Richard III

Richard III
February 15-17, 2024 | 2:00pm & 7:30pm
FXK, Reynolds Club
Tickets $6 advance | $8 door (cash only)

They say there's a wicked duke creeping about in London town with a wind-up key in his back and cogs and gears in the place of his heart. He made a name for himself in the wars as a killing machine...but now that the fighting is done, who will turn back his infernal key and stop the carnage? Come one, come all to witness the rise and fall of treacherous King Richard III!

Co-Director — Nora Schultz
Nora Schultz is a fourth year English and Gender & Sexuality Studies major. She has previously worked on Macbeth in Space (Co-Assistant Director) and appeared onstage in both Taming of the Shrew and Love's Labour's Lost as pathetic loser men (Hortensio, Dumaine/Forester). She also serves as Dean's Men Secretary. When not working on her thesis about the performance of kingship in Richard III and Henry V this quarter, she's greatly enjoyed relaxing by thinking even harder about Richard III but with a cool steampunk key in his back. Despite this being her favorite Shakespeare play, her favorite English monarch is actually Henry VI, which makes watching the opening pantomime rather difficult. She is abstaining from the question of who will get murdered the fastest because she knows all, but she DOES want you all to watch your backs around her shifty co-director Honor...

Co-Director — Honor Torrance
Honor Torrance is a fourth-year studying English and Cinema & Media Studies, and the current Arts Chair for the Dean's Men. When she hasn't been pondering Victorian anxieties of the body this quarter for her BA thesis, she's been pondering how awesome those Victorian anxieties of the body look in the form of a medieval king with a nineteenth-century automaton arm and a giant wind-up key in his back! Whoa!!! If Honor had to pick a favorite English monarch hers would probably have to be Queen Victoria, on account of all those aforementioned Victorian anxieties of the body. Honor was last seen onstage causing problems on purpose as the conniving servant to a lovestruck aristocrat (Tranio, The Taming of the Shrew) and causing problems on purpose as the conniving servant to a lovestruck aristocrat (Maria, Twelfth Night). Honor knows full well who's getting murdered first, but she shan't say...but don't you think her co-director looks a little...suspicious?

Dramaturg — Adrian Leonard  

Production Manager — Maya Carlos Doyle
Maya Carlos Doyle is a third-year majoring in English. Previous Dean's Men credits include Twelfth Night (Stage Manager) and Macbeth in Space (APM). After two stints as an APM, she's excited to finally ascend to PM status. #alwaystheapmneverthepm. Thanks to Kelly and Coco for letting her APM underneath them throughout the years, the entire company of Richard III (especially the talented designers and hard-working stage management!), and Pro-Staff. Richard might be the third, but this crew is first in Maya's heart.

Co-Stage Manager — Sophie Regales
Sophie Regales is a fourth year Near Eastern Languages and Civilizations major with a Latin American and Caribbean Studies minor. She has previously worked on Romeo and Juliet (Assistant Stage Manner), Macbeth in Space (Co-Stage Manager), and Muscle Memory (Props). She is very thankful to the actors for all of their hard work and the production team for their support! She would especially like to thank Lee for being an amazing (executive) ASM! Thank you for coming (especially to her amazing roomies) and she hopes that you enjoy the show!

Co-Stage Manager — Madison Newton

Props/Scenic Designer — Jess Aaron

Costume Designer — Anna German 
Anna German is a third-year Political Science and MAAD major who—rumor has it—is 37th in line to the British throne. Her previous UT/Dean’s Men credits include Twelfth Night (Costume Designer), Macbeth in Space (Costume Designer), Romeo and Juliet (Costume Designer), and King Lear (Asst. Costume Designer). This show bio, like every other one of her show bios, was written by her beloved friend, roommate, fellow designer, light of her life, and all-around cool kid Kelly Mao, whose own bio you can check out on this very webpage!

Lighting Designer — Camila Delgado 
Camila Delgado is a first-year Astrophysics major. They have previously worked on Taming of the Shrew (Assistant Lighting Designer). They are very excited to help bring this show to life!

Sound Designer — Kelly Mao
Kelly Mao is a third-year studying Computer Science and Mathematics. Her previous UT/Dean’s Men credits include Macbeth in Space (Sound Designer) and Romeo and Juliet (Asst. Sound Designer). She enjoys deep conversations and long walks on the beach at sunset.

Asst. Director — Viviana Hilario
This is Viviana's first ever Dean's Men production, and they couldn't be more excited! This is Viviana's first time being a part of production in a role other than actor and is thrilled to be a part of the Richard III as Assistant Director. Seeing the show come to life was such an amazing experience for them, and she hopes you all enjoy the show as much as they enjoyed being a part of it!

Asst. Stage Manager — Lee Gutman 
Lee Gutman (Assistant Stage Manager) is a first-year Biology and Classics major. She is a giant Shakespeare nerd and is so excited to be getting her first Dean's Men and UT credit! She thinks Ratcliffe and Lovell are definitely going to bite the dust first... if Catesby doesn't kill them before the show even starts.

Asst. Props Designer — Artie Davis 

Asst. Costume Designer — Eleni Lefakis  
Eleni Lefakis is a third-year TAPS major. Her UT mainstage credits are The Heirs (Stage Manager), The Trail to Oregon! (Assistant Director/Dramaturg), Romeo & Juliet (Co-Production Manager), Marian, or the True Tale of Robin Hood (Assistant Director/Dramaturg), MacBeth in Space (Dramaturg), The Laramie Project (SM Collective™), Be More Chill (Co-Director), Twelfth Night (Pre-Production Manager), The Taming of The Shrew (Stage Manager/Assistant Dramaturg), and Falsettos (Dramaturg). She is currently working on Strings Attached (Co-Director/Dramaturg) and preparing to serve her third term on UT committee. She is obsessed with Anna German and honored to have been her personal assistant for these past few weeks.

Asst. Costume Designer — Julia Jackson 

Asst. Lighting Designer — Aurélie Roubinowitz

Asst. Sound Designer — Anjali Subramanian 
Anjali Subramanian is a second-year Environmental Science and Biology major. This is her first show with University Theater and Dean's Men!

UT Committee Liaison — Danielle Yablonovskiy

Fight Captain — Ruth Witter 

Fight Lieutenant — Dallas Wolf 

Jack Pflieger — Richard
Jack Pflieger is an MA student in the Humanities. He previously acted in Dean's Men productions of King Lear (Lear Understudy) and Macbeth (the Porter) as well as Cup of Theater's adaptation of Arms and the Man (Capt. Bluntschli). Jack would like to thank his parents for trekking out to see the play and his partner Cassie for coming to every performance (and for running all those lines). He thinks those little bastards in the Tower will be murdered first (so wise, so young they say do never live long).

Griffin Bonnin Jones — Anne/Page
Griffin is a second-year at this university, and one majoring in history. They have acted in Dean's Men's 2022 production of Romeo and Juliet and its 2023 production of Twelfth Night, and they worked as an assistant stage manager in UT's Muscle Memory this past fall. They have never flown in a helicopter. They have eaten alligator meat. They have never taken a polygraph test. They have met the original Big Bird performer. They have never been to Mississippi, New Mexico, Arizona, Louisiana, Arkansas, Georgia, Idaho, North Carolina, South Dakota, New Hampshire, Alaska, Vermont, Ohio, Utah, North Dakota, South Carolina, Oregon, Missouri Washington, Nevada, Montana, Kentucky, Kansas, Hawaii, Colorado, Wyoming, Nebraska, Oklahoma, or Quebec.

Simon Tsuchiya Lenoe — Buckingham
Simon Tsuchiya Lenoe is a second-year MAPH student specializing in East Asian Languages and Civilizations. Given that his area of study is Japan, he wonders what the deal is with medieval island nations and their obsession with petty dynastic wars. He thinks that the song "Backburner" by NIKI accurately describes the relationship that the Duke of Buckingham has with Richard and has been lobbying the directors to incorporate Lou Bega's "Mambo no. 5" into the production, to no avail. He thinks the Princes will be murdered first because everyone can't get enough of hating on Gen Alpha.

Fimi Adesemoye — Elizabeth
Fimi Adesemoye is a first year in the College, planning on pursuing Psychology and Economics. This is her first show with University Theater (she's only done a staged reading so far) and she's very excited to experience this adventure with y'all. She has previously worked on Rebel Without A Cause (Ray), A Midsummer Night's Dream (Fairy), Seussical the Musical (Assistant Stage Manager), PUFFS (Professor Sproutty, Costume Designer), and Annie (Ronnie Boylan, Ensemble). She also thinks that Margaret would be the first to die because she's made wayyy too many powerful enemies.

Anya Moseke — Margaret/Prince Edward
Anya Moseke is a second year in the college majoring in Creative Writing and Art History. This is her first production with University Theater and The Dean's Men, but she has previously worked with Arizona Theatre Company in Colour My World: A New Musical (Natalie), Matilda (Lavendar), Hamlet (Ophelia), and American Idiot (Alysha). In her free time she enjoys writing poetry, running, and spending time with her loved ones. She knows that if Margaret had a dagger, Richard would be the first to die and the play would be much shorter.

Lekha Masoudi — Edward/Catesby
Lekha Masoudi (Edward IV/Catesby) is a second year pursuing a major in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology with a History minor. This is her first show with the Dean's Men and her second show with University Theatre. Previous credits include Cassandra (Cassandra, UT), and Antigone (Chorus) and Antony and Cleopatra (Assistant Director) with Columbia University's King's Crown Shakespeare Troupe. In her free time she enjoys going into delusional raptures at art museums and trinket hunting at thrift stores. A lover of dramatic irony, she believes that one of the Murderers would die first.

Charlie Robinson — Richmond/Murderer 1
Charlie Robinson is a first year at the University of Chicago. He has previous experience with acting through his high school Saint Anns - culminating in his role as Touchstone in As You Like It. He's a prospective something major and just happy to be here. His character, Murderer 1 thinks the person who is going to die first is whoever tips the least.

Tannus Vollmer — Henry/Murderer 2
Tannus Vollmer is a 3rd-year in the college, studying Creative Writing and Political Science. He plays the three least competent characters in Richard III: King Henry VI (RIP), the 2nd murderer, and the messenger. This is his first show with the Dean's Men, but not his first role in UChicago theater -- he played the titular character in The Quentin Show, a queer coming of age drama produced by Maroon TV. In his free time, he writes about politics and religion, and spends way too much time coming up with crack theories about Shakespeare. He doesn't have an opinion on which character gets killed first, but is adamant that Richard will die third.

Dallas Wolf — Rivers/Brakenbury
Dallas Wolf is a third-year Economics major. He previously starred in Taming of the Shrew (Merchant/Tailor/Servant). Brakenbury is confident that the first one to die would be any conniving murders sneaking around without proper permission. Rivers just hopes that he isn't the first one to die.

Margaret Nakigand — Dorset/Lancaster/Cardinal
Margaret Nakiganda is a second-year public policy student. She has previously worked on The Importance of Being Earnest (Ms. Prism), This Hurts (Marvalyn), The War of the Worlds (Carl Phillips), Fourteen (Mrs. Horace Pringle), The Trials of Robin Hood (Set Designer), and Into the Woods (Set Designer). Prince Edward Lancaster believes Richard III will be murdered first, due to his own impressive swordsmanship and distaste for the way Richard looks at his wife.

Elisa Gao — Duchess/Mayor
Elisa Gao is a first-year potential Astrophysics and TAPS major. Richard III is her first time performing with UT. Before this show, she has worked on Falsettos as the Assistant Costume Designer. The Duchess is sure that she will not die first since all children are afraid of their mom, and Richard is not an exception (hopefully).

Ruth Witter — Clarence/Derby/York
Ruth Witter is a first-year Linguistics and Gender Studies major. They have previously appeared in the Taming of the Shrew as Vincentio/Curtis/Rich Brian and they’re thrilled to be in their second Dean’s Men production as a silly little guy. They think that the Duke of York would die first because, as much as they love him, he is a small, mostly-incompetant child with an uncomfortably good claim to the throne.

Josiah Rubio — Hastings/Tyrrel
Josiah Rubio is a first year (potential, fingers crossed) computer science major. They have previously worked in theater [24] as an actor, playing trisha paytas, a drug dealer, and prince harry. They also claim to be the person that threw a shoe at George Bush. They were in a high school production of Legally Blonde by accident, which sparked an interest in theater, and they have never once known anything, ever, and likely never will.