Piven-3 Sisters

Artistic Director: Jennifer Green Artistic Director Emeritus: Joyce Piven Executive Director: Leslie Brown Presents

Three Sisters

By Anton Chekhov A New Version by Sarah Ruhl Based on a literal translation by Elise Thoron With Natalya Paramonova and Kristin Johnsen-Neshati Directed by Joyce Piven Producer: Jodi Gottberg Production Stage Manager: Wendy Woodward* Scenic Design: Aaron Menninga Technical Director: Bernard Chin Lighting Design: Andrew Iverson Costume Design: Bill Morey Composition & Sound Design: Collin Warren Sound Engineer: Alex Bradford Ruhlin Properties Design: Jesse Gaffney Asst. Director & Dramaturg: Stephen Fedo Asst. Stage Manager: Chad Duda Asst. to the Director: Skye Robinson Hillis Costume Assistant: Melissa Ng Graphic Design: Clayton Smith Production Intern: Nathaniel Williams * Member of Actor’s Equity Association, the professional union of actors and stage managers.

THREE SISTERS is produced by special arrangement with Bruce Ostler, BRET ADAMS, LTD., 448 West 44th Street, New York, NY 10036. www.bretadamsltd.net Originally Commissioned and Produced by CINCINNATI PLAYHOUSE IN THE PARK Edward Stern, Producing Artistic Director Buzz Ward, Executive Director The use of cameras, videotape recorders or audio recorders by members of the audience during the course of this production is strictly prohibited.

Piven Theatre is a proud member of:

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THE CAST Brent T. Barnes............................................................................................................................................Kulygin Ravi Batista*...................................................................................................................................................... Irina Dave Belden................................................................................................................................................. Andrei Marcus Davis...............................................................................................................................................Fedotik Kevin D’Ambrosio..................................................................................................................................Ferapont John Fenner Mays.............................................................................................................................Chebutykin Andy Hager........................................................................................................................................... Tuzenbach Amanda Hartley.......................................................................................................................................Natasha Jacob Murphy................................................................................................................................................. Rode Saren Nofs-Snyder......................................................................................................................................Masha Jay Reed.......................................................................................................................................................Solyony Kathleen Ruhl............................................................................................................................................... Anfisa Daniel Smith............................................................................................................................................ Vershinin Joanne Underwood.......................................................................................................................................Olga Susan Applebaum............................................................................................................................... Anfisa U/S * Member of Actors’ Equity Association, the professional union of actors and stage managers.

SPECIAL THANKS Jennifer Sultz, Jeanne Sullivan, Ravi Batista, Lyn Niemann, Kathy Ruhl, Professor Irwin Weil, Bob Fisher at Evanston Lumber, Sarkis Tatosian at Oscar Isberian Rugs, our friends at Next Theatre & Actors Gym, Luther Goins at Actor’s Equity Association, Jeff Cory, Jill Silverman, Alex Theis & The Noyes Cultural Arts Center Staff, the Piven Board of Directors, Tracey Samlow, Evelyn Farabaugh, Micky York, and Clayton Smith.

D I R E C TO R S S TAT E M E N T Oh, my sisters, our life isn’t over yet. We will live! The music is so happy, so full of joy, as if we’re only one moment away from knowing why we live, why we suffer . . . Oh to know, only to know!

In the preface to her translation of The Three Sisters, Sarah Ruhl writes of the “melodies” of Chekhov’s text, the “natural emotional and melodic rhythms” that, as much as the words themselves, express the relationships among the characters. The melodies sound “the act of defiance in the sisters rather than the elegy, . . .the philosophical lament with humor rather than the complaint . . . .” In Sarah’s version of this play, the sisters are strong and defiant in their moment of loss; they triumph in their stamina, their capacity to go on, their ability to endure. Far from being defeated, at the end of the play, each of the sisters has come to a kind of epiphany: gone is the dream of going to Moscow, and living life—“knowing” life as it is and hoping to know what it may be—is what gives them the strength to endure.

I met Sarah when she was ten and a student in the Workshop. A lovely youngster, reticent but not shy, her depth was beyond her years. As she evolved from a student to a teacher of the work, we began collaborating on adaptations of Chekhov stories. Along the way we developed and ultimately produced her adaptation of Virginia Woolf’s Orlando, which was subsequently produced in Los Angeles by Tim Robbins’ Actors Gang, and this year is being revived in new productions in New York and Chicago.

In class and in these adaptations, Sarah was integrating the Workshop’s acting method, which was derived from Mira Rostova and the Moscow Art Theatre (the “home” of Chekhovian drama). That method is based on the melody of relationship and of speaking to the common understanding. We seek to discover what a line is actually “doing” in the moment a character is communicating with another.

Chekhov was the master of the melody of relationship, and his texts have always been a foundation of our work here. Sarah, with her exquisite talent and ear for language, has given us a beautiful and accessible translation, and any director would be grateful to have it.

But weaving together as it does so many strands of the Workshop’s artistic and pedagogic history and traditions, this version of The Three Sisters is special to me, and I cannot say adequately how proud and honored I am to be able to give it stage life.

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PROFILES SUSAN APPLEBAUM (Anfisa U/S) currently teaches dramatic literature and play analysis at Loyola University Chicago where she has been on the faculty since 1975. She also has a longtime association with the Piven Theatre Workshop. Starting in the mid-seventies, Susan studied with Joyce Piven, taught classes for both children and adults and directed stories for the YPC. From 1983 to 1985, Susan was the Director of the Junior Company and in 1987-1988 she served as Director of the Young People’s Company. Other university teaching includes courses and seminars at Northwestern University where she earned her Ph.D. in 1998, the University of Missouri-Kansas City, and the University of Pittsburgh. In 1969, Susan was a founding member and choreographer for Synthesis Theatre in Fleetwood, Pennsylvania where she acted in Michael Weller’s Moonchildren and in Jean Giraudoux’s Amphitryon 38.

Her understudy role as Anfisa for The Three Sisters marks her professional acting debut in Chicago. She is very excited to be working with Joyce Piven and this wonderful cast.

BRENT T. BARNES (Kulygin) appeared Off-Broadway in Grasmere by Kristina Leach, continuing on with the production to the Edinburgh Fringe Festival. Chicago credits: Pangs of the Messiah at Silk Road, What Dreams May Come: American Visions Through Jewish Eyes, directed by Joyce Piven at Piven Theatre Workshop, Banquo/Doctor in Macbeth and Fluellen/Westmoreland in Henry V at Muse of Fire, and The Christmas Schooner at The Bailiwick. Regional Theatre credits: six seasons with the Utah Shakespearean Festival, A Christmas Carol at McCarter Theatre, the U.S. premiere of The Parfumerie at Summer Studio Theatre Company, and Malvolio in Twelfth Night as a guest artist at Willamette University in Salem, Oregon.

RAVI BATISTA* (Irina) Ravi Batista is delighted to return to the Piven stage where she has performed in several plays. She has also appeared at Centerstage, Donny’s Skybox at Second City, First Folio, Greasy Joan & Co., Kansas City Rep, Lookingglass, Silk Road, and Soul Theatre.

DAVE BELDEN (Andrei) appeared most recently at Piven as Ed Sullivan in Lady Chaplin & Her Tramp, and also appeared in Chekhov: The Stories. Other favorite productions include Uncle Vanya (Court Theatre), The Taming of the Shrew and Love’s Labor’s Lost (Chicago Shakespeare Theater), Earth to Margaret (Acorn Theatre), Shoppers Carried by Escalators into the Flames (Viaduct Theatre), and Alcestis (Uffish Theater). Dave can be seen in the independent feature Eye of the Sandman, and he’s a violinist with the Chicago Sinfonietta and the Joffrey Ballet.

MARCUS DAVIS (Fedotik) is excited to make his debut at Piven Theatre with Three Sisters. He could previously be seen as Eli in Sunchoke (Rodez Productions) on the Raven Theatre West Stage and as Johnny in Onto Infinity (Azusa Productions) at the Greenhouse Theatre. Marcus is a brand new graduate of Columbia College with a BFA in acting. There, he appeared as Ryumin in Summerfolk, Cradeau in No Exit, Troy in Hiding Behind Comets, and a few others. He wants to thank everyone who has continued to support him, and a special thanks to past teachers, mentors, and gurus of the arts.

KEVIN D’AMBROSIO (Ferapont) is delighted to be a part of Piven’s production and Sarah Ruhl’s translation of The Three Sisters, having been a long time student of Joyce and Byrne’s. As a faculty member he helped create the PEEP outreach program which was designed for adults with developmental disabilities to explore the Piven method. Some of Kevin’s theatre highlights include Six Degrees of Separation (Signal Ensemble Theater), The Brother (Hancock Productions) and Tweaked (Big Brother Productions). Recently, Kevin’s voice could be heard in the t.v. commercial of the ThinkBeyondTheLabel campaign. Indie film projects include QWERTY, Dead Seriously and Driving the Dynamite Truck. He sends a shout out to his family back east. Special thanks to Jen & Joyce for bringing him back home.

This one goes up to Byrne.

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P R O F I L E S ( c o n t .)

JOHN FENNER MAYS (Chebutykin) is delighted to be making his debut with the Piven Theater and Anton Chekhov. A fifteen year veteran of Chicago’s storied off-loop scene, John has appeared in around thirty stage productions with over a dozen different theatre companies, and was recently seen this summer at the Storefront Theatre in Dog and Pony Theatre’s world premiere of Dead Letter Office by Philip Dawkins and directed by Dieterich Gray (Piven ensemble member). Favorite roles include Nick from Lillian Hellman’s Autumn Garden (Eclipse Theatre), Bradley from Sam Shepard’s Buried Child (Mary-Arrchie Theatre), Riley from Michael Henry Brown’s King of Coons (Congo Square Theatre), Jerry from Denis Johnson’s Soul of a Whore (Viaduct Theatre), and Policeman/Hugh from Rebecca Gilman’s The Glory of Living (Circle Theatre). Commercial work includes a national spot for Coors Light. John can also be seen as Deputy Sheriff Ernest Blunk in Michael Mann’s film Public Enemies.

Thanks to Joyce for this wonderful opportunity and, as always, to Lorraine for her undying love and support.

ANDY HAGER (Tuzenbach) made his Piven debut six years ago in Our Country’s Good. He has performed with City Lit, ATC, Goodman, Side Project, Mary-Arrchie, Famous Door, Thunder & Lightning (After Dark for Performance in Red Light Winter), New Leaf, Apple Tree, Trap Door, European Rep, and Theo Ubique. A company member of TUTA Theatre, Andy played Astrov in their long-running production of Uncle Vanya and will appear in their remount of The Wedding (Jeff Nomination – Best Ensemble) this January.

AMANDA HARTLEY URTEAGA (Natasha) hails from Rhode Island, but is proud to call Chicago home. During her eight years in the Windy City she’s earned her MFA in Acting at The Theatre School of DePaul, won a Jeff Award for playing the witch, Salome, in The Robber Bridegroom (Griffin Theatre), and a Jeff nomination with her ensemble in the long-Running Jacques Brel; Songs of Love and War with Theo Ubique. Most recent shows include The Yeo4 Piven Theatre Workshop

man of the Guard (Light Opera Works), Wild Nights with Emily (Caffeine Theatre) and The Diary of Anne Frank (Metropolis Performing Arts). She is delighted to be making her Piven Theatre debut, and thanks Jen and Joyce very much for this opportunity!

JACOB MURPHY (Rode): In Chicago: Talk Radio (State Theatre), A Brief History of Helen of Troy (Steep Theatre, assistant director). In New York: Too Little Too Late (HERE Arts, Nominated: Best Ensemble, NY Innovative Theater Awards); Don’t Pet The Zookeeper (Rising Phoenix Rep); numerous short plays with EST/Youngblood, readings and workshops galore (the Public Theater, Rattlestick, etc); assistant directing Kathleen Turner’s production of Crimes of the Heart (Roundabout); and a summer at the Williamstown Theater Festival. Jacob was a member of Piven’s Young People’s Company in high school and he is thrilled to be at the workshop again.

SAREN NOFS-SNYDER (Masha) fell in love with Three Sisters at the Babcock Theatre in Salt Lake City, Utah, and has waited 15 years to play this role. She is honored to make her debut with Piven Theatre Ensemble in this beautiful production. Most recently she was seen as Mrs. Alving in Ghosts at Bohemian Theatre Ensemble, and Sarah in Return to Haifa at Next Theatre. A Jeff Award Nominee, Saren has worked locally with Chicago Shakespeare Theatre, Remy Bumppo, The Silk Road Theatre Project and Circle Theatre, among others. Regionally: Kansas City Repertory Theatre, Utah Shakespearean Festival, Artists Repertory Theatre, Riverside Shakespeare Theatre, Pioneer Theatre Company and many others.

Saren earned an MFA in Acting from the University of Missouri, Kansas City.

JAY REED (Solyony) is delighted to be back at Piven where he was last seen in Two By Pinter and Disappearing Acts.

This summer he played Omar in The Big Funk by John Patrick Shanley.

Other favorite shows include Orphans, Kiss of the Spiderwoman and La Cat Show. Jay got his BFA in Acting from Ithaca College. He also had the honor of being in the Young People’s Company

P R O F I L E S ( c o n t .) where he honed his machine building skills.

He would like to dedicate this show to Henrietta, Leo, Cactus and Trey; his beacon of light for sixteen years.

KATHLEEN RUHL (Anfisa) is delighted, as always, to be at Piven and, especially, in Chekhov translated by Sarah Ruhl. Other Piven credits include Disappearing Acts: Nose and Overcoat; Book of Days; Top Girls; Chekhov: The Stories; American Blues; and Everything That Rises Must Converge. At Timeline, Kathy played Rima West in Dolly West’s Kitchen (Jeff Award 2008-Actress in a Supporting Role), the maid in Gaslight, and Mrs. Flint in This Happy Breed (Jeff Award 2005-Ensemble Acting). Other relatively recent appearances include Hay Fever at Court Theatre; the grandmother in Lost in Yonkers, Sister Clarissa in Over the Tavern, and Ruth Singer in Collected Stories, all at the Attic Playhouse. At Northlight, she understudied for Grey Gardens.

DANIEL SMITH (Vershinin) is pleased to return to the Piven Theatre. He was last seen here in Brilliant Traces, directed by Joyce Piven. He has previously worked with Victory Gardens, Defiant, Bailiwick, and Steppenwolf Theatre. His last theatrical appearance was at The Public Theatre for the New York premiere of Space, written and directed

by Tina Landau. Special thanks to Joyce Piven, Dennis Zacek, and Polly Noonan.

JOANNE UNDERWOOD (Olga) is an artistic associate at the Piven Theatre, where she has appeared in numerous productions. Favorite roles include Irina in Three Sisters directed by Joyce Piven, Cordelia in King Lear starring Bryne Piven, and Florina in Mad Forest (After Dark Award: Best Ensemble). Other Chicago credits include Marina in Pericles at greasy joan and company and Mary in The Red Coat at Raven Theater. Joanne is delighted to revisit the world of Three Sisters with Joyce Piven at the helm, this time looking through the eyes of Olga.

PRODUCTION TEAM: SARAH RUHL (Playwright) Sarah Ruhl’s plays include In The Next Room or the Vibrator Play (Glickman Prize, finalist for Pulitzer Prize, 2010), The Clean House (Susan Smith Blackburn award, 2004, finalist for Pulitzer Prize,

2005), Dead Man’s Cell Phone, (Helen Hayes award for best new play), Demeter in the City (nominated for 9 NAACP awards), Eurydice, Melancholy Play, Orlando, a new version of Chekhov’s Three Sisters, and Passion Play (Kennedy Center Fourth Forum Freedom Award). Her plays have premiered at the Lyceum Theater on Broadway, produced

by Lincoln Center Theater; off-Broadway at Lincoln Center Theater, Playwrights’ Horizons, and Second Stage; and regionally at Berkeley Repertory Theater, Yale Repertory Theater, the Goodman Theater, Cornerstone Theater, Arena Stage, Woolly Mammoth, Cincinnati Playhouse, and the Piven Theater Workshop in Chicago, as well being produced at many other theaters across the country. Her plays have also been performed in England, Poland, Germany, Israel, New Zealand, and Australia, and have been translated into Spanish, Polish, Russian, Korean and Arabic. Sarah received her M.F.A. from Brown University where she studied with Paula Vogel, and is originally from Chicago. In 2003, she was the recipient of a Helen Merrill award and a Whiting Writers’ award, a PEN/ Laura Pels award, and in 2006 was the recipient of a MacArthur Fellowship. Her work is published by TCG and Sam French, and she is a member of New Dramatists and 13P. She lives in New York City with her family.

JOYCE PIVEN (Co-Founder / Artistic Director Emeritus / Director) was one of the founding members and leading actresses at Playwrights’ Theatre, the group that spawned Compass Players and Second City. With Playwright’s Theatre, she played leading roles in Midsummer Nights Dream, The Seagull, The Dybbuk, Round Dance and Caucasian Chalk Circle and studied extensively with Uta Hagen and Mira Rostova.

Returning to Chicago, she and husband Byrne Piven helped Paul Sills form the Second City Repertory with Bernie Sahlins and Joyce Sloane as well as (with Sills) the original Story Theatre Company. Ms. Piven played Lady Macbeth in the Piven Theatre’s futuristic Macbeth, Bessie in Wisdom Bridge’s production of Awake And Sing, Lillian Hellman in The Julia Project directed by Shira Piven at New York’s Greenwich Theatre, and most recently appeared in Great Expectations at Piven Theatre and in Lookingglass Theatre’s Hard Times. Ms. Piven is the Co-Founder and Artistic Director Emeritus of the Piven Theatre Workshop and founding director of the Piven Theatre Workshop’s famed Young People’s Company. Ms. Piven has directed Lili Taylor in the revival of Maria Irene Fornes’ Mud at Victory Gardens and she directed the remounting of Orlando at the Actors Gang in Los Angeles. At Piven Theatre, she has directed: Rochelle Distelheim’s Sadie In Love, Caryl Churchill’s Top Girls, Sarah Ruhl’s adapPiven Theatre Workshop 5

P R O F I L E S ( c o n t .) tation of Virginia Woolf’s Orlando, Brilliant Traces by Cindy Lou Johnson, Speed-the-Plow

by David Mamet, Collected Stories by Donald Margulies, Chekhov’s Three Sisters, Chekhov: The Stories, Sarah Ruhl’s Eurydice, Festival of Jewish Stories, Chekhov Stories: The Emerging Woman, What Dreams May Come: American Visions Through Jewish Eyes and Two By Pinter.

She recently directed Suffragette Koan by Linda Carson in Los Angeles. She continues to bridge two cities, Chicago and LA, where her children and grandchildren, Pearl (yes THAT one) and Lili thrive. With Emmy Award Winning son Jeremy and writer/director daughter Shira, she is dedicated to keeping the Story Theatre method and the Piven Theatre Workshop legacy alive and thriving.

JODI GOTTBERG (Producer) is so excited to be working with such a phenomenally talented group of artists. She has spent the past 3 years producing at Piven and has recently designed props for Disappearing Acts: Stories of Nikolai Gogol & Someone Who’ll Watch Over Me at Piven Theatre.

Other Design credits include: Dog & Pony Theatre’s As Told By The Vivian Girls & Not Waiting Productions’ Ruby Wilder. She has also worked closely with Hell In A Handbag Productions in recent years as a Stage Manager and Associate Producer. Many thanks to: Joyce, Skye, Jen, Morven, Natalie, and Tom. WENDY WOODWARD* (Stage Manager) is thrilled to be returning for her fifth production with the incredible people at Piven.

Other Piven credits include Mad Dancers; Chekhov Stories: The Emerging Woman; Lady Chaplin and Her Tramp; and Great Expectations. Other Chicagoland credits include work at Buffalo Theatre Ensemble, The Court, Writers’, Congo Square, A Red Orchid, and Steppenwolf. Other credits include work with Great Plains Theatre (Abilene, KS), Merry-Go-Round Playhouse (Auburn, NY), Penobscot Theatre (Bangor, ME), Centennial Theatre Festival (Hartford, CT), The Broadway Rose (Portland, OR) and the A.D. Players (Houston, TX). Ms. Woodward graduated from the University of Houston theatre program and earned a Masters in Ministry Management in Portland, Oregon.

AARON MENNINGA (Scenic Designer) is pleased to return for his second set design and third collaboration with the Piven Theatre. Before this he designed 2 By Pinter, also directed by Joyce, and he was Technical Director for A Number of People. Recent designs include Spring Awakening with The Promethean Ensemble and The Wizard of OZ at Northwestern University. He keeps busy as a freelance Graphic Designer, Web Designer, and 3D Animator. He is a Rigger and ASM for the Shedd Aquarium show 6 Piven Theatre Workshop

Fantasea. He is the Sound Engineer for a radio art piece by Michael Rakowitz soon to air in Jerusalem. He is grateful that you took this time to read about him. Find his online portfolio at www.aaronmenninga.com.

BERNARD CHIN (Technical Director) Barney is pleased to be working with Piven Theatre and the artistic team of Three Sisters.

A NY native, transplanted to Chicago, he has been building spaceships and castles since ‘98 across town and across the country. He would like to thank all of his friends and co-workers who help him seem vastly more talented and capable than he really is.

ANDREW IVERSON (Lighting Designer) is a Theater Design major. Andrew was the Master Electrician for Late: A Cowboy Song at Piven Theatre. He would like to thank Jodi for this opportunity. Previous works include: Doris to Darlene, Songs for a New World, Hedda Gabler, and more. As always he thanks his friends and family for everything.

BILL MOREY (Costume Designer) is happy to return to Piven where he designed costumes for Two by Pinter, Number of People, and Disappearing Acts. He has been nominated for three Jeff Awards, winning in 2008 for Porchlight’s Nine as well as two After Dark Awards. You can see more at www.billmorey.com.

COLLIN WARREN (Composition & Sound Design) is thrilled to be working on his second show with Piven Theatre Workshop.

Collin made his Chicago debut last fall with Piven’s Two by Pinter. Since then, his work as a composer and sound designer has been heard with Chicago Children’s Theatre, The State Theatre, Vancouver School of the Arts, Northwest Children’s Theatre and the Medill News Service. In addition, Collin has worked as a sound engineer for Waterdog Studios and Double Door Chicago. Collin is currently in the process of relocating to the Washington D.C. area and thanks Chicago for one outstanding year!

ALEX BRADFORD RUHLIN (Sound Engineer) is excited to be working with the Piven Theatre on their production of Three Sisters. Alex is a recent graduate from the University of Iowa having studied technical theatre and audio. On top of working on this production Alex has been working crew calls for the Raue Center for the Arts in Crystal Lake. He would like to thank his family, those at the Piven, and again to Tresa Makosky for helping me to get my start in the business.

P R O F I L E S ( c o n t .)

JESSE GAFFNEY (Properties Design) is excited to be working on her first show here at the Piven. Elsewhere in Chicago she has worked with Silk Road, Apple Tree, 16th Street, Marriot Lincolnshire, First Folio, Steep and Noble Fool Theatre Companies. Outside of Chicago, Jesse worked for Allenberry Playhouse in Boiling Springs, PA, Stages St. Louis, and The Arrow Rock Lyceum in Arrow Rock, MO. She is a St Louis native and an Illinois Wesleyan graduate. Thanks and love to Warwick.

STEPHEN FEDO (Assistant Director & Dramaturg) adapted and directed last season’s Disappearing Acts: Gogol’s “Nose” and “Overcoat.” In previous seasons, he adapted short stories for Joyce Piven’s productions: What Dreams May Come: American Visions through Jewish Eyes; Chekhov Stories: The Emerging Woman; and A Festival of Jewish Stories. He also adapted Jane Austen’s Emma for Reverie Theatre and translated and directed Hofmannsthal’s Elektra for Rogue Theater. Recent acting credits include roles with Reverie, Rogue and ShawChicago. He also practices law.

CHAD DUDA (Assistant Stage Manager) is excited to be working with Piven Theatre for the first time. He recently relocated to the Chicago area from Austin Texas where he received a B.A. in Theatre Performance from St. Edward’s University. He most recently stage managed for the inaugural Chicago Fringe Festival. Regional credits include stage management: Ah’ Wilderness, The Three Sisters, On the Town, Ring ‘Round the Moon at Mary Moody Northen Theatre and Evil Dead: The Musical at Salvage Vanguard Theatre. Acting credits include Peer Gynt, The Pajama Game at MMNT and Fup Duck with Trouble Puppet Theatre.

SKYE ROBINSON HILLIS (Assistant to the Director) is happy to be working on her third show at Piven, having previously worked on Late and Number of People. She is currently a Directing student at Columbia College. Love to the cast, and special thanks to Joyce, Stephen & Wendy, and to Jen Green, for throwing this at her and knowing she could catch it.

PIVEN THEATRE WORKSHOP: JENNIFER GREEN (Artistic Director) is a recent grant recipient of the Theatre Communications Group’s New Generations Program, supporting Leaders of Tomorrow. She most recently directed the midwest premiere of Motti Lerner’s PANGS OF THE MESIAH at Silk Road Theatre Project.

At Piven Theatre, Jennifer’s directing credits include Our Country’s Good, Mad Forest (2003 After Dark Award: Best Ensemble), Burn This (Jeff Recommended), Book of Days (Chicago premiere), Never In My Lifetime (named one of the Top 10 Shows of the year by the Chicago Sun-Times), Great Expectations featuring Joyce Piven, Lady Chaplin & Her Tram, Mad Dancers (Chicago premiere) and Someone Who’ll Watch Over Me (Jeff Recommended.) Jennifer directed the world premiere of For You Were A Stranger at Chicago’s Hothouse and assistant directed Sarah Ruhl’s Orlando at the Actor’s Gang in Los Angeles. Since 1997, she has been an adapter and director with Piven’s Young People’s Company and a Piven faculty member. Jennifer is an adjunct faculty member of Northwestern University, has been a resident artist in public and private schools in the Chicago area with both Urban Gateways and the Illinois Arts Council, and conducts professional development workshops within Piven’s corporate residency program.

LESLIE BROWN (Executive Director) Leslie comes to Piven after several years as Director of Programs and Communications at Ragdale, an artist-in-residence program on the North Shore of Chicago. Leslie previously served as Associate Director of the Wilmette Theatre, has taught film studies at Boston University, Harvard and MIT, and has worked in various capacities with several film festivals in Massachusetts and Evanston, IL. She lives in Evanston with her husband and son, serves on the Steering Committee for Leadership Evanston, a program of the Evanston Community Foundation, and is on the Board of Percolator Films, the founding organization of Reeltime and Evanston’s Talking Pictures Film Festival.

MELISSA NG (Costume Assistant) is excited to be working with Piven for the first time. Most recently, she has costume designed Body Awareness at Profiles Theatre (Dir: Ben Thiem). Other credits include Titus Andronicus, The Last 90 Minutes In The Life Of Nikola Tesla and The Flu Season at the University of Chicago. More information on her work is available at http://melissang.carbonmade.com.

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A B O U T T H E P I V E N T H E AT R E WO R K S H O P For over 35 years, the Piven Theatre Workshop has maintained both a professional subscription theatre and a nationally acclaimed actors training center for children and adults. The Mission of the Piven Theatre Workshop is to preserve a process of creative exploration that celebrates each individual’s unique voice through an ensemble-based, community-oriented approach to theatre training and performance. This mission, as it has evolved over the years, is pursued through the three branches of the organization: the training center for children and adults, annually serving 1,000 students with mentorship opportunities for emerging theatre artists and educators, the extensive scholarship and community outreach programs, and the professional Equity theatre.

The Piven Theatre has been producing highly acclaimed productions throughout its history and has evolved into an Equity house offering a full subscription season.

In recent years, Piven Theatre has received an After Dark Award for Outstanding Ensemble, Joseph Jefferson Awards for Best New Adaptation and Best Sound Design, and Jeff Nominations for Best Ensemble and Best Original Score. Not only does the theatre support a Resident Ensemble of actors, it has also proven valuable as a training ground for directors such as Eric Simonson, Jennifer Green, Robin Chaplik and Jessica Thebus and playwrights such as Sarah Ruhl, Jennifer Barclay, Emilie Beck and Michael Stock.

The Piven Theatre Workshop now annually trains approximately 1,000 students from age 9 to adult. By focusing on the creative process rather than the prepatterned result, on releasing the natural sense of play, and on the richest personal expression evoked through the communal experience that is theatre, the Piven Theatre Workshop training program has touched countless lives over the years.

Many know the Piven Theatre Workshop for its celebrity alumni: John, Joan & Ann Cusack, Jeremy Piven, Aidan Quinn, Lili Taylor, Harry Lennix, Kate Walsh, Hope Davis, and many more. Yet for all the spawning of celebrities, the Piven Theatre Workshop’s greatest value may be to those many students who have taken into their lives and professions an enriched understanding of the human exchange and greater confidence in the value of their unique presence.

Piven Theatre Workshop is well known for its exemplary history of community outreach, consistently providing extensive aid through its scholarship program, offering training at little or no cost to under-served and economically disadvantaged students. During a school year, the Workshop waives approximately $30,000 worth of tuition fees to qualifying students in financial need (applications available at www.piventheatre.org). In addition to scholarship aid, the Workshop currently maintains outreach programs with Chicago’s Off the Street Club, After School Matters, and through PEEP, the Piven Empowerment through Enrichment Program, offering classes to adults with disabilities.

Stagebill designated the Pivens “Chicago’s first family of acting” and praised them for founding “one of the most successful theatre training programs in the country.”

The Pivens have received the Evanston Arts Council Youth and Education Award, the Evanston Mayors Award for the Arts, the Chicago Drama League’s Crystal Award, and the University of Chicago’s Glorious Gargoyle Award for lifetime contribution to the theatre. In 1996, they were named Artists of the Year by the Chicago Tribune and in 2000, they were honored with a Joseph Jefferson Award for lifetime achievement.

Byrne and Joyce Piven have both received lifetime achievement awards from the Chicago Improv Festival. Byrne Piven passed away in 2002 and the Piven Theatre Workshop now continues under the leadership of Co-Founder and Artistic Director Emeritus Joyce Piven and Artistic Director Jennifer Green. In 2002, the City of Evanston designated Noyes Street with the honorary name of Byrne Piven Place.

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OUR COM MUNIT Y OF DONORS

Spotlight on two of our greatest supporters …

Piven Theatre Workshop has been honored by the generosity and support of longtime friend Jeanne Sullivan. Committed philanthropists, Jeanne and her late husband Joseph Sullivan have also provided substantial support to the American Refugee Committee, Glencoe’s highly respected Writers’ Theatre, and various projects by writer/director Moisés Kaufman, author of The Laramie Project. Artistic Director Joyce Piven has described the Sullivans as “truly giving and selfless people who quietly and profoundly underpin the artist’s dream and transform it into reality.” We mourn the loss of Mr. Joseph Sullivan but we will long remember him for his extraordinary kindness and for the profound effect that his generosity has had on so many. With all of our hearts, we honor both Jeanne and Joe and we extend our heartfelt thanks to Jeanne Sullivan for her continued support.

Piven Theatre Workshop is grateful for the generous support of Jeanne Sullivan, the Illinois Arts Council, a state agency, the Gaylord & Dorothy Donnelley Foundation, the Richard H. Driehaus Foundation, and our extensive family of generous contributors.

We at Piven Theatre extend our very heartfelt thanks to our Premiere Contributors …

VISIONARIES ($10,000 or more) Gregg Balis • Marcia & Alan Cahn • Adrian Cazares • Scott Chaikin • Ellen & Eric Friedler • Ray Hartshorne • Adam & Denise Hoeflich • Marvin & Nancy Levine • Joyce Piven • Jeremy Piven • Gerald & Geri Sherman • Jeanne Sullivan • Two Sisters Productions • John & Cindy Valleau LEADERS ($5,000 - $9,999) Miriam Ament • Bernard & Sherry Beck • Daniel Brunell • Charles Corella • Rebecca Crown & Richard Robb • Kenneth Dillon • The Gaylord & Dorothy Donnelley Foundation • Stephen Fedo & Ann Speltz • Michael Fox • Maya Friedler • Elizabeth Guscott-Mueller • Peter Handler • The Illinois Arts Council, a state agency • Wendy Kopald • John Mahoney • Lyn Niemann • Anita & James Orlikoff • Barry & Margo Potekin • Susan Sneider & Jon Mills • Kate Walsh And to all of the many individuals and organizations who have generously contributed this year to Piven Theatre Workshop’s training center, theatre, and outreach programming. To join this family of PTW supporters, contact Leslie Brown at 847.866.8049

Piven Theatre also extends its sincere thanks to the following sponsors:

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P I V E N T H E AT R E WO R K S H O P C O N T R I B U T I O N F O R M Yes, I wish to contribute to the Piven Theatre Workshop in the amount of $ _______!

I would like my donation to go towards the: c General Workshop Fund, supporting the Piven training center c Byrne Piven Memorial Fund, supporting upcoming productions c Dick Cusack Memorial Fund, supporting the Performance Lab of Piven c Piven Outreach Programming in honor of: c Lynn Hirsch c David Friedler c Ron Saiet c Other ________________

Double or Triple the Value of Your Gift to Piven through your Employer’s Matching Gift Program!

Just ask you company’s matching gift officer (usually in the human resources or community relations department) for a matching gift form, send it to us with this form, and we’ll do the rest!

Name: ___________________________________________________________ Address: _________________________________________________________ City: ____________________ State: ___ Zip: ________ Phone: _____________ Email: ___________________________________________________________

c Enclosed is my check made payable to Piven Theatre Workshop c Please charge my (check one) ___ Visa ___ Mastercard ___ Discover ___ AmEx Card #: _____________________________________ Expiration: _______ Signature: ____________________________________________________

Please send this form with your donation to Piven Theatre 927 Noyes St. Evanston, IL 60201.

You will receive a written acknowledgement of your gift.

Thank you for your support!

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P I V E N T H E AT R E P R O D U C T I O N H I S TO R Y 1979 Chekhov: Some Family Portraits 1979-81 The Man in 605 (Jeff Award for Best Actor: Byrne Piven) 1982 Something Is There 1985 Mamet Festival 1986 Spike Spangle 1988-89 Macbeth 1990 American Voices 1991 Mothers and Daughters 1993 Mud 1995 The Shoemakers Sadie In Love 1997-98 The Conversion of Leo Novotny Top Girls 1998 Orlando Punto 1999 Brilliant Traces Never In My Lifetime (1st Production of Inaugural Subscription Season) 2000 Transformations 2000 Chekhov: The Stories The Illusion (Jeff Recommended) Burn This (Jeff Recommended) 2001 Three Sisters American Voices

2002 Rosa Lublin (Jeff Award for Best New Adaptation: Robin Chaplik) Speed-the-Plow (Jeff Recommended) Melancholy Play (Jeff Nominated for Best Original Score – Gregory Hirte) Mad Forest (After Dark Award for Outstanding Ensemble) 2003 The Guys Abingdon Square Collected Stories Skyscraper 2004 Eurydice Our Country’s Good 2005 Great Expectations A Festival of Jewish Stories 2006 Lady Chaplin & Her Tramp Chekhov Stories: The Emerging Woman 2007 The Mad Dancers What Dreams May Come: American Visions Through Jewish Eyes 2008 Storybox Because They Have No Words (Jeff Award for Best Sound Design – Jack Arky) Someone Who’ll Watch Over Me 2009 Disappearing Acts: Gogol’s ‘Nose’ & ‘Overcoat’ Two by Pinter: ‘The Lover’ & ‘The Collection’ 2010 Number of People LATE: a cowboy song Three Sisters

King Lear Book of Days Piven Theatre Workshop 11

P I V E N T H E AT R E WO R K S H O P S TA F F Founders.........................................................................................................Byrne & Joyce Piven Artistic Director...................................................................................................... Jennifer Green Artistic Director Emeritus......................................................................................... Joyce Piven Executive Director..................................................................................................... Leslie Brown Production Manager..............................................................................................Jodi Gottberg Office Manager.....................................................................................................Morven Higgins Literary Manager......................................................................................... Scott Shallenbarger Public Relations.................................................................. Cathy Taylor Public Relations, Inc. Website Design & Management.............................................................................. Micky York BOARD OF DIRECTORS Evelyn Farabaugh Michael & Karen Fox Eric Friedler Jennifer Green Elizabeth GuscottMueller Raymond Hartshorne Penny Katz Marvin & Nancy Levine Joyce Piven Barry Potekin Michael Pusateri Tracey Samlow Gerald Sherman Shaunese Teamer

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HONORARY BOARD Marcia Cahn Nancy Cusack David Doyle Maya Friedler Barbara Galper Stephen & Linda Goranson Tsehaye Hebert Stephen Holowid Penny Katz Wendy Kopald Adele Neems Eric Rubenstein Kathy Ruhl Bonnie Wilson

ADVISORY BOARD Ann Cusack Joan Cusack John Cusack Catherine Malfitano Jeremy Piven Shira Piven Aidan Quinn Linda Yu