CHAMBERMACBETH
Production Team Biographies

Russ Banham (Director)

SSC: Othello, Twelfth Night

Russ directed Twelfth Night at Seattle Shakespeare Company in 2003 and Othello in 2005 and adapted and directed both Ethan Frome and Romance with Double Bass for Book-It Repertory Theatre. He was formerly the artistic director of Montana Players Inc., overseeing 28 productions and directing nine plays at the Missoula company, including Speed of Darkness, House of Blue Leaves and Sylvia. He directed Loot for Spokane Interplayers, Hubcaps for Montana Repertory Theatre, summer stock musicals and farces at the Bigfork Playhouse, and was a teaching fellow at the University of Montana, directing Seagull, What the Butler Saw, and others. Russ has an MFA in Directing and an MA in Drama Theory and Criticism. Acting credits include the Broadway production of The Merchant, with Zero Mostel, who died upstage right at the first performance. The production is considered among the most cursed in Broadway history: two other actors died during its run and on closing night the fire curtain broke loose and came within a hairsbreadth of injuring the remaining principals. Russ co-starred for a season as Brad in the NBC sitcom, Joe’s World, with Christopher Knight of The Brady Bunch and co-starred as Crockett in the summer sleeper, Meatballs, with Bill Murray in his first film role. Russ is the author of 14 books, including the international best-seller, The Ford Century, an award-winning biography of the Ford dynasty translated into 13 languages.

Jennifer Lupton (Scenic Designer)

SSC: Debut

This is Jennifer’s first show with Seattle Shakespeare Company. Lately, she has spent most of her time at Seattle Children’s Theatre where she just opened Goodnight Moon. Other recent SCT designs include: Peter and the Wolf, Red Badge of Courage, Bunnicula, Mrs. Piggle-Wiggle, Our Only May Amelia, The Hoboken Chicken Emergency, The Boxcar Children, The Tempest, and the original production of Afternoon of the Elves. Jennifer has designed for many Northwest theatres: ACT, The Empty Space Theatre, Intiman, Perseverance Theatre in Juneau, Tacoma Actors Guild – where she designed Beauty Queen of Leenane, Baltimore Waltz, Educating Rita, and The Drawer Boy and The Group where she last designed Falsettos in this theatre space. She is on the faculty of Cornish College of the Arts and holds an MFA in set and lighting design from University of Washington. Jennifer is married to model builder extraordinaire, Denis, and they have one son, Zach.

Heidi Ganser (Costume Designer)

SSC: Much Ado About Nothing

Heidi’s work was last seen at Seattle Shakespeare Company in Much Ado About Nothing. She is a founding member of WET where she is also the resident costume designer. WET designs include Finer Noble Gases, Crave, Wonderful Life, Swimming in the Shallows, and Crumbs Are Also Bread. She has also worked at Book-It Repertory Theatre (Broken For You), The Empty Space Theatre (Stupid Kids), Taproot Theatre (Arthur: The Hunt), Theater Schmeater (Soccer Moms), ExitTheatre (Dianna Moves), and various productions with Defibrillator. She recieved her MFA in costume design from University of Washington and was a costume design assistant at Saturday Night Live.

Tim Wratten (Lighting Designer)

SSC: The Comedy of Errors, The Winter’s Tale, Much Ado About Nothing, Cyrano de Bergerac, Richard III, Romeo and Juliet, The Taming of the Shrew, Othello, Love’s Labour’s Lost, As You Like It, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, King Lear, Measure for Measure, Twelfth Night, The Tempest, Macbeth, The Merchant of Venice, Hamlet

Tim loves to play with light and is delighted to return to Seattle Shakespeare Company to light this show. Having worked in British rep theatres (Bristol Old Vic, Manchester Library, Coventry Belgrade) for many years, in 1996, Tim and family decided to come and play in Seattle (the weather is the same). Since then he has completed over forty shows, including designs for The Empty Space Theatre, New City Theatre, Seattle University, and the Alliance Theatre Atlanta.

Dave Pascal (Sound Design)

SSC: A Midsummer Night’s Dream

Dave Pascal’s work as a composer and sound designer has been heard at all of Seattle’s professional theatres as well as at Colorado Shakespeare Festival, Pittsburgh City Theatre, and the Club at La MaMa E.T.C. in New York. He has recorded music and sound effects for Emmy-winning TV videos, produced albums for musical groups, and created music and sound effects for multimedia projects, including titles for Discovery Channel and Scholastic Books. He has worked since 1975 as a bassist in show and club bands, recording studios, theatre orchestras, and as backing for national acts. He holds a musical engineering degree from the University of Washington.

Kimberly White (Vocal/Text Director)

SSC: The Comedy of Errors, The Winter’s Tale, Much Ado About Nothing, Cyrano de Bergerac, Richard III, Romeo and Juliet, The Taming of the Shrew, Othello, Love’s Labour’s Lost, As You Like It, King Lear

Kimberly has worked with Shakespeare’s text over the past 16 years as coach, teacher, director, and producer. She has taught and coached for the Professional Actor Training Program at the University of Washington, Freehold Conservatory Theatre, University of British Columbia, Otterbein College, and the Korean University of the Arts. Kimberly spent the past five summer seasons in Idaho where she directed and coached for Sun Valley Shakespeare Festival, a company she co-founded in 2000 and served as its Artistic Director for several years. She was Associate Director on Richard III for Harvard/Radcliffe University at the Loeb Theatre. She has been a faculty member with Shakespeare and Company (Lenox, Mass.) for eleven years and worked as “Lamentation Coach” for their ground-breaking production of Richard III. Kimberly has also worked with Lake Tahoe Shakespeare Festival and Seattle Children’s Theatre, and she served as co-director of the local innovative youth program, Young Shakespeare Workshop. Kimberly is a designated Linklater voice teacher. She is the proud mother of Hannah.

Marleigh Driscoll (Properties Designer)

SSC: The Comedy of Errors, The Winter’s Tale, Much Ado About Nothing, Cyrano de Bergerac, Richard III, Romeo and Juliet, The Taming of the Shrew, Othello, Love’s Labour’s Lost, Kate and Isabel, Macbeth, The Two Gentlemen of Verona

Marleigh is delighted to be working with Seattle Shakespeare Company for the third full season. She has been a stage manager and assistant director at Book-It Repertory Theatre for I Am of Ireland, Owen Meany’s Christmas Pageant, and In a Shallow Grave, as well as the Flying Karamazov’s Fun House at ACT Theatre. She has also designed props for Wooden O Theatre for their last seven seasons, and also served as Production Manager for the last two seasons, including their most recent productions of Hamlet and As You Like It. Marleigh also has a Master’s Degree in Architecture and spent seven years as Production Manager for the Drama Department at North Seattle Community College.

Lenore Bensinger (Dramaturg)

SSC: Othello, The Taming of the Shrew, As You Like It, King Lear, Merchant of Venice

Lenore last dramaturged for Russ Banham on Othello. She has also dramaturged other Seattle Shakespeare Company productions, including The Taming Of The Shrew, King Lear, The Merchant Of Venice and As You Like It. Her dramaturgy credits in Seattle are extensive. Among Lenore’s produced plays are: Seed, Behind The Veil, Masque Of The Red Death, Fever, Yeb-yang-ah…and The Prince and the Dragon. She is currently writing a new play embracing the work and amours of Emilie de Chatelet, the greatest mathematician of the Age of Reason and “Volaire’s luminary.” Lenore is a MFA graduate of the now extinct University of Washington playwriting program. In her former life, she was a journalist and political speech-writer based in DC.

Miller Freeman IV (Stage Manager)

SSC: Much Ado About Nothing, Romeo and Juliet, The Taming of the Shrew, Othello

Miller is excited to be stage manager for Seattle Shakespeare Company’s Chamber Macbeth. Miller has worked as stage manager for several shows throughout Seattle, including Summer Rhapsody: The Reunion and Uncle Willy’s Chocolate Factory produced by the Langston Hughes Performing Arts Center at Seattle Repertory Theatre, Rebecca and Waxwings with Book-It Repertory Theatre, and several shows at Theater Schmeater and the University of Washington.