Artistic Director Michael Stevenson &
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Directed by Janis Stevens |
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November 29 - December 31, 2023 [EXTENDED] PERFORMANCE LENGTH: 2 Hours & 15 Minutes with 1 Intermission |
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Eric Broadwater |
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Lighting Designer Patrick O'Reilly |
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| Sound Designer Ed Lee |
Properties Designer Christa Kinch |
Hair & Make-Up Designer Corey D. Winfield |
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| Original Music by Christopher Kriz |
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| Additional Original Music by Jenny Giering |
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Stage Manager |
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| Assistant Stage Manager Maddie Hardiman |
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SEASON WINE SPONSOR: |
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GEORGIANA & KITTY: CHRISTMAS AT PEMBERLEY is presented by special arrangement with Dramatists Play Service, Inc., New York. |
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| *Member Actors' Equity Association | ||||||||||||||
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OUR MISSION
Capital Stage’s mission is to entertain, engage and challenge our audience with bold, thought provoking theatre.
THINGS TO KNOW
HEALTH & SAFETY:
Visit our COVID-19 Safety Protocols & Procedures Page to stay up to date on our Health & Safety requirements and recommendations.
VIDEO/PHOTOS:
Recording and photography during the performance are prohibited at Capital Stage by copyright law and union regulations.
CELL PHONES:
Patrons are asked to turn any noise making devices off upon entering the theatre.
LATE SEATING & RE-SEATING:
Due to the design of our theatre, we cannot guarantee seating for late arrivals or for patrons who leave the theatre during the performance. As a courtesy to our artists and our audiences, late arrivals will be seated in a suitable location by our staff if possible and at the appropriate intervals.
REFRESHMENTS:
Only concession items purchased in the Wine & Dessert Bar are allowed in the theatre, patio and lobby areas. Yes, you can bring your drinks and snacks into the theatre!
CHILDREN:
Capital Stage is noted for bringing intimate bold productions to our region and we encourage young adults to experience a live performance. Children age sixteen and up are welcome at Capital Stage unless specifically noted in the production’s description.
WHEELCHAIR SEATING:
Seating locations at Capital Stage for patrons using wheelchairs or with limited mobility are located in the first row. Tickets for these seats may be purchased in person or by calling the Box Office at 916-995-5464. Please call ahead to notify the staff if you required these seats.
RESTROOMS:
Restroom facilities are located in the lounge behind the Wine & Dessert Bar.
INFORMATION:
Brochures and information about upcoming Capital Stage productions and events are available in the box office or by visiting capstage.org.
Capital Stage is a member of Actors' Equity Association, the Union of Professional Actors and Stage Managers in the United States.
Capital Stage is a member of Theatre Communications Group (TCG), the national organization for the American theatre.
Capital Stage is a member of the National New Play Network, the country’s alliance of leading nonprofit theaters that champion the development, production and continued life of new plays.
Capital Stage is a member of Blue Star Theatres, offering discounts to Military personnel, Military family members, and Veterans.
SDC is the theatrical union that unites, empowers, and protects professional Stage Directors and Choreographers throughout the United States.
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Cast
Creative Team
Lauren Gunderson
Margot Melcon
Janis Stevens
Michael Stevenson
Keith Riedell
Tony Gabrielson
Caleb Jones
Melissa Jernigan*
Maddie Hardiman
Shelby Saumier^
Eric Broadwater
Patrick O'Reilly
Gail Russell
Ed Lee
Christa Kinch
Corey D. Winfield
Samantha McLean Haas
Jessica Sager
Nicole C. Limón
Christopher Kriz
Jenny Giering
Special Thanks
American River College
Joe Bertolucci, Affordable Heating & Air, Inc.
Donna Chipps
Di Arie Vineyard & Winery
Connie DiGiacomo
Michael Faw
Jim Hensley, President Abbey Flooring, Inc.
Nicole Lewis
Gigi Linquist
Pakuda Ly
Bob Mandelson
Brooke Mullenix
Oak Park Brewing Company
Lucía Plumb-Reyes, Moonbelly Bakery
Courtney Siperstein-Cook
UC Davis Department of Theatre & Dance
Meghan Unquera
Production Staff
Artistic Director - MICHAEL STEVENSON
Production & Company Manager - TONY GABRIELSON
Technical Director - CALEB JONES
Lead Carpenter - CONOR WOODS
Carpenter, Technician & Marketing Assistant - ANDREW FRIDAE
Carpenter - SUNNY MACKEY
Scenic Designer - ERIC BROADWATER
Scenic Charge Artist - SAMANTHA McLEAN HAAS
Sound Designer & Engineer - ED LEE
Lighting Designer - PATRICK O'REILLY
Lead Electrician - SHAE MERCER
Electricians - ISAIAH LEEPER, SHAE MERCER
Stage Manager - MELISSA JERNIGAN*
Assistant Stage Manager - MADDIE HARDIMAN
Assistant to the Director - SHELBY SAUMIER^
Properties Designer - CHRISTA KINCH
Costume Designer - GAIL RUSSELL
Hair & Make-Up Designer - COREY D. WINFIELD
Build Crew - ANDREW FRIDAE, SUNNY MACKEY, CONOR WOODS
Painters - SAMANTHA McLEAN HAAS, CALEB JONES, SUNNY MACKEY, ANDREW FRIDAE, CONOR WOODS
Wardrobe/Run Crew - MADDIE JUDD^, SHELBY SAUMIER^
Sub Run Crew - MADDIE JUDD^, OSCAR QUEZADA^, SHELBY SAUMIER^
Production Associate - YASMINE SALMERON
BIAPOC Liaison - VERNON LEWIS
Dramaturg - JESSICA SAGER
Resident Dramaturg - K. KEVYNE BAAR
Infection Control Manager - ELIJAH PETERS
Graphic Designer, Webmaster - MISTY MCDOWELL
Photographer - CHARR CRAIL
^ Capital Stage Apprentice | * Member Actors' Equity Association
About The Play
by K. Kevyne Baar, PhD
“Music is a universal language. And women should have a voice in all things universal as they are not only participants but creators in this world...If a world ruled by men does not include us, we must create a space for ourselves or else forgo what is universally ours, and that I refuse to do. Music belongs to me just as much as it does to any man. That…is the point.”
– Georgiana Darcy
Jane Austen’s Pride & Prejudice, not the zombie version, nor the vampire version, nor the Bridget Jones diary version, nor the other dozen versions truly compare to the original tale which begins in the England of 1812, where we learn it is most important above all else for the five Bennet sisters to marry and marry well. When the story ends in October of 1813, three of the sisters, Jane, Elizabeth, and the hapless Lydia are married. This leaves us to wonder what will happen to the remaining two Bennet sisters, Mary and Kitty, as well as one sister-in-law, Georgiana Darcy.
Enter the playwrights Lauren Gunderson and Margot Melcon, who decided to continue the story for us by creating three plays taking place simultaneously two years after the curtain fell on the weddings of Jane Bennett to Charles Bingley and Elizabeth Bennet to Fitzwilliam Darcy. For those not up on their Austen, Lydia was married a bit earlier in the story to one George Wickham.
The first of the three plays is Miss Bennet wherein Mary, the shy and nerdy middle sister meets her match in both areas when Arthur de Bourgh comes to visit the Darcy home. His aunt, Catherine de Bourgh has already wrecked a bit of havoc in Pride & Prejudice, and his cousin Anne de Bourgh almost does in the chance for happiness for Mary and Arthur. Fear not, by the end we are only one Bennet sister short of an upcoming wedding.
Play number two is The Wickhams, which moves us to the downstairs where true romance will find a way to be delivered by two members of the staff. At the same time, Lydia is finally freed from the ugliness of being married to George Wickham by being allowed to sever the relationship.
Meanwhile, we continue upstairs with the play you are seeing this evening. Georgiana Darcy, younger sister of Fitzwilliam Darcy, is an accomplished pianist but wary of romance. Kitty Bennet, sister number four in the Bennet line, is a bright-eyed optimist and a perfect best friend. “These two younger sisters are ready for their own adventures in life and love, starting with the arrival of an admirer and secret correspondent. Meddlesome families and outmoded expectations won’t stop these determined friends from forging their own way in a holiday tale filled with music, ambition, sisterhood, and forgiveness” in this, the final play in the Christmas at Pemberley trilogy. A second act change of venue is only one of the lovely surprises awaiting the audience here at this performance. Suffice it to say, it wouldn’t be fair to reveal the other surprises here.
Let us leave the last word on these tales with playwright Gunderson, “You know what people love? Jane Austen. You know what people really love? Christmas and Jane Austen.” From the playwrights and all of us at Capital Stage, sit back and enjoy the “music” that is Georgiana and Kitty: Christmas at Pemberley.
About The Playwrights
by K. Kevyne Baar, PhD
“The most salient quality of the holidays is being with family, specifically the way you’re all on top of each other, and everybody brings their current self, and yet you also can’t help but turn into this person your family thinks you are.” – Margot Melcon
The story of how these writers got together and decided that these three plays needed to exist, has become a thing of legend as the inception was a drive for its two authors, and friends, Lauren Gunderson and Margot Melcon, from San Francisco to Ashland, Oregon. It was on this drive that Melcon, a former literary manager, reminded Gunderson that every theatre needs a holiday show: something clever, heartwarming, and family-friendly enough to entice an audience inured to “A Christmas Carol.” Six hours and several scribbled-on napkins later, they had started the writing process that would end in a rolling world premiere in 2016 of Miss Bennet: Christmas at Pemberley, which was followed in 2018 by “the much-anticipated companion piece,” The Wickhams: Christmas at Pemberley, and ends in 2021 with the premier of Georgiana and Kitty: Christmas at Pemberley. All three stories, which reviewers have heralded as a “seasonal confection,” pick up two years after the end of Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice and take place all at the same time in the home of Elizabeth and Fitzwilliam Darcy.
Gunderson, the more familiar of the two, is one of the most produced playwrights in America. She has now topped the list three times starting in 2015 and including 2022/23. She is a two-time winner of the Steinberg/ATCA New Play Award for I and You and The Book of Will, the winner of the Lanford Wilson Award and the Otis Guernsey New Voices Award, as well as a finalist for the Susan Smith Blackburn Prize and John Gassner Award for Playwriting. A recipient of the Mellon Foundation’s Residency with Marin Theatre Company, she studied Southern Literature and Drama at Emory University, and Dramatic Writing at NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts.
Gunderson is the book writer with Ari Afsar of the musical Jeannette, and with Dave Stewart and Joss Stone on Built for This and The Time Traveller’s Wife that just opened in London. She is also a board member of The Playwrights Foundation. For Gunderson “There’s this space for genuine human feeling and heart and soul...It’s easy to not write that, out of fear of being cheesy or whatever, but I think that’s the bravest thing you can do onstage—to be fully alive and emotional and vulnerable. That swell of heart is what I go to the theater for.”
Margot Melcon’s Northern California credentials are undeniable. She is a graduate of California State University Chico and a Bay Area resident who has worked with Marin Theatre Company, American Conservatory Theatre, Berkeley Rep, and Shotgun Players. She has worn many artistic hats so far in her career as a Director of New Play Development, dramaturg, freelance writer for American Theatre magazine, and the Program Executive for Promoting Culture at the Zellerbach Family Foundation. Although she had never had a particular interest in turning her hand to playwriting, Melcon found that working on Miss Bennet was “a nice soft entry into the world of playwriting because I was working with one of the most prolific playwrights in America today.” In an interview with the San Francisco Chronicle, Melcon has said that she wanted to write a Christmas play that captured her own experience of the holiday.
Regency England, 1811-1820
by Jessica Sager
The setting for countless novels and inspiration behind many a beloved movie or TV series, the Regency Period lasted just under a decade. Part of the greater Georgian Era, the Regency started when George III was deemed too ill to rule and his son, Prince George, became regent; it ended with George III’s death and George IV’s ascension to the throne.
The Regency was an exciting, turbulent time. The American and French Revolutions were within living memory for many adults, and the first Industrial Revolution was picking up speed in England. The abolitionist movement was well underway, and Mary Wollstonecraft’s Vindication of the Rights of Woman was changing how the English perceived women’s place in society. The feminist ideas championed by Wollstonecraft are seen in Jane Austen’s own writing: Austen’s heroines are brave, intelligent, and independent despite the constraints of Regency society. Bold new ideas and artistic endeavors were shared in salons, gatherings of artists, intellectuals, and politicians in private homes.
Despite (or perhaps because of) these changes, the Regency English had strict social hierarchies and protocols, especially for the nobility and gentry. Our characters belong to the gentry, an influential social class made up of landowners, or landed gentry, and men in “respectable” professions such as doctors, lawyers, and clergymen.
The eldest sons of landed gentry maintained their family estates and fortunes, while younger sons usually worked for a living. Women were under immense pressure to marry well, as a marriage would determine a woman’s financial and social future (not to mention personal happiness). Women with great personal or family wealth did not need to marry for financial stability, but marriage to an eligible gentleman was still highly desirable. Accomplishments, which included playing instruments, embroidery, and painting, were skills meant to help a young woman attract a husband. Accomplishments were not intended to become careers in their own right.
Unmarried young women were expected to have very limited contact with men and remain naive until they were married. Men and women often met at chaperoned dances and parties; even exchanging letters was a privilege usually - but not always - reserved for engaged couples. If a young woman were caught in a “compromising” position, her reputation would be ruined and her future made extremely precarious. A fortune hunter might trick an heiress into elopement; the heiress’ family would then have to accept the clandestine marriage if they wanted to save their daughter from ruin. Once a woman married, her job was running her husband’s household (some households were massive, and their management comparable to running a modern-day company) and giving birth to an heir. Household duties included preparations for special events like balls and holidays.
Christmas was a special time for Regency households. The wealthy gentry’s celebrations lasted from December 6 (St. Nicholas’ Day) through January 6 (Epiphany or Twelfth Day). These celebrations looked quite different from our own, since many of our modern traditions come from the Victorians. Christmas Trees were quite rare in Regency England, though not unheard of. Gift-giving between friends was done on St. Nicholas’ Day, greenery was put up on Christmas Eve, and Christmas Day itself was observed by going to church in the morning and enjoying a huge meal featuring goose or turkey afterward. The day after Christmas, the gentry would give servants and staff “Christmas Boxes,” which is how December 26 came to be called Boxing Day. The end of the holiday season was marked with exuberant Twelfth Night parties, which could last past midnight, and the removal of all greenery on Epiphany.
Meet the Company
Megan Wicks*
Megan Wicks is excited to join the infamous Pemberly family! She has previously lived and performed in both New York City and San Francisco. Local credits include: HEROES OF THE FOURTH TURNING & THE ARSONISTS (Capital Stage), CHRISTMAS CAROL, FRANKENSTEIN, STOP KISS (B Street Theatre), THE SPEAKEASY (Boxcar Theatre SF), WHERE THE BOYS ARE (A.C.T. Strand). Wicks is a voiceover actor and has been featured in a dozen commercials and several video games including VAMPIRE: THE MASQUERADE. She is an audiobook narrator with 10 books available on Audible. Follow along @meganwicks
Fatemeh Mehraban^
GEORGIANA & KITTY is Fatemeh’s debut at Capital Stage and she couldn’t be more excited! She is also proud to be a part of the ‘23/24 Capital Stage Apprentice class. Fatemeh has a theatre education from American River College and is currently getting her bachelor’s degree from California State University of Northridge. Her recent productions include DOG SEES GOD, FOR THE LOVE OF DOG, THE NEWLYWED GAME, and AND THEN THERE WERE NONE. Fatemeh hopes you enjoy the show as much as the cast and crew have—and happy holidays! @fatemeow
Brittni Barger*
Brittni (she/her) is truly honored to reprise the role of Lizzy Darcy at CapStage. Past credits here include Lizzy in MISS BENNET and THE WICKHAMS, Sylvia in TRIBES, Nora in A DOLL’S HOUSE, and Nina in STUPID F##KING BIRD. She is a company member at B Street Theatre, last seen on the Mainstage as Michele in LOVE AND BASEBALL by Jerry Montoya and Maisie Poole in INSERTION. She studied theatre at CSU Sacramento and NYU’s Collaborative Arts Project. Currently living in San Diego, she’s had the opportunity to film commercials and mixed media with a wide variety of fun clients and products like Manscaped, Bloomsybox, Crossrope, Pourri, Glamnetic, and much more. She is a host on the Amazon Prime show BEYOND GEEK. Visit her on the Gram @brittnibarger.
Devin Valdez
Devin Valdez is over-the-moon excited to be reprising the role of Lydia Wickham in this production of GEORGIANA & KITTY: CHRISTMAS AT PEMBERLEY. Previous Capital Stage credits include: PREDICTOR, THE WICKHAMS, MISS BENNET, and THE WOLVES. Other Sacramento Credits: MURDER ON THE ORIENT EXPRESS, GLORIA: A LIFE, HAMLET, and A MIDSUMMER NIGHT’S DREAM (Sacramento Theatre Company), JASPER (Big Idea Theatre), JUST A PINCH (Matriarchy Theatre), and WELCOME TO ARROYO’S (Teatro Espejo). Devin is so grateful to everyone who supports live theatre in Sacramento. Follow along @devinnicolvaldez
Nicole Anne Salle
Nicole Anne (she/her) is thrilled to reprise her role as Jane Bingley! She was most recently seen at the Ooley Theater in LUNGS directed by Lori Russo. Past Capital Stage credits include THE GREAT LEAP, MISS BENNET: CHRISTMAS AT PEMBERLEY, and the virtual production of RIPE FRENZY. She has also performed at Sacramento Theatre Company and Big Idea Theater. Nicole Anne earned her BA in Theater from Sacramento State University and is a proud Capital Stage apprentice alum. Follow along @nicoleannesalle on Instagram and www.nasalle.com
Elyse Sharp
Elyse Sharp (she/her) is thrilled to return to Pemberley and Capital Stage. She was also seen in Capital Stage’s MISS BENNET: CHRISTMAS AT PEMBERLEY, THE REAL THING, and MACBETH and is a former Capital Stage Apprentice. Elsewhere: B Street Theatre (WINNIE THE POOH, FANTASY FESTIVAL 32 & 33, MIND-BOGGLING MYSTERIES OF THE WORLD), Pacific Repertory Theatre (TOM JONES, CORIOLANUS) and Shakespeare on the Vine (MACBETH, HAMLET, THE TEMPEST, A MIDSUMMER NIGHT’S DREAM). She co-hosts and co-produces the podcast “Shakespeare Anyone?”. For more visit www.elysesharp.com or follow @elysesharp on Instagram.
Andrew Fridae
Andrew Fridae is delighted to mark a return to acting with this incredible team of artists after focusing on directing productions such as RIDERS TO THE SEA, and MENDACITY (Happy Hour Theatre), ART and CIRCLE MIRROR TRANSFORMATION (WTC), TWELFTH NIGHT, COMEDY OF ERRORS, and THE TEMPEST (Winters Shakespeare Workshop) and his own SLUG LOVE IN THE TIME OF COVID (Capstage Apprentice team of 21-22.) Acting credits include SHERLOCK HOLMES (NWCT), ZEN SHORTS (Rogue Artists Ensemble), and 20,000 LEAGUES (Tears of Joy Puppet Theatre). Andrew is also developing an original play in collaboration with Capital Stage, THE CIGARETTE TREE.
Braeden Harris
Braeden (he/him) is ecstatic to join Capital Stage in the finale of the CHRISTMAS AT PEMBERLEY series! Previous credits include: FOR THE LOVE OF DOG (The Stage At Burke), THE MOUSETRAP, LOST GIRL, ANIMAL CRACKERS (American River College), THE KILLING (Actors Ensemble of Berkeley). He received his Associates Degree in Theatre Arts from American River College and is a two-time KCACTF Irene Ryan Nominee. For more @braedenharris.
Kriston Woodreaux*
Kriston (he/him) is a multidisciplinary artist based in Austin, TX . His recent theatre credits include THE WICKHAMS: CHRISTMAS AT PEMBERLEY, and PASS OVER (Capital Stage); THE INHERITANCE, EVERY BRILLIANT THING, NOTES FROM THE FIELD, and THIS GIRL LAUGHS, THIS GIRL CRIES, THIS GIRL DOES NOTHING (ZACH Theatre); BRUTAL IMAGINATION (Salvage Vanguard); THE CITY WEARS A SLOUCH HAT (Rude Mechanicals); ACTUALLY (WorkHound), MONROE (Austin Playhouse); HENRY IV (The Hidden Room); and NEVA (Theatre en Bloc). Kriston studied acting at Bradley University. He is appreciative for the opportunity to return to Capital Stage and getting to work with a stellar team.
Lauren Gunderson
Lauren M. Gunderson is one of the most produced playwrights in America since 2015 topping the list thrice including 2022/23. She is a two-time winner of the Steinberg/ATCA New Play Award for I AND YOU and THE BOOK OF WILL, the winner of the Lanford Wilson Award and the Otis Guernsey New Voices Award, a finalist for the Susan Smith Blackburn Prize and John Gassner Award for Playwriting, and a recipient of the Mellon Foundation’s Residency with Marin Theatre Company. She studied Southern Literature and Drama at Emory University, and Dramatic Writing at NYU’s Tisch School where she was a Reynolds Fellow in Social Entrepreneurship. Her play THE CATASTROPHIST, about her husband virologist Nathan Wolfe, premiered digitally in January 2021. She co-authored the MISS BENNET plays with Margot Melcon, and THE HALF-LIFE OF MARIE CURIE premiered off-Broadway and at Audible.com. Her work is published at Playscripts (I AND YOU; EXIT PURSUED BY A BEAR; THE TAMING and TOIL AND TROUBLE), Dramatists Play Service (THE REVOLUTIONISTS; THE BOOK OF WILL; SILENT SKY; BAUER, NATURAL SHOCKS, THE WICKHAMS and MISS BENNET) and Samuel French (EMILIE). Her picture book DR WONDERFUL: BLAST OFF TO THE MOON is available from Two Lions/Amazon. She is the book writer for musicals with Ari Afsar (JEANNETTE), Dave Stewart and Joss Stone (THE TIME TRAVELLER’S WIFE), Joriah Kwamé (SINISTER), Kait Kerrigan and Bree Lowdermilk (JUSTICE and EARTHRISE), and Kira Stone (BUILT FOR THIS). She is a board member of The Playwrights Foundation. LaurenGunderson.com
Margot Melcon
Margot Melcon is an artist, arts administrator and writer. She co-wrote MISS BENNET, THE WICKHAMS and GEORGIANA & KITTY with Lauren Gunderson, the CHRISTMAS AT PEMBERLEY trilogy. She was the Director of New Play Development at Marin Theatre Company for seven years, where she dramaturged over 30 productions – including six world premieres – and administered the company’s two annual new play prizes and commissioning program. She has developed plays with TheatreWorks, Bay Area Playwrights Festival, Crowded Fire Theater, Shotgun Players, Berkeley Rep’s Ground Floor, the Kennedy Center, the New Harmony Project, and The Playwrights’ Center in Minneapolis. She currently manages arts and culture grantmaking at the Zellerbach Family Foundation. Margot is a graduate of California State University, Chico and currently lives in San Francisco with her family.
Janis Stevens
Janis is elated to direct the outstanding cast of GEORGIANA & KITTY. Previous directorial credits with Capital Stage include FOOL FOR LOVE, AMERICAN BUFFALO, HEDDA GABLER, A DOLL’S HOUSE, THE HOMECOMING and BETRAYAL. Regional credits: A MIDSUMMER NIGHT’S DREAM, TWELFTH NIGHT, PRIDE@PREJUDICE, TALLEY’S FOLLY for the Theater at Monmouth, Maine; SEX WITH STRANGERS at American Stage, Florida; THE TEMPEST, Arizona Shakespeare Festival in Mesa. “Locally”: OLEANNA at Sierra Rep, PROOF for Mendocino Theatre Company; THE BELLE OF AMHERST at STC, THE MOORS, Big Idea and, most recently, CHEF for California Stage. Janis will direct THE HEIGHT OF THE STORM with Black Point Theatre this coming Spring. Wishing a peaceful holiday season to all.
Michael Stevenson
Keith Riedell
Tony Gabrielson
Caleb Jones
Melissa Jernigan*
Melissa most recently worked at Capital Stage on CLYDE'S. She has been lucky to have been stage managing at Capital Stage since 2016. Some of her favorites include VIETGONE, THE NETHER, MISS BENNET, STUPID F##KING BIRD and PASSOVER. Other theatrical credits include Production Assisting on Broadway’s LENNON, Off-Broadway: FELA! the Lagos Tour, David Cromer’s OUR TOWN, John Leguizamo: A WORK IN PROGRESS, BEAUTY OF THE FATHER at Manhattan Theatre Club, BREATH & IMAGINATION at Hartford Stage, OUR TOWN starring Helen Hunt at The Broad Theatre in Santa Monica and THE LASSO OF TRUTH at Marin Theatre Company. Last year she was a sub stage manager on Harry Potter and the Cursed Child in SF. She is a proud Equity Member. When she’s not inside the stage management booth Melissa enjoys spending time with her Husband and two sons.
Maddie Hardiman
Shelby Saumier^
Eric Broadwater
Patrick O'Reilly
Gail Russell
Ed Lee
Christa Kinch
Corey D. Winfield
Samantha McLean Haas
Jessica Sager
Nicole C. Limón
Christopher Kriz
Jenny Giering
Multimedia
ACTORS’ EQUITY ASSOCIATION (AEA)
Founded in 1913, this union represents more than 45,000 actors and stage managers in the United States. Equity seeks to advance, promote and foster the art of live theatre as an essential component of our society. Equity negotiates wages and working conditions, providing a wide range of benefits, including health and pension plans. AEA is a member of the AFL-CIO, and is affiliated with FIA, an international organization of performing arts unions. The Equity emblem is our mark of excellence.
Capital Stage Staff
MICHAEL STEVENSON - Artistic Director
KEITH RIEDELL - Managing Director
KIRK BLACKINTON - Development Manager
TONY GABRIELSON - Production & Company Manager
MISTY MCDOWELL - Marketing Manager
LOGAN JACOB HELLER – Education & Box Office Manager
CALEB JONES - Technical Director
CONOR WOODS - Lead Carpenter
SUNNY MACKEY - Carpenter
ED LEE - Resident Sound Designer & Engineer
ISAIAH LEEPER - Lighting Supervisor
SHAE MERCER - Lead Electrician
ANDREW FRIDAE - Carpenter, Technician & Marketing Assistant
CECILIA CASTILLO JUAREZ - Concessions & Box Office Associate
YASMINE SALMERON - Production Associate
K. KEVYNE BAAR - Resident Dramaturg
JAMIE JONES, PETER MOHRMANN, GAIL RUSSELL, JANIS STEVENS – Associate Artists
ELIJAH PETERS - Infection Control Manager, Payroll & Administrative Assistant
2023/24 SEASON APPRENTICE COMPANY - Maddie Judd, Fatemeh Mehraban, Oscar Quezada, Shelby Saumier
Capital Stage Board Members
Chastity E. Benson
California State Association of Counties
Dan Brunner, Treasurer
Arts Patron
Melissa Conner
Seed Communications Design
Kathryn E. Doi, Board President
Feldesman Tucker Leifer Fidell LLP
Sherry Hartel Haus
Downey Brand
Steve Koonce
Arts Patron
Kristi Quesada Mathisen
Sacramento Country Day School
Lori Abbott Moreland
Arts Patron
Vince Sales
Everyday Impact Consulting
Mike Tentis
University of the Pacific
Peggy Wheeler
California Hospital Association
Board Emeritus:
Stephanie Gularte, Founding Artistic Director
Capital Stage
Peter Mohrmann, Co-founder
Capital Stage
Jonathan Williams, Co-Founder
Capital Stage
Clif McFarland
Mitchell Chadwick
Arlen Orchard
SMUD
Julie Stark
Arts Patron
Donors
Special Thanks to our Donors
Donation Totals from 11/1/22 to 11/1/23
Please alert us to any errors or omissions by contacting Development Manager, Kirk Blackinton at kblackinton@capstage.org.
Founder's Circle: $20,000+
Kathryn Doi
The Shubert Foundation
Executive Producer: $10,000+
Donna Chipps
Drs. John & Lois Crowe
Gloriette C. Fong
Lesley & Steve Koonce
Bob Mandelson
Kris Martin
Anita Scuri & James Simon
Producer: $6,000+
Dan Brunner
Jeffrey Farley & Mike Tentis
Sacramento City Office of Arts and Culture
Director: $3,000+
John Abbott & Lori Abbott Moreland
John & Randi Brooklier
Susie & Jim Burton
Melissa Conner & Theodore Harris
Steven Debry
Downey Brand
Susan Edling
Foundation for California Community Colleges
Deborah Franklin & Douglas Mitten
Tuan Hoang
Linda McAtee & Steve Sphar
Keetha Mills & Phil Nanni
Kim Silvers & Sheila Cardno
Ed Telfeyan & Jeri Paik
Patricia Wall & David Stavarek
Gloria & Don Yost
Lead Actor: $1,200+
Jacob Appelsmith
Peggy Beasley
David Bell & Katherine Newman
Chastity Benson
Linda Brandenburger
Dr. William Bronston & Lisa Levering
Margaret L Buss
Kathleen Collins
Timothy Corcoran
Gayle Dax-Conroy
Jim & Kathleen Deeringer
Donald Fraulob & Melissa Brown
Patty French
Curtis Fritz
Patty Garcia & Jim Mattesich
Mary Hargrave
Eileen Heaser
Larry Hendrick
Josh Horowitz & Patti Baggett
Janet Jensen
Brian & Dorothy Landsberg
Janet Lial
Kristi Quesada Mathisen & Josh Mathisen
Clara McCoy
Peter Mohrmann & David Harris
Gretchen Peralta
David Pitman & Rani Pettis
Laurie Nelson Randlett & Jim Randlett
Marshall & Maureen Rice
Ken Rothaus
Leonard Vincent Sales
Art & Sue Scotland
Chuck & Nancy Shulock
Siragusa Family Foundation
Susan & Ross Siragusa
Howard Slyter
Roger & Barbara Smith
Barbara Sommer
Marty & Janet Steiner
Rae-Nani Stokes & Griff Field
David Temblador
Shirlee Tully
Harold & Ilah Turner
Susan Wheeler
Designer: $600+
Chris Abare
John Angell
Stephen & Melva Arditti
Karen Broido
Les & Peggy Chisholm
Ted Cobb
Michael Cohen
Ellen Covairt & Bernard Kalscheuer
Kathy Davenport & Ken Weiss
Stuart Eldridge
Carol & Steven Goldberg
Alex Gonzalez
Patricia & James Grieshop
Ed Hall & Warren Lindeleaf
James R Hargrove
Stephanie & David Hunt
Gary & Eva Incaudo
Dr. John & Rosemary Lamb
Doron Levitan
Shannon Mahoney & Kirk Blackinton
James McElroy & Ann Gerhardt
Sara Nichols
Gail Pereira
James Queirolo
Glenn Rondeau
Bob & Shirley Rosenberg
Lori Saper
Diane Schertz
Harold Smith
Peggy Stare
Julie Stark
John Stefanki
Kim Varner
Marian Ver Wey
Bryan Weare
Tim Whalen
John Wilson
Claudia Wrazel & Frank Horowitz
Ensemble: $300+
Candace & Doug Adams
John & Kathleen Agnew
Merle Axelrad
Walter Barnes
Marsha Baskins
Janet Berman-Brooks
Barbara Black
Sandra Briggs-Howell
Margaret & Stephen Brush
Carin & Bob Bryans
Celia Buckley
Janet Burger
Sharon Cammisa & Joseph Orr
Donna Campbell
Susan & Richard Carlsen
Edward Condon
James Crouch
Daniel DeFoe
Martha & Jim Dickson
Katherine Downey
Cindy Dunning
Nancy Erman
David Felderstein & Dan Hoody
Ellen Ferguson
Tracie & Richard Fike
Mary Helen Fischer
Sara Floor
Muffy & Terry Francke
David Fulk & Keith Riedell
Cynthia Gerber
Adrienne Graham
Mary Graziose
Stephanie Gularte
Suzanne Hanrahan
Team Hanseth
Dalinda Harman
Sherry Haus
Brian & Tiffany Heacox
Charlotte Hegle
Suzanne Houlton
Kim Hunter
Linda Iseri
Barbara Jeffus
Anne Jennings
Lial Jones
Margaret Kane & Richard Frey
Jolanta Kieturakis
Jane Kirkland
Pamela Kisor
Beverly & Ronald Lamb
Susie LaPointe
Daniel Leahy
Sandy Lee
David & Ruth Lindgren
Spencer Lockson
Olga Mandrussow
Dennis Mangers & Michael Sestak
John Marinko
Dena Martinez
Elizabeth McClatchy
Carol McCormick
Steve & Cheryl Meyer
Mr. Colin A. Miller
Shelley Mydans & John Griffing
Shirley Nelson
Allison Noren
Tracey O'Reilly
Frank Pajerski
Richard Pearson & Joan Hart
Sarah Phelan
Ron Robie
Allan Robin
Carol Rogers & Jon Courtway
Donald Rubin
Michael Scheible
Elaine Silver
Susan Sonoyama
Michael Stevenson
Patrica Symkowick
Susan & Ken Taylor
Jelena Tiemann
Stephanie Tucker
Elaine Verbarg
Denise Verbeck
Chris Wagner
LeRose Weikert
Martha West
Peggy Wheeler
Richard Williams
Claudia & Olin Woods
Wendy & Mark Zlotlow
Dean & Sandi Karagianes
Kathryn & Jim Carlson
Patron: $150+
Laura Jane Bailey
Jose Barbosa
Robert & Jean Bonar
Peter Botto
Bruce Bowers
Carol Brodeur
Russell Burgess (Marie Smith)
Margaret Burns & Roy Bellhorn
Allison Claire
David A Combies
Dennis Cook
Kelly Coplin
Julia Costello
Kaoru Cruz
Jennifer Cummings
Gretchen Cypin
Gail & Tom Devitt
Lily Douglas
Stephanie Finelli
Gail Finney
James Flynn
Daphna Fram
Marc Gabrys
Jan Geiger
Wayne & Mary Ginsburg
Patricia Gregory
Shirley Hazlett
Zheyla Henriksen
Suzanne Hermreck
Mike & Doris Horton
Marlys Huez
Patrick Hunt
Lydia Inghram
Helen Emilia Jankowski
Don Johnson & Elizabeth Miller
Iris Johnson
Myrna Johnston
Joann Joye
Bobbie Keill
Peggy & Bruce Kennedy
Kellie Kilgore
Linda Kingsley & Sharon Liberatore
Joann Kleemann
Paul & Jane Lammerding
John Leonard
Patricia Levin
Margaret McCarthy Household
Cheryl McDonald
Shelley & James McFarland
Hallie Morrow
Catherine Mulhall & Steve Danielson
Sandra Nelson
Karen Neuwald
Becky & Bob Norris
Ann OConnell
Douglas Patton
Steve Patwell
Enid Pritikin
Raymond Reis
Lowell Richardson & Paula Sugarman
Randy Roberts
Myrna Rodriguez
Sunny Romer
Laura Rosenthal
Linda Roth
Nai Saechao
Peter Saucerman
Judith Scammell
Seasons Coffee Roasters Inc.
Adrienne Shapiro
Walter Sherwood
Chris & Julia Smith
Tom & Hedda Smithson
Robert Snider
Luree Stetson
Michael Storey
Harry & Linda Struthers
Janet Summers
Penelope Taylor
Peter & Karen Von Elten
Debra Waltz
Steven Winlock
Arnold Wolf & Fern Tablin
Megan Wygant
Timothy Zindel
Arnold Wolf & Fern Tablin
"The Crew" - Recurring Donors
Chris Abare
John Abbott & Lori Abbott Moreland
Candace & Doug Adams
John Angell
Merle Axelrad
Jose Barbosa
Peggy Beasley
Bill Bronston & Lisa Levering
Margaret & Stephen Brush
Celia Buckley
Margaret L Buss
Ann Byfield
Kathryn & Jim Carlson
Bernice Chin
Les & Peggy Chisholm
Kathleen Collins
Kaoru Cruz
Jennifer Cummings
Daniel DeFoe
Gail & Tom Devitt
Martha & Jim Dickson
Lily Douglas
Katherine Downey
Stuart Eldridge
Ellen Ferguson
Mary Helen Fischer
Sara Floor
Muffy & Terry Francke
Deborah Franklin & Douglas Mitten
David Fulk & Keith Riedell
Mary Graziose
Kathryn Grey
Stephanie Gularte
Suzanne Hanrahan
Courtney & Nate Hans
Dalinda Harman
Josh Horowitz & Patti Baggett
Suzanne Houlton
Stephanie & David Hunt
Kim Hunter & Sherry Reser
Linda Iseri
Eillen Jacobowitz
Anne Jennings
Iris Johnson
Maria Jurado
Dean & Sandi Karagianes
Pamela Kisor
Dr. John & Rosemary Lamb
Sandy Lee
Doron Levitan
Shannon Mahoney & Kirk Blackinton
John Marinko
Kristi & Josh Mathisen
Linda McAtee & Steve Sphar
Carol McCormick
Shelley & James McFarland
Peter Mohrmann & David Harris
Diane & Lisa Moore
Suzanne Ness
Ann OConnell
David Pitman & Rani Pettis
Laurie Nelson Randlett & Jim Randlett
Carol Rogers & Jon Courtway
Sunny Romer
Linda Roth
Donald Rubin
Leonard Vincent Sales
Peter Saucerman
Diane Schertz
Susan Scott
Chris & Julia Smith
Jennifer Sommer
Peggy Stare
Michael Stevenson
Michael Storey
Linda & Scott Taylor
Martha West
John Wilson & Susie Monary-Wilson
Claudia Wrazel & Frank Horowitz
Learn more about "The Crew": capstage.org/play-a-part/donate/
