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Home , Doug Wright, Joseph Kesselring

DIFFERENT STAGES’ REPERTORY Begun as Small Potatoes Theatrical Company 1981: ’s Creditors and The Stronger. 1982: William Shakespeare’s The Tem- pest and A Midsummer Night’s Dream. 1983: George Bernard Shaw’s Candida; Anton Chekhov’s The Brute, Swan Song, and Celebration. 1984: Luigi Pirandello’s Right You Are (If You Think You Are); Jane Martin’s Talking With… 1985: Caryl Churchill’s Cloud 9; William Shakespeare’s As You Like It; Carl Sternheim’s The Underpants; Michael Weller’s Moonchildren. 1986: Amlin Gray’s How I Got That Story; William Shakespeare’s The Winter’s Tale; Eugene O’Neill’s Beyond the Horizon. 1987: Michael Weller’s Loose Ends; Aristophanes’ The Wasps; Larry Kramer’s The Normal Heart; Arthur Schnitzler’s Anatol. 1988: Wallace Shawn’s Aunt Dan and Lemon; Dylan Thomas’ Under Milk Wood; ’s Light Up the Sky; Jean Racine’s Phaedra; Jean-Baptiste Molière’s The Misanthrope. 1989: Caryl Churchill’s Fen; Charles Ludlam’s The Artificial Jungle; William Shakespeare’s The Merchant of Venice. 1990: Eric Overmeyer’s On the Verge; Eugene O’Neill’s Long Day’s Journey Into Night; Milan Kundera’s Jacques and His Master; Tom White’s The Trouble with Tofu; William Shakespeare’s Titus Andronicus. 1991: George Kelly’s The Show- Off; George Bernard Shaw’s Mrs. Warren’s Profession; Keith Reddin’s Life and Limb; Mozart/ Lorenzo da Ponte’s Così fan Tutte; Jean-Baptiste Molière’s The Learnèd Ladies. 1992: Alan Ayckbourn’s Woman in Mind; Carlo Gozzi’s The Raven; Henrik Ibsen’s The Wild Duck; Charles MacArthur’s Johnny on a Spot; George Farquhar’s The Recruiting Officer. 1993: Timberlake Wertenbaker’s Our Country’s Good; Charles Ludlam’s The Secret Lives of the Sexists; ’ Orpheus Descending. 1994: Constance Congdon’s Tales of the Lost Formicans; William Shakespeare’s Cymbeline; George M. Cohan’s The Tavern; Marlayne Meyer’s Etta Jenks. 1995: Pierre Marivaux’s The Triumph of Love; Tom Stoppard’s Travesties; Larry Kramer’s The Destiny of Me; Alexander Ostrovsky’s The Diary of a Scoundrel. 1996: Caryl Churchill’s Mad Forest; Agatha Christie’s Black Coffee; William Congreve’s The Way of the World. 1997: Terrence Mc- Nally’s A Perfect Ganesh; Dorothy Parker’s Here We Are; Alan Ayckbourn’s Drinking Companion; Terrence McNally’s Noon; George M. Cohan’s Seven Keys to Baldpate; Sean O’Casey’s Juno and the Paycock. 1998: Tom Stoppard’s Arcadia; Aeschylus’ Agamemnon; Giles Havergal’s Travels with my Aunt; ’s All My Sons. 1999: Edit Villareal’s My Visits with MGM; Jean-Baptiste Molière’s The Hypochondriac (tr. Martin Sorrel); Edward Percy and Reginald Denham’s Ladies in Retirement; Anton Chekhov’s Uncle Vanya. 2000: Peter Parnell’s The Rise and Rise of Daniel Rocket; Ann Ciccolella’s Fruits and Vegetables; George S. Kaufman and ’s Merton of the Movies; Martin McDonagh’s The Cripple of Inishmaan. 2001: Milcha Sanchez-Scott’s Roost- ers; George Bernard Shaw’s The Devil’s Disciple; J. B. Priestly’s Dangerous Corner; Tennessee Williams’ Summer and Smoke. 2002: Ann Ciccolella’s Madame X; David Linsay-Abaire’s Fuddy Meers; Agatha Christie’s The Unexpected Guest; Federico Garcia Lorca’s The House of Bernarda Alba. 2003: Christopher Durang’s Betty’s Summer Vacation; ’s The Traveling Lady, William Shakespeare’s Two Gentlemen of Verona; Oscar Wilde’s An Ideal Husband; Moliere’s The Miser. 2004: ’s The Hasty Heart; Tom White’s The Misses Overbeck; Brian Friel’s Molly Sweeney, George Bernard Shaw’s Arms and the Man. 2005:William Shakespeare’s Pericles, Prince of Tyre; Edit Villareal’s Marriage is Forever; Agatha Christie’s Appointment with Death; John Millington Synge’s The Playboy of the Western World. 2006: Two into War (The Gifts of War and The Retreating World); Amy Freed’s The Beard of Avon; Agatha Christie’s The Hollow; Christopher Durang’s Mrs. Bob Cratchit’s Wild Christmas Binge. 2007: ’s The Goat or Who is Sylvia?, Peter Shaffer’s Lettice and Lovage, W. Sommerset Maugham’s The Constant Wife; Moliere’s The Miser. 2008: Tennessee Williams’ Garden District: Something Unspoken & Suddenly Last Summer, Diana Son’s Stop Kiss; Tom White’s What I Want Right Now; George Ber- nard Shaw’s Getting Married. 2009: Christopher Durang’s Miss Witherspoon; Caryl Churchill’s A Number; J.B. Priestley’s An Inspector Calls; ’s The Skin of Our Teeth. 2010: Sarah Ruhl’s Eurydice; Horton Foote’s The Carpetbagger’s Children; Agatha Christie’s Spider’s Web; Paul Osborn’s Morning’s at Seven. 2011: Charlotte Jones’ Humble Boy; Tennessee Williams’ The Night of the Iguana; W. Somerset Maugham’s Too Many Husbands; Lisa Kron’s Well. 2012: Lillian Hell- man’s The Children’s Hour; Agatha Christie’s Murder on the Nile; Lennox Robinson’s Is Life Worth Living?; George S. Kaufman & Moss Hart’s You Can’t Take it With You. 2013: ’s ; David Lindsay-Abaire’s Good People; Emlyn Williams’ Night Must Fall Different Stages presents ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS AND SPECIAL THANKS Paula Gilbert, Royce Gehrels, Douglas Kelley, Bill Peeler, Bonnie Cullum and Melissa Vogt-Patterson, Doug Shae, Travis Dean, Larry and Bobbie Arsenic and Old Lace Oliver, Jamie Urban, Dougherty Arts Center by FUNDING AND DONATIONS Director ...... Norman Blumensaadt Director Level $5000+ Assistant Director ...... Jean Budney Stage Manager ...... Haley Naiser The City of Austin Set Design ...... Ann Marie Gordon Actor Level $1000 - $5000 Light Design ...... Amy Lewis Karen Jambon & Jennifer Underwood, Bobbie & Larry Oliver, Costume Design ...... Heather Lesieur Jack Grimes, Ameriprise Financial Stage Manager Level $500-$999 CAST AMD Foundation, Ann Bower, Craig Kanne, Abby Brewster ...... Jennifer Underwood Connie McMillan The Rev. Dr. Harper ...... Mick D’Arcy Teddy Brewster ...... Joe Hartman Designer Level $250-$499 Officer Brophy ...... Sebastian Garcia Irene Dubberly, Emily & Kent Erington, Royce Gehrels, Officer Klein ...... Grayson Little Harvey Guion, Bruce McCann, Sarah & David Seaton Martha Brewster ...... Karen Jambon Stage Hand Level $100-$249 Elaine Harper...... Sarah Danko Mortimer Brewster ...... Tyler Jones Pamela Bates, Marla Boye, Andy & Renee Brown, Bonnie & Frank Cahill, Melanie Mr. Gibbs ...... Mike Dellens & Travis Dean, Diane Herrera, Roy & Leona Kaskin, Bill Kemp, Steven Kinslow, Jonathan Brewster ...... Steven Fay The Pfizer Foundation, Annette Sherman, David Smith, Keith Yawn, Tom White, Dr. Einstein ...... Porter Gandy Betty Wood, Brian Graham-Moore, Anonymous Officer O’Hara ...... Andy Brown Audience Level $20-$99 Lieutenant Rooney ...... Mick D’Arcy Mr. Witherspoon ...... Mike Dellens Patricia Bennett, Cecilia Berg, Charles Ramirez Berg, Mary Alice Carnes, Paula Gilbert, Reba Gillman, Dianne & Donna Le Roy, Cade & Al Minder, Gerald The entire action of the play takes place in the Moore, Rebecca Robinson, Miriam & Larry Rubin, Kelly Slupek, Brian Graham- living room of the Brewster home in Brooklyn. Moore Act I: In-Kind Donations An afternoon in September Karen Jambon, Bill Peeler ~Intermission~ Act II: This project is funded and That same night supported in part by the City of Austin through ~Intermission~ the Cultural Arts Division Act III: believing an investment Scene 1: Later that night in the Arts is an invest- Scene 2: Early the next morning ment in Austin’s future. Produced by special arrangement with Dramatist Play Service, Inc. Visit Austin at: NowPlayingAustin.com PRODUCTION STAFF ABOUT THE PLAYWRIGHT Joseph Otto Kesselring (July 21, 1902 – November 5, 1967) was an American Set Crew ...... Ann Marie Gordon, Elaine Jacobs, Sebastian Garcia writer and playwright known best for his play Arsenic and Old Lace, written in 1939 ...... Steven Fay, Norman Blumensaadt and originally entitled Bodies in Our Cellar. He was born in City to Henry Properties ...... Norman Blumensaadt and Frances Kesselring. His father’s parents were immigrants from Germany. His Webmaster ...... Martina Ohlhauser mother was an English Canadian. Kesselring spent much of his life in and around Photography ...... Bret Brookshire the theater. In 1922 he began teaching vocal music and directed stage productions Graphic Artist ...... Dean Shultz at Bethel College in North Newton, . After two years, Kesselring left teach- Program Design ...... Emily Erington ing and returned to the stage, working for two years with an amateur theatrical Publicity ...... Carol Ginn, Norman Blumensaadt group in Niagara, New York. He began working as a freelance playwright in 1933, completing 12 original plays, of which four were produced on Broadway: Wisdom ABOUT DIFFERENT STAGES in Women (1935), Arsenic and Old Lace (1941), Four Twelves Are 48 (1951), and Mother of That Wisdom (1963). Different Stages, Inc. has been a community-based organization since its in- Kesselring died in Kingston, New York in 1967 at the age of 65. ception in 1981 and incorporation in 1984. It produces works by playwrights who we believe to be defining forces in . We seek to entertain with per- In 1980, the created the Joseph Kesselring Prize for up-and- formances that reveal life in all its comedy, tragedy and intensity; and we hope coming playwrights. It was funded by Kesselring’s widow, Charlotte. Among the to educate by choosing plays that provide exceptional insight into the human playwrights who have won the prize are , David Adjmi, Doug Wright, , , , Melissa James Gibson, Jo Car- condition. By challenging ourselves as artists, and our audiences as participants, son, Nicky Silver, David Lindsay-Abaire, José Rivera, Naomi Wallace, Philip Kan we endeavor to provide the community with vigorous and exciting live theatre. Gotanda, Kira Obolensky, Tracey Scott Wilson, and Marion McClinton.

Producing Artistic Director Norman Blumensaadt 2013-14 Board of Directors Season Karen Jambon, T.J. Moreno, Norman Blumensaadt Operating Board Norman Blumensaadt, Sarah Seaton, Royce Gehrels, Paula Ruth Gilbert ~COMEDY CLASSIC~ Arsenic and Old Lace by Joseph Kesselring Nov. 22-Dec. 15, 2013 The Vortex

~NEW AMERICAN PLAY~ The Language Archive by Julia Cho Jan. 10-Feb. 1, 2014 City Theatre

~MYSTERY~ Child’s Play by Robert Marasco April 4-May 26, 2014 City Theatre

~A KIND OF LOVE STORY~ Pygmalion by George Bernard Shaw June 27-July 19, 2014 The Vortex CAST BIOGRAPHIES

ANDY BROWN (Officer O’Hara) is pleased to be appearing in another Different Stages production. He has appeared previously in Is Life Worth Living? and You Can’t Take It With You. Selected roles include Mark Styler in MindGame, Hugo Taney in God’s 711 W. 38th St., Suite C3 Austin, TX 78705 Man in Texas, and Lenny in Of Mice and Men. Andy would like the thank the cast and Mon - Fri, 8:30am - 6:00pm; Sat-Sun, Closed crew for another fun production, wishes everyone a happy holiday season, and is glad 512-458-3784; Toll Free: 1-800-734-2176 that this production concludes his community-service obligation. Fax: 512-458-1882 Email: [email protected]

SARAH DANKO (Elaine Harper) is new to the Austin theatre scene, and thrilled to be making her debut with Different Stages. An actress and classically trained vocalist, Sarah has also studied with Austin Shakespeare and at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art in London. Since moving to Austin in 2011, she’s been utilizing her skills, not only D e b i t , P r i vat e H e a l t h I n s u r a n ce as an actress, but as a visual artist, with filmmaking collective--Archimedes Media Lab. Sarah couldn’t be happier to be a part of Arsenic and Old Lace.  MICK D’ARCY (The Rev. Dr. Harper, Officer Rooney) just finished The Spanish Tragedie for the Baron’s Men, Cyberfest 2013 at the VORTEX and before that Raisin in the  Forbidden Fruit Sun for UpRise Productions just before that. Before that was Much Ado About Nothing at Keeping Austin Kinky Since 1981 City Theatre and EARTH before that at the VORTEX. Mick last worked for Different  Vibrators, Leather Toys, Stages in the capacity of director for You Can’t Take It With You just about a year ago. Corsets, Bachelorette Party Supplies, Lubes, Edible Oils,  Workshops MIKE DELLENS (Mr. Gibbs, Mr. Witherspoon) is excited to be in his first play Home Party Sales and for Different Stages. He has appeared at City Theatre in Buried Child and Othello. In ad-  locally made products! dition, he has been in the Wondrous Strange Players production of Blood Wedding, In2 AIBA member discount! Photo by DarkFlame Studios The West at Austin Community College and an adaptation of Death of A Salesman titled 108 E North Loop Blvd. This Great Country which was in the 2012 Austin Fusebox Festival. He gives thanks to  453-8090 his wife, Joanne, for all of her support for his creative endeavors. In addition to acting, www.forbiddenfruit.com Mike has been a mathematics professor at Austin Community College for 33 years.

STEVEN FAY (Jonathan Brewster) appears in his 22nd Different Stages production. Previous DS appearances include Appointment With Death (B. Iden  Payne nomination), Getting Married, Mur- der on the Nile and You Can’t Take It With  You. Many years ago, he appeared in   Referred for a reason Arsenic and Old Lace as O’Hara and Mr. Spenalzo. Why would you bring your Porsche to the Black Forest Werks hop? This is absolutely an intelligent and honest question. 512-419-0021 The answer lies strictly with whom you trust and are comfortable PORTER GANDY (Dr. Einstein) is I N D E P E N D E N T  www.TheMaidsServingAustin.com delighted to be performing in his second working withB tMo sWerv •ic Me andINI r+epa PiOr yRouSr CHpersEona 66 LLQQ lFF auHHtom obile. show for Different Stages and in Austin. 512-300-300-26-972697 (BM W• wwwS) • 2417.4 wBueellr kA.vce o• wwwm • 2417.4werk B.cueomll He was last featured as Stevie Grimes in Good People last spring. He received his BFA in

 ANN MARIE GORDON (Scenic De- theatrical performance from the Univer- sign) is pleased to be working again with sity of Texas at Arlington in 2010. Porter Different Stages. Her recent work with Dif- extends a grand gesture of thanks to the ferent Stages includes Good People, Is Life company of Arsenic and Old Lace and to Worth Living?, The Children’s Hour, and A his family and friends for all the love and Number, which was nominated for a Critics support. Table Award. She is a member of the VOR- TEX Repertory Company where she de- SEBASTIAN GARCIA (Brophy) is signed the sets for Oceana, The Inbetweeners, pleased to be doing his second show for and The Dragonfly Queen, all premiere works Different Stages. His first was You Can’t recently presented by the VORTEX. Take it With You; in which he played the head G-Man. He is also thrilled to be HEATHER LESIEUR (Costume De- back at the VORTEX. Garcia has per- sign) is excited for her first production formed in many shows here, including the with Different Stages. She will be gradu- Wyrd Sisters, Elizabeth: the Heart of a King Serving Generations of ating from Southwestern University in and Vitriol & Violets. Austinites Awesome December with a BA in Theatre. While at Vegetarian Food Since 1980 Southwestern she has designed costumes JOE HARTMAN (Teddy Brewster) 4215 Duval for The Laramie Project, Trial by Jury, Good- has performed in the past with Differ- 512-451-3994 night Desdemona (Good Morning Juliet), and I ent Stages in Quills, Murder on the Nile, Too www.motherscafeaustin.com Stand Before You Naked. Her other costume Many Husbands, and The Beard of Avon (B. design work includes Dying City (Capital T) Iden Payne Nomination). Other local productions include Zeus in Therapy, Vampire Les- and Losing Elysium (University of Limerick). bians of Sodom (B. Iden Payne nomination) Milkmilklemonade, Hay Fever, The Casket of Passing Fancy, The Page and the Caterpillar (B. Iden Payne nomination), Psycho Beach Party (B. AMY LEWIS (Light Design) is a graduate of McMurry University with a BFA in Iden Payne nomination), and his one-man show Overwhelming Underdogs (B. Iden Payne Theatre. She is very active in the Austin theatre community as both an actor and a nomination). Musical performances include appearances in ’s Com- lighting designer. Amy’s Austin area acting credits include Sordid Lives, Human Sketches, pany, When Pigs Fly (B. Iden Payne nomination) Annie, Guys and Dolls, My Favorite Year Picasso at the Lapin Agile, Romeo and Juliet, Shakespeare in Hollywood, Dracula at the Bastrop (B. Iden Payne nomination), and The Music Man. LA credits include: Reverend Joseph Opera House, The Laramie Project at City Theatre, Bitten!: A Zombie Rock Odyssey, The Au- Dale in Showtime Television’s Great Commission, Mrs. Mackelravey in The Tune Timers tomat, Bride of Slapdash, Slapdash Cinco de Flimflam, Slapdash Live Six Showand The Brothers (TV pilot), and Wally in ITC’s 1940’s Radio Hour. Merlin with Loaded Gun Theory, of which she is also a member and resident lighting designer. Past productions with Different Stages include The Skin of Our Teeth, An KAREN JAMBON (Martha Brewster) is thrilled to be playing Jennie Underwood’s Inspector Calls, What I Want Right Now, Mrs. Bob Crachit’s Wild Christmas Binge, The Hollow, sister again, having played her sister in Different Stages’ The Cripple of Inishmaan and Playboy of the Western World, and Too Many Husbands. Sam Bass Theatre’s The Queen of Bingo. She most recently directed Good People for Dif- ferent Stages and Next Fall for Paradox Players. For Different Stages she has directed HALEY NAISER (Stage Manager) stage manages, assistant stage manages, and Fuddy Meers, Betty’s Summer Vacation (B. Iden Payne nominations for Best Play), and does running crew for theatre companies around town, including Salvage Vanguard, Playboy of the Western World (Critic’s Circle nomination for best play) as well as Morning’s City Theatre, Tutto Theatre Company, Crank Collective, MacTheatre, and now Differ- at Seven, Stop Kiss, and Mrs. Bob Cratchit’s Wild Christmas Binge. Karen has also directed ent Stages. for The VORTEX Repertory Company, Sam Bass Theatre, Loaded Gun Theory, and Scottish Rite Children’s Theatre.

TYLER JONES (Mortimer Brewster) is pleased to return to Different Stages where he has appeared in Murder on the Nile, Getting Married, The Hollow, and The Beard of Avon. Other Austin credits - Zilker Hillside Theater: Little Shop of Horrors, Beauty and the Beast, and The Music Man. ZACH: Xanadu, Ragtime, White Christmas. Hyde Park Theatre: The JEAN BUDNEY (Assistant Director) has appeared in Is Life Worth Living?, Quills, Lonesome West. Penfold Theatre: I Love You Because. Capital T Theatre: Spirits to Enforce. and Good People, all with Different Stages. Jean is a graduate of Boston Conservatory of Paradox Players: Guest Artist. City Theatre: Death of a Salesman (B. Iden Payne winner Music. This is her first time not appearing onstage in a production she is involved with, for Outstanding Featured Actor), Songs for a New World, How the Other Half Loves. and she thanks Norman Blumensaadt for the opportunity to gain a greater knowledge of her theatrical surroundings. GRAYSON LITTLE (Klein) is proud to be making his debut with Different Stages. He received his BFA in Theatre from Texas State University, and is a B. Iden Payne Award nominee. Grayson hosts a weekly podcast about wrestling and blogs about mu- sic.  JENNIFER UNDERWOOD (Abby Brewster) last appeared with Different Stages 603 Williams in the role of Ann Kron in Well, for which she won a B. Iden Payne award for Best Austin, Texas 78752 Featured Actress in a Comedy. Other roles for Different Stages include Flora in Humble Boy, Grace Anne in The Carpetbagger’s Children, Esther in Morning’s at Seven, the title role Robert White - Owner in Miss Witherspoon, Mrs. Venable in Suddenly Last Summer, Lotte Shoen in Lettice and (512) 459-5337 Fax: 450-0093 Lovage, Queen Elizabeth I in The Beard of Avon, Catherin Petkoff in Arms and the Man, Austin's one stop service and repair shop for Jeeps® since 1988 Mrs. Siezmagraff in Betty’s Summer Vacation, (B. Iden Payne Award for Outstanding www.JustJeepsAustin.com Actress in a Comedy), the title role in The House of Bernarda Alba, Gertie in Fuddy Meers, Mrs. Dudgeon in The Devil’s Disciple, Kate in The Cripple of Inishmaan, Kate in All My Sons  and Norma in The Misses Overbeck. Other Austin area productions include The Duchess in The Casket of Passing Fancy, (2009 Austin Critics Table Award for Outstanding Actress in a Leading Role), Mag in The Beauty Queen of Leenane (B. Iden Payne for Outstanding Cast Performance), Kate in Dancing at Lughnasa, Vera in Auntie Mame, Sis in Queen of Bingo, Big Mama in Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, Melissa in Love Letters, Bessie in Marvin’s Room, Elizabeth in The Petition, Betty in The Effect of Gamma Rays on Man-in-the-Moon-Marigolds, and Evie in The Gingerbread Lady.

DIRECTION AND DESIGN BIOGRAPHIES

NORMAN BLUMENSAADT (Director) is the Producing Artistic Director for Different Stages. As an actor, he has worked in Shakespeare festivals in Odessa; Dallas, Texas; and Madison, New Jersey. For Different Stages, he has recently appeared in You Can’t Take It With You, Eurydice, Humble Boy and A Number. He won a B. Iden Payne Award for Best Supporting Actor in a Comedy for The Triumph of Love. Among the numerous shows that he has directed, a selection includes Quills, Is Life Worth Living?, The Carpetbagger’s Children, Well, The Beard of Avon, An Ideal Husband, and The Constant Wife. In celebration of his long and outstanding work in the Austin theater scene, the Austin Circle of Theaters bestowed upon Norman the 1998 Deacon Crain/John Bus- tin Award. His productions of The Normal Heart and The Goat or Who Is Sylvia? won B. UNIVERSAL PUBLISHERS Special Events Advertising Iden Payne Awards for Best Production of a Drama. His production of Arcadia, the first of at least five productions in Austin, won the Austin Critics Circle Award for Best (512) 478-6306 Comedy. www.upstages.com