Streaming Premiere – Thursday, October 29, 2020, 7pm

Manual Cinema’s Frankenstein Video produced exclusively for Cal Performances

A Manual Cinema Production A Cal Performances Co-commission Adapted from the novel by Mary Shelley

Concept by Drew Dir Devised by Drew Dir, Sarah Fornace, and Julia Miller Original Music and Sound Design by Ben Kauffman and Kyle Vegter Storyboards by Drew Dir Shadow Puppet Design by Drew Dir with Lizi Breit Projections and Scenic Design by Rasean Davonte Johnson Costume and Wig Design by Mieka van der Ploeg Lighting Design by Claire Chrzan 3D Creature Puppet Design by Lizi Breit Prop Design by Lara Musard

Shelby Glasgow, stage manager, video mixing, and live sound effects Mike Usrey, sound engineer Drew Dir, lighting technician

CAST

Puppeteers Sarah Fornace (Victor Frankenstein, Mary Shelley) Julia Miller (The Creature, Elizabeth Frankenstein) Leah Casey (Percy Shelley, Vocals) Sara Sawicki (Lord Byron) Myra Su (Ensemble)

Musicians Peter Ferry, percussion Zachary Good, clarinets and auxiliary percussion Deidre Huckabay, flutes, auxiliary percussion, piano Lia Kohl, cello, auxiliary percussion, vocals

Note: following its premiere, Manual Cinema’s Frankenstein will be available on demand through January 27, 2021.

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PROGRAM NOTES

ary Shelley’s 1818 novel Franken - film: the novel’s cinematic afterlife, so to speak. stein—which, among its myriad other The artists are doingso by taking a cue from Mcontributions to popular culture, Mary Shelley herself, who gave her novel a single-handedly founded the modern genre of “gothic” structure—the story is told in a series science fiction—casts a long shadow over the of narrative frames, like Russian nesting dolls, medium of cinema. The story of Victor Frank - with each frame narrated by a different charac- enstein and the unnamed Creature he brings ter (the centermost frame being an account by to life has itself been perennially re-animated for the Creature itself). In Manual Cinema’s adap- movie audiences; from the first 1910 silent film tation, each “frame” of the story will be told adaptation produced by Thomas Edison’s stu- through a different cinematic genre or style, de- dio, to Boris Karloff’s iconic visage in the 1933 pending on which character’s point-of-view is Universal Studios classic, to more recent Holly- being presented. Like the Creature itself, the wood reboots, riffs, and parodies. With each production becomes a pastiche of different visual new era, Frankenstein manages to connect with idioms scavenged from a century of cinema. our sympathy and revulsion at Frankenstein’s Manual Cinema has also written an addi- “monster,” our ambivalence about the progress tional frame: the story of Mary Shelley herself, of science and technology, and our anxieties and how she came to write a novel of such en- about the mysterious threshold between life during relevance. Frankenstein was originally and death. conceived by Mary as a ghost story—a response This fall, Cal Performances presentsFrank - to a friendly competition with the poets Percy enstein , a new adaptation by Manual Cinema, Shelley and Lord Byron during an unusually a theater company that seeks to create cinema on stormy summer on Lake Geneva. stage through an ingenious choreography of live Manual Cinema’s adaptation aims to re-animate music, object theater, and shadow puppetry its own Frankenstein against the backdrop of using old-school overhead projectors. The work Mary Shelley’s fascinating, tragic, and little-told of Manual Cinema shares a special affinity with biography. Mary Shelley’s story about the reanimation of —Drew Dir obsolete materials, and their adaptation aims to lead deviser and co-artistic director capture the breadth of Frankenstein’s legacy in

ABOUT THE ARTISTS

anual Cinema is an Emmy Award- and was named Artists of the Year in winning performance collective, 2018 by the Chicago Tribune. Mdesign studio, and film/video pro - Manual Cinema has been presented by, duction company founded in 2010 by Drew worked in collaboration with, or brought its Dir, Sarah Fornace, Ben Kauffman, Julia Miller, work to the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the and Kyle Vegter. The company combines hand - Brooklyn Academy of Music, and the Under the made shadow puppetry, cinematic tech niques, Radar Festival (New York City); the Kimmel and innovative sound and music to create Center (Philadelphia); the O, Miami Poetry immersive stories for stage and screen. Using Festival; Arts Emerson (Boston); the Yale Rep- vintage overhead projectors, multiple screens, ertory Theatre; the Museum of Contemporary puppets, actors, live feed cameras, multi-channel Art Chicago; the Kennedy Center (Washington, sound design, and a live music ensemble, DC); the Ace Hotel Theater (Los Angeles), La Manual Cinema transforms the experience of Monnaie–DeMunt (Brussels); the Noorderzon attending the cinema and imbues it with live- Festival (Netherlands); the Tehran International ness, ingenuity, and theatricality. The company Puppet Festival (Iran); the King Abdulaziz received an Emmy Award in 2017 for The Center for World Culture (Saudi Arabia), the Forger, a video created for the New York Times, Hakaway International Arts Festival (Cairo),

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ABOUT THE ARTISTS the Edinburgh Fringe Festival, and elsewhere ingglass Theatre Company, , around the world. The company has also colla - Steppenwolf Garage, and Blair Thomas and Co. borated with the three-time Grammy Award- Most recently, she wrote the story mode for winning Eighth Blackbird and Hubbard Street the video game Rivals of Aether. In 2017, For- Dance (Chicago); the New York Times and nace directed and edited the first episode of StoryCorps (New York City); Pop-Up Magazine the web series The Doula is IN. In 2016, she (San Francisco); Nu Deco Ensemble (Miami); directed and devised an “animotion” pro - the New York Times best-selling author Reif duction of Shakespeare’s Hamlet with Rokoko Larsen; NPR’s Invisibilia; Topic magazine; the Studios for Ham letScen at Kromborg Castle in Grammy Award-winning Esperanza Spalding; Elsinore, Denmark. Erratica (Lon don); and the Belgian Royal Opera (Brussels). Julia Miller (The Creature, Eliza beth Franken - In December, Manual Cinema will premiere stein, MC co-artistic director) is a director, its new adaptation of Charles Dickens’ A puppeteer, and puppet designer. With Manual Christmas Carol. Each show will be performed Cinema, she has directed Mementos Mori and live in Manual Cinema’s Chicago studio in a The End of TV and created original roles in socially distanced manner, and live-streamed to Frankenstein (The Creature/Elizabeth),Ada/ audiences at home, including here on Cal Per- Ava (Ada), Lula del Ray (Lula’s Mother), The formances at Home (Dec 17–19). In signature Magic City (Helen), and Hansel und Gretel Manual Cinema style, hundreds of paper pup - (Hansel). In Chicago, she has worked as a per - pets, miniatures, silhouettes, and a live original former and puppeteer with Redmoon Thea tre musical score will combine in an imaginative and Blair Thomas and Co. Miller spent several re-invention of this cherished holiday classic. years training in devised theater, clown, and For more, visit www.manualcienema.com. mask with Double Edge Theatre and Carlos García Estevez, as well as at the Accademia dell’ Arte in Arezzo, Italy. She is a co-producer and PUPPETEERS director of several episodes of the new web series The Doula is IN. Leah Casey (Percy Shelley, vocals) is a Chicago- based actress, writer, and dancer with an un- Sara Sawick (Lord Byron) is a Chicago based natural love for podcasts and sound design. theater artist. With Manual Cinema, she most Some of her previous credits include Franken- recently appeared in the original cast of Frank - stein with Manual Cinema at Court Theatre, enstein (Lord Byron). She tours internationally Romeo and Juliet with Teatro Vista, and Storm with MC in Lula del Ray (Lula’s Mother), Me- with Walkabout/Moonfool. When not onstage, mentos Mori (Lady), and Ada/Ava (puppeteer). she can be found behind the mic as an audio- Sara works nationally with the Center for Per - book narrator, or working with the cast of formance and Civic Practice as the part ner ships Project Stellar, a science fiction podcast about a and communications manager. She is also an group of crazy kids who have close encounters artistic associate with Sojourn Theatre, most of the awesome kind. recently appearing in the Midwest regional premiere of How to End Poverty at Cleveland Sarah Fornace (Mary Shelley, Victor Franken- Public Theatre, presented in partnership with stein, MC co-artistic director) is a director, pup- United Way of Greater Cleveland. Past projects peteer, choreographer, and narrative designer include work with NetherRealm Studios (cine- based in Chicago, and a co-artistic director of matic performance capture); Actors Gymna - Manual Cinema. Outside of Manual Cinema, sium (Youth Circus co-director and writer); and Fornace has worked as a performer and/or one step at a time like this, in collaboration with choreographer with Redmoon Theatre, Look - Chicago Shakespeare Theater (performer).

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ABOUT THE ARTISTS

Myra Su (puppeteer) is a storyteller, puppeteer, forming with the International Contemporary and puppet maker. Her primary medium is Ensemble, Eighth Blackbird, Third Coast Per - shadow puppetry but her work also includes cussion, Ensemble Dal Niente, Lyric Opera experimentations with crankies, paper craft, Unlimited, the Civic Orchestra of Chicago, and bunraku, video, and taxidermy. Su has been a the improv trio ZRL. He is also a band director featured artist at the Chicago International at the Chicago Waldorf School. Good is a grad- Puppet Theater Festival, the Baltimore Crankie uate of Oberlin and DePaul. Festival, and the National Puppet Slam in Atlanta. Upcoming projects include a NPN/ Deidre Huckabay (flute, piano) is a Chicago- VAN-funded music-puppetry collaboration based performer, writer, photographer, and with renowned musician/filmmaker Tatsu event producer. She is co-owner of the experi- Aoki, using miniatures, shadows, and live video. mental cassette tape label Parlour Tapes+ and In addition to her independent work, Su has a regular contributor to Cacophony Magazine. worked with Manual Cinema since 2013 as a Huckabay is a member of the Chicago-based puppet builder and touring puppeteer. Some of performance group Mocrep, co-curator of the her show credits include: Frankenstein, Lula del WE Series at Elastic Arts, and founder of Spi - Ray, and Ada/Ava. For her full portfolio, please derf*rt Press. She is also a 2017 3Arts Make a visit myrasu.com. Wave grantee and a Sponsored Artist at High Concept Labs. In 2017, Huckabay received a full year studio and rehearsal residency with the MUSICIANS Eighth Blackbird Chicago Artists Workshop.

Peter Ferry (percussion), praised as an “ingen- Lia Kohl (cello) is a cellist and multidisciplinary ious percussionist” (Chicago Sun-Times) and artist based in Chicago, creating and per - “an artist of vision” (Democrat and Chronicle), is forming embodied music and multimedia a young American percussion soloist and artis- per formance that incorporates sound, video, tic collaborator. Since his concerto debut at age movement, theater, and sculptural objects. Kohl 18, Ferry has championed the works of living is a curator and ensemble member with the composers including Michael Daugherty, who acclaimed performance ensemble Mocrep, with has praised Ferry as “one of the most promising whom she has toured nationally and interna- and committed soloists of his generation.” A tionally. She has presented work and performed TEDx speaker, Ferry has collaborated with at the Art Institute of Chicago and the Museum choreographer Nick Pupillo at Chicago’s Harris of Contemporary Art Chicago, and held resi- Theater and abroad at the European Museum dencies at Mana Contemporary Chicago, High of Modern Glass, where he was nominated for Concept, DFBRL8R Performance Art Gallery, the Coburg Prize. An alumnus of the Eastman and Stanford University. As an improviser, Kohl School of Music, Ferry graduated with the first- performs regularly around Chicago and with ever John Beck Percussion Scholarship, an Arts ZRL, her clarinet/percussion/cello trio. She also Leadership Program certificate, and the presti - plays with Chicago bands Whitney, OHMME, gious Performer’s Certificate recognizing out - and Circuit des Yeux and tours regularly with standing performing ability. Manual Cinema.

Zachary Good (clarinets) is an instrumentalist (clarinets and recorders) and performer from STAFF & CREATIVE TEAM Pittsburgh. Now based in Chicago, he is a free- lance musician, educator, and founding mem - Lizi Breit (puppet designer, MC associate de- ber of the performance group Mocrep. Along signer) is a Chicago-based artist working pri- with Manual Cinema, Good has enjoyed per- marily in illustration, animation, sculpture,

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ABOUT THE ARTISTS and performance. She has been working with Shelby graduated from the Uni ver sity of Cen - Manual Cinema since 2011 and is currently tral Florida with a BFA in stage management serving as associate designer. Breit is an artistic and has stage managed regionally all over the associate with the Neo-Futurists and a former country. Thank you to Manual Cinema for these member of Blair Thomas & Co. Her internet amazing opportunities! self lives at www.lizibreit.com. Rasean Davonte Johnson (projections and Claire Chrzan (lighting designer) is excited to scenic design) is delighted to be working again collaborate with Manual Cinema again after with Manual Cinema, following his previous previously designing No Blue Memories: The involvement with Lula del Ray and Fjords. A Life of Gwendolyn Brooks and The End of TV. Chicago-based video artist and theatrical Other credits include Evening at the Talk House, designer, he has also worked with Steppenwolf The Mutilated, and The Room (A Red Orchid); Theatre, The Hypocrites, Yale Repertory Thea - The? Unicorn? Hour?, Saturn Returns (The Neo- tre, Long Wharf Theatre, McCarter Theatre Futurists); The Distance, We’re Gonna Die Center, Geva Theatre Center, Berkshire Theatre (Haven Theatre); Caught (Sideshow Theatre Group, Alliance Theatre, the Ningbo Song and Company); After Miss Julie, The Night Season Dance Company, and B-Floor Theatre. Johnson (Strawdog Theatre Company); Peerless (First received his MFA degree from the Yale School Floor Theater); Pinocchio (Neverbird at Chicago of Drama. raseandavontejohnson.com. Children’s Theatre); Love and Human Remains, Good Person of Szechwan (Cor Theatre); The Ben Kauffman (composer, sound designer, Terrible (The New Colony);The Guardians, MC co-artistic director) is a composer, director, Uncle Bob (Mary-Arrchie); The Hero’s Journey, and inter active media artist, and a co-artistic Best Beloved: The Just So Stories, The Pied Piper director of Manual Cinema. His film and inter - (Forks and Hope Ensemble). Chrzan also works active work has been shown at the Jay Pritzker as a production stage manager for companies Pavilion and the Peggy Notebaert Nature Mu - including Hubbard Street’s HS2, the Joffrey seum in Chicago, and at CUNY’s Baruch Col- Ballet’s Joffrey Academy, and Alonzo King lege in New York City. Kauffman has lectured LINES Ballet. Clairechrzandesigns.com. and given workshops at the Metropolitan Mu seum of Art, New York University, and the Drew Dir (director, puppet designer, MC co- Parsons School of Design/The New School. His artistic director) is a writer, director, and puppet past composer/sound designer credits with designer. Previously, he served as Resident Dra - Manual Cinema include Ada/Ava, The End of maturg of Court Theatre and as a lecturer in TV, and the New York Times documentary The theater and performance studies at the Univer - Forger. Kauffman holds a master’s degree from sity of Chicago. Dir holds a master’s degree New York University’s Interactive Telecom - in text and performance studies from King’s muni ca tions Program (ITP). College London and the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art. Lara Musard (prop designer) serves as the prop manager at Court Theatre in Chicago, where Shelby Glasgow (live sound effects and video, Manual Cinema’s Frankenstein first premiered stage manager, MC company manager) joined in October of 2018. For this project, she worked Manual Cinema in September 2016 as the with Drew Dir to design and create the majority touring stage manager and company manager. of the two- and three-dimensional pieces seen She has since toured within the United States in the Victor Frankenstein sections of the story- and internationally with Ada/Ava, Lula del Ray, telling. (Having propped nearly 60 shows at Mementos Mori, The End of TV, and Manual Court Theatre over a 12-year period, Musard Cinema’s newest full-length show, Frankenstein. found Frankenstein to be, by far, the most

9 ABOUT THE ARTISTS

unique.) She is grateful for the experience of Golden Boy (Griffin Theater) and Mr. Burns working in this medium and proud to have (co-designed with Mara Blumenfeld and Thea - been part of the team. ter Wit).

Mike Usrey (sound engineer, MC tech director). Kyle Vegter (composer, sound designer, MC co- “That may be the most important thing to artistic director) is a composer, producer, and understand about humans. It is the unknown sound designer, and the managing artistic that defines our existence. We are constantly director of Manual Cinema. As a composer of searching, not just for answers to our questions, concert music, he has been commissioned but for new questions. We are explorers. We by groups including the Chicago Symphony explore our lives day by day, and we explore the Orches tra’s MusicNOW series, the Pacific galaxy trying to expand the boundaries of our Northwest Ballet, and Tigue. Vegter’s music and knowledge. And that is why I am here: not to sound design for theater and film has been seen conquer you with weapons or ideas, but to co - worldwide and commissioned by the New York exist and learn” (Benjamin Lafayette Sisko). Times, NPR’s Invisibilia, Topic (First Look Media), the Museum of Contemporary Art Mieka van der Ploeg (costume designer) has Chi cago, StoryCorps, the Art Institute of Chi - designed costumes for a host of Chicago cago, the Poetry Foundation, Hubbard Street theaters that includes Lookingglass Theatre, Dance, the O, Miami Poetry Festival, and Chi cago Shakespeare Theatre, The Hypocrites, others. His past composer/sound designer Chicago Children’s Theatre, About Face Thea - credits with Manual Cinema include Lula del tre, the House Theatre, Next Theatre, Griffin Ray, Ada/Ava, Fjords, Mementos Mori, The End Theatre, the Building Stage, Albany Park of TV, and various other performance and Thea ter Project, Dog and Pony Theatre, and video projects. Vegter has been an artist-in- Manual Cinema. She is proud to be an artistic residence at High Concept Laboratories and co- associate at About Face Theatre. Van der Ploeg founded Chicago’s only contemporary classical has re ceived Jeff Award nominations for music cassette label, Parlour Tapes+.

10 CREDITS

For all North, Central, and South American DEVELOPMENT booking enquiries please contact: Taun Miller Wright, Chief Development Officer Laura Colby, Director, Elsie Management Elizabeth Meyer, Director of Institutional Giving [email protected] Jennifer Sime, Associate Director of Tel: +1 718 797 4577 Development, Individual Giving www.elsieman.org Jamie McClave, Individual Giving and Special Events Officer Exclusive Asian touring representation: Alex Higgins, Director of Annual Fund Broadway Asia Company EDUCATION AND COMMUNITY PROGRAMS [email protected] Rica Anderson, Interim Director, Artistic Literacy Tel: +1 212 203 9986 Laura Abrams, Artistic Residencies and Public www.broadwayasia.com Engagement Manager

HUMAN RESOURCES For Cal Performances at Home Judy Hatch, Human Resources Director Tiffani Snow, Producer Shan Whitney, Human Resources Generalist Jeremy Little, Technical Director MARKETING AND COMMUNICATIONS For Ibis Productions, Inc. Jenny Reik, Director of Marketing and Jeremy Robins, Post-Production Video Engineer Communications Zach Herchen, Post-Production Audio Engineer Ron Foster-Smith, Associate Director of Marketing For Future Tense Media Mark Van Oss, Communications Editor Jesse Yang, Creative Director Louisa Spier, Public Relations Manager Cheryl Games, Digital Platform Program For Cal Performances Manager Jeanette Peach, Public Relations Senior Associate EXECUTIVE OFFICE Jeremy Geffen, Executive and Artistic Director Elise Chen, Email Production Associate Kelly Brown, Executive Assistant to the Director Lynn Zummo, New Technology Coordinator Terri Washington, Social Media and Digital ADMINISTRATION Content Specialist Andy Kraus, Director of Strategy and Administration OPERATIONS Calvin Eng, Chief Financial Officer Doug Warrick, General Manager Rafael Soto, Finance Specialist Jeremy Little, Production Manager Marilyn Stanley, Finance Specialist Alan Herro, Production Admin Manager Gawain Lavers, Applications Programmer Kevin Riggall, Head Carpenter Ingrid Williams, IT Support Analyst Matt Norman, Head Electrician Sean Nittner, Systems Administrator Tom Craft, Audio/Video Department Head Jo Parks, Video Engineer ARTISTIC PLANNING Amy Ferrara, Event Manager/Greek Theatre Katy Tucker, Director of Artistic Planning Tiffani Snow, Event Manager Robin Pomerance, Artistic Administrator Ginarose Perino, Rental Business Manager Rob Bean, Event Operations Manager Marybeth Baluyot, Assistant Manager, Audience Services Loretta Hill, Office Manager

11 CREDITS

STAGE CREW TICKET OFFICE Charles Clear, Senior Scene Technician Liz Baqir, Ticket Services Manager David Ambrose, Senior Scene Technician Gordon Young, Assistant Ticket Office Manager Jacob Heule, Senior Scene Technician Sherice Jones, Assistant Ticket Office Manager Jorg Peter “Winter” Sichelschmidt, Jeffrey Mason, Patron Services Associate Senior Scene Technician Joseph Swails, Senior Scene Technician Mark Mensch, Senior Scene Technician Opening fanfare used by permission from Jordi Mathison Ott, Senior Scene Technician Savall from his 2015 recording of Monteverdi's Mike Bragg , Senior Scene Technician L'Orfeo on Alia Vox. Ricky Artis, Senior Scene Technician Robert Haycock, Senior Scene Technician Major support for the Cal Performances STUDENT MUSICAL ACTIVITIES Digital Classroom is provided by Wells Fargo. Brad Brennan, Director, Student Musical Activities Mark Sumner, Director, UC Choral Ensembles Major support for Beyond the Stage is provided Bill Ganz, Associate Director, by Bank of America. UC Choral Ensembles Matthew Sadowski, Director, Cal Marching Band calperformances.org Ted Moore, Director, UC Jazz Ensembles © 2020 Regents of the University of California Brittney Nguyen, SMA Coordinator

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