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ARIZONA THEATRE COMPANY
CULTURAL TOUR TO ASHLAND
July 9 – 13, 2008
Under the stars and mountains….
New and interesting people…
Gourmet dinning and fine wine….
Behind-the-scenes learning….
Classic plays and fresh perspectives….
Oregon Shakespeare Festival
Founded in 1935, the Tony Award-winning Oregon Shakespeare Festival (OSF) is among
the oldest and largest professional non-profit theatres in the nation.
WEDNESDAY, JULY 9
Arrive Medford airport. You’ll be whisked from the airport to your hotel, Bard’s Inn in
Ashland.
The Best Western Bard's Inn is a beautifully updated hotel nestled in the cultural heart of
Ashland, surrounded by plush gardens and mountain views. It’s located just two blocks
from the historic Ashland Plaza, and within walking distance to the theaters of the
Oregon Shakespeare Festival, Lithia Park, fine dining, art galleries and shops. With an
outdoor heated pool and rose gardens, you’ll have plenty of ways to relax.
Daily continental breakfast includes juices, coffee, tea, Danishes, bagels, and cereals.
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WEDNESDAY (continued)
Welcome Dinner (5:30 pm): this evening starts with a dinner at the Ashland Springs
Hotel (212 E. Main St., Ashland, 541.488.1700). Executive Chef Damon Jones, formerly
of Emeril’s of New Orleans makes weekly visits to the growers’ market in Ashland to
purchase the freshest produce to create his comfort food from scratch.
Join Jessica Andrews, Executive Director, Arizona Theatre Company, James Ryan
of Insider Cultural Tours and your fellow ATC friends and patrons.
Actress, Linda Alper, of the Oregon Shakespeare Festival will welcome our group,
giving us insider information about the history of the Festival and her involvement in this
year’s productions of Midsummer Night’s Dream and The Comedy of Errors. (6:30 pm)
A special welcome will be extended by OSF’s Artistic Director, Bill Rauch (7pm).
Performance 1 – Othello (8:30 pm Elizabethan Stage): enjoy this opulent production of
Shakespeare’s larger-than-life tragedy, outdoors, on the Elizabethan Stage. Lisa
Peterson’s muscular Shakespeare interpretation boils over with fury, sexual heat and
consuming passions (3:06 running time, one 15 minute intermission).
THURSDAY, JULY 10
Backstage Tour (10 am, meet at Bowmer Theatre lobby doors): this morning we’ll take
a backstage tour of the Festival and get a genuine insider’s view. We’ll visit all three
theaters, and come away with a fresh perspective on OSF’s mission and artistry.
Matinee Performance 2 – Further Adventures of Hedda Gabler (2 pm Bowmer
Theatre): it’s the final act of Ibsen’s play, and Hedda’s just done herself in—again. In
hopes of a rewrite, Hedda ventures out on a rollicking quest to liberate her story. Bill
Rauch directs Tony Award-winner Jeff Whitty’s (Avenue Q) mind-bending and riotously
funny comedy that will have you questioning your attachment to archetypes,
stereotypes—and your own destiny. (2:17 running time, one 15 minute intermission)
Performance 3 – Our Town (8:30 pm Elizabethan Stage): out in the cool mountain air
and under the stars again to watch the classic Our Town. Director Chay Yew distills this
beloved classic down to its astounding, uncertain, joyous essence. If you think you’ve
been to Grovers Corners, it’s time to revisit (2:14 running time, one 20 minute
intermission).
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FRIDAY, JULY 11
Discussion with actor Tony DeBruno (10 am Black Swan on OSF campus): currently
in Othello, rehearsing for A View from the Bridge, Tony has been in many ATC’s
productions and was recently the bellicose boss in ATC’s wonderful production of
Pajama Game. He’s also a graduate of the University of Arizona, Tucson.
Courtesans, Gamblers, & Others: the Worldview of The Clay Cart (12 pm Carpenter
Hall): join us for an interesting lecture by visiting scholar, Ketu Katrak, dramaturg
University of California at Irvine. An excellent way to bring a fresh perspective to your
viewing of The Clay Cart this afternoon.
Matinee Performance 4 – The Clay Cart (2pm Bowmer Theatre): bursting with music
and dance, color, action, and romance, this 2,000-year-old Indian classic—utterly
Shakespearean in spirit—proves that great storytelling transcends the centuries. Jewels
are stolen. A Brahmin faces execution. A beautiful courtesan is at the mercy of the
King’s bad-boy brother. Journey through a world where gamblers, holy men, political
fugitives and royal scoundrels intersect and good people triumph. Don’t miss new
Artistic Director Bill Rauch’s sensual and celebratory opening-season gift (2:46 running
time, one 15 minute intermission).
Performance 5 – Comedy of Errors (8:30 pm Elizabethan Stage): back out under the
stars again tonight to be swept away by Penny Metropulos’s wild, whacked-out Old West.
It’s a rough-hewn, lawless place, where the townsfolk, given half a chance, break into
song. In fact, everyone in the whole darn town is off-kilter—gunning for love and order
in this hilarious, music-infused brawl of a comedy (2:21 running time, one 15 minute
intermission).
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SATURDAY, JULY 12
Farewell Cocktail Party at Bard’s Inn (7pm) – Join guest Director Penny
Metropulous for cocktails at Bard’s Inn for an hour long discussion and a sampling of
some great Oregon wines! Ms. Metropulous directed The Comedy of Errors at OSF this
year.
Performance 6 – Breakfast, Lunch, and Dinner (8:30 pm New Theatre): Minerva’s
family is a hotbed of appetites. For Minerva, it’s Sno Balls and pork rinds. For Alice, it’s
men. Minerva’s husband gorges on sports, and Alice’s latest flame is obsessed with being
a cop. Funny thing, though, as Minerva outgrows her clothes, she outsizes her life too.
Director Tracy Young brings her maverick energy to this surreal and surprising comedy.
Life is a carnal and spiritual banquet, and Alfaro’s new work takes a big, yummy bite out
of it.
SUNDAY JULY 13
Depart for home.
11:00 am car service for Mr. & Mrs. Ross in hotel lobby (12:42 pm Delta/Skywest)
11:45 am car service for everyone else in hotel lobby (1:30 pm Delta/3804 and 1:40
pm US Air/Flt 2878)
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Bios
Linda Alper
Egeus in A Midsummer Night's Dream; Emilia in The Comedy of Errors
In 21 seasons at OSF: Betty, Mabel Stark, Mrs. Seyfang in Tracys Tiger, Dorine in
Tartuffe, Edith Frank in The Diary of Anne Frank, Amalia Jovine in Napoli Milionaria!,
Flora Humble in Humble Boy, Blair Lowe in Daughters of the Revolution [Continental
Divide], Rosa in Saturday, Sunday, Monday, A Dresser in Enter the Guardsman, Vivian
Bearing in Wit, Milady in The Three Musketeers, Natasha in Rough Crossing, Mac in
Three Viewings, Sabina in The Skin of Our Teeth, Sally Truman in Lips Together, Teeth
Apart, and many other roles.
Other credits: co-writer of Tracys Tiger; co-translator of Napoli Milionaria! and Saturday,
Sunday, Monday; co-adapter of OSFs 1999 production of The Three Musketeers.
Other theatres: leading roles Off-Broadway and at the Intiman Theatre, Seattle Repertory
Theatre, Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park, Mark Taper Forum, A Contemporary Theatre,
Baltimores CENTERSTAGE and other theatres. Awards: Oregon Individual Arts
Fellowship, Back Stage West Garland Award for her role as Vivian Bearing in Wit.
Education: BFA, Juilliard School of Drama.
* member of Actors' Equity Association
Tony DeBruno
Brabantio, Gratiano and Ensemble in Othello; Alfieri in A View from the Bridge
In 16 seasons at OSF: Zangler in On the Razzle, Vincentio in The Taming of the Shrew,
Otto Frank in The Diary of Anne Frank, Master George Page in The Merry Wives of
Windsor, Harry Binion in Room Service, Ciappa in Napoli Milionaria!, George Pye in
Humble Boy, Mitch Vine and Ira Kirschenbaum in Daughters of the Revolution and
Mitch Vine in Mothers Against [Continental Divide] (OSF, Berkeley Repertory Theatre,
Birmingham Repertory Theatre, Barbican Theatre), Gloucester in King Lear, Captain
Locicero in Idiot's Delight, Peppino in Saturday, Sunday, Monday, Alonso in The
Tempest, Shylock in The Merchant of Venice, Dr. Kelekian in Wit, Jake Callahan in
Chicago, Leonato in Much Ado about Nothing, Zeizel in Vilna's Got a Golem, Charley in
Death of a Salesman, Duke of Milan in The Two Gentlemen of Verona, Uncle Morty in
Awake and Sing!, Sam Truman in Lips Together, Teeth Apart, Parson in Restoration, Dr.
Gibbs in Our Town, Artie Shaughnessy in The House of Blue Leaves.
Other theatres: Milwaukee Repertory Theater, Willamette Repertory Theatre, Alabama
Shakespeare Festival, Arizona Theatre Company and others.
Education: M.A., acting and directing, University of Arizona, Tucson.
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Bill Rauch
Artistic Director
Oregon Shakespeare Festival
Director, The Clay Cart, The Further Adventures of Hedda Gabler
In six seasons at OSF: Romeo and Juliet, The Two Gentlemen of Verona, By the Waters
of Babylon, The Comedy of Errors, Hedda Gabler, Handler
Other theatres: co-founder of Cornerstone Theater Company and artistic director from
1986-2006 where he directed over 40 productions; in addition, The Clean House (Lincoln
Center), world premiere of The Clean House, Medea/Macbeth/Cinderella and The Cherry
Orchard (Yale Rep), world premieres of Living Out and For Here or To Go? (Mark
Taper Forum), world premiere of The Further Adventures of Hedda Gabler, Habeus
Corpus and Lovers and Executioners (South Coast Rep), As You Like It: A California
Concoction (Pasadena Playhouse), Nickel and Dimed (Guthrie Theatre); The Wild Duck,
Peter Pan (Great Lakes Theater Festival), Good Person of New Haven (Long Wharf
Theatre), and A Community Carol (Arena Stage).
TV: Judging Amy.
Other credits: associate artist at Yale Repertory and South Coast Repertory ; board
member, Theatre Communications Group, 1992-98; Claire Trevor Professor of Drama at
University of California, Irvine (2005-07).
Awards: Los Angeles Weekly, Garland, Connecticut Critics Circle, DramaLogue and
Helen Hayes awards for direction; nominated for Emmy and Ovation awards; inaugural
"Leadership for a Changing World" award.
Education: B.A., Harvard College
Jessica Andrews
Jessica Andrews is the recipient of the prestigious Governor's Arts award, presented by the Office of
the Governor, Arizona Commission on the Arts and Arizona Citizens for the Arts. Jessica serves on
the Executive Committee of the League of Resident Theatres, has served on state arts agencies in 10
states, including Arizona, and she's lectured in arts management at the University of Arizona, the Yale
School of Drama and the Centro Nacional de las Artes in Mexico City. The Governor’s Award was
given to Ms. Andrews because of her success at bringing ATC into national prominence.
Penny Metropulos
Penny has been at OSF for 14 seasons as both actor (three years) and director, and in
1996 she became one of two Associate Artistic Directors. She has directed 18
productions at OSF, among them The Philanderer, Humble Boy, Lorca in a Green Dress,
The Tempest, The Night of the Iguana, The Good Person of Szechuan, The Three
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Musketeers and Death of a Salesman. She has recently directed at Arena Stage and
Chicago Shakespeare Theater.
James Ryan
James Ryan, founder of Insider Cultural Tours, is an award-winning playwright,
screenwriter and film director. The former Chair of the Playwriting Department, Actors
Studio Drama School, he has taught at Rutgers, NYU, New School, and Muhlenberg
College. He is the recipient of fellowships from the National Endowment for the Arts,
New York State Foundation for the Arts, McKnight Foundation, the Drama League
Award, and was a resident at Yaddo. He has written screenplays for Disney, Warner
Bros., Spring Creek Productions, Granada, and Mr. Mudd, John Malkovich's production
company. His film, The Young Girl and the Monsoon, premièred at the Los Angeles Film
Festival, won the Best Actress Award at the American Film Institute’s Los Angeles
International Film Festival, Best Screenplay and Best Film Award at the Napa Valley
Film Festival, released in the United States by Artistic License Films, it appeared on
Showtime Networks for 2 years, around the world, from Cuba to Israel, and released on
DVD by Vanguard International Cinema. As an actor he appeared in the films Falling in
Love, Joe vs. the Volcano, and Five Corners. As a playwright he has had 9 New York
productions, has written non-fiction and is currently completing a memoir Model Boy.