Company in the News April-2024

See what PlayGround Writers, Company Members, and Alumni are up to this April!

April Ballesteros will be Assistant Stage Managing the World Premiere of Sign My Name To Freedom written by Michael Gene Sullivan and directed by Elizabeth Carter at ZSpace. Presented by San Francisco Bay Area Theater Company. Runs March 29, 2024 to April 13, 2024. More info here.

Nancy Carlin is performing in the world premiere of Kate Hawley’s new play Under Ben Bulben at The Jewel Theatre in Santa Cruz, March 27-April 14.

Elizabeth Flanagan‘s play, There’s Something Wrong In There, will have a reading on Sunday April 21, as part of the 3GT reading series. More info here.

Michael J. Asberry returns to Berkeley’s Aurora Theatre this week to begin rehearsals for Tanya Barfield’s Blue Door. Opening on 4/25 and running until 5/19. More info here.

Miyoko Sakatani is thrilled to be associate producer and actor in two films screening in April. “Werewolf Serenade” by Daedalus Howell will be screening at the Mystic Theatre in Petaluma. “Distressed” will be screening at the Poppy Jasper International Film Festival in Gilroy.

Garret Jon Groenveld (a founding writer of the original PlayGround) will have a Manhattan premiere of his play, The Hummingbirds, from April 3-21, 2024 at the Chain Theatre (312 W. 36th St.)

Cherielyn Ferguson‘s short play Everything’s Under Control, written last season in response to the prompt “Grief and Hope for Planet Earth”, will be performed by the Lantern Theatre as part of its New Writing: The Shorts, scheduled for April 23 – 27 in Sheffield, UK.

Rachel Bublitz‘s play Funny, Like An Abortion opens April 25th at Cleveland Public Theatre, the second production in a National New Play Network Rolling World Premiere. Another of Rachel’s plays, Burst, will receive its second production at Relative Theatrics, opening April 5th. Rachel also turns 40 in April!

Julia Brothers is frisking and frolicking in Sarasota, doing Sean Daniels’ play The White Chip at Florida Studio Theatre through April 28th. Leave the snow and howling winds behind, come to the Gulfcoast and soak up some warmth and some laughs!

Katja Rivera is directing Apertures Of Love In Times Of War by Anne Yumi Kobori, part of Playground-Sf’s Festival Of New Works, performing at Potrero Stage, May 11 & 12, and available for livestream. More info here.

Michael Barrett Austin was recently nominated for a San Francisco Bay Area Theatre Critics Circle Award for his performance in Chinglish at SF Playhouse last spring. He will also be performing in Apertures of Love in Times of War. 

Cindy Goldfield is currently working on three directing projects: Shady Manor for Stagebridge, tick, tick…boom for NCTC and Bright Star at 42nd Street Moon.

Kimberly Ridgeway is making her directorial debut at Shotgun Players as Associate Director for Jonathan Spector’s Best Available, directed by Jon Tracy. The show runs May 18-June 16, 2024.