Andy Bayiates, (Festival Co-Chair & Project Director; Founding Father and co-writer of 44 Presidents) is a Chicago-based playwright, Neo-Futurist almnus and a former contributing writer for Time Out Chicago. Bayiates wrote and performed in the ever-changing Too Much Light Makes The Baby Go Blind (30 Plays in 60 Minutes) through 2004, also appearing in seven other Neo-Futurist productions, including 43 Plays for 43 Presidents and the gratifying hit, Daredevils! (as writer/performer.) His plays have been produced in Boston; Chicago; Los Angeles; San Francisco; Atlanta; Edinburg, Scotland; Geva Theater in Rochester, New York; The O’Neill National Theater Institute; and the 25th Annual Humana Festival at The Actor’s Theater of Louisville. A 60-Minute History of Humankind, mounted in 2003, appeared briefly on the NBC reality TV show Starting Over. His play, A History of Human Stupidity, received its world-premiere production by Rough & Tumble of Berkeley, CA in 2010, and was previewed in American Theatre Magazine. In addition to Playscripts, Inc., Bayiates’ work has been published in Humana Festival 2001: The Complete Plays, 200 More Neo-Futurist Plays (Hope and Nonthings Publishing, 2004); and The Absolutely Worst Places to Live in America (St. Martin’s Griffin, 2006).
Sean Daniels (Festival Co-Chair; Two-time director of 43 Plays for 43 Presidents) is Director of Artistic Engagement at the Geva Theatre. He spent five years at Tony Award-winning Actors Theatre of Louisville as its Associate Artistic Director. He is the former Associate Artistic Director/Resident Director of California Shakespeare Theater and previously spent a decade as Artistic Director/Co-Founder of Dad’s Garage Theater Company in Atlanta. He has developed many plays with delightful playwrights, including two time Tony Award- winner Greg Kotis, Trey Parker and Matt Stone, Pulitzer Prize finalists Kristoffer Diaz and Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa, Peter Sinn Nachtrieb, Deborah Stein, Lauren Gunderson, Jordan Harrison, Carly Mensch, James McLindon, Deborah Zoe Laufer, and Monty Python’s late Graham Chapman (with an assist by John Cleese and Michael Palin). Upcoming projects include partnering with the Center of Puppetry Arts in Atlanta to create a new adaptation of 20,000 LEAGUES UNDER THE SEA funded by the Jim Henson Foundation.
Genevra Gallo-Bayiates, (Communication Specialist/Message Strategist and co-writer of 44 Presidents), is one of the five original creators of 44 Plays for 44 Presidents. A former Artistic Director and ensemble member with The Neo-Futurists, Genevra has also worked professionally as a choreographer, arts educator, and writer. In addition to her artistic life, she is the Assistant Director of the Career Advancement Center at Lake Forest College. Were she to pick a special cause as First Lady, it would definitely involve empowerment through intentional action and equal rights for all citizens.
Tyler Haberman (Festival Production Assistant) is currently an undergraduate at Lake Forest College majoring in Communication and Theater. He has a passion for all types of theater, in particular comedy. Tyler was recently the Assistant Director for the inaugural production in the Plays for Presidents Festival at Lake Forest College. He is now thrilled to be a part of the nationwide Festival efforts and continuing to spread the excitement of 44 Plays for 44 Presidents.
Evan Hanover (Secretary of Research) is an anthropologist by day and a dramaturg by night and by weekend. He is excited to be working with the Neo-Futurists for the sixth time. Previous dramaturgical adventures at the corner of Ashland and Foster include: Chalk and Saltwater: The Ladder Project, The Fool (Returns to His Chair), Crisis: A Musical Game Show, and A 60-Minute History of Humankind. He also appeared in the Neo’s production of Fear. When not looking things up, Evan snaps pics as the unofficial official photographer for Chicago favorites, the It Came From The Neo-Futurarium film fest and Write Club.
Chloe Johnston, (Education Coordinator and co-writer of 44 Presidents) is a Neo-Futurist alumnus. She wrote and performed in Too Much Light Makes the Baby Go Blind in addition to creating The Emmett Project, Patriots and, most recently, collaborating on Fear, an interactive walking tour of the stories of Edgar Allen Poe. She has also worked as a performer, writer, and director with various theatres around Chicago, including Steppenwolf, Lookingglass, CollaborAction, Chicago Dramatists, and Walkabout. She has designed and taught courses at the University of Chicago and Northwestern University and conducted performance workshops at universities and theatres in Chicago and beyond. Chloe received her PhD in Performance Studies from Northwestern University.
Jeffrey Mosser (Senior Strategist/Social Media & Community Outreach Director) is a former Education Fellow at Actors Theatre of Louisville where he co-created and directed Theatre for Two: The Wedding Party, a site-specific piece inspecting the actor/audience relationship. Jeffrey’s served as the Director and Education Coordinator for the Youth Action Theatre, Production Manager for the Kentucky Shakespeare Festival, and in several positions at the Great River Shakespeare Festival. Recently his play, Love, Death, and Latex, was accepted to the Source Festival in Washington D.C. He is a member of the Rebels Without Applauze improv troupe, and can already tell we’re going to be great friends. http://jeffreymosser.me
Molly O’Donnell (Resident Filmmaker) is an ethnographic researcher and moonlight documentary filmmaker. As a videographer, editor, and producer, she loves capturing events and telling compelling visual stories. Right around the time the 2012 presidential election is wrapping up, Molly will be starting at the Master of Communication in Digital Media program at the University of Washington in Seattle.
Sarah R. Rowan (Lead Press Director) currently serves as the Marketing & Sales Manager for Actors Theatre of Louisville where she establishes strategies for single and season ticket sales and leads the marketing department in the successful execution of promotional tactics. She also supports Actors Theatre as a mentor for the Apprentice/Intern Company; a staff advisor for the Generation One Board, a young professionals Board dedicated to building the next generation of theatre subscribers and donors; and aiding in the play selection for the 2012 New Voices Young Playwrights Festival. Presently, she is also assisting with the development of an original puppet theatre piece for Xperimental Puppetry Theatre at the Center for Puppetry Arts, and serving on the Executive Committee for the Louisville Youth Orchestra’s Board of Directors. Sarah is a theatre practitioner who aspires to generate innovative, cross-disciplinary work focused on specific communities. She is dedicated to nurturing future generations of theatre professionals and creating work that engages, educates, and stimulates conversation.
Karen Lynn Weinberg (Co-Author and Festival Video Wrangler) – in addition to being one of the authors of this play, Karen helped create sketch comedy shows with Cupid Players and GayCo, her one-woman show Faker toured the country, and she appeared in the Off-Broadway remount of Seussical as Gertrude McFuzz. As a film and television editor, she has cut episodes of several different series for the History Channel including Clash of the Gods andMysteryQuest; other editing credits include the feature films Frozen River, Racing Dreams, Certainty and One Night Stand. Karen’s film production company Ten Trees is currently in development for pilot. www.tentreesproductions.com
Plays for Presidents Festival 2012 