mad fellowships

2026 MAD FELLOW Applications are NOW CLOSED

Check back here for the 2027 MAD Fellowship applications in September 2026!

SUPPORTING EMERGING THEATER ARTISTS

Starting a career in theater? Want to get paid while also receiving a hand-on learning experience with professional designers? Shotgun Players offers MAD fellowships for early-career and emerging theater artists in theatrical design (lighting, sound, costumes, scenic, props), stage management, and more!

2026 MAD Fellows

EJ Agata

THE DEATH OF MEYERHOLD – MAD Lighting Fellow

EJ Agata (she/they/he), 22, is a queer Chicanx theatre maker from Los Angeles. She is also a recent graduate of UC Davis, having double majored in English and Theatre & Dance. Their love for theatre began in 2017 when he saw An American in Paris at the Pantages and it has grown and evolved since. When they aren’t working in theatrical design, EJ is a teaching artist in Davis, educating the theatre makers of the future, or they’re watching movies and lounging at home with their roommates. EJ’s recent works include: EUREKA DAY (Capital Stage), THE MERRY WIVES OF WINDSOR (SPARC), “SING WITH PRIDE:” CONSIDERING MATTHEW SHEPARD (Mondavi Center), GROUNDHOG DAY (Studio 301 at UC Davis), and SMALL MOUTH SOUNDS (UC Davis).

EJ Agata

Lighting Design

she/they/he

Atusa Assadi

IPHIGENIA IN SPLOTT – MAD Directing Observer

Atusa Assadi is an Iranian American writer and stage manager from the Bay Area who collaborates most often with Golden Thread Productions and the San Francisco Mime Troupe. While not running around the Bay working on various theater productions, Atusa is a cinema and screenwriting student at San Francisco State University with plans to pursue filmmaking alongside theater. She loves storytelling and is excited to get the opportunity to dip her toes into the creative side of production through the MAD Fellowship program!

Atusa Assadi

Directing Observer

she/any

Alexandrite camerino

IPHIGENIA IN SPLOTT – MAD Scenic/Props Fellow

Alexandrite Camerino (he/they) lives his life on, off, and around stages. By day, he works as a scenic painter and carpenter for live theatre (recent credits include Marin Theatre and SF Shakes). By night, he performs original folk, punk, and country under the stage name “Manic Sobriety” and is a keeper of the Oakland Secret, a DIY venue dedicated to supporting artists, musicians, performers, culture bearers, and organizers in the Bay Area. Most recently, they directed “No Exit” by Jean-Paul Sartre- a contemporary adaptation set in a BART car- which received 5 nominations including “Best Director” and “Best Set Design” in an Adult Comedy/Drama at the 2025 Arty Awards. His passions include two-stepping in the pit, hiking in the rain, and randomly reciting Shakespeare monologues. @alex_camerino

Alexandrite Camerino

Scenic/Props Design

he/they

MiLisa “Mercy” Coleman

IPHIGENIA IN SPLOTT – MAD Lighting Fellow

MiLisa “Mercy” Coleman is a Black American queer writer, artist, and aspiring light designer from Cleveland, OH based in Oakland, CA. With a background in television, film and photography, they have worked on live broadcasts, music videos, and short films in the roles of production assistant, script supervisor, editor, assistant director and photographer. Coleman has exhibited their visual art in solo and group exhibitions at Gordon Square Art Space, Maelstrom Collaborative Arts, Oakland Photo Workshop, and at community spaces. They participated in Twelve Literary Arts’ Baldwin House Urban Writing Residency and in various workshops. Coleman was a recipient of The Writing Salon’s 2020 Black Writers Matter Scholarship. Their poetry appears in Obsidian: Literature & Arts in the African Diaspora, The Tiger Moth Review, The Shade Journal, and Root Work Journal. After participating in Afro Urban Society’s Light Design Fellowship Lit From the Black!, Coleman has continued learning through shadowing and assisting Dr. Stephanie Johnson. They have programmed light cues at different theatres in the Bay Area; namely, Shotgun Players, Altarena Playhouse, New Conservatory Theater Center, and Oakland Theatre Project. Coleman earned their B.A. in Digital Media with minors in Black Studies and Sociology from Cleveland State University.

MiLisa “Mercy” Coleman

Lighting Design

they/them

Dorsey crocker

CONTINUITY – MAD Sound Fellow

Dorsey is a queer sound maker and creative with a passion for collaboration and experimentation. After graduating Calarts with a BFA in Experimental Pop, she moved to the Bay and continued to pursue her passion of intersecting intuitive art making with technical experimentation. Sound has always been a medium for storytelling in her work on sound design for film and animation, and DIY audio installations, and while new to theater, she is excited to apply her perspective to this work. dorseycrocker.com

Dorsey Crocker

Sound Design

they/she

Siavash Ford

THE GOAT OR, WHO IS SYLVIA? – MAD Costume Fellow

Siavash is an Oakland-based creative with a love of all things costume. As a teaching artist, he is a strong believer in using theater and play to educate and form communities. In 2025, he received a BA in Theater at UCLA’s School of Theater, Film, and Television with an emphasis in costume design and production. Most recently, he designed for Berkeley Playhouse’s TeenStage production of Guys and Dolls. His work in costume design is deeply intertwined with his love of puppetry, interactive media, and animation. Outside of theater, Siavash loves textile craft projects, tabletop games, and people watching. siavashford.com

Siavash Ford

Costume Design

he/him

SARAH “ELI” HAMPTON

CONTINUITY – MAD Directing Observer

Sarah “Eli” Hampton is a passionate theater director, administrator, and actor living and working in the Bay Area. As of May 2026, Eli will earn their Bachelor’s Degree in Performing Arts and Social Justice, with a Minor in Business, from the University of San Francisco. During their studies, Eli developed a great personal interest in human-centered, ethical artistic leadership. They embrace the transformative, revolutionary power of theater for both audiences and practitioners. Eli served as the executive producer for the University of San Francisco theater troupe for two years and notably directed productions of Hair, The Skin of Our Teeth, and a devised piece titled Red Line. Off campus, Eli has performed in productions of Jesus Christ Superstar (Berkeley Playhouse), The Laramie Project (Theater Rhinoceros), and Nice Guy (Marsh Theater). As their career evolves, Eli hopes to use their interdisciplinary experiences to facilitate brave spaces where artists investigate themselves and the world around them through play.

Sarah “Eli” Hampton

Directing Observer

they/she

EMMA JIANG

IPHIGENIA IN SPLOTT – MAD Sound Fellow

Emma Jiang is an audio engineer and AV technician based in Oakland, CA and is delighted to make her debut in theatrical Sound Design as a 2026 MAD Fellow with the Shotgun Players at Ashby Stage. She specializes in vocal editing and mixing and works with local and global artists on original music and vocal covers. A UC Berkeley alumnus with a B.A. in Cognitive Science, Emma is passionate about the human creative soul and crafting sensory experiences. In her spare time, she enjoys birdwatching, singing and a cappella, and making hearty soups. emmajiang

Emma Jiang

Sound Design

she/they

JASMINE LEW

THE FALL SHOW – MAD Directing Observer

Jasmine Lew (she/they/he) is a theatre maker, educator, and social worker based in the Bay Area, on unceded Ohlone Land. Jasmine runs arts-based programming for transitional aged youth experiencing housing insecurity in the SF Tenderloin, and has the daily pleasure of mentoring up and coming Bay Area artists. Beyond this work, Jasmine specializes in facilitating devised theatre and new work development. They make scrappy, heartfelt theatre that examines the relationship between intimate human moments and large systemic issues. Recently, they were a director for The Pear Theatre’s new works festival, Pear Slices 2025, and stage managed/produced “The Specimen: A Horror Play” by Schaeffer Nelson, a new work featured in PlayGround SF’s 2026 Solo Festival. Jasmine is grateful to be a part of the MAD Fellowship program, and can’t wait to work on and learn from The Fall Show!

Jasmine Lew

Directing Observer

she/they/he

ANDREW LIM

CONTINUITY – MAD Lighting Fellow

Andrew Lim is a lighting designer based in San Francisco. They practiced lighting design for film and live theatre at Grinnell College, working on student musicals, plays and short films, and now they are excited to be working on Shotgun Players’ production of Continuity!

Andrew Lim

Lighting Design

they/them

2026 MAD FELLOW Applications are NOW CLOSED

Check back here for the 2027 MAD Fellowship applications in September 2026!

MAD 2026 Design Fellowship

The design fellow will work alongside a designer mentor to gain hands-on experience in a production environment. Skills will be developed through collaborative discussions with the artistic team, research, and creative problem-solving. This fellowship is up to of 50 hours over about 7 weeks, from the start of the production process until opening night. Available design disciplines: lighting, scenic, sound, costume, props with responsibilities for each distinguished below.

Responsibilities:
– Attend design and prep meetings between director and designer, and pre-production meetings
– Research materials and sources for preliminary design
– Assist in preparing design presentations for first production meeting
– Assist with paperwork and execution of design (ex: scenic drafting, light/speaker/projector plot, costume renderings, dramaturgical research, programming, fabrication and construction, shopping/sourcing, etc.)
– Attend design run-throughs
– Participate in production meetings
– Attend load in and tech rehearsals, problem-solve, maintain quality control/integrity of design, and other issues during tech
– Execute production design notes to achieve final design goals
– Be a critical eye and report any notes to designer

Prerequisites:
– Prior experience in theatrical design and construction on at least one production (either academic or non-academic)
– Strong communication and organization skills, attention to detail, ability to manage multiple projects
– Bonus: proficiency in standard software for your field (ex. Vectorworks, Lightwright, QLab, AutoCAD, Microsoft Excel, Adobe Creative Cloud, Google Suite)
– Comfortable with craftsmanship (ex. sewing and alterations, building, fabrication).

Time Commitment:  Up to 50 hours total
Compensation:  Berkeley Minimum Wage

Costume design

Costume fellowship responsibilities

– Dramaturgical research
– Shopping and online shopping research
– Create costume renderings
– Measurements and fittings with actors
– Costume construction, fabrication, alterations, etc. 
– Attend tech/production meetings and take notes

apply now!
Lighting design

Lighting Design Responsibilities

– Drafting of light plot
– Sourcing rentals, trades etc
– Programming cues on the ETC Ion light board
– Helping with focus and hang coordination
– Attend tech/production meetings and take notes

Apply now!
props design

properties fellowship responsibilities

– Shopping, exploring other local prop shops
– Prop construction and fabrication
– Attend tech/production meeting and take notes

apply now!
scenic design

scenic design responsibilities

– Research
– Drafting of set design (on CAD, Vectorworks, Sketchup)
– Model building
– Meet with scenic designer and technical direction team to problem solve
– Attend tech/production meeting and take notes
– Hands-on painting, carpentry, and fabrication as needed
– Sourcing items

apply now!
Sound Design

sound design responsibilities

– Research/sourcing or creating sound cues
– Programming the design on Qlab
– Engineering speaker and microphone set up
– Attend tech/production meeting and take notes

Apply now!

MAD 2026 Directing Observership

The purpose of this experience is to give this person a comprehensive look at the work and responsibilities of a Director for a mid-sized professional theater. 

Responsibilities:
– Attend at a minimum of 2 rehearsals per week, the design runs, and some tech rehearsals and previews. There is no maximum number of rehearsal or production attendance.
– Be prepared to offer feedback and suggestions.

Prerequisites:
– Experience directing one show
– Proficiency with Google Suite (Sheets and Docs in particular)

Time Commitment: TBD
Compensation: $400 stipend

Apply now!

MAD 2026 Stage Management Fellowship

The purpose of this experience is to give the fellow a comprehensive look at the work and responsibilities of a Stage Manager on a production for a mid-sized professional  theater. The fellow will serve as the Assistant Stage Manager on the production.

Responsibilities:
Assist production Stage Manager with running rehearsals (ie. prepping the space for rehearsals; taking line notes; tracking and managing costumes, props, and prop table; supporting cast and creative team with production-related tasks; assisting with cleaning and close-out procedures)
Track backstage logistics
Serve as Assistant Stage Manager or Production Assistant for all performances, planning and managing the backstage components of the production

Prerequisites:
Experience stage or production managing at least one show (either academic or non-academic)
Proficiency with Google Suite (Sheets and Docs in particular)
Enthusiasm for learning how to use new tools and technologies in theater
Ability to lift up to 40 lbs

Time Commitment: Approximately 50-280 hours depending on ASM designation, primarily evening and weekend daytime commitments.
Compensation: Berkeley Minimum Wage

APPLY now!
Working onYellow Face has been an incredible experience. Under the guidance of lighting designer Spense Matubang, I assisted in helping bring David Henry Hwang’s comedic yet powerful story to life to the Ashby Stage. Through color, effects, and shadow, we aimed to reflect the show’s message about authenticity and the importance of uplifting Asian voices in American theater and beyond.
Justin Kelley-CahillLighting Design Fellow – Yellow Face (2025)
Working on The Magnolia Ballet as a Directing Observer has been a transformative experience—one that has, just as AeJay envisioned, unleashed something powerful in all of us. Observing the text has opened new ways of seeing love, grief, humor, absurdity, and holiness, while watching the cast and crew at work has unlocked the meaning of joyful collaboration, the layered textures of storytelling, and the deep responsibility of collective creation. It is an honor to take up this call to action and carry its lessons into my artistic journey beyond.
LaRae Mays-HardyDirecting Observer – The Magnolia Ballet (2025)
Working on The Magnolia Ballet as a scenic design MAD fellow has allowed me to learn new skills while exercising existing interests and expertise. The translation of imagined spatial qualities – to representations of those designs – to finally the built, inhabitable scenery is just so juicy and fun! It is endlessly interesting to observe how artistic minds weave together to solve problems and create theater magic!
Sophie Ruf Scenic Design Fellow – The Magnolia Ballet (2025)

Frequently Asked Questions

You’ve got questions, we’ve got answers! For questions about Shotgun’s MAD Fellowships or the application, please contact MAD Program Coordinator, Alejandra Maria Rivas at [email protected].

Scroll to Top