Beatrice Basso

Beatrice Basso (she/her) has performed at Long Wharf Theatre, YBCA, Cutting Ball Theater, CounterPulse, Brava Theater, The Front Gallery, and Santa Cruz Shakespeare. With Atosa Babaoff, Nora El Samahy and Emily Hoffman, she is founding member of “Affinity Project,” whose piece was named one of “five wildest theatrical moments of 2015” by KQED. Bea is the lead in the short film “Laundry” by Danielle Katvan and has lent her voice to Guillermo del Toro’s “Crimson Peak.” Her directing credits include WOW Festival and Diversionary Theatre. Bea was cultural consultant on Pixar film “Luca” and lectures at UCSD.

Frank DiPalermo

Frank DiPalermo received his MFA in fiction from the Vermont College of Fine Arts. In 2020 two of his poems were finalists in the Steve Kowit Poetry Prize, a flash hybrid piece appeared in Ruminatemagazine, a short story appeared in Beyond Words (an anthology of queer fiction), and two essays appeared in The Whole Alphabet (an anthology of essays by queer authors). He is currently at work on his novel, Singing in Tongues, about a queer young man born into a Catholic Charismatic family. Life Sucks is his return to the stage after a long, long absence.

Patty Gallagher

Patty Gallagher is an actor, choreographer, and director with specialties in Shakespeare, Beckett, and Clown.  She has performed and taught in Asia, Europe, South America, and the US. Favorite roles include Maria Callas (Master Class, Jewel Theatre), Winnie (Happy Days, California Shakespeare Theatre), Rosencrantz (R&G Are Dead, Rogue), Hoopoe (Conference of the Birds, Folger), The Dromios (Comedy of Errors, SCS), and Fool (King Lear, Rogue).  She is a Fulbright Scholar (Ecuador), and an Artistic Associate at both Santa Cruz Shakespeare and the Rogue Theatre. She is a Theatre Professor at UC Santa Cruz, and received her Ph.D. from the UW-Madison.

Savanna Padilla

Savanna is an Actor and Teaching Artist originally from Humboldt County California..Theatre credits: Shakespeare in Love, Mojada: A Medea in Los Angeles, Off the Rails (U/S, Oregon Shakespeare Festival); Pick Me Last (La Jolla Playhouse);The Refugee Hotel (Latinx Play Project); The Madres, The Return of Tartuffe (Ashland New Plays Festival); The Epic of Gilgamesh (Oregon Fringe Festival); Dream Hou$e (Latinx New Play Festival); Written in Stone (LJP WOW Fest); Saints Go Marching (Ingenio Milagro Festival).SOU credits: The Resistible Rise of Arturo Ui, The Secret Garden, The Crucible, Little Shop of Horrors, Caliban’s Dreams, Horse Girls. UC San Diego credits: Shame Spiral, Life is a Dream, Orestes 2.0, Elektra, HEAP, A Midsummer Night’s Dream.  BFA in Acting: Southern Oregon University, MFA UC San Diego. 

Jorge Rodriguez

TV: Dwight in Shining Armor, Days of our Lives, Terriers. Theatre: Sideways, El Henry, A Willow Grows Aslant at LA JOLLA PLAYHOUSE. Red Truck Blue Truck at OLD GLOBE. Into the Beautiful North, My Mañana Comes, Oedipus el Rey at SAN DIEGO REP. Discourse on the Wonders of the Invisible World, References to Salvador Dali Make Me Hot at MOXIE THEATRE. Much Ado About Nothing at NEW VILLAGE ARTS. Reasons to be Pretty, Julia at ION THEATRE. Seven Spots on the Sun at INNER MISSION. National campaign commercials: Walmart, Cricket, Celino and Barnes, The Barnes Firm. Studied acting with world-renowned master teacher Larry Moss for 4 years. Visit www.actorjorgerodriguez.com.

Emily Shackelford

Emily Shackelford is an AEA actor originally from San Diego. Recent Off-Broadway and regional credits include Lucky Duck (New Victory Theatre), The Wolves (Syracuse Stage), Indecent (DC Arena Stage, Baltimore Center Stage, and Kansas City Repertory Theatre). To see more info visit emilyshackelford.com or find emily on Instagram @emilyareti.

MJ Sieber

MJ is proud to be making his Cygnet and San Diego debut with Life Sucks. Before the pandemic he lived in Seattle as an actor, director and filmmaker working regularly at the Seattle Rep (Glengarry Glen Ross, Outside Mullingar, Dry Powder), ACT Theatre (Lt. of Inishmore, Olso, The Crucible, Stupid Fucking Bird) Seattle Shakes, Intiman, StrawShop, and was a founding member and associate artistic director of New Century Theatre Co where he directed the west coast premiere of ‘The Flick’ by Annie Baker. He exists mostly for his wife Keiko and their Bassett hound Gus.

Peter Herman

Cygnet Theatre: Costumes and Wig/Makeup Design for Shakespeare’s R&J, Hedwig and the Angry Inch.  Wigs/Makeup Design for La Cage aux Folles, The Great Leap, The Virgin Trial, Rock of Ages, Pride and Prejudice, Angels in America, Marie and Rosetta, HIR, Spamalot, The Last Wife, Shockheaded Peter, On the 20^th Century, Bad Jews, Seven Guitars, King Hedley II, Gypsy, Stupid F**king Bird, The Rocky Horror Show, When the Rain Stops Falling, Hay Fever, The Vortex, Dogfight, My Fair Lady, Sons of the Prophet, Pageant, Fool for Love, True West, The Motherf**ker with the Hat, Spring Awakening, Maple and Vine, The Importance of Being Earnest, Travesties, Company, Assassins, A Christmas Carol, Gem of the Ocean, Mistakes Were Made, Man of La Mancha, Dirty Blonde, Parade, A Behanding in Spokane, The Glass Menagerie, Little Shop of Horrors, Our Town, Cabaret, The Norman Conquests, Private Lives, Sweeney Todd.  Elsewhere: Peter has designed hair and wigs for over 300 productions, including the La Jolla Playhouse, San Diego Rep, San Diego Opera and Disneyland.  Peter currently teaches wig and makeup at SDSU.

Minjoo Kim

Minjoo Kim is a lighting designer who is, such as an explorer, on a never-ending quest of understanding the perpetually fascinating facets of light. Her lighting design credits include Sensoria (New Renaissance Performing Art Company), Quiet No More (San Diego Women’s Chorus), Qulili (The Blind Spot), IDEAS-Cetacea (Calit2 Theater, Atkinson Hall), Crimson Girl (Dongsoong Art Center), Die or Not (Seoul Art Space Mullae), Mask on/off (Shanghai Dramatic Arts Centre).

She received MFA in theatrical lighting design from UCSD and a BA in Theatre and Film Design from Chung-Ang University in Seoul, Korea.

Yi-Chien Lee

Yi-Chien Lee is a San Diego based set designer originally born and raised in Taiwan. Selected design credits include Girlfriend (Diversionary), The Winter’s Tale (The Old Globe-Globe for All), Mission Incomplete (Young Stars, New Vision), Code: Cytus (Divertimento. Media), Truth or Dare (MOD Short Film), A Cigarette/How to eat A cow/Morning Glory (Tainaner Ensemble),  In Search of Beckett (Double Theatre), You tube (Dead-end Flower), Representation of the Cherry Orchard (Minister of Culture, Taiwan), A Cigarette/How to eat A cow/Morning Glory (Tainaner Ensemble), Everybody Black (UCSD), How to Defend Yourself, Mothers (New Play Festival). She received MFA from UCSD Theatre and Dance and BA from National Taiwan University. Her work for Moon drunk has been selected for Emerging Artist/Imagination Exhibit in 2019 Prague Quadrennial. yichienlee.com

Steven Leffue

Steven Leffue creates live performances of theater, dance, music, and performance art. He is a co-founder and board member of the OBIE award winning non-profit performing arts organization JACK, Brooklyn (jackny.org), and a lecturer of sound design the University of California San Diego Department of Theater and Dance. He is also a member of Voices of Our City Choir, a local non-profit organization which provides a social and performative platform for people experiencing homelessness (voicesofourcity.org). For more information visit stevenleffue.com.

Rob Lutfy

Rob is the Associate Artistic Director at Cygnet Theatre. Cygnet Theatre: The Great Leap, The Last Five Years, The Virgin Trial, Pride and Prejudice, Marie and Rosetta, HIR, Every Brilliant Thing, The Wind and the Breeze, The Last Wife, The Effect of Gamma Rays on Man-in-the-Moon Marigolds, Shockheaded Peter, Bad Jews, Stupid F***ing Bird, When the Rain Stops Falling, Hay Fever, Sons of the Prophet, The Motherf**ker with the Hat. Elsewhere: Clown Play, NYC International Fringe Festival; The Gin Game, Anacostia Playhouse; The Lieutenant of Inishmore, Threshold Repertory; The Sunset Limited, 3M Productions; Time Stands Still, Collaborative Arts, Bodas de sangre, Grossmont College. He has worked on plays in development at The Kennedy Center, The O’Neill Theatre Center, Burning Coal Theatre, The Hub Theatre and The Rensing Center. He has assisted directors at Shakespeare Theatre Company, Folger Theatre, Woolly Mammoth Theatre, Arena Stage, The Kennedy Center and Marin Theatre Company. He was the 2014-2015 National New Play Network Producer-in-Residence at Marin Theatre Company, and the 2012-2013 William R. Kenan, Jr. Directing Fellow at The John F. Kennedy Center. Rob is a graduate of the directing program under Gerald Freedman at the University of North Carolina School of the Arts.

Michael Mizerany

Michael is the artistic director for Compulsion Dance & Theater. Choreography Credits: At Cygnet: The Last Five Years, Pride and Prejudice, Stupid F**king Bird, When the Rain Stops Falling, Spring Awakening. Elsewhere: Dooley, Divine Sister, Miss Kitty’s Wild West Revue, Scrooge In Rouge, Thrill Me, Bare: A Pop Opera, A New Brain, Hot Guys Dancing 1-3, In The Va Va Voom Room 1 & 2 (Diversionary Theatre); Chicago: A Speakeasy Cabaret, Grey Gardens, Ass, or A Midsummer Night’s Fever, Jesus Hates Me, Airline Highway (Ion Theatre); Carnival!, Suds, Altar Boyz (The Coronado Playhouse); The Full Monty (New Village Arts); Trolley Dances (SDDT); Rent (Southwestern College); West Side Story, Once on this Island, The Wiz (J*Company).

Shirley Pierson

For Cygnet: The Great Leap, Kate Hamill’s Pride and Prejudice, Angels in America Millennium Approaches and Perestroika, Hir, ShockHeaded Peter (San Diego Critics Circle – Craig Noel Outstanding Costume Design Award), Wind and the Breeze, Pageant, The Importance of Being Earnest, Travesties, Assassins, WCYG A Christmas Carol (’13, ’12), Parade (Craig Noel Outstanding Costume Design Award), Spring Awakening, Mistakes Were Made, Glass Menagerie, Little Shop of Horrors, Our Town, Cabaret, Sweeney Todd, Private Lives, It’s a Wonderful Life (‘09, ‘10, ‘11), History Boys, A Christmas Carol (’09).  Selected Regional and San Diego Theatre: The Pasadena Playhouse: The Fantasticks, The Old Globe: Tiny Beautiful Things, Ken Ludwig’s Baskerville, Rich Girl, Diversionary Theatre: The Moors, The Boy Who Danced on Air, Now or Later, Marry Me A Little, The Further Adventures of Hedda Gabbler, When Last We Flew, Pippin, Harmony Kansas, Next Fall, New Village Arts; Seascape, Into the Woods. Shirley received her MFA in Theatrical Design from San Diego State University. View her work at: shirleypiersondesigns.com.

Dean Remington

Dean is thrilled to return to the Cygnet having completed successful runs of La Cage aux Folles, The Virgin Trial, Pride and Prejudice, Every Brilliant Thing, The Wind and the Breeze, A Christmas Carol, The Effect of Gamma Rays on Man-in-the-Moon Marigolds, Shockheaded Peter, When the Rain Stops Falling, and Stupid F***ing Bird.  National Tours include The Lion King and Disney’s Beauty and the Beast.  In the UK he was delighted to work with Cameron Mackintosh on his musical, Hey, Mr. Producer!  Other highlights include The Luckiest, the Annual Gala and the WoW Festival for La Jolla Playhouse; Outside Mullingar and the world premiere of Manifest Destinitis at San Diego Repertory Theatre; as well as international productions of Grease, 42nd Street, Anything Goes, A Chorus Line and Meet Me in St. Louis.

Teresa Jove

Teresa Jove is deeply grateful and honored to be a part of this production. She has been working at San Diego Repertory Theatre in Props, Carpentry and as a Stage Hand on the productions of Sweat, 33 ⅓ House of Dreams, Bad Hombre Good Wives and The Humans. Previously in 2018, she worked at San Diego Musical Theatre on both productions of Bring It On (Props Master and Assistant Stage Manager), South Pacific (Production Assistant and Stage Hand) and Hairspray (Production Assistant, Makeup Artist and Stage Hand). She would also like to give special thanks to all her friends and family who have been supporting her and encouraging her to pursue her passion.