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Thanks to all who joined us in celebrating 41 years of Free Shakespeare in the Park! Since 1983, as part of SF Shakes’ mission to make Shakespeare accessible to all, we’ve brought our Free Shakes production to audiences around the SF Bay Area; no tickets or Shakespeare experience required.
Cymbeline, Shakespeare’s epic romantic adventure, is believed to be one of his final plays and features a dazzling mix of comedy, tragedy, and fairy tale. King Cymbeline of Britain has banished Posthumus who has secretly married his daughter, Princess Imogen. A series of unimaginable misadventures ensue that test the strength of their commitment to each other and conclude with inventive scenes of revelation and joyous reconciliation.
The show is suitable for all ages and runs 90 minutes without an intermission. Public restroom are onsite. We do not offer concessions but encourage you to patronize a local business for your food and drink items.
Cymbeline received the Going Green achievement from the Theatre Bay Area Highlights Program, honoring companies who are making sustainable choices backstage, onstage, and in the house.
2023 brings us back to three of our longtime Free Shakes partners- Cupertino’s Memorial Park, Redwood City’s Red Morton Park, and San Francisco’s McLaren Park. In 2023 we we’re thrilled to extend our season by two weeks with performances at the Bruns Amphitheater in Orinda, thanks to a new partnership with Cal Shakes. No matter which venue you plan to attend, click the Venue Info button for important information including location, transportation, food options, and important tips for attending.
* Preview show (preview shows allow the cast and crew to to make adjustments before opening in each venue; all are welcome to attend these complete performances.)
+ Opening show
*Sat July 22 – 6pm
*Sun July 23 – 6pm
*Fri July 28 – 6pm
+Sat July 29 – 6pm
Sun July 30 – 6pm
Fri Aug 4 – 6pm
Sat Aug 5 – 6pm
Sun Aug 6 – 6pm
*Sat Aug 12 – 6pm
+Sun Aug 13 – 6pm
Sat Aug 19 – 6pm
Sun Aug 20 – 6pm
Sat Aug 26 – 6pm
Sun Aug 27 – 6pm
*Sat Sept 2 – 2pm
*Sun Sept 3 – 2pm
+Mon Sept 4 – 2pm
Sat Sept 9 – 2pm
Sun Sept 10 – 2pm
*Sat Sept 16 – 4pm
+Sun Sept 17 – 4pm
Sat Sept 23 – 4pm
Sun Sept 24 – 4pm
As part of our ongoing commitment to the environment, we no longer print paper programs. Get the digital program here, or scan the QR codes in the park.
RON CHAPMAN * +
CYMBELINE
Ron Chapman is a writer and artist who believes in the power and necessity of storytelling. He last appeared as Albert/Kevin in Clybourne Park at Hillbarn Theatre, and is excited to make his return to the SF Shakes stage with Cymbeline.
SHAKORIA DAVIS
IMOGEN
Shakoria is very excited to be returning to the SF Shakes stage. She is a recent graduate of The University of Cinncinati-College Conservatory of Music and is an Atlanta-based actress, who cannot get enough of Shakespeare. Her recent credits include Julius Caesar (CCM), The Tempest (Hoosier Shakespeare Fes.), Hamlet (Richmond Shakespeare Fes.), and Richard III (Hoosier Shakespeare Fes). When she’s not acting, she’s indulging herself in her favorite hobbies which include roller skating, editing videos, dancing, and organizing. Leo Sun, Scorpio Moon, Leo Rising.
DEANALÍS AROCHO RESTO *
POSTHUMUS
Deanalís (they/he/she) is a queer Pennsylvania-Rican, born and raised on Susquehannock land. Deanalís is stoked to make their SF Shakes debut! Other recent Bay Area credits: Carla in In The Heights (Center REP), Jaques in As You Like It (San Francisco Playhouse), Leslie in Rachel Lark’s Coming Soon: A New Rock Musical. Favorite Midwest credits: Atlacamani in Brujería for Beginners (20% Theatre Co. & Lightning Rod), Miranda in The Tempest (Oak Park Festival Theatre), Mopsa in Head Over Heels (Kokandy Productions), Luna in Luna (Filament Theatre). Ithaca College Alum, BFA Musical Theatre. Cancer Sun, Aries Moon, Libra Rising.
CATHERINE LUEDTKE *
QUEEN
Catherine Luedtke (she/they) is a British Actor working in the Bay Area and Europe. Recent productions include: Dirt– FenCity Players (UK), Death at Five O’clock-TDTWT, (UK), Macbeth and The War of The Roses-Cal Shakes, The Anarchy Quartet– Exit Theatre and the National Theatre/Young Vic production of The Jungle. She is a Resident Artist at Crowded Fire Theater, member of Actor’s Reading Collective, founding member of The Director’s Theatre/Writer’s Theatre (TDTWT) London, and a proud member of Actor’s Equity. She is a TBA, SFBATCC, and Titan award finalist, and studied Acting at Studio A.C.T., and Shakespeare at RADA.
@luedtkecat, catluedtke.com
NATHANIEL ANDALIS *
IACHIMO, CLOTEN
Nathaniel returns after last being seen as Hamlet in SF Shakes’ 2017 production. Recently he was last seen as Trinculo/Sebastian in Oakland Theater Project’s The Tempest. He is a graduate of PCPA Pacific Conservatory Theater. This will be his 10th play on his journey to perform the Shakespeare canon.
ELIZABETH JONES
PISANIO, U/S QUEEN
Elizabeth Jones is ecstatic to be making her SF Shakes debut! Elizabeth grew up in the Bay Area and is a graduate of Howard University with a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in Theatre Arts. Elizabeth was recently seen in The Scottsboro Boys at 42nd Street Moon, the world premiere of A.C.T.’s YA production of The Code by The Kilbanes, Claudette in Theatre Rhino’s How Black Mothers Say I Love You, Nancy/Boz in Center REP’s A Christmas Carol, Radio in Caroline or Change (Ray of Light) and Motormouth Maybelle in Bay Area Musical’s production of Hairspray. Some other theatre credits include, Lady O in The Right Note (Spare Stage), Darlene in Dance of The Holy Ghosts (Ubuntu Theater Project), Deloris Van Cartier in Sister Act! (Berkeley Playhouse) Ronnette in Little Shop of Horrors (Contra Costa Musical Theatre). Elizabeth sends love to her daughter Caira and thanks God, family and friends for their support. Follow Elizabeth on instagram @elizasenoj.
WILLIAM ROGUE
BELARIUS, U/S CYMBELINE
William Rogue trained at the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama in Glasgow, Scotland. William took the long road into acting after serving in the Royal Navy, then working as an astrologer, bouncer, laborer, electrician, barman, pizza chef, teacher, salesman and musician. Originally from Glasgow, Scotland, William has lived in some of the most exotic places in the world: Middlesbrough, Portsmouth, Johannesburg before finally moving to the Bay Area fifteen years ago. This will be William’s second production with SF Shakes after appearing as the Porter in 2013’s production of Macbeth. His TV credits include Hamish Macbeth, Feel the Force and World’s Most Astonishing News. Film credits include Zombie Clowns Conquer the World, Silver Dogs and Bronco Billy and The Bandit’s Secret. He is ‘prouder than rustling in unpaid-for silk’ to be back with SF Shakes.
MAYOU ROFFÉ
CAIUS LUCIUS, U/S PISANIO, IMOGEN
Mayou is beyond excited to be in the cast of this summer’s Cymbeline! She will be serving up Caius Lucius, Cornelius, and the Frenchman, and understudying Imogen and Pisanio. Mayou is a Bay Area native and can’t wait to perform with a company who’s productions nourished her young imagination. Her theater credits include Fefu (Fefu and her Friends, dir. Kate Bredeson), Sasha (Orlando, dir Martin Parr, 2019), Hannah (The Oh Fuck Moment, 2020), and Ariel (The Tempest, Inferno Theater, 2023). Film credits include Marine (Yesterday, dir. Alicia Kester, 2017), and J (Nurse Log, dir Ercoli Cruningale, 2020).
BRIAN HERNDON *
MUSICIAN #1
Brian Herndon gratefully returns to SF Shakes for his sixth season, having performed in Much Ado About Nothing, The Tempest, The Comedy of Errors, The Two Gentlemen of Verona and Cymbeline. His favorite shows include Failure: A Love Story and Shakespeare in Love with Marin Theatre Company, Eurydice and The Merchant of Venice at City Lights Theater Company, and Jane Austen’s Emma at TheatreWorks. He has taught theatre and stage combat in the Bay Area since 2000. Brian holds an MFA in Acting from the Alabama Shakespeare Festival, and studied at the Dell’Arte International School of Physical Theatre.
brianherndon.com
EIKO YAMAMOTO
MUSICIAN #2, MOTHER, ARVIRAGUS
Eiko (she/they) an issei, ilchom ose, multi-hyphenate artist, hails from Tokyo/
Seoul/ Honolulu. Recent credits: Clue, Follies, Tiny Beautiful Things (San
Francisco Playhouse), M’Lynn Eatenton – Steel Magnolias (SierraRep), originating
role of Pacfica – world premiere of Sleeping Beauty: Panto (Presidio Theatre), Into
The Woods (Mountain Play). They’ve also worked with PlayOn Shakespeare at
the Magic Theatre, Marin Shakespeare, African American Shakespeare, Playwrights Foundation, PlayGround, Berkeley Rep Ground Floor, ZSpace, Company One. Upcoming: Panto in the Presidio; The Truer History of the Chan Family: film released 2024. Eiko is a graduate of UCLA and member of SAG-AFTRA. eikoyamamoto.com | IG @eikoyh.
BEN CHAU-CHIU
U/S MUSICIAN #1, IACHIMO, BELARIUS
Ben Chau-Chiu is a Bay Area actor and director. He’s excited to be back for another summer of Free Shakes! Recent credits include: She Loves Me (42nd Street Moon); Poor Yella Rednecks, The Headlands (A.C.T.); Delta Daze, Momo, Best Christmas Ever (Monday Night PlayGround SF/NY); Much Ado About Nothing (San Francisco Shakespeare Festival); Beauty and the Beast (Palo Alto Players); A Gentleman’s Guide to Love and Murder (Lamplighters Music Theatre). He has also worked with Cal Shakes, Berkeley Rep, Livermore Valley Opera, New Conservatory Theater Center, Town Hall Theatre, and Bay Area Children’s Theatre.
benchauchiu.com
JULIEN GUSSMAN
U/S MUSICIAN #2, POSTHUMUS, CAIUS LUCIUS
Julien Gussman (they/he) is joining San Francisco Shakespeare for the first time this summer and cannot be more excited! They grew up in the Bay Area and are currently studying Theatre Arts and Anthropology at Santa Clara University. Previous credits include Toad in A Year With Frog and Toad (BACT), Tracy Turnblad in Hairspray (Stage1), Yellow Girl in Shout (SBMT), Martha Dunnstock in Heathers (PSP), and Ensemble in Sense and Sensibility (TheatreWorks). They hope you enjoy the show!
www.juliengussman.com
MARYSSA WANLASS +
DIRECTOR
Maryssa (she/them) is thrilled to be directing Cymbeline. They have previously been seen on the SF Shakes stage in Much Ado About Nothing, Pericles, Prince of Tyre, Macbeth, The Winter’s Tale, Hamlet, and As You Like It. Other acting credits include As You Like It (California Shakespeare Theatre); Book Club Play, Breaking the Code (Jewel Theatre); Betrayal (Pear Theatre); Much Ado About Nothing, Good Person of Szechuan (Woman’s Will). Wanlass is also passionate about social justice theatre and has directed at-risk young adults in Shakespeare plays and taught improv to California’s maximum-security inmates. She is currently the Engagement Director for San Francisco Shakespeare Festival.
VANESSA DALPIAZ
ASSISTANT DIRECTOR
Vanessa Dalpiaz is a Bay Area director, actor, and teaching artist. She made her professional directing debut with Much Ado About Nothing and is thrilled to be working with SF Shakespeare again on Cymbeline. Vanessa is a graduate of Pomona College where she earned her BA in theatrical performance and directing. She also studied Shakespearean performance at the London Dramatic Academy where she worked on a devising team who performed at the Tower of London. Vanessa’s previous directing projects include both theatrical works and digital media content. She also teaches musical theatre and Shakespeare performances classes for Poison Apple Productions.
PRATIKSHA SHAH
PRODUCTION MANAGER
Pratiksha Shah is not just a production manager but a true visionary genius behind the scenes. This means balancing a million tasks while staying on top of everything that’s going on – rehearsal schedules, hiring crews and designers, contracts, and payrolls to name a few. Pratiksha graduated from Foothill Theater Conservatory and has been an active part of the theater world for the past 10 years. She fell in love with Shakespeare during school and joined San Francisco Shakespeare Festival at the onset of the pandemic in January 2020. In her short tenure of 3 years with SF Shakes she has supported and mastered: fully virtual productions (King Lear), episodic virtual hybrid productions (Pericles), and in-person productions in three different park locations (Much Ado). In her spare time, she produces shorts, commercials, web series, features and so much more!
NEAL ORMOND
TECHNICAL DIRECTOR / SCENIC, GRAPHIC, & WEB DESIGNER / BUILDER, PAINTER, MOVER / SITE SERVICES
Neal has been the Technical Director of San Francisco Shakespeare Festival since 2017, serving also as webmaster, graphic designer, scenic designer, master carpenter, and managing infrastructure and venue logistics. A 2001 graduate of Stanford University, he subsequently founded NAO Design and spent the next decade expanding into the realms of web, graphic, product, sound, scenic, and automotive design, lighting, furniture, signage, pyrotechnics, robotics, and architecture. From there he spent four years as Manager of Art and Technology at the advertising conglomerate Publicis. Upon joining the ranks of SF Shakes, Neal found it to be a tremendous match for all these miscellaneous skills! At the outset of the COVID pandemic he developed SF Shakes’ “Unified Virtual Space” method of compositing more than a dozen live, remote actors into a shared virtual space onscreen, the first such undertaking worldwide. Future plans include the first-ever production of Shakespeare in Space.
nealormond.com.
EMMA WALZ*
AEA STAGE MANAGER
Emma (she/her) is excited to be making her San Francisco Shakespeare Festival debut! She has previously worked with All Puppet Players, The Phoenix Theatre Company, Bay Area Children’s Theatre, Berkeley Repertory Theatre, and American Conservatory Theater.
GABRIELLA HOWELL
DECK MANAGER
Gaby is thrilled to be returning to San Francisco Shakespeare as a member of the Cymbeline team! She started her Bay Area theatre career as a stage management intern for the company’s 2016 run of The Winter’s Tale and since then has joined SF Shakes the past four years as ASM/Wardrobe Assistant for As You Like It: A New Musical, ASM/Props Coordinator for King Lear, Props/Costumes Coordinator for Takes on Shakes, Props/Wardrobe Supervisor for Pericles, and Deck Manager for Much Ado About Nothing. Other highlights of her past work include stage managing Urinetown at Berkeley Playhouse and Lamplighters’ 2019 & 2021 champagne galas.
MIN KAHNG
MUSIC COMPOSER
Min Kahng (he/him) is an award-winning playwright, composer, lyricist and creative coach whose works include The Adventures of Honey & Leon, The Four Immigrants: An American Musical Manga (BATCC Awards, TBA Award, Edgerton New Play Award, NAMT Production Grant), GOLD: The Midas Musical (TBA Award), Inside Out & Back Again, Where the Mountain Meets the Moon: A Musical Adaptation, Bad Kitty On Stage!, The Song of the Nightingale and Tales of Olympus. Kahng is a MacDowell Fellow, an NEA Grant Recipient, a Jonathan Larson Grant Finalist, a Richard Rodgers Award Finalist, and a Dramatists Guild committee member.
www.minkahng.com
MAGGIE MCGRANN
COSTUME DESIGNER
Maggie McGrann is a freelance costume designer and teaching artist currently residing in the Bay Area. She holds an MFA in Costume Design from Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh, PA as well as a BA from the University of Richmond in Virginia where she studied Theatre & English. She did her internship after undergrad at Actors Theatre of Louisville in Kentucky and has completed an apprenticeship before her graduate degree at the Juilliard School in NYC. Maggie believes there is no wrong way to have a body and prioritizes emotional management and intelligence when working as a costumer. Her primary experience is in devising, new script development, and performance; her propensity for dramaturgical script analysis makes her a valuable collaborator in the theatrical work. Her most recent credits: Richmond, VA – The Inheritance (Richmond Triangle Players), Camelot Jr (SPARC), How I Learned to Drive (TheatreLAB); Pittsburgh – Chimerica (Quantum Theatre), I Hope They Haunt You (Carnegie Mellon); NYC – Jagged Little Pill (assistant shopper, Broadway reopening)
BROOKE COX
PROP DESIGNER
Brooke (she/they) is a set designer, writer, and stage manager from the Bay Area. She graduated with a BA in Theatre and English from Willamette University, and is excited for her first show with SF Shakes! Some of their previous design work includes Getting There (New Conservatory Theatre Center), 7 Secrets of Teaching Online (Theatre 33), and The Amateurs (Willamette University.) Beyond design, she most recently worked as the ASM for The Triumph of Love (Shotgun Players). See more of their work at brookejcox.com.
SYDNEY SCHWINDT
FIGHT DIRECTOR
Sydney is an actor, fight director, teaching artist, and visual artist. She joined the SF Shakes family in 2015 playing Rosalind in the tour of As You Like It. Favorite acting credits include: Laertes Hamlet, SF Shakes; Sally Ride She Persisted the Musical: Bay Area Children’s Theatre; Helena A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Benvolio Romeo and Juliet, Helena Landless Mystery of Edwin Drood Davis Shakespeare Festival; Cassandra Jihad Jones & the Kalashnikov Babes Arabian Shakespeare Festival; Hartford Stage, Berkeley Rep, Mirage Entertainment, The Hampton Theatre Company. Education: BFA Hartt School of Music, Dance, and Theatre, Accademia dell’Arte, Society of American Fight Directors, DAI, SF Clown Conservatory.
sydney-schwindt.com
MICHAELA STEWART
INTIMACY CONSULTANT
Michaela (she/her) is an Intimacy Director and Coordinator who has worked on several shows and short films in the Bay Area and Chicago. She is also a member of the San Francisco Shakespeare Festival’s Education Workgroup and is proud to represent consent artists in the Bay. More info at www.michaelamstewart.com
STEPHAN PENNINGTON
CULTURAL CONSULTANT
Stephan Pennington is a critical musicologist and public intellectual. He specializes in cultural identity and performance with special attention to race, class, gender, and sexuality. In addition to being a professor at Tufts University, he has been featured in multiple media projects as a scholar, including Swedish National Public Radio, Billboard, Entertainment Tonight, and the award winning documentary No Ordinary Man, the story of trans masculine jazz musician Billy Tipton. He has done sensitivity and diversity consulting for game companies, theater companies, and universities, among other organizations. He is also a performer, with most of his performing happening on live streaming platforms such as Twitch. He has worked with Seattle Improv theater Unexpected Productions, produced his own streamed shows, and even merged his performance side and academic side by giving a charity stream on Black Music and Protest that raised over $10,000 for the Bail Project. A California native, he is happy to be working with SF Shakes, even if only remotely!
MURPH ELYRIA
SOUND DESIGNER / SOUND TECHNICIAN
Murph (they/them) is excited to be working with SF Shakes again! They currently are a student at California Institute of the Arts pursuing a B.F.A. in Composition and Experimental Sound Practices.
FRAN ASTORGA
MASTER CARPENTER
Fran is a San Francisco local whose administrative and artistic works center the well-being of the community and artistic excellence by working to decolonize approaches, practices, and procedures that negatively impact folx from marginalized communities. Fran works toward their goal by continuously seeking to work alongside those who are asked to assume a role of silence and kindred spirits who enjoy exploring the nuances of identity and perception. Fran upholds that if “all the worlds a stage,” then we need to ensure that the world we represent on our stages incites action for the world we need and not the world we need to leave behind. Fran is a founder and co-leader of IN THE MARGIN, a 501(c)(3) arts and advocacy organization. Their full-length play, EXHAUSTION ARROYO, was recently selected and featured in the 2022 Latinx Theatre Commons’ Comedy Carnival where their writing was presented as being part of “the best Latinx comedic talent in the country!”. Follow them @TheyAreFran on all platforms.
RACHEL KATIN
LEAD SOUND TECHNICIAN
Bio coming soon!
RACHEL BRATT
HOSPITALITY MANAGER
Rachel Bratt (she/her) is delighted to be returning to SF Shakes for another fabulous summer! Rachel started her journey at SF Shakes in 2017, and has Stage Managed all in-person annual galas since. This is her third year as Hospitality Manager for Free Shakes, and already she can’t imagine a summer without it. During the school year, Rachel is the Drama Director for Stratford Schools, which she regards as a fun nod to keeping Shakespeare in her life year-round! She looks forward to welcoming you to the park! Please feel free to stop by the Hospitality table to say hello!
LEE GARBER-PATEL
WARDROBE SUPERVISOR
Lee (they/them) has worked on several productions in a variety of capacities, from backstage to onstage. In their first year as a production intern with the San Francisco Shakespeare Festival, they focused on the costumes and wardrobe department. They are currently in their third year at UC Berkeley, working towards a B.A. in Media Studies, with a double minor in Theatre and Ethnic Studies.
ARIANA CHAVEZ-MAGANA
STAGE MANAGEMENT INTERN
Ariana (She/They) is a stage management intern who is looking to pursue stage management
professionally after graduating from Santa Clara University next year. Ariana is a Psychology,
Theater Arts, and Child Studies triple major. They have been interested in theater even since
their freshman year of high school after taking a drama class. She is incredibly passionate about
bringing the performing arts to under-representative communities and will become a teacher
once she graduates along with continuing to pursue stage management. She is extremely
excited to be part of the team, and can’t wait for everyone to see the production!
MARION RICHARDSON-BEATTY
STAGE MANAGEMENT INTERN
Marion Richardson-Beatty (he/they) grew up in the Bay Area, and is now studying theatrical production and design at Lewis and Clark College. Their recent stage management work includes Hamlet with Sweet Prince Shakespeare Company, and Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead and Our Town with Lewis and Clark College. He’s thrilled to be working with SF Shakespeare this summer.
ROCIO SHWARTZLANDER
STAGE MANAGEMENT INTERN
Rocio Schwarzlander is a 17 year old high school student in San Francisco. They enjoy theater and have been studying technical theater at their school for the past two years. In their free time, they enjoy reading, sewing, and watching horror movies.
JOLIE OUYANG
LITERARY INTERN
Jolie is thrilled to be the literary intern for Cymbeline, her first professional show! She grew up in San Francisco and started doing theatre in Georgetown University’s Mask and Bauble Dramatic Society and Nomadic Theatre, where she has had the opportunity to work on shows such as Rent, the 37th Donn B. Murphy One-Acts Festival, and Into the Woods. Jolie would like to thank the company for providing her guidance as she gains experience in this career and her family and friends for supporting interest in the field.
SHREYANSH PANDA
SOUND INTERN
I am currently a rising senior at Santa Clara University with a Communication Major and a Theater Design and Technology Minor. I began to explore technical theater in my junior year of high school, and after a brief gap continued further in college. My interest in theater is primarily in sound, and I have worked both as a Board Operator and Assistant Sound Designer on SCU productions. I have also worked in the Scene Shop as a Set Builder and have taken on a Stage Management position. I am always eager to learn more about theater and explore new opportunities!
NATALIE SEPULVEDA
WARDROBE INTERN
Natalie is so excited to join the San Francisco Shakespeare Festival as a wardrobe/costume intern this summer! They first became involved with theater and costuming in fourth grade for a production of Beauty and the Beast. Some of their other favorite shows to help make costumes for have been James and the Giant Peach, Newsies, and The Wizard of Oz. In addition to helping behind the scenes in the costume and wardrobe department for local community musicals, Natalie loves being a part of their high school’s Tech Crew which provides sound support for any school event with live music.
CORA SHIMETZ
PROPS INTERN
Cora Shimetz (Class of 2023 Theater Tech, Ruth Asawa School of the Arts) has designed, built and managed props for shows such as Hamlet, Marisol and Urinetown. She is the recipient of the Alumni Promise Award, Certificate of High Honors and California Seal of Biliteracy (Spanish). She is an alumni of multiple SF shakes camps and the Advanced Shakespeare Workshop. She loves the art of prop making and is excited to set her skills to work in a professional production! In the fall she will be attending Cal Poly Humboldt to continue her studies in technical theater and beyond.
POE ANGELES DAYAO
PROPS/HOSPITALITY INTERN
Poe Angeles Dayao (He/Him) is a Bay Area native and an aspiring theatermaker. Going into his third year at UC Davis, he has had the good fortune to be able to expand his knowledge and skills in production, performance, management, and hospitality. He is incredibly thrilled to have the opportunity to grow, learn, and work with SF Shakespeare Festival!
ANGELICA MOSQUEDA
HOSPITALITY INTERN
Angelica Mosqueda is a senior at the University of California, Berkeley, where she pursues dual degrees in Media Studies with a specialized focus in Global Cultural Studies, as well as Theater and Performance Studies. When she is not studying, Angelica makes films with her friends, acts, does photography, and adds to her Pinterest boards. She continues her journey in the performing arts through teaching and uplifting underrepresented creatives through arts, literature, and education. Proud theater kid at heart.
JOHN WESTERN
MARKETING DIRECTOR
John has been a fan of Free Shakespeare in the Park since its inception in 1983 with The Tempest. He is responsible for the marketing and advertising of all Festival programs. He received his B.A. from Cleveland State University and continuing education credits from the advertising program at the University of California at Berkeley’s School of Extended Learning. Mr. Western has been on the Festival staff since 1998, and has ten years of experience in theater advertising and promotion, plus two years of management experience in the public relations field.
JOSHUA WATERSTONE
COMMUNICATION SPECIALIST
Joshua (he/him) has been working with San Francisco Shakespeare Festival since 2020. In addition to marketing/communications he has worked with SF Shakes as a teaching artist, education workgroup member and performer as Romeo/Nurse & Oberon/Lysander in Takes On Shakes. Joshua works in theatre and film as a director, performer, producer/ digital producer, fight choreographer, film maker and educator. In the Bay Area Joshua was an ensemble member with foolsFURY and Ragged Wing Ensemble. Directed/Fight Choreographed with PlayGround, Ragged Wing, foolsFURY, New Century Symphony, San Francisco Youth Theatre and is a Digital Artist with the International Theatre Company and Podcast The Theatre of Others. Joshua has also worked with Georgia Shakespeare, Fly By Theatre, Essential Theatre, Yat/Bentley Centre, Fuse, Nebraska Repertory Theatre, Center Theatre, Georgia Mountain Theatre, Push-Push Theatre and Film, Jewish Theatre of the South, Georgia Ensemble Theatre, PlayMakers, Cal Shakes, Berkeley Repertory School of Theatre, ACT, The Alliance Theatre, Dragon Theatre and Shakespearience. Joshua holds an MFA in Directing for Stage and Screen and teaches theatre at Foothill College and was the Program/Artistic Leader of the Center for Creative and Performing Arts Theatre at Guilford Tech College. An associate member of the Society of Directors and Choreographers a member of the Society of American Fight Directors and an Actor-Combatant. waterstonejoshua.wixsite.com/director
MEREDITH ELDRED
DEVELOPMENT ASSOCIATE
A graduate of San Francisco State University, Meredith is a long time member of the San Francisco arts community who has worked extensively with EXIT Theater and the SF Fringe festival as a director and producer, was a founding member of Misery/Loves Co. and has staged works at Theater Rhino, Mission Cultural Center and Brava. Through her work as an Arts and Parent Engagement Coordinator at SFUSD she guided innovative partnerships between arts organizations, school staff and families to strengthen relationships and support student achievement. In her role as Development Associate she is able to continue her work in supporting equitable arts access in the Bay Area.
CARLA PANTOJA
ARTISTIC DIRECTOR
Carla, born and raised in the South Bay, is an actor, fight director, teaching artist, intimacy director, and mom of two. She has been a Resident Artist of San Francisco Shakespeare Festival since 2014 and recently served as Director of Vision for the 2021 Free Shakespeare in the Park production of Pericles, Prince of Tyre, directing episodes 2 and 4. In 2020, she was in the acting company at Oregon Shakespeare Festival, returning in 2022 as the festival’s first female fight director. Carla is an associate instructor for Dueling Arts International and serves on their governing body as Vice President. She is also a proud member of Making Good Trouble, an anti-racist training cohort based in the Bay Area. Carla has directed SF Shakes’ Shakespeare on Tour production of Romeo and Juliet and Comedy of Errors and Assistant Directed the 2017 Free Shakespeare in the Park production of Hamlet. She played Paulina in Free Shakespeare in the Park’s The Winter’s Tale, Tybalt in Romeo and Juliet, and Kate in The Taming of the Shrew. She’s performed with Cal Shakes, Shotgun Players, Crowded Fire, Playground, Lorraine Hansberry Theatre, and the SF Mime Troupe in the Bay Area to name a few.
TOBY LEAVITT
EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
Toby oversees all aspects of the Shakespeare Festival’s programs. She did her undergraduate work at the University of Chicago, and received her Masters from the University of Chicago Business School in 1997. Prior to joining the Festival in 1998, she served as General Manager for Chicago’s Court Theatre. She oversaw their financial growth from a $1.6 million to $2.8 million annual budget, guided the theatre in developing a 5-year strategic plan to become the National Center for Classic Theatre, and managed the ensuing strategic growth of the organization. Prior to her four years with the Court, she worked at the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago as Senior Editor and Director of Marketing Communications. Her accomplishments in audience development have been recognized by the Arts Marketing Center of Chicago and the Marshall Fields Foundation. She has served as a management consultant for Chicago Opera Theater, the Piven Theater Workshop, and Roadworks Theater Company, and has served as a panelist for the San Francisco Art Commission’s Cultural Equity Initiatives Grant program.
Free Shakes in the Park employs around 40 seasonal actors, directors, designers, technicians, and interns. We believe that a diverse organization is a better organization and that the art itself is greatly improved by collaboration among people with different backgrounds and perspectives. If you’re interested in being a part of our 2022 production, check out the following pages for available positions:
As a non-profit organization, SF Shakes is committed to producing high-quality theater and making it accessible to all, in part by eliminating any cost of entry, while at the same time striving to be an industry leader in providing a living wage to all actors, designers, staff, and crew. This is no easy feat, and we couldn’t do it without the generous support of community members like you.
If, like us, you believe that the performing arts have the ability to unify us in our humanity, help us heal, and you have the means to do so, then please, take action today and donate. No donation is too large or too small. You can give either in the park or online:
In addition to support from individual donors, Free Shakes in the Park is made possible by our 2023 sponsors:
Shirts, sweaters, onesies, hats, bags, pillows, water bottles, and more! Stock up on all the layers and accessories you might need for the park, while rocking the Cymbeline graphic.
Below you will find official Cymbeline production photos, along with links to external photo albums.
cymbeline –
Cupertino
Photos by Neal Ormond
cymbeline –
Redwood City
Photos by Neal Ormond
cymbeline –
San Francisco
Photos by Neal Ormond
cymbeline –
orinda
Photos by Neal Ormond
SAN FRANCISCO SHAKESPEARE FESTIVAL
PO Box 46093
San Francisco, CA 94146-0937
Stay Informed:
© 2024 San Francisco Shakespeare Festival, a 501c3 non-profit organization.
