Recent Tragic Events

By Craig Wright
Directed by Georgette Verdin

Recent Tragic Events is a quirky and dark comedy set in Minneapolis on the evening of Sept. 12, 2001. Waverly, an attractive advertising executive and Andrew, an awkward, yet oddly-endearing airport bookstore manager are meant to go on a blind-date. The idea of going out evolves into an evening in, as Waverly becomes increasingly concerned about her twin sister, a New York resident who's been unaccounted for since 9/11. With the arrival of uninvited, yet obnoxiously-charming neighbor Ron and his oddly-silent 'house-guest,' Nancy, the date begins to unravel. The question of fate vs. free will gets entangled amidst a slew of shocking coincidences, an unexpected visit and one bizarre turn after another in this existential exploration by Craig Wright.

"There is really too much talent here to celebrate each component in the detail that they deserve. Suffice it to say, this cast fits together exquisitely, their humor and heart in perfect alignment." - NewCity

The Artists

". . . [Verdin] gracefully balances the humor, tension, and tragedy in Wright’s narrative."
- Around The Town Chicago

CAST

Matthew Nerber - Andrew
Laura Berner Taylor - Waverly
Maximillian Lapine - Ron
Rachel Christianson - Nancy/Joyce

UNDERSTUDIES

Kelsey Melvin - Waverly
Claire Bauman - Nancy/Joyce

RTE Scene Photos

PRODUCTION TEAM

Ben Apple stage manager
Lucy Carr assistant director
Claire Chrzan lighting design
Shawn Galligan assistant stage manager
Mealah Heindenreich prop design
Noël Huntzinger costume design
Morgan Lake sound design
Greg Pinsoneault scenic design

Samantha Dzirko production manager
Lisa Giebler technical director

Christopher Aaron Knarr house manager /marketing/social media
David Rosenberg press relations

Cast Bios

Featured

Jul 12, 2016

MATTHEW NERBER, Andrew

Jul 12, 2016

Matthew is beyond thrilled to be making his Interrobang stage debut. He assisted director Georgette Verdin on Interrobang's Midwest premiere of Katrina: Mother in Law of Em All and understudied ITP's production of Caryl Churchill's Owners. Matthew has acted in and assistant directed productions with LiveWire Theatre Chicago, Redtwist Theatre, and Shattered Globe Theatre and is a graduate of SGT's Protege Program. He proudly holds a BFA in Theatre Performance from SUNY Buffalo.

Jul 12, 2016

LAURA BERNER TAYLOR, Waverly

Jul 12, 2016

Laura is very excited to be working with Interrobang for the first time! Her most recent credits are Vices and Virtues (Profiles) and A Life of Galileo (ETOPiA). She has also performed with Black Ensemble Theatre, Step Up Productions, The Poor Theatre, Polarity Ensemble, LiveWire, Redmoon (RIP) and Piccolo. She is represented by Big Mouth Talent.

Jul 12, 2016

MAXIMILLIAN LAPINE, Ron

Jul 12, 2016

Max is excited to be part of his first production with Interrobang Theatre Project. A proud member of The Hypocrites, Max was part of both productions of the Jeff Award-winning All Our Tragic. Other credits include The Hypocrites’ Sophocles: These Seven Sicknesses, The Right Brain Project's Salome, Mary Arrchie's Geography of a Horse Dreamer, among others.

Jul 12, 2016

RACHEL CHRISTIANSON, Nancy/Joyce

Jul 12, 2016

Rachel is very excited to be part of Recent Tragic Events. Most recently she was the puppet director of Avenue Q with Highland Park Players. Performance credits include Ruby and Charlie (International Puppet Festival), Cerberus (Nasty, Brutish and Short: A Puppet Cabaret), Lockout: The Musical (Big Idea Productions). Rachel has also started the company Puppet Mechanics, that builds custom puppets and teaches puppetry skills.

Jul 12, 2016

KELSEY MELVIN, u/s Waverly

Jul 12, 2016

Kelsey Melvin is excited to finally have the opportunity to work with Interrobang. Recent acting credits include: The Rose Tattoo (Shattered Globe Theatre), A Midsummer Night’s Dream (Midsommer Flight), and regular collaborations on MixTapes (Odradek Theatre Company). Kelsey is a Shattered Globe Ensemble Member and Associate Artist with The Poor Theatre. As well as, a graduate of Northwestern University, BADA’s Midsummer in Oxford Program, & SGT’s Protégé Program.

Jul 12, 2016

CLAIRE BAUMAN, u/s Nancy/Joyce

Jul 12, 2016

Claire Bauman has worked with (re)discover rheater (where she is also an ensemble member), Pursuit Productions, Redmoon Theatre, and Dream Theatre Company. Claire also dances with Innervation Dance Cooperative in their SPEAKS school program. Claire's work extends to choreography from ballet pieces to the musicals Spring Awakening and The Cradle Will Rock. Claire graduated from Vassar College and also studied at the Moscow Art Theatre School and American Conservatory Theater.

Jul 12, 2016

Production Team

Featured

Jul 12, 2016

GEORGETTE VERDIN, Director (Co-Artistic Director)

Jul 12, 2016

Along with working for Interrobang and being a freelance director, Georgette is also the founding theatre teacher at Polaris Charter Academy, an Expeditionary Learning School in West Humboldt Park, and adjunct Speech Faculty at Wilbur Wright College. In addition to assistant directing last season's Really Really and Owners; she also directed ITP's first show of our current season: Katrina: Mother-in-Law of 'Em All, which chronicled the harrowing and humorous true tales of six Hurricane Katrina survivors. Georgette holds a Masters in Directing from Roosevelt University and a B.A. in Theatre Performance from McNeese State University in Lake Charles, LA.

Jul 12, 2016

JAMES YOST, Co-Artistic Director

Jul 12, 2016

With BareBones Theatre Group (Charlotte, NC) for which he served as artistic director for 12 years, Yost has staged over 50 plays and has won several awards including THEATRE PERSON OF THE YEAR in 2001. Selected credits include: Mr. Marmalade, Psycho Beach Party, and Debbie Does Dallas: The Musical. The Graduate, The Play About the Baby, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Drift, Ugly Art, bash; the latter-day plays, Squirrels, The Wizard of Oz, Lend Me A Tenor, True West, The Pitchfork Disney, and Noises Off. He has produced several new play festivals and was the co-producer of Charlotte’s CITY STAGE SUMMER PLAY FESTIVAL. For ITP, Yost has directed Orange Flower Water (Jeff nomination for best supporting actor, Joseph Wiens), Ibsen is Dead and last seasons critically acclaimed REALLY REALLY. Yost has also taught acting, directing, production design and film at the high school and collegiate level. He is published in Teaching Theatre Journal, a publication of Dramatics Magazine. Yost will direct the midwest premiere of The North Pool by Rajiv Joseph for ITPs 6th Season.

Jul 12, 2016

CRAIG WRIGHT, Playwright

Jul 12, 2016

Craig Wright's recent productions include Mistakes Were Made at A Red Orchid Theatre, Hartford Stage and the Barrow Street Theater; Blind at Rattlestick Playwrights Theatre; The Gray Sisters at Third Rail Rep; The Unseen at Actors Theater of Louisville and upcoming at Stages Rep with Lady, which was commissioned by and received its world premiere from the Northlight Theatre and was subsequently produced at Rattlestick and across the country; and Orange Flower Water, produced at Steppenwolf Theatre. Wright’s television credits include Six Feet Under (Emmy Award nomination), Lost, Brothers & Sisters and Dirty Sexy Money.

Jul 12, 2016

BEN APPLE, Stage Manager
This is Ben’s first production with Interrobang Theatre Project. Past regional credits include: Brother Wolf (Triad Stage), Snow Queen (Triad Stage), Christmas Carol (Triad Stage), Rum and Vodka (Burning Coal Theater), Romeo and Juliet (NC Shakespeare Festival), Actor and the Assassin (Haywood Arts Regional Theater). Ben graduated in 2014 with a BFA in Acting from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro.

CLAIRE CHRZAN, Lighting Design
Claire grew up in the suburbs of Chicago. She is thrilled to work with Interrobang Theatre Project as an artistic associate where she has designed the lighting for their recent productions of Ibsen is Dead, The Pitchfork Disney, Hot ‘N’ Throbbing, Speaking in Tongues, and Orange Flower Water. Other previous designs include, In the Heart of America (Theatre Seven), Little Shop of Horrors (Street Tempo Theatre), and Someone Who’ll Watch Over Me and Seascape (Oak Park Festival Theatre). www.clairechrzandesigns.com

SAMANTHA R. DZIRKO, Production Manager
Samantha is grateful to be doing her 2nd show with Interrobang Theatre Project. Production Management credits include:Really Really (Interrobang Theatre Project), Workshop Production Manager at Williamstown Theatre Festival, and Production Management Intern at Actors Theatre of Louisville.

SHAWN GALLIGAN, Assistant Stage Manager
With a background in performance, Shawn switched to stage management in 2011. That's not to say he can't be dragged back onstage, if arm twisted... Since then, he has worked for theaters in Ohio, Illinois, and Wisconsin, both onstage and backstage. His Interrobang SM credits include: Speaking in Tongues, Terminus, Really Really, and Recent Tragic Events. Shawn spends his summers in Wisconsin under the stars, where he is the ASM at Northern Sky Theater. He is a recreational cyclist (and a bike mechanic), and a lover of board games.

LISA GIEBLER, Technical Director
Lisa is a freelance technical director, carpenter and mixed media artist in the Chicagoland area. She works at Northbrook Theatre regularly and has also done work at Harper College, Chicago Folks Operetta, and Chicago Dramatists. This is her third production with Interrobang.

MEALAH HEIDENREICH, Property Design
Some of Mealah’s previous prop designs include Caged Dames and Miracle! with Hell in a Handbag Productions, A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum with Porchlight Music Theatre, Really Really with Interrobang Theatre Project andHello, Dolly! with Light Opera Works. Mealah is an ensemble member with Hell in a Handbag Productions.

NOEL HUNTZINGER, Costume Design
Noel is an Interrobang Theatre Project company member for which she has designed costumes for Really Really, Owners, Ibsen is Dead, The Pitchfork Disney, Terminus, and Speaking in Tongues. She is also an artistic associate with Filament Theatre Ensemble where she designed Snow Queen and Hank Williams: Lost Highway. Other favorite credits inlude: Mistakes Madeline Made and Permanent Image with Livewire Theatre and Happy Now? with Shattered Globe Theatre.

CHRISTOPHER AARON KNARR, House Manager & Social Media Guru
Originally from South Bend, IN and relocated to beautiful Chicago, Christopher graduated from Indiana University with a B.A. in Theatre & Drama, and studied abroad with The Gaiety School of Acting in Dublin, Ireland. His last credits included Interrobang Theatre Project's previous productions of Terminus, The Pitchfork Disney and Ibsen is Dead as Assistant Stage Manager. He was also House Manager for these productions as well as last season's Owners, Really Really, and this season's Katrina: Mother-in-Law of 'em All.

MORGAN LAKE, Sound Design
Morgan is a Chicago-based sound designer. She is very excited to be working with Interrobang Theatre Project for the first time. Recent projects include designing The Terrible (The New Colony) and engineering It's a Wonderful Life (American Blues Theater). Upcoming work includes engineering The Life of Galileo (Remy Bumppo Theatre Company) and Little Shop of Horrors (American Blues Theater) this spring.

GREG PINSONEAULT, Scenic Design
Greg is a Chicago based designer who recently received a BFA in Scenic Design from The Theatre School at DePaul University. Chicago credits include works with Griffin Theatre, Profiles Theatre, Interrobang Theatre Project, Rasaka Theatre Company, The Agency Theatre Collective, Cock and Bull, and Underscore Theatre Company. He has also assisted on productions at The Cort Theatre (NYC), The Broadhurst Theatre, Glimmerglass Opera, The Goodman Theatre, Chicago Shakespeare Theatre, The Paramount Theatre, and Drury Lane Oakbrook. Greg was the recipient of The 2014 Theatre School Michael Merritt Award and the 2015 USITT W Oren Parker Undergraduate Scene Design Award. Examples of his work can be found at GPScenic.com.

ZOE VERDIN, Graphic Design
Zoë is a freelance graphic designer and Thai masseuse. She received her undergraduate degree in Studio Art from Carleton College in 2006 and is currently enrolled at the Thai Bodywork School of Thai Massage in Evanston. She has worked as scenic designer/carpenter, costume designer and muralist on a number of projects at Polaris Charter Academy, including Wiley and the Hairy Man, Alice in Wonderland, and A Midsummer Night's Dream. She is delighted to be a part of Interrobang Theatre Project's incredible company of artists.