BJ Jones Timothy J. Evans ARTISTIC DIRECTOR EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR presents BY SHARYN ROTHSTEIN DIRECTED BY CODY ESTLE Scenic Design Jeffrey D. Kmiec, USA Costume Design Rachel Laritz, USA Lighting Design JR Lederle Original Music & Sound Design Lindsay Jones, USA Casting Director Lynn Baber, CSA Production Stage Manager Mara Filler, AEA OPENING NIGHT: MARCH 24, 2017 At the North Shore Center for the Performing Arts in Skokie By the Water was commissioned by The Writer’s Room (Manhattan Theatre Club, Ars Nova) and received its world premiere at Manhattan Theatre Club (Lynne Meadow, Artistic Director, Barry Grove, Executive Producer) in association with Ars Nova (Jason Eagan, Artistic Director, Renee Blinkwolt, Managing Director) on November 4, 2014. By the Water is presented by special arrangement with Dramatists Play Service, Inc., New York. COLOR COLOR PRODUCTION SPONSORS CAST & PRODUCTION INDIVIDUAL PRODUCTION SPONSOR CAST (IN ORDER OF APPEARANCE) BILL AND ELEANOR REVELLE Francis Guinan* ...........................................................................................Marty Murphy Penny Slusher* ..............................................................................................Mary Murphy Jordan Brown*.................................................................................................. Sal Murphy CORPORATE PRODUCTION SPONSOR Joel Reitsma ..................................................................................................Brian Muprhy Janet Ulrich Brooks* ................................................................................ Andrea Carter Patrick Clear* ..................................................................................................Philip Carter Amanda Drinkall* ....................................................................................... Emily Mancini OPENING NIGHT SPONSOR Understudies: Jim Gallanis (Patrick), Therese Harrold (Andrea), Rich Holton (Brian), Felipe Jorge (Sal), Erin Rein (Emily), Jamie Vann (Marty), Anne Wrider (Mary) Understudies will not substitute for listed players unless a specific announcement is made at the time of the performance. *Member of the Actors Equity Association, the union of SEASON SPONSORS professional actors and stage managers. Setting The storm-ravaged home of Marty and Mary Murphy, on the eastern coast of Staten Island, New York. After Hurricane Sandy. By the Water will be performed without intermission. NORTHLIGHT THEATRE IS SUPPORTED IN PART BY: ADDITIONAL PRODUCTION STAFF THE SULLIVAN FAMILY THE OFFIELD FAMILY THE ELIZABETH F. CHENEY FOUNDATION FOUNDATION FOUNDATION Assistant Director ...........................................................................................Eli Newell Properties Master ........................................................................Christopher J. Neville Production Assistant ..................................................................................... Katy Garcia Production Dramaturg ........................................................................Lauren Shouse Dialect Coach ..........................................................................................Eva Breneman Assistant Dramaturgs ............................................ Lauren Quinlan, Gina Grabinski HENRIETTA LANGE BURK FUND KIRKLAND & ELLIS The video and/or audio recording of this performance by any means FOUNDATION whatsoever is strictly prohibited. THE DAVEE FOUNDATION Modestus Bauer Foundation || Full Circle Foundation || Sanborn Family Foundation || The Harold & Mimi Steinberg Charitable Trust || Tom Stringer Design Partners || Dr. Scholl Foundation || Niles Township Corporate Fund 2 | NORTHLIGHT THEATRE NORTHLIGHT THEATRE | 3 COLOR PROGRAM NOTES FROM THE ARTISTIC DIRECTOR In Sharyn Rothstein’s affecting play, By the Water, a family’s life is tossed by the tempest of Hurricane Sandy. The decades-long home of the Murphy family is literally torn apart, and in that physical wreckage lies the remains of a broken past that years of personal redecorating has masked. In Rothstein’s play, natural disaster serves as a metaphor for the social and political change that forces generations to confront very real issues about their own lives—lives built on values that have become outmoded. How many of us characterize political correctness as a faddish affectation rather than an awakened sense of what is right and just in our current social fabric? With the brisk winds of change comes the sting of sand long buried. Families and friends are pulled apart and points of view are wielded like weapons. Sharyn’s sharp sense of humor built on rich character development is sprinkled throughout the play. And the themes of justice Join the and family values and loyalties emerge full-throated in her dialogue and her surprising plot. neighborhood Sharyn is a wonderful talent and we are proud to have her work on our dinner party. stage directed by longtime collaborator Cody Estle, who has assisted me on many projects here at Northlight, like Charm, Season’s Greetings and Stella & Lou. We are also thrilled to have Francis Guinan and Penny In our neighborhood, dinner is a time when friends get together to enjoy Slusher back, heading a stellar cast of Northlight favorites. engaging stories and culinary delights. At both our fine dining and casual dining options, our chefs create meals that cater to all tastes. Resident- BJ Jones, Artistic Director inspired dishes and good friends create a dining experience that is delicious and delightful. Schedule a visit today. NEXT AT NORTHLIGHT STARTS MAY 11 by MARK ST. GERMAIN directed by BJ JONES Featuring TICKETS ON MIKE NUSSBAUM 2323 McDaniel Avenue • Evanston, Illinois SALE NOW! as Albert Einstein 847-563-4855 • www.threecrownspark.com NORTHLIGHT THEATRE | 5 TCP1619/1604B—Dining Ad 5.375x8.375 FP.indd 1 10/7/16 3:45 PM COLOR COLOR PROGRAM NOTES PROGRAM NOTES FROM THE PLAYWRIGHT Dear Northlight Audience: I am thrilled and honored to share By the Water with you. I was living in Brooklyn when Hurricane Sandy hit New York. Like all natural disasters, there were those that were fortunate and those that were not. Among those hardest hit, were the below- or at-sea level communities on Staten Island. They were neighborhoods that families had lived in for generations, and suddenly they were empty, dangerous and boarded-up. The people who generously shared their stories with me in the aftermath of the storm were proud Staten Islanders who loved their neighbors and neighborhoods. But they were also frightened and Playwright Sharyn Rothstein scarred by a horrific event that took human life and so much else. As a writer, I am always drawn to questions that have no easy answers. When the Debris from the storm used to spell “Global Warming is Here” government started offering buy-outs for people in these hard-hit communities to move out, I was struck by how deeply difficult it must be for those who had just lost so much to have to choose to lose still more, or face an even more uncertain future. As climate change continues to upend our idea of “normal” weather, people across the country and the The upper story of a house blocking a roadway world are already being on Staten Island after Hurricane Sandy forced to weigh the value of human life against that of private property. More and more communities will have to face these impossible choices in the near future. The weather doesn’t care if we believe in climate change or not. A hurricane that’s more severe than it should have been because of warming water and higher sea levels doesn’t pick a better path because we have chosen to build our homes along the coast. But community is and always has been a powerful antidote to head-in-the- sand politics, ignorance and fear. As we adapt to life with the dangerous new climate we’ve created, all of us – just like Mary and Marty, their family and friends – will need to rely on our humor, our love and our belief in each other, to survive these storms and change their outcomes for future generations. Thank you again for sharing in this play. Sharyn Rothstein An aerial look at the homes on Staten Island after the storm. 6 | NORTHLIGHT THEATRE NORTHLIGHT THEATRE | 7 COLOR PROFILES JANET ULRICH PATRICK CLEAR BROOKS (Andrea (Philip Carter) is HURRICANE SANDY Carter) is delighted to delighted to return to return to Northlight Northlight where he Hurricane Sandy devastated portions of the Caribbean and the after previously was seen as Mr. Kirby Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern United States, with lesser impacts appearing in Ten in last season’s You in the Southeastern and Midwestern states and Eastern Canada, Chimneys. A company Can’t Take It With You. member of TimeLine, His other Northlight in late October 2012. her credits include Bakersfield Mist, The appearances include The Mousetrap, How And The Why, Apple Family Plays The Miser, Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde and and Jeff-nominated performances in All Pride & Prejudice. He has appeared in Hurricane Sandy killed at least My Sons, When She Danced, Not more than 60 productions with Chicago 131 people in eight states: Enough Air and Weekend. Other credits area theatres including Goodman, include Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Chicago Shakespeare, Steppenwolf, Spike, The Seagull (Goodman); Crazy Writers and Remy Bumppo. His regional For You (Drury Lane); Women Laughing credits include appearances at Hartford 253 people were killed Alone With Salad (Helen Hayes Stage, the Asolo Repertory Theatre, nomination - Woolly Mammoth Theatre, Indiana Repertory