PLAYWRIGHT/PRODUCER JO MORELLO is a Philadelphia native and holds a B.S. from Villanova University and an M.S. from Temple University’s School of Communications and Theater. She has been a lifelong writer, having produced summer stock for three years. When she turned to drama, she won two national contests on her initial attempt. She also founded and was producing artistic director of Starlite Players in Sarasota, producing 61 new short plays in 15 months. She recently completed LIL & LOUIS, about Lil Hardin Armstrong and husband Louis Armstrong (starring Michael Kinsey as Louis and Renata Eastlick as his first (and I guess most important wife Lil Hardin Armstrong) along with two related short plays. She has had her work performed everywhere in North America and the UK. She has written extensively on American theater in the American Theatre magazine and in the Eugene O’Neill review. Today, and in addition to her writing, she operates Jo Morello, Inc., a small P.R. agency in Sarasota, Florida since 1986. It has served the Jazz Club of Sarasota for over two decades as well as other regional and international clients, including several Central Asian embassies.