THEATRE OF THE MACABRE Virtual Playbill

A WELCOME FROM PARK SQUARE’S ARTISTIC ASSOCIATES

Theatre is returning, let us connect and celebrate!

It is with so much joy that we welcome you back to Park Square Theatre. As Theatre of the Macabre takes the stage this week, it will be 593 days since the last performance on stage. The “extended intermission” has made us appreciate the connections that live theatre builds between people all the more.

We come together to share our music, our stories, our laughter, and our pain in ways that theater can help us soothe our souls and give new energy to our spirits.  We at Park Square are here to connect with you, our community; to bring the joy and wonder back into our lives is the shared experience of the performing arts. This is a season of ‘recovery’ full of our own long delayed productions, collaborations, a revival, and the return of our classic educational theater productions. We are returning to the stage to serve you the best of our creative work. It’s a full course meal with everything from the heartfelt stories and struggles of our lives to highly entertaining crime mysteries, and even the thrill of playing air guitar.

Thank you for being with us in spirit and online through the shutdown, and thank you for returning to the theatre to celebrate today!

Mark Ferraro-Hauck (Executive Director), Kim Vasquez (Producing Director and Artistic Associate), Ansa Akyea, Ellen Fenster, and Rick Shiomi (Artistic Associates)

SCENES

The Three Witches from Macbeth
by William Shakespeare
Sophina Saggau, Taj Ruler, Hope Nordquist 

“Defying Gravity” from Wicked
Music and lyrics by Stephen Schwartz
Hope Nordquist, Natalia Peterson

The Old Witch
by the Brothers Grimm
Craig Johnson, Sophina Saggau

The Yellow Wallpaper (Part 1)
by Charlotte Perkins Gilman
Anna Leverett, Ben Shaw, Taj Ruler

Gerald
An original piece written and performed by David Mann

Miss Mina’s Diary from Dracula
by Bram Stoker
Sophina Saggau, Ben Shaw

The Yellow Wallpaper (Part 2)

“The Addams Family Theme Song”
By Vic Mizzy
Hope Nordquist, Natalia Peterson

A Little Witchy
An original piece written and performed by Taj Ruler

The Tell-Tale Heart
by Edgar Allan Poe
Ben Shaw

The Yellow Wallpaper (Part 3)

 “Kiss of the Spider Woman”
Music and Lyrics by John Kander and Fred Ebb
Hope Nordquist, Natalia Peterson

Run Time 75 minutes with no intermission

A NOTE FROM YOUR HOST FOR THE EVENING…

BOO! Wait–we don’t want to scare you away! After all, live theater is just now coming back to Park Square after a COVID intermission that, let’s face it, went on for far too long. Last Halloween, you may recall, we came up with a virtual Theatre of the Macabre, a creepy, spooky, slightly silly online variety show. This year we are delighted to creep you out in person. And laugh together a little.

Tonight you’ll hear a few songs with decidedly macabre twists, enjoy a taste from Shakespeare’s witchy cauldron, cuddle up to a bedtime story that may give you nightmares, thrill to a handful of gothic horror classics, and be the first audiences to witness two original stories by local artists. And who knows, you may have an opportunity to join the storytelling and spook us!  – Craig Johnson, director and host

A man in Victorian garb holding a knife, a candelabra is in the background.

CAST 

Anna Leverett
Park Square Debut Representative Theatre Yellow Tree Theatre: Another Miracle on Christmas Lake; Bucket Brigade Theater: ‘Til Death: A Marriage Musical; The Orchard Theater Collective: Twelfth Night; Highland Center/Northern Stage (VT): A Midsummer Night’s Dream; Theatre Coup d’Etat: Rogue Prince Training B.F.A., University of Minnesota/Guthrie Theater BFA Actor Training Program Class of 2017 Other Co-founder of The Orchard Theater Collective Upcoming Projects Guthrie Theater: Emma

David Mann
Park Square (as Director) Sherlock Holmes and the Adventure of the Suicide Club; Romeo and Juliet; To Kill a Mockingbird; Sherlock Holmes and the Case of the Jersey Lilly; Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, Taking Steps (as Actor) Doubt; Of Mice and Men, Opus Representative Theatre (as Director) Children’s Theatre Company; Mulan; Torch Theater: Macbeth, Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, The Mary Tyler Moore Show (as Actor) Guthrie Theater: Romeo and Juliet, Antony and Cleopatra; Chanhassen Dinner Theatres: The Wonder Bread Years; Old Log Theatre: Rancho Mirage; History Theatre: Revelations of Mann (as Playwright) Queens of Burlesque; Corleone: The Shakespearean Godfather, six one-man shows Training LAMDA; B.S., Northwestern University Other Bush Artist Fellowship

Hope Nordquist
Park Square Theatre of the Macabre (2020); The Rocky Horror Show Representative Theatre Theater Mu: Charles Francis Chan JR.’s Exotic Oriental Murder Mystery; Ordway Center: Rebels On Broadway; Umbrella Collective: June; Artistry: The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee; The Moving Company: Come Hell or High Water Training Stella Adler Studio of Acting, NYC 

 

Taj Ruler
Park Square The Skin Of Our Teeth (Girl Friday Productions) Representative Theatre Mixed Blood Theater: Animate; Pillsbury House Theatre: King of Shadows; Brave New Workshop; Rough Magic Performance Company: ​Measure4Measure; Girl Friday Productions: Winterlight; Theatre Pro Rata: Convent of Pleasure

 

Sophina Saggau
Park Square Debut Representative Theatre Yellow Tree Theatre: Sherwood; Walking Shadow Theatre: Cabal; Arkansas Shakespeare Theatre: Romeo and Juliet; Theatre Coup d’Etat: The Tempest; Bryant Lake Bowl: Moth Training B.F.A., University of Minnesota/Guthrie Theater BFA Actor Training Program

 

Ben Shaw
Park Square Romeo and Juliet (u/s) Representative Theatre Theatre Coup d’Etat: Rogue Prince; History Theatre: Sisters of Peace; Open Eye Figure Theatre: A Prelude to Faust; Orchard Theater Collective: Twelfth Night; Guthrie Theater: A Christmas Carol (u/s) TV/Film The Killer Next Door: Fox Nation; I Was There (multiple): History Channel; Last Days Saga: Northstar Visions; Damsel or the Dogs: Short Film Training B.F.A., University of Minnesota/Guthrie Theater BFA Actor Training Program Other John Bittner Acting Award, Michael Swifka Scholarship for Potential Leadership

CREATIVE TEAM

Craig Johnson Director and Host
Park Square 53 productions since 1979 including Theatre of the Macabre (2020); Cyrano; Laughter on the 23rd Floor; Doubt; Sherlock Holmes and the Jersey Lily Representative Theatre Yellow Tree Theatre: Sherwood; Six Points Theater: A Pickle; Gremlin Theatre: The Father; The Jungle: The Nether; Girl Friday Productions: Idiot’s Delight Other Ivey Awards: directing, Street Scene (2011); acting, Gross Indecency (2013); Theatre Artist of the Year: City Pages (2011), Lavender Magazine (2011, 2015); Faculty: St. Catherine University, University of Minnesota Upcoming Projects Commonweal Theatre Company: A Christmas Carol; Artistry: Into the Woods; Lyric Arts: The Mousetrap

Natalia Peterson Music Director
Park Square Marie and Rosetta ​​Professional Credits Music Direction – Christ on Capitol Hill: Music Director; Freelance Musician and Composer Training Bachelor of Music in Voice and Piano, St. Olaf College Other McKnight Fellowship for Composition/Playwriting; Arts and Cultural Heritage Fund (ACHF) – Individual Artist Grant for Jazz Composition; Telly Award for Music Composition in Industrial Theater ​​Upcoming Projects Park Square: Marie and Rosetta 

 

Sarah Bauer Stage Manager/Lighting Designer
Park Square Debut Representative Theatre Gremlin Theatre (Resident Stage Manager), Torch Theater, Transatlantic Love Affair, Bloomington Civic Theatre, Theatre Pro Rata Training M.F.A., Creative Writing, Hamline University. B.A., Theatre Arts, St Cloud State University

Charlotte Deranek Sound Designer
Park Square Five seasons as Sound Supervisor including Baskerville – A Sherlock Holmes Mystery; Jefferson Township Sparkling Junior Talent Pageant; The Rocky Horror Show Representative Theatre Lakeshore Players: Company; Steppingstone Theatre (at Park Square): Madagascar – A Musical Adventure Jr. Training B.A., Theatre Arts, Emphasis in Sound Design and Sound Engineering Upcoming Projects Theatre Pro Rata: Top Girls; Park Square: Marie and Rosetta 

Kim Vasquez Original Concept Park Square Producing Director and Artistic Associate; (as Actor) Theatre of the Macabre (2020) Representative Theatre Producer/Actor/Director for over 25 years in New York City, having worn many hats on Broadway and Off, most recently as a producer on Be More Chill and Broadway Bounty Hunter TV/Film (as Actor) In The Heights the movie; Saturday Night Live: various episodes, season 44; 30 Rock Upcoming Projects (as Actor) Full Circle Theatre Company (at Park Square): The Empathy Project

The 2021-2022 Season is made possible with extraordinary support from the John W. Harris Family

This activity is made possible by the voters of Minnesota through a Minnesota State Arts Board Operating Support grant, thanks to a legislative appropriation from the arts and cultural heritage fund.

Upcoming!

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The box office is currently closed. Please email tickets@parksquaretheatre.org with any questions.

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