Roy Conboy is a Latino/Irish/Indigenous writer and teacher who’s poetic plays have been seen in the struggling black boxes on the edges of the mainstream theatre in Los Angeles, Santa Ana, San Francisco, San Antonio, Denver, Minneapolis, and more.  His musical plays for young people have toured extensively in California.  

His poetry has been published in Green Hills Literary Lantern, Orphic Lute, Third Estate Art’s Quaranzine, Freshwater Literary Journal, New American Writing and others.  He’s also been featured on the the podcast latinxlitmag.

His poetic radio drama Hue can be heard online at Barewire Theatre Company.  His children’s play The Song of the Oak/El Canto Del Roble is anthologized in Aplauso! - Hispanic Children’s Theatre published by Piñata Books.  

As a playwright Roy was in the first waves of the American Latino theatre movement, and was among the first to break into the consciousness of the “mainstream” theatre. 

As a poet he’s written for years exploring his Mixed Blood heritage and familia, as well as life in the cosmos, the calles, and the casas. His first book of poetry: River, Street, Sky, and Casa is currently being readied for publication by Hydroelectric Press.

In fiction, he’s currently at work on Mystery Memo and Maggie, a Middle Grade detective series; Elena Shines Bright, a Middle Grade adventure novel, as well as other Young Adult pieces.

As an educator he taught for 35 years, first at Rancho Santiago (Santa Ana) College, and for the next three decades as the head of the San Francisco State University playwrighting program. Along the way he helped many writers find and explore their own voices, providing guidance and training that has helped launch numerous storytellers of multiple ethnicities and genders. Two production programs that he founded - the SFSU Fringe, and GreenHouse - have each run for more than two decades, and continue to annually produce a wide array of plays, over the years giving hundreds of students a chance to be heard and seen on the stage.

Images to left: 1. Two Fountain Valley Fuzz attempt to interrogate Tia Loca in “My Tia Loca’s Life of Crime,” Guerrilla Rep/Bindlestiff Studios, SF 2012. 2. Funeral Scene, “The Journeys of the Angels,” Teatro Esperanza, SF 2008. (Photos by Claire Rice.)