LIVE-STREAM PERFORMANCES Thursday, December 17, 2020, 5pm Friday, December 18, 2020, 7pm Saturday, December 19, 2020, 1pm

Manual Cinema’s Christmas Carol A Cal Performances Co-commission

Production Credits A Manual Cinema Production Adapted from the novel by Charles Dickens Written by the Manual Cinema Artistic Directors: Drew Dir, Sarah Fornace, Ben Kauffman, Julia Miller, and Kyle Vegter Storyboards: Drew Dir Original Music and Sound Design: Ben Kauffman and Kyle Vegter Puppet Design: Drew Dir with Lizi Breit Puppet Build Assistants: Sarah Fornace and Julia Miller Outside Eye: Sarah Fornace with Julia Miller Additional Video Puppetry: Drew Dir Costume Design: Maddy Low Set Design: Julia Miller and Kyle Vegter Aunt Trudy Lighting Design: Andrew Morgan Violin Performance: Amanda Bailey Technical Director and Sound Engineer: Mike Usrey Stage Manager, Video Mixing, and Live Sound Effects: Shelby Sparkle Streaming and UX: Ben Kauffman Production Manager: Julia Miller Creative Producer: Laura Colby, Elsie Management

CAST Lizi Breit (Puppeteer) Sarah Fornace (Puppeteer) Ben Kauffman (Keys, Piano, Lead Vocals) N. LaQuis Harkins (Aunt Trudy/Puppeteer) Julia Miller (Puppeteer, Live DP, News Anchor) Kyle Vegter (Cello, Keys, Bass, Vocals)

1 ABOUT THE ARTISTS

anual Cinema is an Emmy Award- Lizi Breit (puppeteer, puppet design) is a winning performance collective, -based artist working pri marily in Mdesign studio, and film/video pro- illustration, animation, sculpture, and per - duction company founded in 2010 by Drew formance. She has been working with Manual Dir, Sarah Fornace, Ben Kauffman, Julia Miller, Cinema since 2011 and is currently serving as and Kyle Vegter. The company combines hand- associate designer. Breit is an artistic associate made shadow puppetry, cinematic tech niques, with the Neo-Futurists and a former member of and innovative sound and music to create im- Blair Thomas & Co. Her internet self lives at mersive stories for stage and screen. Using vin- www.lizibreit.com. tage overhead projectors, multiple sc reens, puppets, actors, live feed cameras, multi-chan- Drew Dir (co-artistic director) is a writer, direc- nel sound design, and a live music ensemble, tor, and puppet designer. Previously, he served Manual Cinema transforms the experience of as Resident Drama turg of and as attending the cinema and imbues it with live- a lecturer in theater and performance studies at ness, ingenuity, and theatricality. The company the Univer sity of Chicago. Dir holds a master’s received an Emmy Award in 2017 for The degree in text and performance studies from Forger, a video created for the New York Times, King’s College London and the Royal Academy and was named Chicago Artists of the Year in of Dramatic Art. 2018 by the . Manual Cinema has been presented by, Sarah Fornace (co-artistic director) is a director, worked in collaboration with, or brought its puppeteer, choreographer, and narrative work to the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the designer based in Chicago, and a co-artistic Brooklyn Academy of Music, and the Under director of Manual Cinema. Outside of Manual the Radar Festival (New York City); the Cinema, Fornace has worked as a performer Kimmel Center (Philadelphia); the O, Miami and/or choreographer with Redmoon Theatre, Poetry Festival; Arts Emerson (Boston); the Lookingglass Theatre Company, Court Theatre, Yale Rep er tory Theatre; the MuseumSteppenwolf of Garage, and Blair Thomas and Co. Contemporary Art Chicago; the Kennedy Cen - Most recently, she wrote the story mode for ter (Washington, DC); the Ace Hotel Theater the video game Rivals of Aether. In 2017, For- (Los Angeles), La Monnaie–DeMunt (Brus - nace directed and edited the first episode of sels); the Noorderzon Festival (Netherlands); the web series The Doula is IN. In 2016, she the Tehran International Puppet Festival (Iran); directed and devised an “animotion” pro - the King Abdulaziz Cen ter for World Culture duction of Shakespeare’s Hamlet with Rokoko (Saudi Arabia), the Hakawy International Arts Studios for Ham letScen at Kromborg Castle in Festival (Cairo), the Edinburgh Fringe Festival, Elsinore, Denmark. and elsewhere around the world. The company has also colla borated with the th ree-time N. LaQuis Harkins (Aunt Trudy) was born and Grammy Award-winning Eighth Blackbird raised in Chicago, Illinois and is a graduate of and Hub bard Street Dance (Chi cago); theNew Howard University. Since her initial work in York Times and Story Corps (New York City); Rhyme Deferred with Hip-Hop Theatre Junc - Pop-Up Maga zine (San Francisco); Nu Deco tion, Harkins has been involved in Chicago Ensemble (Miami); the New York Times best- productions including Repairing a Nation, How selling author Reif Larsen; NPR’s Invisibilia; We Got On, and Blues for an Alabama Sky; in Topic magazine; the Grammy Award-winning Manual Cinema’s own No Blue Memories; and Esperanza Spalding; Erratica (Lon don); and the in various commercials and independent films. Belgian Royal Opera (Brussels). She recently produced her first short film, For more, visit www.manualcienema.com. Kayla’s Light, about a family in Chicago dealing with tragic loss. Harkins is grateful and honored to return to work with the magical Manual

2 Cinema for such a delightful and modern twist gluing things together, Lowe co-curates Nasty, on a classic. Brutish & Short, the quarterly puppet slam at Links Hall. Her original performance work has Ben Kauffman (co-artistic director) is a been seen around Chicago in living rooms, composer, director, and interactive media artist, bars, DIY spaces, and various theaters. Lowe is and a co-artistic director of Manual Cinema. a graduate of Northwestern University and the His film and inter active work has been shown at School at Steppenwolf. the and the Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum in Chicago, and at Julia Miller (co-artistic director) is a director, CUNY’s Baruch College in New York City. puppeteer, and puppet designer. With Manual Kauffman has lectured and given workshops Cinema, she has directed Mementos Mori and at the Metropolitan Mu seum of Art, New York The End of TV and created original roles in University, and the Parsons School of Design/ Frankenstein (The Creature/Elizabeth),Ada/ The New School. His past composer/sound Ava (Ada), Lula del Ray (Lula’s Mother), The designer credits with Manual Cinema include Magic City (Helen), and Hansel und Gretel Ada/Ava, The End of TV,and the New York (Hansel). In Chicago, she has worked as a per - Times documentary The Forger. Kauffman holds former and puppeteer with Redmoon Thea tre a master’s degree from New York Univer sity’s and Blair Thomas and Co. Miller spent several Interactive Telecommuni ca tions Program (ITP). years training in devised theater, clown, and mask with Double Edge Theatre and Carlos Maddy Lowe (costume designer) is a costume García Estevez, as well as at the Accademia dell’ designer, puppeteer, and performer from Arte in Arezzo, Italy. She is a co-producer and Illinois. Past costume work includes Manual director of several episodes of the new web Cinema’s Frankenstein, Rough House Theater’s series The Doula is IN. Cicada Summer, The Skin of Our Teeth, and Bloomsday at Remy Bumppo; The Secretaries Andrew Morgan (Aunt Trudy lighting design) with About Face; and several productions at has been working professionally as a director, Lookingglass Theatre. When not sewing and cinematographer, and editor since graduating

3 ABOUT THE ARTISTS

from Columbia College Chicago in 2008. In galaxy trying to expand the boundaries of our 2009, he formed Little Cabin Films with friend knowledge. And that is why I am here: not to and business partner Nick Nummerdor. As conquer you with weapons or ideas, but to co - co-director and producer of Vannin’ (2013), exist and learn” (Benjamin Lafayette Sisko). Morgan saw his first feature film go from con- ception to successful distribution via streaming Kyle Vegter (co-artistic director) is a composer, services such as Amazon Prime. Morgan has producer, and sound designer, and the also acted as a producer, director, and cine- managing artistic director of Manual Cinema. matographer on two short documentaries— As a composer of concert music, he has been North Branch (2018) and Hill Climb (2017)—that commissioned by groups including the Chicago both focus on unique aspects of Americana. His Symphony Orches tra’s MusicNOW series, the mosts recent documentary, Sleeze Lake: Vanlife Pacific Northwest Ballet, and Tigue. Vegter’s at its Lowest & Best, will screen at CUFF & SF- music and sound design for theater and film has DOCS. Most recently, Morgan found himself been seen worldwide and commissioned by the as director of photography for Manual Cinema’s New York Times, NPR’s Invisibilia, Topic (First shadow puppetry material to be included in Look Media), the Museum of Contemporary the 2021 release of Monkey Paw Productions’ Art Chi cago, StoryCorps, the Art Institute of Candyman, directed by Nia DaCosta. Chi cago, the Poetry Foundation, Hubbard Street Dance, the O, Miami Poetry Festival, and Shelby Sparkle (stage manager) is grateful to others. His past composer/sound designer have the opportunity to work on this gorgeous credits with Manual Cinema include Lula del production with these amazing humans dur- Ray, Ada/Ava, Fjords, Mementos Mori, The End ing these uncertain times. Sparkle has been of TV, and various other performance and with Manual Cinema for four years, stage man- video projects. Vegter has been an artist-in- aging several touring productions that have residence at High Concept Laboratories and co- taken her across the United States and around founded Chicago’s only contemporary classical the world, while also overseeing these touring music cassette label, Parlour Tapes+. operations as company manager. Before join- ing Manual Cinema, Sparkle stage-managed plays all over Chicago with companies includ- CREDITS ing Sideshow Theatre Company, , and the Strange Tree Group. She then Manual Cinema’s Christmas Carol was made pos- went on to stage manage all over the country, sible by the contributions of co-commissioners: including for various experimental theater Cal Performances at the University of California, projects with graduate students at the A.R.T. Berkeley; COCA – Center of Creative Arts; College Institute, school touring productions with of Saint Benedict/Saint John’s University; Kahilu ArtsPower, and an opera with Dell’Arte Opera Theatre; Krannert Center for the Performing Ensemble. But nothing has brought her as Arts/University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign; much joy as working and traveling with the in- Millersville University – The Ware and Winter Centers; Moss Arts Center, Virginia Tech; Stanford credibly talented artists, puppeteers, and mu- Live; Southern Illinois University Edwardsville’s sicians of Manual Cinema. Arts & Issues; Younes and Soraya Nazarian Center for the Performing Arts at California State Mike Usrey (technical director and sound engi- University, Northridge; Williams Center for the neer). “That may be the most important thing to Arts, Lafayette College; and Writers Theatre, with understand about humans. It is the unknown substantial in-kind commissioning support from that defines our existence. We are constantly Marquee TV; additional commissioning support searching, not just for answers to our questions, from South Miami-Dade Cultural Arts Center, but for new questions. We are explorers. We and support from the Newman Center for the explore our lives day by day, and we explore the Performing Arts at University of Denver.

4 Presenting Partners For Cal Performances at Home Arizona Arts Live; Carlsen Center, Johnson Tiffani Snow, Producer County Community College; Chico Performances Jeremy Little, Technical Director at Cali fornia State University, Chico; Clovis Com - munity College Cultural Arts Series; Des Moines For Ibis Productions, Inc. Per forming Arts; Hult Center for the Performing Jeremy Robins, Video Director Arts; Irvine Barclay Theatre; Maui Arts & Cultural Zach Herchen, Audio Engineer Center; OzArts; Purdue Convocations; Rozsa Center for the Performing Arts; Santiago a Mil; For Future Tense Media Seattle Theatre Group; Society for the Performing Jesse Yang, Creative Director Arts; Texas Performing Arts; Warren Miller Performing Arts Center; and the Weis Center for For Cal Performances the Per form ing Arts at Bucknell University. EXECUTIVE OFFICE Jeremy Geffen, Executive and Artistic Director Video Stream delivered by Marquee. Kelly Brown, Executive Assistant to the Director

ADMINISTRATION For all North, Central, and South American Andy Kraus, Director of Strategy and booking enquiries, please contact: Administration Laura Colby, Director, Elsie Management Calvin Eng, Chief Financial Officer [email protected] Rafael Soto, Finance Specialist Tel: 1 718 797 4577 Marilyn Stanley, Finance Specialist www.elsieman.org Gawain Lavers, Applications Programmer

Ingrid Williams, IT Support Analyst Exclusive Asian Touring representation: Sean Nittner, Systems Administrator Broadway Asia Company [email protected] ARTISTIC PLANNING Tel: 1 212 203 9986 Katy Tucker, Director of Artistic Planning www.broadwayasia.com Robin Pomerance, Artistic Administrator manualcinema.com

5 CREDITS

DEVELOPMENT STAGE CREW Taun Miller Wright, Chief Development Officer Charles Clear, Senior Scene Technician Elizabeth Meyer, Director of Institutional Giving David Ambrose, Senior Scene Technician Jennifer Sime, Associate Director of Jacob Heule, Senior Scene Technician Development, Individual Giving Jorg Peter “Winter” Sichelschmidt, Jamie McClave, Individual Giving Senior Scene Technician and Special Events Officer Joseph Swails, Senior Scene Technician Alex Higgins, Director of Annual Fund Mark Mensch, Senior Scene Technician Jocelyn Aptowitz, Major Gifts Associate Mathison Ott, Senior Scene Technician Mike Bragg , Senior Scene Technician EDUCATION AND COMMUNITY PROGRAMS Ricky Artis, Senior Scene Technician Rica Anderson, Interim Director, Artistic Literacy Robert Haycock, Senior Scene Technician

HUMAN RESOURCES STUDENT MUSICAL ACTIVITIES Judy Hatch, Human Resources Director Mark Sumner, Director, UC Choral Ensembles Shan Whitney, Human Resources Generalist Bill Ganz, Associate Director, UC Choral Ensembles MARKETING AND COMMUNICATIONS Jenny Reik, Director of Marketing and Matthew Sadowski, Director, Cal Marching Band Communications Ted Moore, Director, UC Jazz Ensembles Ron Foster-Smith, Associate Director of Brittney Nguyen, SMA Coordinator Marketing TICKET OFFICE Mark Van Oss, Communications Editor Liz Baqir, Ticket Services Manager Louisa Spier, Public Relations Manager Gordon Young, Assistant Ticket Office Manager Cheryl Games, Digital Platform Program Sherice Jones, Assistant Ticket Office Manager Manager Jeffrey Mason, Patron Services Associate Jeanette Peach, Public Relations Senior Associate Elise Chen, Email Production Associate Opening fanfare used by permission from Jordi Lynn Zummo, New Technology Coordinator Savall from his 2015 recording of Monteverdi's Terri Washington, Social Media and Digital L'Orfeo on Alia Vox. Content Specialist

OPERATIONS Jeremy Little, Production Manager Major support for the Cal Performances Alan Herro, Production Admin Manager Digital Classroom is provided by Wells Fargo. Kevin Riggall, Head Carpenter Major support for Beyond the Stage is provided Matt Norman, Head Electrician by Bank of America. Tom Craft, Audio/Video Department Head Jo Parks, Video Engineer calperformances.org Tiffani Snow, Event Manager Ginarose Perino, Rental Business Manager © 2020 Regents of the University of California Rob Bean, Event Operations Manager

6