TUESDAY, DECEMBER 10, 7:30 PM
SHORT PLAY FESTIVAL (THEATRE)
J. Lois Diamond, Slicing an Onion Pria strives to find peace after surviving a shooting at her Sikh temple, and struggles to forgive, despite having been the target of xenophobic hatred and violence. She can forgive, but at what cost? J.Lois Diamond’s work has been produced off-off Broadway, regionally, in Canada, at the William Inge Theatre Festival, and the Downtown Urban Arts Festival. She is a member of Polaris North and The Dramatist Guild, where she recently studied with Tina Howe. Actor: Gabi Singh; Stage Manager Ali Walensky. Jloisdiamond.com
Joseph Bulvid: If Only . . .: Michael is a successful actuary, married with twin children, who has long buried his true feelings about who he really is. Seeing Mason triggers a vivid vision where only love is love matters. Is it all just a dream, or a remembrance?Playwright Bio: Joe Bulvid has authored numerous short plays which have been produced in New York City and in London. He is considering opportunities for his full-length play, 'Blue Moon'. He continues to learn about human interaction teaching graduate students at NYU in Manhattan. Director: Lauren Shields. Cast: Rebecca Laurel Anderson (Jody); Dave Rideout (Michael); Brendan McMillen (Mason).
Eugene Grygo, Graduation. Graduation,” is the story of two roommates in 1983 who are sorting out their future together after college. However, their dream is threatened when one of them wants to deny the love that will define their lives. Over the past 30 years, Eugene M. Grygo has worked as a playwright, journalist, producer, book editor, comedy writer, performer and producer. He has won awards for his accomplishments as a journalist and playwright because of his unique ability to bring new insights to difficult material. Director: Rachael Langton.
David Meyers, The Secret Keeper Ahmad is the groundskeeper at a cemetery in Afghanistan. When a local mother visits the cemetery, she befriends Ahmad and unearths a troubling secret that unites them both. David Meyers (playwright) is an actor and writer based in New York and Los Angeles. www.DavidActs.com Director: Ivette Dumeng is the Artistic Director of Nylon Fusion Theatre Company.
Hope Shangle, The Problem with Phantasms Is What if the one person in the whole world who understands you is the one thing the whole world doesn't understand? After spending her life reading, watching, and performing in plays and films, Hope decided it was time to start writing them after a medical diagnosis left her fearing for her long-cherished literacy. Now, writing plays and screen projects is my favorite obsession/hobby. Director: Michelle Cowles.
INTERMISSION
Yasmine Rana, Leena and Rose at the Barre With the looming reality of deportation and loss, Leena from Syria and Rose from El Salvador seek humanity and refuge at a New York City ballet studio as both women share their fear of disappearing and their solace in dancing. Yasmine Rana, the author of The War Zone is My Bed and Other Plays, has written extensively on the plight of immigrants, refugees and asylum seekers. Yasmine's plays have been inspired by her work as a teacher and drama therapist in areas of conflict including post-war Bosnia. John Pietrowski, Director and Danielle Constance, Stage Manager.
Rachael Carnes, Permission Permission offers an intergenerational #MeToo conversation, between a mother and daughter. What will these two family members reveal to each other, and to themselves? Rachael Carnes had more than 50 productions across the U.S., U.K., Canada and Asia last year, with additional invitations to playwriting festivals, conferences and symposiums. A busy mom and full-time arts administrator, Rachael's plays are featured in the Coachella Review, the Silk Road Review, the Cascadia Rising Review and Some Scripts Literary Magazine. Directed by Tricia Mancuso-Parks, featuring Emmy Albritton and Sarah Kiefer.
Monica Raymond, Ernesto undocumented and always wanting to be a doctor, Ernesto escaped gang warfare in El Salvador to come to the US. But what can his English teacher say about him that won't give him away? Monica Raymond’s play, THE OWL GIRL, won the Peacewriting Award, the Castillo Theater prize, a Clauder Competition Gold Medal, and was nominated for the Susan Smith Blackburn Award (best play in English by a woman). A MacDowell Colony Fellow and a Jerome Fellow at the Playwrights’ Center, she has taught writing and interdisciplinary arts at Harvard, CUNY, and the Boston Museum School.
Ivan Faute, Lost Sock Laundromat, Astoria, Queens When a recent immigrant from Lebanon shows up at their corner laundry, a first generation Mexican-American and second-generation Greek-American must decide how to respond. As laws change around them, the women build friendships and community while negotiating their own lives at a corner laundry in Queens. Ivan Faute’s fiction appears in various journals and anthologies and his plays have been produced in New York, London, Chicago and elsewhere. He has been the winner of the Art of Adaptation Festival (City Lit Theater) and a finalist for the Calvino Prize and the ATHE Excellence in Playwriting Award. Director: Melissa Mowry.
