Marcela descalzi

Marcela Descalzi is a very enthusiastic new member of Houston Playback Theatre. She has written and performed in more traditional venues and is know stretching her craft into the realm of improvisational theatre. She started her professional career in evolutionary sciences, moved daintily to education, and is currently facilitating writing workshops and encouraging the exploration of ‘voice’. As an educator, she works with writers and performer ages nine through sixty-three. She is fascinated by the many ways art and community intermingle to produce sublime manifestations of beauty.

Esteban Gago

Esteban has been an actor at Houston Playback Theatre since its creation in 1996. He is a co-founder and actor of "Gente de Teatro", a Spanish theatre group since 1995. Esteban is also an actor of "Jaguar Sun", a non-profit theatre company which enhances Hispanic culture for children. He is a graduate from the Graduate Program for Communication Disorders at the University of Houston. He also works with individual clients and a group of pre-kindergarten children with language delay at House of Tiny Treasures funded by SEARCH. Esteban teaches creative writing to 4th graders using Playback as a tool to prompt personal stories. He has also taught drama in an after school program in the 5th Ward. He is a full-time Dad of three wonderful kids.

Leslie Gauna

Leslie Gauna is a founding member of Houston Playback Theatre which started in 1996. She is also concurrently a Bilingual Teacher in the Empowerment Through Literacy program for second grade bilingual students, holding an ethnically and linguistically mixed after school Playback Theatre club. Leslie holds a Bachelor's degree in Political Science and a Masters in Education and is a Certified Regular and Bilingual Teacher by the State of Texas. She wrote curricula, and trained educators, parents, students and community organizers in violence prevention among teenagers. Leslie has counseled children and parents in domestic violence issues.

Mary Ann Pendino

Mary Ann Pendino is an accomplished playwright, actor, and song writer, Pendino is best known for her long running one-woman musical The Attitude Club. Her writing credits include two commissioned librettos for Houston Grand Opera: Strega Nona, and The Princess and the Pea, and a play adaptation of the popular children�s book, If You Give A Pig A Pancake, for Main street Theatre. Throughout her career she has written several musicals and commercial jingles. She has composed music for two award-winning art films, The Colors of Sunday and The Jet Benny Show She continues to perform as a voice over talent and is the female narrator for the PBS documentary, Brother Can You Spare a Billion. Throughout the school year she is an art-in-education consultant and teaches for Writer�s in the Schools and Houston Grand Opera.

Paymaan Jafar-Nejad

Paymaan Jafar-Nejad is an MD by academic training, works as a scientist at Baylor College of Medicine. He is not an artist, he just thinks poetry, music, and Playback Theater are artistic tools that he can express untold stories.

Ramiro Salas

Ramiro Salas, PhD, is a scientist who works on the molecular mechanisms to drug addiction, specially nicotine addiction, at baylor College of Medicine in Houston, Tx. When he is not doing experiments he goes home to wife and two kids. In free time, he is a playbacker. Not an actor, conductor or musician, just a person who believes Playback must happen and tries to do whatever might be needed (like acting, conducting or playing music).