Playwrights of 2016
Here are the previous talented playwrights who showcased their work in the 2016 OC-Centric New Play Festival.
Lojo Simon
Author of "Love All"
Lojo’s plays include ADORATION OF DORA (KOLT Run Creations, Idiom Theatre, KCACTF/ATHE David Mark Cohen National Playwriting Award), CONTROLLED BURN (WESTival @ TheaterWorks, OC-Centric Finalist, Missoula Colony), MOSCOW (Sam French Off Off Broadway Festival, City Theatre National Short Play Award finalist, KCACTF Ten Minute Play Award, Tribal Humor Festival, Best of Tribal Humor), and GINGER AMERICA (WWU British Theatre Tour, Ensemble Theatre of Chattanooga, T. Schreiber Theatre, Badass Theatre). Her plays for young audiences include MI CORAZON (Missoula Colony, published by International Center for Women Playwrights) and NICE & SLOW (Noorda Theatre Center for Children and Youth 2017 School Tour). Plays written with Anita Simons include J’OY VEY (Florida Rep PlayLab) and HEARTLAND (Dayton Playhouse FutureFest, published by Sense). These and other of Lojo’s plays have been presented in Arizona, California, Connecticut, DC, Florida, Idaho, Montana, New York, Ohio, Oregon, Utah, Tennessee, Washington and Wisconsin. Lojo also is a dramaturg, working on new play development and production dramaturgy. She holds an MFA from U. Idaho and a BA from Brandeis.
Kimberly Kalaja
Author "Night Moths On The Wing"
Born and raised in Westminster, California, Kimberly Kalaja is a playwright, author, filmmaker, and literary scholar. Her plays include What Happened to Emmaline, Temple of Venus, D-Basement, and Night Moths on the Wing, which has been developed at the LARK Play Development Center in New York City, and was a semi-finalist for the AROHO Shakespeare's Sister Playwriting Award. Her non-fiction publications include Reading Games (Dalkey Archive Press, 2007). Her essays, reviews, and interviews, have been published in England, Ireland, Albania, and the U.S. After attending Westminster High School, Kimberly graduated with honors from Scripps College in Claremont (California), earned an honors MA in Irish Literature at The Queen's University of Belfast (Northern Ireland), and a Ph.D. in Comparative Literature from Princeton University. She has taught literature and writing at leading universities including, NYU, Princeton, and most recently as a visiting Fulbright Professor at the University of Tirana (Albania). She currently lives in New York City and is a proud member of the Dramatists Guild. www.kimberlykalaja.com
Scott K. Ratner
Author of "Kill A Better Mousetrap"
An Orange County-based writer/actor/magician, Scott's passion for Golden Age detective fiction is reflected in his book and lyrics (written with Terence Alaric) for ALL-TALKING! ALL-SINGING!! ALL-MURDER!! (Maverick Theatre, Mt. Sac College, Ayres Hotel), and (with Tim Nelson) for MURDER ON THE HIGH C's (Rose Center Theatre, Musical Theatre Academy, Edinburgh Festival Fringe). KILL A BETTER MOUSETRAP was first presented at the Hollywood Fringe Festival where it received a "Best of the Fringe" extension, and also at The Chance Theatre, Huntington Beach Playhouse, and the Victorian Dramatic League Festivals in Melbourne, Australia. A graduate of U.C. Irvine, Scott has had several articles published in Mystery Scene and Crime and Detective Stories Magazine. He was named OC Daily Pilot's Theatre Man of the Year for 2015. When not writing, Scott can be found performing as a freelance magician or singing and dancing at the Calico Saloon Show at Knotts Berry Farm.
Joshua David Vega
Author of "Left Behind, Waiting"
Joshua David Vega is a San Francisco Bay Area native who relocated to Orange County in 2013 in pursuit of a bachelor’s degree in theatre arts at California State University, Fullerton (a degree that is so close, and yet still so far…), where he has studied advanced playwriting with New York playwright Susan Merson, as well as acting with film and Broadway veterans Madonna Magee and John Short. As an actor, his favorite credits have included productions of Les Misérables (Joly/Claquesous/Ens.), Jesus Christ Superstar (Ens. U/S Judas/Jesus), Footloose (Willard), Seussical the Musical (Horton), The Crucible (John Proctor), and The Laramie Project (various). He is also a production photographer and composer/lyricist, having recently drafted his first musical - a rock adaptation of William Shakespeare’s Hamlet.
This also marks Joshua's first produced play.
