New Jersey Repertory Company presents
What Doesn't Kill You
A heart attack, an obsession with Cher, and a trip to a concentration camp. So yes, it's a comedy!
Written by James Hindman
Directed by SuzAnne Barabas
Who's Who
James Hindman*
Playwright/Actor
James would like to thank SuzAnne & Gabe for encouraging him to write What Doesn't Kill You. Much to his surprise … it didn't kill him. James is an award-winning playwright & actor. As a writer James' NY credits include: Popcorn Falls directed by two-time Tony Award Winner Christian Borle (Chosen Top 20 Theatrical Moments of ‘18, pub. Concord Theatricals), Pete 'N' Keely (Outer Critics Award nom., 2 Drama Desk nom.), The Audience (Drama Desk nom.), Being Audrey (Transport Group, NEA Grant recipient), A Christmas Survival Guide, The Gorges Motel (NYFringe Festival ‘16, Pub. DPS) & One Christmas Eve at Evergreen Mall (NYFringe, Pub. DPS). Recent work: The Pin-Up Girls, Casa Manana Theatre, Pete 'N' Keely at Papermill. His other work includes Multiple Family Dwelling (NJ Rep, Chosen Top 10 NJ Productions of ‘17), The Bikinis (Long Wharf, Goodspeed), The Drama Department (Terrence McNally Award finalist), Heaven Help Us (Denver Center, Carbonell Award nom.) Many of his short plays & monologues have been published in anthologies. He was a guest artist at Last Frontier Theatre Conference & has taught playwriting at The Barrow Group in NYC & The Art Workshop International in Assisi, Italy. He is a member of The Dramatist Guild. As an actor - Film: HBO's The Time Traveler's Wife, The Report, Oceans 8, Things Heard & Seen, Henry's Crime. TV: Godfather of Harlem, Marvel's Iron Fist, The Americans, Steven Spielberg's Public Morals, Madam Secretary, Forever, Believe, Person of Interest, Hostages, House of Cards, The Sopranos, Law & Order, SVU, CI, Rescue Me & The Blacklist. B'way & tours: Mary Poppins, The Scarlet Pimpernel, 1776, City of Angels, A Grand Night for Singing, Once Upon A Mattress, Falsettos, Dancing At Lughnasa as well as many Off Broadway shows. Thank you to John and Adam.
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.
SuzAnne Barabas
Director
Barabas has been the Artistic Director of NJ Rep for the past 23 years. She is a member of Actors Equity Association, the Dramatist Guild, and the Society of Directors and Choreographers.
Patricia Doherty
Costume Designer
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 Lighting Design/Assistant Director
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.
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
Jessica Parks
Scenic Design
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.
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.
Robert Baird
Company Manager
Baird graduated from Duke University in 2008 with a dual major in Theater Studies and Public Policy. After a career in the telecommunications and legal consulting worlds, he’s thrilled to jump back into the world of the theater. At Duke he directed, produced, and acted in numerous productions for the Hoof ’n’ Horn Theater Company as well as Duke University Theater Studies. He also assistant directed a staged reading of Labyrinth Theater Company’s Going After Alice. He won the Jody McAuliffe Award given to the top student director in his class, and his thesis project, directing John Patrick Shanley’s the dreamer examines his pillow, was awarded highest distinction. Thanks to Gabor and SuzAnne for bringing me aboard the team - excited for what’s to come at NJ Rep!
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 Compliance Officer
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
Covid Compliance Officer- John Pietrowski
Artistic Associate- Lindy Regan
Artistic Associate- Gail Winar
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.
