PlayGround presents Season 29

27th ANNUAL PLAYGROUND FESTIVAL OF NEW WORKS

May 8-28, 2023
Live at Potrero Stage + Simulcast
On-Demand thru June 30

Acknowledging the Legacy of the Land We Inhabit

PlayGround acknowledges that we are on the unceded ancestral homeland of the Ramaytush (RAH-my-toosh) Ohlone (oh-LOW-nee) and Lisjan (lih-SHAH-n) Ohlone, the original inhabitants of the San Francisco Peninsula and East Bay, respectively. As the past and present Indigenous stewards of this land and in accordance with their traditions, the Ramaytush Ohlone and Lisjan have never ceded, lost, nor forgotten their responsibilities as the caretakers of this place, as well as for all peoples who reside in their traditional territory. We recognize the historic injustice of the forcible removal of the Ohlone people from their ancestral lands, and that we benefit from living and working on their traditional homeland. We wish to pay our respects by acknowledging the Ancestors, Elders and Relatives of the Ramaytush and Lisjan Communities and by affirming their sovereign rights as First Peoples. We honor the storytellers of the Ohlone and are grateful for our ability to share and uplift Indigenous stories and those of other historically marginalized communities.

To learn about the legacy of the land you inhabit, visit Native-Land.ca | Our home on native land. To read the complete Land Acknowledgment Policy, click here.

PlayGround’s Anti-Racist Policy

PlayGround recognizes the impact of racial oppression within society and the American Theater and that we have been complicit in White Supremacy culture. Our goal is to co-create safety for our community by identifying and interrupting instances of racism and all forms of oppression when we witness them, through specific actions rooted in the principles of anti-racism and accessibility. In its endeavor to address the implications of our history, PlayGround is committed to its compliance with the following fundamental rights:

• The recognition of inherent dignity and worth of each human being.
• The recognition of equality of all human beings.
• Recognition of rights of ethnic, racial, cultural, linguistic and religious groups.
• Equality and non-discrimination.

PlayGround’s Anti-Racist Policy applies to: all members of the PlayGround community, including employees, independent contractors, volunteers, audience members, donors, and general members of the community.

To read the complete Anti-Racist Policy, click here.

Festival Sponsors

PlayGround is grateful for the following Festival Sponsors, whose generous support makes this year’s PlayGround Festival of New Works possible:

AfroSolo Theatre Company, Mary Baird, Ruth & Robert Brayton, Ben Cain, Joan Cleveland, Jack Codd, Marilyn Cooper, Krystyna Finlayson, Mary Foote, Michael Fried, Eleanor Clement Glass, David Goldman, Keith Goldstein, Regina Guggenheim, Kathryn Hecht, Lucy Hsu, Jeff Jackson, Greg Keydel, Douglas Le Blanc, Lisa Mammel, Linda Marks, Dolores Martinez, Nitin, Arthur & Toni Rembe Rock, Miyoko Sakatani, Gae Shulman, Jeunee Simon, Abraham Sofaer, Darryl Wilburn, Janine Wilburn, Susannah Wise

To learn more or becoming a festival sponsor, click here.

Programs & Cast Lists

May 8, 2023 8pm PT

Festival Kick-off and Panel
Jim Kleinmann, Co-Founder & Artistic Director
Jonathan Spector, PlayGround Alumni
Geetha Reddy, PlayGround Alumni
Christian Wilburn, PlayGround Alumni
Jennifer Le Blanc, PlayGround Alumni

May 12, 2023 7pm PT

Young Playwrights Project

Pleased as Peach
by Arisa Sky Krueger
Directed by Rebecca Ennals
Peach…………….Isabel To
Obasan……………Eiko Yamamoto
Ojisan……………Jomar Tagatac

When One Cries Wolf
by Linnani Simpson
Directed by Rondrell McCormick
Collie…………….Jamella Cross
Wolfgang……………Tony Ortega
Mother…………...Tiana Randall-Quant
Larkin…………...Doonie Love

American Magpie
by Brian Guan
Directed by Ciera Eis
Zhinu…………….Marissa Ampon
Niulang…………..Leon Goertzen
Mollie…………...Isabel To
Qiang-An…………...Doonie Love

The Rouge Shoes
by Grady Fleming, Clifton Chiang, Josslyn Grover, Julia Satterley and Annika Svahn
Directed by Doyle Ott
Zhinu…………….Gisela Feied
Niulang…………..Leticia Duarte
Mollie…………...April Ballesteros
Qiang-An…………..David Cramer

May 13 & 14, 2023 7pm PT

Best of PlayGround 27

Gallows Humor 
by Bridgette Dutta Portman,
Directed by Claire Ganem
Lisa…………….Anne Darragh
Mia……………Nicole Apostol Bruno

Changing Inward 
by Danny Martinez, Jr
Directed by Tanvi Agrawal
Julia……………………………………..Rebecca Pingree
Carlos………………………….Bacilio Mendez II
Chad………………………….Doonie Love

Work/Shoot 
by Matthew Y. Morishige
Directed by Jim Kleinmann
Farrah Fenix.…………………….Gisela Feied
Maya Money.……………………………….Leticia Duarte
Ryan.……………………………….Mark Rafael Truitt

The Resolution of Us 
by Vicky Pham
Directed by Rebecca Pingree
Juniper………………………..Elissa Beth Stebbins
Fin……………………………..Jed Passario
Narrator…………………….Louis Parnell

Two Kitchens and a Bowl 
by Alexis Standridge
Directed by Tracy Ward
Grandmother………………………………..Leticia Duarte
Mother…………………………….Carolina Morones
Daughter…………………………….Carla Gallardo
Husband…………………………….Doonie Love

Boogie Cousins and the 1.8 Seconds that Changed Everything 
by Michael Tuton
Directed by Rondrell McCormick
Demarcus “Boogie” Cousins……………………………….Kenny Scott
Lynn Isfine ………………………Khary Moye

Lighting Designer: Brittany Mellerson
Props Artisan: Dianne Harrison
Stage Manager: Heather Kelly-Laws
Sound Designer: James Goode
Scenic Designer: Yohana Ansari-Thomas
Costume Designer: Tasa Gleason
Production Manager: Jacquelyn Bugler

Monday Night PlayGround Prompts
Oct-2022 (“In Disguise”): Gallows Humor
Nov-2022 (“Give and Take”): Work/Shoot
Dec-2022 (“Holiday Spirit”): Two Kitchens and a Bowl
Jan-2023 (“Resolution”): Changing Inward, The Resolution of Us, Boogie Cousins and the 1.8 Seconds That Changed Everything

May 15, 2023 7pm PT

A Festival Staged Reading

A Thousand Natural Shocks
By Jacob Marx Rice
Directed by Jeffrey Lo
Kennedy……………………Alicia Nelson
Laurel.……………………………….Elena Wright
Jennifer.……………………………….Isabel To
Molly.……………………………….Rebecca Pingree
Doctor.………………………………Champagne Hughes

May 19, 2023 7pm PT

A Festival Staged Reading

Character Assasination
By Akaina Ghosh
Directed by Nikki Meñez
The Writer…………...Gisela Feied
The Protagonist …………….Stephanie Prentice
The Pizza Delivery Guy, The Police Officer, The Podiatrist……………………….Melanie Marshall

Stage Manager: Declan Manasse-Boetani

May 20 & 21, 2023 7pm PT

A Festival Premiere Presentation

Starlight
By Christian Wilburn
Directed by Ely Sonny Orquiza
Sasha/ Edgar………………………………..Sumayyah Green
The Specter ……………………………………….Jamella Cross
Mom……………………………………….Tiana Randall-Quant
Dad/Doctor/Grantham/ Lie Weaver………Tony Ortega
Luna…………………………………………………Isabel Anne To

Stage Manager: Declan Manasse-Boetani
Sound Designer: Lana Palmer
Properties Artisan: Dianne Harrison
Lighting Designer: Brittany Mellerson
Costume Designer: Tasa Gleason
Production Assistant / Scenic Designer: Hector Zavala
Visual Designer: Colin Johnson

Starlight is a PlayGround commission and was originally developed at the 26th annual PlayGround Festival of New Works.

May 22, 2023 7pm PT

A Festival Staged Reading

Apertures of Love in Times of War
By Anne Yumi Kobori
Directed by M. Graham Smith
Aya………………………………….Kina Kantor
Ed …………………………...Bacilio Mendez II
Marty……………………………….Ryan Tasker
Takahashi…………..Matthew Y. Morishige
Gabriella / Miyo………...Miyoko Sakatani
Jean-Baptiste………………..Brian Herndon

Stage Manager: Declan Manasse-Boetani
Assistant Director: Tanvi Agrawal

May 26, 2023 7pm PT

A Festival Staged Reading

Seasonal Sweets
By Jennifer Le Blanc
Directed by Jennifer King & Jim Kleinmann
Dad………………………..Robert Sicular
Mom……….…Tessa Koning-Martinez
Sarah………………...Krystle Piamonte
Junior………………….Benjamin Ismail

May 27 & 28, 2023 7pm PT

A Festival Premiere Presentation

The Bramford
By Lauren Gorski
Gloria……..Livia Gomes Demarchi
Betty…………….Stephanie Prentice
Rosemary……………….Kina Kantor
Mick/Satan………………Max Tachis
Harold/Guy………..Patrick Russell

Stage Manager: Liora Jacob
Sound Designer: Lana Palmer
Properties Artisan: Dianne Harrison
Lighting Designer: Brittany Mellerson
Costume Designer: Nia Jacobs
Scenic Designer: Hector Zavala
Visual Designer: Colin Johnson

These live streams are produced under a SAG-AFTRA New Media Agreement.

PlayGround is a member of Theatre Bay Area and Theatre Communications Group,
and a Partner Organization of the National New Play Network (NNPN).

People’s Choice Award

Following the Best of PlayGround 27 performances, we invite your participation in the Best of PlayGround People’s Choice Award. Through the People’s Choice Award, our audience can play a direct impact in furthering the career of a promising new playwright. To vote, make a People’s Choice Award tax-deductible donation on behalf of your favorite play(s)/playwright(s) from the evening. Every donated dollar counts as a vote while directly supporting PlayGround’s New Play Commissioning program.

Cast your vote for your favorite play(s) by making a People’s Choice donation via Zelle (info@playground-sf.org), Venmo (our account ID is @playgroundsf and if they ask for the last four digits of my phone, it’s 8541) or on our website at https://tickets.playground-sf.org/TheatreManager/1/online?donationquick=16 (you can also visit the Best of PlayGround page for the People’s Choice donation button). Add a note/memo with your gift to indicate your favorite play(s) or email your selection to boxoffice@playground-sf.org.

At the end of June, we’ll tally up the top vote-getter and recipient of this year’s Best of PlayGround People’s Choice New Play Commission, a full-length expansion and adaptation of their award-winning Best of PlayGround short play. It’s a powerful way of showing your support for new writers and their work, while helping PlayGround continue doing what we do!

Biographies

PLAYWRIGHTS

CLIFTON CHIANG (Co-Author, YPP, The Rouge Shoes), he/him, had a lot of fun helping to brainstorm and create The Rouge Shoes. Although he’s never written a play before, he had a lot of fun using his acting experience in the process. Some of his prior roles in theater include Little Sally in Urinetown, and Fester in The Addams Family. When he’s not onstage he also enjoys Speech and Debate and Golf.

GRADY FLEMING (Co-Author, YPP, The Rouge Shoes), he/him, is a student at Bentley Upper School. He is 15 years old and enjoys playing ukulele in his free time. Although new to theatre, he also enjoys playwriting and directing plays. He wrote “The Rouge Shoes” along with Joss Grover, Clifton Chiang, Annika Svahn, and Julia Satterley. “The Rouge Shoes” is a modern take on “The Red Shoes” by Hans Christian Andersen, with a new environment but a plot and character development very similar to the original tale.

AKAINA GHOSH (Festival Reading, Character Assassination), they/them, is a non-binary theater artist. They are thrilled to be sharing Character Assassination (PlayGround’s 2022 June Anne Baker Prize Commissioned Play) as part of the Festival Reading Series.They’ve debuted original works at PianoFight, Z-Below, TheatreFIRST, and The Flight Deck. They are a two-time recipient of 3GirlsTheatre’s Innovator’s Series Grant, and they were a semi-finalist in the National Alliance for Musical Theater’s 15-Minute Musical Challenge with selections from their original musical Lilith. They are passionate about reconstructing historically significant narratives through a gender expansive lens and generating new works that center queer voices and perspectives. They are currently pursuing their MFA in Graduate Acting at NYU Tisch. Follow Akaina’s work at akainaghosh.com.

LAUREN GORSKI  (Festival Premiere, The Bramford), she/her, has a Master’s in Professional Writing with emphasis in Stage and Screen from the University of Southern California. She writes fiction, poetry, screenplays, and stageplays. Her fiction and poetry have been featured in “apt”, “Badlands”, “Jersey Devil Press”, “Underground Voices”, and elsewhere. Her plays have been performed for the Hollywood Fringe, PlayGround (including the Best of Festival), PianoFight’s ShortLived series, and more. She is a past playwright-in-residence with PlayGround San Francisco. She is also the Comics & Film Editor of Exposition Review, a multi-genre digital literary journal.

JOSSLYN GROVER(Co-Author, YPP, The Rouge Shoes), she/her, is a sophomore at Bentley School. In addition to writing, she enjoys club volleyball, reading, and debating with her sister how she would rewrite their favorite TV shows. Her family says she has a flair for the dramatic, and it is not much of a surprise to them that she is drawn towards all forms of storytelling and the arts! She is thrilled to be included in this debut selection for the 2023 Young Playwrights Project.

BRIAN GUAN (YPP, American Magpie), he/him, is excited to be a playwright in this year’s Young Playwrights Project! A National YoungArts winner and 2023 Bay Area American Voices Nominee, he is passionate about writing and creative expression, theatre being one of his all-time favorite mediums. You can watch more of his work this July in LA, where his play “Good” will have a four-show run as part of the Blank Theatre’s Young Playwrights Festival.

ANNE YUMI KOBORI (Festival Reading, Apertures of Love in Times of War), she/her, is a Japanese-American playwright, actor, producer, director, and teaching artist. As a director, she has worked with Utopia Theatre Project, EnActe Arts, Los Altos Youth Theatre, and SF Shakespeare Festival, where she spent 5 years as Education Program Manager. She has written multiple short plays: for production: THE ART OF SUFFRAGE (Best of PlayGround 25), NEW YEAR, COWARD’S FLAME, GIVE ME THE SKY (MondayNightPlayGround), SIMULATION (Pear Theatre), ROSES IN THE DESERT (Dragon Theatre) and THE DISAPPEARANCE OF BETTY LA ROSE (Neighborhood Stories). Her full-length plays SEEDS and EVERY DAY ALICE, and her adaptation of Chekhov’s THE SEAGULL have premiered with Utopia Theatre Project. Currently, Anne is a co-writer for Braided, a play exploring Native American liberation and Japanese American resilience, in development with Theatre of Yugen. Recent projects include Script Co-Conspirator for A.C.T.’s production of Neo Symposium, and the Pear Slices short play festival with Pear Theatre, where she is a Playwrights’ Guild member. BA Theatre Arts, summa cumlaude, Santa Clara University. www.anneyumikobori.com.

ARISA SKY KRUEGER (YPP, Pleased as Peach), she/her, is a student at the Ruth Asawa School of the Arts and passionate about playwriting. This is her second Young Playwrights Project selection. She would like to thank her friends and family for being her personal cheerleaders.

JENNIFER LE BLANC (Festival Reading, Seasonal Sweets), she/her, is thrilled to be part of Playground. She adapted Jane Austen’s Persuasion which received its world-premiere at San Jose Stage Company and Defoe’s Moll Flanders which received its world-premiere at Pacific Repertory Theatre. She wrote We Made Bread, a one-woman show adapted from interviews, for Perspective Theatre Company (formerly Arabian Shakespeare Festival). Jennifer has contributed short plays to Shotz, Perspective Theatre Company’s New Works Festival, and Our Digital Stories. Jennifer received her BA in English Literature from U.C. Berkeley and her MFA in Acting from the National Theatre Conservatory. She is an associate artist with SPARC. Website: www.jenniferleblanc.com New Play Exchange: https://newplayexchange.org/users/18502/jennifer-le-blanc

DANNY MARTINEZ, JR.  (BoP27, Changing Inward), he/him, is an actor and playwright from San Jose. This is his first season as a member of Playground’s Writers Pool, and the water is nice and ~warm~! Daniel will be debuting his second one man show, Round Hole, as part of Playground’s Solo Performance Festival later this month and he hopes you’ll consider watching! He loves writing stories that make you laugh and go “aw”. For his day job, Daniel teaches screenwriting, acting, and directing to adults with developmental and intellectual disabilities.

MATTHEW Y. MORISHIGE (BoP27, Work/Shoot), he/him, is an actor, musician, and playwright based in the Bay Area. Matthew’s work aims to capture unique perspectives and voices pulled from his own personal experiences. He is energized by collaboration with talented artists across many different disciplines.

VICKY PHAM (BoP27, The Resolution of Us), she/her, is a playwright, Bay Area native, and student at Santa Clara University. Through her writing, Vicky wishes to channel her creativity into uplifting voices and raising awareness to issues afflicting the AAPI community. She is the writer of plays such as White Christmas and A Seat At The Table, which was selected for a reading under the direction of Tony Award winning actor, BD Wong. Currently, Vicky is a Hackworth Fellow researching the history and ethics of representation of Asian Americans in theatre and film in pursuit of a full-length play (Spring 2023).

BRIDGETTE DUTTA PORTMAN (BoP27, Gallows Humor), she/her, is a playwright and novelist based in Fremont, CA. More than two dozen of her plays have been produced locally, nationally, and overseas. She is past president of the Playwrights’ Center of San Francisco and is a board member of the Pear Theatre, a teaching artist with Dragon Theatre, and a member of the Pear Writers’ Guild and Dramatists’ Guild. She has been a finalist for the Bay Area Playwrights’ Festival, the Theatre Bay Area TITAN award, the PlayPenn Conference, the New Dramatists playwrights’ residency, and more. She holds an MFA in creative writing from Spalding University.

GEETHA REDDY (Opening Night Panel), she/her, is a playwright and filmmaker working in the Bay Area. Her plays include: Mahābhārata (Ubuntu Theatre Project), Far, Far Better Things (Shotgun Players/TheatreFirst), Safe House (SF Playhouse) , Blastosphere! (Central Works Theater with Aaron Loeb), HeLa (TheatreFirst with Lauren Gunderson). Her short film Obit appeared at LA Shorts, Bend Film Festival, and many others. Geetha is a member of the Dramatist’s Guild, and alumni of the Resident Playwright at the Playwright’s Foundation.

JACOB MARX RICE (Festival Reading, A Thousand Natural Shocks), he/him, is a playwright and screenwriter. His plays have been produced and developed in over a dozen cities on three continents at theaters including The Eugene O’Neill Theatre Center, The Finborough Theatre in London, Actors Theatre of Louisville, The Flea Theater, EST, and Atlantic Theatre Stage 2. His play Chemistry was hailed by The Guardian as “remarkable for its tender compassion.” Jacob’s plays won the Jean Kennedy Smith Playwriting Award from the Kennedy Center, an Ensemble Studio Theater Sloan Commission, and Best Of awards from Fringe Festivals around the world. As a screenwriter, he won a Sloan Screenwriting Grant and the Faculty Award from NYU, and he was a semi-finalist for The Nicholl Fellowship. He is currently in development with Anonymous Content on his first feature. Jacob also wrote See Through, a short film featuring Tony-nominee Lauren Ridloff (The Sound of Metal, Marvel’s Eternals), which premiered at the Austin Film Festival.

LINNANI SIMPSON (YPP, When One Cries Wolf), she/her, is a rising high school senior in Ruth Asawa SOTA’s Theater Program. She describes herself as a young black queer theater artist. While usually more inclined towards the acting side of things, this year she decided to explore playwriting and she’s happy to say she’s found a huge passion for it. She’s been in school productions but she’s also been lucky enough to participate in short films, work with SFArtsEd and SFBATCO. She hopes to continue doing playwriting and theater in college next year.

JONATHAN SPECTOR (Opening night panel) has a portfolio of plays that include EUREKA DAY (Aurora Premiere, recently at The Old Vic w/Helen Hunt, New York Times Critics’ Pick, Glickman Award, BATCC Award, TBA Award, Rella Lossy Award, New York Drama Critics Circle Award Nomination, WhatsOnStage Award Nomination), THIS MUCH I KNOW (Aurora Premiere, Glickman Award, BATCC Award, Edgerton Award, upcoming at London’s Hampstead Theater), BEST AVAILABLE (South Coast Rep Commission, Ashland New Play Festival, upcoming at JAW West) and GOOD. BETTER. BEST. BESTED. (Custom Made Theater/Just Theater, BAPF). He’s a Core Writer at Playwrights Center, a MacDowell Fellow, a former Playwrights Foundation Resident Playwright and is currently under commission with Roundabout Theater Company, Manhattan Theater Club and La Jolla Playhouse.

ALEXIS STANDRIDGE (BoP27, Two Kitchens and a Bowl), she/her, is a South Bay Area playwright and writer. Her other works include Myth (Santa Clara University, 2022), Beach Pit (Santa Clara University, 2021), and Amendment (Filament Podcast, City Lights Theatre Company, 2020). She is a selected playwright with 3Girls Theatre, and is excited about her upcoming performance of Ball Biddies with LezWritesBTQ on June 13th. Her short works have been performed with 3Girls Theatre, Foothill College’s Brownbag Series, Giving Individuals Fabulous Theatre, and Santa Clara University’s New Playwright’s Festival.

ANNIKA SVAHN (Co-Author, YPP, The Rouge Shoes), she/her. This is the first piece of playwriting Annika has ever done and she’s so grateful that their play was chosen! She loved working on The Rouge Shoes with her peers and she can’t wait to see it performed!

MICHAEL TUTON (BoP27, Boogie Cousins and the 1.8 Seconds that Changed Everything), he/him. Mike Tuton’s first play won 2nd place in the Playwrights’ Center of San Francisco 2021 Playoffs and won the 2022 Act One:One Act festival in NYC. He is a cofounder of the Unofficial Theater Company with four other writers. Mike has created Intellectual Properties for Nike, SFMoMA, Intel, and has won multiple Cannes Lions, but Mike is most proud of being retweeted by Joyce Carol Oates. Mike is unsure what themes tie his plays together, but he likes to explore how minds are changed.

CHRISTIAN WILBURN (Festival Premiere, Starlight) is a San Francisco based writer whose work blends the deeply personal and the fantastical. Christian has been working with PlayGround frequently over the past three years; being featured in Monday Night PlayGround, Best of PlayGround, and the PlayGround Playwright Residency Program. Christian thanks PlayGround for commissioning this piece based on his short play, Sasha and the Angelier, which won the People’s Choice Award for Best of PlayGround 2021. Christian is a graduate of Santa Clara University and holds an MFA in Writing from the University of San Francisco.

ACTORS

MARISSA L. AMPON (American Magpie, “Zhinu”)  is a technical creative on Ramaytush Ohlone Land (aka SF Peninsula). Started her technical creative journey as a voiceover artist and business owner of AmpOnTheAir. Since 2017, she has expanded her skillset to stage and screen actor, stage management, Zoom tech operator, producer, former Managing Director for The Chikahan Company, and tech operator. Last heard in a YBCBD video spot “Getting to Yerba Buena,” last seen in zoom stage reading as Lola Corazon in NOT UNUSUAL by RJ Silva (PlayGround Chicago), and on screen as Nurse Barb in the award-winning short film NANAY’S LULLABY (Sunny Owl Pictures). IG: @ampontheair

APRIL BALLESTEROS (The Rouge Shoes,“Isabella/NA meeting participant”), she/her/ella, is an actor, director, educator, and stage manager. She is the Associate Artistic Director of Theatre Cultura and Artistic Learning Programs Manager at the California Shakespeare Theater. She has worked with SF Playhouse, Lorraine Hansberry Theatre, SFBATCO and the Latinx Mafia Theater Collective, to name a few. She earned a BA in Theatre Arts from California State University, East Bay and hails from East Los Angeles. With every project she does, she hopes to empower and uplift BIPOC voices. You can catch her as ASM and playing Concepcion in Yerma at Shotgun Players (shotgunplayers.org) opening this month!

NICOLE APOSTOL BRUNO (BoP27: Gallows Humor, “Mia”)

DAVID CRAMER (The Rouge Shoes, “Alvin/Janitor“), he/him, has been a company member of Playground for14 years. He has performed locally with The Magic Theatre, Shotgun Players, Word for Word and Marin Theatre Company, among others. Film and tv credits include M*A*S*H, The Waltons and Nash Bridges.

JAMELLA CROSS (When One Cries Wolf, “Collie”), she/they,  is a local Bay Area artist that is very excited for you to see these young writers work!

ANNE DARRAGH (BoP27: Gallows Humor, “Lisa”), she/her, is delighted to return to Best of Playground!; her most recent Playground performance was in Bright Shining Sea by Julianne Jigour. Anne has been performing new work for over 20 years including world premieres of plays by Neena Beber, Michelle Carter, Anthony Clarvoe, Anne Galjour, Barry Gifford, Rebecca Gilman, Miranda Rose Hall, Denis Johnson, Lynne Kaufman, Tony Kushner, Julie Marie Myatt, Peter Nachtrieb, Edna O’Brien, Amy Sass, Bill Talen, and Brian Thorstenson among others. Special thanks to her family.

LIVIA GOMES DEMARCHI (The Bramford, “Gloria”), she/her, is a local Bay Area actor, originally from São Paulo, Brazil. She holds a degree in Theater and Performance Studies from UC Berkeley and has worked at the Magic Theater, San Francisco Shakespeare Festival, SF Playhouse, Center Rep, Crowded Fire and Marin Shakespeare. She is a proud member of Playground SF and Latinx Mafia Theater Collective. She is committed to radical representation and inclusion within her own community and the theater beyond.

L. DUARTE (YPP: The Rouge Shoes, “Director/Gabriel”; BoP27: Two Kitchens and a Bowl, “Grandmother”, BoP27: Work/Shoot, “Maya Money”), they/them, is an actor, director, playwright and activist, whose recent projects include: August: Osage County with San Jose Stage Company, Julius Caesar with PacRep, The Review with Theatre Rhinoceros , Helen! with Theatre of Yugen, and Into the Beautiful North & The King of Cuba with CentralWorks. They have also worked with Willows Theatre Co, Berkeley Rep., Crowded Fire, Playwrights Foundation, Bay Area Children’s Theatre and various others. Duarte is a graduate of UCLA, UCSC, and has trained with A.C.T. and Shakespeare & Co. Duarte is a founding member of Latinx Mafia, a Bay Area collective of Latinx Teatristas, who work to ensure Latinx stories are valued and accurately represented. www.latinxmafia.com. They are also a company member of Lez Writes and FabLab. Their hope for all their work is trying to center their personal practice in liberation pedagogy. Find a full range of work by Duarte at Casting Networks: https://app.castingnetworks.com/talent/public-profile/d69eed18-24bd-11ec-8124-c9bb66a47a51

GISELA FEIED (YPP: The Rouge Shoes, “Juliette”; BoP27: Work/Shoot, “Farrah Fenix”; Character Assassination, “The Writer”), she/they, graduated from PCPA in 2019 where they had the pleasure to be in the ensemble for the Crucible, play Tootles in Peter Pan, and Hermia in A Midsummer Night’s Dream. Most recently, they toured Breaking Through as part of the PCPA Fall Outreach Program along the central coast. Currently, they are working as a Teaching Artist bringing mental health awareness and tools for mental wellness virtually to high schools across Northern California. You can catch them this summer in PCPA’s production of American Mariachi.

CARLA GALLARDO (BOP27: Two Kitchens and a Bowl, “Daughter”), she/her, Carla Gallardo has been acting in the Bay Area for over seven years. She enjoys sunny days at the beach, surrounding herself with her loved ones, and  hot chocolate.

LEON GOERTZEN (American Magpie; “Niulang”), he/they, recently performed the role of Atung in Lloyd Suh’s The Chinese Lady at Capital Stage. He is a founder and artistic associate of Ferocious Lotus Theatre Company and is a freelance actor. Los Angeles and Bay Area credits include work at Berkeley Rep, East West Players, Magic Theatre, San Francisco Mime Troupe, Road Theatre Company, Knightsbridge Theatre of Los Angeles, Will and Company (Los Angeles), Mountain Play Association, Impact Theatre, Best of Playground 2003, Playwrights Foundation, New Conservatory Theatre, Inverness Shakespeare Project, and Theatre Lunatico. Leon is a proud member of Actors Equity Association, SAG-AFTRA, and is a graduate of UNCSA’s theatre arts department.

BRIAN HERNDON (Aperture of Love in Times of War, “Jean-Baptiste”), he/him, has performed with PlayGround for over two decades, playing everything from apes to corpses to kings to the Devil. Next up for Brian is CYMBELINE with the San Francisco Shakespeare Festival, free this summer in a park near you! He received his MFA in Acting from the Alabama Shakespeare Festival and studied at the Dell’Arte School. Brian steadfastly believes in the power of empathy and live performance and hopes you do too.

CHAMPAGNE HUGHES (A Thousand Natural Shocks, “Doctor”), she/her, is the Bay Area’s Director of Development and Taboo Topics. For most, she is known for her contributions to the Arts as an administrator, actor and produce. Now, Hughes completed her Counseling Psychology Masters degree with an emphasis drama therapy and sex therapy program. She looks forward to developing her private practice, Loverse Lane Inc, under supervision, host workshops for oppressed identities, produce a sexual wellness festival, and build emotional support programs within local theaters designed to care for artists during the rehearsal process. Other Credits: The Human Ounce (Central Works Theater); Othello, Macbeth (African American Shakespeare Company); Clybourne Park (Altarena Theater); Down Here Below, Romeo and Juliet (Oakland Theatre Project). Art Administrative Credits: The Flight Deck; American Conservatory Theater; Berkeley Repertory Theater; Beach Blanket Babylon. Contact: ChampagneHughes@icloud.com

BENJAMIN ISMAIL (Seasonal Sweets, “Junior”), he/they, is very happy to be returning to Playground. Favorite acting credits include Louis Ironson in ANGELS IN AMERICA (Berkeley Rep), TARTUFFE (BRT), METAMORPHOSES (BRT / Guthrie), DISGRACED (Capital Stage), THE INVISIBLE HAND (American Stage) and many more. He is also an accomplished director, producer and sound designer. Love to Jerid.

DOONIE LOVE (YPP: When One Cries Wolf, “Larkin”; BoP27: Two Kitchens and a Bowl, “Husband”; BoP27: Changing Inward, “Chad”), he/him, focuses on the intersections of performance, fashion, identity, culture, and language. He received a Bachelor of Arts degree in Performing Arts & Social Justice with a concentration in theater from the University of San Francisco. Doonie is travel-ready and loves to explore the globe to learn first-hand the diverse experiences of human life. The art of story-telling is an ancestral practice that holds significance in society. Love passionately carries the ancient practice through time utilizing mediums such as; photography, theater, cinema, dance, music and other creative outlets.

MELANIE MARSHALL (Character Assassination, “The Pizza Delivery Guy/The Police Officer/The PodiatristMelanie Marshall”), she/her, is a long-time company member of Killing My Lobster, where she is a TBA Award nominated actor, writer, teacher, and soon-to-be director (Covens vs. Cults, coming this October). She has worked around the Bay with all sorts of companies from Shotgun Players to Quantum Dragon and The Breadbox to Oasis. She will next appear in the campy, immersive theatrical event, Pride in Gotham, this June. She is a Playground company member and is excited to be back at Playground’s Festival of New Work.

TESSA KONING-MARTINEZ (Seasonal Sweets, “Mom”), she/her, is a long-time Bay Area actor who has worked with The Eureka, The Magic, Z-Space, El Teatro Campesino, The New Mexico Rep, Marin Theater Company, San Jose Repertory, S.C.O.T.U.S., 3-Girls, Thick Description and Word for Word among others, and has originated roles in plays by Josefina Lopez, Cherrie Moraga, and Octavio Solis. Most recently she had the great pleasure of directing a reading of her father’s play “The Blood-Red Cafe”. *member Actors’ Equity

BACILIO MENDEZ II (BoP27: Changing Inward, “Carlos”; Apertures of Love in Times of War, “Ed”), he/him, PlayGround company member and writers pool and producing fellow alum. He currently serves as an Associate Producer with PlayGround and is a proud member of SAG-AFTRA and the Actors’ Equity Association. If you must, you can also find Bacilio in court, but he does not recommend it. → bacilio.com.

MATTHEW Y. MORISHIGE (Apertures of Love in Times of War, “Takahashi”), he/him, is an actor, musician, and playwright based in the Bay Area. Matthew’s work aims to capture unique perspectives and voices pulled from his own personal experiences. He is energized by collaboration with talented artists across many different disciplines.

CAROLINA MORONES (YPP: Pleased as Peach, “Georgia Peach / Stagehand”; BOP27: Two Kitchens and A Bowl, “Mother”), she/her,  is a multidisciplinary performer, educator and community organizer focused on telling stories that empower through poetry and movement. Recently, she played the role of Marina in Pericles, Prince of Tyre (SF Shakes). In 2020 she was the Movement Director and Cultural Consultant for Octavio Solis’ Retablos: Life on the Border (Word 4 Word, ZSpace). Carolina currently teaches for The American Conservatory Theatre (Studio-ACT), Word For Word (SF) and is the Education & Engagement Consultant for the Oregon Shakespeare Festival. Recipient of the 2023 Creative Work Fund, as playwright of “Querida Sor Juana: The Death of the Phoenix of Mexico.”

KHARY MOYE (Boogie Cousins And The 1.8 Seconds That Changed Everything, “Lynn Isfine ”), he/him, is an actor originally from N.Y and now resides in the Bay Area. He is beyond thrilled to make his PlayGround return and to have live audience members again!! Instagram: kharylmoye

ALICIA P. NELSON (A Thousand Natural Shocks, “Kennedy”), she/her, is an award-winning San Francisco/Bay Area based actor, clown, and arts educator. She is a member of the Red Ladder Theatre Company where she works to bring arts to at-risk populations ,and is a graduate of Boston University where she acquired a BFA in Acting. Nelson has trained in both classical theatre and Commedia dell’Arte in Greece and Italy. As an actor she has worked across the country in varying theatres including WAMTheatre, TheatreWorks Silicon Valley, San Francisco Playhouse, Marin Theatre Company,Berkeley Repertory Theatre, and more. She has worked as a teaching artist in various companies in the Bay Area, and she specializes in working with students in preschool and kindergarten. Nelson is passionate about all things that spark the imagination. She is an avid believer in playing pretend, diving in head-first, and increased diversity in theatre. www.ampnelson.com

SUMAYYAH NURIDDIN-GREEN (Starlight, “Sasha”), she/her, is thrilled to be making her Playground debut in “Starlight”. The young artist has been performing since she could speak, training everywhere from locally at American Conservatory Theater in their “Young Conservatory” program to the Debbie Allen Dance Academy in their “Rise” Program in LA. You can usually find her performing at Berkeley Playhouse or at the Garret and/or The Strand with A.C.T. She’s extremely thankful to be in this production as it is her first lead role and she hopes you enjoy not only her role but the world of “Starlight”. She would like to thank Playwright, Christian Wilburn and Director, Ely Sonny Orquiza. To keep up with Sumayyah and follow her journey, follow her Instagram @allaboutusmayyah

TONY ORTEGA  (When One Cries Wolf, “Wolfgang”), he/him, has performed in the Bay Area for over a decade and has worked with companies such as The San Francisco Playhouse: Cashed out and The Paper dreams of Harry Chin U/S, African American Shakespeare Company: Richard II,  The Custom Made Theatre company: Zac & Siah, or Jesus in a body bag, Alter Theatre: Ghosts of Bogota, Coastal Repertory Theatre: Native Gardens, Death of A Salesman, Half Moon Bay Shakespeare: Romeo & Juliet, Dragon Productions: Take Me Out, and Bay Area Drama Company State of Denial. Tony is proud to have founded City Street Artists with his artistic peers as they strive to support the creation of new BIPOC and Queer performance works. As a new father, it is important to build the cultural landscape he hopes his son can enjoy in the future. Tony is in residency at PlaygroundSF with City Street Artists. Much love @citystreetartists @tortega4

JED PARSARIO (American Magpie, “Qiang-An”; The Resolution of Us, “Finn”), he/him, has been involved in numerous PlayGround projects including Potrero Nuevo Project, Kano & Abe: A Daly City Bible Story, and Best of PlayGround 23. Jed is a company member of PlayGround and Red Ladder Theatre Company. http://www.jedparsario.com/

LOUIS PARNELL (The Resolution of Us, “Narrator”), he/him has been an active actor and director in Bay Area Theater for the last 50 years.He has worked with most of the larger houses including American Conservatory Theatre, Marin Theatre Company, CenterRep, Magic Theatre and TheatreWorks as well as with numerous smaller theaters.He works most often with the SF Playhouse where he last appeared in their production of FOLLIES this past summer and will be Assistant Directing A CHORUS LINE this coming summer. He has also appeared in many film, television and commercial roles and is a proud member of AEA and SAG/AFTRA.

KRYSTLE PIAMONTE (Seasonal Sweets, “Sarah”), she/her, in STARLIGHT; Sarah in SEASONAL SWEETS), she/her, is a San Francisco-based actor. Theatre credits include work at Z Space, SF Playhouse, Ferocious Lotus, Magic Theatre, TheatreWorks, TheatreFirst, Bindlestiff Studio, 59E59 in collaboration with Artistic Stamp, and a radio play, THE FOREVER WAVE by Nicole Gluckstern. Screen credits include the award-winning short films BOUND 4 HEAVEN and MEDIAN. She is a 2x Theatre Bay Area Award Finalist for Outstanding Performance in a Principal Role in a Play and was named an MVP of Bay Area Theatre by KQED. Krystle is a Co-Founder/Co-Artistic Director of The Chikahan Company and a company member of PlayGround. www.krystlepiamonte.com

REBECCA PINGREE (BoP27: Julia in Changing Inward, “Julia”), she/her, is delighted to return to Best of, having been a member of PlayGround’s Acting Company for over a decade. Most recently she played Adira in Exodus to Eden at OTP, Bridget Potter in the original cast of The Kilbanes’ The Code with ACT YC, and The Baker’s Wife in Sondheim’s Into the Woods at Berkeley Playhouse. She holds an MFA in Collaborative Theatremaking from Rose Bruford in London, and co-founded Analog Theatre (analogtheatre.org) a member of PlayGround’s IN2 cohort. Catch her upcomingly in Analog’s Mask Monday at Standard Deviant (May 29), Shadow Circus’ Voidville at Amado’s (June 3), and as Judith in The Dignity Circle at Centralworks (opening June 24).

STEPHANIE PRENTICE (The Bramford, “Betty”; Character Assassination, “The Protagonist”), she/her, is a Bay Area native, and an AEA member for over 20 years. She has worked with many other Bay Area theatres including: Marin Theatre Co, 42nd Street Moon, San Francisco Playhouse, Shotgun Players, and TheatreFIRST. She is a graduate of the Santa Clara University Theatre and Dance program, where she taught as a member of the SCU voice faculty from 2005 – 2017. Stephanie is a PlayGround company member, PG Associate Producer, and is also serving as the current Board Chair. Stephanie is also Artistic Co-Director at TheatreFIRST in Berkeley. Most importantly, she is Aiden and Devan’s mom.

TIANA RANDALL-QUANT (YPP: When One Cries Wolf, “Mother“;  Starlight, “Mom”; Associate Producer), she/her, is a born and raised Angeleno trying to change the narrative that “LA is not a theatre town”. Her goal is to create theatre that gives a glimpse into a world full of love and healing. Her creative focus revolves uplifting the voices of the underrepresented and marginalized, particularly that of queer Black women. Her biggest inspirations include Audre Lorde, Rihanna, and her sister Jade. She is also a proud co-drafter of the new LA ARTS Document, and a proud co-founder of BLKLST, an organization focused on anti-racism and accountability in Los Angeles Theatre. She can also be found making fun comedy and gaming content with The 354 Squad on Youtube.

PATRICK RUSSELL (The Bramford, “Harold/Guy”), he/him, has performed in Bay Area theaters for over 10 years including ACT, TheatreWorks, Cal Shakes, SF Playhouse, Aurora, Shotgun Players, The Magic Theatre, and Marin Shakespeare. He teaches acting and movement for UC Berkeley, ACT, SF State, and is also the founder of The Actors Space, actor training school and performance group in SF. He is also a director and his work will be seen next at SF State’s with productions of Stupid F**king Bird and She Skills Monsters. Patrick is a PlayGround company member and holds an MFA in acting from ACT.

MIYOKO SAKATANI (Apertures of Love in Times of War, “Gabriella / Miyo”), she/her, is SAG-AFTRA-E. She has proudly and gratefully worked with PlayGround over many wonderful years. She has worked with A.C.T. Magic Theatre, TheatreWorks, San Francisco Playhouse and the Berkeley Repertory Theatre. She performed her solo piece at the Marsh Theatre regarding her family’s immigration and WWII internment. Film credits include the award winning Samuel Goldwyn film “East Side Sushi.” (https://www.imdb.com/name/nm5706042/) As founder of Playland Productions, Miyoko has produced short films, stage plays and co-directed “Silent City” by Dan Wilson with a diverse hearing and deaf cast performing in ASL with closed captions. Endless love and gratitude to Richard, Shanti and dearest friends.

KENNY SCOTT (Boogie Cousins and the 1.8 Seconds that Changed Everything, “Demarcus “Boogie” Cousins”), he/him, is an actor based in Oakland, California. He attended Morgan State University, and was a member of the Laney College Fusion Theatre Project (Más, The Late Wedding, and In The Wound). Shotgun productions include The Claim and The Light. Other recent credits include productions with Quantum Dragon Theatre (Ageless), The New Conservatory Theatre Center (Mystery of Love and Sex), The Forum (Sarafael) and Idiot String (Port Stories), Crowded Fire (Inked Baby). He is also a proud company member with the Oakland Theatre Project (Hamlet, Mother Courage).

ROBERT SICULAR (Seasonal Sweets, “Dad”), it/its/it’s, has performed a universe of roles in a decades long career that spans the country and the globe. He has over 90 productions of Shakespeare to his credit, dozens of contemporary world premieres, and everything in between. In Film/TV/Online he’s featured in Josh Kornbluth’s Love and Taxes, the sci-fi comedy action-thriller Never Die Twice, Bollywood potboiler, Dil Pardesi Ho Gaya, and stars as the title character in the podcast, Dr. Dark Presents.

ELISSA BETH STEBBINS (The Resolution of Us, “Juniper”), she/they, is a Bay Area based actor, teaching artist, and theatre maker. Recent regional credits include Colonialism is Terrible, but Pho is Delicious (Aurora Theatre Company), Nan and the Lower Body (TheatreWorks), Becky Nurse of Salem (Berkeley Rep), among others. She is a co-founder of Analog Theatre Company, which focuses on imaginative storytelling using masks, puppets, and physical theatre. She is a TBA Award winner, and a TITAN and CASH grant recipient. Elissa graduated from Santa Clara University, and has continued training with Shakespeare and Company, and Atelier Mask Movement Theatre in Italy.

JOMAR TAGATAC (Pleased as Peach, “Ojisan”), he/him, previously played Gordon Hirabayashi in Hold These Truths here at San Francisco Playhouse in collaboration with Capital Stage in Sacramento. He also played Marc in Art and Actor 1 in King of the Yees here at the Playhouse. Other credits include Bob in Wintertime (Berkeley Repertory Theater) the role of DJ Loki in Today is My Birthday (Theater Mu), Mr. Botard in Rhinoceros, Bob Cratchit in A Christmas Carol, the Playwright and others in Vietgone, Fortinbras in Hamlet (American Conservatory Theater), George in The Language Archive (TheatreWorks Silicon Valley), Quang in Vietgone (Capital Stage Company and City Lights Theater), The War of the Roses, Macbeth, Everybody, and As You Like It (California Shakespeare Theater), and The Happy Ones and Dogeaters (Magic Theatre). Jomar received a San Francisco Bay Area Theatre Critics Circle Excellence in Theatre Award for Principal Actor in a Play and a TBA Award for Outstanding Performance in a Featured Role. He earned an MFA from American Conservatory Theater.

MAX TACHIS (The Bramford, “Mick/Satan“), he/him, is an actor and playwright based in San Jose, with pieces produced at readings and festivals across the Bay Area at companies like City Lights Theater Company, Los Altos Stage Company, The Pear Theater, and Dragon Productions Theater Company; digital plays presented on the Our Digital Stories (ODS) platform; and an annual gig writing for students in the Ohlone College Theatre & Dance Department.

RYAN TASKER (Apertures of Love in Times of War, “Marty”), he/him, has worked with Marin Theatre Company, Just Theater, Aurora Theatre Company, the San Francisco Shakespeare Festival, American Conservatory Theatre, Theatre Q, Livermore Shakespeare Festival, and Shotgun Players, among others. He is a member of Actors’ Equity, a Core Company member of Word for Word Performing Arts Company, and proud partner to Rebecca and dad to Henry and Eddie.

ISABEL TO (YPP: Pleased as Peach, “Peach”; YPP: American Magpie, “Molly”; A Thousand Natural Shocks, “Jennifer”; Starlight, “Luna”), she/her, is an actor, singer, voiceover artist, and proud PlayGround company member. She most recently appeared in the world premiere of Gordon Dahlquist’s play Tea Party, directed by Erin Merritt. Other selected credits: a staged developmental reading of Chris Steele’s Sitcom Seagull (Poltergeist Theatre Project), sketch comedy shows Freddy Krueger’s Day Off and Let’s Do the Sex (Killing My Lobster), Funny, Like an Abortion (part of PlayGround’s 2022 Festival of New Works), The Jersey Devil Play (Awesome Theatre), Avenue Q (New Conservatory Theatre Center), and the 3-part video series Paranormal Hotline. Isabel dedicates this performance to the memory of Apo Amy Hu.

MARK RAFAEL TRUITT (Work/Shoot, “Ryan”), he/him, has appeared in Titanic, Star Trek Voyager, Chance, and The Practice among other television and film appearances. He has appeared with the Magic theatre, Goldenthread productions, and has been a member of Playground here in the Bay area for over 20 years. He teaches at Cal, USF, ACT, and the Academy of Art University, and is author of the book “Telling Stories a Grand Unifying Theory of Acting Techniques.”

EIKO YAMAMOTO (YPP: Pleased as Peach, Obasan), she/they, an issei, ilchom ose, multi-hyphenate artist, hails from Tokyo/ Seoul/ Honolulu. Recent credits: Clue, Follies, (San Francisco Playhouse); originating role of Pacifica in Sleeping Beauty (Presidio Theatre); M’Lynn Eatenton in Steel Magnolias (SierraRep). They’ve worked with (selected): Berkeley Repertory Theater’s Ground Floor Lab, Playwrights Foundation, Alter Theater’s AlterLab, Marin Shakespeare Company, Crowded Fire, ZSpace. Upcoming: All’s Well That Ends Well and new works at PlayOn Shakespeare (Magic Theatre), Panto in the Presidio (Presidio Theatre), Eugenie Chan’s The Truer History of the Chan Family film, released 2024. Graduate of UCLA and member of SAG-AFTRA, eikoyamamoto.com; @eikoyh

DIRECTORS

TANVI AGRAWAL (BoP27: Changing Inward; Apertures of Love in Times of War, Assistant Director) Tanvi Agrawal (they/them) is super excited to be making their Directing debut with PlayGround! They served as a Directing Apprentice for PlayGround this past year, and have previously Assistant Directed at Oakland Theater Project. Tanvi fell in love with Directing in high school but got most of their experience at UC Berkeley, where their favorite projects were 1984 (based on the play by George Orwell), Universal Language (David Ives) and Waiting for Godot (Beckett). When they are not directing Tanvi enjoys performing and traveling!

KARINA GUTIÉRREZ (The Resolution of Us), she/her, is a Bay Area-based director, dramaturg, and scholar. She is passionate about supporting new play development, fostering local artists, and creating welcoming, equitable, and accessible theatre spaces and classrooms. Karina has had the pleasure of working with Bay Area Children’s Theatre, BRAVA, Magic Theatre, Crowded Fire, Huntington Theatre, Magic Theatre, PlayGround, Playwright’s Foundation, Shotgun Players, Stanford University, TheatreFirst, Townhall Theatre, West Edge Opera, and Word for Word. Karina received her Ph.D. in Theatre and Performance Studies from Stanford University. Her scholarship concentrates on the intersection of politics and performance. She is currently a professor of Theatre History and Performance Studies in the Department of Theatre and Dance and Santa Clara University.

CIERA EIS (YPP, American Magpie), she/hers, is a director and producer who is dedicated to seeding the theatrical landscape with risky new work that promotes the next generation of artists and activists in the field. She has worked at Berkeley Repertory, Magic Theatre, A.C.T, Thunder Bay Theatre, and Shotgun Players. Currently the Artistic Director of FaultLine Theater and the Interim Artistic Director of Custom Made Theatre Co. She graduate of University of California, Santa Cruz and was an SDCF Observer Class 2019-2021. www.cieraeis.com.

REBECCA J. ENNALS (YPP, Pleased as Peach), she/her, is an SF-based director, stage manager, writer, and educator and longtime Playground company member. From 2002-2022, she was on the staff of San Francisco Shakespeare Festival, serving as Artistic Director from 2012-2022. There, she directed 8 touring productions, multiple youth theatre productions, and 6 productions of Free Shakespeare in the Park. Most recently, she was the Equity stage manager for Poor Yella Rednecks: Vietgone 2 at ACT. Her favorite creative collaborations will always be Henry (8) and Eddie (5).

JENNIFER KING (Seasonal Sweets),she/her, is a director, actor, and teacher. Her practice focuses on cultivating a dynamic connection between artists and audiences through a rigorous, collaborative and playful approach to text and storytelling.Dividing her time between Europe and the US, she has performed, directed and created work in the UK, Germany, Poland, and the Czech Republic. Recent directing projects include Slowgirl (Capital Stage), As You Like It (Shakespeare Napa Valley), The Comedy of Errors (Prague Shakespeare Company) and Dry Powder (Aurora Theatre Company). 

JIM KLEINMANN (BoP27, Work/Shoot; Artistic Director & Co-Founder), he/him, co-founded PlayGround in 1994, along with playwright Brighde Mullins and director Denise Shama, and has served as Artistic Director since 1996. For PlayGround, he has provided artistic and administrative leadership for the past twenty-four seasons, developing PlayGround’s unique array of new playwright and new play incubator programs, including Monday Night PlayGround, the PlayGround Festival of New Works, the full-length play Commissioning Initiative, the New Play Production Fund, Potrero Stage: PlayGround Center for New Plays, and most recently the Innovator Incubator. For PlayGround, he has directed more than one hundred short and full-length plays, including works by Garret Jon Groenveld, Aaron Loeb, Geetha Reddy, Lauren Yee, Katie May, and many others. Recent directing and dramaturgy credits include David Steele’s Vignettes on Love and Ruben Grijalva’s Value Over Replacement. He is a veteran arts administrator with more than thirty years of experience, including stints leading Traveling Jewish Theatre, Smuin Ballet and Berkeley Symphony, and received his MFA from the Yale School of Drama.

NIKKI MEÑEZ (Character Assassination), they/she/siya, is a director, movement artist, and arts administrator based in the San Francisco Bay Area who is moved to challenge what performing arts look like and how stories are told. A graduate from the University of California at Santa Cruz, Nikki received degrees in Environmental Studies and Theatre Arts and is an alum of Rainbow Theater. Nikki is the Curatorial Director at Z Space where they curate and cultivate the rental partnerships that populate the venue side of the organization and coordinate Z Space’s various residency programs in order to make the venue more accessible to the local arts ecosystem. When not at Z Space or directing, Nikki works in casting and artist outreach, theater education, and arts advocacy for a more equitable, sustainable, and humane creative ecosystem. Bay Area creative affiliations include Queer Cat Productions, Awesome Theatre, Custom Made Theatre. Faultline Theatre, Epic Party Theater, & PianoFight.

RONDRELL MCCORMICK (Boogie Cousins And The 1.8 Seconds That Changed Everything), he/him, From Sundance Theater Lab to Antaeus Theatre Company (The Fire In-Between) to Old Globe Directing Fellow, Rondrell continues to carve and create. Founder and CEO of production company Iron Drell Films… Playground Executive Committee member. Film/Tv/Media: Weakend (Netflix – Proof Of Concept); The Wesley’s (web series); The Old Saturday (short film); Theater: Between Dog And Wolf (Theatre Of NOTE); Vol. 1 A Post Racial America (Boston Court Pasadena); Polar Bears, Black Boys & Prairie Fringed Orchids (Orlando Shakespeare Festival & San Diego Repertory Theatre); Training: B.F.A., North Carolina A&T State University; M.F.A., American Conservatory Theater.

ELY SONNY ORQUIZA (Starlight, he/him, A 2023 YBCA 100 Honoree, Ely Sonny Orquiza (he | him) is a multidisciplinary Queer Filipino artistic director, stage director, and arts educator native to San Francisco Bay Area, the unceded territory of the Ramaytush Ohlone People. Through theater and the performing arts Orquiza illuminates the experiences of the Asian diaspora, explores the politics of Queer/ness, and gives voice to the narratives of People from the Global Majority. As an artist, Orquiza draws on his heritage and lived experiences to create stunning theatrical productions that captivate audiences and spark meaningful conversations about equity and representation. Through his art and advocacy, he is breaking down barriers and elevating marginalized voices for the American Theatre. For more: elysonnyorquiza.org

DOYLE OTT (YPP, The Rouge Shoes), he/him, is a performer, director, dramaturg and theatre and circus scholar and has worked with Make A Circus, Splash Circus Theatre, Prescott Circus, San Francisco Shakespeare Festival, Children’s Fairyland San Francisco Circus Center, Bay Area Children’s Theatre, Foolsfury, Antenna Theatre, Golden Thread, and the San Francisco Playwright’s Foundation. Recent publications include Believing Impossible Things: Alice in the Circus Ring, about circus adaptations of Alice in Wonderland, and Extreme Embodiments: Shakespearean Circus Performance, about the use of circus in producing Shakespeare. He performs and directs regularly as company member of the Medical Clown Project and of Playground. He is a member of Actors Equity and a certified Feldenkrais practitioner.

REBECCA PINGREE (The Resolution of Us), she/her, is delighted to return to Best of, having been a member of PlayGround’s Acting Company for over a decade. Most recently she played Adira in Exodus to Eden at OTP, Bridget Potter in the original cast of The Kilbanes’ The Code with ACT YC, and The Baker’s Wife in Sondheim’s Into the Woods at Berkeley Playhouse. She holds an MFA in Collaborative Theatremaking from Rose Bruford in London, and co-founded Analog Theatre (analogtheatre.org) a member of PlayGround’s IN2 cohort. Catch her upcomingly in Analog’s Mask Monday at Standard Deviant (May 29), Shadow Circus’ Voidville at Amado’s (June 3), and as Judith in The Dignity Circle at Centralworks (opening June 24).

M. GRAHAM SMITH (Apertures of Love in Times of War), he/him, a San Francisco-based Director, Educator and Producer. He is an O’Neill/NNPN National Directing Fellow, an Oregon Shakespeare Festival FAIR Fellow and a proud Resident Artist at SF’s Crowded Fire. He grew up outside of New York City and has been based in San Francisco since 2004. He’s directed in New York City, Philadelphia, Los Angeles, Portland Oregon, Washington DC, and in the San Francisco Bay area. Recent productions include the World Premiere of Obie winner Christopher Chen’s Home Invasion, Kevin Rolston’s Deal with the Dragon at ACT & Edinburgh Fringe, Mia Chung’s You for Me for You at Crowded Fire, James Ijames’ White at Shotgun, and Kait Kerrigan’s Father/Daughter at Aurora. During pandemic he directed his first full length film, a hip-hop musical adaptation of As You Like It with music and lyrics by Ryan Nicole Austin produced by ACT. He is workshopping a new play FDR Drag Show, with co-creator Regan Linton at Arena Stage and his latest original project is a new musical The Mortification of Fovea Munson which premiered at The Kennedy Center in March. www.mgrahamsmith.com

PRODUCTION & STAFF

TAŚA GLEASON (Costume Designer, Starlight), she/her, has been designing and creating costumes for dance and theatre for many years. Her work has been seen in Seattle, the greater Bay Area, New York and has toured internationally. Having a background in performance and choreography offers Taśa an understanding of what is unique about costuming for dance and theater, it also means that she shares a vocabulary in regards to movement that is indispensable to her when collaborating with directors, choreographers and performers. Taśa has a background in draping and construction and holds an M.F.A. in Dramatic Arts, Costume Design from UC Davis and a BFA in Dance Performance from Cornish College of the Arts, Seattle WA.

LIORA JACOB (Stage Manager, The Bramford), she/her,  is excited to be involved in the Playground Festival of New Works. From 2017-2018 she interned at the Hangar Theatre in Ithaca, NY for 7 months, then at Florida Studio Theatre in Sarasota, FL for 10 months. Other recent credits include: Copenhagen with Indra’s Net Theatre; Human Ounce, Escape from the Asylum, Dreaming in Cuban & Mondragola with Central Works; A Small Fire with Shotgun Players and Getting There with New Conservatory Theater Center.

NIA JACOBS (Costume Designer), she/her, born in Oakland, CA, Nia’s love for technical theatre started when she signed up to do scenic art for her high school’s production of Scapino. In college, she minored in technical theatre, allowing her to practice her sewing skills on productions like Ain’t Misbehavin’ and Eclipsed. Since then, Nia has gone on to get a BA in English from Howard University, alter many costumes, style mannequins, and work on many plays, including four different productions of Peter Pan. In her spare time she enjoys writing, sewing and baking

COLIN JOHNSON (Visual Designer) is a multi-hyphenate production artist who has sullied the grounds of the Bay Area arts since 2008. His work has been produced or featured at PlayGround, Pianofight, The Circus Center Cabaret, San Diego Comic-Con, Image Comics, Potrero Stage, Pint-Sized Plays, The Olympians Festival, Shotz, Shotgun Players, The Curran, and various theatre, radio and film venues throughout the country. He is the Artistic Director of Awesome Theatre, Chief Creative Officer at Troubleshoot Productions and an Instructor / Director / Designer at Circus Center. He makes movies until he gets too frustrated and makes theatre until he has panic attacks.

JAMES GOODE (Sound Designer), he/him, is a composer, musician, songwriter, audio engineer, and sound designer who lives and works in the Bay Area. He’s collaborated with actors, animators, visual artists, writers, and others on a wide variety of projects, including films, gallery and museum installations, live performances, music videos, podcasts, and radio dramas. Local theater productions he’s done sound design for include Richard II (African-American Shakespeare Company), Dot (New Conservatory Theatre Center), Men on Boats (Palo Alto Players), Escaped Alone (Anton’s Well Theater Company), Native Gardens (Center REPertory Company), and Pool of Unknown Wonders: Undertow of the Soul (Oakland Theater Project). https://jamesgoodesound.com

RUBEN GRIJALVA (Festival Kick-Off and Panel Moderator), he/him, is a San Francisco-based playwright exploring the boundaries of human agency in a world evolving faster than our minds. His short plays include Anna Considers A Cocktail (PlayGround Emerging Playwright Award), Full Steam Ahead, and All The Worlds Are Stages (PianoFight Short Lived VII Winner). His full-length plays include Anna Considers Mars, Value Over Replacement (O’Neill National Playwrights Conference Finalist, Edgerton Foundation New Play Award Winner), and Shoot Me When… (O’Neill Semi-Finalist, Will Glickman Award Winner). He is a three time winner of the PlayGround Emerging Playwright Award. He lives in San Francisco’s Sunset District with a Labrador named Retha, a human named Keli, and a tiny human named Genevieve, whose arrival served as the very hard deadline for the first draft of Shoot Me When….

DIANNE HARRISON (Props Artisan), she/her, works with many Bay Area theatre companies, including the African-American Shakespeare Company, JoLee Productions, PlayGround SF, Ross Valley Players, Santa Rosa Junior College (SRJC), and The Mountain Play, primarily as a stage manager, sound/light board operator, and props artisan. Her other theatre experiences include sound-mixing, co-directing, and costume designing. In 2015, Dianne received a Certificate of Merit from the Kennedy Center’s American College Theater Festival for stage managing the SRJC’s production of Almost, Maine. She is honored to be working with PlayGround SF once again, and thanks her amazing husband for all his encouragement and support.

BRITTANY MELLERSON (Festival Lighting Designer) is an East coast native and graduate of Point Park University’s Conservatory Program, with a BFA in Theatrical Lighting & Sound Design. Brittany is the Resident Lighting Designer for Lamplighters Music Theatre, PlayGround, and the Telluride Film Festival. Recent credits include lighting design for PlayGround’s Solofest 2022, Awesome Theatre’s feature film THEM, lighting and sound design for The Pear’s Mountaintop and Sunset Baby. Throughout the pandemic, Brittany has been dedicated to source and produce equitable employment avenues within the Bay Area for Black designers and technicians. Up Next : Lamplighter’s Gentleman’s Guide to Love & Murder; Custom Made’s Blood at the Root; Awesome Theatre’s Coffee Lady; PlayGround’s Best of PlayGround Festival.

PLAYGROUND, California’s leading playwright incubator, provides unique development opportunities for the Bay Area’s, Los Angeles’ and now New York’s best new playwrights, including the monthly Monday Night PlayGround staged reading series, annual PlayGround Festival of New Works, full-length play commissions and support for the production of new plays by local playwrights through the New Play Production Fund. To date, PlayGround has supported over 250 early career playwrights, developing and staging more than 1000 of their original short plays through the Monday Night PlayGround staged reading series and the PlayGround Festival. PlayGround has also commissioned 90 new full-length plays by 60 of these writers through its Commissioning Initiative and, through the innovative New Play Production Fund, has directly facilitated the premiere of 34 plays at theatres of every size, including three that have gone on to NYC and other major theater communities. Most recently, PlayGround renovated and relaunched the former Thick House Theater in San Francisco’s Potrero Hill as Potrero Stage, a state-of-the-art center for new plays, home to PlayGround’s expanding artistic programs and some of the Bay Area’s most distinguished new play developers and producers. Over the past twenty-four years, PlayGround has served to identify some of the most important new local voices for the theatre. PlayGround’s alumni have gone on to win local, national, and international honors for their short and full-length work, including recognition at the Humana Festival, O’Neill National Playwrights Conference, Bay Area Playwrights Festival, The Lark’s Playwrights’ Week, New York International Fringe Festival, and others. PlayGround received the 2009 Paine Knickerbocker Award for outstanding contributions to Bay Area theatre, 3 BATCC Awards for Best Original Script for PlayGround commissions, a 2014 National Theatre Company Grant from the American Theatre Wing (founder of the Tony Awards®), and a 2016 Edgerton Foundation New Play Award. Visit https://PlayGround-sf.org for more information.

POTRERO STAGE is a 99-seat state-of-the-art performance space located in the heart of San Francisco’s Potrero Hill neighborhood, operated by PlayGround, and serving as home to some of the Bay Area’s leading new play developers and producers, including PlayGround, Crowded Fire, Golden Thread, and Playwrights Foundation, among others. While the venue is closed during the COVID pandemic, Potrero Stage will highlight the best in online programming by PlayGround, Potrero Stage resident companies and other Potrero Stage producers. For more information, visit https://potrerostage.org.

PlayGround Contributors

PlayGround is deeply grateful for the generous contributions of the many individuals, foundations, gifts of $125 or more committed between March 1, 2021 & March 21, 2022.

GOVERNMENT, CORPORATE, & FOUNDATION DONORS

Alameda County Arts Commission • Amazon • American Rescue Plan Act & CARES Act • Art Space Development Corporation • Berkeley Civic Arts • The Bernard Osher Foundation • Bill Graham Supporting Foundation of the Jewish Community Federation & Endowment Fund • California Arts Council • Creative Capacity Fund • First Republic Bank • The Fleishhacker Foundation • Goldman Sachs • Google • Grants For The Arts • Koret Foundation • Lenore & Howard Klein Foundation • The Leo J. & Celia Carlin Fund • Negley Flinn Charitable Foundation • NIAC • Nvidia • Phyllis C. Wattis Foundation • Planet Earth Arts • San Francisco Arts Commission • The Shenson Foundation • The Shubert Foundation • Stanford University • The Tournesol Project • Voluntary Arts Contribution Fund • The William & Flora Hewlett Foundation • Zellerbach Family Foundation

INDIVIDUAL SUPPORTERS

SEASON SPONSORS ($5000+)

Mr. William Bivins, Emilie T. & Gordon C. Brooks, Jerome Joseph Gentes & Michael Bourque, Lara Gilman & Jim Kleinmann, Craig & Kathy Moody, David Steele, Anonymous

EXECUTIVE PRODUCERS ($2500–$4,999)

John H. Gilman, Regina S. Guggenheim, Linda Kremer, Anonymous

PRODUCERS CIRCLE ($1000-$2499)

Dr. Elaine Baskin & Kenneth R. Krechmer, Mr. William Bivins, Emilie T. & Gordon C. Brooks, Sidney Glass & Eleanor Clement Glass, Thalia Dorwick, Keith Goldstein & Donna N. Warrington, Tish and Steve Harwood, Mrs. Frannie Pope Hohman, Lara Gilman & Jim Kleinmann, Karen Mauney-Brodek, Nitin, Diane Sampson, Sharon Simpson, Marian Scheuer Sofaer & Abraham D. Sofaer, David Cost and Kate Stechschulte, Anonymous (5)

PLAYWRIGHTS CIRCLE ($500-$999)

Mr. Thomas Patrick Broyhill, Karen Chakmakian, Paulette Donsavage & Deeje Cooley, Mr. Richard Dixon, Michael Fried, Barbara Goodyear & Stephen Rosenfield, Ruben and Keli Grijalva, Ms. Kathryn A Hecht, Jofish Kaye & Erin Marie Panttaja, Diane Leonard, Gwen Loeb & Doyle Ott, Ray Riegert, Michele and John Ruskin, Nancy Spencer & Hardy Callcott, Oren & Justin Stevens, Mr. Malachy Walsh, Susannah Wise & Scott Lebus, Maury Zeff

PATRON ($250-$499)

Sharon Baldwin, Wendy Bear, Cass Brayton, Ruth & Robert Brayton, In memory of Susan Bruett, Karen Catlin, Lily L Chow, Laurie Cohen, David Cramer, Ms. Doris Davenport, Mr. Richard Davis – Lowell, Maggie Dewan-Smith, Ms. Lynda Divito, Mr. Mark Andrews, Krystyna Finlayson , Ms. Jessica Forbess, Sarah Gasser, Justin and Oren Stevens, Keith Goldstein, Eileen Grady, Joan & Donald Green, Vicki Hamilton, Daryl Anthony Harper, Becky Harris, Gail Hillebrand & Hugh Barroll, Margaret and Cory Johnson – UCSF Essential Worker’s Program, Roxy Jones, Ray and Carla Kaliski, Jonathan Luskin and Leslie Katz, Michael Lutz, Brittany S Mellerson, Three Kurtics and a Morse, Bud & Donna Ogle, Chris Potter & Lisa Mammel, Annie Stuart & June Palladino, Lisa R. Taylor, Liam Vincent, Ms. Rosalinde Westil, Christian Wilburn, Janine Wilburn, Joanne Chow Winship, Anonymous (3)

ASSOCIATE MEMBER ($125-$249)

Mary E. Baird, Julie Birdsong, Gwendolyn Marie Boozé, Nancy Rivera Brooks, Jessica Forbess, Gina Harris, Joanne Kobori, Gregg Le Blanc, Ms. Lisa A. Mammel, Cecily T. Martin, Trynne Miller & David Prince, Doug Peckler & Evelyn Jean Pine, Ms. Madeline Daly Puccioni, Kathy J Reynolds, Kary Schulman, Rebecca Schweitzer, Jeunée Simon, Kurt Taylor & BJ Olsen, Lisa Gaye Thompson, Jeffrey Trescott, Mr. Darryl Wilburn, Janine & Darryl Wilburn, Kelli Wong, Anonymous (3)

Become a PlayGround contributor!

DONATE

PlayGround Company

PLAYGROUND WRITERS COMPANY

Linda Amayo-Hassan+, Cass Brayton+, Tom Bruett+, Rachel Bublitz+, Madeleine Butler, Vanessa Cassandras, Reg Clay, Victoria Evans Erville, Jessica Fechtor, Ipsheeta Furtado, Akaina Ghosh, Linda Maria Giron, Garret Jon Groenveld+, Monique Hafen Adams, Sam Hurwitt, Tejahra Jacobs, Lisa Kang, Anne Yumi Kobori, Molly Krost+, Jennifer Le Blanc, Jonathan Luskin+, Christopher Magee, Alanna McFall, Bacilio Mendez II, Isaac Ontiveros+, Conrad Panganiban, Erin Marie Panttaja, Evelyn Jean Pine+, Madeline Puccioni, Neiry Rojo, Kevin Rolston, Annette Roman, Rebecca Schweitzer , Susan Sher, Marissa Skudlarek, Alexis Standridge, Chris Steele, Shruti Tewari, Lisa Gaye Thompson, Eteya Trinidad+, Daysha Veronica+, Madison Wetzell, Christian Wilburn+, Maury Zeff
+ Resident Playwright

PLAYGROUND COMPANY

Molly Aaronson-Gelb, Angel Adedokun, Patrick Alparone, Liz Anderson, Rinabeth Apostol, Michael Asberry, Michael Barrett Austin, Mary Baird, Aldo Billingslea, Giselle Boustani-Fontenele, Millie Brooks, Julia Brothers, Nicole Apostol Bruno, Lizzie Calogero, Ron Campbell, Joy Carlin, Nancy Carlin, Desdemona Chiang, Tessa Corrie, David Cramer, Will Dao, Anne Darragh, Dodds Delzell, Livia Gomes Demarchi, Carolyn Doyle, Nora el Samahy, Rebecca Ennals, Britney Frazier, Michael French, Claire Ganem, Sarah Gasser, Norman Gee, Douglas B. Giorgis, Amy Glazer, Cindy Goldfield, BW Gonzalez, Christian Haines, Margo Hall, Rosie Hallett, Katherine Hamilton, Daryl Anthony Harper, Eric Fraisher Hayes, Brian Herndon, Monica Ho, Laura Humphrey, J Jha, Colin Johnson, Lyndsy Kail, Dean Koya, Danielle Levin, Amy Lizardo, Jeffrey Lo, Gwen Loeb, George Maguire, Melanie Marshall, Alicia Mason, Leontyne Mbele-Mbong, Julia McNeal, Sam Misner, Brady Morales-Woolery, Lisa Morse, Jasmine Murray, Noble, Joseph Patrick O’Malley, Karen Offereins, Annette Oliveira, Soren Oliver, Ely Sonny Orquiza, Melissa Ortiz, Doyle Ott, June Palladino, Carla Pantoja, Louis Parnell, Jed Parsario, Michael Phillis, Rebecca Pingree, Stephanie Prentice, Ezra Reaves, Virginia Reed, Cathleen Riddley, Katja Rivera, Adrian Roberts, Neiry Rojo, Stacy Ross, Adam Roy, Katie Rubin, Lindsey Marie Schmeltzer, Louel Senores, Robert Sicular, Jeunee Simon, M. Graham Smith, Ken Sonkin, Lauren Spencer, Teddy Spencer, Howard Swain, Jomar Tagatac, Emilie Talbot, Danielle Thys, Isabel Anne To, Jon Tracy, Dane Troy, Mark Rafael Truitt, Liam Vincent, Ian Walker, Maryssa Wanlass, Tracy Ward, Reggie D. White, Aaron Wilton, Elena Wright

PLAYGROUND AMBASSADORS

Jomar Tagatac (Co-Chair) , Aaron Wilton (Co-Chair) , Aldo Billingslea, Tessa Corrie, Livia Demarchi, Britney Frazier, Claire Ganem, Cindy Goldfield, Jeffrey Lo, Gwen Loeb, Brady Morales-Woolery, Ely Sonny Orquiza, Stephanie Prentice, Katja Rivera

PLAYGROUND STAFF

Jim Kleinmann, Co-Founder & Artistic Director
Annie Stuart, Associate Artistic Director
Norman Gee, Associate Producer
Jed Parsario, Associate Producer
Stephanie Prentice, Associate Producer
Katja Rivera, Associate Producer
Lana Richard, Associate Director of Development
Jacque Bugler, Production Manager
Brittany Mellerson, Resident Designer
Sarah Gasser, Resident Stage Manager & Assistant to the Artistic Director
Daniel Benitez, 2021-22 Producing Fellow
Emlyn Doolittle, 2022 Producing Fellow
Bacilio Mendez II, 2022 Producing Fellow
Caroline Portante, 2021-22 Producing Fellow

PLAYGROUND BOARD OF DIRECTORS

Regina Guggenheim, Chair
James A. Kleinmann, President
Jerome Joseph Gentes, VP-Communications
Emilie Talbot, VP-Development
Nitin, Treasurer
Katie May, Secretary
William Bivins
Diana Burbano
Eleanor Clement Glass
Philippa Kelly
Lisa Mammel
Rebecca Martinez
Rondrell McCormick
Stephanie Prentice
Katja Rivera
David Steele

www.PlayGround-sf.org
3286 Adeline St #8
Berkeley, CA 94703-2485
info@playground-sf.org
(415) 992-6677