In the second and final episode of our special two-part "Cycle of Poverty" series, enjoy a "first listen" of two in-development plays from our Commission Fellowship Program. Sage Martin & DeLane McDuffie read from their new plays which explore poverty and homelessness through BIPOC perspectives. Followed by a conversation moderated by L. Trey Wilson.

This Month

• Sage & DeLane discuss the development of their "Cycle of Poverty" plays.
• DeLane chats about how he likes to hear his plays and screenplays read aloud.
• Sage admits her love for feedback during the writing process, especially from people who don't work in theatre and non-writers.
• DeLane & Sage talk about how they discovered their perfectly-fitted play titles.
• Sage laments the prevalence of poverty in the South and how it is often the brunt of jokes.
• DeLane explains how the characters in his play are not "good" people and will do anything to stay out of poverty.
• Sage discusses how deeply the "cycle of poverty" upsets her because the U.S. has the wealth and resources to solve it.
• DeLane discusses how the "cycle of poverty" has more to do with the people who can do something about it, not the people in poverty.
• Sage reveals her love for folklore in the U.S. and the South.
• DeLane confesses his reverence for the rich language from the '30s & '40s.
• Sage chats about how she started to write stories for fat women because she had never been able to play a fat woman on stage.
• DeLane chats about how he loves to write stories from fresh perspectives that he has never seen on stage or in film and TV.

Pieces Read

• Excerpt from, MINE by Sage Martin, an Appalachian ghost story about grief, greed, and getting even, told through the perspectives of a mining family.
• Excerpt from, FOLLOW THE LADY by DeLane McDuffie, which follows a seasoned grifter who must choose between scamming or saving her people.

About DeLane McDuffie

DeLane McDuffie is a Southern-bred, cornbread-fed, LA-based playwright, screenwriter, and poet. His play The Inaugural was part of Lower Depth's BIPOC Voting Plays in 2020. Other plays include Amy & Neil, Cop & Fiske, For the Love of God, Monomachia, Granddaddy Long Legs, and Mascot Race War. His work has been produced by Towne Street Theatre, showcased at the Fade to Black Play Festival in Houston, and selected for production by Seoul Players in Seoul, South Korea. He earned BA English and MFA Film degrees from Morehouse College and the University of Miami, respectively, and attended Royal Holloway, University of London.

About Sage Martin

Sage Martin (She/Her/Mx) is an actor and writer devoted to human rights, southern folklore, and ghost stories. She is a proud graduate of Paul McCartney's Institute for Performing Arts (Liverpool, UK), performed at the Sam Wanamaker Festival (The Globe, London), and recently joined the Radical Hospitality Team at Actor's Theater of Louisville. She has had the distinct honors of presenting at the StateraArts National Conference, testifying in Washington D.C. for survivors of abuse, and speaking on tour with Senator Bernie Sanders. Sage's work is fueled by very late nights, MoonPies, and the people she is fortunate enough, tasked, and blessed to know. www.Sage-Martin.com

In the first episode of a special two part series, get an exclusive first look at two of the in-development plays from our Commission Fellowship Program. Vasanti Saxena and Marlow Wyatt read from their new plays which explore poverty and homelessness through BIPOC perspectives. Followed by a conversation moderated by L. Trey Wilson.

Notes:

• Vasanti and Marlow chat about the inspiration for their pieces for the Commission Fellowship Program and how their pieces compare and contrast to the work they usually write.
• Marlow discusses how she explored homelessness through the perspective of a carnival spectacle.
• Both writers answer the question, "How does it feel to be an observer?"
• Marlow explores how human choice, rather than the lack of money or resources, is the primary reason that homelessness continues to devastate the lives of countless Americans.
• Vasanti comments on how egregious rent inflation exacerbates homelessness and gentrification.
• Vasanti shares a story with us about how her family accidentally took her to see David Henry Hwang's M. Butterfly instead of the opera, Madame Butterfly, which transformed her and showed her the power of theatre.
• Marlow discusses how acting in plays that were not culturally diverse led her to write plays that would give people like her a place in American theatre.
• Marlow explains how she develops her characters' life stories extensively because of her background as an actor.
• Vasanti talks about how her work begins with putting characters in a space, allowing them to talk freely, and allowing things to be discovered.
• Marlow admits she doesn't believe she can force a story to come out that isn't hers.
• Trey and the writers connect over their shared experiences with invalidation as a writer in a capitalistic society.

Pieces Read

• Excerpt from, working title: FOOTSTEPS by Vasanti Saxena, about two girls who grow up together in poverty and ultimately go down different paths.
• Excerpt from, BREAD AND CIRCUS by Marlow Wyatt, which follows two generations of homeless women as they help each other navigate homelessness and poverty.

About Vasanti Saxena

Vasanti Saxena is a writer whose work explores the fissures of family and relationships, memory, and historical legacy. Her plays have been produced/developed at Ensemble Studio Theatre, New York Theatre Workshop, Chicago Dramatists, Silk Road Rising, Chalk Rep, Company of Angels, East West Players, The Road Theatre Company, and Santa Monica Rep. Her play Sun Sisters was the winner of East West Players Pacific Century Playwriting Competition, a finalist for Chicago Dramatists Many Voices Project, and a semi-finalist for both the O'Neill National Playwrights Conference and the Princess Grace Award. It is published in Contemporary Plays by Women of Color (London, UK: Routledge 2017). Fellowships and commissions include: 2017 Outfest Screenwriting Lab (with the screen adaptation of Sun Sisters), NYTW Emerging Artist of Color Fellowship, and an EST/Sloan commission.

About Marlow Wyatt

Marlow Wyatt is a writing artist, actor and community advocate. She received her BFA (magna cum laude) in Acting from Howard University. Her thirst to share the richness and beauty of Black culture manifested into playwriting. As a playwright Marlow has been fortunate enough to share her creative expression with audiences across America. Some of her works include: SHE (2022 World Premiere Latino Theater Company, Long Beach Playhouse New Works Winner, HUMANITAS Finalist, NBTF A-List Reading Series) Robbin, from the Hood (2021 Eugene O'Neill semi-finalist, 2021 New Works Pipeline/SBT), and Red Ribbons (2022 Voices for Victory Reading Series, 2021 Headwaters New Play finalist, NBTF –A-List Reading Series).

In this month's episode of Writers Revealed, we hear from DeLanna Studi and Jason Grasl, two wonderful writers with Native American heritage, as they discuss generational cycles of behavior and the call to be a beacon of change. Moderated by EDI coordinator & facilitator, L. Trey Wilson.

This Month

• Jason Grasl reads outloud from "That Time Hans Solo Fell Off From A Precariously High and Unrailed Bridge"
• DeLanna Studi reads outloud from two pieces that analyze traditional Cherokee folklore and how it used to inform our sense of self and womanhood
• L. Trey and Jason discuss how mistakes can repeat themselves in cycles, and how that presented itself in Jason's piece
• Both writers discuss, "How do we keep tradition alive? How do stories help us heal and evolve?"
• DeLanna and L. Trey discuss code-switching in comparison to shape shifting and how a lot of BIPOC artists are forced to shape-shift in different spaces around different people
• Each writer discusses their call to playwriting and how they found their way
• • Jason discusses finding his way through college and finally writing his first play
  • DeLanna discusses how her need for writing came from her need to be heard as an actress
• Each writer discusses how deadlines are beneficial in their writing process
• L. Trey introduces how relationships are a key part of life and difficult to maintain but that our relationships and awareness of others defines who we are
• The writers discuss assimilation:
• • The point of how assimilation is a journey into finding who you are and becoming a beacon of change.
  • Assimilation is never an option because our culture never questions us but the rest of the world does.
• Both writers talk about our inherent need to be understood and be seen for who you are, while still having moments feeling not seen.
• Both writers talk about how we decide what to share and also the power of if we will ever share

Pieces Read

• Excerpt from, "That Time Hans Solo Fell Off From A Precariously High and Unrailed Bridge" by Jason Grasl
• Excerpts from two short plays, "Wolves" and "Flight" by DeLanna Studi

About Jason Grasl

Jason is a playwright, actor and director. His recent play, The Normal Force (a sci-fi drama), was commissioned by San Diego Rep for their Here U.S. Now Festival.

Jason was a commissioned playwright in Lower Depth Theatre's Pandemic Short Play Festival. Which focused in on a pair of neighbors and their assumptions/guilt surrounding race.

Jason works closely with the theatre company 'Native Voices at the Autry' as an ensemble member and writer. His play, "Lying with Badgers" was chosen to have a world premiere production at Native Voices at the Autry.

About DeLanna Studi

DeLanna Studi is a well accomplished actress and playwright. DeLanna serves as the Chair of SAG-AFTRA's National Native Americans Committee, and as the Artistic Director of Native Voices at the Autry.

DeLanna's TV credits include 'Dreamkeeper', 'Edge of America', 'Shameless', 'General Hospital', just to name a few. She was also a part of the First National Broadway Tour of 'August: Osage County, Off Broadway's 'Informed Consent' and 'Gloria: A Life'. With established relationships at Theatre for One, The Theatre Center, and Period Piece. Her play "And So We Walked", retraces her family's footsteps along the Trail of Tears.

In this month's hilarious episode of Writers Revealed, we hear from two prolific LA writers, Penelope Lowder & Saymoukda Duangphouxay Vongsay, about how family, history, and culture affects our writing and vice versa. Also, there's a lot of Jean Nate. Moderated by EDI coordinator & facilitator, L. Trey Wilson.

This Month

• Penelope Lowder reads outloud from her book, 'Three Seconds of Hell' entitled 'Sixth Floor Showdown' which takes a look at how colorism is rooted in hatred and can lead to violence
• Saymoukda Duangphouxay Vongsay reads out loud from a collection of her own poems.
• L. Trey discusses how each of the writer's work really embodied their own share culture, both the good and the bad
• Both writers discuss their experience with generational trauma and how their parents played important roles in their lives
• Penelope discusses how her parents connected her to her shared history and culture at a young age. She also talks about how she feels called to share this information with the world.
• Saymoukda discusses the power of laughter and how it helps BIPOC through trauma
• Everyone discusses…
  • How racism is used as a weapon by most
  • How BIPOC use racism against other BIPOC as a trauma response
  • The places where people feel comfortable
  • Colorism and skin whitening creams
• Saymoukda discusses how community and writing helped her deal with generational trauma
• Penelope discusses how the pandemic turned a lot of her writing to the darker side. She discusses how a lot of her stories and characters lost hope. She turned to comedies to help get herself out of the funk.
• Saymoukda discusses how the pandemic gave her a lot more inspiration and led her to writing more than she ever had
• Both writers discuss their journeys into writing
• Saymoukda talks about her organization the Faulk, an organization dedicated to giving a platform to Asian women

Pieces Read

• Excerpt from "Three Seconds of Hell" by Penelope Lowder
• Excerpts from a collection of Saymoukda's poems

About Penelope Lowder

Penelope Lowder (@lowderpenelope) is a force to be reckoned with. She is a playwright, screenwriter, and novelist. Her past on stage productions include 15 Minutes, The Follicle Prison War, and WEST ADAMS: which was selected as an LA Times Critics Choice! Her debut novel, Three Seconds of Hell, looks at her own father's experiences in a 1950's motorcycle gang.

Penelope was commissioned by Lower Depth Theatre to writer a 10-minute play, UNIT HOPE JUST WANTS TO VOTE, as part of our BIPOC Voting Plays in Oct. 2020.

With established relationships at CTG, Skylight, and SkyLAB, we are beyond proud to continue working alongside Penelope here at Lower Depth Theatre. We know her mission and vision will take her far. Welcome back Penelope!

Learn more about Penelope's work here:

http://penelopelowder.com

About Saymoukda Duangphouxay Vongsay

Saymoukda Duangphouxay Vongsay (@refugenius). Hailing all the way from Lao, Saymoukda is a "revolutionary" as quoted by CNN's W. Kamau Bell. She is best known for her award winning play KUNG FU ZOMBIES VS CANNIBALS. Her first children's book entitled WHEN EVERYTHING WAS EVERYTHING details her own experience in America as a refugee. She writes about ESL Classes and food stamps as a love letter to survivors who have also lost their homeland.

Saymoukda is currently an Andrew W. Mellon Foundation Playwright in Residence at Theater Mu, a McKnight Foundation Fellow in Community- Engaged Art, and a Jerome Hill Artist Fellow in playwright.

Check out more of her work here:

www.refugenius.net

In this special episode of Writers Revealed, we join two up-and-coming young playwrights, Giovanny Camarena and Zharia O'Neal. These two bright and energetic artists share a little about how they got to where they are today and where they hope to go in the future.

This Month:

• Giovanny and Zharia discuss their background and how the settings of the pieces were inspired by where they grew up.
• Giovanny discusses the origins of the symbolic and iconic names in THE AMERICAN DREAM.
• Zharia talks about how reality television inspired her play ROOST.
• Giovanny talks about his process of writing a play and how immigration inspired THE AMERICAN DREAM.
• Both writers discuss how their understanding of the American Dream has evolved over time.
• Both writers break down their writing process.
• Zharia talks about inaccessible theatre norms and how she wants to make going to a theatre show more available to all types of people in her work.
• Giovanny emphasizes the importance of BIPOC writers telling stories about people who do not have the same racial makeup as themselves.
• Zharia and Giovanny tell us about their experience dealing with COVID and racial violence and how it changed their writing and their lives.
• Both writers answer the question, "Who are we (as BIPOC artists) writing for?"

Pieces Read

• Monologue from the play, THE BLOOD OF A HIBISCUS, by Zharia O'Neal
• Monologue from the play, ROOST, by Zharia O'Neal
• Excerpt from a work-in-progress play, THE AMERICAN DREAM, a play by Giovanny Camarena

About Giovanny Camarena

Giovanny Camarena is a latine actor and playwright. He received his first commission from The Breath Project 2020 to write a full length play. He is currently developing a short he wrote to be entered into film competitions. Giovanny also has experience on stage and dubbing foreign tv shows for Netflix. He received his bachelor degree from the University of Southern California and has also studied at the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Arts. He currently works for Lower Depth Theatre as their Program Assistant.

About Zharia O'Neal

Zharia O'Neal is a playwright, poet, and multi-medium storyteller hailing from the British Virgin Islands. Her work, seasoned with fistfuls of fish, fungi, and B/black comedy tends to explore liminal spaces between places, nationalities, languages, and genres, and has been recognized and commissioned by HUMANITAS PLAY LA and the Association of Los Angeles Playwrights. O'Neal is currently an International Artists' Fellow and third-year candidate for an MFA in Dramatic Writing at the University of Southern California. She is also Associate Literary Manager at Playwrights' Arena, and has worked in association with the Ojai Playwrights' Conference.

In this episode, hear from two generations of writers, Wendy Graf & Zola Dee, about the way criticism of the self and of art can manifest and how to combat it. Moderated by Lower Depth Artistic Director & Founding Member, Gregg T. Daniel.

This month:

• Wendy Graf reads an excerpt from her GLAAD Award winning play, No Word in Guyanese for Me.
• Zola Dee reads from "Rain River Ocean", a piece she developed at CalArts as part of their New Works Festival
• Zola contemplates the inception and perpetuation of self hate.
• Zola discusses the healing process within art and how pain plays into a cycle that also feeds you as an artist to keep creating meaningful work.
• Wendy & Zola reminisce on how they struggled to be creative during COVID-19, despite having an abundance of time to write.
• Wendy examines religion and someone could reconcile with their faith, instead of remaining bound within uncompromising restrictions.
• Wendy emphasizes the value of being approached by people who vehemently disagree with her because she chooses to ask questions that challenge different points of view and beliefs, such as religion.
• Zola talks about black artists who judge other black art and claim that the work doesn't capture the black experience because they want the art to be something that is not what the artist intended.
• Wendy advises writers on how staying true to yourself can help you embrace criticism.

Pieces Read

• Excerpt from "Rain River Ocean" by Zola Dee
• Excerpt from No Word in Guyanese for Me by Wendy Graf

About Wendy Graf

Wendy Graf is an award-winning playwright whose plays have been produced nationally and internationally. Some recent plays include: EXIT WOUNDS (First Place Gold Medallion Winner Moss Hart and Kitty Carlisle New Play Initiative); UNEMPLOYED ELEPHANTS – A LOVE STORY; PLEASE DON'T ASK ABOUT BECKET; ALL AMERICAN GIRL (Stage Raw 2015 nom Playwriting and Solo performance; StageSceneLA 2015 Outstanding Solo Performance Production;); CLOSELY RELATED KEYS (dir by Shirley Jo Finney; NAACP win/nominations); NO WORD IN GUYANESE FOR ME (2012 GLAAD Award Outstanding L.A. Theater; Helen Hayes Awards Recommended); BEHIND THE GATES; LESSONS (L.A. production dir by Gordon Davidson); LEIPZIG (LADCC nomination; Garland award/Playwriting); THE BOOK OF ESTHER (San Fernando Valley Artistic Directors nominations including Best Play; ASK Theater Projects Grant Award); and her newest, A SHONDA and WEDNESDAY'S CHILD. Graf recently worked with Lower Depth in their BIPOC Voting Plays with her play, THE CROSS AND THE SABER. Visit her at wendygraf.com

About Zola Dee

Los Angeles based Zola Dee is an emerging theatre artist and arts activist from North Carolina. Her most notable work GUNSHOT MEDLEY: Part 1 was Ovation Award recommended and published in Routledge's Contemporary Plays by Women of Color. Other accomplishments include: 2017-2018 Core Apprentice at The Playwright's Center in Minneapolis, Minnesota & 2018 Alliance of Los Angeles Playwrights Diversity Fellow.

Zola is a graduate of California Institute of the Arts with a BFA in Acting and a minor in Creative Writing. Currently, she serves as the Artistic Associate at The Pasadena Playhouse, The State Theater of California where she assists in curating all artistic programming, event producing, and community engagement efforts within the Pasadena and greater San Gabriel Valley area. For more information, visit www.zoladee.com

In this episode, two well-established writers and actors, Diana Burbano and Peppur Chambers-Soraci, share their experiences as female artists of color.

This month

• Peppur & Diana connect over how there are no female heroes because women are often the end goal for male characters and their "Hero's Journey."
• Peppur discusses how her observant nature and acting training helps her create detailed descriptions in her writing.
• Diana chats about her work for Theatre for Young Audiences (TYA) and how it was a place for actors of color to belong and be seen.
• Diana tells us about her powerful experiences watching Ian McKellen on stage, (including one particularly fun story about playing a corpse on stage).
• Peppur responds to L. Trey's admiration for her piece and how it switched between beauty and tragedy so eloquently.
• Both writers talk about how actors of color don't get any grace because they either have to be perfect or be a one-dimensional stereotype.
• Diana expands on a line in her essay, "I have nothing against a good love story, but I wanted to explore a journey between people who have more on their minds than their hearts."
• Peppur discusses how she felt ugly as a girl and young woman despite what everyone else said about her beauty.
• Both writers talk about how actors shouldn't have to hide things about themselves, such as their accents, but should be able to celebrate every bit of themselves.
• Diana advises through her play, "Don't take away people's joy."
• Peppur laments the lack of discussion around sex trafficking, especially for black children.
• Peppur and Diana discuss what is inspiring them now.

Pieces Read

• Prologue from, HARLEM'S AWAKENING, a novella by Peppur Chambers-Soraci
• An essay by Diana Burbano that describes the inspiration for her TYA play, CALIBAN'S ISLAND

About Peppur Chamburs-Soraci

PEPPUR CHAMBERS is an international writer/producer/educator. A member of Circle X Emerging Playwrights Group, Moving Arts MADLab, and Antaeus Playwrights Lab, she uses her voice to scream, shout or sing about women's issues, social justice and love. Her radio play, End of the Line, examines about human trafficking and was featured in Antaeus Theatre Company's The Zip Code Plays Season Two. Her plays For the Love of You, House Rules, The Build UP, Dick & Jayne Get A Life and one-woman show, Harlem's Awakening: Storytelling Live have been produced in Los Angeles and Prague. A published novella author, she's also recently directed a short film she co-wrote, Do Something, shot during the pandemic, socially distanced and entirely on iPhones. Learn more at penandpeppur.com where she tells stories of heroes, including her own.

About Diana Burbano

Diana Burbano, a Colombian immigrant, is a playwright, an Equity actor, and a teaching artist at South Coast Repertory and Breath of Fire Latina Theatre Ensemble. Diana's play Ghosts of Bogota, won the Nu Voices festival at Actors Theatre of Charlotte in 2019. Ghosts was commissioned and debuted at Alter Theater in the Bay Area in Feb 2020. Sapience, was a Playground-SF 2020, Winner and was featured at Latinx Theatre Festival, San Diego Rep 2020. Fabulous Monsters, a Kilroys selection was to premiere at Playwrights Arena in 2020 (postponed). She was in Center Theatre Group's 2018-19 Writers Workshop cohort and is in the Geffen's Writers Lab in 20-21. She has worked on projects with South Coast Repertory, Artists Repertory Theatre, Breath of Fire Latina Theatre Ensemble and Center Theatre Group and Livermore Shakespeare Festival.

Diana recently played Amalia in Jose Cruz Gonzales' American Mariachi at South Coast Repertory and Arizona Theatre Company, and Marisela in La Ruta at Artists Repertory. You can also see her as Viv the Punk in the cult musical Isle of Lesbos. She is the current Dramatists Guild Rep for Southern California. www.dianaburbano.com

In this episode, veteran writer, Velina Hasu Houston, and actor and writer, Jeanne Sakata, reunite over their experiences losing a parent at a young age and living in the racially nonbinary space of being Asian American and multiracial in the United States.

This month:

• Both writers answer the question, "What was it like to read your pieces in this format?"
• Velina opens up about how she is treated like a suspicious presence in both white spaces and Asian American spaces, as a multiracial and multicultural Japanese and Black woman.
• Velina relays an experience she had being followed in a store.
• Jeanne talks about how much her experiences have changed since she wrote her piece, "My Father is a Quiet Man".
• Jeanne describes and empathizes with her father's experiences as the child of an immigrant family and as the single father of multiple children.
• Both Velina and Jeanne discuss seeing through the eyes of a child and learning from their perspectives of the world.
• Jeanne and Velina connect over their experiences losing a parent as a child.
• Jeanne talks about her desire to play Himiko from Velina's play, TEA, because of her own experience having a ghostly presence over her shoulder.
• Jeanne confesses she didn't experience the same cold brutal realization that she wasn't welcome into America as her parents did, but instead experienced racism and exclusion in ways that were less world-changing and subtler.
• Velina talks about being "racially non-binary" as a child of mixed ethnic background.
• Both writers discuss their experience witnessing and experiencing the rise of Asian American hate and violence during the pandemic.

Pieces Read

• An excerpt from COLOR MY WORLD, a novel by Velina Hasu Houston about a young multiracial Japanese and Black girl and her experiences living with her Japanese mother in the United States in the mid 20th century.
• "My Father is a Quiet Man", song lyrics by Jeanne Sakata, written about her own father
• A work-in-progress play, LUCKY 13, by Jeanne Sakata inspired by Jeanne's experience coping with her mother's passing at age 13.

About Velina Hasu Houston

Velina Hasu Houston's literary career began Off-Broadway at Manhattan Theatre Club, expanding globally. With 30 commissions, she's been honored by institutions such as the Japan Foundation, Doris Duke Charitable Foundation, and Theatre Communications Group. She founded graduate playwriting at the University of Southern California and directed dramatic writing there for 31 years; she is a presidentially appointed Distinguished Professor, USC Resident Playwright and School of Dramatic Arts/Iovine Young Academy faculty. A Fulbright Scholar, she served on the state department's Japan-U.S. Friendship Commission. She is a Writers' Odyssey Associate Artist, Odyssey Theatre Ensemble, and affiliated with New Circle Theatre Company.

About Jeanne Sakata

Actor-playwright Jeanne Sakata's solo play Hold These Truths (Drama Desk nomination, Outstanding Solo Performance; Theatre Bay Awards, Outstanding Lead Performance, Direction and Production; San Diego Theatre Critics Circle Award, Outstanding Solo Performance), has won accolades in over twenty productions at the Arena Stage, Guthrie Theatre, ACT Seattle, Portland Center Stage, TheatreWorks Silicon Valley, Pasadena Playhouse, and more. Her latest play, For Us All, was commissioned and produced in 2021 by L.A. Theatre Works. Jeanne recently enjoyed recurring/guest star roles in ABC's Station 19; CBS' NCIS Hawai'I, NCIS Los Angeles, and Magnum P.I.; Disney's High School Musical: The Musical: The Series and Big Hero 6; she has also performed in regional theaters nationwide (Los Angeles Ovation Award, Outstanding Lead Actress, Chay Yew's Red, East West Players). Websites: jeannesakata.com, holdthesetruths.info