THE LOOKING GLASS THEATRE
PRESENTS ODYSSEY
A comic adaptation of Homer's classic
Written and directed by Kate Marks
May 10 – June 3
NEW YORK – When war is the catalyst, the path to forgiveness is an odyssey. The Looking Glass Theatre is proud to present Odyssey, an original adaptation of Homer’s classic written
and directed by Kate Marks. Odyssey, which playfully uses anachronism and humor to examine the repercussions of war, opens at The Looking Glass Theatre on Thursday, May 10.
About The Show…
Using lies and deceit, you’ve won the war waged in the sand.
Now all you have to do is sail home, no problem… Your men?
Eaten like baby sausages by a Cyclops. Your manhood? At
the mercy of a woman who could turn you into a pig. Your ship?
A bone to a six-headed salty dog. The wrath of a WWF
Poseidon. Ten years lost at sea…and you thought the 80s
was a bad decade.
Odysseus’ voyage is a journey of redemption. After a decade
of fighting the Trojan War, triumphant Odysseus ignores
Cassandra’s plea for protection from his soldiers. Angered
by the brutality of the soldiers, the goddess Athena punishes
him with a great storm that flings him off course. Odysseus
leads his men through many of the famous trials of Homer’s
The Odyssey (The Lotus Eaters, the Cyclops, Circe, The Underworld and The Sirens) as he
attempts to reconcile his hubris with the tragic results it has on his fortunes.
Taking inspiration from clown and dance, this production utilizes the bold physicality of the actors
to stage the impossibilities of the play (including shape-shifting from men to animals, a towering
Cyclops, a half-man/half-woman prophet and an epic sea storm). This production illuminates the
theme of transformation as Athena shape-shifts into a stag, a pig and Penelope, while Poseidon
changes into a rope and Telemachus. However, the deepest transformation will be the nature of
Odysseus himself.
CAST: Elena Chang, Will Ellis, Fosse E. Emery, Sarah Petersiel, Libya Pugh*, Marc Santa Maria,
Ben Sumrall*, Daren Taylor, Jamie Lea Thompson, Joshua Vink*, Anthony Wills, Jr.*, and Andrew
Zimmerman.
CREW: Kate Marks (Director), Toby Bercovici (Assistant Director/Stage Manager), Holly Nanes
(Assistant Director/Stage Manager), Laura Roemer (Dramaturge), Carolyn Mraz (Scenic
Designer), Ryan Metzler (Lighting Designer), Sean Sullivan (Costume Designer), Jason Atinkson
(Sound Designer), Paco Tolson (Production Support).
About The Director/Playwright Kate Marks…
Ms. Marks has directed several productions of her own plays including I-95 South as part of The American Living Room Series at HERE, Ark for the Looking Glass Theatre’s mainstage and Odyssey (as a commission for Germany’s Baracken Theatre). Marks’ tenure as a director at the Looking Glass Theatre has garnered rave reviews from The New York Times which credited her as a “superb director” (The Fall) and “ingenious” (Jack!). She has also directed numerous productions for the Looking Glass Forum. Select NY directing credits include Nothing of Origins (Urban Stages), Reproduction (Riant Theatre), Faith (Broadway Institute), The Lamp's Lit (Milk Can Theatre), Paint the Wind (ArtsStart), and numerous collaborations with the 52nd Street Project
A graduate of Brown University where she received honors in playwriting and studied under Nilo Cruz, Ms. Marks recently assisted directed Loretta Greco’s production of Victoria Martin: Math Team Queen for the Women’s Project and Danny Goldstein’s production of Godspell at the Papermill Playhouse. She has choreographed for BUST (a comedic dance troupe), Two Sides of A Coin Productions, Studio 42 and The Baracken Theatre. Kate Marks is excited to combine her work as a playwright, director and choreographer in Odyssey.
About The Looking Glass Theatre…
The Looking Glass Theatre’s mission is to explore and expand the feminine aesthetic, producing works by historic female playwrights, new works by women, and productions of the classics re-imagined by contemporary women directors. This June, The Looking Glass Theatre and Artistic Director Justine Lambert received The Lucille Lortel Award from The League of Professional Theatre Women. Additionally, New York Resident named Ms. Lambert one of the Top 100 New Yorkers of 2003 for her work with the company.
* Appears courtesy of Actors' Equity Association.
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ODYSSEY -- May 10 - June 3, 2007
SCHEDULE: Thursday-Saturday @ 8PM; Sunday @ 7pm
TICKET PRICE: $15 General Admission, $12 for seniors/student with valid ID
ADDRESS: 422 West 57th Street, between 9th and 10th Avenues
PHONE: (212) 307-9467
TDF Vouchers Accepted!
CAST
Elena Chang (Athena) is a recent graduate of Mason Gross School of the Arts at Rutgers University. During her training she had the honor of performing at the Shakespeare Globe Theater in London in productions of Troilus & Cressida and A Midsummer Night's Dream. She is thrilled to be making her NYC stage debut with the Looking Glass Theatre! Most recently she is featured in West 32nd, directed by Michael Kang as part of this year's Tribeca Film Festival. Elena would like to dedicate her work to all the great teachers in her life. Special thanks to Kate Marks, the Looking Glass Theatre, and the cast and crew of Odyssey for this fierce journey
Will Ellis (Lochus) is thankful to be back at The Looking Glass Theatre (The Fall, NYIT Award nomination; Spring’s Awakening). New York Stage Credits: The Other End (Michael Weller Theatre), Macbeth (Workshop Theatre), Rock of Ages (Underground at GTT). Regional: Hamlet, A Vampire Tale, Come Back to the Five and Dime, Jimmy Dean, Jimmy Dean (Portfolio Awards), The Foreigner, Laughter on the 23rd Floor. TV/Film: “Law and Order,” Rocky and Bullwinkle, Danny and Manny. Thanks to Kate, cast and crew. To Breanna & Liz at CTM. Love to my family and friends. To my wife Erin: you make this life Grand. Habakkuk 1:5. SDG!!
Fosse E. Emery (Perry) comes from Oklahoma City, by way of Ft. Worth, Texas. He was a dancer/choreographer for two dance companies in Oklahoma. He also choreographed the independent film Jaded Games. He has been in Beauty & the Beast (Stainsworth), You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown (Schroeder), Once Upon a Mattress (Jester), Little Shop of Horrors (Audrey II), A Hat Full of Rain (Mother), A Midsummer Night's Dream (Egeus) and Into the Woods (Rapunzel’s Prince) I don't always believe in myself, so I appreciate those who pick up the slack for me. Jason Raize & Nell Carter you are greatly missed.
Sarah Petersiel (Aspen/Sip/Anticlea’s Ghost/Calypso) belongs to the ensemble Under the Table which creates actor-generated works of physical theatre. She acts and writes for the 52nd Street Project, is half of the comedic dance duo BUST, and graduated from Brown University and the Dell’Arte International School of Physical Theatre. Up next, Sarah appears in Duende Arts’ 365NYC week. Sarah was involved in the original production of Odyssey in Wust, Germany and is glad to revisit it.
Libya Pugh* (Cassandra/Penelope/Periwinkle/Tiresias/Sera) is excited to working with such a great ensemble. She moved to NY in February from Chicago and last appeared at the New Victory in The Bluest Eye; a Steppenwolf Theatre production The Dreams of Sara Breedlove, Goodman Theatre; Wedding Band at Steppenwolf; Piano Lesson and From the Mississippi Delta at Congo Square; For Colored Girls at Journeyman; Macbeth at Chicago Shakespeare; As You Like It at Milwaukee Shakespeare; and Christmas Carol at Milwaukee Repertory. Libya received her M.F.A from University of Illinois, Urbana Champaign. She is a founding ensemble member of Congo Square and an artistic associate of Chicago Dramatist in Chicago.
Marc Santa Maria (Poseidon) is thrilled to be working with the awesome Kate Marks again. He is also blessed to be part of the theatre companies Partial Comfort Productions (www.partialcomfort.org) and Velocity (www.velocitytheatre.org). Seriously, ask him how many push ups he can do. This is for his dad - one of his personal gods.
Ben Sumrall* (Dime/Pig Willy/Tantalus) is very happy to be making his second appearance at the Looking Glass Theatre. He has recently been seen in Macbeth at the WorkShop Theatre, Props in the Midtown International Theatre Festival, Spring's Awakening at the Looking Glass, and playing Vladimir in Waiting for Godot. He gives his deepest thanks to everyone involved in this production, as well as to friends and family for all of their love and support. Ben is a member of the WorkShop Theatre Company and Actors' Equity Association.
Daren Taylor (Prontis), who was last seen in Creatures of the Cabaret at The Looking Glass Theatre, is a recent graduate of NYU Tisch School of the Arts. He has just returned from a year of teaching abroad in Japan and is very happy to return to the stage. Some of Daren's favorite past roles include The Colored Museum, Our Lady of 121st Street, and his one-man show What a Man!. Although a young actor, he is still an accomplished one who has worked with many companies both here in New York and Washington D.C. He is very grateful for this opportunity.
Jamie Lea Thompson (Nettle/Sol/Circe/Iphegenia’s Ghost) is a graduate of the theater program at Sarah Lawrence College. She originated the role of Fairy Blackstick in The Rose and the Ring as well as appearing as Saunders in Fallen Angels and Lady Edith in The Prince and the Pauper. Her latest effort has been in the film In Search Of… where she plays Cathy. Jamie Lea would like to thank her mother and father for their support and her better half, Ramazan, for picking her up at the PATH train at all hours of the day and night…with a smile on his face.
Joshua Vink* (Tan) is excited to be working for the first time at The Looking Glass Theatre and with director Kate Marks. New York Credits: LaMama, E.T.C., Theatre for the New City, Gorilla Rep, The Kraine, Genesius Guild, Dixon Place. Regional: Orlando in As You Like It (Connecticut Free Shakespeare), Valentine in Twelfth Night (Princeton Rep), Henry Percy in Richard II (Shakespeare in Delaware Park). TV: “Hacking Chronicles” (AT&T). Independent Film: A Dog’s Life, The Crusher, 100% The Art of Conversation. Training: MFA, Shakespeare Theatre’s Academy for Classical Acting.
Anthony Wills Jr.* (Antis/Polyphemus/Tiresias) recently relocated to New York where he’s performed in Avenue X (Dreamlight Theatre), Talking to Terrorists (Culture Project), A Season of Miracles (Pushcart Players) and his one-man show, The Happiness of Schizophrenia (New York International Fringe Festival). Regional credits include seasons at Milwaukee Rep, Utah Shakespearean Festival, Pennsylvania Centre Stage and First Stage Children’s Theater. In his former home of Chicago he’s performed with many companies including Dream Theater, House, Hypocrites, Lookingglass, Northlight, and Steppenwolf. Memorable roles include Lovin’ Al (Working), Doc Daneeka/Chaplain (Catch-22), Lot (Lot’s Wife), and Bokonon in the staged adaptation of Kurt Vonnegut’s Cat's Cradle.
Andrew Zimmerman (Odysseus) – Selected acting credits: The Lamp’s Lit, Milkcan (with Kate Marks); The Trial, Egress Theatre; 365 days/365 plays, Clubbed Thumb (wk 10); The Euthanasist, Manhattan Rep; Romeo and Juliet, Allentown Shakespeare; Things Beyond Our Control, Grid Theater; Girl Blog from Iraq, Six Figures; Troilus and Cressida. (Chattanooga, TN): Theatre I, Polaroid Stories. Directing/design: Edward Bond’s Red Black and Ignorant (director, prod. design), WASP (set). Currently a finance associate for Theatre for a New Audience, Andrew was previously an intern/resident handyperson at New Dramatists. He earned BAs in Theatre and English from the University of Tennessee-Chattanooga.
CREW
Kate Marks (Playwright/Director) selected directing credits include The Fall, Romeo and Juliet, Decent, Bumping Umbrellas, Lola and The Planet of Glorious Diversity, Jack! (Looking Glass); Nothing of Origins (Studio 42); and The Lamp’s Lit (Milk-Can Theatre). She has written and directed I-95 South (HERE), Ark (Looking Glass Theatre) and Odyssey (Baracken Theatre, Germany). Selected writing credits include Flyers and Other Tales (Midtown Festival). She has choreographed for BUST and Studio 42. Kate is a graduate of Brown University. Thank you to the cast and crew for their inspiring dedication and strength; the Looking Glass for believing in this project; and Mom, Dad, Elizabeth and Paco whose love and faith makes everything possible. www.katemarks.net
Toby Bercovici (Assistant Director/Stage Manager) is a theatre director interested in the radical deconstruction of classical texts. She comes happily to The Looking Glass Theatre from Smith College, where she directed A Feast at Countess Kotlubay’s, a dark comedy about the growing problem of cannibalism amongst the upper classes as well as her own adaptation of Henrik Ibsen's A Doll House, which introduced a troupe of grotesque puppeteers who supplemented the story with dance and dumbshow. Contact her at tobyvera@hotmail.com.
Holly Nañes (Assistant Director/Stage Manager), An aspiring director for theatre, a rebel, a dreamer, and an idealist, she desires to contribute something meaningful to the human race. Holly wants to spread the Infection of Art in the hearts of children. For her, theatre has always been her passionate release, and she owes her worst and her best years of theatre to Mr. Robert Rehm, a true inspiration when seemingly unfortunate accidents lend themselves to a new passion for life and creativity. Rock on Mr. Rehm!!!
Laura Roemer (Dramaturg) -- Previous credits as dramaturg include I-95 South (THE AMERICAN LIVING ROOM at HERE), also written/directed by Kate Marks; Trout Stanley (The Culture Project); The Golem (Manhattan Ensemble Theatre); Ark (Looking Glass Theatre), also written/directed by Kate Marks; Nothing of Origins (Studio 42); Little Fishes (Abingdon Theatre Company); The House of Blue Leaves (Brooklyn College). Laura holds a BFA in Theatre from New York University and an MFA in Dramaturgy from Brooklyn College.
Carolyn Mraz (Scenic Designer) -- New York credits include scenic designs of Serenading Louie (Stella Adler Studios), Stone Cold Dead Serious (Clurman Theater), The Havel Festival (the Ohio Theater), An Evening with the Family (The Brick), and Avalon (Looking Glass Theatre). Previously, she designed the touring children’s show Strange Waves, produced by the Berkshire Theatre Festival. Other scenic credits include various mainstage and student productions at Oberlin College, such as Dancing at Lughnasa, Tales From Ovid, The Vagina Monologues, The Black Monk, and The Man Outside. She is currently designing, painting, and assisting throughout the city.
Ryan Metzler (Lighting Designer) is the Lighting Designer in Residence at the Looking Glass Theatre, where he designs the semi-annual Writer/Director Forums. Productions in New York include: Copito, Sex and Sealing Wax, and The Quiet Model (Midtown Festival); Chess (NY Fringe); Spring’s Awakening, Helix 999, Baal and Bug Boy Blues (Looking Glass Theatre); The End of Civilization (Locus Theatre Company); Eight Ways to Meet your Neighbor and Soccer Moms from Hell (The Theatre Studio, Inc.); Stone Cold Dead Serious (Small Pond Entertainment).
Sean Sullivan (Costume Designer)
Jason Atkinson (Sound Designer)
Paco Tolson (Production Support) has collaborated with Kate Marks since the spring of 2001 while attending Brown University together. In NYC He has assisted her in a production, casting, and performance level on The Fall, Bumping Umbrellas and Ark at Looking Glass, Bird House (New Dramatists), and In the Bedroom of Toots and Company (92nd St. Y/Makor) among others. The two have often contributed parallel work for the 52nd Street Project. He considers assisting her work a precious opportunity and a great privilege.
