about Lisa
Brooklyn-based and Illinois-bred lyricist, bookwriter, and playwright Lisa Mongillo is an alumna of The College of William & Mary and a member of the world-renowned BMI Lehman Engel Musical Theatre Advanced Workshop. Her work has been performed Off-Broadway and presented at venues including Joe’s Pub, Feinstein’s/54 Below, The Duke, Signature Theater, and Lincoln Center’s Bruno Walter Auditorium, with performances and productions spanning stages from Los Angeles to Paris. She is a contributing writer for the viral satire publication Reductress. She uses comedy to explore dark subject matter with absurdity, playfulness, and pathos.
Her work has been developed, supported, and showcased by organizations including Out of the Box Theatrics, Western Connecticut State University, Pendragon Theater, The Phoenix Theater, Latiné Musical Theatre Lab, Ring of Keys, the New York Public Library for the Performing Arts, and the Johnny Mercer Foundation. She has been featured in showcases and festivals such as the Samuel French Off-Off-Broadway Festival, TheaterNow NY SoundBites, and Playbill’s Songwriter Series, and is a member of the Dramatists Guild, Maestra, and Ring of Keys.
RECENT THEATER CREDITS INCLUDE…
THE RADIUM GIRLS (Lyrics & Book), co-written with Sami Horneff and Amanda D’Archangelis — a NAMT Festival Finalist, Eugene O’Neill NMTC Semi-Finalist, and five-time Kennedy Center American College Theatre Festival award winner following its developmental premiere production at Western Connecticut State University. The musical received an NYC industry presentation directed by Tony Award winner Marissa Jaret Winokur and featuring Broadway and TV/Film stars. It is currently in commercial development with High Octave Productions, with a world premiere to be announced.
WE ARE THE BENJAMIN HARRISON HIGH SCHOOL HORSE GIRLS! (Lyrics & Book), with composer Joanna Burns — developed through Out of the Box Theatrics’ New Works Series and presented via In The Works at The Duplex. The show has been adapted into a screenplay and is represented by WME. Lisa and Joanna’s collaborative work, including their spec adaptation of Lars and the Real Girl, has been showcased by the BMI Workshop at the Marjorie S. Deane Little Theatre, by Ring of Keys at Joe’s Pub, and more. You can find their musical comedy videos online under their duo name Doll Camp.
SICK (Lyrics & Book), with composer Jake Chapman — developed through the BMI Workshop and inspired by Lisa’s experiences as a patient in children’s hospitals. The project is loosely based on their short musical which won Best Book at SoundBites at Signature Theatre and was a City Theatre National Short Playwriting Award Finalist.
Other projects in development include the musical UNTITLED LIFEGUARDS PROJECT, the TYA musical THE COLOR OF THINGS (adapted from Vivienne Shalom’s children’s book), the parody musical FOREVER NOON, and the play UGLY: A Case Study of a Wannabe Hot Person. Additional credits include lyrics for the song cycle A NEVER-ENDING LINE (Off-Broadway run at Players Theatre; album released by Broadway Records), the play PARTY PEOPLE (Samuel French Off-Off-Broadway Festival), and book for the musical GUTS (New York Public Library for the Performing Arts).
COMEDY & WRITING CREDITS…
Lisa began her career in Chicago, where she trained in comedy writing and performance at Second City Conservatory, iO Chicago, and The Annoyance Theater. Her sketch work was staged at The Public House Theater, Second City’s de Maat Studio Theater, and Stage 773 in Chicago Sketchfest for three years running.
She is a contributing satire writer for Reductress, with headlines like “How To Be a Lady in the Streets and a Haunted Clocktower in the Sheets.” She writes silly promotional scripts for new Netflix content and worked on Comedy Central’s THE PRESIDENT SHOW.
