"Vortex Theater Company rounds out its ambitious 2007 season having explored the ghost of musicals past (H.M.S. Pinafore), musicals present (Kiss of the Spider Woman), and now a vision of the kind of musicals yet to come with director Kris Thor and composer Joel Bravo's intense and satisfying new version of Charles Dickens' A Christmas Carol. (Jason) Trachtenburg leads an intelligent and charming company of actors and musicians working in true ensemble fashion in a complex and thought-provoking show that harnesses some of the philosophical wistfulness many find in the holiday season."
BACKSTAGE
"...the tone of the show is not abrasive or condascending: there's real invention here rather than nose-thumbing. Risky and rule-breaking, with edgy hybrid musical sensibilities that (save for one brassy show-stopping piano number for the Ghost of Christmas Present) have not the faintest whiff of Broadway, the show is "downtown" in the best sense of the word."
SHOW SHOWDOWN
"This production, like the young artists that made it, is filled with a profound cynisism, but equally a profound hope. And it is that quixotic, complicated view of the world, the christmas spirit, and maybe even the power of art, that makes me think twice about saying 'Bah Hum'."
NPR "All Things Considered"
"Just in time for the upcoming holiday season, the Vortex Theater Company guts Charles Dickens' morality tale and repackages it as a quirky, folk celebration...exciting and mischievous...A Christmas Carol: the new musical is more than a fresh spin on the classic. It is an entirely different experience."
NEW THEATER CORPS
November 29 - December 22, 2007
at the Sanford Meisner Theater
Director: Kris Thor
Music: Joel Bravo
Costumes: Kylie Ward
Stage Manager: Carter Edwards
Producer: Joshua Randall
with: Mikey Barringer, Kelly Eubanks,
Libby King, Deborah Knox*,
Julie LaMendola, Michael Martin,
Joe Ornstein, Tracy Weller, Isaac Woofter,
and Jason Trachtenburg as Scrooge.
Musicians: Ian Everall, Dan Gower
* Actor appears courtesy of Actors Equity Association
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BIOGRAPHIES
Michael J Barringer (Tiny Tim) studied at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor and at Albert-Ludwigs University in Freiburg, Germany. Currently he acts, makes films, and lives at Flux Factory, a nonprofit arts collective in Queens. www.michaelbarringer.com
Carter Edwards (Stage Manager / Groundskeeper) is a writer living in Williamsburg.He produces the national touring company of The Upright Citizens Brigade Theater and is the technical director of SketchFest NYC. Currently he is seeking his MFA in creative writing from The New School and also co-edits the literary journal, Pax Americana. Love to Michael and thanks to the robots for all that wine.
Kelly Eubanks )Arborist) keeps busy in all types of performance from cabaret at Uncle Ming’s to Norma at the Met Opera. After catching her face on fire in her last collaboration with Joel and Kris, she is thrilled to jump back into the fire again with “A Chriistmas Carol”. She holds an MFA from Columbia University.
Dan Gower (Present) plays piano and lives in Brooklyn. He is the Chong in Ching Chong Song, an explosive duo whose new album will be released in December. When Ching Chong Song is not touring in Germany, Dan plays in other bands and is an ordained minister for The Universal Life Church.
Libby King (Beekeeper / Future) is psyched to be back at the Vortex once again. She recently won best actress of the Dublin Fringe Festival for her role as Sarah in Particularly in the Heartland. She is a member of the NYC based theatre company The TEAM. In 2008, The TEAM will premiere their new work Architecting produced by the the National Theatre of Scotland at the Traverse Theatre, Edinburgh. Favorite roles: Astrov in Uncle Vanya (CSC), Sarah in Particularly in the Heartland (Dublin Fringe, Galway, UK TOUR, Harbour Front Center (Toronto), PS122, BAC (London), Traverse Theatre. Other credits: The Blind, LEAReguardless, Springtime, Tennesssee Williams in Quarter Time, Two Gentleman of Verona, Death of a Salesman, The Tavern. Libby played Dottie in Killer Joe as her thesis role at Louisiana State University where she received her MFA in Acting. Libby would like to thank her Robot.
Deborah Knox (Archivist/Past) NEW YORK: Gone byCharles L. Mee (dir. Kenn Watt), premiere at CUNY Prelude Festival 2006; Jon Fosse's deathvariations (dir. Sarah Cameron Sunde), Oslo Elsewhere/59E59 Theaters; workshop of Wallace Shawn's adaptation of The Master Builder (dir. Andre Gregory). REGIONAL: Susan Smith in 1:23 (dir. Mark Wing-Davey), Cincinnati Playhouse; Klara in Amerika, Theatre de la Jeune Lune / A.R.T; Belinda in The Provok'd Wife (dir. Mark Wing-Davey), American Repertory Theatre; Spring Awakening, Brecht Cabaret, Partytime, The Flying Doctor, Bright Room Called Day, The Comedy of Errors. Upcoming: Crime and Punishment at the Cincinnati Playhouse. FILM: The Rage: Carrie 2 and The Rose Garden. B.A. from Dartmouth College, M.F.A. from A.R.T. at Harvard University.
Julie LaMendola(Present) is the Ching in Ching Chong Song. She specializes in relational thinking, performing, and being. For a good time call 512-797-9264. Email Chingcsong@gmail.com. She has 3 cats, 1 dog, all with worms. She has been in several reputable productions and collaborations.
Michael Martin (Wayne Bridge) Born in St. Louis and raised by a cup of coffee, Michael’s been tearing up the New York stage for a decade. Maybe you’ve seen him on TV, promos, Off or Off Off Broadway, at the UCB Theater (in Blackout and the Hot Sauce), or maybe you’ve seen his two-man improvised one act play, Chairman Golem. Point is, he looks familiar, doesn’t he? He would like to thank Pam, Morgan, and Carter for inspiration.
Joe Ornstein (Jacob Marley) a/k/a Mandola Joe, has been performing on the streets and in the parks and public spaces of New York since the 1970's. With Frank York and The String Messengers, and The Summit Hill Ramblers, and Manduology, he may also be seen in various folk venues around the City, including Cornelia Street Cafe, the Lion's Den, Kenny's Castaways, the Sidewalk Cafe, and others, as well as the Bethlehem Music Fest in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. In addition to playing all the instruments of the mandolin family, Joe is an adept in the field of string figures, and has had numerous articles published in the Bulletin of the International String Figures Association.
Joshua Randall - As the Producing Artistic Director for the Vortex Theater Company, Joshua has produced H.M.S. PINAFORE (Drama Desk nomination, Outstanding Revival of a Musical), LEARegardless, Kristjan Thorgeirsson's the blind: adapted by Bathsheba Doran, (Pier 63, Frying Pan as well as its extension at Classic Stage Company), A. Rey Pamatmat's DEVIANT, the Drama Desk Nominated AGAMEMNON (St. Veronica’s Church), and IN DELIRIUM: after the sorrows of young werther, for which he received an NY Innovative Theater Award Nomination for Outstanding Solo Performance. Current projects include KISS OF THE SPIDER WOMAN directed by Drama Desk nominated Gisela Cardenas,, and A CHRISTMAS CAROL (a new musical), with Kris Thorgeirsson and Joel Bravo. Through the Vortex, Mr. Randall has collaborated with groups such as Dave Dalton's Quinnopolis, NY, and Brooklyn’s Opera On Tap. Joshua has worked in the administrative offices of New York City Opera (Marketing), Manhattan Theatre Club (Individual Giving), American Ballet Theater and Second Stage Theatre.
Kristjan Thorgeirsson (Director) MFA, Columbia University under the guidance of Anne Bogart and Brian Kulick. He is a graduate of Dartmouth College as a Senior Fellow, focusing on the dramatization of cultural histories. This was realized in two productions, one studio production at the Moscow Art Theatre called Vasilia the Beautiful, and an investigation of the Icelandic Sagas at Dartmouth College titled Egil’s Saga: Depictions of a Viking Poet. More recently he formed the Lift Group where he directed St. Fatso’s Lament by Hillary Miller, which performed at the Cherry Lane Studio and then moved to the Edinburgh Fringe Festival. He has also directed Chekov’s The Seagull, Hillary Miller’s The Hovering and most recently LEARegardless and The Blind with the Vortex Theater Company. The Blind was also extended with Classic Stage Company, where Kristjan was the Assistant Director for CSC’s Hamlet, starring Michael Cumpsty. Kristjan was also named one of NY Magazine’s “Top 25 Under 25” for 2006.
Jason Trachtenburg (Scrooge) Musical career began in the late '80s in New York City, where he was part of the Lower East Side's anti-folk and performance-art scenes. In 1992, he moved to Austin, TX, where he worked with Daniel Johnston on music and video projects. He also formed the band the Pancakes With Cheese while in Austin. He relocated yet again to the Pacific Northwest in 1993 to collaborate with Chris Ballew of Presidents of the United States of America. Ballew produced Trachtenburg's early recordings in Seattle, including 1993's Let the Fishes Do the Asking and 1996's Lefty's Black Bag, which was co-produced by Conrad Uno of Pop Llama. In 1999, Trachtenburg released Your Favorite Song. His folky, lo-fi acoustic songs instantly gained him favorable attention from Seattle music fans and from the Orange Recording Company, who released his Revolutions Per Minute album in 2000. The quirky songs on the album finally garnered Trachtenburg the national attention he'd always deserved. It was during this era that the Trachtenburg Family Slideshow Players were born. Deriving their song topics from vintage slides the trio (keyboardist/guitarist/vocalist Jason Trachtenburg, slide projector/costume designer Tina Piña Trachtenburg, and preteen drummer Rachel Piña Trachtenburg) became the first unsigned act to play on Late Night With Conan O'Brien. Their debut album, Vintage Slide Collections from Seattle, Vol. 1, was released on Bar/None Records. Jason released TOGETHER, his latest solo record, in June 2006.
Tracy Weller (Belle) As an actress, Tracy has performed throughout New York City and abroad in various festivals in Germany, South Korea and Italy. She received her graduate training and MFA from Columbia University, with additional training from, Ann Bogart and the SITI Company. Some New York City credits include Spectre Box’s “Touched” at Uncle Ming’s, "Faust" at the Met, "Library Play" at TSI, "Twelfth Night" (Olivia) at Riverside Theatre, "House of Bernarda Alba" (Best Ensemble of The Year, New York Observer) at the DAMS Festival, and "Lie of The Mind" at Riverside Theatre. Tracy is a founding member of Spectre Box, in which she writes, sings, acts, and produces. She is grateful to be working with such a talented group of “theatre-makers”.
Isaac Woofter (Ignacious Bridge) is a graduate from Columbia University’s MFA acting program. He has studied intensively with Anne Bogart’s SITI company, the Polish theatre group Gardziniece and at the prestigious Guthrie Experience. Past favorite roles include Scapin (Scapin), Roberto Zucco (Roberto Zucco), Dromio of Syracuse (Comedy of Errors) and Cort Quartermain (The Executioner) where he was nominated for best supporting actor at the Midtown International Theatre Festival. He has performed across the world including California, Japan, Minneapolis, Venezuela, Poland and various places throughout Germany & Italy. Isaac is also part owner of a Circle of Seven Productions a production company that produces movie trailers…but for books (www.cosproductions.com). For more information about Isaac please visit his new website (www.isaacwoofter.biz).
