Trojan Women Crew

PJ is currently in preproduction for Shockheaded Peter at the English Theatre where he also directed Huck Finn and is on staff as their Shakespeare Instructor. He is the Artistic Director of Shakespeare Frankfurt for whom he will direct The Comedy of Errors in June. Other directing credits include: The Pillowman by Martin McDonagh, Shakespeare’s Macbeth, Othello, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, The Tempest, Twelfth Night, Ibsen’s An Enemy of the People, Shakespeare in the Garden: Hortus Inclusus, Where, and Grounded by George Brandt. For 10 years he was the Artistic Director of Shakespeare Anyone? with whom he played over 30 different roles as well as produced and/or directed 18 different versions of the project. He cast and directed Undergraduate Playwriting Thesis projects at NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts from 2007-2012. He was the Project Coordinator and Associate Artistic Director of WordBRIDGE Playwrights Laboratory from 2006-2012. He holds an MFA in Acting and Directing from the University of Missouri - KC.

Varvara comes from Athens, Greece. Her training includes theatre improvisation at TLS Frankfurt, Meisner Technique with Maria Ott, classes at Stage & Voice Coaching in Frankfurt and masterclasses on Shakespeare and on Clowning techniques in UK. In 2019, she trained on Shakespeare's language with Michael Corbidge and on Meyerhold’s Biomechanics & Physical Theatre with the Ostrenko Brothers. She has directed the original play TCC-416 by PJ Escobio and she is an ensemble member of the silent clown piece WHERE. She was member of the improv group The Sidekicks and she has performed in FEST's productions of Our Country’s Good and And Then There Were None. This is her sixth production with Shakespeare Frankfurt and most recently, she played the role of Tupolski in Martin McDonagh’s The Pillowman.

Elisa began her involvement with English-language theater at the age of seventeen with the English Dramatic Society at University Erlangen-Nuremberg. She has performance experience as an actress and singer and directs a student choir. From 2018 to 2019, she was musical director for two musical productions, “Tone Death” and “College Collage,” of the Chaincourt Theatre Company and contributed music to the production of “The Scarecrow.” Since 2018, she has been a surtitles manager at the Frankfurt Opera and works as assistant dramaturge for individual productions. She is a student of theatre, film and media studies at Goethe-University Frankfurt.

Originally from Los Angeles, California, James has been on stage in various capacities for most of his life. Recently, James has performed with Frankfurt’s English Theatre, Shakespeare Frankfurt and FEST. In addition to theatrical productions, James has performed with various choirs in the United States and Germany. Despite the time spent performing, James' true passion is in composing: he has a degree in music composition from Cornish College of the Arts in Seattle, Washington. He has won composition competitions, and had his music performed by ensembles in the US and Germany. Trojan Women marks his debut as costume designer for Shakespeare Frankfurt.

Markella was born and raised in Greece. Professionally, she is a scientist working in the pharma industry. Art was always part of her life since she was a child: painting, writing or playing the piano. The last 5 years she attended various improvisation theater courses with TLS Frankfurt and performed in a monthly improv show with the group The Sidekicks. In Trojan Women, she participates as production assistant focusing on prop construction, Greek culture consulting and more.

Rosa is 19 years old and she is an urban dancer. She recently got her Abitur at the Freiherr-vom-Stein Schule in Frankfurt am Main. Currently, she is doing an internship with Shakespeare Frankfurt. This is her first time working as Production Assistant and she is interested to gather as much as theatre experience and study acting.

Brad is a public affairs specialist for the U.S. Army, returned to theatre in 2018 after a decade-plus hiatus. This is his second collaboration with PJ Escobio, having previously designed the lighting for the production of The Pillowman. He is a company regular for the Amelia Earhart Playhouse in Wiesbaden where he has performed both stage and technical work.