Winter Tales Cast & Crew

The Young Writers Project (Authors)

is an independent nonprofit that works with thousands of students and hundreds of teachers throughout Vermont and part of NH. It operates youngwritersproject.org, a civil, safe community for kids to share work and give each other feedback. On the first and third Fridays of every month, it holds workshops and spoken word events such as slams and storytelling at its Winoosk headquarters. It runs YWP Schools Project, a comprehensive, cross-curriculum writing program that provides teachers with private online classrooms and extensive mentoring throughout the year.  YWP publishes students' best work each week in 13 newspapers and on vpr.net.  For more, go to youngwritersproject.org or ywpschools.net.

Philip Baruth (Author)

 is a novelist, and was a longtime commentator for Vermont Public Radio. His most recent novel is The Brothers Boswell (Soho,2009), a literary thriller tracing the famous literary friendship between James Boswell and Samuel Johnson, author of the first modern dictionary. The Brothers Boswell was selected by the Washington Post as one of the Best Books of 2009.  Parenthetically, Philip was elected to the Vermont State Senate in November of 2010.  You can read more of his work at his award-winning political blog, The Vermont Daily Briefing (www.vermontdailybriefing.com).

Kathryn Blume (Author, Ensemble)

is an actor, writer, yoga teacher, wedding officiant, public speaker, climate activist, and longtime Artistic Associate with Vermont Stage Company.  VT Stage productions include Much Ado About Nothing, Amadeus, Midwives, A Streetcar Named Desire, Waiting For Godot, A Child's Christmas in Wales, Vanya/Vermont, Sylvia, and a whole bunch of Winter Tales.  Look for her new, as-yet-to-be-named solo show this spring.

Bruce Campbell (Ensemble)

has appeared in the VSC productions of Photograph 51, Oliver Twist, and Winter Tales, and in the Stowe Theater Guild production of Doubt. A member of the Dramatists Guild, his one-act Hooker’s Night Off was the inaugural production of the Indiana Playwrights Festival, and his feature film Knowing Lisa won the Silver Medal at the Houston International Film Festival.

Patti Casey (Author, Ensemble)

Native Vermonter Patti Casey has been called  "...the voice of Vermont contemporary music" by the Times Argus. With a voice that's strong and sweet, a catalog of timeless songs, and a history of penning classics that have found their way into the folk music world across the United States, Patti has become the vocal backbone for many of our region's finest musical productions.  Her list of awards includes Kerrville Folk Festival Songwriting Contest winner, Chris Austin Song Writing Contest winner, South Florida Folk Festival Songwriting Competition finalist, A Prairie Home Companion "Talent From Towns Under 2000" winner, and Telluride Songwriting Competition Finalist. Patti has written and directed music for Burlington's Vermont Stage Company, and has produced 5 independent recordings of her music, 3 of which landed in the Seven Days Top Ten Recordings of the Year. Her 2010 release "The Heart of a Waiting Boy" was named Top Country Album of 2010 by the Times Argus/Rutland Herald and was the fourth most-played album in the worldwide folk circuit for the month of February 2011 (FolkDJ Radio). She provided soundtrack music for Pasture Productions' award-winning independent film "The Summer of Walter Hacks," and for the independent documentary film "Brush and Pen: Artists and Writers of the White Mountains." She tours nationally with Vermont's venerable folk band The Woods Tea Co., and lives in central Vermont. http://www.patticasey.com/

Chris Caswell (Ensemble)

Chris Caswell is a playwright and performer who gets her kicks playing cross-gender roles. She most recently directed Seth Jarvis' ICON. With VSC, she performed in Oliver Twist, Shipwrecked, Well and Winter Tales (thrice). She co-founded Heat & Hot Water Productions (heatandhotwater.com) with whom she creates and performs. Chris is humbled to be part of this wonderful cast and would like to thank Jason and Cristina for the opportunity.

Joseph Campanella Cleary (Ensemble)

was born and raised in Chesterfield, Virginia. He began playing violin at age 7 and fiddle styles soon thereafter. He attended the College of William and Mary in Williamsburg, VA and received a BA in Anthropology in 1996. After college he completed an traditional apprenticeship with a mandolin maker in Idaho. Joe eventually moved to VT to play in the Cleary Bros Band with brother John, and subsequently worked for a violinmaker in Burlington for 5 years. He currently makes violins and mandolins at his own shop, and recently received a grant from the Vermont Arts Council to support his violin-influenced mandolin design. He has appeared on many VT recordings as well as St. Michael's Playhouse musicals Big River and Always, Patsy Cline.  http://www.campanellastrings.com/

Patrick Clow (Ensemble)

lives in Williston, is a native Vermonter, and by day is a manager at LPA Design in South Burlington. This is his 5th VSC production - thank you Jason and Cristina! He was seen most recently in FlynnSpace during Winter Tales. His last appearance on the Flynn mainstage was as 'Smee' in Lyric Theatre Company's Peter Pan. Patrick directed Lyric's recent production of Hairspray. The Full Monty was 2009: he both directed it for Lyric and played 'Jerry' in Stowe Theatre Guild's production! He will be returning to the Stowe stage this summer as Sweeney Todd. Love to 7-year-old Elliott who endures daddy's wacky theatre schedule, and thanks to Elliott's mom, Kristen, for enabling such.

Erik Esckilsen (Author)

  is a native Burlingtonian and the author of three novels for young adults - The Last Mall Rat (2003), Offsides (2004), and The Outside Groove (2006) - published by Houghton Mifflin/Walter Lorraine Books. His articles on the arts and culture have appeared in a variety of publications, and he is a regular contributor to Seven Days. A faculty member at Champlain College, Erik lives in Burlington with his wife, their twin daughters, and their dog. He thanks Mark Nash for this opportunity and for his patience and editorial acumen. Erik dedicates this essay to his mother and siblings.

Liz Gilbert (Ensemble)

has been onstage since age 5. Involved in proffessional and community theater, Liz has worked with local Vermont companies such as Lost Nation Theater, Vermont Stage Company, and Green Candle Theater as well as having performed in numerous plays with the Montpelier Theater Guild and Stage 32. Favorite roles include Helen Keller in The Miracle Worker, Scout in To Kill a Mockingbird, Rosalee in Maura Campbell's Rosalee Was Here, and two seasons in the ensemble of Winter Tales. Also a singer, Liz has studied musical theater with Bill Reed and Alan Langdon, performed at the Skinner Barn, and sung with the VYO chorus, Young Singers' Chorus of Vermont, and the FlynnArts Show Choir. When she's not at dance class, rehearsal, or running, Liz enjoys just being 16 at home in East Montpelier.

Mark Nash (Ensemble)

is proud to have served for 11 years as artistic director of Vermont Stage Company. He is currently catching up on his rest.

Dana Yeaton (Author)

My Ohio is Dana's fourth world premier with Vermont Stage Company, dating back to the 1996 production of his one-man show, Jump Cut, and including Mad River Rising, which went on to receive the Moss Hart Award. His adaptation of Chris Bohjalian's best-selling novel, Midwives, was the inaugural production for VSC at FlynnSpace and has been produced frequently at professional and university theatres across the country. His most recent VSC premiere was The Big Random, later produced by Bald Mountain Stage of Rochester, Vermont, and then by Sight Unseen Theatre in Los Angeles. Dana is the recipient of the Heideman Award from the Actor's Theatre of Louisville and the "New Voice in American Theatre" award from the William Inge Theatre Festival. His last full-length play, Redshirts, was co-produced by Penumbra Theatre in Minneapolis, and Round House Theatre in Washington, DC, where it was nominated for a Charles MacArthur Outstanding New Play Award. He was founding director of the Vermont Young Playwrights Project and teaches playwriting at Middlebury College.

Peter Ferguson (Lighting Designer)

John B. Forbes (Lighting Supervisor)

has previously designed the lighting for Photograph 51, Oliver Twist, The Glass Menagerie, Opus, My Ohio, King Lear, Inspecting Carol, Woody Guthrie's American Song, True West, Copenhagen, The Foreigner and The Drawer Boy at Vermont Stage Company.  In addition he has designed the lighting for productions at the Old Globe Theatre, the San Diego Repertory Theatre, the Center Repertory Company, and the Ensemble Theatre Company, all in California.  He has also designed lighting for Theatre Aspen in Colorado; the Riverside Shakespeare Company and Theatre Matrix in New York; the Arizona Theatre Company, and Saint Michael's Playhouse, the Big APE Dance Company and Lost Nation Theatre in Vermont.  He is the winner of three L. A. Dramalogue awards for his designs at the Old Globe Theatre and three Shelley Awards for his designs with the Center Repertory Company.  He is the faculty lighting designer at the University of Vermont in the Department of Theatre, and his lighting design for UVM's production of Metamorphoses was displayed in the Gallery Exhibit at the World Stage Design Exhibition in Toronto.  He has also taught at San Diego State University and the University of San Diego, and while at U.S.D., he also managed Shiley Theatre.  In that capacity he served as the technical liaison between the University and the Presidential Debate Commission for the final Presidential Debate of 1996 held there.

Dylan Michael Friedman (Lighting Designer)

is graduating from UVM with a BA in theatre on May 20th, having recently completed his Honors Thesis ABCDF: Student Response. He co-designed lights for Winter Tales last December. UVM credits include Director for The Toys Take Over Christmas ‘11, Assistant Director for The Beaux’ Stratagem and Cloud 9 and Stage Manager for You Can’t Take It With You.

Jamien Lundy Forrest (Stage Manager)

Jamien is thrilled to return for another season with Vermont Stage Company.   Previous VT Stage stage management credits include Sylvia, Underneath the Lintel, Oliver Twist, Winter Tales, Quilters, and Vanya/Vermont.  While living in New York City, Jamien worked as the full time Technical Associate for Lincoln Center Institute, and stage managed The Gazillion Bubble Show off Broadway.  She has also designed lights for Wallis Knot Productions and New York Conservatory for Dramatic Arts.  A 2001 UVM Theatre graduate, Jamien is happy to be back in Burlington with her husband and little boy.

Ellen O'Brien (Assistant Stage Manager)

Ellen is delighted to be working on her sixth VT Stage show.  As a teenager, she studied dance at the Banff School of Fine Arts, then went on to graduate from Colby College with a BA.  She danced with the University of Iowa Dance Company until she attended dental school and graduated with a DDS.  Since then she has been dividing her time between family, dentistry, and the performing arts.  Favorite past theater endeavors include Lyric Theater's South Pacific, Liz Lerman's Hallelujah Project, Circle in the Square Theater School's summer musical theater program and cabaret, and Bill Reed Voice Studio's summer musical theater intensives and cabarets. Ellen has choreographed and taught dance at schools in Vermont and for the VSA Arts program. She's currently a member of VSA's Awareness Theater Company. Ellen thanks Cristina Alicea for this great opportunity.  Thanks Tim, Alice, George, and James, for your love and support.

Sarah Simmons (Lighting Designer)

is a senior theatre student at the University of Vermont and is very excited to be doing the lighting design for Winter Tales this season. While her concentration in the theatre is in stage management, she loves bringing the stage to life using light. She has been an electrician on many shows at the Royall Tyler Theatre at UVM, as well as VSC's Photograph 51. She would like to thank her friends, family, fellow designers and John Forbes for all their support and guidance.