EST's "Truth Be Told"

From TRUTH BE TOLD's September 25th, 2025 show ("Scary Monsters!") Akyiaa Wilson's "Peace of Mind" tells the story of a terrifying inheritance possibly being passed down along generations of a Caribbean-American family…. Akyiaa Wilson is an actor, writer, comprehensive personal aesthetics professional, andcardigan fetishist, born and raised in Brooklyn. Cute baby pics...

From TRUTH BE TOLD's June 10th, 2025 show ("First Love/First Lust") Maggie Bofill's "The Tumor Speaks" is a story about one human, against all odds, came to be born—after the Cuban revolution, and with the help of her gay uncle... Maggie is an actor and writer. Her play Drawn and Quartered was a New York Times critics pick. Other productions of plays she’s written hav...

From TRUTH BE TOLD's September 25th, 2025 show ("Scary Monsters!") David Zellnik's "The Dodger" tells the story of an overweight kid, and a monster lurking in the dark of a high school theatre... David is a writer in New York who loves telling stories, making old-fashions, drinking old-fashions, and showing you pictures of his cat Jupiter. For more on the writing part...

From TRUTH BE TOLD's June 10th, 2025 show ("First Love/First Lust") Susan Kim's "Meat" is a story of how a little girl glimpses her future in a bag that contains a terrible secret... Susan writes plays, books, documentaries, and quite a bit of kids' TV. A flaneuse who fortunately lives in Manhattan, the best city for that kind of thing, she loves animals and funn...

From TRUTH BE TOLD's September 25th, 2025 show ("Scary Monsters!") Christine Farrell's "The Monster and the Choice"  tells tha story about a Pirate Dream that haunted a child's love of her sister... Christine is a versatile New York theater veteran, playwright, and dedicated educator. Her performance background ranges from classical stage roles inUncle Vanya to i...

From TRUTH BE TOLD's June 10th, 2025 show ("First Love/First Lust") Holli Harms' "Life" is a story about the giving of a young woman's virginity and how the memory of that magical day comes back years later at her father's wake. Holli is a writer of plays, screenplays, short stories and is a writing instructor with Writopia Lab, and a reviewer for Front Row...

From TRUTH BE TOLD's September 25th, 2025 show ("Scary Monsters!") Fernando Buzhar Segall's "That Time Hannibal Lecter Ruined My Dad's Filmmaking Dream" tells the story of the collapse of one movie director's ambitions after an on set encounter with a genuine monster... Fernando is a Brazilian born writer based in NYC for 10 years. He is a recent recipient o...

From TRUTH BE TOLD's June 10th, 2025 show ("First Love/First Lust") Michael Walek's "Brian Kinney" tells how a secret late-night TV show changed one boy's life.   Michael Walek is a director, producer, and writer based in New York City.  TRUTH BE TOLD was created by Susan Kim and David Zellnik and each episode was produced and scored by Eric Svejcar. Logo designe...

From TRUTH BE TOLD's September 25th, 2025 show ("Scary Monsters!") Laura Maria Censabella's "Count Yorga, Vampire" tells the story of a  campy movie monster who teaches a child her first lessons in human betrayal. Laura has received three grants from the New York Foundation for the Arts in Playwriting and Screenwriting, and her play Carla Cooks The War won the Saroyan...

From TRUTH BE TOLD's June 10th, 2025 show ("First Love/First Lust") David Zellik's  "Untitled Typewriter Story" tells of what happens when David's mom discovers a porn he has written on her hand-me-down typewriter. He is 12 years old.  DAVID ZELLNIK is a playwright, lyricist, and monologist based in NYC and Vienna. Also he was once a nerdy gay kid in 1980’s South...

From TRUTH BE TOLD's September 25th, 2025 show ("Scary Monsters!") Chris Gonzalez's "Evan; or, The Witch King of Belmont" tells the story of a very damaged, very human monster stalking Portland, Oregon. Chris Gonzalez is a playwright based in Brooklyn, NY, and Portland, OR. He is the playwright for the Portland Experimental Theater Ensemble. Last year, with PETE, he w...

From TRUTH BE TOLD's June 10th, 2025 show ("First Love/First Lust") Akyiaa Wilson's "Storytime" tells of what happens when a potentially clueless girl finds herself alone with the cutest boy in class... who also happens to be the school's drug dealer.  Akyiaa Wilson is an actor, writer, comprehensive personal aesthetics professional and cardigan fetishist born an...

From TRUTH BE TOLD's September 25th, 2025 show ("Scary Monsters") Susan Kim's "Rex" tells of a very famous monster, backstage and on set. Susan writes plays, books, documentaries, and quite a bit of kids' TV. A flaneuse who fortunately lives in Manhattan, the best city for that kind of thing, she loves animals and funny people, and really wishes we could all just...

From TRUTH BE TOLD's June 10th, 2025 show ("First Love/First Lust") Joe Gilford's "Birthday" tells of the  eternal battle between love and fear... and about his very noisy first time in 1960's Greenwich Village. Joe Gilford is a playwright and screenwriter living in Brooklyn. His play "Finks" was a Drama Desk nominee and his new screenplay "Chiaros...

This podcast draws from a hit true story night created by Susan Kim and David Zellnik at Ensemble Studio Theatre in New York City. It features members of EST—and friends—who tell heartbreaking, embarrassing, hilarious, true stories based on a theme. This season draws from our first two sold-out evenings in 2025: “First Love, First Lust” and “Scary Monsters.” Each of these 14 episodes will feature...