The Return

Hanna Eady and Edward Mast

have been writing plays together since they met in Seattle in 1995. Hanna Eady grew up as a Palestinian in Northern Israel and had come to Seattle years earlier for graduate school in directing. Edward Mast was returning home from his first of many trips to the Occupied Palestinian Territories. Their first collaboration was Sahmatah, a play drawn from testimonies by residents of one of the Palestinian villages destroyed during the founding of Israel in 1948. Sahmatah premiered in 1996 in Seattle, and then premiered in Arabic in 1998 on the original site of the village itself inside what is now Israel. Other plays they have written together include Loved Ones: Families of the Incarcerated, Letters from Palestine in the Time of the Virus, The Love Tunnel: A Comedy of Occupation, and The Mulberry Tree, which recently premiered in New York.

Nick Musleh

(he/him) played the titular role in Hamlet and co-created and performed in the Untime at Marin Shakespeare Company, where he is an artistic associate and resident dramaturg. Before returning to San Francisco, he acted in Los Angeles for roughly 20 years, playing recurring and guest star roles on on network television and in original plays at Theatre West, where he was an artistic board member and Shakespeare workshop moderator. Several of the plays he performed in and directed received critical acclaim, including the Los Angeles Times Critic’s pick for Against the Wall. He created the role of Daniel Baker in Mark Wilding’s Our Man in Santiago, which he also debuted Off-Broadway. Nick has adapted Shakespeare for the stage and screen; his Love’s Labour’s Lost is still taught in colleges and he is the co-creator of the Rosy Cross series being developed in Europe. He attended Solano Community College, Santa Clara University, and the UCLA School of Theater, Film & Television and has performed in Shakespeare productions throughout the Bay Area. He is a theater professor at Laney College and the Oakland School for the Arts.

Elissa Beth Stebbins

(they/she) is a Bay Area based actor, teaching artist, producer, and maker. Recent regional acting credits include Miss Bennet: Christmas at Pemberley, Mrs. Christie, and Nan and the Lower Body (TheatreWorks); Colonialism is Terrible, but Pho is Delicious (Aurora Theatre Company); Becky Nurse of Salem (Berkeley Rep); Kings, Kiss, The Village Bike, and Caught (Shotgun Players); In Braunau (San Francisco Playhouse Sandbox Series); Revolt. She Said. Revolt Again and You For Me For You (Crowded Fire Theatre), The Little Prince (Marin Theater Company), and Minneola Twins (Cutting Ball), among others. Elissa is also a co-founder of Analog Theatre, where they produce and devise physical theatre. Elissa graduated from Santa Clara University, and has continued training with Shakespeare and Company, and Atelier Mask Movement Theatre in Italy.

James Ard

(he/him) is a noisemaker specializing in new works, live experiences, and immersive stage productions. His designs with Golden Thread include The Most Dangerous Highway in the World, Scenes From 71 Years*,* On The Periphery*, and various ReOrient short play festivals. Other work includes collaborations with Under the Radar at The Public Theater, American Conservatory Theater, TheatreWorks Silicon Valley, Summerhall at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe, Sibiu International Theatre Festival, Woolly Mammoth Theatre Company, Shotgun Players, Guthrie Theater, American Repertory Theater, Oregon Shakespeare Festival, Portland Center Stage, CenterREP, Ensemble Theatre Company, Cutting Ball Theater, Joe Goode Performance Group, Stanford University, Atlantic Theater Company, and the University of California, Berkeley. Ard is currently an affiliated artist with Golden Thread Productions and a resident artist with Crowded Fire Theater. jamesard.com

Kate Boyd

(she/her) is a Bay Area scenic and lighting designer. She recently designed the lights for Waste at Marin Theatre Company and scenery for Simple Mexican Pleasures at NCTC. She has designed sets at Aurora Theater for Born with Teeth, Hurricane Diane and Everything is Illuminated. She has also designed at Portland Center Stage, Magic Theater, Merola Opera, the SF Conservatory of Music, Company C Ballet and Theaterworks. Kate is an affiliated artist with Golden Thread Productions and a recipient of the Gerbode Design Fellowship. Kate teaches stagecraft and design at Lick-Wilmerding High School.

Robert Bo Golden

(he/him) has been involved in the theatre in one form or another for over 50 years. From playing Berger in the Chicago and Broadway companies of the 60’s rock musical Hair to directing the same show, as well as others for bus and truck tours. He went on to perform in other Broadway shows, as well as touring shows. That’s when he became fascinated with scenic and sound design. Since then he has designed over 40 shows, built and painted 90% of them, as well as doing sound design. Before COVID, he loved going out singing and jamming the blues on slide guitar, as well as performing his own music. Happy to be joining Golden Thread for the first, with more times to come! scenicdesignbybo.com

K’Zhane McGill

(she/they) is delighted to be debuting with Golden Thread Productions as a stage manager. This is her first project since graduating from San Francisco State University in the spring, where previous credits include Eurydice, Everybody, and Stupid F**king Bird. As a big advocate of theater being used as an educational tool and a megaphone for smaller voices, she’s grateful to help uplift these Palestinian stories.

Hector Zavala

(All pronouns) is a multifaceted artist and international creative force with an expansive career spanning theater, film, and dance. As an actor, dancer, set designer, technical director, and producer, Hector’s work has graced stages across Mexico and the U.S., including standout performances in La Leyenda de Georgia McBride and the bilingual solo show Seeking the Last Gay Man. Hector’s work is rooted in cultural integrity, queer visibility, and transformative artistry. hectorzavala.com

Bessie Zolno

(she/her) is a mental health-informed violence and intimacy choreographer and mental health coordinator for theater and film. Based in the San Francisco Bay Area, she thoughtfully cultivates collaborative and consent-driven environments, an approach deeply rooted in her certification in Mental Health Coordination (Association of Mental Health Coordinators). Additionally, she is a member of the Society of Directors and Choreographers and the National Society of Intimacy Professionals. Her expertise is dedicated to facilitating the safe and impactful execution of heightened moments on stage and screen for performers of all ages, across both professional productions and educational settings. This summer, her work can be seen across the Bay Area in: Sweeney Todd (Cabrillo Stage), Hamlet (Oakland Theater Project), Head Over Heels (City Lights Theater Company), and Alabaster (Town Hall Theater). bessiezolno.com

Art2Action, Inc.

creates, develops, produces, and presents original theatre, interdisciplinary performances, artistic interventions, and progressive cultural organizing. We support Black, Indigenous, artists of color, women and queer or trans-identified artists, artists living with disabilities, and creative allies in the creation of contemporary work. We are dedicated to cultural equity and aesthetic innovation, artistic quality and community impact. art2action.org