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AQUINAS COLLEGE THEATRE PROGRAM’S
Twelfth Night
Cast Biographies
 Reign Lawson (she/her) (Viola) is a current junior at AQ. She is a double major in Exercise Science and Theatre.
Some mentionable roles include Abilene/Sarah Ruth (The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane), Schwoopise (Firebringer), Vertumnus/Hermes (Metamorphosis), and Scarlet (Clue). When she is not on stage, you can find Reign modeling, being a part of Aquinas’
Cheer Team, and weight training. Reign thanks her friends for all the love and support
they have given her throughout the entire process, Scott Harman for trusting and allowing
her to play this role and step out of her comfort zone, and the entire cast for always
bringing positive energy and allowing her to have fun and explore with them. |
 Francesca Varricchio (she/her) (Olivia) is a current first year student at Aquinas College and is new to AQ Theatre. However,
she has been involved in theatrical productions and musicals for many years. During
her time at West Catholic, she acted in Anne of Green Gables as Anne, The Plot, Like Gravy, Thickens as Peggy Sue, All Shook Up, and Cinderella. Francesca thanks her family, friends, and high school theater director Miss Ouellette
for always believing in her. She says she wouldn't be on this stage without them.
Most importantly, she thanks her Mimi for being her biggest support throughout her
life and says she knows you are guiding her from heaven, and she misses you everyday. |
 Carson LePage (he/him) (Orsino) is a sophomore at Aquinas College, currently majoring in Theatre. Previously at Aquinas,
he has acted in Metamorphoses and Ada and The Engine. He thanks the cast and crew for being wonderful people to work with throughout this
process. He also thanks his family for their support, guidance, and love. He hopes
you enjoy the show! |
 Drew Huegli (he/him) (Feste/Captain) is very thankful to be a part of Twelfth Night at Aquinas College. He has recently worked on The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane as The Musician/Edward, Waking Nightmare as Hippolytus, The Thanksgiving Play as Caden, and The Arkansaw Bear as Mime. He has also worked as a crew member on shows such as Failure: A Love Story as the Assistant Stage Manager and Head Over Heels as the Assistant Stage Manager. Drew is majoring in Communication with an emphasis
in Theatre and minoring in Biology. This is Drew's senior year at Aquinas, and he
is looking forward to all of the memories he will make in his last year. He thanks
his parents for supporting him in his passions, his sisters for putting up with his
crazy ideas, and his friends for being inspirations to him. He also thanks you all
for coming and supporting this amazing cast and crew of extremely talented individuals. |
 Abby Kozal (she/her) (Malvolio) is a senior at Aquinas College, majoring in English: Writing and minoring in Studio
Arts. Her recent acting credits include Mia in the student-directed and written All of This and Kathryn Schaub in Radium Girls. In her free time, Abby enjoys writing, drawing, reading comics, and going on long-winded
rants about her favorite shows. She's an advocate for all things silly and whimsical
(including the live-action Cat in the Hat). Abby thanks the cast and crew for this wonderful experience, and she hopes you
quite enjoy her yellow stockings and cross-garters. |
 Michaela Faith (she/her) (Sir Toby Belch) is a sophomore at AQ majoring in Theatre, with a minors in Business Administration
and English Literature. She has acted in Failure: A Love Story, as Nelly Fail, Lizzie the Musical as Lizzie Borden, and more! She is very thankful for her loving friends, family,
and not-so-loving hamster for the support! |
 Delaney Pocevich (she/her) (Maria) is a sophomore at Aquinas College and has previously been in the recent production
of The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane. She is excited to be returning to the AQ stage and thanks her friends and family
for their continuous support. |
 Ashlyn Armock (she/her) (Sir Andrew/Valentine) is a first-year student at Aquinas College. This is her first production with AQ,
and she is very excited to be a part of this production, playing the part of Sir Andrew.
In past productions she has acted in Anne of Green Gables, Cinderella, All Shook Up, and Bells are Ringing. She thanks all of her friends who have supported and encouraged her to continue
theatre. |
 Joel Grimsley (he/him) (Antonio) is a first-time actor and an international student from Ireland. He is very grateful
for the opportunity to work with so many talented people and the community he has
found here at Aquinas. He loves to fulfill his creative passions at any chance he
gets and is a fan of classical history and literature. |
 Isaac Zittel (he/him) (Antonio) is very thankful to be part of an AQ production once again, and he is excited for
what opportunities the future may bring! He is grateful to everyone who has made this
show possible, and to everyone coming to see it. Per aspera ad astra. "And at last I resolved to scale that tower, fall though I might; since it were better
to glimpse the sky and perish, than to live without ever beholding the day." - H.P.
Lovecraft, The Outsider |
Production Staff
 Scott Harman (Director) (he/him) is Assistant Professor of Theatre and Director of Theatre Production at Aquinas College.
He is a PhD Candidate in Theatre at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. He also holds
an MA in Theatre History from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and a
BA in Theatre and Dance from Alma College. He has taught at Grand Valley State University,
Alma College, Parkland College, and he is a longtime summer faculty member at the
Interlochen Center for the Arts. He has worked as an actor, director, technician,
teacher, and playwright at various theatre companies and schools around the country.
As a scholar and researcher, he works extensively on acting theory and pedagogy. |
 Rhodey Matzke (they/them) (Stage Manager) is a sophomore at Aquinas College studying English and Theatre. They have been involved
in theatre since middle school and found a place backstage. They've enjoyed stage
managing many shows such as The 39 Steps, The Bold, the Young and the Murdered, All of This, Lizzie and now Twelfth Night! Rhodey thanks the AQ Theatre community for their hard work and hopes you enjoy the
show! |
| Kelsey Edwards (Scenic Designer/Technical Director) (she/her) is a graduate of Adrian College with a Bachelor’s Degree in Theatre. She has been involved in many productions as a technical director and stage manager. Kelsey is very excited to be working as technical director for this season at Aquinas College. She also has experience in scenic design, costume design, and properties design. Recently, Kelsey has worked on The Moors (2021), Blithe Spirit (2021), Spitfire Grill (2021), and Abigail/1702 (2022) as a technical director. |
|
Jess Luiz (Costume Designer) (she/her) has been a member of the Grand Rapids theatre community for over a decade, participating
as a costume designer, performer, props designer and audience member. She studied
Theatre at Northern Michigan University. Jess also serves as a teaching artist, sharing
her love of storytelling and design through theatre arts with kids and adults of all
abilities throughout the West Michigan area. She is grateful to her husband Jason
for his support and their two kids for providing laughter, play, new ideas, and all
the hugs. |
| Catherine Marlett-Dreher (Lighting Designer) (she/her) has designed lights for over 300 productions in the West Michigan area, including shows for Grand Rapids Civic Theatre, Circle Theatre, Actors’ Theatre, Jewish Theatre Grand Rapids, Aquinas College, Grand Valley State University, Grand Rapids Community College and Cornerstone University. Aquinas credits include: I Love you, You’re Perfect, Now Change, Distracted, Dracula, The Illusion, A Year With Frog and Toad, Love and Information, Enchanted April, Arabian Nights, Hotel Cassiopeia and many more. She works as the Production Manager and Resident Lighting Designer at Grand Rapids Civic Theatre. |
 Penny Avery (Theatre Program Director) (she/her) joined the Aquinas College faculty in 1994 and currently serves as both the Communication
Department Chairperson and the Theatre Program Director with a PhD in Communication
from Michigan State University and a MA and BS from Central Michigan University in
Secondary Education with certification in English and Speech/Theatre. She was a member
of the facility planning team when the Performing Arts Center was designed and loves
to see the space being utilized to share arts with diverse audiences through Aquinas
College’s partnerships with Community Circle Theatre and the Grand Rapids Catholic
Schools. In her early years at AQ, she taught Children’s Theatre (suitably renamed
Theatre for Youth and Education) and directed several productions, including The Great
Cross Country Race and Charlotte’s Web. She is happy to be celebrating her 30th year
at AQ! |
PRODUCTION CREW
| Graphic Design | Shannon Heldt |
| Scene Shop Assistant | Carson LePage |
| Theatre Office Assistant | Abby Kozal |
| Light Board Operator | Preslee Hall |
| Sound Board Operator | Augustus Smith |
Program Notes
Twelfth Night is a study in contradictions. It’s funny and lively, but with a streak of melancholy and even cruelty underneath. Like all of Shakespeare’s comedies, it is ultimately joyful, but the play goes out of its way to let us know that we are in the shadow of a recent war. It’s a play about attraction and the zaniness of mistaken identity, but it’s also suffused with a lot of anxieties about family, love, gender, and belonging. It also rather famously doesn’t wrap everything up in a neat bow at the end; there are still hurt feelings and the promise of retribution, and Viola’s impending marriage seems to be conditioned upon her dressing properly for her gender. These people are doing their best, but in a messy and very human way.
In trying to create this comedic and melancholic world, we’ve taken some visual and aural inspiration from another time. The historical Illyria was on the coast of the Adriatic sea, on the same Balkan Peninsula as the Yugoslav Wars of the 1990s. While those wars are long since over, the dissolution of Yugoslavia into its descendent states was fractious and dangerous enough that “Balkanization” has become a descriptive term in its own right. It is not hard to imagine how difficult it must be to move beyond times of strife and suspicion in order to find a new way to live together. We do not seek to invoke those conflicts directly, but instead to create a reminder of how the challenge to find joy and reconciliation after conflict is both recent and perennial. Perhaps Twelfth Night represents a kind of best-case scenario, where most (but not all) are able to find a kind of resolution, and the best choice we have is to turn toward the next generation with a sense of humor, celebration, and hope.
NOTE TO AUDIENCE:
The videotaping or audio and/or visual recording of this production is a violation of United States Copyright Law and an actionable federal offense.
UPCOMING PRODUCTIONS
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