Synopsis
For twelve years, Prospero, the exiled Duke of Milan, has been living on a remote, uninhabited Mediterranean Island with only his daughter Miranda, the son of the island’s former ruler, and the spirit Ariel. Prospero has learned the magical arts through deep meditative study, and at the play’s beginning, he causes a tempest to overtake the surrounding waters, shipwrecking the enemies responsible for his exile. The boat’s passengers are scattered, and the state of the island is thrown into chaos as murder plots, drunken foolery, and love-at-first-sight become the order of the day.
Event Information
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April 12, 17-20 @ 7:30pm
April 13 @ 1:00pm & 7:30pm
Morgan Theatre
Approx. Run Time: Act 1 - 66 minutes, Act 2 - 62 minutes, Total - 128 minutes
Special Thanks
USU Productions Services, the Coltrin Family, the Conrad Family, Hometown Values
Director's Note
In The Tempest, I find the idea of magic as a theatrical metaphor to be especially engaging, and how the pursuit of power can lead us to lose ourselves. Prospero goes on a rollercoaster of a journey, and I do believe that he is often tempted to go to the “dark side,” to become more like Sycorax the original ruler of the island. For him, it’s a constant battle to not let his revenge rule him, and it takes a spirit, Ariel, to remind him what it means to be human and humane. Indeed, the island seems to be a catalyst for self-reflection, and the trials and tribulations that Prospero puts them through are what cause everyone to find “all of us ourselves/When no man was his own” (Gonzalo, Act V Sc 1). A story using theatre as redemption is particularly fitting given where The Tempest was in Shakespeare’s own life, one of his last plays before retirement. For me, I’ve had the pleasure of working on The Tempest before in a myriad of ways, but this one is my fav. The Tempest was chosen as part of our season because of the design opportunities it afforded for our wonderful design/tech team and for the myriad acting roles within it. It has been a vigorous and challenging project to weave all of the ideas and theatrical potential throughout the show. For the seniors working on this production, I hope that this is a memorable capstone experience that they will look back on fondly. For the others, I hope that they keep challenging themselves to take risks and let their creativity shine out.
Dramaturgy Note
What's in a Name? The Story of Shakespeare
Shakespeare.
It’s a name that has come to mean many things since the birth of its most notable bearer almost half a millennium ago in 1564. Depending on the person, it might denote ruffled collars, a cryptic genius, or the English language itself. But most would agree that William Shakespeare’s name and legacy centers on theatre and its perpetual exploration of the human condition.
Shakespeare’s hometown of Stratford-upon-Avon was a village located about 83 miles outside of London, the cultural epicenter of England. After marrying Anne Hathaway
in 1582 and having two children, eldest daughter Susanna (1583) and twins Hamnet and Judith (1585), Shakespeare would eventually move to the early modern metropolis in order to establish himself as a theatre practitioner, although we don’t know the exact year he came into the city. Shakespeare acted and wrote many of the plays put on by his theatre troupe, known under the name The Lord Chamberlain’s Men during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I and The King’s Men under King James I (or James VI of Scotland). They mainly performed in two venues: The Globe, located on the other side of the Thames, and the Blackfriars Theater.
In Shakespeare’s lifetime, England was undergoing a renaissance, much like those experienced throughout all of continental Europe, in addition to various locations in Asia and Africa. The Renaissance, which literally translates to “rebirth”, was an exploration of and expansion upon the classical ideals found in the philosophies and art of Ancient Greece and Rome. Architecture, poetry, and theatre were all deeply affected by these principles in Elizabethan and Jacobean England. Humanism, the championing philosophy of the Renaissance, speaks to the inherent goodness and potential of humankind, an idea that is especially explored by Shakespeare in The Tempest.
Written around 1610-1611, only five years before his death, The Tempest was one of the last plays that Shakespeare ever wrote, and is likely the last he penned as the sole contributor and author. On a surface level, The Tempest is a story about a shipwreck on a strange and magical island, but a second glance reveals that the show is, at least partly, about the theatre. It’s easy to imagine the Bard speaking through the play’s protagonist, Prospero, to detail the bittersweet experience of concluding a life devoted to the arts. Perhaps this is why it’s fitting that The Tempest was the first play to appear in Shakespeare’s First Folio, a comprehensive collection of Shakespeare’s works published seven years after his death.
— Mary Newton, Dramaturg
Cast & Production Team
| Name | Pronouns | Graduation Year | Role | Position |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Annie Coltrin | Young Miranda | Cast | ||
| Ariana Whatcott | she/her | 2026 | Francisco/ Iris/ Ceres/ Juno/ U/S Prospero/ Puppeteer | Cast |
| Avery Burt | she/her | 2026 | U/S Puppeteers | Cast |
| Brighton McDonald | he/him | 2026 | U/S Gonzalo | Cast |
| Brynn Francis | she/her | 2024 | Stephano | Cast |
| Dakota Sanches | he/him | 2027 | Boatswain/ Puppeteer/ U/S Antonio/ U/S Stephano | Cast |
| Ellyse Snow | she/her | 2024 | Mariner/ Puppeteer/ U/S Sebastian/ U/S Boatswain/ U/S Master | Cast |
| Es Barnes | she/they | 2027 | Ariel #3/ U/S Ariel #1/ U/S Trinculo | Cast |
| Ethan Shaw | he/him | 2025 | Caliban | Cast |
| Harmon Roy Jackson | he/him | 2024 | Antonio/ Puppeteer | Cast |
| Jonah Newton | he/him | 2026 | Adrian/ Puppeteer/ U/S Ferdinand/ U/S Caliban | Cast |
| Juan Mendez | he/him | 2027 | Master/ Puppeteer/ U/S Alonso | Cast |
| Kelsey Koga | Waiting Woman | Cast | ||
| Levi Hopkins | he/him | 2024 | Ferdinand | Cast |
| Maren Lyman | Waiting Woman | Cast | ||
| Marin Robison | she/her | 2025 | Trinculo | Cast |
| Mason Lorenzo Garcia | he/they | 2024 | Gonzalo/ Puppeteer | Cast |
| Megan Christiansen | she/her | 2026 | Ariel #4/ U/S Ariel #2/ U/S Miranda | Cast |
| Mia Gatherum | she/her | 2025 | Miranda | Cast |
| Nancy Hills | Waiting Woman | Cast | ||
| Ollie Chieppa | they/them | 2024 | Ariel #1 | Cast |
| Rachel Tillotson | she/her | 2024 | Waiting Woman | Cast |
| Roland Conrad | Infant Miranda | Cast | ||
| Ryan Adams | he/him | 2024 | Sebastian/ Puppeteer | Cast |
| Sumner Jones Shoell | he/him | 2024 | Prospero | Cast |
| Suzy Gatherum | - | Miranda’s Mother | Cast | |
| Timo Rasmussen | he/him | 2024 | Alonso/ Puppeteer | Cast |
| Willoughby Staley | he/she/they | 2024 | Ariel #2 | Cast |
| Audrey Kearl | Co-Scenic Charge/ Projection Designer | Designer | ||
| Dennis Hassan | Puppet Designer | Designer | ||
| J.S. Peterson | he/him | 2024 | Scenic Designer/ Puppet Coach | Designer |
| Jacob Clawson | Props Designer | Designer | ||
| Jocelyn Flammer | Assistant Costume Designer | Designer | ||
| Katie Bauer | they/she | 2024 | Sound Designer | Designer |
| Lennon VanAusdal | Co-Scenic Charge | Designer | ||
| Mark Hulse | Lighting Designer | Designer | ||
| Nancy Hills | Costume Designer | Designer | ||
| Rebecca Farmer | she/her | 2025 | Composer | Designer |
| William King | Asst. Props Designer | Designer | ||
| Amanda Dawson | she/her | Dramaturgy Advisor/ Intimacy Director | Faculty/Staff | |
| Amy Critchfield | Technical Director/ Production Manager | Faculty/Staff | ||
| Dennis Hassan | Graduate Advisor | Faculty/Staff | ||
| Joshua Legate | Interim Head of Tech and Design | Faculty/Staff | ||
| Kelsey Koga | Production Stage Manager | Faculty/Staff | ||
| Leslie Brott | Associate Dean, Head of Acting | Faculty/Staff | ||
| LuAnn Baker | Program Coordinator | Faculty/Staff | ||
| Lydia Semler | Costume Shop Manager | Faculty/Staff | ||
| Maren Lyman | Assistant Costume Shop Manager | Faculty/Staff | ||
| Richie Call | Department Head | Faculty/Staff | ||
| Amanda Dawson | she/her | Intimacy Director | Production Team | |
| Carter Lee | he/him | 2026 | Assistant Stage Manager | Production Team |
| Gray Harding | they/them; fae/faer | 2025 | Assistant Stage Manager | Production Team |
| Mary Newton | she/her | 2024 | Assistant Director/ Dramaturg | Production Team |
| Paul T. Mitri | he/him | Director | Production Team | |
| Rachel Tillotson | she/her | 2024 | Stage Manager | Production Team |
| Audrey Allen | Light Board Op | Run Crew | ||
| Jose Huerta-Borjas | Sound Board Op | Run Crew | ||
| Leah Brown | Wardrobe Head | Run Crew | ||
| Linn Eggett | Wardrobe | Run Crew | ||
| Mary Newton | she/her | 2024 | Projection Board Op | Run Crew |
| Niko Barlow | he/him | 2027 | Deck Hand | Run Crew |
| Rosalind Liechty | Wardrobe | Run Crew | ||
| Samantha Clinger | Deck Hand | Run Crew | ||
| Ariana Whatcott | she/her | 2026 | Intimacy Captain | |
| Dakota Sanches | he/him | 2027 | Puppet Artisan | |
| Harmon Roy Jackson | he/him | 2024 | Intimacy Captain | |
| Ky Trupp | Assistant Technical Director | |||
| Levi Hopkins | he/him | 2024 | Music Coach | |
| Mia Gatherum | she/her | 2025 | Movement/Fall Captain | |
| Willoughby Staley | he/she/they | 2024 | Video Assistant and Editor |