Actors' Reading Collective

06/24/2026

05/15/2026

HAPPY OPENING to A ROOM IN THE CASTLE

the West Coast Premier of Lauren Gunderson's feminist spin on Hamlet

featuring ARC Artists Sheila Devitt, Amy Kossow, Leontyne Mbele-Mbong, Luisa Sermol, Emilie Talbot

The 222 presents
A Room in the Castle
by Lauren Gunderson
Directed by Amy Kossow

May 15 - 24, 2026

The troubled, grieving Prince of Denmark is never far from the thoughts of Ophelia, a caretaker to Ophelia, and the Queen of Denmark. Gunderson does a masterful job re-imagining the women trapped by class, circumstances, expectations, and desire within the castle’s walls. Each, in their own way, follows the queen’s edict for women—to “obey, agree, assist”—until they absolutely do not. This play dances and duels with Hamlet, foregrounding the women in the play and re-imagining them with agency, vitality, and radical hearts eager for a more hopeful ending.

Featuring:
Ophelia – Marie Sadd
Anna – Luisa Sermol*
Gertrude – Leontyne Mbele-Mbong*

Stage Manager - Sheila Devitt*
Costumes - Naomi Arnst
Lights - John Bernard
Sound - Marisa Whitmore & Garland L. Thompson, Jr.
Set - Amy Kossow
Props - Emilie Talbot*
Programmed by Aldo Billingslea* & Amy Kossow

https://the222.org/product/a-room-in-the-castle/

Friday, May 15, 2026 – 7:00 pm OPENING NIGHT
Saturday, May 16, 2026 – 7:00 pm
Sunday, May 17, 2026 – 2:00 pm MATINEE
Friday, May 22, 2026 – 7:00 pm
Saturday, May 23, 2026 – 7:00 pm
Sunday, May 24, 2026 – 2:00 pm MATINEE
Sunday, May 24, 2026 – 7:00 pm

*member Actors Equity Association

05/08/2026

HAPPY OPENING to LAY MY BURDEN DOWN

featuring ARC artist Sheila Devitt
with Cat Brooks and Valerie Fachman

San Francisco International Arts Festival
Strange Angels Theater presents
the world premier
Lay My Burden Down
by Elizabeth Gjelten
directed by Christine Young

featuring Cat Brooks, Sheila Devitt*, Valerie Fachman

A serious play with silly puppets.
An in*******al le***an couple navigate
the burdens of trauma, racism, death - and love.

One Weekend Only!
Friday, May 8 @ 6:00 pm
Saturday, May 9 @ 3:30 pm + post-show discussion
Sunday, May 10 @ 3:30 pm

approx. 90 min. no intermission

Ruth’s Table
3160 21st St.
San Francisco, CA

Tickets $25 or PWYW
Seating is limited.

www.sfiaf.org/sfiaf2026_strange-angels-theater

05/01/2026

SPARC Theater presents
The Glass Menagerie
by Tennessee Williams
directed by Gary Armanac

featuring ARC Artist Emilie Talbot
with James Crutcher, Elliot Hall, Isadora Zucker

In this cherished American Pulitzer Prize-winning classic written by Tennessee Williams, Amanda Wingfield, a faded remnant of Southern gentility, lives in a cramped apartment with her son, Tom, and her shy daughter, Laura, who has a physical disability. When Tom brings home a “gentleman caller” for Laura, the fragile illusions they’ve created to make life bearable begin to crumble around them.

May 1, 2, 3
The Stage Door Lounge @ The Bankhead Theater
https://sparctheater.org/glass-menagerie/

05/01/2026

From Our Friends at World Builders Incubator

WBI Stories is a festival of solutions-focused new works of fiction
— a tv pilot, screenplay, 2 books, and a play
— that highlight solutions for issues such as
climate change, immigration, financial literacy, and inter-generational trauma.
Come see 5 stellar casts entertain you
with attainable solutions
wrapped in delicious fiction!

World Builders Incubator in the YBCA Screening Room, 701 Mission Street, SF CA
May 1-3, 2026

https://wbistories.org/readings-2026/

Friday May 1 @ 2:30pm: Road from Ruin, a young adult fantasy novel by Doug Weissman that highlights frontline solutions for climate change. Read by the wonderful Lizzie Calogero.

Saturday May 2 @ 11:30am: Merlin, a play by Susan McCully that highlights solutions for climate change adaptation. A superstar cast!

Saturday May 2 @ 2:30pm: The Rules of the Financial Avengers, a memoir by Tom Swift that highlights the path to financial freedom. A well kept Bay Area secret is that Tom is a Northwestern trained actor! Jon Tracy is directing and Tom is performing!

Sunday May 3 @ 11:30am: Vis a Vis a Visa, a TV pilot by Esther Banegas Gatica that uplifts the solutions for immigration. Another all-star cast!

Sunday May 3 @ 2:00pm: Family Kwento, a screenplay by Mikee Loria that uplifts the solutions to inter-generational trauma and the de-stigmatizing of mental health care. (An incredible cast!)

🌎

05/01/2026

Reimagined: The Fisher Collection at 10.
In Their Words: Actors Read Artists
Presented by the San Francisco Museum of Fine Art in partnership with Actors’ Reading Collective, local actors bring the galleries to life by reading texts from select artists on view.

Ron Chapman
Luisa Sermol
David Sinaiko
Anna Takayo

"I Am For Art" by Claes Oldenburg
"A Warhol Bio"
"A List of Active Verbs" by Richard Serra

with direction by Robert Parsons

📷 Christine August

04/14/2026

Join us this Saturday and Sunday, April 18–19, for a special collaboration with SFMOMA during the opening weekend of The Fisher Collection at 10: Reimagined. ARC actors will bring artists’ texts to life with live readings in the galleries at 11 AM and 2 PM each day. We’d love to see you there!

04/14/2026

Join us the weekend for our collaboration with SFMOMA on their "Fisher Collection Reimagined" opening! Texts by featured artists read by ARC actors at 11AM and 2 PM on both Saturday and Sunday- April 18th and 19th!

04/04/2026

Congratulations to all of the nominees and awardees at the 49th San Francisco Bay Area Theatre Critics Circle Excellence in Theatre Awards, which were presented on March 30, 2026 at the Victoria Theatre in San Francisco.

The Actors Reading Collective is proud of all our artists who were nominated and/or won awards, across categories. ARC Artists showed especially strong in Ensembles and Entire Productions throughout our Bay Area community!

WON
⭐️ Solo Show - Takes All Kinds by Dan Hoyle, The Marsh, dir. Aldo Billingslea
⭐️ Stage Direction (small theatre) - Hard Times, Word for Word, dir. Amy Kossow
⭐️ Entire Production - SF (small) - Hard Times, Word for Word, dir. Amy Kossow
⭐️ Entire Production - SF (mid-size theatre) - Fat Ham, San Francisco Playhouse, feat. Ron Chapman
⭐️ Entire Production - North Bay (mid) - Eureka Day, Marin Theatre, feat. Leontyne Mbele-Mbong
⭐️ Entire Production - Bay Area (mid) - Eureka Day, Marin Theatre, feat. Leontyne Mbele-Mbong

NOMINATED
⭐️ Featured Performance - Drama (mid) - Waste, Marin Theatre, feat. Leontyne Mbele-Mbong
⭐️ Ensemble - Drama - Waste, Marin Theatre, feat. Leontyne Mbele-Mbong
⭐️ Ensemble - Drama - Hard Times, Word for Word, dir. Amy Kossow
⭐️ Ensemble - Comedy - Fat Ham, San Francisco Playhouse, feat. Ron Chapman
⭐️ Entire Production - South Bay/Peninsula (mid) - The Cake, City Lights, feat. Luisa Sermol

Congratulations to all of our Bay Area theatre community for continuing to make excellent work!