LAWRENCE HELMAN PUBLIC RELATIONS – E MAIL - lhelman@sbcglobal.netTel. 415 /661- 1260 / Cell. 415/ 336- 8220 (DO NOT PUBLISH THIS #)

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: May 27, 2016

For press materials and hi-res color press photos, visit: www.sfmt.org/Press/index.php

Tony Award-Winning SAN FRANCISCO MIME TROUPEOpens 57th Season with SchooledJuly 2 – Sept. 5, 2016www.sfmt.orgwww.facebook.com/sfmimetroupewww.instagram.com/SFTrouperswww.twitter.com/SFTroupers

Schedule by Date: www.sfmt.org/schedule/images/schedulebyorder2016.pdf

Schedule by Area: http://www.sfmt.org/schedule/images/schedulebyarea2016.pdf

(Schedules can be accessed on the press page at): www.sfmt.org/Press/index.php SFMT Promo: www.youtube.com/watch?v=tB8s3AaK_2c&feature=youtu.beEducation. It’s like the weather: everyone has an opinion but nobody does anything about it. That’s how Lavinia Jones feels about her son Thomas’ new school, Eleanor Roosevelt High. Decades of funding cuts have resulted in old textbooks, crumbling classrooms, and underpaid teachers, making Roosevelt exactly the sort of public school that has failed students time and time again. Isn't it time for something… efficient? And efficient is exactly what Fredersen Babbit, from Learning Academy for Virtual Achievement (LAVA Corp.), promises to bring to the district. New Technology, remote learning, computer-generated teachers –LAVA promises to put the “virtual” in achievement! But with kids learning from home, do we need all these empty schools? And with privatization on the line, a Wall Street heavy hitter on one side and a feisty octogenarian teacher Ethel Orocuru on the other, suddenly the next School Board election is more about a hidden agenda than the open curriculum. Are schools the last chance for democracy, or is education the next frontier for profit? Can we trust a politician’s public/private plan to replace an out-of-date system, or is there something even more sinister than privatization going on behind the doors of LAVA? And wait - when did the hall monitors start wearing brown shirts and arm bands? When it comes to the real plan for the future of education – and of our democracy - are we all about to get... Schooled?

Schooled is written by Michael Gene Sullivan and Eugenie Chan.Music & lyrics by Ira Marlowe. Directed by: Michael Gene Sullivan.Music director: Daniel Savio. Musicians include: William Durkee, Dominic Moisant, and Daniel Savio.

SAN FRANCISCO MIME TROUPE PRESENTS - Schooled - 2016 Summer

Schooled features veteran SF Mime Troupe collective members: Velina Brown (Lavinia Jones, Estelle), Rotimi Agbabiaka (Thomas Jones, Arthur Quisdedo), Keiko Shimosato-Carreiro (Ethel Orocuru), Lisa Hori-Garcia (Michiko Chimlis, Fredersen. Babbit). 

Tech credits for Schooled include: Scenic Designer: Jay Lasnik; Costume Designer: Blake More; Props Master: Marie Cartier; Sound Designers/Operators: Keith Arcuragi and Taylor Gonzalez; Technical Director: Loid M Loid; Prod. Stage Manager & Web Programmer: Karen Runk; Tour Manager: Junelle-Johannah Taguas; Publicity: Lawrence Helman; Photography: DavidAllenStudio.com; Poster Design: Jolene Russell.

To arrange an interview with writers, actors, or anyone from the SFMime Troupe Collective, please call or e-mail publicist Lawrence Helman at 415/ 661-1260 lhelman@sbcglobal.net

Schooled plays July 2 – Sept. 5, 2016 Bay Area Openings: East Bay – Sat. July 2 & Sun. July 3 – Cedar Rose Park, San Francisco – Mon. July 4 – Dolores Park; and running throughout the Bay Area in SF, the North Bay, East Bay, Peninsula, Sacramento, Davis, Nevada City, and 3 Northern CA shows. All park shows are free and open to the public. Additional ticketed shows: Point Arena – Wed. July 13, Redway – Sat, July 16, and two indoor shows at SFMT Studio Space in SF – Wed. Aug. 3 & Thurs. Aug. 4, 2016.

For a complete schedule and more information, visit www.sfmt.org or call 415-285-1717. Additional info on SFMT and community organizations is made available at information tables at each of our park shows.

Character Breakdown:

Lavinia Jones: Black mother is very protective of her son, Thomas - given the violence against black boys - but also because of the prejudice in the school system in regards to punishment and grading. Lavinia assumes everyone is racist, and believes she has to be proactive to give him the best possible chance in a system tilted against him. Wants her son to be an entrepreneur.

Thomas Jones: Black student is an average kid who deals of being a professional YouTube gamer. He wants to live in an online world - which he sees as post racial. Doesn’t go to protests, doesn’t get what the big deal is, and is always embarrassed when his mother stands up to defend/save him. 

Michiko Chamlis: Asian/Latino student is average kid - works hard, but sucks at math. Assumes Blacks are ignorant. Secretly very interested in politics, very activist - but parents don’t know/wouldn’t approve. Student Body President, and much to the chagrin of her parents - basketball jock.

Edith Orocuru: Old Teacher has been around forever, and knows everything - except computers. Still uses personal mimeograph machine (loves the smell). Product of the Great Society, values Liberal and Classical education, but hasn’t shifted headset to multiculturalism. Still a bit racist, sexist.

Mr. Fredersen Babbit: Young, passionless, interested in new economy, new tech, new newness. Believes the future will belong to the most efficient. Libertarian product of economic school who sees history as a bar to progress, and traditional education as a non-productive example of a too humanistic approach to cold reality. CEO of Learning Academy for Virtual Achievement. Sees himself as one of the shapers of the future. Vows to “Make American Schools Great Again.” Also a real estate developer.

SAN FRANCISCO MIME TROUPE PRESENTS - Schooled - 2016 Summer

Arthur Quisdedo: Very popular and personable outgoing school board president. Has overseen the increased public/private partnership in the school district. 

Estelle: A cheerleader for the Eleanor Roosevelt Honey Badgers. A student who will cheer with any crowd - regardless of what they are cheering for…

Tatianna: Mr. Babbit’s Russian secretary, and lover.

Q: Why do you call yourself a Mime Troupe if you talk and sing?We use the term “mime” in its classical and original definition, "The exaggeration of daily life in story and song." It is a form of popular theater that is as old as the marketplace itself. From the ancient Greek and Roman farces to the Renaissance commedia dell'Arte to modern Chinese Opera, using archetypes comically to illustrate people's issues is a time honored worldwide tradition. Our broadly drawn characters are instantly recognizable allowing the audience to immediately engage in the action. Our work is political satire and anything but silent.

News of SF Mime Troupe for 2016:

SF Mime Troupe seeks to Expand:

"Funded by a grant from the SF Arts Commission, the Troupe has completed an initial Feasibility Study that has determined what process, permits and design criteria are necessary to realize SFMT’s dream of enhancing and expanding our 855 Treat St. home in SF so that it will better serve the SF Mime Troupe and our community. Aided by the skillful B.A.R. Architects, Bay Hill Builders, and other talented local professionals, initial plans include a black box theater, workshop and gallery space, expanded production facilities, and residential space for visiting artists. Adhering to the Troupe's commitment to alternative energy, the entire compound will be net-zero, resource self-sustaining, with multiple water conservation systems."

SFMT Awarded prestigious grant from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.

In May 2016 the first of our 3 teaching teams hit the road, beginning an exciting project funded by the prestigious Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF). The foundation's primary focus is health on both the individual and community levels. They've asked us to bring the SF Mime Troupe’s collaborative playmaking workshops to rural disenfranchised communities. Health is the burning issue that will inform and generate more specific discussions about subjects which will mold the one act plays that will be performed in each respective community. Velina Brown and Mario Gonzales will be the first team out - heading to Golden Valley High School in Merced, CA. They will be followed by Wilma Bonet and Hugo E Carbajal, who will facilitate the workshops at Buena Vista Migrant Center in Watsonville, CA. Finally, Ed Holmes and Bob Ernst will work with the inmates of Salinas Valley Prison (formerly Soledad).

Each group will spend 2 weeks learning theatrical skills and creating an original one-act play on a health topic that is pertinent to their community. Workshops led by the teachers will help guide the discussion with the participants about what health means to the participants on a personal, societal, and planetary level.  Upon the workshop’s conclusion, the participants will perform their plays locally use them as an activists tool in their community. In the autumn, the SFMT will weave the different elements and into a larger fourth play adding music and songs.to highlight the common threads. In early 2017 the Troupe will return to the original workshop communities and perform staged readings of the new combined play. In post-show discussions, feedback provided by the original workshop

SAN FRANCISCO MIME TROUPE PRESENTS - Schooled - 2016 Summer

participants will help inform the play’s continuing development hopefully generating a piece that can bring these issues to an even broader audience around California and the nation.

SAN FRANCISCO MIME TROUPE PRESENTS - Schooled - 2016 Summer

SF Mime Troupe gets a dubious shout out on CNN in March 2016: Congressional 2015 Waste Awards by Congressman Steve Russell (R- OK) (author of 4 Waste Watch books). Who's blowing your tax money? CNN's Jake Tapper speaks to one lawmaker who calls out organizations that are receiving federal funds for unusual reasons.http://tinyurl.com/hz9ojcq (The SF Mime Troupe received $20,000 in 2015 and just $10,000 in 2014)

SF Mime Troupe History:

Founded in 1959 by R.G. Davis, as an experimental project of the Actors’ workshop, the San Francisco Mime Troupe’s early works were…silent, (but not pantomime) avant-garde pieces that today would be called performance art. By the early sixties, the SF Mime Troupe began performing spoken plays with character archetypes drawn directly from the Commedia dell’Arte. Continuing in the broad styles of popular theater, the Troupe’s productions became overtly political.

In 1965, the city's Recreation and Park Commission revoked the troupe’s performance permit, on grounds of "obscenity". Refusing to allow his company to be censored, on August 7, 1965, R.G. Davis attempted to perform Il Candelaio in Lafayette Park, loudly announcing to his audience: “today for your appreciation, we perform an arrest,” as Davis was swept up by the police for performing without a permit. The ensuing court case, argued by Marvin Stender, established the right of artists to perform uncensored in the city's parks. The SFMT has opened a new show in the parks every summer since.

In 1965, future rock impresario Bill Graham, then the company's business manager, organized his first rock dance/light show at the Fillmore Auditorium as a bail benefit for the SFMT.

In 1965, Davis, Saul Landau, and a racially mixed group of actors created A MINSTREL SHOW, OR CIVIL RIGHTS IN A CRACKER BARREL, using a historically racist form to attack racism in both its redneck and liberal varieties. The Student Non-Violent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) sponsored performances around the country, the Troupe began its life as a touring company.

In 1970 Davis left the Troupe, and the company became collectively run: Instead of a single Artistic Director the Troupe - a company dedicated to telling the stories of workers – committed itself to being run by its workers. They then began a series of experiments with industrial-era popular theater forms: melodrama and its descendants: science fiction and spy thriller.

Adding music, songs, and physical comedy the Mime Troupe’s style solidified and its national and global popularity increased. In addition to performing, the Troupe has taught workshops on both the SFMT “style” and its unique method of collaborative playmaking. The Mime Troupe also has a youth theater component - its Youth Theater Project, which bring student from underserved communities to the Troupe’s studio to study playmaking with veteran Troupers, and the Young California Writer’s Project, which send a veteran Troupe writer into locals schools to teach the art of activist playwriting.

In 1987, the Troupe's Brechtian style of guerrilla theatre earned them a special Tony Award for Excellence in Regional Theater. The Troupe has since been nominated for and received multiple awards, including OBIE, Drama-Logue, Bay Area Drama Critic Circle, and Theatre Bay Area awards - most recently for its 2015 production of its critically-acclaimed tragic farce, FREEDOMLAND. In its 50 years the Troupe has performed at The Israel Festival (1990), The Festival of People’s Theater (Canada, 1991), The Asian People’s Theatre Festival (Hong Kong, 1996), The Kwachon International Open Air Theatre Festival (Korea, 1998), The International Festival of Theatre Action (Belgium, 1998), the Festival of Verbal Heroes (Germany, 2001), as well as performances in France,

SAN FRANCISCO MIME TROUPE PRESENTS - Schooled - 2016 Summer

Nicaragua, Columbia, Cuba, Off-Broadway, The Kennedy Center for the Arts, and in tours across the United States. Yet the Bay Area parks still remain the Troupe’s home stage.

Post Show discussions associated with SF Mime Troupe’s production of SCHOOLED

The Mime Troupe has invited guest speakers to participate in post-show discussions about the privatization of public education at select shows. Our invited guests will join the SCHOOLED collective, cast members for 30 minute post-show discussions for the following performances:

Sat., July 9, Live Oak Park in Berkeley James (Lynn) Woodworth, Quantitative Research Analyst at CREDO (Center for Research

on Education Outcomes) at Stanford University

Erik-Jon Gibson, full time actor in the Bay Area; took on the character of "Poder" in Docudrama play by Milta Ortiz entitled MAS, which stands for Mexican American studies

Wed., Aug 3, SF Mime Troupe Studio Gregory Keech, Department Chair of the ESL (English as a Second Language) Program

at City College of San Francisco

Frank Adamson, Senior Policy and Research Analyst at the Stanford Center for Opportunity Policy in Education (SCOPE)

Sat., Aug 6, Santa Cruz Ronald David Glass, Professor of Philosophy of Education at UC Santa Cruz, Director, UC

Center for Collaborative Research for an Equitable California (CCREC)

Sat., Aug 13, Glen Park in SF Jeremiah Jeffries, Board member and founding coordinator for Teacher 4 Social Justice;

First Grade Teacher at Redding Elementary School; Board president for the Center for Critical Environmental Global Literacy (CCEGL)

Lita Blanc, President of United Educators of San Francisco

Sat., Aug 20, Willard Park in Berkeley Eric Heins, President of California Teachers Association

Derek Mitchell, Chief Executive Officer at Partners in School in Innovation

Sun., Sept 4, Dolores Park in SF David L Kirp, Professor of Public Policy at UC Berkeley; Author of ‘Improbable Scholars: The

Rebirth of a Great American School System and a Strategy for America's Schools’

Grace Wakefield, Resident in the San Francisco Teacher Residency Program and the Education Preparation Student Liaison to the California Commission on Teacher Credentialing (CTC); Co-founded the Future Teachers Association at University of San Francisco

Please check website www.sfmt.org for more information.

SAN FRANCISCO MIME TROUPE PRESENTS - Schooled - 2016 Summer

Bios:

DIRECTION & SCRIPT:Michael Gene Sullivan (Director, Writer, SFMT Collective) has performed in, written, and/or directed over thirty SFMT productions. As an actor Sullivan has also appeared in productions at the American Conservatory Theater, Denver Center Theater Company, Theatreworks, SF Playhouse, Magic Theatre, Lorraine Hansberry Theater, SF Shakespeare Festival, Berkeley Repertory Theater, San Jose Repertory Theater, off-Broadway, as well as the Festival of Verbal Heroes (Germany), The Kwachon Int’l. Open Air Theatre Festival (Korea), International Festival of Theater Action (Belgium), The Festival of People’s Theater (Canada), The Asian People’s Theatre Festival (Hong Kong), and The Israel Festival. Michael has been a principal actor in SF Mime Troupe plays since 1988, performing in Freedomland, Ripple Effect, 2012: The Musical, Posibilidad, Too Big To Fail, Making a Killing, Godfellas, Doing Good, Showdown at Crawford Gulch, Mister Smith Goes to Obscuristan, Eating it, Damaged Care, Soul Suckers form Outer Space, Revenger Rat, Escape to Cyberia, Offshore, Social Work, I Ain't You uncle, Back to Normal, Rats, Seeing Double, and Ripped Van Winkle. In addition to directing SFMT shows, such as Schooled, For The Greater Good, Red State, Veronique of the Mounties, 1600 Transylvania Avenue, Killing Time, and Coast City Confidential, Michael has also directed for the SF Shakespeare Festival, African American Shakespeare Company, Mystic Bison Theater, and Circus Finelli. In 1992 Michael became a Contributing Writer for the SFMT, and the Resident Playwright in 2000, and his scripts for SFMT include Schooled (with Eugenie Chan) Freedomland, Ripple Effect (with Eugenie Chan and Tanya Shaffer), For The Greater Good, Posibilidad, Too Big To Fail (2009 nominee, Best Original Script, SF Bay Area Theater Critics Circle), Red State (2008 nominee, Best Original Script, SF Bay Area Theater Critics Circle), Making A Killing, GodFellas, Showdown at Crawford Gulch, Veronique of the Mounties, Mr. Smith Goes to Obscruristan, and 1600 Transylvania Avenue. As a contributing writer his SFMT scripts include Eating it, Soul Suckers From Outer Space, Escape to Cyberia, Offshore, and Social Work. His non-SFMT scripts include his all-woman political farce Recipe, (Central Works, winner of the Israel Baran Playwriting Award,) his adaptation of Dickens' A Christmas Carol (Open Door Theatre, Sheffield, England), the historical drama fugitive/slave/act, and his award-winning one person show, Did Anyone Ever Tell You - You Look Like Huey P. Newton? Michael is also a Resident Playwright for San Francisco’s Playwright Foundation, and his critically acclaimed stage adaptation of George Orwell's dystopic novel 1984 opened at the Actors' Gang Theatre under the direction of Tim Robbins in 2006, and has since been performed in Europe, Asia, Australia, Central and South America, has had several tours of the USA, and has been published in two languages, and translated into Spanish, Russian, and Catalan. Michael is also a blogger for the political website, The Huffington Post. Visit Michael’s website.

Eugenie Chan (Writer) is a SF-based playwright. Theater/Opera: Cutting Ball Theater, SF Mime Troupe, Magic Theater, Public Theater, Playwrights Horizons, Houston Grand Opera: HGOco and others. Film: Berlin Int’l., Mill Valley, Big Apple, Cinestory, DisOrient, San Diego Asian Film Festivals. Alumna: New Dramatists, Playwrights Foundation. Playwright Emerita, Cutting Ball. Member, 6NewPlays, a Bay Area playwriting & producing collective. Eugenie teaches at the USF’s Performing Arts & Social Justice Department. Artistic Director: Eugenie Chan Theater Projects. Past SF Mime Troupe collaborations: Ripple Effect and GodFellas.

Daniel Savio (Musical Director, Musician) started his professional theater career playing for the SF Mime Troupe, participating in the tours for GodFellas ('06), Making a Killing ('07), and Freedomland ('15), and is delighted to be back in the pit this summer. He recently was co-composer/lyricist, with SFMT vet Bruce Barthol, of the play FSM ('14, Stagebridge Senior Theater), written by fellow SFMT vet Joan Holden. Daniel has composed the scores of 4 musicals for young audiences at Stagebridge, all with book and lyrics by Josiah Polhemus. He also composed original music for an early production of Lauren Yee's A Man, His Wife, and his Hat ('11, AlterTheater). Daniel plays keyboards for The 808 Band, winner of the 2011 North Bay Bohemian Award for Best Hip Hop Band, which has backed many hip hop and reggae performers including KRS-ONE, MC Radioactive, and Robert Herrera. He has performed as an improv pianist with the Antic Witties, the Un-Scripted Theater Company, 6th Street Improv!, and the Midnight Matinee. Daniel has a BA in Music from the UC t Santa Cruz and currently studies with Bay Area composer Michael Kaulkin.

SAN FRANCISCO MIME TROUPE PRESENTS - Schooled - 2016 Summer

Ira Marlowe (Composer, Lyrist) songs have been described as "four-minute movies", and have appeared nationally in places from NPR to Dr. Demento. He's won the SF Weekly "Best of the Bay" song competition, the Napa Valley Music Festival, and the Songs Inspired by Literature contest, earning a spot alongside David Bowie, Tom Waits, Steve Earle and Roseanne Cash on a CD benefiting adult literacy programs. Aside from his music for adults, he's also released five acclaimed kids' CDs on his own BrainyTunes label. In June of 2012, he opened The Monkey House a storefront theater in Berkeley hosting a variety of entertaining performers. His latest challenge is the Song-a-Week Project, with a growing audience of subscribers who receive the new song he writes and records every week of 2016. Ira served as composer/lyricist for the 2014's Ripple Effect and the 2015 show Freedomland.

CAST:

Rotimi Agbabiaka (Actor, SFMT Collective) is thrilled to back on the SF Mime Troupe stage after performing as a principal actor, in Oil & Water and Posibilidad, or Death of The Worker, and as an understudy in Freedomland. He most recently appeared in Sojourners (Disciple) and runboyrun (boy) at Magic Theatre, Hair (Hud) with Bay Area Musicals, Holiday High Jinx (Dancing Dan) with Word for Word, Choir Boy (Junior) at Marin Theatre Company, The Amen Corner (David) with Alter Theater, We Are Proud To Present... (Another Black Man) at Just Theater, and Raisin in The Sun (Asagai) at Cal Shakes. He is a collective member of the SF Mime Troupe, a former cast member at Beach Blanket Babylon, and his solo play, Homeless, won Best Solo Performance at the SF Fringe Festival. Mr. Agbabiaka also teaches with the SF Mime Troupe's Youth Theater Project, SF Shakes, and Each One Reach One. He has directed for the SF One Minute Play Festival and writes articles for Theatre Bay Area magazine. He studied at Moscow Art Theatre and earned his MFA from Northern Illinois University. Visit Rotimi’s website.

Velina Brown (Actor, SFMT Collective) has been a principal performer for the Mime Troupe in such shows as City for Sale, Eating It, 1600 Transylvania Avenue, Mr. Smith Goes to Obscuristan, and Showdown at Crawford Gulch to name a few. She was the Devil in Deal With the Devil, Veronique in Veronique of the Mounties, she's played Condoleeza Rice three times, and was both an actor and Contributing Lyricist on GodFellas and Making a Killing. Velina's most recent shows with the Troupe include Ripple Effect, For The Greater Good: Or the Last Election, Red State, Too Big to Fail, and Posibilidad: Or Death of the Worker for which she won Best Principal Actress by the Bay Area Critics Circle. Earlier this year you may have seen Velina's critically acclaimed performance in New Conservatory Theatre's latest Terrance McNally piece Mothers and Sons. Other credits include A.C.T., Berkeley Repertory Theatre, Denver Center Theatre Company, Word for Word, Lorraine Hansberry Theater, Thick Description, SF Playhouse, Theatreworks as well as film (Bee Season with Richard Gere, Playing it Cool with Chris Evans and Milk with Sean Penn) and TV (Party of Five, Nash Bridges, Trauma, Final Witness). Velina is the founder and owner of the "Business of Show Biz", which offers career planning consultations and workshops for theater artists. She also writes a popular column of the same name for Theater Bay Area Magazine and is a contributing author of TBAs ATLAS (Advanced Training Leading Artists to Success) Manual. In 2012 she was honored as one of TBA's "35 Faces", artists who've made significant contributions to the Bay Area theater community. Visit Velina’s website.

Lisa Hori-Garcia (Actor, SFMT Collective) has been a principal actor for the SF Mime Troupe since 2004. Last year Lisa received a TBA Nomination for Best Principal Actress in a Musical for her performance in SFMT's show Freedomland. She has worked with Bay Area companies: Marin Theatre Company, Asian American Theater Company, Magic Theatre, Berkeley Rep, Woman's Will, Impact Theater, and Word for Word. Lisa is the program director and lead teacher with the SF Mime Troupe's Youth Theater Project and SFMT summer workshop. Lisa is a former Ensemble Member & Production Manager with New WORLD Theater in Amherst, MA and received her BA from Smith College and MFA in Acting from the USC. Visit Lisa’s webstie.

Keiko Shimosato Carreiro (Actor, SFMT Collective) was born in Cambridge MA. Keiko holds a BFA in Interdisciplinary Arts and an MA in Multimedia from the U of Iowa. She arrived in SF with the Horse Drawn, Caravan Stage Company of Canada. She has been an actor, designer and director for the SF Mime Troupe since 1987. Keiko has designed costumes for many other Bay Area Theater companies including, Berkeley

SAN FRANCISCO MIME TROUPE PRESENTS - Schooled - 2016 Summer

Rep, S.F. Shakespeare in the Parks, The Asian American Theater Company, African American Shakespeare Company, Crowded Fire and Custom Made Theater as well as the SF Mime Troupe. She has directed City for Sale and Gotta Getta Life for the SFMime Troupe, and Cowboy versus Samurai for the Asian American Theater Company. Keiko is very glad to be back on deck this summer for Schooled.

MUSICIANS:

William Durkee (Musician) was born in San Francisco in 1992. Will graduated from Redwood High School in Larkspur, CA, and then went to study art at California College of the Arts in Oakland. He received a BFA in painting from CCA in 2014. Currently living outside of Davis on a family art compound, Will is also a member of a studio warehouse called Third Space Art Collective. It is here that Will has been working to pursue his most wild dreams, like building a psychedelic double-neck guitar, in addition to painting, designing, and creating art + music every day. He is very excited to be working with SF Mime Troupe! Check Will out on FaceBook!

Dominic Moisant (Musician) is a Bay Area musician who began playing professionally at age 18. Dominic has a B.A. from Cal State University East Bay, where he studied with Artie Storch and Alan Hall learning classical percussion and jazz drum-set techniques. He has played for multiple groups and theatre companies including Broadway by the Bay in their production of Annie and The Berkeley Playhouse in numerous productions. Currently he is involved with the new SF-based company FOGG Theatre in their development of new musicals. He played drum-set and percussion for their first ever production, The Cable Car Nymphomaniac in January 2015 and the re-mount run in June. FOGG is currently in development on their 2nd production, Bottle Shock, The Musical, which had a preview performance 2015 and is set for opening Oct. 2016. Dominic also plays guitar, bass and piano. Click here to listen to his original music.

Daniel Savio (Musical Director, Musician) started his professional theater career playing for the SF Mime Troupe, participating in the tours for GodFellas ('06), Making a Killing ('07), and Freedomland ('15), and is delighted to be back in the pit this summer. He recently was co-composer/lyricist, with SFMT vet Bruce Barthol, of the play FSM ('14, Stagebridge Senior Theater), written by fellow SFMT vet Joan Holden. Daniel has composed the scores of 4 musicals for young audiences at Stagebridge, all with book and lyrics by Josiah Polhemus. He also composed original music for an early production of Lauren Yee's A Man, His Wife, and his Hat ('11, AlterTheater). Daniel plays keyboards for The 808 Band, winner of the 2011 North Bay Bohemian Award for Best Hip Hop Band, which has backed many hip hop and reggae performers including KRS-ONE, MC Radioactive, and Robert Herrera. He has performed as an improv pianist with the Antic Witties, the Un-Scripted Theater Company, 6th Street Improv!, and the Midnight Matinee. Daniel has a BA in Music from the UC t Santa Cruz and currently studies with Bay Area composer Michael Kaulkin.

PRODUCTION TEAM:

Keith Arcuragi (Sound Operator/Designer) hails from Camden, Ohio. He has interned as a sound assistant and understudy flutist with the SF Mime Troupe in 2014 Ripple Effect and interned as a sound assistant, dramaturg, and community engagement coordinator in 2015 Freedomland. He has Bachelor's Degrees in Theatre and Political Science from Miami University (in Ohio), and a Master's Degree in Theatre Studies, also from Miami University. He does a little bit of a lot of things in the theatre: He has previously been a sound designer, stage manager, run crew member, board operator, and/or actor for Pollen Productions (a company that operates in Southwest Ohio and England) on Proof, The Normal Heart, and 12th Nite... Whatever; The African American Shakespeare Company's Cinderella; Golden Thread Productions' 2015 ReOrient Festival, and Z Space's A House Tour. He has done a small bit of voice-over work, and enjoys recording the answering machine message for people, so ask him to record your voicemail message when you see him in the parks!

Marie Cartier (Props Master) has been working with the SF Mime Troupe since 2012, and is thrilled to be contributing to this years' summer show as Props Master. A SF native, her theater practices encompass a variety of roles, including performing, lighting design, education and properties. She is also a visual artist working in mediums ranging from painting to jewelry to zinemaking and more! Visit Marie’s website.

SAN FRANCISCO MIME TROUPE PRESENTS - Schooled - 2016 Summer

Taylor Gonzalez (Sound Operator/Designer) first started working with the SF Mime Troupe 10 years ago while in high school. His work began with The Youth Theater Project as a student. Since then he has taught as well as designed lights and sound for the youth program. This will be Taylor's second full summer with the SF Mime Troupe, his first was in 2012 when he was the sound intern on For the Greater Good, or The Last Election. During the past 2 years he has been designing sound at Berkeley Playhouse with such shows including; Hairspray, Fiddler on the Roof, Avenue Q, and for several of their Youth Theater Projects. He was a board operator on Hair with BAM! and A House Tour with Z Space. In 2011 while attending school at Laney College he was able to travel to Edinburgh, Scotland for the Fringe Festival to perform Polaroid Stories with the resident company The Fusion Theater Project. This trip changed his outlook on life and theater. He strives to bring excitement and joy through his Edinburgh experience to every show he designs and works on.

Jay Lasnik (Scenic Designer) recent productions include: SF Shakespeare Festival's Free Shakespeare in the Parks production of The Winter's Tale (also playing this summer and touring the bay area) as well as their recent children's theatre production of A Midsummer Night's Dream. Jay just designed a multi-director, 8 show new play fest for the USF, and in the 2015 Golden Thread Production's ReOrient its new play fest. Other theatres include Cinnabar Theatre, (Petaluma, CA), 6th Street Playhouse,(Santa Rosa), Palo Alto Players, Raven Players in Healdsburg, Coastal Rep in Half Moon Bay and Theatre Rhinoceros. Visit Jay’s website.

Loid M Loid (Technical Director) and his corporate entity, mongoloid amalgamated, have been creating compelling objects, events, and performances in SF for a quarter century. Visit Loid’s website.

Blake More (Costume Designer) began working with the SF Mime Troupe as a summer workshopper in 2001 and never stopped. She has been the SF Mime Troupe's Annual Youth Theater Project Costumer since 2001, as well as the costumer of the 2012 summer production of For the Greater Good. In addition to costuming, Blake is an artist with many creative voices and obsessions. Blurring the boundaries between disciplines, her work embraces visual art, poetry, video, performance, costume design, teaching, functional mixed media art/life pieces and hand-painted art cars, including her newest artcar, a Mercedes SL500 painted with a metallic palette she calls "Star Yantra". She also hosts an hour-long public affairs program called Women's Voices on KZYX&Z FM Mendocino. Author of 5 books of poetry, her book godmeat is a collection of poetry, prose, color artwork, and a DVD compilation of poem movies (available at godmeat.com), and her chapbook Up In the Me World is available on her website.

Karen Runk (Production Stage Manager, Web Programmer) moved to SF with the intention of only staying for a few months. Nearly 2 decades later she's still here! This is largely due to the talented folks at the SF Mime Troupe. Runk first experienced the Troupe by stage managing two 97 youth projects, Revenger Rat Meets the Merchant of Death and Inside Out. After which she ran screaming into the arms of the Magic Theatre and there she stayed, contently for 2 years. The SF Mime Troupe then wooed her back for their 99 Summer Production City For Sale. Still under the SF Mime Troupe’s wooing spell she's stage managed a plethora of their summer shows and has only managed to escape, successfully, one summer in 02 when she worked with SF Shakes.

Jolene Russell (Poster Designer) is a professional artist living and working in Oakland. In 2008, she received a BFA in Fine Art from UC Santa Cruz, where she studied painting and drawing. In 2013, the East Bay Express voted her "Best Artist" in their Best of the East Bay issue. Some of Jolene's favorite materials include chalk pastel, charcoal, graphite, ink, and oil paint. She is currently working on a series of paintings exploring realism. Visit Jolene’s website.

Junelle-Johannah Taguas (Tour Manager, SFMT Collective) became a Collective Member in 2013. She started at the SF Mime Troupe as a tech intern & summer workshopper in 2008 and remained involved with the SFMT filling various positions: Assistant Stage Manager, Production Assistant, YTP Stage Manager, and YCWP Stage Manager. Junelle is an Equity Membership Candidate Stage Manager. Companies she has stage managed for include: Central Works, Golden Thread Productions, Transient Theater, Symmetry Theatre, RasaNova Theater, OutLook Theater Project, Climate Theater, and the USF’s PASJ department. She has a B.A. in Drama from the U of Portland, OR. Aside from theatre, Junelle is a freelance ASL-English Interpreter

SAN FRANCISCO MIME TROUPE PRESENTS - Schooled - 2016 Summer

(NIC Pre-certified). As if she wasn't busy enough, Junelle is also launching a food truck called "Word on the Street" along with a group of friends. Visit Junelle’s website.

Calendar Editors:WHAT: SAN FRANCISCO MIME TROUPE

Opens 57th Season with Schooled

WHEN: July 2 – Sept. 5, 2016

TIX: All park shows are free and open to the public. Additional ticketed shows: Point Arena – Wed. July 13, Redway – Sat, July 16, and 2 indoor shows at SFMT Studio Space in SF – Wed. Aug. 3 & Thurs. Aug. 4, 2016For more info. call 415- 285 -1717 or visit www.sfmt.org

VENUE: SFMT performs in parks & some theatres throughout the Bay Area in SF, the North Bay, East Bay, Peninsula, Sacramento, Davis, Nevada City, and 3 Northern CA shows.All park shows are free and open to the public. Additional ticketed shows: Point Arena – Wed. July 13, Redway – Sat, July 16, and 2 indoor shows at SFMT Studio Space in SF - Wed. Aug. 3 & Thurs. Aug. 4, 2016

PHOTOS: High-resolution photos for Schooled can be accessed athttp://www.sfmt.org/Press/photos.php

WEB PAGE: www.sfmt.org

SF Mime Troupe Promo: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tB8s3AaK_2c&feature=youtu.be

Schedule by Date: http://www.sfmt.org/schedule/images/schedulebyorder2016.pdf

Schedule by Area: http://www.sfmt.org/schedule/images/schedulebyarea2016.pdf

(Schedules can be accessed on the press page at): www.sfmt.org/Press/index.php

SAN FRANCISCO MIME TROUPE PRESENTS - Schooled - 2016 Summer

SCHOOLEDSF MIME TROUPE SCHEDULE SUMMER 2016CHRONOLOGICAL LISTING – By Date Opening Weekend (East Bay & SF)Cedar Rose ParkSat., July 2 - 2:00 pm (Music 1:30)Sun., July 3 - 2:00 pm (Music 1:30)1300 Rose & Chestnut Sts., Berkeley, 94702 Ticket Info: FREE (donation)

Dolores Park Mon., July 4 - 2:00 pm (Music 1:30)19th & Dolores Sts., San Francisco, 94110 Ticket Info: FREE (donation)

Live Oak ParkSat., July 9 - 2:00 pm (Music 1:30)Sun., July 10 - 2:00 pm (Music 1:30)Shattuck Ave. & Berryman St., Berkeley, 94709 Ticket Info: FREE (donation)

Arena TheaterWed., July 13 - 8:00 pm (Music 7:30)214 Main St., Point Arena, 95468 Ticket Info: arenatheater.org 707-882-3272

Todd Grove Park Thurs., July 14 - 7:00 pm (Music 6:30)Live Oak Ave. & Clubhouse Dr., Ukiah, 95482 Ticket Info: FREE (donation)

Mateel Community Center (near Garberville in Humboldt County)Sat., July 16 - 8:00 pm (Music 7:30)59 Rusk Ln., Redway, 95560 Ticket Info: mateel.org/sfmimetroupe.html

707-923-3368

Mill Valley Community Center, on the Back LawnWed., July 20 - 7:00 pm (Music 6:30)180 Camino Alto (at East Blithedale), Mill Valley, 94941 Ticket Info: FREE (donation)

Mitchell Park, South FieldThurs., July 21 - 7:00 pm (Music 6:30)600 East Meadow Dr. & Cowper St., Palo Alto, 94306 Ticket Info: FREE (donation)

Nicholl Park Sat., July 23 - 2:00 pm (Music 1:30)3230 Macdonald Ave. & 31st St., Richmond, 94805 Ticket Info: FREE (donation)

Yerba Buena GardensSun., July 24 - 2:00 pm (Music 1:30)Mission & 3rd Sts., San Francisco, 94103 Ticket Info: FREE (donation)

Lakeside Park - (Lake Merritt) in front of the Edoff Memorial Bandstand Wed., July 27 - 7:00 pm (Music 6:30)Thurs., July 28 - 7:00 pm (Music 6:30)Bellevue Ave. & Perkins St., Oakland, 94610 Ticket Info: FREE (donation)

SAN FRANCISCO MIME TROUPE PRESENTS - Schooled - 2016 Summer

McLaren Park - Jerry Garcia AmphitheaterSat., July 30 - 2:00 pm (Music 1:30)100 John F Shelley Dr., San Francisco, 94134 Ticket Info: FREE (donation)

Walnut Park - Petaluma Progressive FestivalSun., July 31 - 4:00 pm (Music 3:30)201 4th St. (at D St.), Petaluma, 94954 Ticket Info: FREE (donation)

SF Mime Troupe Studio SpaceWed. Aug. 3 - 7:00 pm show (Music 6:30)Thurs. Aug. 4 - 7:00 pm show (Music 6:30)855 Treat Ave. (btw’n. 21 & 22 Sts.), San Francisco, 94110 Ticket Info: FREE (suggested donation $20)

RSVP: schooled.brownpapertickets.com

UCSC, Porter QuadSat., Aug. 6 - 3:00 pm show (Music 2:30)Sun., Aug. 7 - 3:00 pm show (Music 2:30)UC Santa Cruz - 1156 High St., Santa Cruz, 95064 Ticket Info: FREE (donation)

Glen ParkSat., Aug. 13 - 2:00 pm (Music 1:30)Chenery & Diamond Sts., San Francisco, 94131 Ticket Info: FREE (donation)

Washington Square ParkSun., Aug. 14 - 2:00 pm (Music 1:30)Columbus & Union Sts., San Francisco, 94133 Ticket Info: FREE (donation)

Willard ParkSat., Aug. 20 - 2:00 pm (Music 1:30)Sat., Aug. 21 - 2:00 pm (Music 1:30)Hillegass Ave. & Derby St., Berkeley, 94705 Ticket Info: FREE (donation)

St. James ParkTues., Aug 23 - 6:30 pm (Music 6:00)3rd & St. James Sts., San Jose, 95112 Ticket Info: FREE (donation)

Pioneer ParkFri., Aug. 26 - 7:30 pm (Music 7:00)421 Nimrod St., Nevada City, 95959 Ticket info: minersfoundry.org/buy-tickets/

paulemerymusic.com/Briar Patch Market

Community Park Sat., Aug. 27 - 7:00 pm (Music 6:30)1405 F St., Davis, 95616 Ticket Info: FREE (donation)

Southside ParkSun., Aug. 28 - 5:00 pm (Music 4:30)6th & T Sts., Sacramento, 95811 Ticket Info: FREE (donation)

Bayview Opera House - (Outdoor Plaza) Thurs., Sept. 1 - 6:30 pm (Music 6:00)4705 3rd St (at Oakdale St.), San Francisco, 94124 Ticket Info: FREE (donation)

SAN FRANCISCO MIME TROUPE PRESENTS - Schooled - 2016 Summer

San Francisco Closing WeekendPeacock Meadow in Golden Gate ParkSat., Sept. 3 - 2:00 pm (Music 1:30)240 JFK Drive & Peacock Meadow, San Francisco, 94117 Ticket Info: FREE (donation)(Btw’n Panhandle and Conservatory of Flowers)

Dolores ParkSun., Sept. 4 - 2:00 pm (Music 1:30)Mon., Sept 5 - 2:00 pm (Music 1:30) (Labor Day)19th & Dolores Sts., San Francisco, 94110 Ticket Info: FREE (donation)

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SAN FRANCISCO MIME TROUPE PRESENTS - Schooled - 2016 Summer

2016 PERFORMANCE SCHEDULE BY AREA:       

SAN FRANCISCO:Opening Weekend -Mon., July 4 Dolores Park,   1:30 pm music, 2:00 pm show

Sun., July 24 Yerba Buena Gardens,  1:30 pm music, 2:00 pm show

Sat., July 30 McLaren Park, 1:30 pm music, 2:00 pm show

Wed., Aug 3 SFMT Studio Space, 6:30 pm music, 7:00 pm showFree – suggested donation $20   RSVP at schooled.brownpapertickets.com

Thurs., Aug 4  SFMT Studio Space, 6:30 pm music, 7:00 pm showFree – suggested donation $20   RSVP at schooled.brownpapertickets.com

Sat., Aug. 13 Glen Park, 1:30 pm music, 2:00 pm show

Sun., Aug 14  Washington Square Park,   1:30 pm music, 2:00 pm show

Thurs., Sept. 1 Bayview Opera House, 3rd St / Oakdale St.(Outdoor Plaza)  6:00 pm music, 6:30 pm show

Closing Weekend - Sat., Sept. 3  Peacock Meadow, Golden Gate Park, 1:30 pm music, 2:00 pm show

Sun., Sept. 4  Dolores Park, 1:30 pm music, 2:00 pm show

Mon., Sept. 5 Dolores Park 1:30 pm music, 2:00 pm show

EAST BAY:Opening Weekend - Sat., July 2 Cedar Rose Park, Berkeley, 1:30 pm music, 2:00 pm show

Sun., July 3 Cedar Rose Park, Berkeley, 1:30 pm music, 2:00 pm show

Sat., July 9  Live Oak Park, Berkeley,   1:30 pm music, 2:00 pm show

Sun., July 10 Live Oak Park, Berkeley, 1:30 pm music, 2:00 pm show

Sat., July 23 Nicholl Park, Richmond, 1:30 pm music, 2:00 pm show

Wed., July 27 Lakeside Park (Lake Merritt), Oakland, 6:30 pm music, 7:00 pm show

Thurs., July 28  Lakeside Park (Lake Merritt), Oakland, 6:30 pm music, 7:00 pm show

Sat., Aug. 20 Willard Park, Berkeley, 1:30 pm music, 2:00 pm show

Sun., Aug. 21  Willard Park, Berkeley,   1:30 pm music, 2:00 pm show

SAN FRANCISCO MIME TROUPE PRESENTS - Schooled - 2016 Summer

NORTH:

DAVIS:Sat., Aug. 27 Community Park, Davis 6:30 pm music, 7:00 pm show

MARIN:Wed., July 20 Mill Valley Community Center, Mill Valley     

(Back Lawn)  6:30 pm music, 7:00 pm show  

PETALUMA: Sun., July 31 Walnut Park, Petaluma Progressive Festival

3:30pm music, 4:00pm show

POINT ARENA:Wed., July 13 Arena Theater, Point Arena 7:30 pm music, 8:00 pm show

Ticket info: arenatheater.org 707-882-3272

UKIAH:Thurs., July 14 Todd Grove Park, Ukiah 6:30 pm music, 7:00 pm show

REDWAY: (near Garberville in Humbolt County)Sat., July 16 Mateel Community Center, 7:30pm music, 8:00 pm show

Ticket info: mateel.org/sfmimetroupe.html 707-923-3368

SACRAMENTO:Sun., Aug. 28 Southside Park, Sacramento 4:30 pm music, 5:00 pm show

NEVADA CITY:Fri., Aug. 26 Pioneer Park, Nevada City 7:00 pm music, 7:30 pm show

Ticket info: minersfoundry.org/buy-tickets/paulemerymusic.com/Briar Patch Market

SOUTH:

PALO ALTO:Thurs., July 21 Mitchell Park (South Field), Palo Alto 6:30 pm music, 7:00 pm show

SAN JOSE:Tues., Aug. 23 St. James Park, San Jose 6:00 pm music, 6:30 pm show

SANTA CRUZ:Sat., Aug. 6  UCSC, Santa Cruz, Porter Quad 2:30 pm music, 3:00 pm show

Sun., Aug. 7 UCSC, Santa Cruz, Porter Quad 2:30 pm music, 3:00 pm show

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