Biography, Artist Statement, Resume and Contact

I write plays about identity: how we define ourselves to the world, how we protect parts of ourselves that we fear revealing, and how circumstances beyond our control can irrevocably redefine who we are. Having lived through a time when I had to shield my own identity as a gay man, I am drawn to characters who must hide, reinvent, or surrender parts of themselves out of necessity rather than choice.

My work is often issue-driven. I am drawn to flawed characters who nevertheless inspire empathy and compassion. I set much of my work in communities outside traditional urban areas to tell stories and give voice to those who are often overlooked. I also embrace moments that can only exist in live theatre–moments that seem impossible or out of place in film or everyday life. Those moments are what make theatre uniquely powerful to me.

I am inspired by playwrights like Lynn Nottage, who explores identity and the experience of marginalization and Craig Lucas, whose characters find their worlds shaken when they discover they are not who they believed themselves to be. Mostly, I am inspired by playwrights living and working outside of urban centers who embrace the bold act of writing plays without the support systems to help them develop their work found in larger communities.

Ultimately, I want to create theatre that demands conversation over coffee or a cocktail after the performance; provokes debate and discovery during talkbacks; and challenges the idea that we always know who we are. I want audiences to see how quickly circumstance can force us to become someone we never imagined we could be.