Spring Awakening is performed with a fifteen-minute intermission.
Content Warning: This production features atmospheric effects and adult language and themes.
“Spring Awakening” is presented through special arrangement with Music Theatre Internation (MTI). All authorized performance materials are also supplied by MTI. www.mtishows.com
First produced in New York City
Eugene O’Neill Theatre
Steven Sater, Book and Lyrics; Duncan Sheik, Music; Based on the play by Frank Weddekind
LEAD PRODUCTION TEAM
DIRECTOR
Rachael Swartz
MUSIC DIRECTOR
David Brady
CHOREOGRAPHER
Ryan Cappleman
INTIMACY AND FIGHT DIRECTOR
Christopher Elst
SCENIC DESIGNER
Eric D. Diaz
ASSISTANT DIRECTOR
Emily Moisant*
COSTUME DESIGNER
Misti Bradford
LIGHTING DESIGNER
Jessica Baker
SOUND DESIGNER
Kevin Gray
HAIR & MAKEUP DESIGNER
Percy Reed
PROPERTIES HEAD
Jim Guy
STAGE MANAGER
Star Howard*
Samantha Feiler
TECHNICAL DIRECTOR
Jenny Bauer
DRAMATURG
AJ Lance*
* Indicates undergraduate BA student
DIRECTOR'S NOTES
“I’ll tell you everything. But not today. Tomorrow. Or the day after.”
Frank Wedekind penned Spring Awakening in 1891 as commentary on the culture wars being fought over sexual freedom and humanistic education. In 2006, the team of Duncan Sheik (music) and Steven Sater (book and lyrics) adapted the critical piece of modernist theatre into a contemporary alt and folk-rock musical utilizing rock and roll to give voice to the emotional outpourings of its teen characters. In its earliest incarnation, the play was frequently censored due to its frank portrayal of sexual discovery, masturbation, homosexuality, suicide, and abortion. After its first season on Broadway, the musical garnered eight Tony Awards including Best Musical, Best Book, and Best Original Score. Fortunately, some attitudes have changed with time.
“You cannot imagine I still believe in the stork.”
Spring Awakening may appear, on the surface, to be a musical solely concerned with sex. But it doesn’t take much to move past the surface; in doing so, we discover a cautionary tale of adults not allowing young people to be heard.
“All that’s known in history and science, overthrown at school, at home, by blind men…”
Today’s youth scream to be heard about their experiences with gun violence, the mental health crisis, and sexual discrimination, all while being told their voices are invalid. That they should be silent and do what they’re told. The world, and all the information it contains, is accessible via our phones, and yet we routinely fail to equip them to contextualize said information. This, in particular, has been on display as we return to collaborative learning and social settings in the wake of the pandemic’s Great Disruption.
“The sadness, the doubt, all the loss, the grief, will belong to some play from the past; as the child leads the way to a dream, a belief, a time of hope through the land.”
What do you do when you feel like screaming into the void? Or when that chasm seems echoless, deafening in its silence? When it seems like no one in the world is listening? You scream. You turn up the speakers and you scream louder. Because Spring Awakening is proof that if you scream loud enough, play your music loud enough, eventually they won’t be able to tune you out. All the pain feels different when you have an audience and those tears of rage are no longer cried in solitude.
“Those you’ve known, and lost still walk behind you….”
Creating this piece together with our massive cast, with my collaborators in choreography, music direction and fight and intimacy direction, with our design teams, with stage management and assistant director has been a powerful experience in listening. In doing so, I am reminded often of the two folks who taught me what I know about the collaborative processes of Musical Theatre pedagogy (Victoria Bussert) and of the art of directing an ensemble driven piece (Lou Rackoff). My work is modeled from their excellence in artistry and mentorship, and it is my great sadness to dedicate this production to the memory of my directing mentor, Lou Rackoff, who passed this February after a brief illness. Lou, in particular, taught me the art of a director and actor’s collaboration in shaping a story as was modeled to him by his mentor Joseph Papp. May his memory be a blessing.
Rachael Swartz
Director
DRAMATURG'S NOTES
Spring Awakening is a tough story about topics that are hard to discuss and depict on stage, such as teen pregnancy, abortion, teen suicide, and sexual assault. Originally written in 1891 by German playwright Frank Wedekind, the play was banned and hardly ever produced due to the sexually explicit content and anti-religious themes. Starting in the 90s, lyricist Steven Sater and composer Duncan Sheik decided that the play was still extremely relevant 100 years later and started to work on a musical adaptation for modern audiences. Spring Awakening’s pop rock music and angsty lyrics help make this a great musical adaptation without losing the main ideas present in the original.
Although the original and the musical have the same core story, the interpretation of some of the elements is vastly different. It’s important to know the differences between the two to get a better understanding of the characters and the historical significance of the play. In the original text, the relationship between the central characters, Melchior and Wendla, features a much darker tone. Melchior sexually assaulted Wendla in the haystack rather than the musical having a romantic, loving tone between the two. Taking it out was essential for a Broadway audience, but knowing about it is still important. Differences like this can provide a different perspective on the text or provide more meaning to the central ideas of sexual suppression and teen depression.
Understanding the historical significance of the themes can also provide a better understanding of the play and allow for more thought-provoking conversations amongst audience members. In 1891, Germany’s conservative authoritarianism was starting to show in every facet of the culture, including education. Teachers would beat students and children would be given one week of work to do in one day. Society had extreme pressures on getting a high school degree and if a student didn’t have one, they had nowhere to go. The students that learned differently or couldn’t keep up failed. These extreme pressures led to Germany having a child suicide rate not seen anywhere else in Europe at the time, with a yearly rate of 64 students per 32,000, while countries like England only had 4 in 100,000. In addition to the mental health and poor education standards, sexual education and abortion was a deeply rooted problem due to the strict Christian values. Abortion was made outright illegal in Germany in 1872. Therefore, unsafe abortion methods were used such as extremely toxic concoctions containing ergot of rye and pennyroyal and could’ve been a method Wendla uses in the play. Also, sex education was not taught to children. Most children thought babies were made at a factory, bought at a store, or made in Heaven. If teens expressed sexual interest, they were punished or lied to about what sex is, just like Wendla or Melchior being lied to or getting punished.
Since the musical was inspired by the things happening with teens in America at the dawn of the 21st century, it is also important to know the United States modern historical perspective. The original play did not put as much emphasis on the abortion as the musical does. This is because abortion has become a much more debated topic since Roe v. Wade made it a right and only recently being struck down. Abortions are a leading cause of death in the world and most of them are due to unsafe access, such as the one Wendla has. Sexual education in schools has only recently started to become more medically accurate and teen birth rates have drastically declined. Until 2009, Christian organizations still funded inaccurate, abstinence only school programs. This led to the highest rates of teen pregnancy in the 90s and early 2000s, with a peak of 173 pregnancies per 1,000 teens. Finally, the themes of mental health address the still ongoing crisis teens face in America. The 90s was the start of record rates of suicide amongst teens with a rate of 19 per 100,000. Since then, rates have drastically climbed each year. Compared to 1999, 2017 saw rates of 30 per 100,000. School shootings by heavily bullied individuals who are ignored by school authorities and who have extreme mental health problems and developmental delays have become the norm.
Based on the historical research of both the 19th century and early 21st, it is clear that the themes of suicide, bullying, societal pressures, sexual education, and abortion are still all very relevant to the modern audience. Audiences of all ages should find this play easily relatable since the issues have been going on since the original was written in 1891. It can also serve to educate audience members, cast, and crew about the topics. This play still matters in 2023.
AJ Lance*
Dramaturg
CAST LIST
Spring Awakening
WENDLA
Annagrace McCurdy
ILSE
Delaina Kuzelka
THEA
Jenna Speer
ANNA
Elisebeth Sparks
MARTHA
Olivia Mauritz
ADULT WOMAN
Janet Jurado
MELCHIOR
Ben Brewer
MORITZ
Colton Smith
HANSCHEN/RUPERT
Alistair Weime
ERNST/REINHOLD
Gavin Casillas
GEORG/DIETER
Dylan Perozzo
OTTO/ULBRECHT
Austin Voyles
ADULT MAN
Hans Pfrang
ENSEMBLE
Allison Hayes
Talia Last
Briana Livesay
Juliana (Juju) Garcia-Malacara
Alison Pinchard
Alyssa Ritacca
Giuliana Soldatelli-Damo
Maddie Paige Christie
Jordan McGraw
Petr Jaros-Vitacco
Alex Ortiz
Percy Reed
MUSICIANS
Spring Awakening
Keys
David Brady
Keys
Ryan Cappleman
Guitar 1
Charlie Collins
Guitar 2
Aren Goodwin
Bass
Bill Drimmel
Drums
Joshua Hoenke
Violin
Maya Gibson
Cello
Michele Venturella
Viola
Molly Lieberman
CAST BIOS
ANNAGRACE MCCURDY (Wendla) is a first-year Theatre Arts major with a concentration in Musical Theatre. Previous credits include As You Like It (U/S Rosalind) and The Wolves (Soundboard Operator).
DELAINA KUZELKA (Ilse) is a senior Theatre Arts major with a concentration in Acting. Previous credits with UW-Parkside include As You Like It (Celia), Indecent (The Middle: Halina), The Penelopiad (Penelope), Stupid F##king Bird (Nina), Rodgers and Hammerstein's Cinderella (Ensemble), Romeo and Juliet (Juliet), and Silent Sky (Williamina).
JENNA SPEER (Thea) is a senior Theatre Arts major with a concentration in Musical Theatre and a transfer student from State Fair Community College (Sedalia, MO). Recent credits include The Aliens (Assistant Stage Manager), The Wolves (#2) and Indecent (U/S The Ingenue) at UW-Parkside. Additional credits include Racine Theatre Guild’s The Little Mermaid (Arista), Cyclopedic Ensemble's Stinky Cheese Man (And Other Fair(L)y Stoopid Tales), Summit Theatre Group’s Mamma Mia! (Ali), SFCC’s First Date (Lauren), James and the Giant Peach (Aunt Spiker), and Coffeyville Community College’s regional premiere of The Humans (Brigid).
ELISEBETH SPARKS (Anna, Dance Captain) is a senior with a double major in Music Performance and Theatre Arts, as well as a concentration in Musical Theatre. Recent UW-Parkside credits include The Wolves (#11), Indecent (The Ingenue: Chana), The Mad Ones (Sam), Rodgers and Hammerstein’s Cinderella (Ensemble/Marie U/S), Stupid F##king Bird (Mash U/S), and 3Sisters (Irina). Additional credits include The Little Mermaid (Ariel) and Mamma Mia! (Sophie) at Racine Theatre Guild. Recently, Elisebeth served as Assistant Costume Designer for our production of The Aliens.
OLIVIA MAURITZ (Martha) is a first-year student with a double major in Art and Theatre Arts and a concentration in Musical Theatre. Previous credits include The Wolves (#8).
JANET JURADO (Adult Woman) is a junior with a double major in Communication and Theatre Arts, a concentration in Acting, and a minor in Digital Media and Production. Previous credits include The Wolves (#13), She Kills Monsters (Evil Gabbi), The Penelopiad (Maid/Melantho) and Proof (Claire). She also served as soccer coach for The Wolves, wardrobe crew for Indecent, and spotlight operator for Rodgers and Hammerstein's Cinderella. Janet is currently working as a lead actress on a SAG-AFTRA horror movie directed by Jake Jarvi scheduled to be released in 2023.
BEN BREWER (Melchior) is a senior Theatre Arts major with a concentration in Acting and a transfer student from State Fair Community College (Sedalia, MO). Recent credits include As You Like It (Oliver), Indecent (The Middle: Mendel) and The Thanksgiving Play (Jaxton) at UW-Parkside. Additional credits include The Diviners (C.C. Showers), Mr. Burns: A Post Electric Play (Gibson/Homer Simpson), and First Date (Aaron) at State Fair Community College, as well as Bang Bang, You’re Dead (Josh) at Springfield Little Theatre.
COLTON SMITH (Moritz) is a senior Theatre Arts major from Lawrence, Kansas. Previous acting credits include As You Like It (Adam/Jacques), Indecent (Lemml), and The Thanksgiving Play (Caden) at UW-Parkside. Additional credits include The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time (Ed) and The Humans (Erik) at Coffeyville Community College. Recently, Colton served as assistant director for Little Shop of Horrors at the Lawrence Arts Center. Colton received the 2023 Irene Ryan Best Comedic Performance Award at the Kennedy Center American College Theatre Festival (Region 3).
AURTHUR WEIME (Hanschen/Rupert) is a Sophomore Theatre Arts major with a concentration in Acting. Previous credits include As You Like It (Duke Frederick/Corin), She Kills Monsters (U/S Chuck, U/S Vera), Circle Mirror Transformation (James) and The Penelopiad (Swing) at UW-Parkside, and Romeo and Juliet (Gregory) at Fleeing Artists.
GAVIN CASILLAS (Ernst/Reinhold) is a first-year Elementary Education major. Previous acting credits include Something Rotten (Minstrel/Bard Boy) at Sunset Playhouse.
DYLAN PEROZZO (Georg/Dieter) is a first-year student with a major in Geosciences and a minor in Theatre Arts. This is Dylan’s debut on the university stage!
AUSTIN VOYLES (Otto/Ulbrecht) is a junior with a major in Contemporary Commercial Music (CCM) and a member of Parkside Range, Parkside Jazz Band, and Parkside Jazz Combo. Recent credits include Rent at Lakeside Players. Austin is also a collaborative saxophonist and is often seen performing in gigs alongside his friends.
HANS PFRANG (Adult Man) is a senior Theatre Arts major with a double concentration in Acting and Musical Theatre. Previous credits include As You Like It (LeBeau), Indecent (The Ingenue: Avram), The Penelopiad (Laertes/Suitor/Maid), Rodgers and Hammerstein’s Cinderella (Jean Michel/Topher U/S), A Number (Salter), A Doll’s House, Part 2 (Torvald), Urinetown, The Musical (Senator Fipp/Ensemble), and Water by the Spoonful (Fountainhead). Hans has also collaborated with Southwest Shakespeare Company’s virtual production of The Roaring Girl (Lord Nolan’s/A Fellow). Starting this May, Hans will begin his post undergraduate theatre career by touring around the U.S. with Missoula Children’s Theatre.
ALLISON HAYES (Ensemble, Wendla Cover) is a senior Theatre Arts major with a concentration in Musical Theatre. Previous credits include The Aliens (Assistant Stage Manager), As You Like It (Audrey), The Wolves (Sound Designer), Circle Mirror Transformation (Swing and Sound Designer), The Penelopiad (Maid/Iole) at UW-Parkside. Additional credits include James andThe Giant Peach (James) and She Kills Monsters (Farrah) at State Fair Community College.
TALIA LAST (Ensemble, Martha Cover, Fight Captain) is a senior Theatre Arts major with concentrations in Acting and Musical Theatre. Recent UW-Parkside credits include The Aliens (Scenic Charge Artist), The Wolves (#7), Indecent (The Elder: Vera), The Mad Ones (Kelly U/S), The Penelopiad (Maid/Eurycleia), Rodgers and Hammerstein’s Cinderella (Madame), and A Doll’s House, Part 2 (Anne-Marie). Additional credits include Mamma Mia! (Ensemble, U/S Sophie) at Racine Theatre Guild, Twelfth Night (Maria), Hamlet (Rosencrantz), and Romeo and Juliet (Tybalt) at Fleeing Artists Theater, and The Comedy of Romeo and Juliet... (Kinda Sorta) (Juliet) at Lakeside Players. Talia also holds Actor Combatant Status within the Society of American Fight Directors (SAFD).
BRIANA LIVESAY (Ensemble, Ilse Cover) is a senior with a double major in Theatre Arts and English who originally transferred from the College of Lake County. Previous credits include As You Like It (Rosalind), She Kills Monsters (Tilly), Pretty (Sylvia/Charlotte) and The Glass Menagerie (Laura) at UW-Parkside, as well as Junie B. Jones Is Not a Crook (Lucille), Oedipus the King (Chorus), She Kills Monsters (Evil Gabi), and As You Like It (Rosalind) at CLC. Briana received the 2023 Irene Ryan Best Classical Performance Award at the Kennedy Center American Theatre Festival (Region 3).
JULIANA (JUJU) GARCIA-MALACARA (Ensemble, Thea Cover) is a junior with a double major in Communication and Theatre Arts, as well as a concentration in Musical Theatre. Recent UW-Parkside credits include As You Like It (U/S Phoebe). Regional theatre credits include Bob’s Burgers (Louise Belcher) with Purse String Productions, Kidswrites (Ensemble) and Songbook (Lyrics) at Skylight Music Theater, Lost Girl (Krista/Girl C) and A Christmas Carol (Belinda Cratchit) at Milwaukee Repertory Theatre. Additional credits include Mamma Mia! (Ensemble), Nunsense (Sister Mary Leo), The Laramie Project (Alice Silva), Rainbow Fish (Little Fish), Junie B. Jones (Junie B. Jones), Sister Act (Michelle) at Racine Theatre Guild. Juju served as the Assistant Director for Disney’s The Jungle Book, Jr. and Disney’s 101 Dalmatians Jr. at Racine Theatre Guild.
ALYSSA RITACCA (Ensemble, Adult Woman Cover) is a first-year student exploring different majors. Recent credits include The Wolves (U/S #7, #14, #25) at UW-Parkside. She has been involved in multiple productions at Children’s Theater Academy (CTA) in Kenosha, such as Frozen (Sven), Moana (Moana), and Newsies (Ensemble). Alyssa has designed props for CTA’s production of Newsies and scenery for their production of Seussical.
GIULIANA SOLDATELLI DAMO (Ensemble) ) is a first-year Theatre Arts major with a concentration in Musical Theatre. Previous credits include The Wolves (U/S #00, #13).
MADDIE PAIGE CHRISTIE (Ensemble) is first-year student with a major in English and a minor in Theatre Arts. This is Maddie’s debut on the university stage!
JORDAN MCGRAW (Ensemble, Melchior Cover) is an actor and a UW-Parkside Theatre Arts alum. Recent credits include As You Like It (Ensemble, U/S Touchstone, U/S Jaques), Indecent (The Elder: Otto), The Penelopiad (Icarius/Maid/Percussion), Rodgers and Hammerstein’s Cinderella (Sound Board Operator), Little Women (Laurie), The Government Inspector (Director of Schools), and The Last Days of Judas Iscariot (Crew). Jordan has also worked as professional mascot characters in NCAA/National Competition.
PETR JAROS-VITACCO (Ensemble, Moritz Cover) is a sophomore Theatre Arts major with a concentration in Design and Technology. Past credits include Hir (Stage Manager), The Wolves (Assistant Lighting Designer), She Kills Monsters (Head Electrician), Circle Mirror Transformation (Lighting Designer), and The Mad Ones (Adam U/S). Recently, Petr directed Anne of Green Gables and a Playwriting Showcase at Racine Lutheran High School.
ALEX ORTIZ (Ensemble, Otto and Georg Cover) is a junior Theatre Arts major from Ponce, Puerto Rico. Previous credits include As You Like It (Touchstone) and The Tourists (Dmetri).
PERCY REED (Ensemble, Adult Man Cover) is a sophomore Theatre Arts with concentrations in Acting and Directing. Recent credits include Gruesome Playground Injuries (Doug), Indecent (U/S Lemml and The Ingenue) and The Penelopiad (Suitor/Maid) at UW-Parkside. Percy served as Assistant Director for our production of The Aliens.
PRODUCTION TEAMS
Production Personnel
Assistant Stage Managers
Sam Carlson
Audrey Jenkins
Stage Management Faculty Advisor
Misti Bradford
Assistant Costume Designer
Kalyn Diercks
Assistant Lighting Designer
Savana Andershock
Hair and Makeup Designer
Percy Reed
Assistant Music Director
Ian Huddleston
Assistant Choreographer
Keinaija Campbell-Carson
Assistant Intimacy Director
Kalyn Diercks
Scenic Charge Artist
Bianca Gonzalez
Head Carpenter
Aria Johnson
Carpenter
Taylor Ramcke
Head Electrician
Peter Jaros-Vitacco
Sound Mixer
Maggie Jay
Props Head
Jim Guy
Assistant Props Head
J Lofty
Hair and Makeup Faculty Advisor
Misti Bradford
Costume Shop Supervisor
Leslie Vaglica
Scenic Lab Supervisor
Jenny Bauer
Light Board Operator
Kammi Kringle
Spot Light Operator
Taylor Ireland
Matt Gould
Deck Crew
Joshua Barner
Wardrobe Supervisor
Michelle Catalan
Program Layout
Aahlaysia Gentry
Poster Design & Marketing
Kim Sekas
Production Photographer
Alyssa Nepper
Department Administrative Assistants
Joe Lambin
Edson Melendez
Theatre Arts Artistic Director
Fabrice Conte-Williamson
Theatre Arts Department Chair
Misti Bradford
Costume Shop Assistants
Elisebeth Sparks
Allison Hayes
Kalyn Diercks
Janet Jurado
Michelle Catalan
Lucero Martinez
Scene Shop Assistants
J Lofty
Bianca Gonzalez
Travis Siepl
Scenic Paint Crew
Bianca Gonzalez
Talia Last
Maggie Jay
Alison Pinchard
Giuliana Soldatelli-Damo
Jody Sekas
Scenic Construction Crew
Alex Ortiz
Matt Gould
Colton Smith
Travis Siepl
Hans Pfrang
Quincy Wilson
Props Crew
Alyssa Ritacca
Olivia Mauritz
Percy Reed
Lighting Crew
Petr Jaros-Vitacco
Kammi Kringle
Savana Andershock
Taylor Ireland
Lynn Bryant
Briana Livesay
Aren Goodwin
Ben Brewer
Emily Moisant
Jenna Speer
Delaina Kuzelka
Costume Construction Crew
Elisebeth Sparks
Kalyn Diercks
Michelle Catalan
Kali Avery
Allison Hayes
Jane Sekas
Janet Jurado
Annagrace McCurdy
Julianna (Juju) Garcia-Malacara
PRODUCTION TEAM BIOS
RACHAEL SWARTZ (Director) teaches musical theatre, voice, movement, and on-camera acting at UW-Parkside and during the summer serves on the Acting and Musical Theatre faculty at Interlochen Center for the Arts. Rachael is a proud union member of the Stage Directors and Choreographers Society. Some of her recent regional performance credits include: The 39 Steps (Annabella/Pamela/Margaret), The Sound of Music (Mother Abbess), and Romeo and Juliet (Nurse). Recent on-camera credits include work with the Travel Channel, ID, Oxygen and TV One. She holds an undergraduate degree from Baldwin Wallace University and her MFA in Theatre Performance from The University of Southern Mississippi.
DAVID BRADY (Music Director/Piano) finds joy helping people see their potential and activate it. He finds his fulfillment seeing people take their skills and share them with others who care—like you. David worked for Carnival Cruise Line for nine years as a Casting Supervisor and Manager of Musical Direction and eight years as an Musical Director for Holland America Line. Local support for Broadway tours includes Hairspray, Little Women, Wicked, The Little Shop of Horrors, The King and I, My Fair Lady, All Shook Up, Mamma Mia, and Menopause the Musical. David has additionally backed up artists like Aretha Franklin, Mario Frangoulis, Bobby Rydel, and Nikki Blonsky (from the movie, Hairspray). Now, what matters most to him, is that you experience the work of people who believe that wonder, awe, and vulnerability are powerful forces to drive change.
RYAN CAPPLEMAN (Choreographer) is a performer, choreographer, musician and teaching artist from Milwaukee. Here at UW-Parkside, Ryan teaches Voice, Dance for Musical Theatre, and Musical Theatre Appreciation. As a performer, favorite roles include Woof (Hair), Scarecrow (The Wizard of Oz), Pooh-Bah (The Hot Mikado), and dance ensemble (Carmina Burana) at Skylight Music Theater, Alex Mialdo (Miracle on 34th Street) at Forte Theater, Britton (La La Lucille), the Piano Player (Billy Bishop Goes to War), and Company (Tomfoolery) at Third Avenue Playworks, and Jake (Waiting…a Song Cycle) Off-Broadway at the Cherry Lane Theater. As a choreographer, Ryan has earned three Footlights Awards for Outstanding Choreography in a Professional Musical, as well as numerous Jerry Awards. As a musician, Ryan has collaborated with artists ranging from elementary-school students, to Broadway stars, to Grammy Award winners. He has been lucky enough to educate young performers locally and around the country including the Milwaukee Ballet, UW-Milwaukee, Marquette University, First Stage, Danceworks, the Minnesota Conservatory of the Arts, the Virginia State Thespian Conference, and many high schools.
CHRISTOPHER ELST (Fight and Intimacy Director) (He/They) is prominent member of several national theatre organizations (Certified Teacher, Society of American Fight Directors; Associate Instructor, Dueling Arts International; Intimacy Director in training, Intimacy Directors and Coordinators, et al.) and an advocate for safe practices in theatres nationwide. Christopher has performed, directed, and designed violence, movement, and intimacy for professional theatres across the country, including Ogunquit Playhouse, Door Shakespeare, First Stage, Finger Lakes Musical Theatre Festival (now The REV), Next Act Theatre, Milwaukee Chamber Theatre, Renaissance Theatreworks, Skylight Music Theatre, and the Milwaukee Rep.
ERIC D. DIAZ (Scenic Designer) is thrilled to be working on this production of Spring Awakening at the University of Wisconsin-Parkside. Erik is no stranger to the area, having designed The Full Monty and Evita both for Skylight Music Theatre in Milwaukee. Nationally, his work has been seen at theatres like Colorado Springs Fine Arts Center, Sierra Rep, Omaha Playhouse, Kingsman Shakespeare, Connecticut Rep, Playhouse on the Square, A.R.T. Institute, SpeakEasy Stage Company, Greater Boston Stage Company, New Repertory Theatre, Penobscot Theatre Company, Nebraska Shakespeare Festival, and North Shore Music Theatre. Recent credits: Chicken and Biscuits (Front Porch Arts Collective), Alma (Central Square Theatre), All is Calm (Greater Boston Stage Co.), Billy Elliot - BroadwayWorld Award, Doubt - IRNE Nomination (Ocean State Theatre Co.), Peter and the Star Catcher (Playhouse On The Square), Heisenberg (TheatreWorks Colorado Springs), Mary Poppins (Colorado Springs Fine Arts Center), Fairview, Once on This Island, & IRNE Award winner Between Riverside and Crazy (SpeakEasy Stage Co.), As You Like It (Kingsmen Shakespeare Co). TV: WBZ-TV Boston, HGTV's Designed to Sell. Erik lives in Boston with his wife, Holly, and sons, Ezra and Zander, where he is the Director of Technical Theatre and Design at the Noble and Greenough School. Proud Member United Scenic Artists Local 829. www.DESIGNBYDIAZ.com (He/Él).
EMILY MOISANT (Assistant Director) is a junior Theatre Arts major with a concentration in Directing. This season, Emily directed our FreshINK stage reading of Hir by Taylor Mac. Additional credits include The Wolves (Wardrobe Supervisor), Circle Mirror Transformation (Stage Manager), and The Penelopiad (Dramaturg) at UW-Parkside, as well as In the Next Room (Wardrobe Crew) at UW-Milwaukee. Recently, Emily served as Wardrobe Supervisor for Maples Repertory Theatre in Macon, Missouri.
MISTI BRADFORD (Costume Designer) is a professional costume designer and educator. Selected design credits include Boswell (Off-Broadway at 59E59 Theatre, NYC and at the 2019 Edinburgh Fringe Festival); The Thanksgiving Play and Bus Stop (Milwaukee Chamber Theatre), Happy Days and Annie Jump and the Library of Heaven (Renaissance TheaterWorks), The Nerd (Milwaukee Repertory Theatre), Pride and Prejudice (Illinois Shakespeare Festival), Murder for Two (Merrimack Repertory Theatre and Milwaukee Repertory Theatre), Much Ado About Nothing and The Comedy of Errors (Door Shakespeare), two seasons of A Christmas Carol (Children’s Theatre of Madison), Goosebumps the Musical (First Stage Children’s Theatre), The Flying Dutchman, Les Misérables, and Man of La Mancha (Utah Festival Opera and Musical Theatre). Misti served for five seasons as Resident Costume Designer and three seasons as Costume Crafts Supervisor and Wig Stylist with PCPA Theaterfest in Santa Maria, CA. She has also worked as a Costume Crafts Artisan for American Players Theatre. Misti is an Associate Professor of Costume Design and has designed over 20 productions for UWP Theatre Arts and currently serves as the Theatre Arts Department Chair. Misti is a proud member of the United Scenic Artists, Local 829.
JESSICA BAKER (Lighting Designer) is a Theatre Arts alumni from UW-Parkside, currently serving as UW-Parkside's Lighting Supervisor. She is a KCACTF Region 3 Theatrical Design Award Recipient for her lighting designs of both The War of the Worlds and Romeo and Juliet. During summer of 2019, Jessica was an intern at The Great River Shakespeare Festival. Most recently, she was a Lighting Apprentice at The Santa Fe Opera, working on many productions including Carmen, The Barber of Seville, Tristan und Isolde, and Falstaff.
KEVIN GRAY (Sound Designer) is UW-Parkside’s Sound Manager and Instructor, working with both the Theatre Arts and Music departments to produce art and events on campus. Kevin received a BA in Sound Design with a minor in Music Composition from Michigan Technological University. Design credits include The Aliens, The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time, Cinderella, and Stupid F##king Bird, for which he received a national award.
JIM GUY (Properties Head) has been a props professional since shortly after he joined the resident company of The Cleveland Play House more than 40 years ago, following brief stints elsewhere as a librarian and stage manager. Since then his work has appeared on and Off-Broadway, on tour, in print, on television, in museums and on the stages of theaters, opera and ballet companies nationally. In that time, he has propped an estimated 600 plays, musicals and operas. Jim was Properties Director at Milwaukee Repertory Theater for 24 seasons, from 1998 to 2022. As time and temperament allows, he now freelances, writes, teaches – most notably bringing his Firearms Safety for Stage workshop to theaters and colleges around the country—as well as consulting and serving as Membership Co-Chair of the professional not-for-profit prop masters and educators association, the Society of Props Managers (S*P*M), for which he served as president for 16 years.
STAR HOWARD (Stage Manager) is a senior Theatre Arts major with a concentration in Stage Management. Recently, Star was seen on stage as Max in our FreshINK stage reading of Hir by Taylor Mac. Previous credits also include The Aliens (Head Electrician), As You Like It (Assistant Director and Assistant Head Electrician), The Wolves (Stage Manager), She Kills Monsters (Stage Manager), The Penelopiad (Stage Manager), Rodgers and Hammerstein’s Cinderella (Assistant Stage Manager), Romeo and Juliet (Assistant Stage Manager), Stupid F##king Bird (Assistant Sound Designer), and Silent Sky (Deck Chief) at UW-Parkside. Additional credits include Love Stings (Production Intern) and Fishing for the Moon (Production Intern) at Northern Sky Theater.
SAMANTHA FEILER (Stage Manager) is a UWP alum who earned a BA in Theatre Arts with concentrations in Acting, Musical Theatre, and Stage Management. Previous acting credits include Rodgers and Hammerstein’s Cinderella (Cinderella) and The Thanksgiving Play (Alicia) at UW-Parkside and Little Red Riding Hoodie (Little Red Riding Hood) and Mostly Monsterly (Bernadette) professionally. Stage management credits include Gideon’s Knot with Sunstone Studios, Young Playwright’s Festival 2023 with Milwaukee Chamber Theatre, and Best of Br!nk Bre!fs 2020 with Renaissance Theaterworks and Indecent, The Glass Menagerie, The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time, Love’s Labour’s Lost, and The War of the Worlds at UW-Parkside.
AJ LANCE (Dramaturg) is a senior with a double major in Mathematics and Economics, and minors in Theatre Arts, Music, and Chemistry. Previous credits include Indecent (Dramaturg). AJ has served on crew for multiple UW-Parkside theatre productions, including The Thanksgiving Play, The Complete Works of William Shakespeare [Abridged], and Romeo and Juliet.
KALYN DIERCKS (Assistant Costume Designer, Assistant Intimacy Director) is a junior Theatre Arts major with a concentration in Design and Technology and a concentration in Acting. Previous credits include reasons to be pretty (Intimacy Director) and The Aliens (Wardrobe Supervisor). Acting credits include Hir (Narrator), The Wolves (Soccer Mom, U/S #8, #11), Indecent (U/S The Middle) and The Penelopiad (Maid/Naiad Mother).
PERCY REED (Hair and Makeup Designer) is a sophomore Theatre Arts with concentrations in Acting and Directing. Recent credits include Gruesome Playground Injuries (Doug), Indecent (U/S Lemml and The Ingenue) and The Penelopiad (Suitor/Maid) at UW-Parkside. Percy served as Assistant Director for our production of The Aliens.
SAVANA ANDERSHOCK (Assistant Lighting Designer) is a sophomore Theatre Arts major with a concentration in Design and Technology. Previous credits include The Aliens (Light Board Operator), As You Like It (Assistant Stage Manager), The Wolves (Master Electrician), She Kills Monsters (Assistant Stage Manager), Indecent (Assistant Master Electrician), and The Penelopiad (Deck Crew). Recent acting credits include She Kills Monsters (Narrator) and The Thanksgiving Play (Logan).
PETER JAROS-VITACCO (Master Electrician) is a sophomore Theatre Arts major with a concentration in Design and Technology. Past credits include Hir (Stage Manager), The Wolves (Assistant Lighting Designer), She Kills Monsters (Head Electrician), Circle Mirror Transformation (Lighting Designer), and The Mad Ones (Adam U/S). Recently, Petr directed Anne of Green Gables and a Playwriting Showcase at Racine Lutheran High School.
MICHELLE CATALAN (Wardrobe Supervisor) is a senior with a major in Psychology and a minor in Theatre Arts. She works as a Costume Shop Assistant and has served on costume construction crew for a number of UW-Parkside productions, including Stupid F##king Bird, The Glass Menagerie, Rodgers and Hammerstein’s Cinderella, The Penelopiad, Indecent, She Kills Monsters, The Wolves, and As You Like It.
JENNY BAUER (Technical Director) is a freelance theatre technician and lighting designer, as well as an alum from UW-Parkside Theatre Arts. Recent credits include serving as Assistant Technical Director at Arrow Rock Lyceum Theatre. Jenny also works as carpenter (Mercury Theatre, Court Theatre, The Wit Theatre, and Fireside Dinner Theatre) and as electrician (Marriott Theatre, Mercury Theatre, Porchlight Music Theatre, Chicago Children’s Theatre, Chicago Shakespeare Theatre, The University of Illinois Chicago, and the Athenaeum Center). Additionally, Jenny served as Lighting Designer for productions at Racine Theatre Guild, Union Grove High School, Case High School, and for a Midcoast Concert at the Cooperage Center.
SPECIAL THANKS
Casa Capri for ongoing support, Jenny Bauer, Sean Slaber, Isabella Cernuska, Mya Figueroa, Taylor Ramcke, Aria Johnson, Lynsey Gallagher, Minnie Martinez, Milwaukee Repertory Theater Props Department, Skylight Music Theatre, Charlie Collins, Sean Slaber, Isabella Cernuska, Mya Figueroa, Julie Johnson, Jeff Zellmer, Skip Collins, Ben Mannix, Ron Rahl, Alex Allgood, Jay Kummer, Tyce Green, Angela Owens, Colorado State University Theatre, Lesley H. Walker and the College of Arts and Humanities.
THEATRE ARTS SUPPORTERS
The College of Arts and Humanities with the UW-Parkside Foundation gratefully acknowledges the following individuals for their investment in the Theatre Arts Department and students.
PRODUCING SPONSOR
Trish Petretti
Susan M. Cable, D.D.S., '81*
Don Cress
Heidi Skatrud
Tom Harty
$1,000+
Susan M. Cable, D.D.S., '81*
Dr. Donald A. Cress*
Marie Kohler & Brian Mani*
Patricia Petretti*
$500-$999
Laurie & Steve Feiler
Shirley Warter
$250-$499
Debra Karp & Stephen Smiley
Kim and Jody Sekas
$100-249
Darleen Chiappetta
Barbara DeLaney
Ruth A. Frear
Dr. Claire M. Hicks
Lisa & Mike Humke
Karen MacKinnon
Jeff & Lynn Skatrud
Melissa Smyth
You can enhance Theatre Arts Education.
In the same way that mounting a play requires a team, funding it is likewise a team effort. To produce our amazing shows, we rely on a combination of sources—ticket sales, the University, and private funding.
Play a part in advancing the student experience through your one-time or recurring contribution to the Dr. Donald A. Cress Theatre Production Enhancement Fund.
Donations listed were received Jul 1, 2020-Sep 30, 2021. For omissions or changes to this donor list, please contact development@uwp.edu
*Denotes members of the UW-Parkside Chancellor’s Society.
This production is entered in the Kennedy Center American College Theater Festival (KCACTF). UW-Parkside is very active in the Region 3, the largest region of the Kennedy CenterAmerican College Theatre Festival
We regularly accrue a significant number of Merit Awards (in Design, Direction, and Tech) as well as Acting Awards, including what we consider to be the highest accolade, The Ensemble Acting Award. At festival, our students compete and succeed.
THE VIDEOTAPING OR MAKING OF ELECTRONIC OR OTHER AUDIO AND/OR VISUAL RECORDINGS OF THIS PRODUCTION AND DISTRIBUTING RECORDINGS OR STREAMS IN ANY MEDIUM, INCLUDING THE INTERNET, IS STRICTLY PROHIBITED, A VIOLATION OF THE AUTHOR(S)’S RIGHTS AND ACTIONABLE UNDER UNITED STATES COPYRIGHT LAW. FOR MORE INFORMATION, PLEASE VISIT:
https://concordtheatricals.com/resources/protecting-artists
About UW-Parkside
Since 1968, the University of Wisconsin-Parkside has continued to build a reputation as an outstanding liberal arts institution with particularly strong fine arts programs. With The Rita Tallent Picken Center for Arts & Humanities, our state-of-the-art instructional facilities and stunning performance venues match our award-winning academic programs and provide even greater community access. UW-Parkside offers a wide variety of undergraduate and graduate degree programs, as well as specialized online programs. Each year, more than 100 College of Lake County graduates transfer to UW-Parkside to pursue a four-year degree. The award-winning Theatre Arts program is a popular destination for transfer students.