THROW ME ON THE BURNPILE AND LIGHT ME UP
BY LUCY ALIBAR DIRECTED BY RYAN RILETTE ROUND HOUSE’S LEADERSHIP From
NE OF THE KEY IDEAS THAT DRIVES OUR PROGRAMMING CHOICES As you watch Throw Me On the Burnpile and Light Me Up, we encourage you O at Round House is to produce plays written by and about people who have to consider the ways that we as a society discard those who have the least. Daddy been historically underrepresented or misrepresented on American stages. Throw Me asks Lamby where all the educated people were when things were being turned into on the Burnpile and Light Me Up is no different. White people from the South may not trash. It’s a question we should all grapple with. We hope that this production helps seem to fit that description, but rarely have white rural poverty and the violence and you to do so. fear that accompany it been seen on American stages with the clarity depicted here. At the same time, this is a frequently hilarious play that also underlines the joy This is a play about “Southern white trash.” We use the word “trash” here, despite its that Lamby’s finds in herself, her family, and her friends. It’s a theme that carries racist and classist derogatory meaning, because it’s a word that playwright Lucy Alibar over into our next show, which wraps up our spring virtual season. While it may uses throughout this semi-autobiographical, one-woman play. In the world of this play, seem counterintuitive to present a play titled We’re Gonna Die in the midst of a global the trash of history is literally seeping up through the ground, and, together with the pandemic, Young Jean Lee’s musical play is a perfect antidote for our time. We hope trash of lives lost to the criminal justice system, is collected in a giant trash pile in the you will join us for this one-woman show, performed with a four-person band, which playwright’s yard. “Trash” is also the term given to the criminals Daddy represents, to finds joy and comfort in life’s inanities and inevitabilities. Daddy himself as well as his family for consorting with them, and to the poorest and Stay tuned for information about our return to live performance this fall. As always, most vulnerable students in Lamby’s school. It’s an all-purpose word that’s used to the safety of our audiences, artists, and staff will remain paramount. Thank you for describe anyone and anything we throw away in our society. being a part of keeping Round House thriving through the pandemic. We remain In describing to Lamby why he represents killers on death row, Daddy tells the story of extraordinarily grateful. one of his clients who was treated like trash his whole life—too poor to get the mental help he needed, never educated, given drugs at an early age. Daddy says, “They just leave him out there, hoping he’ll run off to the woods and die. Well, surprise! They do run off to the woods and die, eventually, but not before taking a hell of a lot more RYAN RILETTE | ARTISTIC DIRECTOR ED ZAKRESKI | MANAGING DIRECTOR people with them.” It’s partly our fault as a society that this man has turned into a killer, Daddy is saying. If the system was set up to take care of those most in need instead of discarding them, then perhaps he wouldn’t have committed the horrible atrocities that he did.
1 ROUND HOUSE THEATRE EXTENDS ITS ROUND HOUSE THEATRE DEEP GRATITUDE TO ALL OF OUR RYAN RILETTE, Artistic Director, and SPONSORS FOR THE 2020-2021 VIRTUAL SEASON ED ZAKRESKI , Managing Director
PRESENT Round House Theatre’s 2020-2021 Reimagined Virtual Season is sponsored by THROW ME ON THE MITCH & HEIDI DUPLER LINDA RAVDIN & DON SHAPERO BURNPILE THE ZICKLER FAMILY AND LIGHT ME UP
BY LUCY ALIBAR DIRECTED BY RYAN RILETTE It is my great pleasure to sponsor Round House Theatre’s production of Throw Me on the Burnpile and Light Me Up. I first experienced Lucy Alibar’s distinctive voice and powerful storytelling through her Oscar-nominated screenplay for Beasts of the Southern Wild, and was moved by her ability to tell complex stories with the clarity of a child’s mind. I am CREATIVE TEAM honored to help bring this remarkable talent to Scenic Designer...... PAIGE HATHAWAY the Round House stage.” Costume Designer...... IVANIA STACK Lighting Designer ...... HAROLD F. BURGESS II —NAN BECKLEY Sound Design & Original Music . . . . . MATTHEW M. NIELSON Dialect Coach...... MELISSA FLAIM Dramaturg ...... NAYSAN MOJGANI During a year in which our ‘normal’ Assistant Scenic Designer ...... ANDREW COHEN interactions were upended, Throw Me on the Production Stage Manager...... CHE WERNSMAN* Burnpile and Light Me Up offers an opportunity Director of Photography...... MABOUD EBRAHIMZADEH to examine how we perceive of and connect with others. We are honored to help bring this comedic yet moving story to the Round House stage, and we offer our heartfelt thanks to all Running Time approximately 95 minutes with no intermission. of those who have supported Round House, the theatrical jewel of Bethesda, throughout this challenging time. We look forward to gathering Center Theatre Group/Kirk Douglas Theatre, Michael Ritchie, Artistic Director, produced the World Premiere of Throw Me on the at the theatre again as soon as we are able." Burnpile and Light Me Up in Los Angeles, CA in 2016.
—PATTI AND JERRY SOWALSKY Produced by LCT3/Lincoln Center Theater, New York City in 2018.
2 A CAST CONVERSATION Lamby...... BETH HYLTON* WITH PRODUCTION Production Technical Director. . . JOSE ABRAHAM LUCY ALIBAR, Props Coordinator...... MATT SAXTON Location Audio ...... MATTHEW M. NIELSON PLAYWRIGHT Camera Operators...... JOHN GROVE, NATE PESCE Electrician / Light NAYSAN MOJGANI: I know that this play is Board Programmer...... CASSANDRA SAULSKI a work of fiction, but is it fair to say that it’s inspired Production Assistant...... NIEW BHARYAGUNTRA by your own childhood? LUCY ALIBAR: I drew on experiences from POST PRODUCTION my own life, which I think many writers do. Russel T. Editor ...... MABOUD EBRAHIMZADEH Davies wrote this incredible show, It’s a Sin, and for Sound Editing & Mix ...... MATTHEW M. NIELSON me this play lives in that same sphere. Drawn from memory, trying to work from the perspective that a very young person had at a turbulent time without trying too hard to comment on it. Full staff listing on page 12 N: And then there are some parallels between you and Lamby in the play, as well as between your father and hers, yes? L: There’s definitely similarities between myself and Lamby. I was very lonely, very desperate for friends,
The Scenic, Costume, Lighting, and Sound Designers of this production and I was just so weird. And in this play, I tried to are represented by United Scenic Artists, Local USA 829 of the IATSE. focus on my perception of my father that I had at nine years old. The father in the play certainly has some of mine’s better aspects. Their senses of humor are very similar. N: And they’re both rural defense lawyers. L: Yeah. With my dad’s work, I saw up close the *Actors’ Equity Association (“Equity”), founded in 1913, is the U.S. failings of the criminal justice system, the healthcare labor union that represents more than 51,000 professional Actors and Stage Managers. Equity fosters the art of live theatre as an essential system… I saw how they let people down. component of society and advances the careers of its members by N: Thinking about your work in general—Beasts of negotiating wages, improving working conditions and providing a wide range of benefits, including health and pension plans. Actors’ Equity the Southern Wild, Troop Zero—that father-daughter is a member of the AFL-CIO and is affiliated with FIA, an international relationship seems like a story you keep coming back organization of performing arts unions. #EquityWorks to, as does the relationship to the South. Why is that? What do you find so compelling in those stories? L: The simplest answer is, I’m from the South, so
3 IN DEFENSE OF DEFENSE BY NAYSAN MOJGANI
N THROW ME ON THE BURNPILE AND LIGHT ME UP, LAMBY’S FATHER IS a lawyer whom we mostly see defending the people nobody else wants to defend: I those who have committed heinous crimes and don’t have the money to hire anybody else. Others in town scorn both Lamby and her father as a result, asking how he could defend such actions. After Lamby sees the crime scene photos from one of these cases, she asks her father the same question. “I’m defending Gary Dwayne Atkins. I’m not defending A vindictive voice what he did. I’m not trying to prove he’s innocent. inside us whispers He doesn’t have anybody else, Boss. And I took an “that they’re just that’s very familiar territory and tends to be my default. But I also think you write oath to defend this guy when I took an oath to defend as bad as their about the things that you can’t understand, the things that keep you up at night. the United States Constitution. And we have a good There’s not a clear road map for father-daughter stories. In every generation, the Constitution that says no matter how sorry a piece of clients, that they’re role of the father is remarkably different. The expectations are different. And family trash you are, you deserve a defender. You deserve a parasites, that to family, the father-daughter relationships are different. But it was rare that I saw fight for Life over Death.” they’re scum, that those relationships onscreen. And it’s just a puzzle I’ve always returned to. This isn’t a foreign idea to any of us. The right to they’re immoral.” N: And the South? What about that environment “keeps counsel (part of the Sixth Amendment) and the The world seemed you up at night?” presumption of innocence are both fundamental to our justice system. These principles apply regardless of who the defendant is, or of what crimes they are an incredible L: Well, the sense of faith and Christianity in the South is accused. Most of us would agree with and endorse these principles as true and just “kaleidoscope that interesting, because we were not that. In that sense, I was and real. As theoretical ideals, anyway. an outsider and could never be a part of that. But you I was never quite can’t escape religion and faith the South—it’s in the air. We can all think of cases and defendants that test the limits of those ideals. From a part of.” So it gave me this incredible love of language very early famous football players to violent police officers to stomach-turning acts of assault, on. The King James Bible is one of the most beautiful when we see somebody that we know did something terrible go free, it just feels English-language texts, and being around people who felt that love for God, higher wrong. We point to it as a failure of our justice system. And we blame the power, creator… That was humbling and interesting. The world seemed an incredible kaleidoscope that I was never quite a part of. N: You’ve compared this play to storytelling. What does that form mean to you? L: Somebody talking to you and you just hear this amazing story… When I first saw Spalding Gray’s Swimming to Cambodia, it just blew my mind that theatre could be that. You’re just talking to a man in a flannel shirt, and he’s just talking about his mom, but it goes one way and it circles back. You’re just hearing about this experience of him having a small role in a movie, but you’re getting this whole thing, you’re going on this huge journey. I’ve always wanted to live there, when I go to the theatre… That’s what I always aspire to do.
4 lawyers. A vindictive voice inside us whispers that they’re just as bad as their clients, that they’re parasites, that they’re scum, that they’re immoral. THE SIXTH AMENDMENT & RIGHT And some of them may be. Some of them are just in it for the money. Some of them convince themselves that their clients are innocent. But they all are doing a necessary TO COUNSEL (A BRIEF HISTORY) job without which—to the degree our justice system works—our justice system could not work, and those ideals to which we pay lip service would bear no resemblance to SIXTH AMENDMENT: actual lived experience. 1791 While Throw Me on the Burnpile… is a piece of fiction, it—like most works of art— “In all criminal prosecutions, the accused shall enjoy the right to draws elements from the life of its creator, Lucy Alibar. Specifically, Lucy’s father, Baya a speedy and public trial, by an impartial jury of the State and M. Harrison III, is a private defense attorney, who also serves as a court-appointed district wherein the crime shall have been committed, which attorney for those who are unable to afford to hire one—this practice serves to district shall have been previously ascertained by law, and to alleviate the pressure on public defenders’ offices with too many cases (or can be the be informed of the nature and cause of the accusation; to be only indigent defense option in jurisdictions without a public defender). Harrison has confronted with the witnesses against him; to have compulsory worked on several capital cases in his career. process for obtaining witnesses in his favor, and to have the Assistance of Counsel for his defence.” One of those was the case of John Ruthell Henry, who murdered his estranged wife and her 5-year-old son. Harrison took on the case in the appeal phase and represented his client for 14 years, managing appeal after appeal. He represented his client literally to COFFIN V. UNITED STATES: the end, receiving a call from the Supreme Court denying a last-minute appeal about 1895 one hour before Henry was pronounced dead after his execution by lethal injection. Explicitly codified the presumption of innocence (“innocent until Harrison did not deny that Henry committed the crimes for which he was executed, proven guilty”) nor did he claim that Henry was a good man. But like the father in Burnpile, he took an oath. Because everyone deserves a defender. POWELL V. ALABAMA: Although the right to counsel was established as part of the Sixth Amendment in 1791, 1932 it wasn’t until a series of Supreme Court cases beginning in 1932 that that right gained “The Scottsboro Boys” case; established that the right to counsel real meaning. Prior to that, a defendant who didn’t know about the Sixth Amendment, means a right to effective counsel and (at least in capital cases) or couldn’t afford a lawyer, had no counsel, no advocate. There was no guarantee that those who could not afford an attorney were entitled to have their rights were protected or that the laws were followed. Almost 100 years later, the one appointed thankless but necessary job of allowing (or, perhaps, forcing) us to live by the ideals we all claim to believe in falls to these lawyers and public defenders who defend the defenseless. JOHNSON V. ZERBST: 1938 Expanded the right to be appointed an attorney to all federal cases
GIDEON V. WAINWRIGHT: 1963 “My father once said: ‘To keep our society free and Expanded that right to state felonies democratic, someone has to do your job, and do it well.’ Then he paused and said: ‘I'm just really sorry it's you.’ I feel the same way.” ARGERSINGER V. HAMLIN: —John Henry Browne, Defense Attorney for Ted Bundy; 1972 Further expanded that right to cover any case where imprisonment June 27, 2014, The Guardian was a possibility
5 BIOS PAIGE HATHAWAY (Scenic Designer) is a Round House Resident Artist, CAST returning after designing The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time; School Girls; Or, The African Mean Girls Play; A Doll’s House, Part 2; How I Learned to BETH HYLTON (Lamby) is very happy to return to Round Drive; The Book of Will; and Or, . Other DC credits include Right to be Forgotten House after appearing in Small Mouth Sounds; Handbagged; at Arena Stage; Ain't Misbehavin', John, and The Gulf at Signature Theatre; the and Rapture, Blister, Burn. Beth is a company member of Queens Girl Rep at Everyman; South Pacific, Thurgood, and Godspell at Olney Baltimore’s Everyman Theatre: some favorite recent performances Theatre Center; and Familiar at Woolly Mammoth. Regionally, she designed Matilda, include Blanche in A Streetcar Named Desire, Rosemary Cinderella, Jerome Robbins’ Broadway, and A Chorus Line at the Muny; A in Outside Mullingar, and Marie Antoinette in The Revolutionists. Midsummer Night’s Dream at Arden Theatre; and Sweat at Asolo Repertory DC-area credits include Appropriate and Collective Rage at Woolly Mammoth Theatre. Paige is a member of USA 829. She received her BFA from the University and The Heidi Chronicles at Rep Stage, as well as productions at Ford’s and Olney. of Oklahoma and MFA from the University of Maryland. PaigeHathawayDesign.com Favorite regional performances include Amanda in Private Lives at PICT; Nora in A Instagram: @paigehathawaydesign Doll’s House at Gulfshore Playhouse; Elvira in Blithe Spirit at Delaware Theatre Company; and The Woman in The 39 Steps at The Maltz-Jupiter. Other credits IVANIA STACK (Costume Designer) is delighted to return to Round House include PlayMakers Rep, Kennedy Theatre NC, Weston Playhouse, and Public Theatre Theatre, where she is currently a Resident Artist. Her work has been seen at many of Maine. regional and DC area theatres including Arena Stage, Woolly Mammoth Theatre Company (Company Member), Seattle Repertory Theatre, Ford’s Theatre, Kennedy Center Family Theatre, Center Stage, Everyman Theatre, The Second City, The Contemporary American Theatre Festival, Signature Theatre, Imagination Stage, CREATIVE TEAM Olney Theatre Center (Associate Artist), Studio Theatre, Theater J, Constellation Theatre, Andy’s Summer Playhouse, Pointless Theatre, Synetic Theatre, Forum LUCY ALIBAR (Playwright) has written for Zoetrope, Theatre, Theatre Alliance, Rorschach Theatre, The Karski Project, Metro Stage, and the Oxford American, and the Wall Street Journal. Her plays Gala Hispanic Theatre. She has an MFA in design from the University of Maryland, have been seen at Sundance Theatre Lab, National Theatre College Park. Studio, Joe’s Pub, Ojai Playwrights Conference, Berkeley Repertory Theatre, and Williamstown Theatre Festival. Her HAROLD F. BURGESS II (Lighting Designer) returns to Round House, where first movie, Beasts of the Southern Wild (an adaptation previous credits include Homebound; A Doll’s House, Part 2; and A Year with Frog with Benh Zeitlin of her play, Juicy and Delicious), received the Sundance Grand and Toad. DC credits include Breath Boom and My Children! My Africa! at Studio Jury Prize and the Cannes Film Festival Caméra d’Or. For her work on Beasts , she Theatre; Aubergine, Thurgood, and Grounded at Olney Theatre Center; Trayf , Broken was nominated for the Scripter, BAFTA, and Academy Award. Alibar is the winner Glass, Another Way Home, and The Sisters Rosensweig at Theatre J; Big River at of the Ray Bradbury Nebula Award, the Humanitas Prize, and the Nantucket Film Adventure Theatre; and Unexplored Interior at Mosaic Theatre Company. Regional Festival New Voices in Screenwriting Award. She is a Sundance Screenwriting Fellow. credits include Be Here Now, Murder on the Orient Express, Radio Golf, Dinner With She’s since been privileged to work for Pixar, Escape Artists/Amazon, Julia Roberts/ Friends, The Importance of Being Earnest, Sweat , Aubergine, Dot, and Death of A New Line Cinema, and Guillermo del Toro/Universal Studios (The Secret Garden). Salesman at Everyman Theatre; and productions for Rep Stage, Imagination Stage, Alibar is a Usual Suspect at New York Theatre Workshop and an associate editor at Northern Stage (VT), and several local universities. Harold is the recipient of a 2020 Oxford American. Maryland State Arts Council Independent Artist award. He holds an MFA from the University of Maryland and is the Director of the College Park Scholars Arts program. RYAN RILETTE (Director) Harold is a member of United Scenic Artists, Local 829. HaroldBurgessDesign. com Please see bio with Executive Leadership on page 9.
MATTHEW M. NIELSON (Sound Design & Original Music) returns to Round House, where design and composition credits include Homebound, Spring Awakening, The Legend of Georgia McBride, The Book of Will, Two Trains Running, Around the World in 80 Days, and A Prayer for Owen Meany. DC-area credits include Arena Stage, Ford’s Theatre, the Kennedy Center, Woolly Mammoth,
6 Signature Theatre, Olney Theatre Center, Studio Theatre, Theatre Alliance, CATF, Sounds; The Legend of Georgia McBride; Or, ; The Book of Will; and A Prayer for and The Smithsonian. Off-Broadway credits include The Public Theatre, Lincoln Owen Meany. Che has worked as an AEA Stage Manager in the DC/Baltimore Center, and 59e59. Regional credits include Denver Performing Arts Center, region for the past two decades, with shows at Imagination Stage, The National, Cincinnati Playhouse, Milwaukee Rep, Portland Center Stage, Actors Theatre of The Kennedy Center, Folger Theatre, Shakespeare Theatre Company, Theatre J, Louisville, Philadelphia Theatre Company, and Barrington Stage Company. Film/ Studio, Everyman, Rep Stage, Center Stage, and Olney Theatre Center. She earned a TV credits include Those Who Wait, The Hero Effect, Elbow Grease, From Hell Bachelor of Science from Virginia Tech. to Here, Discovery Channel, National Geographic, and Delivery.com. Matthew has won five Helen Hayes Awards and several regional theatre and film festival MABOUD EBRAHIMZADEH (Director of Photography) is a Round House awards. CuriousMusic.com Theatre Resident Artist, previously serving as Director of Photography for The Work of Adrienne Kennedy: Inspiration & Influence and Homebound and previously seen MELISSA FLAIM (Dialect Coach) is a professional actress, vocal coach, and in Homebound, The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time, Oslo, Small educator who lives and works in Washington, DC. Melissa has previously served as Mouth Sounds, The Book of Will, and Bengal Tiger at the Baghdad Zoo. Other Dialect Coach at Round House Theatre for their productions of The Curious Incident DC credits include The Price at Arena Stage; Oil and The Invisible Hand at Olney of the Dog in the Night-Time, Miss Bennett: Christmas at Pemberley, The Book of Theatre Center; Mockingbird at the Kennedy Center; King John and Timon of Will, and Handbagged–and is delighted to return for Throw Me on the Burnpile and Athens at Folger Theatre; Water by the Spoonful and Edgar & Annabel at Studio Light Me Up. She has worked as the Vocal Coach for The Folger Theatre, Woolly Theatre; and The Pillowman at Forum Theatre. Regional credits include Murder on Mammoth, Constellation Theatre, and WSC/Avant Bard, among others. As a member the Orient Express at Hartford Stage and McCarter Theatre; Disgraced at McCarter of the faculty at CUA, she has coached a number of productions including The Theatre and Milwaukee Rep; The Invisible Hand (Barrymore Award, Outstanding Laramie Project, Bloody Poetry, Pride and Prejudice, The Revolutionists, The Lead Actor) at Theatre Exile; The Liar at Gulfshore Playhouse; and The Container at Merchant of Venice, Tartuffe, The Cherry Orchard, and Love’s Labor’s Lost. Center Stage. Film and television credits include Jessica Jones, Imperium, and Sally Pacholok. MaboudEbrahimzadeh.com NAYSAN MOJGANI (Dramaturg) has recently joined the staff of Round House Theatre as Associate Artist for Literary & New Plays, in which capacity he serves as in-house dramaturg and leads the theatre's new work program. As a theatre scholar, director, and dramaturg, Naysan has worked on new and classic work with theatres around the country, including La Jolla Playhouse, MOXIE, Theatre de la Jeune Lune, Theatre Squared, Malashock Dance, and Arena Stage (where he previously served as Literary Manager), and has taught at UC San Diego and George Mason University. Naysan holds a PhD in Theatre & Drama from UC San Diego, and a BA from Carleton College. He currently lives in Northern Virginia with his wife and their two children.
ANDREW COHEN (Assistant Scenic Designer) is happy to be back at Round House, where he previously worked on Rapture, Blister, Burn. Off-Broadway credits include Where Words Once Were at Lincoln Center Theatre and Occupied Territories at 59E59. Regional credits include The Wanderers, The Jewish Queen Lear, and Broken Glass at Theater J; King John at Folger Theatre; The Crucible at Olney Theatre Center; Eureka Day and Satchmo at the Waldorf at Mosaic Theater Company; Earthrise and Darius & Twig at Kennedy Center TYA; and Charlotte’s Web and A Year with Frog and Toad at Imagination Stage. He received his MFA in Scenic Design from University of Maryland. andrewcohendesigns.com
CHE WERNSMAN (Production Stage Manager) is so happy to back for her fifth season at Round House! Some of her favorite RHT credits include The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time; School Girls; or, The African Mean Girls Play; Handbagged (Off-Broadway, Bethesda); Oslo; Gem of the Ocean; Small Mouth 7 THE COST OF TRASH BY NAYSAN MOJGANI
White trash. How often have you heard the phrase? Or used it yourself? Certain images and associations are conjured up: Trailer parks. Jeff Foxworthy. Uneducated. Lazy. NASCAR. Racism. Meth. Roseanne. Wife-beaters (both the article of clothing, and the more literal meaning). The South. Most importantly, however, “white trash” means “poor.” It’s one thing to dismiss a person as trash for their behavior, words, or beliefs. But when we write off individuals, communities, and even entire regions as “white trash,” we do so largely because of poverty. Trash is refuse. Waste. Something to be discarded. Something that is not wanted or needed, and that should be removed. Trash is taken to the outskirts of society, buried, and forgotten. There is a cost to that when we throw away literal trash—Styrofoam, and plastic bags, and CFCs. So naturally, there’s a cost to doing the same with human beings: a cost to those individuals, as well as to the rest of us. When we cast people out and label them trash, they band together. Who else can trash associate with, after all, other than more trash? And over time, as we tell them over and over that they are trash and treat them accordingly, they eventually accept the label and all that comes with it. And the rest of us people of color and LGBTQ+ folks in these communities as well, who suffer because take this as confirmation and justification for that label, they are surrounded by people who are living up to their label of trash. In Georgia, where and we tell ourselves that they deserve it or bring it on And, of course, eventually the worm turns. this play is set, the themselves. And we stop caring and we stop paying In the aftermath of the 2016 election, an entire cottage industry of class-based “childhood poverty attention and we stop trying to fix the situation. ruminations and analyses of American society popped up, the most notable example But that “trash” isn’t a monolith. rate in urban areas of which was, perhaps, J.D. Vance’s controversial Hillbilly Elegy, recently adapted into stays around 1 in 5, It’s trite to say “think of the children,” but think of the the universally panned film of the same name. While “economic anxiety” is certainly but for rural areas, children. Rural children are more likely to be affected by overblown as an explanation, the January insurrectionists do not seem to have been poverty than urban children—nationwide, those stats are primarily composed of the poor, and voting rates in poor rural counties are generally it’s 1 in 3.” 1 in 4 versus 1 in 5, but in some places it’s even higher. the lowest in the country. There is no denying that our current political dynamic is According to Save the Children (the actual reputable informed in no small part by the consequences of condemning and ignoring these organization with no connection to the slogan co-opted by QAnon), of the 41 counties parts of our country. with child poverty rates above 50% in 2016, 93% of those counties were rural. In “Round House is a theatre for everyone… We amplify voices that have been historically Georgia, where this play is set, the childhood poverty rate in urban areas stays around under-represented and under-resourced.” These words are part of our mission 1 in 5, but for rural areas, it’s 1 in 3. and values. The next time you hear the words “white trash”—from your mouth or Rural areas have less funding for schools, for prisons, for public defenders, for another’s—give some thought to what those words mean and where they came from. hospitals, for psychiatric services. Even trash need these things. There are plenty of And what the cost is.
8 OUR MISSION: OUR VALUES:
Round House is a theatre for everyone . THEATRE FOR EVERYONE | EXECUTIVE We enrich our community through bold, ARTISTIC AMBITION | outstanding theatrical and educational LEADERSHIP COMMUNITY | EMPATHY | experiences that inspire empathy and INTEGRITY RYAN RILETTE (Artistic Director) is in his ninth season as Artistic Director demand conversation . of Round House Theatre. During his tenure, he has produced five of the best- READ MORE AT selling and highest-attended seasons in the theatre’s history. His productions RoundHouseTheatre.org/MissionValues have received 57 Helen Hayes Awards nominations and 13 Helen Hayes Awards, including Outstanding Original New Play or Musical, Outstanding Ensemble, and Outstanding Resident Musical. Ryan created the theatre’s Equal Play Commissioning program, Resident Artist program, Fair Play pay scale for artists, and Free Play ticketing program. For Round House, he has directed Homebound, The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time , Oslo, Small ROUND HOUSE THEATRE LAND ACKNOWLEDGMENT Mouth Sounds, “Master Harold”…and the Boys, The Book of Will, Angels In our ongoing efforts to learn more and strengthen our relationships with members in America: Perestroika, The Night Alive, Fool for Love, This, and How to of our local community, and to work towards dismantling the harmful effects of Write a New Book for the Bible. Prior to joining Round House, Ryan served white supremacy and colonization, Round House acknowledges that our theatre, as Producing Director of Marin Theatre Company, Producing Artistic administrative offices, education center, and production shop are located on the Director of Southern Rep Theatre, and co-founder and Artistic Director of unceded land of the Piscataway peoples. We acknowledge the Piscataway as the Rude Mechanicals Theatre Company. He is the former Board President original caretakers of this land. We pay our respects to the Piscataway community and of the National New Play Network, and currently serves on the boards of their elders both past and present, as well as future generations. theatreWashington and Maryland Citizens for the Arts. Ryan is a member We also acknowledge that, as the world experiences the COVID-19 pandemic, many of SDC, AEA, and SAG-AFTRA. of us are using the internet and other technologies that are not as readily available or accessible in present day indigenous communities. ED ZAKRESKI (Managing Director) is in his fifth season as Managing Director of Round House Theatre. He has produced the five best- We pledge to do the work necessary to build relationships with sovereign tribal nations, selling shows in Round House history, led the theatre’s $12+ million Full to ensure that Round House becomes a more inclusive space, and to never cease Circle campaign, and oversaw the complete renovation of its Bethesda ongoing learning. theatre. He has been an executive leader and fundraiser in DC area Learn more about the Piscataway tribe: nonprofit arts organizations for more than 25 years, raising more than Facebook.com/PiscatawayConoyTribe $120 million. Prior to joining Round House, Ed spent 12 years as Chief PiscatawayConoyTribe.com Development Officer at Shakespeare Theatre Company where he Support indigenous rights organizations on a national or global level: completed the $75 million capital campaign to build Sidney Harman Native American Rights Fund: NARF.org Hall and produced its $3 million opening gala. From 1998-2005, Ed Cultural Survival: CulturalSurvival.org worked in Development at the Kennedy Center, ultimately overseeing Indigenous Environmental Network: IENEarth.org a 22-member team raising more than $11 million annually. Ed holds a degree in Arts Management from American University and frequently presents and leads workshops about management and fundraising for nonprofit arts organizations. WHAT IS A LAND ACKNOWLEDGMENT?
A land acknowledgment is a formal statement that recognizes and respects Indigenous peoples as the traditional stewards of a given geographic area. We share ours as part of Round House’s ongoing efforts toward equity and anti-racism. 9 WE GRATEFULLY ACKNOWLEDGE the following donors who support the work of our 2019- ROUND HOUSE 2020 and 2020-2021 Seasons. These tax-deductible gifts help Round House continue to be a home for outstanding theatrical and educational experiences that inspire empathy and demand conversation. ANNUAL DONORS To learn more about the ways to support Round House, donor benefits, or to make a gift, visit RoundHouseTheatre.org/ InnerCircle or call the Development Department at 240.641.5352. List is current as of April 2, 2021.
LEADERSHIP CIRCLE
DIAMOND Elaine Kotell Binder and Sari Hornstein Paul Henderson Robert Lewicki and Edna Boyle Amy Selco and Kevin Keeley Richard Binder Rick Kasten Linda Lurie Hirsch Judy and Brian Madden Elaine and English Showalter CIRCLE Clark-Winchole Foundation Ann and Neil Kerwin Jane Hodges John and Marie McKeon Pamela and John Spears $100,000+ The Cora & John H. Davis Joy Lewis Robbins and Giles Hopkins Scott and Louise Melby Weissberg Foundation Foundation Paul and Zena Mason Reba and Mark Immergut Aruna and David Miller Richard and Susan Westin Arts and Humanities Council of Pam and Richard Feinstein Susan Freeman McGee Clifford Johnson and Carl and Undine Nash Sheila & Oliver Wilcox Montgomery County JBG Smith Alan Miller and Susan O'Hara Margaret Roper Barbara Rapaport Roger Williams and A. James & Alice B. Clark The Sheldon and Audrey Katz Elissa and Bill Oshinsky Rosalyn Levy Jonas City of Rockville Ginger Macomber Foundation Foundation Pasternak & Fidis, P.C. Dana and Ray Koch Glenn and Pamela Rosenthal Alan and Irene Wurtzel Maryland State Arts Council Debra Kraft and Rob Liberatore Sally J. Patterson Barry Kropf Margaret Ann Ross Montgomery County Government Ann and Bruce Lane Hank Schlosberg, in honor of Paul Marion Ein Lewin Mason, Mark Shugoll, and Marion INNER CIRCLE PLATINUM Maryland State Department Ein Lewin of Education Linda and Steve Skalet CIRCLE Chris and Kathleen Matthews Michael and Andrea Steele SUSTAINERS Foundation, Lee G. Rubenstein, Lana Halpern co-President Margaret Johnson $50,000-$99,999 David and Joan Maxwell The Sulica Fund Marvin and Jo Anne McIntyre The Venable Foundation $1,500-$2,499 Michelle Six Megan Klose and Frank Burdette The Morris and Gwendolyn Maureen and Michael McMurphy Anne* and Robert Yerman Clement and Sandra Alpert Ed Starr and Marilyn Marcosson Kathleen Knepper Cafritz Foundation and the Patrick Michael McMurphy Lynda and Joseph Zengerle Designated Endowment Fund Susan and John Sturc Ellen Kohn Share Fund Memorial Foundation Margot Lurie Zimmerman, in Kate and Stephen Baldwin Carol Trawick Mimi Kress Shubert Foundation National Endowment for the Arts memory of Paul Zimmerman Daniel and Nancy Balz Mary Jo Veverka Isiah and Catherine Leggett Susan and Bill Reinsch Jeff Bauman/Beech Street Foundation Kathy and Bob Wenger Beverly Lehrer GOLD CIRCLE The Rowny Foundation Janice Crawford Elena and Joel Widder Lerch, Early, & Brewer Susan Gilbert and Ron Schechter COPPER Eileen and Paul DeMarco Mier and Cathy Wolf Frank Liebermann $25,000-$49,999 Mark and Merrill Shugoll CIRCLE Victoria Heisler Edouard Sharon and James Lowe Michael Beriss and Jean Carlson Bernard and Ellen Young Burton and Anne Fishman BENEFACTOR B. Thomas Mansbach Cathy S. Bernard $2,500-$4,999 Fleishhacker Foundation - in honor James P. Martinko Lorraine and Doug Bibby Marla and Bobby Baker, Baker- of Mitch and Heidi Dupler $1,000-$1,499 Doug and Mary Beth McDaniel Heidi and Mitch Dupler BRONZE Merine Family Foundation Victoria Frink Andrew Auerbach Catherine and Patrick O'Reilley Jay and Robin Hammer CIRCLE Ellen Berman Neil R. Greene and Ellen G. Miles Daniel and Nancy Balz R. Scott & Courtney Clark Pastrick Bonnie and Alan Hammerschlag Brookfield Properties Management Edward Grossman and Sue Ann and Ken Berlin Menick-Friese-Phillips-Bock Group Daniel Kaplan and Kay Richman $5,000-$9,999 James Burks and Bette Pappas Rochelle Stanfield Marian Block and Ed Rosic Geraldine Fogel Pilzer Linda Ravdin and Don Shapero Anonymous Larry Culleen and Nina Weisbroth, Mitchell and Patti Herman Susan and Dixon Butler Andrew and Melissa Polott David and Sherry Smith Don and Nancy Bliss in honor of Rosa K. Culleen Robin Hettleman and Jane* and Fred Cantor Olwen and Don Pongrance Patti and Jerry Sowalsky Don and Jan Boardman Dallas Morse Coors Foundation for Matthew Weinberg Anne and Bill Charrier Claire Reade Judy and Leo Zickler Ellen and Jon Bortz the Performing Arts Jane Holmes Warren Coats Dennis Renner and Michael Krone Brown Advisory William Davis and Jane Hodges JKW Foundation Greg Crider Ryan and Christy Rilette Lynn and Bill Choquette Hope Eastman and Allen Childs Renee Klish Belle Davis Sheryl Rosenthal and Marty Bell SILVER CIRCLE Stephanie deSibour Jim Eisner Darrell Lemke and Katherine DeWitt Ludwig and Joan Rudel $10,000-$24,999 The Dimick Foundation Clare Evans Maryellen Trautman Lorraine S. Dreyfuss Theatre Linda Ryan Laura Forman and Richard Bender Suzi and Dale Gallagher Evelyn Sandground and Bill Perkins Margaret Abell Powell Fund of the The Levitt Philanthropic Fund Education Foundation Lawrence and Joanie Friend Susan and Timothy Gibson Marilyn and Barry Scheiner William S. Abell Foundation in honor of Bonnie and Alan Bunny R. Dwin Ann and Frank Gilbert Susan and Peter Greif Robin Sherman Esthy and Jim Adler Hammerschlag Christina Files Leslie Grizzard and Joe Hale Holly Hassett Michael L. Burke and Carl W. Smith Paul M. Angell Family Foundation Laurel and Robert Mendelsohn Dr. Helene Freeman John and Meg Hauge Robert E. Hebda Ian and Marcia Solomon Celia and Keith Arnaud MetroBethesda Rotary Foundation Inc. Arlene Friedlander Michael and Ilana Heintz Ms. Mindy Hecker Somerset Elementary School PTA Terry Beaty Martha Newman Karen Garnett and Dan Hudson Bonnie and Harold Himmelman Bruce J. Heim Foundation Leslie and Howard Stein Nan Beckley RBC Wealth Management Nancy Garrison John Horman Connie Heller Anne & Henry Reich Family Susan Gordon Rochelle S. Steinberg 10 Jane and Herb Stevens Elaine Economides Joost Sandra Willen Rhonda Goldberg Jill Myers Page and Amy Stull Veronica Kannan D M W Sara Goldberg Ellen and Bill Neches MATCHING Mr. Leslie C. Taylor Mary Kennedy John and Val Wheeler Robert Goor Mary E. Nelson GIFT William & Karen Tell Foundation Cookie Kerxton Kathryn Winsberg and King Stablein Mary-Alice Gray Kevin O'Connell and Jill Goodrich Ms. Carolyn L. Wheeler Jean and Chris Koppen Carole and Robert Winter Stuart and Beverly Greenfeig Colleen O'Malley COMPANIES George and Patti White Simeon M Kriesberg and Karen Spangler and Matthew Yeo Suzanne Guardia Fred and Barbara Ordway CIT David Young Martha L Kahn Ellie Zartman Helene Guttman Mary Padgett ExxonMobil Foundation Ed and Judy Zakreski Stephen Leppla Keith and Shelby Harper Lisal Panciocco Freddie Mac Foundation Andrew A. and Marcia D. Zvara Herb and Dianne Lerner Florence H. Hein Terry and Ann Peel GE Foundation Jan Lower and Paul Berger ASSOCIATES Suzanne Henig Dr. Willo Pequegnat IBM Ann Hutchison Lung $300-$499 Fred and Lucia Hill Carol and Jerry Peron Salesforce ADVOCATES Deanna and Thomas Marcum John Hogg Perry Perone Truist Financial Corporation Anonymous (4) Susan Martin Thomas Hudson Joram and Lona Piatigorsky Synchrony Financial $500-$999 Actors' Equity Foundation, Inc. Winton Matthews, Jr. Nancy Hughes Katherine Pickett Texas Instruments Fred and Helen Altman Marie Ali Diane and Peter Mayer Dudley and Susan Ives Michael Polis and Rhoda Barish Dr. Robert Angerer and Boris Allan David McGoff Deborah Jaffe Marcella Portewig Dr. Pamela McInnes Robert and Betsy Anderson IN KIND Phillip* and Judith Messing Victoria Jaycox Jaclyn Portnoy Shannon Baker-Branstetter Bruce and Janet Andrews Lisa M. Mezzetti Elke Jordan Lisa Potetz Ann Baker and Chris Zeilinger Dennis Askwith DONORS William Mullins Samuel and Leslie Kaplan Carol Preston Naomi and David Balto Carol Assmann Andy Stern Office Furniture Stacy Murchison Colleen and Jack Katz Beverly Purdue Lynn Barclay Michael Barry Chevy Chase Florist Evan and Judy Novenstein Robert and Diane Kaufman David and Susan Reichardt Thomas Blackburn and Brenda Frank Marilyn Barth Dawson’s Market Geri Olson John Keator and Virginia Sullivan Markley and Jeanne Roberts Wendy and Eben Block Leonard Bebchick Doyle Printing & Offset Co. John and Margie Orrick Charles Kelly Helene Ross Barbara Boggs Seth Berlin Honest Tea P. David Pappert Chaz and Jane Kerschner Jane Rostov Jeremy Brosowsky and Beth Tritter Jonathan Binder Microsoft Stan Peabody Alan and Leslie Kerxton Kristin Ruckdeschel Jack and Jan Buresh Judith Block Provisions Catering PGIM Real Estate Nalin Kishor Carl Schaefer and Frances Li Martin and Barbara* Buzas Linda Blumberg and Stephen Turow Vamoose Mark and Teresa Plotkin Carole Klein and Brad Chesivoir Stephen Schaefer Bill Cain Glenn Boston Zeke’s Coffee Julie and Ron Redfern Rita Kopin Christina Schoux Margaret Cohen Gayle Boyd Sharon Rennert Karla Kramer Linda Scofield Sue Cunningham Sandy Bresnahan Eric J. Sanne and Judith Rivlin Stephen Kraskin Jeffrey Seltzer and Karen Rothenberg Kenneth Davis Robert Brewer and Connie Lohse David and Gayle Roehm Vinca LaFleur James and Ann Sherman Ted Deming Julie Buchanan Steven M. Rosenberg and Dr. Marcel C. Lafollette and Joseph Silvio Linda and Joseph Dominic Ellen Cades Stewart C. Low III Mr. Jeffrey K. Stine Cora Simpson Jean and Paul Dudek Wallace Chandler Vivian Rosskamm Roberta Larkin Carrie Singer Eli and Flo Dweck Thomas L. Cline Laura and Marc Salganik Phyllis and Mort Lessans Suzanne Snedegar Bill and Donna Eacho Robert and Janis Colton William and Ellen Sandler Sharon Light Sara Sonet Emily and Michael Eig Richard Cooper and Judy Areen Julia and Jim Schaeffer Peter Linquiti Jeffrey Splitstoser Matthew Fink Lisa Cosgrove-Davies Perry and Dianne Seiffert Deborah and Robert Litt Deborah Taylor Duane and Barbara Fitzgerald Edward Cowan Cathy Selden-Feidt Mary Maguire Barry and Jo Ann Thompson Carole and Robert Fontenrose Kaye A. Craft Suzanne Shapiro Dave and Margo Maier Tom Calhoun and Thelma Triche Mark Foster John and Valerie Cuddy The Honorable Robert Sharkey and Diane Makuc Lorraine Tropf Sam and Linda Gibbons Julie Davis and John Metz Round House Theatre is supported in Dr. Phoebe Sharkey George Martin Debby Vivari Janet Gilchrist Reid Detchon part by funding from the Montgomery Jay P. Siegel and Mona Sarfaty Sara Mazie Sandra Vogelgesang Joseph Gitchell Cynthia Dopp County government, the Arts and Daniel and Sybil Silver Mr. and Mrs. Jon McBride James Voorhees Alan* and Hedda Gnaizda Douglas Dunlop Humanities Council of Montgomery David and Mickie Simpson Lee McBride Ronald Wange Michael Greene David Eisenstein County, and the Maryland State William and Alice Sims William McDermott Anne Warner Regina Greenspun Susan Fariss Arts Council. Leslie Smith Nancy McManus Sara Watkins Eugenia Grohman Marilynne Felderman Luanne and Marc Stanley Philip & Lynn Metzger Susan and Adam Wegner Tom & Karen Guszkowski Steven Ferguson and Deen Richard Steiner Thomas Michael Robert and Blima Wellek Jay and Maureen Harris Kleinerman Rebecca Stevens Antoinette Miller Leila Whiting James Heegeman Harold and Arlene Finger We make every effort to provide accurate Tom Strikwerda James Miller Mike & Jenifer Wilhelm Margaret Hennessey Susan and Jay Finkelstein acknowledgement for our contributors. Lucinda and Stephen Swartz Tish Mills Mary Jo Wills Cathy MacNeil-Hollinger and Robert and Sally Fish If your name is misspelled or omitted, Deborah Tannen Rita Molyneaux Lyric Winik please accept our apologies and Mark Hollinger Devra Lee Fishman Grant P. and Sharon R. Thompson Kendall Montgomery William and Charlene Zellmer contact the Development Department Glen and Lauren Howard Louis W. Fusco Patricia G. Tice Scott and Paula Moore at 240.641.5352 or Development@ Howard and Ella Iams Steve Garron *In memoriam Marna Tucker and Lawrence Baskir Audrey Morris RoundHouseTheatre.org. Carol and Terry Ireland Jeffrey and Elaine Gaynes Leslie and Michael Weber Alfred Munzer and Joel Wind Andrew Isen Janet George Susan Weldon Robert K. Musil and Mark Israel Laurence Gold Mr. Gerry Widdicombe Caryn McTighe Musil Larry* and Sue Jeweler Ellen and Michael Gold 11 VV
K-12 AT ROUND HOUSE, SUMMER 2021 THE PANDEMIC HAS NOT THEATRE CAMPS FOR CHANGED WHAT WE DO, JUST HOW WE DO IT.
When the coronavirus crisis began, Round House committed to continue engaging audiences with interesting and meaningful theatrical experiences. Over the past year, our digital productions have connected audiences from around the world and inspired important conversations.
PLEASE CONSIDER MAKING A GIFT TO ROUND HOUSE TODAY. Your gift will ensure we can finish our innovative virtual season strong and be ready to launch an exciting 2021-2022 Season. Plus, YOU’LL RECEIVE EXCLUSIVE, BEHIND- THE-SCENES ACCESS TO OUR PRODUCTIONS, ARTISTS, AND EVERYTHING ROUND HOUSE.
Thank you for sticking with us—we can't wait to see you in person at the theatre!
Donate today at RoundHouseTheatre.org/Join-Give or contact us at [email protected] or 240.641.5352. EXPRESSEEXPRESSXPRESS YOURSELF!YOURSELF! YOURSELF!
Info at RoundHouseTheatre.org/Camp 12 DIRECTORY Faculty: DEVELOPMENT Box Office Associates & Agyeiwaa Asante Director of Development: House Managers: BOARD OF TRUSTEES Ashley Barrow Veronica Kannan Nessa Amherst Desiree Chappelle Development Officer: Marquita Dill Doug Bibby, President Leslie Grizzard Mark Shugoll Reenie Codelka Dina Goldman* Lauren Farnell Linda Ravdin, Vice President Bonnie Hammerschlag David H. Smith Jenny Cockerham Development Operations Brandon Horwin Amy Selco, Secretary Michael Heintz Patti Sowalsky Kevin Corbett Manager: Helen Aberger Steve Langley + Cathy Bernard, Treasurer Michele Jawando Ivania Stack* Maboud Ebrahimzadeh Institutional Giving Manager: Julia Marks Bruce Lane, Assistant Secretary Daniel P. Kaplan Michael Steele Dominique Fuller Katelyn Maurer Maureen May Jay Hammer, Assistant Treasurer Neil Kerwin Nina Weisbroth Emma Lou Hébert Sonia Olychik MARKETING & Mitchell Dupler, Immediate Marion Ein Lewin Roger Williams Mitchell Hébert Tamisha Ottley COMMUNICATIONS Past President Joy Lewis Ed Zakreski* Eleanor Holdridge Nashira Rawls Director of Marketing & Elaine Kotell Binder Debra Kraft Liberatore Judy Zickler Caleen Sinnette Jennings Sisi Reid Stephanie deSibour Kathleen Matthews Communications: *Ex-officio Claire Jones Sofia Sandoval-Ferriss + Paul Mason Hannah Grove-DeJarnett Maboud Ebrahimzadeh* +Artist Representatives Tim J. Lord Danielle Scott Associate Director Laura Forman Aruna Miller Casey Kaleba Morgan Scott of Marketing & Susan Gilbert Ryan Rilette* Sisi Reid Lacey Talero Communications: Danielle Scott *Member of the Equity, Diversity, Katie Atkinson Morgan Scott Inclusion, and Accessibility Graphic Designer: HONORARY COUNCIL Elle Sullivan Staff Workgroup. Craig Wallace Kent Kondo Esthy and James Adler Peter A. Jablow* William J. Sim* Rick Westerkamp AUDIENCE SERVICES Sue Ann Berlin Ann Lane Shellie Steinberg ADMINISTRATION Associate Director of Sales & Don Boardman* Carolyn Leonard Kathy Yanuck Wenger* General Manager: Audience Services: Jean Carlson Ann Marie Mehlert Mier Wolf* Tim Conley Brian Andrade* Bunny Dwin* Trina and Lee G. Rubenstein Andrew A. Zvara* Facilities Manager: Audience Services Manager: Donna W. Eacho* Ron Schechter *Former Round House Liz Sena* Mason Catharini Burt Fishman Marilyn Scheiner Theatre Trustees Associate Managing Stuart Greenfeig* Jeremy W. Schulman* Director: Jasmine Jiang* Reba Immergut* Robin Sherman Associate General Manager: Carter Rice STAFF
LEADERSHIP Assistant Production Resident Stage Manager: ROUND HOUSE THEATRE is one of the leading professional Artistic Director: Manager/Company Che Wernsman Ryan Rilette Manager: Sara Patterson theatres in the Washington, DC, area, producing a season of new plays, modern EDUCATION Managing Director: Technical Director: classics, and musicals for more than 55,000 patrons each year at our 352-seat Director of Education: Ed Zakreski Matt Saxton theatre in Bethesda. Round House has been nominated for more than 197 Danisha Crosby Assistant Technical Director: Helen Hayes Awards and has won more than 37, including four “Outstanding ARTISTIC Education Program Manager: Jose Abraham Resident Play” Awards, the “Outstanding Resident Musical Award,” and the Associate Artist– Kathleen Mason Master Electrician/Audio Literary & New Plays: Education Assistant: Charles MacArthur Award for Original New Play in 2016. Round House’s lifelong Supervisor: Chris Hall Naysan Mojgani* Patrick Joy* learning and education programs serve more than 5,000 students each year at its Costume Shop Manager: Casting Director: Lead Teaching Artists: Aubrey Mazzaferri Education Center in Silver Spring and in schools throughout Montgomery County. Agyeiwaa Asante Ian Anthony Coleman Scenic Charge: Cornerstone programs include Free Play, which provides free tickets to teens and Kelsey Hall PRODUCTION Jenny Cockerham college students; the year-round Teen Performance Company, which culminates in Brandon McCoy Production Manager: Master Carpenter: the student-produced Sarah Metzger Memorial Play; Summer Camp for students Jesse Aasheim* Shaun Bartlow in grades K-12; and a full slate of classes for adults and youth. 13 UP NEXT FROM ROUND HOUSE THEATRE
…and it’ll be okay.
BY YOUNG JEAN LEE DIRECTED BY PAIGE HERNANDEZ
Bad things will happen to all of us. That’s a certainty in life, but it also means that none of us are alone. And while we can’t avoid breaking up, getting sick, and losing loved ones, we can sing a little song to feel a little better. Based on true stories of tragedies and traumas, Young Jean Lee creates an experience that is part one- woman stage play, part live-band rock concert, and totally life-affirming. We’re Gonna Die is a "goofily grim and oddly uplifting” (Vogue) meditation on the human experience, blending indie songs with down-to-earth storytelling to offer a simple but hopeful message: We are going to die…and it’ll be okay.
BEGINS STREAMING ON DEMAND JUNE 14