Digital Playbill: TBA

TBA Cast and Crew, Fall 2023

An Asian American actor reads from a script

Mia Lindsay as Darren

A woman in a purple shirt reads from a script

Zoe Diao as Maya

Chase Keelin reads Stage Directions, Bennett Buchholz as Silas

An Asian American man smiles fondly on a woman

Bennett Buchholz as Silas and Zoe Diao as Maya

A seated Latino man in a leather jacket leads on a table

Ricardo Guevara as Finn

A confrontation over a table between two men

Ricardo Guevara as Finn and Bennett Buchholz as Silas

An African American woman reads from a script

Allana Gladman as Maxie

Light Board Operator, Charlotte Smith

all photos by Ryan Reynolds

TBA

by Carla Ching

Artistic Team

Playwright: Carla Ching

Director: Barbie Wu

Stage Manager: Makenzie Binsacca

Lighting Design: Lili Gudgel

Costume Coordination: Taylor Andreas

Cast

Silas: Bennett Buchholz

Maya: Zoe Diao

Maxie: Allana Gladman

Darren: Mia Lindsay

Finn: Ricardo Guevara

Stage Directions: Chase Keelin

Production Crew

Assistant Stage Manager: Aria Hroma

Light Board Operator: Charlotte Smith

Wardrobe: Connor Alexander

Theater Program Production Staff

Production Manager: Andy Christensen

Scene Shop Supervisor: Eric Adams

Costume Shop Supervisor: Sue Bonde

Primary Electrician: Lili Gudgel

Scene Shop Technicians and Electricians: Anthony Albelo, Fin Bagshaw, Hilario Corral Flores, Casey James, Judah Juarez, Rowan Lowery, Julia Moran, Sofia Olin, Kai Sapp

Costume Construction: Amber Beeks, Alaina Cruson, Claire Hadley, Nick Hailer, Aria Hroma, Jenelle Josias, Zora Richardson, Lilly Grey Rudge

Costume Shop Volunteer: Janet Bemis

Marketing Director: Lezlie Cross

Marketing Assistant: Ashwini Chandrakanth

Box Office Manager: Yoshimi Lin

Front of House Manager: Mindi Logan

Ushers: Sarai Bunting, Fiona Haselton, Ysabelle Pobre

The show runs 90 minutes with no intermission.

If you have enjoyed the show, we invite you to support our program by making a donation to the Theater Patrons Fund. You can donate online at giving.up.edu/pfa (select Theater Patrons Fund) or by contacting the University’s Development Office (503.943.8003)

From the Director

TBA by Carla Ching is the first production at UP Theater with an entire cast from the Black, Indigenous, and people of color community. Carla has given us a play where people are complicated, and truths are hard to mine. This play challenges every actor to fight for their character’s humanity even when their character is flawed. I appreciate that Carla asks us those hard questions with moral implications and doesn’t let anyone off the hook.

Witnessing this ensemble making fearless and specific choices have been thrilling, revitalizing, and healing. This process has been one full of exploration, laughter, and endless support from the cast, crew, and my incredible colleagues at the University of Portland.

Biographies

Bennett Buchholz, he/him (Silas) is a UP Alumni ('23) from Seattle, WA. Bennett is delighted to be a part of UP's production of TBA. Recently, you might have seen him in UP's production of Twelfth Night as Sir Toby Belch, in Everybody as a Somebody, or in Company as Robert. He would like to thank his Director Barbie Wu, the stage management team, the whole production crew, and the wonderful cast of this show for making this whole thing possible.

Makenzie Binsacca she/her (Stage Manager) is a senior theater major from Sammamish, Washington. Makenzie is excited to be making her stage-managing debut! She has participated in many shows both backstage and onstage at UP. Most recently, she was an Assistant Stage Manager for the production of Twelfth Night and played the role of Death in Everybody. She would like to thank Barbie for being a wonderful director, the cast and Andy for their support and her stage-managing idol Natalie Davis. Enjoy the show!

Carla Ching (Playwright) is a Chinese American native Angeleno who called NYC home for 16 years. She writes plays that interrogate why people do terrible things to people they love. Her work centers on women and people of color, especially with the endeavor to allow Asian Americans to be portrayed in their full complexity, depth and nuance. Her other plays include The Play I’m Writing So I Don’t Die from Rage, Revenge Porn or The Story of a Body, Nomad Motel, The Two Kids That Blow Shit Up, Fast Company, and The Sugar House at the Edge of the Wilderness. On television, Carla has written for Graceland, Fear the Walking Dead, I Love Dick, The First, Preacher, Home Before Dark and Mr. and Mrs. Smith. She has developed shows with AMC, Hulu, Netflix, Amazon and FX.

Zoe Diao, she/her (Maya) is a first-year biology major from Las Vegas, NV. This is Zoe’s first UP theater production, and she is so excited! She has been in theatre since her freshman year of high school and has played roles such as Gretchen in Mean Girls, The Bearded Lady in The Greatest Showman, and Sergeant in The Pirates of Penzance. Zoe is no stranger to staged readings and has worked with Joe Iconis and Concord Theatricals on the development of Iconis’ Family Album in this medium at the International Thespian Festival in June 2023. She would like to thank her parents and brother for always supporting her erratic whims, her fellow cast members for their encouragement and insight, and Barbie and Andy for trusting in her to take on this role. She hopes you all enjoy the show immensely!

Ricardo Guevara, he/ him (Finn) is a junior theater and marketing double major from Portland, OR. Ricardo is very excited to share this production with the world. His recent productions include Sir Andrew in Twelfth Night, Somebody in Everybody, Brindsley in Black Comedy, and Don Carlos in Los Empeños de Una Casa (House of Desires). He would like to thank his family, friends, girlfriend, the Redmond Academy of Theatre Arts, the Centro de Arte de Teatral CDMX, the theatre department at SHS, and everyone in the University of Portland theater department for supporting him in his journey in theatre. He dedicates this, as well as all of his work, to his late grandmother Blanca Estela Chavez Alcantara.

Allana Gladman, she/her (Maxie) is a first-year political science major from Seattle, WA. Allana is very excited to play Maxie in her first performance here at the University of Portland theater program! Allana has been performing on stage since she was 8 years old and continued theatre throughout high school. Her most recent roles have been Miss Gwynne in Merry Murders at Montmarie and a protest leader in The Imperfect Proposal. She wants to thank her family for attending all her performances throughout the year and her great cast members. Allana wants to make her first year at UP Theater amazing!

Chase Keelin, he/him (Stage Directions) is a junior theater major with a performance emphasis from Santa Fe, NM. Chase is debuting on the UP stage this semester in TBA. He danced for quite some time before beginning his transition to acting. Chase is always seeking opportunities for innovation and adventure!

Mia Lindsay, she/her (Darren) is a UP alumni (‘23) from Eugene, OR. Mia recently graduated in May of 2023 with a B.S in Biology and a B.A in Psychology. She is a Pre-Med student with an interest in narrative medicine. Mia is super excited to be back for a sixth time with University of Portland Theater and is honored and privileged to be a part of the first all BIPOC cast at UP. She was previously the Stage Manager for The Wolves (2023), Assistant Stage Manager for Inventing Van Gogh (2019) and Everybody (2022) and has performed as Taylor in You Can’t Undo This Action (2021) and Clea in Black Comedy (2022). She would like to thank Barbie Wu for challenging and supporting her in this process and wants to give a special shoutout to Maisie, Lexi, and Branna for their constant inspiration.

Barbie Wu she/her (Director) is a Portland based actor and educator. She holds a Master of Fine Arts degree in acting from Southern Methodist University. She is a resident artist at Artists Repertory Theatre. Wu is currently serving as a visiting assistant professor in the theatre department at Reed College.

Theater Faculty and Staff

Eric Adams, Scene Shop Manager

Eric Adams (class of '12) has had the pleasure of working here at his alma mater since 2015. Favorite UP credits include crafting sound designs for Good Kids and A Midsummer Night's Dream, and scenic designs for 1959 Pink Thunderbird. He has worked as a director, designer, and technician at various theatres across Portland including Third Rail Repertory, Portland Opera, Northwest Theatre Workshop, and Artists Rep.

Susan Bonde, Costume Shop Manager

Sue Bonde is the costume shop manager for the University of Portland. She worked in Chicago as a freelance costume designer and technician for the Goodman Theater and Light Opera Works prior to moving to Portland. She has designed for A.R.T., New Rose Theatre, and Portland Repertory Theatre, and the Wee Sing children’s videos before joining Michael Curry Design and working on The Lion King on Broadway. Bonde has designed costumes for Portland Opera’s The Return of Ulysses, Albert Herring, La Calisto, Il Ballo delle Ingrate/Il Combattimento di Tancredi e Clorinda/Trouble in Tahiti, Galileo, Postcards from Morocco, L’heure Espanogle / L’enfant et les Sortileges, and La Cenerentola. She is the recipient of two Willamette Week Excellence in Theater Awards and two Portland Drammy Awards. Mock’s Crest Opera costume design credits include Iolanthe, Ruddigore, The Pirates of Penzance, Light in the Piazza, and Yeoman of the Guard. Past designs for UP include Tartuffe, Pippin,The Moors, and Twelfth Night.

Andy Christensen, Instructor, Directing and Acting

Andy Christensen is a fiercely curious artist-educator who specializes in emergent forms of immersive and site-informed theatre that explore the intersection of place and time. In his practice, he builds egalitarian ensembles that create interdisciplinary, research-driven, and process-shaped performances that put audiences at the center of artistic experiences and contextualize performance within community. After receiving his M.F.A. in theatre directing from the Lir Academy of Trinity College in Dublin and the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art, Andy returned to the United States to invest in emerging artists in the Pacific Northwest. He is a founder of Cascadia Art Project and a member of the Stage Directors and Choreographers Society. He has mentored artists in many regional high schools, George Fox University, Pacific University, and most recently at Whitworth University where he was recognized for outstanding integration of vocation in the classroom.

Lezlie C. Cross, PhD, Assistant Professor, Theatre History and Dramaturgy

Dr. Cross’s directing credits at UP include Twelfth Night, House of Desires, Where is Home: a Digital Living Newspaper, and As You Like It. At UP, she teaches courses in theatre history, dramaturgy, and playwriting. She is also a professional dramaturg who has worked at regional theatres across America including the Utah Shakespeare Festival, Cincinnati Shakespeare, Classic Stage Company, Actor’s Theatre of Louisville, Oregon Shakespeare Festival where she was the literary assistant for five years, and Nevada Conservatory Theatre where she was the Associate Artistic Director. She received her Ph.D. from the University of Washington, her M.A. from the Shakespeare Institute, University of Birmingham, and her B.A. from Whitman College. See more at lezliecross.com

Larry Larsen, M.F.A., Professor, Lighting and Scenic Design

This is Larry’s 30^th year of teaching at the University. He has been involved with theater since 5^th grade when he played Schroder in You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown. He teaches courses in Scenic and Lighting Design, Scenic Painting, Film Studies and Visual Art. He has served the department as theater program director and chair, and just completed 6 years of service as an Academic Associate Dean for the College of Arts and Sciences. Recent shows he has designed at the University include last year’s productions of Everybody, The Wolves and Twelfth Night. He has designed over 100 shows in his time at UP. Larry also works as a professional designer for many local theaters. Recent shows include Arsenic and Old Lace and Blithe Spirit for Lakewood Theatre Company, Snapshots and Don’t Hug Me for Broadway Rose Theatre Company. He is the resident scenic designer for the Portland Revels a post he has held since 2001. He has also designed shows for Artists Repertory Theatre, Oregon Children’s Theatre, Northwest Children’s Theatre, Third Rail Repertory Theatre, Portland State’s Opera Program, and Summer Repertory Theatre in Santa Rosa CA. He served as the producer for Mock’s Crest Productions which presented a summer operetta on campus every June until 2020. Prior to his work at the University he was the design associate for the Oregon Shakespeare Festival – Portland. He has an MFA in Theater Design from University of Washington, and when not at UP he is hanging with his wife Caren, his son Mac and his puppy Milo in lovely Northeast Portland.

Mindi Logan, M.F.A., Associate Professor, Acting Instructor

Mindi is beginning her 24th year teaching for the University of Portland. Her artistic work at the University includes acting and dialect coaching for productions. Mindi received her MFA from the Professional Actors Training Program at Rutgers University and then worked professionally as an actor in New York and Los Angeles, appearing off-Broadway, in soap operas, sitcoms, and film. Continuing her professional acting career, Mindi has appeared locally with Artists Repertory Theatre, Theater Vertigo, Willamette Shakespeare, Quintessence Theater, Stark Raving Theatre, in commercials, industrials, and voiceovers. Mindi was awarded the Kennedy Center Gold Medallion for her service as the Regional Chair of the Kennedy Center/American College Theatre Festival. Mindi’s husband Hal is a professional musician and composer who also works locally and teaches at the University of Portland.

Gregory Pulver, M.F.A., Associate Professor, Costume and Makeup Design

Professor Gregory Pulver, Theater Program Director, teaches courses in The Creative Process in Visual Arts, Intro to the Art of Theater, Beginning Costume Development and Analysis, Advanced Costume Design and Research, Theater Makeup Techniques. He is also a director and choreographer for plays and musicals for the UP Theater season annually. Gregory holds an MFA in costume design and choreography from Humboldt State University, CA. He is the 1993 Kennedy Center American College Theatre Festival (KCACTF) National Costume Design Winner for his work on Three Penny Opera at Humboldt State. Gregory is currently a Resident Artist at Artist Repertory Theater in Portland where his favorite of many designs include: The Hombres, Broomstick, Cuba Libre, and Foxfinder. He has been a member of the international board of advisors for The Valdez Theatre Conference in Valdez, AK for 15 years and participates as a featured artist mentoring new American playwrights by participating on response panels, providing workshops in design and writing, and by individual mentorship during each festival. In Portland, Gregory has designed both sets and costumes for Bag and Baggage Theatre in Hillsboro, and costumes for Broadway Rose Theatre in Portland.

Info For

Search our site:

Common Searches