The Bay Area Premiere of SHOGGOTHS ON THE VELDT Opens in Redwood City in May

When famed Victorian explorer Melford Pumbleshire is torn to pieces by something horrible and unseen while on safari in deepest, darkest Africa, his redoubtable fiancé Euphonia Riggstone must lead an expedition to put his unquiet spirit to rest. This globetrotting adventure comedy has romance, betrayal, an amnesiac ghost, perfidious cultists, and a Lovecraftian tentacle monster. Part of the Main Stage Series.

Shoggoths on the Veldt is a comedic homage to the works of H.P. Lovecraft. You might not know who Howard Phillips Lovecraft is, but you've definitely felt his influences. Contemporary writers like Stephen King, Neil Gaiman, William S. Burroughs, and Alan Moore have all cited Lovecraft as having a major influence on their writings. Argentine writer Jorge Luis Borges wrote his short story There Are More Things in memory of Lovecraft. Even writer Joyce Carol Oates is a fan - she wrote an introduction for a collection of Lovecraft stories. Visual artist H. R. Geiger's creature designs for James Cameron's Alien films were all heavily influenced by Lovecraft's monster aesthetic. Batman's Arkahm is named after a Lovecraft fictional location, and Sam Raimi's Evil Dead Necronomicon was actually invented by Lovecraft.

Artistic Director Alika Spencer-Koknar says that "it was love at first sight when (co-artistic director and husband) Max and I saw the premiere of Shoggoths on the Veldt in Seattle, Washington, at The Rogues Gallery back in 2015 while on tour with the California Theatre Center. When Meredith Hagedorn, founding Artistic Director, asked the Dragon staff for script recommendations for her final season of programming back in 2017, we eagerly passed the script onto her. We were so honored that she chose the script for her final hand-picked season. Obviously, we had to be a part of the creative team bringing this hilarious, heartwarming, swashbuckling, adventure story to life on Dragon's stage. As the new co-artistic directors of the Dragon, Max and I are excited to share this story and we hope you will fall in love with it just as much as we have."

Managing Director Kimberly Wadycki says "Shoggoths on the Veldt checks off so many check boxes for me - fantastic roles for women, some epic fight scenes for the ladies, it made me laugh out loud several times, it vibes very strongly of Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom, and it flips some conventions on its head. It's a terrific entry in the season and a great introduction to the Koknars."

In conjunction with the play, we had a great opportunity to activate a connection with Gr8er Good Games, a local bay area company that creates escape room puzzles. Founded by Shuai Chen, Gr8er Good Games has created the Riggstone Records, with degrees from MIT and Stanford, Ms. Chen's background in neuro-biology designs games to activate the brain and facilitate play, which makes her a perfect partner for Dragon Theatre, and Shoggoths on the Veldt gave her an amazing world to play in.

ABOUT THE PLAYWRIGHT: Cameron McNary is an Actor and Playwright who lives in Columbia, MD. His first play, Of Dice and Men, premiered at PAX Prime in 2010, and has since gone on to significant regional success. It was made into an independent feature film of the same name in 2013, which can be viewed on Amazon Prime. He is currently chipping away at the script for Bed and Breakfast of the Damned, a traditional door-slamming sex farce, but with zombies.

Featuring the talents of: Tasi Alabastro (Famed Explorer Welton Mountcrag), Betsy the Shoggoth (as Herself), Lisa Burton (Lady Phillipa Bickleford-Smith-Jones), Ronald Feichtmeier (Lord Melford Pumbleshire), Alika Spencer-Koknar (Lady Euphonia Riggstone), Michael Weiland (Crompit/Arnult/God of the Bloody Tongue)

Designers & Production Team: Bora "Max" Koknar (Director), Samantha Ricci (Assistant Director), Melinda Marks (Stage Manager), Austin Barnes (Assistant Stage Manager), Karl Haller (Technical Director), Nathaniel Card (Scenic and Lighting Designer), Jonathan Covey (Sound Designer), Kathleen Qiu (Costume Designer), Kate Martin (Properties Master), Jacob Vorperian (Projections Designer), Mike Fatum (Fight Choreographer), Lance Huntley (Photographer), Maggie Ziomek (Graphic Designer)

TIX & MORE INFO: dragonproductions.net/

Photo by Kimberly Wadycki