Home

a couple falls into a sitcom world
after one of them comes out

After moving in together during the pandemic, Roya comes out as gender non-conforming to their partner, Louis. While the two face the emotional weight of gender in their relationship, they fall into a sitcom world—unaware of their true audience. Set on an empty stage, Home responds to the rise of sexuality consciousness over the past decade. 

The presentation will also showcase messages from LGBTQ+ individuals who have experienced gender and sexuality transitions in romantic or familial relationships.

Shot by LFK Media, Home will be shown as a film for the opening event of PlayGround’s 2021 Innovators Showcase. The presentation will also be live-streamed for individuals unable to attend in person.

The Forum Collective produces work exploring political moments that represent universal human experiences. Focused on shared governance, The Forum’s Artistic Board is composed of multidisciplinary producers and curators. Its members analyze a central piece of work in relation to a political, social, or historic trend while deciding on actions as a group. The Forum Collective is a fiscally-sponsored project of PlayGround’s Innovator Incubator program.

post-show

HOME Dramaturg and Creative Director, Wallace Ming Yan, reads the results of the pre-show survey from the premiere on November 16, 2021.

artists

Lilia Houshmand | “Roya” and deviser
Kieran Beccia | “Louis” and deviser
Julius Rea | deviser and director
Marisa Ramos | assistant director and editor
Lorenzo Fernandez-Kopec | director of photography
Wallace Ming Yan | dramaturg and creative director
Tanner Ledin | lighting designer and board operator
LFK Media | video production

Lilia Houshmand (they/them) is a multidisciplinary theatre artist with roots in art & energy work stemming from Persian Folklore Dance, branching into movement/intimacy coordination, stage management, directing, and performance. They received an MFA from University of Idaho after attending UC Berkeley, the Moscow Art Theatre School (MXAT) in Russia, and La Jolla Playhouse Conservatory. When Lilia is not playing around in the theatre world, they are currently studying to hold space as a Full-Spectrum Doula, supporting the range of birth and death work. They are also a co-host on The Collective Perspective podcast. 

Previous collaborations include CalShakes (Blithe Spirit, Lady Windermere's Fan, Black Odyssey), Oregon Shakespeare Festival (As You Like It, Macbeth, Daedalus & Icarus), The Neighborhood Chicago (Children of Edgar & Nina, Sacred Blood), Cornerstone Theatre Troupe (References to Salvador Dali Make Me Hot, Sleepy: A Musical, Death of an Ego), Town Hall Theatre Company (Measure for Measure, Candida), Crowded Fire Theatre (Kaleidoscope), and Noor Theatre (Our Mothers, The Ghost Story). Independent directing projects include Shaky Place Theatre Ensemble (Moon Dancers, Three Sisters). www.liliamakes.com

Kieran Beccia (they/them) is a director and dramaturg focused on devised performance and the development of new plays. Their work has been produced at The Forum Collective, Quantum Dragon Theater, FaultLine Theater, Fuse Theater, Dragon Theater, Utopia Theater Project, and more.  A TITAN Award winner and two-time CA$H Grant recipient, Kieran is also a company member at the Oakland Theater Project, a former artistic director of the U.C. Santa Cruz poor theatre performance lab, Barnstorm, and a founding member of The Forum Collective. They currently serve as the Literary Development Director for The Forum Collective, and are a former Associate Literary Manager for the Bay Area Playwrights Festival. www.kieranbeccia.com 

Julius Rea (he/him) is a Bay Area playwright, curator and performer. In addition to writing for publications such as the East Bay Express and EBONY magazine, he obtained a degree in Philosophy at San Francisco State University. In 2018, he co-founded The Forum Collective, an arts organization that focuses on journalism theatre and gallery curation. Rea was part of Crowded Fire Theatre’s 2020-21 Resilience and Development Lab and has been a finalist in the 2020 and 2021 Bay Area Playwrights Festivals. Also an actor, Rea has performed with Ragged Wing, Left Edge Theatre, and Benicia Old Town Theatre Group; he received a 2019 Arty award for his portrayal of Chris in Lynn Nottage’s Sweat. He has worked and produced with the Playwrights Foundation, Greenhouse Theatre Festival, Nomadic Press, Firehouse Art Collective, Golden Thread Productions, Adelines Lab, and Playground. www.juliusernestorea.com 

Marisa Ramos (she/her) is a director, producer, filmmaker and editor with a creative focus on stories from marginalized communities. She is currently the Development and Media Director at The Forum Collective where she aided in producing Ether, a web series that depicts people of color as they navigate a changed world during the pandemic. Marisa directed a staged reading of La Paloma as part of the Bay Area Women Theatre Festival, and Quantum Dragon Theatre’s staged reading of Ageless. She is a co-founder of LFK Media, a video production company based in Oakland, CA. Some of the theatre companies she has worked with in creating videos include CalShakes, Crowded Fire, Shotgun Players, Oakland Theatre Project, FaultLine Theatre and Z Space. She is also currently the Audience Engagement Director at Mexican American Conservatory Theatre.

Lorenzo Fernandez-Kopec (he/him) is a filmmaker and director of photography. He focuses on creating videos that showcase compelling stories to help connect with audiences. He is a co-founder of LFK Media, a video production company based in Oakland, CA. His recent work includes capturing streamable recordings of the productions Winter's Tale at Cal Shakes, and THE DISPLACED at Crowded Fire Theatre. He has also created video scene inserts for The Last Days of Judas Iscariot at A.C.T. and Caveman Play at Faultline Theatre. His previous work included capturing production photos and creating a marketing video for Z Space's production of Ripped. 

Wallace Ming Yan (they/them) is an award winning Properties Artisan and all around collaborative theater maker. Their last project was playing Touchstone with Island Shakespeare Festival. Their work has been seen at CalShakes, SF PlayGround, Town Hall Theatre Co., RE:ACT, Poison Apple Productions, The Peter Pan Foundation, Summer Rep, and Diablo Valley College. They hold a B.A. in Drama with a Minor in Queer Studies from UC Irvine.

LFK Media helps businesses and nonprofits stand out from the crowd with documentary style video production that attracts true fans. A holistic understanding is at the core of everything they do. That's why they, Lorenzo & Marisa, combined forces. With Lorenzo's business background and Marisa's training in theater they create engaging videos designed to achieve marketing objectives. They have worked with companies such as FaultLine Theater, Z Space, CalShakes, Crowded Fire Theater, and Shotgun Players to create engaging videos and supportive marketing content. www.lfkmedia.com

photos