Dramaturging the Phoenix Forum

“Midterm Elections: DtP Style”, featuring Martha Wade Steketee, Danielle Feder, and Peterson Toscano, moderated by Phoenix planning team member, Liana Irvine. Every choice we make as dramaturgs and literary managers, from season planning to audience engagement, is political. After a summer that began with the Dobbs decision throwing personal rights into question, we’re gathering today to hear how fellow LMDA members are engaging in the political process this season, from calling voters to working the polls to even running for office.

Speakers:

Martha Wade Steketee (she/her/hers) is a dramaturg, critic, and researcher. Chair of the Drama Desk nominating committee, member of Henry Hewes Design Award committee, past chair of the American Theatre Critics Association, lead author of the Women Count report series analyzing gender in hiring trends off Broadway, and proud member of the Dramaturging the Phoenix planning team. Website: urbanexcavations.com

Danielle Feder (she/her) is a dramaturg, producer, writer, and arts administrator based in NYC. Her background spans theatre, non-profit communications, and political organizing. In the arts, she has worked for organizations including Signature Theatre, Premiere Stages, The Interval, Theatre Communications Group, Noor Theatre, and more. All of her work is driven by a passion for amplifying the voices of underrepresented communities across all forms of media and storytelling. Danielle has an MFA in Dramaturgy from Columbia University and a BA in Dramatic Literature from NYU. Twitter @danielle_feder.

Beginning in 2003, Peterson Toscano raised public awareness about the harm that comes from seeking gay conversion therapy. He did this through one-person performances, media appearances, and community organizing. While today he is known for comic storytelling that addresses climate change, Peterson is also a recognized scholar who has highlighted gender variance in the Bible. He presented Transfigurations–Transgressing Gender in the Bible at academic conferences, seminaries, universities, places of worship, and drag bars. Peterson also creates radio plays and TikTok videos that use comedy to take on social justice issues. He produces podcasts including Bubble&Squeak, Bible Bash, Climate Changed, and Citizens Climate Radio. Read about Peterson’s approach to theatre activism in Queer Climate Performance Art in the Most Unlikely Places (HowlRound). 

Moderator: Liana Irvine (she/they) is joyful, methodical, and faithful as a dramaturg, producer, and collaborator for new/reimagined work. Select dramaturgy credits: Thrive (American Shakespeare Company), Hold These Truths (People’s Light and Theatre Company), and The Chinese Lady (InterAct Theatre Company). Select roles: Friends Committee on National Legislation’s Advocacy Corps Organizer (past), Philadelphia Asian Performing Artists’ Outreach Coordinator (current), and National New Play Network Producer in Residence at InterAct (current).

Association for Theatre in Higher Education (ATHE) is in the front seat to changes in campus culture with respect to COVID, higher education’s diversive and equitable practices, young practitioners’ relationships to American Theatre, and so much more. We invite members: LaRonika Thomas and Jane Barnette, to join and report back their findings in this learning environment that encourages students to grow their practice and asks professors to be lifelong learners. 

• DTP Moderators: Liana Irvine, Heather Helisnky

• DTP Guests:

  • Jane Barnette is an Associate Professor in the Department of Theatre and Dance at the University of Kansas, where she teaches courses in dramaturgy, theatre history, script analysis, and seminars in theatrical adaptation and the performance of gender and sexuality. Her book Adapturgy: The Dramaturg’s Art and Theatrical Adaptation explores the alchemy of dramaturgically-savvy adaptations for the stage. Barnette’s research includes Chicago-based touring theatre at the turn of the twentieth century, American pageantry, and depictions of “witch” characters onstage as well as in popular culture.

  • Karen Jean Martinson, PhD, (she, her, hers) is an Assistant Professor of Dramaturgy in the School of Music, Dance and Theatre in the Herberger Institute for Design and the Arts at Arizona State University. Her scholarly and creative work explores the intersection of contemporary USAmerican performance, consumer culture, neoliberalism, and the processes of identification, interrogating issues of race, class, gender, and sexuality. She also writes and talks (constantly) about dramaturgy and dramaturgical thinking. Her manuscript-in-progress, Make the Dream Real, interrogates worldbuilding through performance by El Vez, The Mexican Elvis. She has published in such journals as The LMDA Review, Theatre Annual, Theatre Topics, and Popular Entertainment Studies. Martinson currently serves as the VP Advocacy for the Literary Managers and Dramaturgs of the American (LMDA) and is active in the Association for Theatre in Higher Education (ATHE), the American Society for Theatre Research (ASTR), and the American Theatre and Drama Society (ATDS).

  • LaRonika Thomas is a Visiting Assistant Professor in the Department of Theatre and Dance at Washington College, where she teaches classes in theatre history and performance studies. She is completing her dissertation, “Civic Dramaturgy: Cultural Space, Artistic Labor, and Performances of Urban Planning in 21st Century Chicago.” She was the Visiting Assistant Professor of Theatre at Loyola University Maryland for the 2017-2018 year and has also taught courses at the University of Maryland, Towson University, Washington College. LaRonika currently serves as the LMDA Liaison for Association for Theatre in Higher Education’s (ATHE) Dramaturgy Focus Group (DRFG). A professional dramaturg, producer, and writer, LaRonika worked in arts education, literary management, and dramaturgy in Chicago and in the Baltimore/DC area before returning to school for her doctorate. More information is available on her website.

La Asociación para el Teatro en la Educación Superior (Association for Theatre in Higher Education – ATHE) está al frente de los cambios en la cultura del campus con respecto a COVID, las prácticas diversificadas y equitativas de la educación superior, las relaciones de jóvenes practicantes con teatro estadounidense y mucho más. Invitamos a nuestrxs miembros LaRonika Thomas y Jane Barnette a acompañarnos y contarnos sobre sus hallazgos en este ambiente de aprendizaje que alienta a estudiantes a incrementar su práctica y les pide a lxs profesorxs ser aprendices toda la vida.

• Moderadorx de DdF: Liana Irvine

Recognized by the Kennedy Center American College Theater Festival for exemplary dramaturgical work on projects at their universities, these early career dramaturgs will introduce and contextualize their projects and consider how their experiences might inform future dramaturgical practice.

• DTP Moderator: Anne G. Morgan

Reconocidxs por el Kennedy Center American College Theater Festival por su ejemplar trabajo  dramaturgístico en proyectos en sus universidades, estxs dramaturgistas de carrera temprana presentarán y contextualizarán sus proyectos y contemplarán cómo sus experiencias podrían darle forma a la práctica dramaturgística futura.

• Moderadorx de DdF: Anne G. Morgan

As a profession, dramaturgs have been (for better or worse) described as “helpers” to the creative team, taking on roles of quiet, sometimes unseen support. Some of us then find ourselves discovering commonalities between dramaturgy and family (personal or found) or professional caregiving. Others among us have absorbed additional stress balancing work and caregiving throughout the pandemic. In a continuation of our Forum on dramaturgy and parenting last year, Dramaturging the Phoenix is giving space to discuss the challenges of balancing dramaturgical practice with caregiving. How do we help create meaningful quality of life? How does one prioritize self-care? And how does one take agency and find support so that we don’t break ourselves? 

Note for this week: Dramaturg David Geary (he/him) will lead us in a grounding exercise and we encourage members to bring paper and colored pens/pencils (or have access to another way to create a quick bit of art) if possible.

• DTP Moderators: Russell M. Dembin (he/him) and Heather Helinsky (she/her)

Speakers:

David Geary (he/him) is of Taranaki Māori and Pākehā blood. He grew up immersed in the Polynesian trickster tales of Māui in Aotearoa/New Zealand, and is now honoured to live on the lands of the Coyote and Raven tricksters of Turtle Island/Canada. He is a playwright, screenwriter, dramaturg, fiction writer, and poet. He teaches screenwriting in the Indigenous Digital Filmmaking program at Capilano University, and playwriting for PTC Playwrights Theatre Centre in Vancouver, Canada. Art was one of David’s favourite classes at high school, but he quit while he was ahead when he got 51% in a final exam. Fast forward 25 years, David was lucky to take Graphic Forms with Sarah Leavitt (Tangles; Agnes, Murderess) as part of his MFA at UBC, where he was introduced to the genius of Lynda Barry (Picture This, What It Is) and has been drawing stories and doodling ever since.

Eva Daníčková (pronunciation: [e-vah dan-itsh-ko-vah]; she/her) is a Czech/British dramaturg, theatre translator and academic. After her training as a nurse in the Czech Republic and the UK, Eva worked in the National Health Service in the UK for over 20 years whilst pursuing her studies in drama and working freelance as a dramaturg, translator of plays, and occasional director. Eva is one week away from her PhD viva and her future interests are in Values Based Clinical Practice, particularly examining language(s) in healthcare settings, and bringing together the worlds of science and art she has occupied all her life.

Jenna Rodgers (she/her) is a mixed-race dramaturg and theatre director who gratefully resides on land called Moh’kins’tsis (Calgary), on Treaty 7 Territory in Alberta. She is the founding Artistic Director of Chromatic Theatre, the dramaturg for the Playwrights Lab at the Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity, the co-Board Chair of Literary Managers and Dramaturgs of the Americas (LMDA), and the director of Theatre Alberta. She is a graduate of the National Theatre School’s Artistic Leadership Residency (2020), of the Banff Centre’s Cultural Leadership Program (2019), and a member of the artEquity National Facilitator Training cohort (2018). She holds an MA in International Performance Research from the University of Amsterdam, in the Netherlands, and Tampere University, in Finland.

Yasmin Zacaria Mikhaiel (she/they) is a dramaturg, journalist, and oral historian with roots in and around Chicago. As a queer, fat, brown femme, they endeavor to amplify and archive stories that go lost/stolen/forgotten. Their dramaturgy centers care work and facilitating brave spaces for ensemble-made theatre and performance. Their writing and research explores possibility models for a more inclusive and sustainable theatre culture and industry. Mikhaiel holds a M.A. in Performance as Public Practice from The University of Texas at Austin and a B.F.A. in Dramaturgy/Criticism from DePaul University. They serve on committees for the Literary Managers and Dramaturgs of the Americas and the Association for Theatre in Higher Education. They have also served as a Guest Respondent for the Kennedy Center College American Theater Festival (R3 Journalism, R5 Dramaturgy). Mikhaiel is the Chicago Reader’s Audience Engagement Manager and teaches at The Theatre School at DePaul University. Follow them on Twitter @yasminzacaria (dramaturgically it tracks).

Como profesión, lxs dramaturgistas han sido (para bien o para mal) descritxs como “ayudantes” para el equipo creativo, tomando roles de apoyo silencioso y a veces no visto. Algunxs de nosotrxs entonces nos encontramos descubriendo puntos en común entre el dramaturgismo y la familia (personal o encontrada) o lxs cuidadores profesionales. Otrxs entre nosotrxs hemos absorbido estrés adicional equilibrando trabajo con cuidados a lo largo de la pandemia. En una continuación de nuestro foro sobre Dramaturgismo y Cuidado Parental del año pasado, Dramaturgistas del Fénix está abriendo un espacio para discutir los retos de equilibrar la práctica dramaturgística con ofrecer cuidados. ¿Cómo ayudamos a crear calidad de vida significativa? ¿Cómo prioriza unx el autocuidado? ¿Y cómo toma unx agencia y encuentra apoyo para no quebrarnos nosotrxs mismxs? 

Nota para esta semana: El dramaturgista David Geary (él) nos guiará en un ejercicio para “aterrizar” e invitamos a nuestrxs miembros a traer papel y lápices o plumas de colores (o que tengan acceso a otra manera de crear un poco de arte) si es posible.

• Moderadorxs DdF: Russell M. Dembin (él) y Heather Helinsky (ella)

Invitadxs:

David Geary (él) es de sangre Taranaki Māori y Pākehā. Creció inmerso en los cuentos pícaros polinesios de Māui en Aotearoa/Nueva Zelanda y ahora tiene el honor de vivir en las tierras de los pícaros Coyote y Raven de Turtle Island/Canadá. Es dramaturgo, guionista, dramaturgista, escritor de ficción y poeta. Enseña guionismo en el programa Indigenous Digital Filmmaking en la Universidad de Capilano y dramaturgia para PTC Playwrights Theatre Centre en Vancouver, Canadá. Arte fue una de las clases favoritas de David en secundaria, pero desertó mientras iba adelantado cuando sacó 51% en un examen final. 25 años después, David tuvo la suerte de tomar Graphic Forms con Sarah Leavitt (Tangles; Agnes, Murderess) como parte de su maestría en la UBC, donde conoció el genio de Lynda Barry (Picture This, What It Is) y ha estado dibujando historias y haciendo doodles desde entonces.

Eva Daníčková (pronunciación: [e-vah dan-itsh-ko-vah]; ella) es una dramaturgista checa-británica, traductora teatral y académica. Después de su entrenamiento como enfermera en la República Checa y el Reino Unido, Eva trabajó en el Servicio Nacional de Salud en el Reino Unido por más de 20 años mientras perseguía sus estudios en drama y trabajaba de manera independiente como dramaturgista, traductora de obras y ocasionalmente como directora. Eva está a una semana de obtener su PhD y sus futuros intereses están en las Prácticas Clínicas Basadas en Valores, particularmente en examinar lenguaje(s) en contextos de cuidado de salud y en reunir los mundos de la ciencia y el arte que ha ocupado toda su vida.

Jenna Rodgers (ella) es una dramaturgista y directora de teatro mestiza que agradece vivir en una tierra llamada Moh’kins’tsis (Calgary), en el Territorio del Tratado 7 en Alberta. Es la Directora Artística Fundadora de Chromatic Theatre, la dramaturgista del Playwrights Lab en el Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity, la Co-Directora del Consejo de Literary Managers and Dramaturgs of the Americas (LMDA) y la directora de Theatre Alberta. Es egresada de la Residencia National Theatre School’s Artistic Leadership (2020), del Programa de Liderazgo Cultural del Banff Centre (2019) y miembro de artEquity National Facilitator Training cohort (2018). Tiene una maestría en International Performance Research de la Universidad de Amsterdam, en Países Bajos y la Tampere University en Finlandia.

Yasmin Zacaria Mikhaiel (ella/ellxs) es dramaturgista, periodista e historiadora oral con raíces en y alrededor de Chicago. Como mujer queer, obesa, morena, se esfuerza por ampliar y archivar historias que se pierden/son robadas/olvidan. Su dramaturgismo pone al centro el trabajo de cuidado y la facilitación de espacios de valentía para teatro y performance hechos por ensambles. Su escritura e investigación explora modelos de posibilidades para una cultura e industria teatrales más inclusivas y sostenibles. Mikhaiel tiene una maestría en Performance as Public Practice de la Universidad de Texas en Austin y una licenciatura en Dramaturgy/Criticism de la Universidad de DePaul. Colabora en comités para Literary Managers and Dramaturgs of the Americas y la Association for Theatre in Higher Education. También ha colaborado como Guest Respondent para el Kennedy Center College American Theater Festival (R3 Journalism, R5 Dramaturgy). Mikhaiel es la Directora de Involucramiento del Público de Chicago Reader’s y enseña en la Facultad de Teatro de la Universidad de DePaul. Síguela en Twitter @yasminzacaria (dramaturgically it tracks).

In response to the conversations the LMDA community has been having about pay equity, in this next Phoenix Forum we’ll hear two case studies from organizations that have worked to address pay equity: foolsFURY Ensemble and Bearded Ladies Cabaret. Our panelists will share the conversations and values that led to structural change, what lessons were learned from the work, and what goals and thoughts around pay equity are driving the companies’ next steps into the present and future.

• DTP Moderators: Heather Helinsky (she/her), Playwrights Foundation & Deanie Vallone (she/her), Milwaukee Repertory Theater

Sally Ollove (she/her) is a Philadelphia and Seattle based dramaturg and director. She is the Associate Artistic Director and Resident Dramaturg of the Bearded Ladies Cabaret in Philadelphia. Formerly the Literary Manager at Arden Theatre Company, Resident Dramaturg of Azuka Theatre, and the Programming Director of The Jewelbox Theater at the Rendezvous in Seattle. Other credits include an upcoming project with Pig Iron Theatre, TheatreExile, Philadelphia Theatre Company, and The Foundry (Philadelphia), ACT (Seattle), One Coast Collaboration, Book-It Theater, and Frank Boyd & Libby King (On the Boards) among others. She has served as adjunct faculty at Rowan University, University of the Arts and Intiman Theater’s Emerging Artist program. Sally is a 2016 recipient of the LMDA Bly Creative Capacity Fellowship.

Pamela Hollings (she/her) was the Board Chair (2013-2021), as well as an ensemble member (2018-2022) of foolsFURY Theater and the former Artistic Managing Director of Soup Kitchen Theatre, Melbourne, Australia. She was the dramaturg for foolsFURY on (dis)Place[d] by Debórah Eliezer and Dionysus Was Such a Nice Man by Kate Tarker and has participated in development processes with foolsFURY as an actor, director and dramaturg. She is the Literary Director / Resident Dramaturg at 3Girls Theatre where she directs the Salon Series for emerging women playwrights over 40. She trained in Theatre Direction at Australia’s National Institute of Dramatic Art (NIDA) whose distinguished alums include Cate Blanchett, Judy Davis, Baz Luhrmann and many more. She has studied Nature Awareness and Relational Education through Weaving Earth and is the Managing Artistic Director and a teacher with the Yat / Bentley Centre for Performance. She has strong interests in group process, peacemaking, ritual and storytelling in all its forms.

En respuesta a las conversaciones que la comunidad de LMDA ha estado teniendo sobre pago equitativo, en este siguiente foro de Fénix escucharemos dos casos de estudio de organizaciones que que han trabajado para abordar la equidad salarial: foolsFURY Ensemble y Bearded Ladies Cabaret. Nuestrxs panelistas compartirán las conversaciones y valores que condujeron al cambio estructural, qué lecciones fueron aprendidas del trabajo y qué objetivos y pensamientos alrededor de la equidad salarial están conduciendo los siguientes pasos de las compañías al presente y futuro.

• Moderadorxs Fénix: Heather Helinsky (ella), Playwrights Foundation y Deanie Vallone (ella), Milwaukee Repertory Theater

Sally Ollove es una dramaturgista y directora que vive en Filadelfia y Seattle. Es Directora Artística Asociada y Dramaturgista Residente del Cabaret Bearded Ladies en Filadelfia. Previamente fue la Gestora Literaria en la Arden Theatre Company, Dramaturgista Residente de Azuka Theatre y la Directora de Programación de The Jewelbox Theater en el Rendezvous en Seattle. Otros de sus créditos incluyen un próximo proyecto con Pig Iron Theatre, TheatreExile, Philadelphia Theatre Company y The Foundry (Filadelfia), ACT (Seattle), One Coast Collaboration, Book-It Theater y Frank Boyd & Libby King (On the Boards) entre otros. Ha trabajado como adjunta en la Rowan University, University of the Arts y el programa de Artistas Emergentes del Intiman Theater. Sally recibió en 2016 la beca LMDA Bly Creative Capacity Fellowship.

Pamela Hollings (ella) fue la Directora (2013-2021), así como miembro del ensamble (2018-2022) de foolsFURY Theater y la anterior Directora Artística de Soup Kitchen Theatre, Melbourne, Australia. Fue la dramaturgista de foolsFURY para (dis)Place[d] de Debórah Eliezer y Dionysus Was Such a Nice Man de Kate Tarker y ha participado en procesos de desarrollo con foolsFURY como actriz, directora y dramaturgista. Es la Directora Literaria / Dramaturgista Residente en 3Girls Theatre donde dirige el Salon Series para mujeres dramaturgas emergentes de más de 40. Se entrenó en DIrección Teatral en el Australia’s National Institute of Dramatic Art (NIDA) cuyos distinguidxs alumnxs incluyen a Cate Blanchett, Judy Davis, Baz Luhrmann y muchxs otrxs. Ha estudiado Nature Awareness and Relational Education a través de Weaving Earth y es la Directora Artística y maestra con el Yat / Bentley Centre for Performance. Tiene fuertes intereses en los procesos de grupo, el fomento de la paz, el ritual y la narración de historias en todas sus formas.

This Tuesday (4/26) please Zoom at 5pm ET (2pm PT) for a one-hour Dramaturging the Phoenix forum: “Earthly Dramaturgy: Theatremakers Tackling Climate Change”, featuring Kristin Idaszak, moderated by Phoenix planning team members, David Quang Pham and Deanie Vallone. The science states that our planet is exponentially heating up with weather becoming more unpredictable. Besides scientists, it is also up to the artists to save the world! This forum is a reflection on the ways dramaturgs have contributed to environmental stories and initiatives. We will focus also on how LMDA grants have assisted some theatre practitioners in addressing climate change.

Kristin Idaszak (she/they) is a two-time Playwrights’ Center Jerome Fellow and the former Shank Playwriting Fellow at the Goodman Theatre. Idaszak has received commissions from the Goodman, EST/The Sloan Foundation, Cleveland Play House, St. Louis Shakespeare Festival, and TimeLine Theatre. Her play Second Skin received the Kennedy Center’s Paula Vogel Playwriting Award and the Jean Kennedy Smith Playwriting Award, and her play Another Jungle was a Relentless Award Honorable Mention. Idaszak was the Kennedy Center Fellow at the Sundance Theatre Lab. Her work has been seen at or developed through the The Playwrights’ Center, La Jolla Playhouse’s WoW Festival, SPACE at Ryder Farm, Williamstown Theatre Festival’s Directing Studio, Ensemble Studio Theatre, The Drama League, Pasadena Playhouse, Circle X, Rivendell Theatre, Renaissance Theaterworks, and Perishable Theatre, among others. Idaszak’s work has also received support from the Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events. She teaches at The Theatre School at DePaul University, where she is currently the Acting Head of Dramaturgy/Criticism, and Northwestern University. MFA: UC San Diego.

David Quang Pham (he/him) is a scienceturg. His purpose is to guide scientists to the fourth wall and theatre artists to the fourth dimension. Due to youthful trips to operas and space camp, he now writes love letters to science and devises stories from its branches. His notable musicals personifying quantum mechanics, cosmology, and dimensions are respectively: TOUR (2020 DUAF finalist), ELLIPSES (2022 Eugene O’Neill NMTC semifinalist), and PARALLEL UNIVERSITY. After completing an astrophysics and theatre education at Michigan State University, he studied playwriting as the second apprentice of Working Title Playwrights in Atlanta. He is the Literary Fellow alongside Literary Manager Heather Helinsky of Playwrights Foundation, San Francisco. In the inaugural International Dramaturgy Lab, his Constellations team constructed dramaturgical practices grounded in cosmology. He is a critic in Kennedy Center’s BIPOC Critics Lab whose work is published in TheaterMania; a moderator at LMDA; a founding member of CreateTheater and the International Dramaturgy Lab; a member of ΣΠΣ, ASCAP, and the Dramatists Guild. Be up to lightspeed at davidquang.com

Deanie Vallone (she/her) is a writer, dramaturg, and producer living in Wisconsin. She is the Literary Director at Milwaukee Repertory Theater, overseeing the John (Jack) D. Lewis New Play Development Program. With a focus on new work dramaturgy, she is currently working on new plays with Lauren Gunderson, Eleanor Burgess, Idris Goodwin, Ayad Akhtar, Eric Simonson, and others. Previously, she’s worked with Baltimore Center Stage, Asolo Rep, the Kennedy Center/NNPN, Forward Theater, and various WI theater companies. She has served as a panelist or reader for the O’Neill, Great Plains Theatre Conference, the Yale Drama Prize, the Cambridge International Film Festival, and Playwrights Center. Her writing has been published in several journals, including Booth, The Wisconsin Review, Jumeirah Magazine, and The Independent. For the past thirteen years she has volunteered with a local Wisconsin nature center training birds of prey and doing environmental education programming. She received her MA from St. John’s College, University of Cambridge. She is a proud LMDA member and currently serves as the VP of Institutions.

Este martes 26 de abril acompáñennos en Zoom a las 4pm para una sesión de una hora del foro de Dramaturgistas del Fénix (DdF): “Dramaturgismo de la Tierra: Hacedores de teatro tacleando el cambio climático”, presentando a Kristin Idaszak, moderado por lxs miembros del equipo de planeación Fénix: David Quang Pham y Deanie Vallone. La ciencia afirma que nuestro planeta se está sobrecalentando exponencialmente haciendo que el clima se vuelva más impredecible. Además de lxs científicxs, ¡también está en manos de lxs artistas salvar el mundo! Este foro es una reflexión sobre las formas en las que lxs dramaturgistas han contribuido con historias e iniciativas ambientales. También nos enfocaremos en cómo las becas de LMDA han ayudado a practicantes de teatro a abordar el cambio climático.

Kristin Idaszak (ella/ellxs) es dos veces Fellow del Playwrights’ Center Jerome y anterior Fellow de Shank Playwriting en el Goodman Theatre. Idaszak ha recibido comisiones de Goodman, EST/The Sloan Foundation, Cleveland Play House, St. Louis Shakespeare Festival y TimeLine Theatre. Su obra Second Skin recibió el Premio de Dramaturgia Paula Vogel del Kennedy Center y el Premio de Dramaturgia Jean Kennedy Smith y su obra Another Jungle obtuvo una mención honorífica en el Relentless Award. Idaszak fue Fellow del Kennedy Center en el Sundance Theatre Lab. Su trabajo se ha visto en o desarrollado a través de The Playwrights’ Center, La Jolla Playhouse’s WoW Festival, SPACE at Ryder Farm, Williamstown Theatre Festival’s Directing Studio, Ensemble Studio Theatre, The Drama League, Pasadena Playhouse, Circle X, Rivendell Theatre, Renaissance Theaterworks y Perishable Theatre, entre otros. El trabajo de Idaszak también ha recibido apoyo del Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events. Enseña en The Theatre School en la Universidad DePaul, donde es actualmente la Jefa Interina de Dramaturgismo/Crítica y en la Universidad Northwestern. Hizo una maestría en Bellas Artes en la UC San Diego.

David Quang Pham (él) es un dramaturgista de la ciencia. Su propósito es guiar a científicos a la cuarta pared y a artistas teatrales a la cuarta dimensión. Gracias a viajes juveniles a campamentos espaciales y óperas, ahora escribe cartas de amor a la ciencia y diseña historias desde sus ramas. Sus más conocidos musicales que personifican a la mecánica cuántica, a la cosmología y a las dimensiones son respectivamente: TOUR (finalista 2020 de DUAF), ELLIPSES (2020-2021 Working Title Playwrights) y PARALLEL UNIVERSITY. Después de terminar su educación en astrofísica y teatro en la Universidad del estado de Michigan, estudió dramaturgia como el segundo aprendiz de Working Title Playwrights (WTP) en Atlanta. Es Fellow literario junto con la asesora literaria Heather Helinsky de la Playwrights Foundation en San Francisco. En el Laboratorio Internacional de Dramaturgismo inaugural (International Dramaturgy Lab), su equipo Constellations construyó prácticas dramaturgísticas basadas en cosmología. Es miembro fundador de CreateTheater y miembro de ΣΠΣ, ASCAP y el Gremio de Dramaturgxs (Dramatists Guild). davidquang.com

Deanie Vallone (ella) es una escritora, dramaturgista y productora que vive en Wisconsin. Es la Directora Literaria del Milwaukee Repertory Theater, quien supervisa el Programa John (Jack) D. Lewis New Play Development Program. Con un enfoque en dramaturgismo de nuevas obras, está actualmente trabajando en obras nuevas con Lauren Gunderson, Eleanor Burgess, Idris Goodwin, Ayad Akhtar, Eric Simonson y otros. Previamente, ha trabajado con el Baltimore Center Stage, Asolo Rep, el Kennedy Center/NNPN, Forward Theater y varias compañías de teatro de Wisconsin. Ha trabajado como panelista o ponente para el O’Neill, Great Plains Theatre Conference, el Yale Drama Prize, el Cambridge International Film Festival y el Playwrights Center. Su escritura ha sido publicada en varias diarios, incluyendo Booth, The Wisconsin Review, Jumeirah Magazine y The Independent. Por los últimos trece años, ha sido voluntaria en un centro natural local de Wisconsin entrenando aves de presa y haciendo programación de educación ambiental. Recibió su maestría de St. John’s College, de la Universidad de Cambridge. Es una orgullosa miembro de LMDA y actualmente colabora como la VP de Instituciones. 

Centering the recent events flooding our social media streams, populating our news apps, replaying on our broadcast stations, and those not shown to us—LMDA is holding space for processing difficult realities. With Bart Pitchford, Devika Ranjan, and Matthew MacKenzie, we will explore the impact of conflict on artists and vice versa. In understanding how artists serve ourselves, one another, and our societies, we can search for a place within this moment.

Bart Pitchford (he/him) is an Assistant Professor of Theatre History and Directing at the University of Montevallo. His PhD is in Performance as Public Practice from the University of Texas at Austin. Bart’s dissertation, Hela L’ Wein: Performing Nationalisms, Citizenship, and Belonging in Displaced Syrian Communities, examines the intersection of theatre and citizenship identity formation with displaced Syrians in Jordan. His scholarly work currently focuses on tracing the paths of Syrian diasporic theatre artists. Bart spent six years as an enlisted soldier in the U.S. Army as a Psychological Operations Sergeant including deployments to Iraq, Yemen, and Pakistan.

Devika Ranjan (she/her) is a theatre-maker, ethnographer, and educator who tells stories about migration. Devika specializes in devised immersive performance about issues of social justice and has facilitated workshops with refugees and migrants internationally. Her work has been commended by the Duchess of Sussex, Meghan Markle, for critical storytelling about immigrants worldwide. As Resident Director at Albany Park Theater Project, Devika works with immigrant and first-generation teens to create ethnographic immersive theater about community issues like family separation, housing insecurity, and deportation. Devika also teaches at the intersection of migration, performance studies, and cross-cultural practice. As a Marshall Scholar alumna, Devika holds a distinction from the University of Cambridge for her MPhil research on the electronic tagging of asylum-seekers, and an MA in Applied Theatre from the Royal Central School of Speech and Drama.

Canadian playwright Matthew MacKenzie (Métis; pronouns: he/him) is Artistic Director of Punctuate! Theatre, as well as the founder and an Artistic Associate with Pyretic Productions. In 2018, his play Bears won Toronto Dora Awards for Outstanding New Play and Outstanding Production, was named a co-winner of the Toronto Theatre Critics Outstanding New Canadian Play Award, and won the Playwright Guild of Canada’s Carol Bolt National Playwriting Award. In 2019, Punctuate! premiered Matt’s play After the Fire, which was nominated for an Outstanding New Play Dora, as well as The Particulars, which was named one of the top ten productions of the year by The Globe and Mail.

With our hindsight on 2020, LMDA’s DtP invited members to look back on their experiences of challenge and transformation to imagine ways in which our art form will emerge from this crisis. 2021 COVID-19 continued to impact our work, our play, our homes, our whole lives – did the beginning of return to “before” feel… soon(ish)? Which assumptions and habits will we be free to leave behind? How do theatre artists lead as essential workers? Now as we are in the calendar year, 2022, we look back at us looking back in 2021, looking at 2020.

Moderators: Liana Irvine

Guest Panelists:

David Copelin‘s produced plays include A Clean Breast, The Angel Capone, Bella Donna, Coming Up for Air, Mind Over Matter, That Other Thing, and a popular translation of Ubu Roi. A graduate of Columbia and Yale, David has been a resident dramaturg at the Mark Taper Forum, Arena Stage, New Dramatists, and the Oregon Shakespeare Festival. He has also taught playwriting at several universities in the U.S. and Canada. David’s current projects include A Skeleton for Susan, a surreal comedy, and Quicksand, a political play. David is a member of the Dramatists Guild of America, the Playwrights Guild of Canada, and LMDA. A dual citizen of the U.S. and Canada, David lives in Warwick, New York. He is represented by Michael Petrasek at Kensington Literary in Toronto. “I need to write more, and whine less.”

Fly Jamerson (they/them) is a playwright and dramaturg based in Nebraska. Their play Frozen Fluid: An Antarctic Gender Non-Conforming Creation Myth was a semi-finalist for the O’Neill and the Bay Area Playwrights Festival, as well as a finalist for new play initiatives at Kitchen Dog Theater and Unicorn Theatre. Fly’s current project in development, Hot Money: A Zoological Quest for Immortality in the Madagascar Vanilla Boom, was originally supported by a New Now Commission from Lauren Gunderson with additional support provided by the Network of Ensemble Theatres and Great Plains Theatre Commons in Omaha, where they are a resident playwright with The Commoners. Fly is also currently developing Tillage! A Revue of Anthropogenic Environmental Disasters at the Gates of the Lost City of Atlantis, an experimental submersive performance about the environmental and socioeconomic impacts of industrial agriculture across the globe, in residency at BlueBarn Theatre in Omaha. Their play, The Future of Fire was recently commissioned by Butterfly Effect Theatre of Colorado (BETC) and will premiere and tour as a part of their Air Water Fire Earth Science Shorts Program in 2022. Fly is a member of LMDA and The Dramatists Guild, and they have an MFA from the University of Arizona. For more info visit www.flyjamerson.com or check out their work on NPX: https://newplayexchange.org/users/4648/fly-jamerson

Samantha Baird (she/her/hers) is an award-winning director who has experience in nearly every area that theatre has to offer, but her favorite role is raising one sweet little girl. She has a BA degree in Theatre Arts Studies from Brigham Young University where she focused her studies on directing and dramaturgy and she is expected to graduate from Southern Utah University with her MA in Arts Administration this summer. Her passions are advocating for human rights and celebrating new works. When she’s not working on a theatre project she’s probably searching for her next one or watching Gilmore Girls.

Con nuestra retrospectiva de 2020, DdF de LMDA invitó a sus miembros a mirar hacia atrás a sus experiencias de reto y transformación e imaginar formas en que nuestro arte emerja de esta crisis, cambiado para bien. En 2021, COVID-19 siguió impactando nuestro trabajo, nuestras obras, nuestros hogares y nuestras vidas enteras. ¿El inicio del retorno a “lo anterior” se sintió “pronto”? ¿Qué suposiciones y hábitos seremos libres de dejar atrás? ¿Cómo guían lxs artistas teatrales como trabajadorxs esenciales? Ahora, conforme avanzamos en un nuevo año, 2022, miramos hacia atrás y nos vemos a nosotrxs mirando atrás en 2021, mirando al 2020.

Moderadorx: Liana Irvine

Panelistas invitadxs:

David Copelin ha producido obras que incluyen A Clean Breast, The Angel Capone, Bella Donna, Coming Up for Air, Mind Over Matter, That Other Thing y una popular traducción de Ubu Roi. Egresadx de Columbia y Yale, David ha sido dramaturgista residente en Mark Taper Forum, Arena Stage, New Dramatists y el Oregon Shakespeare Festival. También ha enseñado dramaturgia en varias universidades en EU y Canadá. Los proyectos más recientes de David incluyen A Skeleton for Susan, una comedia surreal, y Quicksand, una obra política. David es miembro de Dramatists Guild of America, el Playwrights Guild de Canadá y LMDA. Como ciudadanx dual de EU y Canadá, David vive en Warwick, Nueva York. Es representadx por Michael Petrasek en Kensington Literary en Toronto. “Necesito escribir más y quejarme menos.”

Fly Jamerson (ellxs) es dramaturgx y dramaturgista que vive en Nebraska. Su obra Frozen Fluid: An Antarctic Gender Non-Conforming Creation Myth fue semi-finalista del O’Neill and the Bay Area Playwrights Festival, así como finalista de las iniciativas de nuevas obras en Kitchen Dog Theater y Unicorn Theatre. El actual proyecto en desarrollo de Fly, Hot Money: A Zoological Quest for Immortality in the Madagascar Vanilla Boom, fue originalmente apoyado por una New Now Commission de Lauren Gunderson con apoyo adicional provisto por la Network of Ensemble Theatres and Great Plains Theatre Commons en Omaha, donde es dramaturgx residente con The Commoners. Fly también está actualmente desarrollando Tillage! A Revue of Anthropogenic Environmental Disasters at the Gates of the Lost City of Atlantis, una escenificación experimental inmersiva sobre los impactos ambientales y socioeconómicos de la agricultura industrial alrededor del mundo, en residencia en el BlueBarn Theatre en Omaha. Su obra, The Future of Fire fue recientemente comisionada por el Butterfly Effect Theatre of Colorado (BETC) y estrenará y hará una gira como parte de su programa Air Water Fire Earth Science Shorts Program en 2022. Fly es miembro de LMDA y The Dramatists Guild y tiene una maestría por parte de la Universidad de Arizona. Para conocer más información, visita www.flyjamerson.com o ve su trabajo en NPX: https://newplayexchange.org/users/4648/fly-jamerson

Samantha Baird (ella) es una directora premiada que tiene experiencia en casi cada área que el teatro tiene para ofrecer, pero su papel favorito es criar a una dulce pequeña. Tiene una licenciatura en Estudios Teatrales por parte de Brigham Young University en donde enfocó sus estudios en dirección y dramaturgismo y se espera que se gradúe de la Southern Utah University con maestría en Administración de Artes este verano. Sus pasiones son promover los derechos humanos y celebrar las nuevas obras. Cuando no está trabajando en proyectos de teatro, probablemente está buscando el siguiente o viendo “Gilmore Girls”.

In this worksharing from Institutional Dramaturgs, we will hear reporting from what they were in the midst of when the Omicron variant surged at the end of 2021. What are the dramaturgical challenges when once again, productions are paused? How are dramaturgs rising to meet the moment? What are useful discoveries for institutions moving forward, especially in this moment when changes are necessary? This session shares with membership some lessons learned from this recent Omicron variant surge. 

We also hope to inspire other members to take a moment to write for our ongoing archive of dramaturgical contributions as we experience the twists and turns throughout the pandemic. 

Guest Panelists:

Moderators: Deanie Vallone (Milwaukee Rep) and Heather Helinsky (Playwrights Foundation)

Neena Arndt is the resident dramaturg at the Goodman, where she has worked in various capacities in the artistic department since 2008. She has experience at multiple regional theatres and holds an MFA in dramaturgy from the A.R.T./MXAT Institute for Advanced Theatre Training at Harvard University.

Kamilah Bush is a dramaturg, playwright, and educator originally from North Carolina. She holds a B.F.A. in Theater Education from UNC-Greensboro. Currently, she is the Literary Manager at Portland Center Stage in Oregon before which she spent several seasons at Two River Theater in Red Bank, NJ, Asolo Repertory Theater in Sarasota, FL, and Triad Stage in Greensboro, NC.

En esta ocasión para compartir el trabajo de dramaturgistas institucionales, nos contarán sobre lo que estaban haciendo cuando surgió la variante Ómicron a finales de 2021. ¿Cuáles son los retos dramaturgísticos cuando, nuevamente, las producciones están en pausa? ¿Cómo están sobreponiéndose lxs dramaturgistas para enfrentar el momento? ¿Cuáles son descubrimientos útiles para las instituciones que están avanzando, especialmente en este momento, en que los cambios son necesarios? Esta sesión comparte con la membresía algunas lecciones aprendidas durante el surgimiento de la reciente variante Ómicron. 

También esperamos inspirar a otrxs miembros a tomarse un momento para escribir algo para nuestro archivo en construcción de contribuciones dramaturgísticas mientras experimentamos los giros y vueltas a lo largo de la pandemia. 

Panelistas invitadxs:

Moderadorxs: Deanie Vallone (Milwaukee Rep) y Heather Helinsky (Playwrights Foundation)

Neena Arndt es dramaturgista residente en Goodman, donde ha trabajado en diferentes puestos en el departamento artístico desde 2008. Tiene experiencia en múltiples teatros regionales y tiene una maestría en dramaturgismo por parte de A.R.T./MXAT Institute for Advanced Theatre Training en la Universidad de Harvard.

Kamilah Bush es dramaturgista, dramaturga y educadora originaria de Carolina del Norte. Tiene una licenciatura en Bellas Artes en Educación teatral por parte de la UNC-Greensboro. Actualmente, es asesora literaria en el Portland Center Stage en Oregon y antes de eso pasó varias temporadas en el Two River Theater en Red Bank, Nueva Jersey, Asolo Repertory Theater en Sarasota, Florida y Triad Stage en Greensboro, Carolina del Norte.

Inspired by Dramaturging the Phoenix over this past year, Mark Bly and Lynde Rosario have come together in conversation around the many non-theatre spaces we find dramaturgy and are excited to open that conversation up to the larger group. Have an “I Spy Dramaturgy” moment as they share findings —spanning from the Nautilus Magazine archives about Einstein’s life and friendship with “Physics Dramaturg” Michele Besso to Peru’s history of Spanish Conquistadors altering their Incan agricultural narrative over generations to daily practices of Observation-Analysis-Response.

Inspiradxs en las actividades de Dramaturgistas del Fénix a lo largo del año pasado, Mark Bly y Lynde Rosario se han unido en una conversación sobre los muchos espacios no teatrales en los que encontramos dramaturgismo y están emocionadxs por abrir la conversación al grupo. Ven a un momento de descubrimientos al estilo “I Spy Dramaturgy” mientras ellxs comparten sus hallazgos – desde los archivos de la revista Nautilus Magazine sobre la vida de Einstein y su amistad con el “dramaturgista de la física” Michele Besso a la historia de Perú en la que los conquistadores españoles alteraron su narrativa agrícola inca por generaciones y hasta prácticas diarias de Observación-Análisis-Respuesta.

Please join us for “Theater Publishing & Licensing” featuring Amy Rose Marsh, currently the Vice President, Acquisitions and Artistic Development (North America) for Concord Theatricals. She previously served as Literary Manager and then Literary Director for Samuel French. As the Literary Director, she was responsible for expanding relationships with other professional licensors, and developed deep knowledge of contemporary and classic American dramatists. “My work at Samuel French has been guided by a strong passion toward new-play advocacy and a belief that theatre is a medium to share diverse experiences,” Marsh said in a statement.

She received her Associate of Arts and Sciences in Theater at Whatcom Community College and her Bachelor of Arts in Theater at University of Washington.

Este martes (25 de enero) por favor acompáñennos por Zoom a las 4pm para una sesión de una hora del foro de Dramaturgistas del Fénix: “Publicaciones teatrales y licencias”, presentando a Amy Rose Marsh, la actual Vice Presidente, encargada de Adquisiciones y Desarrollo Artístico (Norteamérica) en Concord Theatricals. Anteriormente, colaboró como Asesora Literaria y luego como Directora Literaria para Samuel French. Como Directora Literaria, fue responsable de expandir relaciones con otrxs licenciantes profesionales y desarrolló un profundo conocimiento de dramaturgxs estadounidenses contemporáneos y clásicos. “Mi trabajo en Samuel French ha sido guiado por una fuerte pasión por la promoción de nuevas obras y una creencia de que el teatro es un medio para compartir diversas experiencias”, dijo Marsh en una entrevista.

Recibió sus títulos de licenciatura como Asociada en Artes y Ciencias del Teatro en la Universidad de la Comunidad de Whatcom y su licenciatura en Artes en Teatro en la Universidad de Washington.

In response to the conversations the LMDA community has been having about equitable pay, this next Phoenix Forum will end 2021 with a transparent conversation about new models. As we all aim to restructure producing theatre with less reliance on underpaid and unpaid positions, DTP will present case studies of new models that have already transitioned to forward-thinking policies and will share out some lessons learned, as well as speakers who are pushing for necessary changes.

• Featured speaker: Sally Ollove from Bearded Ladies Cabaret 

• Moderators: The DtP team

Sally Ollove is a Philadelphia and Seattle based dramaturg and director. She is the Associate Artistic Director and Resident Dramaturg of the Bearded Ladies Cabaret in Philadelphia. Formerly the Literary Manager at Arden Theatre Company, Resident Dramaturg of Azuka Theatre, and the Programming Director of The Jewelbox Theater at the Rendezvous in Seattle. Other credits include an upcoming project with Pig Iron Theatre, TheatreExile, Philadelphia Theatre Company, and The Foundry (Philadelphia), ACT (Seattle), One Coast Collaboration, Book-It Theater, and Frank Boyd & Libby King (On the Boards) among others. She has served as adjunct faculty at Rowan University, University of the Arts and Intiman Theater’s Emerging Artist program. Sally is a 2016 recipient of the LMDA Bly Creative Capacity Fellowship.

During this session the Dramaturging the Phoenix Team will also take some time to check in with LMDA members and share out what’s next for DtP in the New Year! 

En respuesta a las conversaciones que la comunidad de LMDA ha estado teniendo sobre pago equitativo, este siguiente foro de Fénix terminará el 2021 con una conversación transparente acerca de nuevos modelos. Debido a que todxs buscamos reestructurar la producción del teatro confiando menos en posiciones mal pagadas o no remuneradas, DdF presentará estudios de casos de nuevos modelos que ya han hecho la transición a políticas con visión a futuro y compartirá algunas lecciones aprendidas, así como a panelistas que están ejerciendo presión por lograr los cambios necesarios.

• Panelista invitada: Sally Ollove de Bearded Ladies Cabaret

• Moderadorxs: el equipo de DdF

Sally Ollove es una dramaturgista y directora que vive en Filadelfia y Seattle. Es Directora Artística Asociada y Dramaturgista Residente del Cabaret Bearded Ladies en Filadelfia. Previamente fue la Gestora Literaria en la Arden Theatre Company, Dramaturgista Residente de Azuka Theatre y la Directora de Programación de The Jewelbox Theater en el Rendezvous en Seattle. Otros de sus créditos incluyen un próximo proyecto con Pig Iron Theatre, TheatreExile, Philadelphia Theatre Company y The Foundry (Filadelfia), ACT (Seattle), One Coast Collaboration, Book-It Theater y Frank Boyd & Libby King (On the Boards) entre otros. Ha trabajado como adjunta en la Rowan University, University of the Arts y el programa Intiman Theater’s Emerging Artist. Sally recibió en 2016 la beca LMDA Bly Creative Capacity Fellowship.

¡Durante esta sesión, el equipo de Dramaturgistas del Fénix también tomará un momento para platicar con lxs miembros de LMDA y compartir lo que sigue para DdF el año que entra!

Featuring Hazel Venzon, Emma Tibaldo, and Joanna Garfinkel, moderated by Phoenix planning team members, Liana Irvine and David Quang Pham. Theatres everywhere have been propelled by the technological advances in presentation within the past two years. DTP is discussing Canada’s Digital Dramaturgy Initiative, dramaturgs’ roles within it, the outcomes of the initiative, and the future it could have.

Panelists:

Hazel Verzon is a multi-faceted theatre artist based in Winnipeg, Manitoba. Her practise is influenced by relational-art aesthetics and community engaged performance practice as a vehicle to conduct immersive, intercultural experiences within live theatre and performance.

Venzon’s diverse experience as a writer, director, dramaturg, producer and actress has greatly influenced her work with storytellers of all types. As a dramaturg, she is currently working with three Winnipeg-based storytellers: Primrose Madayag Knazan on Precipice, Ellen Peterson on Down Cant River and Filipino Drag-duo Bahay Perlas on Debut – through a creative process that will encourage them to maximize risk and seek new boundaries. She was recently the Dramaturg in Residence at the Manitoba Association of Playwrights (2020-2021).

Hazel is the Founder of U ‘N I Together (UNIT) Productions that supports the evolution of Filipino-Canadian storytellers through 1:1 mentorship, consultation, dramaturgy and producing support. 

Emma Tibaldo held the position of Artistic and Executive director for the national new creation centre Playwrights’ Workshop Montreal (PWM), where she dramaturgically collaborated on numerous plays, including Jabber by Marcus Youssef, Squawk by Megan Coles, Instant by Erin Shields, Refuge by Mary Vingoe, Okinum by Emilie Monnet, and Behaviour by Darrah Teitel.

In 2005, she co-founded Talisman Theatre for whom she directed the award-winning productions That Woman by Daniel Danis, Down Dangerous Passes Road by Michel Marc Bouchard, and The Medea Effect by Suzie Bastien. She has been a guest artist at NTS and Concordia University.

Most recently she co-created Skin, a new digital performance piece with the interdisciplinary company The Bakery, directed a digital staged reading of Behaviour by Darrah Teitel, co-directed the audio play The Ringtone by Audrey Dwyer in April.

Emma is a graduate of Concordia University’s Theatre Department and the National Theatre School of Canada’s Directing Program. She feeds her inner (and outer) punk rocker by playing in the family band The Tibaldos. 

Joanna Garfinkel lives and works on the the unceded and traditional territory of the xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam), səlil̓wətaɁɬ (Tsleil-Waututh) and Sḵwx̱wú7mesh Úxwumixw (Squamish Nation). She is grateful, as granddaughter of refugees, to have the opportunity to work in the community, on this land. She is the co-founder of collectively and socially-driven play development company Universal Limited and the co-creator, with Yoshié Bancroft, of JAPANESE PROBLEM, a site-responsive piece about the Japanese Canadian Incarceration, which has been performed Vancouver, at Soulpepper in Toronto, and elsewhere. Co-created and directed the pedicab adventure Tour for HIVE 3, Victoria (Theatre SKAM), and Toronto (SummerWorks). Recent dramaturgical credits include Berlin: The Last Cabaret (PuSh), Poly Queer Love Ballad, (Theatre Passe Murailles), and MX (Cultch). Joanna has been nominated for 3 Jessie awards, winning one (Critics Choice for Innovation); Pure Research grant (Nightswimming Theatre), and has received the Sydney Risk award for directing. MFA directing (UBC). Her focus is in new play development, multidisciplinary, and site-specific work; she also has trained with Anne Bogart and the SITI Company in New York. Upcoming: Catalina La O Presenta: Ahora Conmigo, and development of To the Sea. She is the Dramaturg, Creative Engagement, at PTC.

Moderators:

Liana Irvine joyously advocates for new work and faithfully emboldens the left-behind because theater manifests dreamworlds. Liana explores how dramatic habitats affect their theatrical worlds — and in turn, how theatre affects our ecosystems. She/they is passionate about empathetic interrogation, big-swing-aesthetics, and artists as second responders after her training as a Speak Up Ally and outreach with incarcerated-persons. Liana works as a freelance artist (dramaturg, producer, literary manager); Philadelphia Asian Performing Artists’s Outreach Coordinator and Associate Producer; and Friends Committee on National Legislation’s Advocacy Corps Organizer for Environmental Justice. 

David Quang Pham (he/him) is a scienceturg. His purpose is to guide scientists to the fourth wall and theatre artists to the fourth dimension. Due to youthful trips to operas and space camp, he now writes love letters to science and devises stories from its branches. His notable musicals personifying quantum mechanics, cosmology, and dimensions are respectively: TOUR (2020 DUAF finalist), ELLIPSES (2020-2021 Working Title Playwrights), and PARALLEL UNIVERSITY. After completing an astrophysics and theatre education at Michigan State University, he studied playwriting as the second apprentice of Working Title Playwrights in Atlanta. He is the Literary Fellow alongside Literary Manager Heather Helinsky of Playwrights Foundation, San Francisco. In the inaugural International Dramaturgy Lab, his Constellations team constructed dramaturgical practices grounded in cosmology. He is a founding member of CreateTheater; a member of ΣΠΣ, ASCAP, and the Dramatists Guild.

Presentando a Hazel Venzon, Emma Tibaldo y Joanna Garfinkel, moderado por lxs miembros del equipo de planeación Fénix: Liana Irvine y David Quang Pham. Los teatros en todas partes han sido propulsados por los avances tecnológicos en las presentaciones durante los últimos dos años. DdF discutirá la Iniciativa de Dramaturgismo Digital de Canadá, los roles de lxs dramaturgistas dentro de él, los resultados de la iniciativa y el futuro que podría tener.

Panelistas:

Hazel Verzon es artista teatral multi-facética que vive en Winnipeg, Manitoba. Su práctica está influenciada por la estética del arte relacional y la práctica performativa que involucra a la comunidad como un vehículo para conducir experiencias interculturales inmersivas dentro del teatro y el performance en vivo.

La diversa experiencia de Venzon como escritora, directora, dramaturgista, productora y actriz ha influenciado enormemente su trabajo con narradores de todo tipo. Como dramaturgista, actualmente trabaja con narradores que viven en Winnipeg: Primrose Madayag Knazan en Precipice, Ellen Peterson en Down Cant River y el duo drag filipino Bahay Perlas en Debut – a través de un proceso creativo que lxs alentará a maximizar el riesgo y buscar nuevas fronteras. Recientemente, fue Dramaturgista Residente en la Asociación Manitoba de Dramaturgxs (2020-2021).

Hazel es la fundadora de Producciones U ‘N I Together (UNIT) que apoya la evolución de narradores filipino-canadienses a través de mentorías uno a uno, consultoría, dramaturgismo y apoyo en producción. 

Emma Tibaldo tuvo la posición de Directora Artística y Ejecutiva para el centro nacional de nuevas creaciones Playwrights’ Workshop Montreal (PWM), en el que colaboró como dramaturgista en numerosas obras, incluyendo Jabber de Marcus Youssef, Squawk de Megan Coles, Instant de Erin Shields, Refuge de Mary Vingoe, Okinum de Emilie Monnet y Behaviour de Darrah Teitel.

En 2005, co-fundó el Talisman Theatre para quien dirigió las producciones premiadas That Woman de Daniel Danis, Down Dangerous Passes Road de Michel Marc Bouchard y The Medea Effect de Suzie Bastien. Ha sido artista invitada en NTS y la Universidad Concordia.

Más recientemente, co-creó Skin, una nueva pieza performativa digital con la compañía interdisciplinaria The Bakery, dirigió una lectura dramatizada digital de Behaviour de Darrah Teitel, co-dirigió la audio obra The Ringtone de Audrey Dwyer en abril.

Emma es egresada del Departamento de Teatro de la Universidad de Concordia y del Programa de Dirección de Canadá de la Escuela Nacional de Teatro. Alimenta a su rockera punk interna (y externa) tocando en la banda familiar los Tibaldos.

Joanna Garfinkel vive y trabaja en el territorio no cedido y tradicional de los xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam), səlil̓wətaɁɬ (Tsleil-Waututh) y Sḵwx̱wú7mesh Úxwumixw (Squamish Nation). Está agradecida, como nieta de refugiados, de tener la oportunidad de trabajar en la comunidad, en esta tierra. Es la co-fundadora de la compañía de desarrollo de nuevas obras Universal Limited, colectiva y socialmente dirigida, y la co-creadora, con Yoshié Bancroft, de JAPANESE PROBLEM, una pieza “site-responsive” (adaptada al sitio) sobre el encarcelamiento japonés-canadiense, que ha sucedido en Vancouver, en Soulpepper en Toronto y en otros lugares. Co-creó y dirigió el Tour aventura de bicitaxi para HIVE 3, Victoria (Theatre SKAM) y Toronto (SummerWorks). Entre sus más recientes créditos como dramaturgista están Berlin: The Last Cabaret (PuSh), Poly Queer Love Ballad, (Theatre Passe Murailles) y MX (Cultch). Joanna ha sido nominada para 3 premios Jessie, de los cuales ganó uno (Critics Choice for Innovation); la beca Pure Research (Nightswimming Theatre) y ha recibido el premio Sydney Risk de dirección. Tiene una maestría en dirección por la UBC. Se enfoca en desarrollo de obras nuevas y en trabajo multidisciplinario y de sitio específico; también ha entrenado con Anne Bogart y la SITI Company en Nueva York. Próximamente, Catalina La O Presenta: Ahora Conmigo y el desarrollo de To the Sea. Es la Dramaturgista y Responsable de Involucramiento Creativo en Playwrights Theatre Center.

Moderadora: Liana Irvine felizmente promueve las nuevas obras y con fe anima a lxs rezagadxs porque el teatro manifiesta mundos de ensueño. Liana explora cómo los ecosistemas dramáticos afectan sus mundos teatrales – y a la vez cómo el teatro afecta nuestros ecosistemas. Ella/ellx es apasionadx del cuestionamiento empático, la estética nueva o estética big-swing (big-swing-aesthetics) y lxs artistas como trabajadores de apoyo (second responders) después de su entrenamiento como Aliadx Que Alza La Voz (Speak Up Ally) y su contacto con personas encarceladas. Liana trabaja como artista independiente (freelance) (dramaturgista, productora, gestora literaria); es Coordinadorx de Divulgación y Productora Asociada de Philadelphia Asian Performing Artists y miembro del Friends Committee en National Legislation’s Advocacy Corps Organizer for Environmental Justice.

Moderador: David Quang Pham (él) es un dramaturgista de la ciencia. Gracias a viajes juveniles a campamentos espaciales y óperas, ahora escribe cartas de amor a la ciencia y diseña historias desde sus ramas. Después de terminar su educación en astrofísica y teatro en la Universidad del estado de Michigan, estudió una mentoría en Working Title Playwrights (WTP) en Atlanta. Janelle Lawrence es su mentora. Su ópera subatómica, TOUR, es finalista del Festival Downtown Urban Arts 2020. Su mitología cósmica épica, ELLIPSES, es protagonizada por Singularity y sus adolescentes Galaxies y sigue su búsqueda para deshacer el Big Bang, después de que su perro Gravity lo desencadena. Este musical familiar fue desarrollado en talleres anuales con WTP junto con la dramaturgista Jordan Alexandria Ealey. Las canciones serán presentadas en la Universidad Durban de Tecnología en octubre de 2021. En el Laboratorio Internacional de Dramaturgismo inaugural (International Dramaturgy Lab), su equipo Constellations construyó prácticas dramaturgísticas basadas en cosmología. Es miembro fundador de CreateTheater y miembro de ΣΠΣ, ASCAP y el Gremio de Dramaturgxs (Dramatists Guild).

Featuring Candace Amarante and Alix Rosenfeld, and moderated by Phoenix planning team members Anne G. Morgan and Russell M. Dembin, this panel focuses on dramaturgs as creative writers—of poetry, fiction, screenplays, children’s books, nonfiction, and beyond. How does one dramaturg their own work? What does dramaturgy look like applied to other art forms? And what can we learn from other writing media to bring back to our work in the theatre world?

Candace Amarante, Ph.D. (she/her), writes plays, short stories, children’s books, and food articles. Her most recent works include a play on children’s rights, The Ugly Ones (with Chelsea Woolley; Staged Reading Geordie Theatre Fest 2020), and a play for young audiences, You, Me and Victor Hugo!, on the concept of censorship (Artist Mentorship Program at the Black Theatre Workshop 2018-19). Recently, she published a short story, “Us Wards,” in the literary journal International Human Rights Art Festival Publishes (2021). Her creative work for children includes: a children’s book, The Dream Machine (in collaboration with Dr. Argerie Tsimicalis and Shriners Hospitals for Children-Canada; Tellwell Publishers, forthcoming); a poem, “The Sky Smiles at Me,” (featured in My Goodnight Bag-LEARN Quebec 2021); a short story, “The Blunder Family: Now where’d I put the pork?” (East of the Web 2020); a picture book, The Pheasant’s Tale or … was it its Tail? (Green Bamboo Publishing 2017); and two iBooks, How Little Pump became Big Jack and Tundra’s Moon Bunnies (Edition Patatronik 2015 and 2016). She is also a freelance food writer with articles featured in Apulia Magazine, Panoram Italia, VitaBella Magazine, and Eater Montreal. Candace holds a doctorate in political science from Columbia University in the City of New York. She has lived in Tokyo, Freetown, Nairobi, Salerno, Turin, and several places in the US. Currently, she resides in Montreal, where she is a member of the Board of Directors of the Canadian Coalition for the Rights of Children. (https://sites.google.com/site/candaceamarante/)

Alix Rosenfeld (she/her) is a multi-hyphenate theatre artist specializing in dramaturgy, playwriting, and performance; a writer; and a nonprofit administrator. She is a contributing writer to American Theatre, HuffPost, The Flashpaper, HowlRound, and Broad Street Review, and is currently a student in the MFA in Creative Writing program at Antioch University. Rosenfeld serves as the Philadelphia Metro Regional VP for the Literary Managers and Dramaturgs of the Americas, is a staff member of Theatre Horizon, and is a Senior Lecturer in Dramaturgy for the University of the Arts. www.alixrosenfeldwriter.com

Moderator: Anne G. Morgan (she/her) is a dramaturg, literary manager and new play advocate. She currently serves as Programs Director for the National New Play Network and is Board Co-Chair for Literary Managers and Dramaturgs of the Americas. Anne works regularly with the Playwright’s Lab at Hollins University, Great Plains Theatre Conference, the Playwrights Realm, and more. Anne received the 2019 Elliott Hayes Award for Outstanding Achievement in Dramaturgy for her work on Shakespeare’s New Contemporaries, the American Shakespeare Center’s groundbreaking new play initiative. From 2012 – 2017, Anne was the Literary Manager & Dramaturg at the Eugene O’Neill Theatre Center.

Moderator: Russell M. Dembin (he/him) is an editor, writer, educator, and dramaturg whose work is grounded in anti-racism; anti-oppression; accessibility; and equity, diversity, and inclusion. Russ has held a number of editorial positions, most recently serving as managing editor of American Theatre magazine and AmericanTheatre.org, and he is a freelance book copy editor and proofreader, a co-chair of LMDA’s Anti-Racism Task Force, and a steering committee member of the American Theatre Archive Project. He holds a Ph.D. in Performance as Public Practice from the University of Texas at Austin and an M.A. in Theater History and Criticism from Brooklyn College.

Presentando a Candace Amarante y Alix Rosenfeld y moderado por lxs miembros del equipo de planeación Fénix Anne G. Morgan y Russell M. Dembin, este panel se enfoca en lxs dramaturgistas como escritorxs creativxs—de poesía, ficción, guiones, libros para niñxs, literatura no ficticia y más. ¿Cómo hace unx su propia labor dramaturgista? ¿Cómo se ve aplicada a otras formas de arte? ¿Y qué más podemos aprender de otros medios escritos para traer de vuelta a nuestro trabajo en el mundo del teatro?

Candace Amarante, Ph.D. (ella), escribe obras, cuentos cortos, libros para niñxs y artículos de comida. Su trabajo más reciente incluye una obra sobre los derechos de lxs niñxs, The Ugly Ones (con Chelsea Woolley; Staged Reading Geordie Theatre Fest 2020), y una obra para jóvenes audiencias, You, Me and Victor Hugo!, sobre el concepto de la censura (Programa Artist Mentorship en el Taller Black Theatre 2018-19). Recientemente, publicó una historia corta, “Us Wards,” en el periódico literario International Human Rights Art Festival Publishes (2021). Su trabajo creativo para niñxs incluye: un libro para niñxs, The Dream Machine (en colaboración con Dr. Argerie Tsimicalis y los Hospitales Shriners for Children-Canada; Tellwell Publishers, próximamente); un poema, “The Sky Smiles at Me,” (presentado en My Goodnight Bag-LEARN Quebec 2021); un cuento corto, “The Blunder Family: Now where’d I put the pork?” (East of the Web 2020); un libro de fotografías, The Pheasant’s Tale or … was it its Tail? (Green Bamboo Publishing 2017) y dos iBooks, How Little Pump became Big Jack y Tundra’s Moon Bunnies (Edición Patatronik 2015 y 2016). También es escritora de comida independiente con artículos presentados en Apulia Magazine, Panoram Italia, VitaBella Magazine e Eater Montreal. Candace tiene un doctorado en ciencia política de la Universidad de Columbia en la Ciudad de Nueva York. Ha vivido en Tokio, Freetown, Nairobi, Salerno, Turín y varios lugares en EU. Actualmente, vive en Montreal, donde es miembro del Board of Directors of the Canadian Coalition for the Rights of Children. (https://sites.google.com/site/candaceamarante/)

Alix Rosenfeld (ella) es una artista teatral “multi-hyphenate” especializada en dramaturgismo, dramaturgia y actuación, escritora y administradora sin fines de lucro. Es una escritora contribuyente para American Theatre, HuffPost, The Flashpaper, HowlRound y Broad Street Review, y actualmente es estudiante del programa de la maestría en Escritura Creativa en la Universidad de Antioquía. Rosenfeld trabaja como VP Regional de Philadelphia Metro para Literary Managers and Dramaturgs of the Americas, es miembro del staff de Theatre Horizon y es Profesora Titular en Dramaturgismo por la University of the Arts. www.alixrosenfeldwriter.com

Moderadora: Anne G. Morgan (ella) es dramaturgista, gestora literaria y promotora de nuevas obras. Actualmente, trabaja como Directora de programas para la National New Play Network y es Co Directora de Literary Managers and Dramaturgs of the Americas. Anne trabaja regularmente con Playwright’s Lab en la Universidad de Hollins, Great Plains Theatre Conference, Playwrights Realm y más. Anne recibió el Elliott Hayes Award 2019 por Desempeño Sobresaliente en Dramaturgismo (Outstanding Achievement in Dramaturgy) por su trabajo sobre Nuevos Contemporáneos de Shakespeare (Shakespeare’s New Contemporaries), la revolucionaria iniciativa de obras nuevas del American Shakespeare Center. De 2012 a 2017, Anne fue la Gestora Literaria y Dramaturgista del Eugene O’Neill Theatre Center.

Moderador: Russell M. Dembin (él) es editor, escritor, educador y dramaturgista cuyo trabajo está basado en el anti-racismo, la anti-opresión, la accesibilidad y equidad, diversidad e inclusión. Russ ha trabajado en diferentes puestos editoriales, más recientemente como editor gerente de la revista American Theatre y AmericanTheatre.org, es editor y corrector independiente de libros, un co-director de Anti-Racism Task Force de LMDA, miembro del comité director del American Theatre Archive Project. Tiene un doctorado en Representación como práctica pública de la Universidad de Texas en Austin y una maestría en Historia del teatro y Crítica de la Universidad de Brooklyn.

Dramaturging the Phoenix for a thousand, Mayim? With LMDA’s new #ispydramaturgy project, recently featured in American Theatre’s article “A Dramaturg on ‘Jeopardy’ and a Dream Come True”, members of LMDA’s Advocacy committee will be sharing the origins of the project. With this new initiative, there’s energy to engage with dramaturgs, friends, hyphenates, and “-adjacents,” about what we can do to lift up the acts of dramaturgy we see all around us. What are all the ways and opportunities to introduce approaches to the discipline in a university setting? How can students & faculty with varying proximity to dramaturgy in “the real world”, lift up acts of dramaturgy, not just in the world of theatre but outside it? This panel is about how much joy there is in naming acts of dramaturgy with so many reasons to publicly spot dramaturgy wherever we can find it. 

Speakers: Shelley Graham, Liana Irvine, Karen Jean Martinson

• Shelley Graham is a mother of four, teacher, storyteller, and dramaturg with degrees in theatre education and theatre history, theory, and criticism. She has worked as a dramaturg and education director for several institutions, including Gainesville State College Oconee, Pioneer Theatre Company, American West Heritage Center, and Utah Lyric Opera. She was the resident dramaturg at the Covey Center for the Arts in Provo, Utah for nearly a decade before taking her current position as adjunct faculty and Dramaturgy Supervisor at Brigham Young University. She serves as the performing arts chair for the Mormon Arts Foundation, as Dramaturgy Chair for Region 8 of the Kennedy Center American College Theatre Festival, and as a member of the LMDA advocacy committee.
• Liana Irvine works as a freelance dramaturg and as Philadelphia Asian Performing Artists’s Outreach Coordinator. She/they is passionate about socio economic justice, big-swing-aesthetics, and artists as second responders. With an intimacy-driven lens, Liana explores how dramatic ecosystems affect their theatrical worlds, and in turn, how theatre affects “real” worlds as a new works advocate.
• Karen Jean Martinson, PhD, (she, her, hers) is an Assistant Professor of Dramaturgy in the School of Music, Dance and Theatre in the Herberger Institute for Design and the Arts at Arizona State University. Her scholarly and creative work explores the intersection of contemporary USAmerican performance, consumer culture, neoliberalism, and the processes of identification, interrogating issues of race, class, gender, and sexuality. She also writes and talks (constantly) about dramaturgy and dramaturgical thinking. Her manuscript-in-progress, Make the Dream Real, dissects the performances of El Vez, The Mexican Elvis. She has published in such journals as The LMDA Review, Theatre Annual, Theatre Topics, and Popular Entertainment Studies. Martinson currently serves as the VP Advocacy for the Literary Managers and Dramaturgs of the American (LMDA) and is active in the Association for Theatre in Higher Education (ATHE), the American Society for Theatre Research (ASTR), and the American Theatre and Drama Society (ATDS). 

Dramaturging the Phoenix for a thousand, Mayim? Con el nuevo proyecto de LMDA #ispydramaturgy, recientemente presentado en el artículo de American Theatre “A Dramaturg on ‘Jeopardy’ and a Dream Come True” (“Una dramaturgista en Jeopardy y un sueño vuelto realidad”), miembros del comité de Promoción de LMDA compartirán los orígenes del proyecto. Con esta nueva iniciativa, hay energía para involucrarnos con dramaturgistas, amigxs, “similares y conexos” respecto a lo que podemos hacer para realzar los actos dramaturgistas que vemos a nuestro alrededor. ¿Cuáles son todas las formas y oportunidades para presentar acercamientos a la disciplina en un contexto universitario? ¿Cómo pueden estudiantes y miembros de facultades con una variable proximidad al dramaturgismo en “el mundo real”, realzar actos dramaturgistas, no sólo en el mundo del teatro sino fuera de él? Este panel es acerca de cuánta alegría hay en nombrar actos dramaturgistas con tantas razones para identificar dramaturgismo públicamente donde sea que podamos encontrarlo.

Presentadorxs: Shelley Graham, Liana Irvine, Karen Jean Martinson

• Shelley Graham es madre de cuatro, maestra, narradora y dramaturgista con grados en educación teatral e historia teatral, teoría y crítica. Ha trabajado como dramaturgista y directora educativa para varias instituciones, incluyendo Gainesville State College Oconee, Pioneer Theatre Company, American West Heritage Center y Utah Lyric Opera. Fue la dramaturgista residente en Covey Center for the Arts en Provo, Utah por casi una década antes de tomar su posición actual como profesora adjunta y supervisora de dramaturgismo en la Universidad Young de Brigham. Trabaja como directora de artes escénicas de la Mormon Arts Foundation, como directora de dramaturgismo para la región 8 del Kennedy Center American College Theatre Festival y como miembro del comité de Defensa y Visibilización de LMDA.
• Liana Irvine trabaja como dramaturgista independiente y como Coordinadorx de Divulgación de Philadelphia Asian Performing Artists. Es apasionadx de la justicia socio económica, la estética nueva o estética big-swing (big-swing-aesthetics) y lxs artistas como trabajadores de apoyo (second responders). Con un enfoque centrado en la intimidad, Liana explora cómo los ecosistemas dramáticos afectan sus mundos teatrales y a la vez cómo el teatro afecta mundos “reales” como promotora de nuevas obras.
• Karen Jean Martinson, PhD, (ella) es profesora asistente de dramaturgismo en la Facultad de Música, Danza y Teatro en el Instituto Herberger de Diseño y Artes en la Universidad Estatal de Arizona. Su trabajo académico y creativo explora la intersección de las representaciones contemporáneas estadounidenses, la cultura de consumo, el neoliberalismo y los procesos de identificación, cuestionando asuntos de raza, clase, género y sexualidad. También escribe y habla (constantemente) sobre dramaturgismo y pensamiento dramaturgístico. Su manuscrito en proceso, Make the Dream Real, disecta la representación de El Vez, el Elvis mexicano. Ha publicado en periódicos como The LMDA Review, Theatre Annual, Theatre Topics y Popular Entertainment Studies. Martinson actualmente trabaja como la VP de Promoción para Literary Managers and Dramaturgs of the Americas (LMDA) y es activa en la Association for Theatre in Higher Education (ATHE), la American Society for Theatre Research (ASTR) y la American Theatre and Drama Society (ATDS). 

Please join us for a one-hour Dramaturging the Phoenix forum “Horrorturgy” that feature panelists sharing their playwriting and dramaturgical tips & tricks for working with plays about ghosts, monsters, demons, and all things Halloween. 

PANELISTS:

• M Sloth Levine (they/them) is a trans theatremaker who directs, writes plays, and designs in Brooklyn, NY. Recent work has been seen at University of Massachusetts Amherst, Sparkhaven Theatre, Trans Theatre Ensemble, Company One, SpeakEasy Stage Company, Fresh Ink Theatre, Brown Box Theatre Project, and Milky Way Coffee Roasters. They have been involved with the Gender Explosion Initiative with StageSource, advocating for gender diversity in New England theatre. They are a proud alumnus of the Company One PlayLab Unit. Sloth’s work often involves the fantastic, spooky, and queer. In 2016 they received a BA in Theatre Studies: Directing & Playwriting from Emerson College.
• Emma Goldman-Sherman (she/they) is a neurodiverse, genderfluid playwright and dramaturg who believes in the power of theatre to confer healing and agency on audiences. Produced on 4 continents, their work includes “Counting in Sha’ab” (produced by Golden Thread and at PlayingOnAir.org) and Abraham’s Daughters (now a podcast on TheParsnipShip.com). Emma’s work has been a finalist at BAPF, Unicorn (3x), Risk is This at Cutting Ball (3x), Campfire, Bechdel Test Festival, and Henley Rose. Emma earned an MFA from University of Iowa where they received a Norman Felton Award, the Richard Maibaum Award for Plays Addressing Social Justice and Perfect Women received the Jane Chambers Award in the student division from ATHE. Emma received residencies at Millay Colony, Ragdale and twice at WordBridge where they also worked as a dramaturg. Emma ran the WriteNow Workshop for new play development for 6 years in NYC. In 2019 online, Emma created and runs www.BraveSpace.online to support writers of all kinds. Member: Dramatists Guild, Honor Roll, and Literary Managers and Dramaturgs of the Americas. Their plays are available at Next Stage Press, Smith Scripts (UK), Applause, Smith & Kraus, and on newplayexchange.org. 
• Alexander Pine (they/them) Alexander Pine’s first play, “Immortality Crisis” was one of the top 20 candidates for the American Playwriting Foundation’s 2018 Relentless Award. Additionally, the play was a 2019 Finalist for Benchmark Theatre’s Fever Dream Fest, Semi-Finalist in the 2020 BAPF, and a 2018 O’Neill Playwrights Conference Semi-Finalist. The playwright has worked as a suicide hotline volunteer for over 3.5 years, he has been a SAG commercial actor for over a decade, and has a B.A. in writing television from Columbia College Chicago. He hopes to create meaningful genre work utilizing diverse characters for mainstream theater audiences. He works in private practice as an LMFT in Los Feliz, CA. His latest full-length horror/comedy, “The (Other)” can be found on NPX and APmaterial.com.

MODERATORS:

Finn Lefevre (they/them) is a dramaturg and facilitator whose work focuses on trans and queer communities. They currently serve as a lecturer at the University of Massachusetts Department of Theater and have previously taught in the Theater Department at Keene State College and the Department of Ethnic and Gender Studies at Westfield State University. They facilitate applied theatre workshops on identity, naming, microaggressions, and community healing.  www.finnlefevre.com

Liana Irvine works as a freelance dramaturg and as Philadelphia Asian Performing Artists’s Outreach Coordinator. She/they is passionate about socio economic justice, big-swing-aesthetics, and artists as second responders. With an intimacy-driven lens, Liana explores how dramatic ecosystems affect their theatrical worlds, and in turn, how theatre affects “real” worlds as a new works advocate.

Este martes (26 de octubre), acompáñennos por Zoom a las 4pm CT para el foro de una hora de Dramaturgistas del Fénix: “Horrorturgy”, Dramaturgismo del terror, que presentará a panelistas que compartirán sus tips y trucos dramatúrgicos y dramaturgísticos para trabajar en obras sobre fantasmas, monstruos, demonios y toda clase de cosas de Halloween.

PANELISTAS:

• M Sloth Levine (ellxs) es teatrista trans que dirige, escribe obras y diseña en Brooklyn, NY. Su trabajo más reciente ha sido en la Universidad de Massachusetts Amherst, el Teatro Sparkhaven, Trans Theatre Ensemble, Company One, SpeakEasy Stage Company, Fresh Ink Theatre, Brown Box Theatre Project y Milky Way Coffee Roasters. Ha estado involucradx en la Iniciativa Gender Explosion con StageSource, abogando por la diversidad de género en el teatro de Nueva Inglaterra. Es orgullosx estudiante de Company One PlayLab Unit. El trabajo de Sloth frecuentemente implica lo fantástico, lo escalofriante y lo queer. En 2016, recibió su título de licenciatura en Estudios Teatrales: Dirección y Dramaturgia en la Universidad Emerson.
• Emma Goldman-Sherman (ella/ellxs) es dramaturgx neurodiversx y de género fluido que cree en el poder del teatro para conferir curación y agencia al público. Producido en 4 continentes, su trabajo incluye “Counting in Sha’ab” (producida por Golden Thread y en PlayingOnAir.org) y Abraham’s Daughters (ahora un podcast en TheParsnipShip.com). El trabajo de Emma ha sido finalista en BAPF, Unicorn (3x), Risk is This at Cutting Ball (3x), Campfire, Bechdel Test y Henley Rose. Emma obtuvo una maestría por parte de la Universidad de Iowa donde recibió el Premio Norman Felton, el Premio Richard Maibaum para obras que abordan la justicia social y Perfect Women recibió el Premio Jane Chambers en la división estudiantil de ATHE. Emma hizo residencias en Millay Colony, Ragdale y dos veces en WordBridge donde también trabajó como dramaturgista. Emma condujo el Taller WriteNow para desarrollo de obras nuevas por 6 años en la Ciudad de Nueva York. En 2019 online, Emma creó y conduce www.BraveSpace.online para apoyar a escritores de todo tipo. Es miembro de: Dramatists Guild, Honor Roll y Literary Managers and Dramaturgs of the Americas. Sus obras están disponibles en Next Stage Press, Smith Scripts (UK), Applause, Smith & Kraus y en newplayexchange.org. 
• Alexander Pine (ellxs) la primera obra de Alexander Pine “Immortality Crisis” fue una de las candidatas top 20 al Premio Relentless de la American Playwriting Foundation en 2018. Además, la obra fue Finalista en el Benchmark Theatre’s Fever Dream Fest en 2019, Semi-Finalista en el BAPF 2020 y Semi-Finalista en O’Neill Playwrights Conference en 2018. Como dramaturgx, ha trabajado como voluntarix en una línea directa de suicidio por más de tres años y medio, ha sido actor comercial de SAG por más de una década y tiene una licenciatura en escritura de televisión por parte de la Universidad de Columbia de Chicago. Espera crear trabajo significativo en género utilizando diversos personajes para públicos de teatro mainstream. Trabaja en práctica privada como LMFT (terapeuta familiar y de pareja licenciado) en Los Feliz, CA. Su última comedia/horror larga, “The (Other)” se encuentra en NPX y APmaterial.com.

MODERADORXS:

• Finn Lefevre (ellxs) dramaturgista y facilitador cuyo trabajo se enfoca en comunidades trans y queer. Actualmente, trabaja como profesor en el Departamento de Teatro de la Universidad de Massachusetts y previamente ha enseñado en el Departamento de Teatro de la Universidad Estatal de Keeney y en el Departamento de Estudios Étnicos y de Género en la Universidad Estatal de Westfield. Facilita talleres de teatro aplicado sobre identidad, nombrar, microagresiones y sanación comunitaria. www.finnlefevre.com
• Liana Irvine trabaja como dramaturgista independiente y como Coordinadorx de Divulgación de Philadelphia Asian Performing Artists. Es apasionadx de la justicia socio económica, la estética nueva o estética big-swing (big-swing-aesthetics) y lxs artistas como trabajadores de apoyo (second responders). Con un enfoque centrado en la intimidad, Liana explora cómo los ecosistemas dramáticos afectan sus mundos teatrales y a la vez cómo el teatro afecta mundos “reales” como defensora de nuevas obras.

Please join us for a one-hour Dramaturging the Phoenix forum “Fail Forward: Focusing on Action Steps” that will feature commentary from early career dramaturg Shawn Sprankle inspired by his Dramaturging the Phoenix essay “No Resolution, No Rebirth” and break-out conversations with attendees. We will focus on action steps to move our careers into the future while inviting in the next generation of dramaturgy practitioners. The session will be moderated by Phoenix planning team members, Finn Lefevre and Martha Wade Steketee.

Shawn Sprankle (He / Him / His) is a classically trained dancer, dramaturg, historian, and martial artist. He graduated from the State University of New York at Fredonia in 2018 with his BA in History & Theater Arts. Since that time he has continued to serve as the Resident Dramaturg at the university, conducting staged readings and workshops, mentoring student dramaturgs, directors and collaborating on numerous productions such as: Silent Sky, The Grapes of Wrath, Antigone, The Melancholy Play, Noises Off, The 39 Steps, and Daisy Pulls It Off. He has also served as a dramaturg with The Dangerous Summer Arts Collective throughout the pandemic, as well as lending his time to several other dramaturgical projects. He specializes in digital programming, community building, in-depth production dramaturgy, and historical adaptations. He has used the halt in theater over the past year and a half to develop and refine resources and techniques for digital theater programming. For more information on his portfolio and projects you can find him on both Twitter and LinkedIn!

Moderator: Finn LeFevre (they/them) is a Visting Professor of Theater at the University of Massachusetts and founding member of the queer and trans performance collective Queer&Now, currently living in Western Massachusetts. They freelance in many areas with many organizations, with a primary areas of interest in trans and queer performance, applied theater, and new play development. Check out their website.

Moderator: Martha Wade Steketee (she/her/hers) is a freelance dramaturg, editor, researcher, critic and awards adjudicator currently living in New York City. As a theater adjudicator, she was a nominator and voter on Chicago’s Joseph Jefferson Awards and is the current chair of the nominating committee for New York’s Drama Desk Awards covering Broadway and Off Broadway. She works with playwrights, reviews scripts, writes reviews and features, has been LMDA regional representative and Board member, and is the immediate past Chair of the American Theatre Critics Association. Check out her website. 

Este martes 12 de octubre acompáñennos en Zoom a las 4pm CT (2pm PT) para una sesión de una hora del foro de El dramaturgismo del Fénix: “Fail Forward: Focusing on Action Steps”, que presentará comentarios del dramaturgista de carrera temprana Shawn Sprankle inspirados en su ensayo “No Resolution, No Rebirth&rdquo así como conversaciones en diferentes salas con lxs asistentes. Nos enfocaremos en pasos y acciones para hacer avanzar nuestras carreras hacia el futuro mientras invitamos a la siguiente generación de practicantes de dramaturgismo. La sesión será moderada por lxs miembros del equipo de planeación Fénix: Finn Lefevre y Martha Wade Steketee.

Shawn Sprankle (él) es bailarín entrenado en danza clásica, dramaturgista, historiador y artista marcial. Se graduó de la Universidad Estatal de Nueva York en Fredonia en 2018 con una licenciatura en Historia y Artes Teatrales. Desde ese momento, ha seguido trabajando como Dramaturgista Residente en la universidad conduciendo lecturas dramatizadas y talleres, asesorando a estudiantes dramaturgistas y directores como mentor y colaborando en numerosas producciones como: Silent Sky, The Grapes of Wrath, Antigone, The Melancholy Play, Noises Off, The 39 Steps y Daisy Pulls It Off. También ha trabajado como dramaturgista con el Colectivo The Dangerous Summer Arts durante la pandemia y ha dedicado su tiempo a otros varios proyectos dramaturgísticos. Se especializa en programación digital, construcción de comunidad, dramaturgismo de producción a profundidad y adaptaciones históricas. Ha aprovechado la pausa en el teatro este último año y medio para desarrollar y refinar recursos y técnicas para hacer programación de teatro digital. ¡Para ver más información sobre su portafolio y proyectos, puedes encontrarlo tanto en Twitter como en LinkedIn!

Moderadorxs: Finn LeFevre (ellxs) son Profesorxs Visitantes de Teatro en la Universidad de Massachusetts y son miembros fundadorxs del colectivo de performance queer y trans Queer&Now, que actualmente viven en Massachusetts Occidental. Trabajan de manera independiente (freelance) en muchas áreas con muchas organizaciones, con presentaciones trans y queer, teatro aplicado y desarrollo de obras nuevas como principales áreas de interés. Visita su sitio web.

Moderadora: Martha Wade Steketee (ella) es dramaturgista independiente (freelance), editora, investigadora, crítica y jurado de premios que actualmente vive en la Ciudad de Nueva York. Como jurado de teatro, fue nominadora y votante en los Premios Joseph Jefferson de Chicago y es la actual directora del Comité nominador de los Premios Drama Desk de Nueva York que abarcan a Broadway y a Off Broadway. Trabaja con dramaturgxs, revisiones de libretos, revisiones de escritos y presentaciones, ha sido representante regional de LMDA y miembro de la Junta Directiva y es la directora pasada inmediata de la American Theatre Critics Association. Visita su sitio web. 

Please join us for a one-hour Dramaturging the Phoenix forum: “Dramaturging the Phoenix Further Afield,” featuring bruno zamudio, Lenora Inez Brown, and Loren Noveck, moderated by Phoenix planning team members Linda Lombardi and Russell M. Dembin. As we navigate the challenges of the current moment and prepare for the future, how can dramaturgical practice or training inform what people are doing elsewhere, and what lessons can be learned from work in other settings that can be applied to dramaturgy or literary management? In a continuation of a 2020 DTP session, we’ll look at the various applications of dramaturgical skills and sensibilities in careers outside of our theatrical base camp.

bruno zamudio (he/him) graduated from the College of Dramatic Literature and Theater, UNAM. New member of LMDA Mexico. Co-editor of the magazine “Este País.” Actor in the plays Pollito (Hellenic Theater, 2021), Memoria en el asfalto (Theater La Capilla, 2019), Éramos más (Teatro La Capilla, 2019) and dramatized reading Soliloqueando con alguien (La Capilla Theater, 2020). Selected to participate in the Playwriting Jam organized by Teatro UNAM “Trapos y trastos: tu texto es mi texto” (2020). He was a playwright and producer in ENMEDIODELMAR directed by Iozé Peñaloza (El 77 Centro Cultural Autogestivo, 2019-2020). Production assistant in Pollito directed by Micaela Gramajo (Hellenic Theater, 2021), Sepulturas directed by Emma Dib (Teatro Santa Catarina, UNAM, 2019) and in the logistics and dissemination of International Encounter of Clown at the Hellenic Cultural Center (2014-2019). Co-founder with Iozé Peñaloza of the production company “Buitre Amargo, desde la escena.”

Lenora Inez Brown (she/her) is the Senior Fellow with Cleveland Leadership Center (CLC) and the Director of Advanced Leadership Institute: Inspired by Carl and Louis Stokes. She has authored a number of chapters in books including a chapter on Cleveland native Adrienne Kennedy in Bloomsbury/Methuen’s series Decades of Modern American Drama Volume 6: Playwriting in the 1960s. Her two dramaturgy texts are titled New Play Development: Facilitating Creativity for Dramaturgs, Playwrights, and Everyone Else and The Art of Active Dramaturgy: Transforming Critical Thought into Dramatic Action. She is the Vice-Chair-elect for the Women’s Council, the women’s board for the Cleveland Museum of Art. She currently serves on the board for Assembly for the Arts for the renamed arts Cleveland and newly-formed nonprofit arts alliance for Greater Cleveland. She also serves on the Education Advisory Board for the Center for Arts-Inspired Learning, Cleveland’s Young Audiences affiliate, and she is a past president of the Theatre for Young Audiences/USA board and the ASSITEJ 2011 Congress Advisory Committee. She holds a B.A. from Dartmouth College, an MFA in Dramaturgy and Dramatic Criticism from the Yale School of Drama, and an MBA from Cleveland State University, where she received honors and the EMBA John Baker award for leadership, business ethics, and career development.

Loren Noveck (she/her) is a writer, editor, dramaturg, and recovering Off-Off-Broadway producer. For many years, she was the literary manager of Six Figures Theatre Company and its Artists of Tomorrow festival. As a playwright, she co-adapted Moby-Dick into a solo play and the blog Baghdad Burning into the play Girl Blog from Iraq (Culture Project’s Women Center Stage, Dallas Theater Center, Edinburgh Fringe). She is an editor and critic for Exeunt NYC, and has written for The Brooklyn Rail, nytheatre.com, NYTheater now, The Brooklyn Paper, WIT Online, and HowlRound. In her non-theatrical life, she is an associate copy chief at Penguin Random House.

Moderator: Linda Lombardi (she/her) is a director and dramaturg attracted to work that shifts our perspective and broadens our understanding of the world. For her survival job, she is an editor and creative director.

Moderator: Russell M. Dembin (he/him) is an editor, writer, educator, and dramaturg whose work is grounded in anti-racism; anti-oppression; accessibility; and equity, diversity, and inclusion. Russ has held a number of editorial positions, most recently serving as managing editor of American Theatre magazine and AmericanTheatre.org, and he is a freelance book copy editor and proofreader, a co-chair of LMDA’s Anti-Racism Task Force, and a steering committee member of the American Theatre Archive Project. He holds a Ph.D. in Performance as Public Practice from the University of Texas at Austin and an M.A. in Theater History and Criticism from Brooklyn College.

Este martes 28 de septiembre por favor únanse vía Zoom a las 4pm (hora del centro) / 5pm (ET) para una sesión de una hora del foro de El dramaturgismo del fénix: “El dramaturgismo del fénix en otros campos”, presentando a bruno zamudio, Lenora Inez Brown y Loren Noveck, moderada por nuestrxs miembrxs del equipo de planeación Fénix Linda Lombardi y Russell M. Dembin. Mientras navegamos los retos del momento actual y nos preparamos para el futuro, ¿cómo pueden la práctica o el entrenamiento dramaturgísticos dar forma a lo que la gente está haciendo en otros lugares y qué lecciones pueden aprenderse del trabajo en otros contextos que pueda aplicarse al dramaturgismo y a la asesoría o gestión literaria? Como continuación a una sesión de DdF de 2020, abordaremos las varias aplicaciones de las habilidades y sensibilidades dramaturgísticas en carreras fuera del campo teatral. 

bruno zamudio (él) Egresado del Colegio de Literatura Dramática y Teatro de la UNAM. Coeditor de la revista Este País. Miembro de recién ingreso a LMDA México. Actor en las obras Pollito (Teatro Helénico, 2021), Memoria en el asfalto (Teatro La Capilla, 2019), Éramos más (Teatro La Capilla, 2019) y la lectura dramatizada Soliloqueando con alguien (Teatro La Capilla, 2020). Seleccionado para participar en el Jam de dramaturgia convocado por Teatro UNAM “Trapos y trastos: tu texto es mi texto”. (2020). Fue dramaturgista y productor en ENMEDIODELMAR dirigida por Iozé Peñaloza (El 77 Centro Cultural Autogestivo, 2019-2020). Asistente de producción en Pollito dirigida por Micaela Gramajo (Teatro Helénico, 2021), Sepulturas dirigida por Emma Dib (Teatro Santa Catarina, UNAM, 2019) y en la logística y difusión del Encuentro Internacional de Clown en el Centro Cultural Helénico (2014-2019). Cofundó junto a Iozé Peñaloza la compañía productora Buitre Amargo, desde la escena.

Lenora Inez Brown (ella) es la Senior Fellow del Cleveland Leadership Center (CLC) y la Directora del Advanced Leadership Institute, inspirado por Carl y Louis Stokes. Es autora de varios capítulos en libros, incluyendo uno de la nativa de Cleveland Adrienne Kennedy en la serie Decades of Modern American Drama Volume 6: Playwriting in the 1960s de Bloomsbury/Methuen. Sus dos textos dramaturgísticos están titulados Desarrollo de obras nuevas: facilitando creatividad para dramaturgistas, dramaturgxs y todxs lxs demás y El arte del dramaturgismo activo: transformando el pensamiento crítico en acción dramática. Es la vice presidenta electa del Women’s Council, la junta de mujeres del Museo de Arte de Cleveland. Actualmente, trabaja en la junta de la Asamblea para las artes para el renombrado artes Cleveland y la recién formada alianza no lucrativa para las artes para Greater Cleveland. También trabaja en la Junta de Consejo de Educación para el Center for Arts-Inspired Learning, afiliada a Cleveland’s Young Audiences y ex presidenta de la junta de Theatre for Young Audiences/USA y del Comité Asesor del Congreso ASSITEJ 2011. Tiene una licenciatura de Dartmouth College, una maestría en artes en Dramaturgismo y Crítica dramática de la Facultad de Drama de Yale y una maestría de la Universidad del Estado de Cleveland, donde recibió una mención honorífica y el premio EMBA John Baker por liderazgo, ética de negocios y desarrollo de carrera.

Loren Noveck (ella) es escritora, editora, dramaturgista y productora Off-Off-Broadway en recuperación. Por muchos años, fue la gestora literaria de la compañía Six Figures Theatre y de su festival Artists of Tomorrow. Como dramaturga, co-adaptó Moby-Dick a una obra unipersonal y el blog Baghdad Burning a la obra Girl Blog from Iraq (Culture Project’s Women Center Stage, Dallas Theater Center, Edinburgh Fringe). Es editora y crítica para Exeunt NYC y ha escrito para The Brooklyn Rail, nytheatre.com, NYTheater now, The Brooklyn Paper, WIT Online y HowlRound. En su vida no teatral, es jefa asociada de copy en Penguin Random House.

Moderadora: Linda Lombardi (ella) es una directora y dramaturgista atraída por el trabajo que cambia nuestra perspectiva y amplía nuestra comprensión del mundo. Para su empleo de supervivencia, es editora y directora creativa.

Moderador: Russell M. Dembin (él) es editor, escritor, educador y dramaturgista cuyo trabajo está basado en el anti-racismo, la anti-opresión, la accesibilidad y equidad, diversidad e inclusión. Russ ha trabajado en diferentes puestos editoriales, más recientemente como editor gerente de la revista American Theatre y AmericanTheatre.org, es editor y corrector independiente de libros, un co-director de Anti-Racism Task Force de LMDA, miembro del comité director del American Theatre Archive Project. Tiene un doctorado en Representación como práctica pública de la Universidad de Texas en Austin y una maestría en Historia del teatro y Crítica de la Universidad de Brooklyn.

Please join us for a one-hour Dramaturging the Phoenix forum: “Homecoming: Back to the Future”,
featuring Jisun Kim, Percival Hornak, Nate Ferguson, and Jordan Alexandria Ealey, moderated by Phoenix planning
team members, David Quang Pham and Heather Helinsky. As theatres begin announcing 2021-22 seasons, teachers and
students go back to class, and offices begin opening up again, we face a new set of challenges and
questions—things dramaturgs thrive on! Will the experiences of being remote bring us closer together? How
will the anxiety of reopening play out in our interactions? What are the pros and cons we’re starting to
discover in this hybrid way of working? Current grad students from dramaturgy programs at Yale, Iowa, University
of Maryland, and other programs will share case-study style about projects that have thrived, and lessons learned
while pursuing their graduate studies in dramaturgy through the ongoing pandemic.

Jisun Kim (she/her/hers) is an idealist, dramaturg, artist and scholar. She is a fourth-year MFA
candidate in Dramaturgy and Dramatic Criticism at David Geffen School of Drama at Yale University. Her recent
dramaturgy credits include Measure for Measure directed by Alex Keegan, How Black Girls Get Over
Fuckbois, Vol. 1 by Angie Bridgette Jones, The Whale in the Hudson by Brad McKnight Wilson, and
Taking Warsan Shire Out of Context on the Eve of the Great Storm by Christopher Gabriel
Núñez (Yale Cabaret). Jisun and Benjamin Benne, as an art collective, created a non-verbal
puppetry/movement piece benjisun presents bodyssey (Yale Cabaret). Jisun is a former co-artistic director
of Yale Cabaret and a former managing & web editor of Theater magazine (Duke UP). She received her BA
and MA in English Literature from Ewha Woman’s University, South Korea.

Percival Hornak (he/him/they/them) is a dramaturg, playwright, and literary manager who loves
games, ghost stories, and plays about lesbians. They are currently pursuing their MFA in Dramaturgy at UMass
Amherst, focusing specifically on queer and trans theatre and theory. Percy co-produces Dungeons and Drama
Nerds, a podcast exploring the intersection between theatre and tabletop role-playing games. Companies
Percy has worked with include Arena Stage, Princeton University, Andy’s Summer Playhouse, Luna Stage, and
the Theatre Communications Group. He is a proud alum of Albright College. For more info, check out his website at
percivalhornak.com.

Nate Ferguson is based in Chicago, his home, and about to graduate from the Iowa Playwrights
Workshop with an MFA in Dramaturgy and a certificate in Literary Translation. While his focus has previously been
in theatre history and he is looking towards a PhD, his work in Iowa has been deeply focused on editing new plays
in-process and adapting plays for English speaking audiences through translation. Grad school has, honestly, been
a pretty great time for all of this. It was an opportunity to just keep doing theatre at a time when most theaters
have been shut down, and he’d like to thank the IPW faculty for facilitating that.

Jordan Alexandria Ealey (they/she) is a dramaturg, theatre artist, and scholar who divides their
time between Atlanta, GA and the Washington, D.C./Baltimore area. As a dramaturg, Jordan specializes in new play
and musical development; her work has been seen with places such as Synchronicity Theatre, Theatrical Outfit,
Working Title Playwrights, and Hush Harbor Lab. Jordan co-hosts and co-produces Daughters of Lorraine, a
podcast on black theatre from a black feminist perspective, which is supported by HowlRound Theatre Commons. A
proud artist-scholar, Jordan is pursuing a PhD in Theatre and Performance Studies at the University of Maryland,
College Park, where they research black women-authored musicals from the nineteenth century to the present. Jordan
is most passionate about advocating for marginalized theatre artists and hopes to continue to do so in their
career. https://www.jordanealey.com/

Moderator: David Quang Pham (he/him) is a scienturg. Due to youthful trips to operas and space
camp, he now writes love letters to science and devises stories from its branches. After completing an
astrophysics and theatre education at Michigan State, he studied under Working Title Playwrights’
apprenticeship in Atlanta. Janelle Lawrence mentors him. His subatomic opera, TOUR, is a 2020 Downtown
Urban Arts Festival finalist. His epic cosmic mythology, ELLIPSES, stars Singularity and their teenage
Galaxies and follows their quest to undo the Big Bang, after their dog Gravity sets it off. This family musical
developed in yearlong workshops under WTP and alongside dramaturg Jordan Alexandria Ealey. Songs are being
showcased at the Durban University of Technology in October 2021. In the inaugural International Dramaturgy Lab,
his Constellations team constructed dramaturgical practices grounded in cosmology. He is a founding member of
CreateTheater; and a member of ΣΠΣ, ASCAP, and the Dramatists Guild.

Moderator: Heather Helinsky (she/her) is a Philadelphia-based freelance dramaturg currently the
Literary Manager of Playwrights Foundation, as well as the Contest Dramaturg for Jewish Plays Project. For LMDA:
member since 2006, the co-VP of Freelance for LMDA since 2018, and one of the founding members of Dramaturging the
Phoenix. She is beyond grateful for all the freelance dramaturgy adventures she has had between her MFA in
Dramaturgy from A.R.T./Moscow Art Theatre Institute/Harvard in 2007 and this current moment, especially her guest
teaching artist experiences for KCACTF and freelance consultancy with individual playwrights she’s met along
the way. For other credits: her personal website got lost in the fray in March 2020, so until she finds the time
& energy to make a new one, you can find her full bio credits on either the “Find a Dramaturg”
LMDA member page or the New Play Exchange (if she remembers to update it).

Este martes 14 de septiembre acompáñennos en Zoom a las 4pm CT
(2pm PT) para una sesión de una hora del foro de El dramaturgismo del Fénix:
“De regreso a nuestro hogar: volviendo al futuro”, presentando a Jisun
Kim, Percival Hornak, Nate Ferguson y Jordan Alexandria
Ealey, moderado por lxs miembros del equipo de planeación Fénix: David Quang
Pham y Heather Helinsky. Conforme los teatros empiezan a anunciar temporadas 2021-22,
maestrxs y estudiantes vuelven a clases y las oficinas empiezan a abrir de nuevo, enfrentamos un nuevo conjunto de
preguntas y retos – ¡aspectos en los que lxs dramaturgistas prosperamos! La experiencia de estar a
distancia, ¿nos hará acercarnos? ¿Cómo se manifestarán en nuestras
interacciones las ansias por reabrir? ¿Cuáles son los pros y los contras que estamos empezando a
descubrir en esta forma híbrida de trabajar? Estudiantes de dramaturgismo de Yale, Iowa, la Universidad de
Maryland y otros programas nos platicarán, al estilo de estudios de caso, sobre sus proyectos que han
prosperado y las lecciones que aprendieron al tratar de continuar sus estudios en dramaturgismo durante la
pandemia que atravesamos.

Jisun Kim (ella) es una idealista, dramaturgista, artista y académica. Es candidata de
cuarto año a una maestría en artes (MFA) en Dramaturgismo y Crítica Dramática en la
Escuela de Drama David Geffen en la Universidad de Yale. Sus créditos más recientes como
dramaturgista incluyen Medida por medida (Measure for Measure) dirigida por Alex Keegan,
Cómo las chicas negras superan a los Fuckbois Vol. 1 (How Black Girls Get Over Fuckbois, Vol.
1) de Angie Bridgette Jones, La ballena en el Hudson (The Whale in the Hudson) por Brad McKnight
Wilson y Sacando de contexto a Warsan Shire en la víspera de la gran tormenta (Taking Warsan Shire Out
of Context on the Eve of the Great Storm) de Christopher Gabriel Núñez (Yale Cabaret). Jisun
y Benjamin Benne, como un colectivo de arte, crearon una pieza de títeres no verbal/movimiento que benjisun
presenta como “bodyssey” (Yale Cabaret). Jisun fue co-directora artística del Yale Cabaret y
administradora y editora web de la Revista de teatro (Theater magazine) (Duke UP). Recibió sus
títulos de licenciatura y de maestría en Literatura inglesa de la Universidad de Mujeres Ewha (Ewha
Woman’s University) en Corea del Sur. 

Percival Hornak (él/ellxs) es un dramaturgista, dramaturgo y gestor literario a quien le
encantan los juegos, las historias de fantasmas y las obras sobre lesbianas. Actualmente, están trabajando
en su maestría en Dramaturgismo en UMass Amherst, enfocándose específicamente en teatro y
teoría queer y trans. Percy co-produce Nerds de Calabozos y Drama (Dungeons and Drama Nerds), un
podcast que explora la intersección entre el teatro y los juegos de mesa de rol. Algunas
compañías con las que Percy ha trabajado son Arena Stage, la Universidad Princeton, Andy’s
Summer Playhouse, el foro Luna Stage y el Grupo de Comunicaciones Teatrales. Es un orgulloso alumno del Albright
College. Para encontrar más información, visita su sitio web en: percivalhornak.com. 

Nate Ferguson vive en Chicago, su hogar, y está por graduarse del Taller de Dramaturgxs
de Iowa con una maestría en artes (MFA) en Dramaturgismo y un certificado en Traducción literaria.
Aunque previamente su enfoque ha sido en historia teatral y planea estudiar un doctorado, su trabajo en Iowa ha
estado profundamente enfocado en editar obras nuevas en proceso y en adaptar obras para públicos
anglohablantes mediante la traducción. Honestamente, el posgrado ha sido un gran momento para todo esto.
Fue una oportunidad para simplemente seguir haciendo teatro en un momento en el que la mayoría de los
teatros han cerrado y quisiera agradecer a la Facultad de IPW por facilitarlo.

Jordan Alexandria Ealey (ellxs/ella) es una dramaturgista, artista teatral y académica
que divide su tiempo entre Atlanta, GA y el área de Washington, D.C./Baltimore. Como dramaturgista, Jordan
se especializa en desarrollo de obras nuevas y musicales; su trabajo se ha visto en lugares como el teatro
Synchronicity (Synchronicity Theatre), el teatro Theatrical Outfit,
Working Title Playwrights, y el Laboratorio Hush Harbor. Jordan es co-anfitriona y co-productora de Las
hijas de Lorraine (Daughters of
Lorraine), un podcast sobre teatro negro desde una perspectiva negra feminista, que es
apoyada por HowlRound Theatre Commons. Como orgullosa artista académica, Jordan planea estudiar un
doctorado en Teatro y Estudios Teatrales en la Universidad de Maryland, College Park, donde investigan musicales
escritos por mujeres negras del siglo XIX a la fecha. Jordan es una apasionada defensora de artistas teatrales
marginadxs y espera seguir haciéndolo en sus carreras. https://www.jordanealey.com/

Moderador: David Quang Pham (él) es un dramaturgista de la ciencia. Gracias a viajes
juveniles a campamentos espaciales y óperas, ahora escribe cartas de amor a la ciencia y diseña
historias desde sus ramas. Después de terminar su educación en astrofísica y teatro en la
Universidad del estado de Michigan, estudió una mentoría en Working Title Playwrights (WTP) en Atlanta. Janelle Lawrence es
su mentora. Su ópera subatómica, TOUR, es finalista del Festival Downtown Urban Arts 2020. Su
mitología cósmica épica, ELLIPSES, es
protagonizada por Singularity y sus adolescentes Galaxies y sigue su búsqueda para deshacer el Big Bang,
después de que su perro Gravity lo desencadena. Este musical familiar fue desarrollado en talleres anuales
con WTP junto con la dramaturgista Jordan Alexandria Ealey. Las canciones serán presentadas en la
Universitdad Durban de Tecnología en octubre de 2021. En el Laboratorio Internacional de Dramaturgismo
inaugural (International Dramaturgy Lab), su equipo Constellations
construyó prácticas dramaturgísticas basadas en cosmología. Es miembro fundador de CreateTheater y miembro de ΣΠΣ, ASCAP y el Gremio de
Dramaturgxs (Dramatists Guild).

Moderadora: Heather Helinsky (ella) es una dramaturgista independiente que vive en Filadelfia,
actualmente la asesora literaria de Playwrights
Foundation, así como la dramaturgista del concurso de Jewish Plays Project. Para LMDA: miembro desde 2006, es co-VP de
Freelance para LMDA desde 2018 y una de lxs miembros fundadorxs de El dramaturgismo del Fénix. Está más que
agradecida por todas las aventuras de dramaturgismo independiente que ha tenido entre su MFA en Dramaturgismo
desde A.R.T./Moscow Art Theatre Institute/Harvard en 2007 y este momento, especialmente sus experiencias como
artista maestra para KCACTF y consultoría independiente con dramaturgxs individuales que ha conocido en el
camino. Para otros créditos: su sitio web personal se perdió en marzo del 2020, así que hasta
que encuentre el tiempo y la energía para hacer uno nuevo, puedes encontrar todos los créditos de su
biografía ya sea en “Find a Dramaturg” LMDA
member page o en New Play Exchange (si
recuerda actualizarlo).

Please join us for a one-hour Dramaturging the Phoenix forum: “Successes and Challenges of Developing New Work at a Hybrid Festival”, featuring Divinia Shorter, David Geary, and Miranda Cornell, moderated by Playwrights Foundation Literary Manager Heather Helinsky. This summer at the Bay Area Playwrights Festival, five new plays were developed with the playwrights living in community at a retreat house, while creative teams still worked in virtual spaces. The dramaturgs of BAPF 2021 will share out in case study style about their processes and lessons learned from a hybrid form in Covid times. 

Divinia Shorter is a DMV writer and theatre artist currently working as the Literary Manager & Artistic Associate at Adventure Theatre MTC. Divinia is the co-founder of Greatest City Collective, a non-profit organization focused on uplifting artists and the social causes they care about. A writer of many forms, she is currently working on a novel, a collection of sestinas, and a full-length play. Dramaturgy credits include: UC Santa Barbara, Kennedy Center NNPN MFA Playwrights’ Workshop, Bay Area Playwrights Festival, DMV Q-Fests, Quarantined Theatre Company, and Towson Universal. Her dramaturgical analysis article “Run Me My Language” is available online. 

David Geary is of Taranaki Māori and Settler blood. He grew up in Aotearoa New Zealand immersed in the Polynesian trickster tales of Maui and is now honoured to live, work and play in the lands of the Coyote and Raven tricksters of Turtle Island/Canada. He is an award-winning playwright, dramaturg, director, screenwriter, fiction writer and poet. David teaches at Capilano University in the Indigenous Digital Filmmaking and documentary programs. He also teaches playwriting and dramaturgy for PTC Playwrights Theatre Centre in Vancouver. David’s recent work includes writing three short plays for Climate Change Theatre Action http://www.climatechangetheatreaction.com/ , short fiction for Purakau: Māori Myths Retold by Māori writers, and has a new story coming out with VUP soon: The Black Betty Tapes, which mashes up Shakespeare and the Royal Family to crown QEIII / Black Betty. He lives by the yogic mantra: Life is short, stretch it.

Miranda Cornell (she/her) is a mixed-race, Japanese American theater director, generative artist, and educator who uses a dramaturgical approach to all practices. Select directing credits include the North American premiere of It’s True, It’s True, It’s True (Idlewild Theatre Ensemble), The Potluck Plays (Asian American Arts Alliance, also co-writer), Head and Heart (NYMF), and more with The 24 Hour Plays, Primetime Theater Festival, Yale Summer Cabaret, New Ohio/ICE Factory, Underscore Theatre Company, Fordham University, FringeNYC, and Semicolon Theatre Company, where she served as Founding Artistic Director from 2013-2018. As an assistant director: Park Avenue Armory, The Public Theater, McCarter Theatre Center, New York Stage and Film, and The TEAM. She has developed work with NAATCO, NAMT, and the Shakespeare Academy @ Stratford. She was the 2020 Van Lier Fellow in Theater at A4 and is a proud member of the Roundabout Directors Group (Cohort 2). BA: Vassar College. mirandacornell.com 

Moderator: Heather Helinsky (she/her) is a Philadelphia-based freelance dramaturg currently the Literary Manager of Playwrights Foundation, as well as the Contest Dramaturg for Jewish Plays Project. For LMDA: member since 2006, the co-VP of Freelance for LMDA since 2018, and one of the founding members of Dramaturging the Phoenix. She is beyond grateful for all the freelance dramaturgy adventures she has had between her MFA in Dramaturgy from A.R.T./Moscow Art Theatre Institute/Harvard in 2007 and this current moment, especially her guest teaching artist experiences for KCACTF and freelance consultancy with individual playwrights she’s met along the way. For other credits: her personal website got lost in the fray in March 2020, so until she finds the time & energy to make a new one, you can find her full bio credits on either the “Find a Dramaturg” LMDA member page or the New Play Exchange (if she remembers to update it)

Acompáñennos en Zoom a las 4pm CT (2pm PT) para una sesión de una hora del foro de El dramaturgismo del Fénix: “Éxitos y retos de desarrollar nuevos proyectos en un festival híbrido”, presentando a Divinia Shorter, David Geary y Miranda Cornell, moderado por la asesora literaria de Playwrights Foundation Heather Helinsky. Este verano, en el Festival de Dramaturgxs de Bay Area (BAPF), cinco obras nuevas fueron desarrolladas con lxs dramaturgxs viviendo en comunidad en una casa de retiro, mientras los equipos creativos aún trabajaban en espacios virtuales. Lxs dramaturgxs del BAPF 2021 compartirán al estilo de un estudio de caso sus procesos y las lecciones aprendidas de una forma híbrida en tiempos de Covid. 

Divinia Shorter es una escritora en DMV y artista teatral que actualmente trabaja como asesora literaria y asociada artística en Adventure Theatre MTC. Divinia es la co-fundadora de Greatest City Collective, una organización no lucrativa enfocada en impulsar artistas y las causas sociales que les importan. Escritora en muchas formas, actualmente está trabajando en una novela, una colección de sestinas y una obra de teatro de larga duración. Sus créditos como dramaturgista incluyen: UC Santa Barbara, el Taller para Dramaturgxs del Kennedy Center National New Play Network MFA, Festival de Dramaturgxs de Bay Area, Festivales de cuarentena DMV, Quarantined Theatre Company y Towson Universal. Su artículo de análisis dramaturgístico “Run Me My Language” está disponible en línea. 

David Geary tiene sangre de lxs Taranaki Māori y lxs colonos. Creció en Aotearoa Nueva Zelanda inmerso en los cuentos del embaucador polinesio Maui y ahora tiene el honor de vivir, trabajar y jugar en las tierras de los embaucadores Coyote y Raven de Turtle Island/Canadá. Es un dramaturgo, dramaturgista, director, guionista, escritor de ficción y poeta premiado. David enseña en la Universidad Capilano en los programas de cine digital indígena y documental. También enseña dramaturgia y dramaturgismo para dramaturgxs en el Centro Teatral para Dramaturgxs (PTC Playwrights Theatre Centre) en Vancouver. El trabajo más reciente de David incluye 3 obras cortas para Climate Change Theatre Action http://www.climatechangetheatreaction.com/ , una ficción corta para Purakau: Māori Myths Retold por escritorxs Māori y tiene una nueva historia a punto de publicar con VUP: The Black Betty Tapes, que mezcla a Shakespeare y a la Familia Real hasta la Reina heredera Elizabeth III / Black Betty. Vive con el mantra de yoga: “La vida es corta. Estírala.”

Miranda Cornell (ella) es una directora teatral japonesa-americana, artista generativa y educadora que usa el enfoque dramaturgístico para todas las prácticas. Algunos de sus créditos en dirección incluyen el estreno norteamericano de It’s True, It’s True, It’s True (Idlewild Theatre Ensemble), The Potluck Plays (Asian American Arts Alliance, también co-escritora), Head and Heart (NYMF) y más con The 24 Hour Plays, Festival Teatral Primetime, Cabaret de Verano de Yale, New Ohio/ICE Factory, Compañía Teatral Underscore, Universidad Fordham, FringeNYC y la Compañía Teatral Semicolon, con quienes colaboró como Directora Artística Fundadora entre 2013 y 2018. Como directora asistente: Park Avenue Armory, The Public Theater, Centro Teatral McCarter, New York Stage and Film y The TEAM. Ha desarrollado trabajo con NAATCO, NAMT y la Academia Shakespeare en Stratford. En 2020 fue Van Lier Fellow in Theater en A4 y es una orgullosa miembro del Grupo de Directores Roundabout (Cohort 2). BA: Vassar College. mirandacornell.com 

Moderadora: Heather Helinsky (ella) es una dramaturgista independiente que vive en Filadelfia, actualmente la asesora literaria de Playwrights Foundation, así como la dramaturgista del concurso de Jewish Plays Project. Para LMDA: miembro desde 2006, es co-VP de Freelance para LMDA desde 2018 y una de lxs miembros fundadorxs de El dramaturgismo del Fénix. Está más que agradecida por todas las aventuras de dramaturgismo independiente que ha tenido entre su MFA en Dramaturgismo desde A.R.T./Moscow Art Theatre Institute/Harvard en 2007 y este momento, especialmente sus experiencias como artista maestra para KCACTF y consultoría independiente con dramaturgxs individuales que ha conocido en el camino. Para otros créditos: su sitio web personal se perdió en marzo del 2020, así que hasta que encuentre el tiempo y la energía para hacer uno nuevo, puedes encontrar todos los créditos de su biografía ya sea en “Find a Dramaturg” LMDA member page o en New Play Exchange (si recuerda actualizarlo). 

Thinking (and re-thinking) Affinity Space featuring Daniel Mesta. As LMDA expands its offerings of Affinity Spaces, Daniel joins us to share observations about these spaces and facilitate a discussion among attendees.

Daniel Mesta is a theatre professional with a BA in Theatre Arts Studies and Russian Studies. Mesta has received recognition and awards for his work, including regional and national awards from the Kennedy Center American College Theatre Festival, an Irene Ryan nomination, and recognition from the Association for Theatre in Higher Education as well as Literary Managers and Dramaturgs of the Americas. He has worked in various capacities in radio, theatre, opera and dance. He is currently the managing director of DAM Good Productions, a theatre company dedicated to producing site-specific interpretations of stage classics. Mesta is Mexican-American, and proudly permits his cultural background to infiltrate his creative process. He currently serves on the executive committee of LMDA-Mexico. He is fluent in English, Spanish and Russian. In his spare time, he enjoys playing the piano, accordion, organ and violin.

LMDA’s Dramaturging the Phoenix Forum rises! Please join us for a two-part brainstorming/feedback session before we return to curated programming in August:

1. Writing Prompt – If you want to start/edit/finish your Phoenix “essay,” Finn Lefevre will provide prompts and facilitate a creative generation space with community support (aka peer pressure…)

2. Challenge Questions/Breakout Space – Continuing our 7/13 Phoenix survey results overview, you will have the opportunity to share your feedback about where Phoenix should go from here in more intimate breakout discussions.

With a new time (5pm ET) and a new frequency (every second and fourth Tuesday) Dramaturging the Phoenix “2.0” will build on the community and conversations we established amid pandemic pause to continue a sustainable dramaturgical exploration of theatre’s potential to transform – with a focus on converting theory into practice.

Engage the present. 

Shape the future. 

Send your Dramaturging the Phoenix contribution to phoenix@lmda.org today!

Best wishes,
Team Phoenix
Anne, Finn, Heather, Jess, Ken, Liana, Linda, Lynde, Martha, Russ

LMDA’s Dramaturging the Phoenix Forum rises! Please join us for a conversation with the Phoenix Team about what we’ve learned — from the recent survey and from the past year’s worth of activities –, and how the initiative can evolve to meet the moment.

With a new time – 5pm ET – and a new frequency – every second and fourth Tuesday – Dramaturging the Phoenix aims to build on our established community and conversations to continue our dramaturgical exploration of theatre’s potential to transform. We invite you to join us in shaping the future of the program.

Since April 2020, Dramaturging the Phoenix has documented the global health and culture crisis through a collection of local, dramaturgical lenses. As we prepare for the return of in-person theatre, we encourage every LMDA member to contribute to this historic initiative by September 1, 2021. Please add your unique voice and perspective to our invaluable community conversation – and extend a personal invitation to a few colleagues to do the same!

Engage the present. 

Shape the future. 

Send your Dramaturging the Phoenix contribution to phoenix@lmda.org today!

Best wishes,
Team Phoenix
Anne, Finn, Heather, Jess, Ken, Liana, Linda, Lynde, Martha, Russ

Céline Tiare Delcayre, Nicole Gantshar and Celise Kalke

• Céline Tiare Delcayre is a dramaturgically minded, financially inclined arts advocate with a passion for centering the intersection of the arts and community. Her love of new work and artistic collaboration is almost matched by her enthusiasm for audits and practical finance. Currently, she is the General Manager/Associate Producer at The Playwrights Realm in NYC, where she most recently launched the Script Share and Community Class programs with collaborator Alexis Williams. She has previously worked in various capacities with Playwrights of New York, The Lark, NYMF, The Eugene O’Neill Theater Center, and PlayGround SF. She is a graduate of Sonoma State University where she earned a B.A. in Theatre Arts and a B.S. in Business Management. 

• Nichole Gantshar is the Interim Finance & Operations Officer for Theatre Bay Area. Previously she was the Interim Executive Director of Louisville Ballet. There she led the staff through moving to remote work and the production of a digital season, as well as retiring $700,000 of a $1,000,000 debt. For six years, she served as Executive Director of the Rochester City Ballet. During her tenure, the ballet received two National Endowment for the Arts grants for world premieres, joined the roster of Shubert Foundation supported companies, tripled grant revenue, and increased ticket sales by 30 percent. Previously, she worked on the staff of the Tulsa Ballet and Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre. Earlier in her career, she worked for Richmond Ballet, Syracuse Stage, and Milwaukee Ballet. As a freelance artist, she has worked for Playwrights Horizons, Pittsburgh Public Theatre, and others. Nichole received her BFA from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee and MFA in Dramaturgy from the University at Stony Brook. She has taught at Syracuse University, University at Stony Brook, University of Pittsburgh and the Wooster Center for the Arts. Apart from her career in theatre and ballet, Nichole served as a Legislative Aide in Congress and on the staff of The Post-Standard. Among her volunteer activities, Nichole has been a member of Rotary, formerly she served as the treasurer of Literary Managers and Dramaturgs of the Americas (LMDA), was Chair of the National Student Education Fund, and treasurer of the Syracuse Chapter of Girls Inc. Among her awards, she was twice nominated as an Outstanding Young Woman of America and received a LMDA residency grant to serve as the production dramaturg for the Atlanta Ballet’s production of The Great Gatsby.

• Celise Kalke joined Synchronicity Theatre as Managing Director in October, 2018. From 2005 to 2018, Celise led the Alliance Theatre’s New Work programs, notably the Alliance/Kendeda National Graduate Playwright Competition and the Reiser Atlanta Artists Lab. She served as Dramaturg for many Alliance productions and world premieres. Before moving to Atlanta Celise served as the Director of the Literary Department for New York’s Public Theatre producing the New Work Now! reading festival while working as a Dramaturg for Shakespeare’s work. Her career began at Chicago’s Court Theatre and the Juilliard School. Her administrative skills have been displayed as a new work producer, Literary Managers and Dramaturgs of the Americas (LMDA) conference planner, LMDA Administrator, and administrator in the Brooklyn Academy of Music Education Department. She has been an Artistic Associate at NEXT Theatre in Chicago, an Affiliated Artist with Independent Art HERE in New York, an Advisory Council Member, instructor, and Dramaturg for Working Title Playwrights, and frequent teacher at Actor’s Express. She began her career in Prague, the Czech Republic, working with Misery Loves Company, the Narodni Divadlo, and Divadlo Pod Palmovko. Celise was named a 2009 Theatre Artist of the Future by American Theatre Magazine.

Catherine Ballachey, June Fukumura, Derek Chan (陳嘉昊), Pedro Chamale, Mishka Lavigne, Johanna Nutter, Carmela Sison, Bobby Theodore, Yvonne Wallace (Ucwalmicw)

Curated by LMDA Canada President Catherine Ballachey, this exciting conversation with new and returning panelists will be facilitated by June Fukumura:

• June Fukumura is a Japanese-Canadian inter-disciplinary theatre artist with a BFA in Theatre Performance and a Certificate in Sustainable Community Development from Simon Fraser University. June is the Co-Founder of New(to)Town Collective an artist collective with a mandate to create new experimental works; provide ongoing accessible physical theatre training and experimental research workshops called Training Jams. June is also the Co-Artistic Director of Popcorn Galaxies, an experimental theatre company interested in re-enchanting the everyday through unconventional site-responsive and site-specific works. Additionally, she was the Assistant Dramaturg at the Banff Playwrights Lab in 2019 and 2020 and is the Associate Dramaturg this year in 2021. From 2019–2020 June worked as the Emerging Dramaturg/Producer for Vancouver Asian Canadian Theatre’s MSG Lab program. She is now the MSG Lab Curator, developing the 2021-2022 MSG Lab program. 

• Derek Chan (陳嘉昊) grew up in colonial Hong Kong and currently lives and works on the unceded and ancestral lands of the Musqueam, Squamish, and Tsleil-Waututh Nations, colonially known as Vancouver. An award-winning multilingual playwright, director, translator, and performer, he has been founding co-artistic director of rice & beans theatre since 2010. Derek was an artist in residence at the National Arts Centre English Theatre Department in the 2019/20 season, developing yellow objects, a play in support of the ongoing pro-democracy movement in Hong Kong.

• Pedro Chamale was born and raised on treaty 8 territory, colonially known as Chetwynd, BC and now resides and creates on the unceded and traditional lands of the xʷməθkwəy̓əm (Musqueam), Skwxwú7mesh (Squamish), and Səl̓ílwətaɬ (Tsleil-Waututh) Nations. Pedro is a director, playwright, performer, co-founder and co-artistic director of rice & beans theatre, was the Artistic Resident at Neworld Theatre in 2014, guest curator of the 2018 rEvolver Festival and one of the playwrights in the 2019 Playwright’s Lab at the Banff Centre. Pedro was part of the second cohort of Banff’s Arts and Culture Leadership, is a co-founder of the Canadian Latinx Theatre Artist Alliance, sits on the Latinx Theatre Commons steering committee and was part of Director’s Lab North in 2020.

• Mishka Lavigne is a playwright and literary translator based in Ottawa/Gatineau. Her plays have been produced and developed in Canada, Switzerland, France, Germany, Australia and the United States. Her play Havre was recently awarded the Governor General’s Literary Prize for Drama (French). Her most recent play Copeaux, a movement-based poetic creation piece with director Éric Perron premiered in Ottawa in March S2020. Albumen, her first play in English received the Prix Rideau Award for Outstanding New Creation in 2019 and the QWF Playwriting Award in 2020. Mishka is currently working on her new play Shorelines, slated for production in Montréal in 2021, on a bilingual opera libretto with Montreal composer Tim Brady and on a new creation in French, as well as on some translation and screenwriting projects. Mishka is a National New Play Network (USA) alumni playwright as well as a member of the Playwrights’ Guild of Canada and the Centre des auteurs dramatiques. 

• Johanna Nutter is a bilingual straight white female settler theatre artist from Tio’tia:ke (Montreal). She collaborates, performs, writes, translates, curates, directs, produces, and educates. In 2016, she formed creature/creature, consolidating her passion for negotiating the delicate spaces between people, subjectivities, and artistic practices. Co-creations include my pregnant brother/my playwright sister (Soho, Centaur, Cultch, Passe Muraille, Licorne, etc) and continuing work with Algonquin art star Nadia Myre, STRIKE/THRU coming to the MAI in June 2021.

• Carmela Sison is a novice translator currently working on her first work, a Tagalog adaptation of Jovanni Sy’s A Taste of Empire. She’s learning a lot along the way and thankful that she gets to fall in love with her mother tongue through this experience. 

• Bobby Theodore is a screenwriter, playwright, dramaturg, and translator. Bobby has worked on several TV series, including Murdoch Mysteries, Flashpoint, and Knuckleheads (an adaptation of the iconic Québecois cartoon, Têtes à claques). After graduating from the National Theatre School of Canada’s playwriting section in 1998, he was a Governor General Award finalist in 2000 for his translation of 15 Seconds by François Archambault. Since then, Bobby has gone on to translate over 25 plays from French to English. His most recent translations include The Just by Albert Camus (Talonbooks, 2017), Paradise in Flames by François Archambault, and Public Enemy by Olivier Choinière. For the stage, Bobby co-created 300 Tapes (with Ame Henderson), a performance that premiered at the Theatre Centre in Toronto and at Alberta Theatre Projects (ATP) in Calgary. In 2014, his translation of François Archambault’s You Will Remember Me premiered at ATP, won a Betty Mitchell Award for Outstanding New Play, and was produced across Canada and in the USA. Currently, Bobby is writing a play about his grandmother called The Only Jew in Town. 

• Yvonne Wallace (Ucwalmicw) from the Lil’wat Nation. Graduated the Bachelor of Liberal Arts degree program at Capilano University. She is currently working on her Master’s in Education Leadership at UBC. Her enthusiasm for theatre began while she worked at The Centre for Indigenous Theatre. Later, she graduated with honours from Humber College Theatre Acting program. She has written three plays: Smothered Sweetly, The Last Dance, and ustzan (to make things better), a play dealing with language reclamation and her first language fluency progression.

José Solís, David John Chávez

Continuing our conversations on BIPOC Reflections, this week’s “Dramaturging the Phoenix” will feature José Solís, founder of the BIPOC Critics Lab and David John Chávez, vice chair of the American Theatre Critics Association, to discuss what’s happening at present in their community as well as answer questions on how we can move forward beyond statements and promises to change. In line with the Phoenix series to think about ways dramatic criticism and dramaturgy can bring forward progress to our communities in these difficult times, and the steps we can take to move towards better BIPOC allyship.

Melanie Anthony, Tiffany Hagan, Bradley Hewlett, Spencer North, Tess Nunan

Recognized by the Kennedy Center American College Theater Festival for exemplary dramaturgical work on projects at their universities, these early career dramaturgs will introduce and contextualize their projects and consider how their experiences might inform future dramaturgical practice.

• Melanie Anthony, Santa Monica College, Scapin by Bill Irwin and Mark O’Donnell, adapted from Moliere
• Tiffany Hagan, University of South Carolina, She Kills Monsters: Virtual Realms by Qui Nguyen
• Bradley Hewlett, Texas Tech University, Henrik Ibsen’s An Enemy of the People, a new version by Brad Birch
• Spencer North, Earlham College, Mr. Burns: A Post-Electric Play by Anne Washburn
• Tess Nunan, Manhattan College, The Laramie Project by Moisés Kaufman and Members of the Tectonic Theater Project

Team Phoenix

A freewheeling and wide-ranging conversation with Team Phoenix members and participants.

Liana Irvine, Leigh Rondon-Davis

This week, Liana Irvine will interview collaborator, Leigh Rondon-Davis, focusing on, among other topics, the necessity of multiple Affinity spaces, their highlights and pitfalls. Liana and Leigh have a shared title as Magic Theatre’s (current & past) Literary Apprentice and worked together on Rachel Lynett’s Apologies to Lorraine Hansberry (You Too August Wilson).

• Leigh Rondon-Davis (they/them) is a performer, visual artist, and dramaturg from both New York City and the Bay Area. They attended Wellesley College and was a member of Oakland’s Laney College Fusion Theatre Project. Leigh began working with Crowded Fire as a dramaturg on the 2017 Matchbox Reading Series; appeared in 2018’s Revolt. She Said. Revolt Again and 2019’s Inked Baby; and is now a staff member & Resident Artist! They’ve worked throughout the Bay Area: Variety Pack 2018 & 2019 (Cutting Ball Theater), Where The Boys Are (FaultLine Theater), A 24-Decade History of Popular Music (Curran and Magic Theatre), Hamlet and Dance of the Holy Ghosts (Ubuntu Theater Project). Leigh currently works as Company Members for Oakland Theater Project and Shotgun Players, having just received the 2020 Theatre Bay Area Director’s Residency with Shotgun Players!

Linda Lombardi, Jacqueline Goldfinger, Christina Hurtado-Pierson, Kate Mulley

This week, Linda Lombardi (she/her/hers) is joined by Jacqueline Goldfinger, Christina Hurtado-Pierson, and Kate Mulley, in conversation about their 2020 Dramaturging the Phoenix essays and what they’re thinking about now—one year later. As more people get vaccinated and we turn our attention to recovery and rebuilding, what changes have occurred in the past year that are worth keeping? What might reopening look like? Where are we now and where are we going? This week’s guest’s essays are available on the LMDA website for the general public. Take a look before Tuesday’s conversation!

• Jacqueline Goldfinger (she/they) is an award-winning playwright, dramaturg, and librettist who seeks out unique collaborations, working across disciplines to create singular works of theatre and opera. Her awards include the Yale Prize, Opera America Discovery Grant, Smith Prize, Sloan Grant, Independence Foundation Fellowship in the Arts, Tennessee Williams Fellowship, and Generations Award. She teaches workshops and seminars at college and university theatre programs across the U.S. including at University of California, Davis & San Diego, University of Pennsylvania, and Temple University. For more information, visit www.jacquelinegoldfinger.com.
• Christina Hurtado-Pierson (she/her/hers) is a freelance dramaturg and teaches Dramaturgy, Playwriting, and Theatre History at Pomona College. She has worked for both commercial and non-for-profit theaters including Martian Entertainment as a dramaturg and producer, Rattlestick Playwrights Theater as the Outreach Director, and the Royal Exchange Theatre in Manchester, UK, as a literary associate. She holds an MFA in Dramaturgy from Columbia University and is the proud mom of four-year-old Hank and 8-month-old Hazel.
• Kate Mulley (she/her/hers) is a playwright, librettist/lyricist, producer, and dramaturg whose work explores gender, power, place and desire through a feminist, and often historical, lens. Her musical Razorhurst, written with Andy Peterson, was commissioned by and had its world premiere at Luna Stage and its Australian premiere at the Hayes Theatre in Sydney. Kate has been an Artist in Residence at Corsicana Artist and Writer Residency (Texas), Arteles Creative Center (Finland), Catwalk Institute and Nantucket Island School of Design and the Arts. She has been a Guest Artist at Dartmouth, Montclair State, Studio Tisch, and New York Film Academy and a Playwriting Fellow at Shanghai Theatre Academy where her play The Tutor was produced in Mandarin. She graduated from Dartmouth with a degree in Theater and History, received an MA in Writing for Performance at Goldsmiths College, London, and an MFA in Playwriting from Columbia. Kate is a founding member of Vox Theater.

Ken Cerniglia, Karen Zacarías

This week, Ken Cerniglia will interview longtime collaborator Karen Zacarías, focusing on, among other topics, the necessity of multiple productions to develop musicals and plays to their full potential. Ken and Karen worked on OLIVÉRío: A Brazilian Twist at the Kennedy Center Theater for Young Audiences and Squirrel Girl Goes to College, a new Marvel Spotlight Play with Disney Theatrical Productions.

• Karen Zacarías was recently hailed by American Theatre magazine as one of the most produced playwrights in the US. Her plays include The Copper Children, Destiny of Desire, Native Gardens, The Book Club Play, Legacy of Light, Mariela in the Desert, The Sins of Sor Juana, and the adaptations of Just Like Us, The Age of Innocence, Into the Beautiful North, How the Garcia Girls Lost Their Accent and a bilingual Romeo y Juliet. She has been produced at The Kennedy Center, The Goodman, The Guthrie, Arena Stage, Oregon Shakespeare Festival, GALA Hispanic Theater, Cincinnati Playhouse, Old Globe, The Alliance Theater, Repertorio Español, The Latino Theater Company, Milagro Theater, and many more. She is the author of ten renowned TYA musicals and the librettist of several ballets. She is one of the inaugural resident playwrights at Arena Stage, a core founder of the Latinx Theatre Commons (a large national organization of artists seeking to update the American narrative with the stories of Latinx), and she is the founder of the award-winning Young Playwrights’ Theater (YPT), noted as one of the best arts educational programs by the Obama White House. Karen was voted a 2019 Washingtonian of the Year for her arts advocacy by Washingtonian magazine. She was awarded 2019 Sine Fellowship at the American University School of Public Policy for connecting art with policy making. She is a recipient of 2019 Lee-Reynolds-Award for “social, cultural, or political change with theater” awarded by the League of Professional Theater Women and honored with the 2019 Medallion by the Children’s Theater Foundation. She was a 2019 speaker at TEDX Broadway. She is a 2021 recipient of the United Artists Fellowship. Karen lives in Washington, D.C. with her husband and three children and two dogs. She’s represented by the Gersh Agency and is published by Concord Theatricals, Dramatic Publishing and has a collection of plays with Oberon Books. 

Lynde Rosario, Diana Burbano, Inda Craig-Galvin

Lynde Rosario will host a conversation with the following playwrights, who love dramaturgs, about best practices they’ve experienced, as well as engaging in a discussion about better practices they wish for from dramaturgs as BIPOC playwrights (tough love). 

• Diana Burbano: Diana’s play Ghosts of Bogota, won the Nu Voices festival at Actors Theatre of Charlotte in 2019. Ghosts was commissioned and debuted at Alter Theater in the Bay Area in Feb 2020. Sapience, was a Playground-SF 2020, Winner and was featured at Latinx Theatre Festival, San Diego Rep 2020. Fabulous Monsters, a Kilroys selection was to premiere at Playwrights Arena in 2020 (postponed). She was in Center Theatre Group’s 2018-19 Writers Workshop cohort and is in the Geffen’s Writers Lab in 20-21. She has worked on projects with South Coast Repertory, Artists Repertory Theatre, Breath of Fire Latina Theatre Ensemble and Center Theatre Group and Livermore Shakespeare Festival. She is the current Dramatist Guild Rep for Southern California. www.dianaburbano.com

• Inda Craig-Galvin: Inda Craig-Galván is an award-winning playwright and TV writer based in Los Angeles. A 2020 “Theatre Worker to Watch” from American Theatre Magazine, her work often explores intra-racial conflicts and politics within the African-American community through stories grounded in reality with a touch of magical realism. Her produced plays include Black Super Hero Magic Mama (Geffen Playhouse, Los Angeles) and I Go Somewhere Else(Playwrights’ Arena, Los Angeles). She has received the Kesselring Prize, Jeffry Melnick New Playwright Award, Blue Ink Playwriting Prize, Jane Chambers Student Award for Feminist Playwriting, and Stage Raw Best Playwright Award. She has developed and presented work at Ojai Playwrights Conference, Eugene O’Neill National Playwrights Conference, Oregon Shakespeare Festival’s Black Swan Lab, The Old Globe Powers New Voices Festival, Kitchen Dog Theatre New Works Festival, Black & Latino Playwrights Conference, and many others. On the TV side, Craig-Galván is a writer on the new JJ Abrams series Demimonde (HBO), and previously wrote on Happy Face, How to Get Away with Murder, and The Rookie.

Catherine Ballachey, Pedro Chamale, Derek Chan, Johanna Nutter, Carmela Sison, Yvonne Wallace

Catherine Ballachey, Board President of LMDA Canada and Administrative Director of Théâtre la Seizième, will host the following artists:

• Pedro Chamale was born and raised on treaty 8 territory, colonially known as Chetwynd, BC, and now resides and creates on the unceded and traditional lands of the xʷməθkwəy̓əm (Musqueam), Skwxwú7mesh (Squamish), and Səl̓ílwətaɬ (Tsleil-Waututh) Nations. Pedro is a director, playwright, performer, co-founder and co-artistic director of rice & beans theatre, was the Artistic Resident at Neworld Theatre in 2014, guest curator of the 2018 rEvolver Festival and one of the playwrights in the 2019 Playwright’s Lab at the Banff Centre. Pedro was part of the second cohort of Banff’s Arts and Culture Leadership, is a co-founder of the Canadian Latinx Theatre Artist Alliance, sits on the Latinx Theatre Commons steering committee and was part of Director’s Lab North in 2020.

• Derek Chan (陳嘉昊) grew up in colonial Hong Kong and currently lives and works on the unceded and ancestral lands of the Musqueam, Squamish, and Tsleil-Waututh Nations, colonially known as Vancouver. An award-winning multilingual playwright, director, translator, and performer, he has been founding co-artistic director of rice & beans theatre since 2010. Derek was an artist in residence at the National Arts Centre English Theatre Department in the 2019/20 season, developing yellow objects, a play in support of the ongoing pro-democracy movement in Hong Kong.

• Johanna Nutter is a bilingual straight white female settler theatre artist from Tio’tia:ke (Montreal). She collaborates, performs, writes, translates, curates, directs, produces, and educates. In 2016, she formed creature/creature, consolidating her passion for negotiating the delicate spaces between people, subjectivities, and artistic practices. Co-creations include my pregnant brother/my playwright sister (Soho, Centaur, Cultch, Passe Muraille, Licorne, etc) and continuing work with Algonquin art star Nadia Myre, STRIKE/THRU coming to the MAI in June 2021.

• Carmela Sison is a novice translator currently working on her first work, a Tagalog adaptation of Jovanni Sy’s A Taste of Empire. She’s learning a lot along the way and thankful that she gets to fall in love with her mother tongue through this experience. 

• Yvonne Wallace (Ucwalmicw) is from the Lil’wat Nation and graduated the Bachelor of Liberal Arts degree program at Capilano University. She is currently working on her Master’s in Education Leadership at UBC. Her enthusiasm for theatre began while she worked at The Centre for Indigenous Theatre. Later, she graduated with honours from Humber College Theatre Acting program. She has written three plays Smothered Sweetly, The Last Dance, and ustzan (to make things better), a play dealing with language reclamation and her first language fluency progression. 

March 2021 marks a full rotation of the Earth around the Sun for this LMDA initiative. Respecting this year — the loss of theatre as we know it, the liminality between before and after, and the emergence of virtual space — this week’s “Dramaturging the Phoenix” is a group conversation. Opening the floor to express your thoughts and feelings, we hope to honor how we’re in the same storm (but not the same boat).

Naysan Mojgani, TJ Young, Ely Orquiza

Continuing our conversations on BIPOC Reflections, this week’s “Dramaturging the Phoenix” will feature a panel of dramaturgs to discuss what’s happening at present in their community as well as answer questions on how we can move forward beyond statements and promises to change. This week we are joined by Naysan Mojgani, TJ Young,  and Ely Orquiza, to think about ways dramaturgy can bring forward progress to our communities in these difficult times, and what are the steps we can take to move towards better BIPOC allyship? 

As we approach the one year anniversary of lockdown, and the subsequent one year anniversary of the “Dramaturging the Phoenix” initiative, we will use Tuesday’s forum to reflect on the contributions to the DTP essay collection and explore how they might lead us into the theater of the future. Phoenix team members will each summarize and uplift a handful of essays that resonate and inspire them, and we invite all attendees to read an essay (or several!) in advance of our conversation.

Find the full collection here: Dramaturging the Phoenix Essays 

(If you’re having trouble accessing them, make sure your LMDA membership is up to date.)

Jackie Goldfinger, Lynn Spector, Ken Cerniglia

As live theatre prepares to emerge from a year of near-global hibernation, we want to make sure dramaturgs have the tools and strategies we need to rejoin, transform, and expand the job market. LMDA’s Dramaturgy Compensation Task Force has been meeting monthly to review our Employment Guidelines & Sample Contracts and develop new Employment Tools, which we’re rolling out online for member perusal and feedback. Please join task force members Jackie Goldfinger, Lynn Spector, and Ken Cerniglia to walk through the drafts of our new tools and generate ideas for other support you might need to move your career and our field forward … with confident spines and generous spirits!

Lydia Garcia

Continuing our conversations on BIPOC Reflections, this week’s “Dramaturging the Phoenix” will feature a panel of dramaturgs to discuss what’s happening at present in their community as well as answer questions on how we can move forward beyond statements and promises to change. In line with the Phoenix series to think about ways dramaturgy can bring forward progress to our communities in these difficult times, what are the steps we can take to move towards better BIPOC allyship? 

Featured dramaturg: 

Lydia Garcia is the Executive Director of Equity and Organization Culture at the Denver Center for the Performing Arts. She was a founding member of artEquity under Program Director Carmen Morgan, where she served as a core facilitator and the collective’s Resident Dramaturg until 2019. She has served as the Literary Manager and Resident Dramaturg at Marin Theatre Company as well as the Resident Dramaturg at the Oregon Shakespeare Festival, where she co-adapted and translated the bilingual La Comedia of Errors with then-Artistic Director Bill Rauch and dramaturged more than 25 productions. Her dramaturgy and teaching work has appeared at Center Theatre Group, Native Voices at the Autry, the LTC Carnaval of New Latinx Work, Play On Shakespeare, CalArts, Carnegie Mellon, and USC, among many others. She studied dramaturgy and dramatic criticism at the Yale School of Drama and English and American literature at Harvard University. Gender pronouns: she/her/hers/ella.

Jenna Clark Embrey, Lauren Halvorsen, Kris Karcher

With theatre reopening seemingly getting closer with each day, how can we ensure that when it does it looks like what has been imagined in the Dramaturging the Phoenix essay collection? Dramaturgical philosophies guided those visions, now dramaturgical skills can be employed in bringing them to life. Our panel will share how their dramaturgy led to projects, advocacy, and activism for field wide change. 

Our featured guests are: 

• Jenna Clark Embrey is currently the Resident Dramaturg at Signature Theatre, where she has served as production dramaturg for over twenty productions. Prior to her time as Signature, she was the Directing of Marketing at St.Ann’s Warehouse. Her other projects include Julia Doolittle’s TELL THEM I’M STILL YOUNG, produced by Andre Braugher, and the musical SONGBIRD by Michael Kimmel and Lauren Pritchard. Jenna is also the creator of THROTTLE QUEENS, the based-on-real-life story of drag racing ladies in 1950s Kansas City, currently being developed for the screen with Lively McCabe Productions. She received her MFA in Dramaturgy from the American Repertory Theater/ Moscow Art Theater School for Advanced Theater Training at Harvard University. Jenna is the owner and founder of Salt Girl Consulting, which helps people to tell more powerful stories across film, television, theater, events, and corporate branding. 

• Lauren Halvorsen was most recently the Associate Literary Director at Studio Theatre for nine years, where she dramaturged over 30 productions including world premieres by Rachel Bonds and Tearrance Arvelle Chisholm. She spent three years as Literary Manager of the Alley Theatre in Houston, and has worked in various artistic capacities for theatreWashington, The Kennedy Center, City Theatre Company, The Wilma Theater, The O’Neill Playwrights Conference, and First Person Arts Festival. She was the Artistic Associate of the WordBRIDGE Playwrights Laboratory for six years, where she ran the literary office and annual submission process and facilitated the development of over 40 projects by undergraduate and graduate-level playwrights. Lauren currently writes Nothing for the Group, a weekly newsletter about the American theatre that launched in July 2020. She holds a BA in English and Creative Writing from Bryn Mawr College. 

• Kris Karcher (He/Him/His) is a queer dramaturg and new play advocate currently living in Los Angeles. Kris most recently worked as the Literary and Casting Assistant at The Geffen Playhouse. Prior to his Los Angeles move, Kris dramaturged at theatre companies up and down the east coast including Asolo Repertory Theatre, Azuka Theatre, The Eugene O’Neill Theatre Center, Out Front Theatre Company, Playpenn, and The Riant Theatre. He is also a proud member of Out Front Theatre Company’s Advisory Board Twitter / Insta: @Karchswag

Ken Cerniglia, Jacqueline Goldfinger , Beth Blickers, Nicholas Rohlfing, David Harris, Caroline Kaiser, Lynde Rosario

As vaccinations slowly roll out, theatre reopening at some point this year becomes an increasing reality. Literary job postings, some with shockingly low compensation, are beginning to appear. But with so many dramaturgs furloughed or laid off in 2020 and hungry for work, is there anything to be done? This Tuesday, Ken Cerniglia and Jacqueline Goldfinger will introduce a few new advocacy tools and discuss best practices for negotiating agreements in the current landscape. Our featured guests are: 

• Beth Blickers is an agent at APA, where she represents artists who work in theater, television and film. She started her career at the William Morris Agency, where she began work after graduating from NYU. She has served on numerous jury panels and facilitated industry related workshops for organizations around the country. She is a Past President of Literary Managers and Dramaturgs of the Americas and is the Board Chair Emeritus of Theatre Breaking Through Barriers, a New York company that works with artists with disabilities.

• Nicholas Rohlfing, formerly an actor and director based in New York who became a practicing attorney in 2007. He has his own entertainment law firm, where he handles a wide range of transactional matters in the industry, including in television and film. Nicholas has a primary focus on live theatrical properties including dozens of Broadway, off-Broadway shows as well as many others in various stages of development. He is most proud to work for a unique group of clients in the theater community made up of dramaturgs and literary managers as well as associate and resident directors and choreographers, whose contracts do not fall within any union’s collective bargaining agreements and therefore tend to be out of parity with others on the creative team (e.g. lower compensation, no health insurance or pension, no royalty or profit participation, etc.). Nicholas is working hard to bring about change in the custom and practice regarding the deals for these clients and specializes in getting the best terms for this essential group of creatives in the theatre business.

We’ll also be joined by David Harris to discuss the UK Dramaturgs’ Network’s new freelance contract, Caroline Kaiser to introduce Florida Studio Theatre’s internship program, and Lynde Rosario to consider “calling in” as an advocacy strategy.

Brenda Muñoz Salazar, María de Lourdes Guzmán González

Continuing our conversations on BIPOC Reflections, this week’s “Dramaturging the Phoenix” will feature a panel of dramaturgs from LMDA Mexico, joined by Dramaturgistas, Brenda Muñoz Salazar and María de Lourdes Guzmán González. These speakers will discuss what’s happening at present in their community as well as answer questions on how we can move forward beyond statements and promises to change. In line with the Phoenix series to think about ways dramaturgy can bring forward progress to our communities in these difficult times, what are the steps we can take to move towards better BIPOC allyship? 

Anaïs Mitchell, Rachel Chavkin, Mara Isaacs

When has the theatre supported parenting in the past, and how can it build back better for working parents post-pandemic? Dramaturging the Phoenix is thrilled to expand our Dramaturgy & Parenting conversation with three incredible parents and theatre makers at the core of Hadestown: writer Anaïs Mitchell, director Rachel Chavkin, and producer Mara Isaacs. Dramaturg Ken Cerniglia facilitates:

• Anaïs Mitchell is a Vermont and Brooklyn-based singer-songwriter and the Tony Award-winning creator of the Broadway musical Hadestown. Dubbed by NPR as “one of the greatest songwriters of her generation,” Mitchell comes from the world of narrative folksong, poetry, and balladry. She recorded for Ani Difranco’s Righteous Babe Records for several years before starting her own Wilderland label in 2012. Among her recorded works are six full-length albums, including the original 2010 studio album of Hadestown, a folk opera based on the Orpheus myth; 2012’s Young Man in America, which was described by the UK’s Independent as “an epic tale of American becoming”; 2013’s Child Ballads, a collaboration with Jefferson Hamer, which won a BBC Radio Two Folk Award; and Bonny Light Horseman (as part of the band Bonny Light Horseman). Mitchell has headlined shows worldwide as well as supporting tours for Bon Iver, Ani Difranco, Patty Griffin, Josh Ritter, and Punch Brothers. She was the winner of a Folk Alliance 2018 Spirit of Folk Award, and her music has featured in year-end best lists including NPR, Wall Street Journal, MOJO, Uncut, Guardian, Sunday Times, Observer. Mitchell’s stage show of Hadestown, which was over a decade in the making, was first produced off-Broadway at New York Theatre Workshop and in Canada at Edmonton’s The Citadel, with record-breaking runs at both. In 2018 the show opened at London’s prestigious National Theatre, before transferring to Broadway at the Walter Kerr Theatre in April 2019. The show went on to win 8 Tony Awards, the highest of any show of the season, including Best Musical and Best Score for Mitchell.

• Rachel Chavkin received the 2019 Tony Award, Drama Desk Award, and Outer Critics Circle Award for Best Director of a Musical for Hadestown. She is a director, writer, and dramaturg, as well as the founding Artistic Director of Brooklyn-based ensemble the TEAM (theteamplays.org) whose work has been seen all over London and the UK, including the National Theatre, the Royal Court, and multiple collaborations with the National Theatre of Scotland. Selected freelance work: Dave Malloy’s Natasha, Pierre, & The Great Comet of 1812 (Ars Nova, A.R.T., Broadway), Matt Gould and Carson Kreitzer’s Lempicka (Williamstown), Caryl Churchill’s Light Shining in Buckinghamshire (New York Theatre Workshop), Marco Ramirez’s The Royale (Old Globe, Lincoln Center), Bess Wohl’s Small Mouth Sounds (Ars Nova, Off-Broadway, national tour), Sarah Gancher’s I’ll Get You Back Again (Round House), and multiple collaborations with Taylor Mac including The Lily’s Revenge, Act 2 (HERE). In addition to her awards for Hadestown, Chavkin is a recipient of a Tony Award nomination for Best Direction of a Musical, three Obie Awards, a Drama Desk Award, multiple Lortel Award nominations, two Doris Duke Impact Award nominations, and the 2017 Smithsonian Award for Ingenuity along with Dave Malloy. Her first film, Remind Me, was an official selection of the Venice and Beverly Hills Film Festivals. Upcoming: feature film Shrew’s Nest (Paramount). Proud NYTW Usual Suspect and Member SDC.

• Mara Isaacs is a Tony and Grammy Award-winning producer who eschews boundaries and fosters an expansive range of compelling theatrical works for local, national and international audiences. Recognized as a field leader in the development of new work, she has produced over 150 productions at theaters and performing arts centers around the US and the world including Hadestown (8 Tony Awards including Best Musical), The Inheritance, Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike (Tony Award Best Play), Anna in the Tropics, Fiasco Theater’s Into the Woods, The Brother/Sister Plays, and Crowns. Mara is co-founder of Sing It Again Records, winning a Grammy Award with their first release, the Original Broadway Cast Recording of Hadestown, and also co-founder of the Producer Hub, an online resource supporting independent producers in the experimental and performing arts sectors. Current projects include Social! The Social Distance Dance Club conceived by Steven Hoggett, Christine Jones & David Byrne; THEATRE FOR ONE (both virtual and in person); Dreaming Zenzile by Somi Kakoma; Iphigenia, a new opera by Wayne Shorter and Esperanza Spalding; and many others. She was Producing Director at McCarter Theater Center in Princeton, NJ for 18 seasons and was an associate producer for Center Theatre Group in Los Angeles. She is a founding member of CIPA (Creative and Independent Producer Alliance) and serves on the boards of the Dramatists Legal Defense Fund and TCG, where she is vice-chair. Mara teaches at Cal Arts and Princeton University. 

Finn Lefevre, Lynde Rosario

What does it mean to work dramaturgically across borders? The International Dramaturgy Lab (IDL) is an exciting experimental initiative developed in collaboration between an international array of dramaturgical organizations and networks, including The Dramaturgs’ Network UK; Literary Managers and Dramaturgs of the Americas (LMDA) USA, Canada, and Mexico; The Fence International Network; STOD Finland; and the Danish Dramaturg Network. LMDA Co-VP of Freelance, Finn Lefevre, and LMDA VP of Regional Activity, Lynde Rosario, will discuss what’s it’s been like to participate in this international program.

Finn Lefevre (they/them) is a freelance dramaturg, applied theatre facilitator, and educator based in Amherst, Massachusetts, the traditional lands of the Nipmuc and Pocumtuc Nations. They currently serve as a Lecturer in the University of Massachusetts Department of Theater, and as a founding member of the queer and trans performance collective Queer & Now wearequeerandnow.com. They have previously taught in the Department of Theater and Dance at Keene State College, and the Ethnic and Gender Studies department at Westfield State University. They lead workshops in various applied theater techniques, Theatre of the Oppressed and Cops in the Head, implicit bias and bystander intervention, and trans and queer performance. They earned their MFA in Dramaturgy and a Graduate Certificate in Advanced Feminist Studies from the University of Massachusetts, and BS in Theatre Studies and Russian Studies from the University of Evansville. www.finnlefevre.com 

Lynde Rosario (she/her/hers) is Dramaturg and Literary Manager for the DCPA Theatre Company. Other affiliations include: Boulder Ensemble Theatre Company, Curious Theatre Company, Athena Project, Letter of Marque Theatre Company, and The Anthropologists. Memberships: Board Member and VP of Regional Activity for The Literary Managers and Dramaturgs of the Americas, and Board Member for the National New Play Network. Training: B.A. in Drama, Hofstra University; M.F.A. in Dramaturgy, The American Repertory Theatre/Moscow Art Theatre Institute for Advanced Theatre Training at Harvard University.

Liana Irvine, Yasmin Zacaria Mikhaiel, Myjoycia Cezar

Happy New Year! Continuing our conversations on BIPOC Reflections, this week’s “Dramaturging the Phoenix” will feature three Early Career Dramaturgs, Liana Irvine, Yasmin Zacaria Mikhaiel, and Myjoycia Cezar. These speakers will discuss what’s happening at present in their community as well as answer questions on how we can move forward beyond statements and promises to change. In line with the Phoenix series to think about ways dramaturgy can bring forward progress to our communities in these difficult times, what are the steps we can take to move towards better BIPOC allyship?

Mark Bly, Liz Engelman, Shelby Jiggetts-Tivony, James Magruder, Geoff Proehl

As we leave 2020 and enter a New Year, it is a time for introspection perhaps more than in recent memory. We in the theatre find ourselves addressing the pressing need to pass torches and share torches. On the cusp of 2021, we’d like to focus as we are on Time, new careers, and reinvention. We want to look at those artists among us whose lives have been marked by a nimbleness of spirit and a willingness to adapt and pursue careers beyond strictly the field of “being a Dramaturg,” creating innovative “tool boxes” for diverse career experiences. We’re excited to be joined this week by the following artists, writers and mentors who have found ways of “breaking their measuring sticks” for success and reinventing themselves:

• Mark Bly (facilitator) headed up the Yale School of Drama’s MFA Playwriting Program from 1992-2004 and since 1979 has served as a Dramaturg and Associate Artistic Director for major resident theaters and on Broadway, working on over 200 classical and new plays. In 1985 he became the first dramaturg to be credited as such on a Broadway production, when he worked on Emily Mann’s Execution of Justice. He is editor of Production Notebooks: Theatre in Process, Vols. I & II, and recently authored New Dramaturgies: Strategies and Exercises for 21st Century Playwriting, foreword by Moises Kaufman. He is a co-founder of LMDA, a past LMDA Board President, established and funded the international LMDA Bly Creative Capacity Grant/Fellowship, and is a recipient of the LMDA G.E. Lessing Award for Career Achievement. He co-founded the Kennedy Center Dramaturgy Intensive in 2011, and in 2019 was honored with the Kennedy Center Medallion of Excellence for Lifetime Contribution in Dramaturgy. Bly has moved on to a new career in film, working as Associate Artistic Producer/Dramaturg for Academy Award-nominated Brazilian filmmaker Moara Passoni on her latest film EXTASE.
• Liz Engelman is the director of Tofte Lake Center at Norm’s Fish Camp, a creative retreat for artists of all disciplines. She recently taught at UT Austin in the Playwriting and Directing Program, where she remains a Guest Dramaturg. Liz has been on staff at Hedgebrook, Mixed Blood, ACT and Intiman Theatres, and Actors Theatre of Louisville. She’s developed new plays across the country and abroad. She has served as LMDA President and Board Chair and is a current Board Member. She is also a Board Member of the National New Play Network (NNPN) and a member of the National Theatre Conference (NTC).
• Shelby Jiggetts-Tivony is the vice-president of global creative and advanced development for Disney Parks Live Entertainment where she’s part of a leadership team charged with upholding the creative integrity and innovation of live entertainment (stage shows, parades, character development and spectaculars) in Disney’s parks, resorts and cruise ships around the world. Prior to coming to Disney, Shelby spent over a decade in the field of play development holding resident positions at Crossroads Theater; Lincoln Center Theater and the New York Shakespeare Festival/Joseph Papp Public Theater. As a dramaturg she has contributed to the development of more than 30 American plays and musicals working with a variety of artists including: Suzan-Lori Parks, Chay Yew, Lynn Nottage and, most notably, George C. Wolfe on the award winning Bring In ‘Da Noise, Bring In ‘Da Funk! Shelby is a board member of New Dramatists, an advisory board member of Look What She Did! and a member of LMDA.

• James Magruder is a translator, playwright, and fiction writer. His adaptations of Marivaux, Molière, Gozzi, Hoffmansthal, Lesage, Labiche, Dickens, and Giraudoux have been staged on and off-Broadway and across the country, the most recent being Head Over Heels, the blank verse musical mash-up of Sidney’s Arcadia (1590) and the song catalogue of the Go-Go’s. He is also the author of the novels Sugarless and Love Slaves of Helen Hadley Hall and the story collection, Let Me See It.
• Geoff Proehl (responder) taught and directed at the University of Puget Sound from 1994 to 2019. His book Toward a Dramaturgical Sensibility: Landscape and Journey with DD Kugler, Mark Lamos, and Michael Lupu received the Outstanding Book Award in 2009 from the Association for Theatre in Higher Education. In 2016, LMDA awarded Proehl its highest honor: the Lessing Award for Lifetime Achievement.

Scott Horstein, Arminda Thomas, Miriam Weisfeld

2020 has been a taxing yet transformational year. Experiencing it with children can add stress as well as provide welcome perspective. We’d like to continue our discussion from the September 22 forum (“Who Gets Left Behind: Parenting, Dramaturgy, and Covid”) with a particular focus on holiday traditions altered by necessity. We’re thrilled to be joined this week by the following guest ‘turg parents:

• Scott Horstein’s freelance dramaturgy credits include Greenway Court Theater, Native Voices at the Autry, Denver Center, Oregon Shakespeare Festival, Berkeley Rep, South Coast Rep, San Diego Rep, and the Old Globe, among others. He was formerly staff dramaturg for Cornerstone Theater Company. He is currently Professor in Contemporary Theatre and Dramaturgy at Sonoma State University, where he created the campus Arts Integration Program, which brings 2,000 college students to campus arts events each year.

• Arminda Thomas is a dramaturg, director, and archivist. She is currently co-producer and dramaturg for CLASSIX, which seeks to expand the classical canon through an exploration of dramatic works by Black writers. She has served as associate artistic director and resident dramaturg for the Going to the River Festival and Writer’s Unit and as literary associate and archivist for Dee-Davis Enterprises, where she served as executive producer for the Grammy-awarded audiobook, With Ossie and Ruby: In This Life Together, and consultant for the film Life’s Essentials with Ruby Dee. As a dramaturg, she has worked with various theatres, including New Perspectives, Theatre for a New Audience, Baltimore Center Stage, New Federal Theatre, Classical Theatre of Harlem, and Signature Theatre. 

• Miriam Weisfeld (she/her) is the Director of Artistic Development at the Children’s Theatre Company, where she conceived the new musical The First Rule of Punk, adapted from the book by Celia C. Pérez with songs by BMG artists such as Blondie, Iggy Pop, and others (in development). Previously she was Senior Vice President for Broadway production company the Araca Group in New York City, where she recruited the creative team for The Outsiders (upcoming at Chicago’s Goodman Theatre), and supported the development of The SpongeBob SquarePants Musical (Broadway), Ayad Akhtar’s play Junk (Lincoln Center), and Clue: On Stage (national tour). She also served as Associate Artistic Director of Woolly Mammoth Theatre in Washington, DC and as a freelance dramaturg at New York Theatre Workshop, American Repertory Theatre, Steppenwolf Theatre, and Actors Theatre of Louisville. She has lectured at Harvard University, MIT, the Kennedy Center, and elsewhere. She holds an MFA from the American Repertory Theatre/Moscow Art Theatre School Institute at Harvard and is a contributing author to the Routledge Companion to Dramaturgy. She currently teaches undergraduates at the Minneapolis College of Art and Design. 

Sonia Fernandez, Maria Patrice Amon, Nakissa Etemad

Continuing our conversations on BIPOC Reflections, this week’s “Dramaturging the Phoenix” will feature Interim Artistic Director of Magic Theatre, Sonia Fernandez, Associate Artistic Director at San Diego Repertory Theatre, Maria Patrice Amon, and Associate Artistic Director at Marin Theatre Company, Nakissa Etemad. These speakers will discuss what’s happening at present in their community as well as answer questions on how we can move forward beyond statements and promises to change. In line with the Phoenix series to think about ways dramaturgy can bring forward progress to our communities in these difficult times, what are the steps we can take to move towards better BIPOC allyship?

Julie Felise Dubiner, Jessica Kahkoska, Lynde Rosario

Love it? Hate it? Just here for the figgy pudding? A Christmas Carol is ubiquitous in the American theatre ecosystem. As the Dramaturging the Phoenix community imagines the theatre of the next year, the next decade, and the next century, this conversation will explore what Dickens’ place in that future might be. Featuring insights and perspectives from Julie Felise Dubiner, Jessica Kahkoska, Lynde Rosario, and more, this conversation will also give ample space to group discussion.

This week’s forum will feature members of LMDA’s Anti-Racism task force and Executive leadership. These speakers will discuss what’s happening at present in their community as well as answer questions on how we can move forward beyond statements and promises to change. In line with the Phoenix call to think about ways dramaturgy can bring forward progress to our communities in these difficult times, what are the steps we can take at LMDA to move towards anti-oppression practices?

Laurel Green

This week’s topic: As dramaturgs, we’ve honed our skills of how to craft invitations to participate, build brave rooms, create meaningful exchange, and facilitate with care. How does this translate online? Gathering virtually with intention is a practical, technical, and artistic endeavor. How can we make space for conversation, collaboration, and change? How do we want this to feel? Who is in the room? What is our purpose? What is the experience of arriving, participating, and ending that meeting, for all? Join in a practical show-and-share, experiment, and an active conversation about how dramaturgs keep humanizing, revolutionizing, and pushing the boundaries of this space. What are the emerging poetics of Zoom?

Leading us through this week’s Forum is Laurel Green, a dramaturg, director, and producer. Over the past eight months, she’s designed and hosted team meetings, play readings, large conferences, university tutorials, grassroots advocacy groups, panel discussions, civic events, script writing, dance workshops, murder mysteries, wine tastings, ideation sessions, games nights, immersive performances, birthdays parties, rock concerts, family reunions, fitness classes, and a peer-led Leadership Camp. She’s a member of the steering committee for the International Dramaturgy Lab, and former president of LMDA Canada.

Emma Bilderback, Emma Pauly, and Jared Strange

As we look to the future, we’ll take a moment to explore what we might learn from the theatermakers of the past and how our present might influence our approach to their work.

As you may have heard, there’s a presidential election underway in the U.S., which has been preoccupying at least a few LMDA members. Tomorrow we’ll be holding space to check in on each other and discuss how politics can inspire and drive our dramaturgy.

Gina Pisasale, Céline Tiare Delcayre, and Francisca Da Silveira

Continuing our conversations on BIPOC Reflections, this week’s “Dramaturging the Phoenix” will feature Resident Dramaturg at People’s Light, Gina Pisasale, The Playwrights Realm’s General Manager, Céline Tiare Delcayre, and Assistant Literary Director at Geva, Francisca Da Silveira. These speakers will discuss what’s happening at present in their community as well as answer questions on how we can move forward beyond statements and promises to change. In line with the Phoenix series to think about ways dramaturgy can bring forward progress to our communities in these difficult times, what are the steps we can take to move towards better BIPOC allyship?

Finn Lefevre and Maegan Clearwood

Finn Lefevre (they/them), LMDA’s co-VP of Freelance, will facilitate a conversation with Meagan Clearwood (she/her) surrounding the relationship between ritual, spells, magic, and performance.

Meagan is a third year MFA student in the University of Massachusetts Department of Theater. As part of her MFA thesis, Meagan is currently producing Coven 19: Magicks for Unprecedented Times, a project that combines feminist dramaturgy with queer witchcraft in a devised zoom process. Come share space and energy with us!

Ken Cerniglia, Russell M. Dembin, Brett Janecek, Molly Marinik, Brendan Padgett, Arminda Thomas

Whether out of necessity or opportunity, most of us find work outside of “dramaturgy,” yet we never cease being dramaturgs. This week, we’ll shift our Dramaturging the Phoenix lens to various applications of dramaturgical skills and sensibilities beyond our theatrical base camp. How will dramaturgy play a central, useful, and energizing role in the great What Comes Next, both inside and outside the theatre? 

Ken Cerniglia (he/him), former LMDA president and current board member, will moderate a discussion with the following guests: 

• Russell M. Dembin (he/him) is an editor, journalist, educator, dramaturg, and scholar. From 2015 to 2020, Russ was on the editorial team of American Theatre magazine and AmericanTheatre.org, serving as managing editor since 2016. His writing has appeared in other national and international publications, and he’s taught at SUNY New Paltz and the University of Texas at Austin. In addition, he’s a co-chair of LMDA’s Anti-Racism Task Force and a steering committee member of the American Theatre Archive Project. Russ holds a Ph.D. in Performance as Public Practice from UT Austin and an M.A. in Theater History and Criticism from Brooklyn College.

• Brett Janecek (he/him) is a marketing/communication strategist who leverages what he learned as a dramaturg to elevate and protect the reputation of brands. After graduate school (MFA, Dramaturgy, University of Iowa), he transitioned into a corporate affairs/communication role in television (Associate Manager, Corporate Social Responsibility, HBO). Because dramaturgs love to learn, he pursued an MBA part-time, worked in automotive for a year, and eventually landed in healthcare working on brand strategy, corporate reputation, social impact and content creation. He’s currently taking a COVID-19 break and keeping his mind and spirit open as to what’s next.

• Molly Marinik (she/her) is a dramaturg specializing in new play and musical development based in New York. She has developed new work at the New Victory, Rattlestick, Atlantic Theater Company, The Flea (Resident Director 2013-15), New Light, 59E59, Barefoot Theater Company, NYMF, and Musical Theatre Factory, among others. She is the literary consultant for Alchemation/Kevin McCollum. In addition to reading plays for lots of amazing organizations, she proudly served on the subcommittee for the Philip Seymour Hoffman Relentless Award for its first four seasons. Co-founder of Beehive Dramaturgy Studio; Artistic Associate at Musical Theatre Factory (with Beehive) where she co-moderates the Women/Trans/GNC Roundtable. She has also facilitated PlayGym classes at Luna Stage in NJ. On the administrative side of things, Molly is a grant writer at Atlantic Theater Company and the Literary Managers and Dramaturgs of the Americas. Molly holds an MA in Theater History and Criticism from Brooklyn College. www.beehivedramaturgy.com

• Brendan Padgett (he/him) is currently Director of Public Relations at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, overseeing PR initiatives for theater, ballet and dance, performances for young audiences, and education. Prior to the Kennedy Center, he spent seven years on the PR team at Disney Theatrical Group. Outside of PR, Brendan continues a long collaboration with Rebecca Rouse on new media performance projects, which most recently include “Simmer,” an augmented reality adaptation of John Cheever’s “The Swimmer” at the International Conference for Interactive Digital Storytelling, and “Land Mass/Barnacle/Colony/Bot,” an interactive media performance for the Karlskrona Marine Museum in Sweden. He holds an M.F.A. in Dramaturgy and Script Development from Columbia University.

• Arminda Thomas (she/her) is a dramaturg, director, and archivist. She is currently co-producer and dramaturg for CLASSIX, which seeks to expand the classical canon through an exploration of dramatic works by Black writers. She has served as associate artistic director and resident dramaturg for the Going to the River Festival and Writer’s Unit and as literary associate and archivist for Dee-Davis Enterprises, where she served as executive producer for the Grammy-awarded audiobook, With Ossie and Ruby: In This Life Together, and consultant for the film Life’s Essentials with Ruby Dee. As a dramaturg, she has worked with various theatres, including New Perspectives, Theatre for a New Audience, Baltimore Center Stage, New Federal Theatre, Classical Theatre of Harlem, and Signature Theatre. 

Lynde Rosario, Brenda Muñoz, Jenna K. Rodgers

Continuing our conversations on BIPOC Reflections, this week’s “Dramaturging the Phoenix” will feature LMDA Regional VP Brenda Muñoz (Mexico City, Mexico) and LMDA VP Equity, Diversity & Inclusion: Jenna K. Rodgers (Calgary, Canada). These speakers will discuss what’s happening at present in their community as well as answer questions on how we can move forward beyond statements and promises to change. In line with the Phoenix series to think about ways dramaturgy can bring forward progress to our communities in these difficult times, what are the steps we can take to move towards better BIPOC allyship?

University Dramaturgy amid Pandemic: COVID-19 is reshaping all aspects of life and society, including seismic pedagogical shifts at colleges and universities, most of which have been left on their own to deliver quality postsecondary education while preserving public health. How is this manifesting in the dramaturgy of production and the pedagogy of dramaturgy? We’ll discuss perspectives from professors and students at two large public universities in the U.S.

Featured panelists include:

• Karen Jean Martinson, Ph.D., is an Assistant Professor of Dramaturgy at Arizona State University. She earned her degree in Theatre History, Literature, and Theory at the University of Minnesota-Twin Cities. In her scholarly and creative work, she interrogates issues of race, class, gender, and sexuality in and through contemporary U.S. performance. Her work has been published in Popular Entertainment Studies, Theatre Topics, Theatre Journal, Cultural Studies: Critical Methodologies, and in the anthology Performing Objects and Theatrical Things. She currently serves as the VP of Advocacy for LMDA and is active in ATHE, ATDS, and ASTR.

• Nicola Olsen is a Ph.D. candidate in the Theatre for Youth program at Arizona State University. She holds a B.F.A. in Theatre from Utah State University, and an M.A in Directing from Roosevelt University in Chicago. Before entering ASU, she taught high school drama for 18 years in Yuma, Arizona. After taking a dramaturgy course with Dr. Martinson, she worked as an assistant dramaturg for Indian School and is currently the dramaturg for Machos opening in mid-October.

• Jane Barnette, Ph.D., is an Associate Professor in the Department of Theatre and Dance at the University of Kansas, where she teaches courses in dramaturgy, theatre history, script analysis, and seminars in theatrical adaptation and the performance of gender and sexuality. Her book Adapturgy: The Dramaturg’s Art and Theatrical Adaptation explores the powerful alchemy of dramaturgically-savvy adaptations for the stage. Jane is a director, a dramaturg, and a theatre historian whose research includes Chicago-based touring theatre at the turn of the twentieth century, American pageantry, and depictions of Witchy characters onstage as well as in popular culture. She is proud to serve as the VP of University Relations for LMDA and the VP of Membership and Marketing for ATHE.

• Jenny Sledge is a Ph.D. student at the University of Kansas who will discuss season selection participation as well as her experience working with NY Rep remotely.

• Cassandra Ludlum (sophomore) and Kalen Stockton (senior) are both active participants in the KU “fall festival” to occur mid-October. 

Christina Hurtado-Pierson

The life of an artist-parent is challenging in the best of times, but COVID has completely upended our support systems. While every theatre artist is struggling, many parents are finding themselves in the untenable situations of trying to juggle work and parenting, or facing the professional and financial difficulties of dropping out of the workforce to care for children. We will discuss how the artist-parent landscape is changing under COVID, and our thoughts on how theatres can become more family-friendly for artists and staff as we return, and the ways we’ve used our dramaturgical skills to help our families cope during the pandemic. We know many parents still have their children at home, so if your kid makes an appearance, we get it!

Leading the discussion on Who Gets Left Behind: Parenting, Dramaturgy, and Covid will be

• Christina Hurtado-Pierson (she/her/hers) is a freelance dramaturg and teaches Dramaturgy, Playwriting, and Theatre History at Pomona College. She has worked for both commercial and non-for-profit theaters including Martian Entertainment as a dramaturg and producer, Rattlestick Playwrights Theater as the Outreach Director, and the Royal Exchange Theatre in Manchester, UK as a literary associate. She holds an MFA in Dramaturgy from Columbia University and is the proud mom of three-year-old Hank and 8-week-old Hazel. Phoenix essay: “Who Gets Left Behind?”

• Kirsten Bowen (she/hers) is a freelance dramaturg and arts writer. Previously she was Literary Director of Woolly Mammoth Theatre Company in Washington, DC and Literary Associate at Signature Theatre in New York. She has an MFA in Dramaturgy from the Institute for Advanced Theater Training at American Repertory Theater. She lives in Philadelphia with her husband and two year old son. Phoenix essay: “Space on the Sidewalk”

• Tanya Palmer (she/her) is an Associate Professor of Dramaturgy at Indiana University and head of their new M.F.A. in Dramaturgy program. Prior to her arrival at IU she was the Director of New Play Development at the Goodman Theatre in Chicago for 14 seasons, and before that was the Director of New Play Development at Actors Theatre of Louisville for 5 seasons. Originally from Calgary, Alberta, Canada, she lives in Bloomington, Indiana with her husband Jim and their two kids, Harper and Theo. Phoenix essay: “Come Outside.”

• Daniella Vinitski Mooney (she/her) is a Canadian-American practitioner-scholar working in the intersections of experimental performance and identity politics, with an emphasis on physical dramaturgy, acting, and new play development. As a dramaturg/Reader, she has worked with the Colorado Shakespeare Festival, PlayPenn, the Jewish Plays Project, and the Philadelphia branch Dramaturgy Open Office Hours Project, and is a recent contributor to anthologies Physical Dramaturgy: Perspectives in the Field (Routledge) and How to Teach a Play (Bloomsbury Press). She is also an award-winning actor and director trained through the Experimental Theatre Wing (EWT) at NYU and the Royal Academy in London, and most recently taught for the University of Pennsylvania. Daniella’s book project, The Immersive Theatre of GAle GAtes, is currently under consideration for contract. http://daniellavinitski.com Phoenix essay: “Imagining Post-Covid: Theatre & It’s Immediacy”

Brenda Muñoz, David Geary, Jihye Kim

Continuing our conversations on BIPOC Reflections, this week’s “Dramaturging the Phoenix” will feature LMDA Regional VP Brenda Muñoz (Mexico City, Mexico), freelance dramaturgs David Geary (Canada & New Zealand), and Jihye Kim (L.A. & Seoul, South Korea). These speakers will discuss what’s happening at present in their community as well as answer questions on how we can move forward beyond statements and promises to change. In line with the Phoenix series to think about ways dramaturgy can bring forward progress to our communities in these difficult times, what are the steps we can take to move towards better BIPOC allyship?

This week we’re taking a moment to gather feedback on the Forums thus far, solicit suggestions for the year’s remaining Forums, and work on writing prompts to fuel new Phoenix essays toward our ambitious Halloween goal. If you’ve wanted to write an essay for the collection but have just needed a little push, this is the Forum for you!

Lynde Rosario

Continuing our conversations from August 4th’s BIPOC Reflections, this week’s “Dramaturging the Phoenix” will feature LMDA Regional Reps Maren Robinson (Chicago), Alix Rosenfeld (Philadelphia), and one other Regional Rep (TBA). These speakers will discuss what’s happening at present in their community as well as answer questions on how we can move forward beyond statements and promises to change. In line with the Phoenix series to think about ways dramaturgy can bring forward progress to our communities in these difficult times, what are the steps we can take to move towards better BIPOC allyship?

Our moderator for the discussion will be Lynde Rosario, Dramaturg and Literary Manager for the DCPA Theatre Company in Denver, Colorado. Lynde is an LMDA Board Member, VP of Regional Activity, and Co-VP of the Mountain West region. She is also a Board Member for the National New Play Network (NNPN).

Claudia Nolan

Our guest will be Claudia Nolan, author of the Phoenix essay “Mycelial Dramaturgy: Unseen Connections.” Our discussion will dive into Slow Theater-Making as a practice that centers sustainability and humaneness. From Claudia: “In an attempt to consider the fullness of the human experience as a part of the art-making process, and humans as part of the larger natural landscape existing on the planet, I believe that working mindfully in a holistic manner creates more complex art and supports artists more fully.”

Ramona Rose King and Abigail Vega

Our guests will be Ramona Rose King and Abigail Vega, producers at HowlRound Theatre Commons. Our conversation will explore pitching, curating, and publishing at Howlround and beyond.

Lynde Rosario

Our moderator will be Lynde Rosario, Dramaturg and Literary Manager for the DCPA Theatre Company in Denver, Colorado. Lynde is an LMDA Board Member, VP of Regional Activity, and Co-VP of the Mountain West region. She is also a Board Member for the National New Play Network (NNPN).

Our invited speakers, representing Atlanta, the Bay Area, D.C., Philly, NYC, and other U.S. regions, will include:

• Jordan Ealey is a dramaturg, playwright, and scholar from Atlanta, Georgia and currently located in the D.C. area. As a freelance dramaturg who practices in both new play dramaturgy and production dramaturgy, she has worked with Hush Harbor Lab, University of Maryland, and Dance Place. Alongside her dramaturgy, Jordan is also a playwright, whose works centers on the lived experiences of black girls and women. Currently, Jordan is a doctoral student in Theatre and Performance Studies at the University of Maryland, College Park where she researches black theatre and performance, black feminist theory and praxis, musical theatre, and black girlhood studies. She is also the co-host and co-producer of Daughters of Lorraine, a podcast on black theatre from a black feminist lens, which is supported by HowlRound Theatre Commons.

• Quinn D. Eli grew up in the Bronx, NY. His short plays have appeared in Best American Ten-Minute Plays and been produced throughout the country. Longer works include Hazardous, produced locally by Tiny Dynamite; and HOT BLACK/ASIAN ACTION, a satire about sexual and racial stereotypes that premiered at the New York International Fringe Festival. He is a cofounder of Jouska PlayWorks, a Philadelphia-based initiative for playwrights of the African Diaspora, sponsored by Simpatico Theatre. The two-time recipient of Fellowships in Literature from the Pennsylvania Council on the Arts, Eli teaches in the Theater program at the Community College of Philadelphia and has served as a Playwright-in-Residence at Plays & Players Theatre.

• Audrey Rush (she/her/hers) Is a queer theatre artist and fundraising professional with experience in local, regional, and Off-Broadway communities. As the Senior Manager of Individual Giving and Events at A.R.T./New York – the largest arts service organization catering to New York City’s non-profit theatre field – she works each day to provide holistic support to the hundreds of theatre companies that help define New York’s cultural and economic landscape. Audrey is committed above all to developing and introducing new, equitable practices that challenge systems rooted in white supremacy.

Tuesday’s speakers wish to uplift the work of the following:

• Organizations: Snap4Freedom, SisterSong, BYP100, Black Feminist Future

• Black Theatres: Theater Alliance DC, , The Tiny Theatre Company, New African Grove Theatre Company

• Allies: Philadelphia’s Simpatico Theatre (make a note in the donation to Jouska PlayWorks)

Andrea Kovich

As the U.S. honors the life of civil rights icon Congressman John Lewis and marks the 30th anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), we turn our Phoenix focus for a few weeks to discussions of representation and inclusion.

This Tuesday is one-hour Dramaturging the Phoenix Forum featuring Andrea Kovich (she/her), a Seattle-based freelance dramaturg, disabled artist, and accessibility consultant:

My essay, “The Future is Accessible,” is an evolving response to the concurrence of the COVID-19 pandemic and the 30^thanniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act. The central question is what place does accessibility hold in the future rebuilding of the theatre world? With so much that needs to be addressed, will accessibility be the lowest priority? As the pandemic exposes the injustices that we can no longer ignore, we have an opportunity to create change. By posing a number of questions, I’m attempting to start conversations that do not sideline accessibility, but instead examine the full scope of equity and inclusion.

Mark Blankenship

This Tuesday is one-hour Dramaturging the Phoenix Forum featuring Mark Blankenship, a dramaturg-by-training who works as a journalist, editor, and podcast host.

Mark is the founder and editor of The Flashpaper, the host of The Showtune Countdown on iHeartRadio Broadway, and the co-host of the pop music podcast Mark and Sarah Talk About Songs. He has written for The New York Times, Fortune, Variety, and many others, and he was the founding editor of TDF Stages. He’s originally from Chattanooga, Tennessee, and like everyone else from that part of the state, he went to elementary school with someone who swore they were related to Dolly Parton.

The Flashpaper: Theatre’s Thoughts on Right Now is a biannual, print-only publication in which theatre artists and/or theatre companies create new work that responds to a specific prompt about an urgent current event. Their responses are published to elevate their voices, provide them with compensation, and present a snapshot of how they are collectively engaging with the present moment. Issue 1 is currently on sale, and Issue 2 is scheduled for release in December.

Mark will discuss intersections of The Flashpaper‘s first issue with Dramaturging the Phoenix, particularly the following essays:

• “Space on the Sidewalk” by Kirsten Bowen
• “The Pandemic and Accessibility” by Rebecca Curran
• “Rebuilding Theatre Around the Audience” by Michael Feldman
• “The Harder Disease to Beat” by Nicholas Horner
• “Radical Civic Dramaturgy” by LaRonika Thomas
• “A Psychological Case for Theatre Now” by Miram Weisfeld

Diane Brewer

This Tuesday features Diane Brewer, Dramaturg and Professor of Theatre History and Dramatic Criticism at the University of Evansville:

“Notes From the Sidelines” is a snapshot of two moments in time. In the first, I felt as if the pandemic had ironically placed dramaturgy—and me, as dramaturg—at the center of institutional change. Looking back at that entry as the seed of weseeyouWAT activism asserted its rightful place at the center of that change, I saw only my blind spots and (once again) recalibrated my perspective as I looked for ways to decenter myself and my whiteness. Then, at the #LMDA2020, I heard people talking about the importance of getting off the sidelines. I have intensely conflicted feelings about the paradox of active detachment that runs through my own dramaturgical practice. We are in the midst of a revolution. Does active detachment have any value in this moment?

Yoni Oppenheim

Yoni Oppenheim will discuss his recent lecture-performance ‘My Archive of Mourning and Memory”, presented on the 1st anniversary of his father’s passing, as part of Lola Arias’s series My Documents | Share your screen! The work, which culminates his year of investigating the performative nature of mourning, will serve as a springboard for discussing how theater communities might memorialize the dead during and after the Coronavirus pandemic, a theme of his Dramaturging the Phoenix essay.