Who is Taproot?

Claire McKey Berkman is a writer and multi-hyphenate creative that experiments with collaborative methods within development, production, and performance. After four years working production in Los Angeles, Claire moved to London for her graduate work in contemporary theatre development (MFA Advanced Theatre Practice, Royal Central School of Speech and Drama), for which she wrote and produced the immersive musical Below. After returning from the UK, Claire lived in Vermont where she focused on her screenplay writing and continued her freelance production work while also holding multiple roles: Co-Director of the Vermont Film Festival; Vice President of the Board for Okemo Valley TV; and Assistant Director/Documentarian of Yoh Theatre Players. Her screenplays have been awarded Semi and Quarter finalist placements in over ten competitions, including “Female Voices Rock Film Festival” and “Emerging Screenwriters Comedy Screenplay Competition.” She wrote and edited Taproot Creative’s most recent short film, Therapy Won’t Kill You, which has been enjoyed by audiences at multiple festivals. She recently filmed the proof-of-concept short of her unique feature Silent Cal about president Calvin Coolidge. In 2025 Claire was selected for the VT Screenplay Incubator taking place Spring 2025, for which she is wrote a site-specific script set at a Vermont summer camp and explores New England fairies. Claire has just moved down to NYC to start her first year in the Graduate Musical Theater Writing Program at Tisch NYU.

Andrea Cárdenas is a writer and actor who can’t remember her password. Andrea's play, The Product, premiered at Ars Nova in May 2025 where she was an artist in residence. Her work has also been featured at NY Comedy Festival, NewFest, Netflix, TBS, UCB, Second City, and more. She is currently completing her MFA in Dramatic Writing at NYU.

Anita Castillo-Halvorssen (she/her) is a Venezuelan-Norwegian actor, singer, and educator in New York City. With Taproot, she has produced, directed, and/or acted in six projects since its first in 2021. Originally from Colorado, Anita is a graduate of Brown University’s MFA Acting & Directing program at Trinity Rep. She is an ensemble member of and artistic advisor for Notch Theatre Company, and a proud member of the Ring of Keys coalition of queer women, trans, and nonbinary artists in musical theatre. Television: FBI (CBS), Harlem (Amazon Prime), Law & Order (NBC), The Good Fight (CBS). New York Theater: Red Bull Theater, New Georges, Clubbed Thumb, New Dramatists, Ensemble Studio Theatre, New Ohio Theatre, The Chain, Irondale, The Tank, Under St. Mark’s Theater, Theater for the New City, and Theatre Row. Additional Training: British American Drama Academy, Swarthmore College (BA Film & Theater).

Sarah Cuneo is a playwright, actress, director, and aerialist. As a writer, Sarah's work has been seen throughout New York and New Jersey, including the New York City Fringe Festival, the Chelsea Film Festival, the Chain Film Festival, YoFi Fest, and more. In 2024, Sarah received her first professional staged reading: at the Tank, for her play "Antistrophe". She was then selected for the 2024-2025 INKubator residency at Art House Productions in Jersey City, where she spent a year developing her new play "Trad". "Trad" received a staged reading at Art House in April 2025 and was recently selected for a reading at Luna Stage. In the summer of 2025, Sarah was commissioned by the New Jersey Theatre Alliance to write a short play based on interviews with cancer patients via the Horizon Foundation’s 2025 Theatre and Health Bridge Project. She was also recently commissioned by Art House to write a new full length play exploring Hudson County history via the Hudson County Historic Partnership Program.

Kimberly Divad is a first generation Haitian-American Writer/Director, Actress born and raised in New York, currently in LA. She is a lover of horror, comedies, surrealism/ absurdity and her work is centered within these genres. The stories she's interested in telling are those of the misunderstood and exploring motivations to understand their perspectives. Her short film script "Thank Mother" placed as a quarter finalist in Killer Shorts this past February 2024. Her short film "Grapefruit" premiered at the Oscars qualifying VC fest - (FKA the Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Fest and her project, W(HOLE), a dystopian care centered short film, is a finalist for the 2024 Storytelling with Care grant sponsored by Caring across America and the National Domestic Workers Alliance.

Danica Gabriele (she/her) is a writer, actor and director who loves classic literature, history, fantasy, weaving original stories and twisting familiar tales. She has completed her master’s degree in Text and Performance (a joint program at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (RADA) and Birkbeck, University of London) where she earned a distinction and her BA as a History major, English Literature minor and Theatre minor at Swarthmore College. She is currently writing a fantasy series.

Lisette Gabrielle is an actor, writer and proud founding member of Taproot. She received a BA in Theatre & Performance Studies and a BA in Psychology from Georgetown University. Lisette has honed her acting skills at NYC’s Upright Citizens Brigade, DC's Shakespeare Theatre Company and London Academy of Music & Dramatic Art (LAMDA). She has graced the stage as Judith B. Kaufman in An American Daughter, Vera Stark in By the Way Meet Vera Stark, Mrs. Martin in The Bald Soprano, among others. One of her most memorable performances was originating Gabbie in November 2022 in Taproot's first fully staged production of She Said, She Said written by Megan Medley. Lisette, now a certified yoga teacher, emphasizes mind-body connection in her craft. She is forever grateful to have connected with the gorgeous souls that make up the Taproot network as it has reinforced her devotion to theater connecting us all and truly changing our worlds.

Megan Medley (she/her) is a playwright and theater-maker whose plays include She Said, She Said, As Eden Burns, Without God As My Lover, and Ava and Ty. Megan is a co-founder of Taproot Creatives and her work has been produced and developed with this collective throughout NYC and beyond. Awards include: Semi-Finalist National Young Playwrights in Residence 2021, Semi-Finalist SheNYC 2021, Semi-Finalist Maxim Mazumdar New Play Award 2023, Second Rounder Austin Film Festival 2024, Finalist STN Short Play Festival 2024. Member: AEA, Dramatist Guild. Megan earned her MFA from the CWRU/CPH Acting Program. megan-medley.com @meg_the_med @taproot_official

Emily Rellis (she/her) is an actor, producer, intimacy choreographer, and certified Lucid Body teacher based in New York. She has been working with Taproot since its first sprout in 2021, and acting in the most recent short film, “Therapy Won’t Kill You.” Additional acting credits include “Tapawingo,” an indie film starring Jon Heder and Billy Zane, sitcom style “Metro Park,'' now streaming on Amazon Prime and several commercials with Harmon Brothers that you’ve seen on your social channels. Emily is currently a resident Intimacy Director with Marymount Manhattan College, Northeastern University, as well as regional playhouses - Elmwood Playhouse & Antrim Playhouse in the Hudson Valley. Emily is also a founding member of SheNYC Arts - a 501c3 femme-led nonprofit organization fighting for gender equity in the arts & entertainment industry across the United States. She has been the Executive Producer of the Los Angeles based "SheLA Summer Theater Festival" since 2018 helping showcase the talents of writers, composers, directors, and other theater artists who are part of a marginalized gender group, including cis women, trans, and non-binary people.

Kathy Richter (she/her) is an actor and helps Taproot with promotions and public relations. As an actor she’s typically cast as the direct, no nonsense professional who calls ‘em like she sees ‘em. Kathy is a founding member of Taproot Creatives and is grateful to have played the role of “Mother” in She Said, She Said—Taproot’s first fully staged theater production. She is also the voice of EVELYN in another Taproot production—Without God As My Lover. Her film roles include The Tributaries (Dances With Films LA and Rhode Island International Film Festival), Two City Lesbians (New York Shorts International Film Festival), and Love Sucks (Big Apple Film Festival). Prior to becoming an actor Kathy worked as a TV news reporter covering everything from grisly murders to destructive hurricanes. She studied acting at Atlantic Acting School in New York, has a Bachelor’s in Radio-TV from Southern Illinois University, and a Master’s in Journalism from the University of Illinois. She’s also a proud member of SAG-AFTRA, AEA, and New York Women in Film and Television.