MARSHALL BRICKMAN (Book). Films (author or co-author): Sleeper, Annie Hall, Manhattan, Manhattan Murder Mystery, For the Boys, Intersection; (as writer/director): Simon, Lovesick, The Manhattan Project, Sister Mary Explains it All. Television: “The Tonight Show With Johnny Carson” (head writer), “The Dick Cavett Show” (head writer/co-producer). He has published in The New York Times, The New Yorker, Playboy and other periodicals and was the 2006 recipient of the Writers Guild of America’s Ian McClellan Hunter Lifetime Achievement Award. Jersey Boys, his first venture into musical theatre, won four Tonys including Best Musical. The Addams Family, his second Broadway venture (with co-author Rick Elice), is currently playing on national and international tours. He lives in New York City and hopes to die in his sleep, surrounded by his loved ones and their attorneys.

RICK ELICE (Book) co-wrote Jersey Boys (winner 2006 Tony Award, 2007 Grammy Award and 2009 Olivier Award for Best Musical) with the great Marshall Brickman; The Addams Family; Peter and the Starcatcher (winner of five 2012 Tony Awards); and The Cher Show (currently on tour in the UK). In the pipeline: The Princess Bride for Disney; Smash for Robert Greenblatt, Neil Meron and Steven Spielberg, music and lyrics by Marc Shaiman and Scott Wittman, directed by Susan Stroman. Rick is also adapting Sara Gruen’s novel Water for Elephants; the popular film, Silver Linings Playbook; and writing an original musical, Treasure, with 2021 Ed Kleban Award-winner Benjamin Scheuer. Rick’s book, Finding Roger, An Improbably Theatrical Love Story, is published by Kingswell. Heartfelt thanks to those whose theatre work makes him grateful for the day he was born: Sondheim, Stoppard, Bennett, Prince, Fosse, Robbins, Nichols, Nunn, Laurents, Stone, Taymor, Papp, Schumacher, Schneider, David, Strong, Gaudio, Valli, McAnuff, Trujillo, Timbers, Coyne, Brickman, and, eternally, Roger Rees. Rick thinks about them a lot. He never thought about Jersey much. He does now.

BOB GAUDIO (Composer) wrote his first hit, “Who Wears Short Shorts,” at 15, for the Royal Teens, and then went on to become a founding member of the Four Seasons and the band’s principal songwriter. He also produced the hit “You Don’t Bring Me Flowers” for Neil Diamond and Barbra Streisand (Grammy nomination, Record of the Year) as well as six albums for Diamond, including The Jazz Singer. Other producing credits include albums for Frank Sinatra, Marvin Gaye, Diana Ross, Michael Jackson and the soundtrack for the film Little Shop of Horrors. Several songs co-written with Bob Crewe have been cover hits for such artists as the Tremeloes (“Silence is Golden”), the Walker Brothers (“The Sun Ain’t Gonna Shine Anymore”) and Lauryn Hill (“Can’t Take My Eyes Off You”). With his wife, Judy Parker, Gaudio produced and co-wrote the Who Loves You album for the Four Seasons and one of Billboard’s longest-charted singles (54 weeks), “Oh, What a Night.” A high point in his career came in 1990 when, as a member of the original Four Seasons, Gaudio was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. In 1995, he was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame, which hailed him as “a quintessential music-maker.” To this day, Bob Gaudio and Frankie Valli still maintain their partnership…on a handshake.

BOB CREWE (Lyricist) “New York was pregnant in the fifties,” says Bob Crewe, “gestating with possibilities.” Crewe and music partner Frank Slay became independent writer-producers when the category hadn’t yet been invented. In 1957 they wrote and produced “Silhouettes” for The Rays, which skyrocketed to #1. Suddenly, producers in demand, they launched Freddie Cannon’s “Tallahassee Lassie” and Billy & Lillie’s “Lah Dee Da.” Crewe’s 1960’s unprecedented producing success with The Four Seasons birthed a new sound, striking a major chord in American pop. “Sherry, “Big Girls Don’t Cry,” “Walk Like a Man,” “Candy Girl,” “Ronnie” – all smashes! When lead Frankie Valli demanded a solo turn, Crewe and Bob Gaudio wrote (and Crewe produced) ‘Can’t Take My Eyes Off of You,” which eventually became the century’s fifth most-played song. Crewe ran hot with artists from Vicki Carr, Oliver and Lesly Gore to Mitch Ryder, co-writing with Charles Fox the soundtrack for Jane Fonda’s film, Barbarella. Then his own Bob Crewe Generation exploded with Music to Watch Girls By. In 1972 Bob was in L.A., where he revived Frankie Valli with “My Eyes Adored You” by Crewe and Kenny Nolan. They also co-wrote Patti LaBelle’s “Lady Marmalade” (#1, July ’75), which was a hit again on the soundtrack of Moulin Rouge (#1, June ’01)…David Ritz

KAREN AZENBERG (Director/Choreographer) This marks Karen Azenberg’s 13th season as Artistic Director at PTC. Favorite projects include last season’s Natasha, Pierre & The Great Comet of 1812 and The Lehman Trilogy, as well as the world premiere of Alabama Story, the regional premiere of Sting’s The Last Ship, and Newsies, The Play That Goes Wrong, and The Rocky Horror Show. Originally from New York, her work there includes Lyrics and Lyricists (92nd St. Y), Blocks (a collaboration with Jonathan Larson) Prom Queens Unchained, and choreography for Richard Greenberg’s The Dazzle (Roundabout Theatre Company). Among her other credits are over 15 productions of West Side Story and she has worked with Indiana Repertory Theatre, Geva Theatre, Alabama Shakespeare Festival, Goodspeed, Theatre Aspen, and Utah Shakespeare Festival. Karen is a past president of the Stage Directors and Choreographers Society (SDC) and is a proud Mom to Alexander and Emelia.

PHIL RENO (Musical Director/Conductor) has been Musical Director/Conductor for numerous Broadway shows: Something Rotten!; Elf!; Promises, Promises; The Drowsy Chaperone; The Producers; Thou Shalt Not; Dame Edna: The Royal Tour and Back With a Vengeance; Cats. Phil also conducted the Rockettes for six seasons at the Radio City Christmas Spectacular. National Tours: Joseph… (with Donny Osmond); original company Music of the Night; Starlight Express; Bob Fosse’s Sweet Charity. Off-Broadway: A New Brain; Nightmare Alley; Enter Laughing; Chess. Phil has conducted seven original cast albums and is a two-time Grammy nominee as producer of the Something Rotten! and The Drowsy Chaperone cast recordings. Previously at PTC: Sweet Charity; Chess; The Will Rogers Follies; Dirty Rotten Scoundrels; Sweeney Todd; Hello, Dolly!; Putting It Together; The Prom; and Natasha, Pierre & The Great Comet of 1812.

JO WINIARSKI (Scenic Design) Jo’s previous designs at PTC were Natasha, Pierre & The Great Comet of 1812; Native Gardens; The Prom; What the Constitution Means to Me; A Distinct Society; Ass; The Lifespan of a Fact; and Ain’t Misbehavin’. Jo’s Off-Broadway credits include The Fears, HYPROV, Accidentally Brave, The Absolute Brightness of Leonard Pelkey, and Love, Loss, and What I Wore. Regional design credits include Guthrie Theater; Arizona Theatre Company; Utah Shakespeare Festival (over 40 shows); The Old Globe; Berkeley Repertory Theatre; Oregon Shakespeare Festival; Dallas Theater Center; and Geva Theatre Center. Additional credits include Wishes for Disney Cruise Line. Jo was the art director on Late Night with Seth Meyers (episodes 1-844) and received an Emmy nomination for art direction for A Colbert Christmas: The Greatest Gift of All. 

BRENDA VAN DER WIEL (Costume Design) is part of the design faculty for the University of Utah Theatre Department and serves as head of the Performing Arts Design Program. She designs regularly for that department as well as for PTC, Utah Shakespeare Festival, and The Alabama Shakespeare Festival. Her work at PTC includes Scapin, Sweeney Todd, Fences, Outside Mullingar, Alabama Story, Rent, and Emma. Some favorite designs for the Alabama Shakespeare Festival include Annie, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, The Little Mermaid, Mary Poppins, Macbeth, Much Ado About Nothing, The Comedy of Errors and The Count of Monte Cristo. Her work at Utah Shakespeare Festival includes Mary Poppins, Treasure Island and A Midsummer Night’s Dream.

CHRISTINA WATANABE (Lighting Design) is an award-winning lighting designer and educator for theatre, dance, music, and events. Previously at Pioneer Theatre Company: Elf The Musical. Regional: Denver Center, Trinity Rep, Dallas Theatre Center, Contemporary American Theatre Festival, The Rep St. Louis, Oregon Shakespeare Festival, Alabama Shakespeare Festival, Arkansas Rep, OKC Rep, Theatre Aspen, TheatreWorks Hartford, Virginia Stage Company, Charlottesville Opera. Select NYC: Lincoln Center, The Public, WP Theatre, INTAR, EST, Primary Stages, Cherry Lane, 59E59, HERE, New Ohio, Theatre Row, Bushwick Starr. TV: Colin Quinn (co-design). Faculty: Sargent Conservatory at Webster University. USITT Gateway Mentor. Knights of Illumination winner. MFA: NYU. Member USA 829. www.StarryEyedLighting.com.

AARON HUBBARD (Sound Design) is enjoying his 17th season with Pioneer Theatre Company in sound mix and design. His favorite productions have been Sting’s The Last Ship, Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street, Next to Normal, and One Man, Two Guvnors. Aaron teaches sound production and recording at Weber State University, and in his spare time he records and produces music. His favorite star is his wife, Melissa, who puts up with all the late theatre nights.

TAMI LEE THOMPSON (Hair & Makeup Design) Previous credits include: Natasha, Pierre & The Great Comet of 1812,  Bonnie & Clyde, and Agatha Christie’s Murder on the Orient Express (Pioneer Theatre Company); Sherlock Holmes and the Case of the Christmas Goose and A Christmas Story (Barter Theater); Jelly’s Last Jam, The Underpants, A Christmas Carol, Bluish, Intimate Apparel, Moonlight and Magnolias, Tick, Tick…. Boom!, and The Stinky Cheeseman and Other Fairly Stupid Tales (Alliance Theater); A Flea in Her Ear, Da, Born Yesterday, Twelfth Night, Inherit The Wind, and The Philadelphia Story (Asolo Theater); Twelfth Night, Coriolanus, and King Lear (Utah Shakespeare Festival); Bertolt Brecht’s The Life of Galileo (University of Notre Dame); and 42nd Street (Pacific Conservatory for the Performing Arts).

SARAH SHIPPOBOTHAM (Dialect Coach) is an actor, dialect coach, intimacy consultant, and Professor in Acting, and Dialects at the University of Utah. Sarah trained as a Voice and Dialect Coach at The Central School of Speech and Drama in London. Her work as Dialect Coach for PTC includes The Lehman Trilogy, A Distinct Society, Fireflies, Once, Miss Bennet: Christmas at Pemberley, Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street, Oslo, The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time, The Last Ship, and Oliver!. Other Dialect/Voice coaching credits include eighteen seasons with the Shaw Festival (Canada), and shows for Salt Lake Acting Company including Sleeping Giant and Passing Strange. In 2011/12, Sarah spent seven months in New Zealand working as a dialect coach on The Hobbit films.

JAMES O. HANSEN* (Production Stage Manager) is thrilled to be in his second season here at Pioneer Theatre Company! Other credits include: Joseph…Dreamcoat (starring David Archuleta), Mary Poppins, and Wonderland at Tuacahn Amphitheatre. Clue (starring Sally Struthers), The Wedding Singer, A Christmas Carol, and Flashdance (starring Julia Macchio) at The Gateway Playhouse. James earned a Bachelor’s Degree in Arts Management from Dean College. Special thanks to his Mom, Family, and Ostie for their love and support! DHH.

EMILY ROTH* (Stage Manager) is very excited to be joining Pioneer Theatre Company this season! Recent credits include: The Woman in Black US Tour (Pemberley Productions), Miss Saigon (White Plains Performing Arts Center), Dial M for Murder and Sea Monsters of the Deep (White Heron Theatre Company), Lesley Nicol’s How The Hell Did I Get Here? (Pemberley Productions), and Ajijaak on Turtle Island (IBEX Puppetry). She is the co-author of Stage Management Basics: A Primer for Performing Arts Stage Managers (Focal Press © 2017, 2nd ed © 2022).

LYDIA RUNGE* (Assistant Stage Manager) is a freelance stage manager based in Los Angeles and is excited to return to Jersey! Select credits include: Jersey Boys, On Your Feet, Kinky Boots, Million Dollar Quartet, Honky Tonk Angels (Riverside Theatre); Sanctuary City, Head Over Heels, The Great Leap (Pasadena Playhouse); Our Dead Drug Lord (Center Theatre Group); Assassins, Mamma Mia!, Man of God, As We Babble On, Allegiance (East West Players); The Little Foxes, Our Town (South Coast Repertory); An American in Paris, Cinderella, Grease, Ragtime (Musical Theatre West). She is a graduate of the University of Wisconsin – La Crosse with a B.S. in Stage Management. 

MURNANE CASTING is a first-class office in New York City specializing in casting theatre, film, and television projects nationwide. We focus on developing new works and collaborating with emerging creators. Our mission is to curate exceptional ensembles of artists in a relaxed and imaginative casting environment. Learn more at MurnaneCasting.com.

PIONEER THEATRE COMPANY (PTC) Now celebrating its 63rd season, the award-winning PTC is Utah’s premiere professional theatre company and leading arts organization of the West. Led by Artistic Director Karen Azenberg and Managing Director Adrian Budhu, PTC presents world-class productions that celebrate diversity in culture and society and serve as the connecting bridge between art and scholarship as an affiliate of the University of Utah. 

ACTORS’ EQUITY ASSOCIATION (AEA) Founded in 1933, AEA represents more than 51,000 professional Actors and Stage Managers nationwide. Equity seeks to foster the art of live theatre as an essential component of society and advances the careers of its members by negotiating wages, improving working conditions and providing a wide range of benefits, including health and pension plans. Actor’s Equity is a member of the AFL-CIO and is affiliated with FIA, an international organization of performing arts unions. #equityworks

*Member of Actors’ Equity Association, the Union of Professional Actors and Stage Managers in the United States