ON THE VERGE OR THE GEOGRAPHY OF YEARNING is produced
by special arrangement with Broadway Play Publishing Inc, NYC
www.broadwayplaypub.com
First produced by Center Stage, Baltimore Presented by Mosaic Players
CAST
Mary .......... Meghan Lane, Susie Perkowitz
Alex .......... Bonnie Hart
Fanny .......... Jennifer Drinka, Cristianna Formeller
Grover, Etc .......... Josh Formeller, Chris Riter (Understudy)
Directed by
Rebecca Zellar
Sound Designed and Amplified by
Daniel Melendez Set, Props, Costume Transportation and Stage Set-Up by Chris Riter, Rebecca Zellar, Jennifer Drinka, and Cast Props, Signs, Sage, and Sigils by
Connie Wurster Costumed by
Christi Nicholson and Cast Assisted by
Clara Riter Choreographed by
Jamie Gross and Cast Poster Design by
Cristianna Formeller Dramaturgy by
Gretchen Grassl
The play begins in 1888. In Terra Incognita.
"Perhaps the imagination is on the verge of recovering its rights."
- Andre Breton (paraphrased by Eric Overmyer)
SCENES
ACT ONE
On the Verge
Taking Stock - or - on Sartorial Custom, Civil and Savage
Up and Over
The Mysterious Interior
Native Chop
High Tea - or, Many Parts Are Edible
Ember Tales
An Apparition
Fort Apache
In the Jungle - The Mighty Jungle
A Prisoner in a Kaleidescope
Not Quite Robert Lowell
Plot Thickener
There will be a 15 minute intermission.
ACT TWO
Fanmail From the Future
The Starry Deep
Manna From Heaven - or, Among the Jesuits
Vintage Crystal
Woody's Esso
Paradise '55
Later That Same Evening
Go-Go Boots - or, Rock and Roll is Here To Stay
The Geography of Yearning
ACTOR BIOGRAPHIES
MEGHAN LANE (Mary) : Meghan's first excursion into the world of theater came at age 6, cast as an angel in an adult production of Hansel and Gretel. While she continued to perform throughout the years, her involvement in the last decade has reached a fervent pitch performing, stage managing, assistant directing, and even serving on the Board with various theaters including Mosaic Players, Kirk Players, and PM&L Theatre. Some of her favorite roles include Cassandra in Vanya and Sonya and Masha and Spike, Lorraine Sheldon in The Man Who Came to Dinner, and Margaret Lawrence in the suffrage play A Woman's Influence written in 1911 by Gertrude E. Jennings.
Playing the role of Mary Baltimore in On The Verge, Meghan adores Mary's fierce independence, her fearless exuberance for new worlds, change, and the future. Meghan relates to Mary's passion for discovery as she is constantly learning new things and meeting new "natives" along the way. “I have used the quote ‘change is inevitable, change is constant’ in my life to remind myself that I cannot control all things, nothing remains the same forever. Mary’s attitude in the face of change is one I aspire to. The future is coming, no one can resist”.
Fierce in her own way as an independent single mother and cancer survivor, Meghan travels amongst her two wonderful "warriors", Sean and Laura, to whom she is forever thankful for and proud of.
SUSIE PERKOWITZ (Mary) is grateful to be heading to Terra Incognita in Mosaic Players’ production of On the Verge, as it exemplifies the power of live theatre to teach, to entertain and to connect. She holds degrees in both Communications and Theatre, has extensive experience in improv and a cappella, and has a background in broadcasting and voice-
over. She enjoys performing throughout Chicagoland and is currently rehearsing the role of Aphra for an upcoming production of Children of Eden. Recently, under the direction of Rick and Laura Hall (Whose Line Is It Anyway?), Susie had the pleasure of performing in the world premiere musical version of the improv form, A Town Called Henry for the creator himself, Michael Gellman (founding member & senior faculty, The Second City). Susie’s secret goal is to be in every musical that includes tap dancing.
CRISTIANNA FORMELLER (Fanny) : Cristianna is thrilled to be part of Mosaic Players’ inaugural show! A resident of Lake in the Hills, Cristi has been involved in theatre both onstage and off for nearly twenty years. Most recently she could be seen in An Evening of Mystery with Kirk Player (Helen), The Gift of the Magi with Parker Players (Clarice), and Follies with LZP (Young Sally). Josh, my tender parsnip, thank you for being my fellow traveler! Tell us a little bit about yourself and your theatre history. I grew up in mid-Michigan and began acting in the 5th grade, when I was cast as the lead in the church Christmas pageant. I’ve been in love with the art ever since, being involved both onstage and off, and even obtaining a degree in theatre arts. What do you hope our audiences walk away with? I hope that people walk away feeling hopeful for the future. As tough as the present can be, time marches on. What is your philosophy towards acting? To paraphrase Sanford Meisner, to me, acting is living truthfully under imaginary circumstances. My approach is to live genuinely in the character’s emotions, and let the rest build on that inner core.
JENNIFER DRINKA (Fanny) : Jennifer is a native of Antioch, the Director of the Antioch Public Library District, the youngest of 10 children, passionate about her parrot Gracie, her puppeteer husband Joe, her family, nature and stories. Becoming Fanny Cranberry in On the Verge has been the experience of a lifetime. She loves Fanny’s equal parts of fierceness and femininity. She relates to Fanny’s delicate heart, verbosity, adventurous spirit, romantic nature, and love of a good time. She hopes that audiences come away from the play ready and willing to embrace the future, explore hidden parts of themselves, gain a sense of wonderment, as well as having learned a few new words. As an actor, she is motivated by the power of collaboratively creating living art to inspire people in a world that we too often need to take refuge from. Her philosophy towards acting is to immerse herself in her character and the story. In her spare time, she loves being with her family, snuggling her African Grey, Gracie, reading, researching, baking cookies, doing puzzles, watching scary movies, and playing guitar. The rehearsal experience for On the Verge has been a mosaic of people, places, and time. Having two casts has made this experience so incredible, as she gets to see another person’s portrayal of her character in real time, which challenges and motivates her to think more deeply about her role. She is so grateful for this experience and to Rebecca Zellar, who is an incredible Director with an uncanny ability to share her vision and make her super creative ideas a reality. She hopes that you enjoy the show as much as she enjoys being a part of it. Hooper do!
BONNIE HART (Alex) : Bonnie has done theatre since the age of 5 and fell in love with it. They are very excited to be a part of this wonderful production of On the Verge! They have had a fantastic time working on this show and with all these lovely people. They have had a fun time getting to know their character, Alex, who is an excited - except when it comes to the jungle - and forward thinking explorer. They hope you enjoy the show and leave happy and with a sense of adventure!
JOSH FORMELLER (Grover, etc.) : Josh is excited to be playing multiple characters in this fun play. This is Josh's second performance with Mosaic Players. Past credits include Gift of the Magi with The Parker Players and A Christmas Carol with Mosaic Players for their Virtual Advent Calendar.
Special Thanks To:
The Cast and Crew, Broadway Play Publishing, The Mosaic Players Board of Directors, The Lindenhurst Park District, The Lake Villa District Library, The Antioch Township Center, The Antioch Public Library District, the Village of Antioch, Patrick Blake, Jamie Lee, Shola Jimoh, Joe Drinka, Amy Monroe, Nicole Heyl, Paul Bleadow, Robert Krause, Penny Wurster, Jeanna Daebelliehn, Jamie Churchill, Jason Clark, Clint Monroe, Emma Monroe, Sheri Warren, Kristy Warren, Laura Lane, Jeanna Daebelliehn, Renee Johnson, Tiffany Cappel, Susan McCuistion, Ivan Ortega, Agnes Drinka, Kathy Groth,Mary Jedele, and StudioGC Architects.