Seagull: True Story

Alexander Molochnikov

Creator and Director

ALEXANDER MOLOCHNIKOV is a theater director, writer, and filmmaker. He worked for over 10 years in Moscow where he directed five major productions in drama, a ballet, an opera, two feature films, and a TV show. In 2022, he spoke out against the Russian military invasion of Ukraine and then moved to New York. He is now unable to return home to Russia. Since 2014, his first play, 19.14 Cabaret, an antiwar manifest about World War I, has been running in repertoire for over 11 years at the Moscow Art Theatre of Chekov. However, the theater has removed his name from all materials. The billing now says “Directed by Director.” Molochnikov’s production of the opera The Telephone. Medium by Gian Carlo Menotti premiered at the Bolshoi Theatre, along with his ballet The Seagull, which was honored with the “Golden Mask” (the Russian equivalent of the Tony Awards) for best ballet of the year. His feature film, Tell Her, about moving to the U.S. as a child, premiered in 2020 at the 47th SIFF. He has created and directed over 10 shows and films in Moscow including the most viewed six-episode TV series “Monastery” in 2022. He premiered a Crime and Punishment show at the Tel Aviv Gesher Theatre in December 2024. He is working now on a feature film related to the novel. His short film Extremist is long-listed for the 2025 BAFTA awards and premiered in Telluride; he is now turning it into a feature.

Eli Rarey

Playwright

ELI RAREY is an independent filmmaker, performance artist, playwright and poet. As a filmmaker, his feature film The Famous Joe Project premiered at Outfest before playing at festivals worldwide. He has written, directed, and performed with Plant Ant Theater in Detroit. Rarey was a founding member of Science Project performance collective and a regular contributor to the Emergency Gazette covering New York City theater. He holds a bachelor’s degree from Columbia University in Theater Arts and an MFA degree from USC School of Cinematic Arts, where he later taught in the Interactive Media Division. He lives and works in New York City.

Alexander Shishkin-Hokusai

Set Designer

ALEXANDER SHISHKIN-HOKUSAI (b. 1969, Leningrad, USSR). In 1995 graduated from Leningrad Institute of theatre, music and cinematography. Since 1998 – member of Russian Union of Artists. Works as a theatre artist, creates paintings, installations and performances. His works are characterized by absurdity and surrealism, a discrepancy between the external and the internal.

Kristina K.

Costume Designer

KRISTINA K (Kharlashkina) is a fashion and costume designer with over a decade of experience in design, concept development, textile innovation, and couture embroidery. She is a graduate of the Royal Academy of Fine Arts Antwerp, one of the world’s leading fashion institutions. Kristina has collaborated with renowned fashion houses including Carolina Herrera, Valentino, Monique Lhuillier, and Tom Ford. Her work has appeared on international stages and red carpets, with custom designs worn by Vice President Kamala Harris, First Lady Jill Biden, Maye Musk, Coco Jones, and others. She is the founder of the Kristina K brand and gained international recognition as the runner-up on Season 19 of Project Runway. Her designs have been featured in major publications including Vogue, ELLE, Harper’s Bazaar, and L’Officiel.

Brian H. Scott

Lighting Designer

BRIAN H. SCOTT is a Lighting Designer based in New York City. Recent credits include The Handmaids Tale’ with Anne Bogart and Boston Lyric Opera, ‘the theatre is a blank page’ with SITI Company and Ann Hamilton, Lost In The Stars for LA Chamber Orchestra, Falling and Loving with Elizabeth Streb and SITI Company, as well as a number of projects with Kronos Quartet. He created lighting for Tears become…Streams become, Bound to Hurt and Neck of the Woods with artist Douglas Gordon. With Ann Hamilton habitus, The Event Of A Thread. He designed lighting for Laurie Anderson and Kronos Quartet’s Landfall. As a SITI Company member he designed lighting for Chess Match No.5, Steel Hammer with Bang on a Can All Stars, American Document with Martha Graham Dancers, bobrauschenbergamerica, The Bacchae, Trojan Women, and many others.

Sam Saliba

Lighting Designer

SAM SALIBA is a Lighting Designer originally hailing from Boulder, Colorado. With a passion for storytelling and creating captivating experiences, Sam has helped bring to life a variety of shows from traditional plays, musicals, and dance to doncerts, nightlife, film, and immersive theater. Recently he has designed for Moonrise at Paradise Club, Jungle, Bob Moses, and Ludacris.

Diego Las Heras

Sound Designer

DIEGO LAS HERAS is a Canadian-Chilean composer, producer, sound designer, and faculty member in the Music Technology Department at New York University, based in New York City. His work moves fluidly between film, theater, and contemporary performance. He has composed original music and sound design for award-winning feature films and documentaries presented at the Venice Film Festival, Toronto International Film Festival, and NYC DOCS, and for video games and television projects for companies including Warner Bros. Games, E! Entertainment Television, and Discovery Channel. His music has been performed by numerous artists and ensembles, including the Chilean Youth Symphonic Orchestra. His theatrical and interdisciplinary work has been presented at venues including Provincetown Playhouse (NYC), Artist Space (ISP/Whitney Museum) (NYC), and Americas Society (NYC), La MaMa ETC, as well as Kunstfestspiele Herrenhausen (Hannover), Region(es): SUD Festival (NYC), the Santiago Museum of Contemporary Art, and the National Archives of Chile. Diego received the Luis Advis Composition Award in 2006, presented by the Government of Chile, and is a recipient of the Toronto Arts Council Award in the Music Creators and Composers category. In 2025, he was nominated for Outstanding Achievement in Theatrical Design at the HOLA Awards. He holds a B.A. in Jazz Studies from Humber College and a Master’s degree in Music Technology from New York University.

Fedor Zhuravlev

Composer

FEDOR ZHURAVLEV is a composer, multi-instrumentalist, sound designer, and producer. Born in Moscow, he has been working in the USA since 2023. Fedor is the author of an original methodology for creating and performing music. His sound is shaped at the intersection of classical music, contemporary sonic forms, and cutting-edge music technologies. Fedor works in genres such as prog-rock, jazz, blues, classical, avant-garde, experimental, electronic, ambient, minimalist, and pop music. He composes for theater, film, television, and advertising, using his proficiency in various instruments: guitar, piano, drums, while actively applying modern sound production and synthesis technologies. Characterized by emotional expressiveness, a keen sense of rhythm, and a deep commitment to enhancing the dramaturgy of each project, Fedor’s style creates a unique musical and sonic space. Among his works are: “The Tale of the Last Angel” (Theater of Nations, Moscow, directed by Andrey Moguchiy), “Jean and Beatrice” (Tabernacle Theatre, London, directed by Dmitry Serdyuk), “The Dybbuk” (Arlekin Players Theatre, Boston, directed by Igor Golyak), The Merchant of Venice (Classic Stage Company, New York, directed by Igor Golyak), as well as the films “Tsoi” (directed by Alexey Uchitel) and “Intensive Care” (directed by Peter Todorovsky).

Noize MC

Original Songs

NOIZE MC is a musician, rap and rock artist, freestyle performer, author of his own hip-hop opera, and Nobel Peace Prize nominee. Over the past 15 years, he has become a voice of a generation in the Russian-speaking world, known for his powerful live performances, outspoken civic stance, and active public engagement.

Timur Sadyq

Hair & Makeup

TIMUR SADYQ began his hairstyling career in Eastern Europe and is now based in New York City. With over 20 years of experience, drawing on a rich European foundation and the dynamic energy of NYC, Timur brings a distinctive and refined perspective to the world of beauty. His work seamlessly blends classic European aesthetics with contemporary trends, resulting in striking looks across stage, screen, and print. Timur’s editorial hairstyling has been featured in leading fashion publications including Cosmopolitan, L’Officiel, InStyle, and Cosmo Beauty. He has collaborated with major fashion houses such as Ulyana Sergeenko, H&M, Dior, and Dolce & Gabbana, as well as beauty brands like Redken, IT Cosmetics, Maybelline NYC, and NIKE. In the realm of film and theater, Timur has brought characters to life through thoughtful and expressive hair design. He has worked as a hairstylist on various film productions in New York and has also designed hair and makeup for multiple theatrical productions, contributing to the storytelling through visual transformation and period-accurate detail.

Sofia Kapkov

Producer

SOFIA KAPKOV is a New York-based producer who has worked in the performing arts for many years. She is the founder of MART Foundation, a non-profit American organization that supports contemporary culture on the international stage. Sofia has managed a range of MART projects in England, France, Russia, Israel, and the United States, featuring projects at the Brooklyn Academy of Music, Sadler's Wells, Festival d'Avignon, Baryshnikov Arts Center, Orsolina28, Carnegie Hall, and Powerhouse: International - A New Arts Festival . MART co-produced the acclaimed Off-Broadway production Our Class, recipient of four 2025 Lucille Lortel Awards, Sharon Eyal's Into The Hairy and Delay The Sadness, London production of What We Talk About When We Talk About Anne Frank, and the Off-Broadway production Seagull: True Story. In 2025, Sofia published a book titled Arts Hustler, chronicling her journey and experiences as a producer in the arts.

Ruth E. Sternberg

General Manager/Production Manager

RUTH E. STERNBERG is thrilled to be mounting this production of Seagull: True Story at The Public Theater. She serves as the General and Production Manager. Ruth recently appeared in the fall production of The Seat of Our Pants playing Mr. Fitzpatrick at The Public. Ruth stage managed the drone show portion of Starry Nights and has production managed The Nightmare Before Christmas Light Trail at The New York Botanical Gardens. Ruth has consulted for the Cape Playhouse in Dennis, Massachusetts and served as a panelist for The New York State Council of the Arts. Ruth ran the production department at The Public Theater for 18 years, overseeing the productions of new plays and musicals as well as Shakespeare in the Park. Prior to The Public, she spent ten seasons with Oskar Eustis, leading Trinity Repertory Company’s production department. While in Rhode Island, Ms. Sternberg served as a stage management instructor at Rhode Island College. She has served as production manager for the Newport Music Festival and McCarter Theatre, as well as several international tours for Philip Glass (including La Belle et La Bete) and Diamanda Galas. Ms. Sternberg production stage managed Philip Glass’ and Robert Wilson’s world tour of Einstein on the Beach, ESPN’s X Games, and she has stage managed for directors Anne Bogart, Emily Mann, Amanda Dehnert, David Rabe, David Wheeler, Scott Ellis, Richard Foreman, Mark Lamos and Ken Bryant (among others) at theaters such as Hartford Stage Company, Dallas Theatre Center, American Repertory Theatre, McCarter Theatre, as well as Trinity Repertory Company.

Mary Kate Baughman

Production Stage Manager

MARY KATE BAUGHMAN (Production Stage Manager) is thrilled to be back with Seagull: True Story! Select NYC Credits: The Heart of Rock and Roll (Broadway), The Disappear, Mexodus, Strategic Love Play (Audible’s Minetta Lane Theatre), Seagull: True Story (La Mama), My First Ex-Husband (MTTM Theatrics), Small Acts of Daring Invention (Mason Holdings), Malvolio (The Classical Theatre of Harlem), shadow/land (The Public Theater). Regional Credits: Joan, Anastasia (The Cape Playhouse), Anastasia, Last of the Red Hot Mamas (Bucks County Playhouse). Education: BFA, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

Eitan Markowitz

Stage Manager

EITAN MARKOWITZ is excited to be joining this production. Broadway: “Ragtime” (Lincoln Center Theater). He has also worked at companies such as The Cape Playhouse, Gateway Playhouse, Company XIV, The Wild Project, Playwrights Horizons, The Actors Studios, and many workshops championing new work in theater. He is a graduate of Marymount Manhattan College and is currently attending Pace University. He would like to thank his friends and family for all their continued love and support.