Company in the News October 2023

See what PlayGround-LA Writers, Alumni, and Company Members are up to this October!

Eliza Frakes is putting up her new play “Certain Death and Other Considerations” at the Echo Theatre after a smash-hit world premiere at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival. Tickets are only $10 and shows are on Sunday nights at 7:30pm, October 1st, 9th, and 15th. See you there!

Tansu Philip is officially on a UCB House Lloyd Improv Comedy Team, performing the first and third Mondays of every month at 10 PM at UCB Franklin. Her first show is 10/16 and she would love to see some Playgrounders there! Learn more here.

Jully Lee made her film directorial debut filming a music video of “Using/Losing The Light” from the musical PETER AND THE WALL by Timothy Huang. The music video premiered on BACKSTAGE PASS WITH LIA CHANG on cable TV channels FIOS 34, RCN 83, and Spectrum 56/1996. View it here.

Grant Gottschall‘s first full-length play, DOG DOOR, opens in Hollywood October 7. Tickets available here.

Allie Costa can be heard in Slayers: A Buffyverse Story, a new Audible original audio series available October 12th. This official continuation of Buffy the Vampire Slayer features several of the show’s original cast members. Listen here! https://adbl.co/SlayersUS Her play Two Girls was recently produced at the Reboot Festival in London, while Before We Burn was in a one-day-only event at The Glitch in London and Plainview had a reading in Norwich. Learn more here.

Forrest Hartl’s debut feature film “Free Lunch” premiered at the TCL Chinese Theatre as part of the iHollywood Film Fest. Watch it here.

The Covid Monologues, edited by Diana Burbano have won best play at the Latino Book Awards 2023. Learn more here.

Angela Sonner is excited to share that she is stage managing Noise Within’s production of Midsummer Night’s Dream with previews starting October 8th and running through November 12th. It should prove hot fire and wondrous strange snow! Tickets available here.

Mildred Inez Lewis‘ short UNRENDERED AID will be produced by the Black Revolutionary Theatre Workshop in New York City.

Lina Patel’s new play “Belonging” was given a workshop at East West Players led by dramaturg Alice Tuan and featuring Page Leong, Bernard White, William Salyers.

Stephanie T. Keefer stars as the villain in the re-released feature film A Girl, A Guy, A Space Helmet, an absurdist Sci-Fi RomCom. Watch it now on Tubi.

Carolyn Deskin has just completed a Shakespeare course at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Arts. You can also catch her the second Wednesday of every month with her sketch team, Paperback, at the Pack Theater. Learn more here.

Andrew Joseph Perez continues his delve into the world of audiobook narration and production over the next two months before heading to Coleville, CA to mount his original half-hour children’s musical ‘Molly & Acorn’ with the kids of the town. His audiobooks can be found here.

Alexia Jasmene is nominated for best supporting actress in the western short “The Return: Wrath of the Ravishing” at the Wild Bunch Film Festival in Tuscon, Arizona along with the rest of the cast, director and the film itself. She’s honored to be nominated for this powerful story of the brutal struggles that women had to endure in the Wild West and how the human spirit can overcome, even in death…Learn more here.

Jonathan Josephson just had a successful staged reading of his 1903 baseball play “Norine and the King of Swatsville” at Chance Theatre. His published plays continue to be produced around the world including “The Legend(s) of Sleepy Hollow” at The Arts Place of Stokes in Danbury, NC and “Chubby Bunny” at the Stage Door Performing Arts Academy in Whakatane, New Zealand. Learn more here.

This November, Timber Ghost Press will publish Evan Baughfman‘s horror-story-for-middle-grade-students, PERFORMANCE PIECE, in spooky anthology, “The Big Book of Things That Go Bump in the Night: A Collection of Utah Horror”! Each story/poem is either written by a Utah-based author or is set in the Beehive State. Evan’s tale takes place in Salt Lake City, after hours, at the famous Capitol Theatre. It’s about Freddie, a 12-year-old on the lookout for ghosts. Only, the inquisitive boy ends up seeing much more than he bargains for… If you’d like more information on the book—and might want to contribute to its crowdfunding campaign—please click here.

Carla Vega is currently guest teaching artist with Skyline HS drama dept. co-leading a devised theatre workshop. Short film “Everything Good’ debuts in private screening in Oakland 10/8. Upcoming: 11/30-12/2 “Perfect Response” collab with Cali & Co. dance group. Learn more here.

The film adaptation of Rhea MacCallum‘s short play, Asking For It, is an official selection for the LA Femme International Film Festival were it will be screened on Saturday October 21 in the 2-4pm block at the Regal Cinemas LA Live. The film recently won Best Comedy Short at the Studio City International Film Festival and Best Comedy Award at the Die Laughing Film Festival. Learn more here.

Sandra Cruze‘s ten minute play “The Tower” will be read on October 12th. Learn more here.

Shoshanna Ruth Green will be playing a fun character for Shine On Collective’s interactive, narrative, scavenger hunt with the Natural History Museum LA on Oct 28th as well as continuing as a writer for Corduroy (shows 1st Wednesday of every month) and an improviser for Supernova (shows 1st & 3rd Sundays) both at The Pack Theater. Tickets available here.