SFBATCO presents West Coast Premiere of PRIVATE

Posted by on February 10, 2023

The San Francisco Bay Area Theatre Company (SFBATCO) presents the West Coast premiere of Mona Pirnot’s play Private, a searing exploration of personal privacy in the age of digital technology, March 16-April 2 at Potrero Stage. Helmed by director Peter J. Kuo, fresh off his production of A Christmas Carol at American Conservatory Theater (A.C.T.), the cast features Katrina Lauren McGraw (“Georgia”), Sedrick Cabrera (“Corbin”), Aidaa Peerzada (“Abbey”) and Adam Maggio (“Jordan”). The creative team includes Scenic and Props Design by Celeste Martore, Costume Design by Tiersa Nureyev, Sound Design by Ray Archhie and Lighting Design by Claudio Silva. Taylor Mendez is the Stage Manager, and Jocelyn Thompson-Jordan is the Assistant Stage manager. For tickets, click here.

Georgia’s husband Corbin has landed his dream job as a product engineer working under a tech superstar. Georgia is thrilled–that is, until she learns that the company demands round-the-clock monitoring of their devices. Mona Pirnot’s dynamic one-act relentlessly dissects a relationship brought to the brink of ruin by an exposed lie, and raises the question of how much personal privacy we should expect from our friends, employers, and partners in the digital tech era. Private had its world premiere at Mosaic Theater in Washington, D.C. in 2022, and the Washington Post called it, “So persuasive you may wish it had a second act.”

“Our whole SFBATCO team is thrilled to bring this play to the San Francisco Bay Area, where there’s a lot of dialogue around technology’s ethics,” says SFBATCO Artistic Director Rodney Earl Jackson, Jr. “In Private, Mona Pirnot interrogates the emotional impact of clicking all those ‘I Accept’ buttons in apps and on websites. What are we giving up when we do this? Do we care? What does privacy mean for us as individuals versus in our relationships? And by focusing on this one relationship, Private allows for the conversation on how privilege, grief, and careers impact those we love. Bay Area audiences are gonna love the ‘Black Mirror’ energy (with better dialogue!) that Mona has brilliantly crafted for the stage.”

Tickets for Private are now on sale and range from $10-$40. Follow SFBATCO on social media platforms and sign up for the newsletter to learn about post-show talkbacks, sales, and more information.

Learn more at: https://www.sfbatco.org/private-2023

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SFBATCO Mission: SFBATCO engages artists and audiences through live theatre productions, creative development, and community service initiatives that resonate with SF Bay Area perspectives. The organization provides a platform for People of the Global Majority, and inspires both new audiences and theatre innovators.

SFBATCO Vision: SFBATCO envisions a San Francisco Bay Area where the participation in live theatre is essential, accessible, and exhilarating; where artists are valued for their creativity as well as their role in sparking societal change; and where a multitude of cultural experiences are equitably represented.

CAST BIOS:

Katrina Lauren McGraw* (Georgia) (she/they) is a San Francisco native who graduated from the Pacific Conservatory of the Performing Arts. Katrina has worked for many theater companies in the Bay Area including Theatreworks, Throckmorton Theater, 42nd St. Moon, San Francisco Playhouse, Center Rep, Berkeley Playhouse, Ray of Light Theater, Town Hall, New Conservatory Theater Center, and of course SFBATCO. Follow her on Instagram @bigbrownlead.

Sedrick Cabrera (Corbin) (he/him) is a Chicano actor based in San Francisco, CA. He’s a San Jose State University Alumni (B.A. Theatre Arts), trained for both stage and screen acting. Collaborated theatrically with companies such as Cal Shakes, SFBATCO, Those Women Productions, SF Playground, & Marin Shakespeare Company. Played principal roles in commercials for brands such as Lincoln, Google, Apple, & Salesforce. Starred in feature films opposite stars like Winona Ryder (Gone In The Night), Pedro Pascal (Freaky Tales) & Jamie Neumann (Thirsty). Sedrick’s work is dedicated to revealing how Brown Latinx communities bring style, sustenance, & poetry to the culture of California. www.sedrickcabrera.com

Aidaa Peerzada (Abbey) (she/her) is a writer, performer, and arts administrator who grew up between Baltimore, MD, and Lahore, Pakistan. As an actor, Aidaa has performed with Marin Theatre, Word For Word, Pittsburgh Public, Illinois Shakespeare, Utah Shakespeare, Steppenwolf, American Players Theatre, and Quantum Theatre. Aidaa studied at the Baltimore School for the Arts and went on to receive her BFA in Drama from Carnegie Mellon. You catch her later this spring in the World Premiere of The N* Lovers at Magic Theatre. Aidaa is SFBATCO’s Literary and Outreach Manager and was a recipient of the 2020 Artist Leadership Residency with SFBATCO. You can follow her @mixed.millennial

Adam Maggio (Jordan) (he/him) is an administrator, actor, director, and teacher from San Francisco, where he attended the Ruth Asawa San Francisco School of the Arts. As SFBATCO’s Managing Director, he is dedicated to producing exciting new work that reflects and celebrates the Bay Area’s authentic, vibrant, and diverse communities. Adam has performed Off-Broadway and regionally across the country; he has directed both original and established works; and he has served as an Associate Producer with Mile Square Theatre and En Garde Arts. Next he is directing Kinky Boots at Throckmorton Theater.

*The Actor appears through the courtesy of Actors’ Equity Association, the Union of Professional Actors and Stage Managers in the United States.

CREATIVE TEAM BIOS:

Peter J. Kuo (Director) (he/him) is a director, producer, writer, and educator focused on raising the visibility of marginalized communities. He is the director of the conservatory at A.C.T. and serves on the staff EDI committee. Kuo is an alum of Williamstown Theatre Festival’s Directing Corps, the Oregon Shakespeare Festival’s FAIR Program, and Directors Lab West. He held a residency at Drama League and was named one of Theatre Communications Group’s Rising Leaders of Color. He is cofounder of Artists at Play, a Los Angeles–based Asian American theater collective. Previously, he has taught and directed students at The New School, Herbert Berghof Studio, Atlantic Acting School, and Redhouse Arts Center. Directing highlights include the internationally viewed Zoom production of Madhuri Shekar’s In Love and Warcraft, Lauren Yee’s in a word and Ching Chong Chinaman, Christopher Chen’s Mutt, Adam Gwon’s Ordinary Days, and Jason Robert Brown’s Songs for a New World. He received his MFA at The New School of Drama in New York. peterjkuo.com

Celeste Martore (Scenic and Props Design) (she/her) is a visual artist from San Francisco, California. Her work takes various forms– sculpture, photography, set design– and pokes at the beautiful absurdities and troubling inequities of everyday life. Celeste is very fond of the cracks, corners, in-betweens, and the hidden-yet-very-visible patches of a city that author tender moments of ritual, performance, and play.

Tiersa Nureyev (Costume Design) (she/her) is a multidisciplinary artist and designer, who has costumed for film, theatre, dance and performance art. She has led art direction in the creation of fiber-based elements, murals, and garments for exhibitions and set design, and is a recipient of a National Endowment of the Arts-funded residency via SF Arts Education Project at the Minnesota Street Project. She is the co-founder of the design studio, Stella Fluorescent, whose focus is on making thoughtful, materials driven, objects that take the form of fashion accessories, jewelry, and textiles. Tiersa has been a teaching artist with SFArtsED since 2006. She believes strongly that art and making are an integral part of the human experience. This conviction touches all aspects of her work; as a teaching artist in the SF School District, to summer programs with youth that probe deeply into the nature of fashion as identity, to collaborating with artists currently and formerly residing in San Quentin Prison. Social handles: @tiersanureyev

Claudio Andres Silva Restrepo (Lighting Design) (he/him) is the Technical Director at SFBATCO. He is a Theater Artist from Santiago, Chile. He studied at Loyola University Maryland. While at Loyola, Claudio won numerous honors for Acting, Design, and Direction. He spent three years teaching and working at StarStruck Theatre & Academy in Stuart, FL before moving to San Francisco and joining the SFBATCO team in 2017. As an Independent Design Artist and Technician he works with many professional companies like Lorraine Hansberry Theatre, Those Women Productions, 42nd Street Moon, Brava For Women in the Arts, with specific care to create works that represent the diverse community of the Bay Area and addressing social issues relevant to his community. He also works as a designer and educator with children’s companies including SF Arts Education Project, Throckmorton Theatre, and Young People’s Teen Musical Theatre Company. During the Summer of 2020 Claudio had the opportunity to Join the JCHS community as their new Theatre Technical Director. Selected Credits: I, Too, Sing America (Set/ Lights), How To Be A White Man (SM, Lights), La Posarela (SM, Lights), Shining (TD/ Lights).

Ray Archie (Sound Design) is the Executive Director of Notes to the Soul and head engineer of Brooklyn Sound Lab. Ray plays cello, bass, & piano and has performed internationally with Leonard Bernstein, Michael Tilson-Thomas, LSO, SFSO, & many others. Ray is an award-winning engineer/producer who has worked in television and radio for over 20 years, regularly presents AES and EBU conventions, and has recorded 30+ albums, 25+ audiobooks, and 100’s journalism pieces for the major publishers.

Jocelyn “Jojo” Thompson-Jordan (Assistant Stage Manager) (She/Her) is excited to work with BATCO as the Assistant Stage Manager. “Instead of being on the stage, I get to work behind it, and support these talented folks on stage. It’s an entirely new experience and I’m extremely grateful to the folks at BATCO for believing in me!” Being a black queer native of San Francisco, participating in shows that represent the diverse city she grew up in is extremely important to her. “I believe that uplifting BIPOC voices/experiences in the Bay Area is so important, and when I say that, I mean ALL aspects of the BIPOC experience. I’m tired of only hearing about the struggles and pain our people have survived. Let’s highlight our JOY, INTELLIGENCE, BEAUTY, and TALENT that have been the blueprint for American culture, and the inspiration to nations around the world.”