Stage Manager and Light Board Operator: Aria Grisham
Assistant Stage Manager and Sound/Costume Designer: Paige Kent
Set and Props Designer: Alex Reiser
Graphic Intern and Makeup Artist: Elisabetta Antonacci 

John DellaContrada
John is a senior Theatre Performance student, proudly appearing on the UB Drama Theatre stage as Lord Sebastian in Rodgers and Hammerstein's Cinderella, and Lloyd Dallas in Noises Off. Having assistant directed The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time last fall, he is thrilled to be making his full directorial debut with Gruesome Playground Injuries. Outside of theatre, John is also completing a Linguistics BA, a Computer Science minor, and serves as the Music Director for the award-winning singing group, The Buffalo Chips.

Brandon Booker
Brandan Booker is a sophomore Theatre major at the University at Buffalo. He is excited to play the role of Doug, as his debut college role. Brandan has previously played Seymour Krelbourn during his senior year at Rochester Academy Charter School in their production of Little Shop of Horrors. Brandan hopes to be able to do more shows, both plays and musicals, as he continues his college career. 

AlissaDi Cristo
Alissa Di Cristo is a senior Theatre Performance BFA major with an Early Childhood Education minor, who is extremely grateful to be cast in one of her favorite plays this semester. She is so excited to portray her version of Kayleen and tell a story that follows two in-depth individuals. She was last seen on the Drama Theatre stage last fall as Belinda Blair in Noises Off. Alissa would like to thank all of those at UB who support her and let her learn and grow as an actress and as a person.

Aria Grisham
Gruesome Playground Injuries will be Aria's second show with UB's Student Directed Series! Aria also held the role of Stage Manager for The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Nighttime. Other technical theatre credits include Rent: School Edition (Sound), Little Women (Student Director), and Much Ado About Nothing (Producer). Outside of theatre, Aria is in the last year of the Public Health B.S. with a German minor, and spends extracurricular time being a troupe leader and Vice President of UB Improv, volunteering, and getting involved with public health in the Buffalo community.

Alex Reiser
Alex Reiser is a senior at UB and worked as the light board operator for UB’s 2023 production of Cinderella and managed props for Noises Off the semester prior. This semester, Alex was cast in both PUFFS and Outrage, and for his role as Father in Eurydice, he is a 2024 Irene Ryan Acting Scholarship nominee. For Gruesome Playground Injuries, he enjoyed the challenging task of designing a minimal set that would complement the performance onstage, not complicate it.

Paige Kent
Paige Kent is a junior Communication major as well as a Theatre BFA. She is so thrilled to be working on Gruesome Playground Injuries. Helping this show come to life has truly been a wonderful experience for her. Usually, Paige is seen on stage but is finding a love for being behind the scenes. Last semester, she worked crew for UB’s production of Cinderella, and thoroughly enjoyed the opportunity of working backstage. She’s currently rehearsing as the Grandmother in UB’s production of The Intruder which is set to premiere December 2 and 3.

Intimacy Consultant: Mason Beggs
Theatre Technician: Jonathan Irizarry
KCT Box Office Manager: Rob Falgiano
Lighting Design Support: Nicholas Quinn
Fight Consultant: Dr. Danielle Rosvally
Production Photographer: Ken Smith
Senior Staff Assistant: Tom Tucker

The UB Department of Theatre and Dance is a proud member of the UB College of Arts and Sciences. 

With a firm commitment to creative research and experiential learning, the Student Directed Series is administered by the Department of Theatre and Dance. 

The department thanks UB Center for the Arts for their support in advance ticket sales. 

UB Theatre and Dance wishes to acknowledge the generous continued philanthropic support of Fox Run at Orchard Park, an official contributing sponsor of the UB Theatre and Dance 2023-2024 season. 

Today’s performance of Gruesome Playground Injuries, is part of the Department of Theatre and Dance’s season of plays, dance concerts, and musicals. Our season of programming is also made possible by the generosity of patrons in the form of both ticket purchases and donations. If you would like to further Support Theatre and Dance, please visit our website.