Company in the News Apr-2025

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

Nancy Carlin directs the world premiere of Buttercup by J.D. Murphy, inspired by Guy de Maupassant’s Boule de Suif. This new work runs April 3-13 in San Rafael, featuring Lizzie Calogero as Sister Walter of the Lamentable Poor and Norman Gee as Jean-Jacques. Learn more and purchase tickets here.

Molly Noble takes the stage in Morning Sun by Simon Stephens at Spreckels Performing Arts Center through April 6, a poignant story exploring generations of women and memory. Get tickets here.

Isabel Anne To will perform at the 11th Annual Silicon Valley Jewish Playwriting Contest on Sunday, April 6, at the Freidenrich Conference Center in Palo Alto, featuring excerpts from Provenance by Jennifer Maisel. Register here.

Lana Richards serves as Assistant Director for We Players’ Macbeth at Fort Point from April 11 – May 18, an immersive all-femme and nonbinary production set in San Francisco’s historic fortress beneath the Golden Gate Bridge. Multiple performance pathways guide audiences through the dark corridors and expansive brick casemates of Fort Point. Subsidized $25 tickets are available here.

Jennifer Le Blanc takes on the role of King Henry in Henry V, directed by Kevin Hammond at Pear Theatre. The production runs April 18 – May 11. Purchase tickets here.

Left Coast Theatre Company presents Kristy Lin Billuni’s short play The Chalice & the Pearl in He Said She Said They Said, a staged reading anthology about gossip, at Strut in the Castro on April 22 at 6pm.

Kimberly Ridgeway makes her directorial debut with John Proctor is the Villain by Kimberly Bellflower at St. Mary’s College in Moraga, CA. Catch this powerful production from April 24-27. Purchase tickets here.

Rob Dario joins the creative team at Ross Valley Players for The Book of Will, opening May 9.

Hector Zavala joins the cast of Del Engaño del Desierto, al deseo de un crimen by Octavio Islas, directed by Terezina Vital. The play, currently touring Mexico City, delves into migration, law enforcement, and violence, with upcoming performances in Baja California through April and May. Hector will also head to the NYC Fringe Festival, performing in Love in the Time of Piñatas by Baruch Porras Hernandez, running April 7-13 at The Wild Project.

Michael Barrett Austin recently participated in the second workshop of The Bridge, a new musical by Patricia Cotter and The Kilbanes at Marin Theatre.

For audiobook lovers, Annette Amelia Oliveira’s latest book, Manuel’s Murals, is now available on Audible! This heartwarming tale follows a Mexican boy who adores Diego Rivera and uses his love of art to solve a family dilemma. The bilingual storytelling approach helps children learn Spanish in a natural and engaging way. Purchase the audiobook here.