Basking in the love-glow,  we selected plays for Sheherezade and finalized our directors for the show in December.  In January we had a table reading and finalized the cast.  SHEHEREZADE 14 will run in June and features short works from Jennifer Roberts, Terry Anderson, Madeline Puccioni, Madeleine Butler, Steve Koppman,Vonn Scott Bair, and Jim Norrena.  I am really excited about the selections this year with some interesting and captivating material that will be funny and devastating, sweet and poignant.  (I'll blog about that in April). Wes Cayabyab  who has been in the last five Sheherezade's is switching to a Director's role with Amy Crumpacker who joins us for the first time. While Jason Jeremy, who used to be a regular player in Sheherezade back in the day, is returning to acting in the show.   The cast also includes Philip Goleman coming off a string of roles with Ross Valley Players - including ARMS AND THE MAN playing now, Catherine Ludtke - who is busy being amazing in Custom Made's TOP GIRLS, Leontyne Mbele-Mbong who has been garnering audience and critical raves in African American Shakespeare Co's MEDEA, which closes this weekend.  Also joining the cast are Rick Homan who composed and played music in our production of Patricia Milton's BELIEVERS in 2012,Cameron Galloway who you can see at DivaFest's DIVAS TELL ALL, and Gareth Tidball who will be here for her summer break from New York University's theatre program.

We also kicked off our collaborative writing project for what became SUPERHEROES where 8 playwrights - The Playmaker's League - wrote as many short plays as they could in 6 weeks around a facilitated central theme.   Jennifer Lynne Roberts served as Head Writer and provided weekly inspiration and sub-topics for the writers. This creative storm resulted in 114 scripts, which were narrowed down to just 29 for a hilarious marathon reading back in February.  In February we also did private readings of all of the plays for the season, finalized the Superheroes line-up (11 plays between 1 and 10 minutes each), and casting for the show.  We have Alicia Coombes and Chelsey Little directing plays by Bridgette Dutta Portman, Jennifer Lynne Roberts, Karl Shackne, Laylah Muran de Assereto (moi),  Morgan Ludlow, Patricia Milton, Rod McFadden, and Susan Jackson and live music written and performed by Kat Downs from local band Sit Kitty Sit (whose band was at SXSW this March).  We are thrilled to have performers Barrett Courtney (with his SF debut), Brian Flegel (most recently in PCSFs 24 Hour Fest, and a frequent player with Pear Avenue's reading series), Dan Wilson (of Radio Star Improv), Jenna May (recently returning to the Bay Area from Seattle), and Karen Offereins (most recently of Custom Made's THE PAIN AND THE ITCH and returning to us from last year's SHEHEREZADE 13) and actor Shelley Lynn Johnson completes the cast. I can't wait to see them take on our superheroes; their woes, predicaments, and foes.  Look for the trading cards!

We are *this* close to finishing up the casting for Stuart Bousel's EVERYBODY HERE SAYS HELLO! which will be directed by Rik Lopes and will run in rep with SUPERHEROES in July/August.  The short list is pretty impressive and exciting for this multilayered character piece.  

We recently finished casting our fall shows running in October, and also in rep, with Krista Knight's UN-HINGED and Morgan Ludlow's DROWNING KATE and will both be directed by Wesley Cayabyab.  These two shows will share some cast members and like the whole season, includes a fantastic group of actors.   UN-HINGED will feature Rick Homan, Cameron Galloway, Genevieve Purdue Smith, and Scott Cox.  

DROWNING KATE will feature Colleen Egan, Scott Cox, and Genevieve Purdue Smith.

Quinn Cayabyab and Ellen Chesnut along with our directors have been conjuring magical and amazing design concepts for all of the shows, which will feature some pretty cool things that will be dynamic and interesting to see up on stage.

We've also been taking the opportunity before we are ensconced in rehearsals to go to shows!  Associate artist Kat Kneisel is performing with the multi-talentedDiana Brown in COLLECTED STORIES for Expressions Productions.  This play about mentorship, storytelling, trust, betrayal, literary success, and loss is well worth seeing.  We are especially proud of Kat's terrific portrayal of the mentee who outgrows her mentor with heartbreaking emotional fall out.  Quinn Cayabyab, myself and friends caught the show on Sunday March 23rd and Jennifer Roberts along with Jim Norrena, Patricia Milton, and Bridgette Dutta Portman caught the show Friday March 28th.

Jason and I went to see Cutting Ball's RISK IS THIS series closer EX MACHINA on Saturday the 29th.   And various company members have theatre dates to see TOP GIRLS, MEDEA, RAT GIRL,  ARMS AND THE MAN, THE CRUCIBLE, DIVAS TELL ALL and more!  

The company is also looking forward to going to the gala in May to support Morgan Ludlow and Ryan Hayes for their Bay Area Theatre Critics Circle nominations for last summer's GORGEOUS HUSSY!

Say hi when you see us around and have a great spring!

Laylah Muran
Executive Producer
Wily West Productions

What most excites you about this production? 

Something that I’m really excited about is all the stage combat we’ll be doing. I have a little bit of stage combat training but I’ve never done it in a show before, and I think that will be a really interesting new experience for me.

What is the greatest challenge you face with this show? 

One challenge I face is balancing doing this show with all the homework I’m getting now that I’m in my first year of high school.

What kind of research are you doing to prepare? 

Since my character is from the 70’s, I’m looking up stuff that was going on in that time period. I already watch a lot of old TV shows, but I’m going to be looking more into what happened in history during that time so I can give my character a little bit more context.

What have been some of your favorite previous roles (or productions you have been involved with)? 

One of my favorite past roles was when I played a young Russian girl in a play at the theater camp I went to this summer. I got to learn how to do a Russian accent, which was incredibly challenging but one of the best challenges I’ve had as an actor. I had a really wonderful experience with the cast.

This play is about ghosts - have you ever encountered the supernatural yourself? 

I unfortunately have never had a supernatural experience (thus far) but I’ve always wanted to encounter some sort of spirit or supernatural being.

What is the scariest movie or play you have seen? Why? 

I think that the scariest movie I’ve ever seen would either be The Shining or The Exorcist. I was going through a scary movie phase a couple of years ago, and I watched them both around the same time. They were terrifying!

What are you going to take from this production? 

I hope to take with me the experience of working in a professional production and an experience I will always remember. This is my first professional production and it’s been a really great experience.

ELLA ZALON (HOPE)  is very excited to be in her first play with Wily West Productions.  She is a student at Oakland School for the Arts, where her scene work has included Rose from GYPSY, Babette from [Sic], and Nick Bottom from A MIDSUMMER NIGHT'S DREAM. She also appeared in OSA’s production of Fractured Fairytales.  At Young Actors Theater Camp, she is a Company member, after participating for five years as a camper.  She would like to thank her family and friends for supporting her.  

What most excites you about this production? 

It is exciting to be creating a new character. It’s the reason I love working on new plays. There’s nothing better for an actor than having the creative opportunity to be the original actor in a role. 

What is the greatest challenge you face with this show? 

Treading the balance between the light humorous aspects of the character and the serious, scary threat and high stakes that underlie the action of the play. 

What kind of research are you doing to prepare? 

Our director suggested that for style – we watch the movie “HIGH SPIRITS.”  It’s an English film with a wonderful combination of humor and a real ghost story. Our story is very different but it is a good reference for how to combine humor with the ghostly. If it’s done right, an audience will go with crazy stuff like touching a ghost or even marrying one!

What have been some of your favorite previous roles (or productions you have been involved with)? 

I’ve been doing theatre a long time and have so many favorites. The best are always where the entire production just clicks: amazing material, a great cast and production team. Good theatre is a complete team effort. 

Recently I was in A BRIGHT ROOM CALLED DAY.  It was a fantastic production, wonderful cast – and I loved my role “Die Alte”. Other highlights have been Mom in SISTER CITIES, Mom in ZOMBIE VIXENS FROM HELL (another new character I got to originate in a great production & fantastic cast) Mammy O’Dougall in CRIPPLE OF INISHMAN, Desiree in A LITTLE NIGHT MUSIC, any of the roles I’ve done in Shakespeare (especially Paulina) and getting a kiss from Terrence McNalley after a performance of MAN OF NO IMPORTANCE.  

This play is about ghosts - have you ever encountered the supernatural yourself? 

Not personally, although I grew up in PA – and many places in and around Lancaster County are reported to be haunted by ghosts from as far back as the revolutionary war. I was in Gettysburg a couple of years ago, right before the July 4th weekend when the battle originally took place. The town and battlefield are said to be one of the most haunted places on earth and I could absolutely feel it. 

What is the scariest movie or play you have seen? Why? 

THE SHINING. (SILENCE OF THE LAMBS is right up there) I think it’s because the threats are so real but can’t be dealt with by “normal means.” The psychological pressure is unbelievable, but there is comparatively little actual blood & violence onscreen. 

What do you hope audiences will take from this production? 

I hope audiences love our show. It’s great fun, and has really scary moments. Who could ask for anything more - especially in October!

SHELLEY JOHNSON (MRS. CUTTER) Last seen with Wily West as a crazy lady in “Love in the Time of Zombies” – she is excited to be originating a new role. A busy singing actor, she has performed numerous leading musical and non- musical roles with many Bay Area companies.  This past Spring she was narrator for “The Play of Daniel”  – a liturgical play sung in Latin with the San Francisco Renaissance Voices.   Last year she was “Mom” in Zombie Vixens from Hell with Virago Theatre and the mysterious  “Die Alte” in A Bright Room Called Day with Custom Made Theatre.  Favorite productions include leading roles in Sister Cities, A Delicate Balance, Cripple of Inishmaan, Winter’s Tale  - & musical favorites A Little Night Music, Man of No Importance, Fiddler on the Roof, and A New Brain.  Other acting work includes standardized patient simulation in medical schools and recording poetry on Voetica.com. Shelley is also a stage director and acting coach specializing in coaching singers on stage presence and role & audition preparation.  Visit her website: www.actingforsingers.com

What most excites you about this production?

When I was asked to be in this production, I had this very enthusiastic pleading from Morgan and Quinn.  And I'd auditioned for Wily West several times before; so when the call came, it was like, "Finally!"  There is a fantastic stable of actors behind this production, and to have a chance to take on several challenging roles was very exciting.  The subject matter is very topical right now, and the stories we're presenting here have a very broad range, but all hit home in their own way that I find appealing.

You can't ignore the timing of this production, in light of recent events, right?  So, to be a part of the dialogue and to present these stories and anticipate our audience's feedback will be very exciting.

What is the greatest challenge you face with this show?

Getting my lines down, I think!  Its quite a challenge to work on getting lines down with so many other distractions out there. I've had to perfect my own method of line memorization over the years, of course. But with a show where I'm playing five different characters, each one's story, history, purpose and life on stage presents another challenge; one where making specific choices (as with any character) and defining each role - will be quite a challenge.

What kind of research are doing to prepare?

Not that I don't research, because I love that process and am very good at it; for this, I'm giving myself a break. In other words, my main way of approaching this is to look at this as something that is supposed to be fun, and take a break from the heavier stuff I've been doing over the last year. I have been asking around as to whether I can talk to people who have had similar experiences.  I've been thinking a lot about my own personal experiences and have been drawing some parallels, of course. So, emotionally speaking, I'm right there with the characters as they go through their story. 

What have been some of your favorite previous roles (or productions you have been involved with)?

Oh, where to start?  There have been many. Last year I worked with Thrillpeddlers and did "Marat/Sade" with a fantastic group of artists. I played the Nurse, with no dialogue, and all stage action. It was a lesson in stillness, observation, and brute force. I was on stage for the entire 2 hours.  I still get people telling me how much they loved that production.

I think I'll always reference my very first play, "Romeo & Juliet" as the moment when I really thought, "this is what I want to to."  I had been through several rough years as a teenager, and had finally left high school and enrolled at Santa Rosa Junior College.  In 1991, I auditioned for this production and to my surprise was cast. What I find so fascinating now is that - for those of you who knew him - Michael Ward was in this show with me.  Even then, he was an inspiring and passionate force, and his acting was kinetic. Very recently, before he passed, we reunited and we were able to reflect on our friendship and careers in theatre. It was really a special family of people who came together very night and lived this story.  I still think on the friendships and snapshots of emotion or action in my mind, and I'd call that the genesis of my acting career.

Since this play is about the right to marry what are some of your personal feelings regarding marriage that you would be willing to share? 

Having never been married, I do get a sense from others what the joy is, and what the challenges are.  I only know that being free to love whomever I want to love is paramount. I don't believe it should be imposed, and it shouldn't be taken away, either. I suppose the bigger question for me is whether I want to be married, someday. And that would be "yes." 

What do you hope audiences will take from this production?

Each of these scenes speak to someone's truth, and whether you agree, or sympathize, or find it outside of your understanding, these short plays do move.  I think there is something here for everyone. I don't think it hits you over the head either, and it lets the audience decide for themselves, what to take from it.

We're in such an important moment in history; it's impossible to overlook that struggle for equality. So, I just hope it opens up someone's heart and changes their mind. After all, as an artist, we are here to incite debate and present different points of view, yes?

www.scottragle.com

SCOTT RAGLE (JACK, YASH, SEAN/ SHAWN, DOCTOR) Scott Ragle is a San Francisco based actor. Last year he debuted with Wily West in SPOOKY CABARET. He has worked with Marin Shakespeare Company ANTONY & CLEOPATRA; San Francisco Shakespeare Festival THE TEMPEST; Dark Porch Theatre COMEDY BALLET; as well as co-founding & co-producing The Magnetic Theatre Company THE HOUSE OF YES. Regionally, he has worked and trained with Shakespeare & Company (Lenox, MA).  He has worked in print, television, and film. His first film premiered at the 1999 Seattle International Film Festival AROUND THE FIRE.  More recently, he's been working with local playwrights and participating in staged readings for the Playwrights Center of SF and Lorraine Hansberry Theatre.