Meet the Cast & Creative Team

GRUESOME PLAYGROUND INJURIES
by Rajiv Joseph
October 18 - November 10, 2024

CAST

Ashley Renée Scott (Kayleen) is thrilled to be making her New Jersey stage debut, and she feels especially honored to do so in her hometown of Jersey City with Art House Productions. A Colorado native, Ashley earned her degree in Film, TV, and Theater from the University of Colorado. Some of her notable theater credits include Bingo Boyz Columbine (Lida Project), Martha in Strange Snow (Playhouse West), Viola in Twelfth Night (To Be Productions), Jeanie in Good People (Playhouse West), and Carol Cutrere in Orpheus Descending (Vision Box). For her film credits, you can check out her IMDB. In Los Angeles, she studied, performed, and taught Meisner technique at Playhouse West, and worked at the Hollywood Film Lab, teaching film. Additionally, she taught acting and audition technique in Paris, France (Paris Meisner), where her students continue to work globally.


Mario C. Brown (Doug), a New York City native, began his acting career in 2012. Since then, he has appeared in productions such as Othello, Ring Round the Moon, and The Dutchman, and originated roles in stage productions such as Vinny Lyman’s War Stories. In 2018, Mario portrayed Walter Lee Younger in the AUDELCO Award-nominated production of Lorraine Hansberry’s A Raisin in the Sun. His film credits include Empty Spaces, An Afternoon in Monte Carlo, and the award-winning feature Out of Breath. Mario strives to bring specificity and honesty to every performance, immersing himself in the cosmic harmony of collaboration.

CREATIVE TEAM



Catriona Runenis-Stevens (Director) is a multi-award-winning director and producer and was part of the team that went to the 93rd Academy Awards with the Oscar nominated live action short, Feeling Through. She has directed several award-winning short films for the Easterseals’ Disability Film Challenge that have screened across America at top tier festivals including Slamdance, Hollyshorts, and Heartland. Her film, e.ro.sion, noun screened at over 20 festivals worldwide, including The Sci-Fi London Film Festival, SoHo International Film Festival, and the Fargo Fantastic Film Festival, receiving numerous wins including Best Director and Best Film. Her foreign language short, The Path Of Avarice, was a finalist for Best Director at the BBC Alba Awards in Glasgow, Scotland. She is currently now on the festival circuit again with her 4th feature film as producer, Regarding Us, her disability comedy shorts, Unlucky In Love and Best Friends Forever, and her multiple Shorty Award winning music video, Lift Me Up, a tribute to Judy Heumann which was in consideration for Best Music Video at the 65th Annual Grammy Awards and was selected to play at the Diversity Day at the Cannes Film Festival 2024. Catriona also directs and produces the annual Zombie Opera, an experiential concert featuring international opera singers and a 20-piece orchestra that attracts audiences of 4000 people. She is an established theater director in New York and New Jersey, directing shows including the world premiere of Allerleirauh, The Wizard of Oz, Cats, Oklahoma!, Anything Goes, Hairspray, The Lion King, Oliver, Into The Woods, and Spring Awakening.


Naomi Gayner (Stage Manager) is eager to be a part of this production! Naomi recently graduated from the University of Delaware in May, majoring in Criminal Justice and minoring in Dance. During her time, she was a member of E-52 Student Theatre, where she wore many hats! Naomi has been Production Manager for She Kills Monsters, Clue: On Stage, and Twelve Angry Jurors. She has also choreographed for multiple E-52 productions, including Working: A Musical, The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, and Into The Woods. Her favorite moment was directing The One-Act Play That Goes Wrong in November 2023, as her production won a YouDee Leadership Award for Outstanding Program/Event at the University of Delaware! She also dabbles (heavily) in acting in Shrek: The Musical Jr. (Donkey), The Game’s Afoot (Inspector Goring), and Into The Woods (Rapunzel’s Prince). Naomi has also finished her 16th year at Next Step Broadway JC, having danced there since opening in 2008 and serving as Summer Camp Co-Director for the last two years. With Cat being a former acting teacher, she’s excited to reconnect professionally (while she’s not a brooding teenager). Naomi wants to thank Cat, Ashley, and Art House Productions Inc. for this opportunity!

Sarah Woods (Lighting Designer) is a lighting designer for the stage and proud resident of downtown Jersey City. Previously at Art House: Tracy Jones and Return to the Sugar Factory for Tris McCall. Sarah designed the rep lighting grid for the Art House theater before its opening in 2023. Sarah has lit theater, dance, opera, and nightlife productions all over NYC and NJ. Previous designs include Cursed (HERE Arts Center), Cry It Out (Divine Riot). She was a member of the lighting team on McNeal (Broadway), Distant Thunder (Off-Bway at A.R.T./NY), The Great Qin (in Xi’an, China) and many others. Upcoming credits include Lonely Planet at Luna Stage and Duality Off-Bway at A.R.T./NY. Sarah holds a BFA in Lighting Design from Mason Gross School of the Arts at Rutgers University. You can keep up with her work at woodslighting.com or on Instagram @woodslighting.

Lauren Eather (Assistant Stage Manager)
Kiera Dillon (Sound Designer)
Patrick Saint Jean (Costume Designer)
Alexandra Gongolski (Properties & Set Designer)
Stacy Smith-Eginton (Makeup Consultant)

Laia Cabrera (Video Installation Artist) is an award-winning filmmaker and video artist working internationally between Europe and the United States, in the fields of art installations and new cinema. Her diverse body of work—ranging from traditional and experimental filmmaking, visual poetry, interactive art, and immersive projection mapping installations—has been commissioned by major institutions and exhibited globally in leading venues, art galleries, and festivals. Themes of identity and consciousness are central to her work, exploring concepts such as otherness, symbolism, hope, perception, the art of seeing and the nature of belonging.

Isabelle Duverger (Video Installation Artist) is an award-winning French painter and installation artist based in Jersey City. Her practice spans paintings, public art, immersive interactive video installations, video art, and animation. Her work focuses on the relationship between emotions and body language, the observation of patterns, imaginary landscapes and how the human presence interacts with these environments, as well as the pursuit of new artistic languages through technology. Together, Cabrera and Duverger explore innovative approaches to utilizing space and visual imagery as tools for narrative storytelling and audience engagement. Their work is shaped by both scenographic and dramaturgical elements, crafting immersive experiences that connect deeply with viewers. Recent installations include the New York's first largest video interactive public art installation, "The Now" (Times Square, New York); the interactive piece "Dream-e-scape" (Flutter Gallery, Los Angeles; Microwave Festival, Hong Kong; Film Criticism Conference, Riyadh); and the immersive installation “Perennial Land,” set to be presented at the United Nations COP-16 in Cali, Colombia. Past presentations and exhibitions include the Spring/Break Art Show, Times Square Plaza, St. John the Divine Cathedral, NJPAC, Teatros del Canal in Madrid, Fabra i Coats Contemporary Art Center in Barcelona, Tempietto di Bramante in Rome, and Hong Kong City Hall. Their interdisciplinary work has also been extensively showcased in collaboration with theater, dance, and multimedia productions.