Gayme Changers playbill
Welcome From About Face Theatre’s Artistic Director
Welcome to Gayme Changers and About Face Theatre’s 27th season. We are thrilled to gather with you in our new producing home at The Den.
These days it can be especially heartening to remember that we don’t have to figure it all out or make it through on our own. Community and solidarity are part of the answer, but how and where do we practice that? Enter Gayme Changers! This hilarious and smart play is a joyful example of the many ways that theatre can lead us to make real change in our lives and the world around us.
Gayme Changers assures us that by building trust in each other and staying accountable to our everyday actions, we can participate in building a better future.
This production is the culmination of multiple programs at About Face Theatre this year. The ensemble has been developing concepts and characters for this play in a process that started online and shifted to in-person workshops. Playwright Kirsten Baity and Producer Sharon Pasia are completing their terms on the AFT staff in the Green Room Collective leadership development program. Director Vic Wynter is wrapping up a season-long directing fellowship. The collaboration and vision from this creative team have been truly inspiring and they have deeply enriched our season. We’re excited to work with them in the future and to see how they continue to flourish.
I want to offer big thanks and congratulations to the talented, generous, and innovative company of Gayme Changers. For each of you gathering to listen, I’m grateful to be fighting for a better future with you.
Megan Carney
About Face Theatre Artistic Director
About Face Theatre
presents
Devised by the About Face Youth Ensemble
and Written by Kirsten Baity
Directed by
Vic Wynter
Cast
| Emi | Elena Avila |
| Cleo | Edgar Flores |
| Storm | Wilber Grey |
| Z | Lily Rubin |
| Elizabeth | Kara Partisano |
| Sam | Nora Talaga |
| Louise | Sophronia Vowels |
| Ratt | Theo Wampuszyc |
| Pheonix | Pen Wilder |
Production Team
| Scenic Designer | Steven Abbott |
| Lighting Designer & Technical Director | Becca Venable |
| Composer & Sound Designer | Ethan Korvne |
| Props Designer | Caitlin McCarthy |
| Stage Manager | Hannah Weiss |
| Producer | Sharon Pasia |
| AFT Production Manager | Audrey Kleine |
| AFT Managing Director | Logan Jones* |
| AFT Artistic Director | Megan Carney |
*Member of Actors’ Equity Association, the union of professional actors and stage managers
Special Thanks
About Face Youth Theatre extends a special thanks to the changeover crew who wonderfully crafted a new world out of recycled and upcycled materials.
Resources
Performer Bios
Elena Avila (she/they): Emi
Elena is a Chicago based Latinx performing artist, originally from the Bay Area, CA! From theater, to opera, to dance, Elena is passionate about her creative work and artistry. Favorite performances have been in URINETOWN (Berkeley Playhouse), LUSIA MILLER (Berkeley Chamber Opera), and MARISOL (Fragmented Light Theatre). Check out their website www.Elena-Avila.com
Edgar Flores (they/them): Cleo
Edgar is an interdisciplinary artist from Texas currently finishing their BA in Theater Directing at Columbia College Chicago. Edgar is also a drag performer known mononymously as Cleo and recently won Crash Landing at Berlin Nightclub. Past acting credits include THE RACE: 2020 (Ensemble) by Sojourn Theater, THE MOORS (Mastiff) by Jen Silverman, and THE WINTERS TALE (Clown) by William Shakespeare. Directing credits include ELEPHANT ANTONYMS by Colby Calhoun, THE DOOR by Paul Elliot, and REVOLT. SHE SAID. REVOLT AGAIN. by Alice Birch, currently in pre-production. Edgar would like to dedicate this performance to all the “girls, gays and theys” around the world.
Wilbur Grey (e/it/he): Storm
Wilber is an artist and a proud cat dad. This is eirs second year at AFYT. Other hobbies include painting, practicing karate, and cosplay. You can find eir on Instagram @adumbtransguy. “I’d like to see you try to find me anywhere else. I hope you enjoy the show!”
Kara Partisano (she/her): Elizabeth
Kara is a passionate dancer, actor, youth facilitator She is proud to be a part of the wonderful community she has found at AFYT. She was in MARY POPPINS for Vero Beach High School and Dance Festivals for her studio. She loves creating art through movement. She loves to choreograph, paint, and adores teaching and working with children. She’s thankful to her mother and her family for all their support.
Lily Rubin (they/them): Z
Lily is a musician, actor, and performer from Highland Park, IL. They previously attended Columbia College Chicago but will be transferring to Sarah Lawrence College in Yonkers, NY, in the fall. With AFYT, they’ve performed in 20/20, WHODUNNIT? A GROOVY QUEER MURDER MYSTERY, and KINSHIP: AN ALL-AGES QUEER VARIETY SHOW. They’re so sad this is their last project with AFYT, but is so proud of their ensemble for putting queer stories on the stage and being truly their authentic self!
Nora Talaga (she/her): Sam
Nora is thrilled to be back in person in a real life theatre and not on a computer screen. She received her degree in theatre at Seattle University in 2021, and is currently based in her hometown of Chicago. She is SO grateful to About Face Theatre for bringing this cool, queer, creative ensemble into her life. A million thank you’s to the entire team and to her friends and fam for their love and support. Find more at noratalaga.com.
Sophronia Vowels (she/they): Louise
A recent graduate from Boston University’s Theatre Arts BFA Program, Sophronia loves both performing and directing. They are grateful to this ensemble for encouraging and inspiring them on their gender journey. What an honor to create in such a queer space. Check out their website for credits and pictures: www.sophroniav.com
Theo Wampuszyc (he/they): Ratt
Theo is a trans actor, podcaster, and entertainer with a special focus on audio, activism, and joy. In addition to his usual day job as a children’s swim instructor and his various evening rehearsals, he works as a company clown for Vaudeville Chicago where he brings wild characters and variety acts to senior living facilities with a high concentration of dementia and Alzheimers. He also dabbles in standup comedy, and his voice can be heard on several podcasts including the queer comedy coffee talkshow PETTY THEFT AND KINDNESS, the actual play podcast ONCE UPON A MONSTER OF THE WEEK, and half a dozen other audio serials.
Pen Wilder (they/them): Phoenix
Pen is a native Illinoisan writer and artist with a focus in queer theatre. They are a recent graduate of Columbia College Chicago and Their credits include their full-length play FIELDS OF CLOVER and various smaller works in the Playwrights Aloud reading series. They also contribute regularly to literary publications. They are so excited to be involved in their first AFYT performance and are so happy to be a part of such a welcoming community. They are currently working on their next full-length play.
Production Bios
Steven Abbott (he/him): Scenic Designer
Steven is a Chicago based scenic designer and artist. He is originally from Louisville, Kentucky, where he designed and painted for storefront and community theaters. Scenic Design credits include A DYBBUK, or BETWEEN TWO WORLDS (DePaul University), POLAROID STORIES (DePaul University), Assistant Scenic Designer for FUR (New York Theatre Workshop), HANSEL AND GRETAL (DePaul Opera), and Resident Scenic Designer for New Albany Riverstage in 2017. Other credits include Paint Lead for RELENTLESS (TimeLine), SPRING AWAKENING (Porchlight), WHO’S HOLIDAY (Theater Wit), PASSAGE (Remy Bumppo), and Paint Charge for KING LEAR (Redtwist), THE RIVER (BoHo Theatre). He graduated with a BFA in Scenic Design from The Theatre School at DePaul University in 2020.
Kirsten Baity (they/them): Playwright
Kirsten is a multifaceted theatre hustler mainly focused on playwriting, devising, and teaching artistry. They love creating art that puts the audience on the spot to answer tough questions and invites them to dream of a future where everyone has their needs met. Kirsten’s work includes: THIS IS NORMAL (Quaransteam Play Festival), RAGE ISN’T FREE: A PARTICIPATORY PLAY (Youth Empowerment and Performance Project), and LOVE NAD NAPPINESS (Perceptions Theatre) They have developed theater-based workshops with The Illinois Caucus for Adolescent Health, About Face Theatre, FYI (For Youth Inquiry) Goodman Theatre’s Playbuild Youth Intensive, and the Youth Empowerment and Performance Project. Kirsten is a proud member of the Intimacy Coordinators of Color cohort and About Face Theatre’s Green Room Collective. For more info, check out kirstenbaity.com
MEGAN CARNEY (she/her): AFT Artistic Director
Megan is a director, playwright, and teaching artist. Recent Chicago directing credits include THE GULF, 20/20, and TIME IS ON OUR SIDE (About Face), WINTER, GRIZZLY MAMA, Danielle Pinnock’s BODY/COURAGE, AMERICAN WEE PIE, and THE WALLS (Rivendell). Megan has written several plays based on true stories, including WOMEN AT WAR based on 75 interviews with women in the military (Rivendell); OPEN SYSTEMS about the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina (Goodman Theatre); LET THEM EAT CAKE about marriage equality (Dixon Place, NYC); and multiple large ensemble plays with About Face Youth Theatre, which she co-founded. Megan’s work in theatre and community building has been recognized with multiple After Dark Awards, the GLSEN Pathfinder Award, an APA Presidential Citation, induction into Chicago’s LGBT Hall of Fame, and a Rockefeller Foundation MAP Grant. Megan served as the Director of the Gender and Sexuality Center at the University of Illinois at Chicago, where she developed public arts-based programs and led interactive workshops. She is a certified mediator with the Center for Conflict Resolution, earned an MFA in Theatre with a focus on Directing and Public Dialogue from Virginia Tech as well as a BA from Kalamazoo College, where her ideas about art as a tool for social justice and activism began to take shape.
LOGAN JONES (he/they): AFT Managing Director
Logan is a Chicago-based artist, administrator, and consultant. He has frequently collaborated with multiple theatre companies while utilizing his artistic and technical skills, organizational capabilities, and highly-collaborative working style. Logan has worked with Ensemble Consulting as Facilitator and Project Manager on various leadership transitions and organizational development projects since 2015. As a stage manager and production manager, he has helmed multiple productions for About Face Theatre, American Theater Company, The House Theatre of Chicago, Windy City Playhouse, Denver Center for the Performing Arts, 13Exp, and the American Music Theatre Project, among others. Logan holds a BA in Theatre and BA in Modern Languages from Kansas State University, a certificate in Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion in the Workplace from University of South Florida, and is a graduate of the Axelson Center Bootcamp for Nonprofit CEOs at North Park University.
Ethan Korvne (he/him): Composer & Sound Designer
Ethan Korvne (he/him) is a composer and sound designer from Akron, Ohio. He is currently in his second year of studying sound design at The Theatre School at DePaul University, where he recently received a certificate of merit from the Kennedy Center American College Theatre Festival commending his design and music for MEETING POINTS (directed by Megan Carney). Ethan has also worked as a designer and composed original music for the Ohio Shakespeare Festival, as well as virtual events such as the SMA’s Del Hughes Awards and the National Collaborators Conference. Listen to his work and more at ethankorvne.com
AUDREY KLEINE (she/her): AFT Production Manager
Audrey is a Chicago-based artist and the Operations and Production Manager at About Face Theatre. She moved from Nashville, Tennessee, to Chicago to attend college and received a BA in Theater with a concentration in Stage Management from Columbia College Chicago in 2017. After graduating, she freelanced as an Assistant Stage Manager and Production Assistant for more than a dozen productions at Chicago theaters including Windy City Playhouse, The Goodman, About Face Theatre, Rivendell and more.
CAITLIN McCARTHY (she/her): Properties Designer
Caitlin is a theatre and film artist who works in props, costume, and production design. Chicago credits include: costumes/props for THE GULF (About Face); props for LACED (About Face), IN EVERY GENERATION, QUEEN OF THE NIGHT (Victory Gardens); THE LAST PAIR OF EARLIES, A DOLL’S HOUSE (Raven Theatre); A RECIPE FOR DISASTER, EVERY BRILLIANT THING, THE RECOMMENDATION (Windy City Playhouse). Film: production design THE CARE AND KEEPING OF YOU; production/costume design TRADING HEARTS WITH VICTOR SHAW. Upcoming: production/costume design for short “Clambake;” costume design for short “The Last Stand of Bobby Coe” (Santa Fe Film Festival). caitlinmccarthy.net
Sharon Pasia (they/she): Producer
Sharon is an artist with many hats, which include acting, voiceover, facilitating, and producing. They’re currently a part of About Face Theatre’s Green Room Collective and is a teaching artist and producer for GAYME CHANGERS. Recent projects they’ve co-produced include G.L.O.W: A QUEER OPEN MIC w/ K.J. Whitehead and AFYT’s KINSHIP: An All-Ages Queer Variety Show. As an artist and facilitator, Sharon strives to create warm and empowering spaces where artists of all backgrounds and experiences can share work while connecting through community and wholesome fun.
Becca Venable (she/her): Lighting Designer & Technical Director
Becca is a Dallas, Texas native now living in Chicago where she was the technical director at the University of Illinois at Chicago for over three years. In May 2018, she was the recipient of the Michael Merritt Emerging Technical Collaborator Award. Becca also works as a technical director, sound designer, and lighting designer around the city. Some of Becca’s credits include A YEAR WITH FROG AND TOAD (Chicago Children’s Theatre), THE NUTCRACKER (Ballet Lubbock), THE GULF and THE MAGNOLIA BALLET (About Face Theatre), DYING CITY (The Comrades), AMERICAN HERO (First Floor Theater), and A STREETCAR NAMED DESIRE (University of Illinois at Chicago).
Hannah Weiss (she/they): Stage Manager
Hannah is a 2021 graduate of Columbia College Chicago earning her Bachelor’s degree in Theatre concentrating in Stage Management. She is beyond excited to be working with About Face Theatre for the first time. Past credits include RELENTLESS (Assistant Stage Manager; TimeLine Theatre Company/Goodman Theatre), THE SNOW QUEEN (Assistant Stage Manager; The House Theatre of Chicago), TALES OF BERLIN (Production Stage Manager; CCC), MR. BURNS: A POST-ELECTRIC PLAY (Production Stage Manager; CCC), THE 33RD ANNUAL YOUNG PLAYWRIGHTS FESTIVAL (Assistant Stage Manager; Pegasus Theatre Chicago).
Vic Wynter (they/them): Director
Vic shapeshifts through space discovering where and how they can contribute. Their main practice is performance art but explores different practices depending on what needs to be processed (movement, writing, assistant directing). They are making their directorial debut with GAYME CHANGERS after assistant directing ROAN @ THE GATES at American Blues Theater. They recently made their TV debut as Travis on WORK IN PROGRESS. In the summer of 2019, this baby bee buzzed with the hive at THE FLY HONEY SHOW for the first time at The Den Theater and they are now a producer for the show. Vic has premiered original work at KINSHIP, About Face Theater’s All-Ages Queer Variety Show; AFT’s touring show POWER IN PRIDE; and has been on the Goodman stage in the I AM…Fest performance of THE INTERROGATION OF SANDRA BLAND. They performed on the Neo-Futurists stage in THE ARROW – ONE NIGHT ONLY and assistant directed THE ARROW TAKES A LEAP and THE ARROW CLEANS HOUSE. Vic was an FYI (For Youth Inquiry) actor teaching youth sexual health through immersive and interactive plays. They love the worlds of performance, writing, and dance. Those worlds give birth to communities all while connecting folks with and to themselves. These are all ways of communicating in a world that tries to stifle our voices.
Our Mission
About Face Theatre advances LGBTQ+ equity through community building, education, and performance.
Our Vision
About Face Theatre envisions an affirming and equitable world in which all LGBTQ+ individuals are thriving and free from prejudice and discrimination.
Anti-racism Statement
About Face Theatre is dedicated to being an intentionally and increasingly anti-racist organization. Due to the intersectionality of our identities, we understand our work to advance LGBTQ+ equity as directly connected to movements for racial justice.
Thank you to our Generous Funders
For a complete list of our donors and supporters, please visit our Support Us page.
BECOME AN ABOUT FACE SUPPORTER TODAY!
Today, it’s more important than ever to tell bold, powerful LGBTQ+ stories on stage, in our communities, and now online. About Face Theatre’s work is a powerful catalyst for moving forward local and national conversations on sexual and gender identity. During AFT’s 2019-2020 season, we persisted through amazing challenges to continue to connect with our community and continue telling LGBTQ stories.
- Our in-person and virtual productions and educational programming reached almost 4,800 community members
- Our community outreach production adapted its stories for the internet, creating the amazing Power in Pride at Home web series
- AFT’s Youth Ensemble and Youth Task Force produced online cabarets that reached more than twice as many viewers as our in-person events
With your help, we will continue to adapt and expand our impact into Chicago communities and beyond.
