ABOUT THE PANEL

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Michael Barakiva is an Armenian/Israeli American writer and director based in NYC.  His plays include The Nature of Things (EST/Sloan Project Commission), and String Theory, co-authored with Sarah Braunstein and Amy Boyce Holtcamp.  YA Novels include the award-winning One Man Guy and its stand-alone sequel, Hold My Hand (Macmillan, FSG).  He is currently working on his third novel, a contemporary epic fantasy, These Precious Stones.  He has directed at the Oregon Shakespeare Festival, Primary Stage, Ensemble Studio Theatre, Syracuse Stage and the Hangar Theatre, where he served as Artistic Director for five years.  He is the Found Artistic Director of the Upstart Creatures, a theatre company based in NYC that throws (meta)physical feasts.  He is also the Founder and Creative director of Novel Readings, a company that uses new play collaborative techniques to help novelists develop work (www.novelreadings.com).  Education: Vassar College, The Juilliard School. www.michaelbarakiva.com

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Kathleen Dimmick is a dramaturg and director based in NYC. She served as resident dramaturg at the Mark Taper Forum in Los Angeles and American Conservatory Theatre in San Francisco, where she worked on classic and contemporary plays. She has directed a variety of new plays, including premieres by Quincy Long for the Atlantic Theater Company, Portland Playhouse, and ASK Theatre in Los Angeles, and served as resident director for New Dramatists. As production dramaturg, she has worked with directors JoAnne Akalaitis, Robert Woodruff, and Garland Wright. MFA, Yale School of Drama.