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A companion guide to The Siegel by Michael Mitnick directed by Mark Anderson Phillips

May 17-June 17, 2018

supported by producers Rich & Sally Braugh and Steve & Betsy Moulds Ethan Siegel (Ben Euphrat, center) is perfectly comfortable in between his ex Alice (Ella Dershowitz, right) and her boyfriend Nelson (Davied Morales). So what’s the problem? All show photos by Taylor Sanders.

Synopsis

In this new romantic comedy, Ethan Siegel is in love and about to ask Alice’s parents for her hand in marriage. But there may be a few problems: Like Alice and Ethan broke up two years ago. Like she’s seeing someone else. And like she’s falling apart from the aftermath of working on a lost election. That doesn’t stop Ethan, and he goes on a comedic journey through modern love in uncertain times.

Characters

Ethan (Ben Euphrat*): Early 30s. You’ll be kind of in awe of the things that come out of his mouth.

Alice (Ella Dershowitz): Early 30s. Ethan’s ex. Thinks fast, but walks too slowly on the sidewalk.

Nelson (Davied Morales): Early 30s. Alice’s boyfriend. Likes to be the cool guy. Does not like buffets.

Deborah (Luisa Sermol*): Early 60s. Alice’s mother. Doctor. Not great with texts.

Ron (Erik Gandolfi): Early 60s. Alice’s father. Lawyer. Not great with alcohol.

Jordan (Laura Espino): Defies description.

*Member, Actors’ Equity Association About the play & playwright

Five years ago, a quirky, random and thoroughly lovable little play called Spacebar: A Broadway Play by Kyle Sugarman had its world premiere here at City Lights. The show was the theatrical equivalent of a cult classic. Though it didn’t draw huge crowds, people who saw it raved, including longtime local reviewer Susannah Greenwood, who called the show an “exceptionally wonderful, intelligent, creative piece, professionally and vividly produced from top to bottom.” (She also asked Spacebar to be her boyfriend. Y’know, if it were possible to get involved with a play.)

Since then, many of us at City Lights have been hoping for just the right project to bring Spacebar playwright Michael Mitnick’s work back to our stage. That project popped up in 2017 in Orange County when The Siegel made its debut at South Coast Repertory.

It was quickly clear that The Siegel was the right play for us. A smart romantic comedy with a title poking fun at the Chekhov classic The Seagull, the play calls for a tight-knit ensemble cast, which plays beautifully on the intimate City Lights stage. The action moves fast—the script says if the play lasts longer than 90 minutes, “something is wrong.”

Lisa Mallette, City Lights’ executive artistic director, knew this upbeat spirit would make The Siegel an excellent pick for the May-June slot in the 2017-18 season. After the challenging Merchant of Venice, audiences would be ready for a laugh. The Siegel also has the gift of being timely—the character of Alice is reeling after working on a losing election that feels a lot like the 2016 presidential race—but it isn’t a political story at all. Which is a A drawing of Michael Mitnick good thing for people who are exhausted by the current state of politics in the U.S. from his website.

The Siegel scored fine reviews when it opened last year at South Coast Rep. “As sharp as the pop of a whip, entertaining and endearing,” the OC Weekly wrote, and the Orange County Register called the play “refreshingly original.” Lead actors Ben Feldman (as Ethan Siegel) and Mamie Gummer (as Alice) earned wide praise.

Recognize those faces? There’s a reason for that. Ben Feldman’s resume includes indelible roles on TV in Superstore, Silicon Valley, Mad Men and The Mindy Project. On stage, he was in the Broadway revival of The Graduate (understudying Jason Biggs) opposite Kathleen Turner and Alicia Silverstone. And Mamie Gummer has been on TV’s The Collection and The Good Wife, among others, with theater work including the Broadway revival of Les Liaisons Dangereuses. She’s also a dead ringer for the young Meryl Streep; Ms. Streep happens to be her mother.

Playwright Michael Mitnick has a connection with Streep as well. His film writing work includes the screenplay for Streep’s recent science-fiction movie Alice (Mamie Gummer) and Ethan (Ben Feldman) in South Coast Repertory’s 2017 production of “The Siegel.” Photo by Debora Robinson. The Giver, along with the movie The Current War with Benedict Cumberbatch and Michael Shannon. He co-wrote/composed the musical Fly By Night, which was a hit show at TheatreWorks a few years back, and his other plays include Sex Lives of Our Parents, The Happiness Trilogy and Elijah.

Born and raised in Pittsburgh, Michael is a Harvard University graduate and holds an MFA in playwriting from The Yale School of Drama. He is hoping to be able to attend a performance of The Siegel at City LIghts. We’ll keep you posted when we know more. ‘A cast is kind of a living, breathing organism’

When Mark Anderson Phillips’ name is in the program as director, you know you’re in for an extra-polished production. After all, he’s been acting professionally for more than 20 years, has directed all over the Bay Area, and is a member of Actors’ Equity Association, the Screen Actors Guild and The American Federation of Television and Radio Artists.

Actors and artists also like Mark for a more personal reason: he’s sensitive to what they need to make a safe space to create. People who dropped by City Lights during a rehearsal of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde in 2015, or Ideation last year, often saw group hugs, friendly games of beanbag to warm up, and lots of jokes and laughter. Just because a theater-maker is a super-pro doesn’t mean he can’t be approachable.

Mark says this approach is key for him. “I like to make sure that the actors feel supported, and that they are part of the collaboration process,” he said. “I never feel like I’m a director who has all the answers. On the contrary. I don’t know much about a play, I feel, when I start working on a play. I have stuff in my head, but when I get the living, breathing beings in the room, I always learn so much from them.”

He added: “Every cast is very different. A cast is kind of a living, breathing organism. Some casts like to hug, and some like to play games, and some keep to themselves, and I have to adjust to every cast that I have. I learn very quickly what they are as a group and try to foster an environment that will allow them to do the best possible work Mark Anderson Phillips. that they can.” Photo by Lisa Keating. It helps when there are already laughs written into the script. Mark lists one simple reason why he was first drawn to The Siegel: “It’s really, really, really funny.” There are few plays that make him laugh out loud from reading them on the page, and this one did. Mark likens playwright Michael Mitnick’s humor and writing to that of Neil Simon, down to the pauses that are written into the script to make room for audience laughs.

Cracking an audience up is not always easy, and many actors will tell you there’s nothing tougher than comedy. Fortunately, Mark’s got plenty of experience on the acting side as well. When asked about his favorite roles, he’s quick to mention his work as Richard Hannay in the Hitchcock spoof The 39 Steps at TheatreWorks.

Other credits include the Aaron Loeb comedy Abraham Lincoln’s Big Gay Dance Party at the New York International Fringe Festival and the humorous children’s video project Flummox and Friends.

What’s the main reason why Mark finds The Siegel funny? Its heart. “I think the best comedy has a lot of heart in it. There’s always a touch of melancholy in a lot of things that Michael writes,” he said. “A lot of my favorite comedy is funny because it comes from truth, it comes from real experiences, much like the plays of Anton Chekhov.” Mark in a train scene of “The 39 Steps” at TheatreWorks. Photo by Tracy Martin. From stage to page: The drawings of Michael Ellner Creativity is contagious. It's incredibly gratifying when City Lights shows inspire theatergoers to express themselves through their own art. And artist Michael Ellner does just that from the audience with a pencil and a small pad of paper.

While watching a show, Mike may be quietly sketching the scenery or drawing a few lines of an actor’s face. The more a production moves him, the more drawings he’ll go home and create. Last summer’s intense musical LIZZIE especially wowed him, as did this year’s poignant play Alabama Story.

Drawing, painting, traveling and theater: It’s all part of a creative and well- earned retirement for this local artist. Mike and his wife, Joy, have been City Lights season-pass holders for years, and for the last few years he’s been creating drawings based on shows they see.

Whether he’s inspired by the charm and friendship of Calendar Girls, or the intensity of Frankenstein and Ideation, Mike creates works that capture the unique spirit of each production. Some drawings are so realistic that you can recognize individual actors; others have a wonderful dreamy, symbolic quality.

Married for 61 years this August, Mike and Joy are both well-known artists and educators in San Jose. Their lengthy resumes include chairing the art departments at several schools in the San Jose Unified School District, and creating a widely honored art curriculum for the district.

They also taught at San Jose City College, juried shows, gave art lectures, and ran a gallery at the Rosicrucian Egyptian Museum, where some of their students worked. “We were tied in all over,” Mike recalled fondly.

Growing up, Mike always loved drawing, but when it came time to choose a career he followed in his father’s footsteps and became an engineer. He worked on the NASA program for Lockheed, working his way up, running his own group. Fine arts, though, were never far from his mind.

“I enjoyed it,” Mike said of his 13-year engineering career, “but while I was doing that I was painting and showing all over the area. One of Michael Ellner’s drawings inspired by Kit Wilder’s world-premiere adaptation of Painting everything, mostly figurative.” “Frankenstein,” which opened at City Lights last year. One day, he decided he had to follow his true passion. “I thought, ‘If I stay much longer, I’m never going to do what I really want.’

Even though they had children to support, his wife was supportive of the move. “I said, ‘Just do it!’’ Joy recalled. “His job was very demanding. It was night and day.”

Teaching seemed like a good move: a steady job, but with more time to paint. So Mike earned his teaching credential at San Jose State (he had already earned a master’s degree in art) and set off on the path of being an artist and art teacher. Along the way, his style and focus of art would evolve, leading him naturally toward capturing performance on paper and canvas. “My early art, I was doing a lot of social commentary, a lot about Vietnam,” Mike said. Over time, the subject matter started to weigh him down, and he looked around for other inspiration. He found it in the performing arts.

“We go to jazz and blues and rock festivals and concerts,” he said. “So I started painting what I saw.” Travel inspired him as well; after he and Joy visited the Nordic countries he did a whole series about Viking culture.

Before long, Mike turned to theater for inspiration—he and Joy were attending City Lights and other companies nearly weekly anyway. And the rest is history.

Happily retired, Mike and Joy spend most days painting together in their home studio. “We put on some jazz, some blues, some rock, and listen all day long. She sits over there at her easel; I’m over here at my easel,” Mike said. “We’re painting and traveling and going to theater. That’s all I want.”

Several of Michael Ellner’s drawings based on City Lights productions will be on display on the theater’s back wall during the run of The Siegel, May 17-June 17. Audiences can view them before and after the play’s performances, which are Thursday A lively Michael Ellner drawing inspired by City Lights’ 2016 through Saturday at 8 p.m. and Sundays at 2 p.m. (no show on production of the warm-hearted comedy “Calendar Girls.” May 20).

What could be better (or more awkward) than being in a romantic photo booth with your parents? In this fun “Siegel” publicity shot, Alice (Ella Dershowitz, center) shares space with Ron (Erik Gandolfi) and Deborah (Luisa Sermol) and some silly props. The Siegel by Michael Mitnick

City Lights Theater Company presents The Siegel from May 17-June 17, 2018. Shows are Thursday-Saturday at 8 p.m., Sundays at 2 p.m. (no show May 20). The theater is at 529 S. Second St. in San Jose. Details: cltc.org, 408-295-4200.

Director: Mark Anderson Phillips

Scenic Design/Production Manager/Technical Director: Ron Gasparinetti Lighting Design: John Bernard Costume Design: Anna Chase Sound Design: George Psarras Properties Designer: Miranda Whipple Stage Manager: Ben Hemmen Assistant Stage Manager: Andrea Garcia Carpentry, Painting & Electrics: Joseph Hidde

Featuring: Ben Euphrat*, Luisa Sermol*, Erik Gandolfi, Ella Dershowitz, Davied Morales and Laura Espino

*Member, Actors’ Equity Association

Special thanks to producers Rich & Sally Braugh and Steve & Betsy Moulds for their generous support of this production.

This issue of Highlights was researched and written by City Lights dramaturg Rebecca Wallace. Read past issues, and a digital version of this issue, at cltc.org/highlights.