ACTORS BIO'S
two men and a bralette BY melissa lucero mccarl
troy lakey
(troy)
Troy Lakey is a former High School Drama teacher turned Corporate Training Manager. He still has to get his theater fix though. He was the assistant director for The Inheritance at the Vintage Theatre, where he also appeared in Shakespeare in Love and Boys in the Band. Troy most recently played John in the play Cock at the People’s Building. Troy is also working on autobiographical play, called Your Issue about growing up Mormon and coming out as gay. Troy would like to thank his partner, Stock, and his sons for their never ending support of his theater love.
andy anderson
(robert)
Andy is delighted to join the 2023 Play Crawl! While this is his first time in this event, he's been a Denver actor for over 20 years. Most recently he was seen in The Inheritance and Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, both at Vintage Theatre. Thanks to Susan, Kathi, and Troy for including me in this project!
I remember her by nicolette vajtay
john C. ashton
(george)
John Ashton is a recipient of a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Colorado Theatre Guild. He has been actively involved in stage and screen activities -- as an actor, director, playwright, producer, and even a critic -- since Euripides was a stagehand. He is proud and delighted to be a part of Play Crawl, now for the third time.
erica sarzin borillo
(shelly)
Erica Sarzin-Borrillo began her career in her native N.Y. She was the leading lady of Movement based company and taught their course at Cornel, Yale and NYU. Ny credits include Off Broadway and the National tour of tour of Jacques Brel. Ms. Borrillo has garnered several nominations and awards from the Denver Community. Some of her credits include; Circle Mirror Transformation at Curious Theatre, Long Day’s Journey into Night, Suddenly Last Summer, and Nine, The Musical. She recently appeared at The Arvada Center in Death Takes a Holiday. Ms. Borrillo is also a director, author, and visual artist.
Dana Hart Wright
(Sarah)
Dana is excited to be back doing the play crawl after a few years away. Locally, she has performed and directed at Miners Alley Playhouse, The Catamounts, Ovation West, Benchmark Theatre, The Edge Theatre, Equinox Theatre, The Denver Victorian, among others. She has also worked in New York and regionally. Dana is passionately driven to affect change for marginalized groups. As a career changer, she currently works coaching special educators and teams, and as a disability advocate. Dana is also a proud member of the IDEAs admin team www.ideastages.org, an organization committed to fostering accountability work in the areas of diversity, equity, inclusion and accessibility in the theatre community and also serves on two other theatre boards in the Denver metro area. Dana’s most important role to date is that of mom to two year old Fanora. Thanks to Susan, again, for this experience.
earth history today by rebecca gorman o’neill
Austin Lazek
(lou)
Austin Lazek returns to the Play Crawl after a stork-related absence. He has appeared in local shows with And Toto too, Cherry Creek Theater, and Denver Children's Theater. Thanks to all who have supported this event, and thanks especially to Kaela, Harrison, and Lucy for all the love, support, and everyday laughs.
damon guerrasio
(Mal)
Damon Guerrasio is so excited to return to his third year at PlayCrawl! Other regional credits include; Escape to Margaritaville, The Odd Couple (PACE Center); Jesus Christ Superstar, Saturday Night Fever, Charlotte's Web, Ella Enchanted, Lyle the Crocodile, Junie B Jones (Arvada Center); Futurity, Wonderland: Alice’s Rock and Roll Adventure (Aurora Fox); The Great American Trailer Park Musical, A Christmas Story, Once, Lost In Yonkers, Before You Go, Queen of Conspiracy, Dylan Went Electric, Rumplestiltskin, The Story of the Nutcracker, The Legend of Sleepy Hollow, Frog Prince, Young King Arthur, Robin Hood, The Little Mermaid, The Pied Piper (Miners Alley); Cinderella, Curtains (Candlelight); Wedding Singer, Complete World of Sports abridged (Town Hall Arts Center), Meteor Shower, Airness (Benchmark Theatre); Water by the Spoonful (Curious Theatre). Television: Manhattan (Lionsgate); From Dusk till Dawn (Miramax).
tourmaline by ELLEN K GRAHAM
kate poling
(Quinn)
Kate Poling is excited to be performing with And Toto too again! She is an actor, director, and teaching artist based in Denver, Colorado. She holds a BFA in Acting from New York University's Tisch School of the Arts. New York Credits: Puppet Julius Caesar (Puppet Shakespeare Players). With And Toto too: One Last Thing Before I Forget; Gertrude and Ophelia in Hell (Edinburgh Fringe 2022); Smoke; South Star; The Way Station; Show of Force. Other Colorado credits: Miss Bennet: Pemberley at Christmas, Pride and Prejudice, Towards Zero, Three Tall Women (Firehouse Theatre); Rumpelstiltskin, The Story of the Nutcracker, The Pied Piper (Miners Alley Playhouse); Inheritance (Curious Theatre Co) and Almost Maine (Town Hall Arts Center). You can catch Kate's work next month at Benchmark Theatre, where she is directing Jeremiah, a world premiere by local playwright Tami Canaday. The show opens August 11th. Enjoy the Crawl!
erica lee johnson
(torry)
Erica is so grateful to perform with And Toto too Theatre Company’s Play Crawl once again. After a long hiatus from the acting scene, she is so excited to play! Erica is a Colorado based actor who has been working all over the metro area on and off for the past 25 years. Erica has also appeared in performances with Miners Alley Playhouse, Colorado Shakespeare Festival, Town Hall Arts Center, Benchmark Theatre, and Curious Theatre Company, in addition to running her own private practice as a Marriage and Family Therapist at Affinity Counseling of Colorado. She is also thrilled to be creating and teaching a newly offered course at MSU Denver this fall called, “Self-Care in Theatre”. Thank you for nurturing many facets of your individual and collective self-care by contributing to your local arts community.
Johnathan Underwood
(Chris)
Johnathan Underwood, a born Tennessean and previous Colorado dweller (he’s a bit of a vagabond), is blessed to have eased back into Denver’s colorful theatre community. He has been fortunate to play on many stages across the country, while making the best of friends along the way. His last performance was getting to step into the platform boots of, Bertie Rivera, in Benchmark Theatre’s world premiere of “Stonewall”. When not on stage, Johnathan is either sharing his given gift of style as an ABOC optician, or laughing it up with friends over a whiskey neat. “Being like everybody is the same as being nobody.” -Rod Sterling • instagram: Wakebrunchrepeat
seeing is believing BY leslie c. lewis
christine kahane
(kate)
This is Christine’s first Play Crawl with And Toto too—she is delighted to be part of Denver theatre’s iconic event. Her Denver credits include: for Benchmark Theatre, Abby – A Great Wilderness, for Vintage Theatre, Robyn – The Roommate, Frau Blucher – Young Frankenstein ( 2021 Marlowe Award – Best Supporting Actress in a Musical), Melissa – Love Letters, Miss Bates – Emma, The Language Teacher – The Language Archive, Miss Shingle – A Gentleman’s Guide to Love and Murder. For Firehouse Theater, Annie – Calendar Girls. For Ovation West, Rosie Brice – Funny Girl, Mrs. Wilkinson – Billy Elliot, Mrs. Pearce – My Fair Lady (2018 Broadway World - Best Colorado Debut). Regional theatre: Mrs. Saunders/Betty - Cloud Nine, Joyce - And A Nightingale Sang, Arizona Theatre Company, Kate – The Taming of The Shrew, Regan – King Lear, New York Renaissance Festival, An Evening of One Acts, McCarter Theatre. Denver directing credits: Shakespeare in Love—Vintage Theatre, Company – Ovation West. What an honor to be part of this talented cast and production team.
mark collins
(james)
Mark Collins is happy to be back performing in the Play Crawl. You may have seen him in other And Toto too productions The Gun Show and Lost Creatures. This fall, you can catch him in Coal Country at Butterfly Ensemble Theatre of Colorado in Boulder.
summer jobs by nina alice miller
sam charney (They/Sam)
(gabe)
Sam Charney is exhilarated to be taking part in their third Play Crawl! Sam’s passion is theater that expands the audience's experiences so they can gain new perspectives on the world, and they also love all things Shakespeare. Sam is also passionate about makeup and costume design. Some productions you may have seen Sam in are Twelfth Night, Our Town, Macbeth, and The Little Mermaid. Sam has also designed for productions such as She Kills Monsters, The Little Mermaid, and Addams Family. When not acting, Sam can be found performing in Drag, advocating for LGBTQ+ rights, on the runway or curled up in a corner with whatever fiber project they are working on. Sam would like to thank their family and friends for always supporting them, their acting mentors for helping them grow as an artist and person, and thank And Toto too for this amazing experience.
Amelia Hoffman (they/she)
(Frankie)
Amelia is thrilled to be participating in their first Play Crawl! Amelia is a recent graduate of Denver School of the Arts where they were in shows such as The Little Mermaid, A Chorus Line, The Trestle At Pope Lick Creek, and Gideon’s Knot. They have also worked on the direction or choreography team for The Addams Family, Indecent, and The Sound Inside. Amelia recently completed their second season dancing with Davis Contemporary Dance Next Generation. Next year, Amelia will be a Musical Theatre major at the University Of Southern California (Go Trojans!). Apart from acting Amelia also enjoys writing, dance, reading, cryptography, and geography. They would like to thank their family, friends, and mentors for their continued support, along with Susan and the And Toto too team for putting together this fantastic event!
the bench of destiny BY edith weiss
samantha piel
(woman)
Samantha is a local actress, teaching artist and prop designer who is so excited to bring Edith’s words to the stage. Most recently she played Rebecca in Our Town at the Arvada Center and has also been seen locally as Mary Warren in The Crucible with Miners Alley Playhouse and as Zoe in An Octoroon at Benchmark theatre. Thanks for joining us today at this awesome event!
tim fishbaugh
(designator’s assistant)
Tim is thrilled to be working with Edith and Samantha on this piece for And Toto too. He has been seen on stages along the Front Range for nearly twenty years. These days, you can find him most often House Managing at Miners Alley in Golden. Enjoy the Crawl!
larp will find a way BY lisa wagner erickson
michael gurshtein(He/His)
(ben)
www.michaelgurshtein.com
People are not disturbed by things, but by the views they take of them. - Epictetus
Lauren Michelle Long
(ANNA)
Lauren is thrilled to be back with And Toto too for this year’s Play Crawl. Play crawl was the first project she ever worked on when she first moved to Denver in 2016. Besides acting on the stage, she is also a voice actor and media artist creating merchandise for small businesses. She has been in various productions on stage with other companies in Colorado such as Su Teatro, Audacious Theatre, Arts in the Open, Vintage Theatre, The Bug Theatre and Denver’s Dangerous Theatre. Behind the stage, Lauren is also a teaching artist educating children in art, dance, fitness and most importantly, the art of theatre! She is currently teaching at Miners Alley Playhouse this summer and touring with Audacious Theatre for their children’s production of Father Featherbottom’s Forgotton Fairytales. You can see her next with Arts in the Open in their production of All I Needed to Know I Learned From Being a Zombie.
Maya Garg
(Cordelia)
Maya Garg has been performing her entire life. Whether it be participating in musicals throughout her entire academic career or competing with her high school improv trope in Chicago. In addition, Maya has directed a children’s improv trope for a nonprofit theater in Nashville, where she spent the last five years simultaneously developing her songwriting abilities and pursuing her passion for music. While in Nashville, Maya had the opportunity to act in several music videos, play numerous writers' rounds, and record her own EP. And recently she re-entered the theater world in her role as a gypsy in Zorro the musical at Wheat Ridge Theater company!
pc chicken by linda berry
JEFF JESMER
(ACTOR)
Jeff Jesmer is very excited to share this experience with a live audience. Thank you for supporting live theatre in our community. Jeff works around Denver as a Set Builder/designer and as an Actor. He hopes you enjoy the evening and wishes that you spread the word of this and other live theatre around Denver. Jeff would like to thank Julie and our fur-babies for the most love any one person could handle.
Matt Hindmarch
(CHICKEN)
Earlier this year Matt was plucked out of obscurity by Firehouse Theatre Company and seen in their bagawk’s-office hit Tiny Beautiful Things. He is happy to have been pecked by director Julie K. Wolf-in-the-Henhouse to participate in Play Crawl for the first time. No spring-chicken now, in his twenties he appeared on stages up and down the West Coast (Oregon Shakespeare Festival, Pacific Conservatory of the Performing Arts, Seattle Repertory Theatre, Solvang Theatrefest, and many others). Among his favorite plays to have performed: Henry V, Romeo and Juliet (he didn’t play Fryer Lawrence), A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Pippin, Brighton Beach Memoirs and Sweeney Todd. With any cluck you will enjoy this short play.
BROOKES AND FIN-HEAVEN KNOWS I’M MISERABLE NOW BY CHRISTIE BRENNER WINN
Isabella Falber
(Brooks)
Isabella can currently be seen in Funky Little Theater Company's We Will Rock You and The Girl Of The Golden West at the Butte Theater in Cripple Creek. She is from Tampa, FL, Isabella is a recent alum of Florida Southern College where she received her Bachelor of Fine Arts in Musical Theatre. At school, Isabella was a resident advisor, tour guide, and the President of Studio Box (FSC's Improv Comedy Troupe). Some of her credits include Carla in In The Heights at Spanish Lyric Theatre, King Claudius/King Hamlet's Ghost in Hamlet, Woman 1 in Songs For A New World, and Phoebe in As You Like It - all at Florida Southern.
Solomon Abell
(Fin)
Solomon can currently be seen in Funky Little Theater Company's We Will Rock You and The Girl Of The Golden West at the Butte Theater in Cripple Creek. Previously, he appeared as Jeff in Loveland Opera Theatre’s production of Brigadoon. In 2020, Solomon graduated from NYU Tisch with a BFA in Drama. In his free time, he enjoys drawing, taking long, hot showers, and cuddling with his two marauding cats, Fish and Sasha, who enjoy eating his things. He would like to thank his family for always being supportive, and the many mentors he has had the pleasure and privilege of learning from over the years. Enjoy!