Cast                         

Jill Baker (Camille, Evaline, 2nd Leper) made her Tucson debut with The Rogue Theatre, performing the roles of First God and Boy in The Good Woman of Setzuan. She has also appeared as Anya in the Rogue’s production of The Cherry Orchard. She came to Tucson from Chicago where she co-wrote, directed and performed Mary Shelley and Her Monsters. She spent the previous year as Artist in Residence at the Berkshire Theatre Festival where she taught playwrighting and acting to elementary school students while touring a production of Strange Waves. Other productions with the Berkshire Theatre Festival include The Father, Peter Pan, and Arabian Nights. She graduated with her BFA in Theatre Performance from Missouri State University.

Leanné Whitewolf-Charlton (Mother Metz, Marie, 3rd Leper) has appeared with The Rogue Theatre as Indian Maid and Echo in Endymion and as Third God and Wife in The Good Woman of Setzuan. She received theatre and dance education from University of Wiisconsin-Milwaukee and Northwestern College where she appeared in The Miracle Worker, Bram Stoker’s Dracula and Pippin. She has studied with The Milwaukee Ballet as well as the internationally renowned Afro-modern dance company Ko-Thi. Her Arizona credits include the roles of Linda Waterman in Fiction for Beowulf Alley Theatre Company and Albertine and Maud Moon in the Borderlands Theatre production of Dust Eaters.

Steve Cruz (Toulon) most recently appeared with The Rogue Theatre as Trofimov in The Cherry Orchard. He received his Bachelor’s degree in acting from Northern Arizona University, appearing onstage in productions of When You Comin’ Back, Red Ryder?, I Remember Mama, A Midsummer Night’s Dream and The Odd Couple. Here in Tucson, he performed in All In The Timing at Top Hat Theatre Club, and Fifth Planet and Black Comedy at Beowulf Alley Theater Company.

Todd Fitzpatrick (Pellico, Vasquez, Patrice, Viennet) performed as Vagrant and Stationmaster in The Rogue Theatre’s production of The Cherry Orchard. Other Arizona credits include performances as Jesus in Godspell, Scarecrow in The Wizard of Oz and Saul in Play On! (all at The Poor Man’s Theater), Joe in Our Town (Northern Arizona University) and Emile in New Moon (The Gilbert and Sullivan Theater). His other roles include Linus in You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown and Teddy Prior in The Battle of Corpus Christi. He appeared as Lon in the HBO film El Diablo and has studied at American Conservatory Theater in San Francisco.

Patty Gallagher (Sonnerie, Scarron) is Artist in Residence in The Rogue Theatre’s 2007–08 season. She has performed with The Rogue Theatre as Shen Te in The Good Woman of Setzuan, Ranevskaya in The Cherry Orchard, and Winnie in Happy Days. Patty is Assistant Professor of Theatre Arts at University of California Santa Cruz where she directs courses in physical theatre, mask, Balinese dance, and clown traditions. She is Director in Residence for the Clown Conservatory, San Francisco School of Circus Arts. She holds a doctorate in Theatre from University of Wisconsin–Madison. She has performed clown and buffoon with Teatro Cronopio and studied in Laboratorio Grupo Malayerba. She has worked with the New Pickle Circus, Fool Time Circus, Folger Shakespeare Theatre, San Francisco Circus and the Weird Sisters Ensemble. She has performed and directed workshops in Asia, South America, Europe, and the U.S., and recently was a Fulbright Scholar in Quito, Ecuador. She is a founding member of Local Hero, a physical theatre ensemble.

Kenton Jones (Le Grue) most recently appeared as Simeonov-Pishchik in The Rogue Theatre’s production of The Cherry Orchard. He studied Improvisation at Second City in Chicago and in Los Angeles with Avery Schreiber. Favorite roles have included Renfield in The Passion of Dracula, Jerry in The Zoo Story, and Mrs. Forrest in Psycho Beach Party. Kenton appeared in Arizona Onstage’s The Full Monty as well as Perfect Wedding, Lend Me A Tenor, and A New Brain. Kenton co-authored and will also appear in the upcoming Homoneurotic II, at the Cabaret Theatre.

Joseph McGrath (Director, Flote) is the Artistic Director for The Rogue Theatre for which he has performed in The Fever, The Dead, Endymion, The Good Woman of Setzuan, The Cherry Orchard, The Goat, or Who is Sylvia? and Happy Days, and has directed The Balcony, Endymion, and The Maids. Joe is a graduate of the Juilliard School of Drama. He has toured with John Houseman’s Acting Company and performed with the Utah Shakespearean Festival. In Tucson, he is a frequent performer with Ballet Tucson appearing in The Hunchback of Notre Dame, Cinderella, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Dracula and perennially in The Nutcracker. He has also performed with Arizona Theatre Company, Arizona Opera, Tucson Art Theatre, Arizona OnStage, Green Thursday, Damesrocket Theatre, and Old Pueblo Playwrights in such plays as The Seagull, Assassins, Oleanna, Threepenny Opera, and Anger Box. Joe is also a scenic designer and owns Sonora Theatre Works with his wife Regina Gagliano, producing theatrical scenery and draperies.

Cynthia Meier (Marguerite) is the Managing and Associate Artistic Director for The Rogue Theatre for which she has performed in The Goat, or Who is Sylvia?, The Maids, Endymion and The Balcony, and adapted and directed James Joyce’s The Dead, directed Happy Days, The Good Woman of Setzuan, The Fever and The Cherry Orchard. She also directed The Seagull (featuring Ken Ruta) for Tucson Art Theatre. Recently, she directed Talia Shire in Chamber Music Plus Southwest’s Sister Mendelssohn. A co-founder of Bloodhut Productions, Cynthia has also performed in A Streetcar Named Desire (Arizona Theatre Company), Blithe Spirit and A Midsummer Night’s Dream (Michigan Repertory Theatre), Romeo & Juliet and Chicago Milagro (Borderlands Theatre), A Namib Spring (1999 National Play Award winner), and Smirnova’s Birthday, The Midnight Caller, and The Ballad of the Sad Cafe (Tucson Art Theatre). Cynthia is a Division Dean at Pima Community College and holds a Ph.D. in Performance Studies from the University of Arizona.

Michael Mill (Monselet, Mistral, Antrechau) Michael’s favorite roles include Dr. Rance in Orton’s What The Butler Saw, David Bliss in Coward’s Hay Fever, The Street Singer in Brecht’s The Threepenny Opera, Alceste in Molière’s The Misanthrope, and the twin brothers in Anouilh’s Ring Round The Moon. He has appeared in the Alabama Shakespeare Festival’s productions of King Lear, The Winter’s Tale, and The Merry Wives of Windsor; was resident actor for Playhouse on the Square, Memphis; and has been directed by Dr. John Reich, protégé of Max Reinhardt, as well as Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright Paul Green. Michael is pleased to be working with The Rogue Theatre’s company of richly-talented artists. He would like to acknowledge the gracious hospitality of Dr. Jerry & Deborah Dickey, as well as the continuing support (and insightful admonitions) of Margaret McCarley, Daniel O’Brien, Alan Lee, Gerard Lafond, and Mister Jon Dawes Menick.

David Morden (Clement IV, Flagellant) has appeared with The Rogue Theatre as Yephikhov in The Cherry Orchard, The Man in the Silver Dress in the preshow to The Maids and Glaucus in Endymion. David also directed The Rogue Theatre’s production of The Goat, or Who is Sylvia? As a singer, he has played Constable Smith in the Arizona Opera’s production of The Threepenny Opera and has sung in the chorus of Die Fledermaus, The Flying Dutchman and Susannah. He has performed locally with Arizona Onstage Productions (Assassins), Actors Theatre (The Bible: The Complete Word of God (Abridged)) and Green Thursday Theatre Project (Anger Box, Rain), of which he was a co-founder. David has directed productions with Green Thursday (Shakespeare’s R&J, White Garden), Oasis Chamber Opera (Sing to Love), DreamerGirl Productions (The Dreamer Examines His Pillow) and Arts For All (The Apple Tree).

Roger Owen (Rochfort) appeared as Gaev in The Cherry Orchard and the Carpenter and the Policeman in The Good Woman of Setzuan at The Rogue Theatre. He’s worked with Arizona Civic Theatre (now ATC), U of A, Playbox and many others. In 1979, he played Mitch in Streetcar Named Desire in Key West (with Tennessee Williams involved in rehearsals). Favorite classical roles include Macbeth, Oberon and Toby Belch in Invisible Theatre’s 1970s outdoor summer productions at La Placita,Aphrodite/Old Nurse/Theseus in Hippolytus, also at IT, and Jerry in Albee’s Zoo Story (1981). More recently, he has appeared as John Lambert in Visitor’s Guide to Arivaca, as Michael the Archangel in A Tucson Pastorela at Borderlands Theatre, and as Frank in Dirty Story and Julian in Cactus Flower at Live Theatre Workshop. He most recently played the role of an amoral senator in Fifth Planet and Other Plays at Beowulf Alley.

Clark Andreas Ray (Brodin, Druce) most recently played the title role in Tucson Parks & Recreation’s summer production of Richard III. Some of his favorite roles are The Man in Upstairs Theater Company’s Closet Land and Teddy in Fitful Tulip Theatre production of Brian Friel’s Faith Healer. Clark has also acted and performed stunts in films and television series such as Tombstone, Young Riders (14 episodes), and Gunsmoke. He also performs regularly with Action Unlimited in a live stunt show.

Alex Samaniego (Grez) has worked with Old Pueblo Playwrights, Coyote Ramblers, Arizona OnStage, and Borderlands Theater. He’s played card cheats, druggies, man-eating cannibals, and a myriad of other losers that he has enjoyed tremendously. This is his first time portraying a high-caliber loser with The Rogue and he’s bursting with joy for being able to do so. He’s also acted in a worldwide theatrically-released film, as well as commercials for which he was paid in sandwiches. Alex has studied here, there and back again, and has taught acting workshops to children in as far away places as Southern Africa.

Rick Shipman (Lefranc, Bonville, Bigod, 1st Attendant) appeared in this season’s production of The Goat, or Who is Sylvia? He recently moved to Tucson from Phoenix where he has acted for the last 9 years and has performed for most of the theatre companies there. Some of Rick’s favorite roles include Ross in The Goat, Stephano in Southwest Shakespeare’s production of The Tempest; Robert in Proof and Pozzo in Waiting for Godot, both for Is What It Is Theatre; Sgt. King in No Time for Sergeants and Murray in The Odd Couple for Hale Centre Theatre; and Dalton in Equus and GW in Sordid Lives, both for Nearly Naked Theatre Company. He has also appeared in a few TV commercials and some Indie films. Rick is also an acting coach and is getting his degree in education.

Terese Simone (Madame Bonville, Bembo) is thrilled to be making her debut with the Rogue. She is a graduate of the Dell'Arte International School for Physical Theater. Teresa was last seen with Borderlands Theater in A Tucson Pastorela (she was the sheep). She is also a member of Stories That Soar, a theater in education ensemble that makes plays out of stories written by children. Teresa is a co-founder of the BodyMind Theater Group, whose last show, Black and White, was devised around the architecture of a public park in Denver, Co. Teresa teaches drama at Green Fields Country Day School.

Aaron Sosa (Frapper, Crowd) performed the role of Yasha in The Rogue Theatre’s production of The Cherry Orchard. He has graduated with a degree in Theatre Arts from the University of Arizona, where he has performed as Baby San in Tracers, Actor One in Grimm Tales, and Frank in On the Way to Miami. Other performances also include The White Knight in Alice in Wonderland. He is thankful to his parents for their support and The Rogue Theatre for giving him the opportunity to act in the Tucson community.

Layla Tenney (Sabine, 1st Leper, 2nd Attendant) is excited to be sharing the stage with the Rogue Theatre for the first time. Layla has been dedicating her love for the theatre in her schoolwork, currently studying to complete a BFA in Theatre Arts Education from University of Arizona, and has spent the last couple of years at Pima Community College, where she was last seen in Much Ado About Nothing. A member of the Actors Guild of Variety Artists, she entertained thousands performing as multiple characters at Universal Studios Hollywood in 2006. She recently returned from directing and leading the theatre department at an international girls camp in West Virginia. Her heart belongs to her sweet husband Chris, who makes her more alive everyday.

Preshow Music

Music in the play

Designers

Production Staff

Our Thanks

Michelle Scalpone (Stage Manager) is extremely excited to be a part of Red Noses. She is a sophomore at the University of Arizona, a BFA candidate in Theatre Production, with an emphasis in Stage Management. She has spent the past year as the proud Stage Manager of the School of Theatre Arts’ touring production of Encore: With a Song in My Heart. Other productions of which she has been a part include: Scrooge, Older But Miser (Gaslight Theatre, ASM), Broadway Bound (Arizona Repertory Theatre, Light Board Operator), the One Act Festival (School of Theatre Arts, ASM), and Candide (ART, Swing ASM). Michelle would like to thank her Mom, Dad, Julie, Sean, Erika, Nicole, Rhea, friends and family for always being there for her and supporting her in what she loves to do.