisted Juniper (2022 O’Neill Finalist, Chautauqua NPW 2021), Being Up in Here… (Exponential Festival 2024), Blue Fire… (Exponential 2022; Orchard Project 2021), Letiche… (Bushwick Starr SRS 2023), deadbodydeadbodydeadbody (ANT Fest 2022). Marissa’s collaborated with The Public, 24 Hour Plays, Fire This Time, Conch Shell Productions, BUFU, and more. She’s The Workshop Theater's Literary Manager. MFA: Brooklyn College. marissajoycestamps.com
Destini Stewart (She/Her) is a New York based artist. Recent Credits: Romeo & Juliet (Hudson Valley Shakespeare Festival), Mr. Burns (Hudson Valley Shakespeare Festival), Ragtime (Seacoast Repertory), Small Town Icons (a revenge play) (DGF Reading). Destini earned her BFA in Theatre & Performance from Emerson College and is a proud alumna of the Eugene O’Neill Center’s National Musical Theater Institute. She is thrilled to be a part of the OOTH festival! DestiniStewart.com Rep: Stewart Talent
Jackie Jenkins has crisscrossed the country performing theatre in multiple states before landing in NYC some 30 years ago. Having performed on stages both Off and further Off Broadway. She is a member of the Workshop Theater and Love Creek Productions. Roles have included Anna in “Mesquite NV” by Leegred Stevens, Catherine in “Miss Reardon Drinks A Little”, Beverly in Michael Cristofer’s, “Shadow Box” and Somerset Maugham’s, “Our Betters” . Jackie would be remiss in not mentioning her adoration for the work of Paul Buzinski, having performed in “Selection Day”, “Church Music”, “Dinner Party”, “Carefree Drive”, and “Fiddlin’ and Burnin”. SAG-AFTRA/AEA
Jon Lonoff’s writing credits range from an adaptation of Aesop’s Fables for marionettes to a training film for Sunoco gas station attendants. His theatrical and film writing has included "The Garbage Cantata" (with Barry Keating), a musical about recycling, commissioned and produced by Riverbarge Productions, published by Samuel French, and later produced for video by the United Nations; "The Dark Knight," an independent film which won the Silver Award for Comedy at the Houston WorldFest Film Festival and was subsequently developed into an NBC-TV movie; and "Key Changes and Other Disasters," awarded Best Musical Revue by the National Association of Cabaret and Concert Artists. His play "Skin Deep," originally developed at the 42nd St. Workshop in New York City, was published in 2009 by Samuel French and has received over 60 stock and amateur productions throughout the US and internationally, as far away as Australia.
Katie Braden (www.katiebraden.com) is a co-founder of Ivy Theatre Company, where she acted in 8 productions. NYC Theatre: The Scarlet Letter (Hester), Romeo & Juliet (multiple times), The Taming of the Shrew (Katherine), and A Midsummer Night's Dream (Helena). She is a founding member of Wherever You Go Pictures LLC, where their first feature film “Unpacking” is currently on the festival circuit and she won Best Acting at the Magnolia Film Festival (www.unpackingmovie.com.)
Annemarie Hagenaars is an actor & performer with degrees in astronomy and physics. She has worked in the fields of theater, film, television, education, science communication, cognition, climate & sustainability, history, philosophy and finance. Where others see separate or even opposing fields of interest, she passionately searches for opportunities to integrate different modes of thinking. NYC Off-Broadway credits include: CasablancaBox (HERE Arts Center, dir. Reid Farrington), Bioadapted (Culture Lab LIC, dir. Tjaša Ferme), Romulus The Great (Yangtze Repertory Theatre, dir. Chongren Fan), Girl Gone: Or Before A League of Their Own (Actors Temple Theatre, dir. Layon Gray). US film credits include: The Artist’s Wife (starring Bruce Dern& Lena Olin, dir. Tom Dolby), Honeypot (dir. Jill Greenberg), Karma (dir. Irmak Tasindi), Destiny’s smile (dir. Datian Yang). She is a member of SAG-AFTRA & Board Member of the League of Professional Theatre Women (LPTW). Annemarie is forever thankful to all the people who have helped her on her journey to become a permanent resident of the USA and for the opportunity to be able to live in the cultural capital of the world: New York City. www.annemariehagenaars.com
Alyssa See-Tho is a multiracial, queer, Catholic writer who has worked on a variety of forms and cares deeply about creating social change through storytelling. Alyssa’s work has been developed and performed by theaters in both New York City (Rattlestick Theater, The Tank, Workshop Theater, Et Alia Theater Company, Caveat, and The Green Room 42) and the San Francisco Bay Area (Gunn High School), produced online (What Next web series, COCAWrites: Plays on Zoom Festival), and on the radio (WNYU). She is a member of the BMI Lehman Engel Musical Theatre Workshop and the UNTITLED Musical Writers Group. She graduated from Tisch School of the Arts at New York University with a B.F.A. in Dramatic Writing and Performance Studies. Beyond writing, Alyssa has also produced and directed plays, short films, multimedia works, musicals, and web series.
Jeff Paul — A former Managing Director of The Workshop Theater, Jeff is happy to be involved for another year with the OOTH festival, and to be working with this fantastic group of artist/friends. A toast to all who love and appreciate the artistry of, and dedication to the creative process! “With mirth and laughter let old wrinkles come.”
AEA/SAG/AFTRA
Alex Dmitriev is a director, a writer and again, most recently, an actor. He has directed at regional theaters across the USA, Canada, NYC and in London. He has written several plays for the Workshop Theater's OOTH series, and during the pandemic, wrote The House of Atreus, a series of monologues from Zeus to Orestes with music. Most recently he portrayed the Judge and Papa Bettinger in AMT Theater's production of Al Tapper's Bettinger's Luggage.
Natalie Mosco Broadway (original HAIR, MAGIC SHOW), regional (GRAND HOTEL, FOLLIES), West End, Paris, Australia (leading roles), Writing/acting A BRUSH WITH GEORGIA O'KEEFFE (WorkShop, Off-Broadway, Smithsonian Institute), etc.
Davion Dowdell is an Actor, Filmmaker, and Editor based in New Jersey. One of his roles consist of The Incredible Jessica James (2017) an Netflix Original Movie. Davion has worked on films but he also acts in many commercials.
Ben Sumrall is a New York-based actor and media artist. A member of Actors’ Equity Association, he also recently served as Board Chair of the Workshop Theater. Ben has performed in theatres throughout New York City, on Comedy Central, and was a part of the Drama Desk- nominated Ryan Case 1873. He has appeared in the Sundance Film Festival, SXSW, and the Tribeca Festival.
Vanessa Vivas (she/her) is New York-based Venezuelan actress and arts marketer. Recent credits include I'M FINE THOUGH (Ars Nova ANT Fest 2023), CINCO/FIVE (Tour, New York City Children's Theatre), MI ABUELA, QUEEN OF NIGHTMARES (Quail Bell Productions), and ISLANDS NEVER SAY (Grassroots Theatre Co). BA: Point Park University. She is a 2023 alum of The 24 Hour Plays. vanessavivas.com IG: @vivas_lavida
M. D. Schaffer (They/He) is a Non-Binary, Ashkenazi, African-American writer, choreographer, librettist, and lyricist born in Houston, Texas, and residing in New York City. Their previous works include "Southern Seeds: An Americana Story" with the Ensemble Theatre’s New Voices Fest, "The Last Days of Victor Greymore" with Emerging Artist Festival, "A Rodeo Clown" with the Obsidian Theatre Festival, & "Drapteomania: A Negro Carol" with the We Will Dream Festival. They are a 2023 recipient of the Pine Meadow Ranch for Arts & Agriculture Residency program with Roundhouse Foundation Their works examine the relationship between Americana historical romanticism and contemporary American reality.
Jennifer Fell Hayes is published by Samuel French, the Dramatic Publishing Company and Smith and Kraus. Her plays include Rosemary and Time (Paradise Factory Theatre) and A Weekend in Filey (Workshop Theater Company, and Hen and Chickens, London), Endurance, winner in True Voices playreading series, and Sealsongs in the Midtown International Theatre Festival. Jennifer has written many plays for youth and museums, co-authored an award-winning book, Pioneer Journeys, with Dorothy Napp Schindel, about drama in museum education. She received honorable mentions in the Gideon Poetry Review 2019 and 2020 and was a winner in the NYTimes Golden Shovel Poem competition March 2021, and also had a Tiny Love Story published by them that month. Jennifer taught drama for many years, and in that time was Head of the Arts Department at Riverdale Country School, Head of Performing Arts at the Spence School (where she created that department) and Director of Drama at Friends Seminary. She was also playwright-in-residence at City Lights Youth Theatre for ten years. She is a member of the Dramatists Guild. Website: Jenniferfellhayes.com
OOTH! you bet I'm back - Happy holidays to all Jody Prusan AEA/SAG/AFTRA
Anson Romney- Anson is a NYC based actor and writer originally from Phoenix, AZ. Previous Credits include: Esther-53 (Atlantic Theater Company), Mousetrap (New York Theater Festival), and Americano! (The Phoenix Theatre Company). Anson can also be seen in multiple Independent short films currently on festival runs in India, New York, Atlanta, Los Angeles, and Arizona. He would like to thank Jody, and his family and friends for being his biggest supporters. For Shawna. @ansonrr
Rose T.M. is a writer-producer for stage, screen and content filmed in New York City. They use writing to draw thrilling stories from the everyday moments of love, horror and revelation lived by LGBTQ+ people today. In 2023, they began work on Q2Q Theatre Advice, a documentary project on the experiences of career theatremakers and advice they have for the next generation. Their playwriting has been shown at La MaMa ETC, Theaterlab, The Tank NYC, Theatre Row, NYU Tisch School of the Arts, and Abingdon Theatre Company.
James Armstrong is thrilled to be a part of this year's OOTH. Each year this festival has been a joy to be part of, and this year is no exception. Special thanks to Rose and Fred and to Thomas and all the other dedicated Workshoppers who make this happen each year.
Fred Velde is a native New Yorker and has been part of the New York theater scene for over thirty years. He has been a member of The Harbor Theatre since 1995 and is currently a member of The Workshop Theater. His theatre credits include The Price of Genius on Broadway, Sex by Mae West, Off-Broadway, and Traveling Souls in Moscow as a member of The Phoenix Ensemble. As well as theater, he has appeared in film, soaps, Comedy Central and commercials. He is a member of AEA, SAG and AFTRA.
Dan Caffrey is a playwright, musician, teacher, and pop-culture critic who graduated from UT Austin's M.F.A. Playwriting program in 2020. He's based in Brooklyn after a stint teaching playwriting at the Alliance Theatre in Atlanta. He's currently a member of The Civilians R&D Group, where he's developing his play The Tusk Hunters, which he previously worked on with The Workshop Theater as part of their Winter 2023 Intensive. Other recent projects include River Watchers, a new play on the water co-created with Dina Vovsi and Jens Rasmussen, produced by The Motor Company. It ran throughout October on a 14-person canoe in Greenpoint's Newtown Creek. Dan has also been an O'Neill Finalist, Next Forever Finalist (The Civilians/Princeton), Jerome Semi-Finalist, shortlisted for the Alpine Fellowship, Princess Grace Semi-Finalist, Resident Artist at Tofte Lake Center, and M.F.A. Scholar at Sewanee Writers' Conference. His work has recently been developed/produced by Think Tank Theatre, Atlantic Theatre, Concord Theatricals, Hot Playwright Summer, American Records, Jarrott Productions, Kitchen Dog, and Pegasus PlayLab. You can catch him as a co-host on The Losers’ Club: A Stephen King Podcast and Halloweenies: A Horror Franchise Podcast, both produced by the Bloody Disgusting podcast network.
Karen Marulanda (she/her/ella) is a proud Colombian/Nicaraguan actor, writer and director currently based in NYC. Recent credits include: The Mask Maker in Luchadora! (Orlando Repertory Theatre), Portia in Julius Caesar (Arachne Theater) and SWAY (The Fled Collective). Karen was a Semifinalist in NBC’s Nosotros Ya Tu Sabes Monologue Slam 2022. She earned her BFA in Acting from The University of Florida. She is a proud company member of The Fled Collective. Connect with Karen on Instagram @karenmarulanda
Michael Ortiz (he/him) is a proud New York-based Puerto Rican producer, actor, and director. He is a co-founding member of The Fled Collective and an inaugural member of The Line-Up with Breaking & Entering Theatre Collective. He currently produces and hosts SERIALS, an ongoing late-night short play competition series in TriBeCa. Michael is passionate about the cultivation of new work and creating opportunities for underrepresented artists. He is an avid gamer, a home cook, and lover of all things spooky! Follow @mctease on Instagram or check out michael-ortiz.com for updates regarding upcoming projects. Management: Shari Flack-Council @ Broadway Dreams Management & Consulting.
Mildred Inez Lewis writes and directs for stage, screen, podcast and the digital space. A recent AGE Legacy grant winner, she is delighted to be completing projects for the Lucille Lortel's Alcove and The Road Theatre's Under Construction. The WorkShop Theatre is her safe place.
Jessica Carmona is thrilled to be a part of the OOTH festival for the second year in a row. She was a member of the Workshop Theater Fall 2022 Playwrights Residency. She is an Actress, Playwright and Librettist/Lyricist of Puerto Rican descent. NYU Tisch Alum and current BMI Musical Theatre Program participant.
SMJ (they/them) is a mixed-Latiné, and Trans non-binary playwright, musical theater writer, educator, & theatermaker originally from Mount Vernon, OH. They are a 2022-2023 Dramatists Guild Foundation Fellow and currently creating work with Ars Nova, Latiné Musical Theatre Lab, The Orchard Project, The Road Theatre Company, and American Theater Group. Member of the Dramatists Guild and Ring of Keys. www.smjwrites.com
Joseph Franchini trained with Stella Adler at NYU and at the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art. Most recently he appeared in Cherry Jam, an adaptation of The Cherry Orchard and in the American premiere of The Land of Swollen Faces by Paolo Bignami at The Tank. He received a Drama Desk Nomination for Best Actor in a Play for The Navigator by Eddie Antar which he also played in Los Angeles.
Kari Swenson Riely is an actor, writer and musician based in New York City. Theatre: The McCarter Theatre, Hudson Stage, The Workshop Theater Company, The 52nd Street Project, Extant Arts Company, Artistic New Directions. Film: Never Forever, Life in Flight, The Vibrator, The Bicycle. TV: Law and Order: SVU, Cupid, New Amsterdam.
Utkarsh Rajawat likes to explore gender/race/performance with jokes/participation/exclamation! They've been a Sesame Street Writers’ Room Fellow, Pipeline PlayLab Member, Princess Grace Award Finalist, Children’s Emmy Nominee, Ars Nova CAMP Finalist, New Victory LabWorks Finalist, Eugene O’Neill NPC Semifinalist, Playwriting MFA at Brooklyn College, kids’ TV writer.
Uma Paranjpe is an Indian-American actor and playwright from the San Francisco Bay Area. Uma most recently appeared as Pi to close the Broadway run of Life of Pi at the Schoenfeld Theater. Off-Broadway: Short Stack (Ma-Yi), tango of a crumbling wall (Teatro Latea). Regional: Life of Pi (American Repertory Theater), A Midsummer Night's Dream (Catskill Mountain Shakes), Twelfth Night (CMS). Film: Beast (Tribeca New Voices), King Lahiri (Amazon Prime). Uma currently teaches at the Atlantic Theater Company in New York City, and out of her home in Brooklyn. BFA Musical Theatre: University of Miami. umaparanjpe.com | @superumapuma
Nile Harris is a New York Based artist. Originally from Philadelphia Pennsylvania, Nile graduated with a BFA in theatre from NYU. Recent work includes Revolt She Said Revolt Again (Theatre Lab) Char (Weasel Fest) Fettuccine (Fresh Fruit Festival) Posessed Girls of St. Mary's (Fringe and Fur) Fresh Ink (Primary Stages)
Tyaela (they/she) is a filmmaker and theater artist based in Brooklyn, NY. After graduating from NYU in 2019, Tyaela produced, wrote, and directed her debut short film Limon Agrio, which was awarded recognition from the Best Shorts Competition and selected for the 2021 Latino Film Market showcase. Tyaela is deeply inspired by their Afro-Latinx lineage and queer identity. They hope to bring the dynamic stories of underrepresented people to the stage and screen.
Leslie Kincaid Burby is a NYC director, dramaturge, and performer. She is a frequent director for Dephi, Pied Piper, and UP Theatre companies, and is proud to serve as an Associate Artistic Director at The Workshop Theater. Leslie has received the New York Innovative Theatre outstanding director award for her Drama Desk nominated production The Navigator by Eddie Antar at The Workshop Theater (New York Times Critic Pick). She also received the New York International Fringe Festival Overall Excellence Award for her direction of Sean-Patrick O'Brien's Zamboni. During the pandemic, Leslie directed and developed readings of a number of new works, including "New Canaan" by Jessica Durdock Moreno (featuring Debra Jo Rupp), and "American Portraits" by Devon O’Brien (featuring Kate Burton). Her independent film, "Robin Hood", recently won multiple awards in the Hudson International Film Festival.
Laurie Graff’s novels include the best-selling You Have to Kiss a Lot of Frogs that received a movie option and multiple printings here and abroad, Looking for Mr. Goodfrog, and The Shiksa Syndrome. She is a contributor to “Complaint Box” NY Times, Splash Magazine and the anthologies Grease: Tell Me More Tell Me More, No Kidding, Live Alone and Like It, It’s A Wonderful Lie, New Monologues for Women by Women, Best Men’s Stage Monologues of 1999 and The Best Ten-Minute Plays of 2013, 2019 and 2021. An OOB playwright, Laurie has had her short plays produced at PS NBC and WorkShop Theater, with publications of All My Problem, The Incredible Egg and At the Hotel Texas that was part of the Ivoryton Playhouse Fifth Annual Women's Playwright's Festival. She also wrote the book for a new musical, The Pet Project (music/lyrics by Nancy Shayne), that received a workshop at Loyola NOLA and a reading at AMT (NYC).
Joanie Schumacher has been a member of The Workshop Theater since 2003, working as an actor and occasionally, a costume designer. She also served as a member of the Workshop Theater Board of Directors for 6 years. She is happy to participate again in Out Of The Hat for 2023. AEA
Jason Howard is an actor, fight choreographer, writer, director, producer, coder, and driving enthusiast. He has performed with the Public Theater, NYTW, The Workshop Theater, Theater for the New City, La Mama, The Nerve Tank, ManhattanTheatreSource (founding member), the Ontological, EST, Circle Rep, the Ohio and Gideon Media. He has toured internationally doing puppetry with Drama of Works. Co-Adapted and directed “Love That Dog” with NYCity Children's Theater. Writing highlights: “Divine Providence”, “The Launch”, “The Monkey”. TV/Film highlights: “3rd Watch”, “Solar Vengeance”, “Soldier in the Shadows”, “Pandora Machine”. Podcasts: "Steal the Stars", "Saturn's Return."
Margo Hammond has worked at Williamstown Theatre Fest (MA), Wilma Th. (Philadelphia), Asolo Th. (FL), Centenary Stage (NJ), Nickerson (Boston) and various locales in Manhattan; including EST, Circle Rep Lab, Huron Club (Soho Rep), Abingdon Theatre, Artistic New Directions, The Workshop Theater, American Jewish Th @ 92nd St Y, infamous Club 57, and many more. www.margohammond.com member of AEA, SAG/AFTRA, Dramatist Guild, ARTC, Actors Studio PDU and LPTW
Michael Gnat recently starred as Jakob in the new full-length 'Hidden'. Prepandemic he toured Europe in Sam Graber’s 'Shooter' (2019; dir. Katrin Hilbe), then did three wonderful shorts in 'Dark Planet' (2020, Planet Connections). He’s since Zoomed numerous new works, including Scott Sickles’s full-length 'Marianas Trench' (Portland Stage; dir. Kevin R. Free). Features: 'Off Jackson Avenue'; 'Bobby G. Can’t Swim'. Web: ONN’s 'News from the Year 2137'. AEA, SAG–AFTRA. (Thxoxox, Linda!)
Ashley Lauren Rogers Don’t Think About Elephants, was a semi-finalist in the 2023 Bay Area Playwrights Festival, Eugene O’Neill Theatre National Playwrights Conference Semifinalist 2021, Literary Director for Step1 Theatre Project, Oddity received an honorable mention on The Kilroys “The List,” 2020, Trans Theatre Lab fellow 2019, artist in residence at Middlesex County Vocational-Technical School 2018-2019. Works performed at Dixon Place, MITF, the Brick, Joe’s Pub. “Becky’s Xmas Wish,” Finalist for the City Theatre National Short Play Award, Miami, work produced in Wisconsin, Cincinnati, Maine, Iowa, New Jersey, Detroit, and Minneapolis. Creator Is It Transphobic and The Right to Play Podcasts. AshleyLaurenRogers.com
Yasmin Pascall (she/they) is an NYC-based actor and creative originally from Chennai, India. They were last seen as Ridhi in White Bitches in Delhi by Ellis Stump at The Lenfest Center. UNCSA Drama ’21. @yasminpascall
Nate James Shelton is a New York City based actor, artist, storyteller and all around theater person. website: natejshelton.com - instagram: @naaaate123
Cecily Lyn - is an actor and writer holding degrees from UCLA and the American Academy of Dramatic Arts. She is an emeritis member of The WorkShop Theater Company and former volunteer with Rehabilitation through the Arts at Sing Sing Correctional Facility. She has appeared in numerous productions both Off and Off-Off Broadway to critical acclaim. Film and television credits include Paul Schrader’s First Reformed, Random Acts of Flyness, Off-Off Kilter (web-series), One of the Boys and The Friends. Stage Credits include: Verbatim Verboten, with guest artist Olympia Dukakis, and NY Times Critic’s Pick Interchange. Also The Color of Justice, Tarragona, The Rubber Room and many many others.
Aaron Colelman is a New York City-based playwright and lyricist from Los Angeles. He is a 22-23 Dramatists Guild Foundation Playwriting Fellow, 2023 Artist-in-Residence at New York Stage and Film, and Second Year Member of the BMI Lehman Engel Musical Theatre Workshop. His plays include TELL ME I’M GORGEOUS AT THE END OF THE WORLD: THE LAST GAY PLAY (2023 O’Neill Finalist, 2022 Yale Drama Series Prize Shortlist, 2023 Blue Ink Award Semi-Finalist), UNCLE REMUS, HIS LIFE AND TIMES, AS TOLD TO AARON COLEMAN (The Old Globe’s 2023 Powers New Voices Festival), and WHERE HAVE ALL THE FAIRIES GONE? (2022 Reading, Brave New World Repertory Theatre). Over the past few years, Aaron has also been a Semi-Finalist for the Princess Grace Award, a two-time Finalist for the Jerome Fellowship at the Playwrights’ Center, a Finalist for New York Theater Workshop's 2050 Fellowship, three-time Finalist for The Civilians’ R&D Group (2020, 2021, 2023), and a Finalist for the 2019 Playwrights' Week at The Lark. MFA: Writing for Screen and Television, USC School of Cinematic Arts.
Liz Amberly’s plays have been published by Samuel French, Applause, and Smith & Kraus. Her drama Embers (developed at the Workshop) was a semi-finalist for the O'Neill National Playwrights Conference. Her plays have been seen throughout the USA and London. Theaters include New World Stages, Neighborhood Playhouse, The Barrow Group, American Globe Theatre, Algonquin Theater, True North Theater, Equity Library Theater among others. She has written films (including a winner of the Real-13 Award on Channel 13) and writes family tips and activities for Dolly Parton Imagination Library (published by Penguin Random House).
Emily Zacharias is a founding member of The Workshop. Once upon a time, she was featured in six Broadway shows- three musicals, and three plays directed by Joe Mantello, Leonard Nimoy, and Mike Nichols. Off-Broadway credits: March of the Falsettos, Inventing Avi, and The Doubling Time. Favorite roles: 'Joanne' in the Natl'l Co. of COMPANY, 'Anna" in the revised RAGS at Goodspeed Opera House, and 'Maria' in LEND ME A TENOR at The Fulton. TV credits: guest star with Anne Hathaway and Jared Leto in We Crashed, and many teasers on Law & Order. She loves OOTH...!
Charles E. Gerber is now in his 51st year as a professional actor and is among the Founding Member Artists of The Workshop Theater. He's appeared on Broadway , National Tours, Off B'way and several Indie stages in NYC and Regionals across the country, as well as Films, Television, Radio, and Web Series. His YouTube Channel: YouTube/Charles E. Gerber will provide more info if you so desire.