Staged Reading
Comedy Smackdown: Fiery Pits of Hell Song Contest
Featuring Samantha Ginn, Bryan Barbarin, Wendy Maples, Marley Bauer, Abigail Grace Allwein & Denise Lopez
An interactive night of laughs, chaos, and unexpected musical damnation
Back by popular demand, The Roustabouts’ annual Comedy Smackdown returns this September for two nights only. This time, we’re diving headfirst into the Fiery Pits of Hell. It’s live theatre meets game show meets musical madness. Think Whose Line Is It Anyway? ...if the host had a pitchfork and the audience got to play judge, jury, and executioner. You choose who moves on and who burns (figuratively, of course).
What’s at stake? Just the actors’ dignity, your sanity, and the soul of San Diego's theatre scene. Whether you're a die-hard fan or a first-time sinner, grab your friends and come laugh ‘til it hurts.
September 29 & 30, 2025 | 7:30PM
Scripps Ranch Theatre
9783 Avenue of Nations
San Diego, CA 92131
What Everyone Who’s Anyone Is Saying
“I didn’t know whether to laugh or repent.” – Audience member, mid show and mid-laugh
“Theatre should not be this fun. But I’m glad it is.” – Someone, we're sure of it
Meet the Cast
Samantha Ginn
Actor
Samantha is thrilled to be back playing with her funny friends at The Roustabouts! Past Roustabouts shows include: Hand to God, The Odd Couple and
Doubt (staged readings), and will be playing God herself in
An Act of God
in March 2026. When not performing on stages, she works as an Inclusion Specialist around San Diego. She’s committed to bringing her love of laughter and theatre to underserved communities.
Bryan Barbarin
Actor
National: Folger Theatre: A Midsummer Night’s Dream; Regional: Lamb’s Players Theatre: The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, Respectfully Christmas, Cotton Patch Gospel, A Christmas Carol, Oz, The Music Man, Harvey, The Glory Man, Around the World in 80 Days; The Old Globe: The Comedy of Errors, On This Spot; Cygnet Theatre: Water by the Spoonful, Parade, Man of La Mancha; New Village Arts: Big River;
Intrepid Shakespeare Company:
Hamlet; San Diego Repertory Theatre:
The Threepenny Opera.
Wendy Maples
Host
Wendy is thrilled to be jumping back in with the Roustabouts! having last been on stage with them in
For Whom the Southern Belle Tolls!
Recent stage credits include
Our Town, (Groundworks Theatre)
Proof
(Craig Noel Nomination) and
Steel Magnolias
(Backyard Renaissance)
The Roommate, Buddy
(New Village Arts)
Ms. CAST,
ROE, Dance Nation
and the world premiere of
Orange Julius
(MOXIE Theatre)
PIPPIN, Fair Use
(Diversionary Theatre)
Dog Sees God (InnerMission Productions.) Additionally, she has directed & performed with Playwrights Project, InnerMission Productions and the Theatre Arts School of San Diego. Currently, Wendy is a San Diego theatre teacher and playwright; her original writing has been featured in the Bocón! Festival of New Plays, La Jolla Playhouse's WithOut Walls (WOW) Festival, and in
Palabras del Cielo-
Volume II, to be published later this year by Dramatic Publishing.
Marley Bauer
Actor
Marley has been seen as
U/S Lloyd, Freddie, Selsdon in
Noises Off, The Old Globe. Regional: Logan in
Chicken and Biscuits, Oceanside Theatre Company, Richard Hannay in
The 39 Steps, Scripps Ranch Theatre. Collegiate: Mal Beineke in
The Addams Family, Various Roles in
The Servant of Two Masters
(Sierra College). Other: Lenny Ganz in
Rumors, Lamplighter's Theatre. Kit Marlowe in
Shakespeare in Love, Green Valley Theatre Company. Film: "Gà Lavabo," "Two Birds," and others. Education: Bachelors in Theatre with an emphasis in Performance from California State University Long Beach. Instagram: @subtextuser
Abigail Grace Allwein
Actor
Abigail Grace Allwein is thrilled to be joining The Roustabouts for
Comedy Smackdown and
Masterclass
fresh off a long run of
ONCE:The Musical (Ex-Girlfriend), and
The 70's Show at Lamb's Players. She has been seen in the Kathleen Marshall directed
Much Ado About Nothing, and
The Winter’s Tale
at the Old Globe Theatre. Abigail has also appeared in
Sister Act (Walnut Street Theatre), Indecent (Cape Repertory Theatre + Chatauqua Theatre Co.),
Company (Fine Arts Assoc.), and numerous other theatrical productions. Her San Diego Opera productions include
Pagliacci, Turandot, One Amazing Night, Così fan tutte, Romeo et Juliette, El Último Sueño de Frida y Diego, Suor Angelica (Suor Osmina), and
Tosca
(Little Shepherd Boy),
Madame Butterfly, La Boheme,
and
Making Merry. All my love to Bruce & Archie.
www.abigailgraceallwein.com
Denise Lopez
Actor
Denise Lopez is a versatile theater artist who is passionate about creating theater that reflects and actively involves her community's voices and experiences. Acting:
MASA (Onstage Playhouse),
DayDreamer: A New Musical (TuYo Theater),
Just Like Us (SDCC),
The Vagina Monologues (UCSB). Stage Management:
The Age of Innocence, Apprentice (The Old Globe),
The Harvest, Devil in a Box (Onstage Playhouse),
Las Cuatro Milpas
(TuYo Theater),
Celebrando Latinas (El Latino San Diego). Directing:
The Elaborate Entrance of Chad Deity,
Assistant (NYU Latinx Theatre Collective),
Somos Aire,
Assistant (Teatro Las Hermanas),The Vagina Monologues (SDCC). De San Ysidro para el mundo.
Meet the Creative Team
Phil Johnson
Director
Phil Johnson is the Artistic Director and proud co-founder of The Roustabouts Theatre Co. For TRTC he’s directed:
Looped,
Hand to God,
Savoyard Murders, and readings of
All My Sons,
Falsettos,The Little Foxes,
12 Angry Men,
Doubt, and others. He also started the new Great Jewish American Playwright Series/JPlays at the JCC. As an actor he has appeared at most San Diego theaters and in numerous original traveling solo shows including
A Jewish Joke which opened Off-Broadway in NYC in 2019. He played in
Les Miserables on Broadway and on tour, the Canadian production of
Sunset Boulevard, and the 1st National Co. of
Miss Saigon. He is a two-time winner of the San Diego Critics Circle Craig Noel Award for acting, and he is a founder of the San Diego Theatre Alliance.