Who’s Who in Othello

“Stand and unfold yourself”

- Hamlet

Katharine Abbruzzese (Desdemona) is a recent graduate of Vassar College, where she studied psychology, literature, and drama while participating in the student-run groups Vassar College Shakespeare Troupe, Vassar Improv, and the Philaletheis Society.  Favorite Vassar roles include Tilly (The Melancholy Play), Lady Bracknell (The Importance of Being Earnest), Zillah (A Bright Room Called Day), and Lady Macbeth (Macbeth), the last of which won her the Molly Thatcher Kazan Memorial Prize.  Following graduation, Kathatine spent two summers at the crittically-acclaimed Hudson Valley Shakespeare Festival, where she appeared as Helen in Cymbeline, Lychorida in Pericles, and Perdita in The Winter's Tale.  Recently, she has bounded across the U.S. to play Portia in Shakespeare & Company's tour of Julius Caesar and the title role in Florida Studio Theatre's production of Sylvia.

Actors’ Equity Association (AEA) was founded in 1913 as the first of the American actor unions.  Equity’s mission is to advance, promote, and foster the art of live theatre as an essential component of our society.  Today, Equity represents more than 40,000 actors, singers, dancers, and stage managers working in hundreds of theatres across the United States.  Equity members are dedicated to working in the theatre as a profession, upholding the highest artistic standards.  Equity negotiates wages and working conditions and provides a wide range of benefits, including health and pension plans for its members. Through its agreement with Equity, Tennessee Shakespeare Company has committed to the fair treatment of the actors and stage managers employed in this production.  AEA is a member of the AFL-CIO and is affiliated with FIA, an international organization of performing arts unions.  For more information, visit www.actorsequity.org.

Annie Bellinger (Assistant Stage Manager) is a founding member of Tennessee Shakespeare Company, and happy to be back for her fourth production with TSC.  Regional assistant stage manager credits include the Utah Shakespeare Festival (The Secret Garden and Henry V) and the Orlando Shakespeare Theatre (Shylock, As You Like It, Macbeth), In Chicago she worked as a stage manager with Dog and Pony Theatre Company (God's Ear), the Shadowmen (An Adult Night of Shel Silverstein).  She has also stage managed Twelfth Night, Much Ado About Nothing, Man of La Mancha, Royal Hunt of the Sun, and the world premiere of The Monkey King with Texas Shakespeare Festival.  She first worked with Dan McCleary at the Orlando Shakespeare Theatre on As You Like It, where she also met her husband. 

Paul Bernardo* (Iago) Paul's love for performing Shakespeare developed as a six-year member of a classical repertory company in Philadelphia and eventually led him to earn an MFA in Classical Acting from the Shakespeare Theatre's Academy for Classical Acting at The George Washington University.  He has worked extensively in regional theatre where favorite roles include: Brutus in Julius Caesar, Angelo and Duke Vincentio in Measure for Measure, Silvio in The Servant of Two Masters, Charles in Blithe Spirit, Matt in Talley's Folly, and Valentin in Kiss of the Spiderwoman.  Paul has appeared in numerous industrials and commercials as well as independent and feature films, including Brian de Palma's Snake Eyes.  Paul is delighted to be working with Dan McCleary and making his Tennessee Shakespeare Company debut.

Bruce Bui (Costume Designer) is very excited to be a part of TSC's third season.  Other TSC credits: A Midsummer Night's Dream and Julius Caesar.  Originally from Southern California, Bruce now lives in Memphis, and is going into his tenth season as the Wardrobe Director and Resident Costume Designer for Ballet Memphis.  His work can be seen regularly on the Orpheum stage and numerous other venues around the Mid-South.  Bruce has been praised as "dazzling" by Critical Dance Magazine, and a "Master of Chiffon" by the Commercial Appeal.  He has also worked with companies such as The Western Stage (Always, Patsy Cline), Cabrillo Musical Theatre (Funny Girl), Santa Susanna Repertory Theatre (Shiloh, War of the World), and Kingsmen Shakespeare Company (As You Like It), among others.  Some of his specialty garments can be seen on Miss Tennessee for Miss America 2005, At Home Tennessee Magazine's featured wedding issue 2007, and The Memphis Mystic Krew 2005 court.  When not working behind the scenes, Bruce enjoys acting on stage, and has been in numerous productions with Emerald Theatre Company.

Chris Burgess (Composer/Musician) is a Memphis-area freelance percussionist and educator.  Chris earned his Bachelor of Music degree at Indiana University (taught primarily by Anthony Cirone and Gerry Carlyss), where he began his interest in ethnic styles of percussion from around the world, primarily Latin America and West Africa.  He also received his Masters of Music degree from Boston Conservatory (primary study with Keith Aleo, Nancy Zeltsman, David Herbert, and John Grimes).  Currently, Chris is the Director of Education and Development at Memphis Drum Shop.  Additionally, Chris and his wife Ruth play in the acclaimed Americana/Folk band Harpeth Rising, which tours the United States and the UK, and was voted the 2010 "Best Lovcal Band in Nashville" by the Tennessean newspaper.

 Shaleen Cholera (Gratiano; Cypress Gentleman) is a 2009 graduate of The University of the South.  He most recently appeared in The Tempest at The University of Mempis' Lab Theatre.  Before that, he was a part of New york City's The Living Theatre's production of Red Noi (world premiere) by Anne Waldman.

Matthew Crewse (Montano; men's understudy) is a recent graduate of the University of Memphis, where he received the Dean's Creative Achievement Award in Theatre.  Memphis acting credits: Parade, Noises Off, Much Ado About Nothing, As You Like It (Ostrander nomination), Assassins, Animal Farm (Ostrander Award), and served as music director for the first non-equity production of tick, tick... Boom!.  He has taught acting and voice in the Memphis area and composed for U of M, Playhouse on the Square, and Chatterbox Audio Theatre.  He has written two short plays: An American Parable and Show White: A Fractured Fairy Tale, and is finishing his first musical, True Love Stalks(!).

Johnny Lee Davenport* (Othello ) has been a company member of Shakespeare & Company since 1989 and has performed in many of their productions.  Most recently at S&Co: Richard III, The Winter's Tale, and The Ghost/Gravedigger/Player King in their national tour of Hamlet.  Orlando Shakespeare: Much Ado About Nothing and Hamlet; The Wheelock Family Theatre in Boston: The Little Mermaid.  Regional Theatre: Actor's Shakespeare Project: Much Ado About Nothing (Leonato), Love's Labor’s Lost (Boyet/Don Armado/Bull) for which he was nominated for Boston's Elliot Norton Award, and Hamlet (Claudius); Trinity Repertory: A Raisin in the Sun (Bobo), Richard III (King Edward IV); Commonwealth Shakespeare Company: As You Like It (Duke Senior); New Repertory: A House With No Walls (Salif; Elliot Norton Award nomination); 92nd St.Y Poetry Center in NYC: title role in Gilgamesh; Shakespeare Theatre in Washington, D.C.: The Oedipus Plays (Theseus/Chorus Leader/Messenger), which also ran in Athens, Greece.  Dublin, Ireland has welcomed Johnny Lee on four separate occasions in Othello, three times in the title role and once as Iago.  He has appeared at The Stratford Shakespeare Festival in Stratford, Ontario, in King Lear, Oedipus, Twelfth Night, and The Critic.  Other regional credits include Alabama Shakespeare Festival, Goodman Theatre, Steppenwolf, Court Theatre (Chicago), Sankofa and ACT in Seattle, Virginia Stage, Theatre Virginia, Actor's Theatre of Louisville, Great Lakes Theatre Festival, Indiana Repertory, Chicago Shakespeare Theatre, Milwaukee Repertory, Milwaukee Shakespeare, and Arizona Stage Company. TV/Film: Law & Order, Lateline, Higher Goals, The Mary Thomas Story, There Are No Children Here, The Fugitive, U.S. Marshals, The Blues Brothers, Chain Reaction, and the recently-filmed pilot for Empire State.  

Jason Hansen (Lodovico) is a founding company member of Tennessee Shakespeare Company, and returns after appearing in TSC inaugural production of As You Like It and last season's A Midsummer Night's Dream.  A graduate of the University of Memphis, he has been seen on the college stage in The Tempest, Woolgatherer, Waiting for Godot (Ostrander Award), Dancing at Lughnasa, Assassins (Ostrander Award), and Lysistrata and the Death of Cupid.  He last appeared onstage in Dead Man's Cell Phone at Circuit Playhouse.  Directing credits include a production of Extremities and several outdoor Shakespeare pieces.  Jason also has a vast background in vocal performance that includes the New York Opera, Carnegie Hall, Rockefeller Center, Disney World, the Kennedy Center, and the White House.

 Stuart Haymen (Brabantio)  has spent much of his professional career in the world of opera as stage director and production manager for companies in the United States and Europe.  He is delighted to return to TSC, having appeared as Corin in the inaugural production of As You Like It.  Since then, he has been seen in Harrell Theatre’s Fiddler on the Roof (Tevye) and in New Moon Theatre’s The Homecoming (Teddy).  Memphis area credits: My Fair Lady (Henry Higgins), OLIVER! (Fagin), Man of La Mancha (Quixote/Cervantes), Guys and Dolls (Nathan Detroit), Tintypes (TR), and Twelfth Night (Malvolio).  An avid Gilbert & Sullivan fan, Stuart is willing and able to perform the patter songs from any of their operettas upon demand.

Michael Khanlarian (Roderigo), a native Memphian, is making his return to TSC and the Mid-South after a move to Chicago last year.  TSC credits: As You Like It (Adam), A Midsummer Night’s Dream (Starveling).  Recent theatre: The Tempest (Prospero); Decadence: The Two Faces of Robert Lapage with  'Abraham Werewolf.’  Recent film: $5 Cover (directed by Craig Brewer), which can still be viewed at fivedollarcover.com.  Other Memphis credits: Einstein’s Dreams (Ostrander Award for best supporting actor), Uncle Vanya, and Titus Andronicus.  Michael has a BFA from the University of Memphis and received a scholarship to study abroad at the Accademia dell’Arte in Arezzo, Italy.

Slade Kyle (Fight Choreographer) is a founding company member of Tennessee Shakespeare Company, and has recently taken on the title and responsibilities of Education Manager.  TSC credits: As You Like It (Oliver, Fight Director) and A Midsummer Night’s Dream (Puck, Fight Director).  Slade’s career in Fight Choreography began as a professional wrestler with the SEWA.  Light-Heavyweight Champion and two time Tag-Team Champion, he also worked behind the scenes choreographing bouts for the organization.  Slade holds a BFA with a concentration in Physical Theatre, Combat, and Pedagogy.  Stage Combat experience and training includes: Unarmed Combat, Rapier/Dagger, Small Sword, Broad Sword, Quarterstaff, Found/Improvisational Weaponry, and Large Group Combat. 

Dan McCleary+ (Director; Founder and Producing Artistic Director) is a native Memphian and a graduate of Germantown High School and its Poplar Pike Playhouse.  Dan directed and acted in TSC's inaugural production of As You Like It (Jaques) and directed last fall's A Midsummer Night's Dream.  He also has directed critically-acclaimed productions of As You Like It at Orlando Shakespeare Theater, The Servant of Two Masters outdoors in downtown Atlanta and at Seattle Shakespeare Company, and All's Well That Ends Well at Georgia Shakespeare Festival.  At the Orlando Shakespeare Theater, he has directed the world premier of The Stone Face (about Buster Keaton and Samuel Beckett) and has played the title roles in Antony and Cleopatra and Richard III, Brutus in Julius Caesar, Porfiry in Crime and Punishment, Pertruchio in The Taming of the Shrew, and Falstaff in The Merry Wives of Windsor.  As Associate Artistic Director at Shakespeare & Company in the Berkshires, Dan acted in and directed over 30 productions, appearing as Coriolanus, Macbeth, Herman Melville, Stephano, Don Armando, Hotspur, Master Ford, Bertram, and Antipholus/Dromio of Ephesus.  He directed S&Co's first production of The Servant of Two Masters, also his own adaptation of Anais Nin's Henry & June, Vita & Virginia (about Vita Sackville-West and Virginia Woolf), My Own Stranger (poet Anne Sexton), and The Fiery Rain (Edith Wharton, Henry James, and Morton Fullerton).  Other Regional/New York theatre: Merrimack Rep., North Shore Music Theatre, Actors Theatre of Louisville, StageWest, Alabama Shakespeare, Arden Theatre, Studio 4-A, and Huntington Theatre.  Dan is a published poet and teaches Shakespeare master classes around the country.  Last autumn, Memphis Magazine named him among the "Who's Who in Memphis," and the Germantown Arts Alliance honored him with its 2009 Distinguished Arts and Humanities Medal for Performing Arts.  Dan holds a B.A. in Marketing and Journalism from temple University.

Tony Molina, Jr.* (Cassio)  is a founding company member of TSC, having performed in As You Like It (Duke Frederick, Duke Senior) and A Midsummer Night’s Dream (Bottom).  Tony is from New Orleans and has been seen in over 15 productions there, including A Midsummer Night's Dream, Angels in America: Parts One and Two, As I Lay Dying, Gloria Duplex, and A Confederacy of Dunces.  Tulane Shakespeare Festival: title roles in Othello and Hamlet, as well as appearing in Twelfth Night, The Winter's Tale, Macbeth, and Romeo and Juliet (Mercutio).  Colorado Shakespeare Festival: Taming of the Shrew (Petruchio), Macbeth (Banquo), and Hamlet (Claudius).  Shakespeare & Company: Tina Packer's experimental production of Othello, Comedy of Errors, Romeo and Juliet, Antony and Cleopatra, As You Like It, and A Midsummer Night's Dream.  Film: In the Electric Mist (with Tommy Lee Jones).

Vanessa Morosco* (Emilia, Doge of Venice) is delighted to be returning to TSC after playing Helena in A Midsummer Night's Dream and Cassius in Julius Caesar.  She has performed steadily with the American Shakespeare Center, for whom she has performed over 25 roles in seven season, including the title role in The Duchess of Malfi, Helena in All's Well That Ends Well, Hippolita in Tis Pity, Princess of France in Love's Labor's Lost, and Gwendolyn in The Importance of Being Earnest.  She now resides in New York, where she has appeared off-Broadway most recently as the Baron in Rape of the Lock (Judith Shakespeare Company), Gwendolyn in The Importance of Being Earnest (Theater Ten Ten), and the Woman in Wonder:lust (Beckett Theatre).  Regionally, favorite roles include Peg in The Way of the World (Yale Rep), Lady Teazle in School for Scandal (Pittsburg irish & Classical Theatre), Elvira in Blithe Spirit and Molly in Smell of the Kill (Wayside Theatre), Helena in A Midsummer Night's Dream (Virginia Shakespeare Festival), the Courtesan in Comedy of Errors (Cincinnati Shakespeare Festival), and Launce/Thurio in Two Gentlemen of Verona (Folger Shakespeare Theatre).  She has trained with the British-American Drama Academy, Chautauqua Institution, Shakespeare & Company, and SITI Company.  Vanessa holds a B.A. in Philosophy from Manhattanville College and an M.A. in Ethics from Yale University.

Seth Payeur* (Stage Manager) is a founding member of Tennessee Shakespeare Company.  He is excited to be spending his third autumn working on his fourth TSC production.  Seth received his B.A. in Theatre Arts from SUNY New Palz.  Some past credits include The Taming of the Shrew, Two Gentlemen of Verona, Foxfire, Private Lives (Utah Shakespeare Festival); James and the Giant Peach, Measure for Measure, The Trial of Ebenezer Scrooge, The Stone Face (Orlando Shakespeare Festival); My Favorite Year, Lucky Stiff (Maples Repertory Theatre); and World Goes 'Round, You Can't Take It With You (Lost Nation Theatre).

William Shakespeare (Playwright) was probably a lot like you, regardless of your age.  He was also a Revolutionary.  He was born into an Age of alarming innovation and discovery in every field of study: voyage, religion, printing, science, commerce, history, disaster, and triumph.  Just like you.  There was revolution all around him, and for us the occurrences of financial tumult, widespread poverty, victory and defeat overseas, scientific discovery, natural catastrophe, a warming planet, an increasingly intelligent world due to electronic information-sharing, and women beginning to share corporate and political leadership all create a similar Age of Renaissance.  William was born into an Age of religious ambivalence, often with accompanying violence, and he received the usual education for a boy then until he as 12 years old.  He married an older woman, perhaps because they were pregnant first.  And there are two periods in his early adult life that we know very little about.  When he emerges in documentation, he is a player and a writer.  But he doesn’t write like the others around him.  He writes, using known stories, through the rhythm of his heart. You can hear it in his verse lines.  He began to write his life into his plays: when his son Hamnet and father die, there is Hamlet; after his mother dies and England’s corn riots create domestic war, there is Coriolanus; after he falls in love with a dark-haired woman in the city, there are the Sonnets to his Dark Lady and all of his Rosalinds in As You Like It and Romeo and Juliet and Love’s Labor’s Lost; and when his daughters come of age, there are his final plays in which the daughters redeem their fathers.  It is said of William that he created the human being, which is to say he developed character on stage with psychological underpinnings and fragile grace resulting in landmark joys or the end of lives.  Like a genuine poet, he forces no answers upon us.  He lends us timeless questions.  William was a Revolutionary because he dared to question his life in a public forum, and he discovered that that which is most personal is shared by us all.  It is collectively held and needs to be articulated and felt for the health of a community.  In so doing, William redefined the function of theatre.  His Age compelled and inspired him, just as our own Age can do the same for us.  

Bill Short (Scenic Designer)  is a 40-year veteran of the Memphis theatre scene and is the 2006 recipient of the Eugart Yerian Award for Lifetime Achievement in Theatre.  Most recently, he provided the scenery for Much Ado About Nothing at Theatre Memphis.  Other design credits include Pride and Prejudice, House of Blue Leaves, Enchanted April at Theatre Memphis; The History Boys, Orson’s Shadow, Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf? at Circuit Playhouse; and Much Ado About Nothing at Bartlett Performing Arts.  Bill received an Ostrander Award for a cameo role in The Play’s the Thing at GCT.  He is delighted to be working with Dan McCleary and this wonderful company.

Frank Williams (Technical Director; Master Carpenter) returns to TSC after constructing the set for last season's A Midsummer Night's Dream.  He has worked on the sets for High School Musical, Curtains, and The Fantastics at the Poplar Pike Playhouse.  Frank earned a degree in Marketing from Robert Morris University in Pittsburgh, PA, and has had an extensive career in Information Technology, both as director and Project Manager.  He has also worked in the fields of manufacturing, printing, hospitality, and software.   

* Member of Actors' Equity Association, the Union of Professional Actors and Stage Managers in the United States.
+ Member of The Society of Stage Directors and Choreographers, Inc., an independent national labor union.