Speed Date has Zoomed into the Virtual World! More tech, less noise – each writer will be in an individual breakout room with each of our 11+ producers. 

Sunday 10/13/24, submission deadline 9/26/24
Early submissions will be given priority consideration.
Session 1: coaching at 2:00, pitching at 4:00 ET (there will be an hour wait time between coaching and pitching)
Session 2: coaching at 3:00, pitching at 5:30 ET (there will be a 90 minute wait time between coaching and pitching)

You meet a producer at a party, and have two minutes to interest him in your work. Do you have the skill to sell yourself? Here's a chance to practice your pitching with real producers who are open to and interested in meeting you. Okay, they probably won't option you on the spot, but they'll give you valuable feedback about your work and your ability to talk about it. And you'll have the opportunity to start developing a relationship. And that's what this business is all about. Relationships.

The Speed Date is the only event I know of that gives writers the chance to meet high level producers one-on-one in a room. To me, that's what makes the Speed-Dates so valuable. And you do it with kindness, which I value in life. ~Vincent Amelio (How Alfo Learned to Love)

Click here: WriterSpeedDateApp-90-75virtual-rev3 for application. Please fill out and email to TRUStaff1@gmail.com (PLEASE - add your name to the document name, and put your name FIRST when you "save as").

We'll have eleven producers lined up, from both the commercial and not-for-profit worlds, all with an interest in new projects; we also may have eleven aspiring producers from our Producer Development program. So you'll be pitching to as many as 22 producers in total! Come with a willingness to learn, because the real value is the chance to practice your pitching. And you'll be getting invaluable coaching from experts, as well.

Confirmed producers include (subject to change):

• Patrick Blake, producer (Bedlam Theater’s Hamlet/St. Joan, The Exonerated, In the Continuum, Play Dead), founding artistic director Rhymes Over Beats Hip Hop Theatre Company;
• Ina Chadwick, MouseMuse Productions (T-o-t-a-l-l-y Kimleigh, Grace Notes, The Chadwick Papers, When the Streets Were Paved with Gold) - "We look for originality, a small cast, developmental potential, great writing, plays that make lives other than our own visible.";
• Susan Cohen, producer (What They Said About Love in NY and London, What They Said About Sex online with CreateTheater; Money Talks the  musical). Upcoming: Cape Cod Solo Play Festival, featuring Steve Budd in Seeing Stars.  "My taste is eclectic. I prefer happy endings where people come together as compared to when they are driven apart, but I am open to anything."
• Merrie L Davis, creative producer, (Tony award for Parade, Tony award for Company Broadway, Olivier award for Company London, Cabaret, The Who’s Tommy, 6 Tony nominations for Eclipsed, Gigi; Himself and Nora; Museum of Broadway; upcoming: Working Girl, Just In Time: Bobby  Darin, Bran Castle);
• Jane Dubin, producer (Still, Is This a Room, Dana H., The Prom, Tony winning The Norman Conquests, An American in Paris, Farinelli and the King, Bandstand, Peter and the Starcatcher, Absolute Brightness of Leonard Pelkey, The 39 Steps, Ann; upcoming: The Village of Vale, an original fantasy musical);
• Gene Fisch, Jr., Broadway Producing Team (High), 100+ Off Broadway, Off-Off Broadway productions, Carnegie Hall concert Producer, Director of the New York New Works Theatre Festival, Director of 4 episodes of the TV series, "Two Many Moms"; currently developing The Last of the Red Hot Mamas musical about Sophie Tucker;
• William Franzblau, producer (Rocktopia, Tony Award-nominated Say Goodnight Gracie, American Buffalo and Wonderland on Broadway; tour of Little House on the Prairie the Musical; off-Broadway Sistas, Jewtopia, Evil Dead the Musical, Respect, Illuminate);
• Tiffani Gavin, executive director of the O'Neill Theatre Center, former executive producer with Clear Channel Entertainment;
• RK Greene, producer (Harmony, Beau the Musical; previous: Peter and the Starcatcher, The Lightning Thief tour, Farinelli and the King, A Time to Kill, Cougar: The Musical, Room Service); 
• John Lant, producer/director/showrunner/consultant specialist for musicals/plays off-Broadway;  (17 off-Broadway shows: Frankenstein, Wicked Frozen, It Came from Beyond, Wicked City Blues, Fabulous; Earnestly LGBTQ+, XIMER), artistic director Write Act Rep NYC/LA (20 years); 2-time NAACP, 4-time DramaLogue & 4-time CA for the Arts Winner; PM Carnegie Hall (13 years), TV/Film Studio Operator for 2 Studios for stage to screen or film productions NY & NJ;  
• Tamra Pica, TV, film and theater producer and casting director for Write Act Repertory - "My work centers on developing writers in theater, film and television.  Though I tend to produce more musicals, I am interested in writers in all genres with a strong voice who write the stories they are uniquely meant to tell.";
• Brett Ricci, producer, developmental consultant and composer/lyricist. (Broadway and National Tour: The Kite Runner; off-Broadway: Dracula; a Comedy of Terrors) "I value in a writer the willingness to collaborate and explore every avenue to see their vision grow beyond themselves.";
• Blair Russell, producer (Lizard Boy at Edinburgh Fringe & Off-Broadway, DIVA: Live From Hell! at Edinburgh Fringe & Off West End, Pop Off, Michelangelo! at Edinburgh Fringe; Broadway: Tony nominated Slave Play; off-Broadway: STILL, Sweeney Todd revival);

Coaches: Gillien Goll, Emileena Pedigo, Bailie Slevin

Training Producers:  Sam Affumado*, Barbara Cassidy*, Nick Hafner, Charlie Hitchcock*, Eric Jones*, Mike Katona*, Shelby Pickelny*, Lil Rhee*, John Scott-Richardson*, Thomas Simmons*, Soraya Sussman*.

[*members and alumni of TRU's Producer Development program]

At TRU they not only provide you with the opportunity to meet 11 different producers, but they also provide you with tools and coaching to make your pitch night a success. They also bring producers that love the educational aspect of the pitch night and genuinely love meeting new writers. So, even if you don’t walk away with an option, which they tell you not to expect, you walk away with a better pitch, new ideas, and a bigger network. ~Kenady Sean, musicalwriters.com 

I really am impressed with the info and support from TRU. I've done several of these with [another] group. I quit last year. With you guys it's like you're setting us up for success, what a concept. ~Kurt Johns (Hello Kitty Must Die)

I just wanted to relay a huge thanks to you and everyone at TRU for this experience, it was awesome! We really felt supported the whole way through, and we feel so much better prepared to market our show after getting the chance to practice pitching. If there's anywhere we can write a review or something for this experience, please let us know. And thank you and the rest of the team for all the tech effort behind this. ~Daniel Rosen & Alara Magritte (Safe Hands)

Just wanted to say “thanks” for your Herculean efforts in making the event so worthwhile.... Honestly, I much preferred pitching via Zoom than in person with everyone else within earshot. ~Sam Affoumado (Panic Defense)

I participated in TRU's Writer's Speed Date Pitch session last year, and got a LOT out of it! I found it so motivating to have a deadline to create production assets and prepare myself for meeting producers. My partner and I worked tirelessly for days before the event to make sure we were in top form before presenting (as writers) to the "producers" on hand. My experience was one of the rare occasions where several producers expressed real interest in my work. Later, one attended my reading, and followed up with a coffee meeting to talk financing. We're still in touch. Again, this is never promised, but it does happen for some of us. In my opinion, the price of $85 for all that value is a BARGAIN! ~Ed Zareh (Long Lost John)

I've had follow-up meetings with two people I met from the event. and provided scripts to three others. I also met some fellow playwrights, and through a chain of introductions coming out of that, I'm now working on a possible film deal in Los Angeles.  If you have a project where you'd like to practice and receive feedback on your pitch; potentially make some connections that would be useful for script development or early production; and meet some other playwrights – this is an ideal opportunity. ~William Roetzheim

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  PATRICK BLAKE

  is a writer/producer based in New York and San Francisco, and Founding Artistic Director of Rhymes Over Beats, a hip hop theater company. In New York theater, he is a producer of the off-Broadway revival of The 39 Steps, the off-Broadway transfer of Bedlam Theater Company's dual productions of Hamlet and Saint Joan, and is currently producing My Life Is a Musical (from the TRU Voices series) which had a debut production at Bay Street Theatre. He was one of the producers of Play Dead! at The Players Theatre, he has produced In the Continuum at Perry Street Theatre, Noah's Archive, Joe Fearless, The Exonerated (Lucille Lortel, Drama Desk, Outer Critics Circle and Court TV's Scales of Justice Award) and The Soap Myth at Southstreet Seaport. He also produced Dirty Works at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival. He was Executive Producer for the short film, The Igloo, and the feature film Mr. Smith Gets a Hustler. Patrick is a proud board member of TRU.
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  INA CHADWICK

  Mousemuse Productions @mousemuse.com - Celebrity Hitched & Ditched, Fringe Festival first place winner Totally Kimleigh, When the Streets Were Paved With Gold,  Actors Theater. Founder. Producer “A” Chronicles @achronicles.org, a theater production company founded in 2021 with a distinct focus on  relationships and reproductive rights.  Ten Minute play festivals, fully staged readings in a co-partnership with the Museum of Contemporary Art of Connecticut. Our first full  production, “The Wish,” May 2024, Six Marginalized Young Women Playwrights on the eve of the dissolution of Roe V. Wade. Consulting Director Martha Lomonaco, Ph.D.  Mousemuse and Achronicles.org maximizes the potential of museum performance spaces, underutilized brick and mortar venues, Black Boxes outside of New York City. 
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  SUSAN L. COHEN

  is a producer whose career has spanned the industry from casting to stage managing to international ticketing. In her current role, she is Performing Arts Coordinator at the Sandwich (MA) Arts Alliance and producer of Oy, What They Said About Love on Cape Cod. Her plans include producing the new comedy Working for Crumbs by Kate Danley. Susan produced Steve Budd's show in New York and London, and online via Cate Cammarata's CreateTheater. Susan was a coproducer of Money Talks the musical, by Peter Kellogg and David Friedman, at New York’s Davenport Theater. A Broadway investor, Susan is a graduate of the Broadway League’s Commercial Theater Institute 14-Week Program and Dartmouth College. She earned an MBA in Finance and Theater Management at Columbia University, where she attended weekly seminars taught by Gerald Schoenfeld and Bernard Jacobs in the Shubert’s offices. 

   

   
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  MERRIE L. DAVIS

  is a Tony & Olivier Award-Winning Creative Producer New York & London. Her award-winning productions include: Parade, Broadway, Best Musical Revival 2023; Company Broadway, Best Musical Revival 2022, West End, Olivier Award Winner Best Musical Revival 2019. Other Broadway Productions: Just in Time; 2 Strangers (Carry a Cake Across New York); Cabaret; Dead Outlaw; The Who's Tommy; Working Girl; Giant; Liberation; Eclipsed with 6 tony nominations; Gigi, the Musical. London: The Code; Farewell Mister Haffmann; Dr. Semmelweis; The Picture of Dorian Gray. National/ International Tours: Dear Evan Hansen; Company; Parade; Moulin Rouge; To Kill a Mockingbird; Come From Away; The King and I; The Talented Mr. Ripley. Merrie is also a Co- Producer on the Museum of Broadway. She is an Out-of-the-Box Marketer who founded Next Act 2 Follow, a marketing /producing company, utilizing her unique creative talent to help generate inventive ideas that introduce fresh concepts to the Broadway scene. For over 20 years, prior to her career change into producing, Merrie owned her own Visitor Magazine Publishing Company, IN New York and WHERE Magazines,  which were distributed in the Hotels, Cunard Lines, British Airways and over 300 other points of distribution. She had the pleasure of working with New York City's Tourism & Hospitality industries, including the Theatre agencies and the Concierge Community.  Merrie is an Honorary Concierge and continues to support the Concierges in their interactions with the visitor markets and theater community. Merrie is on the Board of TRU, Abingdon Theatre Company, The Broadway Association and Big Apple Greeter.  Merrie thoroughly enjoys working with students and newcomers to the Theater world to help welcome them into a world she has always loved. 
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  JANE DUBIN

  is a Tony, Drama Desk and Drama League Award-winning producer and the President of Double Play Connections, a theatrical production company committed to supporting the development of new work. Jane is a graduate of the CTI 14-week (NYC) and O’Neill (CT) Producing Workshops and Director of TRU’s Producer Development Master Class. Ms. Dubin is co-Chair of the Board of Houses on the Moon Theater Company, a past Board member of the League of Professional Theatre Women and was a Tony voter for seven years. She is a member of the Broadway Women’s Alliance, Off-Broadway Alliance, LPTW and Off-Broadway League. She serves as an evaluator for Bethany Arts Community’s residency program. She is a frequent panelist and guest lecturer on theater-related matters. Jane serves on the advisory boards of Elizabeth Mascia Child Care Center, Axial Theatre and Dirty Laundry Theatre. Jane has an MBA in Finance from NYU and was a partner in an investment advisory firm prior to her theater career. Productions: Recent: The Village of Vale – an original fantasy musical (Adirondack Theatre Festival), Still, starring Melissa Gilbert and Mark Moses.  Broadway: Is This A Room, Dana H., The Prom (Drama Desk Best Musical), Farinelli and the King (Mark Rylance), An American in Paris (4 TONY Awards, London, National Tour), Ann, (Holland Taylor) (Lincoln Center), Bandstand, Peter and the Starcatcher (5 TONY Awards), The  Norman Conquests (TONY). Other: Absolute Brightness of Leonard Pelkey, Beebo Brinker Chronicles (GLAAD Media Award), Groundswell, The 39 Steps, The Umbrellas of Cherbourg (London). Film: Radium Girls. 
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  GENE FISCH JR.

  has been a passionate fan of the arts his entire life. Though only as a hobby these past ten years, he has either produced, directed, or invested in 100+ shows during that span, most all at the Off Broadway and Broadway levels. Philanthropy being his primary focus, he was the lead producer for Carnegie Hall performance / Album that donated the proceeds to establish music programs in NYC schools. He has two television pilots in his repertoire, one of which was his directorial debut that was funded for four episodes by a group who worked for ABC.  Fisch is particularly fond of his work directing the Off Broadway parody of the television show, “Dexter”. Subsequent to being part of the Broadway producing team for High starring Kathleen Turner, Gene founded The New York New Works Theatre Festival, helping over 1,000 artists by giving them a shot on a top tier stage (historically the Duke and Acorn Theaters). Three shows from NYNW’s stages are on their way to Broadway and one (“12 Angry Voices” produced by his mentor and panelist, Lauren Class Schneider) is generating traction for its national tour. Submissions are free and NYNW outlays most all of the upfront costs with the hopes that the NYNW stage is only the first step of the project's journey (Numerous shows have moved forward). Every submission is reviewed by at least one Broadway producer. Gene has led a wonderfully diverse career outside of the arts and currently teaches Engineering Technogenesis at the Stevens Institute of Technology. "The bottom line is that theatre is awesome and if there is a way that we can help someone take their art to the next level while having a ton of fun, we’re all in!"   nynwtheatrefestival.com
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  WILLIAM FRANZBLAU

  created and produced the recent Broadway Rocktopia, the Tony Nominated Best Play Say Goodnight Gracie, produced David Mamet’s American Buffalo on Broadway, and the tour of Little House on the Prairie the Musical starring Melissa Gilbert. He also served as the Executive and Lead Producer for Broadway’s Wonderland. He licensed and produced the off-Broadway shows, SISTAS the Musical (recently shot and broadcast on BET, now in its sixth year off Broadway), This One's for the Girls, Jewtopia, Evil Dead the Musical, the male intellect: an oxymoron, Respect and ILuminate (America’s Got Talent Finalist) while developing several Broadway shows including Paramount’s Crazy People and the new Rupert Holmes play, Kennedy/Reagan. He produced and Co-Directed Rocktopia for the 2016 PBS National Pledge Broadcast with a 2017 tour. As Chief Executive Officer of the high technology company, KATrix Inc. he created strategic alliances with the Walt Disney Company, Microsoft Corporation, MGM and the Intel Corporation. In the early nineties, Mr. Franzblau co-founded Interfilm Inc., a publicly traded company combining interactive technologies with cinematic art. He was the driving force in putting together an $18 million initial public offering underwritten by Smith Barney and subsequently facilitated the sale of the company via a reverse triangular merger with Palatin Technologies, Inc. From 1990 through 1992 Mr. Franzblau served as producer of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles touring show, a 21-month tour involving 500 appearances in 200 cities and 10 countries, for which he managed all aspects of the business development and operations. The tours grossed over $60 million in sponsorships, ticket sales and merchandising as well as spinning off a double platinum record and a national pay-per-view. Previous to the above Mr. Franzblau served as Executive Producer of three tours of the Moscow Circus on Broadway and North America and produced the touring productions of BEATLEMANIA. In 2021 he produced MANSlaughter (episodic podcast) which reached  # 1 podcast in the US, Canada, UK and Australia. 
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  TIFFANI GAVIN

  Executive Director of the Eugene O'Neill Theater Center, Tiffani began her career in general management at The Public Theater in NY and as a company manager at Blue Man Group, she went on to hold leadership positions in both nonprofit and commercial theater organizations, including Clear Channel Entertainment and the American Repertory Theater. She's been the Manager of the Marquis Theatre on Broadway and has managed productions such as the National Tour of The Phantom of the Opera. As an Executive Producer for Clear Channel Entertainment and later as the General Manager/VP of Production at Martian Entertainment she commissioned and developed new work by emerging artists across the U.S. and internationally. While producing at Clear Channel, her broad portfolio included Broadway and off-Broadway productions as well as national tours. Among them were Ragtime (National Tour), The Producers (Broadway, National Tour), Hairspray (Broadway, National Tour), Sweet Charity (2005 Broadway Revival), Gumboots (National Tour, European Tour), Squeezebox (Off-Broadway), and Contact (National Tour). She was also the Sr. Director of Professional and International Licensing for Theatrical Rights Worldwide where she acquired and licensed secondary performing rights for musicals such as Monty Python’s Spamalot and The Color Purple. 
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  RK GREENE

  is a producer of the Tony Award winning Broadway and off-Broadway hit Peter & the Starcatcher as well as Farinelli and the King, A Time to Kill and Harmony, by Barry Manilow and Bruce Sussman.  In addition to his business career, he was a founding member of the Seattle Group Theatre, a multi-cultural ensemble that produced its own work. In 2000, he founded The StoryLine Project, LLC, a commercial theater production company, to develop new plays and musicals. SLP made its debut as an above line producer for the Off Broadway hit, Room Service, and went on to produce Love Child, by Daniel Jenkins and Robert Stanton, Cougar: The Musical, and Terms of Endearment with Molly Ringwald.  In the non-profit world, R.K. is the Marketing Director at The Directors Company and helped to transfer Irena’s Vow to Broadway and produced several shows at 59E59 Theaters. Currently in development is the new musical Beau by Douglas Lyons and Ethan D. Pakchar. The world premiere album is available on the Sony Masterworks label, www.StoryLineProject.com. 
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  JOHN LANT

  Producer/Director, Consultant specialist for musicals/plays off-Broadway and TV/Film Studio Operator for 2 Studios for stage to screen or film productions NY & NJ. 43-year veteran in the entertainment in over 750 television, film, theatre/music tours, and live theater. Production Manager at Carnegie Hall since 2006-2020 season for over 2,000 events. Award-winning producer, director, writer, lighting/set designer; Interlochen, Cal Arts, Ricardo Montalban, Hollywood Playhouse, Long Beach Playhouse, Glendale Center, Jewel Box Theatre Center and Write Act Repertory garnering DramaLogue, Diamond, ADA, NAACP Awards, LA Weekly and Backstage Pick of the Week, Garland and Valley Theatre (LA) nods. Executive Radio Producer New Frequency - Theatre of the Mind for SIRIUS/XM Radio - Ranked #1 Radio show. Mentored with Jonathan Sanger/Chanticleer Films for two shorts (Emmy & Oscar Winners), Howard Storm CBS Radford and TRU PDMP Master Fellow under Jane Dubin and Jennifer Issacson. Directed TV / Pilots Symphology, Carrot Talk, BET JAZZ Master Awards (1&2), Toronto Independent Shorts Awards, Funiki-Jam Season 2, and Anonymous Confessions. 17 Off-Broadway Lead Producer / Director (AEA/Non-union) credits include Fabulous!, 2By Tennessee Williams, Lili Marlene, Frankenstein, It Came from Beyond, Wicked Frozen, Teen Party Massacre, Swing!, Wicked City Blues, Geeks! TV/Film Credits include King of New York, The Freshman, Army of Darkness, Renegade, Power Rangers, and HBO Max's The Flight Attendant (CCO Supervisor). Tours include Phantom of the Opera, Singin' in the Rain, Gypsy and Evita. Current money raise - Pearl Bailey Musical (with Tony winning team members of Dreamgirls! and Hamilton). Development Director/Consultant for TV Film - Twisted Media NYC, Nathan Murphy Prod, Gatehouse Entertainment, Tin Mirror Prod and Trinity Theatrics network and streaming content for 3 TV pilots & 2 feature film currently in pre-production. COVID Compliance Supervisor certified for Film/TV/Broadway Theatre.
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  TAMRA PICA

  producer and casting director for Write Act Repertory. Tamra's theater and television work spans 33 years and over 250 productions as a prop designer, AEA Stage Manager, producer and casting director of plays, musicals, dance and ice shows. She produces both Off Broadway, as well as, managing the Los Angeles theater presence for Write Act.  Recent credits include the long-running Frankenstein, Wicked City Blues, and Swing.  Other credits include: Lili Marlene, Caldwell’s Bomb for the New York Venus/Adonis Theater Festival, Renewal, Your Name on My Lips at Theater for the New City and the long running musical Fabulous! Queen of the New Musicals where she served as a casting director and producer.  Alongside theater, Tamra’s work production, casting, and development television work can be seen for companies such as Disney, Sony, Cartoon Network, NBC Studios, TBS, CBS, MTV, ABC and FOX.  She currently works on the animated Disney series Mira, Royal Detective.
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  BRETT RICCI

  is an award-winning producer, actor and composer/lyricist with a passion for developing new works.  He is also a musical dramaturge and ghost writer. Producing Credits include: Broadway and National tour: The Kite Runner; Off-Broadway: Dracula: A Comedy of Terrors, ‘Til Death. In an effort to foster new and emerging writers, he has produced readings, workshops and world premieres across the country.
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  BLAIR RUSSELL

  is a producer who specializes in developing new works for the theatre. Recent projects include the off-Broadway play Still with Melissa Gilbert which he found at a TRU Speed Date, new musical Lizard Boy which has been performed in 4 countries including Off-Broadway, For Tonight, which premiered in concert on the West End at the Adelphi Theatre, DIVA: Live From Hell! (Edinburgh, Off West End), and Pop Off, Michelangelo! (Edinburgh, Off West End). He was a producer on Slave Play which held the record for most Tony-nominated play in history, is developing the new musical Salem which has over 50k followers on social media, and executive produced the first two concept albums in the EPIC series which have over 150 million streams globally. Other projects as co-producer / investor include The Wiz (National Tour/Broadway 2024), Sweeney Todd (Immersive Off-Broadway 2017), and Gypsy with Imelda Staunton (West End 2014). Blair is Co-Chair of the Board of The New Harmony Project and a member of the Board of Trustees of Goodspeed Musicals and SPACE. He is a graduate of Virginia Commonwealth University with a BFA in Technical Theatre/Stage Management.

   
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  SAM AFFOUMADO

  is a NYC-based Playwright/Director/Actor. He has written seven full-length plays and over two dozen short plays and monologues. Sam has produced and directed many of his plays in and around NYC: One-Way Ticket, (sending Trump to Mars) was selected for the William Inge Theatre Festival Playwrights’ Lab and he directed it for The Spark Festival, NYC at the Chain Theatre (2025). He directed his play Doctor Truth for the All-Out Arts Fresh Fruit Festival (2024), The Finalist for the Emerging Artists Theater - New Work Series, The Flogsta Scream for the International Human Rights Arts Festival at The Wild Project, and Peanut Butter Patty, (semi-finalist) in the 37th Annual Samuel French OOB Short Play Festival. In Pursuit of Prudence was the winner of the Short Play Competition, Phillips’ Mill Community Association, New Hope, Pa. His play Sunset Living was produced by Stage it! International Ten-Minute Play Festival (2022) at the Bonita Springs Arts Center, Florida. His plays and monologues have been presented in New York, Pennsylvania, North Carolina, Kentucky, Kansas, Florida, and Washington, DC Published works: The Bully’s Eye, More 10-Minute Plays for Teens published by Applause Theatre and Cinema Books (2015); The Panic Defense Monologues in We/Us: Monologues for The Gender Minority, Smith & Kraus publishers (2022); Sunset Living, 2022 International Stage It! 6 Anthology. Sam is a proud member of the Dramatists Guild, Theatre Resources Unlimited (TRU Producer Development Program), NPX, The Playwrights’ Center, SAG-AFTRA, AEA, and he was an active writer-member of Playground-NY where his plays, Good Grief, (Peoples’ Choice Award), and In Pursuit of Prudence were virtually presented and simulcast on ZOOM live. http://www.samaffoumado.com/
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  BARBARA CASSIDY

  Plays have been seen at The Tank, The Flea Theater, Margo Jones Theatre, Playwrights Horizons, JACK, Dixon Place. Little Theater and Bric Studios. She earned her MFA in Playwriting from Brooklyn College. Her play Interim was nominated for the Barrie Stavis Award by Playwrights’ Horizons and is published in the anthology New Downtown Now. She is currently an inaugural member of Sceal Nua at the Irish Arts Center and has an upcoming residency at the Tyrone Guthrie Center in Ireland. She was a 2021 RUC Resident, 2015 MacDowell Fellow and a 2010-2011 Lower Manhattan Cultural Council Workspace Resident She received a 2018 SuCasa Grant from the Brooklyn Arts Council and a 2018 SPARC Grant from LMCC, was a resident at HB Studio (2016) with Amie Hartman and Sarah Buff for their play Diorama. Cassidy is co-creator and co-director of Seeing Rape - a theater and justice program at John Jay College of Criminal Justice.She was a semi-finalist for the Beatrice Terry Residency (2018), is a New Georges Affiliated Artist, and is a proud member of the Dramatists’ Guild. Mrs Loman premiered at The Tank November 2022 and it will be performed Winter 2025 at Theatre Row, directed by Meghan Finn.
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  NICHOLAS (NICK) HAFNER

  is a poet and song writer with ASCAP publishing credentials under ABOFA Publishing. He represented and managed Broadway musical artists and composers, and currently holds a Miami Beach big band director's music library. Most of his career has been spent in the corporate arena with Royal Caribbean Cruise Line and American Airlines. Nick grew up in and enjoys Montana, sings and plays golf and resides in Fort Myers, FL with wife Amy. Member of Musical Writers Academy, Dramatist Guild Associate, Theater Resources Unlimited and Alliance for the Arts.
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  CHARLIE HITCHCOCK

  is a recovering computer nerd who left his tech life for a former flame: the theater. Now a playwright and self-producing artist, he recently and proudly graduated from TRU's PDMP Foundations and Masters courses. Charlie forms half of the dynamic writing duo behind the book to Speakerheart (a musical with an NYC developmental reading in November), and "Brainstorm" (a dark comedy mashing up tech, social media, and family drama set for a December workshop). The other half of this duo? His daughter Sierra, the true brains of the operation … but don't tell Charlie. Together, they're proving that the family that writes together, delights together.
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  MIKE KATONA

  is an award-winning producer and director with 35 years of experience in local broadcast television and digital media.  His credits include executive producing on Solutionaries (an Emmy and Murrow award-winning series with a mission of making a difference in communities through the impact of solutions journalism), Something Good and JustWeather.  Mike was Director of Digital Operations at Graham Media Group until his retirement in 2024, where he led digital content teams, audience development, e-commerce and branded content, contests, marketing and public relations efforts for top-rated broadcast television stations in seven major U.S. markets. Mike is new on the scene of theatrical production and thrilled to be a member of the TRU Producer Development Program.  He’s passionate about storytelling and creating magical moments - and can’t wait to get started!
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  SHELBY PICKELNY

  (she/they) is a producer and writer of theatre and television located in NYC/NJ. She believes that art is a tool best used for empathy, curiosity, and social justice. Recent work: Line producer of Still by Lia Romeo (2024: DR2 Theatre). Television work includes development of I Am Shauna Rae (TLC, writer/Creative Producer) and all seven seasons of Drive By History, as well as Drive By History: Eats (Associate Producer). General Management work: 101 Productions Ltd., KGM Theatrical. Playwright and lead producer of Dead Babies (2021: Chain Theater), The Art of Peaking Too Soon (2021: La Teatro Latea), and out skirts (2023: Chain Theater). 
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  TOM SIMMONS

  is a playwright who recently moved to New York from Chicago, where he helped write, direct, and produce countless comedy shows all over the city. He is currently a member of the Playwright/Director's Unit at The Actor's Studio, and is also part of the TRU Producer Development Program.

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  GILLIEN GOLL

  is an Acting Teacher & Coach, Director, and Artistic Director with a background in Casting, having worked in casting for TV pilots, indie film, and web series. As she has been on the other side of the table, she knows what does and doesn’t work. Her clients appear in every medium: Broadway, films, TV, webisodes. As a teacher and coach, she can help you connect emotionally & truthfully to your role. and guide you to an audition that is truly exceptional and unique in showcasing your strengths and talents. With an additional background in coaching presentation techniques, she can help you overcome stage fright and nerves. Gillien is also a produced playwright and is adept at cutting & pasting dialogue together to create original monologues. She has taught courses in monologues, acting technique, scene study & on-camera acting, and has taught and/or lectured at Fordham University, Barnard College, Wellesley College, and for ACTRA (the Canadian Actors Union), among others. She has been teaching at AMDA since 2001, and there has seen thousands of hours of actors’ presentations. An actor herself, she is best recognized for crying in the Self-Help Aisle in “Sex & the City.”  You can check out her other credits at her website, www.gilliengoll.com
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  EMILEENA PEDIGO

  Emileena's work focuses on building sustainable careers #AnotherWay, using entrepreneurial strategies that prioritize the artist over their art.  Her company, The Show Goes On Productions provides coaching and artist management, as well as produces workshops, showcases, and events.  Before that Emileena was managing producer of the Midtown International Theater Festival.  She helped expand the annual festival into seven venues, presenting up to 60 shows in one month during her seven-year tenure.  Emileena also general-managed for several nonprofits, assisted Stewart F. Lane on four Broadway shows, including the Off-Broadway transfer of The 39 Steps, and worked on various film and music festivals.  She toured theaters, music arenas, and schools across the country, working with artists from all artistic disciplines.  Emileena has served on the board of Conscious Capitalism NYC, and helped to build Arts programming within the Chelsea Greenwich Village Chelsea Chamber of Commerce.  She is a graduate of the Commercial Theatre Institute, SUNY/Kaufmann's Fasttrac program for entrepreneurs, and a Purdue University alum. 
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  BAILIE SLEVIN

  is the founder of Financial Wellness Companion, Entertaining Finance, and is the current Sales Trainer at MediaRadar. She has made a study of language and how people communicate value, be it screenwriting, playwriting, sculpting, performing, painting, or commercial sales. Bailie helps to translate the creator’s passions to others in a business setting. With her15 years in the personal financial planning industry, Bailie developed a niche in the arts and freelance communities, specializing in working with people with an uneven income. She has also spent significant time in the theatre industry as a stage manager, general manager, and producer. She is a Life Purpose Life Coach and a New York Mental Health Peer Specialist. She lives in New York City with her rescue pup, Lorelai.