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The Cast of Antony & Cleopatra
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John Bogar, Antony Member AEA
This is Mr. Bogar’s grateful Harlequin debut. He has been seen most recently in Persuasion at Book-It Repertory Theatre. At the Seattle Shakespeare Company: Othello, Macbeth, The School for Scandal. Two seasons at the Texas Shakespeare Festival included: Shenandoah, Cymbeline, Comedy of Errors, King Lear. Intiman Theatre: The Grapes of Wrath. The Bathhouse Theatre: Bloody Poetry, The Heiress. The Empty Space: The Empress of Eden, Dealers Choice. Mr. Bogar holds an M.F.A from Columbia University where he performed Hamlet at the Theatre of Riverside Church. His next production will be Turn of the Screw back at the Seattle Shakespeare Company. |
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Mari Nelson, Cleopatra Member AEA
After graduating from The Juilliard School, Mari began her professional career in the New York Shakespeare Festival production of Twelfth Night in Central Park. In her Broadway debut, she originated the role of Elizabeth in John Guare’s Six Degrees of Separation. Subsequent Broadway appearances include Sarah Brown in Guys & Dolls and Moira in Brian Friel’s Translations. Mari also gave the world premiere of Joe Orton’s Up Against It, with music by Todd Rundgren (Joseph Papp Public Theater). Regional credits include Private Lives (Alley Theater, Houston), Arms & the Man, As You Like It, An Ideal Husband (Center Stage, Baltimore), and Present Laughter (Hartford Stage). Closer to home, Mari has been featured in Arms & the Man, Intimate Apparel and Nora (Intiman); An American Daughter as well as Twelfth Night (Seattle Rep); Going to St. Ives, Omnium Gatherum, Miss Witherspoon and Grand Magic (ACT); A is for Alice, The Voice of the Turtle, As You Like It, Hay Fever, and Crimes of the Heart (TAG); A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Frozen, The Love List, The Constant Wife, Arcadia, The Tempest, Hapgood, Rough Crossing, Stardust Serenade, and Stardust Cavalcade (Harlequin). Mari starred in Bad Girls, directed by Amos Koleck, and also Back Spot Turn, an independent feature film shot in Seattle. TV credits include Ilsa in “One Life to Live,” Brenda in “Another World” and MTV’s “Pirate TV,” as well as numerous commercial voiceovers. No stranger to the concert stage, Mari performed Honnegger’s King David with The Orchestra of St. Luke’s and The Choir of Men & Boys (St. Thomas Fifth Avenue, NYC) as well as collaborating with Taj Mahal on Slain in the Spirit (St. Ann’s for Restoration & the Arts, Brooklyn, NY). Mari also returns this summer as an instructor for The Shakespeare Experience, our student acting workshop. |
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Paul Purvine, Octavius
Paul is a River Ridge High School graduate (2000) and studied theater at Centralia College. Previous roles with Harlequin include Lolo in Enrico IV, Lysander in A Midsummer Night’s Dream, a Tragedian in Rosencrantz & Guildenstern Are Dead and Abraham/Friar John in Romeo and Juliet. Other roles include Kippy in Take Me Out (TAO), Jesus in Godspell (St. Martin’s University), the title role in Fortinbras (Centralia College), Francis in La Cage aux Folles (Capital Playhouse), Bo in Bus Stop and Jeff in The Curious Savage (Olympia Little Theater). Paul is a staff member at Creative Theatre Experience and a member of Theater Artists Olympia and the Northwest Playwrights Alliance. |
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Frank Lawler, Pompey/Ensemble
Frank is delighted to return to the other side of Harlequin’s stage after directing last season’s Accomplice. His previous roles here include Lucio in Measure for Measure and Coleman in The Lonesome West. Frank was also seen in various roles in The Elsinore Diaries, a show he co-penned with his writing partners Daniel Flint and Jason Marr. He has worked with various theatres in the Puget Sound area; acting credits include Pandarus in Troilus and Cressida (Sound Theatre Company), Charles in Book-It’s Persuasion, Tzara in the Seattle Times Footlight Award-winning production of Travesties (Seattle Public Theater), all eight male characters in On The Verge (Arts West), Dudard in Rhinoceros (Capitol Hill Arts Center) and Harold in Out of Order (Edge of the World Theatre). This past summer, he directed Greater Tuna at Second Story Repertory Theatre. Frank is a graduate of Harvard University, an alumnus of the actor training program at Shakespeare and Company, and Vice-President of the board of directors of Theatre Puget Sound. He sends his love to his beautiful wife and best friend, Ann, and to their handsome where-did-the-time-go-he’s-not-a-toddler-anymore son Rowan. |
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Dennis Rolly, Lepidus/Ensemble
Dennis was first shot from Shakespeare’s canon in the role of King Lear. Since then he has loaded his resume with portrayals of over two dozen of the Bard’s characters. Our audiences have seen him in Romeo & Juliet, Measure for Measure, The Tempest, King John, The Winter’s Tale, Rosencrantz & Guildenstern Are Dead, Enrico IV, Cyrano de Bergerac, and The Rainmaker. Locally, he showcased a one-man show called Shylock, based on The Merchant of Venice. Among his favorite roles are Shylock, John of Gaunt, and the colorful Malvolio. Dennis recently directed Theater Artists of Olympia’s production of The Merchant of Venice. |
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Roderick Campbell, Eros/Ensemble
Roderick is the baby in the cast, this is his second performance of Shakespeare and his third time on stage as an actor. He discovered theatre after moving to Olympia from Casper, Wyoming. The first play he ever saw was here at Harlequin two years ago. It was A Midsummer Nights Dream. He has been spellbound ever since. In fact, two weeks after seeing the show he dropped his international law major and changed it to Theatre Arts and Directing. His debut on stage was in last year’s production of Macbeth. He also appeared as Ray Dooley at Olympia Little Theater’s production of The Beauty Queen of Leenan as a director. He has directed stage productions of Aristophanes, The Birds, a slew of short works and he will be directing Martin McDonagh’s The Pillowman this winter at South Puget Sound Community College. Roderick looks forward to developing his theatre career by working on more Shakespeare and branching out to more regional theatre opportunities. Thank you family for all your support and thank you Scot for being such an amazing mentor! |
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Jared Van Heel, Enobarbus/Ensemble
Jared is thrilled to be making his first appearance in the State Theater with Antony and Cleopatra. Some of his past credits include Zolton Karpathy in My Fair Lady (Centerstage), a national tour of The trip to Bountiful, regional tour of Frankenstein, Mitch in Cyclone, Buck in Betty's Summer Vacation, the world premiere of Breach by Barret O'Brien (Montana Repertory Theatre), and Jimmy Harper in Reefer Madness! The Musical (K-Mo Pro). He was an ensemble member with the Buttenik Ensemble in their christening season and has worked as an actor, director and fight choreographer for companies such as the Big Sky Repertory Theatre, Summer Musicale Theatre Co., and Pretty One Prod. Some other favorite roles include Captain Hook/Mr. Darling in Peter Pan, Kit Carson in The Time of Your Life and Oed in Big Love.
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Carolyn Marie Monroe, Charmian
Carolyn is delighted to make her Harlequin debut. She is grateful for this opportunity to collaborate with such a talented group of artists on this extraordinary play. Carolyn was most recently seen as Ophelia in Hamlet (Greenstage). Other favorite Seattle roles include Evie in The American Pilot (Theater Schmeater), Hannah in Be Agressive (Art Attack Ensemble) and Lucy in Dracula (Burien Little Theater). Look for her later this winter in End Days at Seattle Public Theatre.
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Sara Flotree, Alexas/Ensemble
Ms. Flotree, blessed over the years to have portrayed a diverse collection of characters, makes her Harlequin debut with her most unusual role -- Magenta. How appropriate it seems! Other favorite roles include the Fortune Teller in the recent Capital Playhouse production of Side Show as well as the Beggar Woman in Sweeney Todd. Her other musical theatre credits include; Sheila in A Chorus Line, Josephine Strong in Urinetown, Alaura/Carla in City of Angels, Godspell, Silvia in Two Gentlemen of Verona -- the Musical and Eliza in My Fair Lady. She has also performed the roles of Melissa in Love Letters, Bobbi Michelle in Last of the Red Hot Lovers, and Judge Murdoch in Nuts, as well as roles in children's theatre productions of Robin Hood, The Boy Who Rescued the Sun, Charlotte's Web, and Brave Little Taylor. Other credits include principal on-camera and voice-over work for corporate videos as well as radio spots. She is currently working on the second draft of her first young adult novel. Many thanks to those who continue to follow my theatrical work! |
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Kolya Schweppe, Mardian/Ensemble
Kolya is exuberant to be making his Harlequin debut! He earned his Bachelor of Arts in Theatre from Fort Lewis College in Durango, Colorado. Some highlights of his college theatre credits include Sky in The Essence with the Intertribal Theatre Project, Don John in Much Ado About Nothing, Horatio in Fortinbras and many others. His last professional theatre credits include: Vico and Marco in A Witless Rogue, and Major Coffin in The Wicklow Wedding for the Diamond Circle Melodrama in Durango, Colorado. Although he enjoyed his seven year hiatus from the world of theatre, mostly to teach English in China, he is ecstatic to be able to continue his acting career in the most capable hands of Harlequin Productions. Special thanks to the Whitneys for the chance to be involved in such a great show, and to his parents and friends for their love and support. |
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Shane Rivers, Philo/Ensemble
Shane is excited to be making his Harlequin debut with this production. He has been seen in many productions around the area, most recently as Clarence in Olympia Little Theatre's production of It's a Wonderful Life. Shane is a high school teacher and has taught both English and Drama. He is a "local boy" having been born and raised right here in Olympia, Washington. He enjoys spending time at home with his wife and three year old daughter, and hopes to one day play wide receiver for the Seattle Seahawks :) |
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Emilie Rommell-Shimkus, Octavia/Iras
We welcome back Emilie to the Harlequin stage! She was last seen as a mustachioed Transylvanian in The Rocky Horror Show and as Nora Lynne in Operation Stardust. A Puget Sound native and Pacific Lutheran University graduate, other recent local credits include The Seven Year Itch and 1776 (Tacoma Little Theatre), and The Hollow and Black Coffee (Lakewood Playhouse). In addition to commercial, film, and voiceover work, Emilie sings lead vocals for Igneous Rocks (www.igrocks.com). Love always to her family, and to Matt, who agreed to make Antony & Cleopatra "part of the honeymoon."
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Matt Shimkus, Agrippa/Ensemble
Matt is thrilled to return to the Harlequin stage. Since Operation Stardust, Matt has appeared as Demetrius in A Midsummer Night’s Dream with Wooden O Productions and in the ensemble of Little Women at the Village Theatre. Regionally, Matt has been seen at Seattle Repertory Theatre(Twelfe Night), The Village Theatre (Once Upon a Time in New Jersey), Contemporary Classics (A New Brain), the Fifth Avenue Theatre’s Adventure Musical Theatre(Klondike!), Civic Light Opera (Children of Eden) and Renton Civic Theatre (Wait Until Dark). Matt has also worked at Chicago Shakespeare Theatre (Hecuba, Much Ado About Nothing) and been seen in productions at the Chicago College of Performing Arts and Pacific Lutheran University. Matt would like to thank his fellow cast and crew for all their wonderful work, and his family, friends, and beautiful wife Emilie for their love and support. |
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