Committed to the principle of ensemble performance through the collaboration of a company of actors, directors and playwrights, Rising Sun Performance Company's (RSP) mission is to advance the vitality and diversity of American theater by nurturing artists, encouraging repeatable creative relationships, and contributing new works and revitalized pre-existing work to the national canon. Rising Sun Performance Company realizes this goal by providing a safe artistic home that stimulates risk-taking without limits of genre or agenda. In July 2005, Rising Sun was nominated for two New York Innovative Theatre Awards, for their production of The Shape of Things By Neil Labute, Directed by John Pinckard For Outstanding Ensemble and Outstanding Performance by a Lead Actor for Tate Ellington. In July 2009, Rising Sun's commissioned play [pwnd] by Kitt Lavoie received a New York Innovative Theatre Awards nomination for Outstanding Short Script and Artistic Director Akia, was honored with the NYITA Founders Award.
"Wonderfully designed… thought-provoking… It's a rip-roaring good time, and well worth your dime… Check it out. You'll be glad you did." Will Kenton, Cultural Capitol
"There are no weak links in this cast. Everyone creates a full character and is fantastic in his or her role… a production not to be missed, not only for the subject matter, but also for the talent of all involved.”
Alyssa Simon, nytheatre.com
The Cast and Crew |
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Akia (Director/Founding Artistic Director) is an active member of the flourishing Off-Off/Indie & Off Broadway theatre communities having produced, directed, and performed with numerous NYC companies since 1997. Akia is the Company Manager for the international sensation, The Blue Man Group at the Astor Place Theater. Proudly, she is the Founding Artistic Director of the Rising Sun Performance Company, now in entering its ninth season, and has been involved on all levels with each of its 35+ productions. She is a Board Member of The Paul Butterfield Fund & Society, and Company Manager for The New York Innovative Theatre Awards & Foundation, where she serves on their honorary awards committee as Sub-Committee Chairman and as an At-Large Judge. Past notable credits include working on staff at Horse Trade Theatre Group, serving as General Manager for FRIGID New York’s inaugural year, and returning as Volunteer Coordinator in 2009; she also served as Production Coordinator for nationally acclaimed Puerto Rican Traveling Theatre, overseeing the playwrights unit and INSIGHT 13 production series. Most recently Akia directed the remount of “Goodnight Lovin’ Trail” at the Best of Strawberry Fest and the Inaugural Wilmington FRINGE festival. This past summer she was the recipient of the New York Innovative Theatre Awards “Founders Award” for her contributions to the organization. Thanks to this amazing family of theatre artists, Erez, Heidi and Horse TRADE, to Frank, friends & family for putting up with her long absences from the world around her in pursuit of theatre, and especially to Tiffini, David, Tiffany & Lindsay her brilliant partners in crime, for their faith and belief in this merry band of lunatics. Merde’!! |
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Rebecca Jane Stokes received her BA in Theatre Arts from the University of the South: Sewanee. Stokes was a participant of the 2004 Sewanee Writer’s Conference where she was a Sewanee Fellow under playwriting chairs Romulus Linney and Hilary Bell. Stokes has worked with Boston’s Southcity Ensemble as writer and actor. Their show ‘Mosaic’ was hailed by the Boston Globe as “Witty, acerbic, and intense.” She received her MFA in playwriting from the New School for Drama in 2009. Stokes’s newest full-length play ‘Freakish’ enjoyed a stage-reading by Abroad Stage Company in 2009. Stokes has worked as writer on the Lifetime Web Series ‘Inspector Mom’ starring Danica McKellar produced by Fireside Entertainment, and interned with Swingline Productions on HBO’S hit drama, ‘In Treatment.’ Thanks to my parents, for their unfailing support. |
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Anastasia Peterson has been a proud member of Rising Sun Theatre Company since early 2010 and made her debut as Paulie in Dan Rosen’s The Last Supper. She graduated with a BA in theatre from Bucknell University and also studied at NYC’s Atlantic Acting School and the London Dramatic Academy. Anastasia worked as an actress at Bloomsburg Theatre Ensemble in PA before moving to New York. Her past credits include All My Sons, Urinetown the Musical, The Secret Rapture, Ken Ludwig’s Leading Ladies and Let’s Play Two. She is pleased to be a part of the one-acts. |
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Becky Sterling Rygg is happy to be a part of her 3rd season of One Acts with RSPC. She is an ensemble member of Rising Sun and can currently be seen in "The Last Supper" at The Red Room. She is also an associate artist with The Cry Havoc Company and can sometimes be seen as a Zombie-lover with Endtimes Productions. Thank you to all my family and friends for all of their support! Thank you to all the cast and crew of Encounters, especially my dear directors, Leal and Tiffany! Love you lots!! |
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Kelly Hawkins is thrilled to be working with such a great script and cast. Directing credits: Dan Rosen's The Last Supper, Jonathan Marc Sherman's Women and Wallace, Christopher Shinn's Four and her own K-Hawk: The Musical. Performance credits include: One Flew Over the Cuckoos Nest, A Play About Science and Rocky Horror. |
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Jak Prince has worked in the theatre since age 6 as an actor, designer, director and educator. He has designed for Theatre on Five, Playwrights and Actors Contemporary Theatre, Vital Theatre Co. and most recently The Frog & Peach Theatre Company. He has degrees from Cornell College (B.S.S. ’72) Montclair State M.A. ’80) and has studied with Dennis McDonald, W. Scott MacConnell, Andre’Gregory, and Stuart Dillon. He has a daughter, Danielle, who is an animal trainer in Austin, Texas. His scenic design can currently be seen onstage in the production of “The Last Supper”. |
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Mariana Guillen was born in Mexico City and has had a love for the arts for as long as she can remember. After receiving her Bachelor’s degree in English & Drama from Goldsmiths College (University of London), she decided to pursue the acting realm further. In 2009 she enrolled in the One Year Acting program at the New York Film Academy. She can currently be seen in RSP’s long running production of The Last Supper. |
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Anthony Mead acts in New York City. His A.D.D. prevents him from sitting at his computer long enough to craft his past credits into a third- person-paragraph-listing. He is tickled green to be working with the fine folks of The Rising Sun Performance Company, once again. He likes fuzzy little ducks, old pick-up trucks, fast moving trains and grass. He can also be seen on stage in the critically acclaimed production of “The Last Supper”. |
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Tim Butterfield is making his directorial debut for Rising Sun with Residue. He is currently in his final year at The New School for Drama where he will earn an MFA in Directing. While at NSD Tim has been fortunate enough to learn from such talented artists such as Doug Hughes, Jo Bonney, Bob LuPone, Lou Jacobs and Casey Biggs. At the end of the year Tim will Direct Odon von Horvath’s Don Juan comes back from the war as his thesis production. Keep and eye out for details at www.TimButterfield.net. |
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John Patrick Bray is ABD in Theatre Studies at Louisiana State University and holds an MFA in Playwriting from The New School (Actors Studio Drama School). He is a member of The Dramatists Guild of America, Inc., TCG, ATHE and he is an Equity Membership Candidate. He has been involved with a number of theatre companies, and has had plays produced Off-Off Broadway and around the country. Most recently, he was a Finalist for a Playwriting Residency at the Hangar Theatre. “Goodnight Lovin’ Trail” and “On Top” are published in The Best Plays from the Strawberry One Act Festival, Vol. 1.and 2. He has written plays under grants from the NEA and the Acadiana Arts Council. He teaches at SUNY New Paltz. Thank you RSPC for the warm welcome home! |
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Stacey Lane’s plays have been seen at over one-hundred theatres from coast to coast in the U.S., as well as in Canada, England, and Australia and are published with Playscripts, Inc., Smith and Kraus, Manhattan Theatre Source, San Luis Obispo Little Theatre, and Scene4 Magazine. She is the recipient of a Helene Wurlitzer Foundation playwriting fellowship, a “Charlie Award”, and a nominee for “Outstanding Playwriting for a New Script of a Play or Book of a Musical” at the Midtown International Theatre Festival. www.StaceyLaneInk.com |
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Tim Chaffee (Director) received his degree in directing from Fordham University. Since then he has worked for Blue Man Group as a stagehand and video operator at the Astor Place Theater, and spent 6 months traveling and volunteering in India. Sound Design: Once There Was a Boy directed by Aaron Rhyne, Elephant in the Room directed by Morgan Gould. Directing credits: The Dumb Waiter by Harold Pinter, The House of Yes by Wendy Macleod and Last Call: an Apocalypse Story by Rob Perry, Ostrander(film) by Ian McWethy. |
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Allison Whittinghill is super excited to be working with Rising Sun Productions! While attending the University of Texas, she worked with the Gobotrick Theatre Company, the New Works Festival and Frontera Fest. Always up for helping and collaborating with colleagues, she was one of the founding members of the Experimental Theatre Project, in which actors write, cast, and produce original work in a group setting. In New York, she has gotten great joy and fun from working with the Sanctuary Playwrights group, the Anthropologists, and Planet Connections Theatre Festivity. |
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Tom Misuraca’s plays have been produced in New York City, Long Island, Brooklyn, Madison, Chicago and Hollywood. He’s won audience favorites at PianoFight’s ShortLived 2.0, Bellarmine University’s Anything Galileo Festival and at the Tehachapi Community Theatre’s Ten-Minute Play Competition. Over eighty of his short stories have appeared in publications worldwide. His second novel, Lifestyles of the Damned, was released in 2009. He also co-wrote the film, Happy Holidays. He currently presides as President of the Board at FirstStage in Hollywood. Thanks to Charlene Ward, Ann Simmons and Angie Weitzman. |
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Tiffany Hogan (Meet Up director) was raised in North Carolina where she studied theatre at Catawba College. She moved to New York two years ago where she made her directing debut with 13th Street Repertory. This is Tiffany’s second show with RSPC, she is currently assistant directing The Last Supper, and is excited to be a part of a wonderful group of people. She would like to say thank you to the company and her wonderful actors. |
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Christopher Schwartz Hey nice to meet you my name is Schwartz, This is my very first show in NYC! I am from Scranton,Pa where I was an active member of College and Community theater. I also acted in a short form Improv group and formed a two man sketch group called The Pancake Brothers! I currently live in Brooklyn and I'm trying my hand at Stand up comedy and based on the sketches I've done, with the help of fellow Pancake brother Baxter Pancake, we are turning our sketches into a cartoon! I also enjoy watching other people watch sports. |
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Jason Vinoles graduated from Boston University where he majored in Communications and earned his degree in Advertising and Public Relations. He was also captain of the Division I tennis team and a proud member of the acting troupe Theater For Actors.
Jason was fortunate to be part of several productions during his tenure with TFA including the lead roles in: Hamlet (Hamlet), Charlie Brown (Charlie Brown) and "The Line That Picked up 1,000 Babes" (Nice Guy). Jason also preformed an original work at the Manhattan Repertory Theater called "Rachel Must Die." He has also done several roles in independent film and television and looks forward to continuing the pursuit of happiness! He most recently had the lead role in an HOLA theater company production at La Tea theater entitled, "The Jedi Papi Chulo and the Power Pansa" and is very much looking forward to his first appearance with Rising Sun! |
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Mark Harvey Levine has had over 500 productions of his short plays all over the world from New York to Seoul to Sydney to Prague, and has been translated into French, Hebrew, Japanese and Portuguese. Evenings of his work have played in Sao Paulo, Amsterdam, Los Angeles, Boston and Indianapolis. His collection "Cabfare For The Common Man" will be at Madlab Theatre in Columbus, Ohio this October. Rising Sun Productions produced his play "The Kiss" last year in "Twisted." More info at www.markharveylevine.com. He lives in Pasadena with his lovely wife and son. Please leave the raising of the dead to professionals. Thank you to Aki Squitieri, and everyone at Rising Sun Performance Company. |
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Erica Lutz is a 2009 graduate of the Conservatory of Theatre Arts and Film at SUNY Purchase. This is her first production with Rising Sun and is very happy to be a part of it! |
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Michael Lee Jones is thrilled to join a cast of such talented performers. Studying voice under Florence Birdwell at Oklahoma City University, Michael Lee earned his bachelor's of fine arts in Musical Theatre. Jones has performed with many companies including Manhattan Repertory Theatre, Lyric Theatre of Oklahoma, Light Opera Oklahoma, Texas Heritage Foundation, and is a proud member of the 2010 Rising Sun Performance Ensemble. Jones recently had his Rising Sun debut in "The Last Supper" and is looking forward to working with this new family in the future. |
