Modern Myths Podcast

Modern Houses in the Lush Green Savannah that Lies in the Shadow of the Volcano by Paul Hufker Directed by: Brett Sullivan Santry Featuring: Featuring: Cassidy Adkins, Ron Black, Larissa Jantonio, DeVaughn Robinson, and John Teresi Synopsis The edge of everything. Four western 20-somethings have come to this wild, unfettered place to “live life as it was meant to be lived.” They’d like to open a yoga studio for the women of the village. To help them. But there’s a chained elephant that desperately needs its own help, and are we sure the villagers are peaceful? Suddenly the earth is very dry, their money has run out, and their baby is missing. They are fored to hunt. Things here have quickly become dark and desperate. Can man outrun himself? Paul Hufker Biography Paul has been an AEA actor, playwright and director in NYC for over 13 years. He is a proud graduate of Brooklyn College’s MFA playwriting program, under Mac Wellman and Erin Courtney. Most recently, Paul became a resident playwright with the 29th St. Writing Collective, in NYC. In the spring of 2020 (just before COVID) Paul had his play Birthday in the Bronx premiere at The Tank Theatre (NYC.) Paul also recently worked with fashion designer and political activist Carla Fernandez, writing her London fashion show/protest piece, which debuted in London in 2018. Also in 2018, Paul worked with world-renowned visual artist Pedro Reyes, writing his Noam Chomsky-Inspired puppet play Manufacturing Mischief, which premiered in NYC and internationally, and was directed by Meghan Finn. In the fall of 2017, Paul wrote the script for Pedro Reyes’ massive art installation in Brooklyn entitled Doomocracy, also directed by Meghan Finn. He is a 2018 Eugene O’Neill Prize Semi-Finalist, a 2016 Great Plains Theatre Conference invited playwright, a 2015 and 2016 Himan Brown Award winner (through Brooklyn College), a 2016 O’Neill Conference semi-finalist, a 2016 American Theatre in Higher Education Excellence in Playwriting Award finalist, a 2015 Jerome Fellowship finalist, a 2014 Princess Grace Award semi-finalist, and a 2011 O’Neill Conference semi-finalist. His plays have been produced in NYC, throughout the US, and in Toronto, Canada, as well as at MIT, the Museo Jumex in Mexico City and the Serpentine Gallery in London. He is currently a full-time Teaching Instructor at Rutgers University, in their Writing Program, and a proud graduate of Webster University where he received his BFA in theatrical performance. Paul has upcoming projects with: The American Vicarious (workshop), The Bechdel Group (workshop), 12 Peers Theatre Company (podcast), the 29th St Playwrights’ Collective (reading) and Meghan Finn (short film), Artistic Director of The Tank, NYC.

Identities by Katherine Dubois Directed by: Brett Sullivan Santry Featuring: Harper York, Nick Benninger, Katie Crandol, John Feightner, Alyssa Herron, Stephanie Ramos, and Brett Sullivan Santry Synopsis The first day Atom Man arrives on earth, he finds himself in the middle of a bank robbery. Lucky thing he can vaporize atoms, or he might have been shot. Surprised and uncomfortable with his instant celebrity, he goes to Lisa, an actress, for help in establishing a secret identity. As mild-mannered Ralph, he gets a job as a bank teller. Lisa's husband, Richard, is a policeman. Lisa doesn't know it, but he's also married to Chris, a reporter for the local paper. Chris's twin sister Bonnie is involved with the bank robber, Jesse, who's now planning to rob the bank where Ralph works. Jesse doesn't know it, but he has a twin, too, separated at birth. Stephen works at the gas station across the street from the bank and is writing a novel. He wants to apply for a loan at the bank, so he can publish the novel himself. He's met the loan officer, Michelle, but doesn't know she has dissociative identity disorder. Chris finds out that Bonnie is involved with the bank robber and hatches a plan to trap him while protecting her sister. But she needs Atom Man's help, and she can't find him. Lisa knows that Ralph is really Atom Man, but she's promised to protect his secret. And somehow just about everyone manages to wind up at the bank right when Jesse plans to rob it. Katherine Dubois Biography Katherine Dubois has been writing plays for many years, during which time thirty-nine of her works have been presented to the public in ninety-seven readings and productions, in both professional and amateur venues in the United States and abroad.

18 Victoria by Cody Daigle-Orians Directed by: Maggie Balsley Cast Ben: Michael Aulick Catherine: Alex Burdick Stephen: Jed Shook Synopsis In a trio of interlocking monologues, 18 VICTORIA tells the story of three siblings — Ben, Catherine and Stephen — who are struggling to piece together their broken family relationship in the wake of their father’s untimely death. But a larger crisis looms. 18 Victoria, an asteroid the size of a few city blocks, is on a trajectory to collide with Earth and will cause an extinction event on the scale of the one that killed the dinosaurs. As they share their stories of facing the last days of the human race, they also grapple with memories of their father, a troubled childhood, and their shared inability to connect as adults. In an apocalyptic present, it’s the wreckage of the past that endures. Cody Daigle-Orians Biography Cody Daigle-Orians is a Louisiana-born playwright, educator and arts programmer living in Hartford, Connecticut. He is the program and events specialist for the Westport Library in Westport, Connecticut. Cody’s work is focused on exploring the intersections of education, justice, storytelling and community building, with a particular interest in the expression of those intersections through arts-based library programming. In his writing life, his playwriting work has been produced and/or developed at the Astoria Performing Arts Center, New Jersery Repertory Theatre, The Actors Company Theatre (NYC), Manhattan Theatre Works, Acadiana Repertory Theatre (Lafayette, LA), The Growing Stage (Netcong, NJ), Gadfly Theatre (Minneapolis, MN), StageRIGHT (Seattle, WA) and the Great Plains Theatre Conference (Omaha, NE). He’s also returned to his first writing love: horror stories. He’s working on a collection of short stories and a novel.

Wrong Number by Nedra Pezold Roberts Directed by Spencer Whale Cassie.......................................Erika Cuenca Mike..............................Shaun Cameron Hall Emma........................................Julia Geisler Dan...........................................Charlie Wein Dorothy....................................Gina Preciado Arnold........................................Todd Betker Stage Directions...................Amanda Montoya   Synopsis Cassie Hobson is thirty-five, single, and desperately wanting to be pregnant. Her pal Emma and parents Dorothy and Arnold are sympathetic but unable to help. Cassie’s best friend Mike and his partner Dan want to start a family, so the solution seems simple enough when Cassie offers to be the surrogate for their child. Then life intervenes. The fetus Cassie is carrying turns out to be twins, Dan decides he can’t cope with that much responsibility and leaves Mike, and Cassie realizes she can’t give up her babies after all. From the time they were toddlers, Mike and Cassie have been as close as family; suddenly, they actually are family—the parents of twins. Now these friends have to find a way to share the new lives they’ve created: not just the lives of their twins but also their own unexpected connection as gay dad and single mom.   Nedra Pezold Roberts Biography Nedra Pezold Roberts is an emerging playwright from Atlanta. For several decades she taught English and drama, and her publications in the academic arena included two textbooks (one a critical anthology of plays). Then Nedra chose early retirement in 2010 to concentrate on writing her own plays. Her new, second career has begun auspiciously with a number of productions and staged readings coast to coast. She has also scored in several national competitions, including the Southern Playwrights Competition (2013), AACT NewPlayFest (twice, in 2013 and 2015), and the 2016-17 TNT POPS! New Play Project. She feels honored that the California Stage Company production of The Vanishing Point captured seven Elly Awards, including Best Script, in the 2014 Elly list announced by SARTA, the Sacramento Area Regional Theatre Alliance. Nedra is a member of the Dramatists Guild of America and Working Title Playwrights, and serves on the board of the Atlanta Writers Club. For more information, see her website or her entry in the New Play Exchange or the profile in The Dramatist for March/April, pp. 56-57.

Alex Kump Interview Playwright of It's Just Something That Happened Directed by Reginald Douglas Featuring Moira Quigley ..……..………...………….Frankie Matt Henderson..………………….…..……….. Eli Ryan Patrick Kearney...…....…..Christopher John Feightner..….………….………………...Billy Alex Manalo…….………………....…...….. Death Christopher Collier…...….. Stage Directions Recording location provided by TimeSys Corporation.   It’s Just Something That Happened Synopsis The Family Fun Time Bowling Center will be closing its doors at the end of the season. Frankie and Eli spend their summer with Billy, who is doing nothing with his life, and Death (short for Meredith) the gamer obsessed with old arcade games, and the new employee Christopher. At a party in the arcade, something happens that threatens to break apart Frankie and Eli's friendship for good. It's Just Something That Happened is a coming-of-age play about friendship and uncertain futures. Alex Kump Biography Alex Kump is a playwright, performance artist, and general Jack-of-All-Trades based in Chicago, Illinois. He an Assistant Director and company member with Drinking and Writing Theater, and a production manager with Wild Atlas Theatre Co. Alex is currently performing in VS at the Drinking and Writing Theater twice weekly in Chicago, where he writes and performs short performance art pieces. He also will be writing and performing in a full-length performance art piece in April, in which he and his performance partner will be attempting to catalog the death of every writer ever. 12 Peers Theater’s Mission Founded in 2011, and taking their name from the Twelve Peers of Charlemagne, 12 Peers Theater is a 501(c)(3) organization operating in the Greater Pittsburgh Area. 12 Peers Theater's mission is to provide challenging and engaging theater through contemporary works exploring myth and cultural identity.  www.12peers.org www.patreon.com/12peerstheater

It’s Just Something That Happened by Alex Kump Directed by Reginald Douglas Featuring Moira Quigley ..……..………...………….Frankie Matt Henderson..………………….…..……….. Eli Ryan Patrick Kearney...…....…..Christopher John Feightner..….………….………………...Billy Alex Manalo…….………………....…...….. Death Christopher Collier…...….. Stage Directions Recording location provided by TimeSys Corporation.   It’s Just Something That Happened Synopsis The Family Fun Time Bowling Center will be closing its doors at the end of the season. Frankie and Eli spend their summer with Billy, who is doing nothing with his life, and Death (short for Meredith) the gamer obsessed with old arcade games, and the new employee Christopher. At a party in the arcade, something happens that threatens to break apart Frankie and Eli's friendship for good. It's Just Something That Happened is a coming-of-age play about friendship and uncertain futures. Alex Kump Biography Alex Kump is a playwright, performance artist, and general Jack-of-All-Trades based in Chicago, Illinois. He an Assistant Director and company member with Drinking and Writing Theater, and a production manager with Wild Atlas Theatre Co. Alex is currently performing in VS at the Drinking and Writing Theater twice weekly in Chicago, where he writes and performs short performance art pieces. He also will be writing and performing in a full-length performance art piece in April, in which he and his performance partner will be attempting to catalog the death of every writer ever. 12 Peers Theater’s Mission Founded in 2011, and taking their name from the Twelve Peers of Charlemagne, 12 Peers Theater is a 501(c)(3) organization operating in the Greater Pittsburgh Area. 12 Peers Theater's mission is to provide challenging and engaging theater through contemporary works exploring myth and cultural identity. www.12peerstheater.org www.patreon.com/12peerstheater

Episode 18 - Leslie Becker Interview 12 Peers Theater's Artistic Director Vince Ventura interviews Broadway Veteran, Leslie Becker.   LESLIE BECKER has appeared on Broadway and major national tours of WICKED, BONNIE & CLYDE, ANYTHING GOES, CINDERELLA, NINE, AMAZING GRACE, BEAUTY AND THE BEAST and SHOW BOAT. She has starred in over 50 regional productions including RAGTIME (Mother), BILLY ELLIOT (Mrs. Wilkinson), KING AND I (Anna), HELLO, DOLLY (Dolly) and more. Also a writer, her book The Organized Actor has been a best seller for over 20 years and her musical A PROPER PLACE (book/lyrics) will have its World Premiere on the Mainstage at The Village Theatre in March 2017. As a recording artist, her debut single Slow Burn reached number 4 on the AC Billboard/Hot AC chart this year.  www.LeslieBecker.com   Click here for an exclusive discount on Leslie Becker's The Organized Actor

The Curse of Atreus by Jim Knable A white motorcycle cop gets a flat tire on the freeway and ends up meeting Grace, a black female mechanic, at her auto shop. As a rookie, he wants to keep the flat off the books to save face. Despite their differences, an understanding begins to develop. But when Grace's son shows up and meets the description of a suspected car thief, a Tragedy of the 21st Century is set in motion.

The Curse of Atreus by Jim Knable A white motorcycle cop gets a flat tire on the freeway and ends up meeting Grace, a black female mechanic, at her auto shop. As a rookie, he wants to keep the flat off the books to save face. Despite their differences, an understanding begins to develop. But when Grace's son shows up and meets the description of a suspected car thief, a Tragedy of the 21st Century is set in motion.

The Curse of Atreus by Jim Knable A white motorcycle cop gets a flat tire on the freeway and ends up meeting Grace, a black female mechanic, at her auto shop. As a rookie, he wants to keep the flat off the books to save face. Despite their differences, an understanding begins to develop. But when Grace's son shows up and meets the description of a suspected car thief, a Tragedy of the 21st Century is set in motion.  

Gone Astray By Jennie Redling Kerryn O’Mally has insisted for nine years that her abducted child is still alive. Since her daughter’s disappearance she has frozen herself, her husband and their mentally handicapped son in a changeless state. With the missing girl's twentieth birthday approaching, a young woman of the Lakota nation arrives at their doorstep and is persuaded to recover the lost child. A battle of wills ensues when the hopes of Kerryn, a white woman steeped in Roman Catholic ritual, clash with the doubts of a Native American who has wandered adrift of her ancestors’ beliefs

Gone Astray by Jennie Redling Kerryn O’Mally has insisted for nine years that her abducted child is still alive. Since her daughter’s disappearance she has frozen herself, her husband and their mentally handicapped son in a changeless state. With the missing girl's twentieth birthday approaching, a young woman of the Lakota nation arrives at their doorstep and is persuaded to recover the lost child. A battle of wills ensues when the hopes of Kerryn, a white woman steeped in Roman Catholic ritual, clash with the doubts of a Native American who has wandered adrift of her ancestors’ beliefs.

Gone Astray by Jennie Redling Kerryn O’Mally has insisted for nine years that her abducted child is still alive. Since her daughter’s disappearance she has frozen herself, her husband and their mentally handicapped son in a changeless state. With the missing girl's twentieth birthday approaching, a young woman of the Lakota nation arrives at their doorstep and is persuaded to recover the lost child. A battle of wills ensues when the hopes of Kerryn, a white woman steeped in Roman Catholic ritual, clash with the doubts of a Native American who has wandered adrift of her ancestors’ beliefs.

Gone Astray by Jennie Redling Kerryn O’Mally has insisted for nine years that her abducted child is still alive. Since her daughter’s disappearance she has frozen herself, her husband and their mentally handicapped son in a changeless state. With the missing girl's twentieth birthday approaching, a young woman of the Lakota nation arrives at their doorstep and is persuaded to recover the lost child. A battle of wills ensues when the hopes of Kerryn, a white woman steeped in Roman Catholic ritual, clash with the doubts of a Native American who has wandered adrift of her ancestors’ beliefs.

Caliban By Michael Aman Caliban is a play about language and resentments. Shakespeare’s creature from The Tempest is still alive and well and still speaking iniambic pentameter. He lives on an island where he finds Emma, a nurse with her own baggage. Together with an angry young playwright named Wendy and her father, the play shows the power that forgiveness holds, even when confronting ancient resentments.

 Caliban By Michael Aman Caliban is a play about language and resentments. Shakespeare’s creature from The Tempest is still alive and well and still speaking iniambic pentameter. He lives on an island where he finds Emma, a nurse with her own baggage. Together with an angry young playwright named Wendy and her father, the play shows the power that forgiveness holds, even when confronting ancient resentments.  

Caliban by Michael Aman Caliban is a play about language and resentments. Shakespeare’s creature from The Tempest is still alive and well and still speaking iniambic pentameter. He lives on an island where he finds Emma, a nurse with her own baggage. Together with an angry young playwright named Wendy and her father, the play shows the power that forgiveness holds, even when confronting ancient resentments.

  Spiralling By Judith Pratt A mysterious crate of tribal masks appears in the office of a disaffected academic and her struggling young grad student. Meredith hopes that the masks, and their stories, are a ticket out of her hated teaching job. Jill, struggling for meaning in her life, hopes the masks will supply her with a belief in—something. The two women learn that the masks might be forgeries made by Emma, who traveled the Pacific in 1910. Or the masks may have been made by the indigenous tribe Emma visits and describes in her journal. As Meredith and Jill find and read the journal, Emma, in the past, writes and comments on it. The three masks represent the traps women encounter at each stage of life—maiden, mother, and crone. The maiden gives up everything for love; the mother starves herself for her children; the crone nearly destroys the world in her fight against death. Jill loves the Maiden; Meredith fears the Crone; between them they are Mother and daughter. Obsessed with the masks, Jill argues with Meredith, forgets to eat, burns her dissertation—and discovers something to believe in.

Spiralling By Judith Pratt A mysterious crate of tribal masks appears in the office of a disaffected academic and her struggling young grad student. Meredith hopes that the masks, and their stories, are a ticket out of her hated teaching job. Jill, struggling for meaning in her life, hopes the masks will supply her with a belief in—something. The two women learn that the masks might be forgeries made by Emma, who traveled the Pacific in 1910. Or the masks may have been made by the indigenous tribe Emma visits and describes in her journal. As Meredith and Jill find and read the journal, Emma, in the past, writes and comments on it. The three masks represent the traps women encounter at each stage of life—maiden, mother, and crone. The maiden gives up everything for love; the mother starves herself for her children; the crone nearly destroys the world in her fight against death. Jill loves the Maiden; Meredith fears the Crone; between them they are Mother and daughter. Obsessed with the masks, Jill argues with Meredith, forgets to eat, burns her dissertation—and discovers something to believe in.

Spiralling By Judith Pratt A mysterious crate of tribal masks appears in the office of a disaffected academic and her struggling young grad student. Meredith hopes that the masks, and their stories, are a ticket out of her hated teaching job. Jill, struggling for meaning in her life, hopes the masks will supply her with a belief in—something. The two women learn that the masks might be forgeries made by Emma, who traveled the Pacific in 1910. Or the masks may have been made by the indigenous tribe Emma visits and describes in her journal. As Meredith and Jill find and read the journal, Emma, in the past, writes and comments on it. The three masks represent the traps women encounter at each stage of life—maiden, mother, and crone. The maiden gives up everything for love; the mother starves herself for her children; the crone nearly destroys the world in her fight against death. Jill loves the Maiden; Meredith fears the Crone; between them they are Mother and daughter. Obsessed with the masks, Jill argues with Meredith, forgets to eat, burns her dissertation—and discovers something to believe in.

Cry in the Shower by Liz Leighton Detailing the emotionally complicated relationship between a mother and daughter both suffering from an emotional disorder (which the mother has euphemistically coined as “the sads”), this piece jumps around in time to reveal how a family of two develops over the course of a lifetime. Chantal Gregory perseveres to teach her daughter, Lena “The Rules of Suffering” to help her survive genetically inherited clinical depression. In doing so, she overlooks her daughter’s humanity. This piece explores how even the closest relationships can fall apart.

Cry in the Shower by Liz Leighton Detailing the emotionally complicated relationship between a mother and daughter both suffering from an emotional disorder (which the mother has euphemistically coined as “the sads”), this piece jumps around in time to reveal how a family of two develops over the course of a lifetime. Chantal Gregory perseveres to teach her daughter, Lena “The Rules of Suffering” to help her survive genetically inherited clinical depression. In doing so, she overlooks her daughter’s humanity. This piece explores how even the closest relationships can fall apart.

Cry in the Shower by Liz Leighton Detailing the emotionally complicated relationship between a mother and daughter both suffering from an emotional disorder (which the mother has euphemistically coined as “the sads”), this piece jumps around in time to reveal how a family of two develops over the course of a lifetime. Chantal Gregory perseveres to teach her daughter, Lena “The Rules of Suffering” to help her survive genetically inherited clinical depression. In doing so, she overlooks her daughter’s humanity. This piece explores how even the closest relationships can fall apart. ter’s humanity. This piece explores how even the closest relationships can fall apart.

Cry in the Shower by Liz Leighton Detailing the emotionally complicated relationship between a mother and daughter both suffering from an emotional disorder (which the mother has euphemistically coined as “the sads”), this piece jumps around in time to reveal how a family of two develops over the course of a lifetime. Chantal Gregory perseveres to teach her daughter, Lena “The Rules of Suffering” to help her survive genetically inherited clinical depression. In doing so, she overlooks her daughter’s humanity. This piece explores how even the closest relationships can fall apart.

 12 Peers Theater is launching their 2016 season with a groundbreaking year round podcast featuring 13 new play readings, exclusive interviews with the playwrights, and Q&A sessions with the producers, directors and actors. In an effort to make theatre more accessible and on demand, the thirteen new plays will premiere online over the course of 52 episodes spanning the entirety of 2016.