The Last Show On Earth!

N E P T U N E T H E AT R E . C O M

Box Office 902-429-7070 Toll free across North America 1-800-565-7345 agent@neptunetheatre.com NEPTUNETHEATRE.COM To advertise in Neptune Theatre house programs, contact: Leslie MacDonald 902-429-7300 Ext. 249 lmacdonald@neptunetheatre.com

PRESENTS

@NEPTUNETHEATRE Neptune Theatre is located on sacred land that has been the site of human activity since time immemorial. We are in Mi’kma’ki, the ancestral and unceded territory of the Mi’kmaq, and we acknowledge them as the past, present and future caretakers of this land.

As artists, we are grateful to work and build community here. As stewards of culture, we commit to continuing to improve our relations with Indigenous people and upholding values of collaboration and inclusivity in all that we do.

We recommend that masks be worn in our venues. As our theatres place the audience so close to the action on stage, masking helps protect not only audience members but also the actors, who cannot wear masks when performing. By keeping them safe, we all can help prevent COVID-related performance cancellations.

Any videotaping or other video or audio recording of this production is strictly prohibited. The use of cameras, cellular phones, paging devices and all other recording devices is strictly prohibited in the theatre. Please ensure all cellular phones and watch alarms are turned off. Neptune Theatre is a scent-free environment.

Neptune Theatre is a member of the Professional Association of Canadian Theatres and engages, under the terms of the Canadian Theatre Agreement, professional Artists who are members of Canadian Actors’ Equity Association. Neptune Theatre engages professional technicians represented by IATSE Local 680.

Neptune Theatre acknowledges the support of our government partners:

BY BRETON LALAMA DIRECTED BY ANNIE VALENTINA

The Company Playright’s Message Director’s Message A Message from Neptune Theatre Biographies

6 9 12 13 14-20

THANK YOU! Maddie Maitzen, Pasha Ebrahimi, Santiago Guzmán, Helen Belay, Erin Tancock and Jacob Sampson.

THE LAST SHOW ON EARTH (TM)! received dramaturgical support through the Playwrights Atlantic Resource Centre (PARC) Home Delivery program and their New Play Development workshops, generously supported through Arts Nova Scotia.

THE COMPANY

CAST Elm Reyes Wayne Burns Anne-Marie Saheb Richie Wilcox

Eli Ayo Lina Interviewer (Recording Only)

CREATIVE TEAM Breton Lalama Annie Valentina Wesley Babock Alison Crosby Jordan Palmer Oliver Dorais-Fleming Koumbie Stephanie MacDonald Katrina Jones Brittney Whitaker MacKenzie Cornfield

6 LAST SHOW ON EARTHTM!

Playwright Director Set Designer Lighting Designer Sound & Video Designer Costume Designer Intimacy Choreographer Stage Manager RBC Chrysalis Set RBC Chrysalis Sound RBC Chrysalis Video

THE NEPTUNE THEATRE SCHOOL PRODUCTION OF

N E P T U N E T H E AT R E . C O M

PLAYWRIGHT’S MESSAGE This is not a playwright’s note but a love letter to you who read this play with me on bedsheets late into the night to you whose heart i broke (i’m not the good guy, just your narrator) to you, the mes who stripped themselves like Ayo’s last show act, unwinding so we could get closer to the truth.

This is not a playwright’s note but a love letter to you who wrote words in each draft: write from the hip, AD, SF, DM and all who read these roles; Neptune theatre and JW for believing in this risky queer time again and again; AV for seeing more than i could ever, the whole team for such thoughtful, wild, magic; OAC and PARC for support and this ocean city for becoming a friend and a home.

This is not a playwright’s not but a love letter to you who’s sitting in the dark unseen so you might just feel seen, to you who changed your clothes en route so that your parents wouldn’t know, to you whose ticket is a small offering to support Gaza queers, to you who keeps searching for sweetness through a million tiny deaths.

This is not a playwright’s note but a manifesto: To you keep searching for it keep dying for it keep going now do it again.

-Breton Lalama

LAST SHOW ON EARTHTM! 9

SEASON SPONSOR

ETSS TICK WA AS LO $40!

THE BROADWAY MUSICAL Book by Terrance McNally Music and Lyrics by David Yazback

P RE S ENTED THRO UG H S P EC I AL A R R ANGEM ENT WIT H M U S IC T H E AT R E IN T E R N AT IO N A L (M T I).

ALL A U TH O RI Z ED P ERF OR M ANC E M AT ER I A LS A R E ALS O S U PPL IE D B Y M T I. W W W. M T IS H O W S . CO M

NEPTUNETHEATRE.COM

DIRECTOR’S MESSAGE Queer representation in culture is more important now than ever, and I’m proud of our regional theatre for recognizing this call for visibility. We live in a precarious time for queer and trans folks, who face increased vitriol and violence worldwide, not to mention the constant threat of having legal rights stripped away.

We are scared, we are angry, and we need you to pay attention.

After five years as Neptune Theatre’s Artistic Associate, I’m delighted to be back to the Scotiabank Stage directing the world premiere of this bold, poetic and irreverent new play by Breton Lalama. It is the jubilant revolt against encroaching darkness we need right now, and I think this team has created something very special for you. Enjoy the show.

It’s never not a great honor to be part of bringing new work to the stage, but this goes double for Queer new work. Preparing a story to be received for the very first time is a vulnerable, messy, beautiful (and sometimes ugly), provocative process; an ongoing becoming; a coming-out, even, which doesn’t end when the audience leaves the theatre carrying a piece of you with them.

Annie Valentina Director, Last Show On Earthtm!

LAST SHOW ON EARTHTM! TK

A MESSAGE FROM NEPTUNE THEATRE Jeremy and I are delighted to welcome you to The Last Show on Earth™. Supporting and developing marginalized communities and voices is a critical part of our mission here at Neptune Theatre, and when Breton Lalama presented this project, we knew we had to be involved.

Under the thoughtful direction of Annie Valentina (Ballad of the Motherland, Lo or Dear Mr Wells, Pleasureville), this unapologetically queer sci-fi, apocalyptic drama is not the kind of work we often get to see on a Regional Theatre’s stage.

Infused with multi-media, this production speaks to the future of Canadian Theatre and we’re excited to be a part of it.

When we support and elevate new voices, we are expanding the experience for all theatre goers. Thank you for being here and being a part of this premiere audience.

Kimberlee Stadelmann Executive Director Jeremy Webb Artistic Director

LAST SHOW ON EARTHTM! TK

THE CAST ELM REYES (HE/THEY)

ROLE: Eli NEPTUNE: Debut OTHER THEATRE: Charlie and The Chocolate Factory (The Grand Theatre), Downed Hearts (Eastern Front Theatre and Ships Theatre Company), Into The Woods (Dead Name Theatre), Sweeney Todd (Talk is Free Theatre and Outside The March), Trojan Girls and The Outhouse of Atreus (Outside The March and Factory Theatre) FILM/TV: Skymed (CBC/Paramount+), Painkiller (Netflix) TRAINING: BFA Acting, University of Windsor OTHER: @elenamreyes

WAYNE BURNS (HE/HIM) ROLE: AYO NEPTUNE: Shakespeare in Love OTHER THEATRE: Summer of Semitism (Winnipeg Jewish Theatre), Yaga (Highland Arts Centre), Essay (Matchstick Theatre), Good Grief (Ship’s Company Theatre), Dock Mother God Society (Bloodpact Theatre), Crave (Pure Carbon Theatre), Miss (Unit 102 Actors Co.), Romeo + Juliet (Shakespeare in the Ruff) FILM/TV: What We Do In The Shadows (FX), Murdoch Mysteries (CBC), Olympus (Syfy), Slo Pitch (IFC) AWARDS: Two-Time Theatre Nova Scotia Award Winner, ACTRA Maritimes Award Nominee, Breakthrough Theatre Artist in NOW Magazine TRAINING: The National Theatre School of Canada OTHER: Thank you for having me J, A and B. @wayne.burns

👽

ANNE-MARIE SAHEB (SHE/HER) ROLE: Lina NEPTUNE: Debut OTHER THEATRE: Louis Riel (Infinithéâtre); Foxfinder* (Imago); Strawberries In January (Hudson Village); En Pointe (Tableau d’Hôte); Measure for Measure (Repercussion); The Last Wife* + The Baklawa Recipe (Centaur); Caisse/Checkout 606 (La Fille Du Laitier) FILM/TV: Sorcières (TVA); Le temps des framboises (Trio Orange), To Catch A Killer (FilmNation); Mon cirque à moi (Attraction Images); Sweeping Forward** (Breakfast Films) AWARDS: *META Nominee, Outstanding Performance in a Supporting Role; **Mtl World Film Festival Winner, People’s Choice OTHER: I’m French-Canadian – Egyptian, learned English + Spanish while living in Honduras.

THANK YOU, NEPTUNE!

14 LAST SHOW ON EARTHTM!

RICHIE WILCOX (HE/THEY)

ROLE: Interviewer NEPTUNE: Annie, Gift to Last, Vigil, She Kills Monsters OTHER THEATRE: Frequencies, New Waterford Boy, The Princess Show, Princess Rules, Princess’ Pride ‘n’ Joy (HEIST), Good Grief (Ship’s Company), UNSEX’d, Confessions of Jeffrey Dahmer, Castrati: An Electro Drag Opera (Theatre Outre) Pitchfork Disney, Girls! Girls! Girls!, Fewer Emergencies, Blackbird, How Do I Love Thee? (Angels & Heroes) FILM/TV: Dawn, Her Dad & The Tractor (Crave), Diggstown (CBC), Canadian Idol (CTV) AWARDS: Merritt Award for Outstanding New Nova Scotia Play 2022, Outstanding Supporting Actor 2018 OTHER: Love to my husband Aaron for being the best collaborator in everything in life

LAST SHOW ON EARTHTM! 15

CREATIVE TEAM BRETON LALAMA (HE/THEY)

ROLE: Playright NEPTUNE: Pleasureville, Fully Committed, The Rocky Horror Show, In Lieu of Flowers RECENT THEATRE: Alice in Wonderland (Bad Hats/Soulpepper; Dora Award: Best Production), Queen Goneril, King Lear (Soulpepper); Orlando (RMTC); Hair (North American Tour; Broadway World Award: Best Featured Performer in a Touring Production). RECENT FILM/TV: The Madness (Netflix), Y: The Last Man (FX/Hulu), Slasher (Shudder), Pretty Hard Cases (CBC/NBC) SELECT WRITING: QUID PRO QUO (Play developed in 2023-24 Tarragon Emerging Playwright Residency); Really Happy Someday (Co-writer, feature, Spindle Films) NEXT UP: The Inheritance Part 1 and 2 (Canadian Stage). Breton is a proud co-director of the Spindle Films Foundation, a program to support emerging trans filmmakers OTHER: For BK, SE, AM, and all the little worlds we built and lost. ∞ to this team + SEAN!!! @bretonlikethecrackers

🙏

ANNIE VALENTINA (SHE/HER) ROLE: Director NEPTUNE: Ballad of the Motherland (also playwright); Pleasureville; Lo (Or Dear Mr Wells) OTHER THEATRE (SELECTED): The Outside Inn (Festival Antigonish); Yaga (Highland Arts Theatre); King of Berlin (The Doppler Effect) UPCOMING: The Outside Inn (Prairie Theatre Exchange) OTHER: Huge thanks to the amazing and hard-working team, to Breton for his trust with the story, and to PARC for being an invaluable resource for new play development in the Maritimes.

WESLEY BABOCK (HE/HIM) ROLE: Set Designer NEPTUNE: Ballad of the Motherland (Set), Pleasureville (Set) OTHER THEATRE: The Outside Inn (Festival Antigonish - Set, Merritt Nominee), The Woodcutter (Matchstick - Set, Merritt Nominee), Educating Rita (Watermark Theatre - Set), The Sound Inside (Coal Mine Theatre - Set & Lights).

Co-founder of Act1: Consulting for the Performing Arts with Peter Henry Architect. (act1consulting.ca) AWARDS: TNS Wes Daniels Design Award (2020) OTHER: Wesley is a Queer set and lighting designer, splitting time between Tkaronto, and K’jipuktuk.

16 LAST SHOW ON EARTHTM!

ALISON CROSBY (SHE/HER)

ROLE: Lighting Designer NEPTUNE: Associate LD - Cinderella; RBC Chrysalis Assistant LD - Lo (Or Dear Mr. Wells), The Color Purple OTHER THEATRE: Downed Hearts, Dayboil (Ship’s Company Theatre); Gaslight, Steel Magnolias (Watermark Theatre); Essay, USSR, Mexico City, Joyride, The Little Years, The Woodcutter, Peter Fechter: 59 Minutes, Bone Cage (Matchstick Theatre); Lauchie Liza & Rory, The Myth of the Ostrich (Theatre Baddeck); House, Yaga, John & Jen, See Jane Run (Highland Arts Theatre); Harmonia (Painted Dance Co.); Strike Tone, Don’t Wake the Lions, Synced Systems (Votive Dance); The Realistic Joneses (KAZAN Co-op) TRAINING: Mount Allison University AWARDS: TNS Merritt Award – Lighting Design (Dayboil).

JORDAN PALMER (HE/HIM)

ROLE: Sound & Video Designer NEPTUNE: In Lieu of Flowers, Misery, Ballad of the Motherland, Billy Elliot, Elf, The Play That Goes Wrong OTHER THEATRE: Old Stock: A Refugee Love Story (2b Theatre, Merritt Nominated), Footnotes, Joyride, The Little Years, The Woodcutter, Peter Fechter: 59 Minutes, Bone Cage (Matchstick Theatre); The Aliens (Theatre in Space); The Hydrofoil Mystery (Theatre Baddeck. Merritt Nominated); The Proletariat, YAGA, Little One (Highland Arts Theatre) TRAINING: OIART, Diploma in Audio Recording Technology.

OLIVER DORAIS-FLEMING (HE/HIM) ROLE: Costume Designer NEPTUNE: Debut OTHER THEATRE: DESIGNER: Hamlet, Cinderelly, A Midsummer’s Night Dream (SBTS), Rain On The Parade (Villains Theatre), Dido & Aeneas (FSPA). Cutter: Secret in the Wings, Purgatorio, An Evening of Molière One Acts (FSPA) FILM/TV: Be Cos I Can (CBC Online) OTHER: Oliver dedicates these designs to his older brother Taliesin, who was an inspiration throughout the process.

LAST SHOW ON EARTHTM! 17

CREATIVE TEAM KOUMBIE (SHE/THEY) ROLE: Intimacy Choreographer NEPTUNE (AS IC): Debut OTHER THEATRE (AS IC): Romeo & Juliet (SBBTS) SELECT FILM/TV (AS IC): The Trades (CRAVE), TPB: Jail Series (SWEARNET), Sharp Corner (Jason Buxton), There There (Heather Young), Look at Me (Taylor Olson) OTHER: Intimacy Choreography is still a relatively new role, every production and company that uses one solidifies its place as industry standard so thank you to Annie and Neptune for championing a new normal. Grateful to the team also for their talent, patience and grace as I huffed and puffed my way through working eight months pregnant.

STEPHANIE MACDONALD (SHE/HER) ROLE: Stage Manager NEPTUNE: Debut OTHER THEATRE: The Outside Inn (Festival Antigonish), Wood Buffalo, Resident Aliens (Theatre New Brunswick), Rain On the Parade (Villians Theatre), Watch Over Me (Mulgrave Road Theatre), Stacey & Liz (Kazan Co-op) OTHER: Thank you to Christine Oakey and Rachael Dawn Woods

KAT JONES (SHE/THEY) ROLE: Assistant Set Designer NEPTUNE: Murder for Two, Pawkan Macbeth, Spongebob the Musical (technician) OTHER THEATRE: Downed Hearts, Crypthand (Ship’s Company Theatre -Technician), Shadows in the Cove (Mulgrave Road Theatre – Sound Design), Til Death Do Us Part (Kick at the Dark Theatre– Build Team), An Orchid and Other such Lilies and Lies (Bodycube Arts Collective, 2019 – Lighting Design) OTHER: Kat is grateful for the opportunity to work with seasoned professionals at Neptune to further her education as an emerging theatre maker.

18 LAST SHOW ON EARTHTM!

TICKE PACKA T AVAILA GES BLE!

NEPTUNETHEATRE.COM C ONCEIVED AND CREATED BY K E LLY HOLIF F AND J E RE M Y WE B B M U S ICAL ARRANGEMENTS BY SAR AH R ICH A RD S O N PH OTO BY STOO ME TZ SEASON SPONSOR

CREATIVE TEAM BRITTNEY WHITAKER (SHE/HER) ROLE: Assistant Sound Designer NEPTUNE: YPCO SpongeBob Square Pants (ASM), YPCO Les Misérables (ASM) OTHER THEATRE: Life’s a Drag (Musical Director and Sound Designer), Carols at the Brewery (Musical Director and Composer) Coram Boy (FSPA), A Midsummer Night’s Dream (FSPA), Rimers of Eldritch (FSPA), Orestia (FSPA) OTHER: I am so grateful for this incredible opportunity to learn and create from such a supportive team.

MACKENZIE CORNFIELD (SHE/HER) ROLE: Assistant Video Designer NEPTUNE: KOQM (Lighting Design) OTHER THEATRE: Downed Hearts (Ship’s Company Theatre), Crypthand (Gale Force Theatre), Memories Beyond the Grave (Independant), Frequencies (HEIST), Spring Tide Circle (Ship’s Company Theatre), Refraction (Breaking Circus), A Northern Lights Dream (FSPA), Mary Stuart (FSPA) OTHER: I am so grateful for the opportunity to begin again, and again.

Thank you to Neptune and my peers for the space to learn and grow. mackenziecornfield.com

LAST SHOW ON EARTHTM! 21

SPONSORS & PARTNERS SEASON SPONSOR

PRODUCTION SPONSOR

Nova Scotia Teachers Union

Nova Scotia Teachers Union

FOUNDATIONS

JASON ROTH AND CHERYL STEADMAN ROTH

THEATRE PARTNERS

GOVERNMENT PARTNERS

TIM MARGOLIAN AND DAWN FRAIL FOUNDATION

WINDSOR FOUNDATION