About the artist:

Shirley Kaplan, director, playwright and painter has worked extensively in theatre within the United States and Europe. Ms. Kaplan has created inter-disciplinary theatrical material based on personal stories and events. She has made media interactive work for all of New York City's museums. Ms. Kaplan designed all the Cole Porter Shows for Ben Bagley and her designs and paintings have been exhibited in many museums and galleries including The Stable and Terry Dintenfass in New York City. She has directed with many companies developing original theatrical material and was commissioned to create a piece for Festival St. Archangelo in Italy with an ensemble of Italian performers from various theatre companies. Ms. Kaplan is one of the co-founders of the OBIE-Award winning Paper Bag Players, along with Judy Martin, Remy Charlip, and Sudi Bond, and she is founder/director of Painters Theatre. She has directed new works by many playwrights including Richard Greenberg, Jane Willis, Stuart Spencer, Leslie Lyles, Eduardo Machado, Denise Bonal, and Keith Reddin. She has written and/or directed plays performed at Playwrights Horizons, UBU Repertory, Ensemble Studio Theatre, All Seasons Theatre Group, LaMama, Image Theatre and Music Theatre Works. A member of Ensemble Studio Theatre she is currently on the theatre faculty at Sarah Lawrence College. New work includes a collaboration with composer, Chester Biscardi, entitled Notes in a Bottle and directing a new play by poet, Teresa Carson entitled Mr. V’s Congress of Oddities. Ms. Kaplan lives in Brooklyn.