PROGRAM 18

A Wedding Story by Sean O'Leary

CareFull by Talie Melnyk

Forget Me Not by Katrina Mattson

S.O.F.T Care by Jordyn Stoessel

Sunday Night At The Torchlight Lounge by Philip Cioffari

Chelsea LeSage (Claire) is thrilled to be working with Sean, Jen, Mario and Joe again after Sean’s award-winning production of “Boo”. Favorite Off-Broadway/New York theatre: Much Ado About Nothing (Beatrice) at Stag & Lion, Girls Who Walked On Glass (Katrina) at Alchemical, Macbeth (Lady Macbeth) at Stag & Lion. Regional/International favorites: Into The Woods (Witch) at Barrington Stage Company, Hamlet (title role) at Minvera Arts Center, Henry V (title role) at Rotations Theatre (Germany). Film/TV: 21st Century Demon Hunter, The Following, The Virginia B*tches, Bishop’s Cove, Macbeth: A Cursed Film. www.chelsealesage.com

Joe Naimoli (Matt) began his comedy and acting career training with coaches from UCB and Caroline's on Broadway. During the pandemic, his comedic impression of New York Governor Andrew Cuomo garnered over a million views receiving praise from NY1 as well as multiple New York radio stations. Before his comedy album on SiriusXM, he co-starred in the Off-Broadway production of Stanley Kubrick's Napoleon. He created a cooking instagram entitled Joemakemecook where he showcases his recipes and has garnered the attention of multiple cooking shows. He can currently be seen on The Disastrous Dating Life of Diane Damone available on Amazon Prime Video and season 3 of Next Level Chef on Fox.

Mario Corry (Director) award winning director with Sean O’Leary’s “Reservations for Dinner” and “The Sample”. Director of best play “Something Like Penguins” written by Levi Wilson. As a character actor, “Bridge of Spies” directed by Steven Spielberg, “The Irishman” and “Wolf of Wall Street” directed by Martin Scorsese. “The Parents” directed by Darren Aronofsky plus multiple cable and network TV roles.

Sean O’Leary (Playwright) was the 2022 Week Three winner of the Short Play Festival’s 11th Annual Boo Festival with the play “Boo”.  His play “Reservations for Dinner” appeared in Strawberry Festival at Symphony Space in 2020 in New York City. Prior to that, three of his plays (“The Empty Space”, “The Sample”, and “Reservations for Dinner”) appeared in the Green Lit Showcase at Teatro Circulo.  Other plays have been performed at the New York Theater’s Summerfest, Riant Theater’s Strawberry Festival, where “Reservations for Dinner” was nominated for best play, and at the Secret Theater’s One Act Festival.

Jennifer O’Leary (Producer) has been producing operas and plays in NYC for over fifteen years. She has directed “Le Nozze Di Figaro”, “The Magic Flute” (Mozart), “Christopher Columbus” (Offenbach), and “The Sorcerer” (Gilbert and Sullivan), and the premier of Sean O’Leary’s “The Return” at the Secret Theater. As a vocalist, she has performed the roles of Monica (The Medium), Laetitia (Old Maid and the Thief), and Rose Maybud (Ruddigore) along with several cabarets and recitals throughout New York. 

BIOS

Talie Melnyk (Playwright) (Meredith) Originally from Calgary, AB, Talie is a Brooklyn based actor, screenwriter, playwright and producer.  Adapted from her award-winning screenplay of the same name, CareFull marks Talie’s first production with Chain Theatre.  She is over the moon to be a part of this festival and perform the role of Meredith.  

Adrienne D Williams (Director) is a New York based director and actor.  Credits include: Paris, Luck Of The Irish, Uncle Vanya, Sweat, and Legacy, The Musical.

Chynna Holder (Gen) Repped by Eris Talent Agency, Chynna is an actress, dancer, singer and gymnast.  She is a most recent NYU Tisch School of the Arts graduate and has trained in studios such as Stella Adler, New Studio on Broadway and Stone Street for film and television.  Chynna is also coached by world renowned teacher, Sheila Gray.  She is ecstatic to take on the role of Gen in this play. 

Special thanks to Brian Hurley for his contribution and support.

Katrina Mattson (writer/director) makes her directorial debut at the Chain Winter One Act Festival. She has written numerous pieces of work and never had the courage to share them, so  she thanks you for coming along on this wild ghost ride. Much love to the folk stories of  Scandinavia and the exploration of the creative team and the Chain Theatre!  

Iryna Scarola, (Anna) NYC resident, known for "Terror Trips" (2022), “Last Straw” (2023) and a  couple of short films. Fluent in English, Russian, and Ukrainian. Juilliard Extension Program  graduate, currently studying with The Barrow Group. Recently acted in two plays with  Genoveva Production. Very grateful to work with all the talented people on this project. 

Kate Anderson-Song, (Mila) is a mixed-race Korean American performer originally from MA.  She is a graduate of NYU Tisch and recent credits include Swim Before You Drown (NY  Winterfest) & Rent (The Secret Theater). You can find further info at www.KateAndersonSong.com and her art on Instagram @TheK8Pages. 

Kristin Cantwell (Claire) has appeared on The Path (Hulu), and most recently  performed in Archipelago at HB Studio Playwrights Theatre. She's currently recurring in Season  2 of the award-winning web series, Demon Doctor. She studies at Kimball Studio and has a BA  in Theatre from the University of Mary Washington. You can go to www.kristincantwell.com for  more information and to see a picture of her cat. 

Juliana Conte (she/they) (the Myling) is so excited to share this story at the Chain's Winter  Festival! She is a Vermont native and graduate of CAP21/Molloy College's BFA musical theater  program. Some of her favorite roles include Wendla in Spring Awakening, SB in Experience  Marianas, and Katie Weiner in Triangle: Scenes from a Prosecution. She strongly believes in the  power of adults skipping (like frolicking). @julihuli_

Produced By Brooklyn Garza and Personal Pizza Party

Actor Bios: 

Linda Vega (Carmen) recently appeared in St Barts Players’ production of 45 Seconds From Broadway (Zelda), and at the Brooklyn Heights Players in Act One (Frieda Fishbein), Dinner At Eight (Carlotta Vance) and Harvey (Ethel Chauvenet). She has also appeared at the Gallery Players in The Tree, Women Underground, and The Piece. Other favorite roles include Harriet Stanley in The Man who Came To Dinner at St Jeans and Costanza in Enchanted April at FAPC.

Annabelle Duffy (Kyra) recently moved to Brooklyn after graduating from Carnegie Mellon's BFA Drama program this past May and is thrilled to be a part of S.O.F.T. Care! Recently: Godspell (Learn Your Lessons Well) and Hamlet (Ophelia) both at CMU. She thanks Sarah and Addie for thinking of her for this opportunity and hope you enjoy the show!

Director Bios: 

Sarah Margaret Stowell (she/her) is a New York based theatre director.

For the past several years, Sarah has been working regionally as an associate / assistant director under a variety of notable directors. Her credits include multiple productions at the Tony Award® winning Utah Shakespeare Festival, Tuacahn Center for the Arts, and NewYorkRep, where she was selected as an inaugural Education Fellow in 2019.

During this time, Sarah also received her BFA from the Carnegie Mellon School of Drama John Wells Directing Program. 

Addie Saltz (she/her/hers) is currently studying Directing within the prestigious John Wells Directing Program in the School of Drama at Carnegie Mellon University. Most recently, Addie served as the Directing Intern for Santa Cruz Shakespeare’s 2023 production of King Lear.  

Playwright Bio: 

Jordyn Stoessel (she/her/hers) is a Brooklyn based theater artist with a flair for brash, unruly art. Since graduating from Boston University School of Theater in 2021, Jordyn's written work has been featured in the SheNYC 2022 New Play Festival, 3P’s Short Play Reading Series, Naked Angels’ T@9, and Tigers’ Heart Players New Work Lab. She has been selected as a finalist for the 2022 Moxie Arts Incubator cohort, and a semi-finalist for the 2023 NAPSeries Festival. She is extremely grateful to The Chain for platforming the small but mighty story you are about to watch! Jordynstoessel.com, @jordynstoessel

Playwright/Director Philip Cioffari is the author of the novels: NIGHT AND ITS LONGINGS; IF ANYONE ASKS, SAY I DIED FROM THE HEARTBREAKING BLUES; THE BRONX KILL; JESUSVILLE; DARK ROAD, DEAD END; and CATHOLIC BOYS; and the short story collection, A HISTORY OF THINGS LOST OR BROKEN, which won the Tartt Fiction Prize, and the D. H. Lawrence award for fiction. His Indie feature film, which he wrote and directed, LOVE IN THE AGE OF DION, has won numerous awards, including Best Feature Film at the Long Island Int’l Film Expo, and Best Director at the NY Independent Film & Video Festival. He is a playwright member of the Actors Studio. He teaches fiction writing at the Gotham Writers Center in NYC.  www.philipcioffari.com  

Sara Beneke/Actor

Sara Beneke is an actress and model, born and raised in Minnesota. There, she discovered her love of acting through local theater productions and was a trained dancer for 16 years. Since moving to New York, she’s had the opportunity to work in commercials and film while studying at HB Studio. Sara is excited to be performing Philip Cioffari's work in this year's One Act Showcase.  

Sangita Baruah/Actor

Sangita Baruah has studied Acting at HB Studio, and has recently been in several commercials and short films.  She writes a blog about spirituality and positive thinking, and is a member of the NYC A.R.E Dream group.  She was an English teacher for many years, working with such programs as Lincoln Center Open Stages, National Theatre, TDF Stage Doors, and Broadway Bridges.  Sangita is thrilled to be a part of the Chain Theater play festival!