Directors of 2015
Here is the talented roster of directors from the 2015 OC-Centric New Play Festival
Paul Cook
Director of "Fabulous Monsters"
Paul is so pleased to be part of this festival! A native Chicagoan, he's recently moved to the OC in order to start a Masters Program in Directing, at UC Irvine (under the watchful eye of Jane Page). Recent directing credits include Macbeth, The Comedy of Errors, and Next to Normal, while performance credits include Leo Frank in Parade and a National Tour of Crazy for You. Thanks to Tamiko & Eric for taking a chance on him, to the JPA for milkshakes and cookie sheets, and you, dear audience - for supporting live theatre. WPJC.
Sebastian Munoz
Director of "Grace Note"
Sebastian Munoz is a stage and film Actor/Director hailing from Mexico City. He’s a proud company member at Zombie Joe’s Underground Theatre Group in North Hollywood where he’s performed in and directed over 30 productions to critical claim. He’s extremely excited to bring his signature style to the OC-centric Festival this year and grateful for the opportunity.
Payden Ackerman
Director of "Corrupt Impressions or The Dangerous Ones"
Payden Ackerman is a theatre director, acting coach, and playwright. He holds a B.A. in Theatre Arts with an Emphasis in Playwriting from Cal State Fullerton, and his plays have been produced in Orange County, Los Angeles, Portland, and Seattle. He is also a trained dramaturg, specializing in New Play Dramaturgy and Devised Theatre. While obtaining his M.A. in Theatre Studies from Central Washington University, Payden studied various acting methodology before writing his thesis on Fay Simpson’s Lucid Body – an acting method based on the Indian chakra system and Jungian psychology. He currently uses this method and others to coach actors in LA, Orange County, and the Inland Empire. Payden teaches and directs at Mt. San Jacinto College and Moreno Valley College.
Tamiko Washington
Creator & Director of "HamlEt"
Tamiko Washington is also the artistic director and founder of OC-centric. An Associate Professor of Theatre at Chapman University, she has an MFA in Acting from UCI and is considered the originator of American Noh Theatre. Tamiko has acted at South Coast Repertory, the Old Globe Theatre, the L.A. Women’s Shakespeare Company and Shakespeare Orange County. Her TV credits include co-starring and guest artist roles in Pensacola, Silk Stalkings and two Lifetime films, Two Small Voices and Kidnapped. In 2009, as a member of the Los Angeles Women’s Shakespeare Company, she was honored, with the company, in receiving the Margaret Hartford Award for sustained excellence in theatre. In 2005, she received a Kennedy Center/American College Theatre Festival Award for Excellence in Education for her work at Chapman University. Tamiko is also artistic director of Actors Circle Ensemble and directed ACE’s productions of Experiment (Hollywood Fringe, South Coast Repertory’s SCRamble series) and A Night of Noh Theatre (Hollywood Fringe).
Angela Cruz
Director of "Love's Lost Words"
Angela Cruz is thrilled to be directing Love’s Lost Words. Angela is a graduate from UCSB with her B.A in Directing. Some directing credits include: Chance Theatre: Izzy McGizzy’s One Night Only One Man Musical; Teatro de las Americas: Adan, Eva y La Orta, and other plays written by Angela for the children’s workshop, Theatre Out: A Festival of Short Plays, UCSB: The Gronholm Method by Jordi Galceran (English Translation by Anne Garcia-Romero, US Premiere), Ni Una Mas by Angela & Company (D & S Corwin Award Honorable Mention), Food for the Dead; Hangar Theatre: The Women of Juarez Project (Devised 10min); Breath Of Fire Latina Theater Ensemble: Stage Readings: Somebody’s Children, Performances: 9ine Digits Away From My Dream (Tour ’07-’08); FJC: Soldado Razo (FJC Winner Best of Fest 2004), The Nomads: Undertow by Mel Nieves and Casa 0101: Brown and Out Festival and Food for the Dead. Recently, Angela directed a stage reading of Eric Eberwein’s The Hyperachieving Narcissists Present the Next 20 Years. Angela is excited to have the opportunity to work with OC-Centric! Se Se Puede!!
Philip Brickey
Director of "Spoken Allowed"
Philip Brickey has a degree in drama from the University of Arkansas. He has directed numerous original plays including the world premieres of LARVA BOY, REVENGE: A LOVE STORY and THE MEANING OF LIFE at STAGEStheatre. He also directed the world premiere of BORNEO BOB at The Actor's Circle Theatre in Hollywood before directing its OC Premiere at STAGEStheatre. Other selected credits include JUNK BONDS (Gardner Stages-world premiere) THE AMERICAN DREAM (STAGEStheatre), DIAL M FOR MURDER (Kentwood Players) , GEORGE WASHINGTON SLEPT HERE (Kentwood Players) , HOLLYWOOD ROUNDUP (The Next Stage-world premiere), THE PRISONER OF SECOND AVENUE (La Habra Depot Theatre) and I REMEMBER MAMA (Kentwood Players Marcom Masque Award winner).
