Summer Devised Theater Ensemble

Ashley Forman worked in the education and community engagement department at Arena Stage for over 22 years. She served as the Director of Education for 17 years, over-seeing lesson planning and curriculum for all of Arena Stage’s education programs. Ashley was responsible for the design of Voices of Now, Arena Stage’s devised theater program for young artists in the D.C. area and served as the artistic director for that program and its ten devising ensembles for 20 years. Through partnerships with the U.S. Department of State, Ashley implemented her devised theater model in India, Ukraine, Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina and Peru. From 2013 to 2020 Ashley was as a visiting artist and guest lecturer at Utah State University, where she devised and directed plays with theater education students and taught masterclasses for their BFA acting students.

Ashley has facilitated workshops with public health workers for the National Institute of Medicine, the National Institutes of Health, the Archie Institute in Atlanta, and DC Child and Family Services Agency, the Wendt Center for Loss and Healing, and the Red Cross. She has devised autobiographical plays with numerous populations including young people aging out of the foster care system, grieving teens, survivors of childhood trauma, as well as professional artists, and social advocates. She has presented on her work at numerous conferences including AATE, ATHE, and TCG. Currently Ashley is in her second term as a board member for the American Alliance for Theater and Education, where she serves as their national programming director.

In June of 2024, Ashley started Precipice Theater Team to continue her life’s work of devising, evocative theater that provokes discussion, and leads to empathy and understanding.

WIth over 35 years of directing and teaching experience, Josh began his directing journey while working at Adventure Theatre  in Glen Echo, MD. He recently retired as a middle school Theatre Arts Educator after 30 years in public education. Josh is also a former teacher with Institute for the Arts, a summer arts program, and the Director of Performer’s Corner Summer Workshop. He was a Director with Arena Stage’s Voices of Now program for 10 years, where he worked with teen artists to create devised theatre performances based on the artist’s’ personal experiences.

Currently, Josh is also the Co-Director of the AFYP (Acting for Young People) Adventures Cast and a Lead Teacher with the AFYP Summer Camp. In 2023, Josh began working with the International Schools Theatre Association where he was a co-director of Para la Guerra Nada (For War, Nothing) in Bogota, Columbia.

Kaity holds a B.A. in Theater and an M.A. in Arts Management from George Mason University.  Kaity has been a part of the Acting for Young People team since 2008, working as a teaching artist in after school, summer camp, and showcase programs, as well as stage managing for AFYP’s Musical and Advanced Showcase programs. As of 2022, Kaity has moved out of the classroom to fully focus on the day-to-day operations of the organization as the Manager of Outreach and Theater Programs for the Academy. 

Kaity has an extensive background in the arts and education. In addition to her theatrical interests, she enjoys sketching, watercolor, and is an avid reader. Kaity has taught children ranging from early childhood through high school levels since 2008. In her time as a student at GMU, she participated in many stage productions as an actor, stage manager, and technician. Kaity served on the board for GMU’s producing group, the Mason Players, for three years, and co-founded GMU’s chapter of Alpha Psi Omega, the theater honor fraternity. She received the Chris Parsons Achievement Award for her work with the theater department in 2010. Kaity has also worked professionally as a stage manager in the DC Metro Area. Kaity is the mother to twin girls. Kaity is passionate about the transformative experiences provided by arts education for people of all ages.

Mary is Executive Director of Mason Community Arts Academy (MCAA) and served as MCAA’s Associate Director for 10 years. She is a longtime member of Mason’s School of Theater faculty in the areas of Performance and Theater Education. She was named a 2013 “Teacher of Distinction” and was a 2014 TEDxGeorgeMasonU speaker (“Magic Moments: the Transformative Power of  Theater“). She previously taught at the Studio Theatre Acting Conservatory and the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts. 

Mary founded Acting for Young People (AFYP) in 1997 and serves as Artistic Director. She has watched the company grow from being its only teacher with a sporadic program schedule in rented spaces to where it is today: an award-winning, year-round program with a full staff, working in conjunction with MCAA. 

A graduate of University of Maryland, College Park with a Bachelor of Arts in Theater and Speech Communications, Mary has worked professionally as an actor on stage, screen and radio in the Metropolitan Washington area, Los Angeles, and New York. She is a proud member of SAG-AFTRA and Actors Equity Association. 

Mary has directed several of AFYP’s student showcase productions, the Mason Players’ productions of An Experiment With an Air Pump and Shakespeare in Hollywood, and several staged readings. She is also a casting consultant and co-producer of independent films.