16 Playwrights, 16 Directors and
over 45 Actors & Crew
donate their talents benefiting New Theatre!

Elizabeth Abad (Director of HOLD ONTO YOUR DREAMS) graduated from Florida International University with her B.F.A in Theatrical Performance. At FIU she was featured in The Cherry Orchard, The Ruby Sunrise, Pride & Prejudice and Swimming in the Shallows. She made her directorial debut there with Survival of the Fittest and Puppy Love written by Edward G. Excaliber. She recently wrote and directed her solo performance piece based on the life of photographer Francesca Woodman. She directed the reading of Edward G. Excaliber's plays at the From Scratch Theater Festival at Deering Estate. She is thrilled to be a part of New Theatre's Miami 1-Acts.

David Jay Bernstein (Director of ‘Til The End) – David holds a B.A. in Theater from U of Pa. and an MFA in Directing from FAU. He served as Executive Artistic Director for The Public Theatre of South Florida from 2000-2007. He is also an actor and playwright and has written several award-winning plays, musicals and one-acts (most recently, his play TO LIFE (or The Bris, The Bar-Mitzvah and Beyond) was honored by Jewish Ensemble Theatre (JET). So glad to be here with old friends! David practices law in Lauderhill. Thanks to Steven, Ricky, Eileen, Barry and Joel and to Joe for trusting me with his play.

Catherine Bush(THE ICE MACHINE) lives in Abingdon, Virginia where she is Barter Theatre's Playwright-in-Residence. Her plays include: The Other Side of the Mountain, The Quiltmaker, Comin' Up A Storm, I'll Never Be Hungry Again (book and lyrics), Wooden Snowflakes, Tradin' Paint, The Controversial Rescue of Fatty the Pig, Where Trouble Sleeps, The Road to Appomattox, The Frankenstein Summer, Walking Across Egypt, and unhINGEd. Another play, Just a Kiss (produced at New Theatre) was a finalist for the 2007 American Theatre Critics Association's Steinberg Award. www.catherinebushplays.com

Will Cabrera (HEART-FELT REJECTION) has worked in South Florida as a lighting designer, most prominently with Ground Up & Rising and The Alliance Theatre Lab. He has dabbled in playwriting once before in Naked Stage's inaugural 24-hour Theater Festival. He is excited to be working with Ricky J. and the rest of the New Theatre crew!

James Carrey (HALLELUJAH) is the Co-Founder and Artistic Director of CRASHBOX Theatre Company. He recently directed You're A Good Man Charlie Brown (MSP), Battleships* (Artistic Vibes) Dirty (New Theatre), and Shooting Gallery*, This*, and First Date* (Conundrum). He has had performances of his play A Moment of Romance and First Date (New Theatre) performed this past year, and is currently starring inUNLEASHED at Empire Stage, which he also wrote, directed, produced, and designed. In addition, James is currently finishing production on a full length album and an EP that will be released in early 2013. *also written by James Carrey

Todd Caster (FROM ACROSS A CROWDED ROOM) is a published and produced local playwright. His most notable works include Broken Angels, Dog of War, Little Piggies and Stranded on the Isle of Few. As an actor Todd performed this year in Beyond Therapy, Joseph Andrews, Murder in the Cathedral and 12 Angry Men. Todd co-founded Theatre Arts Group in NY and recently joined Playwright Lisa Bankert in establishing The Palm Beach PlayMakers. This innovative group will showcase 6 original 1-Acts on December 29th at the Delray Beach Playhouse. Heartfelt thanks to Jerry, Melissa and Gabe for bringing this play to life.

David Caudle (THE WORLD OUTSIDE), a Miami native, is the author of THE SUNKEN LIVING ROOM (Samuel French). VISITING HOURS, developed in Downstage Miami, premiered this spring in New Orleans to rave reviews. Current projects: the books for two musicals, the comedy DOWNWARD FACING DEBBIE (to be read in NYC by Project Y Theatre Co. in January), and the screenplay adaptation of retired US Army Major Jeffrey McGowan's memoir, MAJOR CONFLICT: One Gay Man's Life in the Don't Ask, Don't Tell Military. David is grateful to his New Theatre family for their continued support, as he develops THE WORLD OUTSIDE into a full length play about the plight of the Everglades.

Steven A. Chambers is Literary Manager at THE NEW, where last season he directed Artistic Director Ricky J. Martinez in Nilo Cruz's A Bicycle Country. Since then, he has collaborated with Ricky on our first BoomFrog! Series Keeping A-Breast and has directed Educating Rita. An actor, director, stage manager and some-time designer, Steven received his B.A. in Theatre from the University of Tennessee, Knoxville; he was for two years Associate Artistic Director of the Public Theatre of South Florida. He is 'Happy' to be part of this incredibly talented group of artists donating their time to make the M1-A Festival Winter Session a success!

Ruben R. Diaz (Director of AIMING HIGH) A writer and graphic designer for nearly a decade, Ruben R. Diaz has worked as a journalist, covering pop culture for magazines and web sites, and has also written several yet-to-be published or produced scripts for comic books and television. For the past two and a half years he has created New Theatre's ads, flyers, and posters. He has worn many hats in his role as assistant stage manager, having assisted in nearly every area of a show's production. He is excited to be tackling his first directing job for the Miami 1-Acts Festival.

Mark Duncan (Director of GIFT WRAPPED) is thrilled to participate in the Miami One-Act Festival at New Theatre. He earned an M.F.A. in Acting from Virginia Commonwealth University, a B.A. in Dramatic Arts from Coastal Carolina University and is a graduate of Chicago's Second City Conservatory. Regional and international acting credits include: Pensacola Shakespeare Theatre (A Much ado about Nothing, Twelfth Night), Broward Center for the Performing Arts (A Midsummer Night's Dream), The Promethean Theatre (Cannibal the Musical, Still the River Runs, Cyrano and Boeing-Boeing), Georgia Shakespeare Festival (Romeo & Juliet), New American Theater (Holiday O' Henry), Wing and Groove Theatre Company-Chicago (Taming of the Shrew), Theatre Virginia (A Much Ado About Nothing, Hay Fever), Rude Mechanical Productions (The Reindeer Monologues), Richmond Shakespeare Festival (Two Gentlemen of Verona), Blue Ridge Theatre Festival (Loves! Labours! Lust!), and the Sibiu International Theatre Festival-Romania (Sleepers and Catastrophe). Directing credits include: New American Theatre, Shockoe Slip Theatre (Chicago), Hollywood Shakespeare Festival and the Pensacola Shakespeare Theatre. Mark is an Associate Professor and Chair of Theatre and at Nova Southeastern University.

Kim Ehly (Director of THE WORLD OUTSIDE) wrote, directed, and produced her play, Baby GirL, this past summer as the inaugural production of her company, Kutumba Theatre Project. Baby GirL enjoyed sold out audiences and critical acclaim. As a result of that production, Kim received the Silver Palm Award this month for Outstanding New Playwright and is nominated for a Broadway World Award for Best Original Work. Kim has directed at the Women's Theatre Project and in NYC at Michael Howard Studios. She has a BFA in acting/directing from FAU. Kim is thrilled to mount a production of Baby GirL in May 2013, right here at New Theatre, as part of the BoomFrog Series!

Edward G. Excaliber (Director of HALLELUJAH) graduated from Florida International University. He began writing in 2010 which led to his first production, Prodigal: The Execution of William Spencer. Edward penned and directed the film Lucky in 2010. In 2011, Edward made his directorial debut with David Mamet's Oleanna. New Theatre's Miami 1-Acts Festival in the summer of 2012 featured Edward's Fuck This Clown. Edward is currently revising two new full length scripts, one of which was work-shopped this September at The Playwrights' Center in Minneapolis. Other productions include: Puppy Love, Survival of the Fittest, and After the Beep.

Joe Feinstein ('TIL THE END), Bronxite, with lives on Long Island, Manhattan, Los Angeles, and now suburban Detroit (with FL winters), taught high school, college English, and worked as a substance abuse therapist. Productions - short plays - Sioux Falls; Lebanon, PA; Ann Arbor, Oregon St. U. and Ohio St. U.; Cornwall, UK. One-act play, Unfinished Business, off-off-Broadway. Full-length comedies, BETTER THAN MONEY and LAST OF THE AZTECS at Village Players in Birmingham, MI, and AZTECS at The Met in L. A., and a staged reading by Playgroup here in South Florida in the 2013-2014 season.

Vanessa Garcia (REMEMBERING LOVE) is a writer/playwright and Founding Artistic Director of The Krane (www.thekrane.com). Her plays, together with The Krane's, have been produced in New York, Miami, Fort Lauderdale, Amsterdam, Edinburgh, and Los Angeles. Currently, she is a part of the Playwright Development Program in Miami-Dade County, and completing PhD at the University of California Irvine. In 2010, she was named one of Miami's 20 under 40 for her work in the theatre, and one of Miami's 100 Creatives for her Mixed-Media work. For more information about her, please visit her website at:  www.vanessagarcia.org. She is extremely grateful to New Theatre for putting up these 1-Acts!

Marion Grey (AFTER SUNSET) is a sophomore at James Madison University. There she majors in Theater and Dance, with her focus on acting. She aspires to be a renowned film actress, and has dreams of composing music as well. After Sunset is the first piece of work Marion has ever written for the stage. She hopes it warms people's hearts and brings a smile to their faces.

Jerry Jensen (Director of FROM ACROSS A CROWDED ROOM) is in his second season as Production Stage Manager at New Theatre, and directed Saving the Swanford as part of NT's Miami Stories and Passing Through at last spring's Miami 1-Acts. At other Florida theaters, he's directed The Lion in Winter, A Thousand Clowns, Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, Biloxi Blues, My Fair Lady, All The Great Books, Say You Love Satan, 2 Boys in a Bed on a Cold Winter's Night, The Cocktail Hour, The Dining Room, Private Lives and Rumors.

Aubrey Shavonn Kessler (Director of NEUTRAL.OR MEN?) has had the privilege and pleasure of working with New Theatre since 2002. She is part of the ensemble at The Alliance Theatre Lab, a member of the Actor's Equity Association and Director of the annual South Beach Comedy Festival.

Monnie O. King (THE GETAWAY) was awarded an M.A. Classical Acting from the Royal Central School in London in 2003. She holds an MBA from Loyola University and was a 2009 invitee to the Kennedy Center Playwrights Intensive. She's been on stage in London and South Florida and has written several award-winning plays produced in South Florida. She is currently the Producing Artistic Director of the Key West FRINGE Theater. She and actor/director husband Peter divide their time between Ft Lauderdale and Key West. King is a member of the American Dramatists Guild and British Equity.

Mcley Lafrance (Director of REMEMBERING LOVE) received his Bachelor of Fine Arts from Barry University. He has appeared in The Male/Female Thing (AAPACT), 24 Hour Theatre Project 2011 & 12 (Naked Stage), Lobby Hero, Off Center of Nowhere (Alliance Theatre Lab), Shorts 4 Kids 2012 (City Theatre), Ruined (Gablestage) and will soon appear in A Raisin in the Sun (Palm Beach Dramaworks). He has directed The Colored Museum (Barry University), The Lab Project (Alliance Theatre Lab) and is the Resident Director of Shorts 4 Kids (City Theatre). He is currently the Artistic Associate at City Theatre.

Margaret M. Ledford (Director of ELF YOURSELF) hails from Chattanooga, Tennessee where she received her Bachelor of Arts in Theatre and Speech from the University of TN and studied Cubo-Expressionistic Scenography post WWI abroad at Masaryk University in Brno, Czech Republic. She is a 4 time Carbonell Award nominated director, a multiple Silver Palm winner for direction and has directed for many S FL theaters including Naked Stage, Mosaic Theatre, Caldwell Theatre, and Florida Stage. She was the Associate Artistic Director and Resident Director for The Promethean Theatre, the professional company in residence at Nova Southeastern University for the past 8 years, and currently Margaret serves the South Florida Theatre League as Board President.

Tony Macy-Perez (DEB WARS) is a NYC based actor/writer/director just coming of a successful run at The Duplex in Greenwich Village with a show called Sex on Trial. He is currently in Miami finishing up his film Requiem for a Life and soon will start a series of readings on The End of X-Stasy based on life during the age of disco. He is very grateful to all the people at New Theatre for this great acknowledgement.

Ricky J. Martinez (writer, NEUTRAL. OR MEN?; director, AFTER SUNSET and BULLSH*T UTAH) is a Miami-born Cuban-American proudly residing and working in South Florida. Schooled at the New World School of the Arts, he studied with Jorge C. Guerra, Richard Armstrong, Lee Michael Cohen, Richard Janaro, Carol Cadby and Clay James. His acting credits include roles in West Side Story, The Mystery of Edwin Drood, A Chorus Line, J & J's Wedding, Lenin's Omelet, 4 Guys Named Jose, The King and I, Steel Pier, Don Quixote in Miami, Isadora Libre, Something Cloudy... Something Clear, Bent, Marat... de Sade, Cries and Whispers, The Balcony, Balm in Gilead at Creative Arts, Broward Stage Door, Miami Light Project, Dreamers Theatre, Actors' Playhouse, Cuban-American Rep, Jugerknot, Off Broadway at HERE, Horizon's Rep, Akropolis Acting Company and Acme. In addition, he has appeared in King Lear, A Midsummer Night's Dream, Othello, Twelfth Night, On the Verge and Clarence Darrow's Last Trial, all at New Theatre.

Marj O'Neill-Butler (ELF YOURSELF) is a member of the Dramatists Guild and the International Center for Women Playwrights, is a produced playwright of TRUE BLUE, eight Theatre for Children scripts, short plays WHAT IF?, SCAVENGER HUNT, MISSED CONNECTIONS and a reader's theatre script THE WOMEN OF THE BEAT GENERATION. She has studied playwriting with Leslie Ayvazian, Carlos Murillo and Christian Parker and attended the Kennedy Center Playwriting Intensive in DC in 2010 and 2011. A proud member of Equity, SAG-AFTRA, she ran The Green Mountain Guild Summer Theatre in VT for 24 years. Visit her online at www.marjorieoneill-butler.com.

Andy Quiroga (Director of HEART-FELT REJECTION) After a long hiatus, Andy is delighted to be once again working with New Theatre. You may remember Andy from The Naked Stage's recent production of A Man Puts On A Play as Joe; or The Alliance Theatre Lab's, Off Center of Nowhere as Pauly Trotula. Andy holds a BFA from New World School of the Arts and an MFA from Florida Atlantic University. He currently runs the Theatre Department at MDC North and is the Producing Artistic Director of their Pen Players. He wishes to thank Ricky and Eileen for their trust and faith. All his love to his wife Elda and his baby G!

Erik Rodriguez and Stephanie Sandoval (Directors of THE GETAWAY) are local artists who first met at Florida International University's Theatre Department. They both have been long theatre patrons who have been involved in the theatre from acting, writing, and directing. This year they have teamed up and are Co-Directing for New Theatre, marking Stephanie's professional debut and Erik's second directorial venture. They both look forward to continuing their careers and are thankful for the opportunities New Theatre has provided.

Marla E. Schwartz (HOLD ONTO YOUR DREAMS) is a Senior Writer for Miami Living magazine where she's published interviews with celebrities such as Gloria and Emilio Estefan, Andy Garcia and Sharon Gless. She freelances for Lighthouse Point magazine and AroundWellington.com. Her photographs have appeared in these publications as well as the Miami Herald, the Ft. Lauderdale Sun-Sentinel and the Palm Beach Post. Her play, America’s Working? was produced in Los Angeles at the First Stage and Lone Star Ensemble theater companies, in Florida at Lynn University and then Off-Broadway. Her script The Lunch Time Café, was a Heideman Award Finalist, Actors Theatre of Louisville.

Eileen Suarez (Director of DEB WARS) Miami-born and bred, Eileen received a Bachelor of Arts degree in Theatre, with an emphasis in stage management, from Florida State University. After graduation, in 1996, she joined the New Theatre staff, first as stage manager and box office manager, then as production manager and director of operations, later going on to become New Theatre's first Managing Director in 1998. In her capacity as New Theatre's "second in command", Eileen oversees all the fiscal, managerial, administrative, and staffing aspects of New Theatre. Most significantly, Eileen shepherded the company in its challenging transition from its two former locations.

Thomas Daniel Valls (BULLSH*T UTAH) is graduating from NYU with majors in Psychology and Dramatic Writing. He works for the National Geographic Channel and is directing a production of West Side Story at the Skirball Center for Performing Arts in New York City. Writing credits: Tunisia (Ensemble Studio Theatre, New Theatre), Bullsh*t Utah (NYU), Lambskin (Cherry Lane Theatre), Notes from the Underground Boy (Labyrinth Theater), Crayons (Lakeland Center, Roxy Performing Arts Center) and Gentlemen of Kentucky (Public Theatre Collaboration, Dixon Place in February 2013). He writes a food culture blog: www.foodisthis.com. Thomas Daniel Valls (BULLSH*T UTAH) is graduating from NYU with majors in Psychology and Dramatic Writing. He works for the National Geographic Channel and is directing a production of West Side Story at the Skirball Center for Performing Arts in New York City. Writing credits: Tunisia (Ensemble Studio Theatre, New Theatre), Bullsh*t Utah (NYU), Lambskin (Cherry Lane Theatre), Notes from the Underground Boy (Labyrinth Theater), Crayons (Lakeland Center, Roxy Performing Arts Center) and Gentlemen of Kentucky (Public Theatre Collaboration, Dixon Place in February 2013). He writes a food culture blog: 

David Victor (AIMING HIGH) is a writer, actor, director and broadcaster from Hamilton, Ontario, near Toronto. Some of his work which has been produced in Canada includes: the high-tech, multi-media, stage production, The Human Touch, at Hamilton's Theatre Aquarius as well as a four-city tour, the metaphysical psychodrama The Return of Michael, and two short dramatic films, Little Sister and Table Stakes. Staged readings have included: the comedy about surviving hard times, The Pizza Chronicles and the reincarnation thriller, All Things In Time. Since his relocation to South Florida, he has had public readings at Caldwell Theatre in Boca Raton, Actors' Playhouse in Coral Gables, Mosaic Theatre in Plantation, and Hollywood Playhouse in Hollywood, FL. The short, comedic film, A Much Too Open House won Best Florida Short at the 2005 Ft. Lauderdale International Film Festival, plus Best in Show, Best Comedy Short and Best Florida Short at the 2006 Gem City Film Festival near St. Augustine, Florida. He also won 3 Telly Awards for corporate videos.

Susan Westfall (GIFT WRAPPED) is a City Theatre Co-Founder and its Literary Director. Her plays have been produced at City Theatre, Actors Playhouse, New Theatre, Teatro Avante and the Coconut Grove Playhouse. Some of her plays include, Look At Me (Heideman Finalist, published in "Best Short Plays 2011"), Rats, The Boy From Russia, Uprising, The Wedding Party, Passing Through (Heideman Finalist), With the Patience of Angels (Heideman Finalist), 1962, You Are Here, Voices at the Mary Elizabeth Hotel, and Magic City, a specialty that was commissioned for the visit of Queen Elizabeth to Miami, and featured a young Ricky Martinez in the cast. She is a past recipient of a Florida Arts Council Playwriting Fellowship, a Remy Award for Outstanding Contribution to Theatre by the Theatre League of South Florida, and a member of the Dramatists Guild of America and Theatre Communications Group. She is a native Miamian, holds a BFA in Playwriting from FSU, and lives on Key Biscayne with husband, Alan Fein, and sons Jake and Pete.