MERRIMACKMERRIMACK REPERTORYREPERTORY THEATHEATRTREE BY Lauren Gunderson & Margot Melcon DIRECTED BY Sean Daniels NOVEMBER 28 – DECEMBER 23, 2018 1 CO-STARRING2018-19 TWO CORPORATEAWARD WINNING SPONSORS RESTAURANTS Corporate Sponsors are an essential part of producing plays at Merrimack Repertory Theatre. Thank you to the following donors for their generous support of our 40th Anniversary Season. SEASON SPONSOR American • Tavern global • extraordinary Steaks • Seafood raw bar tapas steaks Burgers • Craft Beer • • wine list creative cocktails Classic Cocktails • PRODUCTION SPONSORS Delivering Complete connected care Murder for Two Miss Bennet: Christmas at Pemberley The Heath to our community Well beyond the walls of our hospital The Haunted Life Cry It Out Circle Health, an integrated community healthcare delivery system that includes Lowell General Hospital, brings together providers and organizations ADDITIONAL SPONSORS across the continuum of care with a shared vision for providing convenient and affordable access to high-quality preventive, primary and specialty care in the community. Assistant Producer for Miss Bennet: Christmas at Pemberley Hospitality Sponsor Circle Health embodies the promise to deliver an experience of Complete Easy Directions & Parking connected careSM to ensure that no matter where an individual is in the continuum of health, he or she will have a truly seamless, coordinated and Award-Winning Sunday Brunches personal experience. Eight Function and Private Rooms Learn more at Circle-Health.org GiftAssistant Certificates Producer forStudent MatineeAll SeasonsSponsor & CelebrationsPlayGuide Sponsor MEDIA SPONSORS CobblestonesofLowell.com moonstones110.com enjoy life. Bringing Style to Downtown Lowell one biteMiss Bennet: at a Christmas time at Pemberley Lowell General Hospital | Circle Home | Our Community of Physicians Miss Bennet: Christmas at Pemberley The Haunted Life The Haunted Life Murder for Two 91 Dutton Street • Lowell, MA 978.970.2282The Haunted Life185 chelmsford street (route 110) chelmsford 978.256.7777 2 3 FROM SEAN DANIELS, ARTISTIC DIRECTOR FROM BONNIE J. BUTKAS, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR I love holiday shows. I do. And I love Lauren Gunderson This is the season of joy, generosity, and gratitude. shows. I think that’s fairly obvious. Thank you for you for joining us for Miss Bennet: I’ve worked on or programmed a holiday show every year Christmas at Pemberley. This is your theatre, and since I’ve been in this business (which is approximately we cannot wait to share this sparkling holiday show 4,000 years). with you. The show combines so many of our favorite people—written by Lauren Gunderson and Margot Plus, Lauren Gunderson married my wife and I. Literally. Malcon, based on Jane Austen’s characters from Pride and Prejudice, and featuring a delightful cast—bringing back So, when this came around, I was sold. Actually she sent it to us years ago to Alexis Bronkovic, Veronika Duerr, Vichet Chum, and Victoria Grace, and see if we would premiere it, and at the time we just couldn’t afford it—so we introducing you to Amanda Collins, Jesse Hinson, Katie Grindeland, and passed, and other theatres went on to have the glory of starting a show that Shawn K. Jain. will play for decades to come. But that was years ago, and since then, we’ve added Bonnie Butkas, who professionalized our admin and development As I write this, dozens of volunteers are assisting with hand-folded paper ornaments for the set of Miss Bennet… Our community has stepped up attempted in at least 15 years with a cast of eight. And what a special one to bring James Fenton’s gorgeous set design to fruition—young women tostaff do — it on.and One bam! that Here celebrates we are, not able only to takethe holidays, on the largest but literature show MRT and hasthe from Girls Inc., students from Valley Collaborative, our Cohort Club, women inside it. artists from Western Avenue Studios, the Friends of MRT, and our crafty staff members have all volunteered their time and talent to fold, crease, The night before we started rehearsal, Lauren asked me to read this to the glue, and fold some more. cast. It was amazing to look around the room and see them listen with their In the spirit of giving, we will be collecting toys for children in Lowell “I Voted” stickers on. throughout the run of Miss Bennet… Our neighbors at the Church of the “Margot and I think it’s a pretty big deal to be telling a story about a woman from your generosity. And in the spirit of giving, thank you to all our who changes everyone around her instead of changing because of the world audienceImmaculate members Conception who workcontributed with dozens to the of Essex families County who Communitywill benefit around her. We think it’s a pretty big deal to tell the story of a brilliant Foundation to support the people impacted by the gas explosions in determined woman who is rewarded with understanding and love of her Lawrence, Andover, and North Andover. You donated over $1,600 during family and a nice young man. We think it’s a pretty big deal to tell a story that ends with hope and heart. We know you do too or you wouldn’t be in this room at this awesome theater company! Happy first day of rehearsal!” theLastly, first it show has been of our an season! exciting season so far. We are grateful to be part of the Barr-Klarman Massachusetts Arts Initiative. With generous multi- What a great message for right now. year funding from the Barr and Klarman foundations, we will address our Hope and heart and women at the center of the story. be equitable, diverse and inclusive, and plan for the future. ongoing structural deficit, invest in our artistic vision, grow our efforts to The things we always love at the holidays and couldn’t need more of in 2018. Thank you. Also who doesn’t love a holiday story? Not me. We wish you a happy, healthy holiday season, mrt.org/holidayspecials P.S. If you’re still looking for that perfect holiday gift, MRT has gift certificates and gift 4 5 subscriptions! Go to . Get a three-play package for just $73! Q&A: PLAYWRIGHT AND DRAMATURG MARGOT MELCON Q&A: PLAYWRIGHT AND DRAMATURG MARGOT MELCON How did you meet different kind of holiday story. Ours is a world of people with problems that of the sisters. If you used to be more of a Lauren Gunderson? rooted in the complications of being are maybe a little superficial, but always Lydia, you may evolve into a Lizzy. Or part of a family, one that is made up of serve to showcase great and complex maybe you've always felt like a Mary at Lauren and I first met very different and dynamic women, and characters, especially the women. heart, until one day you wake up, and when I was working at what it means to support each other. What I love especially about Pride and you're relating to Jane. That's the lovely Marin Theatre Company Prejudice is that each of the sisters has thing about complicated characters: they as their dramaturg— she You are a highly regarded dramaturg. such a unique personality— at different resonate differently because each one of was brought out in 2009 Had you written a play before? times in your life, when you read the us has a little bit of each of them in us. to work on a play of hers called Rock novel, you'll identify with a different one Hill. She ended up moving to the Bay Though I had read literally thousands of Area, and she and I began collaborating plays as a dramaturg and the director of as playwright-dramaturg. We worked on new play development at Marin Theatre, several pieces in development at Marin I had never written a play. So, my only FACEBOOK.COM/ @MERRIMACK_REP Theatre, as well as on the world premiere experience of writing has been as a co- MERRIMACKREPERTORYTHEATRE of her play I and You. writer, but it has been an incredibly @MERRIMACKREPERTORYTHEATRE Follow the conversations: gentle entry into the world of being #MRTMISSBENNET How did the two of you come up a playwright. The process of writing with the idea of writing a sequel to can be very solitary, very much alone, Pride and Prejudice? even in the theater, which is ultimately a collaborative artform. The nice thing In the summer of 2014, she was working about being part of a writing team is that at Berkeley Rep's Ground Floor on a the collaboration starts early, from the one-woman show with banjo that was inception of the idea, so you're never loosely based on King Lear. [That play staring down at a blank page by yourself. became The Heath, which premieres From the beginning, neither Lauren or here at MRT in February.] We decided myself were precious with the words we to take a road trip up to the Oregon wrote, or took too much ownership. It Shakespeare Festival to see a production was all in service of the story. of Lear and on the six-hour car ride, we came up with the idea for Miss What do you think is the enduring Bennet... The impulse came from both a appeal of Jane Austen? practical place— all theater companies need good holiday shows to produce, Jane Austen will never go out of style and there just aren't that many to choose because of her incredible use of wit and from — and a place of desire to see a comedy. It is never not fun to dive into WHAT IS A DRAMATURG? A dramaturg is the most misunderstood position in the theatre because the work of a dramaturg varies widely from project to project.