Steve Carter – Horace E. “Steve” Carter, Jr. was an American playwright, best known for his plays involving Caribbean immigrants living in the United States. Mr. Carter received the Living Legend award at the 2001 National Black Theatre Festival. He was Victory Gardens Theater’s first playwright-in-residence beginning in 1981, and he also served as playwright-in-residence at George Mason University. Carter’s Pecong (winner of the Joseph Jefferson award for New Work) premiered at Victory Gardens in the 1989–1990 season and received subsequent productions at London’s Tricycle Theatre, American Conservatory Theatre in San Francisco, and Newark Symphony Hall. His plays Eden (winner of an Outer Critics Circle Award, an AUDELCO Award, and the Los Angeles Drama Critics Circle Award) and Nevis Mountain Dew received Midwest premieres; and Dame Lorraine, House of Shadows, Shoot Me While I’m Happy, Spiele ’36, or the Fourth Medal, and Root Causes all premiered at Victory Gardens. Mr. Carter died at the age of 90 in 2020.

Brandon J. Dirden recently appeared on Broadway starring in the Tony Award-winning production of Take Me Out and Skeleton Crew for which he received a Drama Desk nomination.  He also appeared on Broadway as Martin Luther King, Jr. in the Tony Award-winning production of All the Way, with Bryan Cranston; as well as in the Tony Award winning revival of August Wilson’s Jitney; Clybourne Park; Enron; and Prelude to a Kiss. Off-Broadway, he has appeared in The Piano Lesson, for which he won OBIE, Theatre World, and AUDELCO awards; The First Breeze of Summer, Day of Absence (Signature Theatre); Detroit ’67 (The Public Theater, Classical Theatre of Harlem); Peter and the Starcatcher (New York Theatre Workshop); and as Brutus in Julius Caesar (Theatre for a New Audience). On screen he has appeared in The Good Wife, For Life, Evil, The Big C, Public Morals, Manifest, The Get Down, The Accidental Wolf, Blue Bloods, The Quad, the FX miniseries Mrs. America, and four seasons of FX’s The Americans as Agent Dennis Aderholt. He has directed numerous plays by Dominique Morriseau and August Wilson and recently Wine in the Wilderness by Alice Childress for Two River Theater. Brandon is an Associate Arts Professor on the faculty of Tisch Grad Acting at NYU; a frequent volunteer at the 52nd Street Project; and a proud member of both Actors’ Equity Association and Fair Wage On Stage.

George Zhou 周亦款 is a third-year M.F.A. candidate at David Geffen School of Drama, where his credits include Cleansed and Rent Free, as well as Baksa at Yale Cabaret. He received his bachelor’s degree in set design from the University of the Arts London. yiyangzhou.design

Caroline Tyson is a third-year M.F.A. candidate at David Geffen School of Drama, where credits include Pearl’s Beauty Salon and Fucking A. Other costume design credits include Herencia, Arlington, The Royale, And the Beetle Hums, and Marry Me A Little (Yale Cabaret); Bat Boy: The Musical (Weston Drama Workshop); and Twelfth Night (The Public Theater Children’s Shakespeare Ensemble). Assistant/associate design credits include productions at The Juilliard School, Cincinnati Opera, Barrington Stage, Berkeley Rep, Wolf Trap Opera, and Lincoln Center Theater. B.A., University of Maryland, Baltimore County. carolinetyson.com

Ankit Pandey is a lighting designer, theater practitioner, and educator originally based in New Delhi, India, and currently a third-year M.F.A. candidate at David Geffen School of Drama. They have worked in and designed for a wide gamut of performances including but not limited to theater, music, dance recitals, films, exhibitions, and installations.

Notable among these are Pearl’s Beauty Salon, Fucking A, The Winter’s Tale (Geffen School); Dastaan LIVE, Table Radica, Green Room, and Love, Prufrock. Ankit has also served as the technical and art director for various performing arts festivals. They are also a co-founder of Tech Quartet, a technical design and production company based in New Delhi.

Tojo Rasedoara is a third-year sound designer and M.F.A. candidate at David Geffen School of Drama. Recent and notable credits include Every Goodbye Ain’t Gone, Charlotte, Springtime, Birthday Candles, Fabulation, falcon girls, The Light and the Dark (Chautauqua Theater); Pearl’s Beauty Salon, Measure for Measure, Macbeth, Ghost, Furlough’s Paradise (Geffen School); Wish You Were Here (Yale Rep); Soft Jade (Yale Cabaret); OFF-PEAK (world premiere, Hudson Stage Company, 59E59 Theatre); Sandblasted (Vineyard Theatre); Is There Still Sex in the City? (Daryl Roth Theatre); Citizen: An American Lyric (Duke University); The Gradient (Repertory Theatre of St. Louis); and Harriet Tubman (HI-ARTS). Tojo holds a B.A. in entertainment technology from City Tech Brooklyn. He also worked with various New York Fashion Weeks as a production assistant. He would like to thank his sound team and creatives Cat Slanski, Robert Salerno, Kiersten Lamora, Stephanie Smith, Mike Backhaus, Justin Ellington, James Monaco, Jill Du Boff for their incredible support towards the play.

Ein Kim (Projection Designer) is a video artist and a third-year projection design student at David Geffen School of Drama. Hailing from South Korea, she earned her B.F.A. in film from the Korea National University of Arts. Her artistic journey is dedicated to unraveling the universal language of visuals, transcending geographical and linguistic boundaries. Recent theater works include Gianni Schicchi, Seven Deadly Sins, and Measure for Measure. Video installation projects include Moving Sculpture: Streams, and You See What You See. einkim.com

Krystal Balleza – Previously at Yale Rep: falcon girls; the ripple, the wave that carried me home; and Mojada: A Medea in Los Angeles. Opera: Opera Theatre of Saint Louis 2023–24 season. Off-Broadway: Orlando (Signature Theatre); The Connector (MCC); Good Bones, The Tempest (The Public Theater); Six Characters in Search of an Author, At the Wedding (Lincoln Center); Americano! (New World Stages). Regional: Ain’t Misbehavin’ (Barrington); Angels in America, Part One (Arena Stage); Real Women Have Curves (ART). Krystal is the Hair and Makeup Department Head at Six: The Musical on Broadway. Krystal holds a B.F.A. in Wig and Makeup Design from Webster Conservatory and is co-owner of The Wig Associates with her design partner, Will Vicari.

@thewigassociates

Will Vicari – Previously at Yale Rep: falcon girls; the ripple, the wave that carried me home. Broadway: Yellowface (Roundabout), Parade (2023 revival), Harmony, and Spamalot (associate wig and makeup design). Opera: Opera Theatre Saint Louis 2023 and 2024 seasons. Off-Broadway: Orlando (Signature Theatre); The Connector (MCC); At the Wedding (Lincoln Center); Mrs. Warren’s Profession, Candida (Gingold Group). Regional: Ain’t Misbehavin’ (Barrington Stage Company), Angels in America, Part One (Arena Stage). Will holds a B.F.A. in Wig and Makeup Design from Webster University and is co-owner of The Wig Associates with his design partner, Krystal Balleza. @thewigassociates

@thewigassociates

Austin Riffelmacher he/him is a third-year M.F.A. candidate at David Geffen School of Drama, where his credits include Stray Dogs by comfort ifeoma katchy, HELLYOUTALMBOUT by ML Roberts, and The Misanthrope directed by Mary Lou Rosato. At Yale Cabaret, his work includes The Royale directed by Lauren F. Walker and his solo performance “A Phantastic Christmas.” Originally from Worcester, Massachusetts, he holds a B.A. in English with a concentration in African American literature and film from Framingham State University. Austin would like to dedicate his work on this production to his father, Donald.

Tia Smith is a second-year M.F.A. candidate at David Geffen School of Drama and the current Robert and Jean Steele Intern at Yale University Art Gallery. As a Mellon Mays Undergraduate Fellow, she authored an award-winning thesis on Eden by Steve Carter and nominated the play for Yale Rep’s 2024–25 season. She is a recipient of the Black Theatre Network’s S. Randolph Edmonds Young Scholars Award and the Cody Renard Richard Scholarship. She holds a B.A. in theater studies and African & African American studies from Duke University. She thanks her sister for introducing her to Carter’s work. She is proud to be from the South Side of Chicago.

Nickie Dubick she/her is a second-year M.F.A. candidate in the technical design and production program at David Geffen School of Drama, where her credits include Ghosts (properties manager), Marys Seacole (assistant production electrician), and Measure for Measure (technical director). Her Yale Rep credits include the ripple, the wave that carried me home (assistant technical director), Wish You Were Here (production electrician), The Far Country (properties manager), and falcon girls (assistant technical director). Prior to Yale, she earned a B.A. in scenic design from Marymount Manhattan College and worked for The Polar Express Train Ride™ as Décor and Props Supervisor.

Michael Rossmy is a Resident Fight and Intimacy Director for Yale Rep, a lecturer in acting at David Geffen School of Drama, and Stage Combat and Intimacy Advisor for Yale College. Broadway credits include A Tale of Two Cities, Cymbeline, and Superior Donuts. Regional theater credits include The Public Theater, Roundabout, The Atlantic, Primary Stages, Westport Country Playhouse, Goodspeed Musicals, Paper Mill Playhouse, Asolo Rep, The Old Globe, TheaterWorks Hartford, Princeton University, The Acting Company, Soho Rep, the Geffen Playhouse, Long Wharf Theatre, McCarter Theatre, Kansas City Rep, People’s Light & Theatre, and others. He was nominated for a 2017 Drama Desk Award for his work on Troilus and Cressida for The Public Theater’s production in Central Park and a 2024 Barrymore Award nominee for his work on Bonez at Peoples Light. His work can also be seen in the upcoming independent film Floating Carousel.

Paul Pryce Coaching credits include Playboy of the West Indies (NYU Grad Acting) and Play the Devil (feature film). Off-Broadway: King Lear, The Merchant of Venice (Compagnia de Colombari); Pecong (National Black Theatre of Harlem); She Talks to Beethoven (JACK!); Harry the Hunk (Cherry Lane Theatre); Empire State Works (Whitney Museum). Regional: Create Dangerously (Miami New Drama); Hamlet, The Piano Lesson, Good Goods, American Night: The Ballad of Juan Jose (Yale Rep); Julius Caesar, Pericles (Elm Shakespeare).

International: Everything That Rises Must Converge (Compagnia de Colombari, Italy); Silence and Fear (Lieux Dits, France); Smile Orange (Scarlett Project, Trinidad and Tobago). Film and television: Jessica Jones, Narco Saints (Netflix); Unforgettable (CBS/A+E). Directing and producing: Constellations, Five Times in One Night, Almost Maine (HB Playwrights); Nina Goes to New York, Mary Jane (Korea). Education: M.F.A. in acting, David Geffen School of Drama.

Calleri Jensen Davis is a creative casting partnership among James Calleri, Erica Jensen, and Paul Davis of over 20 years. They began their collaboration with Yale Rep in 2023 with Mojada: A Medea in Los Angeles and the ripple, the wave that carried me home. Broadway credits: The Piano Lesson, Topdog/Underdog, for colored girls…, Thoughts of a Colored Man, Burn This, Fool for Love, The Elephant Man, Hedwig and the Angry Inch, Of Mice and Men, Venus in Fur, A Raisin in the Sun, 33 Variations. Television: Love Life, Queens, Dickinson, and The Path, to name a few.

callerijensendavis.com

Hope Binfeng Ding she/her is in her final year as an M.F.A. candidate in stage management at David Geffen School of Drama, originally from Shenzhen, China. Selected theatrical credits include falcon girls, The Far Country (Yale Rep); Romeo and Juliet (NAATCO); Aubergine (South Coast Rep); Sleep No More Shanghai; Eye of the Storm Stunt Spectacular (Disney Shanghai). B.A., UC San Diego. All my love and gratitude to family and friends.