Playwright Julie Jensen
Julie Jensen is Utah’s most-produced playwright. She grew up in Beaver, Utah, and graduated from College of Southern Utah and Utah State University, receiving a B.A. and M.A. in English. She also holds a Ph.D. in Theatre from Wayne State University in Detroit. Having taught playwriting as a guest at more than a dozen colleges and universities, she was a professor of theatre at Saint Mary’s College and the University of Notre Dame and directed the graduate playwriting program at University of Nevada, Las Vegas. She also spent five years working as a writer in Hollywood. She now makes her home in Salt Lake City where she works with several theatres. Jensen has written more than 30 plays, all of which have been professionally produced. PYGmalion has produced several of them, including LAST LISTS OF MY MAD MOTHER, CHEAT, WAIT, MOCKINGBIRD, and MOTHER MOTHER.
Ma as Reb Fleming
Long ago and far away Reb Fleming and the lovely Miss Nancy Roth dreamed of a theatre company that would present theatre from a decidedly female point of view. That dream gave birth to PYGmalion. Ms. Roth took the helm as producer and Reb as artistic director and history is still in the making. Reb has acted and directed for this company she loves in productions including HELLMAN V. MCCARTHY, GIN GAME, BLITHE SPIRIT, CAKEWALK, BEYOND THERAPY, HOUSE OF BLUE LEAVES, LIVING OUT, KNOWING CAIRO, BUS STOP and SORDID LIVES. She also taught Voice and Speech for the Actor, Acting I and II, and treasures each memory of every student she worked with.
Dot – Tamara Johnson Howell
Tamara has worked PYGmalion many times, most recently in Julie Jensen’s MOTHER MOTHER as the indomitable Bella Abzug in BELLA BELLA Other recent work has included SWEENEY TODD at the Grand Theatre, and FOUR WOMEN TALKING ABOUT THE MAN UNDER THE SHEET at Salt Lake Acting Company. During the Covid shutdown, she was in Plan B’s radio play P.G. ANON by Julie Jensen. Other recent roles include Modesto/Floating/Jenya in WAIT!, Mary Todd Lincoln in MARY AND MYRA, Chris Remington in REMINGTON AND WEASEL, Mrs. Brooks in MOCKINGBIRD (Pygmalion), Abuela Claudia in In THE HEIGHTS (Good Company), Emperor Saturninus in TITUS ANDRONICUS (Pinnacle) and Bashira in TWO STORIES (SLAC). Tamara earned her BFA in Theatre from the University of Utah and is currently pursuing her Masters. She is a junior-high school theatre teacher.
Sis Ariana Broumas Farber
Ariana Broumas Farber is an actress, director, playwright, and producer who has worked on the professional stage locally and regionally for 22 years. Past productions with Pygmalion include: The Sex Habits of American Women and Spark. Other local theater companies include: Pioneer, Salt Lake Acting Company, PLAN-B, Wasatch, the Grand, The Classical Greek Theater Festival, The New Works Theater Machine, and Immigrant’s Daughter. She has 5 production credits from Immigrant’s Daughter Theater, where she serves as Managing Director alongside the illustrious Morag Shepherd. Their latest production, Worship, was selected by the Utah Review (alongside Pygmalion’s Mountain Meadows) as the number #1 production of the 2023 Utah Enlightenment. Her playwriting credits include Savage Resources (FFF Award at GSL Fringe Festival), Dreamers (Top 10 plays of 2022, Utah Review), Role Play, and Ride Me: A Play with Cruel Intentions (co-writer). Her writing will be featured in a collaborative production with Sakerson Theater Company coming in spring of 2024. Ariana graduated Magna Cum Laude with a BFA (Actor Training Program) and MPA from the University of Utah. She is a former Captain in the United States Marine Corps and works in economic development during the day.
Director – Morag Shepherd
Morag Shepherd is the artistic director of Immigrant’s Daughter Theatre and is a member of the Plan-B writers lab, where her play MY BROTHER WAS A VAMPIRE, and NOT ONE DROP (David Ross Fetzer grant recipient) has performed. Her play WORSHIP recently performed with the Utah Arts Alliance (The Utah Review top moment of 2023), and her play DO YOU WANT TO SEE ME NAKED (Critics Choice Award, and Best Solo Performance) has performed in Salt Lake City, Tucson, and The United Solo Festival in New York City. Her site-specific play, CHERRY WINE IN PAPER CUPS performed outside the Salt Lake City library summer 2020, and her immersive play, A BRIEF WALTZ IN A LITTLE ROOM performed throughout 2019 in Salt Lake City. Recent directing credits include MOUNTAIN MEADOWS by Debora Threedy, THE BEAUTY QUEEN OF LEENANE by Martin McDonagh, MELANCHOLY PLAY by Sarah Ruhl, BODY AWARENESS by Annie Baker, and LET THE RIGHT ONE IN by Jack Thorne.