About Aria

My parents got me the VHS of the 1998 direct-to-video Cats the musical and unfortunately for them, I fell in love with theater.

As a teenager I frequently took the Metro into DC to attend City at Peace DC, a youth development organization that taught teens from across the DC area how to use theatre as a tool for social change, and it taught me the capacity for theatre to be a force for action and growth. When not at City at Peace, I would see shows at Arena Stage, Studio Theatre, the Kennedy Center, and others, inspired by the scope of DC’s salient political dramas, large-scale musical productions, and inventive reimagined classics. When I left DC to attend The University of the Arts (RIP), I knew I would come back to the city some day to make it my artistic home. As an artist and audience member, I believe in fostering the talent and community of regional theatre, in DC or around the country.

I live with my amazing wife, KJ, an excellent playwright, teacher, and partner, and by far my favorite person with whom I get to see and create theatre. We met on OkCupid after she answered the question “Sondheim or Andrew Lloyd Webber?” by just saying “Yikes.” Since then, she’s never stopped making me laugh.

There’s a chance you might be here because you know me as The Critical Lesbian – and if you do, just pretend that you didn’t see this. A hobby that started as a teenager, I now have a TikTok with over 200k followers where I review, analyze, and gush about films, TV shows, theatre, and other entertainment media around queer women. My passion for lesbian stories also bleeds into my artistry, as I love directing and uplifting stories about queer women in all of our humor, sorrow, and complex history.

PS Ask me about Cats lore.