Staff

Anthony P. Pennino has been director of Metropolitan New Works since the spring of 2003. East Village Chronicles were his invention, and he coordinates the commissioning of plays and contacts with playwrights.
Mr. Pennino himself is is a playwright and director who has been working in the off-off-Broadway community for years. His New York City playwriting credits include: Call It Peace: Meditations from North America (2003, 13th Street Rep; 2002, Jade Productions); Call It Peace: The Long, Twilight Struggle (2002, Jade Productions); The A-Train Plays (2002 and 2003, Neighborhood Playhouse); “Avatar” (2002, Native Aliens); Story of an Unknown Man (2000, Gorilla Rep); and “Forgeries of Jealousy” (2000, Gorilla Rep).
Call It Peace: Meditations from North America was also produced at the Finborough Theatre in London, United Kingdom in 2002 as was Survivors the previous year. Pennino has also written extensively for the radio with his World War II series City of Shadows. New York directing credits include: Kerouac by Tom O’Neal, A Soldier’s Death by Tom O’Neal, “Falling Through the Cracks” by Craig Pospisil, Washington Square Dreams for Gorilla Rep, and Poor Fellas by Marc Palmieri. Martin Denton of nytheatre.com has written of Pennino, “[S]uch audacious originality marks this playwright as one we need to keep our eyes on.” “Mr. Pennino's skill as a playwright is clearly demonstrated in his manipulation of themes. He deconstructs international politics and Western philosophy through a paradigm shift from the national to the individual experience,” notes The Columbia Spectator. “Forgeries of Jealousy” has been published by New York Theatre Experience. He has been interviewed by both NPR (for its documentary Unscripted: The New York Theatre Responds to 9/11) and WNYU.

Mr. Pennino holds an M.F.A. in Playwriting from Columbia University, and a Ph.D. in Dramatic Literature from the University of London. He is a member of the Workshop at Neighborhood Playhouse, The Players, and The Dramatists Guild of America.


		Metropolitan Playhouse The American Legacy 220 East Fourth Street ~ New York, New York 10009 Office: 212 995 8410 ~ Tickets: 212 995 5302 "One of my favorite downtown theaters" ~ Martin Denton, nytheatre.com						First Name Last Name
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Staff
Alex Roe: Artistic Director	Alex Roe has produced, directed, acted, and taught around the country and abroad for the past twenty years. Founder and Artistic Director of the Illegitimate Theatre Company in San Francisco, he also worked for American Conservatory Theatre, the San Francisco Shakespeare Festival, and the Delaware Theatre Company before coming to New York in 1993. He has worked for many Off-Off-Broadway companies, including Expanded Arts, Gallery Players, Kings County Shakespeaere, Falstaff Presents, Gorilla Repertory, Abingdon Theatre Company, Basic Theatre, Gilgamesh Theatre Group, Ambrosia Productions, Westside Repertory, and American Globe Theatre. Drawing on his background in comparative literature and theatre at Harvard, his direction concentrates on both new presentations of Western classics and the first productions of new plays, typically created with the performing ensemble. He has also adapted numerous classic texts into modern English. His 1997 production of The Way of the World for Blue Coat Repertory won the off-off-broadway review Award for excellence, and his production of Chekhov’s The Cherry Orchard represented the United States at the Second International Russian Theatre Festival in Paris in November, 1999. Mr. Roe has taught over the same period in high schools, theatres, and privately. Two years as an English Teacher--one of those in Shrewsbury, England--complement his directing, acting, and playwriting classes. Currently, he concentrates on teaching Shakespeare and leading hands-on playwriting workshops. In addition to his artistic work, Mr. Roe has assisted numerous companies produce their projects. He was theatre manager for Theatre Row Studios in New York City, responsible for renting and maintaining four theatres on Theatre Row. Additionally, he co-produced his presentations with Expanded Arts, American Globe and Gilgamesh. Mr. Roe envisions a theater as a local arts institution devoted to serving its community with the best intimate, professional theatre; outdoor summer productions; educational programs for area students; children’s entertainment for the community’s families; and a warmly inviting gathering place for the neighborhood to meet through the unifying power of theatre.
KimberlyWadsworth: Dramaturg	Ms. Wadsworth has worked with the Metropolitan Playhouse as literary manager and dramaturg since 1998. With a BA in theater from New York University, she marries a comprehensive knowledge of American theatrical history to a voracious appetite for more information and has proven an invaluable resource in the Playhouse’s search for lesser known American plays of high merit and historical source material. She has also maintained an aggressive review of new scripts and spearheaded the successful search for contemporary playwrights whose work suit the company’s mission and high standards of literary merit. Further, her comprehensive and thoughtful production guides have deepened the experience for the audiences of many Metropolitan productions. Supplementing her literary work, Ms. Wadsworth has worked as a stage manager for numerous Metropolitan productions and presentations by other Manhattan theaters, including 29th Street Repertory, Bombshell Productions, the 11th Hour Company, and Reverie Productions. She is a member of Actors Equity Association. Other work has included production assistant and associate web site editor for the ESPN outdoor television series The Walker’s Cay Chronicles.
Yvonne Conybeare: Resident Director	Ms. Conybeare has directed for Gallery Players, Abingdon Theater Company, and Metropolitan Playhouse, leading the company’s revivals of The City, Missouri Legend, Inheritors, and The Show-Off. She founded an improvisational theater company in Dresden, Germany, and for six years helped manage New York’s Freestyle Repertory. She is currenly on the faculty of Clark University, where she teaches improvisation and directing. Ms. Conybeare holds and MFA in directing from Brooklyn College and is a member of the SSDC.
Anthony P. Pennino: Director of New Works	Anthony P. Pennino has been director of Metropolitan New Works since the spring of 2003. East Village Chronicles were his invention, and he coordinates the commissioning of plays and contacts with playwrights. Mr. Pennino himself is is a playwright and director who has been working in the off-off-Broadway community for years. His New York City playwriting credits include: Call It Peace: Meditations from North America (2003, 13th Street Rep; 2002, Jade Productions); Call It Peace: The Long, Twilight Struggle (2002, Jade Productions); The A-Train Plays (2002 and 2003, Neighborhood Playhouse); “Avatar” (2002, Native Aliens); Story of an Unknown Man (2000, Gorilla Rep); and “Forgeries of Jealousy” (2000, Gorilla Rep). Call It Peace: Meditations from North America was also produced at the Finborough Theatre in London, United Kingdom in 2002 as was Survivors the previous year. Pennino has also written extensively for the radio with his World War II series City of Shadows. New York directing credits include: Kerouac by Tom O’Neal, A Soldier’s Death by Tom O’Neal, “Falling Through the Cracks” by Craig Pospisil, Washington Square Dreams for Gorilla Rep, and Poor Fellas by Marc Palmieri. Martin Denton of nytheatre.com has written of Pennino, “[S]uch audacious originality marks this playwright as one we need to keep our eyes on.” “Mr. Pennino's skill as a playwright is clearly demonstrated in his manipulation of themes. He deconstructs international politics and Western philosophy through a paradigm shift from the national to the individual experience,” notes The Columbia Spectator. “Forgeries of Jealousy” has been published by New York Theatre Experience. He has been interviewed by both NPR (for its documentary Unscripted: The New York Theatre Responds to 9/11) and WNYU. Mr. Pennino holds an M.F.A. in Playwriting from Columbia University, and a Ph.D. in Dramatic Literature from the University of London. He is a member of the Workshop at Neighborhood Playhouse, The Players, and The Dramatists Guild of America.
Rachael Kosch: Director of Children's Programming	Rachael Kosch has made ballets for her company The Kangaroo Garden and for New York Theater Ballet. She works with child dancers at The Martha Graham School of Contemporary Dance and at Ballet School New York. She has produces concerts of her work at Merce Cunningham Studio, Dancespace Project at St. Mark’s Church, and Judson Memorial Church. Her choreography has been presented by New Music Chicago, American Women Composers, Mo Ming Dance and Arts Center (Chicago), The Dance Center of Columbia College, Chicago, and festivals at Westbeth Artists Residence.