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ERIK ORTON (Author/Composer) wrote the book, music and lyrics for the new musical, Berlin. He recently served as the Artistic Director for Standard to the Nations at Rado City Music Hall, featuring the largest cast to ever appear on the RCMH stage. He co-wrote the book for Savior of the World, a religous musical drama, which plays each Christmas and Easter season at Salt Lake City's Conference Center Theatre. Mr. Orton co-wrote book, lyrics and music for The Drummings, a full-length musical featured at the Washington D.C. National Theatre Helen Hayes gallery in 1998 and one of seven musicals selected as finalists in the David Merrick American Musical Competition in 1999. He wrote book, lyrics and music for the one act sung-through musical, Esther, based on the biblical account. Esther premiered in 1997 at the Nelke Theatre in the Harris Fine Arts Center. Orton graduated from Brigham Young University with a Bachelor of Arts from the School of Music and a minor in Theatre and Media Arts. He lives in New York City with his wife and three daughters. Orton spent his childhood years in West Germany where his father worked at the same Air Force bases utilized during the Berlin Airlift. Orton is an associate member of the Dramatist Guild of America. |
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JAMIBETH MARGOLIS (Director) most recently served as assistant director toJerry Zaks on Jules Feiffer's new play, A BAD FRIEND, at Lincoln Center Theatre. She also recently directed the commercial workshop of OWL CREEK: A NEW MUSICAL, after having directed the Equity staged reading of it last year. She also directed (at various prominent venues in and around NYC) STANDING HERE: The Music Of Ben Cohn and Sean McDaniel, which is a review show of original musical theater material, including music from OWL CREEK. Other directing credits include many readings, concerts, regional theater productions, and academic productions of such shows as: RAGS, ROMANCE/ROMANCE, BROADWAY BOUND, etc. From 1995-2002, Jamibeth worked as a casting director for the prestigious Johnson-Liff Casting Associates, where she served as casting director for the Broadway and National Touring Companies of CATS, LES MISERABLES, THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA, and many others. She also teaches ongoing class here in NYC in auditioning for the musical theater. Jamibeth has a B.A. in Drama/Directing from Ithaca College. She is a member of Actors' Equity Association, The Casting Society Of America, and an associate member of the Society of Stage Directors and Choreographers. |
| JODY RIPPLINGER (Choreography/Musical Staging) has choreographed several original musicals in both the U.S. and Canada (her native land). Most recently, Miss Saigon at the Gateway Theatre in Long Island. Other credits include the AEA Showcase Productions of HousePlague, a Romeo and Juliet Story, and Elvis: An American Artist, both in NYC; The Most Happy Fella (5th Avenue Theatre, Seattle); Anything Goes (5th Ave Theatre and The Ordway Center, St. Paul); The Grand Duchessof Gerolstein (Opera Theatre of St. Louis); Fatherís House (Vancouver); Showstoppers!, and Come Rain or Come Shine: The Music of Harold Arlen (Toronto). She has worked as associate choreographer with Tony Award winner Wayne Cilento on The Whoís Tommy (Canadian Tour) and Spirit: a journey in dance, drums and song (U.S. National Tour and PBS). As a performer, she has appeared on Broadway and Off in: JosephÖwith Donny Osmond (cast album); The Whoís Tommy; Dream; and Aida (cast album). | |
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MATT TORONTO (Associate Choreographer) as a performer Matt was most recently seen in Singiní in the Rain at the Westchester Broadway Theatre after returning from a National Tour of West Side Story.Other performing credits include Romeo and Juliet (American Globe Theatre), Grease (St. Michaelís Playhouse) and many other productions in New York City and in regional theatres across the country.Choreography credits include Do Black Patent Leather Shoes Really Reflect Up? and a Broadway Cares/Equity Fights Aids benefit at the Sheldon Concert Hall in St. Louis.He has also taught master classes in theatre-dance at the Center of Contemporary Arts (St. Louis), Circa í21 Theatre (Rock Island) and Studio-One (Ann Arbor).As a director his work has been seen at American Theatre of Actors, Theatre Studio Inc., and the Gallery Players (Brooklyn).He has staged and directed several revues and musicals including an outdoor production of Into the Woods.He has also written and directed several of his own plays and short films.His play Mysterious Waysrecently received an honorable mention in the Irreantum Fiction Contest and is expected to be published in 2004.He graduated Summa Cum Laude from the University of Michigan with a B.F.A. in musical theatre. He is member of Actors' Equity Association, Screen Actors Guild and the American Guild of Variety Artists. |
| RICK BERTONE (Music Director) Rick is excited to be a part of the Berlin company! Previous credits include Big River (National Tour), Tommy (Walnut Hill), Footloose (National Tour, Big League), Forever Plaid (Bucks County) and Songs For a New World, Company and Little Shop of Horrors all at NYU. Keyboard credits include Falsettos, And the World Goes 'Round, and Into the Woods. Rick has also musically directed various workshops and cabarets around the city. He holds a Bachelor of Music from NYU and would like to thank his family and friends for their continued support and encouragement. | |
| AMY DALTON (Associate Music Director/Keyboardist) "Berlin" is Amy's first New York gig, after many years of playing, singing, composing and conducting in Southern California and her native Utah. She graduated from Southern Utah University with a bachelor's degree in piano performance, having been named the Music Department's Outstanding Student that year, and later earned a master's degree in choral conducting from Brigham Young University. A one-time member of the Mormon Tabernacle Choir, she had the opportunity to perform in President George W. Bush's inaugural parade and the 2002 Winter Olympics Opening Ceremonies. She has also sung with and toured the United States and eastern Europe with the University of Southern California Chamber Singers, Utah Chamber Artists and Brigham Young University Singers. Amy is a published arranger, with many hymn, Christmas and folk song arrangements in print. Her arrangements have been performed around the U.S. and on international television broadcasts, including the PBS special "A Thanksgiving of American Folk Hymns," on which she also conducted the BYU Women's Chorus. Her arrangement of "Simple Gifts," performed by the BYU Women's Chorus, has been featured in KBYU television advertisements. An active performer and accompanist all her life, Amy has directed music for and accompanied numerous stage productions and music reviews, including "West Side Story", "The Secret Garden", "Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat", "Annie", "Finian's Rainbow", "Damn Yankees", "My Fair Lady", "Oklahoma!" and the original musical "Savior of the World" at the Conference Center in Salt Lake City (collaborating with "Berlin" author/composer Erik Orton). | |
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DOUG ELLIS (Set Designer) The Set Design talents of Mr. Ellis have been used in many aspects of Entertainment. Theatre, Opera, Ballet, Musicals, and in addition, Retail Store Design, Corporate Industrials, Trade Shows, and Exhibits. He also spent years Art Directing and Production Designing feature films and episodic television shows, including four years as the Art Director for "Spin City"staring Michael J. Fox. Recent designs include: The Philadelphia Story, King Lear, KBYU TV Modular Sets, Abinadi, The Snow Queen, Hancock County, The Life and Loves of Emmeline B. Wells, and feature films- The RM and The Home Teachers. He received a BA in Theater Arts from Hunter College and an MFA in Design from New York University. Mr. Ellis currently teaches Production Design and Technical Theatre at Brigham Young University. |
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EDWARD PIERCE (Lighting Designer) collaborated on the Broadway lighting design for Disney's Aida, which won a TONY Award for Best Lighting. Other Broadway design collaborations include Ragtime and Cabaret (both nominated for the TONY Award for Best Lighting), Bring in 'da Noise / Bring in 'da Funk and The Tempest. Current projects include the new Broadway musical Wicked. National and international productions include GRACE - The Musical (Amsterdam), Aida, Ragtime, Cabaret, and Bring in 'da Noise / Bring in 'da Funk. Other design credits include the recent Kennedy Center production of Tell Me on a Sunday (Scenery & Lighting), the off-B'way comedy Blessing in Disguise (Lighting), the Broadway revival of Follies (Projection Design), the recent national tour of The Who's Tommy (Scenery), the off-B'way musical Prodigal (Lighting), the live VH1.com web-cast of the YAHOO! Online Music Awards at Studio 54 [1999 & 2000]; Gypsy of the Year 2000-2002 Awards - BC/EFA Benefit; Kenny Rogers in "Christmas from the Heart" at the Beacon Theatre; The Male Intellect: An Oxymoron; Big Cactus; Elvis: An American Artist; The Tales of the Lost Formicans; Orestes: "I Murdered My Mother"; and various Benefits, Events, and Industrials.His work as a designer has been featured in Entertainment Design magazine. Graduating with honors from the University of Richmond in Theatre, Computer Science, and Latin, Mr. Pierce continued his educational training at Ohio University, earning a Master of Fine Arts in scenic and lighting design |
| BRENDA PHELPS (Costume Designer) has spent the last year in New York as a buyer for Barbara Matera Ltd. Past design credits include: The Threepenny Opera, The Two Gentlemen of Verona, Stories from a Garden, Black Comedy, The Borderland, as well as numerous dance and opera productions. Brenda assisted on the original workshop of Charlyane Woodardís In Real Life directed by Daniel Sullivan. Regional theatres include The Georgia Shakespeare Festival and the past three summers on the production staff of The Colorado Shakespeare Festival. B.A. in Theatre from The University of Georgia, M.F.A in costuming from The University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. | |
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MICHAEL CASSARA (Assistant Director) most recently directed Thornton Wilder's one-act play, Childhood, and has previously worked as an assistant to director Lonny Price on the 1999 revival of Finian's Rainbow. As a performer, Michael created the role of Anton in the US Premiere of Napoleon and other favorite regional theatre credits include Junior-Mister in The Cradle Will Rock (Stage 5 Rep - Columbus, Ohio), Goat in The Robber Bridegroom (Fort Salem Theatre - Salem, NY; Clarion Summer Musical Theatre Festival - Clarion, PA), and Kyle Corbett in the world premiere of the new musical Full Moon (directed by Frank Dunlop at Cleveland's Dobama Theatre). In New York, Michael has worked for Johnson-Liff Casting Associates, Ltd. and Cameron Mackintosh, Inc. as a casting assistant. A native Clevelander, Michael earned his BFA in Musical Theatre from Otterbein College in Columbus, Ohio. |
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NELLIE BEAVERS (Producing Associate) is a transplant from Miami Beach and recently graduated from the American Musical and Dramatic Academy. Her favorite credits include Belle (Walt Disney World), Muse (Walt Disney World), Dorothy (The Wizard of Oz), and The Girl in 14G (Disney Marketplace). Nellie has worked on projects with Showchoir Camps of America, Disney Channel, Mabou Mines, the Genesius Guild, and Camp Broadway. She is the vice-president of Heaven Week, a Miami based choral workshop for high school students. Many thanks to Erik & Jamibeth and especially Donna Reid. www.nelliebeavers.com |
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SHARI DIETZ (Stage Manager) has worked as a stage manager on many different productions in the New York and New Jersey area. She most recently worked on The Glass Menagerie directed by Robert Cuccioli at the Shakespeare Theatre of New Jersey. She has also worked with Opera Festival of New Jersey on Turandot, La Traviata, Barber of Seville and Rape of Lucretia. She was Production Stage Manager for NYUís production of Parade and a premiere produced by PSNBC called Prime Time. Other Stage Management credits include an Equity staged reading of Owl Creek last summer (also with Jamibeth Margolis) and Love After Death a dance piece with Wide Open Arts Dance Company. She has also worked with Passage Theatre Company on their State Street Project, an outreach program for inner city youth. |
| JULIANA CRAWFORD(Assistant Stage Manager) has just finished Stage Managing the North American tour of Cats which was mounted with the creative team last associated with the historic Broadway production (Richard Stafford, dir. & Kristen Blodgette, musical supervisor). National Tours: The Sound of Music and The King and I (which subsequently toured South America). Juliana received her degree from Ball Stage University in Musical Theater, with an emphasis on Stage Management. She would like to thank her family and new husband, Matt, for all their love and support. | |
| RANDOLPH BORDEN (Assistant Stage Manager) is an accomplished actor, writer, and director. He spent 16 years with Walt Disney Entertainment where he wrote and directed for the Disney Cruise Line, Disney Parks, Disney Channel, ESPN, ABC, and the Home and Garden Channel. Randyís first Equity stage management job was for Tiger Tale written and directed by Tennessee Williams. | |
| CATHERINE ROGERS(Prop Mistress): is originally from Poquoson, Virginia. She is a recent graduate from The American Musical and Dramatic Academy here in New York City. This is her first production as Props Mistress. Catherine has won the National Association of Teachers of Singing for Musical Theater in Virginia in 1999 and 2001. Her favorite role to date has been Lucy in "You're A Good Man Charlie Brown". Catherine would like to thank everyone at Berlin the musical, and her parents and Scottish Terrier, Angus, for all their love and support. | |
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Matthew Myhrum.................................Projection Designer
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