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About TheatreWorks Silicon Valley
March 2017
Volume 48, No. 6
Welcome to TheatreWorks Silicon Valley and our 47th season of award-winning
theatre. Led by Founding Artistic Director Robert Kelley and Managing Director
Phil Santora, TheatreWorks Silicon Valley presents a wide range of productions
and programming throughout the region.
Founded in 1970, we continue to celebrate the human spirit and the diversity
of our community, presenting contemporary plays and musicals, revitalizing
great works of the past, championing arts education, and nurturing new works
for the American theatre. TheatreWorks has produced 66 world premieres
and 160 US and regional premieres. In the 2016/17 season, we add the world
premiere of Confederates and four more regional premieres to our résumé.
TheatreWorks Silicon Valley’s 2015/16 season included the world premiere of
the musical Triangle, as well as regional premieres of The Country House,
Hershey Felder as Irving Berlin, tokyo fish story, Cyrano, and The Velocity of
Autumn. Hershey Felder as Irving Berlin broke all our box office records,
becoming the highest-grossing show in TheatreWorks’ history. In the course of
the year, shows that debuted here were produced at theatres around the world.
With an annual operating budget of $8 million, TheatreWorks Silicon Valley
produces eight mainstage productions at the Lucie Stern Theatre in Palo Alto
and the Mountain View Center for the Performing Arts. Sixteen years ago, we
launched the New Works Initiative, dedicating ourselves to the development of
new plays and musicals. The Initiative has since supported over 150 new works
through retreats, workshops, staged readings, developmental productions,
and the annual New Works Festival, inspiring The Mercury News to call us “a
premiere breeding ground for new musicals, which has put the company on
the national map.”
TheatreWorks believes in making theatre accessible to the entire Silicon Valley
community. Our Education Department reaches on average 25,000 students in
70 schools in 7 counties annually. It sponsors outreach programs that include
the Children’s Healing Project at Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital, the Young
Playwrights’ Initiative, specially-priced student matinees, extensive school
tours, post-show discussions, and theatre camps, classes, and conservatories
for youth.
2 THEATREWORKS
Hengehold Trucks is the official trucking provider of TheatreWorks.
Marilyn Kallins, Terri Reed, Rob Scott
San Francisco/Bay Area Account Executives
Brieanna Bright,
Joey Chapman, Ann Manning
Seattle Area Account Executives
Jonathan Shipley
Ad Services Coordinator
Carol Yip
Sales Coordinator
ENCORE
Paul Heppner
President
Mike Hathaway
Vice President
Corporate Office
425 North 85th Street Seattle, WA 98103
p 206.443.0445 f 206.443.1246
FRONT COVER: MIA TAGANO / PHOTO KEVIN BERNE
The Mercury News is TheatreWorks’
2016/17 Season Media Sponsor.
J. Lohr is the official wine
of TheatreWorks.
Mike Hathaway
Sales Director
Ryan Devlin
Business Development Manager
operates under agreement between LORT and Actors’ Equity Association (AEA), the union of professional actors
and stage managers in the United States. TheatreWorks is a constituent member of Theatre Communications
Group, Inc., the national organization for the nonprofit professional theatre. TheatreWorks is a member of the
National Alliance for Musical Theatre, a national service organization for musical theatre. In addition,
TheatreWorks is a member of Theatre Bay Area, the Palo Alto Chamber of Commerce, and the Mountain View
Chamber of Commerce. TheatreWorks’ 2016/17 Season is presented in cooperation with the City of Mountain
View and the City of Palo Alto, Community Services Department, Division of Arts and Sciences.
Garden Court is the official
hotel of TheatreWorks.
Ana Alvira, Robin Kessler,
Shaun Swick, Stevie VanBronkhorst
Production Artists and Graphic Design
Sara Keats
Marketing Manager
AFFILIATIONS—TheatreWorks Silicon Valley is a member of the League of Resident Theatres (LORT) and
TheatreWorks Silicon Valley is a proud
home company of the Mountain View
Center for the Performing Arts.
Susan Peterson
Design & Production Director
Genay Genereux
Accounting & Office Manager
For more information on our 2016/17 season, New Works Festival, and
Education programs, please visit theatreworks.org or call 650.463.1960.
The director is a member of the Society
of Stage Directors and Choreographers,
Inc., an independent national labor union.
The lighting, scenic, and sound designers
are members of United Scenic Artists. This
season is supported in part by an award
from the National Endowment for the Arts.
Paul Heppner
Publisher
[email protected]
800.308.2898 x105
www.encoremediagroup.com
Encore Arts Programs is published monthly by Encore Media
Group to serve musical and theatrical events in the Puget
Sound and San Francisco Bay Areas. All rights reserved.
©2017 Encore Media Group. Reproduction
without written permission is prohibited.
From the Board Chair
Strange times we’re living in. On the one hand, I’m luxuriating in
the creativity, diversity, and brilliance of TheatreWorks’ 47th season
—perhaps our best ever. On the other hand, I’m increasingly
worried about the future of the performing arts.
Significant cuts since the recession have resulted in a 2015 national
arts budget of $146 million, a paltry .002 percent of federal
discretionary spending. Now there are rumblings that the impending national budget will shutter both the National Endowment for
the Arts (NEA) and the National Endowment for Humanities (NEH). The importance
of these agencies cannot be underestimated. Since being signed into law in 1965,
the NEA and NEH have administered grants annually to the fine arts, performing
arts, and cultural projects in each congressional district in the country. TheatreWorks
Silicon Valley has been fortunate to be one of many such grantees.
Looking ahead, it’s clear that there will be fewer federal dollars available to deserving applicants. Equally important, the message that defunding these agencies will
send the public, including the next generation of theatregoers, is disheartening.
We must continue to support the arts. They matter! Your generosity allows nonprofit
organizations like TheatreWorks to teach, entertain, and inspire, while employing
creative artists on the stage, behind the scenes, in the schools, and throughout the
community.
In this Issue
2
About TheatreWorks
6
2017/18 SEASON
8
Coming Next at TWSV
9
From the Artistic Director
10
Director’s Notes
12
Velina Hasu Houston Gets It
Silicon Valley
Write with CALLIGRAPHY
There is more we can do to ensure that the arts thrive and keep pace with the
scientific and technological innovation that surrounds us in Silicon Valley. Your annual
support can make a vital difference. In addition, a legacy gift will help TheatreWorks
prosper well into the future. Through our FutureWorks program, planned gifts from
bequests, trusts, life insurance, and retirement plans are easy to arrange. And they
can help fulfill your personal philanthropic, retirement, and financial goals.
I’m hoping you’ll join me as a donor and a member of FutureWorks. Although I
believe we will survive additional federal cuts, it is comforting to know that our gifts
will safeguard the art of TheatreWorks now and for generations to come.
Barbara Shapiro
BOARD OF TRUSTEES
Playwright Velina Hasu Houston
14
Insider Access
15
TheatreWorks Silicon Valley
16
Who’s Who
19
Contributors
22
TWSV Staff
23
TWSV General Information
Barbara Shapiro, Chair
Jayne Booker
Cabell Chinnis
Bill Coughran
Ciro Giammona
Anne Hambly
Judy Heyboer
Larry Horton
Charlotte Jacobs
Roy Johnson
Derry Kabcenell
Michael Kahn
Julie Kaufman
Robert Kelley
Phil Santora
Loren Saxe
Nancy Ginsburg Stern
Debra Summers
Lynn Szekely-Goode
Ewart Thomas
Tzipor Ulman
Mark Vershel
Holly Ward
Lisa Webster
Jane Weston
Gayla Lorthridge Wood
presents CALLIGRAPHY
BOARD EMERITUS
Nancy Meyer, Founder • William F. Adler • Edward T. Anderson, MD • Doug Barry • Lauren
Berman • Chuck Bernstein • Sharon Anthony Bower • Michael Braun • Polly W. Bredt • Bruce
C. Cozadd • Jeff Crowe • Peggy Dalal • Yogen Dalal • Jenny Dearborn • Susan Fairbrook •
Michael R. Flicker • Peggy Woodford Forbes • Dan Garber • Doug Garland • Aaron
Gershenberg • Marcia Goldman • Emeri Handler • Susan M. Huch • Perry A. Irvine • Nancy
Lee Jalonen • Lisa Jones • Gina Jorasch • Roberta R. Katz • Tom Kelley • Robin Kennedy •
Michael Kwatinetz • Dick Maltzman • Suzanne Martin • Patti McClung • Don McDougall •
Bruce McLeod • Cynthia S. Miller • Leslie Murphy-Chutorian • Eileen Nelson • Karen Nierenberg
• Carrie Perzow • Carey Pickus • Margot Mailliard Rawlins • John Reis • Eddie Reynolds •
Sandi Risser • Lynn Wilson Roberts • Ray A. Rothrock • Adam Samuels • Denise Stanford •
Rosina Lo Sun • James Sweeney • Cathie Thermond • Helaina Titus • Robert J. Van der Leest,
MD • Ronni Watson • Elissa Wellikson
Continue the conversation online!
@TheatreWorksSV
#TWSVCalligraphy
encore art sprograms.com 5
“STELLAR!” “STUNNING!”
A T I M E LY N E W M U S I C A L
A TIMELESS MUSICAL JOURNEY
The Four Immigrants:
The Prince of Egypt
Book, Music, & Lyrics by Min Kahng
Based on Manga Yonin Shosei by Henry Yoshitaka Kiyama
Translated as The Four Immigrants by Frederik L. Schodt
Directed by Leslie Martinson
WORLD PREMIERE
From a tumultuous earthquake to an exhilarating world’s fair, this
broadly comic new musical chronicles the adventures of four endearing Japanese immigrants in a world of possibility and prejudice:
turn-of-the-twentieth-century San Francisco. Driven by an infectious
vaudeville and ragtime score, the quartet pursues their American
Dream despite limited options in the land of opportunity. Don’t miss
this runaway hit of our 2016 New Works Festival.
Music and Lyrics by Stephen Schwartz
Book by Philip LaZebnik
Directed by Scott Schwartz
WORLD PREMIERE in collaboration with Fredericia Teater, Denmark
Join TheatreWorks as this inspiring world premiere musical begins its
international journey towards a 2018 debut in Denmark. A soaring
celebration of the human spirit, The Prince of Egypt features a
dazzling, multi-ethnic cast in one of the greatest stories ever told:
the saga of Moses and Ramses, his Pharaoh brother, and the
indomitable people who changed them both forever. Inspired by the
beloved DreamWorks Animation film and featuring a score that
includes the Academy Award-winning “When You Believe” by the
composer and lyricist of Wicked, this breathtaking journey of faith
and family is the must-see event of the season.
An American Musical Manga
Jul 12 – Aug 6, 2017 Lucie Stern Theatre, Palo Alto
A CONTEMPORARY ROMANTIC DRAMA
Constellations
By Nick Payne
Directed by Robert Kelley
London Evening Standard Award Best Play 2012
REGIONAL PREMIERE
A tIme-bending romantic drama spun out of string theory, this
unconventional Broadway and West End sensation explores the
infinite possibilities of “boy meets girl” with intelligence, heart, and
humor. A charming beekeeper and a Cambridge cosmologist are
nerds in love, for better and for worse, their relationship an everchanging mystery of “what ifs.” Who knew that honey and higher
physics could be so touching—or so sexy?
Contains mature language.
“Truly stellar. Five stars!” London Evening Standard
Aug 23 – Sept 17, 2017 Mtn View Center for the Performing Arts
6 THEATREWORKS
Oct 6 – Nov 5, 2017 Mtn View Center for the Performing Arts
A H I L A R I O U S H O L I D AY A D V E N T U R E
Around the World in 80 Days
Adapted by Mark Brown
From the Novel by Jules Verne
Directed by Robert Kelley
Stampeding elephants! Raging typhoons! Runaway trains! Join
fearless adventurer Phileas Fogg and his faithful valet in the original
“Great Race,” circling the globe in an 1870s alive with danger,
romance, and comic surprises at every turn. In the hilariously theatrical style of The 39 Steps, five actors portray dozens of characters in
a thrilling race against time and treachery. Grab your family, and your
passport, for an ingenious, imaginative expedition around the world!
“Action and hilarity to spare!” The Boston Globe
Nov 29 – Dec 23, 2017 Lucie Stern Theatre, Palo Alto
ACTORS LEFT TO RIGHT: TINA CHILIP, L. PETER CALLENDER, MICHELLE BECK, PUN BANDHU, HILARY MAIBERGER, & DEREK CARLEY / PHOTOS BY TRACY MARTIN & KEVIN BERNE
NOT TO BE MISSED!
A POWERFUL MUSICAL TRIBUTE
A SOARING MUSICAL ROMANCE
Our Great Tchaikovsky
The Bridges of Madison County
Music by Piotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky
Written and Performed by Hershey Felder
Directed by Trevor Hay
REGIONAL PREMIERE
Brilliant composer Piotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky springs to life through
the hands and insight of piano virtuoso Hershey Felder, whose
time-traveling tale of culture and repression explores the mystery
surrounding some of the greatest music ever written. From the
unforgettable ballets Swan Lake, Sleeping Beauty, and The
Nutcracker, to the outrageous 1812 Overture and the brilliant
symphonic works, this powerful musical tribute travels to Czarist
times to ponder the inevitable enigma of genius. From the creator
and performer of Hershey Felder as Irving Berlin and Beethoven.
“Stunning! Potent! Brings beautiful life to Tchaikovsky.”
Book by Marsha Norman
Music and Lyrics by Jason Robert Brown
Based on the novel by Robert James Waller
Directed by Robert Kelley
2014 Tony Award Best Score
San Diego Union-Tribune
Jan 10 – Feb 4, 2018
Mtn View Center for the Performing Arts
A BOLD AMERICAN DRAMA
This sweeping musical romance about the roads we travel and the
bridges we dare to cross recalls the unexpected affair of a devoted
Italian-born housewife and a roving National Geographic photographer—four sensual, heart-stirring days that would never be forgotten. Set amidst the cornfields of Iowa in 1965, it is an intimate
remembrance of love both lost and found, brilliantly adapted by a
Pulitzer Prize playwright and Tony Award composer from one of
America’s favorite novels.
“A breathtaking sweep of feelings.” The NY Times
Apr 4 – 29, 2018 Mtn View Center for the Performing Arts
A P L AY F O R T H E N A N D N O W
Skeleton Crew
FINKS
By Dominique Morisseau
Directed by Giovanna Sardelli
A Coproduction with Marin Theatre Company
REGIONAL PREMIERE
By Joe Gilford
Directed by Giovanna Sardelli
Drama Desk Award Best Play Nominee
CALIFORNIA PREMIERE
A makeshift family of autoworkers navigates the recession in this
funny, tough, and tender American drama. Will their Detroit plant
survive? Ambitious dreams and corporate deception interweave,
pushing friendships to the limit. When the line between blue collar
and white begins to blur, how far over the lines is each of them willing
to step? Don’t miss this riveting new drama from one of America’s
hottest young writers.
Contains mature language.
With the 1950s Red Scare in full swing, the House Un-American
Activities Committee attacks “subversion” in the arts. When a
romance blossoms between a rising comic and a firebrand actress,
they face being blacklisted along with their friends and fellow artists.
Will they lose their careers or betray each other and be branded
forever as “finks”? Based on the true story of comedian/actor Jack
Gilford, this stunning comic drama is written by his son.
Contains mature language.
“Warm-blooded, astute. A deeply American play!” The NY Times
“A testament to an indomitable spirit.” The Huffington Post
Mar 7– Apr 1, 2018 Lucie Stern Theatre, Palo Alto
Jun 6 – Jul 1, 2018 Mtn View Center for the Performing Arts
A D D - O N E X T R A F O R T H E H O L I D AY S
The Santaland Diaries
By David Sedaris
Adapted by Joe Mantello
Directed by Jeffrey Lo
When an unemployed slacker signs on as a Yuletide elf at Macy’s,
a village of candy-caned kids and cynical Santas springs to hilarious,
if humiliating, life. This rollicking one-man cure for an overdose of
holiday hype will have you ho-ho-hoing till the red-nosed reindeer
comes home!
FOR MATURE AUDIENCES
“A sardonic, merrily subversive tale worth more than a
photo album full of Santas!” Newsday
Dec 5–23, 2017 Lohman Theatre, Foothill College, Los Altos Hills
THEATREWORKS
S I L I C O N VA L L E Y
2017/18
Subscribe today!
theatreworks.org
650.463.1960
encore art sprograms.com 7
TheatreWorks
S I L I C O N V A L L E Y
A Musical Saga of Immigrant America
RAGS
Book by
Joseph Stein
Music by
Charles Strouse
Lyrics by
Stephen Schwartz
Directed by Robert Kelley
April 5–30
Mountain View Center for the Performing Arts
theatreworks.org 650.463.1960
An Extraordinary Musical Play
HERSHEY FELDER
BEETHOVEN
Hershey Felder
Music by Ludwig van Beethoven
By
Directed by Joel Zwick
Mountain View Center for the Performing Arts
theatreworks.org 650.463.1960
8 THEATREWORKS
PHOTO COURTESY EIGHTY-EIGHT LLC
June 5–July 2
From the Artistic Director
THE BRUSHSTROKES OF TIME
We produced our first Velina Hasu Houston play 27 years
ago in 1990. Simply titled Tea, it was the story of a Japanese
war bride who, against the convictions of her family, married
an African-American serviceman in the years following
World War II. She wound up living as an immigrant in smalltown Kansas, finding solace in the company of other Japanese women who
shared the same challenging life in a new world. We chose the play for its
touching insight into the lives of these women, but also for its honest
exploration of a racially mixed family in a reluctantly changing America.
Tea became a major hit for TheatreWorks, and demonstrated an emerging
Silicon Valley eager to better know its neighbors of Asian heritage.
Since then, our Valley has changed dramatically, and now boasts an Asian
population of over 30%. What’s more, California’s population of mixed race
people has also continued to grow. That’s what makes this final chapter of
Houston’s family story such an important journey for TheatreWorks. Tea
was set in a late 60s America still harboring post-war prejudice toward the
Japanese, and ongoing prejudice toward any mixing of the races.
Calligraphy jumps forward three decades to reveal that same mother in
the care of an adult daughter, Hiromi, who is determined to reconcile a
different prejudice of the past, a Japanese version of racism that once tore
her family apart.
A Japanese cousin joins in Hiromi’s quest, and the two offer a startling
contrast: a mixed-race American consumed by her Japanese roots and a
native Japanese consumed by American culture. But as culture and race
begin to blend in our interconnected world, the boundaries and prejudices
of the past begin to blur as well.
Calligraphy focuses on a generation that came to maturity in the 1950s, a
time when the world’s nations and races seemed much further apart. I
wonder what kind of diverse world upcoming generations will find here in
Silicon Valley. What family dysfunctions will we resolve at long last; what
lingering prejudices will we eventually recognize and surmount; what
cultural, religious, and political conflicts will we finally put to rest? Tough
questions, but here at TheatreWorks we will attempt to answer them as we
always have, by turning them into art. Call it calligraphy.
As we’ve rehearsed this final chapter of a story inspired by Velina Hasu
Houston’s own family history, we’ve been privileged to have the playwright
in residence working on the play. Following an initial production in Los
Angeles, she has further shaped Calligraphy with support from TheatreWorks’
New Works Initiative. We thank you for helping to make that possible.
Robert Kelley
Upcoming Events
Mar, Apr, May
3/15, 3/22, 3/29
CALLIGRAPHY POST-SHOW
DISCUSSIONS
Question and answer with the
cast and staff following the
performance
Lucie Stern Theatre, Palo Alto
3/20 @ 6:00pm
GREEN ROOM PARTY
Donors of $750 or more are
invited for a sumptuous reception
and insider program.
Garden Court Hotel
Palo Alto
4/4 SNEAK A PEEK @ 7:00pm
Donors of $150 or more are
invited to a pre-show reception and
final dress rehearsal of RAGS.
4/4 @ 7:00pm
INVITED DRESS REHEARSAL WITH
PHIL SANTORA
Inner Circle members ($1,500 or
more) are invited to attend final
dress rehearsal of RAGS and meet
with Managing Director Phil
Santora for a casual pre-curtain
chat. Limited space. RSVP required.
[email protected]
MVCPA
4/22 @ 10:00am
BACKSTAGE TOUR
Refreshments, displays, speakers,
and a backstage tour of the set of
RAGS. Admission: $20
Complimentary to donors of $750
or more. RSVP required. For more
info: [email protected]
MVCPA
5/20 @ 5:30pm
BEDAZZLED
Spectacular food, wine, signature
cocktails, auctions, and live
entertainment. Tickets start at $185.
theatreworks.org/give/bedazzled/
[email protected]
TWSV Headquarters
Redwood Shores
encore art sprograms.com 9
Director’s Notes by Leslie Martinson
The gift a playwright gives us is the chance to experience the world from another
person's point of view. In Calligraphy, Velina Hasu Houston does just that, with the
character of Noriko. Based on Velina's own mother's story, it is Noriko’s journey
that we follow, from growing up in Japan, marrying an African-American G.I. just
after World War II and emigrating to Kansas with him, then moving to Los Angeles
as a widow.
This question of “point of view” came up over and over as I worked with the
design team to create the physical world of this play. How do we let the audience
know where a scene takes place, or when? We decided to stay inside Noriko's
perspective. If she finds herself on a street in post-war Kobe, Japan, so will you.
The butterflies which whirl about her head come to rest where you can see them.
Shodo, the Japanese art of calligraphy, is an anchor for Noriko throughout her life.
A blend of the visual, the verbal, and the spiritual, shodo, or “The Way of the
Brush,” is described in the play as “something just for me.” So we decided to
anchor the set with a platform holding her shodo table, at the heart of Noriko's
new home in California. In an afterword in the script, Velina writes this:
The art of calligraphy in terms of lettering is a meticulous craft that
grows refined with experience if discipline and determination are
applied. Life is not dissimilar. We are born, smudge the lines, learn,
grow, spill ink, mature, and so forth. Even in the most finely tuned
and dedicated effort, ink fades. It is part of aging. What was created
hopefully with love and vigor feels, looks different. But it is still art—
sometimes even more valuable than at the time of its creation and
vitality.
Welcome to Calligraphy.
10 THEATREWORKS
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Velina Hasu Houston
Gets It Write with Calligraphy
“N
othing is precious,” says Velina Hasu Houston,
about writing. “If I walk in with a precious
attitude about my play, I may as well sit in my office.
I want the play to get better. So that means put my
ego aside and let the play get better.”
Calligraphy is about two female cousins—one is
Japanese/African American and lives in Los Angeles;
the other is Japanese and lives in Japan. The two
women are finding it difficult to cope with life’s many
changes while dealing with their mothers growing old.
“It’s called Calligraphy because when you draw with
that dark black India ink, you make bold strokes,”
explains Houston. “That’s how we live life—with bold
strokes. Then it begins to fade but it fades with different forms of beauty. We should be able to appreciate
the aging.”
Houston, who brings uniquely pertinent credentials to
her role as playwright, wrote Calligraphy in part
because she was going through her own mother/
daughter concerns. “The issue of parents aging is
challenging,” says Houston. “It started with my own
life. The first seed was my own mother getting
dementia. As I began to see my life shift from being
the daughter to the mother—I had to take on responsibility. She’s Japanese and doesn’t speak English very
well. I had to step in and be a business manager. It
was a learning process for me—how I was living my
life and looking at things differently. In a sense, my
mother became my child. I began to see the world
through my mother’s eyes.”
Houston says that ever since she was a small child,
she and her mother have always been very close.
“I adore the human being that she was. Her choice to
marry a black man in 1950s Japan was a huge thing.
I began to understand the impact that choice had to
have on her life. She had to have courage. So, I
admire her pioneering spirit.”
12 THEATREWORKS
After doing extensive research for the play over a
five-year period, Houston realized there was a “large
part of the culture that didn’t have patience for
aging” and didn’t think of the natural evolution as
being beautiful. “I had to move from the shock of
dementia to understanding the beauty in the aging
process and what I could learn from that,” she
explains. “I wanted to learn about other people who
were seeing their parents’ lives change. I started
interviewing caregivers in their 40s and 50s and
wanted to know how they thought of themselves.”
Seeking a deeper understanding, Houston traveled
to Japan to do more interviews and to discover
whether there were cultural differences in aging there
as well. “I looked at my mom’s aging from both the
Japanese and American perspective,” says Houston.
“I did a lot of reading about these kinds of life
changes. Then I sat down to write the play.”
Houston’s life story is far more intriguing than any play
she could ever write. It has all the ingredients for a
juicy romance novel while reading like a fascinating
tome about reality, family, ethnic cultures, international
affairs, survival, exclusion, assimilation, and triumph.
The dramatist, who was born on a military ship outside of Japan, is the second daughter of a Japanese
woman (Setsuko Takechi) and a World War ll/Korean
War African-American soldier (Lemo Houston), now
deceased. “I often get inquisitive looks from people
who can’t quite figure out what I am,” says Houston.
“Some people just ask if I’m Hawaiian or Latina.
People just want you to identify yourself. If people
ask, I’m Japanese and African-American. There are a
lot of me out here.”
Houston has an older brother who was adopted in
Japan, grew up, and married an Argentinean, and a
sister who married into a Chinese family and is now a
professor at Cal State LA. She grew up in Kansas
where she often spent time in Japanese and French
war brides’ kitchens watching and learning how to
cook. “There was a time in my life that parents came
in different colors. It was black husbands with their
international wives.”
Determined to become a writer after a teacher gave
her Chekhov’s The Cherry Orchard to read, Houston
attended the University of Kansas where she studied
communications and philosophy. She also has a Master
of Fine Arts in playwriting from UCLA and a PhD in
Critical Studies in Cinema from USC. A lifetime member of both UCLA and USC alumni associations, she
jokingly refers to herself as “biracial and bi-campus.”
Once she graduated from the University of Kansas,
her career took a meteoric ride. She’s written a book,
Writer’s Block Busters: 101 Exercises to Clear the
Dead Wood and Make Room for Flights of Fancy
(Smith and Kraus), poems, essays, and more than 20
plays which have been produced worldwide.
For instance, her play Tea [TW production 1990,
Burgess Theatre in Menlo Park], which portrays the
lives of Japanese war brides who move to the United
States with their American servicemen husbands,
became a trademark of her work with numerous
productions and presentations around the globe
including the US, Osaka, Tokyo, Hiroshima, nationwide radio in Japan, People’s Republic of China,
Singapore, Malaysia, Australia, and Indonesia. She’s
also written for television and film. Many of her plays
speak to the multicultural experience, something
advisors at UCLA told her would never work.
“When I was at UCLA they discouraged me from
writing about Japanese and black people in theatre
because they didn’t think anyone would produce my
plays,” says Houston. “I was discouraged from
writing Japanese characters. I guess I had a multiculturalism outlook before it was popular.”
It would seem Houston got the last laugh. Not only
have her plays been produced, she’s been praised
extensively and awarded generously from the community at large for her good works. Houston’s mastery of the written word is the direct result of several
decades of study and application.
As a playwright, she uses all of her life’s experiences
to create her body of work. “I tell my students that
humanity is your laboratory,” says Houston. “I tell
them to use everything you see, taste, and smell.
The most important thing for me is they need to
write about things they feel the greatest passion for.
Be inspired by deep critical passions so the drive to
write the play doesn’t have to be forced. It’s just
there organically.”
Writing is more than a passion for Houston, who
admittedly is so focused she can write while standing
in line at the bank. “I write compulsively,” says
Houston. “It’s like air and water. It’s like the necessities of life. I love writing. It’s an important relationship
for me. I’d be unhappy if I couldn’t write.”
——————————
By Darlene Donloe
Abridged from the original interview for
LA STAGE Alliance, 2010
encore art sprograms.com 13
Membership provides you the ULTIMATE THEATRE EXPERIENCE
INSIDER ACCESS
Imagine sharing wine with the stars of TheatreWorks’ shows or bumping into actors
backstage during exclusive tours. Imagine calling your very own TW concierge to
acquire house seats on Broadway, or flashing your VIP passes to the New Works
Festival (don’t forget the lounge!).
As a Member, you craft your Insider experience and support incredible, transformative
art at the same time!
Insider Access starts at $75. Join by April 2 and your name will be entered into a
drawing for a private lunch and backstage tour with Artistic Director Robert Kelley.
Join us at or above the $750 level and we’ll add your name to the drawing twice!
(Two winners will be selected.)
Make your gift or request more information online at theatreworks.org/support or
call 650.463.7155.
14 THEATREWORKS
TheatreWorks
S I L I C O N V A L L E Y
,
Calligraphy
presents
By
Velina Hasu Houston
Directed by Leslie Martinson
Scenic Designer
C
Costume Designer
LLighting Designer
Sound
Designer
S
Media Designer
M
Casting Director
C
LLos Angeles Casting Director
Stage
Manager
S
E
Erik Flatmo
Alina Bokovikova
Steven B. Mannshardt
S
Gregory Robinson
G
David Lee Cuthbert
D
Leslie Martinson
L
JJulia Flores
Sara Sparks
S
Originally Produced by Playwrights’ Arena in association with Latino Theatre Company
Jon Lawrence Rivera, Artistic Director, Playwrights’ Arena
Jose Luis Valenzuela, Artistic Director, Latino Theatre Company
PRODUCERS
Mike & Yvonne Nevens
Janne & Bill Wissel
SEASON SPONSORS
Garden Court Hotel • J. Lohr Vineyards & Wines • The Mercury News • Sobrato Philanthropies
SPECIAL THANKS
Noriko Lake, San Jose Shodo
CALLIGRAPHY plays March 8–April 2, 2017
THE VIDEOTAPING OR OTHER VIDEO OR AUDIO RECORDING OF THIS PRODUCTION IS STRICTLY PROHIBITED.
encore art sprograms.com 15
THE CAST
(In order of appearance)
Hiromi Jameson
Noriko Matsuda Jameson
Eamon Jameson/Police Officer
Sayuri Matsuda/Girl in Kimono
Natsuko Matsuda
Mia Tagano*
Emily Kuroda*
William Thomas Hodgson*
Elizabeth Pan*
Jeanne Sakata*
* The Actors and Stage Manager employed in this production are members of Actors’ Equity Association,
the Union of Professional Actors and Stage Managers in the United States.
Understudy for Eamon Davied Morales (Performs on March 8)
TIME & PLACE
A season in the lives of the four Matsuda women at the turn of the 20th century, the years 2000 and 2001.
Los Angeles, Tokyo, Matsuyama.
Who’s Who
EMILY KURODA
(Noriko) has performed at Huntington
Theatre Company
(Tiger Style, Woman
Warrior), South Coast
Rep (Fast Company,
Ballad of Yachiyo, Our
Town), Alliance Theatre
(Tiger Style), East West Players, Kirk
Douglas, Mark Taper Forum, The Public
Theater, La Jolla Playhouse, Seattle
Repertory, Singapore Repertory, Berkeley
Repertory Theatre, The Doolittle, LATC,
Zephyr, LA Women’s Shakespeare
Company, and the Los Angeles
Shakespeare Festival. She was Mrs. Kim
on Gilmore Girls for seven years and was
seen in Netflix’s Gilmore Girls Revival.
Other TV series include Drop Dead Diva,
Rufang in Sony’s Sequestered, and Under
One Roof with Flavor Flav. Films include
Red, Sensei, and Take the 10. She is the
recipient of five Dramalogue Awards, a
Garland Award for outstanding performance, and Playwrights Arena Award and
the EWP Award for Outstanding
Contribution to LA Theatre.
ELIZABETH PAN
(Sayuri/Young Girl) is
thrilled to be making
her debut with
TheatreWorks. Past
theatre credits include
Dogeaters (Center
Theatre Group/SIPA),
Film Chinois (Grove
Theater Center, Ovation Award for Best
Play), @thespeedofjake (Playwrights’
Arena), A Winter People (Boston Court
Performing Arts), and Boats on a River
(L.A. Theatre Works). Recent film and TV
appearances include Lights Out, Better
16 THEATREWORKS
Half (Best Supporting Actress nom,
Philadelphia Indie Film Fest), Scandal, The
Real O’Neals, Stitchers, and How I
Met Your Mother. You can hear her voice
in the films Penguins of Madagascar and
Planes. She debuted earlier this year as a
Marvel character in the Iron Man universe
for Hong Kong Disney. She received her
BA at UCLA and has trained at American
Conservatory Theater and the Royal
National Theater in London.
elizabethpan.com
WILLIAM THOMAS
HODGSON (Eamon/
Police Officer) is making
his TheatreWorks debut.
Regional credits include
It Can’t Happen Here
(Berkeley Repertory
Theatre), Disney’s The
Hunchback of Notre
Dame (La Jolla Playhouse), An Octaroon
(Mixed Blood Theatre), El Henry (San Diego
Rep), A Midsummer Night’s Dream (PCPA
Theaterfest), Trufaldino Says No (Shotgun
Players), Seussical the Musical (Berkeley
Playhouse), and I Am My Own Wife (Ubuntu
Theater Project). He recently eceived his
MFA from UC San Diego, and he is
Co-Artistic Director of the Ubuntu Theater
Project in Oakland. Mr. Hodgson currently
teaches drama at Park Day School.
JEANNE SAKATA
(Natsuko) is making her
TheatreWorks debut.
She has performed with
The Public Theater,
Kennedy Center, Mark
Taper Forum, La Jolla
Playhouse, South Coast
Rep, American
Conservatory Theater, Berkeley Repertory
Theatre, People’s Light and Theatre,
Northlight Theatre, Intiman Theatre, A
Contemporary Theatre, Oregon
Shakespeare Festival, Portland Center
Stage, Syracuse Stage, and the Arizona
Theatre Company. Recent TV and film:
Advantageous, Dr. Ken, Bravo’s True
Fiction, Big Hero 6. Special honors: LA
Ovation Award, Outstanding Lead Actress,
Chay Yew’s RED; Lee Melville Award,
Outstanding Contribution to LA Theatre
Community, Playwrights’ Arena;
Outstanding Artist Award, LA Pacific
American Friends of Theatre Outstanding
Artist Award. She authored the nationallyacclaimed solo play Hold These Truths
about civil rights pioneer Gordon
Hirabayashi (2013 Drama Desk Nomination,
Outstanding Solo Performance), recently
produced at Portland Center Stage, A
Contemporary Theatre, Guthrie Theater,
PlayMakers Repertory Company, and
Perseverance Theatre. jeannesakata.com
MIA TAGANO (Hiromi)
has performed with
TheatreWorks in Snow
Falling on Cedars, The
Loudest Man on Earth,
and M Butterfly. New
York credits include Far
East (Lincoln Center), 99
Histories (Cherry Lane
Theatre) and Song of Singapore (Capital
Repertory Theatre). Regional credits
include Macbeth (Berkeley Repertory
Theatre), Love and Information (American
Conservatory Theater), Tamburlaine
(Shakespeare Theatre), Tantalus (Denver
Center for the Performing Arts and Royal
Shakespeare Company co-production),
Hamlet and Nicholas Nickleby (California
Shakespeare Theater), Every Five Minutes
(Magic Theatre), Snow Falling on Cedars
VELINA HASU HOUSTON (Playwright)
is an internationally celebrated writer with
over twenty commissions in theatre and
opera. She was the first-ever Playwright-inResidence at The Pasadena Playhouse and
a Fulbright Scholar. Honored by The
Kennedy Center, Smithsonian Institute,
Rockefeller Foundation, Japan Foundation,
The Wallace Foundation, Doris Duke
Charitable Foundation, and others, she
founded graduate playwriting studies at
the University of Southern California. At
the USC School of Dramatic Arts, she is
Distinguished Professor of Dramatic
Writing, Director of Dramatic Writing,
Associate Dean of Faculty, and Resident
Playwright. She is the only US playwright
to amass a body of work that explores the
US/Japan relationship through a bilateral,
global view of identity. Her blog,
Matchabook, is at matchabook.wordpress.com. She is married to Peter H.
Jones of Manchester, England; and has
two children, Kiyoshi and Leilani.
LESLIE MARTINSON (Director) is
TheatreWorks’ Associate Artistic Director
and Casting Director. Her many
TheatreWorks directing credits include
Proof, the regional premiere of Water
by the Spoonful, and the West Coast
premieres of The Pitmen Painters and
Superior Donuts. A graduate of Occidental
College, she has been a Watson Fellow in
political theatre, a member of Lincoln
Center Director’s Lab, a member of the La
MaMa International Directing Symposium,
and has served on Theatre Bay Area’s
Theatre Services Committee since 2002.
Silicon Valley Creates named her an Arts
Laureate for artistic achievement and
community impact. She is a Performance
Coach in leadership communication
training with Stand and Deliver Group.
Repertory Theatre, La Jolla Playhouse,
Opera Neo, MOXIE Theatre, and more.
Ms. Bokovikova has an MFA in Costume
Design from UC San Diego and currently
she is a Costume Design Coordinator at
the Academy of Art, San Francisco. Her
works were presented at Prague
Quadrennial 2012, Costume Design at the
Turn of Century Exhibition in Moscow in
2015. She was also featured in Role Call
for American Theatre Magazine in 2016.
Proud to
Support
the Arts in
San Francisco
DAVID LEE CUTHBERT (Media Designer)
designed lighting for Third and lighting/
media for Wild with Happy at TheatreWorks.
He lit Billy Crystal’s 700 Sundays on
Broadway and its subsequent US,
Canadian, and Australian tours, as well as
the HBO film. Off-Broadway, his lighting
and projections for The Snow Queen won
the award for best overall design at 2014’s
New York Musical Theatre Festival.
Internationally, he designed Terminal,
directed by Joseph Chaikin, and his scenic
and lighting design for The History (and
Mystery) of the Universe has been seen at
major theatres across the country. He was a
regular collaborator at San Jose Repertory
Theatre, and is a frequent collaborator at
Arizona Theatre Company. Mr. Cuthbert is
Personal attention
SF
Our goal is to LG
preserve our
thoughtful litigation
final resolution
L A W
(Portland Center Stage and Hartford
Stage), Twelfth Night (SF Shakespeare
Festival), and Waiting for Tadashi (George
Street Playhouse). TV/film credits include
All My Children, Law & Order, and John
Barton’s The Shakespeare Sessions. Ms.
Tagano received her MFA in Acting from
the University of Washington.
F A M I LY
Who’s Who
client’s dignity and humanity.
FA M I LY L AW G R O U P, P. C .
575 Market Street, Suite 4000
San Francisco, CA 94105
415.834.1120
www.sflg.com
GLEIM
ALINA BOKOVIKOVA (Costume Design)
has designed more than sixty professional
productions and is thrilled to come back
to TheatreWorks after her debut here with
tokyo fish story last year. Bay Area
audiences can see her designs in 2017 at
Cutting Ball Theatre (Hedda Gabler),
Opera Parallele (Flight), and Opera San
Jose (La Boheme). Other credits include
productions for California Shakespeare
Theater, The Old Globe, North Coast
encore art sprograms.com 17
Who’s Who
a Professor of Design at the University of
California, Santa Cruz.
Academy of Art San Francisco, in the
Motion Picture and Television Department.
ERIK FLATMO (Scenic Designer) recently
SARA SPARKS (Stage Manager)
previously stage managed TheatreWorks’
New Works Festival productions of
Something Wicked This Way Comes and
Marie and Rosetta. She most recently
stage managed Scrooge in Love! at 42nd
Street Moon. She has worked all around
the Bay, including San Francisco
Shakespeare Festival, Aurora Theatre
Company, San Jose Stage Company, Pear
Theatre, Palo Alto Players, Silicon Valley
Shakespeare, and RE:ACT. She is also a
lighting designer, recently designing
Uncanny Valley, Major Barbara, and Uncle
Vanya at Pear Theatre.
designed TheatreWorks’ productions of
Water by the Spoonful, Wild with Happy,
Time Stands Still, The North Pool, Opus,
and Radio Golf. He has designed scenery
for theatre and opera companies across
the country, including Yale Repertory
Theatre, Asolo Repertory Theatre
(Florida), and American Conservatory
Theater. Locally he has also worked with
Magic Theatre, California Shakespeare
Theatre, Marin Theatre Company and San
Francisco Opera’s Merola Program. His
work in dance involves collaborations with
choreographers Joe Goode, Trajal Harrell,
and Robert Moses. He holds an MFA from
the Yale School of Drama and teaches set
design at Stanford University.
STEVEN B. MANNSHARDT (Lighting
UTAH
FEST
Designer) has been the lighting designer
for over 70 productions at TheatreWorks,
having won numerous Bay Area Theatre
Critics Circle, Theatre Bay Area and
Dean Goodman Choice Awards for his
work. His regional design credits include
Long Wharf Theatre, New Haven; A
Contemporary Theatre, Seattle; American
Repertory Theater, Cambridge; Studio
Arena Theatre, Buffalo; Magic Theatre;
Pasadena Playhouse; The Weston
Playhouse Theatre Company, Vermont;
Vancouver Playhouse Theatre Company;
and Olympia Theatre, Dublin, Ireland.
Mr. Mannshardt previously taught lighting
design at Santa Rosa Junior College for
14 years and now runs an organization
dedicated to improving the education
system for both children and adults in
Nepal. nepal.wwep.org
GREGORY ROBINSON (Sound
Designer) has designed sound for Water
by the Spoonful (Bay Area Theatre Critics
Circle Award, Best Sound Design), The
Pitmen Painters, Snow Falling on Cedars,
Living Out, You Can’t Take It With You, An
American Daughter, Be Aggressive, and
Present Laughter. His sound design, sound
effects, music, and recordings have been
featured in local, regional, and national
radio and television advertisements,
documentaries, corporate video, and
theatre. He has created and produced for
AC Transit, Amazing People LLC (London),
Bank of America, Brava Theatre, California
Lottery, Carlos Santana, Deborah Santana,
HBO, Ivory Coast Pictures (Hollywood),
Lorraine Hansberry Theatre, Magic
Theatre, Safeway, The United Way, Wells
Fargo, and many others. Mr. Robinson is a
motion picture production sound recordist
and post-production sound editor for the
18 THEATREWORKS
ROBERT KELLEY (Artistic Director) is a
Bay Area native and Stanford University
graduate. He founded TheatreWorks in
1970 and has directed over 175
TheatreWorks productions, including many
world and regional premieres. He has
received the Silicon Valley Arts Council’s
Legacy Laureate Award; the Bay Area
Theatre Critics Circle Paine Knickerbocker
Award and Jerry Friedman Award for
Lifetime Achievement; BATCC Awards for
Outstanding Direction for his productions
of The Hound of the Baskervilles; Into the
Woods; Pacific Overtures; Rags; Sweeney
Todd; Another Midsummer Night; Sunday
in the Park with George; Jane Eyre; and
Caroline, or Change; and Back Stage
West Garland Awards for his direction of
Side Show and Sunday in the Park with
George. He recently directed Daddy Long
Legs, Outside Mullingar, Cyrano, Jane
Austen’s EMMA, The Country House,
Fallen Angels, Peter and the Starcatcher,
Sweeney Todd, Marry Me a Little, and
Once on This Island.
PHIL SANTORA (Managing Director)
joined TheatreWorks in 2007. He has
served as Managing Director of Northlight
Theatre (Chicago) and Georgia
Shakespeare Festival (Atlanta), as well as
Development Director for Great Lakes
Theatre Festival (Cleveland) and George
Street Playhouse (New Brunswick). He
holds an MFA in Theatre Administration
from the Yale School of Drama and a BA in
Drama from Duke University. He is Vice
President of the National Alliance for
Musical Theatre Board. Prior board service
includes the League of Chicago Theatres,
Atlanta Coalition of Theatres, and the
executive committee of the League of
Resident Theatres (LORT). He was named
2000’s Best Arts Administrator by Atlanta
Magazine and received the Atlanta Arts
and Business Council’s 1998 ABBY Award
for Arts Administrator.
VISIONARY SPONSORS
CORPORATE CIRCLE, FOUNDATION, & GOVERNMENT GIFTS
Foundations and Corporate Circle members sponsor productions, support new works, and fund education programs for K–12
students. Sponsors may host events at the theatre, receive heightened community visibility, and enjoy other hospitality benefits.
Contact Ronnie Plasters at 650.463.7135 or [email protected] for more information.
Visionary Sponsors
Sponsors
Friends
($50,000 and above)
($10,000 to $14,999)
($1,000 to $2,499)
The Garden Court Hotel*
The William & Flora Hewlett
Foundation
J. Lohr Vineyards & Wines*
The Mercury News*
Microsoft Corporation
The David & Lucile Packard
Foundation
The Shubert Foundation
Sobrato Philanthropies*
Adams Wine Group*
The Leonard C. & Mildred F.
Ferguson Foundation
Harrell Remodeling
Heising-Simons Foundation
Hengehold Motor Company*
Anonymous
Applied Materials Excellence in the
Arts Grants, a program of
Silicon Valley Creates
ChaseVP*
The Dramatists Guild Fund
International ProInsurance Services LLC
Nikon Precision, Inc.
Regarding Arts
Presenting Sponsor
($25,000 to $49,999)
Avant! Foundation
National Endowment for the Arts
Sand Hill Foundation
Stephen Silver Fine Jewelry*
Supporting Sponsors
($15,000 to $24,999)
PRESENTING SPONSORS
Applied Materials
Carla Befera Public Relations*
Fenwick & West LLP
The Kimball Foundation
The Harold & Mimi Steinberg
Charitable Trust
Benefactors
($5,000 to $9,999)
Dodge & Cox Investment
Managers
Hurlbut-Johnson Charitable
Trusts
Palo Alto Weekly Holiday Fund
Supporters
($2,500 to $4,999)
Avidbank
Cooley LLP*
Los Altos Community
Foundation
S. H. Cowell Foundation
The Morrison & Foerster
Foundation
Palo Alto Weekly*
Perkins Coie LLP
Matching Gifts
Many companies will double or triple their
employees’ contributions to nonprofits.
It’s a great way to make your gift to
TheatreWorks go further at no extra cost.
Call 650.463.7155 for more information.
* Indicates donors whose gifts include
in-kind goods or services.
ENDOWMENT FUND
TheatreWorks Silicon Valley thanks the following lead donors for their extraordinarily generous Endowment gifts.
SUPPORTING SPONSORS
Marsha & Bill Adler • William C. Anderson • Ann S. Bowers • Polly & Tom Bredt • Bruce Cozadd & Sharon
Hoffman • Peter & Melanie Cross • Yogen & Peggy Dalal • Carl H. Feldman • Kathryn Green • The John &
Marcia Goldman Foundation • Emeri & Brad Handler • Hurlbut-Johnson Charitable Trusts • Charles & Roberta
Katz Family Foundation • Patricia McClung & Allen Morgan • The Rathmann Family Foundation • Eddie
Reynolds • John & Diane Savage • Joyce Reynolds Sinclair • Lynn Szekely-Goode & Dr. Richard Goode
FUTUREWORKS
FutureWorks members have made an estate gift from a will or living trust, a beneficiary designation in an IRA, a gift of life
insurance, a gift that returns lifetime income, or another planned gift. Contact [email protected] for more information.
SPONSORS
Anonymous (6) • Marc Abramson • The Estate of William C. Anderson • Ray & Carol Bacchetti • Elaine Baskin &
Ken Krechmer • Pauline Berkow & Ronald Kauffman • David & Lauren Berman • Jayne Booker • James & Diane
Bordoni • Ann S. Bowers • Steve & Gayle Brugler • Carol Buchser • The estate of Cathryn Z. Cannon • Eleanor
W. Caughlan • Steven & Karin Chase • Jodi Corwin & Irv Duchowny • Bruce Cozadd • G eorge & Susan Crow •
John & Wynne Dobyns • John & Linda Elman • Frances Escherich • Susan Fairbrook • Harriett Ferziger • Gayle
Flanagan • Carole & David Florian • Peter & Rose Friedland • Terry & Carolyn Gannon • Ed Glazier • Marcia &
John Goldman • Kathryn Green • Lorie Griswold • Maureen Hoberg • Sharon Hoffman • Anne & Emma Grace
Holmes • Kenny Hom • Sam & Elaine Housten • Susan M. Huch • Edward Hunter & Michelle Garcia • John W. &
Nancy Lee Jalonen • Barry Lee Johnson • Stanley Earl Johnson • Claiborne S. Jones • Mike & Martha Kahn • Dr.
Steve Kelem • Robert Kelley & Ev Shiro • Jane Kos • Bill & Terry Krivan • Phil Kurjan & Noel Butler • Woof
Kurtzman • Mr. & Mrs. Robert Mangelsdorf • Steve Mannshardt • Monte Mansir • Suzanne Martin & John Doyle
• Leigh Metzler & Jim McVey • Cynthia S. Miller • Tami & Craney Ogata • Doris Gottsegen-Reiner • Karen & John
Reis • Eddie Reynolds • Betsy Boardman Ross • Adam Samuels • Philip Santora & Cristian Asher • Dorothy Saxe
• Loren & Shelley Saxe • Edward & Jane Seaman • Barbara Shapiro & Mark Lewis • Joyce Reynolds Sinclair •
Gerry Sipes • Carol Snell & Mindy Rauch • Esther Sobel • Jim & Mary Southam • Cherrill M. Spencer • Rick Stern
& Nancy Ginsburg Stern • Susanne Stevens • Mark Stevenson • Laurie Waldman • Carol Watts • Karen Carlson
White • Renee & Herman Winick
encore art sprograms.com 19
TheatreWorks Silicon Valley Contributors
THE PRODUCER CIRCLE
TheatreWorks Producers have made a gift of $10,000 or more. They are invited to exclusive events with visiting artists, and on special theatre trips. Producers may select
a production to follow from “page to stage” by attending the design presentation, rehearsals, and opening nights. Producers also receive all Inner Circle benefits.
Contact Ronnie Plasters at 650.463.7135 or [email protected] for more information
Visionary Producers
($50,000 and above)
Ann S. Bowers
Dr. & Mrs. W. M. Coughran, Jr.
Anne & Larry Hambly
The Dirk & Charlene Kabcenell
Foundation
Ray & Meredith Rothrock
TheatreWorks Board Emeritus
Executive Producers
Mendelsohn Family Fund
Morgan Family Foundation
Cynthia Sears
Rick Stern &
Nancy Ginsburg Stern
Lynn Szekely-Goode &
Dr. Richard Goode
Mark & Teri Vershel
Lisa Webster & Ted Semple
Gayla Lorthridge Wood &
Walt Wood
($25,000 to $49,999)
Bruce Cozadd
Yogen & Peggy Dalal
Frances Escherich
The John & Marcia Goldman
Foundation
William Green
Judy Heyboer & Brian Shally
Robert Kelley & Ev Shiro
Phil Kurjan & Noel Butler
Michelle & Michael Kwatinetz
Debra Leslie
Producers
($10,000 to $24,999)
Anonymous (2)
Marsha & Bill Adler
Lois & Dr. Edward Anderson
Paul Asente & Ron Jenks
Elaine Baskin & Ken Krechmer
Lucy Berlin & Glenn Trewitt
Jayne Booker
Bredt Family Fund at Truckee
Tahoe Community Foundation
45 for 45Circle
TheatreWorks 45 for 45 Circle members have made a multi-year
pledge of $45,000 or more to honor Robert Kelley and
TW’s 45th Anniversary. Contact Ronnie Plasters at 650.463.7135 or
[email protected] for more information.
Elaine Baskin & Ken Krechmer
Ann S. Bowers
Suzanne Martin &
John Doyle
Gayle & Steve Brugler
Mendelsohn Family Fund
Bruce Cozadd
Rebecca & James Morgan
Gordon & Carolyn Davidson
Cynthia Sears
Sylvia & Ron Gerst
Barbara Shapiro &
Anne & Larry Hambly
Judy Heyboer & Brian Shally
Julie Kaufman
Mark Lewis
Rick Stern &
Nancy Ginsburg Stern
Tom & Sharon Kelley
Mark & Teri Vershel
Phil Kurjan & Noel Butler
Lisa Webster
Michelle & Michael Kwatinetz
Watkins Family Charitable
Dorothy Lazier
Trust
Mark & Debra Leslie
Carol Watts
Carole & Michael Marks
Janne & Bill Wissel
20 THEATREWORKS
Steve & Gayle Brugler
Steven & Karin Chase
George & Susan Crow
Gordon & Carolyn Davidson
Ranae DeSantis
John & Susan Diekman
Susan Fairbrook
Dan & Catharine Garber
Sylvia & Ron Gerst
Emeri & Brad Handler
William J. Higgs
Larry Horton & George Wilson
Charlotte Jacobs &
Roderick Young
Leigh & Roy Johnson
Mike & Martha Kahn
Julie Kaufman & Doug Klein
Tom & Sharon Kelley
Robin & Don Kennedy
Dick & Cathy Lampman
Dorothy Lazier
Mark Lewis & Barbara Shapiro
Marks Family Foundation
THE INNER CIRCLE
The Marmor Foundation/
Drs. Michael & Jane Marmor
Gillian & Tom Moran
Leslie & Douglas Murphy-Chutorian
Yvonne & Mike Nevens
Richard Partridge
Adam Samuels
Philip Santora & Cristian Asher
Loren & Shelley Saxe
Martha Seaver & Scott Walecka
Leonard Shustek & Donna Dubinsky
Larry & Barbara Sonsini
Janet Strauss & Jeff Hawkins
Debra Summers & John Baker
Holly Ward & Scott Spector
Watkins Family Charitable Fund
Carol Watts
Harriet & Frank Weiss
Bart & Nancy Westcott
Jane Weston & J. Horn
Bill & Janne Wissel
Jayne Booker, Chair
Members of The Inner Circle contribute a minimum of $1,500 each season and enjoy
a variety of benefits including priority subscription seating, VIP ticket purchases and
exchanges, access to house seats on Broadway, and invitations to Meet-the-Artists
events. Contact Hans Cardenas at 650.463.7155 or [email protected] for more
information.
Associate Producers
($6,000 to $9,999)
Anonymous (2)
Katherine Bazak & John Dohner
David & Ann Crockett
John & Wynne Dobyns
David E. Gold &
Irene Blumenkranz
Linda M. Hinton & Vince Foecke
Edward Hunter & Michelle Garcia
Lisa & Marc Jones
Sue & Dick Levy
Rob & Ann Marangell
Richard Niblock
Bill & Janet Nicholls
Ron & Lila Schmidt
Directors
($3,000 to $5,999)
Carol Bacchetti
Paul & Debbie Baker
Joel & Wendy Bartlett
Jim Bassett & Lily Hurlimann
The BelleJAR Foundation
Steven & Michele Boal
Marah & Gene Brehaut
Bruce & Gail Chizen
Dean & Wilma Chu
Nancy Mahoney Cohen
Diane & Howard Crittenden
Randy Curry & Kay Simon
Richard & Josephine Ferrie
Gayle Flanagan
Lynda & Steve Fox
Peter & Rose Friedland
Terry & Carolyn Gannon in honor of
Robert Kelley
Jerre & Nancy Hitz
D & J Hodgson Family Foundation
Barbara Jones
Louise Karr
Hal & Iris Korol
John & Catharine Kristian
Bill & Terry Krivan
Arlene & Jack Leslie
Janet Littlefield & William Coggshall
Malcolm MacNaughton
Suzanne Martin & John Doyle
The Merrimac Fund
Buff & Cindy Miller
Myrna & Hy Mitchner, PhD
Eileen Nelson & Hugh Franks
Margo & Roy Ogus
Joe, Nancy, Sam & Sara Ragey
Orli & Zack Rinat
Tom Rindfleisch & Carli Scott
Paul & Sheri Robbins
Edward & Jane Seaman
Bart Sears
Ron & Ellen Shulman
Joyce Reynolds Sinclair &
Dr. Gerald M. Sinclair
Ellen & Ed Smith
Sheri Sobrato
Lisa & Matthew Sonsini
Susanne Stevens & Monte Mansir
Catherine & Jeff Thermond
Odette & Ewart Thomas
Brent & Michèle Townshend
Ted & Betty Ullman
Tzipor Ulman & Dan Rubinstein
Griff & Lynne Weber
Mark & Sheila Wolfson
Players
($1,500 to $2,999)
Anonymous (5)
Marc & Sophia Abramson
Douglas & Loretta Allred
Mary Ann Anthony & Ken Fowkes
Shirley Bailey
Doug & Marie Barry
Pat Bashaw & Gene Segre
Jane Baxter & Steve Beck
Mr. & Mrs. David W. Beach
Betsy & George Bechtel
Don & Deborah Bennett
Dr. Barbara L. Bessey in memory
of Dr. Kevin J. Gilmartin
Caroline Beverstock
Charlotte & David Biegelsen
Wendell & Celeste Birkhofer
Neil & Karen Bonke
Bob & Martha Bowden
Lauren & Darrell Boyle
Michael & Leslie Braun
Kathy Bridgman
Ellen & Marc Brown
Marda Buchholz & Marcie Brown
Eric Butler MD &
Suzanne Rocca-Butler
Jeff & Deborah Byron
Calvin & Jennifer Carr
Ron & Sally Carter
Josephine Chien &
Stephen Johnson
Lee & Amy Christel
Larry & Sara Condit
Robert A. Cook
Jodi Corwin & Irv Duchowny in
memory of Milt, Michael & Jack
Jeff & Amy Crowe
Redwood Serenity Fund
Richard & Anita Davis
Scott & Edie DeVine
Douglas Dexter
Dennis & Cindy Dillon
Carl & Meredith Ditmore
Monica Donovan
Pamela Dougherty
Jack & Marcia Edelstein
Mr. & Mrs. Robert English
Sue & Jeff Epstein
Patrick Farris
Sheldon Finkelstein &
Beatriz V. Infante
Kathleen Fitts
Peggy Woodford Forbes &
Harry Bremond
Diane & Bob Frankle
Barbara Franklin & Bernie Loth
Francis Franklin
Jay & Joyce Friedrichs
Markus Fromherz & Heike Schmitz
Marilee Gardner
Nancy & Charles Geschke
Ciro & Eileen Giammona
Kenneth & Susan Greathouse
Renee & Mark Greenstein
Mary Ann & John Grilli
Nancy & Bill Grove
Barbara Gunther
Peter & Laura Haas
Jim & Linda Hagan
Kovin Hagan
Elaine & Eric Hahn
Russell & Debbie Hall
Jane Hamlin & Steven Schow
Helen Helson
David & Noreen Henig
Craig & Deborah Hoffman
Anne & Emma Grace Holmes
Susan M. Huch
Perry A. Irvine &
Linda Romley-Irvine
Sudhanshu & Lori Jain
Nancy Lee Jalonen
Mary Louise Johnson
Claiborne S. Jones
Hilary Jones*
Craig & Gina Jorasch Family Fund
Jack Jorgenson
Mr. & Mrs. Abdo Kadifa
Thomas Kailath & Anu Maitra
Ruth Ann & David Keefer
Cynthia & Bert Keely
Arthur Keller
Chris Kenrick
Liz & Rick Kniss
Woof Kurtzman & Liz Hertz
Jim & Marilyn Lattin
Marcia & Henry Lawson
Elizabeth Leep
Linda Lester
Donald & Rachel Levy
Robert J. Lipshutz &
Nancy Wong, MD
Drs. John & Penny Loeb
Tom & Sally Logothetti
Nancy Madison & Michael Price
Richard & Charlene Maltzman
in memory of Carol Adler
Anne B. McCarthy
Patricia McClung & Allen Morgan
Kevin McCoy
Patricia McGuigan
Dave & Carolyn McLoughlin
Rani Menon & Keith Amidon
Shauna Mika & Rick Callison
Sondra Murphy & Jeremy Platt
Melinda Nasif & Michael Scruggs
Lynn & Susan Orr
Ellice & Jim Papp
David Pasta in memory of
Gloria J.A. Guth
Beth & Charlie Perrell
Carrie Perzow & Von Leirer
John & Valerie Poggi
Diane Posnak
Susan Rabin & David Buchanan
In memory of Pearl Reimer
Karen & John Reis
Eddie Reynolds & Ed Jones
Edward & Verne Rice
Bob Rodert & Bev Kiltz
Alicia Rojas & Howard Lyons
Betsy Boardman Ross
Robert & Suzanne Rubenstein
Alan Russell & Fred Thiemann
Ellen & Jerry Saliman
Joseph & Sandy Santandrea
Charles G. Schulz & Claire E. Taylor
Carolyn Schutz*
Pamela & Rick Shames
Jack & Dorothy Shannahan
Sarah Shema & Neyssa Marina
Marge & Jim Shively
Carolyn & Rick Silberman
Gerry Sipes
Pamela Smith
Todd Smith
Jim Stephens & Abraham Brown
Mark Stevens & Mary Murphy
The Sher-Right Fund
Jerry Strom & Marilyn Austin
Jan Thomson & Roy Levin
Helaina Titus
Robert J. Van der Leest, MD
Mimi & Jim Van Horne
Thomas Vogelsang
Margaret & Curt Weil
Paul & Barbara Weiss
Elissa Wellikson & Tim Shroyer
Arlene & Bruce S. White
Karen Carlson White
Ken & Ruth Wilcox
Bruce & Elinor Wilner
Lynn Wilson & Howard Roberts
Neil & Ann Wolff
Bill & Sue Worthington
Linda and Joel Zizmor
Benefactors
($750 to $1,499)
Anonymous • Sally Abel • Mr. & Mrs. Charles E. Benjamin • Fumiko & Carl Bielefeldt • Robert Block • Sharon & John Brauman • James B. Brennock • Marni Brown &
Gabe Garcia • H. Hans Cardenas • Ron & Marion Dickel • James J. Elacqua • Suzanne & Allan Epstein • Wesley & Dianne Gardiner • Joseph & Sondra Glider • Jack &
Joan Gorham • Sue & Bill Gould • James Heeger & Daryl Messinger • Susan Heller • Mitzi Henderson • Laurie T Jarrett • Dean & Patricia Johnson • Carl Jukkola &
Desmond Lee • David & Joyce Kim • Brian Kleis & Jim Lock • Michael & Ina Korek • Allan & Linda Kramer • Stephen & Nancy Levy • George & Ann Limbach • Alexander
& Anne Long • Anders & Juneko Martinson • Katherine Mason • Nancy & Patrick McGaraghan • Sharon & Harris Meyers • Gus Meyner in memory of Miriam • William
& Sue Miklos • Vivian Nahmias • Annie Nunan • Laurie Reynolds • Susan Rinne • Mary Rodgers in memory of David Rodgers • In memory of Bridget Ross • Tom & Nan
Ryan • Nancy & Magnus Ryde • Jill Sagner & Steve Lipman • Emil & Barbara Sarpa • Lee & Kim Scheuer • David & Harriet Schnur • Perry Segal • Denise & Jim Stanford
• Polly Taylor in memory of Ted Taylor • The Fred Terman & Nan Borreson Fund • Marilyn Tinderholt • Judith & Peter Wolken
Contributions listed were received between 01/25/2016 and 01/25/2017. Program deadlines and space limitations prevent us from listing all of our greatly appreciated patrons.
For corrections, or to make a contribution, please contact Sarah Benjamin at 650.463.7132 or [email protected].
* Indicates donors whose gifts include in-kind goods or services. + Indicates members of the Encore Club, who make ongoing monthly or quarterly gifts.
encore art sprograms.com 21
TheatreWorks SV Staff
Artistic Director Robert Kelley Managing Director Phil Santora
ARTISTIC
SCENERY
DEVELOPMENT
MARKETING
Associate Artistic Director
Leslie Martinson
Technical Director
Frank Sarmiento
Director of Development
Ronnie Plasters
Director of Marketing
Lorraine VanDeGraaf-Rodriguez
Director of New Works
Giovanna Sardelli
Lead Scenic Artist / Craftsman
Tom Langguth
Art Director
Ev Shiro
Company Manager/
Casting Associate
Jeffrey Lo
Master Carpenter
Bill Roberts
Associate Director of
Individual Giving
H. Hans Cárdenas
FutureWorks Fellow
Akemi Okamura
Resident Musical Director
William Liberatore
New Works Reading Committee
Bill Adler, Cristian Asher,
Elaine Baskin, Doug Brook,
Sue Krumbein, Shareen Merriam,
Patty Reinhart, Cindi Sears,
Scott Walecka
Artistic Intern
Grace Hoffman
PRODUCTION,
LIGHTING, & SOUND
Production Manager
David A. Milligan
Assistant Production Manager
Elizar Ivanov
Operations Manager/
Master Electrician
Steven B. Mannshardt
Resident Lighting Designer
Steven B. Mannshardt
Production Coordinator
Karen Szpaller
Electricians
Kat Arguello, Steven Fetter,
Carolyn Guggemos, A.C. Hay,
Cosmo Hom, Dan Kaminski,
Sean Kramer, Nick Kumamoto,
Harris Meyers, Gary Nelson,
Jeff Spackman, Jarku Virtanen,
Jackson Wijtman
Load-in / Strike Volunteers
Rick Amerson, Ed Hunter
Carpenters
Esteban Calvillo, Andrew Clark,
Rodrigo Frausto, Henry Ing,
Patrick McKenna
PROPERTIES
Properties Master
Christopher Fitzer
Properties Stock Manager
Alfred Rudolph
COSTUMES
Costume Director
Jill Bowers
Assistant Costumer
Noah Marin
Lead Cutter/Draper
Yen La Wong
Costume Rentals Manager
Conni Edwards
Wardrobe Manager
Sarah Hatton
Assistant Cutter/First Hand
Michelle Earney
Stitchers
Nhan Thi Luu, Son Pham
Resident Wigmaster
Sharon Ridge
Hair Stylist
Jeanne Naritomi
Events Manager
Jodi Corwin
Development Operations Manager
Sarah Benjamin
EDUCATION
Director of Education
Amy Cole-Farrell
Associate Education Director
Katie Bartholomew
Education Associate /
Master Teaching Artist
Meghan C. Hakes
Master Teaching Artist
Piper LaGrelius
Teaching Artists
Jake Arky
Lauren Berman
Brittany Caine
Maggie Cole
Jennifer Debevec
Mary Kalita
Fredrika Keefer
Josh Marx
Lauren Mayer
Jennifer Mitchell
Michileen Oberst
Kelly Rinehart
Martin Rojas Dietrich
Cassie Rosenbrock
Elissa Stebbins
Kristina Sutherland
Amanda Wallace
Maryssa Wanlass
STAGE MANAGEMENT
Resident Stage Manager
Randall K. Lum
Lighting, Sound, &
Properties Intern
Noah Listgarten
Associate Director of Marketing
Syche Phillips
Box Office Manager
Alix Josefski
Marketing & Communications
Manager
Heather Orth
Digital Media Manager
Jennifer Gosk
Tessitura Specialist
Andrew Skelton
Ticket Services Supervisor
Michelle Skinner
Patron Services Coordinator
Tracy Hayden
Ticket Services Representatives
Andrée Beals, Laura Henricksen,
Margaret Purdy
Graphics Assistant
Katie Dai
Public Relations & Advertising
Carla Befera & Co.
Carla Befera, Courtney Heimbuck
Company Photographers
Kevin Berne
Alessandra Mello
ADMINISTRATIVE
General Manager
Scott DeVine
Database Administrator
Ken Maitz
Bookkeeper
Jason Hyde
Staff Accountant
Barbara Sloss
Front Desk Volunteers
Joan Doherty, Cindi Sears
And thanks to our fabulous
TheatreWorkers!
CALLIGRAPHY ADDITIONAL STAFF
Assistant Director Jeffrey Lo
Sound Engineer Quinn Pierron
Assistant Lighting Design
Show Carpenters Justin Buchs,
Wil Bakal
Patrick Biggs
Light Board Operators
Properties Runner Alison Froke
Noah Listgarten, Deborah Bennett
22 THEATREWORKS
Dressers Brooke Jennings,
Anna Chalmers
Open Captioning Michelle Skinner
Five Fun Facts About TheatreWorks’ Spring Break Camps
learn acting, movement, and stage craft skills in a fun, playful,
∂ Campers
and engaging way!
∑ Campers make new friends and work together in a team!
learn from professional Teaching Artists who are experienced
∏ Campers
artists and educators!
create a new character to bring to life with their new
π Campers
theatrical skills!
show off all that they have learned during a final presentation
∫ Campers
for family and friends!
Grades K–5
April 3–7, 2017 in Palo Alto • April 10–14, 2017 in Menlo Park
Tuition is $350
New this year: Sibling Discounts
(Use code 2SBSIBS @ check-out online)
TRACY MARTIN
Need-based scholarships and extended care are available.
For more information, contact Associate Director of Education, Katie
Bartholomew, at 650.463.7154 or [email protected].
TheatreWorks SV General Information
CONTACT US
GROUP SAVINGS
LATE ARRIVALS
Mailing Address:
PO Box 50458, Palo Alto, CA 94303-0458
Phone: 650.463.1950 Fax: 650.463.1963
Email: [email protected]
Savings are available for groups of 8 or more.
For more information, call Michelle Skinner at
650.463.7115 or email [email protected].
Latecomers will not be seated until appropriate
intervals, and may not be seated in their exact
seat locations until intermission.
WHEELCHAIR SEATING
LOST AND FOUND
Seating is available for wheelchair patrons. Please
telephone the Ticket Office in advance so that
special arrangements may be made.
For Mountain View Center for the Performing
Arts lost and found, please call 650.903.6568.
For Lucie Stern Theatre lost and found, please
call 650.463.1960.
TICKET SERVICES
Tickets to all TheatreWorks Silicon Valley
performances are sold through the TheatreWorks
Silicon Valley Box Office
Hours: Monday–Friday, 11am–6pm;
Saturday-Sunday, 12pm-6pm
Phone: 650.463.1960
Tickets may also be obtained through the
Mountain View Center Ticket Office
Hours: Wednesday–Saturday, noon–6pm
Phone: 650.903.6000
WALK-UP TICKET SERVICES
The walk-up ticket office will open one hour
prior to each performance.
PERFORMANCE TIMES
Wed, Thur, Fri Previews 8pm
Tuesday & Wednesday Eve 7:30pm
Thursday–Saturday Eve 8:00pm
Sunday Eve 7:00pm
Wednesday, Saturday, & Sunday Matinee 2:00pm
INDIVIDUAL TICKET PRICES
Starting at $32 (balcony).
Discounts available for Seniors, Educators, and
Patrons 35 & Under. For pricing, call
650.463.1960 or visit theatreworks.org.
LISTENING SYSTEMS
Both theatres are equipped with listening
systems for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing.
Please see the house manager for details.
AUDIO-CAPTIONING
Audio captioning for the visually impaired is
available at certain performances. Please call
650.463.1960 for details.
OPEN-CAPTIONED PERFORMANCES
Open-captioned performances for
Calligraphy: 3/26 at 2pm & 7pm,
3/29 at 2pm
Rags: 4/23 at 2pm & 7pm, 4/26 at 2pm
Hershey Felder, BEETHOVEN: 6/25 at 2pm & 7pm,
6/28 at 2pm
For more information about open captioning,
please contact the box office at 650.463.1960
or [email protected].
PLEASE REMEMBER
There is no smoking in the theatres or lobbies.
Cameras and recording devices of any kind
are strictly prohibited. Neither food nor drink
is permitted in the theatres. Please ensure that
all electronic devices are set to the “off“
position while you are in the theatre.
Children 5 and under are not permitted in
the theatre. Persons 14 and under must be
accompanied by an adult. Every person,
regardless of age, must have a ticket.
Schedules, shows, casts, and ticket prices are
subject to change.
Single ticket purchases are non-refundable, but
are exchangeable for $15 per ticket.
Some restrictions apply.
Visit theatreworks.org
for detailed information or to purchase tickets.
encore art sprograms.com 23
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We put good health center stage.
And in your neighborhood.
With our expanded locations, access to exceptional health care
is closer than ever—whether you live in the Peninsula, South Bay,
or East Bay. Supported by one of the best hospitals in the nation,
our connected team of primary care doctors and specialists are
near where you work, live, and play.
For more information, call 844.394.6907
or visit stanfordhealthcare.org/primarycare