Bios

Rose Courtney (Playwright) is a writer and performer whose first play, MET, was produced at Circle Rep LAB under the direction of Peg Denithorne. Her vaudeville comedy, CYCLE, for which she also created original music with composer/multi-instrumentalist Rachel Kaufman, was a finalist in the New Works of Merit Playwriting contest and has been produced at the Cherry Lane Studio Theatre and the New York International Fringe Festival. With Project 400 Theatre Group, Rose has collaborated on the creation of many original works, all directed by Diane Paulus. She has also written stand-up comedy, which has been performed at venues such as Caroline's, The Improv, Stand-Up New York, and The Duplex. Her theatre acting credits include roles in classical and modern plays at George Street Playhouse, Lincoln Center Directors Lab, Ensemble Studio Theatre, Hudson Valley Shakespeare Co. and others. Rose has played leading roles in the films Gestation, which premiered at Avignon Film Festival, Love Conquers, Whigmaleerie, and a series of independent shorts with French director Farouk Thoyer. On television, she has appeared on Guiding Light and Ghost Stories. A graduate of Vassar College and New Actors Workshop, Rose currently resides in her native NYC where she is working on a stage adaptation of an Isak Dinesen story for production in the Spring of 2009.

Rachel Kaufman (Composer/Music Director/Musician): is a multi-instrumentalist who has music directed and/or played for over 200 musicals and cabaret shows all over the world. Credits include: Off-B'way: Schoolhouse Rock Live!, Gifts of the Magi, Ebony Black (Composer), and The Ambition Bird (w/Victoria Clark); Tours: Rent (Japan), Phantom of the Opera (Europe), Ain't Misbehavin', Sophisticated Ladies, Golf: The Musical, and Chicago City Limits (improv); Regional: Tom Jones - The Musical (North Shore Music Theater), The King and I (Westchester B'way), and Hallelujah Baby! (directed by Arthur Laurents). She can also be seen playing for auditions, classes, at restaurants and piano bars, and in the orchestra on cruise ships during the summertime. Rachel holds a B.A. in Music (and Russian) from the University of Chicago.

Craig Carlisle (Director): New York directing credits include: Liz Tuccillo's Joe Fearless at the Atlantic, Rose Courtney's Cycle at the Cherry Lane Studio, Sam Catlin's Sea of Terror at Ars Nova, Jessie McCormack's Spine at The Bosakowski at Primary Stages; Spring Awakening at New York Performance Works; Oren Safdie's Private Jokes, Public Spaces at La MaMa and Charles Evered's Adopt A Sailor for the Brave New World 9-11 Tribute at Town Hall, as well as dozens of workshops and readings at various venues including Naked Angels, EST and the Westbeth Theater Center. He has also directed over two dozen productions in Los Angeles, most recently Strindberg's Miss Julie at The Lillian. Craig has written projects for Edward Burns' Marlboro Road Gang, Oxygen Television, Film Roman, BBC/National Geographic, Calista Flockhart's CalWeb Productions and the HBO/Aspen Comedy Festival and his plays have been staged in New York, LA, Chicago, Seattle and Miami. He most recently wrote and directed his first feature film, "Bob Funk", with a cast including Rachael Leigh Cook, Stephen Root, Eddie Jemison, Grace Zabriskie and Amy Ryan, and is currently developing a film project for Hi-Def Entertainment and writing for the new Disney children's show "Jungle Junction."

For six seasons, Craig served as curator and host of the popular Naked Angels Tuesdays@9 Reading Series in New York. He is Artistic Director of the Steel Town Coalition in Los Angeles and a member of The Writers Group in New York.

Craig holds a Master of Fine Arts degree from The Dramatic Writing Program at New York University, and a Bachelor's Degree in Acting from Indiana State University.

Laura Sheehy (Choreographer) is currently choreographing a show in the Live Nude Play series at The Public Theater and another new work, Call Me Ann, at the Access Theater. Prior to that she choreographed In Search of Cleo for Gina Gershon at The Box, NYC. Theater: Hair (East Village Fragments at The Public Theater), The Baby Janes (La Mama), Cycle (The Cherry Lane), Joe Fearless: A Fan Dance (Atlantic Theater Company), The Kit Kat Girl Revue (The Zipper Theater), The Philosopher's Joke (Workshop Theater); TV: Saturday Night Live, NBA All Star Game, NBC fall promo campaign, MTV Road Rules; Film: Glow Ropes: The Rise and Fall of a Bar Mitzvah Emcee. She just performed in Terry Beeman's Mental Head Circus in Hollywood and has worked on Broadway, off Broadway and in film and TV. She is a graduate of New York University.

Karen Flood (Costume Designer): has been designing costumes for theatre, film, advertising and television since 1996. Her clothes have appeared on Sex and the City, the original production of Urinetown, the History Channel, commercials and many independent films. She is the costume designer for playwright Kirk Wood Bromley and a company member of Inverse Theater. She is the recipient of a 2002 ACE award for Best Costumes.

Jeremy Handelman / Off The Leash Productions (Producer) Jeremy has produced and managed many New York productions including The Bronx Balmers, The Aspern Papers, Scapin, Five by Tenn, Fritz & Froyim, Following the Yellow Brick Road...Down the Rabbit Hole, and The American Renaissance Theater Company Spring Reading Series. He is the author of The Bronx Balmers, Tic-Tac-Toe and numerous short plays. His work has been presented at the Turtle's Shell Theater, Neighborhood Playhouse and Manhattan Theatre Source. Jeremy is the founder of Off The Leash Productions, where he also produces and edits film and video. In a past life he was Vice President, Programming at CBS Sports before leaving behind the suit and tie to pursue his own creative ambitions. In an even earlier life, he was a radio news reporter and sports play-by-play announcer. He is a member of the American Renaissance Theater Company and The Dramatists Guild.