The Alphabetastics! Program

DIRECTOR'S NOTE:

Directing this play was an unexpected opportunity – a gift that continues to demonstrate the magic of saying yes to community, creativity, and collaboration. Meg is SO PROUD of this intergenerational cast of womxn and non-binary folk! It has been such a unique and generative process to dive into this original script written by creative teammates Ted Ryle and Miriam Sterlin, and create something brand new. Meg also got to work with their dear friend, Mandy Ryle, as the Stage Manager of the production! The Alphabetastics is a play about young Halona navigating a big change (a new baby sibling!) and trying out social and emotional tools to support her journey. This is a story that many of us can resonate with, especially now, as we emerge from a pandemic bubble and reincorporate ourselves into public society. Meg hopes this play prompts folks to think about: In what ways can we support and care for ourselves, and the community at large, as we adapt to an ever-changing world?

CAST/CREW:

CAST (name and role):

KB (Kristin Bailey), S, P & Dust Bunny 1

Samantha Chandler, Momma & X

Edsonya Charles, W

Eleanor Kinn, Y & Dust Bunny 2

Laurie O’Brien, Z

Becki Pérez, Mom

Olivia Ritter, C & Dust Bunny 3

Alexa Ryle, H & I

Sara St. Clair, G, B & Grams

Cosette Yanasak, Halona

CREW

Meg Rosenberg, Director

Mandy Ryle, Stage Manager

Ted Ryle, Playwright & Co-composer

Miriam Sterlin, Music Director & Co-composer

James Schnieder, Asst. Music Director

Giles Arendt, Accompaniment Composer

Jill Carter, Scenic & Video Design

Vanessa Postil, Choreographer

Natalie Coblentz, Lighting Design

David Nowitz, Scenic Engineer & Photographer

Felicia Ybarra, Sound Design & Board Operator

Diana Purvine, Costume Design

Bitsy Bidwell, Costume Crew

Jen Ryle, Properties Design

Jupiter Sky Shellman, Light Board Operator

Finn Foley, Sound Board Operator

Leontine Finch, Assistant Scenic Designer

Aimee Adams, ASL Interpreter

Halle Hamilton, ASL Interpreter

MUSICIANS:

Miriam Sterlin, Mandolin

Giles Arendt, Guitar

Michael Bradley, Bass

Ted Ryle, Cajon Drum

SPECIAL THANKS TO:

Scenic Painters – Lori Campbell, Laurie O’Brien, Sara St. Clair, Donna Myers, Kristen Noel, Hillary Van Beek, Elisia Yanasak, Verite Yanasak, Cosette Yanasak, Miriam Sterlin, Elizabeth Stephens, Rayne Sterlin-Stephens, Eleanor Kinn, Leontine Finch, Zachary Clark, Kaiah Costa, Susie Heo, Raphael Venegas, Annabeth Colleth, Raoul Berman, Zed Heo

No photography or video recording is allowed during the show.

Explore some of the Behavioral Support and Body Practice Tools used in The Alphabatastics!

Green Zone Support greenzonesupport.com

The Green Zone uses colors, characters and symbols to relate to behavior and support in a way that kids of all ages can understand. The Green Zone aims to turn on its head the understandable tendency for parents and caregivers to exert high energy with kids when their behaviors are escalated, and to conserve energy, coast or rest when their behaviors have eased. This pattern can unintentionally reinforce and lead to an increase in high intensity emotions and behaviors over time.

Halona and her moms’ use many Green Zone tools in The Alphabetastics! to navigate their challenges.

We have developed 5 free downloadable posters that walk parents and caregivers through the top 5 Green Zone tools for supporting kids with their emotions.

Get your Ease Keys
powerofeasekeys.com

We want each of our kids to live their best life! Best Life Body Boogie brings to our community the Ease Keys. Ease Keys are simple movement, posture, and breath practices that help our brains and bodies. When we are in ease, our nervous system is balanced, it is much easier to be in learning and connected with others. The Ease Keys are also great for stress relief and help us breathe deeply to support our health and our brains.
What helps your body create more movement, breath, and ease?

Try-out these three Ease Key scripts.

See what changes for you and for your family members. Spend time getting to know your amazing body and discover how to work with it

CAST BIOS:

KB (Kristin Bailey) - S, P & Dust Bunny 1

KB (Kristen Bailey) is a recent transplant from the theater world of Philadelphia and is so excited to be making her Olympia debut with OFT! She has spent the last ten years on the east coast delighting in the creation and performance of original productions with Applied Mechanics Theater Company and Bearded Ladies Cabaret. This love of teamwork as well as a passion for sustainability and reconnection to the planet has brought her to the PNW with a dream of creating a place called “WilderHouse.” (Ask her about it!) A singer, a stilt walker, tree hugger and an amateur harpist, KB is ready to make some nature/art friends in Olympia and start telling some stories. Huzzah!

Samantha Chandler - Momma & X

Samantha is grateful to be participating in The Alphabetastics for so many reasons, including the many amazing people who have made it possible: the great Ryle energy, Meg’s enthusiasm and trust in the cast, and the fabulous leadership at OFT. And, there’s the little fact that this return to the stage means families coming together to witness live performances! We need audiences to spread the word-so, please be an ambassador and help us fill the theater for the full run of the show! Thanks for coming!

Edsonya Charles - W

Edsonya is thrilled to return to the Olympia Family Theatre stage. She has been performing for Olympia audiences for the last nine years at both OFT and Harlequin. Favorite roles include Luttiebelle in Purlie Victorious; the Nurse in Romeo and Juliet; and Hecuba in Trojan Women. She holds a Bachelor of Arts from Vanderbilt University and a Juris Doctor from the University of Washington School of Law.

Eleanor Kinn - Y & Dust Bunny 2

Eleanor Rose Kinn is a fifth grade student at Lincoln Options Elementary who loves reading, art, and riding her bike. Her most recent role was as Fanny Scrooge and the Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come in A Christmas Carol at Harlequin Productions. Eleanor has also performed several times as part of the Creative Theater Experience (CTE) and has enjoyed many camps and classes at the Olympia Family Theater. She is thrilled to be a part of this production and is thankful for the local Olympia theater community!

Laurie O'Brien - Z

Laurie is a member of two local Playback Theatre groups, The Heartsparkle Players and Brave Practice. She is happy to be dipping her toes back into scripted theatre with such a fun original project. Many thanks to Meg for the opportunity and to Brian for all the support.

Becki Pérez - Mom

Becki is excited to be a part of this incredible new musical and is so thankful theater is back! Most recently, Becki has played Ze Cook in Clue at OLT. She is a first grade teacher and animal enthusiast. She’d like to thank the cast and crew for such a fun experience, and her friends, family, and cats for their love and support!

Olivia Ritter - C & Dust Bunny 3

Olivia is an 8th grade student at Pioneer Middle School. This is her first show at the Olympia Family Theatre, and she is excited to be back on stage. She has had several lead roles for the Amelia Earhart Playhouse in Wiesbaden, Germany which has been nominated and awarded several TOPPERS during her participation. Her most recent roles participating in community theatre were Tommy from “Matilda”, Scout from “To Kill a Mockingbird” which she was nominated for a TOPPERS as youth lead, and Elsa in “Frozen Jr.”. When she is not singing, she enjoys playing volleyball and softball.

Alexa Ryle - H & I

Alexa has been involved in OFT since its founding and in theater and the arts since childhood. They have worn many hats in the arts community: actor, stage manager, costumer, lighting/sound designer & technician, dancer, maker, and teaching artist. Alexa is super proud to be back on stage to perform. She feels so lucky to be working with this amazing cast and crew! Congrats dad on another successful world premiere!

Sara St. Clair - G, B & Grams

Sara is thrilled to be on stage at OFT for the first time in The Alphabetastics! A classically-trained soprano and member of Olympia’s own Capital City Chorus, Sara grew up on stage, performing in musicals from the age of three and touring Europe with the Columbia Girls Choir. Past favorite roles include Mama Rose, The White Witch, Matchmaker Yente, Magenta in The Rocky Horror Show, and Mother in Menotti’s Amahl and the Night Visitors. Sara is a TESC alum and works in maternal and infant public health. She lives in Olympia with her three children.

Cosette Yanasak - Halona

Cosette Yanasak is excited to be part of OFT! She is a student at Jefferson Middle School and enjoys all things theatre, especially Hamilton. She loves to dance, sing, play guitar, and chill with her lovely cats, Jazzy and Lula. She hopes to become an environmental engineer one day, if she can fit it in between musicals!

Crew Bio's

Meg Rosenberg - Director

Meg Rosenberg (she/they) is a professional theatre artist in Olympia and works at the local storytelling and oral history nonprofit, Window Seat Media, as the community weaver. Meg’s passion is for people and the connections between us. They get to run their dream youth-centered community storytelling program, Brave Practice Playback Theatre Collective, through Window Seat. They have also been a member of the Heartsparkle Players Playback Theatre Company since 2017. When they first moved to Olympia in 2016, Meg was cast as Charlotte in Olympia Family Theater’s production of Charlotte’s Web (directed by Samantha Chandler). Since then, OFT, the Ryles, Mandy, Samantha, Lily, Mike, and the whole Alphabetastics cast, have become family. Meg holds a BA in Theatre Arts from Kalamazoo College (Kalamazoo, MI) and an MPA in organizational development and social change from The Evergreen State College (Olmypia, WA), bringing a background in education, equity work, and storytelling. Thank you to this awesome production team, cast, crew, my partner Chaney, family and friends for your commitment to seeing this project, and me, flourish in our community.

Ted Ryle - Playwright & Co-Composer

I am honored and grateful to watch this piece come to life on the OFT stage under the leadership of the theater’s phenomenal new artistic director, and the vision of Meg Rosenberg in her maiden voyage with directing a main stage production. They are rock stars!
This has been a slow burning passion project for several years, and it’s a thrill to see it find its feet with this excellent cast. I deeply appreciate the creative team that has worked on this project for some time- James Schneider and his musical maestro support; Giles Arendt and his guitar composition magic, and the incomparable Miriam Sterlin, my composing partner. I am also grateful for the synchrony that infused social emotional tools from another passion project into this script. The world needs new tools and toys for practicing self-kindness, and compassionate boldness and boundaries in relationship.
OFT is home. The community family. So much love. I hope you feel it in this production and in your all-around OFT experience. Alphabetastics is the 30th production I’ve had the pleasure to be involved with as actor, director, writer or composer. What a blessing. Thank you OFT. Thank you Olympia! Thank you Jen. Love of my life.

Miriam Sterlin - Musical Director & Co-Composer

Miriam writes music as a way of living. Cinder Edna (Ryle/Sterlin) brought her theatrical debut to the stage, and working with The Alphabetastics (Ryle/Sterlin/Arendt) is a joy. In solo work as Lady Mandolin, classical delicacy meets rhythmic syncopation, coaxing the ear to create a sense of place with depth, humor, and lyrical poetic artistry. Leading Lincoln Elementary School’s Community Band, on the stage, behind the scenes, and giving songs over to the choir, life and song are inextricably twined for Miriam Sterlin; she is joyously grateful to be working with the team at Olympia Family Theater! She can be reached professionally at:

Mandy Ryle - Stage Manager

Mandy has been a part of OFT since day one. She has tried on many roles in the theater and you can find her anywhere from teaching camps to organizing props, working backstage to performing on it. She is currently working on her Masters in Teaching and working as a Kindergarten teacher in her spare time. She loves cuddling with her cats, laughing till her belly hurts, and breaking out into song at any moment. Mandy would like to thank her partner Liam and kiddo Roonsky for their support and love.

Jill Carter - Scenic and Video Designer

Jill is delighted to be OFT’s Resident Designer. She has years of experience in scenic, lighting, and projection designs, for a variety of theaters in the NW. Some of her favorite OFT designs include Corduroy, Cinder Edna, Orphan Train, BusyTown, Wind in the Willows, Fishnapped!, and Starry Messenger.

Vanessa Postil - Choreographer

Vanessa is an Olympia based performing artist, producer, choreographer, musician, Teaching Artist, mama and lover of cats. She is so excited to return to OFT to direct The American Liver Show and to work with all of these very talented performers, directors, writers, crew members, and admin team! Thank you all so much for coming, and please enjoy the show.

Natalie Coblentz - Lighting Designer

Natalie Coblentz [They/Them] is extremely honored to work with such talented and dedicated artists on their first solo theater lighting design. Natalie has been working up to this moment, lighting up gigs in bars and smaller theaters, but this year we grow and go big. With guidance from the very talented Jill Carter and Kate Arvin, plus many years of training, Natalie is pleased to give a warm and magical glow to The Alphabetastics.

Felicia Ybarra – Audio Engineer

Felicia is a passionate audio engineer with 5 years and several hundred live events under her belt. Her favorite part of audio engineering is dialogue. when she’s not running sound, she enjoys teaching, reptiles, and collecting bones.

David Nowitz – Scenic Engineer

David is happiest tinkering around in his scene shop coming up with imaginative ways to make things. Recent favorite engineering challenges for Olympia Family Theater include building an escalator for Corduroy, making a recycling machine with working wooden gears for Cinder Edna, making an under bed and over bed/jungle gym in The Monster Under the Bed, making a ski slope for A Year with Frog and Toad, and making a bed fall through a ceiling in Mercy Watson to the Rescue. Also, for Open Road Productions, David made an underwater/ overwater transforming touring set for The Incredible Undersea Trial of Joseph P. Lawnboy, and for Ballet Northwest, a candy cane throne.

Diana Purvine & Bitsy Bidwell – Costuming Team

Diana & Bitsy first met for a strategy/planning lunch on September 6, 2016. That Theater season we costumed 4 of Olympia Little Theater’s shows and have worked on many more since then, most recently was “Clue!”. Along the way we’ve become very close friends who bounce costume design ideas off each other, work out sewing construction problems and have great gabfests and lots of laughs as we work on costumes for shows. We especially enjoy costuming period pieces especially Regency and Victorian periods. Combined the two of us have 50+ years of costuming and sewing experience. We both have designed shows for Olympia Family Theater in the past, but this is our first collaboration effort for OFT. Our favorite thing to do after the show is up and running and we can finally relax? Go out for ice cream together!

Jen Ryle – Properties Designer

Jen Ryle is the co-founder and former Artistic Director of Olympia Family Theater. By day you can find her reading stories to kids, working in the library at an elementary school in Yelm. Every evening she can likely be found trying out new recipes for dinner with her favorite playwright, puzzling, and cuddling their sweet pandemic pup, Kali. The Alphabetastics cast and crew is full to the brim with friends, theater family, and her actual family and it has been an absolute pleasure for her to help in a small way to bring it to the stage.

Jupiter Sky Shellman – Light Board Operator

This is Jupiter’s (they/them) seventh show with OFT, and they are so happy to be back! Previous favorites include The Wind in the Willows, Flora & Ulysses, Fishnapped! (OFT), Neighborhood 3: Requisition of Doom, Legally Blonde, and Mamma Mia! (Olympia High School). Special thanks to their family for always supporting them!

Aimee Adams – ASL Interpreter

Nationally Certified ASL Interpreter, RID, & Music Educator, ’15 Texas State University alum, Aimee Adams blends the two distinct fields of musical conducting and language access of American Sign Language interpreting into a passionate outpouring, beloved by the Deaf, Hard of Hearing, and Hearing community. As a CODA, Child of Deaf Adults, Aimee Adams engages in communication access in a wide variety of settings while interpreting, but specializes in the performance arts access: music interpreting, integrative theatrical interpreting, traditional theater interpreting, & the comedic arts. See latest works on Tiktok @AimeeAdams_MusicHands.

Halle Hamilton – ASL Interpreter

Halle Hamilton received both her M.A. in Interpreting Studies and her B.A. in American Sign Language/ English Interpreting from Western Oregon University (WOU). She primarily works as an educational interpreter, DC-S supervision leader, and works with graduate students from WOU. She has a passion for theatrical interpreting and is excited to be working with Olympia Family Theater for this production!

OUR DONORS:

Donors from March 2021 – March 2022. Join them in a quick, painless way to support OFT. Ask us how here! If your info is missing or incorrect, please contact Mike Taylor here. * Denotes monthly donors/Combined Fund Drive donors.

Friends of Tweedle Dee & Tweedle Dum ($1000 & up)

Linda & Ronald Moon
David & Jane Nowitz
Elizabeth Gross
Paul D. Shepherd
Diana & Stephen Purvine*

* Denotes monthly donors/Combined Fund Drive donors.

ORGANIZATION CREDITS:

OFT Staff

Artistic Director
Lily Raabe

Deputy Director
Mike Taylor

Education Director
Rachel Carlson

Communications Director
Natalie Coblentz

Box Office Staff
Tracy Thomas

Scenic Engineer
David Nowitz

Resident Designer
Jill Carter

Company-in-Residence
String & Shadow

Volunteer Bookkeeper
Diana Purvine

OFT Board of Directors

Executive Committee:
Samantha Chandler
Sara Thiessen
Nicole Miller
Heather Antanaitis

Members at Large:
Meghan Goodman
Jonnita Thompson
Ally Upton