SONGS TO GROW ON

THE ALLIANCE THEATRE

Susan V. Booth, Jennings Hertz Artistic Director & Mike Schleifer, Managing Director present

INSPIRED BY THE ALBUM "SONGS TO GROW ON FOR MOTHER AND CHILD" BY WOODY GUTHRIE

AND BY THE BERNHARDT THEATRE FOR THE VERY YOUNG PRODUCTION CREATED BY ROSEMARY NEWCOTT

COSTUME & PUPPET DESIGN BY

SCOTTIE ROWELL

SOUND DESIGNER CLAY BENNING

STAGE MANAGER JAYSON T. WADDELL*

TENT SERIES SPONSORED BY

THE CHARLES E. LORIDANS FOUNDATION

This production is supported in part by the BOLD Theater Women’s Leadership Circle.

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CAST *ROB LAWHON . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Woody Guthrie *JULISSA SABINO . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Nora/Arlo

FOR THIS PRODUCTION VALERIE MEDOFF . . . . . . . . . . . . . Stage Management Production Assistant NIKI TRAXLER . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Wardrobe HAYLEE SCOTT . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . COVID Coordinator VICTOR MOULEDOUX . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Stagehand STEVE JORDAN . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Lighting Programmer GRAHAM SCHWARTZ. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Mixer

*Denotes a member of Actors’ Equity Association, the Union of Professional Actors and Stage Managers in the United States.

The Alliance Theatre operates under an agreement between the League of Resident Theatres (LORT) and Actors’ Equity Association, the Union of Professional Actors and Stage Managers in the United States, and the Society of Stage Directors and Choreographers, an independent national labor union. The Alliance Theatre at the Woodruff is a member of Theatre Communications Group (TCG), the national organization for the American theatre, and is a member of the League of Resident Theatres (LORT), the International Association of Theatre for Children and Young Audiences (ASSITEJ/USA), The Atlanta Coalition of Theatres, the Atlanta Chamber of Commerce, the Atlanta Convention and Visitors Bureau, and the Midtown Alliance.

Photos may be taken in the theater before the performance, during intermission, and following the performance. If you share your photos, please credit the designers.

Photos, videotaping or other video or audio recording of this production is strictly prohibited, is a violation of United States Copyright Law, and is an actionable Federal Offense.

Synopsis: A Woody Guthrie concert for children! – A family friendly concert event featuring American folk music legend Woody Guthrie's classic children's songs. Performed by Rob Lawhon and drawn primarily from Guthrie's iconic album Songs to Grow on for Mother and Child, this cycle of songs captures the whimsy, joy, and wonder of childhood in three chords & a whole lot of fun. Join Woody and his dog Arlo as they serenade Atlanta families with songs that celebrate the human spirit.

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ROB LAWHON* (Woody Guthrie) is beyond delighted to be back at the Alliance Theatre! Other Alliance credits include The Wizard of Oz, Pancakes, Pancakes!, Charlotte’s Web, Songs to Grow On, Ghost Brothers of Darkland County, and Troubadour. He can be seen in locally-filmed TV shows like Sleepy Hollow, The Resident, and Star. “Special thanks to Rosemary Newcott, the brothers DePoy, my family, and to my son Gibson, who I love more than anything else in the whole wide world.”

JULISSA SABINO* (Nora/Arlo) is so glad to be back home with her Atlanta theatre community! Previous Atlanta credits: Elizabeth Darcy in Miss Bennet: Christmas at Pemberley (Theatrical Outfit); Esmeralda in Hunchback of Notre Dame, Vanessa in In The Heights (Aurora/Theatrical Outfit); Rizzo in GREASE (Serenbe Playhouse); Spider in James and the Giant Peach, The Lizard and El Sol (Alliance Theatre); Sarah in The Toxic Avenger (Horizon Theatre Company); Mimi in RENT (Actor's Express). TV/ Film: Tyler Perry's If Loving You Is Wrong (Gina). Julissa previously studied at New York University's Tisch School of the Arts at the Atlantic Theatre School & is a proud member of Actors Equity Association. She would like to thank you, the patrons, for continuing to support the arts during this critical time! This one is for my darling little baby - Penelope. For more, follow @JulissaSabino

CLAY BENNING (Sound Design) Resident Sound Designer for the Alliance Theatre and has designed more than 150 productions in his career, with over 100 for the Alliance. Recent works include Candide,

Naked Mole Rat Gets Dressed, Small Mouth Sounds, and Max Makes A Million. Other design work has included Georgia Shakespeare, Atlanta Ballet, Cincinnati Playhouse, Repertory Theatre of St. Louis, Theatrical Outfit, Geva Theatre, Synchronicity Theatre, and the Georgia Aquarium. Awards: Seven Suzi Bass awards for outstanding sound design with 16 nominations. He is a graduate of Presbyterian College (BA), North Carolina School of the Arts (MFA) and a member of IATSE/USA829 and TSDCA.

CHRISTOPHER MOSES (Dan Reardon Director of Education & Associate Artistic Director) Chris has been working in professional theatre education for over 15 years. In January of 2011, Chris took on the position of Director of Education at the Alliance Theatre, overseeing the Alliance Theatre Institute (twice recognized as an Arts Model by the Federal Department of Education), Theatre for Youth & Families, and the Acting Program. Under his leadership, the Alliance launched its Theatre for the Very Young program, which provides fully interactive professional theatre experiences for children of all abilities from ages 18 months to 5 years old, the Alliance Teen Ensemble, which performs world premier plays commissioned for and about teens, and Alliance@ work, a professional development program designed for the business sector—the latest offering of which uses theatre practice to create a culture of civility in the workplace. In 2014, Chris added the title Associate Artistic Director, and has continued to expand the Alliance’s education offerings. Chris serves as a board member for TYA/USA, the national service organization for Theatre for Youth, and Working Title Playwrights and is on the Board of Advisors for the Atlanta Speech School, and the Atlanta Public School’s Partners for Education.

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SCOTTIE ROWELL (Costume & Puppetry Design) is a queer, autistic, Atlanta-based artist, and cheerleader for sustainable arts careers. As owner of Teller Productions, a performance company specializing in storytelling, puppetry, and Theatre for the Very Young, Scottie produces skillfully-crafted, sustainable works, made accessible to audiences through non-traditional theatre installations and immersive experiences. Recent Puppet Directing credits include: Don’t Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus! The Musical! (The Kennedy Center for Performing Arts), Peter & Friends (Teller Productions and the Kennedy Center for Performing Arts), Old MacDonald’s Symphony (the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra), The Tourist Trap (Peppercorn Theatre), Deep Sea Discovery (Georgia Aquarium). Recent Performance Credits: Peter & Friends (The Kennedy Center for Performing Arts), Little Hansel & Gretel (The Atlanta Symphony Orchestra), Composition Quest (The Kennedy Center for Performing Arts). Scottie is currently a Hambidge Cross-Pollination Art Lab Fellow. Check out more art and design work at: ScottieRowell.com, TellerProductions.com

JAYSON T. WADDELL* (Stage Manager) is proud to return to the Alliance Theatre for his eleventh season. At the Alliance, he’s worked on such productions as Becoming Nancy, Courtenay's Cabaret, Approval Junkie, Ever After, Nick's Flamingo Grille, Candide, Crossing Delancey, Troubadour, Moby Dick, Born for This, Tuck Everlasting, The Geller Girls, A Christmas Carol, Ghost Brothers of Darkland County, Broke, Sex and the Second City, Next to Normal, Holidays With the Chalks and Bike America. At Atlanta Lyric Theatre: Oliver, Jesus Christ Superstar, The Full Monty and Young Frankeinstein. At the Illinois

Shakespeare Festival: Shakespeare in Love, I <3 Juliet, Hamlet, Q Gents, Antony & Cleopatra, Macbeth, As You Like It, Twelfth Night and A Winter’s Tale. Jayson graduated from the Gainesville Theatre Alliance and is a proud member of Actors’ Equity Association.

SUSAN V. BOOTH (Jennings Hertz Artistic Director) joined the Alliance Theatre in 2001 and has initiated the Palefsky Collision Project for teens, the Alliance/ Kendeda National Graduate Playwriting Competition, the Reiser Atlanta Artists Lab and commercial partnerships on such projects as The Prom; Tuck Everlasting; Ghost Brothers of Darkland County; The Color Purple; Bring It On: The Musical; Twyla Tharp’s Come Fly Away; Sister Act: The Musical; Bring in ’da Noise, Bring in ’da Funk; and Jesus Christ Superstar GOSPEL. She has directed nationally at the Goodman Theatre, La Jolla Playhouse, New York Stage and Film, Actors Theatre of Louisville, Northlight Theatre, Victory Gardens, Court Theatre and many others. She holds degrees from Denison and Northwestern universities and was a fellow of the National Critics Institute and the Kemper Foundation. She has held teaching positions at Northwestern, DePaul and Emory universities and is a past President of the board of directors for the Theatre Communications Group, the national service organization for the field. Booth’s leadership is underwritten by the BOLD Theater Women’s Leadership Circle, an initiative to support and promote women’s theater leadership funded by The Helen Gurley Brown Foundation. She is married to Max Leventhal and is the proud mother of Moira Rose Leventhal.

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MIKE SCHLEIFER (Managing Director) joined the Alliance Theatre in 2014 as General Manager, and in 2016 became Managing Director. While at the Alliance, Schleifer has led the administrative team on more than 50 productions and was one of the architects of the “On the Road” season, in which the Alliance produced 12 shows at 12 venues. He is proud to have started the Alliance’s Equity, Diversity and Inclusion Committee and to serve on the League of Resident Theatre’s Equity, Diversity and Inclusion Initiative. Previously, he spent 13 years at Baltimore’s Center Stage, working as Associate Producer, Production Manager and Resident Stage Manager. While in Baltimore, he spent seven years as an adjunct faculty member at Towson University and guest lectured all over the East Coast. Schleifer began his career as a Stage Manager and has dozens of stage-management credits in New York and regionally. He is married to theater director and educator Laura Hackman and is the proud father of two boys, Jack and Ben.

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