AMERICAN PREMIERE of THE PERFUME SHOP WARMS HEARTS AND THE ASOLO REP MAINSTAGE DECEMBER 4-APRIL
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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Nov. 10, 2009
MEDIA CONTACT
Julia Guzman, (941) 351-9010 ext. 4800 or julia_guzman@asolo.org
High resolution images available by request.
AMERICAN PREMIERE of THE PERFUME SHOP
WARMS HEARTS AND THE ASOLO REP MAINSTAGE
DECEMBER 4–APRIL 1
(Sarasota, FL) Asolo Rep opens the repertory season with the US premiere of E.P. Dowdall’s charming
adaptation of Miklós László’s beloved story Parfumerie, the play that inspired the popular romantic comedies The
Shop Around the Corner, Good Old Summertime, She Loves Me, and You’ve Got Mail. With intricate period
designs and a wintry setting, The Perfume Shop is a perfect holiday heart warmer for audiences of all ages.
The Perfume Shop is directed by Peter Amster, who won over Sarasota audiences with his award winning
direction of This Wonderful Life in 2008. Set design is by acclaimed artist Jeffrey W. Dean, with detailed period
costumes designed by the renowned Virgil Johnson, winner of the coveted Joseph Jefferson Award for best
costume design. Additionally, lighting design is by Aaron Muhl, sound by Matthew Parker, wigs and hair by
Michelle Hart, and vocal coaching by Patricia Delorey.
The 15 member cast features guest artists Paul Whitworth, Jason Bradley, McKenzie Kyle and Michael Joseph
Mitchell; resident artists James Clarke and Douglas Jones; and third-year FSU/Asolo Conservatory students Ghafir
Akbar, Kirstin Franklin, Sarah Gavitt, Hannah Goalstone, Alexandra Guyker, Peter Mendez, Nissa Perrott, Kevin
Stanfa and Bethany Weise. Each of these cast members will perform multiple roles in several plays, some
overlapping, throughout the repertory season.
About the play: Miklos Hammerschmidt owns a bustling and bright perfume shop in the heart of Budapest
where his life and the lives of his employees are propelled into mayhem when long-kept secrets are revealed.
Emotions run high as two bickering employees unknowingly exchange anonymous love letters, the delivery boy
becomes a magnet for accidents, and a detective arrives with dangerous information. On top of all that, the
holidays are drawing near and the employees rush to sell high end makeup and eau de toilette. This delightfully
witty romantic comedy will make you laugh and warm your heart as Hammerschmidt’s employees resolve their
quandaries and discover true love.
Director’s note by Peter Amster: Miklós László’s play, Perfume Shop, is one of the most successful plays never to
have been produced in the United States. Written in Hungarian in 1937, Illatszertar was a huge hit in Budapest
when it came to the notice of Ernst Lubitsch, movie director extraordinaire, who turned it into The Shop Around
the Corner in 1940, starring James Stewart, Margaret Sullivan and Frank (the wizard of The Wizard of Oz)
Morgan. A few years later it became a vehicle for Judy Garland and Van Johnson: In the Good Old Summertime
changed the setting from a perfume shop in Budapest to a music emporium in small-town America. In 1963, the
play was transformed into the musical She Loves Me, with a book by Joe Masteroff and an enchanting score by
Sheldon Harnick and Jerry Bock, who also wrote Fiddler on the Roof. She Loves Me is much adored and is
revived on Broadway and produced in summer stock and regional theatres with great regularity. Finally, in 1998
Nora Ephron used Perfume Shop as the inspiration for the film You’ve Got Mail, starring Tom Hanks and Meg
Ryan, which brings the play into the digital age and the New York book biz.
Page 1 of 6Michael Edwards and I were both delighted to discover that László’s play has just been given a new, elegant
and very funny translation by E.P. Dowdall, and that the original Perfume Shop is as charming and moving as
any of its progeny. In addition to some wonderful surprises, it offers a large ensemble of richly drawn characters.
The backdrop of the Great Depression, which hit Vaci Street in Budapest as hard as it hit Main Street U.S.A.,
gives the romantic comedy a relevant social and historical context, and the mechanism of the story’s plot is
intricate and tightly wound.
Miklós László’s influential but long-neglected original play puts focus on the small business of seduction, the
delicate ways and means of romance. Love may seem to be for sale in the form of alluring fragrances with their
powers to seduce, the puffs and powders, the dreamy creams, the silky lotions of enticement. But as this wise
and funny play reminds us, what ultimately matters most lies deeper.
The Perfume Shop previews on Wednesday & Thursday, December 2 & 3 at 8 p.m. in the Mertz Theatre,
Asolo Rep’s mainstage. Opening night is Friday, December 4 at 8 p.m., followed by Asolo Rep’s mingle-with-
the-stars champagne afterparty in the lobby. The play runs through April 1, 2010 in rotating repertory, with days
and times alternating. Please consult the box office or ASOLO.ORG for more details.
Subscriptions include a Flex-package or Season Subscription, $119 Play Pass or $35 Student Pass; for
subscriptions please call 941-351-9010 ext. 4812.
Single tickets are on sale now; prices range from $13 to $60, depending on the show,
day/time/seating, theatre and method of purchase. Call the box office at 941-351-8000 or toll-free at 800-
361-8388, or go to the website at www.asolo.org. Groups of 10+ save 20% Groups call 941-351-9010
ext. 6013 or email group_sales@asolo.org.
Season sponsors include: CORPORATE MEDIA SEASON PRESENTER: COMCAST; CRYSTAL SOCIETY: Esther
M. Mertz; Ulla R. Searing; Bob and Lee Peterson; MAJOR SEASON PRESENTERS: Florida State University &
Florida State University Foundation; Virginia B. Toulmin; SEASON PRESENTERS: Designing Women Boutique;
PRESENTERS: Asolo Repertory Theatre Guild, Co-Presidents, Richard Cheski and Barbara Maier; Warren and
Margot Coville; Christine and John Currie; Joan Mendell; Jeanne and Bob Zabelle. Co-presented by: ABC7
(WWSB) and Michael’s On East.
CREATIVE TEAM BIOS
Peter Amster Director (The Perfume Shop) Peter returns to the Asolo Rep after directing This Wonderful Life last
season. Other directing credits include: High Fidelity the Musical (Route 66 Theatre Company, Chicago)
Tartuffe; The Importance of Being Earnest; Twelfth Night; The Royal Family and Idiot’s Delight (Oregon
Shakespeare Festival); Our Town, Driving Miss Daisy, Pride and Prejudice, State of the Union and The Gifts of
the Magi (Indiana Shakespeare Festival); London Assurance (American Players); M. Butterfl y (Apple Tree); The
Mystery of Irma Vep and the Jeff-winning production of Master Class (Northlight); Die Fledermaus, La Traviata
and The Magic Flute (Lyric Opera of Chicago); La Belle Helen and Die Fledermaus (Light Opera Works); The
Mikado, Side by Side by Sondheim (Skylight Opera); Cosi fan Tutte and Elixir of Love (Chicago Opera);
Carmen, The Magic Flute and Tosca (DuPage Opera). Peter has taught theatre, opera and performance studies
at Northwestern University, CalArts, LSU,
Kelly A. Borgia Stage Manager (The Perfume Shop, Galileo, New Play Festival) This marks Kelly’s second
season with Asolo Rep. Last season, she stage managed Inventing Van Gogh and Murderers. Regional theatre
credits: Hedwig and the Angry Inch, Once on This Island and Betrayal at the Hangar Theatre; Beauty and the
Beast and The Full Monty at Northern Stage; The Miser, Picnic, am Sunday and Speed-the-Plow at CenterStage
Baltimore. Off Broadway: Hurricane: A New Musical, part of the 2009 New York Musical Theatre Festival and
Cato at The Flea Theatre. Kelly is a proud member of Actors Equity Association.
Jeffrey W. Dean Scenic Designer (The Perfume Shop, The Last Five Years) Company Senior Property Master,
previous Asolo Rep shows include: Nobody Don’t Like Yogi; Laughing Stock; To Kill a Mockingbird; Broadway
Bound; The Smell of the Kill; The Front Page; Inherit the Wind; The Corn is Green; Broadway; You Can’t Take it
with You; Look Homeward; Angel; Much Ado About Nothing; The Diary of Anne Frank; I’m Not Rappaport;
Page 2 of 6Sicilian Vespers; Ernani; Tales of Hoffman and L’Ariesiana for the Sarasota Opera. Execution of Justice; Invictus
and The Sum of Us for Florida Studio Theatre. Anna in the Tropics; Dracula and We Got Gershwin for American
Stage. Jeffrey has designed well over 200 shows in Florida including designs for television and film. He is a
nationally recognized sculptor and recipient of two Florida Individual Artist Fellowship Awards for set design.
Patricia Delorey Voice & Dialect Coach (Life in the Middle, The Perfume Shop, The Life of Galileo, Hearts) This
is Patricia’s seventh season with Asolo Rep. She is the head of voice, speech & dialects at the FSU/Asolo
Conservator. Ms. Delorey is a Certifi ed Associate Fitzmaurice Teacher with her M.F.A. in Voice & Speech from
the M.X.A.T./ American Repertory Theatre Institute for Advanced Theatre Training at Harvard University. Patricia
has taught voice at the Moscow Art Theatre School in Russia, Texas State University, and the University of
Bologna in Italy. Ms. Delorey has worked extensively as a professional voice, speech and dialect coach both in
the United States and internationally, including Plasticine with Studio 6 directed by Dmitry Troyanovsky, Phaedra
4.48 directed by Robert Woodruff, and the world premieres of Nocturne, Ohio State Murders, and Stone Cold
Dead Serious directed by Marcus Stern.
Michelle Hart Hair/Wig Design (all shows) a licensed cosmetologist and certifi ed professional make-up artist,
is in her ninth season with Asolo Rep and designs for both Asolo Rep and FSU/ Asolo Conservatory shows.
Other credits: Sarasota Ballet: Last Call, Rake’s Progress; Florida Studio Theatre: Ruthless the Musical and Lady
With All the Answers; West Coast Black Theatre Troupe: One Mo’ Time; four seasons with Banyan Theater, and
Open Stage Theatre: Ideal Husband, Dorian Gray and Rumors (where she won the Opius Award for Best Hair).
She has also done hair and make-up for Joan Rivers, Doris Roberts, Martin Short, Jane Russell, Arlene Dahl and
for the music video “Second Chance” by Shinedown. She wants to express her gratitude and great respect to all
involved in every aspect of theatre.
Virgil C. Johnson Costume Designer (The Perfume Shop) Debut at Asolo Rep. Virgil has been an active
professional costume designer in regional theatre for the past 40 years. His designs have been seen at the
Missouri Rep, Guthrie, Colorado Shakespeare, Indiana Rep and various Chicago area theaters including the
Steppenwolf, Chicago Shakespeare Theater (CST), and Northlight. He designed for the Goodman Theatre from
1969-1997 including The Winter’s Tale and The Government Inspector directed by Frank Galati, The Visit and
Richard II directed by David Petrarca, and A Little Night Music and As You Like It directed by Michael Maggio.
Both The Government Inspector and A Little Night Music won the coveted Joseph Jefferson Award for best
costume design. In 2001, Mr. Johnson received the Michael Merritt Award for Excellence in Design and
Collaboration. Most recently, he designed The Crucible directed by Anna K. Shapiro for the Steppenwolf.
Amadeus directed by Gary Griffi n opened the CST 08-09 season and was preceded by designs for Henry IV,
Parts 1 and 2, directed by Barbara Gaines that performed in Chicago and Stratford, England. His design for
opera includes The Voyage of Edgar Allan Poe and Verdi’s Macbeth (current) for the Lyric Opera of Chicago.
Mr. Johnson is Professor Emeritus of Theater at Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois.
Aaron Muhl Lighting Designer (The Perfume Shop, The Last Five Years) Second season. Asolo Rep Credits: This
Wonderful Life, Perfect Mendacity. Regional: This Wonderful Life (Syracuse Stage) Around the World in 80
Days, Trapezium, A Moon for the Misbegotten, A Midsummer Night’s Dream (Orlando Shakespeare Festival); A
Little House on the Prairie, Dancing at Lughnasa (Orlando Repertory Theater). Dance credits: The Snow Falls in
the Winter (OtherShore); The Two Pigeons, Las Hermanas, Grosse Fuge, Elite Syncopations, Allegro Brillante,
Infernal Gallop, Checkmate, The Rake’s Progress, Anna Karenina (Sarasota Ballet); Shifting Phantoms, The
Testimony of Matrimony (Moving Ethos). He is the managing director of production for the Ringling International
Arts Festival and the technical director of the Historic Asolo Theater. B.F.A, University of Central Florida.
Matthew Parker Sound Designer (Contact, The Perfume Shop, Searching for Eden, Hearts, New Play Festival)
Since 1993 Matt has designed sound for most of Asolo Rep’s productions. He also wrote and performed the
musical scores for Asolo Rep productions of The Count of Monte Cristo and Nicholas Nickleby. Matt received
his B.F.A. in Theatre Production Design and Technology from Ohio University, where he designed Heartbreak
House, Luann Hampton Laverty Oberlander, The Importance of Being Earnest, and The Hot L Baltimore. As
resident sound designer at the Monomoy Theatre (Cape Cod), he designed South Pacifi c, Dracula, Private Lives,
Richard III and others. Sound and special effects credits at The Flat Rock Theatre (North Carolina) include I Hate
Hamlet, the world premiere of Gilligan’s Island: The Musical and others. He is most proud of his sound and
video designs for the 1992 production of Jesus Christ Superstar at Cumberland County Playhouse (Tennessee).
Page 3 of 6CAST BIOS
Ghafir Akbar – First season, third-year conservatory student. Last season: Billee/ Herbert Hawkins/Stage
Manager, Wilder! Wilder! Wilder!; Doctor/Hand Job Guy/Blind Student, Blur; Walter/Bob/Mr. Fuller, Three
Postcards. From Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, he is a graduate of Western Michigan University and is also an Artistic
Associate of The Ruckus in Chicago. Other credits: Romeo, Romeo & Juliet; Tupolski, The Pillowman; Ali, The
Retreating World. For their generosity and support, he thanks his family, Bruce & Ann Bachmann, Doug & Patty
Bradbury, Eva Slane and Bill Yandow.
Jason Bradley* – Guest Artist, first season. Jason is delighted to be making his Asolo Rep debut. In Chicago
Jason has appeared in The Diary of Anne Frank (Steppenwolf Theatre Company); To the Greenfelds Beyond
(Writers’ Theatre); and Stripped (Circle Theatre) where he received a Jeff Citation Nomination for Best Actor.
Regional credits include: Milwaukee Repertory Theatre (Pride and Prejudice, A Month in the Country); Indiana
Repertory Theatre (The Heavens are Hung in Black, The Gentleman From Indiana, A Christmas Carol, The
Drawer Boy, and Arcadia); American Players Theatre (Candida, Merry Wives of Windsor, and Macbeth);
Cleveland Play House (Pride and Prejudice) and Madison Repertory Theatre (The Drawer Boy).
James Clarke* – Associate Artist, fourteenth season. Last season: Purgeon, The Imaginary Invalid; Old
Shepherd/Gaoler, The Winter’s Tale; Major Swindon, The Devil’s Disciple. Past seasons: Mansky, The Play’s
the Thing; Jansenius, Smash; Dalton, Equus; Graham, Lady. Other Asolo credits include Amadeus, Men of
Tortuga, A Few Good Men, Pride and Prejudice, Enchanted April, Anything to Declare?, Lady Windermere’s
Fan, Rounding Third, Sherlock Holmes & The West End Horror, The Front Page, A Midsummer Night’s Dream,
The Crucible, The Millionairess, Murder by Misadventure, The Diary of Anne Frank, Inherit the Wind, You Never
Can Tell, Filumena, A Flea in Her Ear, Born Yesterday, The Hollow and Twelfth Night. He has performed at Yale
Rep, Pittsburgh Public, Geva, Circle in the Square and SoHo Rep. He graduated from the FSU/Asolo
Conservatory in the 1970s and spent a year with Asolo Rep after graduation. TV credits include Ryan’s Hope
(Pat Ryan), Search for Tomorrow, Guiding Light, Legwork (CBS series) and Saracen, a series in England.
Kris Danford* – Guest artist, fourth season. Previous Asolo Rep roles include Hermione in The Winter’s Tale,
Beline, Imaginary Invalid, Henrietta, Smash, Carolina Bingley, Pride and Prejudice, and Cinderella, The
Plexiglass Slipper. Other favorite projects include Sight Unseen, Five By Tenn and the title role in Mirandolina.
Kris gives her love and gratitude to the Covilles, her parents and her wonderful husband - and castmate - Sam.
Kirstin Franklin – First season, third-year conservatory student. Last season, Cook Stage: Dot in Blur, Dodie &
Caroline in Wilder!, Wilder!, Wilder! Also Tybalt/Nurse in Romeo & Juliet and Miranda in The Tempest. Kirstin
has a BA in theatre (St. Olaf College) and has performed at The Guthrie, Pangea World Theatre, Actors Theatre
of Louisville, and NYC Players Theater. She thanks: The Baers, The Sieglers, C. Camiener, J. Herrington, and her
family and classmates. She dedicates this season to the love of her life and biggest fan: her husband John.
Steve Garland – Guest Artist, fi rst season. Steve is the proud recipient of Creative Loafing’s 2007 Best of the
Bay award for his work in Jobsite Theater’s production of The Pillowman. Regional appearances include work
with the Gorilla Theatre (Bug, Bach at Leipzig), American Stage (Coronado), Gypsy Productions (Sordid Lives,
Blackout), Jobsite Theater (The Lieutenant of Inishmore, Picasso at the Lapin Agile), and The Studio@620 (Grace).
Graduate of UC Davis.
Sarah Gavitt – First season, third-year conservatory student. Sarah was born and raised in Iowa and graduated
from Grinnell College. She has been seen on stages in Chicago, New York, and Kentucky, and has performed
in such diverse works as The Medieval Cycle Plays, Keely and Du, Arcadia, and Mileep & the Attack of the Jelly
Bean People. Last year she appeared on the Cook stage in Wilder!, Wilder!, Wilder!, Blur and Miss Julie. She
is deeply grateful to her donors, Dr. Dean Hautamaki and Ray & Ann Hautamaki, and to Abbie & Alan Kurland.
Hannah Goalstone- – First season, third-year conservatory student. She received her BA from Whitman College,
and performed in Chicago for five years before attending the FSU/Asolo Conservatory. Other conservatory
roles: Beatrice, Much Ado; Portia, Merchant of Venice; and Lady Capulet/Benvolio, Romeo & Juliet. Hannah
would like to thank her wonderful parents and sister, and amazing donors Warren and Margo Coville, and Ted
and Jean Weiller for their love and support, and the FSU/Asolo Conservatory for this wonderful opportunity.
Page 4 of 6Alexandra Guyker – First season, third-year conservatory student. Originally from Washington, D.C., she
graduated Magna Cum Laude from Niagara University with a BFA in Theatre Performance and minors in
Communications and Fine Arts. At Asolo Conservatory she went on as understudy for the Nurse in Equus and a
Maid in Play’s the Thing. She also played Angelique in the Late Night Performance of The Imaginary Invalid. A
student of classical voice, she has taken workshops with the Washington Opera Center, Richard Crittendon, and
Elizabeth Vrenios. Other interests include photography, digital art, and standup; and she is currently a voice over
student at John Burr Productions. Alexandra sends her love and thanks to her parents and her donors.
Howard Elfman* (Louis) makes his Asolo Rep debut playing the role he originated last year in the world
premiere of Managing Maxine at the Alliance Theatre in Atlanta. He also appeared in the original production of
Bluish at The Alliance (also written by Janece Shaffer). Last year he played Henry Morgenthau in the Gablestage
production of The Accomplices and was in Brooklyn Boy at the Olney Theatre Center, The Chosen at the
Hippodrome State Theatre and Deathtrap at Maltz Jupiter Theatre. A transplanted Chicagoan now based in Ft.
Lauderdale, he has appeared in many top-rated theatres across the country. Favorite roles include Old Man in
Fool For Love, Judge Brack in Hedda Gabler, Boolie in Driving Miss Daisy, Mr. Cobb in Cobb, Herman Lewis in
Mixed Emotions, Flo Ziegfeld in Funny Girl and Henry Ford in Camping With Henry and Tom. Film and TV
credits include HBO's Recount, Raw Deal, Rent A Cop, The Untouchables and Safe Harbor. Howard is a proud
member of AEA, SAG and AFTRA, as well as Georgia's happy husband.
Douglas Jones* – Associate Artist, twenty-fourth season. Last season: Argan, The Imaginary Invalid; Camillo, The
Winter’s Tale; General Burgoyne, The Devil’s Disciple; Roger, Perfect Mendacity. Past seasons: Mortimer, The
Constant Wife; Turai, The Play’s the Thing; Frank, Equus; Dyson, Lady. Other Asolo credits include Amadeus,
Men of Tortuga, A Few Good Men, Pride and Prejudice, Darwin in Malibu, Laughing Stock, Enchanted April,
Lady Windermere’s Fan, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, The Crucible, Hay Fever, You Never Can Tell, Art, A
Flea in Her Ear, Golden Boy, Black Coffee, King Lear, Nicholas Nickleby and The Kentucky Cycle. Other
favorites: Directing The Clean House and playing Vanya in Uncle Vanya at The Banyan Theater. He has
directed and acted in many Asolo Late Nites. Doug has spent seasons at Baltimore’s Center Stage, The
Cleveland Play House, Milwaukee Rep, California Shakespearean Festival, Stage West, Cincinnati Playhouse,
Boston’s Huntington Theatre, American Stage, The Playmakers, Tampa Bay Performing Arts Center, Florida Studio
Theatre and four plays Off-Broadway. Doug trained at The Guildhall School of Music & Drama, London.
Mackenzie Kyle* – Guest Artist, first season. Mackenzie Kyle is thrilled to make her Asolo Theatre debut. She
has Chicago theatre credits that include: Hedda Gabler in Hedda Gabler (Raven Theatre) Amadeus (Chicago
Shakespeare Theatre), Laughter on the 23rd Floor (Raven Theatre), Blithe Spirit (The Gift Theatre), The General
from America (TimeLine Theatre), The Frogs (Pegasus Players), Madge in Picnic (The Illinois Theatre Center) The
Little Dog Laughed (About Face Theatre), Girl, 20 (Serendipity Theatre), Othello (Shakespeare on the Green), The
BFG (Chicago Theatre for Young Audiences), and Still Life with Iris (Vittum Theatre). She holds a B.F.A. in acting
from The Theatre School at DePaul University.
Peter J. Mendez – First season, third-year conservatory student. Last season for the Conservatory: Wilder!
Wilder! Wilder!, Blur, Miss Julie. Regional Theatre: Round House Theatre: Our Town, Problem Child, The Cherry
Orchard; The Shakespeare Theatre Company: Coriolanus, Timon of Athens, Two Gentlemen of Verona, Camino
Real, King Lear; Folger Shakespeare Library: Romeo and Juliet, Much Ado About Nothing; The Kennedy Center
for the Performing Arts: Shear Madness; The Olney Theatre Center for the Arts; Camille, After Play. Thank you to
Angel and Eric Hissom and Foster Harmon for their support.
Carolyn Michel* The Keating Family Foundation Actor Chair – Associate Artist, nineteenth season. Last season:
Toinette, The Imaginary Invalid; Mrs. Dudgeon, The Devil’s Disciple. Favorite roles at Asolo Rep include Kate,
Broadway Bound, Maggie, Hobson’s Choice, Becky, Morningstar. Other Asolo Rep: Enchanted April, String of
Pearls, The Smell of the Kill, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, The Millionairess, I’m Not Rappaport, The Corn is
Green, Brighton Beach Memoirs, Over The Tavern, Communicating Doors, The Sisters Rosensweig, The Tale of
the Allergist’s Wife, The Immigrant, How the Other Half Loves, The Constant Wife. Florida Studio Theatre: four
one-person plays: Ann Landers, The Lady with All the Answers; Rose; The Search for Signs of Intelligent Life in the
Universe; Dorothy Parker, One Foot in Scarsdale. Other regional roles: Sylvia, Sylvia; Lillian Hellman, Cakewalk;
Don’t Dress for Dinner; The Triumph of Love; Learned Ladies. Off-Broadway: Sold to the Movies. Carolyn has
also played Broadway opposite Sid Caesar in Sid Caesar & Company.
Page 5 of 6Sam Osheroff* – Guest artist, second season. Favorite roles include Stanley in Broadway Bound and Cecco the
Pirate in Peter Pan (Asolo Rep), Morris in The Heiress and Jamie in The Last 5 Years (Peterborough Players), and
Uncle Louie in Lost in Yonkers (Pioneer Theatre). Sam holds an M.F.A. from the FSU/Asolo Conservatory and is a
proud member of Actors Equity.
Nissa Perrott – First season, third-year conservatory student. Seen last year on the Cook Stage in Wilder!
Wilder! Wilder! and Miss Julie, other recent credits include Fuddy Meers (Claire), Gum (Auntie), and Big Love
(Thyona) all with the UMass Amherst Theater Department where she received her B.A in Theater. She has been
seen at The Shakespeare Theatre of New Jersey, Williamstown Theatre Festival, as well as studied at the
Moscow Art Theatre School in Russia. She sends endless love to her family and eternal thanks to her generous
donor, Esther Mertz, for her passion, support and lifetime commitment to this theatrical community.
Sharon Spelman* – Associate Artist, fourteenth season. Recent Asolo credits include Hester/Ensemble, The
Plexiglass Slipper; Lila, Expecting Isabel; and Mrs. Bennet, Pride and Prejudice. Past seasons include: Hay Fever,
Kentucky Cycle, Tale of the Allergistt’s Wife, and The Rivals. Sharon has appeared in major roles in regional
theatres across the country, and guest-starred in dozens of national commercials and more than sixty TV shows,
including a regular cast member on Search for Tomorrow and the sitcoms Angie and The Cop & the Kid.
Kevin Stanfa – First season, third-year conservatory student. Recent credits include Blur (Father O’Hara) and
Wilder!, Wilder!, Wilder! in the Conservatory’s 08-09 season, Much Ado About Nothing (Benedick), Romeo
and Juliet and Drunk Enough to Say I Love You? (Guy). Kevin holds an Honors Bachelor of Fine Arts Degree from
the University of Utah. Professional credits include The Merry Wives of Windsor (Shakespeare and Company),
Julius Caesar and Cyrano de Bergerac (Pioneer Theatre Company). He would like to show his extreme gratitude
for his generous sponsors, both past and present, Walker Croskey, Jim Goddard, Emily, Anne and Larry Levine,
as well as the entire community of donors that support our work in the conservatory and lastly his family, without
whom none of this would be possible.
Bethany Weise – First season, third-year conservatory student. Conservatory credits include: Mrs. Boker in
Infancy, Francesca in The Rivers Under the Earth, and Big Jane in Three Postcards. Asolo Conservatory Late Night
credits include Beline in The Imaginary Invalid, Woman in Trash Anthem, and Prospero, The Tempest. Favorite
credits include Circe in The Odyssey, Bridget in Translations, Holly in Anton in Show Business, and Jeannie in Fat
Pig at the Banyan Theatre Company. Bethany is a graduate of Bradley University and native of Illinois. She
would like to thank her family for their never ending support and love, as well as her wonderful donors Beverly
Koski and the late Robert Koski.
Paul Whitworth* – Guest artist, second season. Paul returns to Asolo Rep after playing Dysart in Equus.
Regional credits include Higgins in Pygmalion (Seattle Rep and SSC); Neils Bohr in Copenhagen (Syracuse
Stage), George in Night and Day (ACT, San Francisco); Dr. Robert Smith in Blue/Orange (Aurora Theatre,
Berkeley) and Hamm in Endgame (SSC). Whitworth has also directed professionally in UK and USA at: Crucible
Theatre, (Sheffi eld) Lyric Hammersmith (London), Magic Theatre (San Francisco), and many productions at
Shakespeare Santa Cruz where he was Artistic Director (1996-2007).
Artists are noted according to their position in the company, roles and play titles, and the number of Asolo Rep
seasons in which they have performed. Associate Artist is a title given to the core resident company – Equity
actors who have made a personal and professional commitment to Asolo Rep and to this community for at least
three years. Guest Artists range from professional actors from around the world, to accomplished community
actors. Professional Actors, members of Actors’ Equity Association (AEA), the Union of Professional Actors and
Stage Managers in the United States, are noted with an asterisk. Third-year Conservatory students of the
FSU/Asolo Conservatory perform each season with the mainstage Asolo Rep acting company.
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