Digital Playbill
March 9th and 10th
Co-Founders and Producers: Katie Lindsay and Hannah Wolf
Curator and Producer: Henry Alexander Kelly
Line Producer: Lucy Houlihan
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Meet Cute is generously sponsored by The Pussycat Foundation BOLD Ventures Grant
Better Than Grinder
written by César Carmona - directed by Gabe Figueroa
Ramón Garcia is an LA native with a passion for Theatre, Music, Dance and Pasta ( quadruple threat obtained at the University of Northern Colorado 2017). When he’s not cooking, serving or eating Pasta, you might find him on stage - most recently with the Open Fist Theatre Company in the revival of the acclaimed musical , “ DeLEARious “. Move on over a pew and you might find him singing some Gospel music in “ BOTH A Hard Days Silent Night “, the Beatles Christmas Spectacular produced annually by OFTC and Jason Paige. Ramón is eager to share this fun and relevant story with a group of like-minded people. He looks forward to the growth, the work and the sense community that will undoubtedly come as result of working with MeetCute LA and all involved!
César Carmona (Playwright)
Long time actor first time playwright César has put his knowledge of pop culture and theater education from East Los Angeles College to good use by writing a playful story about finding romance in person when the digital hookup culture is prevalent. He’s always either auditioning, working or writing. César also uses his skills to give back to his community by bringing theater education to the kids in his neighborhood with the hopes of instilling a sense of confidence and pride with kids who might not have the most opportunities.. He loves art in all its forms and is grateful for the support of his family, friends and his partner Manee. Instagram: Theatergeekc Twitter: Theatergeek84 Facebook: @cesarctheatergeek
Gabe Figeuroa (Director)
Gabe Figueroa is a director and producer working in film, television and theatre. He is the Associate Artistic Director of Hero Theatre, where he will be directing the 2nd Annual Hero Song Cycle Cabaret this spring. Gabe has directed readings and productions of new work at Son of Semele, EST/LA, and the Urban Theatre Movement. Gabe’s film work includes Cold Winter’s Night, which was awarded the 2nd Place prize for ‘Best Children’s Programming’ by the Television Academy among other accolades. He currently works as a creative lead at Shots Studios – creating music videos and YouTube sketches for Lele Pons. In 2019, he and his team completed work on over 55 short form projects totaling over 150 million views. Gabe studied at Chapman University graduating with degrees in Film Production and Theatre. He trained with Cirque du Soleil, Oregon Shakespeare Festival, and South Coast Repertory. More at gabefigueroa.com / @gabejfigueroa
Daniel Luna (Gabriel)
Daniel is a Denver native living in LA. Whenever he isn’t eating a cheesecake or teaching a Pound Fitness class you can find him looking for diverse stories. He is very grateful to be a part of the MeetCute event. You can also see him in the new web series, FUNCTIONAL now on YouTube.
Ramón Garcia (Beto)
Ramón Garcia is an LA native with a passion for Theatre, Music, Dance and Pasta ( quadruple threat obtained at the University of Northern Colorado 2017). When he’s not cooking, serving or eating Pasta, you might find him on stage - most recently with the Open Fist Theatre Company in the revival of the acclaimed musical , “ DeLEARious “. Move on over a pew and you might find him singing some Gospel music in “ BOTH A Hard Days Silent Night “, the Beatles Christmas Spectacular produced annually by OFTC and Jason Paige. Ramón is eager to share this fun and relevant story with a group of like-minded people. He looks forward to the growth, the work and the sense community that will undoubtedly come as result of working with MeetCute LA and all involved!
Teddy Alexis Rodriguez (Ignacio)
Teddy Alexis Rodriguez was born and raised in Ponce, PR. He attended University of Puerto Rico (MS, Physics) and Texas Tech University (PhD, Theatre). He is writer/director/actor and his most dear roles are Juan in “Altar Boyz, the Musical” and El in Myrna Casas's “Voces.” His original play “How Did Edward Lose his Accent?” was a semi-finalist at Short+Sweet, Hollywood. Currently, he is working in his film “Hell No.” IG/Twitter: @teddyalexis, Facebook: @tedyalexisrodriguez
The Incident
written by Kate Mickere - directed by Sophie Goldstein
Kate Mickere (Playwright)
Kate Mickere is a playwright, screenwriter, and essayist originally from Scranton, Pennsylvania. Her plays include: Nurse Cadden (comissioned by The Vagrancy), A Banshee Killed My Boyfriend (The Last Frontier Theatre Conference) and Mod Party (Actors’ Theatre of Louisville, KCATCF Region II Ten-Minute Play Award). Her screenplay, Capturing the Stars, won the Alfred P. Sloan Student Screenwriting Award and received an Honorable Mention for the Sloan/Tribeca Grand Jury Prize. As an essayist, Kate has been published in The Los Angeles Times, XO Jane, and The Awl. She wrote two monologues for the collection “Teen Girls’ Comedic Monologues That Are Actually Funny,” published by Applause Books. She holds an MFA in Dramatic Writing from Carnegie Mellon University, where she was the recipient of the Steven Bochco Fellowship. She was a member of The Vagrancy’s 2018-2019 Playwright’s Group. www.katemickere.com
Sophie Goldstein (Director)
Sophie Goldstein is a Mexican-American Jew, Los Angeles native who received her B.A. in Theatre Arts and Dance from Cal State LA and an MFA in Physical Theatre from the Accademia Dell’Arte in Arezzo Italy. While in Europe she was fortunate to study physical theatre from companies all over Italy, Germany and the Czech Republic. Since graduating, she has choreographed and directed with Cal State LA, 2Cents Theatre, Son of Semele, Vaulting Ambition, Crescenta Valley High School and Vagrancy Company. She also taught Acting, Viewpoints and Commedia Dell’Arte at Cal State LA and A Noise Within theatre. She is so very excited to be a part of this MeetCute festival and gives thanks to the fabulous team for putting it together and Kate Mickere for writing such a fun piece!
Daphne Gabriel (Eleanor)
Daphne Gabriel is an actress and filmmaker based on LA. She received her training from Bristol Old Vic Theatre School. She has two upcoming feature films, “The Uncanny” and “No Volveré.” www.daphnegabriel.com
Kristi Schultz (Eleanor)
Kristi Schultz is a hyphenate Theatremaker and Teaching Artist. She is dedicated to championing new plays. Her productions of IN THE HEIGHTS and CHICAGO at New Roads School received Jerry Herman Award nominations for Best Production and an award for Directing. She was Artistic Director of LA company, Zoo District where she directed Ionesco’s THE SUBMISSION and produced THE DEFENDERS, Padua Playwrights DESTRUCTION OF THE 4th WORLD, My Hero Project's INTERNATIONAL PEACE DAY EVENT. Upcoming: premiere of FLESH by Ash Nichols at INKFest at the Broadwater. Company Member and Festival Producer at Son of Semele Ensemble, and a performer with the Grand Guignolers. Associate Producer for the SSDC Director’s Lab West 2020. Other performance: Third Rail Dance, New York’s Theatre Studio, Inc, and Yale Drama Cabaret. Alum: Carnegie Mellon University, British American Drama Academy, SITI Company. Thank you to Sophie Goldstein for the intro to MeetCute!
Jacob Nava (French Guard 1)
Jacob Nava is an actor and a tech person. Currently getting his BA from CSULA in theatre design and production. Jacob was the master carpenter for fall season 2019 at CSULA theatre department. Jacob was also in Hamlet and Antigone all CSULA.
Adam Ferguson (French Guard 2)
Adam Ferguson is a southern boy at heart having grown up in Memphis, TN. He toured internationally (Asia, Europe, and South America) in A Midsummer Night’s Dream directed by Academy Award winner Tim Robbins. He appeared Off-Broadway in the World Premiere of Boys Just Wanna Have Fun. Here in Los Angeles, Adam has appeared in The Altruists (winner of StageSceneLA Best Actor in a Comedy), Picasso at the Lapine Agile, and The Dead Guy. He played Comendador Gomez in Anna Estrada’s bilingual production of Fuente Ovejuna and recently played Prior Walter in Angels in America. Adam wrote and starred in the webseries 30 is Still 30 which is available to watch on YouTube.
Erika Sorondo (WasherWoman)
Erika Sorondo (The washer woman) is an experienced Behavioral Therapist, who studied Psychology with an emphasis in Child Development and Special Needs at California State University, Los Angeles. She is now the owner of A Part of Your World Events- an event planning service catered to clients on the autism spectrum. In her free time she paints and continues to take art classes to better her craft. Her goal is to continue to aid students both typical and atypical integrate and flourish, by using the arts as a way to inspire confidence, self expression and collaboration. This is her Los Angeles theater debut!
Jeremiah Ripley (Scary Man)
Jeremiah Ripley is an LA based actor & writer. He was born and raised in Wheeling, WV. He studied at Fairmont State University, where he received his Bachelor of Arts in Theatre with a minor in Sociology. He is currently in graduate school working towards his MFA in Television, Film and Theatre / Acting option at Cal State LA. He was most recently seen as Louis Ironson in Angels in America, Part One: Millennium Approaches and Orcus in She Kills Monsters both at Cal State LA. You can see Jeremiah next in a web series he co-created and stars in called JERRY, which will be streaming later this year. Follow Jeremiah on Instagram & Twitter @jereripley and check out his website JeremiahRipley.com
Kiley Eberhardt (Marie Antionette)
KILEY EBERHARDT (Marie)-Is excited to once again work with Director Sophie Goldstein. Kiley has worked in the theatre, film, and commercial industries starting in her hometown of Chicago, IL. Recent theatrical credits include Antigone at APAF, DeLearious at The Open Fist Theatre Company as well as The Dead, and Foote Notes: Two Plays from Harrison Texas (Young Lady of Property). Recent TV credits include Grey’s Anatomy and the film Painted Beauty. A graduate of AMDA, Kiley also is a former intern of Piven Theatre Workshop. She would like to thank Nick for always running lines with her, helping her with scenes, and always being there for the other stuff. For more information see KileyEberhardt.com . IG @KileyEberhardt FB @KileyAnnEberhardt
Coaster
written by Scott Mullen - directed by Margaret Starbuck
Scott Mullen (Playwright)
Scott Mullen is a playwright and screenwriter, a two-time winner of Amazon Studios' screenwriting contest, whose thrillers THE SUMMONING and IN BROAD DAYLIGHT aired on TV One. His short plays have been produced hundreds of times around the world. An evening of his comic plays, A NIGHT OF S.M., had a two-week run in Hollywood. Twitter @mullen_scott
Margaret Starbuck (Director)
Margaret is an LA-based director and UCLA TFT alum who is passionate about building community and asking tough questions through rehearsal and performance. Recent directing projects include the world premiere musical We Three Sisters by Frankel & Bloom and Shakespeare’s Measure for Measure with Method & Madness Theater Co., a classical theater company she co-founded in 2017. Margaret has also assistant directed throughout the LA area at Pasadena Playhouse, LA Theatre Works, Boston Court Pasadena, A Noise Within, and The Odyssey. On Facebook as Margaret Starbuck. Instagram as @Margarstar
Renee Torchio MacDonald (Maria)
Renee is a graduate of UCLA's school of Theater, Film and Television, and a co-founder of Method and Madness Theater Company alongside Margaret Starbuck and Will Block. She is thrilled to be working on a new piece of theater with long time friends Margaret, Annette, and her rollercoaster-of-life partner Jono. Enjoy the show! More info at reneetm.com.
Jono Eiland (Paul)
Jono Eiland is a founding member of Sojourn Theatre. He is also a member of two Los Angeles based classical companies Porters of Hellsgate and Method & Madness. Recent roles include Iachimo in Cymbeline, Palamon in Two Noble Kinsmen (Porters of Hellsgate), Lucio in Measure for Measure (Method & Madness), and in the ensemble of Miss You Like Hell (Baltimore Center Stage). He holds a BA in Theater Arts from Virginia Tech. He is thankful to be on the roller coaster with Annette, Margaret, and especially Renée.
Annette Bizal (Gabe)
Annette Bizal is an actor, baker, writer, and clown. Favorite credits: UCLA's A Midsummer Night’s Dream (Puck) and Eugene Ionesco’s The Chairs (Old Woman). She’d like to thank her time working in guest services as training for this role. instagram: @annettebizal or annettebizal.com
Camp
written by Makeda Declet - directed by Lauren Ludwig
Makeda Declet (Playwright)
Makeda Declet is an LA-based playwright, producer and actress. She attended New York University where she received her BFA in theater, studying at The Experimental Theater Wing, ITW Amsterdam, and The Classical Studio. Makeda's focus is on the truthful examination of black family dynamics, confronting the nuances of queerness and sexuality and exploring how to use myth and magical realism as channels for healing. Her most recent plays include Service/Play, HAMMER, and Judith. She is a 2019 HBO All-Access finalist. Makeda is also a member of SAG/AFTRA, AEA, EST/LA's New West Playwright's group, a MADlab development program playwright and an Echo Theater Company member. Much love to her family and friends! IG: @makdeclet Twitter: @makedadeclet
Lauren Ludwig (Director)
Lauren Ludwig is a writer/director who specializes in immersive theater, comedy, and creating communities for artists. She co-founded the award-winning LA theater company Capital W which creates immersive experiences for small audiences. Her work with Capital W won Best Overall Immersive Work at Hollywood Fringe 2017 and the Game Design Award at the 2016 IndieCade Festival. Hamlet-Mobile, her adaptation of Shakespeare's play staged in a cargo van, was published in the anthology Best Plays from American Theater Festivals 2015. Lauren also works in TV and film comedy; her newest half-hour pilot is premiering at the 2020 SXSW Festival. When not making her own work, Lauren loves helping other artists birth theirs; she was the Director of AFI’s Directing Workshop for Women and is the co-founder of Wayward, a retreat in the Canadian wilderness for artists of marginalized genders. laurenludwig.com
Nicole Pacent (Rumor)
Best known for her role as 'Aster' on the award-winning series, Anyone But Me (hulu), Nicole Pacent is an actress, writer, and host. Screen credits include TNT's Murder in the First, ABC's Stumptown, the hit indie series Sorry, Ari, and the short film A Lesson in Grace and Modern Cordiality, which garnered Nicole the Best Actress award at the Rattlestick West Film Festival. LA theater credits include Time Stands Still (directed by Joel Zwick), Brain Problems (Ammo), A Midsummer Night's Dream and All's Well That Ends Well (Theatricum Botanicum), and Susan Miller's Average American with Liza Weil and Jenny O'Hara (The Blank Theatre). NYC theater credits include Revenge of the Space Pandas (Atlantic Theater Company), and Dark Rapture (Attic Theater Company). Nicole co-hosts the podcast Coming Out with Lauren and Nicole, which can be found on all streaming platforms. Twitter: @nicolepacent IG: @nicolepacent
Cammie Middleton (Tayshana)
Cammie Middleton is an accomplished voice-over artist and Jazz & Blues vocalist. She has appeared in and provided voice-over work for more than 25 commercials, music videos, podcasts, and video games, including Dire Universe, Deliberations, and Emergency 911. Cammie cut her teeth in the theater at City Players Theater Company while attending the Conservatory & School for the Arts in St. Louis, MO. Over the past five years, she has toured the U.S. with the Metro Theater Company in “Super Cowgirl & Mighty Miracle” and co-starred in First Run Theater’s world premiere play, “Trick and Anatonia.” She also recently appeared in the 2018 Hollywood Fringe Festival’s immersive play and Golden Key Award winner “Rochester 1996” and “Men-O-Pause: Ages of the Colors of Love Stageplay,” to rave reviews. From her work in “Shakespeare's Women:The Bard's Broads” or “Sluts Talk Back” to Playback, an improvisational group, Cammie is an established dramatic, stand-up comedienne, as well as comedic and character actor.
Win Win
written by Carene Rose Mekertichyan - directed by Bruce Lemon Jr.
Carene Rose Mekertichyan (Playwright)
Carene is an actress, writer, singer, educator, and proud Angelena. Selected stage: Pericles, Twelfth Night (Independent Shakespeare Co.), Troy (Hero Theatre), The Three Musketeers (PVPA), Señor Plummer's Final Fiesta (Rogue Artists Ensemble), American Asylum (Edinburgh Fringe), Macbeth (Northern Stage). Film: Ceci, Boys About Town, The Girl in the Red Dress. She is a Hero Theatre Company Member and Associate Member of Sacred Fools, where she has written and performed with We the People Theater Action. She wrote and starred in her play Number 12 Looks Just Like the Sunken Place, which was produced at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival. Season one of her Amazon Prime exclusive web series Just Roommates is now available to stream. She received her training from Dartmouth College and the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art (LAMDA). Social Medias: @carenerose Website: carenerose.com
Bruce Lemon Jr. (Director)
Bruce Lemon is a storyteller born and raised in Watts, CA. As a child, his father made him write stories and read them aloud in the hallway as punishment for lies and mischief. He’s still in trouble. Host of 89.3 KPCC In-Person’s UnheardLA. Associate Artistic Director/Ensemble with Cornerstone Theater Company. Artistic Director of Watts Village. Company member of Illyrian Players and Collaborative Artists Bloc . Actor, writer, director, producer, creative collaborator. Hobbies include: Holding a mirror up to America, rabble rousing, chasing dreams, working for the reimagining of his community, and listening to the kids. Recent Credits: Director: THE MOTHERFUCKER WITH THE HAT (2Rythms) A LIVE MIXTAPE (CALREP) Actor: WHAT HAPPENS NEXT (Cornerstone / La Jolla Playhouse), Assistant Director: ELLIOT, A SOLDIER'S FUGUE (CTG/ Kirk Douglas), Creative Producer: A JORDAN DOWNS ILLUMINATION (Cornerstone/Nancy Keystone), Writer/Performer: RELATIVES (Inner-City Arts/Rosenthal) Producer: GUNSHOT MEDLEY (Collaborative Artists Bloc / Rogue Machine)
Awards: 2016 Princess Grace. 2014 BroadwayWorld LA. 2018 Sherwood Award Finalist. B.A.- Hampton University, P.AP. - The Juilliard School, M.F.A - New School for Drama . Socials: @BALemonJr Website: BruceALemonJr.com
Nicholas McDonalad (Terrance Alabaster)
Proud Oregonian, Nicholas moved to Los Angeles to study acting at The American Academy of Dramatic Arts. He later went on to study at South Coast Rep. Theatrical credits include: Anthony Pascal in THE HOUSE OF YES (The Zephyr Theater), Yves BEING AT HOME WITH CLAUDE, Mercutio ROMEO AND JULIET, Tranio TAMING OF THE SHREW, Puck MIDSUMMER NIGHTS DREAM (Lovers and Madmen). IMDB: https://www.imdb.com/name/nm6257835/
Patrick Batiste (Terrance Obsidian)
Patrick Dean Batiste Jr. is an American actor, singer and performer, born and raised in Berkeley, California. At an early age he found his passion for entertainment and received a scholarship to the Young Musicians Program at U.C. Berkeley where was trained as a vocalist. He went on to star in all of his High School musicals and plays and it became clear that acting and performing was a God given talent. When he was 16, Patrick secured his first local talent agent in San Francisco and also went on to secure his commercial agent in Los Angeles. He became used to auditioning and booking jobs in both markets, juggling both high school curriculum and basketball practice with flights to Los Angeles for auditions. In 2009, he book his first Co-Star in NBC's Trauma playing opposite Derek Luke and Kevin Rankin. He then moved to Los Angeles and attended California State University, Northridge while pursuing his acting career where he graduated with a BA in Theatre and a Minor in Music. He has since shot over 20 union commercials, starred and co-starred in various shorts and feature films and is a company member with the Independent Shakespeare Co.
Transformation
written by Jesús Daniel Cruz- directed by Maia “Vik Floyd” Villa
Jesús Daniel Cruz (Playwright)
Jesús Daniel Cruz is a Mexican artist, writer, and poet living in Los Ángeles who identifies as LGBTQ. As a Daca recipient, the immigrant and gay experience can be discerned in his works. He has worked with the Q-Youth foundation as an Eastside Queer Stories Festival writer, as part of their playwriting program and poetry program. He has been a Pride Poet for the city of West Hollywood during Pride month and has worked for Houses On The Moon theater company as a live storyteller in a cohort with story tellers from Mumbai. He has been a performer in Artistas En Acción, a show dedicated to raise funds for migrant children in the San Fernando Valley. His work has been featured on InQluded magazine and Acentos Review and deals with themes of love, loss, and injustice within the queer and Hispanic community. More of his work and short stories are also available on Amazon Kindle.
Maia “Vik Floyd” Villa (Director)
Maia “Vik Floyd” Villa is a fifth generation Chicanx Los Angeleno, most at home between taco trucks and boba tea. They’re a lifelong performer and writer, particularly in love with sketch comedy, ancestral reparation, and rock’n’roll. They graduated from Bennington College in 2015, with a focus on Marginalized Identities in Performance. They have written, directed, and performed with Q Youth Foundation’s Eastside Queer Stories Festival; CASA 0101 Theater (Los Angeles); The Playground Theater (Chicago); The Second City Hollywood; United Citizens Brigade; and Highways Performance Space (Santa Monica). They most recently directed Borracho: Spanish for Drunken Bum by Abe Zapata Jr., which won an award at the Hollywood Fringe Festival 2019. You can catch them at sketch/improv shows in Hollywood and doing rey metalero drag all over the Eastside. Instagram: @maia.villa and @mx.vikfloyd
Ale Flores (Sofia)
Ale Flores is a trained actress and produced playwright. She is a sag-aftra performer that has acted in feature films, plays and commercials. She excels at both drama and comedy and embraces the contradictions in her characters. She enjoys pole dancing and connecting with other creatives.
Sherry Mandujano (Death)
Sherry Mandujano is a graduate of The American Musical and Dramatic Academy in New York. Most recently, she starred in ABC’S SPEECHLESS and previously, she has appeared on shows such as THIS IS US, THE YOUNG AND THE RESTLESS, THE MICK, SHAMELESS, Ray Donovan, I’m Dying Up Here, and Baskets. Theatre credits include Real Women Have Curves, Man of La Mancha, Songs For a New World and The Rain of Gold. She has also performed in many showcases and cabarets for new musical works such as the NHMC Latino Scene Showcase, A Little New Music and A Night: Benefit Concert for The Actors Fund
Elena Campbell-Martinez (Mama Dolores)
Elena Campbell-Martínez is a bilingual Mexican-American actor-director committed to telling stories that reflect her family background, as well as other Latinx experiences on the screen. As the daughter of a Mexican writer, she spent summers in Guadalajara at her maternal grandparents’ home, but took several detours before choosing the artist life herself. Currently, Elena is the neighborhood curandera Doña Lupe on three seasons of the Starz series Vida, which is widely acclaimed for its authentic representation of Latinx people. She recently appeared in director John Butler’s Papi Chulo, an indie feature that also got kudos for its non-stereotypical portrayal of a Latinx family. Elena’s most recent TV appearances include This Is Us, Unbelievable, Atypical and Liza On Demand. Elena volunteers her time supporting new voices in the theatre, working with the Seedlings program at Theatricum Botanicum and the LA Female Playwrights Initiative. She recently directed two scenes in the National Hispanic Media Coalition’s 2019 Latino Scene Showcase, and a play about the family separation crisis at our border as part of the Latino Program of the Short+Sweet Hollywood festival.Elena and her husband Dennis share their cozy Highland Park home with their family of three adorkable rescue pups (Baxter, Sarita and Dobbie). IG: @elenurcia; Twitter: @ElenaCampbell; FB: @ElenaCampbellMartinezActorWebsite: https://campbellmartinez.com/
Gabreilla Rafiele (Martina)
Gabriella Rafiele is a Salvadorean/American transplant from Dallas, Texas. She has appeared in various films, series and commercials as well as play festivals such as Brown and Out 2019 and Hollywood Short and Sweet 2019.