ADAPTED BY MARIAN DE FOREST FROM THE NOVEL
BY LOUISA MAY ALCOTTDIRECTED BY KERRY ANN DOHERTY
MARCH 15 - 24 2024
ESSEX HALL THEATRE
PRESENTED BY UNIVERSITY PLAYERS
UNIVERSITY PLAYERS AT THE UNIVERSITY OF WINDSOR PRESENTS
ADAPTED BY MARIAN DE FOREST
FROM THE NOVEL BY LOUISA MAY ALCOTT
March 15 - 24, 2024
ESSEX HALL THEATRE
DIRECTED BY
SET & PROJECTION DESIGNER
COSTUME DESIGNER
LIGHTING DESIGNER
SOUND DESIGNER
INTIMACY DIRECTOR & MOVEMENT COACH
GERMAN ACCENT COACH
There will be one 15-minute intermission
KERRY ANN DOHERTY NANCY PERRIN
AGATHA KNELSEN KIRSTEN WATT
DAVE GAUTHIER MEAGHEN QUINN
LAURA QUIGLEY
It’s a book I read a dozen times when I was growing up. A beautiful coming of age story. At different moments in my life, I have related to each of the girls. Meg: Strong, responsible and feminine. Beth: Soft, generous, shy. Amy: Prim, social, fashionista. And of course Jo: the dreamer, rebellious, ambitious. All creative. All four wrapped up in a blanket of love given to them by their parents. How could I not want to be like one of them? Or in fact, all of them.
But Louisa May Allcott didn’t shy away from showing the hardships they endure, war and death. It’s a story of experiencing them and coming through it with grace, humility and love. It feels to me to be the perfect story to be sharing right now. With the violence happening in the world, the division of people and their opinions strongly being stated on social media, people losing their homes and finding it difficult to feed their families, it feels right to wrap everyone up the March family’s love.
I’ve thoroughly enjoyed working with these students as they are coming of age. Each of them bringing in their own versions of the characters to the play. We’ve laughed and cried together and they have inspired me with their curiosity, tenacity, and open hearts.
I hope you leave the theatre feeling as hopeful and warm as I have left every rehearsal.
Kerry AnnMR. MARCH
MRS. MARCH
MEG JO
BETH
AMY
TOBI USMAN
AVERY THOMAS
ALEXA DIMOULAS
LILLY BATTISTA
SIERRA FARNHAM
GAIA MARTIN DEL FRESNO
AUNT MARCH
MR. LAURENCE
LAURIE
PROFESSOR BHAER
JOHN BROOKE
HANNAH MULLETT
MAKENNA PICKERSGILL
AIDAN ROBERTSON
JACK MEADOWS
JACKSON BALINT
COLE BAILEY
ROSE MALINOWSKI
Canadian Transportation Museum and Heritage Village
Ocean Oliviera
Elizabeth Laughton
For over 25 years, Kerry Ann has performed and directed across Canada and the UK. She holds a BFA from the University of Calgary, a MFA in Directing from the University of Essex, a Diploma in University Teaching from the University of New Brunswick and is a member of AACE (Asssociation of Acting Coaches and Educators). Directing credits include The Importance of Being Earnest (St Lawrence Shakespeare Festival), Nobody’s Children (Yellowdoor Theatre Projects), The Incredible Speediness of Jamie Cavanaugh (Carousel Players), One More Time (Goldsmiths University, UK) and Asking For It, Persists and Little One (University of Essex, UK). Kerry Ann had the pleasure of being the 2018/19 RBC Emerging Director for Studio 180 where she assisted on Oslo and was the Assistant Director for a new production of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert at Queens Theatre Hornchurch, UK. She is the Founding Artistic Director of Little Lion Theatre in London, UK where she directed Tuesdays and Sundays and The Drowning Girls and the Founder/Artistic Director of theatreSix where she directed the Dora nominated Grounded. Thanks to Thom, Liam and Anwen. kerryanndoherty.com
Avery Thomas is a third year in the BFA Acting Program. A proud Belle River District High School graduate, Avery has performed in her local community theatre and school performances. Her most recent role was in 365 Days/365 Plays at the University of Windsor. She would like to thank her friends and family for their unconditional love and support.
Alexa Dimoulas is absolutely thrilled to be a part of the University Players 65th season! Alexa is a 4th year BFA Acting student originally from Toronto, Ontario. Alexa is ecstatic about having another opportunity to perform on the Essex stage after playing Amanda Wingfield in The Glass Menagerie. She would love to thank her family, friends and professors for their constant support!
Lilly is in her fourth and final year of the BFA Acting program. She is a theatre performer from Toronto, ON, and is grateful and beyond excited for her other roles this season, as Assistant Director for Mac Beth, and portraying Annie the Stage Manager in The Play That Goes Wrong. She would love to thank her friends, family, and everyone involved this season both on and beyond the stage.
Sierra Farnham is ecstatic to be continuing her journey with University Players as a 4th year in the BFA program, appearing recently in Mac Beth. She is excited to take on the role of Beth March in Little Women. Sierra is originally from Windsor, Ontario and is glad to be representing her hometown. A huge thank you to all of her loved ones who have continued to support her in her aspirations.
Gaia Martin del Fresno is ecstatic to be back on the Essex stage for the 65th season. Gaia is a Spanish-Canadian actor, based in Toronto, attending her 4th year in the BFA Acting program. Spot her as Witch #2 in Mac Beth and Amy in Little Women. Gaia is eternally grateful for her family, friends and professors for their love and support.
Tobi is excited to play Mr. March in Little Women, having previously appeared in Twelfth Night and The Play That Goes Wrong on the Essex Hall stage.
Makenna Pickersgill is a Concurrent Education student who is honoured to be hitting the University Players stage for the first time in this year’s production of Little Women. Makenna has been acting for over a decade. She has performed on stages in New York, Los Angeles, and Scotland. Makenna would like to personally thank her family and friends for their constant faith in her dreams and accomplishments.
Aidan Robertson is so excited for his fourth and final season with the University Players. Born and raised in the bustling city of Windsor, Ontario, he has been captivating audiences since his theatrical career began at the wee age of three, playing a rock in a production with his local library. Aidan is so thankful for his amazing friends and family for continuing supporting him throughout his work.
Jack is a 4th year BFA student excited to take on the role of Laurie. Previously appearing as Ensemble in 365 Days/365 Plays and Jim in The Glass Menagerie, it is his third time on the magnificent Essex Hall Theatre stage. He loves his parents very much.
Jackson is in his final year of the BFA in Acting program and the current Club SODA President. Born and raised in Windsor, Jackson has performed in many local theatre and film productions. Jackson expresses his gratitude to his caring family, his wonderful partner Chloe, his admirable friends, and his cats Toast and Raspberry for all their love and support on and off the stage. “Keep your stick on the ice. It’s the only way you can score.”
Cole is a 2nd year in the BFA program. He is very excited to be in UP this season as John Brooke in Little Women. Coming from his hometown of London Ontario, Cole would like to thank his friends and family for encouraging and enabling him to perform onstage. He would also like to thank his girlfriend for putting up with his random rehearsing of lines at every hour of the day.
Rose Malinowski is in her second year of the BFA Acting Program. She is overjoyed to be joining University Players for their 65th season! She would also love to give a big thanks to her family for their endless support and love, helping her get to where she is today, but also her amazing professors teaching her strong and impactful skills along the way..
Perla Alejandra Layman is in her fourth year of the BFA in Acting program and is excited to join the University Players’ 65th season. She performed in Mac Beth as Witch 1, Ross, Donalbain, Porter, Murderer 1, and Doctor, and The Play That Goes Wrong as Trevor Watson. Perla would like to thank Jeff Marontate, Walter Cassidy, and Sarah Preney for guiding her to the path of performing arts, and her BFA ’24 classmates for taking that journey with her.
Alex is a Drama/WGST/Arts Management student and is so grateful to the cast and crew for all their hard work. As a true Jill of all trades, Alex is directing Newsies Jr. at the Chrysler Theatre this March and Stage Managing The Trench at Kordazone in June! Special thanks to Kerry Ann and to her partner, Floyd. Enjoy!
Gracie is a 4th year Drama & CMF student, and is very excited to be working on her second UP production. Having performed onstage in past community theatre productions such as Mamma Mia (Rosie) and Legally Blonde (Store Manager), she is thrilled to be taking a role in the booth. She would like to thank her friends, family, and Grant for all of their love and support. She hopes you enjoy the show!
Nancy Perrin, Resident Scenic Designer & Artist. Select designs include Niizh (Native Earth), 3 Sisters, Entrances & Exits, & Punk Rock (Howland) Alice in Wonderland (Guild Festival), Goodnight Bird (Festival Antigonish), Othello (Driftwood), Of Human Bondage (Magnus), and Hamlet (Hart House). Nancy is a Dora nominee and a recipient of the Ian and Molly Lindsay Young Design Fellowship, a Tom Patterson Guthrie Award and a member of the Associated Designers of Canada. Past academic teaching and design work includes Mount Allison University, University of Windsor and Toronto Metropolitan University.
Agatha is a proud alum of the University of Windsor, having graduated with a BA in Drama. She worked in professional theatre for over a dozen years before returning to play dress up for a living here. Favourite designs include Les Liaisons Dangereuses (University of Windsor), Evita (Drayton Theatre), Pirates of Penzance (St. Jacob’s Theatre), The Boyfriend (Huron Country Playhouse), Jesus Christ Superstar (Chrysler Theatre), Pelagie (St. Clair College). Of her professional achievements, Agatha lists first that she still loves what she does for a living. Having designed well over 100 productions, each one has helped remind her how incredibly blessed she is to do what she does.
Kirsten’s previous designs for University Players include: Mac Beth, Beauty and the Beast, God of Carnage, The Penelopiad, Journey’s End, A Streetcar Named Desire, Mr. Burns, Big Love, The Dining Room, Lion in the Streets, and The Crucible. Elsewhere, Kirsten has designed lighting for: the Shaw Festival, Drayton Entertainment, the Segal, Centaur, Rideau Vert, Neptune, Watermark, Gros Morne Theatre Festival, Sudbury Theatre Centre, Magnus, Thousand Islands Playhouse, Green Light Arts, Carousel Players, Hart House, George Brown and Sheridan. Kirsten attained her Bachelor of Arts (Drama) from the University of Alberta, and specialized in lighting design at the National Theatre School of Canada.
Valerie Bonasso is graduate of the University of Windsor School of Dramatic Art earning a BA. She has also recently earned an MBA from the Odette School of Business which included an internship at the Cirque du Soleil HQ in Montreal. Valerie was a founding Artistic Partner with Breathe Art Theatre Project, a critically acclaimed cross-border theatre company. Directing credits for Breathe Art: True West and Hedwig and The Angry Inch ; for Korda Artistic Productions: She Kills Monsters. She has also worked as the Crew Supervisor for The Colosseum at Caesars Windsor – working with such acts as Billy Joel & Celine Dion. Valerie is also currently the resident Stage Manager for the St Clair Music Theatre Program.
adapted by Jeffrey Hatcher from the novella Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde by Robert Louis Stevenson
October 24 - November 2, 2024
by Joseph Robinette
based on the novel by E. B. White
November 21 - December 1, 2024 REAL
by Allana Harkin
January 30 - February 9, 2025
by Kristen Thompson
March 27 - April 6, 2025
Season subscription renewals available now!
New subscriptions and single tickets: June 1 Visit the University Players website
www.universityplayers.com
LATECOMERS are seated at a suitable break in the performance and at the discretion of the House Manager. Please refrain from leaving your seat during the performance as patrons leaving the theatre during the performance will be reseated at the house manager’s discretion.
CAMERAS AND CELLULAR PHONES must be turned off during the entire performance.
WATCH AND PHONE ALARMS and the SOUND OF CANDY WRAPPERS are distracting. We ask that all chimes, alarms or notifications be turned off and patrons refrain from unwrapping candies during the performance.
We ask that you be considerate of those in the audience who might have ALLERGIES TO COLOGNE AND PERFUME.
FOOD AND BEVERAGES are not permitted in the theatre. Patrons are asked to dispose of all garbage in the theatre lobby. Water is permitted in a sealed container.
University Players is sympathetic to those patrons who find SMOKING ON THE STAGE objectionable. In order to address audience concerns we make every effort to eliminate any smoking that is called for in a play script. Should smoking be absolutely necessary, every effort is made to curtail or modify the action, particularly by using prop cigarettes.
In the event of an EMERGENCY, the house lights will be turned on and you will hear a voice-recorded announcement in the theatre. Please follow the directions of the ushers and front of house personnel in the evacuation procedures of the theatre.
The photographing, videotaping or making of electronic or other audio and/or visual recordings of this production or distributing recordings on any medium, including the internet, is strictly prohibited.
We thank you for your patronage and co-operation.
Technical Coordinator
Master Carpenter
Head of Wardrobe
Marketing Coordinator
Dave Gauthier
Justin Yelle
Agatha Knelsen
Kristen Siapas
Props Master and Scene Shop Coordinator
Scenic Designer/Artist
Secretarial Staff
Committee Co-Chair
Valerie Bonasso
Nancy Perrin
Martha Boismier, Melissa Lewis
David Court, Lee Wilson
David Court, Director, School of Dramatic Art
Professor Dr. Michelle MacArthur
Professor Alice Nelson
Professor Dr. Tina Pugliese
Professor Meaghen Quinn
Professor Esther Van Eek
Professor Lionel Walsh
Professor Lee Wilson
Dian Marie Bridge
Laura Quigley Kelly Winney
Mary Donohue Kirsten Watt Paula Wing
Kerry Ann Doherty
Professor Emerita Dr. Erica Stevens Abbitt
Professor Emerita Gina Lori Riley
Professor Emerita Diana Mady Kelly
Professor Emeritus William Pinnell
Professor Emeritus Brian Rintoul
Professor Emeritus Brian Taylor
Professor Emeritus Bernie Warren
STAGE MANAGER
MUSIC DIRECTOR
ASSISTANT DIRECTORS
ASSISTANT STAGE MANAGERS
WARDROBE SUPERVISOR
Gracie Williamson
Jamie Brown-Hart
Alex Hagen
Perla Alejandra Layman
Charlotte Kiervin Starkey
Sarah Fleet
Emma Pace WARDROBE CREW Ayslin Downhill
Kate Fase
Madi Greaves
HAIR AND MAKEUP SUPERVISOR Dominique Joslin HAIR AND MAKEUP SHADOW Reena Dyck COSTUME SHOP ASSISTANTS
Natasha Sangemino, Dominique Joslin, Charles Webb, Emma Pace, Jasmine Pole, Mckenna Lumley
RUNNING CREW
Promys Robinson, Bryanna Rowe, Asia Sinkovic, Miles Walker LIGHTING ASSISTANTS
Hayley Boydell, Micah Franklin, Pritham Suresan, Mary Wilkins, Maddison Williams
PROPS ASSISTANTS
Charlotte Kiervin Starkey, Gabby Manroe Dubois, Rickel Williams
SCENIC PAINTING ASSISTANTS
Vanessa Pereira-Girty, Payton Lauzon, Paris Pulin, Isabelle Case PRODUCTION CREW
Charlie Kerwin, Tara Quesnel, Calvin Mcintyre, Nikita Genoway, Haileigh Prinselaar, Pritham Suresan, Khloe Gamble, Sarah Fleet, Olivia Chapados, Fernando Garcia, Mckenna Lumley, Jasmine Pole
PIANO RECORDING Elizabeth Laughton
FRONT OF HOUSE MANAGERS Patricia Arndt, Steven Hewgill USHERS
Dominika Dudzik, Matthew Elegah, Emma Gaudet, Evan Hayward, Mia Milosevski, Cara Minama, Noelle Pearson, Emily Pinkney, Giancarlo Savoni, Hannah Sutherland-Sebo, Sela Taylor, Jared Vecchio
BOX OFFICE
Yousef Al Khatib, Jack Debresser-Knowler, Mya Lavigne, Abigail Martin, Jaiden Nickles, Hannah Sutherland-Sebo
University Players wishes to thank the following individuals for their much appreciated support of entertaining live theatre. This list reflects donations given in the 2023 calendar year.
LEADING ROLES : $2,500+
Doug and Randi Fox
FEATURED ARTISTS: $1,000-$2,499
David Cooper
Tina Pugliese
Lionel Walsh
RISING STARS: $500-$999
Patricia Fagan
Jane & Tony Meriano
Eleanor Maticka-Tyndale & Sanford Tyndale
A. Sheila Wright
UNDERSTUDIES: $250-499
Cliff Danby
Fred Eldridge
Gina Lori Riley
Linda Menard-Watt
Ken & Janet Ouellette
Bruce Tucker
Marie Walker
Drew Verdam
SUPPORTING CAST: $100-$249
Cecilia Bannon
Jeffrey Berryman
Carol Christianson
Paul Constable
Heather Davies
Clement Eslinger
Larry and Twyla Glassford
Marie and John Guthrie
Richard Hogan
John & Cornelia Huschilt
Diane Kitowski
Robert & Wanda Lacey
Dr. Kathleen McCrone
Bob and Michelle Marchand
Antoinette & Ernest Pecaski
Robert Russell
Michael Shust
For more information, or to make a donation, please contact
Kristen Siapas at 519-253-3000 ext. 2818.
We are grateful to the many committed donors who support the School of Dramatic Art including University Players, student scholarships, endowments and capital projects and are honoured to acknowledge the cumulative gifts of this extraordinary group whose contributions over the years have truly made a difference.
$1 000 000+
The Province of Ontario
$750 000-$999 999
The Jackman Foundation
Bill & Jean Wright
$500 000-$749 999
Caesars Windsor
Henry N. R. Jackman Foundation
$250 000-$499 999
Estate of Ernest Waddell
Scotia Bank
$10 000-$24 999
Jane Black
Club SODA
Doug & Randi Fox
Paul Huschilt
Hutchinson Charitable Fund
The Joan & Clifford Hatch Foundation
Universal Studios Canada Ltd.
$100 000-$249 999
Windsor Endowment for the Arts
Anne Winterbottom
$50 000-$99 999
Lorna Carroll
George Marshall
$25 000-$49 999
FCA Canada
Jeanette McGrath
Sun-Brite Foods Inc.
$10 000-$24 999
Jane Black
Club SODA
Doug & Randi Fox
Paul Huschilt
Mady Dentistry
Jaqueline Sperandio
UWSA
Lionel Walsh
Bill & Jean Wright
$5000-$9999
Jeff Berryman & Carol McDermott
BMO Bank of Montreal
Mina Grossman-Ianni
Dennis Hastings
JMB Wealth Management Inc.
Local 58 Benefit Fund
Gina Lori Riley
Diana Mady Kelly and Don Park
Tina Pugliese
The Rev. Canon John Riddle & Jody Ness
Barbara Heartwell & Keith Taylor
Drew Verdam
A. Sheila Wright
Hutchinson Charitable Fund
Mady Dentistry
Jaqueline Sperandio
UWSA
Lionel Walsh
Bernice Zub
