Below are the recipients of the SDCF Professional Development Program 2023-2024 Season: Cycle 2 Recipients.

Observers:

Jayna Shoda Meyer – Lempicka with Rachel Chavkin

Jayna Shoda Meyer (she/her/hers) is a bi-coastal director and actor, currently living in NYC.  She recently graduated from Boston University with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Theatre Arts and a minor in Arts Leadership. Born and raised in Southern California, she is a diasporic Chamorro/CHamoru indigenous to the Mariånas Islands. A lover of new works and collaborative creation processes, Jayna aims to build community through her work and explore the transformative power of storytelling. She has worked with Breaking Wave Theatre Company in Guam to develop a new collaboratively written intergenerational play, Hita Mane’estoria, which received grants from the JKW Foundation Grant in 2021, the Indigenous Youth Fellowship with Cultural Survival in 2022, and The Collective Fund in 2023. In 2023, she attended ITI Brazil’s New and Emerging Arts Professionals Festival in Rio de Janeiro where she facilitated a workshop on Storytelling Through an Indigenous Lens and participated in Roberto Cayuqueo’s Artist Residency. Additional directing credits include HALF (Premiere – Boston University), Legends of Guåhan Podcast Series (Breaking Wave Theatre Company), and Assistant Director of Once (Boston University Booth Theatre). IG: @jaynashodameyer | Website: jaynashodameyer.com

Dezi Tibbs – Oh, Mary! with Sam Pinkleton

Dezi Tibbs (they/she) is an artist obsessed with exploring how we fabulate and perform our identities. They believe that there are unspoken rules that govern our social interactions that are indicative of larger truths present in our society. Working primarily as a dramaturg, she loves to look at the world of the play through a microscope, excavating its layers to identify the rules of the society and how each character functions within it in service of the narrative. Stylistically, they’re interested in pushing the bounds of what a play looks like—always trying to find the most effective communication with the audience. They employ cartoonish whimsy, dance, and music to create events that engage audiences logically, emotionally, and physically.

Fellows:

Florencia Cuena – Las Borinqueñas with Rebecca Aparicio

FLORENCIA CUENCA is a Mexican actress, singer, writer and director based in New York City.  She entered the artistic world at the age of three acting alongside her father in stadiums and theaters throughout Mexico and the USA. Back in Mexico she is known for telenovelas such as “De que te quiero te quiero,” “Muchachitas como tú,”  and for being part of the successful Mexican musical Si Nos Dejan, the Mexican premiere of Shrek the Musical and Selena the Musical. Her first album “Aquí – The New Standards”, made her tour all around Mexico, Latin America and New York City, being awarded with the Hot House Jazz Award 2016 for Best New Jazz Artist. She has performed Off-Broadway in shows such as Children of Salt (NYMF 2016 Best of Fest) and A Never-Ending Line (album available at Broadway Records). She was recently seen playing the role of Estela in the world premiere of the musical Real Women Have Curves at A.R.T. As a singer-songwriter she has performed in prestigious venues such as Lincoln Center, Joe’s Pub, Feinstein’s/54 Below and others. Director selected credits: Desaparecidas (JACK), A Never Ending Line (Mexico City), Estocolmo (Festival Alfonsino in Mexico). Currently she is working on her new album “Broadway in Spanglish.” She is interested in developing projects that celebrate diversity and especially women and the Latine  and Hispanic community.

Rosie Corr – On Your Feet with Marcia Milgrom Dodge

Rosie is a director-choreographer and arts educator with an emphasis in artistry that centers compassion, agency, and humanity. Recently she worked on HARMONY (Broadway, Assistant Director) and will be starting with ON YOUR FEET (Riverside Theatre, SDCF Directing Fellow). Upcoming: Rosie will make her NYC directorial debut with Doug DeVita’s GODDESS OF THE HUNT at the Fresh Fruit Festival. Other favorite projects include SPRING AWAKENING (Spotlight Musical Theatre) and BACK TO BROADWAY (I Can Do That! Performing Arts Center). www.rosiecorr.com / @RosieCorr

Kajsa Jones-Higgins – Richard II, Henry IV and Henry V with Joseph Haj

Kajsa Jones-Higgins (she/her) is a theater director, arts administrator, and educator based out of St. Paul, Minnesota. She makes theater that connects people to themselves and others. She is honored to be the SDCF Directing Fellow for Richard II, Henry IV, and Henry V at the Guthrie Theater. In 2023, Kajsa assistant directed Say All the Truth with The Moving Company at The Jungle Theater. Kajsa has been the resident musical director at East Ridge High School since 2017 and has an affinity for working with young actors. She has also directed at The Black Hills Playhouse, SoWashCo Summer Stock, and Artistry (Assistant Director). When not directing, she works in Development for various Twin Cities arts organizations.