Mike Ricci's Production of
Chain of Command
Cast
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Jeremy (a prophet)
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Joe Galatz
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Nina Lawson (a mother)
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Nina Kampf
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Jon Lawson (her son)
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Jon Chiaravalle
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William Lawson
(asst. to the asst. attorney general) |
Pat Zollar
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Alberta Cardoza (White House Chief of Staff)
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Louisa Guggisberg
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US Army Captain
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Dave Schaufel
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Sgt. Michael Lawson
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Michael McLaughlin
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Uncle Jack (Nina's brother)
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Joe Treadwell
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Air Force Recruiter, Blackbird Operative,
Secret Service Agent |
Jeremy Boulanger
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US Army Official
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Matt Trask
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Julie Janson (a TV news reporter)
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Julie Tupa
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The Commander in Chief
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Arrow Seifert
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Attorney General
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Josh Dean
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Molly
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Molly Johnson
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Crew
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Stage Manager
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Kelly Gustavvson
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Technical Director/Video Production, Sound and
Video Engineering |
Dan Dolinar
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Production Manager, Set Design, Sound Design
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Mike Ricci
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Lighting Design
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D. Kelly
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Military Consultants
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Brandon Olson - MN Army National Guard
Dean Londo - MN Army National Guard Major Tom Ruud - US Air Force Reserve Tim Case - US Marine Corps |
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Costumes
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Mike Ricci, Tom Ruud, The Cast
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Set Construction
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Dan Dolinar, Mike Ricci, Angela Rohling
Nina Peterson, Nina Kampf, LaKeisha Clinton |
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Stage Crew
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Desiree Hawley
Nina Peterson |
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Lighting, Sound and Video Operation
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Dan Dolinar
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Poster Concept
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Ellie Ricci
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Box Office
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Barb Suech
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Director Notes
Why? That is the question that comes up more often than not when I've been asked about doing a play about the war in Iraq. The easy answer is "why not?", but there is much more to it than that. I had wanted to work on a project like this for quite some time; finding a play that could hopefully bring some clarity to the muddle of this ongoing war. While it's true that one of the functions of theatre in any society is to entertain, it is also one of the best ways to offer a forum for discussion, thought and intelligent debate of issues. Our country is at a cross roads, and we seem to have been held hostage by sound bites, labels, and too many people out to make a buck. I was angry, and disappointed, that in a country as great as ours, we seemed to be floundering. We were losing our great standing in the world community, our economy in debt to a rising China, our military stretched to the breaking point, and our leaders unable to articulate a sensible plan of action that we could all get behind.
So, with all this in mind, I decided to commission a play, to be written specifically for us about the war, and the many threads of connection that bind us all. It was to be titled "Chain of Command", and playwright Dominic Orlando, a Jerome Fellowship recipient, and core member of the Playwrights Center in Minneapolis, was contracted to develop the script, in conjunction with myself, the cast, and a number of military consultants. We started out with an ensemble of eight actors, a blank piece of paper, and many ideas about what we could write about. It became apparent in those early meetings that we would have to narrow our focus in order to create any kind of stage-worthy production. One of the recurring issues for me was the spiritual journey many people take in difficult times, and Dominic agreed that we should explore that, as well as develop a sense of what happens when people are place in a position in which they have to make decisions that affect not only themselves, but other people as well. From all of these discussions, we came up with an outline that included religion, family, politics, and the military, and how the chain of command in each area creates the world we live in. All of the actors were encouraged to share as much of them as they were comfortable with, with most of it finding its way into the script. We went through at least eight re-writes, and much editing, and added six more actors to the ensemble before we came up with a finished version of the script.
This has indeed been a very personal journey for all of us. Many of the cast have family in the war, are in or have been in the military, or know someone who is "over there". I would like to thank the cast for their commitment and energy to this project, to Dominic Orlando for his brave words and passion, to Dan Dolinar for creating the media sights and sounds, and to all the courageous members of the armed services who are serving their country in these difficult times. The play that we created is offered here before you as an opportunity to perhaps embark on a personal journey of reflection, assessment and consideration of where we stand. We can no longer be bystanders - we all need to be held accountable for our words and actions. One of the over-riding themes of the play "who do you serve" was inspired by our own native son - Bob Dylan, and it became a rallying cry for each character, one by one, as the story unfolds. Perhaps that is a question we all need to ask of ourselves: "Who do you serve?"
Play Photos
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