About Us

Lively Productions presents new work for the stage by emerging artists, and seeks to create innovative theatrical opportunities in a world increasingly defined by real time interactions and new technologies. Through the cultivation of new work and exploration of projects based on current events, trends and new media, we endeavor to expand the definition of performance today.

Lively Productions was founded in 2007 and became a registered 501(c)(3) organization in June of 2011. For general inquiries, please email info@livelyproductions.org.

Allison Goldberg & Jen Jamula, co-creative directors

Allison Goldberg and Jen Jamula are co-creators of Blogologues and have been Co-Artistic Directors of Lively Productions since August of 2010. Allison and Jen co-conceived, produced and performed in Blogologues beginning in May 2011, and were subsequently asked to take part in a six month developmental residency at Under St. Mark’s, during which time they created and performed in new versions of Blogologues every month. Blogologues has been featured in The Observer, Crushable, Metro New York, Backstage and more, and the concept has been extended to podcasts and webisodes (blogologues.tumblr.com). This March, they were invited by CNN contributor and media maven Rachel Sklar to host and perform in a women & comedy event at South by Southwest in Austin, TX.  In addition to their stage endeavors, the duo also launched and ran the vlog whyareyouonmytrain.com from 2010-2011, where they interviewed strangers on the New York City subway. The vlog was featured in The New York Times, The Huffington Post, Refinery29 on NY1 and more, and has been called “genius” and a “gem”, while Jen and Allison were praised for “their unique eye for interesting characters.” Allison graduated cum laude from Yale University with degrees in Theater Studies and Near Eastern Languages and Civilizations; Jen also graduated from Yale with a degree in Theater Studies and both have been members of Actors Equity Association since 2006.

Andrew Ash, adorable

Andrew Ash is so happy to be a part of Lively Productions! New York: Lively Productions (Blogologues, The Rivals), Inwood Shakespeare Festival (Othello), TheatreWorks USA (Max & Ruby), Queens Players (A Midsummer Night’s Dream). Regional: Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park (A Christmas Carol, The Nina Variations, The Foreigner), Hangar Theatre (What Happened to Bill Viola?, Bluebeard, Two Donuts, The Wedding Reception). Film: The Cigar Collector, 101 Ways to Kill Yourself. Education: Yale University, Upright Citizens Brigade. Proud member of AEA.

Matthew Cox, actor, collaborator, podcastor

Matthew Cox is a 2011 graduate of Tarleton State University where he received a BFA in Theatre. He is an actor, improviser, writer and musician. Recent acting credits/favorite roles includes several productions of Blogologues with Lively Productions; The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee (Panch); The Servant of Two Masters (Smeraldina); Picasso at the Lapin Agile (Einstein); Woman in Mind (Bill Windsor); Godspell (Jesus); and Fuddy Meers (Limping Man.) He was also a head writer/featured performer for the weekly comedy group Improv at Tarleton from 2007-2011. More recently, he completed the 2011 Summer Conservatory at the Stella Adler Studio of Acting, and is currently attending classes at the Upright Citizens Brigade training center. He also once ended Communism during a high profile  boxing match with Ivan Drago in Russia . He dedicates this to Adrian.

Greg Edwards, playwright, comrade

Greg Edwards is a Manhattan-based lyricist and librettist, essayist, playwright, and adventure game designer. His plays, musicals, and songs have been performed across the country, including at a White House dinner for the President and fifty governors; and he placed second for the 2010 Fred Ebb Award for Musical Theatre Songwriting. Representative musicals include The Rivals (BMI, Lively Productions), “Taking the Plunge” (New York Musical Theatre Festival, Sam French Festival Finalist, Lively Productions), “Episcus and Edendus” (BMI, Lively Productions), and several songs with Marvin Hamlisch (White House, Mr. Hamlisch’s Holiday Tour). His plays include A Crowded House (State Theatre of Chicago), “Diplomatic Relations” (Lively Productions), “Everaftering” (Lively Productions), and “Home-Cooked: A Cautionary Tale” (Jimmy’s No. 43). His computer game Jessica Plunkenstein and the Dusseldorf Conspiracy was published internationally and received acclaim from such arbiters of adventure gamely taste as the New York Times and PC Gamer UK. His Roman-themed game The Judgment of Quintus is currently in development. Greg graduated Phi Beta Kappa from Yale University with a B.S. in Theater Studies and Computer Science. He’s now a member of the Dramatists Guild and the advanced BMI Lehman Engel Musical Theater Writing Workshop.

Consider stalking him at www.greged.com or contacting him at Greg@livelyproductions.org.

Julienne Jones, video guru, graphic designer, renaissance woman

Julienne Jones is most known for her shining performance in The Abominable Blogologues: Tobogganing to 2012. In addition to being a stage sensation, she also acts as Lively Productions’ Media Producer, creating pretty little things like business cards, videos, and press packets! She is honored to be working alongside such talented and wonderful people. Wanna find out more about her? Sure you do! Visit her website! (Also, insert shameless plug for her two blogs The Dimpled Spider and Fill Me Up NYC)

Wendy Joy, actor, ball of sunshine

Wendy Joy is psyched to be a part of Lively Productions! She is originally from Tampa, Florida and holds a BA in Theatre Performance. She performs improv with Artistic New Directions (AND) and Sunday Night Improv. She was recently seen in AND’s Eclectic Evening of Shorts:V and Lively Productions’ Blogologues (Are You There God? It’s Me, Blogologues and Blood is Thicker than Blogologues.)

Jessica Schnall, cat lady, third wheel

Jessica Schnall, a writer, newspaper copy editor and life partner to cats Teva and Isabel, feels intimidated about having her anemic bio listed here, because she’s in the company of accomplished theater types who have lots of achievements to denote between parentheses. As she’s never been published anywhere worth mentioning, and she’ll probably never pursue a career onstage thanks to her stoic disposition, she will repurpose parentheses to overshare. (She’s seen Elton John in concert more than 30 times.) (Her mom has accused her of having a “Julie Andrews fetish,” which she took as a compliment.) (Apparently, she has a thing for British geriatrics.) Genetically inherited indifference be damned, Jessica couldn’t be happier that, through interweb magic, ladies who ‘logue Allison Goldberg and Jen Jamula stumbled upon her blog, Alone … With Cats, performed her posts in several Blogologues shows and then invited her on board. It wasn’t the sort of love she had been searching for online, but it is really, really awesome. (Suck it, internet dating.)

Lisa Siciliano, co-founder

Lisa Siciliano, co-founder, is an actress, director, writer, producer, and educator. For Lively Productions, Lisa has directed Everaftering by Greg Edwards and starred in Apples also by Greg. She has produced Everaftering and Other Tales, The Panda is Not My Friend cabaret, Paper Dolls by Patrick Huguenin, winner of the 2008 New York International Fringe Festival award for Outstanding Ensemble, Episcus and Edendus, and Apples.  Since moving to the Windy City in the fall of 2008, Lisa has taught with Lifeline Theatre, American Theatre Company, ARCC Ballet, Emerald City Theatre, Lasalle Language Academy, the Swedish American Museum, the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, and with the Columbia College Summer Arts Camp.  Currently, Lisa is the Education Manager at Emerald City Theatre. In Chicago, she has served as the executive director of the State Theatre while directing a devised production based on Virginia Woolf’s life and fiction novels for the company, A Crowded House.  She recently directed Laura Nessler’s Etiquette for a Golden Age for the City Lit Adaptation Festival.  Lisa graduated cum laude and with distinction in the theatre studies major from Yale University in 2005 and is currently a graduate student at Northwestern pursuing her master’s of science in education.

Learn more about Lisa at www.lisasiciliano.com and contact her at Lisa@livelyproductions.org.