Search:
|
Fences Artist Bios LOU BELLAMY LOU BELLAMY
(Co-conceiver & Producer)
is the founder and artistic
director of Penumbra
Theatre. He has been a
member of the University
of Minnesota's faculty for 31 years and is
currently appointed to the rank of Associate
Professor in the Department of Theatre
and Dance. Recent awards include the
2007 OBIE for Direction and the 2006
McKnight Distinguished Artist Award.
His most recent directing credits include
Fences and The Piano Lesson at Penumbra,
and A Raisin in the Sun staged at Cleveland
Play House, co-produced by Penumbra,
Cleveland, and Arizona Theatre. This
co-production will also be staged at the
Guthrie Theater this season.DOMINIC TAYLOR DOMINIC TAYLOR
(Associate Artistic Director)
has directed a variety of
theatre projects and musicals
including the new opera
Fresh Faust at the Institute
of Contemporary Art in Boston, the cantata
The Negro Burial Ground at The Kitchen in
New York City, and The Wiz at the University
of Minnesota. He has worked with Goodman
Theatre, Steppenwolf Theatre, The Public
Theatre, New York Theatre Workshop,
Crossroads Theater, Rites and Reasons
Theatre, Playwrights Horizons, and Ensemble
Studio Theatre, among others. He holds
both a Bachelors and a Master of Fine
Arts from Brown University. He has been
appointed Assistant Professor in Directing
at the University of Minnesota.MARY K. WINCHELL MARY K. WINCHELL
(Stage Manager) is in her
22nd season with Penumbra.
Most recently, she stage
managed Penumbra's Fences
and Gem of the Ocean. Other
Penumbra credits include The Piano Lesson,
Get Ready, Black Nativity: Twenty Years of
Holiday Cheer!, Seven Guitars, Jitney, Two
Trains Running, King Hedley II, and Dinah
Was. She has stage managed at the Orpheum
Theatre, State Theatre, Pantages Theatre,
Children's Theatre Company, Jungle Theater,
the Coconut Grove Playhouse in Miami,
Macy's Glamorama, Dorothy Hamill's
Nutcracker on Ice, Aveda's 20th Anniversary
Celebration at Radio City Music Hall, and
Super Bowl XXVI Winter Magic.SARAH BELLAMY SARAH BELLAMY
(Education Director)
is Penumbra Theatre's
Education Director. A
playwright and educator,
she holds a B.A. in creative
writing and post-colonial theory from Sarah
Lawrence College and a Masters degree in
Caribbean history and the trans-Atlantic
Slave trade from the University of Chicago.
She is currently working toward her
doctorate in cultural studies and critical
discourse at the University of Minnesota.JAMES T. ALFRED JAMES T. ALFRED
(Cory) recently appeared at
Penumbra in REDSHIRTS.
He also performed in
Penumbra's co-production,
with Kansas City Rep and
Arizona Theatre Company, of August
Wilson's Jitney. Other credits include
To Kill a Mockingbird at Kansas City Rep
and Arizona Theatre Company, Conversations
on a Dirt Road and Killing Me Softly at the
ETA Creative Arts Foundation in Chicago,
Sundown Names at the Chicago Theatre
Company, and Romeo and Juliet at the
American Repertory Theatre. Film and
television credits include Fox's Prison Break
and the film One Week. He is a graduate
of the Institute for Advanced Theatre
Training at Harvard University, and he holds a Master of Fine Arts in acting from
the Moscow Art Theatre School in Russia.JAMES CRAVEN JAMES CRAVEN
(Gabriel) is a longtime
Penumbra Theatre
company member. He was
most recently seen in
Penumbra's production of
Gem of the Ocean presented at the Guthrie.
Other recent Penumbra credits include The
Piano Lesson, REDSHIRTS, Get Ready,
Zooman and the Sign, and Grandchildren of the
Buffalo Soldiers. He performed recently at
Kansas City Rep Theater and Arizona
Theatre Company in their joint production
of Jitney. James is a 2005 recipient of the
Spenser Cherashore Fund and was awarded
a 2007 McKnight Fellowship.MAHOGANY ELLIS MAHOGANY ELLIS
(Raynell) is an honor
student at Breck School.
She is interested in acting
for the stage, television
and film, and in spoken
word and modeling. Her stage credits
include The Living Nativity, The Wizard of
Oz, A Bug in Michael Bird Boys Garden,
Alice's Rockin Adventures, Once On This Island,
Heartbeat of the Drum, The Wiz, City Children's
Nutcracker, Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor
Dreamcoat, The Story of Hope, Nickel and
Dimed, Young MLK and a Child Shall Lead,
Macbeth, and The Dining Room. She has
appeared in several television commercials,
and performed in the film Agora and in the
Rondo Oral History Video Project and
Curriculum/Interactive-CD. MARIANNA MCGEE MARIANNA MCGEE
(Raynell) is making her
Penumbra Theatre stage
debut. She attends the
Perpich Center for
the Arts and Education
where she has performed in Hearts & Bones
and Under Milk Wood.MARION MCCLINTON MARION MCCLINTON
(Jim Bono) is an accomplished
director, actor, playwright
and a founding Penumbra
company member.
Directing credits at
Penumbra include The Dutchman, A Soldier's
Play and the 1993 production of The Piano
Lesson. Marion has directed at many theatres
throughout the country including the
Mark Taper Forum, The Goodman Theatre
and The Royal National Theatre of Great
Britain as well as on Broadway. Most
recently, he directed Bulrusher at Pillsbury
House Theatre. Marion has received an
Obie Award for Direction, a Drama Desk
Award and a Tony nomination. He is a
New Dramatist Alumni.ELAYN J. TAYLOR ELAYN J. TAYLOR
(Rose) is a Houston native
now living in Los Angeles.
Elayn recently appeared as
'Lena Younger' in Houston
at The Ensemble Theatre
in the production of A Raisin in the Sun.
She received a best actress award for her
work. In Los Angeles she played 'Rose' in
The Odyssey Theatre production of Fences,
earning an Ovations Award nomination.
Also in Los Angeles, she appeared as 'Ella'
in the West Coast premiere of Permanent
Collection at The Kirk Douglas Theatre.
Elayn has been seen in a number of
television shows and commercials and is
looking forward to the release of three
independent films this year, Humboldt
County, You Own Me, and Defiled. Elayn is a
lifetime member of The Actors Studio.KEVIN D. WEST KEVIN D. WEST
(Lyons) is a Penumbra
company member.
Penumbra credits include
Zooman and the Sign, Two
Trains Running, Some Place
Soft to Fall, Joe Turner's Come and Gone, Seven
Guitars, A Raisin in the Sun, and Freefall.
Kevin has also performed with Children's Theatre Company, Jungle Theater, Mixed
Blood Theatre, Pillsbury House Theatre,
Alchemy Theater, History Theatre, Theater
Latté Da, Minnesota Jewish Theater,
Guthrie Theater and the Phoenix Theater.
Film and television credits include The
Death of Tommy Grime, Sweet Caroline,
Kingdom Hospital, Bill's Gun Shop and Justice.
Kevin serves as Artistic Associate with the
Capri Theater where he teaches acting to
high school students.JAMES A. WILLIAMS JAMES A. WILLIAMS
(Troy Maxon) is a
founding Penumbra
company member.
He has also performed at
Pillsbury House Theatre,
Children's Theatre, Illusion Theater,
Guthrie Theater, Centerstage, The
Goodman, Mark Taper Forum, The
McCarter, Seattle Rep, Yale Rep, and on
Broadway in August Wilson's Radio Golf.
He has led performance workshops
throughout the world including at Brown
University, University of Minnesota, the
International School of Kenya, Nshupu
School, Tanzania and Penumbra Theatre
Summer Institute. In 2009, he will head
the drama program at Shangalia School in
Nairobi. He is a recipient of the 2008
TCG Next Generation Leaders Grant, St.
Paul Companies Leadership Initiative in
the Neighborhoods Grant, 2003 City Pages
Artist of the Year, and a 2005 NAACP
Image Award Nominee.C. LANCE BROCKMAN C. LANCE
BROCKMAN (Scenic
Designer) is a professor of
theatre design at the
University of Minnesota
where he has been on the
faculty of the Dept. of Theatre Arts and
Dance for 34 years. His research interest is
in the historic methods of scenic art used to
create illusionary background for opera
houses, vaudeville, circuses, and fraternal
initiations. His efforts led to the discovery
and subsequent exhibits titled: The Twin
City Scenic Collection: Popular Entertainment
1895-1929 and Theatre of the Fraternity:
Staging the Ritual Space of the Scottish Rite of
Freemasonry 1896-1929. In addition, Lance
provides master classes and workshops
nationwide on historical painting
techniques, and maintains an active design
career.DON DARNUTZER DON DARNUTZER
(Lighting Designer)
designed the lighting for
the Tony-nominated
Broadway show It Ain't
Nothin' but the Blues. He
also designed the Off-Broadway shows
Hank Williams: Lost Highway, The Immigrant
and John Denver’s Almost Heaven. Don has
worked for the Guthrie Theater, Denver
Center Theater Company, Kennedy Center
for the Performing Arts, Mark Taper
Forum, B.B. King's Blues Club in NYC,
Shakespeare Theatre, American
Conservatory Theatre, Arena Stage, Old
Globe Theater, Alley Theater, Geffen
Playhouse, Kansas City Rep, Seattle Rep,
Arizona Theatre, Cleveland Play House,
Palm Beach Opera, Minnesota Orchestra,
The Minnesota Opera, Portland Opera,
New Orleans Opera, Alabama Shakespeare
Festival, San Jose Repertory, Saint Louis
Repertory Theatre and Geva Theatre. MARTIN GWINUP MARTIN GWINUP
(Sound Designer) is an
associate professor in
the Theatre Arts and
Dance Department at the
University of Minnesota.
He teaches audio and video technology,
design and production. He has also worked
in the Twin Cities area as a freelance
sound/video designer and technician for
18 years. Martin has worked for the Frank
Theatre, History Theatre, Children's
Theatre, Cricket Theatre and Eye of the
Storm. Recent design credits at Penumbra
include Fences, REDSHIRTS, Get Ready,
Blue, Black Nativity - A Celebration of
Family, A Celebration for the Soul…Testify!,
and Grandchildren of the Buffalo Soldiers.MATHEW J. LEFEBVRE MATHEW J.
LEFEBVRE (Costume
Designer) most recently
designed costumes and
set for Penumbra's
production of Gem of the
Ocean presented at the Guthrie.
Penumbra credits include Get Ready,
Grandchildren of the Buffalo Soldiers, On the
Open Road, Black Eagles, Joe Turner's Come
and Gone and Jitney. Off-Broadway
designs include Two Trains Running at
Signature Theatre and Bach at Leipzig at
New York Theatre Workshop. Costume
design credits at the Guthrie include
She Loves Me, Pride and Prejudice,
Wintertime, Merrily We Roll Along, and
School for Scandal. He has also designed
for Milwaukee Rep, Kansas City Rep,
Arizona Theatre Company, Trinity Rep,
Theatre de la Jeune Lune, Geffen
Playhouse, and American Players
Theatre.KALERE A. PAYTON KALERE A. PAYTON
(Assistant Costume
Designer) assisted
Mathew J. LeFebvre,
costume designer, for
Get Ready and
REDSHIRTS at Penumbra, and Two Trains
Running at Signature Theatre Company in
New York. Her design credits include The
Wiz and Uri Sands’ dance piece Happy for
the University of Minnesota Department of
Theatre Arts and Dance. She is working
towards a Master of Fine Arts Costume
Design/Technology, to be completed in the
spring of 2009.CARLA MEGAN SANDOVAL CARLA MEGAN
SANDOVAL (Assistant
Scenic Designer) is a
native of Chicago who
recently moved to the
Twin Cities to earn her
M.F.A. in Theatre Design and Technology
at the University of Minnesota. Her degree
emphasis is in Scenic Design and Scenic
Painting. Previously, Carla attended Ball
State University where she earned a
Bachelor of Science in Design and
Technical Theatre in 2007. Carla has
worked on a number of shows in the
Twin Cities, including The Count of
Monte Cristo on the Minnesota Centennial
Showboat and The Guthrie Experience
in the Guthrie's Dowling Studio. ANSA AKYEA ANSA AKYEA
(Understudy) was last
seen on stage in Penumbra
Theatre's The Piano Lesson.
He has also appeared at
Mixed Blood Theatre,
History Theatre, Black Ensemble Theatre,
Chicago Theatre Company, Frank Theatre,
and many other stages around the country.
He can be seen and heard on radio and
television for Gillette Hospital, Goodwill
Industries, Great Clips, Qwest, and on the
big screen in movies such as Repetition and
Zora Neale Hurston's The Gilded Six Bits.
Ansa was named City Pages 2007 Best
Actor.TERRY BELLAMY TERRY BELLAMY
(Understudy) is a
founding member of
Penumbra Theatre
Company. He began
acting at the age of six and
has been on stage professionally for over 30
years. He has worked at numerous theatres
including Chimers, Mixed Blood Theatre,
American History Theatre, The Hennepin
Center for the Arts, Park Square Theatre,
Minneapolis Car Garage, Illusion Theatre,
Guthrie Theater, The Goodman Theatre,
Milwaukee Rep, Actors Theatre of
Louisville and many others. He has been a
dramaturge at the Playwrights Center in
Minneapolis, taught advanced acting at the
Children's Theatre Company and he taught
Black Drama at Penumbra Theatre in
1990, 1991 and 1994. KELI GARRETT KELI GARRETT
(Understudy) is a
playwright and performer.
She most recently
appeared in Sound Check
at HERE in New York.
Other performances include Drowning
Sorrows, Eden, and Late Bus to Mecca at
Victory Gardens, and she played the title
role in Saint Joan at The Bailiwick
Repertory. An award-winning playwright,
her plays include UPPA CREEK produced
at Dixon Place in New York. Her stage
adaptations include Faith and the Good
Thing by Charles Johnson, seen earlier
this year as part of Penumbra Theatre's
Word(s)PLAY festival. Her most recent play
SPACE will be given a staged reading at
New York Theatre Workshop this fall.
Keli holds a Bachelor's Degree from
Columbia College of Chicago and an MFA
from Brown University. RICK JACOBSON RICK JACOBSON
(Audio Describer) has
been describing theatre
for 13 years and provides
description for blind
patrons at over 25 theatres
in the Twin Cities. Recent shows include
Fences, Spamalot, The Rocky Horror Show, and
Les Misérables. He is the audio description
coordinator for the Minnesota Fringe
Festival. He describes the annual Flint
Hills Children's Festival. Rick can be heard
on Nickelodeon and PBS stations across the
country. In 2006, he received an Access Arts
Award from VSA Arts Minnesota. He also
describes for blind and low-vision passengers
on cruise ships, most recently in Mexico.ERIKA K. DIXON-GOSS ERIKA K. DIXON GOSS
(American Sign
Language Interpreter) has
been the ASL Interpreter
for Penumbra Theater for
11 years. Erika has had
the pleasure of interpreting works by
the late August Wilson including Seven
Guitars and King Hedley II, The Piano
Lesson and Gem of the Ocean. Erika also
interprets for Hopkin's Stages Theater,
Plymouth Playhouse, Anoka's Main Street
Stage, and The State and Pantages Theatres. |
More Info:
This Season:
|
|
|||||
|
||||||||
|
© 2008 Penumbra Theatre
|