READY, SET, STORY!
How Katie Saved the
Sneaky Spider's Tales
A new children's show exploring international
folktales of tricksters
Written by Emily Paul
Directed by Rose Ginsberg
October 10 - November 1
The Looking Glass Theatre proudly presents the world premiere of READY, SET, STORY! HOW KATIE SAVED THE SNEAKY SPIDER’S TALES, a new children’s show exploring international folktales of tricksters, written by Emily Paul and directed by Rose Ginsberg, as part of its exciting Fall 2009 lineup. Ready, Set, Story! is slated to open at The Looking Glass Theatre on Saturday, October 10. Performances are scheduled every Saturday at 12 p.m. and 2 p.m. and every Sunday at 2 p.m. and 4 p.m. through November 1.
About The Show…
Katie is always getting into trouble for playing tricks! But then, she meets the
greatest trickster of them all: Anansi the Spider, the African god of storytelling.
When Katie peeks into Anansi's magical box of stories, three ancient myths
escape from the box! Katie and Anansi travel through the missing myths,
from Viking castles to Apache forests, trying to recover the stories from the
clever characters of Norse, Native American, Japanese, and African folklore.
But will Katie find all the stories before they are lost forever?
Ready, Set, Story! captures the sense of wonder and
excitement children find in their favorite myths, as well
as the stories’ incredible imaginative power. Who
doesn’t recall spending hours poring over tales of enchanted animals, bickering gods
and goddesses, and brave heroes (and heroines!) on impossible quests?
Clever tricksters who don’t look like much, but always manage to outsmart even the
scariest monsters? These folktales are epic yet familiar, magical yet human, ancient yet
totally alive, and children simply can’t get enough of them. And while the stories have
been told for centuries, each new listener envisions them in his or her own unique way.
This play uses movement, voice work, and playful costumes to bring mythical
characters vividly to life, inviting audiences of all ages to explore their amazing,
delightful worlds. As Anansi the Spider says, “Ready, Set... Story!”
Featuring an energetic mix of part-time teachers, puppeteers, clowns and comedians, this diverse cast tackles different myths and their many characters. Renée-Michele Brunet (Katie) and Lauren Kelly Benson (Anansi) lead the standout ensemble, which also features Andrew Ash, Andrew S. Davies, Brian Hirono, Elisa Pupko and Emily Tucker portraying almost 20 different mythical roles.
Creative team includes: Dara Malina (Assistant Director/Stage Manager),
Sibylle Weltert (Assistant Director/Stage Manager), Zane Enloe (Scenic),
David Monroy (Lighting) and Rachel Soll (Costumes).
About the Playwright Emily Paul…
Ms. Paul is currently pursuing her MFA in Dramatic Writing at NYU TischAsia.
Her work has been performed throughout NYC including at Dixon Place’s
Warning: Not For Broadway Festival and The Shortened Attention Span Festival.
She is a graduate of the Gallatin School of Individualized Studies at NYU where she
studied dramatic writing and mythology. She writes a mythology blog relating the
old stories to modern living at http://omdammit.blogspot.com. Ms. Paul is a member of
the Dramatists Guild of America.
About the Director Rose Ginsberg…
Ms. Ginsberg is proud to direct her seventh production at The Looking Glass Theatre. Past Looking Glass credits include Gentle Girl, Lesbian Bathhouse, The Taming of the Shrew, and Doing Shakespeare. As a company member at Manhattan Repertory Theatre, she recently directed Chekhov’s The Proposal and The Bear and Jean Anouilh’s Antigone. Ms. Ginsberg has staged both The Vagina Monologues (Stiletto Project at The Looking Glass Theatre) and A Memory, a Monologue, a Rant, and a Prayer (_gaia Studio with Arthouse Productions) for V-Day, raising money to help stop violence against women and girls. Her work has also been seen at Ensemble Studio Theatre and Dixon Place.
About The Looking Glass Theatre…
The Looking Glass Theatre’s mission is to theatrically and truthfully reflect a female vision on the stage. We fulfill this by presenting female directors’ visions of classics and by staging new plays either written or directed by women. In 2009 nytheatre.com said, “The Looking Glass Theatre deserves kudos for consistently programming affordable shows for families that really are produced and staged with the youngest theater-goers in mind.” The New York Times called our Fall 2008 production of Adventures of the Puppet Princess “charming” and “especially amusing to children under 10...a substantial introduction to the culture of Bali.” In June 2006, The Looking Glass Theatre and Artistic Director Justine Lambert received The Lucille Lortel Award from The League of Professional Theatre Women
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READY, SET, STORY! HOW KATIE SAVED THE SNEAKY SPIDER'S TALES
October 10-November 1, 2009
SCHEDULE: Saturday @ 12 p.m. and 2 p.m., Sunday @ 2 p.m. and 4 p.m.
TICKET PRICE: $15 Adults, $12 Children 12 and under
ADDRESS: 422 West 57th Street, between 9th and 10th Avenues
PHONE: (212) 307-9467
TDF Vouchers Accepted!
ANDREW ASH (Loki/Firefly/Osebo) was born and raised in Chicago. After graduating from Yale in 2008, he went to an acting internship at the Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park, before moving to New York on August 1. He is proud to be making his New York debut here at the Looking Glass Theatre. Favorite roles include Malvolio (Twelfth Night), Louis (Angels in America) and Dick Wilkins (A Christmas Carol). He has two parents, two brothers, and one miniature dachshund, and he loves all of them very much.
LAUREN KELLY BENSON (Anansi) started her journey in New Jersey. She has been acting since she was 12 and met Rose acting in high school. Favorite roles include Prospero in The Tempest, cast member in Inverse Theatre’s Me, and The Player in Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead. She has studied at NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts and is currently a student at Hunter College. She is also the Associate Artistic Director of hammertheatrecollective and has assistant directed The Libation Bearers with them. She is so excited to be doing a children’s show; she remembers being inspired by just this sort of thing from a young age and hopes that even just one child will discover the joys she has found in theatre. She has had so much fun developing these characters with this group of people and would like to thank Rose for giving her a chance to be involved. She wants to thank her parents and family for so much support, all her friends for listening all about developing a spider, and Linz for having the guts when we were 12 to ask that random lady how we could get into doing plays.
RENÉE-MICHELE BRUNET (Katie) graduated from the University of California-Irvine with a BA in Theatre Arts. She grew up in Germany until the age of eight, but sadly does not speak German. When her father retired from the Army, her family moved to the Central Coast of California. She has lived in both Monterey and Santa Rosa, and fondly calls both places home. Her favorite pastime is snuggling with her puppy dog named Maebee-Audrey. Renée-Michele has an ever-growing collection of Venetian masks and seahorse memorabilia. She also began collecting state quarters when she was 15, and finally has a complete map that holds all 50 coins. In college, she learned to be a clown, and wore her red nose across the stage at graduation. Someday, she would like to move to Italy and join a professional clown troupe. She loves to hear children laughing. Getting them to giggle is one of her main goals for this play. She is thrilled to be playing Katie for her NYC stage debut.
ANDREW S. DAVIES (Thor/Fox/Umbolo) is an actor and comedian living and working in New York City. Originally from Philadelphia, Andrew attended Brandeis University before moving to The Big Apple. Earlier this year he co-wrote and acted in the Off-Broadway children’s musical Blizzard the Wizard at Urban Stages. Other New York City theatre credits include Beautiful World at The Gallery Players and Billy Budd at The Metropolitan Playhouse. Andrew founded the comedy group The New Rapscallions, and has performed comedy at the Magnet Theatre, The Bleecker Street Theatre and Parkside Lounge. Andrew is excited to be performing at The Looking Glass Theatre and would like to thank the cast and crew for their talent and passion.
BRIAN HIRONO (Thrym/Firefly/Umbolo/Susanowo), a graduate of Trinity College, hails from the islands of Hawaii. Brian has performed at La Mama E.T.C., the International Festival of Arts and Ideas, and at the Accademia dell’Arte in Italy. Brian has trained with the Moscow Art Theater School, SITI Company, Marcello Bartoli, Paco Gonzales (Familie Floez), Barbara Karger, Michael Preston and others. Brian just finished recording voiceovers for an episode of PBS “Secrets of the Dead” on Japanese WW2 Super Submarines, which will air this fall. Also, he is currently writing his next one-man show about exorcism in modern-day evangelical Christianity.
ELISA PUPKO (Freya/Goose/Amaterasu/Mwatiya) is excited to be making her Looking Glass Theatre debut with this talented and energetic cast! New York credits: A Wonderland (Anonymous Ensemble/Ice Factory Festival), The Children’s Hour (Astoria Performing Arts Center), Satin Dolls (Broadway Baby Cabaret), Joseph …Dreamcoat (Narrows Theatre) and Central Park - the Musical (Arthur Seelen Theatre). You can also catch Elisa in various episodes of College Humor Originals. A native of Seattle, Elisa loves coffee and hates the rain. BA in Drama from the University of Washington. Favorite roles in Seattle include Liesl in The Sound of Music, Daisy Mae in Li’l Abner and touring the Northwest with Taproot Theatre performing anti-bullying plays for school children. Elisa sends her love and thanks to Mike for always believing and to Mom for all her support. www.elisapupko.com
EMILY TUCKER (Mom/Nyame/Goose) is thrilled to be working with The Looking Glass Theatre on this very fun show! Emily hails from Wisconsin where she earned her BA in Theatre (Acting) from the University of Wisconsin in December 2007. NYC credits include: Mariana in America: A Problem Play (On the Square), Emily in Joseph McDonough's One at Nicu’s Spoon Theatre, Snow White in The Snow White Project (dir. Catherine Bay), Gooda in Ingenue (On The Square) and Annabelle in Whiskey Sisters (Shotgun Theatre Festival, Gene Frankel Theatre). She also performed as part of Marissa Mickelberg’s installation Maximum Perception at the English Kills Art Gallery. Other favorite roles: Urinetown (Little Becky Two Shoes), The Taffetas (Peggy) and Pride and Prejudice (Lydia). She keeps herself busy as an actress, yoga and movement teacher for SMART-4-KIDZ, and she dabbles in puppetry and stand-up as well. Thanks to everyone involved for an amazing process!
EMILY PAUL (Playwright) is currently pursuing her MFA in Dramatic Writing at NYU TischAsia. Her work has been performed throughout NYC including at Dixon Place’s Warning: Not For Broadway Festival and The Shortened Attention Span Festival. She is a graduate of the Gallatin School of Individualized Studies at NYU where she studied dramatic writing and mythology. Emily writes a mythology blog relating the old stories to modern living at http://omdammit.blogspot.com. She is a member of the Dramatists Guild of America.
ROSE GINSBERG (Director) is proud to direct her seventh production at The Looking Glass Theatre. Past Looking Glass credits include Gentle Girl, Lesbian Bathhouse, The Taming of the Shrew and Doing Shakespeare. As a company member at Manhattan Repertory Theatre, she recently directed Chekhov’s The Proposal and The Bear and Jean Anouilh’s Antigone. Rose has staged both The Vagina Monologues (Stiletto Project at The Looking Glass Theatre) and A Memory, a Monologue, a Rant, and a Prayer (_gaia Studio with Arthouse Productions) for V-Day, raising money to help stop violence against women and girls. Her work has also been seen at Ensemble Studio Theatre and Dixon Place.
DARA MALINA (Assistant Director/Stage Manager) graduated from Washington University in St. Louis with a BA in Drama and a focus on Directing. Directing credits: Mud, The Vagina Monologues, Terminating or…Assistant Directing: Caucasian Chalk Circle (PL115), The American Capitalism Project (TEAM), Othello (St. Louis Shakespeare). Dara has worked at The Women’s Project, La MaMa ETC, The Chocolate Factory, and has trained with The TEAM and at The Globe Theatre. She is thrilled to be assisting Rose on this exciting show! Thank you to the cast and creative team for their talent, time, and loads of creative energy!
SIBYLLE WELTERT (Assistant Director/Stage Manager) recently received her Bachelor of Arts in Theater from Long Beach State University. She has performed in numerous productions including Romeo and Julia, The Actor’s Nightmare, and Phaedra’s Love. Some of her directing credits include Ugly Duckling, Rumors and a self-written piece called The Cycle of Life. Sibylle is very excited to be working with The Looking Glass Theatre; moreover, she is grateful for this opportunity to assist direct such talented people.
ZANE ENLOE (Scenic Design) hails from South West Wisconsin where he studied technical theater at UW-Madison. Since then Zane has interned at MASS MoCA, toured with The Wedding Singer First National, and is now the Production Coordinator at New World Stages. Recent designs include: America a Problem Play, Ghosts of Provincetown, and The Hole. He currently resides in Brooklyn with the lovely Miss Emily Tucker, and can often be found in Redhook with his skateboard and a bucket of PBR.
DAVID MONROY (Light Design): If Gandhi met, fell in love with and married Ralph Nader their offspring would be David Monroy - a talented musician, caring activist, audio engineer and lighting designer.
RACHEL SOLL (Costume Design): Costume Design Credits: Week 1 of the EstroGenius Fest at Manhattan Theatre Source; Layla and Harley, BFF, Planet Connections Theatre Festivity. Rachel has worked under established designer Carla Gant, her mentor, for The Heshel School (Grease) and the Lucy Moses Theatre (Jonah and the Whale). She designed six shows and three game shows at Geyonggi English Village, South Korea. Future Project: Assistant Costume Design of Agamemnon at LaMama, Etc. She’s currently a student at FIT, SCPS. When not costuming, Rachel is also an actress, singer, and improv comedienne and can be seen this summer/fall at the Sterling Forest Renaissance Faire in Tuxedo, NY. So excited to be working at Looking Glass, with Jenn and Chanda again, and with Rose and the cast and crew of RSS!
