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Horse Trade Presents

THE DRAFTS

ACCIDENTAL DISCHARGE
IMPOSSIBLE

May 5th-14th 7pm

Tickets $18/$15 students and seniors
Click here to buy tickets to sample small show via smarttix.com

Hard to Kill
Written by Aliza Einhorn,
Directed by Danny Sharron
Featuring Penny Pollak and Gary Warchola

There is a plague in this city! Or, how the dreaded bedbug brought two New Yorkers together.
Senile Agitation
Written by Quinn D. Eli
Directed by Shay Gines
Featuring Amanda Von Nostrand and Quinn Warren
Two sisters contemplate a complex proposition for the care of their ailing grandmother.
Paper Rose of Sarajevo
Written by Eric Kingrea
Directed by Nicole Watson
Featuring JB Rote and Evan Taylor Walker

Tripp has come up with the perfect caper that will get him away from his mother and his trailer park life:
selling cigarettes… in a war-torn Balkan state.

A Better Destiny for Bethany
Written by Derek McPhatter

Directed by Nicole Gehring
Featuring Yesenia Tromp and Matthew Wise

Bethany's the biggest fan for the best-est boy band you've never heard of. And tonight she's finally putting the publicity stunts, medications, restraining orders, hallucinations and whatever else behind her...we hope.

The Bling and the Bang Of It
Written by Megan Hill
Directed by Axel Avin Jr.
Featuring Evan Taylor Walker and Amanda Von Nostrand

A woman enters a jewelry store to buy a gun…
Pigeons, Sharks, and Vixens
Written by Matthew-Lee Erlbach
Directed by Randi Rivera
Featuring Penny Pollak and Matthew Wise

When sex meets commerce, Lance and Kara struggle to find redemption, resolution, and relief in a world that has forced them to the edge.
Laurabeth Breya is excited to be a member of The Drafts! She was born and raised in New York City. She attended Brown University where she received her B.A. in Theatre Arts. After graduating from Brown, she studied intensively at the Dell'Arte International School for Physical Theatre as part of their Professional Training Program, studying Clown, Mime, Melodrama, Acrobatics, Voice, and Commedia Dell'Arte. She is currently enrolled in CUNY's M.A. in Applied Theater Program. In addition to acting professionally, she hopes to use Applied Theatre to politicize and empower marginalized communities.
Reiss Gaspard is a South Florida transplant and a long time New Yorker who has a great respect for the craft of acting and thought provoking theatre. He is a long time company member of the critically acclaimed Ground Up and Rising theatre and is excited to be working with such dedicated actors and writers here at the Drafts. He received his B.A. at Florida State University and continues to study his craft at the historical HB Studios.
Reynaldo Piniella is a New York native representing East New York, Brooklyn. He has performed recently with the Castillo Theatre, New Federal Theatre and Primary Stages. He has also appeared in film projects with the Discovery Channel, Pearson Education, New York Magazine and Chai Lifeline. Reynaldo is looking forward to his journey with The Drafts!
Penny Pollak is an NYC based performer and writer. “Dark and a little creepy,” her solo play No Traveler received glowing reviews in last year's Edinburgh Fringe Festival and will be premiering in Winnipeg in July. You can see Penny perform all over NYC from storytelling to physical theater. Since 2007 she’s hosted Penny’s Open Mic at UNDER St. Marks Theater. An ANYTHING Open Mic for all artists of any kind featured in The New York Times, New York Magazine and Backstage.com. www.pennypollak.com
Jessica Preddy Presently finishing her senior year at NYU, Jessica Preddy is very grateful to the Horse Trade theatre for this wonderful opportunity! Originally from London, she has enjoyed acclimating to the New York theatre scene. Previous favourite credits include: Tis Pity She's a Whore, Story Park, Yahoo!'s Back to School Special, Story Park, among others.
JB Roté fell in love with the theatre from her first role as a snowflake in first grade in Vermont. She apprenticed at Williamstown Theatre Festival, majored in Acting at Brandeis University and completed her BFA in London at the British American Drama Academy. She has also studied and performed at the Upright Citizens Brigade, Magnet and Peoples Improv Theaters. She is enjoying being an active member in The Drafts. Theatre credits include: Crawl For It, Change The Be and Donnie and the Monsters (Horse Trade), Balcony Scene 2010 (MoMA PS1). Come see her this August in LINES (Horse Trade). More info at jbrote.com. Love and thanks to Horse Trade Theater, my darling friends and family.
Yesenia Tromp Yesenia is so excited to be a part of "The Horse Trade Theatre Group."She holds a B.F.A in acting from Long Island University, C.W. Post. She was most recently seen in a reading at The Lark Play Development Center. Previous NYC credits include "The Tenth Man" (Viking Theatre Company), "Bluff" (Rapscallion Theatre Collective), "Sweet Love, Sweet Lines, Sweet Life!" (Manhattan Repertory Theatre), "American Culture" (Quo Vadimus Arts) and "Third Child" (NYC Fringe Festival). Thanks to everyone for making this process so enjoyable!
Amanda Von Nostrand is thrilled to be a part of Drafts! Some of her favorite roles include: Natalya in The Marriage Proposal, Sissy in Come Back to the Five and Dime Jimmy Dean, Jimmy Dean, and the title role in Dulcy. She is also active in the improv comedy scene and has been seen at Upright Citizen's Brigade and performs regularly with The Red Tie Mafia for which she also coaches. For more info, check out her site www.amandavannostrand.com
Evan Taylor Walker is fresh to the “Big Apple,” and originally hails from the Sunshine State. He has recently graduated from Point Park University with a degree in musical theatre. Past credit include: Robbie(The Wedding Singer), Black(The Wild Party), Demetrius(A Midsummer Nights Dream), Beau(Asleep on the Wind), Leo Frank(Parade; in which he was named best actor of 2009 by the Washington Observer) and many others. He is overjoyed to be a part of the Drafts and can’t want to expose the world to new playwrights and their plays on a monthly basis. He would like to thank all those who support and contribute to the arts.
Gary Warchola recently moved to New York after graduating with a BFA in Acting and a minor in Media Arts from the University of Montana He is very excited to perform with Horse Trade Theatre in the Drafts. Some companies he has worked with include Palissimo dance company, Looking Glass Theatre, and the Montana Repertory Theatre. This summer he will be performing at the Sterling Renaissance Festival as a Bless the Mark Player. Some of his favorite past productions include Charles Mee’s Big Love, William Shakespeare’s The Merry Wives of Windsor , and Undone an adaptation of Ibsen’s A Doll’s House.

Quinn Warren is thrilled to be performing with The Drafts!  Recent credits include: The Ballad of Lulu and Dad with Artistic New Directions (Dir. Heather Cohn), Misery, Apathy, and Despair as part of the InGenius Festival at Manhattan Theatre Source (Dir. DeLisa White), the Northeast premiere of Trapezium at Hartford’s Playhouse on Park(Dir. Russell Treyz), Centenary Stage Company’s world premiere production of Bekah Brunstetter’s You May Go Now (Dir. Margo Whitcomb), the world premiere of Emily Mann’s Mrs. Packard (Dir. Emily Mann) at the McCarter Theatre and later at the Kennedy Center,  Frankie in the Depot Theatre production of The Member of the Wedding and Jane in the award-winning world premiere of Stripping Eden by Wayne Paul Mattingly.  Quinn graduated magna cum laude from Stephens College with a BFA in Theatre Arts and is an Equity Membership Candidate.www.QuinnWarren.com

Michael Weatherbee Michael is from Byfield, Massachusetts. Selected credits include: Fly Away (Love Creek Productions, Producers Club), The Man Who Came to Dinner (Ridge Repertory), Father of the Bride (State of Maine Theater, Lakewood), I Never Saw Another Butterfly (Touching Humanity Inc.), The Cupcake Diet (Strawberry One Act Festival, Riant Theater), and What I Like (Where Eagles Dare Play Festival). Readings of Bookstories and The New Facts of Life (Ten Grand Productions, Algonquin Theater). Reading of The Group (Hudson Guild Theater, Fresh Fruit Festival). Spent a summer in college as the cabin boy in historical reenactments at Roanoke Island Festival Park, the Outer Banks.
Thanks Mom and Dad.
Matthew Wise is a graduate of NYU's Tisch School of the Arts and the Atlantic Acting School. He is originally from the San Francisco Bay Area but is a born again New Yorker. He is excited to be working with The Drafts and the very talented playwrights involved as well.

 

Nick Maccarone is a recent graduate of Columbia University's School of the Arts where he received an M.F.A. in theater. In his final year at Columbia he had the opportunity to work with Diane Paulus in an adaptation of James Baldwin's novel, Another Country. Nick recently completed a two-week workshop at La MaMa exploring an original piece by Fernando Rivas entitled Soul Ascending. A native of Oakland, Calif. he is relieved to have his soul back and thrilled to be exploring original works with the Drafts in the greatest city in the world.
Arooj Majid is currently training at The Studio New York Conservatory (thestudionewyork.com), and feels privileged to be part of such a dynamic ensemble. His New York Theater credits include: Between Static (29th Street Rep); In the Zone (Columbia University); Becket (Richmond Shepard Theatre), and regionally: Monstrosity; Almost, Maine (Williamstown). A native of Texas he received his bachelors degree from the University of Texas at Austin. Other training: The Actors Center.
Lindsey Hope Pearlman Lindsey loves Horse Trade and The Drafts! Favorite projects include The Geographical History of America (Performer and Adaptor, Human Group) and The Snow White Project presented by FIAF. Lindsey is a graduate of Hamilton College with a degree in Comparative Literature and Theater. Lindsey will be attending the London International School of the Performing Arts (LISPA) in the fall of 2010. Email Lindsey at lindsey.pearlman@gmail.com. Thanks Horse Trade!
Jennifer Soo Jennifer graduated in '07 from Tisch, where she trained at the Atlantic Acting School and Stonestreet Studios, and spent her last semester with the Grassroots program in New Orleans. NYC Credits include: the Kraine, CSV, Theater for the New City, and most recently The Wings Theatre in a production of MOONCHILDREN with The Attic Theater Company. She also toured regionally with the Georgestreet Playhouse, where she may have been the first Chinese girl to play Anne Frank.
Sarah Babb Sarah is a native of Canada.
Selected film credits include: Wonder Love, Seven Hours, Calendar Girl and Spademeadow (MTV Spoof finalist.) Selected Stage credits include: Erica in The Water’s Edge, Woman in Purgatorio (New York Premiere) and Claudia in Honour. Sarah is very excited to be working with such a talented group of actors. She would also like to thank her family and friends for their support.
Stephen Losack
Patti Murtha studied acting at Mason Gross School of the Arts, Rutgers University and at the Maggie Flanigan Studio. Past roles include Katherine in Taming of the Shrew, Agnes in Ludlow Fair, Geronte in Scapin, Pulcheria in Crime and Punishment, and local and international tours with The Shoestring Players. Directing credits include Much Ado About Nothing, Once on this Island, Godspell, and several tours for Shoestring. She is also a master ensemble theater teacher and conducts workshops with students aged preschool through adult at schools and organizations throughout New Jersey. She currently works with McCarter Theatre as a teaching artist and will be reprising her role as Telemachus in their tour of The Odyssey Experience in the spring.
Ashley Baker
Brittany Bellizeare is a recent graduate of The New School for Drama and is now a “Master” of Acting!! At least she hopes to think she is. Some of her favorite roles include Amita in I’d Do Anything by Rebecca Stokes, Maggie in Den of Thieves, Rosa in CHAIN,Lona Hessel in The Pillars of Society, and Juniper in Juniper; Jubilee, a now published play and 2008 Samuel French Festival Winner, by Janine Nabers. Other theatre credits include All’s Well That Ends Well, Private Life of the Master Race, Lysistrata, 365 Days/365 Plays, (Princess) Escalas in Romeo & Juliet: Jerusalem, a different yet enlightening take on the Shakespearean classic, The Colored Museum: Symbiosis, and Woman + War with The Synchronicity Performance Group at 7Stages Theatre in Atlanta. She was blessed with the opportunity to be apart of the summer long Shakespeare Lab Intensive at The Public Theatre in 2008 where she performed in the a collection of scenes and sonnets in Nights, Fights, Schemes, Dreams arranged and directed by Barry Edelstein. She was also a member of The Bridge Program 2007 at One on One Productions. She is truly grateful to those who continue to mentor and enlighten her along the way. She sends love and thanks to God and her family and friends! She is ready to simply “live her magic.”
Erin Burns is excited to be a member of The Drafts! New to NYC, but no stranger to the stage, Erin's regional credits include Little Red Ridinghood in Into the Woods, Squeaky Fromme in Assassins, The Fantasticks, 5 Women Wearing the Same Dress, Jekyll & Hyde, The Miss Firecracker Contest, The Secret Garden, The Sound of Music, South Pacific, Peter Pan, and Don Giovanni with Nashville Opera, among others. While earning her BA in classical voice and theatre, Erin competed in the Miss GA Pageant and opened for country singer Tracy Lawrence! Thanks to God, her folks, and her lil' sis!
Stephon Pettway is originally from Bridgeport Ct, but is a native of Durham N.C. He is a Sophomore BFA-Acting major in Pace Universities Theatre Arts department. New York credits include: Osage Avenuereading (Slick Willie, Birdie) at The Algonquin Theatre, Cold Water Flatreading (Eric Burns) & Comes A Pausereading (Narrator) at Under St. Marks. Five Seconds to Air (Charles Kingston) at Theatre Row, and Angels As We Fall (God) at The Manhattan Repertory Theatre. Pace Credits include: A Heartbeat to Baghdad (Dwayne), Tribute: A Black History Month Cabaret (Preacher, Walter Lee Younger, Ensemble), and Hard Times (Boundarby). Outside credits include: Two Trains Running (Sterling) & Tunnels (The Man) at North Carolina Central University, Mufaro’s Beautiful Daughters (Villager 2 Male) which he performed in London, England, Perilous Times (Robert) at The Carolina Theatre and One Voice (Michael Lamar Jenkins) which he wrote and performed in Kenya East Africa. Film/Television credits include: Bushwick League, The Roe Effect, 100 Faces, Law & Order, Gameboyz (Mario) and One Man, One Sound which he directed, produced and edited. I would love to give all praises to the God for allowing me to work with a fantastic group of artist. I would also like to thank my friends & family for the continued sacrifices that they make on a daily bases and I would also like to dedicate this performance to my mother Patricia Pettway, who continues to love and support me.
Nicholas Wilder Nicholas was born and raised in Philadelphia. He is thrilled to be returning to the draughts for a second year! New York Credits: Breaking In (Strong Kids Playwriting Festival), Romeo & Juliet (Bare Shakespeare/Manhattan Rep), Free Country (Strawberry One Act Festival) Regional: Trio Sonata (Women’s Theater Company) Pericles, Romeo & Juliet (Philadelphia Shakespeare Festival), The Shape of Things (SCO Productions), U.S Drag, Autobahn (Flashpoint Theatre Company), Much Ado About Nothing (Delaware Shakespeare Festival), and Baby with the Bathwater (Allens Lane Theater). Tours: Richard II, The Learned Ladies (Shakespeare Theatre of New Jersey) One Night (Equalogy), and The Seeds of Freedom (Family Stages).