BMCC Tribeca PAC Presents Writers In Performance Showcase: Longing

Writers in Performance is a 12-week writing and performance workshop hosted by BMCC Tribeca Performing Arts Center, culminating in two public presentations. Throughout the course of the workshop, talented actors, playwrights, poets and storytellers have explored writing exercises, theater games, improvisation, movement techniques, and ensemble work in a safe, creative environment.

This season, the theme and title of the Writers in Performance show is "Longing." Writers in Performance participants are diverse by design; not only in ethnicity, but by age, and experience as well, mixing professionals with students. On Friday, December 7 & Saturday, December 8, 2018 at 7:30PM, the troupe will showcase the monologues and short scenes they have been crafting. We are proud to have members of the BMCC student community in the production (denoted below). Join us to experience this dynamic exchange between the written word and the art of performance!

Tickets are FREE, with a suggested donation of $10, and can be purchased in person at Ticketing Services in the lobby of 199 Chambers St. on the night of the event. (No advance reservations necessary.)

Yvette N. Beshier is the co-proprietor of Cobra Plumbing and Heating and a part time writer and illustrator. Prior to her entrepreneurial endeavors, Yvette served as a Police Officer for the city of Newark, NJ. She also held other professional postitons such as a Scientist, Computer Technician and a Freelance Journalist/Photographer for the International Boxing Organization. Yvette enjoyed all of her employment opportunities, however her desire to write and illustrate will not cease. Yvette has written four books and is currently working on her next book of poetry. Yvette hopes to become a full time Writer and Illustrator.

Michele Carlo is a writer and performer who has told stories across the U.S., including Joe's Pub, the Clearwater Arts & Music Festival and the MOTH's Mainstage in NYC, on NPR and the PBS TV series "Stories from the Stage." She is also the author of the NYC-set memoir Fish Out Of Agua: My life on neither side of the (subway) tracks (Citadel 2010) and hosts a radio show/podcast called "Fish Out Of Agua" on Radio Free Brooklyn, showcasing under-the-radar NYC artists. For more info on Michele: www.michelecarlo.com

Emily Johnson-Erday is a songwriter and theatermaker based in Brooklyn. Hailing from both the mountains and the Piedmont of North Carolina, her music is proudly rooted in the Appalachian sound. She contributed original music to productions with Columbia University and the North Carolina School of the Arts. She co-created 'Welcome to the Doll Den' with the Electric Eye Ensemble and most recently showed a reading of 'Harpies for the Dead', which she co-wrote with Thin Space Productions. Upcoming: Check out the web series 'Acting Out' to hear Emily's original theme song. Find her online: @erdayngerous www.emilyjohnsonerday.com

Akeema 'Keemz' (BMCC Student) is a writer, artist and performance Poet. She has performed for different events, venues and colleges throughout New York City. Most recently performing for the New York City's Poetry Festival alongside The Blaqlist (Bronx League of Artist and Queers). This is her first year of WIP and she is excited to witness the fruition from over the last few weeks.

Ethan Ness is a writer, actor, and producer living in Manhattan. Some of his most recent works include Harpies for the Dead, a new musical co-written with Emily Johnson-Erday, and produced at Dramatist's Guild Foundation, and Die For Me, produced with NYC Fringe Festival. As an actor, he has appeared with Paper Kraine Theater as well as Rhapsody Theater Ensemble. He is co-founder of Thin Space Productions, a theater group dedicated to new works, and a company member with Electric Eye Ensemble, a Brooklyn-based theater group that tells 'untold american stories.' Upcoming projects include Welcome to the Doll Den, a new musical based on the first all-female radio station in the USA. You can find him online at @thinspaceproductions.

Daniel Peña (BMCC STUDENT) is a Dominican actor, singer, & dancer born and raised in New York. Currently a student at BMCC and so excited to appear in "Writers in Performance."

Stéphanie Rupe is an actress, designer and writer based in Brooklyn, NY. Stéphanie's latest acting work includes two seasons of "Same Coin", festival winning thriller "Taste", and her YouTube channel "Stéph's Stories and Crafts". Stéphanie has costumed various shows including "It Can't Happen Here" and "Dirt is Where Flowers Grow". Her design work can be seen on her Etsy shops DaisyDoodleStudio and Boutique Frockets.

Melissa Shaw is a writer, educator, performer and humorist from Brooklyn. Most recently she was an ensemble member with A Sketch of New York, the long running comedy show at the Producer's Club in Midtown. She has told stories at the Moth, Bowery Poetry Club, Friday Night Stories, and Tell-It Brooklyn among other venues. Melissa has two full length one-woman shows and has performed them at venues throughout the city. She holds an MFA in Theater from Sarah Lawrence College. www.melissadshaw.com

Rashmi Singh is thrilled to be a part of Tribeca WIP for the third time. It has proven to be a powerful container for her to write, act, sing, and collaborate with her talented fellow-artists. Rashmi is an AUDELCO-nominated actress, award-winning singer-songwriter, and accoladed screenwriter. As an actress, her highlights include: The Public Theatre's Shakespeare in the Park at the Delacorte Theatre , the New York Fringe Festival, Target Margin Theatre, and the Classical Theatre Lab of Los Angeles. Known for her range and depth, she has worked with iconic film and theatre directors including Ron Howard, Ed Zwick, Jamie Payne, and AUDELCO Board of Directors Pioneer Award Honoree, Passion. As a singer-songwriter, her album of original songs, PUZZLE, is the winner of the Akademia Music Awards Best Folk/Singer-Songwriter EP. She plays regularly around the city at venues such as Rockwood Musical Hall, The Way Station, L.I.C. Bar and The Shrine. As a screenwriter, Rashmi's feature, THE DIVIDE, was an Athena IRIS Screenwriting Lab Official Selection, a semi-finalist for the prestigious Atlanta Film Festival, a finalist for the Sundance Producer's Lab, and Honorable Mention winner at the HBO Urbanworld Film Festival. Connect, listen to her music, and stay in touch with her at www.EverythingRashmi.com

Bria Youngblood is a New Orleans born Performing Artist and Beauty Influencer, and Founder of beauty business Lashes To Eye 4. She attributes most of her love for the arts to her soulful and jazzy upbringing. She is currently leveraging her diverse performing arts background to emerge into a well-rounded influencer and future thought leader.

Gina Stevensen is a playwright and writing instructor who has been involved with Writers in Performance since 2012. Congrats to this year's cast for their wonderful, courageous work! Gina's plays include THE COLONY (Winner: American Stage's 21st Century Voices New Play Festival, Semifinalist: Austin Film Festival Playwriting Competition), CRUEL SISTER (Semi-Finalist: O'Neill National Playwrights Conference), KIDS (Williamstown Theatre Festival), and BOOK OF ESTHER (Top Ten Finalist: Jewish Playwriting Contest, Semi-Finalist: Princess Grace Award). She teaches playwriting through The Writer's Rock. MFA Playwriting: Columbia University. www.ginastevensen.com

Mario Giacalone (Director) has been working in the theater as an actor/director/writer and teacher for decades. In the 1970s, he wrote, produced and directed staged works for the Root Theater Collective, a theater group he created. In the 1980's, as Artistic Director of Mass Transit Street Theater, Mr. Giacalone worked within communities to create new theatrical works which later toured under an Actors' Equity contract. Mario wrote and directed children's theater for the SYDA Foundation, and wrote for a PBS produced children's show. Mr. Giacalone owned the Creative Acting Company, a school for professional actors. There he taught acting, and writing, produced and directed play festivals and short films. Mr. Giacalone continues to serve as the Consulting Programing Director for Tribeca Performing Arts Center, where he directs the Writers in Performance series, which brings together professional actors and writers to create new theatrical works. In recent years Mr. Giacalone has directed shows for The United Solo Theater Festival, The New York Fringe Festival, La Mamma ETC, The Strawberry Play Festival and The National Black Theater Festival. Mr. Giacalone also is a singer songwriter who appears frequently in Westchester and New York City. He is currently recording with his Trio with hopes of a spring 2019 release. www.mariogiacalone.com

 

BMCC Tribeca PAC is Downtown Manhattan's premier presenter of the arts, reaching audiences from the college community, downtown residential and business communities, local schools, families, and audiences of all ages. BMCC Tribeca PAC strives to present a broad global perspective through the presentation of high-quality artistic work in music, theatre, dance, film and visual arts. BMCC Tribeca PAC is located on the Borough of Manhattan Community College campus, 199 Chambers Street (between Greenwich Avenue & West Street) and is convenient to the 2/3, A/C/E and R subway lines and the New Jersey Path Train. For more information please visit our website, www.tribecapac.org