KNOW BEFORE YOU GO
Production Sponsors
Margret and Nevins McBride
JUNE 28 – JULY 24, 2016
PERFORMANCES MAGAZINE P1
KNOW BEFORE YOU GO
We look forward to seeing you at La Jolla Playhouse at your upcoming performance of The Last Tiger in Haiti. Below is some additional information about the production and the venue to enhance your theater-going experience.
PARKING Parking is free for all subscribers. For all others parking is $2 (subject to change), Mon-Fri. Upon arrival to campus, please purchase your parking permit from one of the automated pay stations located next to the information kiosk. Simply park, note your space number, and pay $2 at the pay station. Pay stations accept Visa, MasterCard, American Express or cash ($1 and $5), and do not give change. You will not need to return to your car. Parking is free on the weekends. ACCESSIBILITY A golf cart is available to assist patrons with accessibility issues to and from the parking lot. Please notify Patron Services prior to your performance if you are in need of this service; additionally, you may pull into the five minute parking in front of the theatre, and a friendly La Jolla Playhouse greeter will assist you.
Children under the age of 6 are not permitted in the theatre during performances unless otherwise posted. Unaccompanied minors ages 12 and under are not permitted in the theatre.
P2  PERFORMANCES MAGAZINE
DINING
James’ Place is the Theatre District’s on-site restaurant. Developed by renowned Sushi Master James Holder, the menu includes his signature sushi, as well as delectable dishes created with Prime and Angus cuts of beef, locally and sustainably harvested seafood, along with seasonal dishes. A lighter fare menu is also served at the newly-redesigned sushi/cocktail bar, featuring craft beer and California wines. James’ Place is open daily. For reservations, please call (858) 638-7778. For menu and hours, please visit jamesplacesd.com. We also recommend the following nearby restaurants:
Adobe El Restaurante and Mustangs & Burros at Estancia La Jolla Hotel & Spa 9700 N. Torrey Pines Road La Jolla, CA 92037 estancialajolla.com
Cusp Restaurant and Hiatus Poolside Lounge at Hotel La Jolla 7955 La Jolla Shores Drive La Jolla, CA 92037 cusprestaurant.com
Café la Rue and The Med at La Valencia Hotel 1132 Prospect Street La Jolla, CA 92037 lavalencia.com
Fleming’s Prime Steakhouse & Wine Bar 8970 University Center Lane San Diego, CA 92122 flemingssteakhouse.com
Dolce Pane e Vino 16081 San Dieguito Road Rancho Santa Fe, CA 92067 dolcepaneevino.com
Giuseppe Restaurants & Fine Catering 700 Prospect Street San Diego, CA 92037 giuseppecatering.com
Pamplemousse Grille 514 Via de la Valle, Suite 100 Solana Beach, CA 92075 pgrille.com Piatti 2182 Avenida De La Playa La Jolla, Ca 92037 Phone: 858-454-1589 piatti.com/lajolla Rock Bottom Restaurant & Brewery Playhouse Patrons Get 20% Off 8980 Villa La Jolla Drive La Jolla, CA 92037 rockbottom.com
PERFORMANCES MAGAZINE P3
A MESSAGE FROM THE
ARTISTIC DIRECTOR Storytelling is an essential part of any culture. Our narratives — myths, histories, ghost stories, bedtime stories — fill a fundamental need to entertain while also asserting our shared heritage and values. Whether we’re with our families and friends or sitting alongside strangers in a theatre, we gather together as communities through stories.
MISSION STATEMENT: La Jolla Playhouse advances theatre as an art form and as a vital social, moral and political platform by providing unfettered creative opportunities for the leading artists of today and tomorrow. With our youthful spirit and eclectic, artist-driven approach, we will continue to cultivate a local and national following with an insatiable appetite for audacious and diverse work. In the future, San Diego’s La Jolla Playhouse will be considered singularly indispensable to the worldwide theatre landscape, as we become a permanent safe harbor for the unsafe and surprising. The day will come when it will be essential to enter the La Jolla Playhouse village in order to get a glimpse of what is about to happen in American theatre.
© Howard Lipin/U-T San Diego/ZUMA Wire
For the young Haitian characters in Jeff Augustin’s play, the stories they tell — and how they tell them — have an even greater sense of urgency. They are restaveks, child slaves; they come from nowhere and have almost nothing of value except their stories. Those tales are the currency with which they can buy respect, a sense of self-worth, and through which they can forge an identity in a world that has forgotten they exist. Stories have the power to affirm who we are, but they can also be used as weapons. Who has the right to tell our stories, and what happens when they are taken from us? Jeff Augustin and Joshua Brody — two graduates of UC San Diego’s M.F.A. Theatre program — have been working on The Last Tiger in Haiti since its first public reading as part of our 2015 DNA New Work Series. They are practitioners in the art of theatrical storytelling, and together they have created a rich, compelling narrative about how stories have the ability to create us — and unmake us.
CHRISTOPHER ASHLEY La Jolla Playhouse has received the highest rating from Charity Navigator, the nation’s premier charity evaluator.
AUDIENCE ENGAGEMENT EVENTS: THE LAST TIGER IN HAITI INSIDER EVENTS
DISCOVERY SUNDAY
Join Playhouse staff for a special pre-performance presentation that gives an insider’s view of The Last Tiger in Haiti.
Join special guest speakers post-performance as they engage audience members in a moderated discussion exploring the themes in this world-premiere play. Sponsored in part by
Wednesday, July 20 at 6:45 pm Saturday, July 23 at 1:15 pm
Sunday, July 24 after the 2:00 pm performance
ACCESS PERFORMANCES
TALKBACK TUESDAYS
On select performances, La Jolla Playhouse provides American Sign Language (ASL) interpretation, open captioning, and/or audio descriptions.
Participate in a lively discussion with The Last Tiger in Haiti actors and Playhouse staff members immediately following these performances. Sponsored in part by
OPEN CAPTIONING Sunday July 10 at 2:00 pm ASL INTERPRETATION & AUDIO DESCRIPTION Saturday, July 16 at 2:00 pm P4 PERFORMANCES MAGAZINE
Tuesday, July 5 after the 7:30 pm performance Tuesday, July 12 after the 7:30 pm performance For more information, please visit LaJollaPlayhouse.org
LA JOLLA PLAYHOUSE PRESENTS Christopher Ashley Artistic Director
Michael S. Rosenberg Managing Director A CO-PRODUCTION WITH BERKELEY REPERTORY THEATRE
BY
JEFF AUGUSTIN DIRECTED BY
JOSHUA KAHAN BRODY FEATURING
BRITTANY BELLIZEARE*, ANDY LUCIEN*, CLINTON ROANE*, JASMINE ST. CLAIR *, REGGIE D. WHITE* SCENIC DESIGNER COSTUME DESIGNER LIGHTING DESIGNER SOUND DESIGNER HAIR AND WIG DESIGNER DIALECT COACH DRAMATURG CASTING STAGE MANAGER ASSISTANT STAGE MANAGER PROJECT PRODUCTION MANAGER
TAKESHI KATA DEDE AYITE ALEXANDER NICHOLS NICHOLAS DRASHNER COOKIE JORDAN CHANTAL JEAN-PIERRE GABRIEL GREENE TELSEY + COMPANY; WILLIAM CANTLER, C.S.A; KAREN CASL, C.S.A. MATTHEW MELCHIORRE* JENNIFER KOZUMPLIK* BENJAMIN SEIBERT
THE LAST TIGER IN HAITI WAS DEVELOPED WITH SUPPORT FROM THE GROUND FLOOR AT BERKELEY REPERTORY THEATRE, BERKELEY, CA, THE 2050 FELLOWSHIP PROGRAM AT NEW YORK THEATRE WORKSHOP, AND LA JOLLA PLAYHOUSE’S DNA NEW WORK SERIES
PERFORMANCES MAGAZINE P5
THE CAST (in alphabetical order)
Rose..............................................................................................................Brittany Bellizeare Max..........................................................................................................................Andy Lucien Emmanuel............................................................................................................. Clinton Roane Laurie...............................................................................................................Jasmine St. Clair Joseph............................................................................................................... Reggie D. White Setting: Haiti, 2008 The Last Tiger in Haiti is performed with a 15-minute intermission.
ADDITIONAL STAFF Assistant Director......................................Will Garrett Detlefsen Second Assistant Director........................................Zora Howard Assistant Costume Designer...............Desiree Hatfield-Buckley Assistant Lighting Designer...................... Kimberlee E. Winters
Make-Up Consultant............................................ Albee Alvarado Fight Consultant........................................................Jacob Bruce Stage Management Assistant............................... Kamra Jacobs ‡ Stage Management Intern....................................Kaylyn Buckley
“The Orange Tree” Original Music and Lyrics by Jay Adana * Members of Actors’ Equity Association, the Union of Professional Actors and Stage
Managers in the United States. The theatre operates under an agreement between the League of Resident Theatres and Actors’ Equity Association. This theatre operates under an agreement between the League of Resident Theatres and the Stage Directors and Choreographers Society, an independent national labor union.
This theatre operates under an agreement between the League of Resident Theatres and United Scenic Artists, Local USA-829 of the IATSE. La Jolla Playhouse is a member of the League of Resident Theatres (LORT) and a constituent of Theatre Communications Group (TCG), the national service organization for the nonprofit professional theatre. ‡ UC San Diego M.F.A. Candidates in residence at La Jolla Playhouse.
PATRON SERVICES PATRON SERVICES is located in the lobby area of each theatre. A representative is available to answer questions and hand out assisted listening devices, restaurant guides, performance schedules and subscription information. BARS AND CONCESSIONS are provided by James’ Place, open Tuesday – Sunday 4:00 pm to close. For reservations, please call (858) 638-7778. To avoid the rush, intermission beverages can be ordered before the show. PARKING is free for subscribers; $2 for the general public on weekdays (free on weekends). Upon arrival to campus, please enter your parking space number and pay the automated paystations located in the parking lot. Spaces that are not paid for are subject to ticketing by UC San Diego Parking Enforcement.
ACCESSIBILITY La Jolla Playhouse provides wheelchair-accessible seating and parking. Wheelchair seat locations are available for wheelchair users and a companion at all performances; be sure to advise the reservationist that you require a wheelchair location. Additionally, a golf cart is available to assist patrons with accessibility needs to and from the parking lot. Please notify Patron Services prior to your performance if you are in need of this service; additionally, you may pull into the five minute parking in front of the theatre, and a friendly La Jolla Playhouse greeter will assist you.The Playhouse also provides assisted listening devices for patrons who are hard of hearing. Devices are available, free of charge, at the Patron Services Center prior to performances (subject to availability). Listening Devices Provided in Part by
CAMERAS AND RECORDING DEVICES are strictly prohibited in the theatre. Please check these items with the House Manager and turn off your camera phone.
BABES IN ARMS Out of respect for fellow audience members and the performers, babes in arms are not permitted in the theatre during performances.
PLEASE SILENCE or turn off all electronic devices, including cell phones and watches, before the performance.
CHILDREN under the age of 6 are not permitted in the theatre during performances unless otherwise posted.
P6 PERFORMANCES MAGAZINE
SAFETY IN THE THEATRE DISTRICT La Jolla Playhouse is constantly working with the UC San Diego Police Department and UC San Diego Transportation and Parking Services, which operates the parking lot and security system, to maintain and improve security conditions for patrons and staff members. Additionally, patrons and staff are welcome to use UC San Diego Community Service Officers (CSOs) for an escort to their cars by calling (858) 534-WALK (9255). Further questions regarding security may be addressed to UC San Diego Police at (858) 534-HELP (4357). DOCTORS AND PARENTS expecting calls during the performance should leave their names and seat numbers with the House Manager before the show. Leave the following number with your service: (858) 550-1030. LATECOMERS or PATRONS WHO LEAVE THEIR SEAT DURING THE PERFORMANCE Please arrive on time. Latecomers will be admitted at the discretion of the House Manager. La Jolla Playhouse accepts no liability for inconvenience to latecomers. THEATRE TOURS Tour the stages and production shops of the Playhouse facilities and learn more about the history of La Jolla Playhouse and the role that it plays in the community. Contact (858) 550-1070 x101.
THE COMPANY BRITTANY BELLIZEARE, Rose La Jolla Playhouse: Debut. Regional: Camae in The Mountaintop (Northern Stage); Ruby in Seven Guitars (Two River Theatre); educational touring show Sunjata Kamalenya (McCarter Theater); the one-act musical Archy & Mehitabel (The Yard). She has participated in various festivals in NYC including The NY Fringe and 48 Hours in Harlem, as well as performed at The Cell, Gallery Players in Brooklyn and The Public Theater. TV: Eye Candy (MTV); The Knick (Cinemax); Facing Trauma (Discovery Health); Carol’s Daughter - Do It Yourself (HSN). Education: M.F.A. from The New School for Drama; B.S. in Mathematics from Spelman College. www.brittanybellizeare.com ANDY LUCIEN, Max La Jolla Playhouse: DNA New Work Series. OffBroadway: The Qualms (Playwrights Horizons); City of Conversation (Lincoln Center); The Last Seder (Theater Three at the Mint). Regional and international theatre: Cry Old Kingdom, 27 Ways I Didn’t Say Hi to Laurence Fishburne (Humana Festival: Actors Theater of Louisville); Clybourne Park (Dorset Theater Festival/Barrington Stage); Revenge of a King (Grahamstown, South Africa). TV: Elementary, Token the Webseries, BE the Webseries. Film: Seven Lovers. For Karen, rest well my beloved. CLINTON ROANE, Emmanuel La Jolla Playhouse: Debut. Broadway/London: The Scottsboro Boys. Regional: Five Guys Named Moe (Arena Stage, Cleveland Play House); The Scottsboro Boys (Philadelphia Theatre Company—Barrymore Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor in a Musical, The Old Globe, American Conservatory Theatre, Ahmanson); Hello! My Baby (Goodspeed); My One and Only (Marriott Lincolnshire Theatre); Dreamgirls (North Shore Music Theatre); Radio City Christmas Spectacular (Radio City Music Hall). Education: CAP 21 and B.F.A. from Howard University. Special thanks to God, family, friends and HHA. Habakkuk 3:17-19. www.clintonroane.com. JASMINE ST. CLAIR, Laurie La Jolla Playhouse: Sideways. UC San Diego: Little Children Dream of God (Sula), Cry Old Kingdom (Judith), In the Red and Brown Water (Shun). Regional: Danielle in Dontrell, Who Kissed the Sea (Skylight Theater). TV: Shameless. Film: Daddy and Me (Tasha). Education: M.F.A. from UC San Diego. REGGIE D. WHITE, Joseph La Jolla Playhouse: Debut. Off-Broadway: Troll, I & You, For the Last Time, The Snow Queen, Dogsbody. Regional: I & You (Merrimack Rep); Party People (Berkeley Rep); Hundred Days (Z Space); Crime & Punishment (San Jose Rep); The Last Election (SF Mime Troupe). Currently an artist-in-residence at Berkeley Rep through the TCG Fox Fellowship. Recipient of the Theatre Bay Area TITAN Award as well as the RHE Foundation’s Artistic Fellowship. Education: Cal State Hayward, Atlantic Theater School.
JEFF AUGUSTIN, Playwright La Jolla Playhouse: DNA New Work Series. Mr. Augustin’s play Little Children Dream of God received its world premiere at the Roundabout Underground, where he was the inaugural Tow Foundation Playwrightin-Residence. His plays have also been produced at Actors Theatre of Louisville (Cry Old Kingdom, Humana 2013; That High Lonesome Sound, Humana Apprentice Anthology 2015) and Western Washington University (Corktown). His work has been developed at La Jolla Playhouse’s DNA New Work Series, Eugene O’Neill Playwrights Conference, The Ground Floor at Berkeley Rep, American Conservatory Theater and Seattle Rep. He is the Shank Playwright-in-Residence at Playwrights Horizons; a member of The Working Farm at SPACE on Ryder Farm and the Rita Goldberg Playwrights Workshop at Lark. He is the recipient of the Barrie and Bernice Stavis Playwriting Award, Lorraine Hansberry Award, and was a New York Theatre Workshop 2050 Fellow. He is currently under commission from Manhattan Theatre Club and the Roundabout Theatre. He received his B.A. from Boston College and his M.F.A. from UC San Diego. JOSHUA KAHAN BRODY, Director is currently in residence at La Jolla Playhouse with a 2015 Princess Grace Award Apprenticeship (Faberge Theater Award). His recent directing work includes King of the Yees at New Stages (Goodman Theatre), True Believer (TheaterLab, NY); Fourteen Flights (Award for Excellence in Directing, NY Fringe Festival); Pericles and Medea (UMKC); Titus Andronicus, Little Children Dream of God, The Dybbuk, The Santa Barbarians and A Man, His Wife, and His Hat (UC San Diego). At La Jolla Playhouse, Brody has worked as an assistant director on The Nightingale and The Who & The What, and as an actor in the 2013 WoW Festival production of Our Town. He is co-founder of THE TRIP, a San Diegobased performance group, for which he recently directed Three Plays in a Tattoo Shop. In 2017 he will be directing King of the Yees at the Goodman Theatre and Center Theater Group. He received his M.F.A. from the UC San Diego Department of Theatre & Dance and his B.A. from Yale University. TAKESHI KATA, Scenic Designer La Jolla Playhouse: Guards at the Taj. LA: The Night Alive, American Buffalo, The Seafarer, Boston Marriage, Ruth Draper Monologues and Slowgirl (Geffen); November, Other Desert Cities (Taper); Throw Me on a Burnpile..., Forever (Kirk Douglas); Happy Days (Boston Court). NY: Through a Glass Darkly, Storefront Church, The Intelligent Design of Jenny Chow (Atlantic Theater Company); Adding Machine (Minetta Lane). Regional: Alley, American Players Theatre, Dallas Theater Center, Goodman Theatre, Hartford Stage, Long Wharf, The Old Globe, Steppenwolf, Yale Rep. Mr. Kata has won an Obie Award and has been nominated for Drama Desk, Ovation and Barrymore awards. He is an Assistant Professor at USC, School of Dramatic Arts. DEDE AYITE, Costume Designer La Jolla Playhouse: Debut. Off-Broadway: The Royale (Lincoln Center Theater); Ugly Lies the Bone (Roundabout); brownsville song (b-side for tray) (LCT3); ToasT, Urban Retreat and Manahatta (The Public). Select regional: The Wiz (OSF); Detroit ’67 (Center Stage/Detroit Public Theater); Between Riverside and Crazy (Studio Theatre); The Blood Quilt (Arena Stage); Marie Antoinette (Steppenwolf, 2015 Jeff Award recipient); Stagger Lee (Dallas Theater Center); The CA Lyons Project (Alliance Theatre); Five Guys Named Moe (Arena Stage/Cleveland Play House); A Raisin in the Sun (California Shakespeare Theater); The Piano Lesson (Yale Repertory Theatre); The Music Man in Concert (Two Rivers, NJPAC). Education: M.F.A. from Yale School of Drama.
PERFORMANCES MAGAZINE P7
THE COMPANY ALEXANDER V. NICHOLS, Lighting Designer La Jolla Playhouse: Lighting & Projections for Continental Divide, Zorro in Hell. Broadway: Wishful Drinking (Production Design); Hugh Jackman, Back on Broadway (Video); Nice Work If You Can Get It (Video). Off-Broadway: In Masks Outrageous and Austere, Los Big Names, Horizon, Bridge and Tunnel, Taking Over, Through the Night, In the Wake. Regional: scenic, lighting and/or projection designs for American Conservatory Theater, Mark Taper Forum, Berkeley Repertory Theatre, Arena Stage, Huntington Theatre Company, Seattle Repertory Theatre. Dance: Resident Designer for Pennsylvania Ballet, Hartford Ballet, American Repertory Ballet; lighting supervisor for American Ballet Theatre; resident designer for Margaret Jenkins Dance Company. Scenic, lighting and/or projection designs for San Francisco Ballet, Boston Ballet, Joffrey Ballet, Alvin Ailey and Hubbard Street, Hong Kong Ballet, Singapore Dance Theatre and ODC/SF, among others. Music: Svadba (SF Opera), Bluebeards Castle (Cleveland Symphony), LIFE: A Journey Through Time (Philip Glass & Frans Lanting), Visual Music (Kronos Quartet), Paul Dresher Ensemble, Bill Frisell, Rinde Eckert. NICHOLAS DRASHNER, Sound Designer is thrilled to be working with La Jolla Playhouse again. La Jolla Playhouse credits include: Kingdom City, The Astronaut Farmworker, Suzette Who Set to Sea and A Lonely Boy’s Guide to Survival (and Werewolves). Mr. Drashner is currently Assistant Professor of Sound Design in the School of Theatre and Dance at Kent State University. Education: M.F.A. in Sound Design for Theatre and Dance from University of California San Diego. www.drashner.com COOKIE JORDAN, Hair and Wig Designer La Jolla Playhouse: Side Show. Broadway: Eclipsed, Side Show, After Midnight, Fela, A View From the Bridge. Off-Broadway: Familiar, Eclipsed, Hir, Cloud Nine, Skeleton Crew, Eclipsed, Gloria, Liquid Plain, Hurt Village, An Octoroon. Regional: Side Show (Kennedy Center). Tours: Fela (National tour); Fela (European Tour); Dirty Dancing, Flash Dance (National Tour). TV: Makeup designer, NBC’s The Wiz Live. CHANTAL JEAN-PIERRE, Dialect Coach is thrilled to work with La Jolla Playhouse on such an amazing story. A few of her credits include: Roundabout Theatre Company: Little Children Dream of God; HERE Art Center: Last Day; McCarter Theatre Center: Sunjata Kamalenya; George Street Playhouse: 39 Steps; Playwrights Realm: Five Second Chances; Classical Theater of Harlem: Romeo & Juliet and Dream on Monkey Mountain; Minetta Lane Theatre: Thunder Knocking at the Door; Red Carpet Theater: For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide When the Rainbow Is Enuf and more. Visit pierreactingcoach.com or chantaljean-pierre.com for more about her work. GABRIEL GREENE, Dramaturg joined La Jolla Playhouse’s artistic staff in 2007 and currently serves as their Director of New Play Development. In addition to curating and producing the annual DNA New Work Series (at which The Last Tiger in Haiti received its first public reading), he has dramaturged over twenty new plays and musicals for the Playhouse, including Blueprints to Freedom, Up Here, The Darrell Hammond Project, Kingdom City, El Henry, The Who & The What, Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots, Milk Like Sugar (also off-Broadway; OBIE Award) and Memphis (also Broadway and London; 4 Tony Awards). His adaptation of R.L. Stine’s Goosebumps novels (cowritten and directed by Tom Salamon) recently premiered at The Vaults (London). With Alex Levy, he co-created Safe at Home, an immersive play developed as part of the 2016 DNA Series. B.A.: University of Michigan. M.Phil: Trinity College, Dublin. B.F.F.: Mia Fiorella.
P8 PERFORMANCES MAGAZINE
TELSEY + COMPANY, Casting La Jolla Playhouse: Hollywood, Guards at the Taj, Blueprints to Freedom, Come From Away, Chasing the Song, Hands on a Hardbody, Blood and Gifts, Glengarry Glen Ross, Milk Like Sugar, Little Miss Sunshine, Limelight, Bonnie & Clyde, 33 Variations and Memphis, among others. Broadway/Tours: Paramour, Tuck Everlasting, Waitress, American Psycho, Fiddler on the Roof, The Color Purple, On Your Feet!, Hamilton, Something Rotten!, An American in Paris, Finding Neverland, The King and I, Kinky Boots, Wicked, If/Then, The Sound of Music, Newsies, Motown, Rock of Ages. Off-Broadway: Atlantic, MCC, Signature. Regional: Alliance, Goodman, Hartford Stage, Long Wharf, New York Stage and Film, The Old Globe, Paper Mill, Williamstown. Film: Whiskey Tango Foxtrot, Tallulah, The Intern, Into the Woods. TV: The Family, Grease Live! The Wiz Live!, Flesh and Bone, commercials. MATTHEW MELCHIORRE, Stage Manager La Jolla Playhouse: Debut. City Center Encores!: Do I Hear a Waltz, 1776 and Cabin in the Sky. Broadway: The Light in the Piazza, Coram Boy, Hamlet, Spamalot, The Lion King, Curtains and Wicked. Off-Broadway: Love & Money, Black Tie and Buffalo Gal. Regional: Westport Country Playhouse, Hartford Stage, Long Wharf, Center Stage, Two River Theater and Paper Mill Playhouse. Tour: Steve Martin & Martin Short. JENNIFER KOZUMPLIK, Assistant Stage Manager La Jolla Playhouse: Hollywood, Come From Away, His Girl Friday. Cygnet Theatre: Hay Fever, The Vortex, My Fair Lady, A Christmas Carol, The Motherf**ker with the Hat, Maple and Vine, Travesties, The Importance of Being Earnest, Gem of the Ocean, Man of La Mancha, Dirty Blonde. San Diego REPertory Theatre: A Hammer, a Bell and a Song to Sing; In the Wake; Superior Donuts; Culture Clash in AmeriCCa. She received her B.A. in Theatre Arts from San Diego State University. BERKELEY REPERTORY THEATRE has grown from a storefront stage to a national leader in innovative theatre. Known for its core values of imagination and excellence, and its educated and adventurous audience, the nonprofit has provided a welcoming home for emerging and established artists since 1968. With two stages, a school, and a Tony Award for Outstanding Regional Theatre, Berkeley Rep is proud to premiere exhilarating new plays. Nine shows have ended up on Broadway. More than 12 arrived off-Broadway, two moved to London, two became films, and others have toured the nation. See tomorrow’s plays today at Berkeley Rep.
PLAYHOUSE LEADERSHIP CHRISTOPHER ASHLEY, Playhouse Artistic Director has served as La Jolla Playhouse’s Artistic Director since October, 2007. During his tenure, he has helmed the Playhouse’s acclaimed productions of Hollywood, The Darrell Hammond Project, Chasing the Song, His Girl Friday, Glengarry Glen Ross, A Dram of Drummhicit, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Restoration and the acclaimed musicals Come From Away, Xanadu and Memphis, which won four 2010 Tony Awards including Best Musical. He also spearheaded the Playhouse’s Without Walls (WoW) series and the Resident Theatre program. Prior to joining the Playhouse, he directed the Broadway productions of Xanadu (Drama Desk nomination), All Shook Up and The Rocky Horror Show (Tony, Drama Desk and Outer Critics Circle Award nominations), as well as The Kennedy Center Sondheim Celebration productions of Sweeney Todd and Merrily We Roll Along. Other New York credits include: Blown Sideways Through Life, Jeffrey (Lucille Lortel and Obie Awards), The Most Fabulous Story Ever Told, Valhalla, Regrets Only, Wonder of the World, Communicating Doors, Bunny Bunny, The Night Hank Williams Died and Fires in the Mirror (Lucille Lortel Award), among others. Mr. Ashley also directed the feature films Jeffrey and Lucky Stiff, as well as the American Playhouse production of Blown Sideways Through Life for PBS. Mr. Ashley is the recipient of the Princess Grace Award, the Drama League Director Fellowship and an NEA/TCG Director Fellowship. DEBBY BUCHHOLZ, General Manager has served as general manager of La Jolla Playhouse since 2002. She is the Secretary of the League of Resident Theaters (LORT) and a member of its Executive Committee. In 2009, she received a San Diego Women Who Mean Business Award from The San Diego Business Journal. Previously she served as Counsel to The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts and the National Symphony Orchestra in Washington, D.C. She was a faculty member of the Smithsonian Institution’s program on Legal Problems of Museum Administration. Prior to The Kennedy Center, she served as a corporate attorney in New York City and Washington, D.C. She is a graduate of UC San Diego and Harvard Law School. Ms. Buchholz and her husband, noted author and White House economic policy advisor Todd Buchholz, live in Solana Beach and are the proud parents of Victoria, Katherine and Alexia.
MICHAEL S. ROSENBERG, Managing Director has served as the Managing Director of La Jolla Playhouse since April, 2009. Working in partnership with Artistic Director Christopher Ashley, he has developed and produced new work by Ayad Akhtar, Trey Anastasio, Amanda Green, Kirsten Greenidge, Quiara Alegría Hudes, John Leguizamo, Herbert Siguenza, Basil Twist, Doug Wright and The Flaming Lips. Playhouse collaborations have included projects with UC San Diego, Museum of Contemporary Art San Diego, The New Children’s Museum, San Diego Rep, Tectonic Theatre Project, the I.D.E.A. District and the cities of Escondido and Chula Vista. Previously, Mr. Rosenberg was Co-Founder and Executive Director of Drama Dept., a New York non-profit theatre company, where he produced new works by the likes of Douglas Carter Beane, Warren Leight, Isaac Mizrahi, Paul Rudnick and David & Amy Sedaris. His early work included stints at the Kennedy Center and the National Dance Institute. Mike serves on the Boards of the San Diego Regional Chamber of Commerce, NBC 7 San Diego Community Advisory Board and the Theatre Communications Group – where he is on the Equity, Diversity & Inclusion Committee and chairs the Global Theatre Initiative Community. Follow him on Twitter: @MrMikeRosenberg. DES McANUFF, Director Emeritus served as La Jolla Playhouse’s Artistic Director from 1983 through 1994, and from 2001 through April, 2007. Under his leadership, the Playhouse garnered more than 300 awards, including the Tony Award for Outstanding Regional Theatre. Playhouse to Broadway credits: Jersey Boys (four Tony Awards); Billy Crystal’s 700 Sundays (Tony Award); How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying (five Tony nominations); director and co-author with Pete Townshend on The Who’s Tommy (Tony and Olivier Awards for Best Director) and Big River (seven Tony Awards), among others. Film credits: Quills, The Adventures of Rocky and Bullwinkle, The Iron Giant (9 Animation Society awards) and Cousin Bette. Recipient of the Drama League’s 2006 Julia Hansen Award, Mr. McAnuff served as Artistic Director at Canada’s Stratford Festival from 2007 through 2012. He recently directed the hit productions of Sideways, Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots and Jesus Christ Superstar at the Playhouse.
Highlights of UC San Diego Theatre & Dance’s 2016-17 SEASON:
Vieux Carré by Tennessee Williams, directed by Will Detlefsen
The Taming of the Shrew by William Shakespeare, directed by Kyle Donnelly
The One Hundred Giving Way & Though It May Shift dances created by Anne Gehman & Erin Tracy
Streamers by David Rabe, directed by Kim Rubinstein
Waiting for Godot by Samuel Beckett, directed by Gabor Tompa
The Theatre & Dance MFA program at UC San Diego consistently ranks in the top ten MFA programs in the world, and top five in the country. Our MFA candidates receive professional residencies at La Jolla Playhouse, located on the UC San Diego campus.
Wagner New Play Festival 2017 showcasing new plays by MFA Playwrights
The Last Tiger in Haiti playwright Jeff Augustin, director Joshua Kahan Brody, actor Jasmine St. Clair, and sound designer Nick Drashner are alumni of the UC San Diego MFA program.
For information:
THEATRE.UCSD.EDU • 858.822.3152
and more...
La Bête, 2016. Photo: Jim Carmody
PERFORMANCES MAGAZINE P9
TELLING STORIES Over a lunch break during rehearsals, playwright Jeff Augustin and director Joshua Kahan Brody sat down for a conversation with director of new play development
Gabriel Greene. JKB: Largely, I think that people try to heal and find love through the ways in which we tell our story. I have always loved the thought that within your family, storytelling was a very real, though non-physical way, of creating a home. GG: So storytelling was your way in to the play?
Jeff Augustin and Joshua Kahan Brody. Photo by Jim Carmody.
GG: Jeff, what was your inspiration for writing The Last Tiger in Haiti? JA: I became fascinated with the “Krik? Krak!” traditional form of Haitian storytelling. And also, the question of how we use stories to heal ourselves – not as a single person, but how do we tell stories as a group to heal ourselves? As a storyteller and an audience member, what are our obligations to each other? What is happening between us? GG: Was “Krik? Krak!” storytelling something you grew up with? What are some of the rituals or gestures of those kinds of stories? JA: I’m just going back from my experience at home [growing up in Miami], so I don’t know if it’s Haitian, or if it was just my mom trying to entertain us as children. We’d sit on the floor or in a circle. We would light candles, though I’m pretty sure that was just my mom being like, “Let’s make this fun!” We would take turns performing, grabbing random objects and getting creative in telling these stories. It was family time. For me, storytelling is home. Even if you’re not in your house, not with your family, it feels very home-like, very comfortable.
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JA: My initial impulse was to write about abuse. I pitched an idea to The Ground Floor, Berkeley Rep’s great developmental laboratory that they hold every summer. The initial idea was about these three kids in Orlando who all came from these abusive homes, and were friends in high school. They’d tell all these violent folklores and they would put their parents — or whoever their abuser was — as the villain; it became this form of escape for them. Then, 30 years later, one of them reunites the group because he has just killed his former abusers, and now he wants the others to do it, too. For a week and a half in Berkeley, I wrote 45 pages of this original idea. Then I heard it aloud with a group of actors — including Reggie White, who is in our cast – and what I’d written felt very forced. GG: And now your play ends up connecting those same questions about storytelling and healing to the subject of Haitian restaveks. How did you get there? JA: I happened to read this article in The New York Times about restaveks, and I wondered why no one is talking about this. I asked my mom and she said, “There was no reason to tell you because no one in our family was a restavek; it’s not something we partook in.” You know, it was like asking about one of many things that can exist in a country. I realized later that this story really wanted to be set in Haiti, and the restaveks were still on my mind. I was thinking about escape, about never being allowed to be children.
Cast in rehearsal. Photo by Jim Carmody.
GG: Earlier we talked about storytelling as a very comfortable kind of thing — a way to affirm or celebrate the home — but then there’s also this idea of storytelling as an escape; that one way of escaping a harsh reality is to tell a different story. JA: I think “escape” is about “creating what I wish my life was.” These kids want a real sense of home and family, so for that to be a reality they have to create it in another form. I’m also interested in how we love people who abuse us. It’s easy to assume, “Oh, you were abused, you must hate this person.” But it’s a complicated web, especially since they’re kids. “You bring me anxiety and fear, but at the same time I want you to love me and I need that love.” JKB: You learn what you learn based on your environment. How do you receive love if what you’re getting from a parent in your childhood is physical, emotional or sexual abuse? How do we deal with the hole that that leaves? How do we continue to love people who have broken us? It’s a big, beautiful question to ask in the world and also one that is being asked in the play. GG: You two met during grad school at UC San Diego several years back, and have been friends and collaborators ever since. What makes your collaborative process work so well?
JKB: Jeff writes these beautiful things that are poetic and muscular and sensual. There is violence in it but also a stillness. Our collaboration is based mostly from the fact that I really trust Jeff. It’s a very easy way of working. It’s not that it’s without conflict or disagreement, but there is a basis of a lot of trust and love. JA: It’s mutual. I feel that I can bring in a scene or try something and I trust that whateverJosh says will open me up, free me. GG: Are there things by which you feel bound? JA: Back when I first started thinking about this play, I was reading a book of essays by Edwidge Danticat called Create Dangerously. Her first novel, Breath, Eyes, Memory, was about Haitian women, and in the book the mother repeatedly tests her daughter’s virginity. A lot of people in the Haitian community were in an uproar: “this is going to represent all Haitians!” So in this book of essays, Edwidge went into this spiral — asking herself, what right does she have to tell these Haitian stories, because she left when she was 12. I started thinking: what right do I have to tell these stories? I don’t fear critics as much as I fear other Haitians watching the show. I’m always worried that I’m not getting something right. GG: How do you reconcile being a writer of Haitian descent who feels a gravitational pull towards Haiti in your work, and also that worry about whether your stories will be perceived as authentic? JA: I’ve come to the conclusion that I am talking about a very particular experience; I’m talking about Haitian lives the way I experienced it growing up. So if someone else’s experience is different than my childhood, I just remind myself that I’m not here to represent Haiti; I am not the Haitian playwright. It’s not my job to be that. Everyone has a different life, they might see something different. Also, I call my mom for advice about everything: “Mom, does this make sense, can I do this?” [laughs]
L-R: Clinton Roane, Reggie D. White, Jasmine St. Clair, Brittany Bellizeare, Andy Lucien. Photo by Jim Carmody.
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Born of No One, Belonged to No One The five young characters in The Last Tiger in Haiti are restaveks, part of a shocking, shameful, and tragically widespread phenomenon in Haiti. Even before the devastating 2010 earthquake, Haiti was the poorest country in the western hemisphere; the massive NGO mismanagement that followed the earthquake has only deepened Haiti’s dire financial straits. Many poor parents cannot guarantee even the most basic subsistence for their children, so they have no choice but to send their children to live with other, less poor families, hoping their sons and daughters may find better opportunities elsewhere — education and social services, perhaps, or guaranteed meals, at the least.
Increasingly, attention is being called to their plight. In 1998, JeanRobert Cadet published Restavec, a harrowing memoir about his childhood in service to a woman named Florence starting at age 4. Multiple organizations dedicate themselves to building awareness and advocating for the elimination of the practice. Restaveks are granted their freedom from servitude upon turning 18, but their years of slavery leave physical and emotional scars that plague them throughout their adulthood. In her foreword to Restavec, Cadet’s wife Cynthia writes that her husband, though now acclimated into American society, still suffers nightmares: “when I hear his laboring breath, his muffled cry, or feel his arms tremble and his legs thrash about — I know that the reality from decades ago is upon us again.”
Photo by Restavek Freedom.
Instead, their children are treated as slaves. For no pay and minimal sustenance, restaveks work from dawn until late at night, performing grueling and exhausting chores in service to callous masters. When their work at “home” is completed, they may be rented out to other houses as additional labor. Abuse — physical, emotional, sexual — is rampant. They are treated as something discarded, unwanted; they are malnourished and denied physical affection. In the words of Max, the oldest restavek in Last Tiger, they are “born of no one, belonged to no one.” (“Restavek” is a French and Creole word meaning “stay with,” a cruelly understated description.)
The irony of modern-day slavery becomes even more painful when you consider that Haiti itself was an enslaved nation until its overthrow of the French government in 1804. The world’s first free black republic is home to an estimated 300,000 restaveks, with 16% of all Haitian children self-identifying as such. Though the practice is illegal, it’s tacitly condoned to this day.
Krik?
Storytelling is a ubiquitous part of Haitian culture. All over the country, once night has fallen, families assemble in their homes to share favorite folklores.
When they are ready to start, the storyteller will say “Krik,” an invitation to the assembled to hear the story. “Krak,” the others say, confirming they are ready to listen. The rules having been established, the stories proceed. These tales have been passed down from generation to generation through the oral tradition, preserving the narrative traditions brought over from Africa by their ancestors, and forging an ongoing familial bond. But the stories aren’t passively received; the teller actively engages the listeners, who form a call-and-response type of chorus. P12 PERFORMANCES MAGAZINE
Haiti is a country full of contrasts and contradictions, and their folklores are similarly varied. Reality and the supernatural co-exist. Elements of Christianity and Vodou — both of which are practiced in Haiti, often by the same people — make their way into the stories. Though the primary function of the folklores is entertainment, the stories are also used to instill values and moral instruction. In her collection of Haitian folktales, Liliane Nérette Louis writes, “When I did something wrong during the day, my mother would wait until evening. Then, in a beautiful folktale, she would convey her message about my wrongdoing.”
Krak!
LA JOLLA PLAYHOUSE
STAFF
Christopher Ashley, Artistic Director
ARTISTIC Associate Artistic Director Jaime Castañeda Director of New Play Development Gabriel Greene Associate Producer Flordelino Lagundino Without Walls Festival Director Mei Yin Wang Director Emeritus Des McAnuff Executive Assistant to Christopher Ashley Rick VanNoy Artistic Associate Teresa Sapien Interns Chengyun Huang, Samantha Matta, Jacob Sinclair Commissioned Artists Lemon Andersen, Daniel Beaty, Mark Bennett, Keith Bunin, Kirsten Greenidge, Quiara Alegría Hudes, Joe Iconis, Naomi Iizuka, Aditi Brennan Kapil, Jon Kern, Mike Lew, Mona Mansour, Erin McKeown, Wesley Middleton, Rehana Lew Mirza, Gregory S. Moss, Alfred Uhry, Charlayne Woodard, Martín Zimmerman 2016/2017 Artist-in-Residence Basil Twist PRODUCTION Production Manager Audrey Hoo Associate Production Manager Benjamin Seibert Assistant Production Manager Becca Duhaime Production Office Manager Tarin Hurstell SCENE SHOP Technical Director Chris Borreson Associate Technical Director Curtis Green Assistant Technical Director Tyler Grady Scene Shop Foreman David Weiner Staff Production Carpenters Kyle “Boo-Boo” Ahlquist, Preston Spence Staff Carpenters Mihai Antonescu, William Bender, Matt Clark, Danielle Dunne, Ryan Fischer, James Hopper, Scott Kinney, Stephanie Lee, Dino Spezzini Shop Helper Doug Collind PAINT SHOP Charge Scenic Artist Joan Newhouse Assistant Charge Artists Vicki Erbe, Melissa Nalbach Scenic Artist Dwaine Best PROPERTIES SHOP Prop Shop Supervisor Deb Hatch Associate Prop Master Jeni Cheung Assistant Prop Master Jenny Fajerman Prop Shop Foreman Will Widick Props Artisans Ryan Lewis Props Intern Griselle Gonzalez COSTUME SHOP La Jolla Playhouse Costume Shop Manager 2016/2017 Season Mary Rochon Interim UCSD Costume Shop Manager Jan Mah Costume Shop Foreman/Tailor Lissa Skiles Drapers Elena Ham, Claudia La Rue First Hands Jan Blankenship, Rebecca Fabares Master Stitchers K-Joy Lehmann-Way, Yangchen Dolkar Craft Artisans Christy Jones, Tess Mattraw Costume Shop Assistant Desiree Hatfield-Buckley ELECTRICS Lighting Supervisor Mike Doyle Assistant Lighting Supervisor Kathryn Sturch Staff Electricians Kristyn Kennedy, Andrea Ryan, Ramon Wenn, Matt Wilson, SOUND/VIDEO Sound/Video Supervisor Joe Huppert Associate Sound Supervisor Chad Goss Sound Shop Foreman Steve Negrete Playhouse Sound Engineer Chris Luessmann Interns Janine Chow, Jessica Jakes
ADMINISTRATION General Manager Debby Buchholz Associate General Manager Jenny Case Human Resources Specialist Nezam Etemadi Corporate/Legal Counsel Robert C. Wright, Wright & L’Estrange Theatre/Legal Counsel F. Richard Pappas, Esq. Executive Assistant to Managing Director David Barnathan COMPANY MANAGEMENT Company Manager Megan Alvord Associate Company Manager Samantha De La Riva Company Management Assistant Erica Martin Interns Olson Kelly, Jenna Selby, Jaslit Williams-Singh FINANCE Controller Laura Killmer Consulting Accounting Manager Christine Dolan Senior Accountant Jared Jackson Payroll Accountant Tami Tipps Staff Accountant Janet Gray Production Accountant Sharon Ratelle DEVELOPMENT Director of Development David W. Hanses Sr. Associate Director of Development Erin Decker Associate Director of Development, Individual & Corporate Giving Bonnie Broberg Grants Manager Alexandra Kritchevsky Corporate Relations Manager Carina Burns Development Manager Samantha Wilson Donor Stewardship & Volunteer Coordinator Caitlin Finch Development Database & Research Analyst Tony Dixon Assistant to the Director of Development Naysan Mojgani Special Events Assistant Emma Latimer Development Assistant Jessica Humphrey Intern Michela Rodriguez MARKETING Director of Communications Mary Cook Director of Public Relations Becky Biegelsen Associate Director of Sales & Marketing Mia Fiorella Communications Specialist Grace Madamba Senior Multimedia Designer Nancy Showers Multimedia Designer Jane Sanders Marketing Adminstrator Sonia Diaz Marketing Coordinator Tara Shoemaker Public Relations & Marketing Intern Carly Proffitt PATRON SERVICES Associate Director – Patron Services Nikki Cooper Patron Services Sales Manager Jordan Marrone Patron Services Assistant Manager Travis Guss Senior Lead Patron Services Representative/Ticketing Specialist Pearl Hang Lead Patron Services Representative/Group Sales Specialist Renee Tolson Lead Patron Services Representative/Group Sales Concierge Mike Brown Patron Services Coordinator Bill Washington Patron Services Representatives Deandre Clay, Edward Delos Reyes, Makayla Hoppe Patron Services Sales Specialist Paul Preston Sales Concierges Andrew Fink, William Guiney Intern Carly Profitt
Michael S. Rosenberg, Managing Director
EDUCATION & OUTREACH Director of Education & Outreach Steve McCormick Associate Director of Education & Outreach Alison Urban Education & Outreach Coordinator Paola Kubelis Audio Describers Mernie Aste, Brian Berlau, Joanne Brouk, Tina Dyer, Shari Lyon, Kay O’Neil, Deborah Sanborn, Sylvia Southerland, Susan Weekes ASL Interpreters Lynn Ann Garrett, Anelia Glebocki, Alycen Haynesworth, Suzanne Lightbourn, Billieanne McLellan, Geri Wu Artist Instructors Carolyn E. Agan, Judy Bauerlein, Bradley Behrmann, Julie Benitez, Brian Bose, Julia Cuppy, Rebecca Dennis, Kirsten Giard, Amanda Ghosh, Cory Hammond, Catherine Hanna-Schrock, Rachel Hoey, Becky Hurt, Jeffrey Ingman, Sarah Luchini, Blake McCarty, Dennis Peters, Erika Phillips, James Pillar, Mary Reich, Cynthia Stokes, Skylar Sullivan, Tomas Tamayo, Sofia Zaragoza Playhouse Teen Council Kayla Cruise, Carleigh Jensen, Tyler Moore, Natasha Partnoy, Emily Smedley, Nicole Sollazzo, Madeleine Williams Interns Allison Cutshall, Annika Gullahorn, Halle Hoffman, Carleigh Jensen, Jenna Nilson, Marie Osterman, Marvival Parish, Kelli Plaisted, Cynthia Rebeil, Hannah Reinert, Mondis Vakili, Marilyn Wallace, Kat Ward OPERATIONS Director of Operations Ned Collins Operations Manager Jen McClenahan Network Specialist Mike Salapow FRONT OF HOUSE House Manager John Craft Assistant House Managers Kyle Farene, Sara Lucchini, Amy Marquez, Lenon Peachlum, Mondis Vakili Audience Concierges Maggie Papikyan, Chastyn Rauh, Mandisa Reed Janitorial Professional Maintenance Systems: Elena Hernandez, Miriam Martinez, Ignacio Mena, Juan Mena, Maria Mena
THE LAST TIGER IN HAITI STAFF Production Carpenter Preston Spence Prop Runners Marilia Maschion, Megan Tuschhoff Deck Crew Mihai Antonsecu Wardrobe & Wig Supervisor Jeri Nicolas Dresser Jan Mah Light Board Op Ramon Wenn Sound Board Op Michael Cornforth
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