Who`s Who - Center REPertory Company

CENTER REPERTORY COMPANY
Michael Butler, Artistic Director
Scott Denison, Managing Director
presents a
THRILLRIDE MECHANICS/DEBRA MOSK PRODUCTION
Created by
Sara Moore
Scenic Elements/Props
Stacey Bock
Sound Designer
Sharon Boggs
Costume Designer
Amie Sarazan
Stage Manager
Lisa Perry*
Lighting Designer
Christian Mejia
Movement Consultant
Matthew Martin
Cast
Rory Davis
Sara Moore*
Michael Patrick Gaffney*
Natasha Kaluza
Dawn Meredith Smith
Directed by Andrew Nance
WUNDERWORLD was developed as a workshop production through an artist residency at
The Garage, San Francisco, Joe Landini, Artistic Director
Knight Stage 3 Theatre
October 23 - November 9, 2014
Lesher Center for the Arts
Season
Sponsor
Season Partner
Foundation Sponsor
*Member of Actors’ Equity Association, the Union of Professional Actors and Stage Managers in the United States
Center REP is a member of Theatre Bay Area and Theatre Communications Group (TCG), The National Organization for the American Theatre
CAST
Alice......................................................Sara Moore*
Alice’s Sister/Mad Hatter.......................................
.........................................................Natasha Kaluza
Caterpillar/Red Queen...........................................
........................................... Dawn Meredith Smith
White Rabbit............ Michael Patrick Gaffney*
Cheshire Cat......................................... Rory Davis
TIME and PLACE
Time: The present
Place: The Aventura Retirement Villa
& Environs...
CAST BIOGRAPHIES
Rory Davis (Cheshire Cat)
is one of the Bay Area’s
premiere choreographers.
As resident choreographer
for
Peaches
Christ
Productions
he
has
created numbers for many
screen legends including Pam Grier, Mink
Stole, Jennifer Tilly, and Cloris Leachman.
Most recently Rory choreographed the New
Conservatory Theater Center’s production
of Avenue Q and toured with Ru Paul’s Drag
Race winner Jinkx Monsoon in the soldout touring production of Return to Grey
Gardens. Rory also choreographs for rapper/
performance artist Peaches and performs
with her regularly. This is Rory’s second
production of Wunderworld and he is thrilled
to be back.
Michael Patrick Gaffney*
(White Rabbit) was last
seen in Center REPs
summer hit, The 25th
Annual Putnam County
Spelling Bee. He is currently
working on a one-man
show called The Oldest Living Cater Waiter: My
Life in Three Courses. Other theatre companies
he has worked with include: Shotgun Players,
Aurora Theatre, San Jose Stage Co., Word for
Word, Playwright’s Foundation, and 42nd
Street Moon. Michael is a proud member of
Actors’ Equity Association.
UPCOMING
THRILLRIDE MECHANICS SHOWS:
FLOP! Opens at The Creativity Theater in
San Francisco. March 2015. CYCLONES.
Co-production with Z SPACE, San
Francisco. Opening sometime in 2016…
Natasha Kaluza (Alice’s
Sister / Mad Hatter) is a
multi-talented performer,
known as a chameleon for
her ability to personify a
wide range of characters.
She
graduated
with
honors from UC Santa Cruz with a degree in
Theater Arts and followed up with a graduate
year in Dance. She also completed the first
and second year of the Clown Conservatory
at the SF Circus Center. Credits include: Sweet
Can Productions, New Pickle Circus, Pickle
Circus School Tour, San Francisco Circus
Center, Flynn Creek Circus, Teatro Zinzanni,
Circus Bella, Circus Finelli, The NY Clown
Festival and more! Kaluza is also one half of
the award-winning clown duet, Coventry &
Kaluza. www.CoventryandKaluza.com
Sara Moore* (Alice/
Playwright/Producer)
is an award-winning
and critically acclaimed
physical
comedienne,
actor, playwright and
filmmaker. In 2013 Sara
founded Thrillride Mechanics, San Francisco’s
hyper-comical theater of human animation,
which has been described by Center REP’s
artistic director Michael Butler as being its
“own genre,” mixing high-octane physical
comedy with the poetry of pantomime.
Thrillride Mechanics is rife with new projects
from Moore’s wild imagination including the
accident-prone comedy Flop, opening in
March 2015, Cyclones, about the cosmology
of the great Cyclone rollercoaster, and the
smash hit Wunderworld, which premiered
last summer at San Francisco’s Creativity
Theater. In her illustrious past, Sara created
and performed material for Ringling Bros.
and Barnum & Bailey Circus, The Krofft
Puppets, Royal Caribbean International,
The New Pickle Circus, Six Flags, Tropicana
Casinos and Merv Griffin’s Resorts, among
others. She has opened for and performed
alongside such greats as Chita Rivera, Carol
Channing, Rita Moreno, Sammy Cahn,
Phyllis Diller and other big names while
working for Mr. Griffin who dubbed her “the
hardest working clown in show business!”
She’s performed all over New York and
San Francisco and still tours with her onewoman show Show Ho, which has had two
successful runs at SF’s New Conservatory
Theatre Center and Theatre Rhinoceros. She
is a proud member of Young REP’s faculty
here at the Lesher Center, where’s she’s also
beyond thrilled to perform Wunderworld
with her Center REP family.
Dawn Meredith Smith
(Caterpillar/Red Queen)
is a proud daughter of
San Francisco and, after
several years in NYC, she
is happy to be home again
and working with Thrillride
Mechanics. Dawn joined Make*A*Circus in
the 90’s and excelled at acrobatics, juggling,
unicycling and clowning and has honed
her skills on many stages and in festivals
nationwide, most notably the NY Fringe,
national tour of Ragtime (Sara), Harlem
Rep (Dorothy (The Wiz) and Marie (Vodu)),
as well as children’s theatre troup Flying
Ship Productions. She is a graduate of the
American Musical and Dramatic Academy
and is also an accomplished guitar player
and blues singer.
THANK YOU’S FROM
THRILLRIDE MECHANICS:
William and Sheila Moore, Holly
Grant, Scott Denison, Michael Butler,
Jeff Collister, Michael Berg & ALL
of the beautiful staff of Center REP,
Ed Decker & the lovely staff of New
Conservatory Theatre Center, Kerri
Shawn, Jeffrey Draper, David Wilson,
James Hummel, Dave Garrett & The
Creativity Theater, Lawrence Helman,
PJ Husack, the cast, crew and amazing
attendees of 200 THRILLRIDES and Dr.
Debra Shapiro.
Gracious and warmest thanks to
DEBRA MOSK PRODUCTIONS, the
co-producing wing of Thrillride
Mechanics.
Heartiest
thanks
to
original
Wunderworldians Michael Phillis,
Joan Mankin and Matthew Martin,
whose collaborative ingenuity and
spirit helped create and inspire this
production!
Media Director and Graphic Design
for Thrillride Mechanics: DAVID
WILSON
WUNDERMAP designed and created
by MICHAEL PHILLIS
and finally:
WUNDERWORLD is dedicated to Joan
Mankin and Nutmeg.
PRODUCTION TEAM
Andrew Nance (Director) trained at LaMama
etc., A.C.T., and NYU’s Tisch School of the
Arts (BA in Theatre). His directional favorites
include It’s Christmas Carole (SF’s Children’s
Creativity Theater), Spanish Jade (Stanford
University) and at San Francisco’s New
Conservatory Theatre Center (NCTC): My
Beautiful Laundrette, Beautiful Thing, Dolls (at
NYC Fringe Festival), Show Ho, D*Face, Katya
Smirnoff-Skyy in What Becomes a Legend
Most?, Party Daze, And Then they Came For Me,
Legends!, The Inner Circle, Hijra and As Bees in
Honey Drown. His instructors have included:
Anna Deavere Smith, Terrence McNally, David
Mamet, Anna Strasberg, Linda Hunt, Ellen
Stewart, Richard Scheckner, Rhodessa Jones,
and W.H. Macy. He has received four Bay
Area Theatre Critics Circle Awards: two for
Best Actor in a Solo Performance and two for
Best Ensemble. For the past 18 years he was
NCTC’s Conservatory Director, in charge of
educational programs for youth and adults.
Sharon Boggs & Sound Productions
(Sound Designer) has provided custom
sound design, theater sound reinforcement
& engineering, DJ services, and live/studio
recording for theaters, clubs, and corporate
& private events since 1991. Recent theater
productions include; Ray of Light Theater’s
West Coast Premiere of Jerry Springer the
Opera (The Victoria Theatre SF), Ray of Light
Theatre’s Assassins and Sweeney Todd (Eureka
Theater), Musical Theatre Works’ Footloose
(Randall Museum SF) and NDNU’s RENT
(NDNU Belmont). Corporate events; Rhythm
& Moves annual conference; since 2005, Boris
Goldmund Productions, Inc., See Jane Run ½
marathon (Alameda, CA; Seattle, WA; Boise,
ID), Aruba Networks and Genentech.
Christian Mejia (Lighting Designer) is a
lighting and projection designer working
primarily in theatre and dance. He’s also
been known to design a set now and again.
He is based out of San Francisco, CA. Since
completing his degree in production design
from New York University’s Tisch School of the
Arts, he has worked in performance spaces
in and around San Francisco and New York
creating lighting, multimedia, and scenery.
He is currently the Production Manager &
resident lighting and projection designer at
the New Conservatory Theatre Center in San
Francisco. He has been the recipient of a San
Francisco Bay Area Theatre Critics Circle Award
for Excellence in Lighting Design (Into the
Clear Blue Sky, Sleepwalkers Theatre), multiple
BATCC nominations, and a Lighting Artists in
Dance Award (PunkkiCo Dance Company).
Amie Sarazan (Costume Designer) has been
sewing for nearly 20 years, and has worked
in UC Berkeley’s costume shop as well as
the San Francisco drag and theater and film
community. She is the head of costumes for
Peaches Christ Productions. Visit her website:
http://amie.sarazan.net
Matthew Martin (Movement Consultant) has
been acting, directing and choreographing in
his native San Francisco for over 30 years. His
smash one-man show All Singing! All Dancing!
All Dead! has played the Rrazz Room and Joe’s
Pub, among others, and he is known this time
of year as one of the “live” Golden Girls who
take the city by storm each Christmas season.
He has starred in Billy Clift’s cult classic film
Baby Jane? and is soon to star in Clift’s Hush
Up Sweet Charlotte as well. He works with
Ms. Moore every chance he gets and the two
have been known to share many a stage in
their long friendship and collaboration.
Lisa Perry* (Stage Manager) is extremely
excited to be back Stage Managing with
Center REP after a bit of a hiatus. Previous
productions include: Picasso at the Lapin Agile,
Around the World in 80 Days, The Reduced
Shakespeare Company’s Complete History
of America, Abridged and Complete Books,
Abridged as well as Shirley Valentine with Kerri
Shawn. Lisa is a proud member of the Young
REP teaching staff, where she serves as the
Production Manager and Director of the New
Works Writing Project. Thanks to Sara and the
Cast and Staff of Wunderworld.
Michael Butler (Artistic Director) This is
Michael’s eighth season as Artistic Director
of Center REP, where his directing credits
include Don’t Dress for Dinner, The Underpants,
A Number, Dracula, Boeing-Boeing and To Kill a
Mockingbird, as well as the Shellie and BATCC
Award-winning productions of Around the
World in 80 Days, Picasso at the Lapin Agile,
The Marriage of Figaro, How the Other Half
Loves, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Enchanted
April, and Witness For The Prosecution. His
directing work has also been seen at San
Jose Rep, Cleveland Playhouse, Seattle Rep,
Laguna Playhouse, ACT in Seattle, Marin
Theatre Company, Aurora Theatre Company,
San Jose Stage, Shakespeare Santa Cruz,
and The Juilliard School, of which he is a
graduate. As an actor, Michael has worked on
Broadway and off, in regional theatres, film
and television, as well as REP’s productions of
The Mousetrap, Noises Off and Rumors. He is
a published songwriter and the co-writer and
composer of numerous music-theatre pieces,
which he has directed and performed in NY,
LA, and at festivals in India and Morocco. In
his career as a performer he has also danced
with the Erick Hawkins Dance Company,
portrayed the villainous Pierre LeChance
on The Guiding Light, and played guitar and
harmonica in many rock, blues, and country
western bands at all the notable dives in NYC.
Scott Denison (Managing Director) has
been a leader in the Arts for 40 years
for Walnut Creek and the surrounding
communities. Under Denison’s guidance for
the last 24 years as General Manager for the
Lesher Center for the Arts, he oversees over
850 public events each year. He coordinates
performing arts activities with over 85
producers and producing organizations. He
is also the Managing Director of the Center
REP producing 8 professional productions
each season; and is the director and cofounder of Fantasy Forum Actors Ensemble,
an adult family performing arts company
which presents programs for the young
and Young at Heart. Scott directed CCMT’s
hits Les Misérables, Disney’s Beauty and the
Beast, Rodgers and Hammerstein’s Cinderella,
Hairspray, and for the past 16 seasons Center
REP’s A Christmas Carol. Denison has directed
over 150 productions including REP’s The
Lady with All the Answers starring Kerri Shawn.
In 1979 he created the Shellie Awards, which
annually honors outstanding performing
arts achievement in Contra Costa county.
In 2007 he created the Chevron Family
Theatre Festival bringing adult nationally
acclaimed performances together for one day
performing to over 7,000 guests of all ages.
COMING UP NEXT FOR CENTER REP:
OUR SPONSORS
Chevron (Season Sponsor) has been the
leading corporate sponsor of Center REP
and the Lesher Center for the Arts for the
past nine years. In fact, Chevron has been
a partner of the LCA since the beginning,
providing funding for capital improvements,
event sponsorships and more. Chevron
generously supports every Center REP show
throughout the season, and is the primary
sponsor for events including the Chevron
Family Theatre Festival in July. Chevron
has proven itself not just as a generous
supporter, but also a valued friend of the arts.
Diablo Regional Arts Association (DRAA)
(Season Partner) is both the primary
fundraising organization of the Lesher
Center for the Arts (LCA) and the City of
Walnut Creek’s appointed curator for the
LCA’s audience outreach. DRAA’s role in the
community is all about building partnerships
with the focused goal of enhancing
artistic quality at the LCA and providing
opportunities for everyone to enjoy the arts.
Through partnerships with the LCA and its
producers, individual donors, corporate and
foundation sponsors and the City of Walnut
Creek, DRAA plays a vital role in advancing
the arts for the betterment of the community.
Please visit us online at www.draa.org.
Center REPertory Company
Managing Director - Scott Denison
Artistic Director - Michael Butler
Production Services
Production Services
Coordinator
Toni Kilcoyne
Technical Staff
Steve Pino
John Earls
Michael Arlen
Chris Currie
Kieren McEntee
Garrick Schuster
Stephen Spleiss
Josh Stouffer
Audience Services
Audience Svcs
Coordinator
Courtney Egg
Ticket Office Staff
Jeremiah Vierling
Robert Nolan
Tiffany Del Valle
Jennifer Haga
Kiersten Jones
Karla Kopfhammer
Britt Lauer
Caleb Neeper
Trevor Owen
Usher Coordinator
Pat Rusich
Costumes
Costume Manager
Shannon Sigman
Costumers
Michael A. Berg
Katie Dowse
Casting Director
Jennifer Perry
Education
Education Directors
Jeff Draper
Kerri Shawn
Marketing
Marketing Director
Gabe Marin
Marketing Assistant
Ariel Brewer
Production
Production Manager
Jeff Collister
Technical
Technical Director
Joshua Lipps
Master Electrician
Del Medoff
Carpenters
Matthew Hougey
Gabriel Johnson
Lisa Peterson
Chris Swartzell
Assistant
Stage Manager
Amy Weinstein
Administration
Asst. to Managing
Director
Gail Pfeifer
Program
Linda Nomura
Lesher Foundation (Foundation Sponsor)
Since 1994, the Dean & Margaret Lesher
Foundation has awarded grants totaling
more than $40 million and reaching citizens
in all parts of Contra Costa County. True to
the original wishes of Dean and Margaret
Lesher, the Foundation continues to build
on the strengths of the community by
supporting organizations and programs
that provide help and support to people
in need; enhance and enrich the lives of all
citizens; and promote a healthy and exciting
future for the community. Established in
1989, the Foundation received its principal
assets from Dean Lesher’s estate in 1993
and 1995. In 1997, an additional endowment
from Dean Lesher’s estate followed the
death of Margaret Lesher. A significant and
final bequest from Mr. Lesher’s estate was
received in 2003. As a family foundation,
support for the Contra Costa community
will be carried on by the next generation of
family members. Grant-making decisions are
based on the vision of Dean and Margaret
Lesher who felt quality education, diverse art
programs, and healthy children and families
are the building blocks of a strong and vibrant
community. The Leshers defined the “spirit
of giving” as “investing in the community
and its people.” By providing financial
support and direction in these critical areas,
the Dean & Margaret Lesher Foundation is
investing every day, every week and every
year in the health and well-being of this
county that Dean and Margaret so loved.
THANK YOU TO OUR
OPENING NIGHT
DINNER SPONSORS:
Fleming’s Prime Steakhouse & Wine Bar
Oi-C Bowl
Scott’s Seafood Grill and Restaurant
ABOUT CENTER REPERTORY COMPANY
Center REP is the resident, professional
theatre company of the Lesher Center
for the Arts. Our season consists of eight
productions a year – a variety of musicals,
dramas and comedies, both classic and
contemporary, that continually strive to
reach new levels of artistic excellence and
professional standards.
Our mission is to celebrate the power
of the human imagination by producing
emotionally
engaging,
intellectually
involving, and visually astonishing live
theatre, and through Outreach and
Education programs, to enrich and advance
the cultural life of the communities we serve.
What does it mean to be a producing
theatre? We hire the finest professional
directors, actors and designers to create our
productions at Center REP. These are not
touring productions – they’re conceived and
developed here, the sets and costumes are
built in our shops, and the actors rehearse in
our rehearsal hall. Whether the production
is a Bay Area premiere or a Shakespearean
classic, each is devised to be a one of a kind,
artistic creation that will be a unique theatre
experience for our audience.
What does it mean to be a professional
theatre? It means that all our artists and
artisans are career theatre-practitioners.
Many of the actors in our productions are
members of Actors’ Equity Association;
many of our directors and designers are
members of professional unions. All do
theatre because it is their profession and
their passion.
We are very proud to have the opportunity
to produce professional theatre for our
community in the beautiful theatres here at
the Lesher Center for the Arts. Thank you for
your support!
CITY COUNCIL
THANK YOU TO:
Massimo’s Ristorante
Waters Moving and Storage
Associated Services-Alta Water
Kristina Lawson, Mayor
Bob Simmons, Mayor Pro-Tem
Loella Haskew
Cindy Silva
Justin Wedel
CITY MANAGER
Ken Nordhoff
DIRECTOR
Arts, Recreation and
Community Services
Kevin Safine
ARTS COMMISSION
Jane Emanuel, Chair
Glynnis Cowdery, Vice Chair
Joe Bologna
Polly Bradbury
Anita Sagastegui