Citadel Theatre 2019-2020 The Fantasticks

13 of Tiaras, The Farnsworth Invention ), AlphaBet Soup Productions ( Peter Pan, Charlotte’s Web ) and The University of Florida ( Spring Awakening, Sweeney Todd ). Education: The University of Florida (BFA). Love to friends and family. Kristina Meima (The Mute) is a Senior BFA musical theatre major at Columbia College Chicago. She is so excited to be in a show at the citadel! She was born in Lund, Sweden and started doing theatre as soon as she moved to Brattleboro, Vermont. Some of her favorite roles include Amber ( Hairspray ) Sally ( You’re A Good Man Charlie Brown ) Maria ( The Sound Of Music ) and Sandy ( Grease ). Henry Michael Odum (Henry) last appeared with Citadel as Fagin in Oliver! Favorite roles include Tateh in Ragtime (Porchlight), Charlie in Stones in His Pockets (Buffalo Ensemble), Jack Point in The Yeomen of the Guard (Light Opera Works), Pangloss in Candide (DCASE Opera Gala), Nick Bottom in A Midsummer Night’s Dream , Pistol in Henry V , Dogberry in Much Ado About Nothing (The Shakespeare Project), Trinculo in The Tempest (Kentucky Shakespeare Festival) and Sir Thomas More in A Man for All Seasons (Bowen Park). A Joseph Jefferson Citation recipient, Henry has appeared with Court Theatre, Theatre at the Centre, Bailiwick, City Lit, Pegasus Players, Noble Fool, and NPR’s Chicago Theater On-the-Air. Henry dedicates these performances to his teenage son and daughter--oftentimes baf ing, always fantastick! Aurora Penepacker (Luisa) is thrilled to be working with Citadel Theatre for the rst time! Aurora graduated from Glenbrook South High School in 2016, she currently attends the Chicago College of Performing Arts of Roosevelt University, and she will graduate in the Class of 2020 this May with a B.F.A. in Musical Theatre! Her favorite credits include West Side Story (Maria) at the Encore Theatre Company, as well as The Pirates of Penzance (Mabel) and The Venetian Twins (Beatrice) at CCPA. Most recently, she was the Rosa understudy and female swing in The Mystery of Edwin Drood at Blank Theatre, as well as a member of the company of the Elgin Shakespeare Project in partnership with Janus Theatre. Rory would like to give her thanks to Aaron Kaplan and Rebecca Schorsch, to her amazing friends and family, and to her fantastic Mama and Papa for their unwavering love and support. aurorapenepacker.com Joshua Seeger (Understudy for Hucklebee, Bellomy, Mortimer, and Henry), an alumnus of Acting Studio Chicago, has performed in independent productions and with Galaxy Theater Co., THEatre HEIST, Eclectic Full Contact Theatre, A Red Orchid Theatre, Aleatoric Theatre, Collaboraction, and Invictus Theatre Co. Josh has long been a performing musician and vocalist. He is grateful to the Citadel Theatre Co. for the opportunity to bring his lifetime of experience to multiple roles in this phenomenal musical. He cherishes the love and support of his charming wife, Judith, and he dedicates this performance to his parents, Lou and Alicia, whose love and teaching imbued him with a deep-seated love of literature, music, and theater. Brooks Whitlock (Matt Understudy) is a senior Theatre major at Northwestern University. Past credits include Woyzeck, Knuffle Bunny, Macbeth, The Who’s Tommy, Three Sisters , and numerous staged readings and new works. Thanks to Murphy for this outstanding opportunity. Love to Mom, Dad, Hannah, friends, and family - this one’s for Mimi. Crew Biographies Pat Murphy (Director) Pat has been a part of Citadel for a number of years. Previous shows he directed at Citadel are A Christmas Carol several years ago, Deathtrap , the musical Oliver , and Light Up the Sky. He also acted in Lend Me a Tenor and Other People’s Money. Pat was Director of Theatre for 35 years at Glenbrook North High School where he worked with Charles Dribin and he directed over one hundred productions before retiring many years ago. He is so appreciative and honored to have worked all those years with hundreds of fantastic students who showed passion, dedication and talent to their endeavors in theatre. The Fantasticks brings back memories of the enthusiasm, optimism and idealism of the young people with whom he worked. Aaron Kaplan (Musical Director) enjoys a multifaceted musical career as a conductor, musical director, cellist, music educator, and arranger. He earned a master’s degree in orchestral conducting from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign under the tutelage of Donald Schleicher, as well as his bachelor’s degree in cello performance and bachelor’s degree in music education with high honors also from the University of Illinois. A passionate advocate of the American musical theatre, Aaron has been the music director/conductor for over 65 musicals (with complete orchestration) including West Side Story, On the Town, Les Misérables, RENT, Chess, Guys & Dolls, Fiddler on the Roof , and The Producers . He was invited to conduct the orchestra for the Illinois High School Theatre Festival All-State Production twice; in 2013 for Memphis (premiere