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DAVID MAMET (Playwright) began his career as an actor and director before achieving success in 1976 with three Off-Off-Broadway plays, The Duck Variations, Sexual Perversity in Chicago, and American Buffalo. In 1984, he was awarded the Pulitzer Prize for Glengarry Glen Ross. He followed up in 1988 with Speed the Plow. Perhaps his most controversial play, however, came in 1992 with Oleanna, a two-character drama involving charges of sexual harassment between a male professor and one of his female students. In 1995 he won received the Pulitzer Prize once more for the The Cryptogram. In 1981, Mamet turned his attention to screenwriting and made an impressive debut with his first screenplay, The Postman Always Rings Twice, which he adapted from the novel by James Cain. He has since turned out a number of critically acclaimed screenplays including The Verdict (1982), The Untouchables (1987), Glengarry Glen Ross (1992) and Wag the Dog (1998) and is now considered to be among the industry's finest craftsmen. Mamet has taught at Goddard College, the Yale Drama School and New York University. His awards include the Drama Desk Award, 1977,1978,1983,1984,193,1995; Joseph Jefferson Award, 1974; Obie Award, 1976, 1983; New York Drama Critics Award, 1977, 1984; Outer Circle Award, 1978; Society of West End Theatre Award, 1983; Pulitzer Prize, 1984, 1995; Dramatists Guild Hall-Warriner Award, 1984; American Academy Award, 1986; Tony Award, 1984,1987.
KRISTEN COURY (director) is the Founder and Producing Artistic Director of Gulfshore Playhouse, and has directed all the productions thus far. Kristen was featured on the November 2008 issue of E Bella Magazine, has received the distinction as one of the "Top 40 Professionals Under 40" in 2008 by Gulfshore Life Magazine, and is listed in the Who's Who of American Women. Kristen was also honored in 2011 with the "Star in the Arts" award given by the United Arts Council of Collier County. For Hot Summer Nights at the Kennedy: Skylight, Five Women Wearing the Same Dress, and Oleanna. She made her feature film directorial debut with Friends and Family, a comedy starring Tony Lo Bianco and Tovah Feldshuh, which was released around the US and Europe, and can now be seen on DVD and Cable TV worldwide. Kristen directed the first production of Waiting for the Glaciers to Melt, a new musical by Tony Award-Nominated Brian Lane Green. Kristen has directed several new works, produced a CD and worked on a variety of musicals in various stages of development, including Steel Pier on Broadway, a Broadway-workshop of The Jazz Singer and Houdini at the Goodspeed Opera House. Kristen worked in production/management for Walt Disney Theatrical Productions (working on international productions of Beauty and the Beast and King David), Andrew Lloyd Webber's Really Useful Company (Sunset Boulevard on Broadway and Joseph... on Tour), and for London's English Shakespeare Company in the Press and Marketing Department.
ANNA ALEX (sound designer) is excited to be returning to Gulfshore Playhouse! She is a recent graduate of Northern Kentucky University as a Corbett scholar. Her credits there include sound design for Urinetown: The Musical, Guys and Dolls, Taming of the Shrew, The Aaronsville Women, Shock and Awe, Nightjars and Cats. She also spent the last two years as Resident Sound Designer for New Stage Collective in Cincinnati where she worked on Caroline or Change, Bug, Take Me Out, Jerry Springer the Opera, and Striking 12. Most recently Peach State Summer Theatre used her skills as Sound Engineer/Designer for White Christmas, Hairspray and Secret Garden. Love and thanks to my family for their support and Annie for always being by my side.
MICHAEL CASSARA, CSA (casting director) casts theatre and film in New York City, and is thrilled to be returning for a third season with Gulfshore Playhouse. Recent credits include Fat Camp (anticipated to open on Broadway in 2012), The Man Who Came To Dinner (New York's Peccadillo Theater Co.), Play It Cool (off-Broadway), Kingdom (The Old Globe), and the films Clear Blue Tuesday and Alienated. Recent regional theatre: The Old Globe, Olney, Great Lakes Theater Festival, Idaho Shakespeare Festival and more. Michael is the resident casting director for the New York Musical Theatre Festival (NYMF) where he has cast over 45 new musicals since its inception in 2004. Michael is a native Clevelander and a member of the Casting Society of America. Please visit http://www.michaelcassara.net.
WILLIAM E. CRUTTENDEN III* (production stage manager) Hailing from Washington DC Will is thrilled to be at the Gulfshore Playhouse in beautiful Naples, FL. His previous credits include; Knuffle Bunny: A Cautionary Musical at the Kennedy Center. A Bright New Boise, Booty Candy, Clybourne Park, Full Circle, BOOM!, Maria Stuart, Measure For Pleasure, and No Child... with the Woolly Mammoth Theatre Company. Perfect Harmony at Theatre Row Off-Broadway. And The Curtain Rises, Sunset Blvd., Chess and I Am My Own Wife at Signature Theatre. 2010 Will Awards at Shakespeare Theatre. Doubt at West Virginia Public Theatre. Is He Dead?, Bad Dates and Of Mice and Men at Olney Theatre Center and Twice Upon A Time at Imagination Stage.
CURTIS LEE JONES (technical director) is happy to return to Naples for another exciting production with Gulfshore Playhouse. A graduate of East Carolina University with a BFA in Production and Design, Curtis has served as Technical Director for Hot Summer Nights at the Kennedy, the Orlando Shakespeare Festival, The Opera Company of North Carolina and Florida Studio Theatre just to name a few. Curtis is also an accomplished scenic, lighting and sound designer whose work has been seen at many regional theatres and on several national tours. Past productions for Gulfshore Playhouse include: Romeo and Juliet: Redefined, Oleanna, Life x 3, Married Alive, Another Night Before Christmas, Doubt: a Parable and Tartuffe, Honour, Beau Jest and A Doll's House.
JENNIFER MURRAY (costume designer/ props mistress) is thrilled to be returning to Gulfshore Playhouse for her third season! She has designed costumes for GSPH since the 2009- 2010 season, but last season, Jennifer decided to try her hand in props too. After an incredible year of theater, she decided to return this year to design both the costumes and props! A few of her favorite shows with GSPH include Beau Jest, A View From the Bridge, and Blithe Spirit. Jennifer would like to thank her GSPH family for another wonderful opportunity to create amazing theater and would also like to thank you, our patrons, for being in that seat and for your support of the arts! If you like what you see here, come back and check out our next show! www.jenniferannemurray.com
ALOK WADHWANI (scenic/lighting designer) is a Northern California native and graduate of Syracuse University's Department of Drama. He has over ten years of experience designing lighting and scenery for various theatrical groups in New York and California, as well as architectural and themed lighting for museums, galleries, and themed attractions in many locations. Recently, he has been spending much of his time designing and programming technical media systems for multi-million dollar productions and entertainment installations around the globe, serving some of the world's most recognizable names. He is currently based out of Orange County, CA, where he oversees all IT and technical media design for a prominent production firm specializing in corporate entertainment and visual media for themed and large-scale theatrical projects. www.alokw.com
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