By Christin Eve Cato
Directed by Kat Yen
A NEW PLAY FOR YOUNG AUDIENCES
Touring schools in March and April 2025
Public performances at La Jolla Playhouse’s WOW Festival at UCSD on April 26 and 27, 2025
Creative Team
Christin Eve Cato
Playwright
Christin Eve Cato (she/her) is an award-winning playwright, dramaturg, poet, educator,
lyricist, songwriter, and performing artist, emerging from the vibrant streets of the Bronx,
bringing with her a profound artistic narrative steeped in the rich tapestry of her Puerto Rican
and Jamaican roots. Cato’s voice is often distinguished for her ability to create universal stories grounded in advocacy for human rights and social justice. She holds esteemed positions such as ensemble member and former Resident Dramaturg at Pregones/PRTT, a founding UNIT 52 ensemble member at INTAR Theatre, and a playwright in the WP Theater 2022-2024 Pipeline
Lab. Additionally, she is an affiliated artists at the Playwrights Center, a member of The Latinx
Playwrights Circle, an associated artist with The Sol Project, and a seasonal roundtable
dramaturg at the Musical Theatre Factory. Recent productions include her 2024 Obie Award-Winning play Sancocho (Off-Broadway debut @ the WP Theater); The Diamond (The
People’s Theatre Project @ Pregones Theatre); American Made (Samuel French OOB Festival
@ Playwrights Horizons); and an audio play journey, The Mayor of Hell’s Kitchen Presents: A
Time Traveling Journey Through NYC’s Wild West (The Parsnip Ship & Playwrights Horizons).
Some of her other recognitions include the 2020 Greater Good Commission recipient for
Afro-Latinx writers; the 2021 ReImagine New Plays in TYA grant; second place prize winner in
the 2023 Miranda Family Voces Latinx Competition; the 2023 HOLA award nomination for Outstanding Achievement in Playwriting; and an awardee of the 2023 Negocios Now: 40 Under
40 celebrating Latinx excellence in New York City. She has an MFA in Playwriting from Indiana
University and a BA in Political Science and Philosophy from Fordham University.
Kat Yen
Director
Kat Yen is a Taiwanese-American theater director, born and raised in NYC. Recent productions include Pipe Dream by Rodgers and Hammerstein at Berkshire Theatre Group, Heart Strings by Lee Cataluna at Atlantic Theater for Kids and Happy Life by Kathy Ng with The Hearth. Recent associate directing credits include Redwood written and directed by Tina Landau and conceived with Idina Menzel, The Untitled Unauthorized Hunter S. Thompson Musical by Joe Iconis and directed by Christopher Ashley and The Comeuppance by Branden Jacobs-Jenkins and directed by Eric Ting. Upcoming productions include The Heart Sellers by Lloyd Suh at North Coast Repertory Theatre and All The Men Who’ve Frightened Me by Noah Diaz at La Jolla Playhouse. Kat is the inaugural Directing Fellow at La Jolla Playhouse, a former Resident Director at The Flea, a Van Lier Directing Fellow at Second Stage and the co-founder and former Artistic Director of Spookfish Theatre Company. MFA in Directing: Yale School of Drama. www.katyen.com
Jazmine Logan
Dramaturg
Jazmine Logan is a fourth-year PhD student in Theatre and Drama from UC San Diego. She holds a BA in Theatre Arts and Politics from University of California, Santa Cruz, and a MA in Theatre Arts from San Francisco State University. She is an Artist - Scholar (Actor, Dancer, Researcher) who specializes in Dramaturgy work and has presented theater research in various conferences such as the American Society for Theater Research, Association for Theater in Higher Education and the Black Theater Network Conference. La Jolla Playhouse Dramaturg credits: Abeba in the Tall Grass (2024 POP Tour Production - Dramaturg), Manning (2023 Latinx New Play Festival- Dramaturg). UC San Diego Dramaturg credits: The Half Sibling Play (2024 Wagner New Play Festival), Thicker Than (2023 Wagner New Play Festival-Dramaturg), Dance Nation and In the Red and Brown Water.
Jonathan Gilmer
Set Designer
Jonathan Gilmer is a San Diego-based director and designer with work spanning theater, opera, and symphony performances. He is thrilled to return to La Jolla Playhouse, where he previously designed Pick Me Last, Hoopla! and WOW festivals. Jonathan is the founder of Waterbug Productions, a multidisciplinary design, technical, and production company. Other credits include Noel Noel (San Diego Symphony), As One (San Diego Opera), Shostakovich Day (Barbican Centre), and he was part of the design team for the UK Student Exhibit at the Prague Quadrennial of Performance Design and Space. Most recently, Mr. Gilmer served as the Scenery Supervisor at La Jolla Playhouse. He holds a B.A. Honours in Technical Theatre Arts from the Guildhall School of Music and Drama in London.
Claire Peterson
Costume Designer
Claire Peterson (she/they) is a Costume Designer for both Theatre and Film with an MFA in Costume Design and Technology from San Diego State University. Originally from a small town in Montana, she found interest in art through theatre and design. With a main focus in theatre for social change, Claire strives to create a space where all people have the opportunity to feel safe and represented. She is currently working as a Costume Design Assistant at La Jolla Playhouse, along with doing freelance design around the country. Some design credits include Midnight at the Never Get (Diversionary Theatre), Man and Moon (MOXIE Theatre), The Fog (Montana Repertory Theatre), The House of Bernarda Alba (SDSU), Cabaret (SDSU), Spring Awakening (University of Montana) and A Year with Frog and Toad (Grandstreet Theatre).
Eliza Vedar
Sound Designer
Eliza Vedar (she/they) is a sound designer, composer, music director, and pianist based in Southern California. Their work has been featured in theatrical productions at La Jolla Playhouse, TuYo Theatre, Diversionary Theatre, Moxie Theatre, Cygnet Theatre, New Village Arts, Common Ground Theatre and various educational institutions including: San Diego State University, CSU San Marcos and University of San Diego. Eliza holds a Bachelor's degree in Music Performance: Piano from San Diego State University. https://www.elizavedar.com/
Brian Salvanera
Stage Manager
Brian Salvanera (he/him) is excited to return to POP Tour as the Stage Manager. Originally from Los Angeles, he graduated from UC San Diego and has continued to work regionally around San Diego. Other credits include: Abeba in the Tall Grass, Sumo, Jin vs. The Beach (La Jolla Playhouse); Dracula: a Comedy of Terrors, The Comedy of Errors (The Old Globe); Tick Tick Boom!, Sharon, Cabaret (Cygnet Theatre). He has also performed with the dance team Sleepless Collective.