A Brief History
Grew up on the East Coast in a MD suburb of Washington D.C. where arts in schools still existed. Played percussion in band, even marched for a couple years, and sat in the pit orchestra throughout high school as well as with Wildwood Summer Theater (Washington D.C.'s only all youth summer theater). Travelled to the Midwest for undergrad and began playing drums and writing lyrics for a rock 'n roll trio, The Bonedaddies. After graduation, I spent a couple months back home where I got to spend some time with my newborn nephew before heading back to the Midwest. Met up with the band Patchouli and started travelling the globe with them for a year and a half. We recorded the album, Visions, in Pittsburgh, PA at Mr. Smalls Funhouse. When I left the road, I spent some more time in the Midwest playing in various jam bands and recording an album, Private Recordings, with friends. I had applied to grad school for playwrighting and was accepted down south at the University of Arkansas. More than a dozen plays of mine were presented in some form or another over the three years there. I also began producing--a couple new work festivals, an original children's play and a few shows of existing works. Also played drums and guitar, even sang a bit, with the pass out game.
Received my MFA and headed up to Chicago where for the past five years I have immersed myself in the theater scene. I am currnetly the Executive Director and Resident Playwright of LiveWire Chicago Theatre. I've helped produce three full seasons with LiveWire, which have included world premiere productions of my original work along with extant work in the modern canon. I have also seen an adpation of mine produced and another workshopped to a staged reading. I directed my first one-act, an original piece I wrote called The Bout (I met Madeline Long during this one) and one of my LiveWire world premieres, A/other Lover. I also directed Red Angel by Eric Bogosian in the Fall of 2008 to excellent reviews. I'm currently working on a piece titled "It's Not You, It's the Economy" loosely based on Maxim Gorky's The Lower Depths and my own experience over the past couple years of unemployment during these harsh times in America.
I can remember being a little kid dreaming one day to see my name on the screen "five feet long and luminous." My cousin, Benjamin D. Bain and I have established a film production company, WCProdutions, and have shot multiple short films, most recently the short Vinny, music videos, promos and an ongoing original comedy series, It's Madeline Long (co-created with Ben and Madeline).
Today, like always, I am inspired by those around me and am thankful to everyone and everything that allows me to continue doing what I'm doing.