Sideways Storiesfrom WAYSIDE SCHOOL

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Family Fun Series Sponsor: Sideways Stories from Wayside School

From the Director

Welcome to our mainstage production of Sideways Stories from Wayside School!

In order to talk to you about what you are about to see, I think it best if you know a few things about me. I was born on Oct. 17, 1975. Six days earlier, on NBC, a little show had premiered called “Saturday Night Live.” This was a show with one real purpose—to make you laugh. I grew up in the ‘80s when stand-up comedy was hitting new heights of exposure and popularity. I spent my early adult years in the ‘90s watching “Must See TV” and all of the great comedies that were airing at that time. It seems for most of my life I have had a strong relationship to comedy. I have spent a good part of my life asking, “What makes us laugh and why?”

Now 44 years into my life, I have come to many conclusions about what tickles our funny bones. Each of us has a very particular sense of humor born of our past experiences, influences and values. I have always found it fascinating how specific one’s sense of humor is. It is totally customized to each person. That being said, I have also found the why behind our laughter comes in a few specific colors.

First, we laugh because of self-recognition. Seeing ourselves or our reactions in others will always bring about a chuckle. Schadenfreude, or pleasure derived from another’s misfortune, is something that can commonly bring us to laughter. But there is another reason we laugh, and it is this reason that brings us to the show you are about to see today.

One of the biggest reasons we turn things comedic is to take away the power that they have. Laughter banishes anxiety. Laughter takes the teeth out of things that scare us and gives us back a little bit of our power. At Sideways School, there is plenty to be anxious about—any school really! With new teachers, new people and a building you might not be familiar with, school days can be filled with anxiety and fear. Even the smallest of “unknowns” can make for a very scary experience to those of school age.

This production is an exploration of comedy. Comedy in which we see ourselves. Comedy in which we watch people get the comeuppance they deserve. And most importantly, comedy in which we can laugh at what makes us anxious and reclaim some of our power. It is my sincerest hope that you will find things to laugh at today and walk out of here a little more powerful than when you came in.

Best, Chris Tennison, Director & Head of Academy Program

Production run time: 60 minutes The performance does not include an intermission. Creative Team

Director Chris Tennison Stage Manager Katie Little Props Master Amber Brown Costume Designer Samanathe Burrow ATD Master Electrician & Lighting Designer Laura Happel Head of Production Shannon Miller Junior Production Assistant Maeve Hintz Cast

APPLE CAST Mrs. Gorf/Mr. Gorf/Mr. Pickle/Sammy/Valoosh Jaddy Ciucci Mrs. Jewls Emily Tomlinson Louis Bob Hart Leslie Kylie Groom Bebe Peyton Lyons Myron Jake Lewis Rhondi Kate Rockwood Dameon J. T. Loveless

RAT CAST Mrs. Gorf/Mr. Gorf/Mr. Pickle/Sammy/Valoosh Jaddy Ciucci Mrs. Jewls Emily Tomlinson Louis Bob Hart Leslie Kylie Groom Bebe Emily Vukin Myron Jake Lewis Rhondi Uma Kyles Dameon Dominick Hardy

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Cast Bios

APPLE CAST

Jaddy Ciucci (Mrs. Gorf/Mr. Gorf/Mr. Pickle/Sammy/ Valoosh) is a theater artist from the Midwest currently residing in Northwest . She has worked with Trike Theatre as an actor, teaching artist, director and choreographer collaborating on projects such as Digging Up Arkansas, Three Billy Goats Gruff, Turning Red, A Midsummer Night's Dream and A Year with Frog and Toad. Over the past eight years, Jaddy has focused on Theatre for Young Audiences, performing and teaching with organizations such as Children's Theatre of Madison, Young Actors Theatre Indianapolis, Beef & Boards Dinner Theatre, Lilly Theatre of The Children's Museum of Indianapolis and Indiana Repertory Theatre. Jaddy studied at Indiana University in Bloomington, and is currently a teaching candidate with the National Michael Chekhov Association.

Emily Tomlinson (Miss Jewls) is excited to return to Trike! Previous Trike credits include Blue Dog in Go Dog Go!, Mr. Toot/Elf Ellen/Grandpa in Junie B Jones in Jingle Bells Batman Smells! and Cinderella in Cinderella Confidential. Recently she performed in TheatreSquared’s The Wolves and the educational touring production The Poe Show. Other credits include Evelyn Cole in Staging the Daffy Dame (TheatreSquared's Arkansas New Play Festival) and Rosalind in As You Like It (Classical Edge Theatre Company). University credits include Annabella/ Pamela/Margaret in The 39 Steps, Julia in The Two Gentlemen of Verona, Celia in As You Like It, Silvia in Tribes, Violet Bradman in Blithe Spirit, Lady Macduff in Macbeth and Alice in Vinegar Tom. She also played Simone in the virtual reality short film Say It With Music. She holds a BA in Drama from the and an MFA in Performing Arts from the Savannah College of Art and Design. Bob Hart (Louis) is making his Trike debut. He has performed in more than 85 stage productions, including Shakespeare in Love, All the Way and Amadeus at TheatreSquared, and earned MFAs in both Acting and Playwriting from the University of Arkansas. His original play, Poor Relations, has been performed in and the Kansas City area. He has also directed six productions for Emporia State University.

Kylie Groom (Leslie) attended Oklahoma City University where she earned a BFA in Acting and a BA in Music. She then went on to receive a Master’s in Music with an emphasis in Musical Theater from the University of Central Oklahoma. Since then, she has had the privilege to perform in various roles such as Eponine in Les Mis, Cinderella in Into the Woods, Martha in The Secret Garden and Esther in Meet Me In St. Louis. Kylie also spent two seasons performing at Silver Dollar City as Georgia in Frontier Follies, Mary in Unto Us A Child Is Born and as a swing for Hits at the Hollow. When she’s not performing, Kylie enjoys passing on her passion for the arts by teaching dance and vocal lessons. She believes that through honest, inclusive and communicative storytelling, the world can become a more hopeful, loving and unified place.

Peyton Lyons (Bebe) is a freshman at Haas Hall Academy. Her previous credits include Independence (original cast), Jane Eyre and Peter Pan. She would like to thank Chris Tennison for this amazing opportunity and her parents for helping her reach her goals

Jake Lewis (Myron) is a local actor/writer, and he holds a BA in Theater from the University of Arkansas. He was last seen in TheatreSquared's tour of The Poe Show. He is very excited to be continuing his work with Trike Theatre.

Kate Rockwood (Rhondi) is in 8th grade at Haas Hall Academy. Her previous credits include Jungalbook; The Internet is a Distrac- Oh Look, a Kitten! and The Wizard Of Oz. She would like to thank her parents and her friend Lilly.

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Jon Thomas Loveless (Dameon) is in 8th grade at Washington Junior High School in Bentonville where he is active in theater, choir and band and has earned All Region Band and All Region Choir Honors. He is a member of the University of Arkansas Children's Choir and is an avid percussionist and musician who plays multiple instruments. Upcoming roles include The King in Bestest Bedtime Stories (Washington Junior High School) and Michael Wormwood in Matilda (TheaterSquared.) Previous community theater credits include Charlie in The Best Christmas Pageant Ever (Arts Center of the ), The Wizard in Wizard of Oz (Arts Live), George Banks in Mary Poppins Jr. (TrikeTheater) and Adult Simba in The Lion King Jr. (Washington Junior High School).

RAT CAST

Jaddy Ciucci (Mrs. Gorf/Mr. Gorf/Mr. Pickle/Sammy/ Valoosh) - see previous

Emily Tomlinson (Mrs. Jewls) - see previous

Bob Hart (Louis) – see previous

Emily Vukin (Bebe) is a sophomore at Thaden School. Her previous credits include Waiting, The Greek Mythology Olympiagona, Adrift in New York or Her First False Step and The Somewhat True Tails of Robin Hood. She would like to thank everyone who made this great experience accessible to a younger group and for everyone's openness for learning.

Jake Lewis (Myron) - see previous

Uma Kyles (Rhondi) is in 6th grade at Arkansas Arts Academy. Her previous credits include Charlotte's Web, Peter Pan and Wizard of Oz. She would like to thank her family, friends and cast.

Dominick Fenton (Dameon) is a sophomore at Bentonville High School. This is his first mainstage production but he has taken masterclasses at Trike. He would like to thank Mrs. Harrison, an amazing person who made acting his dream career.

Creative Team

Chris Tennison (Director) Chris joined Trike as Head of Academy in May 2018, after spending several years working as a Teaching Artist at Trike. Chris has an MFA in Theater with a concentration in Acting from the University of Arkansas, and a BA in Theater with a minor in History and Political Science from The University of St. Thomas in Houston. Chris has spent the last 25 years as an actor, director, designer and arts educator in his hometown of Houston (Go Stros!). He has taught at Alvin Community College, The High School for the Visual and Performing Arts, The University of St. Thomas, Main Street Youth Theater and The Page Parkes School of Acting. While in Houston, he was the Founding Artistic Director of Town Center Theatre where he was also the head of their “Tomorrow’s Acting Professionals” program. As an actor and director, he has worked with several theaters and educational institutions across the country. His areas of focus include voice and speech, IPA and dialects, acting theory, directing theory, theater history and viewpoints.

Katie Little (Stage Manager) is excited to be back working with Trike! She has had the privilege of working professionally around Northwest Arkansas for the last three years at Trike, TheatreSquared and The Arts Center of the Ozarks. She would like to thank Kassie Misiewicz and the whole Trike team for this opportunity!

Kimberly Powers (Set Designer) is excited to be working with Trike Theatre again, after having designed Charlotte’s Web in 2017. Regionally, she has designed scenery for a number companies, including TheatreSquared, Charleston Stage in South Carolina, Stages Rep in Texas, Virginia Repertory Theatre in Virginia, Southern Repertory Theatre in Louisiana, Casa Mañana Theatre in Texas, Lyric Theatre of Oklahoma and Northern Stage in Vermont. She was the Resident Set Designer for Ocean State Theatre Company’s inaugural season and for Ohio Light Opera, as well as the first Design Assistant at The Denver Center Theatre Company. Kimberly has also been a freelance scenic artist since 2000, and has worked professionally as a props master, event designer and coordinator, graphic designer and exhibit designer. She received her MFA in Scenic Design from Kent State University and is a proud member of United Scenic Artists, Local 829.

Samanthe Burrow (Costume Designer) received her undergraduate degree at the University of Arkansas in Drama and continued her education with an MFA in Costume Design and Technology at Ohio University. She designed Charlotte's Web, Lilly’s Purple Plastic Purse and A Year with Frog and Toad for Trike. In addition to working as Theatre Production Director

TAG US! @waltonartscenter @walton_arts @triketheatre Sideways Stories from Wayside School at The New School, Samanthe lends her skills to many of the theatrical institutions of NWA such as TheatreSquared, ArtsLive, Walton Arts Center and the University of Arkansas Department of Theatre. Prior to moving to Arkansas in 2015, she lived in New York City working as a first hand and cutter at Tricorne Costume Studio. She worked on wardrobe crew for numerous Broadway shows including In the Heights, Matilda and Newsies. She was also the undergraduate costume shop manager at NYU's Tisch School of the Arts.

Laura Happel (Assistant Technical Director, Master Electrician & Lighting Designer) - earned her MFA in Lighting Design at the University of Southern Mississippi. She has been in tech theater for 30 years and recently joined Trike Theatre full time as the ATD and Master Electrician. Laura has designed in theaters across the United States including The Hanger Theatre in Ithica, New York; the Dorset Theatre in Vermont and The Rose Theatre in Omaha, Nebraska, the third largest children’s theater in America. She was also Resident Designer for Urban BushWoman Dance Group in New York City.

Shannon Miller (Head of Production) received his MFA from the University of Southern Mississippi and BFA from Marshall University. He began his career in 1987 as a stage technician for touring rock bands. From 1987 through the present, he has embarked on a series of challenging career opportunities that fostered his teaching, leadership, entrepreneurial strengths and talents for entertainment design and technology. During this time, he held positions at a variety of universities and professional theaters, including Marshall University, Utah Shakespeare Festival, Millikin University, Chicago Designs, Southern Arena Theatre, Southern Opera, Theatre West Virginia, Public Theatre of Kentucky, Barnstormers Theatre, The University of New Orleans, McNeese State University, Maltz Jupiter Theatre and University of Louisiana at Lafayette. Miller has also completed various designs and consultations for groups such as Christian Youth Theatre through his company SRMDzynes. He is the founder of The Lakefront Youth Theatre Experience, a post- Katrina youth arts initiative and volunteer organization in New Orleans. These varied assignments have provided him with a unique perspective for problem solving in a variety of circumstances with many different personalities, educational backgrounds, artistic visions and production challenges.

Maeve Hintz (Junior Production Assistant) is a freshman at Thaden School. Her previous credits include being the junior production assistant in Peter Pan and Mary Poppins as well as playing Fern in Charlotte's Web. She would like to thank her parents for inspiring her and helping here get where she is today and to her friends for sharing their love of theater. PERFORMANCE GUIDE

Pre-Show Conversation • The show is called Sideways Stories at Wayside School. What do you think the story will be about? What kinds of characters do you think you’ll see? Make some predictions about the show based on what you know so far.

• Being a new student can be hard! Talk about a time when you felt new and alone in front of a group of people. How did it make you feel? How can you help someone else that might also feel this way?

Post-Show Conversation • Bebe is the “fastest draw” of the class, meaning she can draw things super fast! Talk about what your own special, unique skills are. Is there a new skill that you would like to get better at?

• The students of the thirtieth floor have to work together in order to overcome problems in their classroom. Talk about a moment in the play where the students had to work together as a team! When was a moment that you had to work together with a team in order to accomplish a goal?

Creative Activity Mrs. Gorf has these big, horrible, terrible, nasty warts on her nose. And they seem to be multiplying! Why do you think that is? Take turns sharing stories about Mrs. Gorf’s warts. Make it a contest! Who can come up with the scariest story? Who can come up with the funniest story?

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