Our American Tragedy

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Director’s Note

The history of the United States offers us a deep well of stories for artists to excavate, and the infamous tragedy that serves as the catalyst for this show is no exception. But, when it comes to re-examining our past, we, as storytellers, have a tendency to toss the proverbial bucket over and over again into the same spots of the well, examining the same stories, hoping to mine something other than a watered-down, oft-repeated version of historical truth. 

Most of the time we come up short. 

So, we look to the lesser-known stories, the forgotten characters of history, in order to glean something new and interesting from our shared past. What this remarkable ensemble of actors, producers, writers, designers, dramaturgs, and technicians have strived to create with Our American Tragedy is exactly that–our attempt to dig deeper into the well and pull something up that’s truly worth excavating. What we’ve created, we hope, is something that closely captures or resembles the historical essence of the event we’re retelling, through the eyes of shadowed historical figures that were very much real, though dramatized in this version. 

But, beyond historical account, what I hope we can convey with Our American Tragedy is simple. The human emotion that drives all of history. 

The reason I feel that history serves as such a bottomless well from which artists love to pull is not just due to its mythological richness, complexity, or darkness. Rather, I believe what we’ve represented in this piece is that recreating human history serves as more than just an educational tool. On the contrary, retelling true stories illuminates the ways in which human beings are the same across centuries, regardless of time, place, or status. 

How do we deal with tragedy? Do we turn on each other? Do we turn on ourselves? Do we ascribe blame? Or do we merely deflect? How each individual might respond in the wake of unimaginable horror, suffering, humiliation, or defeat will inevitably differ, but the collective, human response in the face of tragedy is certainly an aspect of history worth retelling, beyond just the mere factual account. 

As you watch Our American Tragedy, I hope you will consider the meaning of your own human response to tragedy, whether that tragedy is personal, political, big, or small, and how that response might’ve been shared with the historical figures you’ll see represented tonight. 

- Jack

Cast

Creative Team

Meet the Gang

Angelique Fustukjian

Laura Keene

Angelique Fustukjian is a Los Angeles-based artist and co-founder of Sunny Gingham. She is excited to be back at the Hollywood Fringe for the second year in a row! Last year she wrote, produced, and starred as Susan in the Encore Award-winning play, The King & I, and Paul. She was most recently seen in Short+Sweet Festival Hollywood’s The Line, directed by Nick Roy, and is a 2-year acting veteran of 14/48 Hollywood. Additional theatre credits include “Ensemble “E” in The Line (2024), “Wickersham” in Seussical (2023), “Restaurant Man” in RENT (2022), “Kit Kat Fritzie” in Cabaret (2022), and “Cookie” in Rumors (2019), among others. In addition, Angelique is a series regular on the scripted podcasts, Cryptid Cape. Besides performing, she co-hosts a comedy podcast called The Boozy Botanical Podcast. Angelique dedicates tonight’s performance to her late father, Berj🤍

Matthew Namik

Harry Hawk

Matthew Namik is a Los Angeles-based artist and co-founder of Sunny Gingham Company. Returning to the Hollywood Fringe stage for his second year, Matthew's recent theatrical credits include Paul in The King & I, and Paul, Lucius in Julius Caesar at the California Theater, B in The Line, and Lenny in Rumors. As a director, his credits include; The Library, CHANGE: The Musical, Seussical, She Loves Me, and 4.48 Psychosis as well as short form plays in Hollywood’s 1448 Theatre Festival. In addition to his theater work, Matthew's recent television and film roles include Dustin in Here Comes Your Man (Seasons 1 and 2) and Ryan in The Prodigy. Behind the scenes, he continues to explore his creativity in the art department, contributing to Luke Steinborn’s Formerly Known As and serving as an Art Coordinator on The Kelly Clarkson Show, where he earned his first Daytime Emmy Award.

Nick Roy

John Mathews

This is Nick Roy’s Hollywood Fringe Debut. Before moving Westward, Nick studied theatre at East Stroudsburg University, commanding roles such as The Stage Manager in “Our Town”, and Danforth in “The Crucible”. After which he moved to New York and had the honor of starring in an off-broadway production, “A Therapy Session With Myself” as well as LGBTQIA+ renditions of classic works like Eugene Oneill’s “Thirst”, and Moliere’s “The Pretentious Young Ladies”. Since his move to LA last summer, Nick wrote and directed a one-act play as part of Conundrum’s New Works Festival and directed a 10-minute play as part of Hollywood’s Short+Sweet Festival. He’s ecstatic to take stage once again and bring these historic moments to life.

Bryan Snodgrass

John Burroughs Wright

Bryan (he/him) is the Executive Director and co-founder of Conundrum Theatre Company. He started acting when he was in kindergarten, playing the Prince in a school production of Cinderella. The stage has been his passion ever since. Bryan received his BA in Theatre Directing from the University of Northern Colorado. He has been a part of numerous productions, both on and off stage. He has been part of Conundrum’s productions of Rent (Mark Cohen), Cabaret (Emcee), Fun Home (Bruce), Into the Woods (Baker), She Loves Me (Sipos), Putting It Together, Bells Are Ringing, Pajama Game, and more. Some other acting credits include Pippin (Charlemagne), You’re A Good Man, Charlie Brown (Charlie Brown), Fuddy Meers (Kenny), and The Sound of Music (Max). He has also directed Seussical, A Company of Wayward Saints, Bringing It All Back Home, Love Letters, and The Sound Of Music.

Luke Steinborn

Ned Spangler

Luke is making his Hollywood Fringe debut and is so excited to put on a new work that tackles one of the most infamous moments in our history as a country. Previously, you may have seen him as Svec in Domino One’s production of Once: A New Musical or as the Dentist in Conundrum Theatre Company’s Little Shop of Horrors. Luke has worked professionally on stage and on screen across the nation and is happy to be working with such a great group! Ask him about his brand new pilot, Formerly Known As! IG: @Fkaseries

Aimee Paxton

May Hart

Aimee earned her MFA in Acting from University of Montana, where she wrote and performed a one-woman show, untouchable (@untouchable.short.film), now turned into a short film premiering soon! Some of her favorite theatre roles include Ado Annie in Oklahoma!, Ivy in August: Osage County, Smee in Peter and the Starcatcher, Alma in Summer and Smoke, Shelby in Steel Magnolias, Hanna in A Shayna Maidel, and being part of an ensemble cast for multiple educational touring shows in the Pacific Northwest. Having grown up in theatre, she has gained knowledge on and offstage, with experience in company management, stage management, production management, education director and more. In her free time, she loves learning the Banjo, painting with acrylic and resin, traveling, and being with her niece and nephew at home in Washington state.

Carlos Cameron

Joseph ‘Peanut John’ Burroughs

Ethan "Carlos" Cameron is a performing artist from Port Angeles, Washington. He's previously worked with Sunny Gingham behind the scenes of THE KING & I, AND PAUL, and could be seen on stage in Conundrum Theatre Co.'s SEUSSICAL THE MUSICAL. When he's not doing theatre, you can find him in front of the camera in films like THE FIRST and SAE, headed to festivals soon. Other work includes his music under the name CURSE, with which he's released two albums and is hard at work on the third.

Jack Filsinger

Director

Jack Filsinger is an award-winning writer and director whose childhood dream was to design roller coasters. But ultimately, he decided to pursue the arts once he learned how much math that involved. He studied at New York University, earning a degree in Film and Television before moving back to his hometown of Los Angeles to pursue his new dream of becoming an utter cliché. Jack’s work has been recognized by the Final Draft Big Break Competition and the ScreenCraft True Crime & Public Domain contest. He was also a Semifinalist for the Disney Television Writing Program in 2023. Jack’s work can be found in BuzzFeed, Screen Rant, The Huffington Post, Creative Screenwriting Magazine, the Network ISA Blog, and SlashGear. He currently works for the audio narrative app Pocket FM as a Creative Lead.

Emma Baker

Dramaturg

Emma Baker is a dramaturg, poet, and student from Altadena, California. Emma trained at the LACC Theatre Academy in East Hollywood, where she recently was the dramaturg/stage manager for The Courage To Right a Woman's Wrongs. Other dramaturgy credits include: Domino One Productions (Pippin, Once) and Eight Ball Theatre (Twelfth Night). Special thanks to Matthew and Angelique, Taylor W., and her friends/family for their wisdom and support. She hopes this production will illuminate the fact that we're all living history, every single day. Follow her on Instagram @keepintouchemm.

Haley Silver

Costume Designer

Haley Silver is a Los Angeles-based costume designer and current costume production supervisor at LA Opera. Some of her past credits include assistant design work with Santa Cruz Shakespeare, Marin Shakespeare, San Francisco Playhouse, and Jewel Theatre Company, among others. She holds an MFA in costume design from UCLA, and led a 10 week costume design workshop for high schoolers in partnership with CalArts. This is her second time designing a play for the Hollywood Fringe Festival and she's thrilled to be back working with such a great team!

Isaac Rodriguez

Sound Designer

Isaac Rodriguez is an audio engineer and musician in Los Angeles, California. He’s involved in many aspects of audio, including recording & mixing, sound design, podcasting, and live productions. It’s his passion for audio, and ability to adapt, that have allowed him to appreciate and work within a variety of projects and environments. He also creates musical works under I.S.A.A.C., which blends his love of rock, hip-hop, folk, and Mexican music.

Josh Montijo

Content Editor

Josh Montijo is a post-production specialist and writer based out of Los Angeles. Having graduated from the University of Arizona with a Bachelor’s in Film & Television and a Minor in Creative Writing, Josh has been grinding in LA for nearly 8 years and is currently a lead assistant editor at Westbrook Media. There, he AE’d on SXSW’s documentary short, Owning the 8 Count and assisted on social content for Bel-Air Season 2, and, currently, the feature film Bad Boys: Ride or Die. Josh also edits content for local standup comedians and is the lead audio editor for The Boozy Botanical Podcast. In addition to his experience in post-production, Josh has worked on numerous television projects for companies such as Arizona Public Media, MTV, Nickelodeon, and ATTN:, among others.

Matthew Namik, Angelique Fustukjian, Nick Roy

Playwrights

Thank you to our donors!

Producers marked with a (*)

Executive Producers marked with a (**)

Special thanks to Macy Idzakovich for lending us costume pieces for our set and props!  

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