PlayGround Company in the News Nov 2020

Read on to learn more about PlayGround Company Member and Alumni recent news, current happenings, and upcoming events while we prepare for the November 16th Monday Night PlayGround.

Julia Brothers voted early and was a poll worker in NYC on Nov 3rd. She just did a workshop at ACT with The Kilbanes on their new musical, THE CODE, and a workshop of a new version of the play GASLIGHT at Merrimack Repertory Theatre. Vote Early. Vote Often.

Reg Clay’s one act play, JUDICIAL PROCESS, is part of a five play production called The Private Lives of the Not So Master Race.  Streaming October 27, 28 and 29.  Click on here to buy your tickets. Also, check out Reg and Norman Gee’s theatre podcast The Yay!  Every week.  Subscribe on any podcast app or on Youtube. Reg has also voted early.

Michael Barrett Austin loved playing a not-so-valiant knight in the PlayGround Season opener recently, and will be a part of 42nd Street Moon’s online holiday musical show, HOME (LITERALLY) FOR THE HOLIDAYS, coming in late November. He’s also up to over 220 ‘sequester songs,’ posted daily on his YouTube channel.  He also voted early!

Alex Moggridge has voted! He has also spent much of the pandemic creating an audio version of his play SIMON DAWES BECOMES A PLANET. He had actor friends all over the country record themselves in different roles, and send them in  for editing and he very proud of the result. The website is here.

Julia McNeal is proud to be “appearing,”with Anne Darragh! in the audio play recording of ESCAPED ALONE by Caryl Churchill, available now through Nov. 15th, at Magic Theatre.  This is the final production directed by outgoing Artistic Director, Loretta Greco. And, Yes! She voted! Julia dropped off her mail-in ballot last week. Her fingers are crossed, heart and wallet open to those who are creating mutual respect and hope for a new day.

Ross Peter Nelson has two new pieces coming up in Montana’s Last Chance New Play Fest. His full-length piece HOW TO POISON THE PRESIDENT explores what happens when Che Guevara and Maximilien Robespierre are reincarnated as cats and decide the time is ripe for revolution. He also has a short play in the festival — in R&J, Shakespeare rival Ben Jonson attempts to sabotage Will’s new play. Both will be available for streaming Nov 12-30 at the Fest’s website.  He has also voted  by mail!

Sarah Gasser has started a regular non arts job running programs on Zoom.  She is excited to expand her job experience while still working with the amazing artists of PlayGround.  She also voted early in New York!

The screenplay HE WAS HERE by Addie Johnson Talbott  commissioned by George Maguire and Michael Ray Wisely won the Best of Shorts screenplay Award at the Nevada City Film Festival.

Louis Parnell has not been up to much recently artistically-speaking (like almost everyone else). He did direct a zoomlet play for the SF Playhouse recently (A BROKEN STRING) and appeared as Polonius in a new adaptation of Hamlet entitled HAMLET’S GHOST (which was a benefit for Pear Theatre). Both projects were on Zoom. Next he will be voicing a 10 part radio play/podcast for 3 Girls Theatre (which will be taped starting in late Nov/early Dec).  And, yes, he has already voted via a mail-in ballot.

First time PlayGround Writers Pool member Sean Wong-Westbrooke recently qualified as a semi-finalist in ScreenCraft’s Virtual Pitch Competition for his written drama series pitch, “The Gallows”, about a queer medieval executioner who chooses to adopt the orphaned daughter of an innocent woman executed for witchcraft. Sean is currently waiting to see if his video pitch will see him qualify as a finalist. He has also voted.

Ely Sonny Orquiza is directing short plays for QUEERANTINE EXTRAVAGANZA, an evening of new works and queerness featuring stand up comics, drag shows, and storytelling on October 31, 2020. He’s producing TJ LOVES SALLY 4 EVER by James Ijames for Gritty City Rep with a public virtual reading on November 6 and 7, 2020. Ely is thrilled to have exercised his civic duty to save our democracy. Go vote!

Meghan Maugeri is on her way to her hometown of Milford, CT. She’ll be riding out the pandemic there. She hasn’t seen her family in over a year and can’t wait to see them–outdoors, with masks, and at least six feet apart of course!

Angel Adedokun voted early!  She is  also with BACT as an “Imaginator” where she helps provide educational online content for kids in the Bay Area. Parents can sign up at bactheatre.org. Angel released her new video, “Sunshine” and will be doing an online show on November 21st called  MEDICINE FOR THESE TIMES. It is an online series by Thrive East Bay to nourish our bodies, hearts, minds and spirits as we navigate this moment in society. Featuring timely inspiration & wisdom every week, the series includes: Experiential wellness and resilience workshops, Opportunities for connection, care & community, Meaningful conversations with visionary leaders, healers, and elders, and Uplifting performances by artists.

Rob Dario has plans to have a single theme connecting every script he writes this season for Play Ground, and collect them in a single volume. At the end of the season he will publish them and include illustrations, donating all profits to— Stay tuned in here and at robdario.com as this story develops!

Scott Mullen wrote a TV movie called BLOOD ON HER BADGE, which will be airing on TV One (buried somewhere on your cable system) starting November 16.

Evan Baughfman‘s horror-plays-for-teens, FEAR PRESSURE and THE DODO CHALLENGE, are now published with Next Stage Press. His script, UNTRAGICALLY EVER AFTER, a re-imagining of the ending of “Romeo and Juliet,” is now available through Heuer Publishing.

Jonathan Josephson’s Seven Deadly Tens: A sinful collection of short plays is now available from Original Works Publishing. The collection includes two plays that premiered with Playground-LA – Dave’s Epic 40th Birthday Party (Best of Playground 2018) and The Tale of Dakota Dawson. Available for free download from Google Play on Halloween. Also, earlier in October, Jonathan was thrilled to lead a sold out playwriting workshop as a part of Short + Sweet Dublin’s 2021 virtual theatre festival. He also participated in an international panel about Diversity, Equity and Inclusion in theatre.

Lauren Gorski’s short digital story T.G.I.EFFED about a Zoom party gone wrong will be featured in Vol. IV of Our Digital Stories, premiering on Friday, November 6 with the replay available on the website afterwards. Lauren is also working on a one-hour quarantine romantic comedy, WHILE YOU WERE IN QUARANTINE, set for February 2021.