10 minute read
Company Bios
THE COMPANY
AMIR ABDULLAH | MONTAG
Amir has been seen on stage at Chicago Shakespeare Theatre, the Geffen Playhouse, California Shakespeare Theatre, A Noise Within Theatre, Edinburgh Fringe Festival, and other theatres around the United States. On screen, he has appeared on Chicago Med,Empire, The Odd Couple, Tosh.0, and other network shows and indie films. As a narrator he has recorded dozens of books; he is a four-time Golden Earphone winner, and his work has been recognized as an ALSC Notable Children’s Recording. Amir can be seen and heard in commercials for Ford, Adidas, Kaiser Permanente, Facebook, and more. His playwriting debut, Pray to Ball, had its world premiere at Skylight Theatre Company in Los Angeles and won the Ovation Award for Best Set. Amir earned his M.F.A. from Penn State and his B.F.A. from University of Miami. amir-abdullah.com
Janyce is very happy to return to Indiana Rep where she was last seen as Alice Sycamore in You Can’t Take It with You. Selected Chicago credits include work with Teatro Vista, Raven Theatre, Chicago Children’s Theatre, Theo Ubique, and Emerald City Theatre. Regional credits include American Players Theatre, Marriott Theatre, Paramount Theatre, and First Folio Theatre. TV and commercial appearances include Chicago PD, Discover Credit Card, Coors Light, Orbit Gum, ULTA Beauty, The Onion, Illinois Secretary of State PSA, and 2026 FIFA World Cup. “I would like to thank mi familía and the amazing women at Paonessa Talent Agency for their endless support ... and of course books, my greatest companions throughout the years, that made me who I am today.”
JANYCE CARABALLO | CLARISSE & OTHERS
TIM DECKER | BEATTY & OTHERS
Tim is delighted to be returning to the stage in his first role at Indiana Repertory Theatre. Previous stage credits include work in Chicago at the Goodman, Chicago Shakespeare Theatre, Northlight Theatre, Timeline Theatre, and a four year run in Million Dollar Quartet. Additionally Tim has been seen in guest star and recurring roles on television series such as Boss, Chicago Fire, Chicago Justice,Empire, Detroit 187, and The Untouchables, along with film work in Slice, Uncle John, Thrill Ride, and Dirty Work.
JENNIFER JOHANSEN | MILDRED, MRS. HUDSON, & OTHERS
Among Jen’s IRT appearances are The House That Jack Built, Holmes and Watson, The Mousetrap, The Game’s Afoot, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, The Syringa Tree,Julius Caesar, The Ladies Man, Macbeth, Twelfth Night,and 11 editions of A Christmas Carol.Phoenix Theatre favorites include The Pill; The Christians;Hir; On Clover Road;Mr. Burns, a post-electric play;and Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike.At the Human Race Theatre Company she has played Gloria Steinem in Gloria: A Life, and has also appeared in A Christmas Carol,God of Carnage, Sex with Strangers,and Romeo and Juliet.Jen is a proud member of Indianapolis Shakespeare Company with whom she has performed in A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Hamlet, and Coriolanus. Proud board member of both American Lives Theatre and Summer Stock Stage. Proud spouse of Rob Johansen. “Dedicated to Robert Neal.”
THE COMPANY
HENRY WORONICZ | FABER, ARISTOTLE, & OTHERS
At the IRT, Henry has acted in Tuesdays with Morrie, Morning after Grace, Twelve Angry Men, A Doll’s House Part 2, Holmes and Watson, The Originalist, The Mousetrap, Red, An Iliad, A Midsummer Night’s Dream,Young Lady from Rwanda,and King Lear; he has also directed The Three Musketeersand Romeo and Juliet. Regional acting and directing credits include Actors Theatre of Louisville, American Conservatory Theatre, American Players Theatre, Arden Theatre Company, Berkeley Repertory Theatre, Boston Shakespeare Company, Center Stage, Delaware Theatre Company, Hong Kong Repertory Company, La Jolla Playhouse, Meadow Brook Theatre, Syracuse Stage, the Shakespeare Theatre, and the Alabama, Illinois, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and Utah Shakespeare festivals. He was seen on Broadway in Julius Caesarwith Denzel Washington. Television credits include Seinfeld, Cheers, Third Rock from the Sun, Star Trek, and Law & Order. At the Oregon Shakespeare Festival, he was a resident actor/director from 1984 to 1991 and artistic director from 1991 to 1995. Henry also served as executive producer at Lake Tahoe Shakespeare Festival from 2008 to 2009, the head of M.F.A. Acting at Illinois State University from 2009 to 2012, and a visiting professor in the Department of Theatre at IU Bloomington from 2014 to 2017.
TOBIAS ANDERSEN | ADAPTATION
Tobias originated the role of Fire Captain Beatty for the 1977 inaugural production of Fahrenheit 451 at the Colony Theatre, Los Angeles. He and Mr. Bradbury later co-wrote The Illustrated Bradbury, a one-man show adapted from nine of Bradbury’s short stories. Tobias is a veteran of five decades of regional theatre with such noted companies as Oregon Shakespeare Festival, Milwaukee Rep, Playmakers Rep, and the California Shakespeare Festival, where he appeared as Henry Higgins, Atticus Finch, C. S. Lewis, Don Quixote, and Sheridan Whiteside; and, as a devotee of Shakespeare, Falstaff, Dogberry, Prospero, Cymbeline, Polonius, Gloucester, King Lear, and another dozen or so. His critically acclaimed solo portrayal of famed attorney Clarence Darrow in Darrow has been seen throughout the United States and was selected to represent America in the second International Theatre Festival in Lahore, Pakistan. During his early Hollywood years he was a featured actor on such classic TV shows as Roseanne, The Incredible Hulk, Newhart, Little House on the Prairie, Bonanza, Knot’s Landing, ad infinitum. His most recent TV appearance was on Grimm as a Catholic priest having a very difficult time with an exorcism. He is a recipient of the Portland theatre community’s 2015 Lifetime Achievement Award.
BENJAMIN HANNA | DIRECTOR
Ben is in his fifth year as associate artistic director at Indiana Repertory Theatre. He has previously worked with Berkeley Repertory Theatre, Children’s Theatre Company, Penumbra Theatre, Seattle Children’s Theatre, Steppingstone Theatre, and the Bay Area Children’s Theatre. At the IRT, Ben has directed The Book Club Play, Tuesdays with Morrie, This Wonderful Life, A Christmas Carol, The Little Choo-Choo That Thinks She Can, Elephant & Piggie’s “We Are in a Play!,” and The Town Mouse and the Country Mouse. (see full bio on page 10)
WILLIAM BOLES | SCENIC DESIGNER
William Boles is a multidisciplinary artist based in Chicago whose work bridges scenic design and landscape architecture. As a scenic designer in theatre, opera, and film, his work has been seen on Broadway and in regional theatres across America. In 2020 William founded the Future Future Parks, a studio that designs parks on abandoned lots engaging a conversation about co-defined safe space in communities. William has a B.F.A. in Theater Design and Technology from the University of Central Florida and an M.F.A. in Stage Design from Northwestern University, and he is an adjunct faculty member at DePaul University. He is represented by Abrams Artists Agency. wbdesigns.carbonmade.com
IZUMI INABA | COSTUME DESIGNER
Izumi is thrilled to be working at Indiana Repertory Theatre for the first time. Recent credits include Titanic (Court Theatre), Il Segreto and Il Tabarro (Opera Festival of Chicago), Million Dollar Quartet Christmas (Evan Bernardin Productions, Phoenix Theatre Company), Nightwatch (Goodman Theatre), and Dishwasher Dreams (Writers Theatre). Upcoming: The Royale (Kansas City Repertory Theatre) and The King and I (Drury Lane). Awards and exhibitions: Michael Maggio Emerging Designer Awards (2014), Jeff Awards (2011, 2014) Black Theatre Alliance Awards (2020,) Prague Quadrennial (2019). Izumi is a member of United Scenic Artists Local USA829.
MICHELLE HABECK | LIGHTING DESIGNER
At the IRT, Michelle has designed lighting for Twelve Angry Men, A Doll’s House Part 2, Looking Over the President’s Shoulder, Dial “M” for Murder, The Mousetrap, and Amber Waves (2000), and lighting and scenery for An Almost Holy Picture. Her Broadway credits include slide artist for Thoroughly Modern Millie; and associate/assistant lighting design for The Boy from Oz, Movin’ Out,Thoroughly Modern Millie, and King Hedley II. Off Broadway Michelle designed Fifty Words for MCC Theatre. Regional credits include the Guthrie, Steppenwolf, the Goodman, Alliance, Seattle Children’s Theatre, Minneapolis Children’s Theatre, Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park, Arizona Theatre Company, Penumbra, Lookingglass, and others. Opera credits include The Masked Ball and The Elixir of Love for Austin Opera, and associate for Julie Taymor’s Grendel. Michelle was awarded the NEA/TCG Career Development Grant for Design. She leads the B.A./M.F.A. lighting program in the Department of Theatre and Dance at the University of Texas at Austin.
KEVIN O’DONNELL | SOUND DESIGNER
Kevin is excited to be working with the Indiana Rep for the first time. Based in Chicago for many years, he has worked as a musician, composer, and sound designer at Steppenwolf, Lookingglass, Writers Theatre, Northlight, Chicago Shakespeare, the Court, and many others. His work in Chicago has earned him 20 Jeff nominations and 10 awards. In New Orleans he has worked at the Shakespeare Festival at Tulane and the Southern Rep, and he has been nominated for two Big Easy Awards in theatrical sound design for his work with Le Petite Theatre. Kevin currently lives in the greater Nashville area and is the faculty coordinator for Sound and Media Design at Middle Tennessee State University. He is also a drummer.
THE COMPANY
RASEAN DAVONTE JOHNSON | PROJECTION DESIGNER
Davonte is delighted to be working with Indiana Repertory Theatre. A Chicago-based video artist and theatrical designer, he has had the opportunity to work with institutions such as Steppenwolf Theatre Company, Goodman Theatre, Yale Repertory Theatre, Hartford Stage, Lookingglass Theatre Company, McCarter Theatre Center, Long Wharf Theatre, Berkshire Theatre Group, Alliance Theatre, Court Theatre, the Hypocrites, the Kitchen Theatre, Teatro Vista, Olney Theatre Center, the Studio Theatre, Woolly Mammoth Theatre, and Manual Cinema. He has worked internationally with the Edinburgh Fringe Festival (Scotland), B-Floor Theatre (Thailand), and the Ningbo Song and Dance Company (China). His video and installation work has been seen at the Yale Art Gallery, the Bay Street Theatre, the Bridgeport Film Festival, the Logan Center for the Arts, and the Columbus International Film Festival. He earned his M.F.A. at the Yale School of Drama. raseandavontejohnson.com
RICHARD J ROBERTS | DRAMATURG
This is Richard’s 32nd season with the IRT, and his 24th as resident dramaturg. He has also been a dramaturg for the New Harmony Project, Write Now, and the Hotchner Playwriting Festival. He has directed IRT productions of A Christmas Carol (four times), Bridge & Tunnel, The Night Watcher, Neat, Pretty Fire, The Cay, The Giver, The Power of One, and Twelfth Night. Other directing credits include Actors Theatre of Indiana, the Phoenix Theatre, Indianapolis Chamber Orchestra, Edyvean Repertory Theatre, Indianapolis Civic Theatre, Carmel Symphony Orchestra, Butler University, University of Indianapolis, and Anderson University. This season he directs Pippin at Marian University. Richard studied music at DePauw University and theatre at Indiana University and has been awarded a Creative Renewal Arts Fellowship from the Arts Council of Indianapolis.
NATHAN GARRISON | STAGE MANAGER
This is Nathan’s 26th season at the IRT. He has also worked with Center Stage in Baltimore, Utah Shakespeare Festival, and Brown County Playhouse; and he is a company member with the Indianapolis Shakespeare Company.
BECKY ROEBER | ASSISTANT STAGE MANAGER
Becky hails from the Pocono Mountains of Pennsylvania where they attended East Stroudsburg University for musical theatre and technical theatre. This is their fifth season at Indiana Repertory Theatre; they joined Actor’s Equity Association with this season’s production of A Christmas Carol. They also serve as production manager for Summer Stock Stage and as production stage manager for Eclipse productions. “I am grateful to be producing beautiful productions with this talented company during these trying times.”
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