March 12-April 11, 2020 CITY World-premiere commission! LIGHTS THEATER COMPANY CODED Written and directed by Kirsten Brandt supported by Visionary Producers Nancy B. Coleman & Paul M. Resch 2019-2020 Season presents C O D E D a world premiere Written and Directed by Kirsten Brandt with Alycia Adame Chioma Agu Ari Lagomarsino Stephanie Whigham Anne Younan Scenic Designer Lighting Designer Costume Designer Ron Gasparinetti John Bernard Alina Bokovikova Music & Sound Designer Properties Designer Production Manager George Psarras Miranda Whipple Ron Gasparinetti Fight Director Assistant Directors Assistant Costume Designer Scott Cummins Savannah Garcia Kathleen Qiu Kudra Wagner Master Carpenter/Scenic Artist Master Electrician Paulino Deleal Assistant Stage Manager Joseph Hidde Amber Gebert-Goldsmith Video/Projections Designer Projections Operator Spenser Mutabang Carpenters/Painters Paulino Deleal Stephen Grant Rodrigo Serna Lopez Stage Manager Michelle Singh Coded was commissioned by City Lights Theater Company Lisa Mallette, Executive Artistic Director. This world premiere production of CODED is supported by Visionary Producers Nancy B. Coleman and Paul M. Resch. City Lights Theater Company is a member of Theatre Communications Group (TCG), the national organization for the American theatre. The Cast Jerrie Stephanie Whigham Megan/Ronnie Chioma Agu Chris/Minerva Anne Younan Izzy Ari Lagomarsino Ashley Alycia Adame Setting: the not-too-distant future, Silcon Valley, California. The makeshift offices of ERDA and various rooms in “The Room.” The play is performed with one 15-minute intermission. Special Thanks Mike Ryan Santa Cruz Shakespeare David Lee Cuthbert UC Santa Cruz Compass Los Gatos City Lights thanks the following organizations for their continued support: Please note the locations of all exits. Copyright laws prohibit photography, videotaping, or recording of any kind during the performance. Please silence all cell phones and refrain from texting during the performance. And remember, at City Lights you are always welcome to enjoy your refreshments in the theatre! Connect with us on social media! We’re @citylights on Twitter and @citylightstheater on Instagram. Please consider City Lights for a planned gift or in your estate planning If you're reading this, we know you believe in the power of live theater. You're a member of our family and a part of why we've been thriving for 37 years. Want to help us be around for another 37 years? Want to be a partner in creating provocative productions that engage, inspire and challenge? Now you can support us with a planned gift. Anyone can make a legacy gift, from donating stocks or a portion of an IRA fund to including City Lights in your estate plan. We appreciate gifts of any size. All help to ensure that the lights stay bright. Learn more at cltc.org/plan. Who’s Who in the Cast Adame Agu Lagomarsino Whigham Younan Alycia Adame (Ashley) is stoked to be back for her second show at City Lights, after appearing as Vanessa in In the Heights. She was most recently seen as Lydia in American Night: The Ballad of Juan Jose (Los Altos Stage Company). Other credits include Nina in In The Heights (Stage 1) and Lucy The Slut in Avenue Q (Sunnyvale Community Players). When she’s not on stage, you can find her at Facebook being a friendly front desk face or flying downtown on pink roller skates. Chioma Agu (Megan/Ronnie) is a lifelong theatre nerd who is delighted to be joining the City Lights Theater Company family. Chioma appeared in Northside Theater Company’s production of Doubt: A Parable, and she spent a lot of her three years in graduate school at Stanford University participating in various musicals and plays on campus. She is an avid reader and amateur writer. In her free time, Chioma can be found running around town in training for her next race. Ari Lagomarsino (Izzy) is an Alumna of the Pacific Conservatory of The Performing Arts (PCPA), Class of 2016. She has most recently been performing Peace Signs with KPET as Trina. Other credits include Captain Conrad in Mass Effect: New Earth and dancer/singer in Haunt/Winterfest at California’s Great America, and Molly Aster in Peter and The Starcatcher with Tabard Theatre Co. She has also starred in several short film projects including as Emi in the web series Riding in Cars with Strangers and Young Scout in Scout. Ari is now a member of SAG/AFTRA. Be sure to hit that notification bell and roll for Charisma! Stephanie Whigham (Jerrie) has most recently appeared as Soupy Sue in Urinetown (Sunnyvale Community Players), Narrator in The White Snake (Silicon Valley Shakespeare), and Molly in Shakespeare in Love (Palo Alto Players). Other notable roles include Anna in Closer (Northside Theatre), Cleopatra in Antony & Cleopatra (SVS), Estelle in No Exit (Mojo Theatre), and Columbia in The Rocky Horror Show (Roshi Productions). In addition to working as an actor in theatre, commercials, and short films, Stephanie is a freelance graphic designer, and creates the marketing collateral for several Bay Area theatre companies. She has worked as a stage manager, costume designer, properties designer, and stage electrician for companies such as Pacific Rep, San Jose Stage, and Opera San Jose. More info at www.stephaniewhigham.com. Anne Younan (Chris/Minerva) is thrilled to work on this world premiere after last appearing as another Chris in Calendar Girls in 2016. City Lights credits include Joan in Remembrance, Maggie in Joined at the Head and Lurene in A Girl’s Guide to Chaos. Anne also appeared in Dead Man Walking and the City Lights spotlight presentation of Birth. Other favorite roles include Jetta in the original cast of Angry Housewives (San Jose Stage Company) and Kate in Uncommon Women and Others (West Valley College), for which she received an Irene Ryan Award nomination. A long-time City Lights staff member, Anne serves as the company’s General Manager. About the Playwright/Director Kirsten Brandt is an interdisciplinary artist and award-winning playwright and director who, for City Lights, previously directed Stupid F*ing Bird. She served for six seasons as Artistic Director of the experimental theatre company Sledgehammer Theatre where she directed over a dozen plays and musicals and wrote Berzerkergang, The Frankenstein Project and NU, and she served as the Associate Artistic Director of San Jose Repertory Theatre where she directed Dr. Faustus, Next Fall, The Big Meal, Legacy of Light, Rabbit Hole, and Groundswell, among others. Ms. Brandt’s directing work has been seen at The Old Globe, TheatreWorks, La Jolla Playhouse, Utah Shakespeare Festival, African-American Shakespeare Company, San Diego Repertory, Santa Cruz Shakespeare, North Coast Repertory, Marin Theatre Company, Jewel Theatre, and Arizona Theatre Company. She is the co-adapter of Henrik Ibsen’s A Doll’s House (with AC Harvey), which had its world premiere at the Old Globe Theatre. Her telematic, multi-site play The Thinning Veil was produced at UC Santa Cruz. She is the co-author of the rock musical The Snow Queen (available through Stage Rights) and Launching Ships (with Janet Hayatshahi). Ms. Brandt is an instigator for the The Bay Area Women’s Theatre Festival in 2020 and is an Assistant Professor of Theatre at San Jose State. Visit her at www.kirstenbrandt.com. Director’s Notes A little over a year ago, Lisa Mallette and I brainstormed about a world premiere for City Lights. With the company’s Season on Women on our minds, we discussed the need in our industry for vibrant female roles and plays highlighting issues facing women today. After musing on a variety of topics, we settled on a project about women in Silicon Valley, specifically in computer gaming. This is a personal subject for me. When my daughter was in the 5th grade she announced that she is going to be a game designer. I enrolled her in a summer program only to discover that she was the only girl in the class. I started investigating the volatile events surrounding #gamergate, the incessant trolling of women gamers on line and the misogynistic “Bro” culture of the Valley. As I dug deeper into this world, the dangers facing women became more apparent to me. From blatant sexual harassment and verbal abuse to doxing and death threats, the trolls continue in their quest to bully women out of the industry. It became clear to me that we need to talk about this. The video game industry is larger than the movie and the music industries. Change isn’t something that can happen overnight, but the gradual shift is becoming apparent as we raise awareness of the on-line gender war. Programs have emerged that train girls to code. In addition to creating games, women lead and teach in the top gaming programs in the country. Content is becoming more inclusive as it embraces voices that have been marginalized. I am incredibly grateful to City Lights and our producers for the opportunity to shine a light on this subject, because games are and should be for everyone. -- Kirsten Brandt Who’s Who Behind the Scenes John Bernard (Lighting Designer) is thrilled to return to CLTC this season and to work on this world premiere, after previously lighting Eurydice, The Siegel and The Merchant Of Venice for City Lights. John earned his Master’s degree from the University of Washington in 2015. In the Bay Area, he has designed for CMTSJ, San Jose Dance Co., San Francisco Shakespeare Festival, Ray Of Light, Stanford Repertory Theater, San Jose State University, Silicon Valley Shakespeare, The Dragon Theater, The Pear Avenue Theater, and Hillbarn. Upcoming projects include 3Below’s world premiere A Statue For Ballybunion, CMTSJ’s In The Heights, and Silicon Valley Shakespeare’s Measure for Measure and Sense and Sensibility.