Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park 2025 - Mythic/The Heart Sellers
MC and Tom Brennan and The David C. Herriman Fund of Greater Cincinnati Foundation present
M Y T H I C
Book and Lyrics by MARCUS STEVENS Music and Orchestrations by ORAN ELDOR
Moe and Jack’s Place – The Rouse Theatre
By LLOYD SUH
Rosenthal Shelterhouse Theatre
SEASON ILLUSTRATIONS ON THE COVER AND ABOVE BY KENTON BRETT. PHOTO OF BLAKE ROBISON ON PAGE 4 BY TONY ARRASMITH/ARRASMITH AND ASSOCIATES.
CONNECTED! WEBSITE: cincyplay.com
STEW MARKETING VISUAL (ABOVE AND ON THE COVER) AND PHOTO OF BLAKE ROBISON (PAGE 4) BY TONY ARRASMITH/ ARRASMITH AND ASSOCIATES.
A NOTE FROM BLAKE
IT’S A CHALLENGING TIME FOR THE ARTS. EVERY NEWSPAPER AND website has a story about non-profits struggling to attract audiences and remain vibrant in our post-pandemic world.
Amidst the tumult, Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park remains an outlier. Our stability and success are the envy of our peers nationwide. People keep asking me “what’s the secret sauce?” Here’s what I tell them:
• Our AUDIENCES are loyal. That’s the Cincinnati way. We honor our longtime supporters, even as we welcome new faces to the theatre every season.
• Our FACILITY is first-class. Everything about the new Playhouse tells you that you’re in for a special night, a quality experience, and a memorable encounter.
• Our STAFF is best-in-show. They make dreams come alive on stage, and they are devoted members of our Greater Cincinnati community.
• Our DONORS remain generous. The high quality we display on stage is only made possible by a large group of individuals, foundations, corporations, and ArtsWave.
Thank you for your continued support and playing your part in our success story!
Mythic and The Heart Sellers exemplify our adventurous programming and commitment to new work. They will entertain and inspire you with their creativity and heart. Here’s to a wonderful 2025-26 season together!
Cheers,
Blake Robison
Osborn Family Producing Artistic Director
CINCINNATI PLAYHOUSE IN THE PARK
OSBORN FAMILY PRODUCING ARTISTIC DIRECTOR Blake Robison
MANAGING DIRECTOR Abby Marcus
MC AND TOM BRENNAN AND THE DAVID C. HERRIMAN FUND OF GREATER CINCINNATI FOUNDATION PRESENT
MYTHIC
BOOK AND LYRICS BY MARCUS STEVENS
MUSIC AND ORCHESTRATIONS
BY
ORAN ELDOR
DIRECTOR/CHOREOGRAPHER Kathleen Marshall
SET DESIGNER David Korins
COSTUME DESIGNER Linda Cho
LIGHTING DESIGNER Kenneth Posner
SOUND DESIGNER John Shivers
LASER EFFECTS DESIGNER Adam Biscow
MUSIC SUPERVISOR Chris Fenwick
MUSIC DIRECTOR Bryson Baumgartel
MUSIC PRODUCER Doug Besterman
ASSOCIATE DIRECTOR/CHOREOGRAPHER David Eggers
ASSOCIATE MUSIC DIRECTOR Max Grossman
CASTING DIRECTOR Stephanie Klapper, CSA
SEPT. 20 — OCT. 19, 2025
MOE AND JACK’S PLACE — THE ROUSE THEATRE
PRODUCED
Presenting Sponsors
MC and Tom Brennan
The David C. Herriman Fund of Greater Cincinnati Foundation
Production Sponsor
Barbara M. Weyand
Honorary Producers
Barbara and Irwin Weinberg
Design Sponsors
Linda and Gary Greenberg
Artist Sponsor of Kathleen Marshall
Karlee L. Hilliard
Principal Artist Sponsors
Jenny and David Powell
Artist Sponsors
Student Matinee Sponsor
The Family of Dr. Peter Ruehlman
Season Sponsors of New Work
Nancy and Mark Dawes
Season presented by Rouse Theatre Season Design Sponsor
Assistant Stage Managers (NYC) Rachel Kaplow*, Andrea L. Shell*
Assistant Stage Managers (Cincinnati) Andrea L. Shell*, Madison Stone*
Production Assistant (NYC) Riki Klaskin
Production Assistant (Cincinnati) Maggie Ballard
UNDERSTUDIES
Zeus Understudy Matthew Blum*
Persephone Understudy Alexa Magro*
Demeter Understudy Stephanie Lynne Mason*
Hades Understudy Owen Scales*
Aphrodite Understudy Emily Grace Tucker*
Greek Chorus Swings Josh Devine, Madison Osment
Dance Captain Cassidy Stoner*
MYTHIC WILL BE PERFORMED WITHOUT AN INTERMISSION.
*Member of Actors’ Equity Association, the Union of Professional Actors and Stage Managers in the United States. This production is made possible in part by a generous gift from the Greater Cincinnati Foundation.
BAND/MUSIC
First Keyboard Bryson Baumgartel
Second Keyboard Max Grossman
Drums Brian Malone
Guitar 1 Joel Greenburg
Guitar 2 Nicholas Kordalis
Bass William Jackson
Score Manager Manny Vidales
Music Contractor Brian Malone
Music Copyist J&J Music Preparation
Keyboard Programmer Randy Cohen Keyboards
Playback Engineer and Keyboard Programming Julianne B. Merrill, PatchMaster Productions
This theatre operates under an agreement between the League of Resident Theatres and Actors’ Equity Association, the Union of Professional Actors and Stage Managers in the United States, and with the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees-Local No. 5.
The scenic, costume, lighting and sound designers in LORT Theatres are represented by United Scenic Artists, Local USA-829 of the IATSE.
MEDIA SPONSORS
SONGS
“It’s a Myth”
“Sweet Summer Days”
“My Own Place in the Pantheon”
“Enter Aphrodite”
“Summer All the Time”
“Enter Hades”
“Mess Around”
“Down, Down into the Dark”
“Dark Damaged Soul”
“What Mothers Have to Do”
“Rebellious Children”
“Persephone in Bloom”
“You’d Be Surprised”
“Not a Chance in Hell”
“Look to the Sky”
“Beauty in the Darkness”
“Ew!”
“Irreversible”
“I Will Be Your Home”
“I Return to You”
PROUD DESIGNERS OF
MYTHIC
IT’S A MYTH!
Based on the ancient Greek fable of Persephone, Mythic takes place in a fantasy world that is decidedly modern. Meet the gods, monsters, mythological creatures, and Greek hotspots that bring this pop-rock musical to life.
PERSEPHONE
The sheltered, earthbound teenage daughter of Demeter. Persephone begrudgingly hangs out with harvest nymphs while wondering how the other half lives. She longs for independence and to find her own place among the world of the gods.
DEMETER
Goddess of the Harvest, mother of Persephone. Exiled from Olympus, Demeter spends her days far away from the celebrity culture of the other gods, planting crops and caring for mortals. Beneath her earthy-crunchy exterior lies a strength and resolve that is unmatched.
APHRODITE
Goddess of Love, daughter of Zeus. She’s a party girl with serious daddy issues. Like an ancient Greek Kardashian, Aphrodite lives for the red carpet and cute selfies. She’s always coming in second to her sister Athena in the eyes of Zeus.
HADES
God of the Dead. Living his best emo life down as King of the Underworld, Hades postures as a self-loathing, brooding bad boy, but truthfully, he has a big heart and is longing for acceptance.
ZEUS
King of the Gods, father of like 40 deities. An aging celebrity and narcissist, a terrible father, and slick politician, Zeus is desperately trying to hold on to his throne and will do anything to stay in power. A guy you love to hate.
GREEK HOTSPOTS
THE ACROPOLIS A citadel in Athens built by mortals to honor the gods and where Zeus holds his all-night ragers.
MOUNT OLYMPUS Home of the Olympian gods and Zeus’ swanky office. No mortals allowed.
THE UNDERWORLD Located beneath the depths of the earth, it’s polluted, overcrowded, and the transportation system is a mess … and everyone there is dead.
THE GREEK CHORUS
An eclectic bunch of individuals who act as one to move the story forward and comment on the action. They also play various roles within the world like Harvest Nymphs, Olympian Gods, Tortured Souls in the Underworld, and these supporting characters from Greek mythology:
BARBARA A nymph and confidante to Demeter.
ALECTO Hades’ number two. Authoritative and cynical, their job is to keep Hades on track and the Underworld running smoothly.
JANELLE An underworld Henchman. Really loves torture.
HELIOS Sun God. A total frat-boy “bro.”
CYCLOPS A cyclops.
CHARON Hell’s ferryman. Starts off curmudgeonly and ends up seeing things in a new light.
ASCALAPHUS Gardener of the Underworld. Neurotic and strange until shown a new way.
MINOS Judge of the Dead. A severe evil gatekeeper on the surface but actually a sweet teddy bear underneath.
NIKE A customer service representative at the gates of Mount Olympus. Totally over it.
Ohio, whose name originates from the Iroquoian word ohi-yo, meaning good rivers, is a testament to the deep connection between the land and the Indigenous peoples who have inhabited it for centuries. The Cincinnati region is ancestral land of many Nations, and Indigenous people are still here today. As a step toward honoring the truth and achieving healing and reconciliation with Indigenous peoples, we recognize and honor the enduring connection these Nations have to this territory. May we reflect on our commitment to understanding, preserving, and celebrating the rich culture of Native Indigenous communities who have shaped and continue to contribute to these lands.
WHAT IS A LAND ACKNOWLEDGMENT?
It is the recognition of the Native Americans/First Nations/Indigenous Peoples who cared for these lands prior to removal. Our statement was created with guidance from our partners at the Urban Native Collective. For more information, visit urbannativecollective.org.
SAVY JACKSON - APHRODITE
CINCINNATI PLAYHOUSE IN THE PARK: Debut. BROADWAY: Bad Cinderella starring as the titular role. NATIONAL TOUR: Once on This Island. REGIONAL THEATRE: Take the Lead (Papermill Playhouse), Dorothy in The Wizard of Oz (Geva Theatre) and Ariel in The Little Mermaid (The Muny). OTHER CREDITS: singer/songwriter currently working on their debut EP. Savy’s music can be found on all streaming platforms. INSTAGRAM: @savy.jackson.
MICHAEL PARK - ZEUS
BROADWAY: Dear Evan Hansen (Grammy and Emmy awards), Smokey Joe’s Cafe (Grammy Award), Redwood, Tuck Everlasting, Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, How to Succeed, Little Me and Carousel. OFF-BROADWAY: Hello Again (Lincoln Center); Violet and Burnt Part Boys (Playwrights Horizons); Three Penny Opera (Atlantic Theater Company); and Middletown (Vineyard Theatre). TELEVISION: Stranger Things (Season 3, Screen Actors Guild Award Nomination), House of Cards, Mindhunter, You, The Family, Hightown, Tales of The City and Dash & Lily (Netflix); Lioness (Paramount); As the World Turns (Emmy Awards), Elsbeth, Bull, Blue Bloods and The Good Wife (CBS); Saint X (Hulu); Law & Order, Sound Of Music Live!, Peter Pan Live!, and Chicago P.D. (NBC); and The Time Traveler’s Wife (HBO). INSTAGRAM: @park24hrs.
MAMIE PARRIS - DEMETER
CINCINNATI PLAYHOUSE IN THE PARK: Debut. BROADWAY: Cats (revival), School of Rock, On the Twentieth Century (revival, Roundabout Theatre), Ragtime (revival), The Drowsy Chaperone, 110 In the Shade (revival, Roundabout Theatre). NATIONAL TOUR: Wicked, 9 To 5, Legally Blonde. OFF-BROADWAY: Anything Can Happen in The Theatre (York Theatre); Pump Boys and Dinettes (Encores!) and See Rock City and Other Destinations (Transport Group/New 42). REGIONAL THEATRE: Goodspeed Opera House, The Muny, The Old Globe, Arena Stage, Pittsburgh CLO, Fulton Theatre, Mill Mountain Theatre. FILM/TELEVISION: The Blacklist, State of Affairs , A Standup Guy . CONCERTS: The Rochester Philharmonic, The St. Louis Symphony Orchestra, The Fort Worth Symphony, Columbus Jazz Orchestra, Baltimore Symphony Orchestra, The Grant Park Music Festival, Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra, Austen’s Pride at Carnegie Hall and more. EDUCATION: The American Musical and Dramatic Academy (New York). AFFILIATIONS/AWARDS: Actors’ Equity Association, SAG/AFTRA member, New York Magazine ’s “Best of the City 2023” for her cabaret Surrender: An Andrew Lloyd Webber Thrill Ride. WEBSITE: mamieparris.com. INSTAGRAM: @mamieparrisofficial. TIKTOK: @mamiesings.
ANALISE SCARPACI (SHE/HER)- PERSEPHONE
CINCINNATI PLAYHOUSE IN THE PARK: Debut. BROADWAY: Mrs. Doubtfire (as Lydia Hillard), A Christmas Story and Matilda. REGIONAL THEATRE: Empire Records (as Debra, McCarter Theatre Center) and The Sound of Music (as Liesl, Paper Mill Playhouse). TELEVISION: Law & Order: Organized Crime (Peacock). MUSIC: Original music streaming on all platforms. INSTAGRAM: @analise.scarpaci. Website: AnaliseScarpaci.com.
JULIUS THOMAS III - HADES
BROADWAY/NATIONAL TOURS: Hamilton (as Alexander Hamilton), Motown: The Musical (as Berry Gordy), The Scottsboro Boys (as Roy), The Gershwin’s Porgy & Bess, Xanadu, Shrek the Musical, The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee and The Radio City Christmas Spectacular. REGIONAL THEATRE: Westport Country Playhouse, Signature Theatre, Vineyard Theatre, The Guthrie, Lyric Theater of Oklahoma, West Virginia Public, Music Theatre Wichita, and Beef and Boards, and more. TELEVISION: Law & Order, Sesame Street, Modern Family and Good Guy with A Pun AWARDS/AFFILIATIONS: NAACP Theatre Award and Helen Hayes Award nominated. WEBSITE: www.juliusthomas3.com. INSTAGRAM: @juliusthomas3.
MATTHEW BLUM (HE/HIM) - GREEK CHORUS/CHARON
CINCINNATI PLAYHOUSE IN THE PARK: Debut. NATIONAL TOURS: Pretty Woman and The Wizard of Oz. REGIONAL THEATRE (selected): Arts Center of Coastal Carolina, Gateway Playhouse, Engeman Theater, Atlanta Lyric Theatre and White Plains Performing Arts Center. INSTAGRAM: @matthewsblum.
AARON GABRIEL GRAHAM (HE/SHE/THEY) - GREEK CHORUS/ ALECTO
CINCINNATI PLAYHOUSE IN THE PARK: Debut. REGIONAL THEATRE (selected): La Cage aux Folles (The Muny and Barrington Stage Company), My Best Friend’s Wedding (Ogunquit Playhouse), Kinky Boots (Bucks County Playhouse), The Addams Family (Wheelock Family Theatre) and The Color Purple (Umbrella Stage Company). EDUCATION: BFA from Boston Conservatory at Berklee. AFFILIATIONS: Represented by The Collective Talent Agency. INSTAGRAM: @aarongrahammm.
ALEXA MAGRO (SHE/HER) - GREEK CHORUS/APHRODETTE
CINCINNATI PLAYHOUSE IN THE PARK: Debut. NATIONAL TOUR: Hamilton and The Prom. REGIONAL THEATRE: Lyric Opera of Chicago and Theatre Under The Stars FILM/TELEVISION: Evil and Angelo Rules. EDUCATION: Bachelor of Interdisciplinary Studies from the University of Arizona. WEBSITE: alexamagro.com. INSTAGRAM: @alexa_magro.
CINCINNATI PLAYHOUSE IN THE PARK: Debut. BROADWAY: Fiddler on the Roof. OFF-BROADWAY: Fiddler on the Roof in Yiddish (as Hodl, directed by Joel Grey). NATIONAL TOUR: Million Dollar Quartet (as Dyanne). NEW YORK: Vessels of Light (Carnegie Hall). REGIONAL THEATRE: Beautiful: The Carole King Musical (as Carole King, Engeman Theater); A Christmas Carol (as Mrs. Fezziwig/ Charwoman, Denver Center); A Walk on the Moon (George Street Playhouse); Camelot (as Guinivere); Into the Breeches (as Grace, Barnstormers Theatre); The Light in the Piazza (as Franca, Coachella Valley Repertory); Falsettos (as Trina, Dezart Performs); and Gypsy (as Louise, Virginia Musical Theatre). ORIGINAL CAST RECORDING: Fiddler on the Roof in Yiddish (as Hodl). WEBSITE: www.stephanielynnemason.com. INSTAGRAM: @stephanielynnemason.
OWEN SCALES (HE/HIM) - GREEK CHORUS/CYCLOPS/MINOS
CINCINNATI PLAYHOUSE IN THE PARK: Debut. NEW YORK THEATRE: Broadway Backwards (Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS). REGIONAL THEATRE: Frozen (as Kristoff, Fulton Theatre); Hello, Dolly! (as Ambrose Kemper, Broadway at Music Circus); Rent (as Tom Collins, Southern Plains Production); Dreamgirls and Waitress (The Muny). EDUCATION: BFA in Musical Theatre from University of Michigan. SOCIAL MEDIA: @owenscales.
CINCINNATI PLAYHOUSE IN THE PARK: Debut. BROADWAY/NATIONAL TOUR: Aladdin (Swing). OFF-BROADWAY: Titanique (Celine Dion, Rose and Ruth understudy). REGIONAL THEATRE: A Chorus Line (as Cassie, Theatre By The Sea); Gypsy and 9 to 5 (North Carolina Theatre) and The Will Rogers Follies (Pioneer Theatre Company). RECORDINGS: The Garden: A New Folk Musical (streaming on all platforms). EDUCATION: BFA in Musical Theatre from Pace University. AFFILIATIONS: Represented by CGF Talent. WEBSITE: cassidystoner.com. INSTAGRAM: @cassidystoner.
CINCINNATI PLAYHOUSE IN THE PARK: Debut. OFF-BROADWAY: DRAG: The Musical (New World Stages). NORTH AMERICAN TOURS: Jesus Christ Superstar and Chicago . REGIONAL THEATRE: Head Over Heels (Musical Theatre Southwest); Gypsy (Gretna Theatre); Kinky Boots (Engeman Theater). OTHER CREDITS: Priscilla, Queen of the Desert; Burn the Floor (Norwegian Cruise Lines). EDUCATION: BFA from Temple University. WEBSITE: kodiakthompson.com. INSTAGRAM: @kodiakthompson.
CINCINNATI PLAYHOUSE IN THE PARK: Debut. REGIONAL THEATRE: Frozen (as Anna, Gateway Playhouse); Beautiful: The Carole King Musical (as Cynthia Weil, Flat Rock Playhouse); The Little Mermaid (as Ariel, Tuacahn Amphitheater); Cinderella (as Ella, Musical Theater West); Elf the Musical (as Jovie, National Tour/Madison Square Garden); La Cage aux Folles (Goodspeed Opera House); Mary Poppins (as Mary Poppins, Summer Theater New Canaan), Tangled the Musical (as Rapunzel, Disney Theatrical). Emily is the creator and owner of EGTCreative Sheet Music Art currently in collaboration with Broadway World and Broadway Cares Equity Fights Aids. WEBSITE: www. emilygracetucker.com. INSTAGRAM: @emilygracetucker.
JOSH DEVINE (HE/HIM) - GREEK CHORUS SWING
CINCINNATI PLAYHOUSE IN THE PARK: Debut. REGIONAL THEATRE: Grease, Kiss Me, Kate, Beauty and the Beast, The Wedding Singer, Beautiful and Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat (Wagon Wheel Center for the Arts); Seussical the Musical (The Carnegie); Footloose (Warsaw Federal Incline) and Hair, Something Rotten, Sweet Charity, Wonderful Town and Cinderella (University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music). EDUCATION: Musical Theatre student at University of Cincinnati College-CCM (2026). AWARDS/AFFILIATIONS: Jimmy Awards semifinalist. INSTAGRAM: @Joshiedev.
MADISON OSMENT (THEY/SHE) - GREEK CHORUS SWING
CINCINNATI PLAYHOUSE IN THE PARK: Debut. REGIONAL THEATRE: Escape to Margaritaville, The Prom, Beautiful and Rock of Ages (Forestburgh Playhouse); Guys and Dolls, Singin’ in the Rain (The Carnegie); Hunchback of Notre Dame (La Mirada Theatre); In the Green, The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, Spring Awakening and She Loves Me (University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music). EDUCATION: BFA in Musical Theatre from University of Cincinnati College-CCM. WEBSITE: madisonosment.com. INSTAGRAM: @madison.osment.
MARCUS
STEVENS
(HE/HIM) - BOOK AND LYRICS
Marcus is a New York-based writer, director and actor. He wrote the book and lyrics for Mythic (composer Oran Eldor), which was produced in both London and Canada and was a winner at the 2017 National Alliance for Musical Theatre Festival. With collaborator Sam Willmott, he co-wrote Yo, Vikings!, which has been produced everywhere from Pittsburgh to Dublin and was featured in the HBO documentary, Song of Parkland. Marcus and Sam were also commissioned to write Wake Up, Daisy! for Central Park’s historic Swedish Cottage Marionette Theater, where it enjoyed a record-breaking 22-month run from February 2022 through December 2023. Marcus is the recipient of the Richard Rodgers Award for his musical Red (composer Bree Lowdermilk). As a director, Marcus developed and staged Theaterworks USA’s Dragons Love Tacos and Other Stories – a musical for young audiences that toured venues across the United States. He’s written and directed two of the New York Philharmonic’s Young People’s Concerts and directed the world premiere of Dave Droxler’s comedy, Walken on Sunshine. As an actor, Marcus was seen in two renditions of New York’s acclaimed Forbidden Broadway and can be heard on two of their Original Cast Recordings. He can also be seen nightly in an intimate uptown variety show where he entertains his three children before they go to bed. WEBSITE: Marcus-Stevens.com.
ORAN ELDOR - MUSIC AND ORCHESTRATIONS
CINCINNATI PLAYHOUSE IN THE PARK: Debut. BROADWAY: Fiddler on the Roof (2015 revival, dance arrangements). OFF-BROADWAY: Prosperous Fools (Theater for a New Audience). REGIONAL THEATRE/INTERNATIONAL: Ask for the Moon (Goodspeed Theatre), Mythic (Charing Cross Theatre in London and Segal Centre in Montreal), Murder on the Links (Two Rivers Theater). CONCERTS: Orchestrations for John Legend; Andrea Bocelli; Kristin Chenoweth; Alan Menken; New York Philharmonic; London Philharmonic; Los Angeles Philharmonic; and Disney Parks. TELEVISION: Peg + Cat (PBS); Sesame Street–Israel; Kristin Chenoweth’s Coming Home (Emmy nominated special; orchestrator). EDUCATION: Berklee College of Music. AWARDS: Composition Fellow at the Royal Opera House, London; member of the BMI Musical Theatre Workshop; composer-in-residence with New York’s Salomé Chamber Orchestra; nominated for The Stage Debut Award (London); and a META Award (Montreal) for Best Composer.
KATHLEEN MARSHALL - DIRECTOR/CHOREOGRAPHER
BROADWAY: Nice Work If You Can Get It; Anything Goes; The Pajama Game; Wonderful Town; In Transit; Living on Love; Grease; Little Shop of Horrors; Follies; Seussical the Musical; Kiss Me, Kate; 1776 and Swinging on a Star. OFF-BROADWAY: The Band Wagon; I’m Getting My Act Together and Taking it On the Road; Bells Are Ringing; Carnival and Babes in Arms (City Center Encores!, former Artistic Director); The Unsinkable Molly Brown (Transport Group); Two Gentlemen of Verona (New York Shakespeare Festival) and Saturday Night (Second Stage Theater). REGIONAL THEATRE: Twelfth Night, Much Ado About Nothing and Love’s Labor’s Lost (The Old Globe); My Best Friend’s Wedding (Ogunquit Playhouse); Mamma Mia! (Hollywood Bowl); On the Town (Boston Pops); My Paris (Long Wharf Theatre); Ever After (Paper Mill Playhouse) and Diner (Signature Theatre). INTERNATIONAL: Anything Goes (West End); Top Hat (Chichester Festival Theatre) and Sinatra, the Musical (Birmingham Rep). FILM/TELEVISION: My Week with Marilyn, Once Upon a Mattress, The Music Man and 2 Broke Girls. AWARDS/NOMINATIONS: Three Tony Awards, nine Tony nominations, Olivier Award, three Drama Desk Awards, three Outer Critics Circle Awards, Emmy nomination, Astaire Award, George Abbott Award, Smith College Medal, Pennsylvania Governor’s Award for the Arts and Distinguished Daughter of Pennsylvania.
DAVID KORINS (HE/HIM) - SET DESIGNER
BROADWAY: All In: Comedy About Love; The Who’s Tommy; Here Lies Love (Tony nomination); Hamilton (Tony nomination), Beetlejuice (Tony nomination); Dear Evan Hansen; Just For Us; Mrs. Doubtfire; War Paint (Tony nomination); Bandstand; Misery; The Great Society; Motown the Musical; Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike; Annie; Bring It On; Magic/Bird; An Evening with Patti LuPone and Mandy Patinkin; Godspell; Chinglish; The Pee-wee Herman Show; Lombardi; Passing Strange; and Bridge and Tunnel. TELEVISION: Grease: Live! (Emmy award); 91st and 94th Academy Awards (Emmy nominations); Last Week Tonight with John Oliver; Elton John: I’m Still Standing - A Grammy Salute and The Big Brunch. CREATIVE DIRECTOR: World of Coca-Cola; Immersive Van Gogh; Immersive Disney Animation; Hamilton: The Exhibition; Stages of Imagination; collaborations with The Shoah Foundation; Sotheby’s, David Blaine, Lady Gaga, Bruno Mars, Mariah Carey, Andrea Bocelli and Sia.
LINDA CHO - COSTUME DESIGNER
BROADWAY: Art; Ragtime; Pirates! The Penzance Musical; The Great Gatsby (Tony and Outer Critics Circle awards); Harmony; Doubt; POTUS; Summer, 1976; Take Me Out; Grand Horizons; Anastasia (Tony nomination); The Great Society; A Gentlemen’s Guide to Love and Murder (Tony and Henry Hewes Design awards, Outer Critics Circle nomination); The Lifespan of a Fact and Velocity of Autumn OPERA (selected): Aida (Houston Grand Opera); Turandot (Washington National Opera), American Soldier (Perelman Performing Arts Center); The Dwarf (LA Opera) and Samson and Dalila (Metropolitan Opera). EDUCATION: MFA in Design from the Yale School of Drama; BA in Psychology from McGill University; and Certificate in Fine Arts and Fashion from the Paris American Academy. AWARDS/AFFILIATIONS: Advisory Committee of the American Theatre Wing, Judge Susan Blackburn Prize and TDF/Irene Sharaff awards. WEBSITE: lindacho.com.
KENNETH POSNER - LIGHTING DESIGNER
CINCINNATI PLAYHOUSE IN THE PARK: Debut. BROADWAY/WEST END (selected): Beetlejuice, Mr. Saturday Night, Pretty Woman, Mean Girls, War Paint, Tuck Everlasting, Disgraced, On Your Feet, If/Then, Kinky Boots, Pippin, Cinderella, Hairspray, Dirty Rotten Scoundrels, Legally Blonde, Catch Me If You Can, The Coast Of Utopia: Shipwreck, Other Desert Cities, The Merchant Of Venice, The Little Foxes, The Adventures Of Tom Sawyer, Grease (revival), Finding Neverland and Wicked. EDUCATION: SUNY at Purchase. AWARDS: Tony, Drama Desk, Outer Critics Circle, Lucille Lortel, Joseph Jefferson, Henry Hewes and OBIE awards.
JOHN SHIVERS - SOUND DESIGNER
BROADWAY: Real Women Have Curves, Swept Away (2025 Outer Critics Circle Award nominee), The Heart of Rock and Roll, Shucked (2023 Tony and Drama Desk award nominee), Beauty and the Beast (Worldwide), Pretty Woman (Worldwide), Gettin’ The Band Back Together, Cirque du Soleil’s Paramour, Kinky Boots (2013 Tony Award recipient), Hugh Jackman: Back on Broadway, Leap of Faith, Bonnie and Clyde, Sister Act, 9 to 5, Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, The Little Mermaid, Tarzan and Billy Crystal’s 700 Sundays. INTERNATIONAL: Wicked, Tarzan and The Lion King REGIONAL THEATRE: The Muny (2015-Present), Trading Places, The Wanderer, Becoming Nancy, 42nd Street, First Wives Club, Nutty Professor, Tales of the City, Emma, Robin and the 7 Hoods and Ace. ASSOCIATE/SUPERVISOR: The Lion King (Worldwide), Mary Poppins, Hairspray, The Producers, Titanic, Big, How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying, The Who’s Tommy and The Buddy Holly Story OTHER CREDITS: Savion Glover, Dionne Warwick, Burt Bacharach, Gregory Hines and engineering at Electric Lady Studios
ADAM BISCOW - LASER EFFECTS DESIGNER
FILM: Bill Lynn’s Long Halftime Walk . TELEVISION (recent): The American Music Awards , 60th Annual Academy of Country Music Awards , The Oscars , and the 58th CMA Awards . AFFILIATIONS: Represented by IATSE Local 33 and is Vice President of Television Production and Design at Strictly FX.
CHRIS FENWICK (HE/HIM) - MUSIC SUPERVISOR
BROADWAY (selected): Kimberly Akimbo (Tony Award for Best Musical); Fun Home (Tony Award for Best Musical, Pulitzer finalist); Once on This Island (Tony Award for Best Revival); Sunday in the Park With George (starring Jake Gyllenhaal); and Good Night, Oscar. OFF-BROADWAY (selected): Soft Power (Public Theater, Pulitzer finalist); Giant and See What I Wanna See (Public Theater); Queen of the Mist (Transport Group) and Mother Courage and Her Children (starring Meryl Streep, Shakespeare in the Park). FILM: Steven Spielberg’s West Side Story. AFFILIATIONS: Founding music director of City Center Encores! Off-Center.
BRYSON BAUMGARTEL (HE/HIM) - MUSIC DIRECTOR
CINCINNATI PLAYHOUSE IN THE PARK: Debut. BROADWAY: Merrily We Roll Along; Sunset Boulevard; Just in Time, BOOP! The Musical; The Great Gatsby; and Aladdin. OFF-BROADWAY: Merrily We Roll Along (New York Theatre Workshop) and Hercules (Delacorte Theater). REGIONAL THEATRE: Paper Mill Playhouse, Tuacahn Center for the Arts and Gateway Playhouse. FILM: Beauty and the Beast WEBSITE: brysonbaumgartel.com. INSTAGRAM: @brysonbaumgartel.
DOUG BESTERMAN (HE/HIM) - MUSIC PRODUCER
BROADWAY: Death Becomes Her , BOOP! , SMASH , It Shoulda Been You , A Bronx Tale, Bullets Over Broadway, Elf, Sister Act, Young Frankenstein, How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying, Thoroughly Modern Millie, The Producers and Fosse. OFF-BROADWAY/REGIONAL THEATRE: Anastasia, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Rocky and Tarzan (international productions). FILM/ TELEVISION: Kiss of the Spider Woman (2025), Mary Poppins Returns, Frozen, Chicago, The Little Mermaid (2023), Beauty and the Beast (2017), Aladdin (2019), Schmigadoon (Apple TV+, Emmy Award), The Sound of Music Live! (NBC), Scrubs, Galavant, Crazy Ex-Girlfriend and Smash. RECORDING: Barbra Streisand, Mandy Patinkin, Sutton Foster and Barry Manilow. COMPOSER CREDITS: Breathe , Little Did I Know , The Big One-Oh and Crumbs . AWARDS: Three-time Tony Award winner (six nominations) and multiple Drama Desk Awards. WEBSITES: www.dougbesterman.com and www.arrivalartsinitiative.org.
DAVID EGGERS (HE/HIM) - ASSOCIATE DIRECTOR/CHOREOGRAPHER
As Associate Director/Choreographer with Kathleen Marshall – BROADWAY: In Transit, Nice Work If You Can Get It, Anything Goes, Living on Love. REGIONAL THEATRE: Ogunquit Playhouse, Boston Pops!, Hollywood Bowl, Long Wharf Theatre, Signature Theatre and Paper Mill Playhouse. As Director/Choreographer – NATIONAL TOUR: Nice Work If You Can Get It. REGIONAL THEATRE: Forever Plaid (The Ruth & Nathan Hale Theatre), Nice Work If You Can Get It (Coachella Valley Repertory), Murder For Two (Mason Street Warehouse) and Annie (Teatro de los Insurgentes). UNIVERSITY: Xanadu, Into the Woods, Cabaret, Nine, And the World Goes ‘Round, Urinetown (Spring 2026). As a Performer – CINCINNATI PLAYHOUSE IN THE PARK: Plaid Tidings BROADWAY: Thoroughly Modern Millie, The Pajama Game, Wonderful Town, Curtains, Billy Elliott, How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying, Chicago, The Wedding Singer, Saturday Night Fever and Annie Get Your Gun. EDUCATION: Northwestern University. AFFILIATIONS: Assistant Professor of Musical Theatre at University of Utah (2019 - present). PUBLISHED AUTHOR: Crafting an Intentional Career for the Musical Theatre Performer (Routledge Publishing, October 2025). Website: musicaltheatrecareercompass.com. INSTAGRAM: @profeggers.
MAX GROSSMAN - ASSOCIATE MUSIC DIRECTOR
CINCINNATI PLAYHOUSE IN THE PARK: Debut. BROADWAY: Sunset Boulevard; SMASH; The Notebook; Merrily We Roll Along; New York, New York; Beetlejuice; Wicked; and The Book of Mormon. NATIONAL TOUR: Falsettos, Bright Star and Peter and the Starcatcher REGIONAL THEATRE: Paper Mill Playhouse, Weston Playhouse and Hangar Theatre. OTHER CREDITS: Radio City Christmas Spectacular orchestra and has played as a soloist with the Tampa Bay Symphony.
STEPHANIE KLAPPER (SHE/HER) - CASTING DIRECTOR
CINCINNATI PLAYHOUSE IN THE PARK (14 seasons): select shows: Where the Mountain Meets the Sea; The Book Club Play; English; Primary Trust; Clyde’s; Shane (world premiere); and A Chorus Line. BROADWAY: A Christmas Story, the Musical; Dividing the Estate; and Bronx Bombers. OFF-BROADWAY (recent): Crooked Cross (Mint Theater); Distant Thunder (Amas Theatre); Dig (Primary Stages); The Night of the Iguana (Off-Broadway); and All’s Well that Ends Well (New York Classical). REGIONAL THEATRE: Once (Capital Repertory Theatre); The Age of Innocence (Arena Stage); Peterborough Players and The Cape Playhouse. AUDIO FILM: Elf Quest. FILM: Netuser; The Nature of the Crime; Ranked, the musical and HBO documentary; and many more. AFFILIATIONS/ AWARDS: Casting Society Cares; Casting Society; multiple nominee and four-time recipient of the Artios Awards for Excellence in Casting; Advisory Board of Say Gay Plays; NYU Tisch School of the Arts Women’s Mentorship; Adjunct professor NYU New Studio on Broadway; teacher and guest lecturer at numerous colleges and universities; and Judge for The Jimmy Awards. WEBSITE: www.klappercasting.com.
BRANDON T. HOLMES - STAGE MANAGER
CINCINNATI PLAYHOUSE IN THE PARK: Primary Trust, Stew, Clyde’s, Shane, The Chinese Lady, The Lion, Steel Magnolias and The West End. REGIONAL THEATRE: The Hot Wing King (Denver Center), Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, 42nd Street, Jersey Boys, Fiddler On The Roof, Memphis, The Sound of Music, Chicago, Disney’s The Little Mermaid, Legally Blonde, West Side Story, Newsies (The Lexington Theatre Company); Fun Home, The Mountaintop, Hedwig and the Angry Inch, An Iliad, Grounded, Violet, Pipeline, The Humans, Skeleton Crew and Hands on a Hardbody (Ensemble Theatre Cincinnati); Hello, Dolly!, The Drowsy Chaperone and Side By Side by Sondheim (LOOK Musical Theatre); Golden: MTWichita at 50, Sunset Boulevard, Xanadu, Miss Saigon, Gypsy, The Producers, Big River and Les Misérables (Music Theatre Wichita). WORKSHOPS: LET. HER. RIP. and Night of the Living Dead (Cincinnati Shakespeare Company); Teddy Bear Mountain and When We Vote (Cleveland Play House). AFFILIATIONS: Proud member of the Actors’ Equity Association.
RACHEL KAPLOW (SHE/HER) - ASSISTANT STAGE MANAGER
CINCINNATI PLAYHOUSE IN THE PARK: A Chorus Line and Rutka (Reading). BROADWAY: Sunset Boulevard; Good Night, Oscar; Birthday Candles; and Caroline, or Change . OFF-BROADWAY: Strategic Love Play (Minetta Lane Theatre); The Meeting: The Interpreter (Theatre at St. Clements); All of Me (The New Group); Stargazer (Page 73); Pericles (Classic Stage Company); The Courtroom (Waterwell); Lewiston/Clarkston (Rattlestick Theater); and Fairview (SoHo Rep). REGIONAL THEATRE: Sense and Sensibility, An American in Paris and Baskerville (Cape
Playhouse); Anna in the Tropics (Bay Street Theater); American Jade (Bucks County Playhouse); Tale of Despereaux (The Old Globe); two seasons at Hartford Stage and several summers at Berkshire Theatre Group. EDUCATION: BFA from the University of Michigan.
ANDREA L. SHELL - ASSISTANT STAGE MANAGER
CINCINNATI PLAYHOUSE IN THE PARK: More than 100 productions, including 25 world premieres. FAVORITES: A Christmas Carol (2006-2021); Rutka; Dial M for Murder; Dracula; A Chorus Line; Murder on the Orient Express; School Girls; Or, The African Mean Girls Play; Rooted; Alias Grace; The Last Wide Open; Treasure Island; Mr. Joy; Jane Eyre; Bad Dates; The Revolutionists; I Loved, I Lost, I Made Spaghetti; Merrily We Roll Along; As You Like It; Behind the Eye; The Understudy; Blackbird; Durango; Around the World in 80 Days; Altar Boyz; Smoke on the Mountain Homecoming; Reckless; Ace; The Clean House; A Picasso; One; Abracadabra; The Bible … (abridged); and Dark Paradise. CINCINNATI: Ensemble Theatre and Cincinnati Ballet. REGIONAL THEATRE: The Old Globe, Dallas Theater Center, Alliance Theatre, The Second City, and Ingenuity Festival of Cleveland. AFFILIATIONS: Adjunct faculty for Xavier University’s Theatre Program, contributor for Dramatics. org, and a proud member of Actors’ Equity Association.
MADISON STONE - ASSISTANT STAGE MANAGER
CINCINNATI PLAYHOUSE IN THE PARK: A Chorus Line, Seven Guitars, Ring of Fire: The Music of Johnny Cash, A Christmas Carol, Stew, Rutka, Primary Trust and Birthday Candles. CINCINNATI: The Coronation of Poppea, Fierce, Castor and Patience, Barber of Seville, La Traviata, Tosca, Back to the Zoo Concert and Opera in the Park (Cincinnati Opera). EDUCATION: BFA in Theatre Design and Production (Stage Management) from University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music. AFFILIATIONS: Proud member of the American Guild of Musical Artists and the Actors’ Equity Association.
SHO PRODUCTIONS/SHOSHANA KOVACS PARETS - PRODUCER
SHO Productions / Shoshana Kovac Parets is the lead commercial producer of Mythic, and is thrilled to be bringing this bold, original musical to the global stage. Shoshana’s producing ethos is rooted in joy, connection, and the belief that the arts bring people together in powerful, lasting ways. After more than 25 years working across Broadway, television, and film, Shoshana has never been more passionate about a project than she is about the amazing work that is Mythic Shoshana is a graduate of Washington University in St. Louis and NYU’s Stern School of Business. Endless gratitude to Jacob, Sam, Oran, Marcus, Kathleen, Blake and the Playhouse team, the incredible cast and crew, our beyond awesome interns, and of course Greg, Arielle, Lila, Jonah, the Kovacs and Nini. Special thanks also to Tracy, Lindsay, Kimberly, and Jessica. “Join us” are my two favorite words — if this show resonates, please reach out. Instagram: @mythicmusical or mythicmusical.com.
ADDITIONAL PRODUCTION CREDITS
NYC Rehearsal Studio provided by Roundabout Theatre Company
Associate Set Designer Amanda Stephens
Associate Costume Designer Herin Kaputkin
Associate Lighting Designer Kirk Fitzpatrick
Associate Sound Designer Kevin Sweeter
Moving Light Programmer Jonah Camiel
Laser Equipment supplied by Strictly FX
Laser Programmer Nathan Miller
Laser Technician Noelle Longenberger
3D Model and Previsualization
IMAGINE BLACK LLC
Casting Assistants Gracie Guichard, Joe Piserchio
Assistant to Stephanie Klapper Claire Stancy
Props Run Crew Charlie Rusk, Emma Shreve, ErinMarie Suscheck
DISABLED: Dial 711 to connect to the Box Office via Ohio Relay Services
ACCESSIBILITY WITH DIGNITY PROGRAM
The Playhouse is pleased to offer a variety of services to patrons with special needs.
Audio Described and Signed Performances
Live audio description for patrons who are sight-impaired is offered in both theatres and signed performances for those with hearing impairments are offered in Moe and Jack’s Place – The Rouse Theatre. These services are for designated performances only. ASL Interpreters are Dawn Caudill and Montez Greer. Audio Describers are Mark DeWitt, Bekka Eaton, Shayne Kennedy and Joe Sackenheim
Hearing Enhancement
Moe and Jack’s Place – The Rouse Theatre and the Rosenthal Shelterhouse Theatre both have a hearing loop system which works with existing T-Coil or Telecoil enabled hearing aids or cochlear implants. For assistance, please see a member of our house staff.
Large Print Program
Large print programs for those with visual impairments are available upon request at every performance.
CAMERAS AND RECORDING DEVICES
Actors’ Equity Association strictly prohibits the use of cameras or recording devices in the theatre during the performance.
CHILDREN
Children under the age of 6 will not be admitted to Playhouse productions unless otherwise advertised. Parents with disruptive children will be asked to leave the theatre.
CONCESSIONS
Al’s Bar serves drinks in two locations – one bar on the main level in the Schueler Lobby and one bar on the upper floor. Casual dining fare and snacks from The Delish Dish are available for purchase on the upper floor. Drinks are allowed in the theatres, however food is not.
FACILITY ACCESSIBILITY
Patrons who are mobility-impaired may be dropped off outside the Playhouse’s main entrance. The walk from the top level of the parking garage to the entrance into the Schueler Lobby to the main level of the Rouse Theatre can be made without having to take any stairs. An elevator is available for access to the balcony level and first rows of the Rouse Theatre and the Rosenthal Shelterhouse Theatre. Accessible seating for wheelchairs is subject to availability and should be requested at the time of ticket reservation.
GIFT CERTIFICATES
Need the perfect gift? The Playhouse offers gift certificates redeemable for single tickets or season ticket packages. Call the Box Office or stop by at intermission for more information.
PATRON INFORMATION
GROUP DISCOUNTS
Bring your group of eight or more to the Playhouse and receive great benefits and discounts, including special rates for students and seniors. Our popular corporate web discount program allows your employees to book tickets online at a discount whenever they want. Contact the Box Office for more details.
LATECOMERS AND READMITTANCE
Latecomers are seated at the discretion of the house manager, which may be as late as intermission. Latecomers may be denied admission depending on the demands or structure of a particular production. Please allow yourself adequate time to arrive, park and be seated. Should you need to leave the theatre during a performance, readmittance and seating will be at the discretion of the house manager so as not to disturb the audience and actors.
PARKING
The Park Board reminds you that Eden Park officially closes at 10 p.m. As a grace period to the Playhouse, the police will not ticket vehicles until one half hour following the end of a performance. The Playhouse assumes no responsibility for anyone receiving a ticket for illegal parking. Convenient parking is available in the Playhouse garage. Purchase parking in advance to secure a space. Parking can also be purchased from our parking attendant immediately before the performance if available.
Accessible parking for those with disabilities is located in the Playhouse parking garage. Parking for persons with disabilities is limited and must be reserved and paid for in advance. All vehicles using these spaces must display a valid disability placard.
PROHIBITION OF WEAPONS
The Ohio Revised Code (R.C. 2923.126) has established the privilege of carrying a concealed handgun to Ohio citizens who have obtained the proper license. The same law explicitly grants private employers in the state the right to prohibit their employees and visitors from possessing firearms on the employer’s premises. With this notification the Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park is informing
you that it prohibits weapons of any kind on its premises, and reserves the right to search persons, parcels and vehicles on the same. This policy applies to all employees, patrons and visitors to the facility.
RESTROOMS
There are four types of restrooms: women’s, men’s, all-gender and family. One of each type is available on each level. Restrooms are all wheelchair-accessible.
SMOKING/VAPING
Smoking/vaping is prohibited in the entire theatre complex.
Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park acknowledges the following Partners and their employees who generously participate in the annual ArtsWave Community Campaign at the $100,000+ level.
altafiber
Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center
The Cincinnati Insurance Companies
Cincinnati Reds
Dinsmore & Shohl LLP
The E.W. Scripps Company and Scripps Howard Foundation
The Enquirer | Cincinnati.com
Fifth Third Bank and Fifth Third Foundation
GE Aerospace
Great American Insurance Group
Greater Cincinnati Foundation
The H.B., E.W. and F.R. Luther Charitable Foundation, Fifth Third Bank, N.A., Trustee
The Kroger Co.
Messer Construction Co.
P&G
PNC
Western & Southern Financial Group
presents
A CHRISTMAS CAROL
By CHARLES DICKENS
Adapted and Originally Directed By
Directed By BRIDGET LEAK
BLAKE ROBISON
MOE AND JACK’S PLACE – THE ROUSE THEATRE
NOV. 21 – DEC. 28, 2025
The holiday story you love unfolds in spectacular fashion in Moe and Jack’s Place
– The Rouse Theatre! Charles Dickens’ classic tale of the curmudgeon Ebenezer Scrooge, who finds his heart changing one fateful Christmas Eve, combines with dazzling set, costume and lighting designs to create a magical experience for your family!
“Gorgeous…There is much to love in this celebratory production.”
– Cincinnati Enquirer
LINDA AND GARY GREENBERG present
BECAUSE YOU’RE MINE
Created By MATT CUSACK AND ALLISON KELLY
ROSENTHAL SHELTERHOUSE THEATRE
DECEMBER 3 – 23, 2025
Celebrate the great loves and love songs in country music. From iconic duos to contemporary torch songs, Because You’re Mine features singers and songwriters like: Johnny Cash and June Carter, Dolly Parton and Porter Wagoner, George Jones and Tammy Wynette, Conway Twitty and Loretta Lynn, John Prine and Iris Dement, and more. This limited-run ode to country music is sure to be an entertaining and popular night out. If you loved Ring of Fire: The Music of Johnny Cash, don’t miss it!
Production Sponsor: The Markley Family
CINCINNATI PLAYHOUSE IN THE PARK
OSBORN FAMILY PRODUCING ARTISTIC DIRECTOR Blake Robison
MANAGING DIRECTOR Abby Marcus
THE HEART SELLERS
BY LLOYD SUH
DIRECTOR Desdemona Chiang
SET DESIGNER Sasha Jin Schwartz
COSTUME DESIGNER Christine Tschirgi
LIGHTING DESIGNER Marcella Barbeau
SOUND DESIGNER Sharath Patel
CASTING DIRECTOR Stephanie Klapper, CSA
OCT. 25 — NOV. 23, 2025
THE ROSENTHAL SHELTERHOUSE THEATRE
Production Sponsors Ron Matson and Daniel Young
Honorary Producer Karlee L. Hilliard
Design Sponsors Jeb and Nirvani Head
Artist Sponsors David and Elaine Billmire
Season presented by The Vontz Family
The Heart Sellers was commissioned by Milwaukee Repertory Theater as part of the John (Jack) D. Lewis New Play Development Program
Mark Clements, Artistic Director Chad Bauman, Executive Director and received its first public performance on February 7, 2023
THE HEART SELLERS
CAST
(In speaking order)
Luna Angeleia Ordoñez
Jane Bridget Kim*
Stage Manager Tenley Pitonzo*
Production Assistant Sparrow Mansfield
Location: Luna’s apartment, in a mid-sized US city.
Time: Early evening, Thanksgiving Day. November 22, 1973.
THE HEART SELLERS WILL BE PERFORMED WITHOUT AN INTERMISSION.
This production is made possible in part by a generous gift from the Greater Cincinnati Foundation.
*Member of Actors’ Equity Association, the Union of Professional Actors and Stage Managers in the United States.
This theatre operates under an agreement between the League of Resident Theatres and Actors’ Equity Association, the Union of Professional Actors and Stage Managers in the United States, and with the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees-Local No. 5.
The scenic, costume, lighting and sound designers in LORT Theatres are represented by United Scenic Artists, Local USA-829 of the IATSE.
MEDIA SPONSOR
The Heart Sellers
THE HEART SELLERS
PLAYWRIGHT PROFILE: LLOYD SUH
BY TATIANA GODFREY
Lloyd Suh is one of the most produced playwrights in America right now, and it’s not hard to see why. His work is rich, lyrical, and historically grounded, with a voice that resonates deeply in the current cultural moment. In The Heart Sellers, Suh turns his attention to two immigrant women in 1973, brought to the U.S. under the 1965 Immigration and Nationality Act and left adrift in its aftermath. What begins as a chance meeting over Thanksgiving weekend turns into a tender exploration of friendship, identity, and invisibility. Like much of Suh’s work, it’s a story shaped by the past but grounded in the emotional realities of the present.
This season marks the second time we’ve had the honor of producing one of Suh’s works. The first was The Chinese Lady, a haunting and poetic imagining of the life of Afong Moy, believed to be the first Chinese woman to set foot in the United States. In the early 19th century, Moy was displayed to the public, treated as both novelty and specimen, as she was carted around the country to be exhibited for audiences. She even spent three days on display here in Cincinnati. Much of her life has been lost to the fog of history, but in Suh’s hands, her story becomes emotionally immediate and startlingly present.
Suh’s interest in personalizing these moments in history is a hallmark of his work. His play The Far Country, which premiered off-Broadway at Atlantic Theatre Company, was a finalist for the 2023 Pulitzer Prize for Drama. Set in the aftermath of the Chinese Exclusion Act, it follows Chinese immigrants who were lured by the promise of a better life only to be detained, interrogated, and often deported. While the play takes place more than a century ago, its depiction of how bureaucratic policy can dehumanize and how systems break people
feels sharply contemporary. Suh doesn’t draw parallels so much as he illuminates the throughlines.
Even in his plays intended for younger audiences, Suh brings depth and historical weight. Bina’s Six Apples, a TYA (Theatre for Young Audiences) piece, follows a young girl in Korea during the outbreak of war as she attempts to carry six apples across a country in chaos. It’s a story of resilience, resourcefulness, and inheritance — qualities that echo across his body of work. In Disney & Fujikawa, a short one-act play, Suh stages a fictionalized 1942 meeting between Walt Disney and Japanese American illustrator Gyo Fujikawa, probing questions about representation, exclusion, and artistic legacy.
Suh’s attention to the intersection of American and Asian histories is not incidental, it’s deeply personal. Second generation Korean, born and raised just south of Indianapolis, and a graduate of Indiana University, Suh has long
navigated the dual forces of belonging and exclusion. While his works like Franklinland, a father-son drama about Benjamin Franklin and his estranged loyalist son, focus squarely on white American legacy, his other plays reflect a deliberate pivot toward excavating the histories of his own cultural lineage. This shift has not only enriched his work but has positioned him as a vital voice in the evolving narrative of what it means to be Asian American.
In an interview with the Indiana University Newsroom, Suh said, “The plays that I’ve been writing recently on Asian American history, I realized that they’re all part of the same impulse. My parents are first-generation immigrants. My children are third generation, but they have very little tangible connection to
my parents’ journey beyond what we can tell them. So how do we tell that story?”
Through stories that span centuries, continents, and generations, Suh is building a kind of living archive that challenges dominant narratives while insisting on the complexity, dignity, and agency of those too often left out of history books. In dramatizing the past, he reframes the present. And with The Heart Sellers, he invites us to sit at the table with two immigrant women on Thanksgiving Day in 1973, not as symbols, but as fully realized people navigating loneliness, hope, identity, and friendship. It’s funny, vulnerable, and quietly radical. Like much of Suh’s work, The Heart Sellers is less about resolving the tension between cultures and more about honoring the space in between.
Sami Ma and Albert Park in 2023 production of The Chinese Lady at Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park. Photo by Mikki Schaffner.
THE HEART SELLERS
JUST THE FACTS: THE HART-CELLER IMMIGRATION ACT OF 1965
On October 3, 1965, in a ceremony at the base of the Statue of Liberty, President Lyndon B. Johnson signed into law the Immigration and Nationality Act of 1965. Commonly known as the Hart–Celler Act after its two main sponsors — Senator Philip A. Hart of Michigan and Representative Emanuel Celler of New York — the law overhauled America’s immigration system during a period of deep global instability. For decades, a federal quota system had severely restricted the number of people from outside Western Europe eligible to settle in the United States. Passed during the height of the Cold War, Hart–Celler erased America’s longstanding policy of limiting immigration based on national origin. “Forty years of testing have proven that the rigid pattern of discrimination has not only produced imbalances that have irritated many nations, but Congress itself, through a long series of enactments forced by the realities of a changing world saw fit to modify this unworkable formula so that today it remains on the books primarily as an expression of gratuitous condescension,” observed Celler, the
chairman of the House Judiciary Committee. In its place, Congress erected a legal framework that prioritized highly skilled immigrants and opened the door for people with family already living in the United States. The popular bill passed the House, 318 to 95. The law capped the number of annual visas at 290,000, which included a restriction of 20,000 visas per country per year. But policymakers had vastly underestimated the number of immigrants who would take advantage of the family reunification clause. In particular, the law created new opportunities for immigrants from Asian nations to join relatives in America. Following Hart–Celler, annual immigration jumped to nearly a half million people, and only 20 percent came from Europe.
History, Art & Archives, U.S. House of Representatives , “Immigration and Nationality Act of 1965,” https://history.house.gov/Historical-Highlights/1951-2000/Immigration-and-Nationality-Act-of-1965/
Reprinted with permission from the Office of the Historian of the U.S. House of Representatives.
President Lyndon B. Johnson signs the Immigration and Nationality Act of 1965 on Liberty Island in New York. LBJ Library photo by Yoichi Okamoto.
THE HEART SELLERS
BRIDGET KIM (SHE/HER) - JANE
CINCINNATI PLAYHOUSE IN THE PARK: Debut. REGIONAL THEATRE: The Heart Sellers (Virginia Theatre Festival); The Three Musketeers and Antigone (Cleveland Play House); To the Ends of the Earth/땅끝까지 (JACK NYC); and Smart People (The Liminal Playhouse). FILM/TELEVISION: Law & Order; Insidious: The Red Door; Poker Face; and Elsbeth. EDUCATION: MFA from Case Western Reserve University and BA from University of Louisville. INSTAGRAM: @stopbridget.
ANGELEIA ORDOÑEZ (SHE/HER) - LUNA
CINCINNATI PLAYHOUSE IN THE PARK: Debut. REGIONAL THEATRE: The Great American Mousical (directed by Julie Andrews and Christopher Gattelli). EDUCATION: BFA in Musical Theatre from the University of Michigan. WEBSITE: angeleia.com. INSTAGRAM: @angeleiajade.
LLOYD SUH - PLAYWRIGHT
Lloyd Suh is originally from Indianapolis, Indiana, and is the winner of the 2019 Herb Alpert Award for Theater and the 2020 winner of the Horton Foote Prize. His play The Chinese Lady premiered as a co-production by Barrington Stage Company and Ma-Yi Theater Company, and was hailed a New York Times Critics’ Pick during its NY run. The play now continues to have productions around the country. It returned to New York City in a co-production between the Public Theatre and Ma-Yi Theatre Company in 2022. Lloyd’s play The Far Country premiered at the Atlantic Theatre and was also a New York Times Critics’ Pick, and his play The Heart Sellers premiered at Milwaukee Rep. Lloyd’s play Charles Francis Chan Jr’s Exotic Oriental Murder Mystery was produced by NAATCO. His play The Wong Kids In The Secret Of The Space Chupacabra Go! debuted at the Children’s Theatre Company in Minneapolis and Ma-Yi Theatre in New York. It received the AATE Distinguished Play Award and the Off Broadway Alliance Award for Best Family Show. His play Bina’s Six Apples premiered in a co-production between Children’s Theatre Company in Minneapolis and Alliance Theatre in Atlanta. Lloyd was presented with the National Asian American Theatre Company’s Lilah Kan Red Socks Award in recognition of an artist’s commitment to community service. He served on the National Steering Committee in creating the first National Asian American Theatre Conference and the first National Asian American Theatre Festival. He served as an official artist delegate to the 2007 World Social Forum in Nairobi, Kenya and the inaugural US Social Forum in Atlanta.
DESDEMONA CHIANG (SHE/HER) - DIRECTOR
CINCINNATI PLAYHOUSE IN THE PARK: Debut. REGIONAL THEATRE: Oregon Shakespeare Festival, The 5th Avenue Theatre (Seattle), Guthrie Theater (Minneapolis), Alley Theatre (Houston), South Coast Repertory (Costa Mesa, Calif.), Pittsburgh Public Theater, Baltimore Center Stage, Seattle Rep, Studio Theatre (Washington, DC), Long Wharf Theatre (New Haven, Conn.), Seattle Children’s Theatre, and ACT Theatre, among others. FILM/TELEVISION: Fire Country (CBS/Paramount+), See You Tomorrow Tomorrow Tomorrow (short), and Made in USA (short). EDUCATION: MFA in Directing from the University of Washington. AFFILIATIONS/
THE HEART
AWARDS: Princess Grace Award, Vilcek Prize for Creative Promise, Drama League Fellow, Sundance Episodic Program, Film Independent, Tribeca Untold Stories, American Film Institute Directing Workshop for Women+ and Women in Film. WEBSITE: www.desdemonachiang.com. INSTAGRAM: @deschiang.
SASHA JIN SCHWARTZ - SET DESIGNER
CINCINNATI PLAYHOUSE IN THE PARK: Debut. OFF-BROADWAY: Off Peak (59e59). REGIONAL THEATRE: Twelfth Night and Dragon Lady (Pittsburgh Public Theater); The Hobbit and Pinocchio (Arden Theatre Company); Birthday Candles, Fat Ham and What the Constitution Means to Me (City Theatre Company); Selling Kabul and Heisenberg (Northern Stage); The Heart Sellers, Little Shop of Horrors and Dear Jack, Dear Louise (Virginia Theatre Festival); The Thanksgiving Play (Dorset Theatre Festival); Enron and The Devil is A Lie (Quantum Theatre); and the dance floor, the hospital room, and the kitchen table (The Voxel). EDUCATION: BFA from Carnegie Mellon University School of Drama. AFFILIATIONS/AWARDS: Prague Quadrennial Featured Emerging Designer, Theatre Communications Group Rising Leader of Color and the Lloyd Weninger Award for Stage Design. WEBSITE: sashaschwartzscenic.com.
CHRISTINE TSCHIRGI - COSTUME DESIGNER
CINCINNATI PLAYHOUSE IN THE PARK: Debut. REGIONAL THEATRE: The Oregon Shakespeare Festival, Pittsburgh Public Theater, Baltimore Center Stage, Asolo Repertory Theatre, Seattle Rep, 5th Avenue Theatre, A Contemporary Theatre and Seattle Children’s Theatre. EDUCATION: MFA from University of Washington. AFFILIATIONS: Member of USA 829.
MARCELLA BARBEAU (SHE/HER) - LIGHTING DESIGNER
CINCINNATI PLAYHOUSE IN THE PARK: Debut. REGIONAL THEATRE: Octet (Hudson Valley Shakespeare); The Merry Wives of Windsor, Into the Woods and Much Ado About Nothing (Oregon Shakespeare Festival); Madama Butterfly and Maria de Buenos Aires (Opera San Antonio); The Threepenny Opera, Rigoletto and Maria de Buenos Aires (Opera Columbus); Carmen and Madama Butterfly (Austin Opera); La Traviata (Opera Omaha); Acis and Galatea and L’elisir D’amore (Florentine Opera); L’Amant Anonyme (Madison Opera); Murder on the Orient Express (Playmaker’s Repertory); Lucy and Charlie’s Honeymoon (Lookingglass Theatre, world premiere); Cabaret, As One, The Threepenny Opera and The Threepenny Carmen, world premiere (The Atlanta Opera). AFFILIATIONS: Currently serving as the lighting designer for Santa Cruz Shakespeare. UPCOMING: La Boheme (Portland Opera), The Taming of the Shrew (Oregon Shakespeare Festival), King James (Pioneer Theatre Company) and La Traviata (Opera Columbus).
THE HEART SELLERS
SHARATH PATEL (HE/HIM) - SOUND DESIGNER
CINCINNATI PLAYHOUSE IN THE PARK: Debut. REGIONAL THEATRE: American Repertory Theater, Alley Theatre, Alliance Theatre, ACT Theatre, Alabama Shakes, TheatreSquared, Dallas Theater Center, Portland Center Stage, TheatreWorks Silicon Valley, Indiana Repertory Theatre, Asolo Repertory Theatre, Seattle Rep, Artists Repertory Theatre, Milwaukee Rep, Yale Repertory Theatre, Repertory Theatre of St. Louis, California Shakespeare Festival, Alabama Shakespeare Festival, Cleveland Play House, Theatrical Outfit, Seattle Children’s Theatre, Tantrum Theater, Marin Theatre Company, Virginia Theatre Festival, The Contemporary American Theater Festival, Arena Stage, Hypokrit Theatre Company, Virginia Stage Company, Geffen Playhouse, East West Players and Company One. EDUCATION: MFA from the Yale School of Drama and BFA from Ohio University. AFFILIATIONS: USA829 IATSE, Theatrical Sound Designers and Composers Association, Arts Envoy for the U.S. Department of State, National Respondent for the Kennedy Center American College Theater Festival and Resident Artist at Artists Repertory Theatre. WEBSITE: sharathpatel.com.
STEPHANIE KLAPPER - CASTING DIRECTOR
See bio on page 22.
TENLEY PITONZO - STAGE MANAGER
CINCINNATI PLAYHOUSE IN THE PARK: Rooted and Where the Mountain Meets the Sea. REGIONAL THEATRE (selected): The Winter’s Tale, Sense and Sensibility (American Shakespeare Center); Trouble in Mind (Pittsburgh Public Theater); Murder Girl and The Garbologists (Forward Theater Company); Jane Eyre (The Alley Theatre); Public Obscenities (Theatre for a New Audience); Life is a Dream and Our Town (Baltimore Center Stage); seven methods of killing kylie jenner (The Public Theater and Woolly Mammoth Theatre Company); The African Company Presents Richard III (Great River Shakespeare Festival); Frankenstein: A Ghost Story, for colored girls who have considered suicide/when the rainbow is enuf, Unreliable, Last Days of Summer, School Girls or the African Mean Girls Play and Sweeney Todd (KCRep).
ADDITIONAL PRODUCTION STAFF
Assistant Scenic Designer
Regan Densmore
Props Artisan Kyle Tieman
Voice and Dialect Coach Adi Cabral
Space reservation is happening now!
THE CURTAIN IS RISING
Support the local arts community as it takes the stage this fall and reach an engaged, affluent audience.
Cristian Măcelaru Music Director Designate
BOARD OF TRUSTEES
OFFICERS
James C. Leonard President Nirvani Head Vice President
TRUSTEES
Steve Bestard
MC Brennan
Julie A. Broadwell
Lucy Lane Broderick
Ron Bunt
Maurice E. Coffey, II
Virginia Copley
Mark Dawes
Timothy Douglas
LEGACY TRUSTEES
Victoria Buyniski Gluckman
Linda Greenberg+
Thomas M. Keckeis
Jennifer Dorsey Powell
EMERITUS
Otto M. Budig, Jr.
Chuck Carothers+
David Herriman+
Andrew MacAoidh Jergens
James P. Conway, Jr. Treasurer
Judy Ellis
Vitaly Goldfeder
Ken Goldhoff
Chandra Gravely
Bernita McCann
Hightower
Susan Ingmire
Diane S. Jordan
Alina Khan
Jack Rouse
Margo K. Ross
Secretary
Jerry Thomas Shroat
Bet Koeninger
Digi F. Schueler
Chair
Terry Lemmerman
Jacqueline M. Mack
Danute Miskinis
Samuel Moore, Jr.
Dean A. Moulas
Patti Myers
Audra Rance
Robert Reifsnyder
Ellen G. van der Horst
Larry Vignola
Morse Johnson+
Lois Rosenthal+
Jack Rouse
Howard Tomb+
KJ Sanchez
Julia Wesselkamper
Susan Whitman
Ronna K. Willis
Marcie Wright
Brian Yangyuen
Albert Vontz, III
Barbara M. Weyand
Susan Zaunbrecher
Albert Vontz, Jr.+
Albert Vontz, III
+In Memorium
ey.com
THE MORSE JOHNSON SOCIETY
Thanks to your vision and commitment, we can set a bold course to secure the future of the Playhouse for generations to come. We are grateful to you for including the Playhouse in your estate plans. This list recognizes members of the Morse Johnson Society as of August 13, 2025.
Anonymous
Romola N. Allen
Roderick and Barbara Barr
Martha L. Bell
David and Elaine Billmire
Thomas J. Breed
Charlin Briggs
Rosemarie Brown
John and Peg Bruggeman
Susan and Burton Closson
Carol C. Cole
Jim Conway and Rick Robertson
Scott and Susan Cruse
Richard and Teddie Curry
Kelly M. Dehan and Richard J. Staudigel
Jan Denton
Marilyn Derfus
Jackie Dieckman and Mike Camery
Mrs. James M. Edwards
Barbara Fitch
In memory of Phyllis A. Followell, my heart
Allison Gerrety
Victoria Buyniski Gluckman
Madeleine H. (Mady)
Gordon J. Frederick and Cynthia Gossman
Carol Green
Gary Greenberg
Jan and Herman Groshoff
Mrs. Robert J. Hasl
Robert and Judith Heaton
Dave and Betsy Hendy
Andrea and Dr. Edward Herzig
Karlee L. Hilliard
Susan M. Ingmire
Andrew MacAoidh Jergens
Judith E. Johnson
M. J. Johnson
Jan and Jay Kalagayan
Winifred B. Kessler
David and Janice Klocke
Mike and Marilyn Kremzar
Randolph and Patricia Krumm
Ms. Abby E. Langdon
Donald W. Leedy
Terry Lemmerman
James C. Leonard
Mary V. Lierl
Cheryl Harden Love
Barbara Lyons
Jacqueline M. Mack
Dick and Sandy Manteuffel
James A. Markley, Jr.
David L. Martin
David Mason
Ron Matson and Daniel Young
Barbara and Kim
McCracken
Charles and Joann Mead
Becky Miars
Lauren and James Miller
David and Diane Moccia
William J. and Mary G. Moran
Patti Myers and Alan Flaherty
Ronald and Debi Nash
Julia Okenfuss
Charlotte and Robert Otto
Carolyn Parker
Charles and Tara Pease
Jenny and David Powell
Betty L. Prince
Rob and Gretchen Reifsnyder
Pamela Reising
Ellen Rieveschl
Richard Rosenthal
Jack and Moe Rouse
Robert and Dell Ann Sathe
Mark and Rosemary Schlachter
Carol J. Schroeder
Digi France Schueler
John L. Shields
Jerry and Betsy Shroat
Ann M. Simsic
Mrs. Paul G. Sittenfeld
Adrienne Angst Smith
Francis and Susan Stanton
Nancy M. Steman
Sidney Thomas
Diane D. Todd
Marty C. Tomb
Ellen and Ray van der Horst
Margaret and Albert Vontz III
Daniel G. Walker
JoAnn and Paul Ward
Dr. and Mrs. Nelson B. Watts
Jim and Jo Ann Weber
Irwin and Barbara Weinberg
Barbara M. Weyand
Ronna and Dr. James B. Willis
Susan and Don Zaunbrecher
POSTHUMOUSLY REMEMBERED
Anonymous
Mrs. Thomas Adler
Robert H. Allen
Henrietta Barlag
Peggy Barrett
Karen H. Bell
Frank and Rosemary Bloom
Peter Briggs
Jack G. Brown
Leland M. Cole
Eva Jane Romaine Coombe
John V. Crable
John F. Curley
Anne Elkins Didrichsen
Mrs. Elizabeth Easley
James M. Edwards
Felix and Weta Mae Elkins
Margaret M. Embshoff
Have you included Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park in your estate plans? We would love to hear from you. Please reach out to Director of Individual Giving Kendra Struthers at kendra.struthers@cincyplay.com or (513) 977-2024 so we can properly recognize you for your gift and welcome you into the Morse Johnson Society.
Jerome A. Fey and Robert J. Schlafle
Stona Fitch
William A. and Susan S. Friedlander
Oliver M. Gale
Charles and Caroline Goering
Linda Greenberg
Peter and Mary Hainline
Carlyn G. Hamilton
Dr. Robert J. Hasl
Mrs. Morse Johnson
Stanley M. Kaplan, M.D.
Minor and Dan LeBlond
Keith Lemmerman
Ron Lyons
Manuel D. and Rhoda Mayerson
Mr. and Mrs. Arnold Morelli
Richard Okenfuss
Jack and Marilyn Osborn
Maurice E. Oshry
George Rieveschl
Launcey Roder
Lois Rosenthal
Gene F. Santoro
Mr. and Mrs. Robert C. Schiff, Sr.
Karl and Roberta Schlachter
Mary Louise Schroth
Marsha Shields
Paul G. Sittenfeld
Louise W. Spiegel
Rick Steiner
Jane K. Steinfirst
Thurza R. Sternberg
Charles and Sue Straus
Charles L. and Joan Thomas, Jr.
Lynda A. Thomas
Dr. Thomas Todd
Howard Tomb
Albert Vontz, Jr.
Mr. and Mrs. Dick Waite
Stuart and Gladys C. Warshauer
Monte Witte
2025-26 LEADING LADIES
When amazing women come together, great things happen! Thank you to these 2025-26 season Leading Ladies. This list recognizes members as of August 13, 2025.
PROGRAM
CO-CHAIRS
Lucy Lane Broderick
Jennifer Dorsey Powell
GRANDE DAMES
Mei Mei Burr
Karen L. Carnahan
Kelly M. Dehan
Vickie Buyniski Gluckman
Karlee L. Hilliard
Kelly Lyle
Danute Miskinis
Linda R. Muth
Rosemary Schlachter
Catharina Toltzis Ph.D.
DIVAS
Janet G. Banks
Randal Bloch
Beth Canarie
Amelia Crutcher
Denise M. Esteves-Hicks
Louise Head
Patti Heldman
Betsy Hendy
Susan Ingmire
Molly Katz
Margo Kirstein
Madelynn Matlock
Patti Myers
Karen Neyer
Jennifer Dorsey Powell
Betty Prince
Digi France Schueler
Patricia J. Wagner
Jane Hooper Welling
Ronna K. Willis
STARLETS
Janice Amatulli
Molly R. Barber
Jan Bartel
Mary Ann Bell
Sue K. Blaney
Linda D. Brink
Jacklyn Bryson
Carol Campbell
Nancy B. Carrothers
Janet Castellini
Fran Christensen
Susan Cranley
Judy Dalambakis
April D. Davidow
Debora Del Valle
Marilyn Duke
Joyce Elkus
Mary Anne Frey
Nancy J. Gaffney
Nancy Gollobin
Barbara Hahn
Brenda Hausterman
Nirvani Head
Robin Henderson
Judy Tondi Herd
Meg Hilmer
Marty Humes
Dr. Linda M. Huntress
Diane Iseman
Anne Jaroszewicz
Sarah Raup Johnson
Kimberly King
Rachel Kirley
Patricia Krumm
Patricia Larsen
Lynn P. Larson
Terry Lemmerman
Donna Lilley
Glenda Lindsay
Nancy Lippincott
Sally A. Lloyd
Laurel Markley
Melisse May
Joann Mead
Kathy Merchant
Audrey Korn Miller
Diane Moccia
Mary G. Moran
Joy S. Nadler
Jeannie Niebuhr
Debbie Pendl
MaryAnn Pietromonaco
Jane Portman
woman
theatre
Ildiko Pray
Audra Rance
Margie Rennie
Sara Repenning
Carol Reubel
Danielle Revelson
Buffie Rixey
Gigi Robison
Karina Rothzeid
Susan Brakers Schertzer
Jeanne Schmerler
Anita Schneider
Laura Skidmore
Martha Steier
Dr. Susan R. Strick
Glenda Suttman
Gretchen Thomas
Linda Trebbi
Dionn Tron
Susie Tweddell
Ellen G. van der Horst
Jeannine Winkelmann
Laani A. Wuest
Mary Beth Young
Sue Zimmerman
INGENUES
Lucy Lane Broderick
Helene Herbert
to learn more!
ANNUAL GIFTS
Thank you for your support! This list includes all gifts given to the Playhouse from July 1, 2024 to August 20, 2025, not including Endowment and Capital Campaign gifts.
VISIONARY CIRCLE
EXECUTIVE PRODUCER
($50,000+)
ArtsWave
Rosemary H. and Frank Bloom Special Fund*
MC and Tom Brennan
Fifth Third Bank
First Financial Bank
Linda and Gary Greenberg*
Carol Ann and Ralph V. Haile, Jr. Foundation
The David C. Herriman Fund*
Kerry Automotive
L.I.F.E. Foundation
The Markley Family
L&L Nippert Charitable Foundation
Ohio Arts Council
Moe and Jack Rouse
The Robert and Adele Schiff Family Foundation
The Harold C. Schott Foundation
The Schueler Group
Digi and Mike Schueler
The Louise Taft Semple Foundation
The Shubert Foundation
Nancy and Tim Sparks
Margaret and Albert Vontz III*
PRODUCER
($30,000 - $49,999)
Eleanora C.U. Alms Trust, Fifth Third Bank, N.A., Trustee
The Estate of Peggy Barrett
The Roy Cockrum Foundation
The Charles H. Dater Foundation
Thomas J. Emery Memorial
Sarah and Tommy Evans
Ms. Karlee L. Hilliard
Huntington Bank
Johnson Investment Counsel
Terry Lemmerman
Ron Matson and Daniel Young
Rockwern Charitable Foundation
Ellen and Ray van der Horst
Barbara and Irwin Weinberg Fund*
Barbara M. Weyand
ARTISTIC
DIRECTOR’S CIRCLE
DIRECTOR
($10,000 - $29,999)
Anonymous
Atkins & Pearce Inc.
BHDP Architecture
David and Elaine Billmire
Neil Bortz
Susan Brenner and Steven Mombach
CBRE
Clark Schaefer Hackett
Estate of Barbara (Joan) Cochran
Richard and Teddie Curry
Nancy and Mark Dawes
Deloitte
Dinsmore & Shohl
eat well celebrations and feasts
Emerge Managed Solutions, LLC
Ernst & Young LLP
Frost Brown Todd
The Geiler Company
Greater Cincinnati Foundation
Jeb and Nirvani Head
Heidelberg Distributing Company
Diane and Carl Iseman
Don and Frani Jones
Lightborne
Jacqueline M. Mack and Dr. Edward B. Silberstein
Dick and Sandy Manteuffel
Barbara and Kim McCracken
Charles and Joann Mead
Becky Miars
Millstone Fund
Diane and Dave Moccia
Arthur C. Morrissey and Janet M. Hayes
Jenny and David Powell
Amy and John Rosenberg
Roto-Rooter
The Family of Dr. Peter Ruehlman
John A. Schroth Family Charitable Trust
The Sheakley Group, Inc.
Rhonda and Larry Sheakley
Julie and Steven J. Shifman
Betsy and Jerry Shroat
John and Jennifer Stein
The Sutphin Family Foundation
Jennifer and Woody Taft
Towne Properties
Edward Trach
Lawrence and Maureen Vignola
Randolph Wadsworth
Western & Southern Financial Group
Mr. William J. Weyand
PLAYWRIGHT
($5,000 - $9,999)
Anonymous (2) 25th Hour
David and Traci Alexander
Bahl & Gaynor Investment Counsel
Ms. Henrietta Barlag
Ron Bates and Randy Lasley
Mark and Lindsay Bibler
Ruth and Tom Bobenread
Thomas J. Breed
Terri and John Byczkowski
Canary Floral & Event Design
Candace Carson
Denise and Martin Chambers
Mr. Maurice and Lela Coffey, II
James P. Conway, Jr. and Richard D. Robertson, Jr.
Jack and Virginia Copley
Kelly Dehan and Richard Staudigel
Richard and Lisa Ernst
Brooks and Beth Ewing
Vitaly and Samantha Goldfeder
The Goldhoff Family
Ms. Madeleine H. Gordon
Chandra and Mel Gravely
Fred and Patti Heldman*
Mrs. Andrea and Dr. Edward Herzig
Karen and David Hoguet
Susan Ingmire and Lynn Hailey
Bill and Mary Jane James
Paul Jennewine
Linda Busken Jergens and Andrew MacAoidh Jergens
Patti and Tom Keckeis*
Dr. Robert Keith and Kathleen Thornton-Keith
Marilyn Kinne
Bet and Dave Koeninger
Mark and Karen Kremzar
Mr. and Mrs. Michael H. Kremzar
Asher and Kelsey Lanier
Jamie and Jenny Leonard
H.B., E.W. & F.R. Luther Charitable Foundation
Craig and Anne Maier
Kevin and Frances McMurray
Leon and Barb Meyer
Ms. Danute M. Miskinis
Samuel Moore, Jr.
David and Judith Morgan
Dean and Catherine Moulas
Patti Myers and Alan Flaherty
Karen and Bill Neyer*
Ohio Holocaust and Genocide Memorial and Education Commission
Stuart and Ildiko Pray
Wayne L. Prim Foundation
Prudential - Matching Fund
Rob and Gretchen Reifsnyder
Dianne and J. David Rosenberg
Jennie Rosenthal
Richard Rosenthal and Kitty Strauss Rosenthal
Margo and Sam Ross
Mark and Rosemary Schlachter
Kathy Shell and Joetta Prost
Skidmore Sales & Distributing Co., Inc.
Elsa M. Heisel Sule Foundation
Robert D. Temple and Sue E. Auerbach
Marty C. Tomb
Barbara and Daman Turner
Jo Ann Wieghaus
Ronna and Dr. James B. Willis
The Wohlgemuth Herschede Foundation
YourDoctor, Concierge Medicine
Susan and Don Zaunbrecher
PLAYHOUSE
INSIDER’S CIRCLE
PRINCIPAL
($2,500 - $4,999)
William P. Anderson Foundation
John and Kathy Bachman
Mr. and Mrs. Robert O. Banks
Jan Bartel
Ed and Debbie Birck
The Otto M. Budig Family Foundation
ANNUAL GIFTS
Jeff and Gay Bullock
Ron Bunt and Wei Sun
Eric Burgmann and Linda Vaccariello
David and Sara Butler
Janet and Bruce Byrnes
Leland M. and Carol C. Cole
Marjorie Compton
Kassy and Jeff Corken
The Crawford Family Foundation
Marjorie Davis*
Scott X. Deters
Amy and Michael Fitzgibbons
Shelly Gerson and Dr. Jeff Zipkin
Chris and Janet Gunn
Betsy and Dave Hendy
Ellen and Garrett Jackson*
Sylvia Johnson
Marvin Kolodzik
Randolph and Patricia Krumm
Mr. and Mrs. Stephen S. Lett
John C. Ludy
Kay Lynch and Chuck Beckman
David Martin
Kathryn Merchant
Stan and Mary Morton
Kit and Jack Overbeck
Judy and Thomas Oxman
Tom and Linda Palmer
Betty L. Prince
Audra Rance
Mitch and Karen Rashkin
Robert and Connie Reed
Richard Reis and Pamela Spangler
Diane and William Rumpke, Jr.
Mr. Richard H. Russell
Ladislas and Vilma Segoe Family Foundation
Rick and Cathy Slack
Steven Smith and David Vanderpool
Sandra and Henry Spitz
Steiner Family Foundation
Joseph B. Steiner
Dr. Susan R. Strick
Nellie Leaman Taft Foundation
Thembi Speaks LLC
Mr. and Mrs. Scott Tieke
Robert Trusty
Julia Wesselkamper and Julian Johnson
Mark and Susan Whitman
ENSEMBLE
($1,500 - $2,499)
Anonymous (2)
Ms. Kathryn Allred Al-Lamadani
Gordon Allen and Linda Baas
Americana Arts Foundation
Thomas and Susan Anthony
Gale and Dave Beckett
Mary Ann and Doug Bell
John A. Berenberg
Randal and Peter Bloch
Jane and Gary Booth
Kyle and Lucy Broderick
John and Peg Bruggeman
Jacklyn and Gary Bryson
Mei Mei Burr
Bonnie and Dick Buten
Karen L. Carnahan
Rosalind Chaiken
Philip Clayton
Burton and Susan Closson
Robert and Deborah Collins
Florence and Tom DeWitt
Kathryn Dierckes
Emilie and David Dressler Fund*
Judy Ellis
Paul and Nancy Gaffney
Vickie Buyniski Gluckman
Donn Goebel and Cathy McLeod
Eleanor and Richard Goering
David and Sheryl Harris
Irmgard and Horst Hehmann
James and Susan Herman
Sherrie and Fred Heyse
Sue and William W. Hill III
Hixson Architecture, Engineering, Interiors
Noel and Karen Hofmann
Timothy and Julie Driehaus Horton
Carolyn and Michael Hoyt
Patti and Keith James
Johnson & Johnson - Matching Fund
Arleene Keller
Judith and Ken Kenniston
Mark and Kymberly Kuenning
Jo Ann and George Kurz
Susan J. Lauf
Dr. Carol P. Leslie
Kelly Lyle
Raymond and Madelynn Matlock
Pattianne and Mark Menden
Mr. Roy A. Mitchell
Jim and Eileen Moon
Munich Reinsurance America, Inc.
Linda R. Muth
Carl Parrott and Molly Katz Fund*
Phillips Family Fund*
Mr. and Mrs. Don Popelar
Prolink
Gerald D. Rape
Elizabeth C. B. and Paul G. Sittenfeld
Gerald and Sarah Skidmore
Skyline Chili
Mr. and Mrs. Stephen Smith
Susan and David Smith
John and Merrie Stillpass
Tom and Keri Tami
Catharina Toltzis Ph.D.
Water Tower Fine Wines
Jane Hooper Welling
Wells Fargo Advisors
Sallie Westheimer
Carol and Rich Wilson
Anthony and Sally Woodward
ANNUAL FUND
BENEFACTOR
($750 - $1,499)
Anonymous (7)
Liz and Hank Alexander
James Anthony and Sarah Corathers
Eric and Brenda Armstrong Family Fund*
Bruce and Helene Ault
Michael and Shelia Becker
Miss Martha L. Bell
Judith and Louis Belli
Kit Berger
John Berninger
Jeff and Pam Bernstein
Sandra Bolek
Mr. and Mrs. Ken Borisch
Mark Bowen
Selena, James, and Justin Bowling
Linda D. Brink
Charlotte Brooks
David and Marybeth Brothers
Dr. Jane Brown and Mr. Paul Beck
Beth Canarie
Nancy B. Carrothers
Larry and Julie Chandler
Fran Christensen
James Cissell
Mr. Rick Coffey
Pearl J. Compaan, M.D.
The Cord Foundation
Mr. and Mrs. Scott Cruse
Amelia Crutcher
Anne Dagenbach
Judy and Chris Dalambakis
The Daley Family Foundation
Mark Dauner
Michelle de la Vega
Jeffrey and Sharon DeRossette
Michael and Kathleen Doherty
Timothy Douglas
Tim and Tina DuMont*
Saralou and Dave Durham
Allison and Rick Edwards
Denise M. Esteves-Hicks
George Fabe Fund of the Greater Cincinnati Foundation
Michael Federle
Matthew Feldman and Julie Baker
Mary and Bob Fitzpatrick
Dr. and Mrs. Bernard Foster
Missy and Brian J. Fox
Mr. and Mrs. John Freeman
Gregrick A. Frey
Edward Gemperle
Richard and Kathleen Glaser
Nancy Gollobin
Carl and Joyce Greber
Mary and Phil Hagner
Margo Hall
Ham and Ellie Hamilton
Teri and Mike Haught
Louise Head
Bertie Hertz
Grace and Brian Hill
Wendy Hill
Dr. Carol Hubbard
Marty Humes
Mr. and Mrs. William Ivers
Mark and Sarah Johnson
James and Brenda Jones
Kyle and Sue Jones
Mr. and Mrs. Geoffrey Keenan
Peter and Sandy Keiser
Rosalynd Kendall
Beverly Kinney and Edward Cloughessy
Margo Kirstein
Larry and Kathleen Kissel
Mark and Nancy Kleespies
Mary Kay Koehler and Heather Apple
Kathleen B. and Michael C. Krug*
Michael and Paula Kunka
Mr. and Mrs. John LaMacchia
Mr. Edward Lanzit
Mary Kay Levesay
Donna Lilley
Glenda Lindsay
Sherwin Little
Whitney and Phillip Long
Cheryl Harden Love
Ellen and Ward Maresca
Ms. Margaret E. Mathile
Susan Matz
Evi Banzhaf McCord
Mark McKillip and Amira Beer
Hope Earls McSwigan
Richard I. Michelman and Karen E. Meyer
Jill and Bruce Mitchell
Terry and Jannelle Moore
Joy S. Nadler
Michael Nordlund and Lisa Lee
Melissa and John Panzeca
Mr. and Mrs. Daniel Pardekooper
Parsifal
Kathy and Bob Pellegrino
Alice W. Perlman
Diane and Jeff Pfaff
Leo and Sarah Pulte
Alison and Rob Rice
Mr. and Mrs. Gates T. Richards
Ridgeway Foundation
Pete and Debbie Rizzo
Louise and Gary Roselle
Cathie Rothfuss
Jim Rubenstein and Bernadette Unger
Ann Saluke and Don Yelton
KJ Sanchez
Mark and Jan Rosenbaum Sass
Martha and Lee Schimberg
Pat and Paul Schlecht
Michael and Jeanne Schmerler
Roger and Glenda Schorr*
Linda Sears
Ivan and Karen Silverman
Mr. and Mrs. Irwin Simon
Robin and Murray Sinclaire
Mary Stagaman and Ron Kull
Stephanie and Joseph Stitt
Elizabeth A. Stone*
Sara and Gunter Storjohann
Carol Striker
Gordon and Mary-Anne Thompson
Sneja H. Tomassian
Jovoni Trollinger
Gloria Uziel and Patrick Shea, M.D.
Catherine Valentine
Christopher and Nancy Virgulak
Patricia J. Wagner
Larry Weber
Jeannine Winkelmann
SUPPORTER
($300 - $749)
Anonymous (13)
Essie Adams
Marjorie and Steven Adler
Admirals Cove Foundation
Shakila Ahmad
Drs. Gordon and Dorothy Air
Janice Amatulli
Mrs. Patricia Anderson
Victor and Dolores Angel
Elizabeth C. Armitage
Attiyah Community Team
Athena Avgousti-Bauer
Walter and Barbara Bailey
Kathy Barber
Molly R. Barber
Jennifer Benton
Doug and Judy Betz
Mr. Thomas E. Blackburn
Sue K. Blaney
Phyllis Bossin and Robert Strauss
Barbara and Neal Bronson
Dr. Daniel T. Brown, DDS and Mr.
Mark Haggard
Mark and Diane Bunte
Douglas and Carol Burks
Jack and Marti Butz
Jane and Frank Caccamo
April A. Cain
Carol Campbell
In Honor of Carolyn Guild Carter
Chris and Jim Cartledge
Janet Castellini
Jo-Ann Casuto
Christine Christen
Loretta and David Cook
Douglas and Sarah Coons
Mr. and Mrs. Roy Cotcamp
Robin Cotton and Cindi Fitton
Mrs. Martha S. Crafts
Thomas and Cathy Crain
Susan Cranley
Mr. Guy Crocetti
Jean and John Croxton
Ms. Susan Cummings
April D. Davidow
Dr. and Mrs. Howard Deckter
Debora Del Valle
Marilyn J. Derfus
Diamond/Wolf Family
Thomas Donnelly
Dr. and Mrs. Walter E. Donnelly, Jr.
William G. Dorward III
Marilyn Duke
Bob and Kitty Dunn
John and Liz Dye
Leslie R. Dye, M.D.
Jon and Tara Eaton
Mr. Cameron Ehteshami
Joyce Elkus
Sharon and Bill Emeigh
Ron and Kathleen Emery
Karla Epperson
Dr. and Mrs. Michael Farrell
Dr. and Mrs. William Faulkner
Barbara Ann Feldmann
The Crew of the Felix Locus
Kurt and Lynn Finch
Dr. Daniella Fisher
James K. and Susan A. Fitton
Patricia Fraley
Mr. and Mrs. James A Fraser
Edward Freeman
Mary Anne Frey
Sharon Freyhof
Shirley Gallagher
Sharon and Dennis Geiger
General Electric
Mr. and Mrs. Howard Gerber
Robert Gilmore
Frank and Karen Girolami
Daniel P. Goetz and Pattie Messmer
Jim and Elaine Goldschmidt
Goret Family Foundation
Mrs. Sharon Gorman
Pank and Wendy Goulet
Phillip Griggs
Barbara Hahn
Jan C. Hall
Timothy and Barbara Haller
Joyce and Jim Hamberg
Jeff Hanna and Peggy Eberhard
Jerri and Dan Hanus
Brenda Hausterman
Christine Heatherman
Gwenn and Mark Heintzelman
Mrs. Betty H. Heldman
Robin Henderson
Jane E. Henney, M.D. and J. Robert
Graham, M.D.
Helene Herbert
Judy Tondi Herd
Bernita McCann Hightower
Meg Hilmer
Dale Hodges and David F. Logan
Daniel J. Hoffheimer
Daniel and Marcia Holden
Mark and Deanna Hollon
Linda R. Holthaus
Kim Howland
Joseph Huber and Shelli Smith
Dr. Linda M. Huntress
Maite Iraolagoitia
Charlie and Janie James
Anne Jaroszewicz
Nathan and Vanessa Jenkin
Dr. Amy Johnstone
Dr. Toni and Rabbi Ken Kanter
Amy J. Katz
Mr. and Mrs. Thomas T. Keating
Msgr. Kurt H. Kemo
Dara M. Kendall
Kimberly King
Rachel Kirley
Mr. and Mrs. John Kmet
Judith A. Koch
Sandford and Nancy Kopnick
Heather Krombholz
Bill and Evie Landrigan
Patricia Larsen
Lynn P. Larson
Nancy Lippincott
Sally A. Lloyd
Kevin G. Loesch
Dr. and Mrs. Louis B. Louis, IV
Mr. and Mrs. Damon Lynch, Jr.
Thomas and Jean Macejko
Dave and Lee MacKenzie
Stephanie Maher
Kenneth T. Mahler
Mark Mallory
Lisi and Neil Marcus
Charles and Jennifer Margolis
Laurel Markley
Melisse May
Mr. and Mrs. David J. McAdams, in honor of Vickie and Bruce Ellis
Kathryn McCord
Mrs. Maryanne E. McGowan
Jeff and Debbie McNaul
Audrey Korn Miller
Steven and Jacqueline Miller Family Foundation
Joel Monteith and Barbara MustoeMonteith
Mary G. Moran
Scott and Barb Muhlhauser
Daniel Murphy
Jeannie Niebuhr
Andrew J. Nuckols
Bruce and Neda Nutley
Diana Oberschmidt
J. Brett Offenberger and Douglas Duckett
Kelly O’Neill and Sue Aley
Ms. Monika Osborn
Nan Oscherwitz
The Patel-Curran Family
Debbie Pendl
Marcia Philipps
David Piatt Fund*
MaryAnn Pietromonaco
Ed and Jill Plageman
Ronald Plybon
Jane Portman
James and Linda Pretz
Phil and Susan Price
Michael and Nelda Purdon
Jennifer Ramage
Leslie and Bernie Reiss
Margie Rennie
Sara Repenning
Carol Reubel
Danielle and Kenneth Revelson
Buffie Rixey
Gigi Robison
Linda Rogowski
Karina Rothzeid
Barb and Rich Ruddy
Josie Russo
Susan Brakers Schertzer
Karen Schilling
Anita Schneider
Carol J. Schroeder
William and Sandra Selvey
Linda and Tom Senter
Carol Serrone
John L. Shields
Dr. Tariq Siddiqi
Robert and Linda Singer
Mary Lee and Louie Sirkin
Laura Skidmore
Adrienne Angst Smith
V. Clark Sole, Jr.
John and Sarah Spiller
Jeffery and Nancy Stambough
Jeff and Michele Starke
Tom and Dee Stegman*
Martha Steier
Robert L. and Christine J. Steiner*
Nancy M. Steman
Gary and Nancy Strassel
Kendra L. Struthers
Glenda Suttman
Lora Swedberg
Ms. Marie H. Sweeney
Carlos and Roberta Teran
Gretchen Thomas
Dr. Gary A. Thompson and Dr. Lisa E. Dunlap
Robert and Marcia Togneri
Torey and Tom Torre
Ann Marie Tracey and Daniel Buckley
Linda Trebbi
Ms. Dionn Tron
James and Susan Troutt
Susie Tweddell
Doug and Molly Tyger
Ms. Marlena Tyre
Geroge and Julia Wadih
Liz and Dave Wallingford
Sarella Walton
JoAnn Ward
Dr. and Mrs. Barry W. Webb
Pann and Terry Webb
Joyce Jones Weinkam
Dr. Donald R. and Patricia R. Welti
Steven and Heather Wesloh
Steve and Patty Wilken
Chris and Diane Williams
Mauri J. Willis
Rev. Anne Warrington Wilson
Mrs. Joan R. Wilson
Judy Wilson
Susan and Dean Windgassen
Nancy and David Wolf
Anne Marie Wolfer
Daniel and Jessica Woo
Laani A. Wuest
Dr. Linda Wulff
John M. Yacher
Mary Beth Young
David and Cynthia Zink *Denotes a fund of the Greater Cincinnati Foundation
$50,000+
THE DAVID C. HERRIMAN FUND OF GREATER CINCINNATI FOUNDATION
ROBERT AND ADELE SCHIFF FAMILY FOUNDATION THE HAROLD C. SCHOTT FOUNDATION
$20,000 – $49,999
$10,000 – $19,999
As of Aug. 12, 2025
$5,000 – $9,999
THE WOHLGEMUTH HERSCHEDE FOUNDATION
Anonymous
David and Traci Alexander
Ron Bates and Randy Lasley
Mark and Lindsay Bibler
David and Elaine Billmire
Ruth and Tom Bobenread
Neil Bortz
Thomas J. Breed
MC and Tom Brennan
Susan Brenner and Steven Mombach
Mrs. L.L. Browning, Jr.
Terri and John Byczkowski
Wayne and Fran Carlisle
Denise and Martin Chambers
Joan Cochran
Mr. Maurice and Lela Coffey, II
James P. Conway, Jr. and Richard D. Robertson, Jr.
Jack and Virginia Copley
Richard and Teddie Curry
Nancy and Mark Dawes
Kelly Dehan and Richard Staudigel
Richard and Lisa Ernst
Sarah and Tommy Evans
Brooks and Beth Ewing
Ms. Victoria Buyniski Gluckman
Vitaly and Samantha Goldfeder
The Goldhoff Family
Ms. Madeleine H. Gordon
Linda and Gary Greenberg*
Jeb and Nirvani Head
Fred and Patti Heldman*
The David C. Herriman Fund*
Mrs. Andrea and Dr. Edward Herzig
Ms. Karlee L. Hilliard
Karen and David Hoguet
Susan Ingmire and Lynn Hailey
Diane and Carl Iseman
ARTISTIC DIRECTOR’S CIRCLE
The Artistic Director’s Circle (ADC) members provide inspirational annual support for productions, artists, and community programming. In recognition of their contributions, members receive exclusive behind-thescenes private events hosted by Blake Robison, Osborn Family Producing Artistic Director, featuring artists and behind-the-scenes topics from the art of theatre making. We extend our sincere gratitude to the ADC members for their generosity!
Bill and Mary Jane James
Linda Busken Jergens and Andrew MacAoidh Jergens
Don and Frani Jones
Patti and Tom Keckeis*
Marilyn Kinne
Bet and Dave Koeninger
Mark and Karen Kremzar
Mr. and Mrs. Michael H. Kremzar
Asher and Kelsey Lanier
Terry Lemmerman
Jamie and Jenny Leonard
Jacqueline M. Mack and Dr. Edward B. Silberstein
Craig and Anne Maier
Dick and Sandy Manteuffel
The Markley Family
Ron Matson and Daniel Young
Donna and Neal Mayerson
Barbara and Kim McCracken
Kevin and Frances McMurray
Charles and Joann Mead
Leon and Barb Meyer
Becky Miars
Lauren and James Miller
Ms. Danute M. Miskinis
Diane and Dave Moccia
Samuel Moore, Jr.
David and Judith Morgan
Arthur C. Morrissey and Janet M. Hayes
Dean and Catherine Moulas
Patti Myers and Alan Flaherty
Karen and Bill Neyer*
The Marilyn J. and Jack D. Osborn Fund
Jenny and David Powell
Rob and Gretchen Reifsnyder
Amy and John Rosenberg
Dianne and J. David Rosenberg
The Rosenthal Family Foundation
Jennie Rosenthal
Richard Rosenthal and Kitty Strauss Rosenthal
Margo and Sam Ross
Moe and Jack Rouse
Susan and Jeffrey Routh
Austin Schiff
Dr. and Mrs. Robert C. Schiff, Jr.
Mark and Rosemary Schlachter
Digi and Mike Schueler
Rhonda and Larry Sheakley
Eddie and Pat Sheppard
Julie and Steven J. Shifman
Betsy and Jerry Shroat
Nancy and Tim Sparks
John and Jennifer Stein
Steve and Sarah Steinman
Jennifer and Woody Taft
Robert D. Temple and Sue E. Auerbach
Marty C. Tomb
Edward Trach
Barbara and Daman Turner
Ellen and Ray van der Horst
Lawrence and Maureen Vignola
The Vista Foundation
Margaret and Albert Vontz III*
Randolph Wadsworth
Barbara and Irwin Weinberg Fund*
Barbara M. Weyand
Mr. William J. Weyand
Ronna and Dr. James B. Willis
Susan and Don Zaunbrecher
*Denotes a fund of the Greater Cincinnati Foundation
List as of August 13, 2025
RECOGNITION GIFTS
With heartfelt gratitude, we recognize the following friends who have honored loved ones through a tribute gift to the Playhouse. These meaningful contributions were received between July 1, 2024, and August 5, 2025.
IN HONOR OF ABBY MARCUS
Lisi and Neil Marcus
IN HONOR OF BLAKE ROBISON
Ms. Madeleine H. Gordon
IN HONOR OF THOMAS W. AND JENNIFER TAFT
Kenneth T. Mahler
IN HONOR OF MAUREEN VIGNOLA
Anonymous
MEMORIAL GIFTS
We are grateful to the following friends who have chosen to remember a loved one through a memorial gift to the Playhouse. The following memorial gifts were received between July 1, 2024, through August 5, 2025.
IN MEMORY OF KAREN BELL
Edward Lanzit
IN MEMORY OF MARLENE ELIZABETH CRABTREE
Judith Van Ginkel
Leigh M. Primack
IN MEMORY OF BRUCE E. COYLE
Rebecca J. Graham
IN MEMORY OF LINDA HELDMAN GREENBERG
Stephanie Albert
Mark and Marsha Barsman
Alexandra Belzley
Erica and Matt Biscotti
Randal and Peter Bloch
Nancy B. Carrothers
Edwina Cornelius
Amy Diamond and Eddie Wolf
Barry and Nancy Gibberman
The Greater Cincinnati Foundation
Shelley and Bill Greggs
Beth Hammerman
Zack and Ali Hardoon
Gwenn and Mark Heintzelman
Fred and Patti Heldman
Andrea and Edward Herzig
Daniel J. Hoffheimer
David and Karen Hoguet
Jenna Harris and Dillon Teske
Susan Ingmire and Lynn Hailey
Diane and Carl Iseman
Donald and Franchelle Jones
Laura Hoguet Leonard
Emily Marrero
Cheryl and Scott Mattis
Karen Meyer and Rick Michelman
Patti Myers and Alan Flaherty
Dianne and J. David Rosenberg
Moe and Jack Rouse
Linda and Douglas Sawan
Digi and Mike Schueler
Linda and Tom Senter
Matthew Senter and Rukmini Das
Jeffrey and Cindy Standley
Sneja H. Tomassian
The Townsend Family
Linda Trebbi
Lawrence and Maureen Vignola
Ronna and Jim Willis
The Crew of the Felix Locus
IN MEMORY OF CHRISTINE KINNAMAN
Jeanne Bauer
IN MEMORY OF BEVERLY KINNEY
Edward Cloughessy
IN MEMORY OF JUDGE ROBERT S. MARX
Daniel J. Hoffheimer
IN MEMORY OF LOU SCHRODER
Anonymous
IN MEMORY OF ED SHEPPARD
David Mentzel and Kate Burroughs
Mt. Adams Business Guild
Cathy and Stan Silverman
IN MEMORY OF HOWARD TOMB
Burton and Susan Closson
COMMUNITY SUPPORT
CORPORATE PARTNERS
For companies looking to make a smaller investment in the Playhouse, the Corporate Partner Program is just the ticket. A gift of $1,000 or more is recognized in our show programs, provides invitations to exclusive events, and entitles your employees to receive a 20 percent online ticket discount throughout the season!
$1,000 - $3,499
Hixson Architecture Engineering Interiors Prolink Skyline Chili
For more information about joining these individuals and organizations in support of the Playhouse, call Mary Kay Koehler, Director of Institutional Giving, at 513-977-2026.
IN-KIND CONTRIBUTORS
The Blind Lemon Canary Floral & Event Design eat well celebrations and feasts
Emerge Managed Solutions, LLC Gallo Heidelberg
Lightborne
Mt. Adams Bar and Grill
WKRC-TV, Local 12
WKRQ-FM
WOSL-FM
WVXU-FM
ADMINISTRATIVE AND PRODUCTION STAFF
DIRECTORS
Osborn Family Producing Artistic Director Blake Robison
Managing Director Abby Marcus
ADMINISTRATION
Executive Assistant/Board Liaison Marta Hyland
Associate Producer Suann Pollock
Company Manager A.J. Ford
Assistant Company Manager/Management Associate Remy Elton-Alexander
Director of HR, Equity and Inclusion Dawn Mundy
Finance Associate Brian Anderson
Accounting Services Clark Schaefer Hackett
Receptionist Kara Neumann
OPERATIONS
Director of Operations Bridget Siedlecki
IT Applications Specialist Scott Youger
Facilities Manager Brian Smith
DEVELOPMENT
Chief Philanthropy Officer Sneja H. Tomassian
Director of Institutional Giving Mary Kay Koehler
Director of Individual Giving Kendra L. Struthers, CFRE
Individual Giving Manager Josh Senger
Grants Manager Camryn Morrow
Events Manager Brianna Meinecke
Development Associate, Giving and Stewardship Jennifer Radisch
MARKETING/COMMUNICATIONS
Director of Marketing and Communications Kathy Neus
Audience Engagement Manager Piper N. Davis
Multimedia Designer Sean Martin
Digital Marketing Associate Tessa D’Errico
Marketing Data and Website Manager Jacob Krismanick
Content Marketing Producer Deja A. Shanks
Marketing Intern Mya Gibson
Photographer Mikki Schaffner
PATRON SERVICES
Patron Services Director Don Wong
Assistant Patron Services Manager Julia Hasl Miller
House Managers Joellyn Goos, Kayden Hauke, Ethan Mann
Patron Services Associate Olivia Cremisio
Patron Services Staff Amanda Adams, Haseeb Ahmad, Tommy Berninger, EJ Busby, Grace Caccavari, Tessa D’Errico, Jenny French, Max Holman, Michelle LaMantia, Francis McGovern, Whitney Menser, Jermia Munroe, Cyrus Newitt, Sarah O’Haver, Alexis Pinto, James Racster, Theresa Richmond, Charlie Rusk, Gina Serger, Jacqueline Smith, Logan Smith, LaCheryl Steele, Janis Tibbs, Catherine Trichell, Monica Williams-Mitchell, Lauren Wyatt, Kendall Young
Bar Manager Darren Cox
Bartenders Kathy Burr, Clint Collins, Justin Eckstein, Rachel Ellis, Julia Migliara, Lisa Porter, John Simpson, Niki Sherwood, Kathleen Thorman
ARTISTIC
Associate Artistic Director Joanie Schultz
Literary Manager Tatiana Godfrey
Associate Artists Wendy C. Goldberg, Karen Zacarías
EDUCATION/ENGAGEMENT
Education Director Ariana Moses
Artistic Engagement Manager Katie Baskerville
Education Associate John Llewellyn
Education and Engagement Coordinator Tess Wyrick
STAGE MANAGEMENT
Production Stage Manager Andrea L. Shell
Stage Management Staff Carolyn Fast, Brandon T. Holmes, Tenley Pitonzo, Brooke Redler, Shelby Scaffidi, Madison Stone
Production Assistants Maggie Ballard, Tessa Killen, Sparrow Mansfield
PRODUCTION
Director of Production Joshua Escajeda
Technical Director Sam Thompson
Assistant Production Manager Valerie Perez
Assistant Technical Director Ethan Ruhl
Scene Shop Administrative Assistant Quinn Morgan
SCENERY
Staff Carpenters Valerie Bramer, Timothy Fowler, Michael Lyons, Brandon Smith, Patrick Wellman
Charge Scenic Artist Jennifer Rhodus
Assistant Scenic Artist Carly Huff
Scenic Artist Payton Epperson
Rouse Run Crew Christopher Albaugh, Sam Devlin
PROPERTIES
Properties Manager Liz Lyons
Assistant Properties Manager Katie Kim
Properties Benjamin Adams, Alicia Rhodus
Rosenthal Shelterhouse Properties Running Crew Lead Debra Hildebrand
Rouse Theatre Properties Running Crew Lead Kara Trusty
COSTUMES/WARDROBE
Costume Shop Manager Gordon DeVinney
Costume and Design Administrative Assistant Joe Kovacs
Cutter/Draper Eileen Thoma
First Hand Bridget Kline
Wig and Makeup Artist Amy Whitaker
Wardrobe Lead Amira Rowe
Wardrobe Assistants Grace Hazlett, Lilly Levine
LIGHTING/SOUND
House Audio/Projection Supervisor Josh Brinkman
Lead Electrician Samuel Wilson
Rouse Theatre Light Board Operator Alec Schneider
Rouse Theatre Audio Engineer M. Adam Jacob
Rosenthal Shelterhouse Light Board Operator Jonathan Armstrong
Rosenthal Shelterhouse Sound Engineer Samuel Sadler
EMERITI
Managing Director Emeritus Buzz Ward
INVEST ENGAGE INNOVATE LEAD
Investing state and federal dollars, the Ohio Arts Council funds and supports quality arts experiences for all Ohioans to strengthen communities culturally, educationally, and economically.
Learn more about our grant programs and resources, find your next arts experience, or connect: OAC.OHIO.GOV.
Grantee Spotlight: INSPIRATION STUDIOS, INC.
Inspiration Studios, Inc., and Sonny Spot Too are two Southwest Ohio organizations serving people with developmental disabilities. In 2023, they collaborated to create a new mural for Sonny Spot’s computer and technology room. Image courtesy of the organization
