This summer I had the delightful opportunity to work on a new play as an actor at the Chautauqua Theater Company. Returning to CTC for the second summer in a row was such a joy! And the play was an absolute blast! Written by Jenny Stafford, “Ahoy-Hoy: A Play About That Relatable Feeling When Someone Invents the Telephone Three Hours Before You Do” chronicles the two days prior to Alexander Graham Bell submitting the application for the patent for the telephone. While ostensibly about the competition to invent a history-changing technology, the play explores the shortcomings of the male ego and hubris. I had so much fun chewing up the scenery as Alexander Graham Bell opposite my friend and amazing actor, Geneva Carr as Elisha Gray, alongside Lydia Mushkatina and Brendan Lowry. Directed by CTC Artistic Director, Jade King Carroll, our cast enjoyed three glorious readings including one that featured an unscheduled blackout due to grid overload. This play is so timely, living as we are in the face of an AI takeover completely orchestrated by a few men who seem to have no connections to the lives of regular people. It will be produced by Urbanite Theater in Sarasota this fall, and I hope it will have many productions to come!
Photo by Briana “Bree” Anzures