PlayGround’s 2nd Annual “Twisted” Holiday Show “A VERY HITCHCOCK CHRISTMAS”

PlayGround marks the holiday season with its second annual “twisted” holiday show: A VERY HITCHCOCK CHRISTMAS, featuring returning short plays by Jeffrey Lo, Alexis Standridge, and Eteya Trinidad, and three new short plays by Shoshanna Green, Michael B. Kaplan, and J.S. Puller, melding holiday themes and your favorite Hitchcock films, including “Rope”, “Rear Window”, “Lifeboat”, “Psycho”, “Strangers on a Train”, and “Rebecca!” A Very Hitchcock Christmas runs two weekends only, December 10 & 16-17 at 7pm PT, live in-person at Potrero Stage and simulcast, with on-demand viewing through New Year’s. Admission is free (donations gratefully accepted) but advance reservations are strongly recommended. For more information or to reserve in-person or online tickets, visit https://playground-sf.org/hitchcockchristmas.

The Twisted Holiday Show Lineup

Santa on a Rope by Shoshanna Green, directed by Jim Kleinmann
Life-Sleigh, Like Lifeboat But With A Sleigh, Get it? by Michael B. Kaplan, directed by Norman Gee
A Stranger on a Holiday Train by Jeffrey Lo, directed by Linda Amayo-Hassan
How The Bates (Almost) Stole Christmas by J.S. Puller, directed by Katja Rivera
A Window-ful Christmas by Alexis Standridge, directed by Ely Sonny Orquiza
Christmas at Manderley by Eteya Trinidad, directed by Tracy Ward

About the Playwrights

Shoshanna Green (Santa on a Rope, inspired by “Rope”), she/her, has done a lot of things and plans to do a lot more. Shoshanna says she’s from Philadelphia, but she grew up in Pittsburgh and her family lives in New Zealand. She is a UCB graduate and current writer on The Pack House Team Corduroy. More info at: www.ShoshannaRuthGreen.com

Michael B. Kaplan (Life-Sleigh, Like Lifeboat But With A Sleigh, Get it?, inspired by “Lifeboat”), had his first play produced in the One-Act Marathon at the Ensemble Studio Theatre in New York. Since then he has worked primarily as a TV writer and producer on a dozen different prime time shows for ABC, NBC, FOX and the CW, including stints on such seminal shows as “Roseanne” and “Frasier.” He created “I’m in the Band” on Disney XD and “Dog with a Blog” on Disney Channel, serving as showrunner for both. He has been nominated for four Emmy Awards, winning one, and received a BET Comedy Award for his work as a writer on “Girlfriends.” He is the author of the “Betty Bunny” series of children’s books. As a playwright, he is a member of EST/LA, Playground-LA, and The Group Rep Theatre.

Jeffrey Lo (A Stranger on a Holiday Train, inspired by “Strangers on a Train”), he/him, is a Filipino-American playwright and director based in the Bay Area. He is the recipient of the Leigh Weimers Emerging Artist Award, the Emerging Artist Laureate by Arts Council Silicon Valley and Theatre Bay Area Director’s TITAN Award. Selected directing credits include THE LANGUAGE ARCHIVE and THE SANTALAND DIARIES at TheatreWorks Silicon Valley, HOLD THESE TRUTHS at San Francisco Playhouse, VIETGONE and THE GREAT LEAP at Capital Stage, A DOLL’S HOUSE, PART 2 and EURYDICE at Palo Alto Players (TBA Awards finalist for Best Direction), PETER AND THE STARCATCHER and NOISES OFF at Hillbarn Theatre, THE GRAPES OF WRATH, THE CRUCIBLE, and YELLOW FACE at Los Altos Stage Company. As a playwright, his plays have been produced and workshopped at Berkeley Repertory Theatre, TheatreWorks Silicon Valley, The BindleStiff Studio, City Lights Theatre Company and Stanford University. His play WRITING FRAGMENTS HOME was a finalist for the Bay Area Playwright’s Conference and a semi-finalist for the O’Neill Playwright’s Conference. Jeffrey has also worked with the Oregon Shakespeare Festival, The Asian American International Film Festival, San Jose Repertory and is a company member of Ferocious Lotus Theatre Company and SF Playground. In addition to his work in theatre he works as an educator and advocate for issues of Equity, Diversity and Inclusion and has served as a grant panelist for the Zellerbach Family Foundation, Silicon Valley Creates and Theatre Bay Area. He is the Director Community Partnerships and Casting Director at the Tony Award Winning TheatreWorks Silicon Valley, a graduate of the Multicultural Arts Leadership Institute and a proud alumnus of the UC Irvine Drama Department. Jeffrey is also a founding member of OUR DIGITAL STORIES, for more info www.OurDigitalStories.org.

J.S. Puller (How The Bates (Almost) Stole Christmas, inspired by “Psycho”), she/her, is a playwright and author from the Windy City, Chicago. She has a master’s degree in elementary education and a bachelor’s degree in theatre from Northwestern University. She is an award-winning member of the American Alliance for Theatre and Education and is actively involved in researching the social-emotional benefits of arts education with the University of Chicago Consortium on School Research. When not writing, she can usually be found in the theatre. She is the author of two novels, CAPTAIN SUPERLATIVE and THE LOST THINGS CLUB, both published by Little, Brown Books for Young Readers. She also has several published plays, including: WOMEN WHO WEAVE (Playscripts, Inc.), PERSEUS AND MEDUSA – IT’S ALL GREEK TO ME! (Lazybee Scripts), and THE DEATH OF ROBIN HOOD (Stage Rights).

Alexis Standridge (A Window-ful Christmas, inspired by “Rear Window”), she/her, is a recent graduate of Santa Clara University, where she studied Playwriting. She spends her time exploring queer theatre spaces in the Bay Area, and working with others to produce new works by upcoming young artists. When she’s not writing, Alexis works as a Coordinator for Santa Clara University, and enjoys being a dungeon master for Dungeons and Dragons games.

Eteya Trinidad (Christmas at Manderley, inspired by “Rebecca”), she/her, is a playwright, stage manager, and theater artist. She is a resident playwright at PlayGround and a member of the 2021 LezWritesBTQ Cohort at 3 Girls Theatre. Her writing has been recognized in the 2021 Best of PlayGround Festival with the June Anne Baker Prize, and as a finalist for the 2019 Bay Area Playwrights Festival. Her work has also been seen at Berklee College of Music, SF Olympians Festival, Ross Valley Players, and Amios West, among others. www.eteyatrinidad.com

For more information about PlayGround’s “twisted” holiday show, visit https://playground-sf.org/hitchcockchristmas.

WHAT: PlayGround presents its second annual “twisted” holiday show, featuring returning short plays by Jeffrey Lo, Alexis Standridge, and Eteya Trinidad, and three new short plays by Shoshanna Green, Michael B. Kaplan, and J.S. Puller, melding holiday themes and your favorite Hitchcock thrillers, including “Rope”, “Rear Window”, “Psycho,” and more!

WHERE: Potrero Stage, 1695 18th St, San Francisco, CA 94107, and simulcast online

WHEN: December 10 & 16-17, 7pm PT

TICKETS: Admission is free (donations gratefully accepted) but advance reservations are recommended. Masks are optional for in-person performance at Potrero Stage. Links for online viewing will be sent the day of the performance and can also be accessed through your PlayGround account at https://tickets.playground-sf.org (log in, click “home” for the main menu, then “tickets for upcoming performances”, select the proper show, and choose “watch”). If you have any questions, please contact the Box Office at boxoffice@playground-sf.org. For more information about PlayGround’s “twisted” holiday show, call (415) 992-6677 or visit https://playground-sf.org/hitchcockchristmas.