January 14—January 29, 2022
By
Jeff Talbott
A (very!) timely World Premiere
Norway. 1882. The Stockman home. Sound familiar? Not so fast. Therese Stockman is a small-town doctor and single mother who has made a shocking discovery about the industry that gives her town its lifeblood. Her friend Kristine Hovstad, the editor of The Messenger (one of the two competing newspapers in town), is going to take the story and run with it, but at what cost? Using Henrik Ibsen’s classic An Enemy of the People as a departure point, this brand-new play examines our relationships with the press, our community, and each other.
We also examine where to draw the line when deciding the right move to make.
Tickets are no longer available for this show.
Important Dates
Monday – Thursday , 7:00 PM
Friday & Saturday, 7:30 PM
Saturday, 2:00 PM
Sponsors
Lawrence T. & Janet T. Dee Foundation
Overview
Cast
*Members of the Actors’ Equity Association
Creative
JEFF TALBOTT (Playwright) Jeff Talbott’s play “i” had its world premiere at PTC in 2018. His first play The Submission (MCC Theater, NYC) won the Laurents/Hatcher Award and the Outer Critics Circle John Gassner Award for New American Play. Other plays: The Gravedigger’s Lullaby (off-Broadway – TACT/Theatre Row), Civics And Humanities For Non-Majors (Commissioned And Produced By Montclair State University), A Public Education (Out Of Box Theatre, Atlanta); Joseph Cook, How To Build A City, Three Rules For The Dragon, Elliot And All The Stars In The Midnight Sky. He writes musicals with composer Will Van Dyke; their EPs and singles are available wherever you stream music. Together, Jeff and Will were finalists for the 2022 Edward Kleban Award and the 2019 Fred Ebb Award. Jeff graduated with honors from the Yale School of Drama. www.jefftalbott.com
WES GRANTOM (Director) is delighted to be back at PTC after directing The Lifespan of a Fact, The Lion in Winter, A Comedy of Tenors and three Play-by-Play presentations. He has also worked at Ars Nova, Pittsburgh CLO, Williamstown Theatre Festival, Asolo Rep, Berkshire Theatre Group, Theatreworks USA, Premiere Stages, the Atlantic, New Harmony Project, Roundabout Theatre Company, among others. Wes has a number of Broadway credits as resident and associate director, working alongside James Lapine, Emma Rice, John Rando, Anthony Page and Rufus Norris. He is a recipient of multiple Drama League Fellowships, a member of Lincoln Center Directors Lab, and is on faculty at the University of Evansville.
WILL VAN DYKE (Music Composer) currently serves as the Music Supervisor/Orchestrator/Arranger of the hit revival of Little Shop Of Horrors Off-Broadway. Will also Orchestrated and Arranged Pretty Woman on Broadway and continues to Supervise worldwide. Other credits: Kinky Boots, Rent, The Addams Family, Grease, and Wicked. As a composer: i (Pioneer), The Gravedigger’s Lullaby (TACT), Straight (Acorn), Writing Kevin Taylor (Village), The Lion King Experience titles (Disney). Will also writes musicals with Jeff Talbott and is one-half of the band Stereo Dawn (@stereodawn). For more info and music: www.willvandyke.com or @wvdmusic.
YOON BAE (Scenic and Costume Design) Yoon is an international scenographer. She is delighted to return to Pioneer Theatre Company and work with talented production staff. For The Messenger, Yoon is grateful to have the unique opportunity to design both set and costume for a PTC’s world-premiere production. Previously for PTC, she designed set for Once and costumes for Once On This Island. Other credits include Don Giovanni (Welsh National Opera), Candide (Tokyo), Closer (Seoul), Oedipus El Rey, The Great Gatsby, Three Sisters, The Importance of Being Earnest, Emma, The Sunshine Boys, Evita, Murder On The Orient Express, The Magic Flute, Anything Goes, As You Like It. UK world premieres include Running the Silk Road (Barbican), Three Thousand Troubled Threads (Edinburgh International Festival), Bedevilled (Crucible), Disconnect, Caridad Svich’s Archipelago, and Howard Barker’s Wounds To The Face. She is a professor at the University of Kentucky and a member of Local USA 829 and Wingspace. www.yoonbae.com
BRIAN TOVAR (Lighting Design) is an award winning and Drama Desk nominated lighting designer who has created original work for major off-Broadway and regional theaters, everywhere. Brian has designed lighting for World and NYC Premieres of over 50 productions including Nick Balemire’s Soon (Signature Theatre), Michael Mitnick’s Ed Downloaded (Denver Center Theater) and Sleeping Rough. Brian’s regional credits include Goodspeed Musicals, Signature Theatre, Denver Center Theatre, Two River Theatre, Northern Stage, ReVision Theatre and Flat Rock Playhouse. Broadway Assistant credits include HAIR and Passing Strange. Brian is also the co-founder of Livesight, a multi-disciplined design and production company.
JENNIFER GREGORY (Production Stage Manager) is thrilled to be a part of PTC. Prior to this, she stage-managed in Chicago, where her credits included X-Marks the Spot (Tour, Chicago Children’s Theatre); Bloomsday, Frankenstein, Puff: Believe It or Not, The Skin of Our Teeth, and Born Yesterday (Remy Bumppo Theatre Company); A Parcel from America (Irish Theatre of Chicago); The Little Flower of East Orange (Eclipse Theatre Company); and Disgraced, A Christmas Carol, Another Word for Beauty, The Matchmaker, The Sign in Sidney Brustein’s Window, and War Paint (Goodman Theatre). Outside of Chicago, Jennifer has also worked at Mason Street Warehouse, Arkansas Repertory Theatre, Kitchen Theatre Company and PTC for the season opener Ain’t Misbehavin’.
MARY P. COSTELLO (Stage Manager) has worked on over 60 productions during 11 seasons with PTC. Favorites include Sting’s The Last Ship, Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street, Les Misèrables, In the Heights, Next to Normal, and Rent. Other stage management teams: Indiana Repertory Theatre, Connecticut Repertory Theatre, Boston Theatre Works, Grand Valley Shakespeare Festival, and the Utah Shakespeare Festival. Proud Equity member. #blacklivesmatter #translivesmatter
EMILY NACRISSA GRIFFITH (1st Assistant Stage Manager) graduated from Utah Valley University with a Bachelor of Science in Theatre Arts with emphases in performance and design/technology. Griffith earned the Kennedy Center’s Meritorious Achievement Award for her work as the production stage manager of UVU’s Next to Normal, which received the Kennedy Center American College Theatre Festival national award for Outstanding Production.
SAMANTHA WOOTTEN (Hair and Makeup Designer) is excited to join the Pioneer Theatre Company and the University of Utah as Wig Master. Previous career highlights include Washington National Opera in D.C., Glimmerglass Opera in N.Y., Los Angeles Opera in CA, and Repertory Theatre of St. Louis.
Publicity
Media
Spotlight for Learning
Content Advisory
SYNOPSIS: Therese Stockman works as a doctor in a small Scandinavian town. A new, desperately needed business venture in the community might be contributing to a spreading illness, affecting citizens young and old. Stockman, her brother Peter, who happens to be the town’s mayor, and the local newspaper editor, Kristine Hovstad, wrestle with competing challenges pitting the the local economy against the community’s welfare, all alongside a journalist’s obligation to inform.
LANGUAGE: None.
SMOKING AND DRINKING: None.
SEX: None.
VIOLENCE: There are tense moments as the community protests, including a rock being thrown through a window.
FOR WHICH AUDIENCES?: The Messenger is suitable for all ages, although children under age 10 may find it too advanced.
