new works
As the founder of The Vagrancy—a theatre company I launched in NYC in 2007—I have built and continue to helm BLOSSOMING, a program dedicated to commissioning, developing, and premiering new plays by marginalized artists. For 15 years, BLOSSOMING has uplifted underrepresented voices, focusing on women, nonbinary artists, BIPOC, disabled artists, and members of the trans community. With programming in Los Angeles and Michigan, BLOSSOMING seeks to elevate stories that might otherwise go unheard, fostering an inclusive platform for emerging voices. Theatre, in my view, has a duty to mirror its community's diversity, and I’m passionate about supporting work that offers an authentic, unfiltered portrayal of our world.
To date, 56 new full-length plays have been written. The plays have garnered awards and recognition including: O'Neill Finalist & Semi-Finalist status, David Henry Hwang Writers Institute Playwriting Scholarship, Relentless Award Finalist, Bay Area Playwrights Festival Finalist & Semi-Finalist, Seven Devils Playwrights Finalist, and American Blues Theater Blue Ink Award Semifinalist. Recently, John Guerra’s 2018 BLOSSOMING play, THE LAST, BEST, SMALL TOWN, had its World Premiere at Will Geer’s Theatricum Botanicum and was featured on the cover of the Arts section of The New York Times, our 2020 commission INTO THE SIDE OF A HILL by James Anthony Tyler had it's World Premiere at Flint Repertory Theatre and our 2024 commission IN THE MOUTH OF THE BEST by Baylee Shlichtman had it's World Premire at New Relic Theatre in NYC.
In 2024, I commissioned, produced, and directed a workshop production of UNTITLED DIARY PLAY by Bryanna Lee. Untitled Diary Play combines storytelling, song, and video to convey Lee's journey of self-discovery and cultural reconnection. The show delves into her coming-of-age experience while grappling with romantic feelings and the disconnection from her Filipino roots within the framework of her Catholic upbringing.
In 2020, I commissioned and produced a world-premiere benefit performance written and directed by June Carryl called THE LIFE AND DEATH OF. The short play starred sixteen Black women, confronted violence against Black women in America, and premiered on YouTube. It was followed by an audience talkback via the YouTube Live chat option, and all ticket donations were given to a charity of the playwright’s choice. The piece has gone on to be featured as a short film on Broadway On Demand and The Breath Project Archives, a project that works to “actively dismantle structural racism in the American Theater.” In 2024, the piece was given new life as 'My Wings Burned Off' a one-woman operatic monodrama for soprano and twelve strings, created by June Carryl (librettist) and Jason Barabba (composer), Mimi Hilaire, soprano, and Dr Renee Baker as conductor. I was privileged to sit on the monodrama's panel as the original commissioner and producer.