Pocket Producing Ensemble
What is the producing ensemble?
Pocket Theatre's Producing Ensemble is a dedicated group of artists committed to expanding opportunities within Chicago's theatre community. Pocket is focused on building industry infrastructure and creating meaningful connections between artists and theatre companies across the city post COVID-19.
Our programming centers on two key goals: fostering network opportunities for artists and providing essential development resources for creatives. The Producing Ensemble plays a vital role in this work, helping to build and scale programs that give artists the tools and connections they need to sustain careers in theatre.
Members of the Producing Ensemble work to develop partnerships and expand our reach, ensuring that Chicago's artistic community has access to the resources and opportunities it deserves.
Rashaad Bond
Rashaad A. Bond (he/him) is a Chicago based actor, director, and producer. He moved to Chicago from Albuquerque, New Mexico in the summer of 2019. In Albuquerque, Rashaad founded and served as the artistic director for Middle Ground Theatre Company, a company dedicated to giving opportunities to those in the community that were often neglected. He holds a BA in Theatre from the University of New Mexico. He holds a deep passion for developing stories that highlight the lived experience of people of color. His work has afforded him the opportunity to collaborate with numerous theatre organizations across the Chicagoland area.
Brandii Champagne
Brandii is a producer, director, actor, and all-around theatre-maker! They are one of the co-Artistic Directors of Theatre L'Acadie. Some of their recent theatre credits include Big Time Toppers (Director - Theatre L’Acadie), Polaroid Stories by Naomi lizuka (Guest Director - McNeese University), 6 Installments of In Bloom at Theatre L’Acadie (Producer), and two years of producing INC. alongside Pocket. Keep up with them on Instagram for what's next: @brandii.champagne | Check out their portfolio and more of their work at: brandiichampagne.com
Emma Durbin
Emma Durbin (they/them) is a Chicago-based playwright, producer, and multidisciplinary theatre artist whose work centers queerness, love, and community. They are a co-founding producer for new play development initiatives including Freshly Brewed at The Understudy Coffee and Books, New Play Festival at Subtext Studio TC, and Whale Watch Fest. Emma’s plays include: landscape (workshops: Theatre L’Acadie, Whale Watch Fest NYC, Valdez Theatre Conference, Mirrorbox Theatre; awards: Normal Ave finalist, The Inkwell Theater finalist, Premiere Play Festival semifinalist, Fault Line Theatre semifinalist), overgrown(workshops: Valdez Theatre Conference, Jackalope Playwrights Lab), Witchcraft, Bitchcraft (workshop and commission: Pocket Theatrics). Training: DePaul University (Playwriting BFA), The Kennedy Center (New Play Dramaturgy Intensive with Mark Bly), Oregon Shakespeare Festival (FAIR Literary Assistantship). Visit emmadurbin.com to learn more!
Nadya Naumaan
Ramona Rotten
Ramona Rotten (she/hers) is a multidisciplinary artist based in Chicago, where she serves as the artistic director of the Meat Machine Theatre. Her artistic journey began in childhood, with a fascination for performance that deepened during her studies at the University of New Mexico. Rooted in experimental theatre and performance art, Rotten's practice explores the intersections of the strange, taboo and uncomfortable. With a distinctive queer, feminine aesthetic, her work invites audiences into an intimate and provocative relationship with performance, challenging traditional audience engagement.
Erin Sheets
Erin Sheets is a Director, Producer, Movement/Intimacy Director, and Puppetry Fangirl from New Orleans who has called Chicago home since 2018. Erin is co-Artistic Director of Theatre L'Acadie and an ensemble member at Facility Theatre. She is a lead producer of new play development series Inc. - A New Play Incubator, and the In Bloom New Works Series. As a director, recent projects have included Deserted (Artemisia Theatre), Grey Gardens (Big Noise), and The Swan (Theatre L’Acadie). Other projects of hers you may have seen (if you're into that sort of thing): 4th Graders Present an Unnamed Love-Suicide (Bump In The Night, Intimacy/Violence Director), Endgame (Facility, Asst. Director), Motherhouse (Rivendell, Asst. Director), Big Time Toppers (Theatre L' Acadie, Movement Director), Right Now (Facility, Intimacy Director), The Delivery (Trap Door, Intimacy Director), Today Tonight Soon (Theatre L’Acadie, Director), Helena & Hermia in the Enamored Odyssey (Imposters, Intimacy Director), A Monster Tragedy (Meat Machine, Movement Director), Titus Andronicus (Redtwist, Intimacy Director), among others. Learn more about what's up next at erinesheets.com.
Joel Willison
Having lived overseas from 7-18 in Kampala, Uganda, Joel is focused on accessibility to stories and the stage. His work at Pocket focuses on the intersection between the internet and live theatre; As a producer, he focuses on new work development - curating a space for new/early-career artists to understand their craft and collaborate in community.
Joel is the Artistic Director for Pocket Theatrics, the Co-founding Artistic Producer of Freshly Brewed, and the founder of inc. and Direct Address. He is also a company member of Playground Chicago and Theatre L’acadie. In 2023, he was selected for Directors Haven 6.
Recent credits include work with Shattered Globe, Filament Theatre, Shattered Globe Theatre, Theatre L’acadie, Definition Theatre, Refracted Theatre Company, The Runaways Lab Theater, Playground Chicago, Haven, Ghostlight Theatre Ensemble, Stage Left Theatre, Eclectic Full Contact Theatre, and Chicago Dramatists. joelwillison.com