The Forest

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Meet the Company

Jenny O’Hara*

PAM

Jenny O’Hara, is delighted to be a part of this wonderful new play at NJ Rep. She is a veteran of both stage and film with credits spanning five decades. Some of her recent television appearances include recurring roles on Transparent, The Mindy Project and The King of Queens, as well as guest starring roles on Perry Mason, The Good Doctor, This is Us, The Kids are Alright, Chicago Fire, and American Housewife to mention a few. She has starred on Broadway in The Odd Couple (female version), The Iceman Cometh, Promises, Promises, The Kid, and The Fig Leaves are Falling. She made her Broadway debut in Dylan with Alec Guinness. Her film credits include Killing Eleanor, just released on Amazon and Apple TV+, Devil, Matchstick Men, Mystic River, Angie, Career Opportunities and Heartbeat. She is a member of Ensemble Studio Theatre in NY and Ensemble Studio Theatre LA. So far, so good!

Armando Acevedo*

MIGUEL

Armando Acevedo, is happy to be joining the New Jersey Repertory Company in their world premiere of Lia Romeo’s The Forest after participating in several readings of the play at Florida Studio Theatre in Sarasota. He recently appeared as Pablo in Native Gardens at Gulfshore Playhouse in Naples, as Bill in Mamma Mia! at American Stage in the Park in St. Petersburg, and as Amir in Gable Stage's acclaimed production of Ayad Akhtar's Pulitzer-winning Disgraced in South Florida. He has also played multiple doctors, lawyers and detectives on Telemundo and Univision. The Miami native received his graduate degree in theatre from the California Institute of the Arts and is a proud member of Actors' Equity Association.

Dana Brooke*

JULIET

Dana Brooke, Select New York credits: Baby on a Train (with Mike Birbiglia), Venecia (with Chita Rivera), Claudia Laszlo (with Reed Birney), Vacuum (Cherry Lane), Love of a Pig (Cardinal Group), as well as work with The Journey Company, The Lark, New Circle Theatre Company, The NOW Collective, NYC Fringe. For B Street Theatre (Company Member): Constellations, Ironbound, Venus in Fur, Other Desert Cities, Last Train to Nibroc (Trilogy), Outside Mullingar, The Realistic Joneses, God of Carnage. Additional regional credits: George Street Playhouse, Cincinnati Playhouse, New Jersey Repertory Company, Florida Repertory Theatre, Playhouse on Park, Last Frontier Theatre Conference, NNPN’s National Showcase of New Plays. Television credits: FX’s Damages, NBC's Ed, Fox's Canterbury's Law. Dana was awarded best actress at the 2017 Reno Tahoe International Film Festival for the feature film Laura Gets a Cat.

Chris Grant*

ANDREW

Chris Grant, is an up-and-coming actor who is enrolled in the Equity Membership Candidate Program and has recently obtained a Bachelor of Arts Theatre degree at Kean University. Notable on-stage credits include: Darnell King in Premiere Stages’ Brick City. He also played many roles at his alma mater Kean University as Lucius in Jesus Hopped The A Train and Lucien in Boys Next Door. He had recently won Premiere Stages’ Senior Endeavor Award for writing and wished to continue creating great work and inspiring the masses. To see more you can visit ChrisGrantActing.Com.

Lia Romeo

Playwright

Lia Romeo (Playwright), is a playwriting fellow at the Juilliard School. Her play The Forest was developed at the O’Neill Playwrights Conference. Her play Sitting and Talking, starring Dan Lauria and Wendie Malick, premiered at Mile Square Theatre, and has subsequently been presented by Laguna Playhouse, New Jersey Rep, Seven Devils New Play Foundry, and other companies. Other plays have been produced off-Broadway at 59E59 and regionally around the country. Four of her plays have been recognized by the Kilroys List. She was the winner of City Theatre’s National Short Playwriting Award, and has been a nominee or a finalist for the Heideman Award, the L. Arnold Weissberger Award, the Susan Smith Blackburn Prize, the Kesselring Prize, and the Steinberg Award. Her plays are published by Broadway Play Publishing, Playscripts, Dramatists Play Service, and Smith Kraus. She is the associate artistic director with Project Y Theatre Company, and she teaches playwriting at Primary Stages/ESPA and in the M.A. program in creative writing at Fairleigh Dickinson University. She earned her B.A. from Princeton and her M.F.A. in playwriting from Rutgers/MGSA.

SuzAnne Barabas

Director/Artistic Director

SuzAnne Barabas (Director/Artistic Producer), has been the Artistic Director of NJ Rep for the past 23 years. SuzAnne is a member of Actors Equity Association, the Dramatist Guild, and the Society of Directors & Choreographers.

Gabor Barabas

Executive Producer

For NJ Rep, he has produced over 80 world premieres including Ends, A World I Never Made, North Fork, Octet, The Girl With the High Rouge, In Search of Red River Dog, Naked by the River, An Unhappy Woman, Immortal Interlude, Getting in Touch With My Inner B*tch, Till Morning Comes, Slave Shack, Panama, Big Boys, Winterizing the Summer House, Piaf in Vienna, The Color of Flesh, Emil, Touch of Rapture, Beyond Gravity,  A Child’s Guide to Innocence, The Good Daughter, Apostasy, The Best Man, Tilt Angel, Love and Murder, tempOdyssey, October 1962, Place Setting, And Her Hair Went With Her, Engaging Shaw, Poetic License, The Housewives of Mannheim, Dead Ringer, Exposure Time (recipient of and Edgerton New American Plays Award), Character Assassins, The Tangled Skirt (nominated for an Edgar Award by the Mystery Writers of America), Puma, Night Train, The Judy Holliday Story, Jericho (recipient of and Edgerton New American Plays Award), American Stare, Release Point, Esther’s Moustache, Ants, Noir, Happy, Broomstick, Admit One, A View of the Mountains, Butler (recipient of and Edgerton New American Plays Award), Lucky Me, Dinner with the Boys, Angels and Ministers of Grace, and the musicals Immortal Interlude,Bookends, The Little Hours (recipient of and Edgerton New American Plays Award), and Date of  Lifetime. His book Miklos Radnoti: The Complete Poetry in Hungarian and English was recently published by McFarland.

Patricia Doherty

Costume Design

As NJ Rep’s resident costume designer since 2000, Doherty’s work includes: The Housewives of Mannheim, The Color of Flesh, Old Clown Wanted, The Good Daughter, Place Settings, Bookends, Engaging Shaw, Puma, Noir, Broomstick, View of the Mountains, Swimming at the Ritz, Dinner with the Boys (with Dan Lauria), Closure (with Wendy Malick, Gary Cole), Nobody’s Girl,  Butler, Mad Love and Iago , Fern Hill (with Jill Eikenberry, Dee Hoty and John Glover) to name  just a few. New York: Southern Comfort—The Musical (The Public Theater 2016 Lucille Lortel, Outer Critics, Drama Desk Award Nominations with Annette O’Toole, Jeff McCarthy); Dinner with the Boys  with Dan Lauria (The Acorn Theatre) Academia Nuts (2014 NYMF Best New Musical); The Devil’s Music (St. Luke’s); The Goldman Project (Abingdon Theatre); Freed, Fall to Earth, Poetic License, The Housewives of Mannheim, Butler, Small World (59E59th St Theatres); Love Therapy (DR2) Regional: Alley Theatre (past resident designer), Barrington Stage, Cleveland Play House, Merrimack Rep, Florida Rep, Penguin Rep, Engeman Theatre, Royal Manitoba Theatre Centre, Montreal Jazz Festival , Luna Stage, Playwrights Theatre of NJ, Merrimack Rep (MA), People’s Light and Theatre Festival (PA), Rubicon Theatre  of LA, Mosaic Theatre (DC), Cape Cod Playhouse (MA), Weston Playhouse (VT) TV/Video: AT&T, “Unsolved Mysteries,” Pennsylvania Public Television Guest Artist: Monmouth University, Case Western Reserve University, Ohio University, Niagara University, Syracuse University Guest Artist and Instructor: Kent State University, School of Theatre and Dance 1992-95

Janey Huber

Assistant Director/ Assistant Lighting Design

Huber began her relationship at NJ Rep in 2004 as a patron & quickly became a subscriber: "They had me at Whores!" Janey then brought close to 30 years of administrative experience in community college & graduate nurse-midwifery education, women’s healthcare, and theater management to her 5-year role as Managing Director.  She is thrilled to remain in the NJ Rep family volunteering as Artistic Associate, (ambassador for the theater), Assistant Lighting Designer (all plays), Assistant to the Covid Compliance Officer, & Assistant Director (Wild Horses, Mercy, The Source, West End Arts Festivals, Voyager One, Lily, & The Promotion). Her BA and MS degrees, from East Stroudsburg University, are in aquatic biology.

Jessica Parks

Resident Scenic Designer

Parks has been working for NJ Repertory Company since 2003 and has been the resident scenic designer and prop designer since 2010. Set designs at NJ Rep include: The Promotion, Memoirs of a Forgotten Man, Wolf at the Door, The Jag, Swimming at the Ritz, Happy and Broomstick. NYC credits at 59E59 St. Theaters include: Michael Tucker’s Fern Hill, Butler, The Housewives of Mannheim, Jericho and Poetic License. Other credits include: The End of Hester to be performed in November at The Lion Theatre at Theatre Row NYC,  Bretch:Call & Respond at Paradise Factory Theatre and Dan Lauria's Dinner with the Boys at The Acorn Theater.

Rose Riccardi*

Production Stage Manager

Riccardi has been a NJ Rep Company member since 1998. She has worked on over a hundred productions for the Rep including: The Housewives of Mannheim (Alan Brody), The Little Hours (David Bucknam), Fern Hill (Michael Tucker), Dead Ringer (Gino Dilorio), Naked By The River (Michael Folie), Adult Fiction (Brian Mori), Bookends (Katharine Houghton, Dianne Adams, James McDowell), Whores (Lee Blessing), Donna Orbits The Moon (Ian August), Find Me A Voice (SuzAnne Barabas, Gabor Barabas) Off-Broadway credits include: Songbird by Michael Kimmel and Lauren Pritchard, Butler by Richard Strand, The Violin (Dan McCormick), The Road to Damascus (Tom Dulack), Terms of Endearment (Dan Gordon), Poetic License (Jack Canfora), On A Stool At The End Of The Bar (Robert Callely), A Better Place (Wendy Beckett), Murder In The First (Dan Gordon), Martin Luther on Trial (Chris Cragin-Day), Phoenix (Scott Organ), In The Pocket “A Sideman’s Tale (James Manos Jr. and Mark Rivera) Rose has also been a proud member of Actors’ Equity since 1999.

Rachael Malloy

Assistant Stage Manager

Malloy is very excited to be starting their career with NJ Rep. Previous credit highlights include: 7 Deadly Sins NYC with Tectonic Theatre Project (Show Operator) and Northampton Community College’s Summer Theatre (Tech Intern). College theatre: Head Over Heels (Assistant Stage Manager), FAME (Stage Manager), Into The Woods (Assistant Stage Manager), Cabaret (Stage Manager).

Jill Nagle

Lighting Design

Jill is the Resident Lighting Designer at NJ Rep. Partial NJ Rep include: Dinner with the Boys, Closure, Butler, Broomstick, Happy, Puma, Night Train, and Noir. Partial NYC designs include: Butler, A Stool at the End of the Bar, Jericho, Poetic License, Housewives of Mannheim, The Man in Room 306, The Dishwashers (59E59), Love Therapy (Daryl Roth), Dinner with the Boys (The Acorn) The Bully Pulpit (Samuel Beckett), Do Not Go Gentle (Harold Clurman), Count Down (Bank Street), In the Parlance (The Pulse), Carrera (La Mama E.T.C.), South Beach Rapture (Dixon Place). Other venues: John Engeman Theatre, Chester Theatre, Luna Stage, Playwrights of New Jersey, Montclair State University, New Jersey City University. www.jillnagle.net

Nick Simone

Sound Design

Simone has been a performing arts educator in NYC for the past 18 years. He has worked at various music schools for all ages and has been a teaching artist for Roundabout Theatre Company, Apollo Theater, and Sundog Theatre specializing in sound design and musical disciplines. As a musician, Nick plays multiple instruments and has also performed at the renowned Carnage Hall and at the Metropolitan Opera House. Nick has also worked as sound designer and as an audio engineer for many productions such as: US: A Progressive Love Story, The Norwegians, North To Maine, IYOM, Wild Children, Time Travelers Trip To Niagara, The Diorama, Shakespeare's Hamlet at Bryant Park, Extreme Weather, Don’t Dress For Dinner, Villainous Company, Capone, & Romantic Trapezoid. Nick is also affiliated with MTV's production Artist to Watch series as a sound assistant. He is currently the chief audio engineer for Fenix Studios in Staten Island, NY and has credits on multiple albums, films, broadcasts, streaming, music videos and mobile apps.  He has worked with up and coming talent and platinum selling artists in different genres from Lorde to Coldplay.

Sunjay Venkatraman

Marketing and Public Relations Director

Venkatraman is a graduate from the University of Connecticut with a passion for the arts. In high school, Sunjay served as the student representative for the Matawan Board of Education. In this role his goal was to bring awareness to the art programs at all the schools in the district resulting in an arts budget increase. In college he worked for the Student Union Board of Governors that brought concerts, comedy shows, and lectures on campus. Sunjay would like to thank SuzAnne, Gabor and the Board for giving him the opportunity to represent NJRep. #NJRep

Karen Wharmby

House Manager/Volunteer Coordinator

Wharmby has been attending shows at NJRep since 2001. She began volunteering in 2009, and soon after became Volunteer Coordinator and House Manager. And in her past life, Karen was a math teacher at Long Branch Middle School.

James Lockhart

Master Electrician

Lockhart has the pleasure of working as the Master Electrician for NJ Repertory Company. He is a young, vibrant freelance lighting designer & master electrician that has worked in the tri-state. He has a comprehensive set of skills.

Brian Snyder

Technical Director

Snyder has been an artist, carpenter, and prop builder since 2003 for several companies in NY and NJ including The Art Department, PVS, Stone Dog Studios, Two River Theater Company, and NJ Repertory Company. After 4 years of teaching Visual Arts and Stagecraft at Lakewood High School he returned to the world of freelance and made his debut as Technical Director and Master Carpenter here at NJ Rep in 2014.

John Pietrowski

Covid Safety Manager

Upcoming Performances

The Pin-Up Girls: A Musical Love Letter an east coast premiere by James Hindman & Jeffrey Lodin

JUNE 9 - JULY 10

From The Andrew Sisters to Hip Hop! From World War One to Afghanistan. THE PIN-UP GIRLS sing a cavalcade of hits inspired by actual letters from our troops overseas!  Funny, romantic, heartbreaking and… sexy - the "ladies" put on a show that celebrates the guys and gals who fight to defend our country.

Tickets available online at www.njrep.org or over the phone at 732-229-3166

The Hummingbirds: A Comedy of Menace a US premiere by Garret Jon Groenveld

AUGUST 4 - AUGUST 28

Been unemployed too long? At the Unemployment Bureau, we can place you in a job you may not be qualified for or a job that's not safe, but you will do it. Because if you can walk, you can work! A comic-drama set in the future, which may be closer than you think.

Tickets available online at www.njrep.org or over the phone at 732-229-3166

STAGED READINGS

A Tailor Near Me by Michael Tucker, directed by James Glossman.

April 4, 2022. A man goes to a tailor to have his suit pants let out because he's gained some weight since he last wore them. The tailor convinces him that what he really needs is a new suit, which leads to a negotiation, which leads to the making of a bespoke suit in front of the audience in four fittings, which leads to alterations made in both their lives.

COMING SOON ...

For the Life of Me by Joel Stone

Call for tickets 732-229-3166.

Board of Trustees

Tanis Deitch, President  

Linda Standley, Vice President

Nancy Stek, Secretary 

Karen Wharmby, Treasurer

Pat Addiss, Mare Akana, Gabor Barabas, SuzAnne Barabas, Evan Bergman, Steven Darien, Carl Hoffman, Vasi Laurence, Marilyn Pearlman, Marianne Pedersen, Kim Puvalowski, Lauren Schwarz, Carl Jennings

Staff

Executive Producer- Gabor Barabas

Artistic Director- SuzAnne Barabas

Associate Artistic Director- Evan Bergman

Production Manager/Resident Set Designer- Jessica Parks

Marketing and Public Relations Director- Sunjay Venkatraman

Literary Manager- Joel Stone

Company Manager- Robert Baird

Resident Lighting Designer- Jill Nagle

Assistant Lighting Designer/Artistic Associate- Janey Huber

Resident Costume Designer- Patricia E. Doherty

Resident Sound Designer- Nick Simone

Technical Director- Brian P. Snyder

Financial Director- Dee Cantalice

Master Electrician- James Lockhart

House Manager- Karen Wharmby

Visual Arts Coordinator- Mare Akana

Photography & Digital Imaging Curator- Andrea Phox

Facilities Manager- Christopher Anthony

Artistic Associate- Lindy Regan

Artistic Associate- Gail Winar

Covid Compliance Officer- John Pietrowski

Thank You

We thank the following for their support: The Shubert Foundation, The Geraldine R. Dodge Foundation, New Jersey State Council on the Arts, SBA Shuttered Venues Program, The Stone Foundation of New Jersey, New Jersey CRF, NJEDA, JENNJOE Fund, The Horizon Foundation for New Jersey, OceanFirst Foundation, Princeton Area Community Foundation, Manasquan Bank, Community Foundation of New Jersey, Monmouth County CARES, Investors Bank Foundation, Jewish Communal Fund, Darien Family Fund, Vasi Laurence, Linda Mitchell, Caroline Huber, and all our patrons, year-round subscribers, and new audience members. We are extremely grateful for all your support during these trying times.

Shout out to Blake Robinson that helped with the set build along with our wonderful volunteers who helped during our renovations. Mare Akana, Mitch Berman, Dee Cantalice, Anita Corvin, Barney Fitzpatrick, Steve Corvin, Kathleen Goldpaugh, Jay Kaplan, Barbara Kulberg, Mitch Kulberg, Nancy Lubarsky, Donna Marrazzo, Eric Oberer, Carol Oliver, John Pocalyko, Lindy Regan, Donald Shapiro, Barbara Smith, Larry Smith, Nancy Stek, Jan Thompson, Louis Thompson, Fred Wharmby, Karen Wharmby, Robyn Flipse, Gail Winar, Jessica Parks, and Donna Styles.

Actors Equity

*Member of Actors’ Equity Association

ACTORS EQUITY ASSOCIATION (AEA) founded in 1913, is the U.S. labor union that represents more than 50,000 Actors and Stage Managers. Equity seeks to foster the art of live theatre as an essential component of society and advances the careers of its members by negotiating wages, working conditions and providing a wide range of benefits, including health and pension plans. Actors’ Equity is a member of the AFL-CIO and is affiliated with FIA, an international organization of performing arts union. ActorsEquity.org. NJ Rep is proud to work with AEA.