In Love and Warcraft Program

DEPARTMENT OF DRAMA

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DEPARTMENT OF DRAMA PRESENTS

BY

Madhuri Shekar DIRECTED BY

Matthew Winning SCENIC DESIGNER

COSTUME DESIGNER

LIGHTING DESIGNER

SOUND DESIGNER

Ian Borowik

Anastacia "Staci" Puertas

Garett Pembrook

Kevin O’Connor

PROJECTION DESIGNER

FIGHT CHOREOGRAPHER

INTIMACY CHOREOGRAPHER

STAGE MANAGER

Nitsan Scharf

Alec Barbour

Yvonne Perry

Alana Eden Barker

INTERIM CHAIR, DEPARTMENT OF DRAMA

Holly Thuma In Love and Warcraft is presented by arrangement with Concord Theatricals on behalf of Samuel French, Inc. www.concordtheatricals.com November 12 – 20, 2021 SEASON SPONSOR

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CAST (in order of appearance)

Maria Victoria Polanco………………………………..................…………Evie Caleb Sheedy……………………………………………...........…………Actor 2 Tyler Jessey ……………………………….....……………………Ryan, Monster Karen Sanchez……………………………………….............……………Actor 1 Maggie Monica………………………………………....................…………Kitty Diego Echeverria De Cordova………………..........................…………Raul

SETTING A university in Southern California

There will be one fifteen-minute intermission.

SPECIAL THANKS Special thanks to Ricky Pak, Blizzard Entertainment,Tori Dedo, Henry Tufts, Celia Madeoy, Rob Andrusko, Chris Albright-Tufts, Dr. Kal Alston, Yerba Mate

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ADDITIONAL CREDITS Assistant Director: Soumya Tadepalli Fight/Intimacy Captain: Alana Eden Barker Culture Consultant: Dr. Kal Alston Video Game Consultant: Brad Archer Acting Consultant: Christine Albright-Tufts Dance Consultant: Sofia Swenson Assistant Scenic Designers: Mairead Cummins, Angel Wai Yan Lam Associate Costume Designer: Allison Turlo Assistant Costume Designers: Sophia O’Connor, Sofia Pizer Assistant Lighting Designers: Em Stripling, Andrew Patashnik Assistant Projection Designer: Eli Golding Assistant Stage Managers: Tess Vocalina, Katharine Stephenson Casting Associate: Sofia Aguirre Casting Assistant: Ellie Kingman

The videotaping or making of electronic or other audio and/ or visual recordings of this production and distributing recordings or streams in any medium, including the internet, is strictly prohibited, a violation of the author(s)’s rights and actionable under United States copyright law. for more information, please visit:https://concordtheatricals.com/resources/protecting-artists

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CAST Diego Echeverria De Cordova (Raul) is a sophomore actor-singer major from Caracas, Venezuela, and raised in the suburbs of Boston.

He is making his Syracuse University Department of Drama debut. Recent credits include Sweeney in Sweeney Todd, Pippin in Pippin, and Danny Zuko in Grease. Diego would like to thank his family and friends for always believing in him and dedicates his performance to Papacha.

also worked on various films with Ottonomous Productions, a Syracuse University student run production company.

Maggie is also a singer/songwriter and is releasing her debut album on January 1. After graduation Maggie is moving to Atlanta, GA, to pursue a career in music and TV/Film. Maggie is extremely grateful for the team of people she has and can’t see where the future will take her.

Media: ms.maggie.monica Maria Victoria Polanco (Evie) is a senior acting major from the Bronx, NY. At the Department of Drama, Maria Victoria has been seen as an understudy for The Crucible, and as Ojos in the Syracuse Stage Backstory program, So Journey To The Truth. She would like to thank her family and friends for their endless amount of support and love.

Tyler Jessey (Ryan, Monster) is a senior acting major from good ol’ Vancouver, WA. In Syracuse, his credits include Every Brilliant Thing (Narrator), Love and Information (various roles), Danny, King of the Basement (Danny/Angelo understudy, Bank of America Children’s Tour), The American Pilot (Translator/ Farmer, sophomore project), and Romeo and Juliet (Sampson, mainstage).

He would like to thank his wonderful girlfriend for the constant supply of love and support, and the audience for spending time to come watch theater!

Karen Sanchez (Actor 1) is a sophomore acting major from Los Angeles, CA, and this is her first mainstage show in the Syracuse University Department of Drama. She is an ambassador for Yerba Mate and would like to thank them for providing Yerba Mate during this process. You can find her @Karesanch on Instagram!

Maggie Monica (Kitty) is a senior acting major from Columbus, OH. Syracuse Stage credits include The Bank of America Children’s Tour Suzette Who Set to Sea. Maggie has

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CAST Caleb Sheedy (Actor 2) is a senior acting major from New Paltz, NY. At the Department of Drama, Caleb has been seen as Gregory/Third Watchman in Romeo and Juliet (mainstage) and as the Pilot in The Ameri-

can Pilot (sophomore project). Last semester he was the assistant director for The Matchmaker (mainstage) and directed the Black Box Player’s production of Lonely Planet. Last spring Caleb was named a Syracuse University 2021-2022 Remembrance Scholar. @calebsheedy

A R T I S T I C S TA F F Ian Borowik (Scenic Designer) is a senior theater design and technology major with a concentration in scenic design from Weston, CT. This is Ian’s debut as a scenic designer and he is very excited to share his work with everyone. Department of Drama credits include: assistant scenic designer for A Grand Night for Singing (mainstage) as well as for A Chorus Line (mainstage).

Ian would like to thank his assistants Mairead Cummins and Angel Lam for all of their hard work, as well as Rob Andrusko for being a wonderful design advisor. But most importantly he would like to thank his friends and family for all of their love and support through the years.

also like to thank the entire design team, the costume shop, Maria Marrero, and her parents for helping her through her design journey.

Garett Pembrook (Lighting Designer) is a fourth year theater design and technology student with a concentration in lighting design at Syracuse University. He grew up in Rochester, NY, and he is thrilled to be light designing his second mainstage production at Syracuse University. Previously he has designed the Syracuse University Department of Drama production of Working the Musical. He has also designed the Black Box Players productions of Mud, and [SIC], as well as the faculty project The Secret in the Wings.

Recently he has assisted lights on Syracuse Stage productions of Disney’s Beauty and the Beast and Talley’s Folly. In the past he has assisted the lighting designer on the Syracuse University mainstage productions of A Chorus Line, A Grand Night for Singing, and Mansfield Park.

Anastacia “Staci” Puertas (Costume Designer) is a senior film major from Herndon, Virginia. This is her first production with the Department of Drama, but she has designed costumes and sets for many student films within the Department of Transmedia and you are welcome to view her filmography at www.anastaciasofia.com. She would

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A R T I S T I C S TA F F Kevin O’Connor (Sound Designer) is currently in his 13th season working for Syracuse Stage and the Syracuse University Department of Drama. He graduated from St. Lawrence University with a B.A. in music in 2008. Most of Kevin’s sound design credits have been with the Syracuse University Department of Drama over the past decade and some of his favorites are Bright Half Life (2021), Romeo and Juliet (2020), Good Kids (2019), We Are Proud to Present... (2019), The Baltimore Waltz (2018), Laura and the Sea (2016), A Flea in Her Ear (2016), The Spitfire Grill (2016), Measure for Measure (2015), and Stepping Out (2014). Kevin also designed Danny, King of the Basement and Miss Electricity for the Syracuse Stage/Department of Drama Bank of America Children’s Tour. Besides sound design, Kevin has also worked as the A1 position, controlling the audio console/live mixing most of the musicals over the past 12 years for both Syracuse Stage and the Department of Drama including Disney’s Beauty and The Beast, The Last Five Years, Elf the Musical, Little Shop of Horrors, Next to Normal, The Wizard of Oz, Ring of Fire, Berlin to Broadway, Mary Poppins, Nine, The Spitfire Grill, Peter Pan, Kiss Me, Kate, Avenue Q, Hairspray, Parade, Spring Awakening, Seussical, Violet, Irving Berlin’s White Christmas, Merrily We Roll Along, Quilters, The Cradle Will Rock, and Cabaret.

Nitsan Scharf (Projections Designer) is a multimedia artist currently based in Washington, DC. Recent work includes: A Chorus Within Her (Theater Alliance), The Nether (Montgomery College), My aMeriCa (Mont gomery College), resilience and tres (Ars Nova), Okinawa Field Trip (Georgetown University), Jem and Stonie Discover a New Dimension (Trusty Sidekick Theater Company), The Quadrant Series: Big Fish (Theater Alliance), the untitled martyr project (NextNow Festival), and This Bitter Earth (Theater Alliance). More of Nitsan’s multimedia work can be found at nitsanscharf.com Alec Barbour (Fight Choreographer) is a Rochester, NY, based actor, fight choreographer, and playwright.

He has been studying stage combat since 2005, and is a Certified Teacher with the Society of American Fight Directors. He received his M.F.A. in acting at the Hilberry Repertory Theatre at Wayne State University in Detroit, where his roles included Iago in Othello, Carson in Gross Indecency, and Charles Lomax in Major Barbara. Regional acting credits include Sir Castor (and fight captain) in Camelot at Drury Lane Theatre and Horner in The Country Wife at Franklin Stage. Intimacy Direction: (for Syracuse Stage) Amadeus; (for Syracuse University Department of Drama) Romeo and Juliet, Everybody, Wild Party; (for Wallbyrd Theatre Co.) Bard Bending: Fight Club Edi-

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A R T I S T I C S TA F F tion, Two Gentlemen of Verona; (for Utica College) Dracula. Fight Direction: (for Syracuse Stage) Amadeus, Suzette who Set to Sea, Deathtrap, Disgrace;. (for Syracuse University Department of Drama) Wild Party, Kiss Me, Kate; (for University of Rochester) Revolt. She Said. Revolt Again. (with J. David Brimmer); (for Nazareth College) Spring Awakening, Hayfever, Vinegar Tom; (for Le Moyne College) She Kills Monsters, Macbeth in Concert, Romeo & Juliet in Concert, The Liar; (for Hilberry Repertory Theatre) The Cripple of Inishmaan, Macbeth, The Mousetrap, Moon Over Buffalo; (for Wayne State University) Arabian Nights, Dead Man’s Cell Phone, SubUrbia; (for Wallbyrd Theatre Co) Two Gentlemen of Verona, Taming of the Shrew, Macbeth, Romeo and Juliet, Dracula.

Alec teaches stage combat courses at Le Moyne College, Nazareth College, and Utica College. He is an apprentice with Intimacy Directors International, and is a proud member of Actors’ Equity Association and SAG/AFTRA.

received most of her intimacy pedagogical and experiential training with Intimacy Directors International (now IDC) at workshops and intensives in NYC and The University of Illinois. She is an artistic associate at Capital Repertory Theatre in Albany, NY (where she has been an intimacy consultant on numerous shows), and an adjunct professor in the Theatre Department at UAlbany. She has also taught and/or guest lectured at Skidmore, Union, Siena, and Adelphi University. You can learn more about Yvonne from her website at www.yvonneperry.com. Proud member AEA and SAG-AFTRA. Christine Albright-Tufts (Acting Consultant) is an assistant professor of acting in the Department of Drama. For the last 20 years, Christine has worked as an actress at Arena Stage, the Goodman Theatre, Berkeley Rep, Seattle Rep, the Marin Theatre Company, the Mint Theatre Company, the La Jolla Playhouse, and many others.

She has been a company member at the Oregon Shakespeare Festival (OSF) since 2006, where she’s worked as an actor, director, and teaching artist.

Directing credits include: Love and Information (studio project) for the Syracuse University Department of Drama; Louisville//KY/USA for Actors Theatre of Louisville, Oregon Shakespeare Festival’s School Visit Program (The Tempest, They Say It’s Your Birthday); Chicago Shakespeare Theatre (staged reading of TITUS, an ASL adaptation); Lean Ensemble Theater (The Impor-

Yvonne Perry (Intimacy Choreographer) is a professional actress based in the Capital District and New York. As a director, her credits include shows at University of Albany (My First Time; Circle Mirror Transformation); Siena College (How I Learned To Drive; Tartuffe; Spike Heels); and Union College (Boeing Boeing). She has also directed for the Next Act New Play Summit at Capital Rep since its inception. Yvonne

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A R T I S T I C S TA F F tance of Being Earnest); and Roosevelt University’s Chicago College of Performing Arts (Bully).

2021 Lewis Hecker Virtual Drama Showcase, and The Secret in the Wings (studio project). This summer, Alana was the rehearsal stage manager for Mr. and Mrs. Nobody at Jermyn Street Theatre in London’s West End. Earlier this semester, she directed an immersive adaptation of Marsha Norman’s ‘night, Mother for her honors thesis. Alana is incredibly thankful to be working with such a wonderful team for her last show at Syracuse University!

Alana Eden Barker (she/her) (Stage Manager, Fight/Intimacy Captain) is a senior stage management major, public communication studies minor, and Renee Crown Honors College student from Simsbury, CT. In the Department of Drama, Alana has stage managed Bright Half Life (mainstage), the Class of

A S S I S TA N T S & A S S O C I AT E S Sofia Aguirre (Casting Associate) is a third year theater management major with a minor in public communications from the suburbs of Los Angeles, CA.

Sophia O’Connor (Assistant Costume Designer) is a junior theater design and technology major with a concentration in lighting design from San Diego, CA.

Mairead Cummins (Assistant Scenic Designer) is a sophomore theater design and technology major with a concentration in lighting design, from Annapolis, MD.

Andrew Patashnik (Assistant Lighting Designer) is a second-year from Stamford, CT, studying to earn a B.F.A. in theater design and technology with a concentration in lighting design.

Eli Golding (Assistant Projection Designer) is a sophomore theater design and technology major with a concentration in lighting, projection, and scenic design from Baltimore, MD.

Sofia Pizer (Assistant Costume Designer) is a sophomore theater design and technology major with a concentration in costume design from Los Angeles, CA.

Angel Wai Yan Lam (Assistant Scenic Designer) is a sophomore theater design and technology major with a concentration in scenic design from Hong Kong.

Katharine Stephenson (Assistant Stage Manager) is a freshman stage management major from Wellesley, MA.

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A S S I S TA N T S & A S S O C I AT E S Em Stripling (Assistant Lighting Designer) is a junior theater design and technology major with a concentration in lighting design from Brooklyn, NY.

Allison Turlo (Associate Costume Designer) is a senior theater design and technology major with a concentration in scenic design from Benton, ME.

Soumya Tadepalli (Assistant Director) is a junior theater management major from Corvallis, OR.

Tess Vocalina (Assistant Stage Manager) is a sophomore stage management major from Orange, CT.

DIRECTOR Matthew Winning. Syracuse University Department of Drama acting instructor, actor, and director. Selected directing credits: Everybody by Branden Jacobs-Jenkins (Department of Drama studio production), Antigone, Presented by the Girls of St. Catherine’s (Department of Drama

sophomore project), Summer Stage (Capital Repertory Theatre), As You Like It, The Two Gentleman of Verona (Uncovered Theatre), The Built America (Capital Repertory Theatre On-the-Go), Jayne Eyre, Glass Menagerie, South Pacific, Medea, Godspell (Sterling College).

P L AY W R I G H T Madhuri Shekar is an award-winning playwright and screenwriter.

She was born in California and grew up in India, and is currently based in Jersey City. She is an alum of the Juilliard Playwriting program, a fellow at New Dramatists, and the 2020 winner of the Lanford Wilson Playwriting award. Her audio play Evil Eye debuted on the Audible bestseller list in May 2019 and won the 2020 Audie Award for Best Original Work. Her play House of Joy received its world premiere at Cal Shakes in August 2019, and her new play Dhaba on Devon Avenue was slated to

premiere at Victory Gardens in April 2020, and is postponed until we emerge into a new post-pandemic life.

Her other plays include Queen (2019 New York Innovative Theatre Awards, Outstanding Original Full Length Script; Edgerton New Play Award), In Love and Warcraft (Kendeda Graduate Playwriting Award), A Nice Indian Boy, Antigone: Presented by the Girls of St. Catherine’s and the TYA play Bucket of Blessings (Suzi Bass Award for Outstanding Original Work - TYA). Her plays have also been developed or showcased at Center Theatre Group, the Old Globe, the Kennedy

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P L AY W R I G H T Center, the Hedgebrook Playwrights Festival, South Coast Repertory, the Movement Theater Company, the Oregon Shakespeare Festival, Ma-Yi Theatre, NY Stage & Film, and Juilliard. She has an M.F.A. in dramatic writing from USC, and a dual Master’s degree in global media and communications from the London School of

Economics and USC. She is an alumna of the Ma-Yi writers lab and the Center Theatre Group Writers Workshop, and a co-creator of the Shakespearean web series Titus and Dronicus.

She was a staff writer for the upcoming HBO show The Nevers, and her feature film adaptation of Evil Eye is currently in post-production.

I N T E R I M C H A I R , D E PA R T M E N T O F D R A M A Holly Thuma is associate professor of voice and verse in the Department of Drama and a certified associate teacher of Fitzmaurice Voicework.

Holly’s acting and directing credits include productions with Quantum Theatre, the Dallas Theatre Center, Pittsburgh Irish and Classical Theatre, City Theatre Company, Penn State Center Stage, and Perry Mansfield New Play Festival, as well as independent films. She has served as dialect/vocal coach for many productions at the Syracuse University De-

partment of Drama including Romeo and Juliet, The House of the Spirits, Major Barbara, and Top Girls, and for Mickey Rowe in The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time at Syracuse Stage. A passionate believer in arts education, Holly’s career has included development and direction of performance programs for underserved children through the Pittsburgh Public Theater and for the Hope Academy of Music and the Arts. She is a proud union member of Actors’ Equity and SAG/AFTRA.

A B O U T T H E D E PA R T M E N T O F D R A M A Part of the College of Visual and Performing Arts, the Syracuse University Department of Drama offers degree programs in acting, musical theater, theater design and technology, stage management, and theater management utilizing conservatory-style training in a university setting and in collaboration with Syracuse Stage. With much appre-

ciation, the Department of Drama wishes to acknowledge the valuable contribution of the Syracuse Stage staff.

While students are responsible for designing the technical elements of most Drama productions, implementing these designs requires a significant contribution by the professional staff of the Syracuse Stage production department.

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P R O D U C T I O N S TA F F & R U N C R E W

Faculty Advisors to Student Designers.................................................................Rob Andrusko Faculty Advisor to Stage Managers...................................................................Stuart Plymesser Light Board Operator.................................................................................................Maya Royston Sound Board Operator.....................................................................................................Kit Verweij Deck................................................................................................Madelyn Clark, Avaana Harvey Dressers...............................................................Nyobi Boddie, Emily Kellner, Ada Wennstrom Costume Maintenance......................................................Emily Castillo-Langley, Rivers Harris

S Y R A C U S E U N I V E R S I T Y D E PA R T M E N T O F D R A M A

Interim Chair....................................................................................................................Holly Thuma Business Manager.................................................................................................................Lisa Tucci Administrative Specialist...................................................................................Charlotte Santella Director, Tepper Semester in NYC.............................................................................Lisa Nicholas Assistant Music Director...............................................................................................Jacob Stebly Dean, VPA...................................................................................................................Michael S. Tick F U L L-T I M E FA C U LT Y

Christine Albright-Tufts Rufus Bonds, Jr. Kiira Schmidt Carper Brian Cimmet Gerardine Clark James A. Clark Stephen Cross

Felix Ivanov Rebecca Karpoff Alex Koziara Andrea Leigh-Smith David Lowenstein Celia Madeoy Maria Marrero

Katherine McGerr Thom Miller Ricky Pak Anthony Salatino Holly Thuma Kathleen Wrinn

A D J U N C T FA C U LT Y

Jill Anderson Rob Andrusko Dianna Angell Kathleen Baum Bradley Beckman Dave Bowman Rob Bundy Don Buschmann Diane Coloton Richard Crawley Gretchen Darrow-Crotty Danita Emma Kathryn Fathers

Jacqueline R Herter Robert Hupp Sandra Knapp Richard Koons Nicholas Kowerko Victoria Lillich Michael McCurdy Karen Menter Kathryn Miranda Amanda Moore William Morris Leslie Noble Jaylene Ogle

Whitney Pak Stuart Plymesser Mara Rich Rebecca Schuetz Hanni Schwarzlander Abel Searor Blake Segal Jacob Stebly Randy Steffen Bradley Stone Renee Storiale Joseph Whelan Matthew Winning

A C C O M PA N I S T S

Kerry Dromgoole, David Sabin, Abel Searor, Jacob Stebly

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2021 2022

DEPARTMENT OF DRAMA The Syracuse University Department of Drama offers a unique combination of rigorous conservatory-style training, direct partnership with a professional theater company, and the resources of a major American university.

Undergraduate students in acting, musical theater, stage management, theater design and technology, and theater man-

vpa.syr.edu/drama | 315.443.3275

agement are carefully guided in their artistic and professional growth by a team of skilled and committed teachers. They are supported by the production, administrative, and artistic staff of Syracuse Stage; participate in masterclasses offered by nationally and internationally renowned theater artists; and have the opportunity for extended study in London, Florence, Los Angeles, or New York City.

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