March 24 – May 1, 2016
(Opening Night: Friday, April 1)
A WORLD PREMIERE MUSICAL
Donald and Darlene Shiley Stage
Old Globe Theatre
Conrad Prebys Theatre Center
Book by Sybille Pearson
Music and Lyrics by Michael John LaChiusa
Based on the short story "Rain" by Somerset Maugham
Directed by Barry Edelstein
Movement by Patrick McCollum
Music Director, J. Oconer Navarro
Orchestrations by Bruce Coughlin
Scenic Design by Mark Wendland
Costume Design by Katherine Roth
Lighting Design by Russell H. Champa
Sound Design by Ken Travis
Casting by Telsey + Company/Andrew Femenella, CSA, and Patrick Goodwin, CSA
Production Stage Manager, James Latus
Somerset Maugham’s classic story “Rain” was adapted as a movie three times and his iconic character Sadie Thompson played by Gloria Swanson, Joan Crawford, and Rita Hayworth. Now Broadway star Eden Espinosa recreates this classic role in a gorgeous and powerful new musical. The year is 1924, the setting a boarding hotel on the island of Western Samoa, where a missionary, a doctor, and their wives are scandalized by Sadie’s arrival, particularly when they learn what she does for a living. But the missionary has secrets of his own, and when he tries to save her soul, things get hotter than the South Pacific sun. Barry Edelstein makes his musical theatre directorial debut with this gorgeous and powerful new work that reveals the explosive nature of repressed desire.
Eden Espinosa as Sadie Thompson with Jared Zirilli as Alfred Davidson in the world premiere musical Rain, with music and lyrics by Michael John LaChiusa and book by Sybille Pearson, based on the short story "Rain" by Somerset Maugham, directed by Barry Edelstein, March 24 – May 1, 2016 at The Old Globe. Photo by Jim Cox.
Jared Zirilli as Alfred Davidson and Eden Espinosa as Sadie Thompson in the world premiere musical Rain, with music and lyrics by Michael John LaChiusa and book by Sybille Pearson, based on the short story "Rain" by Somerset Maugham, directed by Barry Edelstein, March 24 – May 1, 2016 at The Old Globe. Photo by Jim Cox.
Eden Espinosa (front) with (from left) Mike Sears as Quartermaster, Tally Sessions as Alec MacPhail, Jared Zirilli as Alfred Davidson, and Jeremy Davis as Jo in the world premiere musical Rain, with music and lyrics by Michael John LaChiusa and book by Sybille Pearson, based on the short story "Rain" by Somerset Maugham, directed by Barry Edelstein, March 24 – May 1, 2016 at The Old Globe. Photo by Jim Cox.
(from left) Elizabeth A. Davis as Anna Davidson, Betsy Morgan as Louisa MacPhail, Jared Zirilli as Alfred Davidson, Tally Sessions as Alec MacPhail, and Eden Espinosa as Sadie Thompson in the world premiere musical Rain, with music and lyrics by Michael John LaChiusa and book by Sybille Pearson, based on the short story "Rain" by Somerset Maugham, directed by Barry Edelstein, March 24 – May 1, 2016 at The Old Globe. Photo by Jim Cox.
Eden Espinosa as Sadie Thompson and Jared Zirilli as Alfred Davidson in the world premiere musical Rain, with music and lyrics by Michael John LaChiusa and book by Sybille Pearson, based on the short story "Rain" by Somerset Maugham, directed by Barry Edelstein, March 24 – May 1, 2016 at The Old Globe. Photo by Jim Cox.
Eden Espinosa as Sadie Thompson and Jared Zirilli as Alfred Davidson in the world premiere musical Rain, with music and lyrics by Michael John LaChiusa and book by Sybille Pearson, based on the short story "Rain" by Somerset Maugham, directed by Barry Edelstein, March 24 – May 1, 2016 at The Old Globe. Photo by Jim Cox.
Eden Espinosa as Sadie Thompson in the world premiere musical Rain, with music and lyrics by Michael John LaChiusa and book by Sybille Pearson, based on the short story "Rain" by Somerset Maugham, directed by Barry Edelstein, March 24 – May 1, 2016 at The Old Globe. Photo by Jim Cox.
Eden Espinosa as Sadie Thompson in the world premiere musical Rain, with music and lyrics by Michael John LaChiusa and book by Sybille Pearson, based on the short story "Rain" by Somerset Maugham, directed by Barry Edelstein, March 24 – May 1, 2016 at The Old Globe. Photo by Jim Cox.
Eden Espinosa as Sadie Thompson in the world premiere musical Rain, with music and lyrics by Michael John LaChiusa and book by Sybille Pearson, based on the short story "Rain" by Somerset Maugham, directed by Barry Edelstein, March 24 – May 1, 2016 at The Old Globe. Photo by Jim Cox.
Eden Espinosa as Sadie Thompson in the world premiere musical Rain, with music and lyrics by Michael John LaChiusa and book by Sybille Pearson, based on the short story "Rain" by Somerset Maugham, directed by Barry Edelstein, March 24 – May 1, 2016 at The Old Globe. Photo by Jim Cox.
Eden Espinosa as Sadie Thompson with Tally Sessions as Alec MacPhail in the world premiere musical Rain, with music and lyrics by Michael John LaChiusa and book by Sybille Pearson, based on the short story "Rain" by Somerset Maugham, directed by Barry Edelstein, March 24 – May 1, 2016 at The Old Globe. Photo by Jim Cox.
Eden Espinosa as Sadie Thompson in the world premiere musical Rain, with music and lyrics by Michael John LaChiusa and book by Sybille Pearson, based on the short story "Rain" by Somerset Maugham, directed by Barry Edelstein, March 24 – May 1, 2016 at The Old Globe. Photo by Jim Cox.
The cast of the world premiere musical Rain, with music and lyrics by Michael John LaChiusa and book by Sybille Pearson, based on the short story "Rain" by Somerset Maugham, directed by Barry Edelstein, March 24 – May 1, 2016 at The Old Globe. Photo by Jim Cox.
(clockwise from top) Marie-France Arcilla as Noi Noi, Elizabeth A. Davis as Anna Davidson, and Betsy Morgan as Louisa MacPhail in the world premiere musical Rain, with music and lyrics by Michael John LaChiusa and book by Sybille Pearson, based on the short story "Rain" by Somerset Maugham, directed by Barry Edelstein, March 24 – May 1, 2016 at The Old Globe. Photo by Jim Cox.
The cast of the world premiere musical Rain, with music and lyrics by Michael John LaChiusa and book by Sybille Pearson, based on the short story "Rain" by Somerset Maugham, directed by Barry Edelstein, March 24 – May 1, 2016 at The Old Globe. Photo by Jim Cox.
Eden Espinosa as Sadie Thompson (front) with (from left) Marie-France Arcilla as Noi Noi, Elizabeth A. Davis as Anna Davidson, and Jeremy Davis as Jo in the world premiere musical Rain, with music and lyrics by Michael John LaChiusa and book by Sybille Pearson, based on the short story "Rain" by Somerset Maugham, directed by Barry Edelstein, March 24 – May 1, 2016 at The Old Globe. Photo by Jim Cox.
The cast of the world premiere musical Rain, with music and lyrics by Michael John LaChiusa and book by Sybille Pearson, based on the short story "Rain" by Somerset Maugham, directed by Barry Edelstein, March 24 – May 1, 2016 at The Old Globe. Photo by Jim Cox.
The cast of the world premiere musical Rain, with music and lyrics by Michael John LaChiusa and book by Sybille Pearson, based on the short story "Rain" by Somerset Maugham, directed by Barry Edelstein, March 24 – May 1, 2016 at The Old Globe. Photo by Jim Cox.
(from left) Eden Espinosa as Sadie Thompson, Jeremy Davis as Jo, and Mike Sears as Quartermaster in the world premiere musical Rain, with music and lyrics by Michael John LaChiusa and book by Sybille Pearson, based on the short story "Rain" by Somerset Maugham, directed by Barry Edelstein, March 24 – May 1, 2016 at The Old Globe. Photo by Jim Cox.
(from left) Elizabeth A. Davis as Anna Davidson, Jared Zirilli as Alfred Davidson, Betsy Morgan as Louisa MacPhail, and Tally Sessions as Alec MacPhail in the world premiere musical Rain, with music and lyrics by Michael John LaChiusa and book by Sybille Pearson, based on the short story "Rain" by Somerset Maugham, directed by Barry Edelstein, March 24 – May 1, 2016 at The Old Globe. Photo by Jim Cox.
Eden Espinosa as Sadie Thompson and Tally Sessions as Alec MacPhail in the world premiere musical Rain, with music and lyrics by Michael John LaChiusa and book by Sybille Pearson, based on the short story "Rain" by Somerset Maugham, directed by Barry Edelstein, March 24 – May 1, 2016 at The Old Globe. Photo by Jim Cox.
Eden Espinosa as Sadie Thompson and Tally Sessions as Alec MacPhail in the world premiere musical Rain, with music and lyrics by Michael John LaChiusa and book by Sybille Pearson, based on the short story "Rain" by Somerset Maugham, directed by Barry Edelstein, March 24 – May 1, 2016 at The Old Globe. Photo by Jim Cox.
Jared Zirilli as Alfred Davidson and Elizabeth A. Davis as Anna Davidson in the world premiere musical Rain, with music and lyrics by Michael John LaChiusa and book by Sybille Pearson, based on the short story "Rain" by Somerset Maugham, directed by Barry Edelstein, March 24 – May 1, 2016 at The Old Globe. Photo by Jim Cox.
Tally Sessions as Alec MacPhail and Betsy Morgan as Louisa MacPhail in the world premiere musical Rain, with music and lyrics by Michael John LaChiusa and book by Sybille Pearson, based on the short story "Rain" by Somerset Maugham, directed by Barry Edelstein, March 24 – May 1, 2016 at The Old Globe. Photo by Jim Cox.
Jared Zirilli as Alfred Davidson in the world premiere musical Rain, with music and lyrics by Michael John LaChiusa and book by Sybille Pearson, based on the short story "Rain" by Somerset Maugham, directed by Barry Edelstein, March 24 – May 1, 2016 at The Old Globe. Photo by Jim Cox.
Jeremy Davis as Jo and Marie-France Arcilla as Noi Noi in the world premiere musical Rain, with music and lyrics by Michael John LaChiusa and book by Sybille Pearson, based on the short story "Rain" by Somerset Maugham, directed by Barry Edelstein, March 24 – May 1, 2016 at The Old Globe. Photo by Jim Cox.
Betsy Morgan as Louisa MacPhail with Tally Sessions as Alec MacPhail in the world premiere musical Rain, with music and lyrics by Michael John LaChiusa and book by Sybille Pearson, based on the short story "Rain" by Somerset Maugham, directed by Barry Edelstein, March 24 – May 1, 2016 at The Old Globe. Photo by Jim Cox.
Eden Espinosa as Sadie Thompson and Mike Sears as Hopper in the world premiere musical Rain, with music and lyrics by Michael John LaChiusa and book by Sybille Pearson, based on the short story "Rain" by Somerset Maugham, directed by Barry Edelstein, March 24 – May 1, 2016 at The Old Globe. Photo by Jim Cox.
Betsy Morgan as Louisa MacPhail in the world premiere musical Rain, with music and lyrics by Michael John LaChiusa and book by Sybille Pearson, based on the short story "Rain" by Somerset Maugham, directed by Barry Edelstein, March 24 – May 1, 2016 at The Old Globe. Photo by Jim Cox.
Elizabeth A. Davis as Anna Davidson in the world premiere musical Rain, with music and lyrics by Michael John LaChiusa and book by Sybille Pearson, based on the short story "Rain" by Somerset Maugham, directed by Barry Edelstein, March 24 – May 1, 2016 at The Old Globe. Photo by Jim Cox.
Tally Sessions as Alec MacPhail in the world premiere musical Rain, with music and lyrics by Michael John LaChiusa and book by Sybille Pearson, based on the short story "Rain" by Somerset Maugham, directed by Barry Edelstein, March 24 – May 1, 2016 at The Old Globe. Photo by Jim Cox.
Marie-France Arcilla as Noi Noi in the world premiere musical Rain, with music and lyrics by Michael John LaChiusa and book by Sybille Pearson, based on the short story "Rain" by Somerset Maugham, directed by Barry Edelstein, March 24 – May 1, 2016 at The Old Globe. Photo by Jim Cox.
Jeremy Davis as Jo in the world premiere musical Rain, with music and lyrics by Michael John LaChiusa and book by Sybille Pearson, based on the short story "Rain" by Somerset Maugham, directed by Barry Edelstein, March 24 – May 1, 2016 at The Old Globe. Photo by Jim Cox.
Eden Espinosa stars as Sadie Thompson in the world premiere musical Rain, with music and lyrics by Michael John LaChiusa and book by Sybille Pearson, based on the short story "Rain" by Somerset Maugham, directed by Old Globe Artistic Director Barry Edelstein, March 24 – May 1, 2016 at The Old Globe. Photo by Jim Cox.
Jared Zirilli appears as Alfred Davidson and Eden Espinosa as Sadie Thompson in the world premiere musical Rain, with music and lyrics by Michael John LaChiusa and book by Sybille Pearson, based on the short story "Rain" by Somerset Maugham, directed by Old Globe Artistic Director Barry Edelstein, March 24 – May 1, 2016 at The Old Globe. Photo by Jim Cox.
Eden Espinosa stars as Sadie Thompson in the world premiere musical Rain, with music and lyrics by Michael John LaChiusa and book by Sybille Pearson, based on the short story "Rain" by Somerset Maugham, directed by Old Globe Artistic Director Barry Edelstein, March 24 – May 1, 2016 at The Old Globe. Photo by Jim Cox.
Eden Espinosa appears as Sadie Thompson and Jared Zirilli as Alfred Davidson in the world premiere musical Rain, with music and lyrics by Michael John LaChiusa and book by Sybille Pearson, based on the short story "Rain" by Somerset Maugham, directed by Old Globe Artistic Director Barry Edelstein, March 24 – May 1, 2016 at The Old Globe. Photo by Jim Cox.
Eden Espinosa stars as Sadie Thompson in the world premiere musical Rain, with music and lyrics by Michael John LaChiusa and book by Sybille Pearson, based on the short story "Rain" by Somerset Maugham, directed by Old Globe Artistic Director Barry Edelstein, March 24 – May 1, 2016 at The Old Globe. Photo by Jim Cox.
Director Barry Edelstein (center) with the cast of the world premiere musical Rain, with music and lyrics by Michael John LaChiusa and book by Sybille Pearson, based on the short story "Rain" by Somerset Maugham, directed by Old Globe Artistic Director Edelstein, March 24 – May 1, 2016 at The Old Globe. Photo by Jim Cox.
Jared Zirilli appears as Alfred Davidson and Eden Espinosa as Sadie Thompson in the world premiere musical Rain, with music and lyrics by Michael John LaChiusa and book by Sybille Pearson, based on the short story "Rain" by Somerset Maugham, directed by Old Globe Artistic Director Barry Edelstein, March 24 – May 1, 2016 at The Old Globe. Photo by Jim Cox.
(from left) Book writer Sybille Pearson, director Barry Edelstein, and composer and lyricist Michael John LaChiusa in the world premiere musical Rain, with music and lyrics by LaChiusa and book by Pearson, based on the short story "Rain" by Somerset Maugham, directed by Old Globe Artistic Director Edelstein, March 24 – May 1, 2016 at The Old Globe. Photo by Jim Cox.
Eden Espinosa stars as Sadie Thompson in the world premiere musical Rain, with music and lyrics by Michael John LaChiusa and book by Sybille Pearson, based on the short story "Rain" by Somerset Maugham, directed by Old Globe Artistic Director Barry Edelstein, March 24 – May 1, 2016 at The Old Globe. Photo by Jim Cox.
Jared Zirilli appears as Alfred Davidson in the world premiere musical Rain, with music and lyrics by Michael John LaChiusa and book by Sybille Pearson, based on the short story "Rain" by Somerset Maugham, directed by Old Globe Artistic Director Barry Edelstein, March 24 – May 1, 2016 at The Old Globe. Photo by Jim Cox.
Elizabeth A. Davis appears as Anna Davidson in the world premiere musical Rain, with music and lyrics by Michael John LaChiusa and book by Sybille Pearson, based on the short story "Rain" by Somerset Maugham, directed by Old Globe Artistic Director Barry Edelstein, March 24 – May 1, 2016 at The Old Globe. Photo by Jim Cox.
Tally Sessions appears as Alec MacPhail in the world premiere musical Rain, with music and lyrics by Michael John LaChiusa and book by Sybille Pearson, based on the short story "Rain" by Somerset Maugham, directed by Old Globe Artistic Director Barry Edelstein, March 24 – May 1, 2016 at The Old Globe. Photo by Jim Cox.
Betsy Morgan appears as Louisa MacPhail in the world premiere musical Rain, with music and lyrics by Michael John LaChiusa and book by Sybille Pearson, based on the short story "Rain" by Somerset Maugham, directed by Old Globe Artistic Director Barry Edelstein, March 24 – May 1, 2016 at The Old Globe. Photo by Jim Cox.
Book writer Sybille Pearson and composer and lyricist Michael John LaChiusa in the world premiere musical Rain, with music and lyrics by LaChiusa and book by Pearson, based on the short story "Rain" by Somerset Maugham, directed by Old Globe Artistic Director Barry Edelstein, March 24 – May 1, 2016 at The Old Globe. Photo by Jim Cox.
The cast and creative team of the world premiere musical Rain, with music and lyrics by Michael John LaChiusa and book by Sybille Pearson, based on the short story "Rain" by Somerset Maugham, directed by Old Globe Artistic Director Barry Edelstein, March 24 – May 1, 2016 at The Old Globe. Photo by Jim Cox.
Rain original short story writer Somerset Maugham. The World Premiere Musical Rain, with music and lyrics by Michael John LaChiusa and book by Sybille Pearson, based on the short story by Maugham, will be directed by Barry Edelstein and runs March 24 – May 1, 2016 at The Old Globe. Photo by Carl Van Vechten.
Rain director and Old Globe Artistic Director Barry Edelstein. The World Premiere Musical Rain, with music and lyrics by Michael John LaChiusa and book by Sybille Pearson, based on the short story by W. Somerset Maugham, will be directed by Edelstein and runs March 24 – May 1, 2016 at The Old Globe. Photo by Joseph Moran.
The World Premiere Musical Rain, with music and lyrics by Michael John LaChiusa and book by Sybille Pearson, based on the short story by W. Somerset Maugham, will be directed by Edelstein and runs March 24 – May 1, 2016 at The Old Globe. Illustration courtesy of The Old Globe.
Cast and Creative Team
(click on image to download a high-resolution photo)
Marie-France Arcilla (Noi Noi) is happy to be back at The Old Globe, where she performed in Stephen Schwartz’s Working,for which she received a Drama Desk Award when it transferred Off Broadway. Her other New York credits include Lizzie Borden, Shout!, The Ark, Sidd, Perfect Harmony, Oklahoma!, and Here Lies Love. Her regional credits include Stuck Elevator (American Conservatory Theater), The Orphan of Zhao with BD Wong (La Jolla Playhouse), Sondheim on Sondheim (Great Lakes Theater), and Simeon’s Gift with Julie Andrews (Bay Street Theater). Her television and film credits include “Law & Order: Special Victims Unit,” “Gossip Girl,” “Cashmere Mafia,” “Big Time Rush,” “Cinema AZN,” and the award-winning shorts Johnny Loves Dolores and A Date with Jao Mapa. @emeffny on Twitter.
Elizabeth A. Davis (Anna Davidson) received a Tony Award nomination for Once on Broadway. Her Off Broadway credits include Allegro (Drama Desk Award nomination), Zorba! (City Center Encores!), Caucasian Chalk Circle (Classic Stage Company), Four Last Things (American Globe Theatre), The 39 Steps (New World Stages), Wolves (59E59 Theaters), Joe (Cherry Lane Theatre Mentor Project), Cherry Orchard (Theatre Row), and Once (New York Theatre Workshop). Her television credits include “Law & Order: Special Victims Unit,” “The Jim Gaffigan Show,” “Blue Bloods,” “Taxi Brooklyn,” “Fringe,” “Late Show with David Letterman,”“The View,” “America’s Got Talent,” and “The Today Show.” Her select regional credits include Rain, Indian Joe, Once, The Misanthrope, The Devil’s Disciple, Doubt, Opus, and A Streetcar Named Desire. elizabethadavis.com, @elizabetadavis on Twitter.
Jeremy Davis (Jo) recently made his Globe debut with In Your Arms. His Broadway credits include Bert Healy in Annie, The Last Ship, South Pacific, Billy Elliot: The Musical, 9 to 5, Dirty Rotten Scoundrels, Ghost The Musical, and The People in the Picture. He has also been on tour with Dirty Rotten Scoundrels, South Pacific, Thoroughly Modern Millie, and The Who’s Tommy. Davis is a graduate of the University of Michigan and has been an Actors’ Equity member since 1998. In addition to his performing work, he and his wife run a portrait photography studio in Manhattan. smithdavisphotography.com.
Eden Espinosa (Sadie Thompson) is most recognized for her critically acclaimed portrayal of Elphaba in Wicked on Broadway and in Los Angeles and San Francisco. She originated the title character in the musical Brooklyn and played Flora in Flora the Red Menace and Maureen in the closing company of Rent. Her television appearances include shows such as “Law & Order” and “Ugly Betty.” Her voiceover credits include “Robot Chicken,” “MADtv,” “Elena of Avalor,” and “Titan Maximum.” Espinosa was the featured soloist in “Magical,” the fireworks spectacular at the Disneyland Resort, and can be heard on such recordings as Hair (Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS benefit recording); The Maury Yeston Songbook; Bright Lights, Big City; John McDaniel Live at Joe’s Pub; and Dreaming Wide Awake: The Music of Scott Alan. Espinosa’s debut album, Look Around, is available at all online retail outlets.
Betsy Morgan (Louisa MacPhail) most recently originated the roles of Tricia Nixon and Susan Ford in Michael John LaChiusa’s First Daughter Suite at The Public Theater and can be heard on the original cast recording. Rain marks 10 years of collaboration between Morgan and LaChiusa, starting with Bernarda Alba at Lincoln Center Theater and including Giant at Signature Theatre Company. She has been a member of the original Broadway companies of The King and I (2015 revival), Les Misérables (2014 revival), A Little Night Music (2009 revival), The Little Mermaid, and High Fidelity. Her other theatre credits include Found (Atlantic Theater Company), the original revival company of The Fantasticks (Off Broadway), Les Misérables 25th Anniversary Tour, and Mrs. Hughes (Yale Institute for Music Theatre). She was also seen on television in HBO’s “Flight of the Conchords.”
Rusty Ross (Kiwi) happily returns to The Old Globe after playing Speed in The Two Gentlemen of Verona and having originated the role of Young Max in Dr. Seuss’How the Grinch Stole Christmas!, a role he subsequently originated on Broadway (Hilton Theatre, St. James Theatre). On tour, in 40 cities, he played Professor in the Lincoln Center Theater production of South Pacific, directed by Bartlett Sher. Off Broadway, he was part of the original cast of Miracle on South Division Street (St. Luke’s Theatre). Also in New York, Ross appeared in Robert Wilson’s Alice (Brooklyn Academy of Music) and the premiere of N. Richard Nash’s The Loss of D-Natural. His regional appearances include The Liar (Westport Country Playhouse), American Buffalo (Center Stage), A Midsummer Night’s Dream (Pioneer Theatre Company), the premiere of Sick (New Jersey Repertory Company), the premiere of Our Lady of South Division Street (Penguin Rep Theatre), The Cripple of Inishmaan (Depot Theatre), and Crimes of the Heart (Totem Pole Playhouse). He is a graduate of Northwestern University.
Mike Sears (Quartermaster, Hopper) previously appeared at The Old Globe in Kiss Me, Kate and Othello, and his play When It Comes received a workshop presentation in December. His Off Broadway credits include in When Words Fail (John Houseman Theatre), Leap (Abingdon Theatre Company), and To Have and to Hold (Phil Bosakowski Theatre). His Off Off Broadway credits include American Globe Theatre, Boomerang Theatre Company’s Summer Shakespeare, New Dramatists, New York International Fringe Festival, The Present Company, Musical Theatre Works, Producer’s Club Theatres, and The Duplex. He has appeared regionally in Sideways, His Girl Friday,Hands on a Hard Body, and Bonnie & Clyde (La Jolla Playhouse), Parlour Song (Backyard Renaissance Theatre Company, Craig Noel Award), A Behanding in Spokane and Man from Nebraska (Cygnet Theatre Company), Tortilla Curtain (San Diego Repertory Theatre), Killer Joe (Compass Theatre), The Foreigner, The Glory Man, and Rehearsal for Murder (Lamb’s Players Theatre), Birds of a Feather (Diversionary Theatre), Simpatico (New Village Arts), Good Boys (Mo`olelo Performing Arts Company), and Tuesdays with Morrie (North Coast Repertory Theatre). Sears is a graduate of the William Esper Studio in New York City.
Tally Sessions (Alec MacPhail) is thrilled to be back at The Old Globe, where he appeared in Robin and the 7 Hoods, and to once again be working with Michael John LaChiusa. His Broadway credits include School of Rock, Big Fish, and The House of Blue Leaves, and his touring credits include South Pacific, Legally Blonde, and Dirty Rotten Scoundrels. He has appeared Off Broadway in Giant (The Public Theater), Queen of the Mist (Transport Group), Yank! and Godspell (York Theatre Company), and Anyone Can Whistle (City Center Encores!). His regional credits include Irving Berlin’s Holiday Inn and Carousel (Goodspeed Musicals), South Pacific and Spamalot (The Muny), The Immigrant (Westport Country Playhouse), South Pacific (Paper Mill Playhouse), The Full Monty (Theatre Aspen), Chess (Arvada Center for the Arts and Humanities), Floyd Collins (Actors’ Playhouse), Carousel (Olney Theatre Center, Helen Hayes Award nomination), and Assassins and The Gospel According to Fishman (Signature Theatre Company). Sessions’s television credits include “Falling Water” (USA) and “Elementary” (CBS). He has received a Henry Award and Carbonell Awards.
Jared Zirilli (Alfred Davidson) was last seen in New York leading the world premiere of Joe Godfrey’s newest play, Romance Language (Ars Nova). His New York, Broadway, and touring credits include Nick Harding in the world premiere of Pretty Filthy with The Civilians, the original Broadway cast of Lysistrata Jones, Brent in Fat Camp, Brit in Queen’s We Will Rock You, and Wicked. His regional credits include Lt. Sam Weinberg in A Few Good Men (Alley Theatre), Nate in LMNOP (Theatre Under The Stars, Goodspeed Musicals), Roger in the Actors’ Equity Association premiere of Rent, Radames in Aida (Drury Lane Theatre), Matthew in the Washington, DC, premiere of Altar Boyz, and Giuseppe in The Light in the Piazza (Maine State Music Theatre). His reading credits include Vanity Fair and Pride & Prejudice (Bedlam), Stone (Playwrights Theatre of New Jersey), Clueless (Dodger Theatricals), Jacob in Twilight: The Musical (New World Stages), and originating the role of Beto in Bare: A Pop Opera. Zirilli has been seen on television in “Pan Am” and “Blue Bloods.” He is also the host of “Jared’s Broadway Boo’s” on YouTube. JaredZirilli.com, @JaredZirilli on Twitter and Instagram.
Sybille Pearson (Book) wrote the book for the musical Baby, with a score by Richard Maltby, Jr. and David Shire, for which she received a Tony Award nomination. She previously collaborated with Michael John LaChiusa on the musical Giant. LaChuisa and Pearson are, at the present, working on a new musical, And a Night. Pearson is the author of the plays Sally and Marsha, Phantasie, Watching the Dog, Unfinished Stories, True History and Real Adventure (a play with music by Mel Marvin), Be Bold (commissioned by Mark Taper Forum), and Promise Me (produced by Mark Taper Forum). She has received the Berrilla Kerr Award for Playwriting, the Daryl Roth Creative Spirit Award, a Rockefeller Playwrights Fellowship, and a Ucross Fellowship, and she is an artist-in-residence at Vineyard Theatre in New York City. She is a professor at New York University, teaching musical theatre writing, and has been a panelist for The Eugene O’Neill Theater Center and the Sundance Institute. She is a member of the Dramatists Guild.
Michael John LaChiusa (Music and Lyrics) is a five-time Tony Award-nominated composer, lyricist, and librettist for his Broadway productions of The Wild Party, Marie Christine, and Chronicle of a Death Foretold. LaChiusa’s acclaimed Off Broadway musicals have been seen at The Public Theater, Lincoln Center Theater, Second Stage Theatre, Transport Group, and Playwrights Horizons and include First Daughter Suite, Giant, Queen of the Mist, See What I Wanna See, Bernarda Alba, Little Fish, Hello Again, First Lady Suite,and Four Short Operas: Break, Agnes, Eulogy for Mr. Hamm, and Lucky Nurse. He has been commissioned by Chicago Lyric Opera, Houston Grand Opera, and Oregon Shakespeare Festival, among others, and has penned Lovers & Friends: Chautauqua Variations for CLO and Send (who are you? I love you),written for Audra McDonald, at HGO. Revues of his work include LaLaLaChiusa (Joe’s Pub), Hotel C’est l’Amour (The Blank Theatre), and most recently Heartbreak Country: Michael John LaChiusa’s Stories of America (Jazz at Lincoln Center). LaChiusa’s awards include an Obie Award, Gilman & Gonzalez-Falla Award, and 2008 and 2009 Daytime Emmy Awards. He teaches at New York University and resides in Manhattan.
Somerset Maugham (Original Short Story Author) was born in 1874 in Paris. Educated at King’s School Canterbury, he went on to Heidelberg University where his ambition to become a playwright was born. After qualifying as a doctor, he published his first novel, Liza of Lambeth, in 1897, which was an immediate success and enabled him to give up medicine. He wrote many plays before his first success, Lady Frederick, in 1907. The following year four of his plays were running simultaneously in the West End. The novel Of Human Bondage appeared in 1915. During the first war he was recruited by British intelligence, and his experiences as an agent formed the basis for Ashenden. His 1918 marriage to Syrie Wellcome produced a daughter, and the 1920s were his most successful decade in the theatre: plays included The Sacred Flame, Our Betters, and The Circle. In 1933 he gave up the theatre but went on to write many novels including The Razor’s Edge, Cakes and Ale, and Theatre, which was adapted into the 2004 film Being Julia starring Annette Bening. Maugham died in 1965 at the age of 92 in the south of France, where he had lived since shortly after his divorce in 1927.
Barry Edelstein (Director, Old Globe Artistic Director) is a stage director, producer, author, and educator. Widely recognized as one of the leading American authorities on the works of Shakespeare, he has directed nearly half of the Bard’s plays. His Globe directing credits include The Winter’s Tale;Othello; and the West Coast premiere of novelist Nathan Englander’s play The Twenty-seventh Man. He also directed All’s Well That Ends Well as the inaugural production of Globe for All, a new producing platform that tours the works of Shakespeare to diverse communities throughout San Diego County. As Director of the Shakespeare Initiative at The Public Theater (2008-2012), Edelstein oversaw all of the company’s Shakespearean productions, as well as its extensive educational, community outreach, and artist-training programs. At The Public, he staged the world premiere of The Twenty-seventh Man; Julius Caesar; The Merchant of Venice; Shakespeare’s Timon of Athens; and Steve Martin’s WASP and Other Plays.He was also Associate Producer of The Public’s Broadway production of The Merchant of Venice starring Al Pacino. From 1998-2003 he was Artistic Director of Classic Stage Company. Edelstein’s other Shakespearean directorial credits include The Winter’s Tale at Classic Stage Company; As You Like It starring Gwyneth Paltrow, and Richard III starring John Turturro. Additional credits include the Lucille Lortel Award-winning revival of Arthur Miller’s All My Sons; the world premiere of Steve Martin’s The Underpants, which he commissioned; and Molière’s The Misanthrope starring Uma Thurman in her stage debut. Edelstein has taught Shakespearean acting at The Juilliard School, NYU’s Graduate Acting Program, and the University of Southern California. His book Thinking Shakespeare is the standard text on American Shakespearean acting. He is also the author of Bardisms: Shakespeare for All Occasions.
Mark Wendland (Scenic Design) designed the Broadway productions of If/Then, The Merchant of Venice (Tony Award nomination), Next to Normal (Tony nomination), Talk Radio, An Almost Holy Picture, and Death of a Salesman. His other New York credits include Significant Other (Roundabout Theatre Company), Heisenberg, Murder Ballad, Beauty of the Father, and Iron (Manhattan Theatre Club), Punk Rock (MCC Theater), I’m Gonna Pray for You So Hard (Atlantic Theater Company), A Month in the Country, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Richard III, and Hamlet (Classic Stage Company), Boy’s Life, Some Men, and Lonely, I’m Not (Second Stage Theatre), The Great God Pan (Playwrights Horizons), The Intelligent Homosexual’s Guide to Capitalism and Socialism with a Key to the Scriptures, Satellites, Fucking A, Pericles, A Dybbuk, The Winter’s Tale, Romeo and Juliet, Henry V, Cymbeline, and Timon of Athens (The Public Theater), Angels in America and Hot ’n’ Throbbing (Signature Theatre Company), and Unconditional (Labyrinth Theater Company).
Katherine Roth (Costume Design) previously designed the Globe productions of The Twenty-seventh Man, Othello, The Rainmaker, and Dracula. She designed the Broadway and international tour productions of Twyla Tharp’s Come Fly Away and the recent New York production of The Twenty-seventh Man directed by Barry Edelstein at The Public Theater. She has designed costumes for many regional and New York theaters. Roth’s film credits include Neil LaBute’s Some Velvet Morning, and her television credits include “All My Children” (two Daytime Emmy Awards). She received her M.F.A. from Yale University School of Drama.
Russell H. Champa (Lighting Design) previously designed The Old Globe’s productions of The Twenty-seventh Man, The Winter’s Tale, Groundswell, Back Back Back,and The Four of Us. His current and recent projects include You Got Older (Page 73 Productions/HERE Arts Center), Zealot (South Coast Repertory), To the Bone (Cherry Lane Theatre), The Qualms (Steppenwolf Theatre Company), and When We Were Young and Unafraid (Manhattan Theatre Club). His Broadway credits include In the Next Room, or the vibrator play (Lyceum Theatre/Lincoln Center Theater) and Julia Sweeney’sGod Said “Ha!” (Lyceum Theatre). His work with other New York companies includes Lincoln Center, The Public Theater, Pilobolus, Second Stage Theatre, Vineyard Theatre, and New York Stage and Film. He has designed regionally for American Conservatory Theater, The Wilma Theater, California Shakespeare Theater, Trinity Repertory Company, Mark Taper Forum, and The Kennedy Center. Thanks J + J. Peace.
Ken Travis (Sound Design) previously designed The Last Goodbye for The Old Globe. His Broadway credits include Aladdin, Jekyll & Hyde,A Christmas Story The Musical, Scandalous, Newsies, Memphis, Threepenny Opera, Barefoot in the Park, and Steel Magnolias. His New York and regional credits include productions at The 5th Avenue Theatre, McCarter Theatre Center, Seattle Repertory Theatre, La Jolla Playhouse, Center Theatre Group, A Contemporary Theatre, Guthrie Theater, Kansas City Repertory Theatre, Dallas Theater Center, Playwrights Horizons, The New Group, New York Shakespeare Festival at The Public Theater, Classic Stage Company, Signature Theatre Company, Soho Repertory Theater, Vineyard Theatre, The Civilians, and Mabou Mines. ken-travis.squarespace.com.
Bruce Coughlin (Orchestrations) last worked at the Globe on A Room with a View. He orchestrated the Broadway productions of Michael John LaChiusa’s The Wild Party, TheLight in the Piazza (Tony and Drama Desk Awards), Urinetown, Grey Gardens, 9 to 5, Annie Get Your Gun,The Sound of Music, Once Upon a Mattress, and The King and I (1996), and he provided additional/contributing orchestrations for Big Fish, On the Twentieth Century, Something Rotten!, and On the Town. His other credits include LaChiusa’s Giant, First Daughter Suite (co-orchestrator), and See What I Wanna See (The Public Theater), the recent Assassins and Urinetown revivals (London), Amélie, Floyd Collins, Children of Eden, the U.K. production of Finding Neverland, A Room with a View at The 5th Avenue Theatre), Tales of the City at American Conservatory Theater, and Far from Heaven at Playwrights Horizons. His opera credits include The Grapes of Wrath, 27, and Morning Star, all by Ricky Ian Gordon. Coughlin’s credits for film include Hairspray (“Miss Baltimore Crabs”) and Fantasia 2000 (principal arranger). He is the winner of the Tony Award (and two additional nomations), Drama Desk Award (and seven nominations), and Obie Award. His upcoming credits include War Paint at Goodman Theatre. brucecoughlin.com.
J. Oconer Navarro (Music Director) was most recently conductor of Michael John LaChiusa’s First Daughter Suite at The Public Theater. His select New York credits include Adding Machine, Avenue Q, Curtains, The House of Blue Leaves, Iowa, Mary Poppins, Next to Normal, We the People, and five seasons with Lincoln Center Theater. His regional credits include Barrington Stage Company, Hangar Theatre, The Kennedy Center, New York Stage and Film, Theatreworks Silicon Valley, three national tours for Theatreworks USA, Two River Theater, and Westport Country Playhouse. He is part of the founding faculty of the New Studio on Broadway at New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts, as well as the Musical Theatre Conservatory at the Stella Adler Studio of Acting, and he is music supervisor at Camp Broadway. He is also a composer, lyricist, and writer whose works have been seen Off Broadway. He was a finalist at The Eugene O’Neill Theater Center’s National Music Theater Conference, and he won an American Theatre Wing Jonathan Larson Grant. joconernavarro.com, @joconernavarro on Twitter and Instagram.
Patrick McCollum (Movement) is a Southern California native who attended California State University, Long Beach as a Fine Arts Affiliate Scholar in Dance. His performance credits include dance captain, swing, and Chistery in Wicked on Broadway and in Chicago and Los Angeles, as well as work with several modern dance choreographers including Joe Goode, Keith Johnson, BARE Dance Company, and Bill Young. As a choreographer, his work includes the world premiere of Unknown Soldier (Williamstown Theatre Festival), Broadway’s The Last Ship with music and lyrics by Sting (associate choreographer to Steven Hoggett), Peter and the Starcatcher (movement associate), Rocky (associate fight choreographer), and Wicked (dance supervisor for Broadway and North American tours). His Off Broadway credits include Murder Ballad (associate choreographer to Doug Varone, Manhattan Theatre Club), Oh, Hello with Nick Kroll and John Mulaney (dance consultant, Cherry Lane Theatre), and Permission (movement consultant, MCC Theater).
Telsey + Company (Casting) cast the Broadway and touring productions of Tuck Everlasting, Waitress, Nerds, American Psycho, Fiddler on the Roof,China Doll, Misery, Allegiance, On Your Feet!, Hamilton,Something Rotten!, An American in Paris, Finding Neverland, The King and I, Kinky Boots, Wicked, If/Then, The Sound of Music, Newsies, Pippin, Motown, and Rock of Ages. Their Off Broadway credits include shows with Atlantic Theater Company, MCC Theater, Second Stage Theatre, and Signature Theatre Company. Their regional credits include Goodman Theatre, Humana Festival, La Jolla Playhouse, New York Stage and Film, Paper Mill Playhouse, and Williamstown Theatre Festival. They have cast the films Aardvark, Fun House, Rupture, Tallulah,Ithaca, and The Intern. Their television credits include “The Family,” Grease: Live, The Wiz Live!, “Flesh and Bone,” “Crazy Ex-Girlfriend,” “Billy & Billie,” “Masters of Sex,” and numerous commercials. telseyandco.com.
James Latus (Production Stage Manager) has previously worked on the Globe productions of King Lear, The Madness of George III, and The Taming of the Shrew. His Broadway credits include All the Way,A Time to Kill,Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?, Clybourne Park,The Pee-wee Herman Show, Dr. Seuss’ How the Grinch Stole Christmas!, Elaine Stritch at Liberty, Stones in His Pockets, Bells Are Ringing, and The Capeman. His Off Broadway credits include The Great American Trailer Park Musical; They Wrote That?; The Persians at National Actors Theatre; 25 productions at The Public Theater including Hamilton, Stephen Sondheim’s Road Show, The Skriker, Steve Martin’s WASP, Stuff Happens, and Antony and Cleopatra with Vanessa Redgrave; Chinese Friends and Memory House at Playwrights Horizons; 15 productions for New York Shakespeare Festival in Central Park; and productions at Young Playwrights Festival, Theatre for a New Audience, and Brooklyn Academy of Music. Latus’s regional credits include Shakespeare Theatre Company, Seattle Repertory Theatre, Chautauqua Theater Company, The Shakespeare Theatre of New Jersey, Utah Shakespeare Festival, and McCarter Theatre Center. He also stage managed Oedipus at the Athens & Epidaurus Festival.
Amanda Salmons (Assistant Stage Manager) has worked previously at The Old Globe on Much Ado About Nothing and All’s Well That Ends Well (Globe for All), The Metromaniacs, Kiss Me, Kate, The White Snake, The Two Gentlemen of Verona, Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike, The Last Goodbye, the Summer Shakespeare Festival (2011-2013), Dr. Seuss’ How the Grinch Stole Christmas!, Somewhere, Lost in Yonkers, I Do! I Do!, and The Price. Her other credits include Blueprints to Freedom: An Ode to Bayard Rustin (La Jolla Playhouse), Kiss Me, Kate (Hartford Stage), The Foreigner, miXtape, See How They Run, The Music Man,and The Rivalry (Lamb’s Players Theatre), The Gondoliers, The Pirates of Penzance, Candide, and Trial by Jury (Lyric Opera San Diego), and SummerFest (La Jolla Music Society). Salmons holds a B.A. in Theatre from UC San Diego.
