Impulse: Sweet 16! Playbill

IMPULSE: SWEET 16!

Welcome to Impulse’s Sweet 16!

We’re thrilled to be back (and in-person!) for another season of our award-winning improv performances.

Improv is such an important skill to have, both on and beyond the stage. It makes us better problemsolvers, better listeners, and strong team members. We actively support each others’ ideas and make brave, bold choices—and learn that it’s OK if our ideas don’t work. It’s a rewarding process and we are honored to share each unique performance with you.

Improv also reminds us that there is always more to learn. Each year, the Impulse troupe challenges themselves to train in new ways. For the first time ever, we’re embarking on Musical Matinees every Sunday, where a new mini-musical will be created from audience suggestions.

And if you’re interested in learning more, check out our improv classes this summer and find your inner “Impulse” with us!

Enjoy the show,

Dani Baldwin Artistic Director, YP Co.

BECOME A YOUNG PROFESSIONAL!

The Young Professionals Company is made up of dedicated theater students ages 14–18 who have been selected to participate in a year-long mentoring program, where they receive advanced training through exposure to a wide range of college-level workshops and professional development.

Cast

Nirmay Anantha

Mary Anderson

Elijah Castillo

Alli Jaffe

Andy Manne

Lily Russell

Miyabi Saito

Aiden Shafiuzzaman

Riley Schreiber, Alternate

Artistic AND ProduCtiOn Team

Blake Wales Co-Director

Nick Condon

Eri Zinke

Anthony Arnista

Erin MacGillivray

Co-Director

Music Director

Sound Designer

Production Stage Manager

Sky Armstrong Stage Manager

Emma Fonseca Halverson

Riley Schreiber

Directing Assistant

House Manager

Saibi Khalsa Board Operator

Dani Baldwin

Artistic Director, YP Company

Production Support provided by OCT Scene Shop

CaSt

NIRMAY ANANTHA

17-year-old Nirmay Anantha is a native Portlandian and has been active in community theater since he was 3. He had the opportunity to play Tall Boy in OCT’s mainstage production Judy Moody 7 years ago (when he wasn’t actually all that tall) and was both Sir Toby and Duke Orsino in OCT’s Twelfth Night (and can now sling great Shakespearean insults)! Outside of theater, Nirmay is most passionate about food, science, speech and debate, salvaging his grades, and his hair. He is excited to be a part of Young Professionals at OCT!

ELIJAH

CASTILLO

Elijah is a senior who goes to Arts and Communication Magnet Academy, and he is so excited to be a part of Impulse 16! He has been a member of the Oregon Children’s Theatre’s Young Professionals company for three years, and he’s happy that his last show with them will be with Impulse! He hopes everyone enjoys the show!

MARY

ANDERSON

Mary is a first year Young Professional and a junior at Camas High School. Mary started her acting career at the age of eight, in her break out role as Sandy the Dog. Although it is her dream to someday reprise this role, for now she is super excited to be a part of Impulse. Mary would like to thank her family, dog, dead dog (Buddy #rip), her wonderful cast mates, the entire production team, and especially the talented Dani, Nick, and Blake.

ALLI

JAFFE

Alli (she/her/hers) is thrilled to join the cast of Impulse with Oregon Children’s Theatre! She is a third year YP and a senior at Lakeridge High School. Some of her credits include: Spotlight Travel Troupe’s 13: The Musical as Lucy, Stumptown Stages’ Mamma Mia as Ensemble, Oregon Children Theatre’s Pestilence: Wow! as Agnes and WROL as Maureen, and assistant directing Alex Getting Better through the YP program. She would love to thank Dani Baldwin, Blake Wales, and the rest of the cast and crew of Impulse for bringing her endless kindness and joy!

MIYABI SAITO

Miyabi is a Senior at Parkrose High School and is excited for her second showing in Impulse! Aside from theater, Miyabi loves pottery, singing, swimming in lakes, and hugging her friends. She would like to thank Blake and the YP company for bringing so much joy and mentorship into her life. Since Improv is one of her favorite forms of theater she hopes Impulse can make it one of yours too!

ANDY MANNE

This is Andy’s first year as a YP and member of Impulse. They are a senior at St. Mary’s Academy where they have performed in Something Rotten (Shylock), Clue (Colonel Mustard), and recently, Our Town (The Stage Manager). In the realm of improv, Andy worked as the Improv Coach for the SMA production of 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, is currently serving as president of the Improv Club, and outside of school they have performed in two youth showcases with ComedySportz Portland. Andy is currently directing a short play for their school’s annual one act festival. They would like to thank their family for all their support and flexibility, their friends for keeping them humble, and Jordan Beck and the late Matt Russell for all their encouragement and guidance.

LILY RUSSELL

Lily is a third year YP and a senior at Roosevelt High School. Previously at OCT, Lily has been a part of Impulse 15, Alex Getting Better (Alex) and In the Forest She Grew Fangs (Ensemble). She’d like to thank her friends, parents, Dani, Nick, and Blake for their support. Outside of theatre, she enjoys ceramics, singing, playwriting, and doing the New York times daily crossword. For more personal information, write to her mother.

AIDEN SHAFIUZZAMAN

Aiden is a second year Young Professional and a senior at Camas High School. He cannot wait to present to you Impulse 16! You might have seen him in YP’s Pestilence Wow!, perhaps last years Impulse 15, or maybe on a the FBI’s most wanted list. He would like to thank Mr. Blake Wales and Dani Baldwin for continually letting me into the building and my siblings for being constant inspirations.

CReaTIVE TEAM

BLAKE WALES | CO-DIRECTOR

This is Blake’s fifth year directing Impulse and is a former Impulse member. He is an alumni of the Young Professionals Company and the current Education Director at OCT. He received his BFA Degree from Adelphi University and studied at the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Arts. Improv is the backbone of Blake’s teaching which he has taken across the globe as a teaching artist, arts administrator and American Sign Language interpreter. Many thanks to Dani Baldwin and his family for their constant support.

NICK CONDON | CO-DIRECTOR

Nick Condon has been improvising, teaching, directing and coaching for over 25 years. A Minneapolis native, he studied and performed at The Brave New Workshop, the country’s longest running satirical comedy theatre, where he first discovered long form improv. In 2006 he moved to Talkeetna, Alaska where he served as Creative Director of Denali Drama and Iditaprov. While in Alaska he produced, directed, taught, and performed theatre and improv all over the state. He moved to Portland in June of 2016 and is thrilled to have found such a great home in the Portland improv community. It’s here where he created his solo show, Solitaire, the one man one act play, and The Nancy Boys Mysteries. When not in Portland, he can be seen performing, coaching and teaching customized improv workshops all over the world.

ERIN MACGILLIVRAY | PRODUCTION STAGE MANAGER

Erin MacGillivray is a Portland area stage manager and costume designer. Her previous work with Oregon Children’s Theatre includes production stage management for WROL and Twelfth Night, and being the Production Coordinator for DNA. She has also stage managed for Original Practice Shakespeare and Milagro, as well as been a production assistant at Artists Repertory Theatre. As a former YP, Erin is thrilled to be able to mentor young stage managers!

ERI ZINKE | MUSIC DIRECTOR

Eri is delighted to be a part of Impulse 16 as Music Director after recently working on the Young Professional’s production of The Mad Ones as choreographer. She is a classically trained pianist who is “unlearning” so she can improvise music just like she used to when she was a baby! She got her theater training at Foothill Theatre Conservatory in the San Francisco Bay Area and has performed in various musical theater productions. Besides OCT, Eri teaches at Portland Japanese School and the online education platform Outschool, integrating music, movement, and drama for language learning. She would like to thank her husband Jonathan and her 2-year-old son Kaito for their love and support.

ANTHONY ARNISTA | SOUND DESIGNER

Anthony Arnista is currently the technical director at Curious Comedy Theater. He graduated with an M.F.A in Ensemble Based Physical Theater from Dell’arte International in 2013. He cofounded the company White Collar Crimes Theatre, which has created two original vaudeville inspired works that have toured the Canadian Fringe Festivals. He also works as a touring technician for both fringe festivals and touring companies taking him to places like: Alaska, Australia, Canada, Scotland and South Africa.

SKY ARMSTRONG | STAGE MANAGER

Sky is a current sophomore at Franklin high school and a second-year YP who is pumped to be a part of Impulse XVI! She worked behind the scenes on both The Very Hungry Caterpillar Show and Dragons Love Tacos. When she isn’t flexing her theatre muscles she loves writing songs, singing, and doodling. She would like to give a big thank you to Blake, Dani, and the cast of impulse for making this a wonderful experience she will never forget.

CReaTIVE TEAM

RILEY SCHREIBER | HOUSE MANAGER

Riley J. Schreiber is a Senior attending West Linn High School, and an inducted member of Thespian Honor Society Troupe 1915. He is a writer, filmmaker, actor, and all-around storyteller, and after high school he plans to pursue screenwriting and film production. He has been a part of three of West Linn High School’s Musicals including Chicago, Matilda the Musical, and The Pirates of Penzance. He has been a member of the Oregon Children’s Theatre’s Young Professionals Company for three years, and he wrote, acted in, and produced the one-act play The Alcohol, which was performed as a part of Oregon Children’s Theatre’s Breaking Character: Frames of Mind in 2020. Plus in 2022 he was the Assistant Stage Manager for Oregon Children’s Theatre’s production of Twelfth Night.

EMMA FONSECA HALVERSON | DIRECTING ASSISTANT

Emma is absolutely thrilled to be back as directing assistant for Impulse 16! She is a third year YP and a senior at Beaverton High School. Recently, she’s been seen as Simone in the YP production of Pestilence: Wow!, in OCT’s, The Very Hungry Caterpillar Show as a puppeteer, as well as behind the scenes of Impulse 14 and 15! She’d like to give huge gratitude towards Mr. Wales, Dani Baldwin, and all the wonderful people involved in making this incredible experience happen.

DANI BALDWIN | YP CO. ARTISTIC DIRECTOR

Dani is the Artistic Director of the Young Professionals Company at OCT. She frequently acts, directs, and designs for OCT. Most recently, Dani directed/ choreographed Jasper in Deadland (YP Co.) and directed the Drammy Award-Winning A Year With Frog and Toad (OCT mainstage). Outside of OCT, she has performed with Love Street Playhouse, Sojourn Theatre, Chianti Club Presents, Tapestry Theater, and Miracle Theatre; plus, she’s a regular improv actor with Kaiser Permanente.

Oregon Children’s Theatre is proud to acknowledge the support of the many individuals, businesses, foundations, and government agencies that make our work possible.

All names listed represent donations made thus far in our 2022-23 season. Email corrections to nick@octc.org.

$50,000 + Business Oregon

James F. & Marion L. Miller Foundation

Regional Arts & Culture Council

$10,000+

Joseph E. Weston Public Foundation of the Oregon Community Foundation

Oregon Cultural Trust

Raymond Family Foundation

Oregon Arts Commission

Summer Lea Hillman Foundation

Maybelle Clark Macdonald Fund

PGE Foundation

$1,000 - $5,000

Angela Vineyards

Hugh Mackworth & Josie Mendoza

Portland Civic Theatre Guild

Jessie Jonas

Portland’5 Centers for the Arts

Community Foundation for a Greater Richmond

Ex Novo Brewing Co

Dana Bach Johnson & Bo Johnson*

Ann Brayfield & Joe Emerson

Edward Hamilton

Maria Raleigh

Artistic Bliss Portraits

Farm to Fit

$500 - $1,000

Bruggere Family Foundation

Heffernan Insurance Brokers

iQ Credit Union

Legacy Health

McDonald Jacobs, P.C.

Olivia Solomon

OnPoint Community Credit Union

Sonny & Diane Sonnenstein

Vancouver Family Magazine

William Mitchell & Rebecca Wusz

Darcy White

PDX Parent

Dan Hammerstrom

Melinda Maas

Sawyer Marglous Foundation

Amie Robar & Michael Chally

Julie Graff

$250 - 500

Brenda Bennett

Jerry & Linette Landis

Nancy & Darek Villeneuve

Sara & Dean Byers

Stanley & Susanne Penkin

Lan Su Chinese Garden

Regional Arts & Culture Council

Anantha Marar*

Val Landrum

Jason & Christine Griffiths

Marcella Crowson

Susan Simonton

Alan & Sharon Jones

Kim Drake

Duncan & Cindy Campbell

Wild Mountain Wax Co

Bill & Margaret Antilla

Christine Martinez

Delores Wilson

Ivy Gibson

Johan Hammerstrom & Paula Sanjines

Karen & Rusty Wales

Rhea Anderson

Sally Palena

$100-250

Fiona Tait

James Cox & Brenda Nuckton

Marilyn C Peterson

Michael Hammerstrom & Eddie May

Nick & Carrie Baldwin-Sayre

Sahni Denton

Terry and Kate Gentry

Diana Prinz Thompson

April Hasson

Hayley McKeen

Veronica & Jesse Leclerc

Lisa Reynolds

Marc Byrne & Kayce Wheeler Byrne

Susan Sheets

Barbara Peterson

Mini Ogle

Green Bean Books

Aaron Pearlman & Sacha Reich

Beth Buffetta

Linda Mehlig

Chris Smolen

Kregg Arntson & Ted Fettig

Karen Ehlbeck

Matthew Witt

Christine White

Dre Slaman

Alex Hausman

Maddy Abulencia

Ned Holbrook

Oregon Children’s Theatre

Susan Jean

Glennellen Pace

Drew Tanaka Household

Joan Hamilton

Katherine Reinert

Adam Bagerski

Brian Cole

Jake Roper

Jeanne Haggard

Mary Finneran

Melissa Yale

Robert Roper

Sarah & Gavin Mahaley

$100 and below

Amanda & David Carmichael

Annetta Young

Barbara Kohnen & James Adriance

Frederic & Trudy Lambie

Jean Edmison

Joan Marquis

Joshua Weiner

Kate Brandy Household

Kathy Carsey

Keoni Watanabe

Lesley & Erik Daley

Marah Danielson

Maralee & Fred Sautter

Mark Nielsen

Mary Flaschner Fagan

Maureen Huntley

Owen Carey Photography

Pauline Kitagawa

Phil & Heather McKnight

Stephanie Burchfield

Terri & Jon Tennis

*These donors specifically support the Young Professionals Ashland Trip

Portland’5 Centers for the Arts includes the Keller Auditorium, Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall, and Antoinette Hatfield Hall, comprising the Newmark Theatre, Dolores Winningstad Theatre, and Brunish Theatre. All are public facilities owned by the City of Portland and managed by Metro through the Metropolitan Exposition-Recreation Commission. Each year approximately one million people attend more than 1,000 performances in these facilities.

Portland’5 Centers for the Arts

Robyn Williams, CVE, Executive Director

Brian Wilson, Deputy Director

Stephanie Viegas Dias, Director of Ticket Services

Ruby Joy White, Director of Education & Community Engagement

Ed Williams, Director of Operations

Heather Wilton, Director of Programming, Booking, & Marketing

Dave Woodman, Levy Director of Operations

Advisory Committee

Greg Brown

Jim Brunberg

Gus Castaneda, Chair

Elisa Dozono

Greg Heinze

Heather Kmetz

Jessica Lagunas

Antonio Lara

Karl Lisle

Ombrea Moore

Brian Sanders

Daniel A. Sullivan

Richard Wattenberg

Steve Wenig

Metro

Lynn Peterson, Metro Council President

City of Portland

Ted Wheeler, Mayor of Portland

Metropolitan Exposition-Recreation Commission

Karis Stoudamire-Phillips, Chair

Damien Hall, Vice-Chair

Deidra Krys-Ruso , Secretary-Treasurer

Dañel Malán

David Martinez

Deanna Palm

David Penilton

Steve Faulstick, Visitor Venues General Manager

Be a Hero!

Each season, OCT serves over 120,000 people through our productions, classes, and in-school programming. Ensuring equitable access for young people, regardless of their background, is a priority for OCT. As a non-profit theatre company, all of our programming is possible because of the financial support of our donors, business sponsors, and grants from various foundations.