Penny Pollak (Host) is “A real pleasure to watch, she flits and flings herself around the stage, an anarchic rock chick with intense focus, wild eyes and a wide emotional range. A charismatic, confident performer.” (Edinburgh Tonight) Her work is described as “dark and a little creepy” by reviewers “She brings a physicality to her roles that make her captivating to watch (Thehappiestmedium.com) “Pollak is an assured performer – powerful, physical and fragile all at once.” (Kate Copstick The Scotsman) “An actress who can flip from funny to tragic in one scene, often in one line. Penny earns major points for her creativity in her dark and fascinating No Traveler” (stagebuzz.com) ‘No Traveler’ a comedy about suicide written and performed by Pollak received glowing reviews in this years Edinburgh Fringe Festival and NYC Frigid Festival. “This is a clever piece of theatre by an impressive performer, the kind of show that the Fringe should be about.” (The Scotsman) She recently starred in ‘Broken Dog Legs’ a one-woman play by Emily Conbere where “Pollak’s shadowy voice is creepy enough to feign tales of sorrow, often spooky with her brooding eyes and dark locks” (showbusinessweekly.com) Penny injects [each performance] with surprising sensitivity, black humor and sinister bite”

For almost three years now she has hosted and produced Penny’s Open Mic, (featured in The New York Times, New York Magazine, Backstage.com, NY Press and Time Out NY) a weekly show at UNDER St. Marks Theater dedicated to supporting artists of every kind to experiment and workshop in a safe environment. A past resident of Horse Trade Theater Company she has produced and performed in just about every performance venue, bar and street corner in the east village since she moved here about three years ago. She graduated with a degree in Theater and a minor in Sociology. After graduation she studied at the TVI London theater intensive program at Rose Bruford College, UK. She has won awards for her writing as well as been featured in a number of readings in NYC.

Mike Milazzo’s (House Band) theatrical soundtracks include No Traveler, The Naked Side of Grace and Kill The Band. Mike blends folk, blues, rock and bluegrass music into an original, yet familiar sound. With a dark resonance in his voice, he sings with an honesty that feels like home. There is an urgency in his lyrics and guitar playing that translates into his live performances, as well as, his new CD "The World Outside". Mike has, in the past, lent his guitar playing and singing talents to bands and singer songwriters such as banjo master, Tom Hanway, "The Juicemen" -heavy alt. rock, "The U.S. Hairforce" -angular art rock, "Dweller"-rock and roll, "The Boardlords" -skate punk to which he is still an active member, and "Meg Griffin's Trainwreck" featuring pedal steel legend Buddy Cage. Mike Milazzo has had the pleasure of being an opening act for Donovan, Richie Havens, Levon Helm, and Vassar Clements. Milazzo plays most of the instruments on his new recording, "The World Outside" himself, with the exception of drums played by Martin Stroh, and guest appearances by Meg Griffin- backing vocals, Joe Meo- clarinet, Stan Hammond- keyboards, and Robin Gager on violin. The end result is a warm and powerful collection of songs. Mike can be seen and heard with his band Broken Arrow on Thursday evenings at The Sundown Saloon, in Greenwich, Ct. also he can be seen solo all around NYC and the Tri-state area. His new CD "The World Outside" is out now on Mighty-Quinn records.

Emleigh Wolf (Box Office Extraordinaire/Occasional Substitute Host) Taking your money at Penny's Open Mic since 2009. A native of Tallahassee, FL, Emleigh fled the South to come to New York and make it as a performer. Seven years later her dream has finally come true, and she can be seen in numerous basements and back rooms of dive bars, delighting audiences of drunks and other performers. She is most well known for her character, Umberto MacDougal, first seen at Penny's Open Mic. Umberto has performed all around the city and is currently working on his very own one-act show to be performed in Horse Trade's MiniFRIDGE summer '11.

Fun fact: Emleigh is the first person besides Penny to ever host Penny's Open Mic.

You may also have seen Emleigh's website design work at pennypollak.com or horsetrade.info, which is the website you're viewing right now.