Situating Lesbian Desire: Staged Readings of The Climb by C.A. Johnson & The Gulf by Audrey Cefaly: Program

Situating Lesbian Desire: 
Staged Readings of The Climb by C.A. Johnson & 
The Gulf by Audrey Cefaly

Directed by Caitlin Kane

Film Forum
Schwartz Center for the Performing Arts
430 College Avenue
April 23, 12 p.m. - 2 p.m. The Climb 
April 23, 3 p.m. - 5 p.m. The Gulf 

 “The Gulf (Full-Length)” is presented by arrangement with Concord Theatricals on behalf of Samuel French, Inc. www.concordtheatricals.com 

The vision of the Department of Performing and Media Arts is to nurture and mentor artists, performers, writers, and thinkers through the process of event programming. We recognize that all people should see their stories represented, and envision their stories as valuable.

We commit ourselves to creating spaces that actively seek to break down systems of oppression based on race, gender, sexuality, class, ability, and place of origin and empower all to be involved. We seek to stimulate thoughtful discussion and enact social change within our productions and our audiences. It is our goal to make our events accessible to the wider Cornell and Ithaca community, to strengthen bonds and engage inquiry, dialogue, and impact around social and cultural change.
 
In the 2021-2022 academic year we will help realize a wide range of students’ creative projects, from original plays, to solo performances, to readings, to choreographies, to acting, directorial, and curatorial projects. We are particularly happy that in addition to supporting live performances, we are now also supporting the production of several student thesis films. Enjoy the shows!

Caitlin Kane - Director
Caitlin Kane is a director, dramaturg, and scholar interested in feminist and queer approaches to applied and documentary theater practice. Her dissertation, Staging Uncertainty: Lessons from Research-Based Performance for the Post-Truth Era, argues that the tools that artists use to transform research into theater and performance model the kinds of collective knowledge creation practices that we need to navigate the uncertainty of the post-truth era. As a director and dramaturg, Caitlin’s work has been seen at About Face Theatre, American Theater Company, Civic Ensemble, the Drama League, Know Theatre, New Georges, and Vital Opera, among others. Her scholarly and artistic work has been supported by multiple grants, including a New York Public Humanities Fellowship and a Fulbright Fellowship. 

The Climb: 
Sofia Aguirre - Assistant Director & Stage Directions

Jenniviv Bansah - Tiffany
Jenniviv Bansah is a junior in the School of Hotel Administration, minoring in Information Science. Last Fall, she played a few characters in Townhall. She also played Slyvia in A Chicano's Guide to Navigation this semester. Jenniviv loves storytelling, dance, and tennis. She is excited to be performing in The Climb as Tiffany.

Kayla Koroma - Bella 
Kayla Koroma is a senior studying Human Development. This is her first PMA production. She is excited to be playing Bella in the staged reading of The Climb. Outside of class, she loves going to the movies and cooking for friends.

Jonah Hirst - Ike 
Jonah Hirst is a singer-songwriter and multimedia artist from Cape Cod, MA. He draws artistic inspiration from coastal imagery, New England birds, and the joys and challenges of marginalized love. His most recent projects include an EP of original music called Stones (2020) and watercolor paintings on display at Alley Cat Cafe. He is also a member of AFAB4, Ithaca’s all-transmasculine vocal quartet, who will be performing at Cornell’s Lavender Graduation this May.

Anna Evtushenko - Marge
Anna Evtushenko is a graduate student in Information Science, originally from Russia. Being primarily a writer and a director within PMA, she is very excited to be part of this compelling reading as an actor and to learn from Caitlin and the rest of the team.

The Gulf:
Sofia Maslova - Assistant Director & Stage Directions
Sofia Maslova is a sophomore in the College of Human Ecology majoring in Human Development. This is the first production she has been involved in at Cornell and she is really excited to participate in a play that honestly portrays two queer women's relationship. 

Sarah Lu - Betty 
Sarah Lu is a graduate student pursuing a Masters in Public Administration at Cornell's Jeb E Brooks School of Public Policy. She was previously involved with Reach for the Sky last Fall. Sarah graduated from Vanderbilt University in Spring 2021 where she had double-majored in Cognitive Studies and Theatre with a minor in Political Science. There she was also involved in theatre performances such as the 2017 First Year Showcase, The Language Archive, and Bowling for Beginners. 

Kit Ellsworth - Kendra 
Kit Ellsworth is a junior in the College of Arts and Sciences majoring in Biology with a minor in Theatre. Last semester, Kit played Greer in Seven Homeless Mammoths Wander New England at PMA. This semester has been busy, but she's excited to be back on stage briefly for this reading. Outside of theatre, Kit volunteers and works at the Cornell Raptor Program where she trains a Harris's Hawk (Wyatt) and a Gyrfalcon (Priscilla).

PMA 1410 – Media Production Lab:
Taylor Bazos, Allison Borton, Matthew Davis, Lucas Esponda, Jordan Ferrell, Ishini Gammanpila, Gillian Harrill, Vera Liu , Allan Mezhibovsky, Oliver Moura, Isabella Ogbolumani, Rin Park, Seeha Park, Annie Riedel, Yingyi Shu, Orion Tian
 
PMA 1610 - Technical Production Lab:  
Sofia Aguirre, Erin Brickle, Kit Ellsworth, Hayden Garniewicz, Daniella Gonzalez, Aidan Herz, Hannah McManus, Jillian Parrino, Katrina Peterson, Saif Quraishi, Maxwell Ringer, Grayson Rosenberg, Noah Rubinstein, Bonny Wong, Vannessa Wong, Angela Yuan

Scene Shop Work-Study:  
David Bascom, Arianna Louise Marie Josue, Julianna K. Lee, Charlie Wright

Props & Paint Work-Study: Jessica Ritchie

Electrics Work-Study: 
Emlen Brown, Anastasia Kreisel, Matthew Secondine, Ariel Shaked Costume First Hands: Emma Kindig, Lillian Liu, Bella Peters, Simone White

BUILDING/HOUSE MANAGERS:
Sofia Aguirre, Mackenzie Closson, Naomi Daniel, Samantha Granja, Deepak Ilango, Anastasia Kreisel, Jack McManus, Maxwell Ringer, Matthew Saylor, Ariel Shaked, Sarah Zaragoza-Smith

PRODUCTION STAFF
Director of Productions and Events: Pamela Lillard
Technical Director: Fritz Bernstein
Assistant Technical Director: Savannah Relos
Props Coordinator: Tim Ostrander
Costume Shop Supervisor: Lisa Boquist
Master Electrician: Steven Blasberg
Computer Support: Chris Christensen
Communications Manager: Gary Gabisan
Performance & Events Coordinator: Youngsun Palmer
Box Office Manager: Julie Tibbits