Fame the Musical

THEATRE CONSERVATORY PRESENTS

Greg Longenhagen, Producing Artistic Director • John Martin, Executive Director • Monique Caldwell, Education Director • Emily Turtle, Asst. Education Director

2022-2023 SEASON HISTORIC ARCADE THEATRE • Fort Myers River District

Book by JOSE FERNANDEZ • Lyrics by JACQUES LEVY Music by STEVE MARGOSHES Conceived and Developed by David De Silva Title Song " FAME " written by Dean Pitchford and Michael Gore SPONSORED BY LYNNE BIRDT DIRECTED BY MONIQUE CALDWELL MUSICAL DIRECTOR EMILY TURTLE

CHOREOGRAPHER MEGAN JIMENEZ LEONARD

SCENIC DESIGNER INDIA SOODOO

COSTUME DESIGNER ELEANOR BOOZER

LIGHTING DESIGNER JOEL ZISHUK

PROJECTION DESIGNER CHARLES CLARK

SOUND DESIGNER KATIE LOWE

STAGE MANAGER JOY RESTER

ASST. DIRECTOR CHASE BRACKETT

INTIMACY DIRECTOR BRIANNA McVAUGH

ASST. STAGE MANAGER CYRUS MEADOWS*

FAME is presented through a special arrangement with Music Theatre International (MTI).

All authorized performance materials are also supplied by MTI. www.mtishows.com Originally produced at the Coconut Grove Playhouse, Arnold Mittleman, Producing Artistic Director.

www.FloridaRepEducation.Org 2022-23 GRAND SEASON SPONSORS Fort Myers Community Redevelopment Agency

This entire season sponsored in part by the State of Florida, Department of State, Division of Cultural Affairs, and the Florida Council on Arts and Culture. Florida Repertory Theatre is a fully professional non-profit LOA/LORT Theatre company on contract with the Actors’ Equity Association that proudly employs members of the national theatrical labor unions. *Denotes Theatre Tech Student

STARRING Carmen Diaz.................................................................................Hannah Cruz Nick Piazza...................................................................................Landon Maas Serena Katz.......................................................................Gigi Lieze-Adams Tyrone Jackson................................................................................Gabe Cruz Joe (José) Vegas........................................................Emmanuel Tojanci Schlomo Metzenbaum..............................................Braden Heckman Mabel Washington.............................................................Ella Cameratta Iris Kelly.......................................................................................................Isa Scalla Grace “Lambchops” Lamb..........................................Jackie Gossett Goodman “Goody” King....................................................Bobby Nolan Ms. Esther Sherman............................................................Danae Teblum Ms. Greta Bell.........................................................................................Lila Seitz Ms. Meyers.......................................................................................Sarah Burns Mr. Sheinkopf.........................................................................Chase Brackett Acting Students...............................................................Norah Kaminsky Katherine Schwartzel Music Students.............................................................................Ella Godfrey Ethan Mohring Dance Students....................................................................Halle Heckman Lia Jaquez (soloist), Lulu Lieze-Adams

MUSICIANS Violin: Chase Brackett • Bass Guitar: Matt Edwards Drums/Percussion: John Gonzalez • Reeds/Saxophone: Frank Sanders Keyboard: Emily Turtle • Guitar: Tim Torres

Understudies/Musician Alternates Carmen Diaz u/s: Lia Jaquez • Mabel Washington u/s: Halle Heckman Reed/Saxophone alt: Terrance McGlon

PRODUCTION STAFF Production Manager: Charles Clark Props Manager: Lily Munroe

Scenic Artist: London Dailey Scenic Painter: Julie McCracken

Run Crew Stage Management Alt.: Jennifer Woodward A1: Emma Sabulsky A2: Katie Lowe Light Board Operator: Serenity Bailey* Spot Operators: Mae Burrus, Matthew Hakesley

Wardrobe Supervisor: Anthony Toney Wardrobe Crew: Serenity Bailey*, Z Schoedel-Cuellar* Stage Crew: Alex Callen, Payton Jordan* *Theatre Tech Students

There will be one 15-minute intermission.

Any taping, filming, recording or broadcast of this play is strictly prohibited.

SETTING Fame The Musical is set in New York City, in the old High School of Performing Arts Building on 46th Street East of Broadway, just off Times Square, during the years 1980-1984. It concerns the last group of students and teachers to inhabit this grand historic (some might say ancient) edifice, following them on a four-year journey from freshman term through graduation.

WHO’S WHO MONIQUE CALDWELL (Director) is so excited to have directed her dream show, Fame, as her first conservatory production here at Florida Repertory Theatre. Monique is a performer, arts advocate, director, and acting coach from the Washington Metropolitan area. She is also a licensed theatre educator with a BFA in Musical Theatre from Howard University and a MA in Theatre Education from Catholic University. Monique has worked with children and youth in the performing arts for over 20 years. Some of her directing credits include A Wrinkle in Time (online), Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, The Wiz, The Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe, Legally Blonde Jr. , Twelve Angry Men, Once on this Island Jr., Gotta Have Glee, The Odd Couple, 15 Reasons Not to Be in a Play, High School Musical and Anne of Green Gables. Monique would like to dedicate this performance to her Heavenly Father, her mom, Alice Caldwell, for being her biggest cheerleader, and to her friends and family back home!

EMILY TURTLE (Music Director/Keyboard) is thrilled to be Musical Director for her first Florida Rep Education Conservatory Production, Fame The Musical. Emily is a professional actress, vocalist, musical director, and teaching artist who joined the Florida Repertory Theatre staff as Assistant Education Director in August of 2022.

Before moving to Florida, Emily obtained her BFA in Theatre Performance and in Theatre Management from the University of Rhode Island, subsequently performing and musical directing professionally throughout New England. Some recent credits include It’s A Wonderful Life: A Live Radio Play (The Gamm Theatre, Zuzu/Radio Announcer/Music Director), Assassins (The Gamm Theatre, Ensemble/ Associate Music Director), The Magic Flute (Encore Opera Company, Queen Of

The Night), The Rocky Horror Show (The University of Rhode Island, Music Director), and Carrie the Musical (Academy Players, Music Director). Emily is very grateful for all of the love and support from her husband Steven, and her family and friends.

CHASE BRACKETT (Asst. Director/Mrs. Sheinkopf/Violin) is an actor, singer, and violinist who is excited to be one of Florida Rep’s acting interns for the 2022-2023 season. He recently appeared on stage in NYC in Snoopy’s Magical Christmas (S.O.O.P. Theatre), Fantasy Tavern Night (Bits and Crits), and The Rowdy Bardlings (Lords of Adventure). Other regional credits: The Lost Colony, Pennsylvania Renaissance Faire, and Pathological (The Waterside Theatre). At Florida Rep he appeared in The Importance of Being Earnest and is touring Ella Enchanted The Musical, Macbeth, and Elephants and Piggies: We’re in a Play with Florida Rep’s Education Department.

Favorite past roles include Seymour in Little Shop of Horrors, Toby in Sweeney Todd, and Jesus in Godspell. Education: BFA Reinhardt University, MCS acting, Tyler Knauf studio. He thanks his wife and family for their love and continued support.

ELEANOR BOOZER (Costume Designer) is a costume intern at Florida Repertory Theatre. She is beyond excited to design for the theatre again after working on Footloose Jr. and Shrek Jr. during the summer camps this past season. Eleanor also served as the costume shop manager for the camps. Eleanor is a recent graduate of Jacksonville State University, where she earned her degree in theatre production.

During her time at the university, she designed costumes for productions of Boy Gets Girl and The Big Bad Bullysaurus, as well as The Shakespeare Project’s production of A Midsummer Night’s Dream.

Additionally, Eleanor worked with CAST

WHO’S WHO Kids in Anniston, Alabama, as their resident costume designer where she designed for many shows including The Addams Family Jr., Winnie the Pooh Kids, and The Little Mermaid Jr. Eleanor would like to thank her parents for their unwavering support and her costume team for all of their help during this process.

MATT EDWARDS (Bass) is a young bassist, currently a student at the Bower School of Music at FGCU. He has played with many esteemed artists including Svetlana Schmulyian, Zach Bartholemew, and Benny Benack III. In addition to performing, he also is a dedicated educator, regularly working with local schools and the Gulf Coast Symphony’s Youth Jazz Collective.

JOHN GONZALEZ (Percussion) holds a degree in music direction from Florida Gulf Coast University where he was a member of the Jazz ensemble and Jazz combo under the direction of Emmy-nominee Brandon Robertson. John was recently accepted into the Florida State University Master’s program focusing on Jazz performance. He has toured with several artists including the Emmy-nominated trumpeter and singer/composer Benny Bennack, III. John has also played in several musicals such as A Chorus Line and Rent.

MEGAN JIMENEZ LEONARD (Choreographer) has a BFA from NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts in Theatre. She had the pleasure of choreographing Florida Repertory’s Education Conservatory production of Mary Zimmerman’s Metamorphosis and Heathers the Musical.

Since 2019 she has been choreographing for Florida Rep Education’s excerpts from the musicals, Mary Poppins, Fiddler on the Roof, Legally Blonde, and most recently Newsies for the Junior Theatre Festival held in Atlanta, GA. Her musical performance credits include the first national tours of The Addams Family musical (Wednesday u/s, Ensemble), White Christmas (Rita, Judy u/s), and 42nd Street (Anytime Annie u/s, Ensemble). She has performed as a Radio City Rockette in New York City and her favorite Regional Theatre credits include musical productions from John F. Kennedy Center, Sacramento Music Circus,

North Shore MT, Walnut Street Theatre, and American Musical Theatre of San Jose.

KATIE LOWE (Sound Designer) has served as Resident Sound Designer during Florida Rep’s 25th season! Previous credits include Lobby Hero, Ring of Fire: The Music of Johnny Cash, The Importance of Being Earnest, Ripcord, Freud’s Last Session, And Then There Were None, Incident at Our Lady of Perpetual Help, Lady Day at Emerson’s Bar & Grill, A Gentleman’s Guide to Love and Murder, Matilda, Spring Awakening, Disney’s Newsies (Sound E n g i n e e r, F l o r i d a R e p e r t o r y Theatre), Maytag Virgin, Bulletproof Backpack, Every Brilliant Thing, Barefoot in the Park, Alabaster, An Inspector Calls, A Fox on the Fairway, Always…Patsy Cline, Romeo and Juliet, August Wilson’s Fences, Tenderly: The Rosemary Clooney Musical, Damascus, Steel Magnolias, Becoming Dr. Ruth, Refugee, (Sound Designer, Florida Repertory Theatre), Cabaret (Florida Repertory Theatre, A2), Million Dollar Quartet (Endstation Theatre Company, A2), Sense and Sensibility (University of Kentucky, Sound Designer). Katie would like to thank her parents, Noodle and Truffle, and her fiancé, Ben, for their endless support and love!

TERRANCE McGLON (Reeds/Saxophone Alternate) is currently pursuing a degree in saxophone performance at Florida Gulf Coast University (FGCU) and studies saxophone with Dr. Michael Weiss-Holmes.

He has also worked with renowned saxophonists Kenneth Tse and James Houlik. Terrance is a member of the FGCU Wind Orchestra and the prestigious Bower Saxophone Quartet. He is also accomplished on flute and clarinet, and thus has participated in multiple ensembles throughout high school and college on multiple woodwind instruments.

BRIANNA McVAUGH (Intimacy Director) is a graduate of The University of South Florida where she earned her B.A. in Theatre Performance. She is an actor/singer/dancer as well as an advanced actor/combatant certified by the Society of American Fight Directors in all eight recognized stage combat weapons. Brianna has worked as

WHO’S WHO a performer professionally in productions such as A Clockwork Orange and Jobsite Theatre in Tampa, Florida and Unto These Hills at Mountainside Theatre in Cherokee, North Carolina. She’s also been seen as a stunt performer in The Big Test Stunt Show at Legoland in Goshen, New York.

Along with being a performer, Brianna is also a professional fight/intimacy director, working on shows such as House of Desires at The University of South Florida, and most recently productions of Macbeth and And Then There Were None at Florida Repertory Theatre and Misery at Jobsite Theatre. She has also been an intimacy director for Jobsite Theatre’s production of Animals Out of Paper and is excited to be intimacy directing Fame here for Florida Rep. education.

JOY RESTER (Stage Manager) recently graduated from Louisiana Tech University with a Master’s Degree in Speech with a concentration in Theatre in May 2022.

Her backgrounds in Theatre include stage management, directing, front of house and performance. Joy is very excited to be working as a stage manager, this being her first gig since graduating. She is so grateful to the Education Department for letting her be a part of this fantastic group!

Joy is also currently Company Manager at Florida Repertory Theatre. She would like to thank her friends and family and husband, Jimmy, for always supporting her in her dreams!

FRANK SANDERS (Reeds/Saxophone) is a saxophonist, pianist, and composer/ arranger based in Fort Myers, Florida. He currently studies music performance at Florida Gulf Coast University and performs with a variety of groups including the Charlotte Chorale and the Swingin’ Clique.

He also frequents as music director and reed player at Fort Myers Theatre and the Broadway Palm Dinner Theatre.

INDIA SOODOO (Set Designer) is a graduate of Howard University’s Theater Department, where she was known as the “techie.” She has worked as a Sound/ Lighting Technician for Walt Disney World, Bonifant Theatre Space, Live Garra Theatre, DC Black Theater Festival, Montgomery County Media, The Bison Repertory (formerly The New Millennium Howard Players). She has also worked as Technical Director for Monique Caldwell in various musicals and plays at Swanson Middle School giving instruction in lighting, audio and set design to the students. The students ran the show!

TIM TORRES (Guitar) is a multiinstrumentalist, educator, and producer based in Southwest Florida. Since graduating from Florida Gulf Coast University in 2017, he has performed with numerous symphony orchestras, community and equity theatre productions, and live bands. He has also produced, mixed, and mastered original music ranging from lo-fi, progressive rock, and heavy metal.

JOEL ZISHUK (Lighting Designer) is a lighting and projection designer as well as the Lighting Supervisor at the Florida Repertory Theatre. Joel has designed across Florida. Professional credits include Lobby Hero, Freud’s Last Session, Lady Day at Emerson’s Bar & Grill, Let’s Fall in Love (Lighting, Florida Rep), Bulletproof Backpack (Asst. Lighting, Florida Rep), Rubenology… (Projections, GableStage), Ain’t Done Bad (Lighting, Orlando Fringe), CLUE: The Stay-at-Home (Graphics, Florida REP), and the Education Department’s 2021 and 2022 Summer Intensives (Lighting and Projections, Florida Rep Education). He received his BFA in Theatre - Design and Technology from the University of Central Florida.

JoelZishuk.com

UPCOMING PROGRAMS

SUMMER 2023 Registration is open for our Summer Musical Intensive day camps!

For AGES 7-18! (Mean Girls: 11-18) Camps run 9AM-4PM daily.

Lyrics by Chad�Beguelin Music by Matthew�Sklar

Book & Lyrics by

LYNN AHRENS

STEPHEN FLAHERTY

Music by

Book by Thomas Meehan and Bob Martin

JUN 12-16 & 19-23

JUN 26-30 & JUL 3, 5-7

PERFORMANCES: JUN 22 & 23 @ 6PM

PERFORMANCES: JUL 6 & 7 @ 6PM

TUITION $440 UT

SOLD O

BOOK BY TINA FEY MUSIC BY JEFF RICHMOND LYRICS BY NELL BENJAMIN

BASED ON THE PARAMOUNT PICTURES FILM

Sibling discounts available.

MUSIC & LYRICS BY ROBERT LOPEZ &

KRISTEN ANDERSON-LOPEZ

BOOK ADAPTED BY LINDSAY ANDERSON

JUL 10-14 & 17-21

JUL 24-28 & JUL 31-AUG 4

PERFORMANCES: JUL 20 & 21 @ 6PM

PERFORMANCES: AUG 3 & 4 @ 6PM

Sign up today at FloridaRepEducation.Org

UPCOMING PROGRAMS

SEASON 26

FALL 2023 FLORIDA REP EDUCATION CONSERVATORY TO PRESENT

AUDITIONS: TBD FLORIDA REP EDUCATION

T H E AT R E Program

PERFORMANCES: OCT 2023

Fall Theatre Tech Program Classes take place in August 2023 and will prepare students for working backstage on Little Shop of Horrors in October.

SPRING 2024 FLORIDA REP EDUCATION CONSERVATORY TO PRESENT

AUDITIONS: TBD FLORIDA REP EDUCATION

T H E AT R E Program

PERFORMANCES: MAY 2024

Spring Theatre Tech Program Classes take place in March 2024 and will prepare students for working backstage on Beauty and the Beast in May.

Check FloridaRepEducation.Org for more details to come

THANK YOU The Education Department would like to thank Lynne Birdt for sponsoring this Conservatory production of Fame.

A hearty thanks to our acting interns Chase Brackett (Assistant Director) and Brianna McVaugh (Intimacy Director) - You guys rock!

We would like to personally thank our production and operations teams for their hard work and support of this show and for mentoring our junior tech crew behind the scenes.

We couldn’t have done this without you.

Thank you to all the parents and family members for remaining flexible and supportive throughout this entire process!

To our student cast and junior crew, we are so proud of you and what we have accomplished in our time together. Thank you for your “hard-work” and dedication to the craft of live theater and the performing arts. You are the best!