The Team
The Zahir is a small company with an ambitious mission, guided by artists and collaborators who believe deeply in the power of live storytelling. Our team brings together creative, organizational, and practical experience shaped by years of work in Austin’s arts community.
Board of Directors
L.B. Deyo
Artistic Director & President
The Zahir founder L.B. Deyo is a playwright whose play Apprehension premiered at Hyde Park Theatre in 2025. He is the author of several books, including, with David "Lefty" Leibowitz, Invisible Frontier: Exploring the tunnels, ruins & rooftops of hidden New York . He's acted in such Austin plays as The Intergalactic Nemesis and Dance, Cupcake, Dance.
Noah Masterson
Treasurer
Noah Masterson is a playwright, musician, juggler, and general creative rabble rouser. He was part of New York City's Inverse Theater Company in the late 90s and early aughts. His most recent play is THE EGG, a surrealist dark comedy about technology gone very, very wrong. Noah holds a degree in screenwriting from the University of Miami.
Chad Nichols
Secretary
Chad Nichols is a writer and musician living in Austin, Texas. In 2013, he received an MFA in Writing from the Michener Center for Writers at the University of Texas at Austin. He co-wrote the wildly popular Intergalactic Nemesis series, which has played off-Broadway and at the Kennedy Center and has been featured on TBS's Conan. Chad has worked with Rob Thomas (Veronica Mars, Zombie) and Scott Shepherd (Haven) on projects in development. Chad's professional screenwriting credits include scripts for the horror-comedy Precinct Five (Kit Chemistry Productions) and the R-rated comedy Boomerang Moon. He performs as a solo act under the name Chad Davidson Nichols and with the trash-rock combo Cheap Fix.
The Company
Jessica Brynn Cohen
Actor, Musician
Jessica Brynn Cohen is an actor, writer, musician, filmmaker, and all-around storyteller and performer. She has appeared in many theatrical productions in Austin and beyond, having performed on stages such as The Vortex, City Theatre Austin, and Hyde Park Theatre. She holds a B. Iden Payne for "Outstanding Featured Musical Performance" for her work in the 2021 Vortex Summer Youth Theatre. Alongside her theatrical work, she has worked on several films both in front of and behind the camera, including acting in Richard Linklater's Netflix original Apollo 10½, which was featured at SXSW 2022. She is an avid singer/songwriter and has released several singles on Spotify, with plans to release more music in the near future, and several other creative projects currently in the works. You can connect with her on Instagram @jessa.cohen.
Laura D'Eramo
Actor
Laura D'Eramo is an Austin-based theatre and on-camera actor whose work spans classical, contemporary, and experimental performance. She received her B.A. from St. Edward's University and continued her training at the Atlantic Acting School in NYC. After graduation, Laura moved to Japan, teaching English for two years and performing with the Tokyo International Players, an experience that broadened her artistic and global perspective. Since returning to Austin in 2024, she has worked with Austin Shakespeare, Walking Shadow Shakespeare Project, The Filigree Theatre, The Stage Austin, and The Vortex. Recent credits include MotherTree at The Vortex and Caesar+Antony+Cleopatra with Walking Shadow Shakespeare. She will next appear in The Stage Austin's Titus Andronicus.
Hope Irish
Actor, Musician
Hope Irish Buchanan is an Austin musician and songwriter who studied acting and costume design at St. Edward’s University. She is originally from Salado, Texas, and was born second of three to a Southern Californian and a Northern Irish immigrant. Hope Irish has released a full body of musical work and a small human. Personal Albums include HopeIsh (denton house productions by Jimmy Wildcat and Orville), The Best of The Least (Superpop Records), Rejects and The Real thing, Pleasure Maps (Cody Coppin/ Matt Howard/ Seth Gibbs w/Shine and Sweetheart Studios), Laddie, The Bubble single sessions (Chris Frenchie Smith and Messina), Hand To Mouth, and most recently, Do No Harm, recorded at Studios at Fischer with Jon Clover Brown and mixed by the infamous Jimmy Wildcat at Sweetheart Studios. Hope Irish is currently recording another full length concept album, to be released in 2026. HI most recently performed in Brently Heilbron’s theatrical production of FUGA at a sold out Stateside Theatre run in Austin, is a member of the classic annual Austin production of HONKYTONK HOLIDAZE, and has historically smashed commercial spots for THE CHIVE. HI has contributed vox/synths/keys to nationally and internationally touring acts with bands including Radar Radar, A Sky Jet Black, Til’ We’re Blue or Destroy, Maxx Cherry, Peckinpah, Brother Machine, Rooster, and has contributed vocals and keys to countless studio sessions including Superpop Records with Seth Gibbs (Brother Machine and The Reputations), Featured vox on Razed By Rebels (Blue Rock Studios) as well as BGVs on Clear Heart Full Eyes, by Craig Finn (of the hold steady) produced by the legendary Mike McCarthy (Spoon, And You Will Know Us By The Trail Of Dead.) H.I. performs regularly, enjoys many mediums, and is a citizen of the world.
Michelle Keffer
Actor, Producer, Writer, Emcee
Michelle is an actor, emcee, producer and writer with over 30 years of on-stage experience. Alongside various on-camera and voice-over roles, she has worked with Hyde Park Theatre, Paper Chairs, Breaking String and Fusebox Festival, among others. She was a producer, writer and actor in the variety/sketch comedy show in Industry Night, and is currently the emcee and co-producer of Natalie George Productions Cabaret.
Danu Mara
Actor
Danu Mara is a voice-over and on-camera actor with over 20 years of experience in commercials, animation, film, video games, and eLearning. She voiced hundreds of characters for educational software used nationwide and performed internationally in The Intergalactic Nemesis, portraying a wide range of humans, robots, and aliens. Her credits include roles in Flatland: The Movie (alongside Martin Sheen and Kristen Bell) and Rooster Teeth's Lazer Team 2 and Nomad of Nowhere. A Daytime Emmy nominee with a B.A. in Drama from Texas Woman's University, Danu has also trained at The Second City in Chicago and is a core member of the acclaimed sketch troupe The Latino Comedy Project.
Shannon McCormick
Actor, Writer, Director
Shannon is a thirty-year veteran of stage and screen, as well as a writer and director. He has appeared in films and TV shows such as Breaking Bad, Les Misérables, Day 5, Red vs. Blue, RWBY, and Camp Camp. He remains active in the local in the Austin improv community, with troupes Get Up and Just Be Sweet as well as many limited run improv productions.
Jeff Mills
Actor
Jeff Mills is an award winning theater artist who has rambled across the Austin theatre scene for the last 25 years. He has worked with the Rude Mechs, SVT, Physical Plant, Fusebox, Zach Theater,, Refraction Arts, the Siti Company and many more. Out of St Edwards he cut his teeth in the improv/sketch scene as a founding member of Fatbuckle & Think Tank, moved to NYC to work with the Muppets, and then returned to Austin as a producer, director, actor and sound designer. Notable credits include The Assumption, Fixing King John, Roe, Everything is Established, Three,Spacestation1985, Fixing Troilus and Cressida, and Hotel Vanya. In 2018, Jeff received the distinguished John Bustin Award for Conspicuous Versatility from the Austin Critics Table.
David Ritch
Director, Playwright, Designer
David Ritch received his BFA in Theatre in 2022 from Texas State University, where he directed Ionesco's The Bald Soprano. Recently, he directed in The Yolk by Noah Masterson, a condensed version of The Egg, for Frontera Fest. He also had his ten-minute play The Willow Tree produced and published by Script Works in their annual Out of Ink showcase. He looks forward to pushing the boundaries of Theatre and connecting people through that shared experience.
Justin Smith
Actor, Musician
Justin Smith is an actor and musician who's been a member of Austin's creative community for 15(ish) years. Justin moved to Austin from Memphis and since has been featured on various Austin records over his tenure as a bass player, songwriter and singer. As an actor Justin's recent stage credits include Austin Shakespeare's Jane Eyre, Jarrot Productions' Dial M for Murder and Ground Floor Theatre's Texas premier of Amy and The Orphans. He will next appear back at Ground Floor Theatre for their 10th Anniversary production of Parade.
Brent Werzner
Actor
Brent Werzner is an actor who has worked and performed professionally with major motion picture, television, and interactive media studios, including A24, Netflix, NBC, CBS, Universal and Rockstar Games. Brent is an alumni of Saint Edward's University, in Austin, TX, and is a long-standing member of the Screen Actors Guild (SAG). He is known for his roles in critically acclaimed films Green Room (2015) and Blue Ruin (2013), as well as in CBS' Blue Bloods, and Netflix's episodic comedy, On My Block. Theatrically, he has worked with the renowned SITI Company and director Anne Bogart, debuting the role of Poseidon in the Trojan Women (After Euripides) at the Getty Villa in Los Angeles and the Harvey Theatre in New York City. Brent also performed the title role in Euripides' Herakles; touring internationally through Greece, and at BAM's Fisher Stage in Brooklyn, NY. Brent also works as an employment and civil rights paralegal for Kaplan Law Firm in Austin. Brent wishes to express his deepest gratitude to Elizabeth, his wife and partner, for her love and support.
Rachel West
Actor, Writer, Content Creator
Rachel West is a Chicago-born creative that now resides in Austin. By day, she's a Senior Writer at a marketing agency, crafting campaigns for major brands. By night, she's an actor and content creator who returned to performing in the summer of 2025, driven by a soul-deep need to reconnect with the art form that first captured her heart. Rachel's performance background spans public speaking, including two TEDx presentations, along with a foundation in classical vocal training across opera, musical theatre, and contemporary styles. Since relocating to Austin, she has appeared with Walking Shadow Shakespeare Project as in Cleopatra in Caesar+Antony+Cleopatra. With over 60,000 followers across social platforms, Rachel shares her creative journey and the courage it takes to return to what you love. You can connect with her on Instagram at @diaryofaluckygirl.
Brian Wittenbrook
Actor, Writer, Director
Brian Wittenbrook is a writer, actor, and director who often focuses on comedies about power with a touch of the absurd. He is a regular participant in FronteraFest. Recently, he wrote and directed Terror at Twenty-Eight Feet, Dance, Cupcake, Dance, and Cookie Cutter. He directed Brownies for the 2024 TUBU Festival.