It's been said that love conquers all, but the limits of devotion will be tested in Rutgers Theater Company's Love and Intrigue, running from Friday, October 31, through Sunday, November 9, 2014, at the Philip J. Levin Theater. New Jersey residents involved in the production include cast members John P. Keller of New Brunswick and Shyrley Rodriguez of West New York, as well as set designer Matthew Crane of Franklin Lakes, lighting designer Jason M. Flamos of Murray Hill, and stage manager Eliza J Brennessel of Middletown.
On a mission to crush his son's relationship with the commoner Luise, Ferdinand's cold-hearted father sets off a chain reaction of violence and tragedy that "will have a powerful emotional effect" on audiences, says director Christopher Cartmill.
Stormy passion and drama run through Friedrich Schiller's 1784 work, punctuated by the characters' sometimes unexpected emotional reactions.
"The play never goes where you think it's going to go," Cartmill says. "It's very intense, but there's incredible humor and intellectual and emotional sophistication."
The work was translated by Cartmill, who teaches global theater at the Mason Gross School of the Arts, because he was unable to find an English version that "got at the power that I feel within the play," he says.
With a pared-down set and "midcentury, vintage hipster-style" costuming, Cartmill says, the play has a contemporary feel.
"Anybody that's expecting it to be a classical, antique museum piece—it is not that," says Cartmill.
Amidst the scandal and raging jealousy, blackmail and backstabbing, how much pressure can Ferdinand and Luise stand before they crumble—or turn on each other? The tragedy may be strong, but Schiller, who wrote the play when he was just 22, leaves plenty of room for "freedom and hope and love," Cartmill says.
"The emotional violence of the play is hard," says Cartmill, "but I think it's something audiences will understand—the anger and fear, and the love and passion."
Love and Intrigue runs from Friday, October 31, through Sunday, November 9, 2014, at the Philip J. Levin Theater. Performances are at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday and at 2 p.m. Sunday. Tickets are $25 for the general public, $20 for Rutgers alumni and employees and seniors, and only $15 for students with valid ID. The Philip J. Levin Theater is in the Mason Gross Performing Arts Center, 85 George Street (between Route 18 and Ryders Lane), on the Douglass Campus of Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, in New Brunswick. For more information about any Mason Gross event, visit www.masongross.rutgers.edu or call the Mason Gross Performing Arts Center ticket office at 848-932-7511.
PHOTO: Left to right, Carter Bellaimey and Leale DeVerges. Photo credit: Eliza J Brennessel.
About Rutgers Theater Company
Carter Bellaimey (Ferdinand von Walters - BFA IV) was born and raised in Minneapolis, Minnesota. His Mason Gross credits include Nigel in Between Here and There, Ferdinando in La Guerra, Brutus in Julius Caesar at Shakespeare's Globe in London, and most recently Ciaus Ligarius/Cinna the Poet in Julius Caesar at Rutgers.
Alejandro Cardozo (Secretary Wurm - BFA IV) is from Miami, Florida. Rutgers credits include Lucifer in Between Here and There, Polidoro in La Guerra, Cassius in Julius Caesar at Shakespeare's Globe in London, and Julius Caesar in the Rutgers production of Julius Caesar.
Leale DeVerges (Luise Miller - BFA IV) is a native of Los Angeles, California. Her Rutgers theater credits include Between Here and There, Fabia in La Guerra, and Octavius in Julius Caesar.
Jean-Louis Droulers (Hofmarshall von Kalb - BFA IV) is from Caracas, Venezuela. Rutgers Theater Company credits include Conte in La Guerra, Sunny in Between Here and There, and Cassius in Julius Caesar at Shakespeare's Globe in London. He was also Caska in Julius Caesar at Mason Gross School of the Arts.
John P. Keller (Chancellor von Walters - Alumni Guest Artist) TV: Beckert on Boardwalk Empire (HBO) season five. Theater: New York credits include world premieres of You Are Now the Owner of This Suitcase and JH3AM with Theater 167, and the 2012 New York City revival of The Violet Hour by Richard Greenberg. Regional: Nicholas in Nicholas Nickleby, Jonathan Harker in Dracula, Roderigo in Othello, and Edward in Sense and Sensibility, all at Orlando Shakespeare Theater; Cohn in Captors at Contemporary American Theater Festival; Jonathan Harker in Dracula at Alabama Shakespeare; Bart in Inspecting Carol at George Street Playhouse; Bottom in A Midsummer Night's Dream at coLAB Arts: New Brunswick Theater Festival; and roles in Macbeth, Much Ado, Midsummer, and Twelfth Night, all at Worcester Shakespeare Festival. Internationally he appeared at the Balinese Arts Festival. Keller holds an MFA in acting from Rutgers University and is a proud member of Actors Equity.
Kaitlin Ormerod (Sophie - MFA I) is from Orlando, Florida. She received her BA in both theater and English literature from Florida State University. Credits include Speed the Plow and The Rocky Horror Show at Florida State University and 42nd Street at Orlando Repertory Theatre.
David Pegram (Herr Miller - Alumni Guest Artist) is from Houston, Texas. Broadway credits include War Horse at Lincoln Center Theater. Regional credits include: Broke-ology, TheaterWorks; Fly, Cincinnati Playhouse; A Few Good Men, Alley Theatre; and Heart and Lights, Radio City Music Hall. Other credits include: Much Ado About Nothing, Smith Street Stage, 'Tis Pity She's A Whore, Tank Theater; and Suits and Ties, Shell Theatre.
Shyrley Rodriguez (Lady Milford - BFA IV) is from West New York, New Jersey. She has been in Between Here and There, La Guerra, and The Tragedy of Julius Caesar at Rutgers, along with The Tragedy of Julius Caesar at Shakespeare's Globe in London.
Nicole Spinnler (Frau Miller - BFA IV) is from Portland, Oregon. Her Mason Gross School of the Arts credits are Cally and Jay in Between Here and There, Soldier 1 in La Guerra, Marc Antony in Julius Caesar, and Brutus and Decius Brutus in Julius Caesar at Shakespeare's Globe in London.
Joey Sponseller (Valet - MFA I) is from Ventura, California. He received his BA in theater arts from Azusa Pacific University, where he was seen in Tartuffe and Crazy for You. Other credits include Kiss Me, Kate (Cabrillo Music Theatre), Romeo and Juliet, and Our Town (Rubicon Theatre Company).
Christopher Cartmill (Director/Translator/Sound Design) is an award-winning actor, playwright, and director. He has appeared in numerous film and television commercials. He is on the faculty at Mason Gross School of the Arts. This winter he will be in Rome, Italy, as Rutgers' Affiliate Fellow at the American Academy. He will next direct his translation of George Sand's Gabriel in Jameson Studio Theater at Rutgers.
Matthew Crane (Set Designer - MFA II) is from Franklin Lakes, New Jersey. He received his BA in theater arts from Gettysburg College. Gettysburg credits include Arcadia. Design credits at Rutgers include The End Is Far. He recently interned with Anne Louizos.
Christianne Bakewell (Costume Designer - MFA I) is from Omaha, Nebraska. She received her BA in theater studies from Northern Arizona University. Northern Arizona University credits include The Servant of Two Masters (assistant wig design) and Macbeth (assistant costume design).
Jason M. Flamos (Lighting Designer - MFA III) is from Murray Hill, New Jersey, and completed his BFA in production/design at Montclair State University in 2010. Past Rutgers Theater Company credits include The Dining Room, Woyzeck, Another Part of the Forest, You Can't Take It With You, and Julius Caesar. Rutgers credits as assistant/associate lighting designer include: A Raisin in the Sun, The Two Gentlemen of Verona, and Cyrano de Bergerac. Flamos also acted as the technical director for Jameson Studio Theater's 2012-2013 season.
Eliza J Brennessel (Stage Manager - BFA IV) is from Middletown, New Jersey. Mason Gross School of the Arts credits include The End Is Far (stage manager), Playwrights Festival of New Plays (production manager), Cyrano de Bergerac (assistant stage manager), Adrift (stage manager), and The R&J Project (stage manager, production manager).
About Mason Gross School of the Arts
Founded in 1976, Mason Gross School of the Arts is the flagship public arts conservatory of New Jersey. Part of Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, the school is home to the departments of Dance, Music, Theater, and Visual Arts as well as the Brodsky Center for Innovative Editions, Mason Gross Extension Division, Arts Online, and the Rutgers Center For Digital Filmmaking. Its faculty and alumni rosters include arts professionals recognized nationally and internationally, including Kristin Davis, Calista Flockhart, Avery Brooks, Cleo Mack, William Pope.L, Alice Aycock, Sean Jones, and Cristina Pato. The school's enrollment of 752 undergraduates and 281 graduate students across four departments, combined with a faculty of 219, ensures students the opportunity to work closely with accomplished artists within their fields.
About Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey
Established in 1766, Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, is America's eighth oldest institution of higher learning. The Rutgers system educates more than 65,000 students and serves the people of New Jersey at universities, research centers, and clinical practices throughout the state. The flagship, Rutgers University-New Brunswick, is one of the nation's premier public research universities and is the only public institution in New Jersey represented in the prestigious Association of American Universities. Rutgers University is also a member of the Big Ten Conference and its academic counterpart, the Committee on Institutional Cooperation—a consortium of 15 world-class research universities.
