Although Wily West has been dark the last several months, we have also been busy busy busy back here behind the curtain. We are in the thick of our 2014 pre-season activities and having a blast. In late fall we had our semi-annual company retreat, welcomed new members Jason Jeremy, Jennifer Roberts, and Ellen Chesnut and finalized our 2014 season. It was an embarrassing love-fest, filled with so much excitement we could barely contain ourselves. In case you didn't know, Morgan, Quinn, Wes, Brady, Kat, Jason, Ellen, Jennifer, and yours truly are all awesome and we decided all of you are too. It was a unanimous vote. Really, I have the flip chart covered in hearts and exclamation points to prove it.
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.
Laylah Muran leads a reading of Sheherezade 14 plays! Photos by Jim Norrena.
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!
Diana Brown and Brian Flegel make everyone laugh at the read through of Superheroes!
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.
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.
Morgan Ludlow, Wes & Quinn Cayabyab attend a performance in February of Collected Stories taking a photo with Kat Kneisel and Diana Brown. 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
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
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