AMERICAN PREMIERE
October 9 – November 1, 2026 2026/2027 Season
From the Artistic Director Welcome to Hartford Stage and the first production of our 2026/2027 Season: the American premiere of Morgan Lloyd Malcolm’s bold new adaptation of Dracula. There is something irresistible about beginning a new season with a story that has thrilled and terrified audiences for generations. Dracula has been told and retold countless times since Bram Stoker’s epistolary novel first appeared in 1897, but part of the pleasure of a great story is discovering what a new generation of artists can find within it. Morgan Lloyd Malcolm gives us a Dracula that is both recognizable and completely fresh. Her adaptation embraces the suspense, theatricality, and delicious scares we expect, while shifting our perspective and placing the brilliant and resilient Mina Harker at the center of the story. The result asks us to look again at a tale we think we know—and perhaps at some of the monsters that exist beyond Dracula’s castle. I am also delighted to welcome director Jackson Gay back to Hartford Stage. Jackson last joined us for The Mousetrap in 2022, and she understands exactly what makes experiencing suspense in a theater so much fun. There is a special energy that comes from sitting together in the dark, not knowing what is around the corner—and hearing an entire audience gasp, laugh, or jump at once. That shared experience is at the heart of what we do at Hartford Stage. For more than 60 years, this theater has been a place where artists and audiences come together to experience great stories in new ways. Dracula is a thrilling beginning to a season that will bring comedy, classics, new work, familiar faces, and unexpected discoveries to our stage. I am so glad you are here to begin it with us. Enjoy the show—and don’t be afraid to be scared together.
Melia Bensussen Artistic Director
22
2026/2027 Season: Dracula
By Bram Stoker
Adapted by Morgan Lloyd Malcolm Directed by Jackson Gay
Scenic Design Costume Design Lighting Design Sound Design Wig, Hair & Make-up Design Fight Director Movement Coordinator Dialect & Voice Coach Casting Production Stage Manager Assistant Stage Manager Director of Production General Manager
Riw Rakkulchon Fabian Fidel Aguilar Paul Whitaker Caroline Eng Tommy Kurzman Rod Kinter Shura Baryshnikov Julie Foh Alaine Alldaffer, CSA and Lisa Donadio Avery Trunko Theresa Stark Bryan T. Holcombe Emily Van Scoy
Commissioned and first performed by the Lyric Hammersmith Theatre on 11th September 2025. The videotaping or making of electronic or other audio and/or visual recordings of this production and distributing recordings or streams in any medium, including the internet, is strictly prohibited, a violation of the author(s)’s rights and actionable under United States copyright law.
Christopher & Mary Swift
Rick & Beth Costello
Jack & Donna Sennott
3
2026/2027 Season There’s still time to subscribe and save up to 20% this season.
January 22 - February 14, 2027
March 5 – March 28, 2027
April 16 – May 9, 2027
May 28 – June 20, 2027
HartfordStage.org | 860-527-5151
The Company
Scout Backus
Caitlin Elizabeth Clouthier
Lucas Dixon
Anney Giobbe
Sara Gutierrez
Pauli
Lucy, Ensemble.................................................................................................Scout Backus Ensemble................................................................................. Caitlin Elizabeth Clouthier Jonathan ............................................................................................................... Lucas Dixon Ensemble...........................................................................................................Anney Giobbe Mina......................................................................................................................Sara Gutierrez Ensemble............................................................................................................................... Pauli SETTING: Here, now, tonight. THIS PLAY IS PERFORMED WITHOUT AN INTERMISSION.
Additional Production Support Assistant Director.....................................................................Karina Aviva Benjamin Associate Scenic Designer.......................................................................Laura Valenti Assistant Scenic Designer..............................................................................Zen Addai Assistant Costume Designer......................................................................Kyle Artone Assistant Lighting Designer............................................................................... Neil Qiu Associate Sound Designer............................................................ Angela Baughman Special Effects...................................................................................................Rod Kinter Intimacy Coordinator..........................................................................Shura Baryshnikov Production Assistant.............................................................................Alyssa Edwards The Actors and Stage Managers employed in this production are members of Actors' Equity Association, the Union of Professional Actors and Stage Managers in the United States. The Scenic, Costume, Lighting, and Sound Designers in LORT theatres are represented by United Scenic Artists Local USA 820 of the IATSE. The Director is a member of the Stage Directors and Choreographers Society, an independent national labor union. 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.
The Company
5
Face Your Fears: An interview with playwright Morgan Lloyd Malcolm and director Jackson Gay Hartford Stage: What inspired you to adapt Dracula? Morgan Lloyd Malcolm: It’s one of those classic texts that I remember studying when I was younger and had seen countless adaptations of and came back to with some curiosity. I was interested to figure out why it has such longevity and was ultimately sucked right into the story again. HS: What was your level of vampire/Dracula knowledge when you started working on the adaption? Are you a horror genre fan? MLM: I’m a huge horror fan and make horror for theater quite a lot in the UK. I am the cofounder of the theater company Terrifying Women which aims to put more horror on stages written by and for women. I’ve always had an interest in vampire stories, but doing this adaptation meant I could properly geek out on them and on Dracula. It’s been a ride. Jackson Gay: My first introduction to Dracula was at 16 years old when I played Lucy in a community theater production of Dracula in Sugar Land, Texas. (I’m sure it was a brilliant production!) My memories of the production are vague, but I remember how much fun it was to do and how much the audience enjoyed the communal experience of being scared together. As an
6
2026/2027 Season: Dracula
Morgan Lloyd Malcolm
Jackson Gay
adult, I have a love of psychological drama but rarely watch horror—although I love directing them for the stage. I thrive on the challenge of creating something both deeply unsettling and thrilling for an audience. HS: Were there other adaptions of Dracula, or other vampire stories that inspired you? MLM: There have been well over 800 adaptations of Dracula over the years, so it’s very rare for someone to have not seen any or be influenced by any. I’m a big fan of the original Nosferatu (F. W. Murnau’s classic film from 1922) and some of the more camp Hammer Horror versions. I also can’t help but think of Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Twilight when thinking of vampires. Dracula itself is such a powerful and rich story, and the concept of vampires was fundamentally altered and influenced by it. In a way, that has meant it freed me up to find a version that could both honor the original and also explore it in a way that meant something to me. continued on next page...
Dramaturgy
7
HS: How did you approach the character of Dracula for this production? MLM: For me, Dracula represents fear. When Stoker was writing, he was exploring the fears of his age: blood-borne infectious diseases, foreign invasions, sexual desires to name a few. When I came to ask myself what it is we fear in our age it wasn’t much different to then, but I also know that for everyone fear can be very personal. JG: Fear is the first word of the play and continues to be its topic to the very end. Dracula is a manifestation of one’s own specific fears, desires, and, often misplaced, shame. When Dracula comes, he’s different for each of us, which only amplifies our fears. HS: What do you want audiences to come away from the production thinking, feeling, and talking about? MLM: I hope it prompts big discussions in the bar afterwards about the nature of fear and who we are told to be scared of. How our fears can be used against us. And how we use our fears and anger to reclaim the narrative. JG: Mina early on warns us to beware the teller as much as the tale. Who is writing the story? What are they leaving out or adding, and what is their objective in telling it the way they are? I’d love the audience to think about how a writer of history has immense power in how whole groups of people view the world, themselves and others. I’d love the audience to ask themselves, if they suddenly had the power, what story would they write?
8
2026/2027 Season: Dracula
HS: Why do you think vampires are so eternally popular in pop culture? MLM: Because they can morph themselves to reflect the generation they are manifesting in. Some generations need monsters; some need sexual beings. Maybe right now we need something to come and violently change everything for us, no matter how scary that may be… JG: Because they tap into our fear of the unknown, our fear of the dark, and of our desire for power. And because it can also be fun to be scared. I also think it’s because vampires have a sadness to them that we find recognizably human. The desire for more. The need for more. And knowing it will never be enough.
Director Jackson Gay
Model of Dracula Scenic Design by Riw Rakkulchon, Model builder Laura Valenti and Associate Set Designer Laura Valenti Dramaturgy
9
About the Artists Scout Backus (they/them) | Lucy/Ensemble Hartford Stage: Debut. Broadway: To Kill a Mockingbird. National Tour: To Kill a Mockingbird. Regional: Technocelibites (ALAB Theatre Festival); Lemuria (Denver Center for Performing Arts); wood demon, snow dance (New Orange Theatre/East Village Basement); GAS (Theatre Row); Legacy (Flint Rep). Film: Doug Liman’s The Instigators. Television: Pretty Little Liars: Summer School, Neuman. Education: Brad Fleischer Personal: Scout is a playwright, pole dancer, and actor based in Manhattan. They are also the resident playwright of New Orange Theatre Company. Recent written work includes: Technocelibites, snow dance (produced by New Orange Theatre); the magdalenes (Finalist), a soft machine (Semi Finalist), Stumpwater (Semi Finalist) (Eugene O’Neill Theater Center). Upcoming: Technocelibites (Theatre Mitu) and Unaccustomed Earth (Netflix). Caitlin Elizabeth Clouthier | Ensemble Hartford Stage: Debut. Regional: Deceived, The Book Club Play, Dial M for Murder (all three directed by Jackson Gay and co-starring Lucas Dixon); Dangerous Days, Constellations, Baskerville and Outside Mullingar. Upcoming: Off Broadway in Terror is The Order of the Day. Education: BA, University of Washington, MFA; Yale School of Drama. Personal: Caitlin is an NYC-based actor who plays a wild variety of characters wherever the wind takes her and is a proud AEA member. Big Love to Victor. www. caitlinclouthier.com Lucas Dixon | Jonathan Hartford Stage: Debut. Regional: Cat on a Hot Tin Roof (Bucks County Playhouse); Deceived, Book Club Play (Dorset Theatre Festival); Assassins (Yale Repertory Theatre); House of Home, Western Country (Williamstown Theater Festival); Dial M for Murder (Gulfshore Playhouse); The Game (Playmakers Repertory); What the Constitution…, Woman in Black (Weston Theater Company); Three Sisters, Elijah, Love’s Labours Lost (Chautauqua Theater Company). Upcoming: Lucas was recently revealed as young Tobias Fornell on the new series NCIS: Origins. Education: MFA, Yale School of Drama; BFA, Otterbein University. Lifetime member, Actors Studio. Personal: Love to Ryan.
10
2026/2027 Season: Dracula
About the Artists Anney Giobbe | Ensemble Hartford Stage: Debut. Broadway: The Realistic Joneses (Lyceum Theatre). Off-Broadway: Post Office (New Ohio Theatre); Wonderful Time (WPA Theatre); SubUrbia (Lincoln Center Theater); Baton Rouge (Ensemble Studio Theatre). Regional: Sex and Other Disturbances (Portland Stage); Deathtrap (Syracuse Stage); Period of Adjustment (Berkshire Theatre Festival); God of Carnage (White Heron Theatre); The Pavilion, One, The Glass Menagerie (Cincinnati Playhouse); The Ladies Man (Pioneer Theatre); The Immigrant (San Jose Rep); Proof (Coconut Grove Playhouse, Carbonell Award); The Moliere Comedies (Stamford Center for the Arts). Film: Fear of Fiction, Pieces of April, The 4th Tenor. Television: Damages, Law & Order, Third Watch, Law & Order: Criminal Intent, Spin City, Late Night with Conan O’Brien, One Life to Live. Education: MFA, NYU/Tisch Grad Acting. Personal: Anney wrote and performed the solo play Shiny at Studio Tisch, and is a member of The Actors Center. Love to her CT family! Sara Gutierrez | Mina Hartford Stage: Debut. Off-Broadway: Quince (The Bushwick Starr). Regional: Sanctuary City (TheaterWorks Hartford). Television: Rabbit Rabbit (which will premiere on Netflix in 2027), Dexter: New Blood (2021) Law & Order: Special Victims Unit (Seasons 23 and 26). Education: BFA in Acting, Ithaca College. Personal: Sara is a San Antonio native. ‘What a joy to be back in the city where I made my regional theater debut! All thanks and love to Miguel, Fresa, my loving friends, family, and thank you to my wonderful team at BRS/Gage.’ Pauli (they/them) | Ensemble Hartford Stage: Debut. Off-Broadway: The Trees (Playwrights Horizons); This Clement World (St. Ann’s Warehouse); The Visitor (The Public, Original Cast Recording ). National Tour: A Midsummer Night’s Dream. Regional: House of Dance (Half Straddle/Kyoto Experiment/Zürcher Theater Spektakel); 21st Century Princess (The Barn at Lee); Breaking the Binary Theater Festival. The Wizard of Oz (Geva); Dom Juan (Fischer Center at Bard); Tiny Beautiful Things (Long Wharf); I and You (Chester Theatre Company). Other credits: Echo Chamber (Sharon Hayes & Brooke O’Hara, Frieze New York/Artists Space). Movement Director, Marie, It’s Time (minor theater/HERE); creative director for folk punk fusion band Déa and the Drips. Education: MFA, NYU Grad Acting.
About the Artists
11
About the Artists Morgan Lloyd Malcolm | Playwright Morgan was commissioned by The Globe to write Emilia which became a hit show in summer 2018 before transferring to the West End in 2019, winning three Olivier awards including Best Entertainment or Comedy Play. Her TV adaptation of Damage by Josephine Hart for Moonage, Gaumont and Netflix, starring Richard Armitage and Indira Varma aired in April 2023 with the title Obsession. She is currently developing further shows with Firebird Productions and BBC Studios. Her recent plays include Turn of The Screw at The Arcola in September 2026 then on tour regionally with Blackeyed Theatre until 2027, Dracula at the Lyric Hammersmith, Mum at Plymouth Theatre Royal and Soho Theatre in 2021, and When the Long Trick’s Over, which toured in 2022 after a run at the New Wolsey Theatre in Ipswich. She has worked extensively with Clean Break, a feminist theatre company working with women with experience of prison. Her commission Typical Girls, a play set in a women’s prison featuring the music of The Slits, ran at the Sheffield Crucible in 2021. Morgan’s previous plays Belongings and The Wasp were both produced at the Hampstead Theatre and Trafalgar Studios. Belongings was shortlisted for The Charles Wintour Most Promising Playwright Award. The film adaptation of The Wasp premiered at Tribeca Film Festival in June 2024, starring Naomie Harris and Natalie Dormer, and was released online in September 2024. Morgan co-wrote the musical Cake with Tasha TaylorJohnson and Jack McManus which toured the UK in early 2023 then a run in the West End in September 2023 and a run at The Other Palace in September 2024. She has co-written several comedy shows with her cofounded comedy group Trippplicate. She has co-written four pantomimes for the Lyric Hammersmith and two community shows for the Old Vic New Voices. She has also written three Christmas shows; Robin Hood and Alice In Wonderland for Bolton Octagon and A Christmas Carol for The Rose Theatre Kingston. With Katie Lyons and LookLeftLookRight, she has written several site specific immersive shows including You Once Said Yes and Above and Beyond. She cofounded the theatre company Terrifying Women with Abi Zakarian, Sampira and Amanda Castro with the aim of creating more horror written by women for stages. Since 2020 they have produced seven horror shows of short plays in London and Cambridge.
12
2026/2027 Season: Dracula
About the Artists Jackson Gay | Director Hartford Stage: The Mousetrap, Make Believe. Upcoming: Moliere’s The Learned Ladies (Juilliard); new musical workshop SCKBSTD by Bruce Hornsby and Heidi Armbruster. Selected: Lauren Gunderson’s Louisa May Alcott’s Little Women (Guthrie); Nashville-inspired new musical Hard Road To Heaven by Willy Holtzman, David Spangler, and Marty Dodson (Bucks County Playhouse); Deceived (Dorset Theatre Festival); King Lear (REP); Hedda Gabler (Juilliard); Christina Anderson’s The Ripple, The Wave That Carried Me Home (Berkeley Rep, Goodman Theatre); Lucy Thurber’s Transfers (MCC); Rolin Jones’ These Paper Bullets! (Yale Rep, Geffen, Atlantic); OBIE-winning The Intelligent Design of Jenny Chow (Atlantic, Yale Rep). Professional Positions: Director of Artistic Programs for Fuller Road Artist Residency in Vermont; Co-AD New Neighborhood (first 24hour community reading of the Mueller Report; the interactive sound installation Endless Loop of Gratitude). Education: MFA Directing, Yale School of Drama. Private Coach for actors and directors: jacksongracegay.com Riw Rakkulchon (He/They) | Scenic Designer Hartford Stage: Rope, All My Sons, The Mousetrap. Broadway: Pass Over, & Juliet, Parade. Off-Broadway: Mexodus, Notes From Now, Christine Jorgensen Show, Cellino v Barnes, Pericles the Prince of Tyre (Set & Costume). Regional: Yale Repertory Theatre, Berkeley Rep, Syracuse Stage, The Old Globe, Asolo Rep, Cleveland Playhouse, Alley Theatre, TheatreSquared, Maltz Jupiter Theatre, KCRep, The Public Theater, Audible Theater, Brooklyn Academy of Music. Personal: Riw (pronounced Ree-you) is a set & costume designer, animator and chef from Bangkok, Thailand. USA 829. Board member of WithAll, a non-profit organization on a fight to end eating disorders. IG: @riwrdesign Fabian Fidel Aguilar | Costume Design Hartford Stage: Sweeney Todd, Romeo & Juliet, The Mousetrap. OffBroadway: Dig (Primary Stages); Afterglow (Midnight Theatricals). Regional: Alliance Theatre, Cincinnati Playhouse, Asolo Repertory Theatre, Portland Opera, Pacific Center for the Performing Arts, American Players Theatre, Commonwealth Shakespeare Company, Two River Theater, Dorset Theatre Festival, Westport Country Playhouse, Yale Repertory Theatre, Juilliard, Brown University. Education: MFA, Yale School of Drama; BFA, Boston University. Personal: fabianfidelaguilar.com. IG: @fabi.f.aguilar.
About the Artists
13
About the Artists Paul Whitaker | Lighting Design Hartford Stage: Make Believe. New York: The Public, Playwrights Horizons, Second Stage Theater, Atlantic, Primary Stages, MCC Theater, The Play Company, Ma-Yi Theater Company, LAByrinth Theater Company. Regional: The Guthrie, Denver Center, La Jolla Playhouse, South Coast Repertory, Long Wharf Theatre, Alley Theatre, Huntington Theatre Company, CTC, CenterStage Theatre Company, American Conservatory Theater, Yale Rep, Dallas Theater Center, and Theater Latté Da, among others. Opera: MN Opera, San Diego Opera, Kansas City Opera, San Antonio Opera. Professional Positions: Partner at Schuler Shook, a theater planning and architectural lighting firm. Education: MFA, Yale School of Drama; BA, Macalester College. paulwhitakerdesigns.com Caroline Eng | Sound Design & Composition Hartford Stage: Debut. Broadway: Yellow Face (Roundabout Theatre Company). Off-Broadway & Regional: Disruption (Signature Theatre Company); The Unknown (Studio Seaview); The Loved Ones (Irish Rep); Cymbeline (NAATCO); Cold War Choir Practice (Trinity Rep); Irishtown (Irish Rep); Merry Me (NYTW); Coriolanus (Oregon Shakespeare Festival, Portland Center Stage); Hurricane Diane (People’s Light); Fences (Shakespeare & Company); What the Constitution Means to Me (WAM Theatre, Berkshire Theatre Group); The Salonnieres (Greater Boston Stage Company); Little Women (Theatreworks Colorado Springs). Personal: Caroline Eng is a New York based sound designer. carolineengdesign.com Tommy Kurzman | Wig, Hair & Make-up Hartford Stage: The Cottage, Romeo & Juliet, The Comedy of Errors. Broadway: Uncle Vanya, I Need That, Gutenberg: The Musical!, The Cottage, Peter Pan Goes Wrong, Pictures From Home, The Collaboration, Macbeth, Mrs. Doubtfire, All My Sons, True West, Saint Joan, Little Foxes, My Fair Lady, Fiddler on the Roof, The King and I, and Bright Star. OffBroadway: Little Shop of Horrors, The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, Romy & Michele, House of McQueen, and The Play That Goes Wrong. UK: The Karate Kid - The Musical. Personal: Tommy Kurzman is a New York City based wig, hair & make-up designer. He has designed hair on multiple scales from Broadway, Off-Broadway, regionally and for film and television. IG: @TommyKurzmanWigs
14
2026 5/2026 7 Se E aAsSoOnN : D r•a c H u lAa R T F O R D S T A G E
About the Artists Rod Kinter | Fight Director & Special Effects Hartford Stage: Debut. Broadway: The Lightning Thief: The Percy Jackson Musical. National Tour: The Life of Pi. Live from Lincoln Center: Porgy and Bess. Off-Broadway: Resident Fight Director at The Pearl Theatre Company, including Henry IV, Part 1; Richard II; Twelfth Night; Playboy of the Western World; No Exit. Off Broadway: Broken Snow, Between Two Knees, The Lightning Thief, The Percy Jackson Musical, The Anthem, Fatal Attraction, A Greek Tragedy, Abe Lincoln’s Big Gay Dance Party, Days to Come. Regional: A.R.T, Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park, Cleveland Playhouse, Seattle Rep, Yale Rep, The McCarter Theatre, The Dorset Theatre Festival, The Barter Theatre, Gulfshore Playhouse, Cape Playhouse. Shakespeare Festivals: Oregon Shakespeare Festival, Shakespeare Theatre New Jersey, Utah Shakespeare Festival, Hudson Valley Shakespeare, Shakespeare on the Sound. Other: Resident Fight Director at New York City Opera for 15 years. Personal: Rod is on the faculty at AMDA and is a full member of the SDC. He is thrilled to be working at Hartford Stage with such an amazing team. Shura Baryshnikov | Movement & Intimacy Coordinator Hartford Stage: Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, Simona’s Search, Pride and Prejudice. Regional: Enough to Let the Light In (Contemporary American Theatre Festival); The Winter’s Tale, The Good John Proctor, Becky Nurse of Salem, The Inferior Sex, Fuente Ovejuna, A Christmas Carol, A Flea in Her Ear, Middletown, Veronica Meadows, Social Creatures, Oklahoma!, The Completely Fictional – Utterly True – Final Strange Tale of Edgar Allan Poe (Trinity Repertory Company); A Mother (Baryshnikov Arts); As You Like It (The Gamm Theatre); Dark Room, Salomé, Julius Caesar, The Forgetting Curve (Bridge Repertory Theatre); The Telling (FirstWorks); Dido’s Ghost, This Love Unbound (Emmanuel Music); Carousel, Norma, The Handmaid’s Tale (Boston Lyric Opera); Jeanne d’Arc au bûcher (Odyssey Opera). Film: Svadba (Director, Boston Lyric Opera). Television: Widow’s Bay (Apple TV). Professional Positions: Associate Professor of the Practice Theatre Arts and Performance Studies (Brown University). Affiliations: AEA, AGMA, SDC.
About the Artists
15
About the Artists Julie Foh | Dialect & Voice Coach Hartford Stage: Death of a Salesman, The Cottage, Hurricane Diane, Romeo & Juliet, All My Sons, The Winter’s Tale. Off-Broadway: Belfast Girls (Irish Rep). Regional: The Snow Goose (Goodspeed Musicals); Dial M for Murder (Drury Lane Theatre); The Woman in Black (Weston Theater Company); A View from the Bridge (Long Wharf Theatre); Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom; Furlough’s Paradise; Spunk; falcon girls; Escaped Alone; the ripple, the wave that carried me home (Yale Rep); Frankenstein, A Christmas Carol, Sense and Sensibility, As You Like It, A Gentleman’s Guide to Love and Murder, The Caretaker (Shakespeare Theatre of NJ); Ride the Cyclone: The Musical and Sleuth (McCarter Theatre); Mlima’s Tale (Repertory Theatre of St. Louis & Westport Country Playhouse). Television: Cobra Kai. Education: MFA, American Repertory Theatre; BA, Duke University. Professional Positions: Associate Professor at the David Geffen School of Drama at Yale. Alldaffer & Donadio Casting | Casting Hartford Stage: Native Gardens; Death of a Salesman; The Cottage; Rope; Hurricane Diane; Romeo & Juliet; August Wilson’s Two Trains Running; A Christmas Carol: A Ghost Story of Christmas; Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde; All My Sons; Simona’s Search; Pride and Prejudice; Trouble in Mind; The Art of Burning; The Mousetrap; It’s a Wonderful Life: A Live Radio Play; Ah, Wilderness!; Quixote Nuevo; Ether Dome. Broadway/Off-Broadway: Stereophonic (Broadway, Off-Broadway, National Tour, UK), Downstate, Dance Nation, Circle Mirror Transformation, A Strange Loop, Clybourne Park, Grey Gardens, The Flick (Playwrights Horizons, Barrow Street Theatre), Classic Stage Company, Tent Theater. Regional: O’Neill National Playwrights Conference, The Huntington, TheaterWorks Hartford, Studio Theatre, Berkeley Rep, The Old Globe Theatre, Williamstown Theatre Festival. Television: The Knights of Prosperity, Ed, Monk. Podcasts: Marvel, Audible, Fresh Produce. Awards: Artios Award (Stereophonic, Downstate, Circle Mirror Transformation, Present Laughter); Drama Desk and Obie awards, Best Ensemble (Circle Mirror Transformation).
16
2026 5/2026 7 Se E aAsSoOnN : D r•a c H u lAa R T F O R D S T A G E
About the Artists Avery Trunko | Production Stage Manager Hartford Stage: The Cottage, Hurricane Diane, 2.5 Minute Ride, The Mousetrap. Broadway: Les Liaisons Dangereuses. Off-Broadway: Ava: The Secret Conversation, Dig, Ibsen’s Ghost, The Confession of Lily Dare (Primary Stages); Belfast Girls (Irish Repertory Theater); Hangmen, On the Shore of the Wide World (Atlantic Theater Company); Privacy, Julius Caesar (Public Theater); This Space Between Us, Molly Sweeney (Keen Company); Dropping Gumballs on Luke Wilson (The Working Theater); Uncle Vanya (Hunter Theater Project); By the Way Meet Vera Stark (Signature Theatre); Eureka Day (Colt Coeur); Superstitions, The Ding Dongs, Is Edward Snowden Single? (The Pool Plays). Select Regional: Hard Road to Heaven (Bucks County Playhouse); Deceived, Advice, True Art, Misery, Thirst (Dorset Theatre Festival); Superstitions (Oklahoma City Rep); The Heart of Robin Hood, Rip Van Winkle (Hudson Valley Shakespeare); The Moors, Elevada (Yale Repertory Theatre). Education: MFA, Yale School of Drama; BFA, Hofstra University. Theresa Stark | Assistant Stage Manager Hartford Stage: Laughs in Spanish (Production Stage Manager), All My Sons, Pride and Prejudice, The Winter’s Tale, Trouble in Mind, It’s a Wonderful Life: A Live Radio Play, Dishwasher Dreams, An Opening in Time, Twelfth Night, A Midsummer’s Night Dream (with Hartford Symphony Orchestra), A Christmas Carol: A Ghost Story of Christmas (2013 Youth Director); Workshops: Tocada, Her Math Play, The Last Survivor, Queens for a Year, Oakdale, Somewhere, Seder and George Dandin. Broadway: The Scarlet Pimpernel. Off-Broadway: Second Stage, Primary Stages/Iowa Boy Productions, 78th Street Theatre Lab, New Georges. Selected Regional: Westchester Broadway Theatre, TheaterWorks Hartford, Long Wharf Theatre, The Ivoryton Playhouse, Music Theatre of Connecticut, Westport Country Playhouse, Goodspeed, Stamford Theatre Works, Summer Theatre of New Canaan, Elm Shakespeare, Barrington Stage, Hangar Theatre and Yale Opera. Professional position: Theresa also works as a dog handler for William Berloni Theatrical Animals, Inc.
About the Artists
17
About Hartford Stage For more than 60 years, Hartford Stage has played a leading role in its industry—producing world-class theater and serving as a civic space where community, creativity, and conversation thrive. Located in the heart of downtown Hartford, the theater is a place for all, where audiences are connected in shared experiences and invited to engage with high-quality, transformative theater. The Tony Award-winning company is dedicated to telling entertaining and thought-provoking stories that reflect the diversity of the Greater Hartford Region, whether reinventing the classics or premiering new work. The theater’s rich legacy includes plays and musicals that have made their way to Broadway, Off-Broadway, and stages around the globe, earning Tony Awards and Pulitzer Prizes along the way. Hartford Stage’s impact extends beyond the stage, through robust education programs—including in-school programs, student matinees, youth productions, and adult classes—nurturing creativity, building confidence, and ensuring that the performing arts remain accessible and essential for generations to come. To learn more, visit HartfordStage.org. Follow us @HartfordStage.Follow us @hartfordstage Cast of Sweeney Todd (2026). Photo by T. Charles Erickson.
18
2026/2027 Season: Dracula
Our award-winning education programs provide students of all ages, abilities, and backgrounds with innovative opportunities that challenge and inspire. Using theater techniques, we build community, promote a passion for literacy and creative expression, and encourage life-long learning.
Adult & Youth Classes
All year, we have classes for youth and adults looking to develop, improve, and show off their performance skills.
Student Matinees
Students are invited to join us for daytime performances throughout the year. They get to see the show and participate in a post-show conversation with the cast and crew.
Connections
Connections is an in-school program that brings teaching artists into classrooms to explore a book through drama, strengthening comprehension skills and building excitement about reading.
After-School Programs
Bring a Hartford Stage teaching artist to your after-school program! Programs range from drama classes to full productions and are designed based on the needs of each individual school.
Learn more: HartfordStage.org/Education About Hartford Stage
19
Board of Directors Officers Don Allan President Richard G. Costello Vice President Devon C. Francis Treasurer Elease Wright Secretary
Governing Directors Doug Adkins Patti Broad Judi Brown Jaime Hait Cohen Brennden D. Colbert Kate Collins Alona Croteau Alana Curren Carlos Espinosa Lisa Frank Kentavis Goodwin-Brice Emily Harrington Barbara Hennessy Jeffrey Higgins Barnaby W. Horton Jackie B. Iacovazzi Mersini Keller Aaron Lyles Amy Leppo Mandell Barri Marks Marjorie E. Morrissey T.J. Noel-Sullivan Andy Pace Esther A. Pryor Rosalie Roth Sean Taylor Judith E. Thompson William J. Thompson Rhonda Tobin Nicole Vitrano Patty Willis Yvette Yelardy
20
Stage One
Emerging Leaders Kyle Abraham Kamille Cockings Angel Cotto Renee Cox Nhat-Dang Do Jovi Douglas Emma Gilmore Ryan Glista Mitzie Martin Morgan Middleton Malia Peres Andrew Pilkons Rebecca Ristow Silvana Robinson Maxwell Toth
Life Directors George L. Estes III Walter Harrison Jeffrey S. Hoffman Davis M. Klein Katherine Lambert Belle K. Ribicoff Christina B. Ripple Linda Fisher Silpe Sherwood S. Willard
Honorary Directors Marla J. Byrnes Carrie Hammond Nancy P. Hoffman Robert A. Penney
Emeritus Directors R. Kelley Bonn Sara Marcy Cole Susan J. Copeland Susan G. Fisher Judith C. Meyers Allan B. Taylor
2026/2027 Season: Dracula
Past Presidents Jill Adams Joel B. Alvord Paul L. Bourdeau Sue Ann Collins Elliot F. Gerson Walter Harrison David R. Jimenez David M. Klein Thomas D. Lips Michael D. Nicastro Christina B. Ripple Jack Sennott Deanna Sue Sucsy Jennifer Smith Turner
Ex Officio Directors John B. Larson US Representative, 1st Congressional District of Connecticut Julio Concepcion State Representative, 4th District of the State of Connecticut Arunan Arulampalam Mayor, City of Hartford Shari Cantor Mayor, City of West Hartford Melia Bensussen Artistic Director, Hartford Stage Cynthia Rider Managing Director, Hartford Stage
Administrative Staff LEADERSHIP Melia Bensussen, Artistic Director Position endowed by Janet S. Suisman Cynthia Rider, Managing Director ADMINISTRATION Emily Van Scoy, General Manager Trisha Hein, Company Manager & Assistant General Manager Sara Walnum, Business Manager EDUCATION Jennifer Roberts, Director of Education Nina Pinchin, Associate Director of Education Emely Larson, Studio Manager 2026/2027 TEACHING ARTISTS Marie Altenor, Thomas Beebe, Grace Clark, Brandon Couloute, Kendyl Davis, Shelby Demke, Ryan Kessler, Jada Lawyer, Erica LuBonta, Jess MacLean, Jan Mason, Nick Palazzo, Justin Pesce, Kevin Scott, Donovan Shaw, Liam Toner, Kaydin Younger EXTERNAL RELATIONS Jennifer Levine, Director of External Relations Lindsay Brayton, Associate Director for Marketing Travis Kendrick-Castanho, External Relations Manager Evan Kudish, Manager of Board & Donor Relations Sonya Thiel, Events & Engagement Manager Sierra Vazquez, Annual Fund Manager Todd Brandt, Audience & Revenue Data Analyst Sarah Shiner, Digital Marketing Associate House Management W. Scott McEver, Audience Experience & Front of House Manager Assistant House Managers: Art Arpin, Mailina Betsey-Chambers, Emily Loscialpo, Aarron Schuelke Bartenders: Tanya Bermudez, Drew Breault, Sam Chiasson, Karen Kudish, Nefris Quiterio, Erica Santa Lucia, Kerry Yerkes Gift Shop Attendants/Event Bartenders: Marsha Arpin, Paulette Caldwell Patron Services Lindsey Hoffman, Box Office Manager Lindsey Taft, Box Office Associate & Subscription Concierge Corey Welden, Box Office Associate & Student Matinee Coordinator Box Office Representatives: Amaris Diaz, Alex Nattrass
PRODUCTION Bryan T. Holcombe, Director of Production Wesley McCabe-Schroeder, Assistant Production Manager Alyssa Edwards, Production Assistant Set Construction & Scenic Art Aaron D. Bleck, Technical Director Jared Wolf, Assistant Technical Director Ian Sweeney, Lead Carpenter Scenic Carpenters: Audra Giuliano, Isabella Pedraza Nathalie Schlosser, Charge Scenic Artist Costumes & Wardrobe Alex Meadows, Costume Director Grace Petersen, Assistant Costume Director James Weeden, Staff Draper Rio Cañas, First Hand K. Duffner, Wardrobe Supervisor Jodi Stone, Wig & Make-up Supervisor Props Joe Dotts, Props Manager Claire Linden-Dionne, Assistant Props Manager Lighting Jackie Costabile, Lighting Manager Ethan Sepa, ALDM, Programmer Sara Dorinbaum, Light Board Operator Sound Lucas Clopton, Audio/Video Manager & Content Creator Jim Busker, Assistant Audio/Video Manager Facilities Michael Langer, Facilities Manager For This Porduction Scenic Artists: Susannah Anderson, Kathleen Kennan, Erin Sagnelli Carpenters: John Holder, Callum McCabe-Schroeder Stitchers: Robyn Farley, Irene Hatch, Margaret Ellen McFarland, Allison Nishimura, Joe O’Brien, Barry Sellers Craft Artisans: Kaiden Allen, Marissa Wiles Nico Platz, Set Electrician Deck Crew: Ariana Harris, Logan Wareham Wardrobe & Wig Crew: Kaiden Allen, Llyn Sadhbh Cheyenne Rodriguez, A2 Special Thanks Michael Beschta The Huntington Costume Collection Alexander Zeek
Board & Staff
21
TAPROOM & KITCHEN manchester | hartford
Annual Contributors Thank you to all our donors. We are grateful for the generosity throughout our entire community and recognize all of our supporters on our website at HartfordStage.org/ Recognition. We are happy to acknowledge here those with leadership contributions in the past 12 months, September 17, 2025 - September 17, 2026.
Annual Fund Director’s Circle • $50,000+ Rick & Beth Costello Karl Krapek Marjorie E. Morrissey Sally Speer Christopher & Mary Swift Producer Circle • $25,000+ Jill Adams & Bill Knight Don & Marilyn Allan The Cheryl Chase & Stuart Bear Family Foundation Robert & Francine Goldfarb Family Fund Wes & Chloe Horton David & Janice Klein Jack & Donna Sennott Judith & William Thompson Ovation Society • $10,000+ Douglas & Sheryl Adkins Sue Ann Collins Dianne & Walter Harrison The Pryor Family Foundation Chrissie & Ezra Ripple Elizabeth Schiro & Stephen Bayer Elizabeth Vandeventer Veronica & Howard Wiseman
Jackie & Drew Iacovazzi Helen Ingram David & Kathleen Jimenez Konover Coppa Family Fund Katherine J. Lambert Marcia A. Lattimore Tom & Margah Lips Jane & Roger+ Loeb Amy & Neal Mandell Barri Marks Carl & Tara Merz Harry E. Meyer Judith Meyers & Richard Hersh Michael & Colleen Nicastro Duff Ashmead & Eric Ort Kristen Phillips & Matthew Schreck Dina Plapler & Earl McMahon Douglas H. Robins Rosalie Roth Donald & Linda Silpe Larry Starr & Family Sally & Allan Taylor Maggie & Sherwood Willard Mark & Patty Willis Elease & Dana Wright The Zachs Family Foundation
Encore Society • $5,000+ Andra Asars Jenefer Carey Berall Patti Broad Jamie & Isaac Cohen Devon & Thomas Francis Lisa Frank Nancy Goodwin Jeffrey & Nancy Hoffman Barnaby W. Horton & Hannah GranfieldHorton
Patron Society • $3,500+ Paul & Joanne Bourdeau John & Suzanne Bourdeaux Marla & John Byrnes Robert L.+ & Susan G. Fisher Ruth Fitzgerald & Dave Sageman Marilda Gandara & Scott O’Keefe Doris Guenter David & Gail Hall Carrie & Jonathan Hammond Emily & Patrick Harrington Jeffrey & Robert Higgins Adlyn & Theodore Loewenthal
Deceased
Continued on next page.
+
R O M E OC o&n Jt rUi LbIuEtTo r s
2323
Annual Contributors Ed & Kelly Lyman Cynthia K. Mackay Ernest & Mickey Mattei Robert A. & Joan C. Penney Rhonda Tobin & Jeffrey Smith Jacqueline Werner+ Yvette Yelardy & Daniel Morganstern
Honorary Gifts IN HONOR OF MELIA BENSUSSEN
William V. Madison
IN HONOR OF ALONA CROTEAU
Alecia Coffin
IN HONOR OF ANNIE HILDRETH
Diane Hildreth
IN HONOR OF DAVID KLEIN
Wendy Avery
IN HONOR OF CYNTHIA RIDER
Sandy Grampsas Anne Rider & Rob Hinrichs Ellen Rider & Stanley King Mallory Pierce IN HONOR OF CHRISSIE RIPPLE
Deborah Brown
IN HONOR OF ROSALIE ROTH
Anonymous
IN HONOR OF PATTY WILLIS
The Burkehaven Family Foundation
Memorial Gifts IN MEMORY OF GALINA FAYNGERSH
Diana Lee
IN MEMORY OF ARNOLD & BEVERLY GREENBERG
David & Merle Trager
IN MEMORY OF BEVERLY G. HIMELSTEIN
Michael Moran
IN MEMORY OF JAQUELINE WERNER
Helen, Andrew & Nancy Kho
Institutional Giving $200,000+ Hartford Foundation for Public Giving The Shubert Foundation Stanley Black & Decker $100,000+ Burry Fredrik Foundation Connecticut Department of Economic +
Deceased
24
& Community Development The Richard P. Garmany Fund at the Greater Hartford Gives Foundation The Hartford RTX $75,000+ The BFA Fund at the Greater Hartford Gives Foundation The Katherine K. McLane & Henry R. McLane Charitable Trust $50,000+ Connecticut Judicial Branch Greater Hartford Arts Council The John and Kelly Hartman Foundation SBM Charitable Foundation, Inc. The Scripps Family Fund for Education and the Arts Travelers $25,000+ Cigna Connecticut Health and Educational Facilities Authority The Elizabeth M. Landon & Harriette M. Landon Charitable Foundation The Harold & Mimi Steinberg Charitable Trust The Helen Gurley Brown Foundation Michael E. Simmons Foundation National Endowment for the Arts Roberts Foundation for the Arts Robinson & Cole LLP $15,000+ Bank of America Hartford HealthCare Lucille Lortel Foundation Talcott Resolution $10,000+ The Charles Nelson Robinson Fund Connecticut Department of Education The Ellen Jeanne Goldfarb Memorial Charitable Trust Liberty Bank The William & Alice Mortensen Foundation $5,000+ Eugene G. & Margaret M. Blackford Memorial Fund continued on next page...
2024 6/2025 7 Se E aAsSoOnN : D r•a c H u lAa R T F O R D S T A G E
Annual Contributors Bradley, Foster & Sargent Connecticut Humanities The Burton & Phyllis Hoffman Foundation Fiducient Advisors JANA Foundation The George A. & Grace L. Long Foundation McDonald Family Trust
Stanley D. & Hinda N. Fisher Fund William H. & Rosanna T. Andrulat Charitable Foundation $2,500+ The Edgemer Foundation, Inc. Allan S. Goodman, Inc.
YOUR PARTNER
IN VIDEO PRODUCTION & PHOTOGRAPHY
The cast of Pride and Prejudice (2023). Photo by T. Charles Erickson.
COMMERCIAL
ADVERTISING
PRODUCT
PROMOTIONAL
MICELIPRODUCTIONS.COM 25
Shakespeare Society The Shakespeare Society comprises individuals who have provided for the future of Hartford Stage in their estate plans. Hartford Stage is deeply grateful for their generosity and foresight. The members of this group help to ensure the legacy of Hartford Stage. Have you included Hartford Stage in your estate plans? Tell us about it! Call Evan Kudish, Manager of Board & Donor Relations, at 860-520-7241 to share your plans and allow us to thank you. Anonymous (15) Brian & Betty Ashfield Richard & Alice Baxter Mr. & Mrs. Paul Bourdeau Mrs. Joan Brown Kimberley & Christopher Byrd Marla & John Byrnes Mario R. Cavallo Sue Ann Collins Richard G. Costello Ms. Linda Diana DeConti Mr. Reginald Gregory DeConti Susan G. Fisher Kathy Frederick & Eugene Leach Victoria E. Gallo Evelyn A. Genovese Carrie & Jonathan Hammond Walter & Diane Harrison Elie Helou Helen Ingram David & Janice Klein Joel M. & Naomi Baline Kleinman Katherine J. Lambert Christopher Larsen William C. Leary Tom & Margah Lips Mark & Liisa Livingston Elaine T. Lowengard Donna Matulis Judith Meyers & Richard Hersh Ki Miller Arthur & Merle Nacht Judge Jon O. Newman Lyn Oliva & John Brighenti Belle K. Ribicoff Ezra & Chrissie Ripple Prudence P. Robertson Barbara Rubin Carol W. Scoville Donald & Linda Silpe Marjorie K. & Jack S. Solomon, Doreen A. Cohn, Faith L. Solomon Fund
26
2026/2027 Season: Dracula
Jennifer Smith Turner & Eric Turner Mary L. Stephenson Elsa Suisman Robert & Gretchen Wetzel Michael Wilson & Jeff Cowie Henry M. Zachs Michael & Ellen Zenke In Memoriam Hartford Stage fondly remembers these late members of the Shakespeare Society. Anonymous (6) Margaret Atwood Cynthia Kellogg Barrington Maxwell & Sally Belding Susan R. Block Clifford S. Burdge Edward C. Cape Ruth Cape Anna & David Clark James H. Eacott, Jr. Robert L. Fisher David Geetter Yummy Graulty Herman Zeus Goldberg George A. Ingram Dieter & Siegelind Johannes Hugh M. Joseloff & Helen J. Joseloff Nafe E. Katter Janet M. Larsen Joe Marfuggi Mr. & Mrs. Henry R. McLane Mary & Freeman Meyer Tuck Miller Don O. Noel, Jr. Ann & George Richards Dr. Russell Robertson Robert K. Schrepf Talcott Stanley Janet S. & Michael Suisman Helen S. Willis Louise W. Willson
Discover your family’s militar y past
Want to know more about your family's military story? Have a veteran you want researched? Interested in someone getting into the National Archives for your loved one's service history? MEET ALEX BECKSTRAND.
Alex is a local professional military historian and veteran with countless hours of experience researching the National Archives. Through Legacies of Service LLC, he has helped hundreds of families discover lost stories of service and sacrifice. Alex will conduct the research, give you all of the documents, and put everything together in a 10–25 page personalized biography of their service.
Ready to begin? Scan the QR CODE → Chat with Alex: alex@legaciesofservice.com 262-949-9364
www.legaciesofser vice.com
Next on Stage GET INTO THE SPIRIT
November 21 - December 27, 2026
Don’t miss this holiday tradition! HartfordStage.org | 860-527-5151 William & Judith Thompson Michael E. Simmons Foundation