IRT Program: "Fences" and "Bridge & Tunnel"

The OneAmerica Mainstage MARCH 9 - APRIL 3

Original artwork by Kyle Ragsdale.

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OUR MISSION

CONTENTS

Live theatre connects us to meaningful issues in our lives and has the power to shape the human experience. The mission of the Indiana Repertory Theatre is to produce top-quality, professional theatre and related activities, providing experiences that will engage, surprise, challenge, and entertain people throughout their lifetimes, helping us build a vital and vibrant community.

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OUR VISION The Indiana Repertory Theatre will be a life-long destination of choice for people of all ages and backgrounds seeking enjoyable and meaningful experiences. Using theatre as a springboard for both personal reflection and community discussion, our productions and programs will inspire our neighbors to learn about themselves and others. As an arts leader in the state of Indiana, the IRT invites collaborations with other top-quality community institutions, with the goal of making Indiana a vibrant home of cultural expression, economic vitality, and a diverse, informed, and engaged citizenry.

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AS AN INSTITUTION, WE VALUE: SUSTAINING A PROFESSIONAL, CREATIVE ATMOSPHERE The professional production of plays that provide insight and celebrate human relationships through the unique vision of the playwright • Professional artists of the highest quality working on our stages in an environment that allows them to grow and thrive • Our leadership role in fostering a creative environment where arts, education, corporate, civic, and cultural organizations collaborate to benefit our community.

PRUDENT STEWARDSHIP OF OUR RESOURCES Our public-benefit status, where the focus is on artistic integrity, affordable ticket prices that allow all segments of our community to attend, and community service • Fiscal responsibility and financial security based on achieving a balanced budget • Growing our endowment fund as a resource for future development and to ensure institutional longevity.

INCLUSIVENESS The production of plays from a broad range of dramatic literature addressing diverse communities • The involvement of all segments of our community in our activities • Using theatre arts as a primary tool to bring meaning into the lives of our youth, making creativity a component of their education • The employment of artists and staff that celebrates the diversity of the United States.

HERITAGE AND TRADITION Our role as Indiana’s premiere theatre for more than 40 years, recognized by the 107th Indiana General Assembly in 1991 as“Indiana’s Theatre Laureate.”• The historic Indiana Theatre as our home, as a cultural landmark, and as a significant contributor to a vital downtown • Our national, state, and local reputation for 40+ years of quality creative work and educational programming • Our board, staff, volunteers, artists, audiences, and donors as essential partners in fulfilling our mission.

Mission & Values

6 Profile 8 Leadership

14 Board of Directors 16 Fences 26 Company bios for

Fences 34 Interview with

David Alan Anderson and Millicent Wright

38 Bridge & Tunnel 46 Company bios for

Bridge & Tunnel 56 Donor Listing

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SEASON 2015 - 2016

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SEASON SPONSOR 2015 - 2016

THANKS

to a World Class Sponsor For over four decades, the Indiana Repertory Theatre has brought actors, friends, families, and community members together to enjoy great entertainment and performances. We are proud to continue our support of the IRT as a key cultural organization in Indianapolis. We hope that you will enjoy the 2015-2016 Season.

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Every time a bar gets raised, a record gets broken, or a new star shines, it’s because somebody was curious. Wondering how high they could reach. How much they could do. As a proud sponsor of the Indiana Repertory Theatre's Student Matinee Series, we applaud that. Questioning everything makes anything possible.

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PROFILE: THE INDIANA REPERTORY THEATRE HISTORY Since the Indiana Repertory Theatre was founded in 1971, it has grown into one of the leading regional theatres in the country, as well as one of the top-flight cultural institutions in the city and state. In 1991 Indiana’s General Assembly designated the IRT as “Theatre Laureate” of the state of Indiana. The IRT’s national reputation has been confirmed by prestigious grants from the National Endowment for the Arts, the Lila Wallace–Reader’s Digest Fund, the Theatre Communications Group–Pew Charitable Trusts, the Shubert Foundation, and the Kresge Foundation; and by a Joyce Award from the Joyce Foundation.

The IRT remains the largest fully professional resident not-for-profit theatre in the state, providing 110,000 live professional theatre experiences for its audience last season. These experiences included 40,000 students and teachers from 54 of Indiana’s 92 counties, making the IRT one of the most youth-oriented professional theatres in the country. A staff of more than 100 seasonal and year-round employees creates nine productions exclusively for Indiana audiences. Actors, directors, and designers are members of professional stage unions.

The IRT’s history has been enacted in two historic downtown theatres. The Athenaeum Turners Building housed the company’s first eight seasons. Since 1980 the IRT has occupied the 1927 Indiana Theatre, which was renovated to contain three performance spaces (OneAmerica Stage, Upperstage, and Cabaret) and work spaces, reviving this historic downtown entertainment site.

To keep ticket prices and services affordable for the entire community, the IRT operates as a not-forprofit organization, deriving more than 45% of its operating income from contributions. The theatre is generously supported by foundations, corporations, and individuals, an investment which recognizes the IRT’s mission-based commitment to serving Central Indiana with top-quality theatrical fare.

PROGRAMS • The OneAmerica Season includes nine diverse productions from classical and contemporary repertoires, including Eli Lilly and Company presents: A Christmas Carol and the world premiere of Bingham Greenebaum Doll presents James Still's: April 4, 1968: Before We Forgot How to Dream.

• New Play Development The IRT offers Write Now, a prestigious national workshop for adult playwrights writing for young audiences; and Young Playwrights in Process (YPiP), a playwriting contest and workshop for Indiana high school and junior high students.

• Community Gathering Place Located in a beautiful historic landmark, the IRT offers a wide variety of unique and adaptable spaces for family, business, and community gatherings of all types.

Call the front desk at 317.635.4805 for more information.

• Volunteer Opportunities The IRT depends on the generous donation of time and energy by volunteers; call 317.916.4848 to learn how you can become involved.

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• Meet the Artists Regularly scheduled pre-show Prologue talks, post-show discussions, and backstage tours offer audiences unique insights into each production.

• Student Matinees The IRT continues a long-time commitment to student audiences with school-day student matinee performances of all IRT productions. These performances are augmented with educational activities and curriculum support materials. This season Eli Lilly and Company presents: A Christmas Carol; Peter Rabbit and Me; and To Kill a Mockingbird offer extensive opportunities for student attendance.

• Educational Programs Auxiliary services offered include visiting artists in the classroom, study guides, pre- and post-show discussions, and guided tours of the IRT’s facilities.

• Classes From creative dramatics to audition workshops to Shakespeare seminars, the IRT offers a wide array of personal learning opportunities for all ages, including our Summer Conservatory for Youth. Call 317.916.4842 for further information.

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LEADERSHIP: JANET ALLEN EXECUTIVE ARTISTIC DIRECTOR Creating world-class professional theatre for Central Indiana audiences of all ages has remained a career-long passion for Janet Allen. She began at the IRT in 1980 as the theatre’s first literary manager–dramaturg. After four years in New York City, she returned to serve ten years as associate artistic director under mentors Tom Haas and Libby Appel. She was named the IRT’s fourth artistic director in 1996, and is celebrating her 20th season in that role. In 2013, she was named the IRT's executive artistic director.

During Janet’s tenure, the IRT has significantly diversified its education services to both adults and children, expanded its new play development programs, solidified its reputation as a top-flight regional theatre dedicated to diverse programming and production quality, and established the IRT as a generous content partner with organizations throughout central Indiana. Janet’s passion for nurturing playwrights has led to a fruitful relationship with James Still, the IRT’s playwright in residence for 18 years, and the creation and production of 13 new works, the Indiana Series, that examine Hoosier and Midwestern sensibilities (six of them

by James Still). Her collaboration with playwrights has brought the theatre prestigious grants from the Pew Charitable Trusts, a Joyce Foundation Award, and a Doris Duke Foundation grant, as well as numerous grants from the National Endowment for the Arts and Shakespeare for a New Generation.

Among the memorable productions she has directed on the IRT’s stages are The Glass Menagerie (1999), Ah! Wilderness (2002), The Drawer Boy (2004), Looking over the President’s Shoulder (2008), The Diary of Anne Frank (2011), and James Still's The House That Jack Built (2012). Celebrating the IRT's 44-year legacy this season, she directs To Kill a Mockingbird.

Janet studied theatre at Illinois State University, Indiana University, and Exeter College, Oxford. As a classical theatre specialist, she has published and taught theatre history and dramaturgy at IUPUI and Butler University. Janet’s leadership skills and community service have been recognized by Indianapolis Business Journal’s “40 Under 40”Award, the Network of Women in Business–IBJ’s “Influential Women in Business”Award, Safeco’s Beacon of Light in Our Community Award, a Distinguished Hoosier Award conferred

by Governor Frank O’Bannon, Girls Inc.’s Touchstone Award for Arts Leadership, and the Indiana Commission on Women’s “Keeper of the Light”Torchbearer Award. She is a proud alum of the Stanley K. Lacy Leadership program (Class XIX) and the Shannon Leadership Institute in Minneapolis, Minnesota and is a 2013-14 Arts Council of Indianapolis Creative Renewal Arts Fellow. In April 2015 Janet was inducted into the College of Fellows of the AmericanTheatre at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts and received a Medallion Award for significant national contributions from the Children'sTheatre Foundation of America.

Janet is a member of the Indianapolis Woman’s Club and Congregation Beth-El Zedeck. She lives in the historic downtown Chatham Arch neighborhood with her husband, Joel Grynheim, their two daughters, and two lovely mutts.

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Henry Woronicz in last season's production of Red. Photo by Zach Rosing.

LEADERSHIP: SUZANNE SWEENEY MANAGING DIRECTOR & CHIEF OPERATING OFFICER Suzanne is a 17-year veteran of the IRT, and has managed every administrative area within the theatre at one time or another during that period. Serving as the managing director is the capstone to her career here.

Her main responsibility had been to serve as the chief financial officer of the theatre, running the business office, human resources, and information technology functions. As the CFO, she helped to steer the organization thorough 15 years of balanced budgets (and 15 audits!). She also served as the interim managing director for 18 months in 2004-2005.

Suzanne is continuing the work of helping to implement a structured and inclusive fundraising effort, including moving the theatre more proactively into planned giving, as well as expanding its marketing efforts and creativity. She is excited to be moving into year three of this leadership role of the organization she loves.

Suzanne is active in the community, having been the treasurer of Irish Fest for nine years and a member of the board of directors and treasurer of the Day Nursery Association for seven years and a past treasurer of Indy Fringe.

Suzanne is a graduate of the College of William and Mary (undergraduate), and Indiana University (M.B.A.). She started her career as a CPA; prior to coming to Indianapolis, Suzanne worked in finance for more than 10 years, living in such varied locales as Washington, DC; Dallas, Texas; Frankfurt, Germany; Honolulu, Hawaii; and even working for three months in Auckland, New Zealand (where, yes, she went bungee jumping). Suzanne is an alum of the Stanley K. Lacy Leadership Program (Class XXXI). Suzanne lives in the Old Northside, with her twelve-year-old son, Jackson, and their foxhound rescue dog, Gertie.

Ryan Artzberger in last season's The Two Gentlemen of Verona. Photo by Zach Rosing.

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LEADERSHIP: JAMES STILL PLAYWRIGHT-IN-RESIDENCE During James’s 18 years as playwright-in-residence, IRT audiences have seen his plays The House That Jack Built, I Love to Eat: Cooking with James Beard, The Velveteen Rabbit, The Heavens Are Hung in Black, Interpreting William, Iron Kisses, Looking over the President’s Shoulder (twice), The Gentleman from Indiana, Searching for Eden, He Held Me Grand, And Then They Came for Me: Remembering the World of Anne Frank (thrice), Amber Waves, and The Secret History of the Future. He has also directed many productions at the IRT, including Red, Other Desert Cities, God of Carnage, Becky’s New Car, Rabbit Hole, Doubt, Bad Dates, Plaza Suite, The Immigrant, and Dinner with Friends, as well as his own I Love to Eat, Looking over the President’s Shoulder (2001), and Amber Waves. This season the IRT produces the world premiere of his play April 4, 1968: Before We Forgot How to Dream and he directs The Mystery of Irma Vep. James is an elected member of the National Theatre Conference in New York and a Kennedy Center inductee of the College of Fellows of the American Theatre. Other honors include the Todd McNerney New Play Prize from the Spoleto Festival, William Inge Festival’s Otis Guernsey New Voices Award, the Orlin Corey Medallion from the Children’s Theatre Foundation of America, and the Charlotte B. Chorpenning Award for Distinguished Body of Work. His plays have been nominated three times for the Pulitzer Prize, and have been developed and workshopped at Robert Redford’s Sundance, the New Harmony Project, Eugene O’Neill Playwrights Conference, the Colorado New Play Summit, the Lark in New York, Launch Pad at UC-Santa Barbara, Perry-Mansfield New Works Festival, Telluride Playwright’s Festival, New Visions/New Voices, Fresh Ink, and Write Now at the IRT. Three of his plays have received the Distinguished Play Award from the American Alliance for Theatre & Education, and his work has been produced throughout the United States, Canada, China, Japan, Europe, South Africa, and Australia.

Other theatres that have produced James’s plays include the Kennedy Center, Denver Center, Geva, Cornerstone Theater Company, Ford's Theatre, People’s Light & Theatre, the Barter, Pasadena Playhouse, Portland Stage, the Station, the Asolo, Company of Fools, the Children’s Theater Company of Minneapolis, Metro Theater Company, B-Street Theatre, Tricklock, Vermont Stage Company, the Round House, American Blues, Illusion Theater, and the Mark Taper Forum.

Premieres last season included the Denver CenterTheatre production of Appoggiatura which was a nominee for Outstanding New Play for the Henry Awards at the ColoradoTheatre Guild.

Appoggiatura is the second play in the family trilogy that began with the award-winning The House That Jack Built. The final play in the trilogy is Miranda and is commissioned by Illusion Theater in Minneapolis. Also premiering last season was The Widow Lincoln at Ford'sTheatre in Washington, DC James's play When Miss Lydia Hinkley Gives a Bird the Bird is a current finalist for the Heideman Award from ActorsTheatre of Louisville.

James also works in television and film and has been nominated for five Emmys and a Television Critics Association Award; he has twice been a finalist for the Humanitas Prize. He was a producer and head writer for the series PAZ, the head writer for Maurice Sendak’s Little Bear, and writer for the Bill Cosby series Little Bill. He wrote The Little Bear Movie and The Miffy Movie as well as the feature film The Velocity of Gary. James grew up in Kansas and lives in Los Angeles.

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Tyler Ostrander & Mitchell Wray in last season’s The Velveteen Rabbit., adapted by James Still.

Photo by Zach Rosing.

LEADERSHIP: COURTNEY SALE ASSOCIATE ARTISTIC DIRECTOR This is Courtney’s third season as the IRT’s associate artistic director.

Courtney works closely with Janet Allen on all aspects of the artistic process, with particular emphasis on casting, education outreach programming, line producing, script selection, and new artistic projects. Additionally, she directs one or two productions a year. Past IRT productions include Jackie and Me, And Then They Came for Me: Remembering the World of Anne Frank, The Mountaintop, A Christmas Carol and The Giver; in the 2015-2016 season, she directs April 4, 1968: Before We Forgot How to Dream, A Christmas Carol, and The Mousetrap.

Courtney is a director with a strong interest in new plays and devised work. Selected directing credits include Mario and the Comet that Stopped the World at NYU/Provincetown Playhouse; uncertain terms (Northwest Playwrights Alliance at Seattle Repertory Theatre); The There There (New Harmony Project, Denver Center Theatre), Zen Prayers and Songs written & performed by Kirk Lynn (Fusebox Festival), The Zoo Story (Secondhand Theatre), Plays for Horses (Performance Studies International at Stanford University), the world premiere of Steven Dietz’s 360 (round dance) (UT Austin), Emergency Prom (UT Austin), Dream of Perfect Sleep (UT Austin), The Tides of Aberdeen (UT Austin), Aloha, Say the Pretty Girls (The Management), The Chalk Boy (The Management), and A Bright Room Called Day (Strike Anywhere Productions). As co-artistic director of The Duplicates, she has co-created/directed The Poison Squad (2013 Austin Critics Award), The Fictional Life of Historical Oddities, Static (2012 Austin Critics Nominee), september play, The Man with the Dancing Eyes, and Expo 2054. Her production of Kristen Kosmas’s The Scandal! was nominated for the New York Innovative Theater Award and featured in American Theatre Magazine. Additionally, her work has been recognized in the Austin Chronicle, Dramatist Magazine, UT Know, and The Daily Texan. In 2001, she was one of fourteen emerging directors to participate in Peter Brook’s workshop in conjunction with his tour of Hamlet. Courtney was awarded a prestigious continuing fellowship through the Graduate School at UT. She has taught at the University of Texas at Austin, Seattle Children’s Museum, Summer at Cornish, Cornish College of the Arts, Booker T. Washington High School of Performing Arts (Dallas), and at Temple College. Courtney has a B.F.A. from Cornish College of the Arts, and an M.F.A. from the University of Texas at Austin.

Courtney lives in Indianapolis with her husband, Sean, and their son, Finn.

Henry Cooper and Matthew Brumlow in last season’s A Christmas Carol, directed by Courtney Sale.

Photo by Zach Rosing.

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INDIANA REPERTORY THEATRE STAFF EXECUTIVE ARTISTIC DIRECTOR & CEO

Janet Allen

ARTISTIC Associate Artistic Director Courtney Sale General Manager Jane Robison Production Manager Brian S. Newman Resident Dramaturg Richard J Roberts Company Manager Hillary Martin Manager of Outreach Programs Milicent Wright Playwright-in-Residence James Still COSTUME SHOP Costume Shop Manager Guy Clark Cutter-Draper Jessica Hayes Costumers Francisnelli Bailoni dos Santos Julianne Johnson Wardrobe Supervisor Rich Taylor

ELECTRICS Master Electrician Beth A. Nuzum Assistant Master Electrician Elizabeth Smith Electrician Matt Griffin

Master Carpenter Betty Rupp

PAINT SHOP Charge Scenic Artist Claire Dana Assistant Charge Scenic Artist Jim Schumacher

SOUND Resident Sound Designer Todd Mack Reischman Lead Sound Engineer Maggie Hall Sound Engineer Jason Tuttle

PROPERTIES SHOP Properties Manager Geoffrey Ehrendreich Properties Carpenter Christina Buerosse Properties Artisan Rachelle Martin Wilburn SCENE SHOP Technical Director Chris Fretts Assistant Technical Director John Bennett Shop Foreman Kyle Baker

Carpenters Catharine Kerr David Sherrill Deck Manager Matt Shives

STAGE MANAGEMENT Production Stage Manager Nathan Garrison Stage Manager Joel Grynheim Production Assistants Brittany Cowgill Stephanie Hawkins Youth Actor Liason Claire Stark

INDIANA REPERTORY THEATRE PART-TIME STAFF & ASSOCIATES ARTISTIC Dramaturgy Intern Austin Yoder

Kathi Ridley-Merriweather Beverly Roche Milicent Wright

Costumer Rachel McCullough

Teaching Artists Chelsea Anderson Andrew Black Iris Dauterman Karaline Feller Callie Burk Hartz Christina Howard Tom Horan Ronn Johnstone

ELECTRICS Electricians Lee Edmundson Kate Smith

PAINT SHOP Scenic Painters Lee Edmundson Jason J. Gill

COSTUME SHOP Dressers Whitney Klein Brittany Kugler

SCENE SHOP Carpenters Lee Edmundson Richard Landon Colin Shay Amanda Greene

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MANAGING DIRECTOR & CHIEF OPERATING OFFICER

Suzanne Sweeney

ADMINISTRATION Receptionist / Administrative Assistant Seema Juneja Administrative Support Specialist Suzanne Spradlin Beinart DEVELOPMENT Director of Development Adam L. Clevenger Associate Director of Development Jennifer Turner Individual Gifts Officer Lindsey Horan Foundations Officer Elisabeth Lesem Development Systems Brady Clark EDUCATION Manager of Education Randy D. Pease Assistant Manager of Education Ann Marie Elliott FINANCE Director of Finance Greg Perkins

MARKETING ASSOCIATE Program Advertising Manager Dave Charrlin | New Moon Advertising FINANCE ASSOCIATES External Auditors Crowe Horwath LLP Legal Counsel Scott Himsel PATRON SERVICES Assistant House Managers Pat Bebee

Controller Brenda Chappell

Clerical Assistant James McWilliams

Payroll & Benefits Specialist Jennifer Carpenter

Priority Seating Representatives Melanie Conley Todd Kemmerer Nancy McCarthy Dustin Miller Mark Vogel

INFORMATION SYSTEMS Director of Information Systems Dan Bradburn MARKETING Director of Marketing & Sales Brandee Bryant Marketing Communications Manager Carolyne Holcomb Subscription & Group Sales Manager Catherine Cardwell Graphic Designer Amber Mills Multimedia Coordinator Chelsea S. Reed OUTREACH Manager of Subscription & Development Outreach Christopher Holden Assistant Manager of Subscription & Development Outreach Aaron Henze Doug Sims

Terri Bradburn Rebecca Eccles Rene Fox Marilyn Hatcher Bill Imel Sarah James Sherry McCoy Gail McDermott-Bowler Sherry Nielsen Deborah Provisor Pheobe Rodgers Kathy Sax Karen Sipes Sheila Smith

PATRON SERVICES Manager of Patron Services Robert Steele Ticket Office Manager Margaret Lehtinen Ticketing Systems Specialist Molly Wible House Manager & Special Events Coordinator Amanda Lyons Customer Service Representatives Thomas Cardwell Sarah Doyle Mak Jungnickel Jacob Peterman Katie Phelan Kimberly Reeves Building Services Dameon Cooper Gaylord Gaulden Dave Melton

Maggie Ward Heather Welling Stacy Zehringer Bartenders Gayle Durcholz Sandra Hester-Steele Nancy Hiser Susan Korbin Tina Weaver

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THE BOARD: MICHAEL J. HARRINGTON INDIANA REPERTORY THEATRE BOARD CHAIR Welcome to the IRT! On behalf of the IRT’s Board of Directors and staff, I want to thank you for joining us for another world-class performance created right here at Indiana's leading fully professional theatre. Whether you’ve been part of the IRT family for years or you are here for the first time, we’re glad to see you!

As we begin our 44th season, we also want to thank you for continuing to support the IRT’s service to the people of Indiana. Your attendance, your gifts, and your good will are crucial components in our ongoing stability. With your participation, the IRT can continue its longtime role as a pillar of the state’s performing arts scene, an important downtown magnet, and a valuable community partner. Enjoy the show!

– Michael J. Harrington

BOARD OF DIRECTORS OFFICERS

MEMBERS

CHAIR

Sharon R. Barner -Cummins, Inc. Frank Basile -Community Volunteer

Sarah Lechleiter -Community Volunteer

Jennifer Vigran -Second Helpings, Inc.

Lawren K. Mills -Ice Miller LLP

Amy Waggoner -Salesforce

Gerald Berg -Wells Fargo Advisors

Charlie Morgan -Emmis Communications

L. Alan Whaley -Ice Miller LLP

Carl W. Butler -Angie’s List, Inc.

Michael Moriarty -Frost Brown Todd

David Whitman* -Community Volunteer

Ann Colussi Dee -Duke Realty

Timothy W. Oliver -JP Morgan Chase Bank, NA

William O. Williams II -UnitedHealthcare

Amy Griman

Gary Denney -Eli Lilly and Company, Retired

BOARD EMERITUS

IMMEDIATE PAST CHAIR

Michael P. Dinius -Noble Consulting Services, Inc.

Brian Payne -Central Indiana Community Foundation

Michael J. Harrington -Eli Lilly and Company

VICE CHAIR | CHAIR ELECT

Thomas C. Froehle Jr. -Faegre Baker Daniels

SECRETARY

Nadine Givens -PNC Wealth Management TREASURER

-Fifth Third Bank

Daniel C. Emerson -Indianapolis Colts

Frank Esposito -Washington & Scoville LLC Richard D. Feldman -Franciscan St. Francis Health James W. Freeman -OneAmerica Financial Partners, Inc.

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Becca Polak -KAR Auction Services, Inc. Tammara D. Porter -Taft Stettinius & Hollister LLP James Reed -Bingham Greenebaum Doll LLP Peter N. Reist -Oxford Financial Group

Ron Gifford -Jump IN for Healthy Kids

Sue Ringo -Community Volunteer

Michael N. Heaton -Katz Sapper & Miller

Wayne Schmidt -Schmidt Associates

Brenda Horn -Ice Miller LLP

Michael Semler -Cushman & Wakefield

Jill Lacy -The Lacy Foundation

Mark Shaffer -KPMG LLP

Robert Anker* Rollin Dick Berkley Duck* Dale Duncan* Michael Lee Gradison* Margie Herald David Klapper David Kleiman* E. Kirk McKinney Jr. (in memoriam) Richard Morris* (in memoriam) Jane Schlegel* Jerry Semler* Jack Shaw* William E. Smith III* Eugene R. Tempel* * Past Board Chairs

MUSICIAN. TECHIE.

CITIZEN. EMPLOYEE.

We’re all citizens. Just like you.

Whether she’s playing guitar or making sure computer programs are in sync, Julie knows the audience wants excellence. That’s no small challenge when your audience is 400,000 customers in and around Indianapolis. People who depend on Julie, and others like her for the water that brews coffee and fills dog dishes. So every day she makes sure her performance is the best it can be, because Julie doesn’t just work for Citizens Energy Group. She lives here, too.

Visit IndyCitizens.com to learn more.

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PRESENTS

ONEAMERICA MAINSTAGE

MARCH 9 - APRIL 3

REVIEWS? FACEBOOK/TWITTER: #irtlive EMAIL: reviews@irtlive.com

ARTISTIC

Director_________________ LOU BELLAMY Scenic Designer_____________________ VICKI SMITH Costume Designer________________MATHEW J. LEFEBVRE Lighting Designer__________________DON DARNUTZER Sound Designer_______________BRIAN JEROME PETERSON Fight Choreographer_____________________ BRENT GIBBS Stage Manager________________ NATHAN GARRISON*

ARTS PARTNERS

m a k i n g t h e a rts h a p p e n

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Season Sponsor

SEASON 2015 - 2016

Associate Sponsor

Production Partner

JANET ALLEN

Executive Artistic Director Chief Executive Officer

SUZANNE SWEENEY

Managing Director, Chief Operating Officer

THE CAST Troy Maxon_______________DAVID ALAN ANDERSON* Jim Bono_____________________MARCUS NAYLOR* Rose______________________________ KIM STAUNTON* Lyons______________________ JAMES T. ALFRED* Gabriel________________________ TERRY BELLAMY* Cory________________________ EDGAR SANCHEZ* Raynell___________________ ELISE KELIAH BENSON

THE SETTING 1957; later, 1965 The Maxson family home in the Hill District, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania The performance will last approximately two hours and 45 minutes with one intermission.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Fences is produced by special arrangement with Samuel French, Inc. Originally produced by Yale Repertory Theatre, Lloyd Richards, Artistic Director.

Fight Captain: James T. Alfred *Cast and stage managers who 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 are represented by United Scenic Artists Local 829, IATSE. Photography and recording are forbidden in the theatre. The videotaping of this production is a violation of United States Copyright Law and an actionable Federal Offense.

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LEGACIES

BY JANET ALLEN, EXECUTIVE ARTISTIC DIRECTOR

Producing Fences for a second time at the IRT provides a variety of leverage points for reflection. Our first production of the play in 1996 came at a time when playwright August Wilson’s star was on the rise. He had not yet completed his monumental ten-play series documenting the African American experience in each decade of the 20th century. He was winning awards, changing perspectives, and introducing a new language and energy to the American theatre. Twenty years later, his untimely death in 2005 at age 60, which robbed our culture of a master poet and sage, seems far too long ago. Mercifully, his plays are easily proving the test of time and becoming classics, perhaps none so thoroughly and memorably as Fences.

Another way in which time has surely passed in our approach to this play is in its casting. In our 1996 production, Indianapolis native and beloved actor David Alan Anderson played the rebellious son Lyons. In our current production, David is playing Troy, father and towering center point of the play. The 1996 Troy will be remembered by many of you: he was played by John Henry Redwood, whose career at the IRT was most notable for creating the role of Alonzo Fields in our first production of Looking over the President’s Shoulder in 2001. John Henry’s own untimely death at age 60 stopped short an amazing career. It also left an empty hole in several productions of Looking over the President’s Shoulder scheduled around the country—holes that David Alan Anderson filled ably, and beautifully, including the IRT’s own second production of the play in 2008. There are some real legacy moments at work here.

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And here’s another: this production is blessed to be directed by Lou Bellamy, whose own relationship with August Wilson, his entire oeuvre, and with David Alan Anderson for that matter, gives us great opportunity for gratitude. As Lou details in his own program note (opposite), his long relationship as an actor, director, and producer of Wilson’s work makes him the leading interpreter of Wilson’s plays and characters. He literally knows these plays inside out, having worked on them now for more than 35 years. Lou’s legacy with Fences, and all of Wilson’s work, means that he brings with him a wealth of deep and nuanced understanding and tremendous love for these characters and this story.

This production is the product of that deep understanding, and to the loyalty of actors and designers to Lou’s vision.

The majority of the actors in this production and the entire design team created a production of Fences at the Denver Center Theatre Company in 2014. That production was so lauded that several of us decided it needed another life: so this current production is being shared by Arizona Theatre Company, Indiana RepertoryTheatre, and Milwaukee Repertory Theatre, and therefore seen by audiences across the country.

My thanks to Lou for his early support of August Wilson, for his ability to inspire intense loyalty and fierce performances from artists, and for entrepreneurial skills that allow us to hold this play in our hands and share it with thousands of people, many of whom may be experiencing this masterpiece for the first time. May its legacy live on.

David Alan Anderson and John Henry Redwood in the IRT’s 1996 production of Fences.

MR. WILSON & ME

BY LOU BELLAMY, DIRECTOR

My relationship with the Wilson oeuvre is largely due to my friendship with the playwright as well as my role as founding artistic director of Penumbra Theatre Company in Saint Paul, Minnesota. As artistic director, I produced Mr. Wilson’s first professional production—Black Bart and the Sacred Hills in 1982.

Penumbra Theatre continues to hold the record for having produced more of his work than any theatre in the world. Mr. Wilson was a member of Penumbra Theatre Company and wrote Malcolm X, a one-man show, expressly for me to perform. I’ve had the honor of bringing several of his characters to life on the stage, including Troy Maxson, Wilson’s flawed hero in Fences.

My professional aesthetic, my relationship with and interpretation of history, and the manner in which I present African American comportment and culture on stage is shaped by his work. I find the spaces Wilson

has engineered in this work capable of being filled by authentic African American cultural rhythms and nuance. Yet, Fences remains perhaps August Wilson’s most accessible play. Maybe it’s the structure, which weaves Wilson’s tale around a single, Lear-like figure who has at once engendered deep understanding, revulsion, and identification from audiences all over the world.

The ensemble you will meet in this production (which includes IRT stalwart David Alan Anderson) is easily the strongest I’ve had the pleasure of leading. The quality and attention to detail of the designers is, in my estimation, without equal. Please enjoy the fruits of our labor, and experience the “thunder” that is Fences.

David Alan Anderson and Kim Staunton in Fences, 2016.

Photo by Jennifer M. Koskinen.

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RETURNING TO THE HILL DISTRICT

MATHEW J. LEFEBVRE COSTUME DESIGNER

There’s a level of authenticity that was essential to the design. We drew great inspiration from the photographs of Charles “Teenie” Harris, who took photos of daily life in the Hill District of Pittsburgh. These photos are rich with vital information regarding character, attitudes, texture, and living conditions specific to the area and the period where the play is set. I tried to use as much vintage clothing as possible, again striving for authenticity; although it’s possible to recreate clothing for different periods, it’s hard

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to beat the real thing. Many of the fabrics used in the 1950s are much different than what we can find today, not just color and pattern, but also weight and drape. You’ll see a combination of vintage and reproduction clothing; this mixture was especially important with Rose. In order to show her trajectory through use of color, we couldn’t rely solely on existing garments; but we were fortunate to find reproduction fabrics which really had the right feel for this production.

DON DARNUTZER

VICKI SMITH

The job of the lighting designer is to support the vision of the director and to complement the designs created by the scenic, costume, and sound designers. My design for Fences is a realistic treatment of time of day, the passage of time, and season. The lighting follows the emotional arc of the play by my use of color, intensity, and direction of the lighting. The play takes place in the Hill District of Pittsburgh in 1957. One of my design elements for this play is the quality of light as it filters through the polluted skies caused by the many steel mills in Pittsburgh at that time.

I hope to recreate the subdued and hazy color in the skies which is created by the scattering of light off particulates and pollution.

Fences takes place in the Hill District of Pittsburgh, where August Wilson grew up. There is a wonderful photographer named Charles “Teenie” Harris who documented that neighborhood extensively from the 1930s to the 1960s, so there is a wealth of period source material to look at.

The neighborhood is mostly brick row houses, two stories, tall and narrow, with streets made of pavers, and small yards of hard-packed dirt with little vegetation. The houses were mostly built in the mid-to-late 19th century and, in Harris’s photographs from the 1950s, they show their age. Troy Maxson’s house is on an alley, narrower than a street. I wanted his house to be architecturally correct for Pittsburgh, but I particularly wanted to close it in with surrounding buildings, leaving only a narrow slot of sky visible: Troy is a man who doesn’t have a lot of room to move in his life.

LIGHTING DESIGNER

Below: Scenic drawing by designer Vicki Smith.

Left: Renderings for Rose and Gabriel by costume designer Mathew J. LeFebvre.

SCENIC DESIGNER

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AUGUST WILSON PLAYWRIGHT

BY RICHARD J ROBERTS RESIDENT DRAMATURG

August Wilson was born Frederick August Kittel in 1945 in the Hill District of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, which would later be the setting for most of his plays. His father was a white German immigrant; his mother was black. Wilson later stated that the “nurturing, the learning” of his life were “all black ideas about the world that I learned from my mother. My mother’s a very strong woman. My female characters come in large part from my mother.”

In the late 1950s, August’s family moved to Hazelwood, a predominantly white suburb of Pittsburgh. Wilson attended Gladstone High School until 1961, when he dropped out at age fifteen. Unlike many dropouts, Wilson did not leave school because he couldn’t read. “I was bored,” he later said. “I was confused, I was disappointed in myself, and I didn’t do any work until my history teacher assigned us to write a paper on a historical personage.”

Wilson chose Napoleon because he had always been fascinated with the “self-made emperor.” It was a twentypage paper, and Wilson’s sister typed it up on a rented typewriter.

Since Wilson had previously done no work in class, his instructor found it hard to believe that it was his own work. He wrote both an A+ and then an F on the paper.

If Wilson couldn’t prove that the paper was his own, he would receive the failing grade. “Unless you call everybody in here and have all the people prove they wrote them, even the ones that went and copied out of the 22

encyclopedia word for word, I don’t feel I should have to prove anything,” replied Wilson. He took the failing grade, tore up the paper, threw it in his teacher’s wastebasket, and walked out of school.

“The next morning, I got up and played basketball right underneath the principal’s window. As I look back on it, I see I wanted him to come and say, ‘Why aren’t you in school?’ so I could tell someone. And he never came out.”

Rather than tell his mother he had dropped out, Wilson spent every school day at the public library, reading some 300 books over the next four years. His reading eventually led him to pursue a career as a writer.

Wilson spent years “hanging out on street corners, following old men around, working odd jobs.” Then he discovered a place called Pat’s Cigar Store in Pittsburgh. “It was the same place that Claude McKay mentioned in his book Home to Harlem. When I found out about that, I said, ‘This is part of history,’ and I ran down there to where all the old men in the community would congregate.”

Wilson channeled his early literary efforts into poetry, saving his nickels for a $20 used typewriter when he was 19. Around that same time, he bought a recording of blues singer Bessie Smith, and hearing this music for the first time changed his life. Later he wrote that hearing Smith’s voice led to an “awakening.” He began to see himself as a messenger, a link in the chain of African American

culture, and he assumed the responsibility of passing stories and ideas from the past to the future. The idea of the blues as a vessel for the African American experience is one that appears frequently in Wilson’s work, along with that of a given character searching for his song—his own personal legacy and his path in life.

In 1968, Wilson co-founded Pittsburgh’s Black Horizon Theatre Company. He began writing one-act plays during the height of the Black Power Movement as a way “to politicize the community and raise consciousness.” He always maintained that the “one thing that has best served me as a playwright is my background in poetry.”

His move to Minnesota in the early 1970s served as a catalyst, permitting both the colloquial voices of his youth and his burgeoning skills as a dramatist to flourish at a remove from their geographical source.

Wilson did not think of himself as a playwright, however, until he received his first writing grant in the late 1970s.

“I walked in,” he remembered of his first encounter at the Playwright’s Center, “and there were sixteen playwrights.

It was the first time I had dinner with other playwrights. It was the first time I began to think of myself as one.”

It was this grant that allowed Wilson to rework a one-act about a blues recording session into what became the full-length Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom. The play caught the attention of Lloyd Richards, artistic director of the Eugene O’Neill Theatre Center and dean of the Yale School of Drama. Richards directed Ma Rainey and many of Wilson’s subsequent dramas. When Ma Rainey ran on Broadway for ten months in 1984, it was the first profitable Broadway play by a black writer since Lorraine Hansberry’s A Raisin in the Sun in 1959. Wilson’s successful career opened doors for many other talented writers.

Wilson died of liver cancer in 2005. Two weeks after his death, Broadway’s Virginia Theatre in New York City was renamed the August Wilson Theatre, becoming the first Broadway theatre to be named for an African American.

Today August Wilson is considered not only one of the greatest African American playwrights, but also one of the greatest American playwrights of our time.

THE HILL DISTRICT The Hill District is a sprawling 650 acres that looks across Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania; it was the first district in the city to develop outside the walls of the original Fort Pitt. Originally farmland owned by William Penn’s grandson, the area became the first planned residential neighborhood in Pittsburgh in 1840, attracting wealthy professionals. In the 1870s, African Americans and European immigrants began to settle in the Hill District, attracted by job opportunities in the steel industry.

By the 1930s, the residents of the Hill District were mostly African American, Jewish, and Italian American. From the 1930s to the 1950s, the Hill District was one of the most energetic and powerful African American neighborhoods in the nation, flourishing as a center for business, art, and music, overflowing with clubs, businesses, and churches, and bustling with crowds both day and night. At the same time, the district’s infrastructure was crumbling. In the 1950s and 1960s, homes were razed but not replaced. More recent housing, retail, and restoration developments bring hope to this historic area, but today the Hill District still struggles.

Around this time, Wilson conceived of a truly grand-scale project: He would write ten plays, one for each decade of the twentieth century, each focusing on a particular issue that challenged the African American community at that time.

Over the next 20 years, Wilson faced this challenge at the stand-up desk in his basement, where he wrote and rewrote each play in longhand on legal pads. Along the way he won two Pulitzer Prizes, for Fences and The Piano Lesson.

Right: Photograph by Charles “Teenie” Harris, the Hill District, corner of Wylie Avenue and Townsend Street, c. 1951-54.

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FROM THE PLAYWRIGHT

BY AUGUST WILSON

Near the turn of the century, the destitute of Europe sprang on the city with tenacious claws and an honest and solid dream. The city devoured them. They swelled its belly until it burst into a thousand furnaces and sewing machines, a thousand butcher shops and baker’s ovens, a thousand churches and hospitals and funeral parlors and money lenders. The city grew. It nourished itself and offered each man a partnership limited only by his talent, his guile, and his willingness and capacity for hard work. For the immigrants of Europe, a dream dared and won true.

The descendants of African slaves were offered no such welcome or participation. They came from places called the Carolinas and the Virginias, Georgia, Alabama, Mississippi, and Tennessee. They came strong, eager, searching. The city rejected them and they fled, settled along the riverbanks and under bridges in shallow, ramshackle houses made of sticks and tar-paper. They collected rags and wood. They sold the use of their muscles and their bodies. They cleaned houses and washed clothes, they shined shoes, and in quiet desperation and vengeful pride, they stole, and lived in pursuit of their own dream: that they could breathe free, finally, and stand to meet life with the force and dignity and whatever eloquence the heart could call upon.

By 1957, the hard-won victories of the European immigrants had solidified the industrial might of America. War had been confronted and won with new energies that used loyalty and patriotism as its fuel. Life was rich, full, and flourishing. The Milwaukee Braves won the World Series, and the hot winds of change that would make the sixties a turbulent, racing, dangerous, and provocative decade had not yet begun to blow full.

Photographs by Charles “Teenie” Harris.

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AUGUST WILSON'S TWENTIETH CENTURY set in 1904 | Gem of the Ocean (premiered 2003) (produced by the IRT in 2007) A haunting, ghostlike play, conjuring tales of slave ships and the black man’s world after slavery.

1911 | Joe Turner’s Come and Gone (1986) The children and grandchildren of slavery grapple with a world that won’t let them forget the past.

1927 | Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom (1984) A volatile trumpet player rebels against racism in a Chicago recording studio.

1936 | The Piano Lesson (1987) (produced by the IRT in 2008) A brother and sister battle over a family heirloom, a link to their past. Pulitzer Prize winner.

1948 | Seven Guitars (1995) The final days of a Pittsburgh blues guitarist, as remembered by his circle of friends.

1957 | Fences (1985) (produced by the IRT in 1996 & 2016) A father-son drama of dreams denied.

Pulitzer Prize & Tony Award winner.

1968 | Two Trains Running (1990) The displaced and the dreamers congregate in a dilapidated restaurant scheduled for demolition.

1977 | Jitney (1979, 1996) (produced by the IRT in 2004) The owner of a jitney cab company squares off against his son, newly released from prison.

1985 | King Hedley II (1999) An ex-con attempts to get his life back on track despite the despair that surrounds him.

1997 | Radio Golf (2005) (produced by the IRT in 2012) A successful middle-class entrepreneur tries to reconcile the present with the past.

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THE COMPANY JAMES T. ALFRED LYONS

James returns to the IRT, where he appeared in April 4, 1968. Other theater credits include Arizona Theatre Company, Penumbra Theatre Company, Congo Square Theatre Company, Steppenwolf Theatre Company, Guthrie Theater, Denver Center, NY Public Theater, Court Theater, Kansas City Repertory Theatre, Second City, Round House Theatre, Wooly Mammoth Theatre Company, Milwaukee Repertory Theater, and A.R.T. James recurs as Tyree on the FOX hit drama series Empire. Other television credits include the award-winning Starz original series Boss, Prison Break, and Chicago P.D. He has appeared in a dozen independent films including the critically acclaimed One Week. He is a graduate of the Institute for Advanced Theater Training at Harvard University and holds an M.F.A in acting from the Moscow Art Theatre School in Russia.

DAVID ALAN ANDERSON TROY MAXSON

IPS #37, #57, Arsenal Tech HS, Indiana University. David is Indianapolis born and bred, and began his association with the IRT in 1990 in a production of A Dickens of a Christmas Carol, directed by Planet Janet Commander Janet Allen. Since then, IRT audiences have seen him in a variety of roles, most recently in What I Learned in Paris, Julius Caesar, The Mountaintop, Romeo and Juliet, The Whipping Man, Radio Golf, The Heavens Are Hung in Black, Looking over the President's Shoulder, A Christmas Carol, and many others. Recently he appeared at the Court Theatre in Chicago in Gem of the Ocean and The Mountaintop (Chicago Jeff Award nomination). Other regional credits include the Guthrie Theater; Baltimore CenterStage; Denver Theatre Center; Actors Theatre of Louisville; the Idaho, Pennsylvania, and Lake Tahoe Shakespeare Festivals; the Great Lakes Theatre Festival; Cleveland Play House; Arizona Theatre Company; and many more. David is a company member with the Penumbra Theatre in St Paul, Minnesota, where he began his long association with Fences director and Penumbra founder Lou Bellamy in 1989, and where he has been involved in several productions of the August Wilson cycle. David’s directing credits include The Color of Justice and Most Valuable Player on the IRT Upperstage and Two Trains Running and Topdog/Underdog at the Phoenix Theatre.

He received a 2007 Creative Renewal Fellowship from the Arts Council of Indianapolis, and he was honored in 2009 by the Circle City Links for his achievements in the arts. He is a 2013 recipient of the prestigious Lunt-Fontanne Fellowship sponsored by the Ten Chimneys Foundation.

TERRY BELLAMY GABRIEL

Terry previously appeared at the IRT in Radio Golf. He is a founding member of Penumbra Theatre Company in St. Paul and the recipient of two Twin Cities Drama Critics Circle Awards. He has performed at the Goodman Theatre, Oregon Shakespeare Festival, Center Stage Baltimore, Cleveland Play House, Guthrie Theater, Guthrie II, Hudson Guild (Off-Broadway), Park Square Theatre, Mixed Blood Theatre, Illusion Theater, and Ten Thousand Things Theater.

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ELISE KELIAH BENSON RAYNELL

Elise is 11 years old and a sixth grader at the Oaks Academy Middle School. This is her debut at the Indiana Repertory Theatre, but she has appeared in a few local high school productions. She was a ballerina in The Wizard of Oz and appeared in Cinderella as a little sister in the town. She was one of two students selected to represent her school in a speech presentation of “Ain’t I a Woman.” Elise loves to sing and is currently taking dance classes. Her dream is one day to become an actress. “I am thrilled to be performing in my first professional production!”

MARCUS NAYLOR JIM BONO

Marcus is making his IRT debut. His Off-Broadway credits include Black Stars of the Great White Way at Carnegie Hall, Breaking Phillip Glass with The Collective, Cool Blues at New Federal Theatre, Love Letters on Ripped Paper at the Joyce Theatre, Watin 2 End Hell at the New Federal Theatre, The Cave Dwellers with the Pearl Theatre Company, No Dogs at Primary Stages, RATS at the Lee Strasberg Theatre, True West at Lincoln Center’s Clark Studio, and Cast Me Down at Theatre Four. Regional credits include Denver Center, Kennedy Center, Arena Stage, Cleveland Play House, Karamu House, Berkshire Playwrights Lab, Crossroads Theatre, and Shakespeare on the Sound. Film and television credits include In Our Youth, Hudson Sunset in the After-While, The Reunion: A Jazz Fantasy, King Lear, Slings and Arrows, Boardwalk Empire, Law & Order, Law & Order: SVU, Without a Trace, The Meeting, Malcolm X, and Only in America.

EDGAR SANCHEZ CORY

Edgar is making his IRT debut. His Chicago credits include Water by the Spoonful and Native Son at the Court Theatre; The Wheel at Steppenwolf; Romeo and Juliet and Twelfth Night at Chicago Shakespeare Theatre; This Is Our Youth with Sankofa Theatre Company; The Ghost Is Here with Vitalist; Fever Chart with Eclipse; Brothers of the Dust at Congo Square; Sinbad: The Untold Story with Adventure Stage; 1001 with Collaboraction; Red Noses Remount with Strawdog; Welcome to Arroyo’s at American Theatre Company; and Wilson Wants It All at The House. Regional credits include Water by the Spoonful at Theatre Squared; the title role in Hamlet at the Gable Stage; Twelfth Night, Richard III, Troilus and Cressida, and The Admirable Crichton at American Players Theatre; and A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Othello, and The Comedy of Errors at the Oregon Shakespeare Festival. He has been seen on television’s Sense 8.

KIM STAUNTON ROSE

Kim is making her IRT debut. She has been a guest company member at the Denver Center Theatre Company for the past 14 seasons, and she represented the company as an inaugural Lunt-Fontanne Fellow at Ten Chimneys Foundation. Regional credits include Arizona Theatre Company, Portland Stage Company, Ebony Repertory Theatre, South Coast Repertory, Center Theatre Group/Kirk Douglas Theatre, Lake Dillon Theatre Company, Lone Tree Arts Center, Seattle Repertory Theatre, Syracuse Stage, Berkeley Repertory Theatre, Virginia Stage Company, Pittsburgh Public Theatre, Colorado Shakespeare Festival, Folger Theatre, Arena Stage, Hartford Stage, and the O’Neill Theatre Center. She has performed in numerous productions on and off Broadway. Film credits include First Sunday, Changing Lanes, Heat, Dragonfly, Bark, Holy Man, Deceived, and Amos & Andrew. Television appearances have included guest starring roles on Eleventh Hour, Army Wives, The Nine, Bones, Strong Medicine, Judging Amy, Law and Order, City of Angels, New York Undercover, and TNT’s original movie Glory and Honor. Kim is a native of Washington, D.C., and a graduate of the Juilliard School.

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THE COMPANY LOU BELLAMY DIRECTOR

Lou has directed What I learned in Paris and Radio Golf at the IRT. He is the founder and artistic director of Penumbra Theatre Company. During his 40-year tenure, Penumbra has evolved into one of America’s premier theatres dedicated to dramatic exploration of the African American experience. Under his leadership, Penumbra has grown to be the largest theatre of its kind in America and has produced 35 world premieres, including August Wilson’s first professional production. Penumbra is proud to have produced more of Mr. Wilson’s plays than any other theater in the world. Lou is an OBIE Award-winning director, an accomplished actor, and for 38 years was an associate professor at the University of Minnesota in the Department of Theatre Arts and Dance. He most recently directed Two Trains Running at the Oregon Shakespeare Festival. Selected directing credits include plays at Arizona Theatre Company, Denver Center for the Performing Arts, Signature Theatre, Cleveland Play House, Guthrie Theater, the Kennedy Center, and Hartford Stage Company.

VICKI SMITH SCENIC DESIGNER

Vicki has designed What I learned in Paris and Radio Golf at the IRT. Regional credits include Arizona Theatre Company, Denver Center Theatre Company, Cincinnati Playhouse, Milwaukee Rep, Geva Theatre Center, Utah Shakespeare Festival, Children’s Theatre Company, Oregon Shakespeare Festival, Guthrie Theater, Penumbra Theatre Company, Cleveland Play House, Actors Theatre of Louisville, Repertory Theatre of St. Louis, Seattle Repertory Theatre, Kansas City Repertory Theatre, Dallas Theatre Center, Pittsburgh Public Theatre, Alley Theatre, Berkeley Repertory Theatre, ACT (Seattle), and San Jose Repertory Theatre. She has also designed for Anchorage Opera, Minnesota Opera, and the Comedy Theatre of Budapest and National Theatre of Miskolc in Hungary.

Awards include Bay Area Theatre Critics Circle Awards for Kite Runner and Execution of Justice; Drama-Logue Award for Cyrano; and Colorado Theatre Guild and Denver Ovation Awards for Mariela in the Desert, Doubt, Plainsong, I’m Not Rappaport, and Pierre, which was selected for the 2007 Prague Quadrennial Design Exposition.

MATHEW J. LEFEBVRE COSTUME DESIGNER

Mathew designed last season’s What I Learned in Paris. His Off-Broadway credits include Two Trains Running at Signature Theatre (Lucille Lortel Award winner for Best Revival of a Play, AUDELCO Award nominee for costume design) and Bach at Leipzig for New York Theatre Workshop. Mathew has designed costumes for more than 20 productions at the Guthrie Theater, including A Christmas Carol, A Streetcar Named Desire, 1776, She Loves Me, Pride and Prejudice, Wintertime, Merrily We Roll Along, and School for Scandal. He has designed costumes for several Penumbra Theatre Company productions, including Fences, Redshirts, Get Ready, Grandchildren of the Buffalo Soldiers, On the Open Road, Black Eagles, Joe Turner’s Come and Gone, Jitney, and both scenery and costumes for Gem of the Ocean. Other regional credits include the Old Globe, the Acting Company, Milwaukee Repertory Theater, Trinity Repertory Company, Cleveland Play House, Theatre de la Jeune Lune, Geffen Playhouse, the Jungle Theater and American Players Theatre.

DON DARNUTZER LIGHTING DESIGNER

Don has designed What I learned in Paris and Radio Golf at the IRT. He designed the lighting for Broadway’s production of It Ain’t Nothin’ but the Blues and Off-Broadway’s Hank Williams: Lost Highway, Almost Heaven, and The Immigrant. He has worked for Arizona Theatre Company, American Conservatory Theater, Guthrie Theater, Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, Oregon Shakespeare Festival, Cleveland Play House, New Orleans Opera, Denver Center Theatre Company, Portland Opera, Kansas City Repertory Theatre, Alley Theatre, Seattle Repertory Theatre, BB King’s Blues Club in NYC, Palm Beach Opera, Shakespeare Theatre Company, Repertory Theatre of St. Louis, Actors Theatre of Louisville, Penumbra Theatre, and Geva Theatre Center.

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BRIAN JEROME PETERSON SOUND DESIGNER

Brian is very happy to be debuting at the IRT. Currently he is celebrating his 30th season at Arizona Theatre Company, where he has designed 82 productions, including The Mystery of Irma Vep (for which he won an ariZoni Award) and the world premieres of Sherlock Holmes and the Adventure of the Suicide Club, Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, Sherlock Holmes: The Final Adventure, Inventing van Gogh, Rocket Man, Minor Demons, and The Holy Terror. His designs have been heard in many theatres including Milwaukee Repertory Theatre, GEVA, Berkeley Repertory Theatre, La Mirada Theater, Virginia Stage Company, Seattle Repertory Theatre, the Cleveland Play House, Coconut Grove Playhouse, Northlight Theatre, Kansas City Repertory Theatre, Portland Center Stage, Actors Theatre of Louisville, St. Louis Repertory Theatre, and Childsplay. Brian has been the associate sound designer on a number of productions with the legendary Abe Jacob.

BRENT GIBBS FIGHT CHOREOGRAPHER

Brent teaches acting and stage combat at the University of Arizona’s School of Theatre Arts, where he also serves as the artistic director for the Arizona Repertory Theatre. He is a member of Actors’Equity Association and Screen Actors Guild/American Federation of Television and Radio Artists. For nine years, he served as the director, fight director, and production stage manager for one of the nation’s largest outdoor dramas, Tecumseh. He has gained recognition as an advanced actor/combatant by the Society of British Fight Directors, Fight Directors Canada, and the Society of American Fight Directors, where he also holds the rank of certified teacher and fight director. He has taught combat master classes around the United States and Europe at various schools, including the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art in London. For several summers he taught stage combat workshops at the International Theatreschool Festival in Amsterdam.

NATHAN GARRISON STAGE MANAGER

This is Nathan’s 20th season at the IRT. He has also worked with Center Stage in Baltimore, Utah Shakespeare Festival, Brown County Playhouse, and Heartland Actors Repertory (HART).

CLAIRE SIMON CASTING

Based in Chicago, Claire Simon, C.S.A., has worked with the IRT on casting more than 30 productions, including The Great Gatsby, The Two Gentlemen of Verona, The Game’s Afoot, The Mountaintop, The Crucible, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, The House That Jack Built, Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, Fallen Angels, The Diary of Anne Frank, Romeo and Juliet, The Heavens Are Hung in Black, Our Town, Inherit the Wind, Pride and Prejudice, and many more. Other regional credits include Syracuse Stage, Indiana Festival Theatre, Lyric Opera, Milwaukee Rep, New Theatre, Paramount, Writers Theatre, Broadway in Chicago’s Working, and the Tony Award–winning Million Dollar Quartet. TV credits include Empire, Sense8, Chicago Fire, Chicago PD, Crisis, Betrayal, Detroit 1-8-7, Boss, Mob Doctor, and Chicago Code. Film credits include Divergent, Contagion, Unexpected, and Man of Steel. Claire won an Artios Award for casting Season 1 of Fox’s Prison Break.

ARIZONA THEATRE COMPANY CO-PRODUCER

Arizona Theatre Company (ATC) is the preeminent fully professional theatre in the state of Arizona, committed to inspiring, engaging, and entertaining—one moment, one production, and one audience at a time. Boasting the largest seasonal subscriber base in the performing arts in Arizona, ATC is the only resident company in the United States that is fully based in two cities, providing its wide array of programming and community outreach across the region. Now in its 49th season, ATC has more than 130,000 people a year attending performances at the historic Temple of Music and Art in Tucson and the elegant Herberger Theater Center in downtown Phoenix. Each season of home-grown productions reflects the rich variety of world drama—from classics to contemporary plays, from musicals to new works—along with a wide array of community outreach programs, educational opportunities, access initiatives, and new play programs.

Designated the State Theatre of Arizona, ATC is led by artistic director David Ira Goldstein and a dedicated Board of Trustees. Fences ran at ATC–Tucson from January 16 through February 6, and at ATC–Phoenix from February 11 through 28.

MILWAUKEE REPERTORY THEATER CO-PRODUCER

Milwaukee RepertoryTheater is a nationally recognized company that presents compelling dramas, powerful classics, award-winning contemporary works, and full-scale musicals, housed in its three unique performance venues: the Quadracci Powerhouse, Stiemke Studio, and Stackner Cabaret.The Rep also produces an annual production of A Christmas Carol at the historic PabstTheater. Under the leadership of artistic sirector Mark Clements and managing director Chad Bauman, the Rep is committed to creating plays that are meaningful and relevant to the society we live in—plays that are challenging and visceral and engage the community through the issues they explore, demonstrating how a theatre deeply rooted in its locality can also enjoy a richly influential and resonant national voice. Fences will run at Milwaukee Rep from April 26 to May 22.

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S C H M I D T

A S S O C I A T E S

A R C H IT ECTS

ENGINEERS

R E I M A G I N I N G H I S T O R I C S T R U C T U R E S A N D D E S I G N I N G N E W S I N C E 19 76 .

W W W. S C H M I DT - A R C H . C O M

Our community outreach programs, sponsored by the Navient Foundation, support organizations and programs that address the root causes which limit financial success for all Americans.

This season, the Navient Foundation is proud to support the Indiana Repertory Theatre as a sponsor for the student matinee for To Kill a Mockingbird and a sponsor for the production support of Fences.

As the nation's leading loan management, servicing and asset recovery company, Navient helps customers navigate the path to financial success. The company supports the educational and economic achievements of more than 12 million Americans. A growing number of public and private sector government clients rely on Navient for proven solutions to meet their financial goals.

In this year’s presentation of Fences, Troy, like many in America, struggles to make sufficient money to provide for his family or save for the future. Today, many Americans rely on financial support to further their education and improve their chances of financial success. We work hard every day to educate our clients and customers to help them through financial challenges so they can achieve their desired financial results.

We at Navient share an affinity for the arts and an appreciation for the hard work, passion and emotion that goes into it, as well as the positive influence it can have on people’s lives. Navient and its over 1,500 employees in the Central Indiana area are dedicated to giving back to and supporting our community through amazing programs like those offered by IRT.

THE COMMUNITY WE’VE BECOME STARTED TAKING SHAPE A CENTURY AGO. THE COMMUNITY WE’LL BE IN 100 YEARS

STARTS WITH YOU.

Share your vision for the future of Central Indiana at CICF.org/BeIN.

Photo courtesy of Bass Photo Co Collection, Indiana Historical Society

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A N I N T E RV I E W W I T H

DAVID ALAN ANDERSON & MILICENT WRIGHT WHAT DO YOU LIKE ABOUT ACTING? MILICENT: I’m going to sound like To Kill a Mockingbird: I like being in someone else’s skin. I like the challenge of being other characters. I like doing for others; and as an actor, you’re bringing people joy, or entertainment, or something to think about. I like my colleagues, being with like-minded people. I like plays! I enjoy going to plays.

There’s a communal, spiritual side to theatre, for me.

DAVID: There’s something to being able to access those child-like things in us. Play-acting, running around— those things that brought you joy as a kid, when you saw people respond in joy. I remember as a little kid telling people I wanted to be an actor, so I could be a cop or a crook and not get in trouble. I’ve learned that I’m a story teller.

Acting gives me a forum to do that. As a child, I made up a lot of stories. Story telling is such a big part of our black culture. Also, frankly, I don’t know what else I would do. It’s my opportunity to teach, and to share. And to challenge myself.

MILICENT: Yes, I agree with that storytelling aspect. I used to perform in my grandmother’s living room. She had one of those arts and crafts houses, with the big wooden archway, and I’d line up all my stuffed animals on the sofa, and perform for my audience.

DAVID: We would stop our parents from watching television, and we would do a musical pantomime for them.

MILICENT: Yes! My mother said that I would come out and perform the commercials, and then I would go back to my room. TV had a big influence in our generation. We were starting to see ourselves on TV, so you could actually start to envision that you could do this. My grandmother took me to early black musicals, like Your Arm’s Too Short to Box with God, so you got to see the possibility that we could do this.

DAVID: Somebody once referred to acting as the shy person’s revenge. It’s a way for someone to access the extrovert that’s in all of us. Even introverts have it in there somewhere, but a lot of us don’t allow it to come out.

Acting gives us a way to let go, and then still be able to retreat within ourselves.

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WHAT'S IT LIKE WORKING AT THE IRT? DAVID: It’s my home theatre. The people are great. There’s a family feeling that’s developed over the years. And that can be both good and bad. But I feel like I’ve been a part of teaching Indianapolis what good theatre is.

MILICENT: Like David said, you are home. And there is both comfort and challenge in that—sometimes good challenges that push you forward. Maybe this is my administrative side coming out, but it feels good when you hear actors from other places saying they’ve heard about the IRT and have wanted to work here. It’s good being part of a company with a reputation like that. I will also say, IRT does tech like no other. What comes out of this theatre with the budget we have is amazing, and to be on those sets is so fulfilling. There’s always both good and bad. But that’s what family is about—both good and bad.

DAVID: Relationships are always challenging. Even good relationships. People’s egos, and hearts, and emotions are involved. And certainly we’re in a profession that requires us to maintain a certain amount of vulnerability in order to be good at what we do. So there’s a certain amount of trust that’s required, and we’ve already built that up here.

I’ve often said that the local actors who populate the IRT stage are as good as any of the other places I’ve been. We’re invested in each other. We’re responsible to and for each other. When I leave, I carry that mantle with me. In some way, I represent the IRT.

Above: Milicent Wright as Calpurnia and David Alan Anderson as Caesar in IRT’s 2011 production of Julius Caesar on the OneAmerica Mainstage. Photo by Zach Rosing.

OVER THE YEARS, DAVID ALAN ANDERSON HAS APPEARED IN SOME 40 IRT PRODUCTIONS AND DIRECTED TWO. FENCES IS HIS FIFTH AUGUST WILSON PRODUCTION HERE. MILICENT WRIGHT HAS MADE 35 IRT APPEARANCES. BRIDGE & TUNNEL IS HER FIFTH ONE-WOMAN SHOW. ADDITIONALLY, MILICENT IS THE IRT’S MANAGER OF OUTREACH PROGRAMS.

DAVID, YOU’VE DONE FENCES WITH LARGELY THE SAME CAST IN DENVER, TUCSON, AND PHOENIX, AND NOW INDIANAPOLIS. WHAT HAS THAT EXPERIENCE BROUGHT YOU?

MILICENT: Whew!

DAVID: On a personal and artistic level, Fences encompasses things that really excite me. The characters are people that I know. I can remember as a youngster being around relatives hanging out and partying, or sitting around on the back porch drinking and laughing and arguing and fighting. On that level it’s exciting, because it’s a familiar place for me.

On an artistic level, it’s exciting, because the language, the vernacular is so challenging, and yet so real. At the same time it’s so lyrical, it’s almost like an opera, in a sense. I love the relationships that August Wilson has crafted on stage.

And the people I’m working with, and the relationships we’ve developed—as I stand on stage and watch them, there seems to be so much life that exists between the characters. It’s an ultimate opportunity for storytelling on stage for me. Not just because Troy is a huge storyteller, but the story of who he is and where he came from is really interesting, and so well crafted by August. And I get to be that storyteller that I enjoy being. It’s been a tremendous challenge, a very rewarding challenge. It’s costly. Emotionally, you have to let it happen to you. You go through a little pain when you tell this story. And we choose to do it every day, sometimes twice a day.

MILICENT, THIS IS YOUR FIFTH ONE-WOMAN SHOW AT THE IRT. WHAT IS THAT LIKE? MILICENT: It gives me a sense of accomplishment. I can do it. I can make it from A to B. I’m in an illustrious club, with Priscilla Lindsay, and David, and all the other wonderful actors who’ve done solo shows at the IRT. I like the relationship with the audience. When you get an audience that’s really there, and you can feel the energy, even from a few people, it’s so exciting and magical! You’re not really alone. I tell my students, a monologue is really a duologue, because you’re talking to someone about something. It’s vulnerable. As David said earlier, you have to be vulnerable as an actor, and out there on your own, a lot can come up. And sometimes that’s a good thing! And sometimes it can be frightening. It’s exhausting. But that can also be a thrilling thing.

DAVID: But we commit to it, and it’s very rewarding.

CAN YOU SHARE A STORY ABOUT BEING TOGETHER ON STAGE? DAVID: One of my most memorable moments with Milicent was our first Julius Caesar, on the Upperstage. I was playing Brutus, and she was playing Portia, and I had torn my rotator cuff and was in constant pain. We began rehearsing the scene, and it was clear to me that Milicent had spent more time thinking about this scene than I had up to that point, because she came in making some big bold choices.

I went up to her afterwards, and I said, I see where you’re going, it’s going to take me a minute to catch up with you. I remember how beautiful that character relationship was, instigated by her choices. For me, it was a lesson on how you can learn from other actors on stage, if you let it happen. I remember people talked about that scene.

MILICENT: We were in sync together. We listened to each other well. Every time we did that scene together, we were always attuned to each other and always present.

Above: David Alan Anderson and Milicent Wright in IRT's 2014 production of A Christmas Carol. Photo by Zach Rosing.

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Director____________ RICHARD J ROBERTS Scenic Designer_________________ GORDON STRAIN Costume Designer____________KATIE COWAN SICKMEIER Lighting Designer___________________ALLEN HAHN* Sound Designer_____________TODD MACK REISCHMAN Stage Manager__________________ JOEL GRYNHEIM

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THE CAST MILICENT WRIGHT

Ms. Lady Mohammed Ali Linda Lorraine Levine Bao Viet Dinh Gladys Bailey Juan Jose Martinez Habiba Rahal Lydia Rios Yajaria Hernandez Monique Barnes Rashid Pauline Ling Boris Ostrovsky Rose Aimee Sylvance

THE SETTING The Bridge & Tunnel Theatre, a poetry café in Queens.

The performance will last approximately 90 minutes with one intermission.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Bridge & Tunnel was produced on Broadway by Eric Falkenstein, Boyett Ostar Productions and Michael Alden; originally produced at The Culture Project; and presented by special arrangement with Sarah Jones and ICM Partners.

Choreographer: Mariel Greenlee Dialect Coach: Nancy Lipschultz The actor and stage manager are members of Actors’ Equity Association, the Union of Professional Actors and Stage Managers in the United States. The lighting designer is represented by United Scenic Artists Local 829, IATSE. Photography and recording are forbidden in the theatre. The videotaping of this production is a violation of United States Copyright Law and an actionable Federal Offense.

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MANY MILICENTS

BY JANET ALLEN, EXECUTIVE ARTISTIC DIRECTOR

There were two goals that catalyzed this production of Bridge & Tunnel: first, to find another solo show for actress and staff member Milicent Wright; second, to broaden our dramatic conversation on the subject of diversity.

This constitutes Milicent’s fifth solo show: that’s easily a record breaker at the IRT, where we pride ourselves on solo performances that are highly memorable and theatrically thrilling. In a field deep with amazing solos performers— let’s not forget two productions of Shirley Valentine by the sublime Priscilla Lindsay—Milicent distinguishes herself in a unique way: she has complete rapport with an audience. She’s at her easiest, her most relaxed, when she’s interacting with an audience, and moving the character she’s playing literally off the stage and into the audience’s laps and hearts.

Some really great solo performers actually stop somewhere about five feet in front of an audience; they are more comfortable working on the stage, using the safety it provides to reassure themselves. That’s never true with Milicent. She derives energy from the audience reactions she gets, she’s drawn to the folks in the

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seats, and nowhere is that energy exchange more evident than when she’s doing solo work. This is not to say that her more traditional work (i.e. with other actors onstage!) isn’t stellar; I hope that many of you saw her Calpurnia in To Kill a Mockingbird.

But something about the highwire work of solo performance just makes everything in Milicent sparkle.

We considered several plays for their opportunities to connect Milicent to audiences, and decided on Bridge & Tunnel largely because it gives her a wealth of opportunity to tell many immigrant stories and to use her prodigious skills variously. You’ll see Milicent as male and female characters, as young and old, as black, Asian, Latino, white, and many more.

Thanks to Mil for taking this one on: it’s a boat-load of challenges, and we’re all excited to learn all the many ways she’ll find to remind us of our human connections. It takes a lot of skill and a lot of empathy to fill the compassionate souls behind all these colorful sounds.

Milicent Wright in Neat (2011), The Night Watcher (2012), and The Power of One (2008).

TAKE A GOOD LOOK

BY RICHARD J ROBERTS, DIRECTOR

Bridge & Tunnel is a play about immigrants. That’s a hot-button word nowadays—immigrant. It might lead you to think about outraged demands to protect our fragile borders, or bleeding-heart propaganda about the land of opportunity. But that’s not the play that Sarah Jones has written. Instead, she gives us an informal evening at an annual open-mic poetry reading, an intimate gathering of literary enthusiasts with varying levels of skill. Individually and collectively, they remind us how art can help people to unlock the stories in their hearts—and what a powerful experience that can be for us all to share.

Do something for me right now, OK? Stop reading for just a moment, and take a good look at the stranger sitting next to you, or in front of you, or across from you. Go on, I’ll wait.

Stranger—that’s another interesting word. Strangers are, by definition, well … strange. What do you know about that stranger next to you? You don’t know where he or

she lives. You don’t know what he or she does for a living.

You don’t know where they go to church—or if they go to church. You don’t know who they’re going to vote for this fall—if they vote at all. You don’t know where their family is from.

But there are also things that you do know. Like you, he or she has come to the theatre today, hoping to be entertained and/or enlightened. Like you, he or she has unfinished business to take care of tomorrow. Like you, he or she has secrets … pain … love—in one form or another … and heartbreak. We all have a past full of joys and regrets, and an unknown future full of hopes and dreams and fears.

We all come from families that were—one generation or eight generations ago—immigrants.

There will always be issues that separate us. But there is so much more that holds us together.

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THE WORLD IN ONE ROOM GORDON STRAIN,

ALLEN HAHN,

My first reading of this play left me with the idea of a hip urban coffee house where a poetry slam might take place. But as I read it again and began to have conversations with the rest of the design team, the location became a little more nebulous. Perhaps some kind of found space that the characters could assemble in. A place that is old, repurposed, and slightly unexpected. A church basement? An abandoned warehouse?

Something large but not cavernous. It needed to be a location that our actor could explore and discover how her many different characters might use it.

Ultimately I have tried to take advantage of the architecture the theatre has given us, and to give Milicent a playground for the characters.

From a lighting design perspective. the challenge in this play is figuring out how to subtly partner with the performer to create a nuanced emotional landscape within which to bring the text alive in the audience’s experience. I hope lighting can support Milicent’s interpretation of Sarah Jones’s characters as elegantly as a dancer lifting his partner in a graceful aerial maneuver: providing support while leaving the focus, rightly, with the performer doing all the hard work—the one you came to see. If this seems grandiose, it is not. Nor is it another way of saying, “good lighting should not be noticed,” an old trope in the theatre. Instead I mean to suggest that there is a way in which a great performer and the space she inhabits can achieve a sublime union and create a richer experience than either could achieve alone. This pathos is, after all, why we keep coming back to the theatre.

SCENIC DESIGNER

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LIGHTING DESIGNER

Initial thumbnail sketch by scenic designer Gordon Strain.

TODD REISCHMAN, SOUND DESIGNER

Reading this script for the first time was exciting, and I had a pretty solid idea what I wanted to do with the sound. As I read on, I wondered if I could make it work. Then I got lost in these great stories. The music is a character in this play, helping to create the world we’re in, and following the story being told. Poetry slams and hip hop music are often intertwined, and the setting for Bridge & Tunnel is a fun and somewhat juxtaposed venue for such pairings. The idea that certain styles of art are exclusive to a certain ethnicity or demographic is wonderfully diminished in this play. The rhythms and tones here are categorized, but not confining. They break down barriers and invite everyone into the same arena.

KATIE COWAN SICKMEIER, COSTUME DESIGNER

The practical hurdle of Bridge & Tunnel is transforming one actress into 15 characters—both genders, in a wide range of ages, from wildly different backgrounds—and doing it very quickly. We start with a neutral canvas and use a few simple items to add specificity. But creating authenticity with so few pieces was the primary design challenge. Bridge & Tunnel premiered in New York City in 2004; however, it could have been written just yesterday about any major city in the United States. The costumes need to reflect both realities. The play was written in a post-9/11 but pre-Obama world, but it begs us to question how we view immigrants right now. American immigrants’ struggle to balance their foreign heritage against the pressure to become “American” is even more amplified in today’s national political conversation than it was in 2004. Thus, I want the characters to be credible not just as recent New Yorkers, but as citizens of Indianapolis in 2016. Their clothes need to exemplify the purgatory that is the immigrant experience, appearing as simultaneously exotic and assimilated. To this end, I chose garments that would make each character individually, and the group as a whole, look as diverse and complex as the experiences they represent.

Costume renderings for Gladys Bailey and Juan Jose Martinez by designer Katie Cowan Sickmeier.

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SARAH JONES POET & PLAYWRIGHT

BY RICHARD J ROBERTS, RESIDENT DRAMATURG

The New York Times has called her “a master of the genre.”

The New Yorker has described her as “a multicultural mynah bird [who] lays our mongrel nation before us with gorgeous, pitch-perfect impersonations of the rarely heard or dramatized.”

In 2001 Jones’s spoken-word recording “Your Revolution,” a hip hop poem about the sexual exploitation of women in hip hop music, was declared indecent by the Federal Communications Commission and banned from broadcast.

Jones became the first artist in history to sue the FCC for censorship, and the ruling was reversed in 2003.

Sarah Jones was born in Baltimore in 1973 and grew up in Boston, Washington DC, and Queens. Her father is African In 2004 Oscar-winning actress Meryl Streep produced American and her mother is of mixed Euro-American and Jones’s Off-Broadway debut in Bridge & Tunnel. The play Caribbean descent; both was produced on Broadway “EVERYBODY WHO’S EVER INFLUENCED are physicians. Sarah was 2006, and Jones received a educated at the United Special Tony Award.

ME, FROM A RICHARD PRIOR TO A WHOOPI Nations International GOLDBERG TO, YOU KNOW, ANY OF THE School and Bryn Mawr VOICES THAT HAVE RESONATED WITH ME AS A A regular guest on public radio, Jones has made College. As the product of PERFORMER SINCE I WAS A KID—YOU KNOW, numerous TV appearances a multiracial, multi-ethnic family and community, YOU COULDN’T REALLY SAY THAT THEIR WORK on shows such as Charlie Rose, The Today Show, and she was interested from DIDN’T HAVE SOME ELEMENT OF POLITICAL CBS Sunday Morning, as an early age in the cultural COMMENTARY IN IT. SO, AS FAR AS I’M well as in her own 2005 backgrounds of her diverse CONCERNED, THE GREATEST ART, THE STUFF Bravo special, The Sarah relatives, neighbors, and THAT MOVES ME THE MOST, IS THE STUFF Jones Show. She has friends. As a budding received commissions from THAT ALSO INEVITABLY MAKES YOU THINK theatre artist, she was Equality Now, the Kellogg ABOUT THE TIMES WE LIVE IN.” influenced by such solo Foundation, and the performers as Lily Tomlin, National Immigration Forum.

She is a UNICEF Goodwill Whoopi Goldberg, and Tracey Ullman, as well as Ruth Ambassador and has performed at the White House at the Draper (1884-1956), a pioneer in the multi-character solo invitation of President and Mrs. Obama. form.

Jones has millions of views for her three TED Talks, the In the mid-nineties, Jones began competing in poetry most recent being an excerpt of her new one-woman slams at the Nuyorican Poets Café in New York. Her first show Sell/Buy/Date, which will have its world premiere solo show, 1998’s Surface Transit, wove monologues of at Manhattan Theatre Club this fall. She is currently eight disparate yet cosmically linked New Yorkers. Women working on a commission from Lincoln Center Theater and Can’t Wait premiered in 2000, focusing on eight different developing an HBO feature based on her characters. women from around the world, each living under laws that violate her human rights.

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“I FEEL VERY CONNECTED AT A FUNDAMENTAL LEVEL TO EVERY OTHER PERSON I’VE EVER MET. I KNOW THAT IT SOUNDS REALLY HOKEY AND STRANGE, BUT IT’S A FAMILIAL RELATIONSHIP TO THE TRUE SENSE OF THAT. THE ‘HUMAN FAMILY’ TO ME REALLY IS A CONCEPT THAT I LIVE WITH EVERY DAY.”

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THE COMPANY MILICENT WRIGHT ACTOR

This is Milicent’s fifth one-woman production, following Pretty Fire and its sequels Neat and The Night Watcher by Charlayne Woodard; and The Power of One, in which she played Harriet Tubman, Madame C. J. Walker, and Rosa Parks. Milicent was just seen in the IRT’s production of To Kill a Mockingbird. Other notable appearances at the IRT include Sojourner Truth in A Woman Called Truth, Maria in Twelfth Night, the Nurse in Romeo and Juliet (2004), Celia in As You Like It, Calpurnia (2011) and Portia (2002) in Julius Caesar, Rosa Parks in Mother of the Movement, Madame Zeroni in Holes, and multiple roles in Hard Times and Great Expectations. Over the years in A Christmas Carol she has played Mrs. Fezziwig, Mrs. Cratchit, the Sister of Mercy, the Charwoman, the Laundress, the Plump Sister, and the Sister with the Roses. Bridge & Tunnel will be her seventh onstage collaboration with director Richard J Roberts. Recently at the Phoenix Theatre she appeared in the rolling world premiere of Dontrell Who Kissed the Sea by Nathan Davis, and their sold-out Love, Loss, and What I Wore. She was seen last summer in Twelfth Night for HART. Other favorites include a two-women show (And Her Hair Went with Her) as well as Black Gold at the Phoenix Theatre, Doubt for Cardinal Stage in Bloomington, and Stonewall Jackson’s House and The Colored Museum at the Human Race Theatre in Dayton. Milicent is the IRT’s manager of outreach programs and a resident teaching artist in the IRT’s Summer Conservatory for Youth. She enjoys sharing her love of acting by working as a teaching artist and private coach to youth. Here in Indianapolis she has had the pleasure of working with the Asante Children’s Theatre, Young Audiences of Indiana (now Arts for Learning), Freetown Village, and teaching in Civic Theatre’s adult class programming. Milicent was a 2011 Arts Council of Indianapolis Creative Renewal Fellowship recipient and a 2015 award recipient from the Center for Leadership and Development. “I am grateful to Joel and Susie Blum; their recognition of my work this season through their artist sponsorship is a generous compliment. My work in this show is in memory of ladies that raised me who I miss terribly: Mrs. Marie Turner-Wright, Ms. Patricia Turner, Ms. Marion Turner, Mrs. Willie Marie Turner, and Mrs. Katherine Wolfe. They believed in me when I didn’t believe in myself.”

RICHARD J ROBERTS DIRECTOR

Richard has directed the IRT’s productions of The Night Watcher, Neat, Pretty Fire, and The Power of One, all featuring the onewoman powerhouse Milicent Wright, as well as The Giver (2009), Twelfth Night, and four editions of A Christmas Carol. Other directing credits include The Musical of Musicals, My Fair Lady, The 39 Steps, and most recently Sweeney Todd at Actors Theatre of Indiana, as well as shows at the Phoenix Theatre, Edyvean Repertory Theatre, Butler University, Indianapolis Civic Theatre, IndyShakes/Wisdom Tooth, and Anderson University. Richard has been the IRT’s resident dramaturg for 18 of his 26 seasons with the company. He has also been a dramaturg for the New Harmony Project and Write Now. Richard studied music at DePauw University and theatre at Indiana University. In 2003 he was awarded a Creative Renewal Arts Fellowship from the Arts Council of Indianapolis.

GORDON STRAIN SCENIC DESIGNER

At the IRT, Gordon has designed Peter Rabbit and Me, The Velveteen Rabbit, Julius Caesar, Mary’s Wedding, Romeo and Juliet, Love Letters, and Macbeth; he assisted on Driving Miss Daisy and The Gentleman from Indiana. Gordon received his B.F.A. from Ithaca College and his M.F.A. from Indiana University. Currently he is the chair of the Theatre Department at Franklin College.

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KATIE COWAN SICKMEIER COSTUME DESIGNER

Katie is thrilled to design her first production at the IRT. Her design credits include Sweeney Todd, The Fantasticks, and My Fair Lady at Actors Theatre of Indiana; M. Butterfly, Intimate Apparel, Richard III, Cabaret, The Three Musketeers, and How I Learned to Drive at Indiana University; and The Matchmaker and Much Ado about Nothing at Indiana Festival Theatre. Katie has been the assistant costume designer on the ISO’s Yuletide Celebration for three years and has also assisted designers at American Players Theatre and the Pacific Conservatory for Performing Arts. She worked at the IRT as the assistant costume shop manager for several years. Katie has an M.F.A. in costume design from Indiana University and a B.F.A. in theatre design from the University of Southern California.

She lives in Greenwood with her husband, Jeff, their son, Ian, and a baby who will make his debut any day. www.katiecowansickmeier.com

ALLEN HAHN LIGHTING DESIGNER

Allen has designed at New York City Opera, Santa Fe Opera, Glimmerglass, Lincoln Center and Spoleto USA Festivals; internationally for companies in Australia, South Korea, France, Germany, the Netherlands, Spain, and the UK; and world premieres at Juilliard and the Royal Danish Opera. His theatre designs have been seen in New York, Philadelphia, Seattle, and Portland, among other US cities. His work was selected for the 2007 Prague Quadrennial Exhibition of Stage Design, and he served as a curator for the US delegation to the 2011 Quadrennial. He has worked with the performance company The Builders Association since 1994 and with artist Tony Oursler on installations at the Metropolitan Museum of Art (NYC) and ARoS Kunstmuseum in Denmark. He is associate professor of lighting design at Indiana University in Bloomington.

TODD REISCHMAN SOUND DESIGNER

Bridge & Tunnel marks Todd’s 75th sound design at the IRT over 14 seasons. He has worked in theatres all around the country, both on stage and off, since the age of 10. Away from the theatre, Todd works with a variety of musical collaborators recording and performing around town. Although he has led a fun and full life, Todd still has yet to swim with a Flemish giant.

JOEL GRYNHEIM STAGE MANAGER

This is the 92nd production Joel has stage managed over 27 years at the IRT. He resides in an historic home in downtown Indianapolis where he works as a stay-at-home dad. He shares that home and his life with Janet Allen, their two daughters, Nira and Leah, and his son, Daniel.

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Were it not for our generous contributors, our current season would have ended on January 28! Just imagine the difference in our city if the Indiana Theatre were to remain dark eight months of the year‌The bustling vitality of neighboring restaurants on show nights would certainly be diminished, and over twenty thousand fewer school children would have the opportunity to experience the magic of live theatre this year. It is impossible to count the number of conversations and lively debates that would never be sparked by an engaging and provocative evening at the theatre.

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($1500 +) | JULY 1, 2015 - JANUARY 26, 2016

PLAYWRIGHT CIRCLE $10,000+

Bob & Toni Bader Mr. Leo Bianchi & Dr. Jill A. Panetta Michael Dinius & Jeannie Regan-Dinius Nancy & Berkley Duck Dan & Ginny Emerson Mr. & Mrs. Charles & Susan Golden Michael & Judy Harrington Sarah & John Lechleiter Alice & Kirk McKinney Jackie Nytes & Michael O'Brien Sue & Bill Ringo Simmons Family Foundation, a fund of CICF David Whitman & Donna Reynolds DIRECTOR CIRCLE $5,000 - $9,999

Susie & Joel Blum James & Kathy Cornelius Gary Denney & Louise Bakker David & Ann Frick Tom & Jenny Froehle Ann Hinson Bill & Nancy Hunt Cliff & Janet Johnson Dr. & Mrs. William Macias Carl Nelson & Loui Lord Nelson, Ph.D. Mel & Joan Perelman Wayne & Susan Schmidt Mike & Sue Smith Bill & Pam Williams Dr. Christian Wolf & Elaine Holden-Wolf ARTIST CIRCLE $3,000 - $4,999

A.J. Allen & Kathy Maeglin 56

Cheri & Rollie Dick Mary Findling & John Hurt Dick & Brenda Freije Paul & Beth Gaylo Charles Goad & James Kincannon Mr. & Mrs. Cuthbert P. Gorman Donald & Teri Hecht Richard & Elizabeth Holmes John & Liz Jenkins Anne Nobles & David L. Johnson David Kleiman & Susan Jacobs John & Susan Kline Steve & Bev Koepper Scott & Amy Kosnoff Kevin Krulewitch & Rosanne Ammirati* Mike & Pat McCrory Charlie Morgan & Kelly Smith David & Leslie Morgan Mr. & Mrs. Kimball Morris Katie & Richard Norton Dr. Christine & Michael Phillips Jonathan & Rebecca Polak James Reed & Kris Martin N. Clay & Amy McConkey Robbins Mary Frances Rubly Jane & Fred Schlegel Eric Schultze & Marcia Kolvitz Jerry & Rosie Semler Mark & Gerri Shaffer Cynthia & William Smith III Cheryl & Jim Strain Gene & Mary Tempel Jeff & Benita Thomasson Cheryl & Ray Waldman Rosalind Webb & Duard Ballard Alan & Elizabeth Whaley

PATRON CIRCLE $1,500 - $2,999

Janet Allen & Joel Grynheim Katy &Tim Allen Anonymous Katrina Basile, Realtor Gerald & Moira Berg Benjamin & Ashley Blair Dan Bradburn & Jane Robison CarlW. Butler Vince & Robyn Caponi David & Judith Chadwick Doug & Brenda Chappell Adam L. Clevenger & Jessica L.Trimble Alan & Linda Cohen Cowan & King, LLP Susan M. Cross Daniel & Catherine Cunningham Dr. & Mrs. Frank M. Deane Gregory Dedinsky MD Ann & Kenneth Dee Drs. Richard & Rebecca Feldman Barrie K. & Gary R. Fisch Jim & Julie Freeman Drs. Sheldon & Cherryl Friedman Rick Fuson Phyllis & Ed Gabovitch Mr. Jim Gawne Dorothea & Philip Genetos Robert & Jo Ann Giannini Ron & Kathy Gifford The Glick Family Foundation Mr. & Mrs. Jeff Griman Caryl & Brady Hancock Michael N. Heaton Mary S. Held

REPERTORY SOCIETY, CONT. Jane Herndon & Dan Kramer Bruce Hetrick & Cheri O'Neill Ted Hingst William & Patricia Hirsch Brenda Horn Randolph & Rebecca Horton David & Sherry Hughes Robert Hunchberger & Kathy Callahan Tom & Kathy Jenkins Daniel T. Jensen & Steven Follis Denny & Judi Jones Mike & Pegg Kennedy Phil & Colleen Kenney Arthur & Jacquelyn King Kurt & Judy Kroenke Jill & Peter Lacy Alan P. & Tonya A. Ladd Dan & Martha Lehman Andrew & Lynn Lewis Joe & Deborah Loughrey John & Barbara MacDougall Donald & Ruth Ann MacPherson

DONOR GUILDS

(1500 +) | JULY 1, 2015 - JANUARY 26, 2016 Sharon R. Merriman Michael D. Moriarty Mr. & Mrs. Robert L. Nagy Stephen & Deanna Nash Carolyn & Blake Lee Neubauer Mr. & Mrs. John Null Tim Oliver Larry & Louise Paxton Brian & Gail Payne Ben Pecar & Leslie Thompson Tammara Porter Bob & Kathi Postlethwait Phil & Joyce Probst Myrta Pulliam Peter & Karen Reist Ken & Debra Renkens Karen & Dick Ristine Mr. & Mrs. Charles O. & Jane Rutledge Charles & Jenny Schalliol Tom & Barbara Schoellkopf Tim & Karen Seiler Michael & Holly Semler Jack & Karen Shaw

Marguerite K. Shepard, M.D. Reuben & Lee Shevitz Michael & Cynthia Skehan Cheryl & Bob Sparks Edward & Susann Stahl Robert & Barbara Stevens Suzanne Sweeney & Todd Wiencek Joe & Jill Tanner Jonathan Tempel John & Deborah Thornburgh Jennifer Turner John & Kathy Vahle Larry & Nancy VanArendonk Jennifer & Gary Vigran Dr.William C.Vladuchick & Ms. Susan M. Meloy Amy Waggoner J. Edgar & Dorothy Webb Carol Weiss Emily A. West Bob & Dana Wilson John & Margaret Wilson Jim & Joyce Winner

ANNUAL CAMPAIGN GIFTS ($250 +) | JULY 1, 2015 - JANUARY 26, 2016

Every dollar counts – donations of all sizes allow world-class theatre to continue on the IRT’s stages. We thank our donor guilds for giving their support to the IRT. * Denotes Sustaining Member DRAMA GUILD $650 - $1,499

Robert & Patricia Anker Anonymous Jesse L. & Carolynne Bobbitt Craig Burke & Diane Cruz-Burke Brady Clark Dr. & Ms. John J. Coleman III Craig & Marsha Dunkin Paul & Phyllis Gesellchen Robert & Melanie Haskell Margorie & James Herald Linebarger Janin Family Fund of Central Indiana Community Foundation

John & Laura Ludwig Glenn & Jane Lyon James & Kathleen McGrath Keith & Marion Michael John & Carolyn Mutz Brian S. Newman George & Christine Plews Judy Roudebush Owen Schaub & Donna McClearey Mark & Alice Martina Smith Ed & Jane Stephenson Craig & KarinVeatch Mr. & Dr. Brian & CarrieWest John & Ingrid BarbroWiebke

THEATRE GUILD $250 - $649

Louis Ackerman John & Eileen Ahrens* Anonymous (6) Jeri Ballantine Allisan Barkel Sarah C. Barney Walter Bartz Jon & Laura Baugh Jim & Sherri Bell Michael & Susan Bem Pamela J. Bennett Dan & Barb Bickel

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THE SUPPORTING CAST INDIANA REPERTORY THEATRE DONORS, CONTINUED DONOR GUILDS

ANNUAL CAMPAIGN GIFTS ($250 +) | JULY 1, 2015 - JANUARY 26, 2016

Ted & Peggy Boehm Zane & Sherri Boucher Dr. Richard Brashear & Mrs. Harriet Ivey Thomas &Victoria Broadie CharlesW. Brown & LouiseTetrick Jeffery & Ketty Brown Gordon A. & Celia Bruder Chris & Charlie Brunette Bob & Brandee Bryant David & Beverly Butler Paul & Renee Cacchillo William & Debra Cantwell Linda L. Claffey Robert & Jennifer Cochrane Larry & Debbie Corbett Daniel P. Corrigan Don & Dolly Craft Karen Dace* Fr. Clem Davis Mary & Steve DeVoe Catharine Diehr Ditech Inc. Marc & Diana Doty Sherry Faris Michael & Nichole Ferguson Ferrell Cleaning Company Joan M. FitzGibbon Mr. Ed & Dr. Cheryl Fleming Erik Fosnaught Kerry & Kimberly Foster Theresa Garcia &Thomas Orr Bob & Bev Gardner Jennifer Gates Rhonda Gatzke Margaret Gordon James Gorski & Laura Baker Darrell &Thecla Gossett Jason & Jodi Greenlee Robert & Nancy Gregori Walter & Janet Gross Phyllis & Bill Groth Susan C. Guba Marla & Mike Guzman 58

Rebecca A. Gwin Shirley Haflich David J. & Jeanne C. Hamernik Dick & Sherry Hamstra Emily Hancock* Angela & Douglas Harris* Steve & Kathy Heath Mike & Noel Heymann Greg & Kathy Hill Bruce & Pat Hubley Alice M. Hughes Leslie Hulvershorn Robert & Marilyn Hunter John Hurlbut Indy Instrument Service, LLC Greg & Patricia Jacoby Patricia Johnson & MichaelWilson Dr. & Mrs.Virgal & Jenna Johnson Ron & Shannon Jones Dave & Donna Kaiser Geo Metric Design Jay &Wanda Kiesler Ann King Louise & Mike Kinney Risa Brainin & Michael Klaers Col. A.D. Kneessy Howard Knight, Jr. & Sarah McCollum-Knight Ernest & Susan Kobets Richard & Mary Kortokrax Dr. Donald & Mrs. Shirley Kreipke Jose & Margie Kreutz Jon Laramore & Janet McCabe Ignacio M. Larrinua & MaryWolf Lisa Le Crone Jim Lingenfelter & Georgia Cravey Dr. Michael Lutz Terren Magid & Julie Manning Magid Dr. & Mrs. David Mandelbaum Kevin S. Mandrell Omar & Amy Martin Randy & Rita Martin Tom & Sandy Mason JD & Liz Masur

Melissa Maulding Mark McAlister Dr. Scott & Mrs. Elizabeth McDougall Donald & Elizabeth McIntire Monty & Brenda McMahan Marie McNelis Connie Miller Milton & Margaret Miller Roger & Kim Miller Dane & Shannon Mize Rev. Mary Ann Moman* David H. Moore M.D. Susan & Jim Naus Dr. LeeAnne M. Nazer John & Patricia Nichols Diana J. Ohman Al & Debbie Parrish* Dr. & Mrs. Robert M. Pearce Joe & Peggy Pearson David & Caroline Pentzien Michael & Patricia Pillar Scott & Susan Putney Nancy Quest Michael & Crisanta Ransom Rodney & Judy Rhoades Ann & Richard Riegner Tracy & Julie Rosa Brent & Kristen Ruder Dr. John R. Rudolph & Mrs. Brena Stewart-Rudolph Nanette Schulte & Matthew Russell Paula F. Santa Mark & Julanne Sausser Heather Ann Scheel Herb Schlotterbeck Roger Schmelzer & Lucinda Phillips Mr. & Mrs. Breck &Verna Schmidlkofer Stephen Shideler Julie D. Singer Michael Slavens Kevin & Amy Sobiski* Larry & Karen Sowinski Marta Spence Steve & Pat Spence

DONOR GUILDS, CONT. Ross & Rosemarie Springer Sarah Stelzner Doshia Hall Stewart Dan & Diana Sullivan Richard & Lois Surber Darrell & Melanie Swartzentruber Nela Swinehart* Mary C.Tanner Fred & CarolTerzo Lynne & AlexTimmermans

ANNUAL CAMPAIGN GIFTS ($250 +) | JULY 1, 2015 - JANUARY 26, 2016 Donald & ShirleyTrapp Dr. James & LindaTrippi Jim & LeahTurner Dr. & Mrs. KurtVan Scoik David & JennyWade ElaineWagner & Family* BrendaWalker Karen S.Waltz Bill & JoanWarrick NatalieWeir

Zoe UrenaWeiss John & PamelaWest Karen J.Weyrauch DanWheeler & SusanWakefield* Philip & ShandonWhistler JohnWhitaker JulieWhitman & Ray Stuart John & JudyWilson Frederick & JacquelynWinters Reba BoydWooden*

IN HONOR OF ANN DEE Deb Lawrence

EMERITUS IRT BOARD MEMBER

TRIBUTE GIFTS IN HONOR OF JANET ALLEN Dr. Dodie Stein IN HONOR OF COURTNEY SALE Mom & Dad

IN MEMORY OF E. KIRK MCKINNEY Janet Allen & Joel Grynheim Jane & Fred Schlegel Suzanne Sweeney &ToddWiencek

TURN YOUR OLD CAR INTO A CONTRIBUTION TO THE IRT Donate a vehicle to the IRT and we will sell it at auction.

The proceeds will go to the IRT and you can qualify for a tax deduction.

WANT MORE INFORMATION? Contact Jennifer Turner jturner@irtlive.com 317.916.4835

Erik Hellman and Ben Tebbe in IRT's Romeo and Juliet (2010)

59

THE SUPPORTING CAST INDIANA REPERTORY THEATRE DONORS, CONTINUED OVATION SOCIETY The Ovation Society is an exclusive program that recognizes donors that have made a planned gift to the IRT. The IRT truly appreciates those individuals whose gift will ensure that the Theatre can continue to provide meaningful and inspirational experiences for future generations of Hoosiers.

Gary Addison Ron & Julia Carpenter John R. Carr John & Mary Challman Robert V. Robinson & Nancy J. Davis Nancy & Berkley Duck Dale & Karen Duncan Meg Gammage-Tucker David A. & Dee Garrett

Michael Gradison Emily Hancock Bruce Hetrick & Cheri O'Neill David Kleiman & Susan Jacobs Frank & Jacqueline La Vista Stuart L. Main Michael R. & Sue Maine David & Leslie Morgan Richard & Lila Morris

Deena Nystrom Marcia O'Brien Jane & Fred Schlegel Jerry & Rosie Semler Gene & Mary Tempel Jeff & Benita Thomasson Christopher J. Tolzmann Alan & Elizabeth Whaley John & Margaret Wilson

PLANET JANET Janet Allen may be the only Artistic Director in the country to be hired as a dramaturg, distinguished as a literary manager, work her way up through that institution’s ranks and eventually assume its artistic leadership.The IRT would like to thank those individuals who have donated in tribute to celebrate Janet’s 20th Season as Artistic Director. Janet holds the longest leadership tenure in the 44-year history of the IRT. EXECUTIVE PRODUCER $5,000+

Bob & Toni Bader Dan & Ginny Emerson Michael & Judy Harrington Sarah & John Lechleiter Sue & Bill Ringo

ASSOCIATE PRODUCER $2,500 - $4,999

Mel & Joan Perelman Dr. Christine & Michael Phillips Jane & Fred Schlegel Wayne & Susan Schmidt Alan & Elizabeth Whaley DIRECTING SPONSOR $1,000 - $2,499

Benjamin & Ashley Blair Susie & Joel Blum Cowan & King, LLP Gary Denney & Louise Bakker Mary Findling & John Hurt 60

Tom & Jenny Froehle Donald & Teri Hecht Jane Herndon & Dan Kramer Ted Hingst Scott & Amy Kosnoff Jill & Peter Lacy Carl Nelson & Loui Lord Nelson, Ph.D. Katie & Richard Norton Jackie Nytes & Michael O'Brien Ben Pecar & Leslie Thompson Jonathan & Rebecca Polak James Reed & Kris Martin Mark & Gerri Shaffer Simmons Family Foundation, a fund of CICF Cheryl & Jim Strain Larry & Nancy VanArendonk David Whitman & Donna Reynolds Dr. Christian Wolf & Elaine Holden-Wolf STAR SPONSOR $500 - $999

Katy & Tim Allen

Katrina Basile, Realtor Adam L. Clevenger & Jessica L. Trimble Ann & Kenneth Dee Cheri & Rollie Dick Drs. Richard & Rebecca Feldman Jim & Julie Freeman Dick & Brenda Freije David & Ann Frick Michael N. Heaton Brenda Horn Randolph & Rebecca Horton Bill & Nancy Hunt Phil & Colleen Kenney Kevin Krulewitch & Rosanne Ammirati Andrew & Lynn Lewis Dr. & Mrs. William Macias Charlie Morgan & Kelly Smith David & Leslie Morgan Mr. & Mrs. Kimball Morris Carolyn & Blake Lee Neubauer Anne Nobles & David L. Johnson Tim Oliver

PLANET JANET, CONT. Brian & Gail Payne Peter & Karen Reist Mr. & Mrs. Charles O. & Jane Rutledge Tim & Karen Seiler Marguerite K. Shepard, M.D.

Joe & Jill Tanner Jonathan Tempel Jeff & Benita Thomasson John & Deborah Thornburgh Jennifer & Gary Vigran

Amy Waggoner Cheryl & Ray Waldman Rosalind Webb & Duard Ballard Carol Weiss Jim & Joyce Winner

BICENTENNIAL FUND The IRT is developing a new work for Indiana audiences to celebrate Indiana’s Bicentennial. This work will premiere in the 2016-2017 Season. Thank you to those individuals whose support is making this new work possible.

Janet Allen & Joel Grynheim Susie & Joel Blum Tom & Jenny Froehle Michael & Judy Harrington Donald & Teri Hecht Bruce Hetrick & Cheri O'Neill

Brenda Horn Sarah & John Lechleiter David & Leslie Morgan Carl Nelson & Loui Lord Nelson, Ph.D. Jackie Nytes & Michael O’Brien Courtney Sale & Sean Manning

Jane & Fred Schlegel Simmons Family Foundation, a fund of CICF Cheryl & Jim Strain Cheryl & Ray Waldman Alan & Elizabeth Whaley

CORPORATE, FOUNDATION, & GOVERNMENT

ANNUAL CAMPAIGN GIFTS ($250 +) | JULY 1, 2015 - JANUARY 26, 2016

CORPORATE

Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield Barnes & Thornburg LLP BASi Bingham Greenebaum Doll LLP Eli Lilly and Company Faegre Baker Daniels Fifth Third Bank, Indiana Frost Brown Todd Indiana Farm Bureau Insurance Company Indianapolis Colts Indianapolis Power & Light Company Navient OneAmerica Financial Partners Oxford Financial Group, Ltd. PNC

Printing Partners Noble Consulting Services, Inc. Schmidt Associates, Inc. Stifel Nicolaus T2 Systems Taft Stettinius & Hollister LLP U.S. Concepts LLC FOUNDATIONS

The Ackerman Foundation Allen Whitehill Clowes Charitable Foundation The Arthur Jordan Foundation Christel DeHaan Family Foundation Elba L. & Gene Portteus Branigin Foundation, Inc. F.R. Hensel Fund for Fine Arts, Music, and Education, a fund of The Indianapolis

Foundation, a CICF Affiliate The Jerry L. & Barbara J. Burris Foundation Lacy Foundation Lilly Endowment, Inc. The Margot L. and Robert S. Eccles Fund, a fund of CICF Nina Mason Pulliam Charitable Trust Pacers Foundation Myrta Pulliam GOVERNMENT

Arts Council of Indianapolis Indiana Arts Commission National Endowment for the Arts

61

THE SUPPORTING CAST INDIANA REPERTORY THEATRE DONORS, CONTINUED IN-KIND/TRADE GIFTS 9 on Canal Brooks Publications/Urban Times Candlewood Suites Coby Palmer Designs Emmis Communications Corp ESG Security Geoff Chen Photography Grins and Giggles, LLC Hoaglin Catering

ANNUAL CAMPAIGN GIFTS ($250 +) | JULY 1, 2015 - JANUARY 26, 2016 IBJ Corp IndyStar Markey's Rental & Staging Midwest Parenting Publications National Institute of Fitness & Sport New Day Craft NUVO The Oceanaire Seafood Room Pac-Van, Inc.

Pita Pit Scotty's Brewhouse Skyline Exhibits By Reitz & Associates Studio 2000 Vanilla Bean Bakery WFYI WICR

THE ALAN AND LINDA COHEN EDUCATION FUND

ANNUAL CAMPAIGN GIFTS ($250 +) | JULY 1, 2015 - JANUARY 26, 2016

We are enormously grateful to the Cohens for this visionary gift which directly benefits students attending all of our many student matinees this season and in future seasons as well.With the support of this fund, the IRT is able to underwrite ticketing four our young audiences.

Anonymous Elba L. & Gene Portteus Branigin Foundation, Inc. Eli Lilly and Company

F.R. Hensel Fund for Fine Arts, Music, and Education, a fund of The Indianapolis Foundation, a CICF Affiliate Beth Meyerson & Jill German

IRT SUMMER CONSERVATORY SCHOLARSHIP FUND

ANNUAL CAMPAIGN GIFTS ($250 +) | JULY 1, 2015 - JANUARY 26, 2016

Drs. Robert Baker & Paula Trzepacz

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Pacers Foundation Craig & Linda Sherman Robert & Barbara Stevens

I N D I A N A

H I S T O R I C A L

S O C I E T Y

E X H I B I T

NOW OPEN Presented by The O’Bannon Foundation, a fund of Central Indiana Community Foundation, and Jock and Penny Fortune EUGENE AND MARILYN GLICK INDIANA HISTORY CENTER 450 WEST OHIO STREET | DOWNTOWN ON THE CANAL

www.indianahistory.org

OVER 40,000 STUDENTS

FROM ALL OVER INDIANA EXPERIENCE THEATRE AT THE IRT. Without The Alan and Linda Cohen Education Fund, almost half of those students would not have been able to attend.

"A student told me he couldn’t pay for the trip because his family doesn’t have a lot of money right now. I told him that the IRT had helped cover the cost.

His eyes lit up and he kept saying 'thank you' throughout the day."

-an Indiana teacher

FOR MORE INFORMATION OR TO GIVE, CONTACT:

Brady Clark bclark@irtlive.com 317.916.4831 Zoe Turner in IRT's And Then They Came for Me. (2014) Photo by Zach Rosing.

A CURRENT FLOWING FROM THE HEART OF INDIANAPOLIS From the pride we feel in supporting the Indiana Repertory Theatre to the joy of being involved with more than 200 organizations, giving back is always cause for celebration at IPL. Because whether we’re serving meals at a community center or fixing up Indianapolis’ parks, the people of Indianapolis truly touch our hearts. IPLpower.com

OFFICIAL CATERERS A FINE SELECTION FOR YOUR EVENT AT THE IRT Betsy Cooprider-Bernstein | 317.396.5310 5635 East County Road 450 N., Brownsburg, IN 46219 www.alancaters.com

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Show your support for the arts by purchasing or renewing your Arts Trust license plate!

Photos courtesy of Music for All

IRT STAGE DOOR RESTAURANTS

DISCOUNTS FOR IRT SUBSCRIBERS ONLY. SUBSCRIBE TODAY! 317.635.5252

THANK YOUR TO OUR 2015-2016 SEASON DESIGNER DINNER PARTNER, OCEANAIRE! 30 S. Meridian St. | 317.955.2277 Free appetizer or dessert with purchase.

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Complimentary glass of sparkling champagne and artisan cheese pairing.

20% off, excluding alcohol.

3 hours of complimentary parking.

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339 S Delaware St. 317.870.1320

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Free appetizer *Excluding the Jumbo Combo

20% off, excluding alcohol.

POTBELLY

PUNCH BURGER

Free 22oz fountain drink with purchase.

Free side with any burger purchase.

55 Monument Circle 317.423.9043

137 E. Ohio St. 317.426.5280

CIRCLE CITY BAR & GRILLE

350 W. Maryland St. 317.405.6100

COLTS GRILLE

110 W. Washington St. 317.631.2007 20% off, excluding alcohol.

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3 hours of complimentary parking.

PALOMINO

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49 W. Maryland St. 317.974.0400

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$10 off purchase.

Free drink & chips with purchase.

TASTINGS

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20% off total purchase.

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Oxford proudly supports the Indiana Repertory Theatre.

Oxford is independent and unbiased — and always will be.

We are committed to providing families generational estate planning and institutions forward-thinking investment strategies.

CHICAGO ✦ CINCINNATI ✦ GRAND RAPIDS ✦ INDIANAPOLIS ✦ TWIN CITIES 317.843.5678 ✦ WWW.OFGLTD.COM/IRT