A devised production conceived of and directed by myself created with and performed by an ensemble of artists as part of my Voxel Artist Residency.

Step into a realm of darkness and starlight, hope and fear, music and dreams. Join a cast of ethereal characters as they search for meaning amid wishes and nightmares in a dazzling dreamscape of morphing circumstances. Vesper is a surrealistic exploration of humanity’s relationship to the night and the rituals we invoke to heal, find peace, and ward off danger.

Vesper is an experimental, non-linear, devised theatrical performance. Created through several months of collaborative incubation, workshops, and refinement, Vesper harnesses the dialogue of training and creation to present visceral, ensemble-centered theatre.

Rich physicality, poetic text, atmospheric sound, live music, and multimedia weave a vivid, theatrical tapestry of ritual and revelation–prepare to lose your footing and find your light.

Machinal by Sophie Treadwell presented at Fells Point Corner Theatre

Depicting one woman's rebellion against her husband and society, this all-too-relevant expressionist drama explores the “machine” that oppresses women, societally and judicially. Sophie Treadwell was a Mexican American social-activist, suffragette, actor, playwright and international journalist; she covered World War I as a foreign correspondent and she was the only journalist to interview revolutionary Pancho Villa. As a journalist, Treadwell covered the sensationalized case of Ruth Snyder, who murdered her husband and was publicly executed in the electric chair. Although written almost a century ago, Machinal is a stark, magnetic play that chillingly shows how female criminality is depicted. Often included on historic lists of best American plays*, Machinal is frequently cited as a quintessential example of expressionist drama. It entered the public domain in January of 2024.

Directed by Deirdre McAllister
Movement Director: Jarod Hanson
Stage Manager: Benni Rose
Lighting Designer: Jaedyn Arrington
Costume Designer: Karen Saar
Set Designer: Justin Nepomucen
Intimacy Director: Shawna Potter
Projections: Chris Uehlinger
Assistant Stage Managers: Penelope Chan & Hannah Karnicki
Producers: Brad Norris, J Hargrove, Laura Malkus
Presented at Fells Point Corner Theatre

Featuring:
Autumn Koehnlein
Matthew Lindsay Payne
Will Beckstrom
Melissa Banister
Pablo Akira Richter
Adrian Bagaric
Eric Boelsche
Niki Jay
Brooke Kemph
Mae Philippe-Auguste
Andy Belt

Photos by Shaelyn Jae

Position: Co-director

The Acme Corporation, Baltimore’s premiere experimental theatre company, has created a stunning new piece under the co-direction of Jarod Hanson and Lola B. Pierson. The Lights Went Out Because of a Problem is a three-act opera, which comprises found text and original writing. The opera is about learning to sing. It is also about goofing off, meditating, hanging out, healing from trauma, and the  pandemic. Featuring music composed by Allison Clendaniel with the libretto found, arranged, and written by Lola B. Pierson, The Lights Went Out Because of a Problem is The Acme Corporation's first show since their pandemic piece, a play in a box called The Institute for Counterfeit Memory. This culmination of 3 years of slow and steady work is going to be a weird one you won't want to miss.

Directed by Jarod Hanson & Lola B. Pierson
Libretto found, arranged, and written by Lola B. Pierson
Music by Allison Clendaniel
Cast: Alix Fenhagen, Britt Olsen-Ecker, Hailey Withrow, Heather Morrison, Julia Creutzer, Kaya
Vision, Megan Livingston, Meghan Stanton, and Molly Margulies
Production team:
Set design: Lola B. Pierson,
Lighting design: Eric Nightengale.
Props design: Jarod Hanson & Kateri Pelton.
Costumes: Kitt Crescenzo

Position: Co-director

Production at Towson University

“The biggest mistake any of us could make would be to underestimate Satan.”

The seventeenth century and present day are seamlessly intertwined as Satan vents to an audience about her frustration at being cast out of Heaven and her thoughts on oppression. When she finds out that God has created delicate new creatures called “humans,” she crafts a plan for revenge and betrayal on the Almighty.

Erin Shields turns Heaven and Hell upside down in this witty, modern, feminist retelling of John Milton’s epic poem about the first battle between good and evil. Shields’s wickedly smart and funny script questions the reasons of the universe, the slow process of evolution and the freedom of knowledge. The debate over right and wrong has never been so satisfying.

Directed by Stephen Nunns & Jarod Hanson
Songs by Stephen Nunns & Erin Shields
Musical Direction by Molly Shayna Cohen
Choreography by Jarod Hanson & Ruben Del Valle, Jr.
Lighting Design by Jay Herzog
Set Design by Daniel Ettinger & Natalie Bolander
Costume Design by Julie Potter
Sound Design, Mixing, and Music Composition by Alexander MacSween
Stage Managed by Olivia Dibble

Featuring:
KP
Conor Harris
Jeremiah Catoe
Jovan Brooks
Hailey Withrow
Gina Mattucci
Max Ramsay
Max Stover
Cyan Jackson
Lela Woodward
Julia Creutzer
Kieran Newell
Brooke Donald
David Norris
Eddie Stockman
Serena Walker
EJ Roeder
Frankie Marsh

Photos by Katie Simmons-Barth, www.katiesimmonsbarth.com