The MENA Show at NYU Production Lab

Vaheed Talebian (he/they) is a queer Persian-American composer and performer, and started writing for theatre at the University of Virginia from which he received his B.A. in Arts Administration and Economics. He then received his M.F.A. at the NYU Tisch Graduate Music Theatre Writing Program (Max Dreyfus Award). He has since written scores for films produced at the Virginia Film Festival and is officially now both an off-Broadway actor and writer. Broadway credits coming soon 🤞 🧿 Vaheed’s current projects include his original full length comedy DINO NUGGETS ARE GAY (play; playwright; staged reading produced by Ice Berg Productions and Out of the Box Theatrics), THE MENA SHOW (musical; composer; NYU Artist in Residence; 2024 NMTC Semi-Finalist; 2024 AMTP Semi-Finalist), PLANT SAFFRON HERE (musical, librettist and composer, reading with Titan Theatre Company), ANOTHER COUSIN’S WEDDING (musical, composer, produced at the Tank’s 2024 International Human Rights Art Festival), ‘TIL NEXT TIME (play, playwright, produced by The Village Playwrights), BLOOD IS THICKER (musical; co-writer, produced at The University of Virginia; Makers Ensemble Intimate Artist Night), PLAYING THE GAME (film, composer, performed at the 2022 Virginia Film Festival). On the stage, Vaheed made his Off-Broadway acting debut in THE MONSTERS OF THE VILLA DIODATI as John Polidori with Emergent TheatreWorks and has three other off-Broadway actor credits as well. vaheedtalebian.com

Faiza Alex Manaa is a New York City-based Egyptian-American composer-lyricist, librettist, and playwright. She is passionate about accessibility in the arts, and amplifying stories that aren’t traditionally told. Her work explores Arab & diaspora culture, intergenerational and cross-cultural family dynamics, and uncomfortable truths about humanity. Her works have been performed Off-Broadway, at 54 Below, Joe's Pub, Davenport's Piano Bar, PinkFROG Cafe, and more. Her opera, THE CURSE OF THE MAGI (commissioned by the Washington National Opera) premiered at WNO Studio in Washington DC in May 2026. Other current projects include THE MENA SHOW (book/lyrics/co-music; 2026 NYU Artist in Residence; workshops at NYU and Goodspeed Opera House; 2024 NMTC Semi-Finalist; 2024 AMTP Semi-Finalist), LAYLA & MAGNUN (book/lyrics/co-music; workshops at NYU and Goodspeed Opera House); WINDY (libretto; 2024 production with American Opera Project), ANOTHER COUSIN'S WEDDING (book/lyrics; 2024 International Human Rights Art Festival, production at The Tank), and ILLEST DANCE (book/lyrics/co-music; 2021 NAMT semi-finalist; 2022 AMTP workshop). Her works have been performed at 54 Below, Joe's Pub, Davenport's Piano Bar, and more. She received her B.A. in Theatre from Northwestern University and her M.F.A. in Musical Theatre Writing from NYU Tisch GMTWP. She is a proud member of the Dramatist Guild, Maestra, and Opera America. manaamusicals.com

GEORGE ABUD is an award-winning actor, director, and playwright. As playwright, his new politically-charged adaptation of 3Penny Opera premiered Off-Broadway this past winter starring Katrina Lenk, Barbara Walsh, and Mary Testa; and his first play The Ruins received its world premiere at the prestigious Guthrie Theater last fall. As director— Fanny: a Fantasy in G (Gural Theatre at ART/NY); 3Penny Opera (Theatre at St. Jean’s); Jake Landau’s The Coin Toss (TheatreNow Festival at Lincoln Center); Vaughan Williams’ Riders to the Sea (Off-Brand Opera, Brooklyn Art Haus); James Abud is Alive and Güd and Living in Detroit (El Barrio’s Artspace PS109). As actor— Film: Caught Stealing starring Austin Butler & Bad Bunny (dir. Darren Aronofsky). Broadway: Marinetti in Lempicka directed by Rachel Chavkin (OBC Recording); The Band’s Visit starring Katrina Lenk & Tony Shalhoub (Daytime Emmy Award, OBC Recording); The Visit starring Chita Rivera & Roger Rees (OBC Recording). Off-Broadway: Macheath in 3Penny Opera (Theatre at St. Jean’s); A Christmas Carol opposite Michael Cerveris (PAC NYC); The Beautiful Lady directed by Anne Bogart (La MaMa); Nerd Face in Emojiland (Drama Desk nom., Duke on 42nd); The Resistible Rise of Arturo Ui opposite Raúl Esparza, Nathan The Wise opposite F. Murray Abraham, Ibsen’s Peer Gynt, and Rodgers & Hammerstein’s Allegro directed by John Doyle (Classic Stage Company); Cornelia Street opposite Norbert Leo Butz, The Band’s Visit directed by David Cromer (Atlantic Theater Company); Lolita, My Love opposite Robert Sella (York Theatre Company). Regional: The Ruins directed by Osh Ashruf (Guthrie Theater); Richard Nixon in The Untitled Unauthorized Hunter S. Thompson Musical directed by Christopher Ashley (Signature DC, Helen Hayes nom./La Jolla Playhouse, Craig Noel Award for Outstanding Featured Performance); Frank Russell in Queen of the Mist opposite Mary Testa (PEAK Performances); Anything Goes directed by Marcia Milgrom Dodge (The MUNY); Marinetti in Lempicka (La Jolla Playhouse, Craig Noel nom.); Lewis Chapman in August Rush directed by John Doyle (Paramount Theatre); Charlie Davenport in Annie Get Your Gun directed by Sarna Lapine (Bay Street Theater); Puck in A Midsummer Night’s Dream (Geva Theatre Center).

Kat Cartusciello is a queer NYC-based composer, sound-designer, and multi-instrumentalist. She is Jason Robert Brown’s music assistant, and has worked with him since 2023 on numerous projects, including "The Connector," "Midnight in the Garden of Good & Evil," "Less," and "The Last Five Years." She is a member of the TheatreNOW writing lab, Maestra, and Ring of Keys, and has three musicals in development: Nima and the Jen (book & lyrics by Thalia Ranjbar,); Hard Tack (book & lyrics by Jessie Field); and Then She Ran (book & lyrics by Alex Becker). With Jessie Field, Kat also wrote a 30-minute opera for American Opera Project, Styx & Stones, which was inspired by Patricia Cronin's "Memorial to a Marriage."