Summer 2025 interns
Alejandra Cepeda Batiz
Alejandra (Ale) Cepeda Bátiz (she/her) is a Mexican artist and playwright currently getting her MFA in Playwriting at Columbia University. She previously got her BA in Theatre & Creative Writing at Muhlenberg College. She is very excited to work with New Perspectives.
Isabella Castillo
Isabella Castillo is a theatre artist and media creative, with a passion for uplifting the work of emerging artists. She graduated with her Bachelor of Arts in Theatre and Media Communication from Muhlenberg College this May. Isabella looks forward to joining New Perspectives Theatre Company this summer!
Raynah Joi Howard
Raynah Joi Howard is an actress, playwright, and poet currently studying for a BFA in acting at the University of North Carolina School of the Arts. Her passions lie in working with heightened historical texts and devising modern work for our modern world. She often says that she isn't sure what she would do with her life if she couldn't write or act. She is thrilled to be spending her summer with the New Perspectives Theatre Company, and can often be found working at her laptop on a project she could talk about for hours but will forget to finish.
Joseph kayne
Joseph Kayne is a double major in Ethics, Politics & Economics and Music at Yale University, passionate about both the management and creative elements of music and theater. He is the Business Manager for Redhot & Blue, Yale’s oldest all-gender a cappella group, and an actor in many musical theater productions. He also helps out with the finances for the Yale Dramatic Association. Joseph is excited to bring his love for artistic production and management to New Perspectives.
Ruby Jones
Ruby Jones is an undergraduate student at New York University pursuing a BFA in Dramatic Writing. She is passionate about storytelling in all forms but especially enjoys theatre, and appreciates New Perspectives’ mission to use theatre as an agent for change. She is very excited to be interning at New Perspectives this summer!
Aishat Lawal
Aishat Lawal is a second-year Presidential Scholar at Florida State University pursuing a dual degree in Creative Writing and Theatre Studies with a minor in French. Aishat plans to use her undergraduate education to pursue careers in dramaturgy, arts administration, and creative writing with an intercultural focus. Ultimately, Aishat plans to use her education and the power of words and storytelling to connect communities across figurative and geographical barriers.
Since graduating high school in 2023 with her IB diploma and matriculating to Florida State, Aishat has begun laying the foundation for her ambitions as a theatre practitioner. From receiving the premiere undergraduate scholarship at Florida State University, serving as the Lectures Coordinator for FSU's student run programming board, working as the Outreach Intern for the Global Citizenship Certificate, volunteering with student-run theatre organizations as a lighting board op and stage manager, directing the student-written and produced Friday Night Live comedy showcase, working as a ticket agent for the FSU Fine Arts Ticket Office, and dramaturgy for FSU's Spring 2025 production of Young Frankenstein, Aishat has already staked her claim as not just a student, but also as an active creative mind at her university.
Sofia rangel
Sofia Rangel is an artist born and raised in Puebla, Mexico. She is a senior at Universidad de las Americas Puebla, pursuing a Bachelor in Theatre with great passion for acting, writing, and directing. She is particularly interested in learning more about how arts and theatre can create an atmosphere that brings people together for the same purpose. Focusing on women’s work and Latin theatre, she is very excited to learn more at New Perspectives.
Brian Tong
Brian Tong (he/him) is an actor, producer, and theater artist dedicated to amplifying AAPI voices on stage. Growing up in Queens, New York, as a first-generation Chinese American, he often grappled with this intersection of tradition and modernity in his artistic journey. Theater, an industry that has historically marginalized artists of color, became both a challenge and a calling—one that fueled his passion for creating spaces where Asian American stories are not only represented but celebrated.
At Fordham University, Brian has served as President of the Chinese Cultural Society, where he deepened his understanding of his heritage and worked to foster cultural unity across campus. He later founded and led the Asian Student Union at the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Arts, carving out a space for Asian artists in an international setting. His leadership roles reflect his mission to bridge the gap between culture and performance, ensuring that AAPI artists can thrive in spaces that have long excluded them. Whether through performance, production, or writing Brian strives to create opportunities where underrepresented voices can take center stage, challenging outdated narratives in the world of theater. This summer, you can also find him working at NAATCO, Theaterlab, and The Tank!