BIO

A true multi-hyphenate, STEVEN CARL McCASLAND is a playwright, pianist, director and producer dedicated to telling the stories of remarkable women and their contributions throughout history. 

Steven burst onto the New York City theatre scene as  the founder and Artistic Director of The Beautiful Soup Theater Collective, for which he directed the American premiere of Craig Adams and Ian Watson’s musical Lift, rare revivals of Rags, Moose Murders, Yentl and A Doll's Life, Crossing Brooklyn: The Musical and more. The revivals of Rags and A Doll's Life featured heavily revised librettos, painstakingly put together using many lost drafts. The end results were comprehensive looks at long-troubled musicals in rare New York revivals. 

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In 2009, Steven was commissioned to adapt poet Jack Wiler's anthologies into a solo performance about Wiler's struggle with HIV. That play, Fun Being Me, was workshopped with Jack in the title role before his passing in 2009. His other plays, When I'm 64, Hope & Glory, The Tip, Opheliacs Anonymous, Fifth Position, Blue, Pulchritudinous (Huntington Award in Playwriting - First Place), neat & tidy and Billy Learns About Captain Kirk have all received productions regionally and in Manhattan.

In June of 2011, Steven premiered his original adaptation of Lewis Carroll's Alice's Adventures in Wonderland. Setting Wonderland in the heart of Paris, he also directed and was featured in the cast as the Mock Turtle. After its one week workshop, Alice Au Pays Des Merveilles was picked up for an extended run at The SoHo Playhouse through September. His play neat & tidy made a splash on the Bowery in May of 2012, with critics hailing McCasland as a new Thornton Wilder and the play as one of the Top Dramatic Plays of the year. 

 

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After The Beautiful Soup Theater Collective ended its five-year run, Steven turned his focus to writing. His critically acclaimed plays Little Wars, What Was Lost and Shades of Blue: The Decline and Fall of Lady Day received various workshop productions, before running in repertory at The Clarion Theatre when several of Steven’s plays enjoyed a month-long run in May of 2015. Also featured in repertory were his works 28 Marchant Avenue: Six Summers at Hyannis Port, Der Kanarienvogel (The Canary) and the first revival of neat & tidy. His writing has been acclaimed by New York critics as "brilliant", "riveting", "mesmerizing" and "extraordinary".

Since its premiere, Little Wars has been performed in four U.S. states, five countries and virtually for the globe, in a reading starring Juliet Stevenson, Linda Bassett and more.

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While not at the theater, Steven maintains life as a private vocal and acting coach, prepping New York actors on new material and for upcoming auditions. A classically trained pianist, Steven enjoys musical directing and conducting (credits include Falsettos, The Wizard of Oz, Aida, Godspell, The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, Thoroughly Modern Millie, Imagine That, The Secret Garden and You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown). 

Steven's plays Little Wars (published by Nick Hern Books), Shades Of Blue: The Decline and Fall of Lady Day, What Was Lost, 28 Marchant Avenue: Six Summers At Hyannis Port are available for purchase at Amazon.com.