Playwrights Foundation
presents
The 40th Anniversary Bay Area
PLAYWRIGHTS FESTIVAL Custom Made Theatre, San Francisco J u ly 13 -23, 2017
New plays. New voices. Be a part of theater's next gen.
Hilary Bettis Clarence Coo Bennett Fisher Lauren Gunderson Nilan Johnson Mona Mansour
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40 YEARS: A VIEW FROM HERE The big 4-OH is upon us and we pause all apprehension of the future to celebrate the phenomenal accumulation of over 500 playwrights who have, in successive waves, invented wholly original ways to illuminate the way forward. Looking back from here, as yet undiscovered writers were lifted by support from the Foundation. The 1970s and ‘80s brought us Sam Shepard, Philip Kan Gotanda, Maria Irene Fornes, Julie Hébert, and David Henry Hwang. In the 1990s, we met Nilo Cruz, Anna Deavere Smith, Erin Cressida Wilson, Eugenie Chan, Erik Ehn, Prince Gomolvilas, and Claire Chafee. Here in the 21st century, we’ve nurtured the works of Liz Duffy Adams, Marcus Gardley, Katori Hall, Annie Baker, Sam Hunter, Naomi Iizuka, Chris Chen, and George Brant. Our history also includes the twenty-seven writers who have been resident playwrights, and over 400 equally compelling and exceptional playwrights too numerous to name here. We support these writers as they brilliantly unearth funny, tragic, soulful, searing, intelligent, poetic, incandescent, provocative, inventive, and deeply meaningful stories that change the narrative, transform theatrical expression, and give voice to a multiplicity of peoples, especially those that are largely invisible and unheard.
1616 16th Street - #350 San Francisco CA 94103 415.626.2176 playwrightsfoundation.org
BOARD OF DIRECTORS Ditka Reiner, president Markham Miller, vice president Marcella McColl, treasurer Francis Fryscak, secretary David Goldman Lauren Gunderson Mark Heitner Nasser Sagheb Jennifer Sousae Chris Smith Octavio Solis Iris Stone
FESTIVAL STAFF
Telling stories is one of the most enduring and powerful forms of human communication. The stories we tell each other about our experiences, the narratives that make up our lives, and the histories we are taught about the world and its people are how we express our most deeply held beliefs, gain insight into our times, and learn about others with empathy. They are how we are able to change minds and hearts. That is why, for four decades, we have sustained a commitment to advancing and amplifying newly emerging theatrical voices that go on to shift the culture and shape our national story.
Amy Mueller, artistic director Marcy Straw, marketing &
During #BAPF2017 six vital plays will take shape, and those of you who have made the choice to be here are in for a meaningful and delightful ride. This year’s crop topples convention, defies definition, and most importantly, will find their way to ripen at our theatres, nourishing the lives of thousands of audiences. You are a critical part of their journey to completion. So many of past Festival plays and playwrights land full productions all over the country, and indeed the globe, in no small part due to the work we are doing here together. Rebuilding and revolutionizing our theatre, discovering beauty, and poetically revealing the hidden, secret, unheard stories of our times.
Leanna Keyes,
Naturally, the Festival would not be complete without some brainy fun. Please take note of all it has to offer. Dialogue with us about the depiction of Middle Eastern characters, or how a critic’s biases can narrow our season selection, or why a dramaturg is critical to the developing play, or anything else you experience here. We are so thrilled to share these six visionary works with you.
development director
Jayne Wenger,
director of artistic process
Dena Martinez, casting director
Logan Ellis (2015-17) Maddie Gaw (2017-18), literary managers
production manager
Lorenz Angelo Gonzales, digital media manager & intern leader
Pancho Morris, front of house & office manager
Kieran Beccia,
special events coordinator
Andrew Custer,
technical director
playwrightsfoundation @pwfoundation
Amy Mueller artistic director
@pwfoundation 2017.07 • BAYSTAGES.COM | 1
RESIDENT PLAYWRIGHTS Jon Bernson Patricia Cotter Victoria Chong Der Dipika Guha Min Kahng Lisa Ramirez Jonathan Spector E. Hunter Spreen Michael Gene Sullivan Noelle Viñas
RESIDENT PLAYWRIGHTS ALUMNI Erin Bregman Gamal Chasten Eugenie Chan Chris Chen Garret Groenveld Lauren Gunderson Chinaka Hodge Julia Jarcho Aaron Loeb Peter Sinn Nachtrieb Marisela Treviño Orta Geetha Reddy Kate E. Ryan Andrew Saito Tanya Shaffer Betty Shamieh Brian Thorstenson
INTERNS & FELLOWS 2016-2017 COHORT Eva Huang Mayu Mizoguchi Adriana Palangio 2017 FESTIVAL INTERNS Thomas Ariniello Sam Barksdale Tyler Drake Danny Hassett Sasha King Tessa King Julius Rea Lily Schwartz Eteya Trinidad
FESTIVAL SCHEDULE THURSDAY | JULY 13, 2017 6:30 PM................................................................Anniversary Party FRIDAY | JULY 14, 2017 8:00 PM........................................................ The Birds of Empathy SATURDAY | JULY 15, 2017 12:00 PM....................................................................... The Fatales 4:00 PM.......................................................... Endangered Species 8:00 PM.......................................................................... Magic City SUNDAY | JULY 16, 2017 1:30 PM...........................................................................Damascus 3:30 PM................................................................... Entr’Acte Panel Loyalty, Patriotism & Homeland: An Exploration of Two Plays, Two Perspectives Led by Torange Yeghiazarian, artistic director of Golden Thread Productions, in conversation with the playwrights and experts in the field, we will unpack some of the questions raised by Damascus and We Swim, We Talk, We Go to War.
5:30 PM......................................We Swim, We Talk, We Go to War THURSDAY | JULY 20, 2017 7:00 PM........................................................ Custom Made Theatre Emerging Theater Professionals Event Join the Bay Area Playwrights Festival summer cohort of emerging theater makers from universities in cities as far flung as Edinburgh, Boston, Denver, San Diego and the Bay Area as they present a night of new short plays – entirely written and produced by the group.
FRIDAY | JULY 21, 2017 4:00 PM...........................................................................Damascus 8:00 PM......................................We Swim, We Talk, We Go to War SATURDAY | JULY 22, 2017 12:00 PM......................................................................... Magic City 2:30 PM.................................................................. Shelton Theatre How Race, Ethnicity, Gender (& Other) Biases in Theater Criticism Impact New Play Season Selection: A Conversation Discussion led by Daniel Banks, PhD, co-director of DNAWORKS, Fort Worth, and Regina Victor, dramaturg of Endangered Species.
4:00 PM.......................................................... Endangered Species 8:00 PM........................................................................ The Fatales SUNDAY | JULY 23, 2017 11:30 AM........................................................ Custom Made Theatre The Role of the Dramaturg: From New Works to Season Planning to Leadership Join us for fruit, pastries, mimosas, and a brunch panel discussion with moderated by Maddie Gaw, literary manager at Playwrights Foundation.
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ABOUT PLAYWRIGHTS FOUNDATION Playwrights Foundation was founded in 1976, and is today widely recognized as one of the top organizations in the country dedicated to the creative development and career acceleration of diverse local and national playwrights. Our mission is to support and champion diverse contemporary playwrights in the creation of new works to sustain theatre as a vital, dynamic art form. In supporting playwrights, the Foundation positions them as the leading creative voice in our organization. Our primary artistic goals are: • to provide a home that supports, encourages and advances the creative process of contemporary playmaking, • to elevate the role of the playwright as a 21st-century storyteller, • to feed the tributaries and rivers of the American theatre in the Bay Area and beyond. To date, Playwrights Foundation has served over 500 exceptionally gifted emerging and mid-career writers as they reach for national prominence. Focusing on cultural diversity and geographic and gender parity, we seek to identify exceptional writers and give them the space, time, and professional artistic collaborators they need to explore new theatrical ideas and take risks with structure, form, and content in a supportive, rigorous environment. The only non-producing playwright support organization of its size and scope on the West Coast, the Foundation has been lauded for its programmatic excellence. Our programs include: • the Bay Area Playwrights Festival, • the Resident Playwrights Initiative, providing an array of resources for ten Bay Area playwrights over a four-year term, as they individually advance their professional playwriting careers, • the Producing Partners Initiative, which allows us to leverage relationships and form ongoing partnerships with producers to advance new work to full production, • a mentorship program which provides training and experience to young artists and arts administrators. Discovered early in their careers, our program alumni include some of the most prominent names in contemporary theatre, including Sam Shepard, David Henry Hwang, Nilo Cruz, Anna Deavere Smith, Paula Vogel, Marcus Gardley, Annie Baker, and Naomi Iizuka. Recent alumni have won four consecutive Will Glickman Awards, multiple American Theatre Critics Association awards, a MacArthur Genius grant, and a Pulitzer Prize, among other recognition. Katori Hall and Rajiv Joseph premiered work developed at Playwrights Foundation on Broadway. These artists exemplify just a few of the many successful beneficiaries of our organization’s work.
PLAY SUBMISSION Playwrights Foundation has an open submission policy: anyone writing in English and living in the U.S. can submit a play for consideration. The 2017-18 window opens on our website on July 14, 2017, and will close on September 30, 2017. 2017.07 • BAYSTAGES.COM | 3
PLAYWRIGHTS FOUNDATION 2016-2017 LITERARY TEAM Logan Ellis,
literary manager
Maddie Gaw,
associate literary manager
FESTIVAL LITERARY COUNCIL Walter Astorga, Kristin Clippard, Logan Ellis, Maddie Gaw, Sarah Nina Hayon, Duca Knezevic, Andrew Kopke, Amy Mueller, Doyle Ott, Lisa Marie Rollins, Valerie Weak, Jayne Wenger, and Monica Yap. NATIONAL READING COMMITTEE Hailey Bachrach, Brady Brophy-Hilton, David Carter, Ina Chang, Sheila Devitt, Matt DiCintio, Amy Dorman, Margaret Dunn, Antonia Fairchild, Laura FarrellWortman, Danielle Feder, Gianna Gargiulo, Alyson Germinder, Jon Blake Hackler, Anne Hallinan, Annelih GH Hamilton, Al Heartley, Chad Henry, Sandra Hess, Anna Jennings, Megan Johnson, Alex Keegan, Hilary King, Bebe LaGrua, Kat Laveaux, Amanda Lee, May Liang, Kait Mahoney, Emma McFarland, Charlie McGrath, Maddie McQueen, Erin Merritt, Paul Miller, Allie Moss, Shannon Musgrave, John Pietrowski, Lucy Tupper Powls, Jordan Puckett, Seeley Quest, Jenna Rodgers, Aily Roper, Brad Rothbart, Sarah Sander, Cassy Sanders, Gaby Schneider, Jason Sharp, Erica Slutsky, Ashley Smiley, Arianna Soloway, Lauren Spencer, Fly Steffens, Kathryn Stewart, Matt Strote, Dustin Trabert, Rebecca Udden, Regina Victor, Deborah Vogt, Cole von Glahn, Jacob Voss, Michael Weems, ShawnJ West, Rebecca White, Casey Wright, Amy Young, and Nora Zahn.
FROM THE PLAYWRIGHT
THE BIRDS OF EMPATHY by Clarence
Coo
CAST [ IN ALPHABETICAL ORDER ]
Sylvia........................................................ Keiko Shimosato Carreiro* Nathan....................................................................... Jomar Tagatac* Mikey, Voice of Troy-Jason-Zeus................................... Liam Vincent* John James Audubon, Mr. Lewis.........................................Dan Hiatt* * Member of Actors’ Equity Association
CREATIVE TEAM “I wanted to get more in touch with nature by learning about the birds of New York City. As I learned about their mating habits and child-raising instincts (and how different species had different approaches), I began to think about the choices we humans make in our own lives. Do our choices come from rational thinking, from biological instinct, or from factors that were formed in our childhood? This question was one of the main reasons I needed to write the play.” – Clarence Coo
Director............................................................................ Ken Savage Dramaturg...........................................................................Allie Moss Rehearsal Assistant....................................................... Lily Schwartz
PERFORMANCE DATES Friday, July 14, 2017 | 8:00 PM Sunday, July 23, 2017 | 1:30 PM
SPONSORS Wendy Buffett + Joel Kreisberg Toni Rembe + Arthur Rock
CLARENCE COO (Playwright) is a recipient of a 2017 Whiting
Award and the 2012 Yale Drama Series Prize. His plays include The Birds of Empathy, Beautiful Province (Belle Province), People Sitting in Darkness, and The God of Wine. His work has been developed at the Atlantic Theatre, Oregon Shakespeare Festival, New York Theatre Workshop, and the Bay Area Playwrights Festival. He has been a Rita Goldberg Playwrights Workshop fellow at the Lark and a Dramatists Guild fellow. He received his MFA in playwriting at Columbia University. Currently he is a New York Foundation for the Arts fellow, a resident playwright at New Dramatists, a member of the Ma-Yi Writers Lab, and the manager of academic administration of the MFA Writing Program at Columbia University.
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THE FATALES
by Lauren
Gunderson
FROM THE PLAYWRIGHT
CAST [ IN ALPHABETICAL ORDER ]
Ninja Redheart........................................................ Arwen Anderson* Saint Kisses..............................................................Jessica Kitchens* Supersmall...............................................................Janine Burgener* Princess Sugar Justice.................................................... Susan Shay* Doctor Universe........................................................... Jeunée Simon * Member of Actors’ Equity Association
CREATIVE TEAM Director............................................................................. Tracy Ward Dramaturg..........................................................Karen Altree Piemme Music Arrangement/Vocal Coach.................................. James Goode Rehearsal Assistant.................................................... Sam Barksdale
PERFORMANCE DATES Saturday, July 15, 2017 | 12:00 PM Saturday, July 22, 2017 | 8:00 PM
SPONSOR Patricia Strong
LAUREN GUNDERSON (Playwright) is the most produced living
playwright in America of 2016, the winner of the Lanford Wilson Award and the Steinberg/ATCA New Play Award, a finalist for the Susan Smith Blackburn Prize and John Gassner Award for Playwriting, and a recipient of the Mellon Foundation’s Three-Year Residency with Marin Theatre Company. She studied Southern literature and drama at Emory University, and dramatic writing at New York University Tisch School of the Arts where she was a Reynolds Fellow in Social Entrepreneurship. Her work has been commissioned, produced and developed at companies across the US including South Coast Rep (Emilie, Silent Sky), the Kennedy Center (The Amazing Adventures of Dr. Wonderful And Her Dog!), the O’Neill, the Denver Center, San Francisco Playhouse, Marin Theatre, Synchronicity, Olney Theatre, Berkeley Rep, Shotgun Players, TheatreWorks, Crowded Fire and more. She co-authored Miss Bennet: Christmas at Pemberley with Margot Melcon. Her work is published at Playscripts (I and You, Exit, Pursued by a Bear, The Taming, and Toil and Trouble), Dramatists (Silent Sky, Bauer, Miss Bennet) and Samuel French (Emilie). Her picture book Blast Off to the Moon! was just released from Two Lions / Amazon. laurengunderson.com
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“This play came to me in a one-week burst after the University of Santa Barbara shootings a few years back. It just so happened that in that same week there was the terrible rape and murder of two young girls in western India. Then came the budding #YesAllWomen campaign. All of this inspired me to funnel my outrage and desperation for a saner world for women into a new play. I knew that I couldn’t write a kitchen sink drama to express the depths and heights of what many women survive and endure. So I turned towards the sometimes feminist, sometimes sexist myths and tropes of princesses, superheroes, and girly pop music. This play quickly became wild, funny, shocking, loud and proud much like the feminist men and women that I know and love. I hope the play is a roller coaster constantly twisting between delight and defiance.” – Lauren Gunderson
FROM THE PLAYWRIGHT
ENDANGERED SPECIES by Nilan
Johnson
CAST [ IN ALPHABETICAL ORDER ]
Madeline, Chola, Queen, Negro 1............................ Elizabeth Carter* Teacher, Alistair, Uncle Sam......................................Douglas Giorgis* Jamal, Homie, Negro 3........................................... Kadeem Ali Harris Student, Elizabeth, Bald Eagle...........................................Monica Ho Frank, Cop, Don Lemon, Negro Delineator, Negro 2.... Howard Johnson Little Emma, Actress, Afro.................................................. Dezi Solèy Jamieson, Host, Conductor........................................ Isiah Thompson * Member of Actors’ Equity Association
“Endangered Species is birthed out of my curiosity of how we help and hinder the development of Black consciousness. How in hopes of securing safety and prosperity we, as a culture, breed the usage of psychological chains on Black youth. Concern arose while witnessing how Black youth spoke about the recent viral videos of unarmed Black shootings. How they knew the rules of their Black bodies but not their humanity. How does one make or take room to metamorphosis beyond this cultural and societal cycle?” – Nilan Johnson
CREATIVE TEAM Director..............................................................Desdemona Chiang ^ Dramaturg......................................................................Regina Victor Rehearsal Assistant..................................................Thomas Ariniello ^ The director is a member of the Stage Directors and Choreographers Society, a national theatrical labor union.
PERFORMANCE DATES Saturday, July 15, 2017 | 4:00 PM Saturday, July 22, 2017 | 4:00 PM
SPONSOR Playwrights Foundation Board of Directors
NILAN JOHNSON (Playwright) is a performer, creator, and
teaching artist. Playwriting credits include And Then I Woke… (Downtown Art), Joan (reading, Oppressed in Heels) The Shadow In The Corner (48 Hours in Harlem), Old School (24 Hour Pridefest), Water From The Tap and An American Tale (NY Indie One Minute Play Festival), American Idiot (Our Country/Our Response Play Festival), The Saint and the Sinner (reading, Wagon Wheel Arts). New York acting credits include And Then I Woke... (Downtown Art), Next Faggot Nation (Dixon Place), Self-Accusation: The Remix (LPAC, Bedlam MadLab), Bar Play (Peculiar Works Project), Trojan Women (Oppressed in Heels),The Champion (Bric Arts). Regional acting credits include Metamorphosis, Assassins, A Raisin in the Sun, Clybourne Park, The Parchman Hour, Henry IV, Henry V, and The Imaginary Invalid (PlayMakers Repertory Company), Radio Golf (Deep Dish Theater Company), and 10x10 in the Triangle (ArtsCenter Carrboro). Other crdits include Playback Theatre (Playback Berlin) and Consent Is Sexy, a four-episode PSA campaign about supporting consensual sexual behavior (YouTube). Nilan earned an MFA in acting from the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill. nilanjohnson.me
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MAGIC CITY
a modern adaptation of Strindberg’s Miss Julie by Hilary Bettis
FROM THE PLAYWRIGHT
CAST [ IN ALPHABETICAL ORDER ]
Julie…………………………………….................................. Martha Brigham* John…………………………………………................................ Caleb Cabrera Christine…………………………………….................................. Sarita Ocón* * Member of Actors’ Equity Association
CREATIVE TEAM Director.....................................................................Susannah Martin Dramaturg................................................................. Anthony Clarvoe Rehearsal Assistant........................................................... Tessa King
PERFORMANCE DATES Saturday, July 15, 2017 | 8:00 PM Saturday, July 22, 2017 | 12:00 PM
SPONSORS Kat + Dave Anderson
HILARY BETTIS (Playwright) writes plays and screenplays.
She is a 2015 graduate of the Lila Acheson Wallace Playwright Fellowship at the Juilliard School. Hilary has received fellowships and residencies at the Bay Area Playwrights Festival, O’Neill National Playwrights Conference, New York Theatre Workshop, Sewanee Writers’ Conference, SPACE at Ryder Farm, Cape Cod Theatre Project, La Jolla Playhouse, New York Foundation for the Arts, Playwrights’ Week at the Lark, NNPN’s National Showcase of New Plays, Audrey Residency at New Georges, Two River Theater, Great Plains Theatre Conference, Last Frontier Theatre Conference, WildWind Lab at Texas Tech, the Kennedy Center/National New Play Network MFA Workshop, and a Sloan/EST Commission. She has had plays recognized by the Kilroys every year since its inception. The Ghosts of Lote Bravo received an NNPN rolling world premiere at the Unicorn Theatre in Kansas City and Borderlands Theater in Tucson. Her play Alligator was produced Off-Broadway with New Georges and the Sol Project, and nominated for a 2017 Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Music. Hilary is story editor on FX’s Emmynominated show The Americans, and is developing a project at the Weinstein Company and a project at Fox 21. She is represented by CAA and Grandview. hilarybettiswriter.com
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“Strindberg’s Miss Julie is a play that I have a love/ hate relationship with. Julie and Jean are dynamic, their illicit affair palpable, the unflinching questions about class continue to be relevant. But Julie never seemed to be given the same respect as Jean – even if they both lose in the end. Strindberg believed Social Darwinism was the ultimate force of nature, which unquestioningly favored Jean –survival of the fittest. In his author’s preface he states, “Miss Julie is a modern character. Not that the man-hating half-woman has not existed in all ages but because now that she has been discovered, she has come out in the open to make herself heard.” And, “Jean is superior to Miss Julie because he is a man.” So I decided it was time to put a new lens on a story so revered by Western culture. Using this familiar text as the backdrop, Magic City asks, ‘Can we evolve beyond brutality to find a more compassionate way to exist?’” – Hilary Bettis
FROM THE PLAYWRIGHT
DAMASCUS by Bennett
Fisher
CAST [ IN ALPHABETICAL ORDER ]
Diaz, Maynard, Conklin, Whitaker.................................. Amy Lizardo* Lloyd......................................................................... Devin S. O’Brien Hassan....................................................................... Adrian Roberts* * Member of Actors’ Equity Association
CREATIVE TEAM “This play was, in part, born out of a family tragedy. It’s my attempt to understand, forgive, and even love a group of people who committed a violent act. It’s a play about the assumptions we make about one another, about when we presume to speak for other people, about how belief is formed and transformed. I wanted to address a highly politicized issue, but I wanted to do so without advancing a political agenda. Instead, Damascus explores how we are individually, intimately affected by global issues - hopefully with a lot of suspense and empathy, but not a lot of judgement.” – Bennett Fisher
Director..........................................................................Becca Wolff ^ Dramaturg..................................................................Nakissa Etemad Rehearsal Assistant.................................................... Alexandra King ^ The director is a member of the Stage Directors and Choreographers Society, a national theatrical labor union.
PERFORMANCE DATES Sunday, July 16, 2017 | 1:30 PM Friday, July 21, 2017 | 4:00 PM
SPONSORS Kathy Roberts + Aaron Loeb Sandra Hess
BENNETT FISHER (Playwright) is a company member of Campo Santo and People of Interest, and an associate artist with the Cutting Ball Theater. His plays include Damascus (O’Neill Finalist, Samuel Goldwyn Award), Borealis (Kendeda Prize Finalist), Campo Maldito, Don’t Be Evil, and the forthcoming Candlestick. They have been presented and produced by the WOW Festival at La Jolla Playhouse, the Alliance Theatre, Victory Gardens Theater, the Kennedy Center MFA Playwrights Workshop, the Martin E. Segel Center, People of Interest, Ubuntu Theater Project, Theater Emory, the Unicorn Theater, Sleepwalkers Theater, No Nude Men, New Conservatory Theatre Center, Cutting Ball Theater, Bread and Water, and Custom Made Theatre Co. As an actor, dramaturg, and director, he has collaborated with California Shakespeare Theater, Stanford Summer Theatre, Just Theater, Crowded Fire Theater, Pear Theatre, Adirondack Shakespeare Company, Marin Shakespeare Company, and many others. Bennett wrote the dialogue for the immersive piece The Speakeasy, now running in North Beach. He is currently the Shank Fellowship Playwright in Residence at Victory Gardens Theater in Chicago. He received his MFA from the University of California, San Diego in 2016.
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WE SWIM, WE TALK, WE GO TO WAR by Mona
FROM THE PLAYWRIGHT
Mansour
CAST [ IN ALPHABETICAL ORDER ]
He………………………………………………………....................Amin El Gamal* She…………………………………………………….................. Sara Nina Hayon* The Arab………………………………………..................... Adam El-Sharkawi* The American Soldier….............................................. Ezra Hernandez * Member of Actors’ Equity Association
CREATIVE TEAM Director......................................................................... Evren Odcikin Dramaturg................................................................ Sonia Fernández Rehearsal Assistant..................................................... Danny Hassett
PERFORMANCE DATES Sunday, July 16, 2017 | 5:30 PM Friday, July 21, 2017 | 8:00 PM Presented in partnership with Golden Thread Productions.
MONA MANSOUR (Playwright) is an Arab-American playwright
whose Unseen premiered at the Gift Theatre in Chicago in February. We Swim, We Talk, We Go to War, again directed by Evren Odcikin, will premiere with Golden Thread productions next spring. The Vagrant Trilogy (comprised of The Hour of Feeling, Urge For Going, and The Vagrant) was recently presented at New Dramatists after a workshop at the Vineyard Arts Project with the Public Theater. It will debut at Mosaic Theater in Washington, DC in 2018, directed by Mark Wing-Davey. The Hour of Feeling, directed by Mark Wing-Davey, premiered at the Humana Festival, and a new Arabic translation was just presented at NYU Abu Dhabi, as part of its Arab Voices Festival. Urge For Going had productions at Public LAB (directed by Hal Brooks) and Golden Thread (directed by Evren Odcikin). The Vagrant was commissioned by the Public Theater and workshopped at the 2013 Sundance Theater Institute. Mona’s play The Way West received its New York premiere at Labyrinth Theater in 2016. It was previously produced at Steppenwolf in Chicago and Marin Theatre Company. Mona was a member of the Public Theater’s Emerging Writers Group and is a member of New Dramatists. Commissions include Waterwell, Old Globe Theater, La Jolla Playhouse, Playwrights Horizons, and American Revolutions at Oregon Shakespeare Festival. She received the 2013 Whiting Award and the2014 Middle East America Playwright Award. monamansour.com
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“[We Swim] started as a conversation between me and my nephew, who was heading into a career in the military. The first question I wanted to explore was: How did this kid know at 17 he wanted a career in the Army? This kid with an Arab background who was surrounded by exactly zero military family members, who wasn’t the biggest or the burliest (my stereotype of military dudes), nor a skinny put-upon kid trying to make up for lost dignity (also my stereotype)? How did he end up going to an ROTC-prep college, with proAmerica stickers inside and outside his car? The play is a placeholder for a real conversation: How is it that I can’t say to him the things I want to say to him—to ask him—so many things? And in what ways am I, his liberal lefty aunt,wrong about what motivates someone like him? In what ways is my thinking as reductive as those ya-ya yellow-ribbon militarists I abhor?” – Mona Mansour
DIRECTORS + DRAMATURGS DESDEMONA CHIANG^
(Director, Endangered Species), is a stage director based in Seattle and the San Francisco Bay Area. She is co-founder of Azeotrope (Seattle). Her directing credits include Oregon Shakespeare Festival, Seattle Repertory Theatre, Long Wharf Theatre, PlayMakers Repertory Company, California Shakespeare T h e a t e r, A u r o r a T h e a t r e Company, Seattle Children’s Theatre, Seattle Shakespeare Company, Shotgun Players, Crowded Fire Theater, Azeotrope, Impact Theatre, FringeNYC, Playwrights Foundation, Golden Thread Productions, Washington Ensemble Theatre, One-Minute Play Festival, Ohio Northern U n i v e r s i t y, t h e U n i v e r s i t y of Washington, and Cornish College of the Arts. Awards and affiliations include Vilcek Prize for Creative Promise in Theatre, Sir John Gielgud Directing Fellowship (SDC Foundation), Drama League Directing Fellowship, Young Leader of Color (Theatre Communications Group), Directors Lab (Lincoln Center Theater) and Directors Lab West, Artist-Investigator (California Shakespeare Theater and Intersection for the Arts), and the Gregory Award for outstanding direction. Desdemona is an adjunct faculty member at Cornish College of the Arts. She earned a BA from the University of California, Berkeley and an MFA in directing from the University of Washington.
ANTHONY
CLARVOE
(Dramaturg, Magic City) has received the American Theatre Critics Association, Will Glickman, San Francisco Bay Area Theatre Critics Circle, Los Angeles Drama Critics, Garland, Elliot Norton, and Edgerton Foundation New American Play awards. His fellowships include 1 0 | BAYSTAGES.COM • 2017.07
the Guggenheim, Irvine, Jerome, and McKnight Foundations, the National Endowment for the Arts, TCG/Pew Charitable Trusts, and the Kennedy Center. He has been commissioned by South Coast Repertory, Mark Taper Forum, and Playwrights Horizons. He received the Berrilla Kerr Award for his contributions to American theatre. Productions include Pick Up Ax (South Coast Repertory, San Jose Repertory Theatre), The Living (Denver Center), Let’s Play Two (South Coast Repertory), Ambition Facing West (Trinity Repertory Company, TheatreWorks), Ctrl+Alt+Delete (San Jose Repertory Theatre, George Street Playhouse), The Brothers Karamazov (Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park, Circle X Theatre Co.), Show and Tell (Repertory Theatre of St. Louis), Gizmo (Penn State Center Stage), Our Practical Heaven (Aurora Theatre Company), Gunpowder Joe (Bloomsburg Theatre Ensemble), and, recently, a series of experimental movementbased pieces with Ragged Wing Ensemble. His plays are published by Broadway Play Publishing, Inc. The Art of Sacrifice (Merrimack Repertory Theatre) was published by Random House in the anthology Plays for Two. Anthony teaches at the University of California, B e r ke l e y, P l a y G r o u n d , a n d Stagebridge. A native San Franciscan and long-time resident of New York and the Midwest, he lives with his family in Berkeley.
NAKISSA
ETEMAD
(Dramaturg, Damascus) is a dramaturg, producer, director, and French translator based in San Francisco. She is a recipient of the Elliott Hayes Award for Outstanding Achievement in Dramaturgy for the Lark’s multicity premiere productions of the road weeps, the well runs dry by Marcus Gardley. Nakissa
is thrilled to be back with Playwrights Foundation for her seventh festival. Others include Home Below Zero by Dan Dietz, The Mountaintop by Katori Hall, and The Blood of Winter by Garret Jon Groenveld. Other Playwrights Foundation credits include dramaturg for Cutting Ball Theater co-production of Gardley’s …and Jesus Moonwalks the Mississippi and directing BASH!, Rough Reading Series, and Resident Playwrights Initiative showcases for Marisela Treviño Orta. She was also the instructor of DRAMA-WHAT?: Unlocking the Mystery of Dramaturgy for the New Play Institute. Recent world premieres include The River Bride (Oregon Shakespeare Festival), Heart Shaped Nebula (Shotgun Players), Isfahan Blues (Golden Thread Productions/ African-American Shakespeare Company), Be Bop Baby: A Musical Memoir (Z Space), and every tongue confess (Arena Stage). In her twenty-five-year career, Nakissa has specialized in new plays and musicals with Tom Stoppard, Arthur Miller, Luis Valdez, Lynn Nottage, Marcus Gardley, Doug Wright, Polly Pen, and others. A former dramaturg and literary manager for the Wilma Theater, San Jose Repertory Theatre, and San Diego Repertory Theatre, Nakissa is the regional vice president for the Metro Bay Area of the Literary Managers and Dramaturgs of the Americas and holds an MFA in dramaturgy from the University of California, San Diego.
SONIA
FERNÁNDEZ
(Dramaturg, We Swim, We Talk, We Go to War) is a scholar, t r a n s l a t o r, a n d d r a m a t u r g , specializing in new work. Recent production dramaturgy projects include the world premiere of Grandeur by Han Ong at Magic Theatre, and The Shipment by
Young Jean Lee with Crowded Fire, where she is a company member. She is the associate artistic director at Magic, where she produces the annual Virgin Play Festival featuring workshops and readings of new plays in development each December. Sonia is a PhD candidate at the University of California, San Diego, and her research focuses on audience experience of racial humor. She received an AB from Princeton and master’s from San Francisco State University.
JAMES GOODE (Music
Arranger & Vocal Coach, The Fatales) is a Bay Area composer, sound designer, audio engineer, and musician with over twenty years of experience working with actors, animators, chefs, curators, dancers, event planners, film directors, game designers, music producers, songwriters, visual artists, writers, and other professionals on a wide variety of projects.
SUSANNAH
MARTIN
(Director, Magic City) is and award-winning director, teacher, and theatremaker and has taught and directed for organizations throughout the Bay Area. For five years, she was the joint artistic director with Elizabeth Spreen of Paducah Mining Co., a San Francisco-based theatre ensemble that produced acclaimed work by established playwrights and devised original pieces on complex material such as domestic terrorism, spousal abuse, and poverty in America. Susannah is a company member at Mugwumpin and Shotgun Players. Recent directing credits include The Events by David Greig and Caught by Christopher Chen (Shotgun Players), Blockbuster Season (Mugwumpin), and the world premieres of The Rules by Dipika Guha, Grounded by George Brant (San Francisco Playhouse, NNPN Rolling World Premiere), Amnesia by Ariel Luckey (La Peña Cultural
Center and the San Francisco International Arts Festival) and That it all makes perfect by Erin Bregman (6NewPlays), which she first directed at the 2013 Bay Area Playwrights Festival. She has also directed countless readings and workshops for companies as varied as Aurora Theatre Company, Playwrights Foundation, Marin Theatre Company, Crowded Fire Theater, TheatreWorks, and Z Space. Susannah received her BFA in theatre from New York University and her MFA in directing from the University of California, Davis. susannahmartin.net
ALLIE MOSS (Dramaturg,
The Birds of Empathy) is a dramaturg and director. Her recent dramaturgical projects include You’ll Not Feel the Drowning (Custom Made Theatre Co.), MacBitch (The Breadbox), and The Realistic Joneses (American Conservatory Theater). Her upcoming directing work includes Erinyes/Eumenides (Undiscovered Works Reading Series, Custom Made Theatre Co.), Please Seat Yourself (ShortLived Festival, PianoFight) and a short piece in The Morning After (Left Coast Theatre Co.). Moss holds a BA in theatre from Goucher College and works as the artistic administrator at American Conservatory Theater.
EVREN ODCIKIN (Director, We
Swim, We Talk, We Go to War) has directed and developed new plays at South Coast Repertory, The Lark (New York), the Eugene O’Neill Theater Center, the Kennedy Center, Cleveland Public Theatre, InterAct Theatre Company (Philadelphia), TheatreSquared (Fayetteville), Magic Theatre, Playwrights Foundation, TheatreFirst, and Crowded Fire Theater with such writers as Mona Mansour, Yussef El Guindi, Kevin Artigue, Lauren Gunderson, David Jacobi, Jonas Hassen Khemiri, Michael Lew, Rehana Lew Mirza, Geetha Reddy, Saïd Sayrafiezadeh, Betty
Shamieh, Lauren Yee, and Frances Ya-Chu Cowhig. He is the director of new plays at Golden Thread Productions. His next project is The Rehearsal by Hannah Khalil as part of Golden Thread’s ReOrient Festival. odcikin.com
KAREN ALTREE PIEMME
(Dramaturg, The Fatales) is an accomplished director, actor, dramaturg, workshop facilitator, and acting instructor, specializing in social justice theatre, new works development, and community access to the arts. Karen is the director of the Red Ladder Theatre Company, a nationally-acclaimed, award-winning social justice theatre company, which empowers marginalized populations in our community by helping them develop positive life skills through the art of theatre. Karen spent twenty-one years with San Jose Repertory Theatre, where she was the director of outreach and resident dramaturg. Prior to that, she spent five years at Arena Stage’s groundbreaking Living Stage Theatre Company. As a freelance artist and theatre professional, Karen has directed productions for both youth and adults, taught classes, developed new works, and conducted workshops locally, nationally, and internationally for nearly thirty years. She is committed to new works development, and has contributed dramaturgy to new works by Philip Kan Gotanda, A n u p a m a C h a n d r a s e k h a r, Jonathan Marc Feldman, Lauren Gunderson, MJ Kaufman, Andrew Saito, Don Nguyen, Tony Taccone, Dan Hoyle, and other noted playwrights. She served as the producer of the Bay Area Playwrights Festival in 2015 and 2016 and coordinated the Foundation’s Resident Playwrights Initiative in those same years.
K E N S AVAG E ( D i r e c t o r , The Birds of Empathy) is a Bay Area theatre director and producer. Ken currently works
2017.07 • BAYSTAGES.COM | 1 1
as the assistant producer at American Conservatory Theater where he is a mainstage line producer, manages the new works program, and produces the annual New Strands Festival. He is also a director for Master of Fine Arts Program in Acting and the Young Conservatory. Select directing credits include Sweeney Todd (San Francisco Bay Area Theatre Company), My Fair Lady (Broadway By the Bay), Spring Awakening, Hairspray, Sunday in the Park with George, and The Fantasticks (Stanford University), The Aliens and The River Bride (A.C.T. M.F.A. Acting Program). Ken has worked as an assistant director and in various artistic administration positions at the Oregon Shakespeare Festival, Public Theater, Arena Stage, California Shakespeare Theater, and TheatreWorks. Musicals that he is developing and directing include Gravity - A New(tonian) Musical (Eugene O’Neill Theater Center National Music Theater Conference finalist in 2017, TheatreWorks New Works Festival in 2016), Tinderella: A Modern Musical (FaultLine Theater/ Custom Made Theatre Co.), and South of Market The Musical v.2. A Stanford graduate with an MA in communication with a focus on virtual reality and performance and a BA in drama, Ken is the recipient of the Silicon Valley Creates Artist Laureate Emerging Artist Award. kensavageproductions.com
REGINA VICTOR (Dramaturg,
Endangered Species) is thrilled to return home to the Bay Area Playwrights Festival as a dramaturg. A non-binary femme of color, their pronouns are they/she/he, and the order is subject change. Regina was born and raised in Oakland, and considers civic engagement, 1 2 | BAYSTAGES.COM • 2017.07
mentorship, and social justice to be the core of their artistic practice. Most recently Regina co-produced and facilitated a panel on cultivating critics of color at Chicago Dramatists. They founded Rescripted, an artist-led website for reviews and essays on theatre with Katherine O’Keefe. A producer, dramaturg, director, writer and performer, Regina has worked with theatre companies such as California Shakespeare Theater, Berkeley Repertory Theatre, Marin Theatre Company, AlterTheater, AfricanAmerican Shakespeare Company, Aluminous Theatre, About Face, Chicago Dramatists, The Hypocrites, and Shattered Globe. Next, Regina is dramaturg and performer in Walkabout Theatre’s The Persephone Pageant, an environmental conservation pageant to save Lake Michigan. Featuring original text by Sarah Ruhl and Morgan McNaught and co-directed by Jessica Thebus and Thom Pasculli, The Persephone Pageant will play in parks across Chicago in August. rescripted.org | reginavictor.com
TRACY WARD (Director, The
Fatales) is an award-winning freelance director based in the Bay Area focusing on new works for the American theatre. Previous work with the Festival includes work with playwrights Lauren Gunderson, Jonathan Spector, E. Hunter Spreen, and Brian Thorstenson. Recent productions include Arctic Requiem at Z Below, and The Dragon Play (included on two Bay Area Top Ten lists in 2015) and What Every Girl Should Know at Impact Theatre. Additional credits include national tours of Strega Nona and The Magic School Bus Live: Climate Challenge (Theatre for Young Audiences), a San Francisco
Bay Area Theatre Critics Circle nomination for directing Hunter Gatherers by Peter Sinn Nachtrieb, and productions at AlterTheater, Shotgun Players, Encore Theatre Company, ODC, and Z Space. She is a proud company member of PlayGround. tracyward.org
BECCA WOLFF ^ (Director,
Damascus) is a California-based, cross-media director committed to developing new forms and attracting new audiences to the theatre. Her current projects include Love is a Dirty Word by Giovanni Adams (VS. Theater Company, Los Angeles), Our Country (piecebypiece, San Francisco Playhouse and Getty Villa), and Flying Easy, Ken Robinson’s visual tribute album to Donny Hathaway. Upcoming world premieres include the rock opera Weightless by the Kilbanes (piecebypiece, Encore Productions and Z Space) and Sinner’s Laundry by John Lavelle (IAMA Theatre Company, Los Angeles). Recent Bay Area premieres include The Roommate by Jen Silverman (San Francisco Playhouse), Promiscuous Cities by Lachlan Philpott (world premiere, A.C.T. Conservatory), and Casa Valentina by Harvey Fierstein (New Conservatory Theatre Center). She is co-founder with Liza Fuentes, Anu Gomez, and Lisa Stern, of SCOTUS Theater, a project of Word for Word and Z Space, co-founder with Jacob Padrón of Tilted Field Productions, and artistic director emeritus IAMA Theatre Company (Ovation Award for Outstanding Ensemble, Intimate Theatre, Los Angeles). She teaches writing and directing for film at Berkeley City College and Pixar U and holds an MFA in directing from the Yale School of Drama. beccawolff.net ^ Member, Society of Stage Directors and Choreographers.
FESTIVAL STAFF AMY MUELLER (Artistic
Director) has spearheaded the growth and development of Playwrights Foundation during her seventeen-year tenure, transforming it into a highly vaunted national new play center with significant impact on the field. She has personally facilitated the development of hundreds of plays, and accelerated the careers of as many emerging and mid-career playwrights who have gone on to shift the landscape of American theatre, winning national acclaim, awards, and visibility. Amy has been at the forefront of the effort to support artists of color and women in the theatre, creating a culture of partnership in new play development in the Bay Area.
MARCY STRAW (Marketing
Director) maintains a consulting practice founded in 1990 that provides interim leadership, f u n d r a i s i n g , s t r a t e g y, a n d marketing to nonprofit organizations and artists, and career guidance for recording and touring artists. Previous roles include executive director of the UC Student Association, the Bay Area Leadership Foundation, and deputy director for Pacific Environment. Marcy also led Bay Area arts icons Teatro ZinZanni and the Midsummer Mozart Festival. For six years she directed marketing for California Shakespeare Theater and before that for ODC Dance. Marcy holds a BS in business and an MBA from John F. Kennedy University. She is a 2017-2018 Encore Fellow and the incoming executive director of the California Music Center.
LORENZ ANGELO GONZALES
(Administrative & Marketing C o o r d i n a t o r) i s a F i l i p i n o American actor, theatremaker, and arts administrator from the Bay Area. Prior to joining Playwrights Foundation, Lorenz was the marketing and digital
communications fellow at Berkeley Repertory Theatre, where he produced digital content and outreached to diverse communities. He is a resident artist at Bindlestiff Studio, a freelance photographer, and received his BA in theatre and performance studies and ethnic studies from the University of California, Berkeley. lorenzangelo.com
PANCHO MORRIS (Office
Manager) is a musician, playwright, and award-nominated actor from Oakland. He is most known for his portrayal of eccentric theatre student Josh Morgan in the Hulu series Dorm Life. Prior to joining Playwrights Foundation, Pancho worked as production assistant and administrative coordinator. Recent production credits include the Netflix series Sense8, 13 Reasons Why, and GirlBoss. He is a resident artist at Zoolabs, a music incubator and recording studio in Oakland, and is the emcee of Splendor All Around, a DIY music venue that hosts folk shows out of a modified, baby blue 1986 Zephyr school bus. Pancho received his BA in theatre, film and television from the University of California, Los Angeles. splendorallaround.com | panchomorris.com
LOGAN ELLIS (Literary Manager)
is returning for his second year, and also serves as the producer in residence at Magic Theatre working closely with Artistic Director Loretta Greco. He is the founder and producing artistic director of Theatre Battery in Kent, Washington where he recently produced and directed the first professional production of Hooded, or Being Black for Dummies by Tearrance Chisholm, which was a tremendous success, with lines around the block attracting the attention of the city’s mayor, superintendent of schools, and other officials, as well as major Seattle press outlets. Other directing credits
include Water by the Spoonful (Dirty Hands Ensemble) Chatroom, Neighborhood 3: Requisition of Doom, Dog Sees God, Milk Like Sugar, A Maze (Theatre Battery), The Firefly Project (Magic Theatre), Year of the Rooster (Impact Theatre), dark play or stories for boys (Do It Live Productions), Inay’s Wedding Dress (Bindlestiff Studio), and Fat Pig and Far Away (Ithaca College). Logan holds a BA in drama with a directing focus from Ithaca College. This fall, Logan will be pursuing his MFA in directing at Yale University.
MADDIE GAW (2016-2017
Associate Literary Manager) is a dramaturg, writer, and producer. Maddie has worked with Marin Theatre Company, Custom Made Theatre Co., 6NewPlays, and foolsFURY Theater, and offers freelance script consultation to local playwrights. At Marin Theatre Company she served as the production dramaturg for Anne Boleyn, the world premiere of Swimmers, and My Mañana Comes. Additional credits include dramaturg for Belleville (Custom Made Theatre Co.) and producer for That it all makes perfect (6NewPlays). As a dramaturg and script reader she has also collaborated with Cleveland Play House, Eugene O’Neill Theater Center, Ensemble Studio Theatre, and Talk Back Theatre. Maddie is a proud member of Literary Managers and Dramaturgs of the Americas, and a 2016 alumna of the Playwrights Foundation intern program. Maddie is joining Playwrights Foundation as the 2017-2018 Literary Manager. maddiegaw.com
DENA MARTINEZ (Casting
Director) casts for the Playwrights Foundation and The Speakeasy. She has also cast for San Francisco Playhouse (First Day of School, She Stoops to Comedy, Den of Thieves, The Fantasticks), the 2017.07 • BAYSTAGES.COM | 1 3
Jewish Theater San Francisco (Death of a Salesman, The Sisters Rosensweig, Lost in Yonkers), and Shotgun Players (Love is a Dream House in Lorin, This World in a Woman’s Hands). As an actor she has toured nationally with the San Francisco Mime Troupe, Culture Clash, and El Teatro Campesino. She played leading roles at Denver Center for the Performing Arts, Repertory Theatre of St. Louis, Marin Theatre Company, Berkeley Repertory Theatre, Word for Word, San Jose Repertory Theatre, San Jose Stage Company, Capital Stage, Magic Theatre, California Shakespeare Theater, TheatreWorks, Pacific Repertory Theatre, and Shotgun Players.
LEANNA KEYES (Festival
Production Manager) is a freelance production manager, theater technician, and Actors’ Equity Association stage manager. She has had the good fortune to work with many Bay Area theatre organizations including Cutting Ball Theater, the Marsh, 42nd Street Moon, Dragon Productions, Stanford University, Broadway By the Bay, Andrea Fulton Productions, and Performance Design Acronym. This is her third festival with Playwrights Foundation. leannakeyes.com
JAYNE WENGER (Director of
Artistic Process) is a director and dramaturg whose exclusive focus is on original material. She has developed the work of acclaimed playwrights nationwide. She is the past artistic director of Playwrights Foundation and of Women’s Ensemble in New York. Current projects include The Blues is a Woman by Pamela Rose, opening in August at the Custom Made Theatre, and An Unreliable Bestiary, a lifelong performance
work by Deke Weaver. She is an alumna of Djerassi Resident Artist Program, a frequent guest artist at the Last Frontier Theatre Conference in Valdez, Alaska, and has taught at ArtWorkshop International in Italy and at San Francisco State University. She is a member of the Dramatists Guild, Literary Managers and Dramaturgs of the Americas, and the League of Professional Theatre Women. bluesisawoman.com | unreliablebestiary.org
ANDREW CUSTER (Technical
Director, Lighting Designer) is excited to be returning to the Playwrights Festival for his sixth year. His lighting design credits include Sail Away and The Boys from Syracuse (42nd St. Moon), The Turn of the Screw (Dragon Productions), and The Crucible (Foothill Theatre Conservatory). Andrew has also spent ten years at TheatreWorks and Opera San José as an electrician, carpenter and stagehand.
KIERAN BECCIA (Special
Event Coordinator) is thrilled to be working on their first Bay Area Playwrights Festival, having served as the associate producer for the 2016-2017 Rough Readings Series. They have worked in many capacities at many theatres throughout the Bay Area including Ubuntu Theatre Project, San Francisco Shakespeare Festival, TheatreWorks, Magic Theatre, and Shotgun Players.
DAVID HYRY & ASSOCIATES
(Publicist) has represented hundreds of artists for thousands of performances at theaters ranging from the intimate Marsh and Magic Theatre venues to American Conservatory Theater and the Palace of Fine Arts. David has
specialized in the launching and positioning of performing artists, composers, choreographers, organizations and festivals, with public relations, media planning, marketing, and advertising. DH&A has represented a range of artists and organizations including Bill Irwin, Spalding Gray, Rinde Eckert, Whoopi Goldberg, Diamanda Galas, Anne Bogart, Karole Armitage, La La La, Paul Dresher, George Coates Performance Works, Word for Word, BAM, Goethe-Institut, Italian Cultural Institute, Alliance Française, and Teatro Di Roma.
NANCY QUINN (Development
Consultant) received her MBA in arts administration from the UCLA Anderson School of Management in 1983. She founded Quinn Associates, a Bay Area-based arts administration and fundraising consulting firm in 1988, which helped hundreds of small and mid-sized arts organizations with fundraising, planning, organizational development, and capacity-building for over twentyfive years. On its closing, Nancy has continued to serve the field as a writer, coach, and consultant under the auspices of Quinn Consulting.
ACTORS’ EQUITY ASSOCIATION
(Equity) was founded in 1913 and is the US labor union that represents more than 50,000 actors and stage managers. Equity seeks to foster the art of live theatre as an essential component of society and advances the careers of its members by negotiating wages, working conditions and providing a wide range of benefits, including health and pension plans. Equity is a member of the AFL-CIO and is affiliated with FIA, an international organization of performing arts unions. actorsequity.org
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FUNDERS + DONORS 40TH ANNIVERSARY BAY AREA PLAYWRIGHTS FESTIVAL SPONSORS
40TH ANNIVERSARY BAY AREA PLAYWRIGHTS FESTIVAL FUNDERS
FLEISHHACKER F O U N D AT I O N
PLAYWRIGHTS FOUNDATION SPONSORS FOUNDATIONS, CORPORATIONS + GOVERNMENT AGENCIES Playwrights Foundation gratefully acknowledges the generous investment of our family of sponsors, foundations, corporations and government agencies. Multi-year grants are designated with a (*).
The Bernard Osher Foundation • California Arts Council • Dramatists Guild Fund Fleishhacker Foundation • Grants for the Arts • The Harold & Mimi Steinberg Charitable Trust Kenneth Rainin Foundation* • Kurz Family Foundation • Mechanics Bank National Endowment for the Arts • Phyllis C. Wattis Foundation • RHE Charitable Foundation* San Francisco Association of Realtors • San Francisco Arts Commission The Tournesol Project • William + Flora Hewlett Foundation* • Zellerbach Family Foundation We invite you to join the Playwrights Foundation family. Your individual gift will directly support the development of the best and brightest new playwrights creating work for the next generation of the American theatre. Visit playwrightsfoundation.org to donate.
THE CAPACITY-BUILDING CAMPAIGN FOR THE FUTURE These generous lead donors have committed their support to our campaign to expand Playwright Foundation’s capacity and strategic goals. We’re deeply grateful for their belief in our mission and our future.
[ $15,000+ ] Carol Dweck + David Goldman ** • The Tournesol Project
[ $10,000+ ] Kat + David Anderson • Castilian Fund (Jill Matichak) RHE Charitable Foundation • Kathy Roberts + Aaron Loeb
[ $5,000+ ] Linda K. Brewer Fund • Dr. Wendy Buffett + Dr. Joel Kreisberg
[ $1,000+ ] Leonard Kurz 2017.07 • BAYSTAGES.COM | 1 5
PLAYWRIGHTS FOUNDATION FAMILY FAIRY GODPARENTS [ $5,000+ ] Arnie Fischman Kat + Dave Anderson Patricia Strong PROUD PARENTS [ $2,500+ ] Kathy Roberts + Aaron Loeb Kristin Leimkuhler + Jeffrey Wilk Fred Levin + Nancy Livingston Jill Matichak Sandra Hess SUPER SIBLINGS [ $1,000+ ] Anonymous (1) Dr. Wendy Buffett + Dr. Joel Kreisberg Steven + Jessica Carroll Kevin Causey** + Cydney Payton Paul T. Downer, In honor of Brian Asawa
Francis Fryscak** Steve Goldband + Ellen Konar Carol Dweck + David Goldman ** Kurz Family Foundation Marcella McColl** Markham Miller ** + Richard Martini Ditka Reiner **
Toni Rembe + Arthur Rock Jennifer ** + Will Sousae, In honor of Brian Asawa
Iris Stone** Lorna Thornton
AWESOME AUNTS + UNCLES [ $500+ ] Judith Cohen + Malcolm Gissen Mark Heitner ** Jonathan Kaplan Ellen Konar + Steve Goldband John Marx + Nikki Beach Chris Smith ** + Sherry Matteo Shawn + Gloria Newman Dr. Alan Stewart Thomas Swift Patti White Alyosha Zim CLOSE COUSIN [ $250+ ] Joe Amato Alisa Baker Anthony Bernier Jack + JoAnn Bertges, In honor of Chris Smith
Anthony + Kate Clarvoe Dean Francis Margot Golding Phillip Howze Stacy Kray
Jack Libeau + Alice Schulman Nancy Quinn David + Pat Usner Annette + Steve Williams FAMILY FRIEND [ $100+ ] Mark Aronson + Marjorie Gelb Dr. Diane Barnes Valerie Barth Barbara Benjamin Mickey + Sally Bolmer George Brant Jesse Bregman + Ziggy Rendler-Bregman Ken Brown Karlyn Carnahan Ann + Kwan-Shei Chen Sol Coffino George Crowe Jeanne Drennan John Eichorst + Jennifer Blackman Brad Erickson Susan Fairbrook Rodney Farrow + Karen Kidwell Mary + Tom Foote Bonnie Joy Giusti Ann Hallihan Lisa Hammond Lisa Hartfield Paul Heller Charlotte Higgins
Gwen Loeb Jonathan Luskin Marina Mackin John Manley Tina Martin Andrew Meisel Pamela Merchant + Kirby Sack Amy Merrill Wallace Mersereau Wayne Myers-Taylor Eva + Paul Milgrom Francis Miltenberger Patricia Milton Amy Mueller Janine Paver + Eric Brown Milton Diaz Perez + Jayne Wenger Gerald Pittman Madeline Puccioni Joshua Redel Andrew Rich + Michele Leitzke Lila + Neville Rich David Riffert Dean + Sylvia Rowan Tanya Shaffer Theodore Shank Octavio Solis ** Peter Stein Marcy Straw Scott Sugarman Barbara Tomash Miguel Ulloa Noelle Viñas Jennifer Welch Gregory Young
IN-KIND DONATIONS 21st Amendment • Dandelion Chocolates • Drake’s Brewing Company • DonSueMore • Haiyi Hotels Mark Heitner** • Magic Theatre •Marin Theatre Company • Markham Miller** • Mechanics Bank Amy Mueller • Nancy Quinn + Tom Driscoll • Ditka Reiner** • Shotgun Players • Jennifer Sousae** The Speakeasy • Marcy Straw + Mark Westlund • Wine & Spirits Magazine ** Playwrights Foundation Board Member This represents all gifts recorded between June 1, 2016 and June 30, 2017. We apologize for any omissions or errors.
SPECIAL THANKS TO Artistic Director Brian Katz (Custom Made Theatre Co.) and the staff of Custom Made Theatre Martha Cifuentes, Mechanics Bank • Indra Mungal • Tencue Productions • Jeffrey Wilk + Kristin Leimkuhler
EXTRA SPECIAL THANKS TO Logan Ellis, our outgoing literary manager • Our wonderful 2016-2017 intern cohort 1 6 | BAYSTAGES.COM • 2017.07
Subscribe to Custom Made’s 2017/2018 Season
which include two new plays * seen at previous Playwrights Foundation Festivals!
HOW I LEARNED TO DRIVE by Paula Vogel Winner of the Pulitzer Prize [ 09.07.17 | 10.07.17 ]
HOODED, OR BEING BLACK FOR DUMMIES by Tearrance Chisholm * Regional Premiere [ 03.08.18 | 03.31.18 ]
THE LION IN WINTER by James Goldman A Holiday Classic with Dungeons [ 11.02.17 | 12.09.17 ]
TINDERELLA: THE MODERN MUSICAL by Oser, Scott and Schmidt World Premiere Co-Production with FaultLine Theatre [ 04.26.18 | 05.26.18 ]
MAN OF LA MANCHA by Wasserman, Darion & Leigh The Beloved Musical [ 01.11.18 | 02.17.18 ]
GOOD. BETTER. BEST. BESTED. by Jonathan Spector * World Premiere Co-Production with Just Theatre [ 06.14.18 | 07.07.18 ]
Subscriptions start at just $99 for six plays, and include great perks like free concessions, unlimited date changes and much more.
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HAMLET | SILICON VALLEY SHAKESPEARE 07.28.17 > 09.01.17 | 408.289.1901 | SVSHAKESPEARE.org
AIRSWIMMING | DRAGON PRODUCTIONS 08.03.17 > 08.27.17 | 650.493.2006 | dragonproductions.net
BLUES IS A WOMAN | CUSTOM MADE THEATRE CO. 08.03.17 > 08.27.17 | 415.798.2682 | custommade.org
SHERLOCK HOLMES... | SILICON VALLEY SHAKESPEARE 08.04.17 > 09.03.17 | 408.289.1901 | SVSHAKESPEARE.org
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ZENITH | SAN FRANCISCO PLAYHOUSE 08.15.17 > 09.08.17 | 415.677.9596 | sfplayhouse.org
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