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April 23 - May 18, 2014 ,

Informed Consent

written by Deborah Zoe Laufer
directed by Sean Daniels
co-produced with Geva Theatre Center

Run time: approx. 90 minutes, no intermission

Scientific breakthroughs allow us to know more about ourselves than ever before. But how much do we want to know — and who gets to decide how that information is used? Based on a true story, Informed Consent takes us into the personal and national debate about science vs. belief and whether our DNA is our destiny.

Informed Consent was originally commissioned by The Ensemble Studio Theatre/Alfred P. Sloan Foundation Science & Technology Project. Additional funding for this production was also provided by the EST/Sloan Project.

Photos & Videos Download Hi Res Photos

From Left: Tina Fabrique as Five and Jessica Wortham as Jillian in Informed Consent. Photo by Ken Huth.

From Left: Jessica Wortham as Jillian, Fajer Al-Kaisi as Graham, Gilbert Cruz as Four, Tina Fabrique as Five, and Larissa FastHorse as Arella in Informed Consent. Photo by Ken Huth.

Tina Fabrique as Five in Informed Consent. Photo by Ken Huth.

From Left: Jessica Wortham as Jillian, Gilbert Cruz as Four, Larissa FastHorse as Natalie, Fajer Al-Kaisi as Graham, and Tina Fabrique as Five in Informed Consent. Photo by Ken Huth.

From Left: Larissa FastHorse as Arella, Gilbert Cruz as Ken, Fajer Al-Kaisi as Two, Jessica Wortham as Jillian, and Tina Fabrique as Five in Informed Consent. Photo by Ken Huth.

From Left: Tina Fabrique as Five and Jessica Wortham as Jillian in Informed Consent. Photo by Colin Huth.

From Left: Jessica Wortham as Jillian, Gilbert Cruz as Four, Tina Fabrique as Five, Fajer Al-Kaisi as Graham, and Larissa FastHorse as Arella in the Cleveland Play House production of Informed Consent in the Second Stage at PlayhouseSquare, April 23-May 18, 2014. Photo by Taylor Crichton.

From Left: Gilbert Cruz as Ken, Larissa FastHorse as Arella, Jessica Wortham as Jillian, and Tina Fabrique as Dean Hagen in the Cleveland Play House production of Informed Consent in the Second Stage at PlayhouseSquare, April 23-May 18, 2014. Photo by Taylor Crichton.

From Left: Jessica Wortham as Jillian, Gilbert Cruz as Four, Larissa FastHorse as Arella, Tina Fabrique as Five, and Fajer Al-Kaisi as Two in the Cleveland Play House production of Informed Consent in the Second Stage at PlayhouseSquare, April 23-May 18, 2014. Photo by Taylor Crichton.

From Left: Gilbert Cruz as Ken and Jessica Wortham as Jillian in the Cleveland Play House production of Informed Consent in the Second Stage at PlayhouseSquare, April 23-May 18, 2014. Photo by Taylor Crichton.

From Left: Larissa FastHorse as Three, Gilbert Cruz as Four, Jessica Wortham as Jillian, and Tina Fabrique as Five in the Cleveland Play House production of Informed Consent in the Second Stage at PlayhouseSquare, April 23-May 18, 2014. Photo by Taylor Crichton.

Artists

Fajer Al-Kaisi

Fajer Al-Kaisi

(Two/Graham) appeared as Zemar in The Boy Who Danced on Air at New World Stages off-Broadway. Regional credits include Tybalt in Romeo and Juliet and Aeneas in Troilus and Cressida, Oregon Shakespeare Festival; Tariq inTennis in Nablus, Stageworks; Musa in Bengal Tiger at the Baghdad Zoo, Arena Stage (Washington, more(Two/Graham) appeared as Zemar in The Boy Who Danced on Air at New World Stages off-Broadway. Regional credits include Tybalt in Romeo and Juliet and Aeneas in Troilus and Cressida, Oregon Shakespeare Festival; Tariq inTennis in Nablus, Stageworks; Musa in Bengal Tiger at the Baghdad Zoo, Arena Stage (Washington, D.C.); Shahid inAftermath, New York Theatre Workshop and ArKtype world tour; Ashraf in Jihad Jones and the Kalashnikov Babes, InterAct Theatre Company; Girl Blog from Iraq, Dallas Theater Center; and Khalid in Omnium Gatherum at Zach Theatre. Film and television includes The Callipine, The Jew of Malta, Karim, I’ll Come Running, Ahmed Al Fatwah, Time Bomb, The Blacklist,Person of Interest, What Would You Do?, Onion News Network,Law & Order, Delocated, Nurse Jackie and 30 Rock. Al-Kaisi has narrated audiobooks Beachhead, My Brother’s Keeper,Atmospheres Apollinaires, Act III in Patagonia, Ancient Near East: A Very Short Introduction, On Language (audible.com),The Ark of Humanity and Destiny Calls.

Gilbert Cruz

Gilbert Cruz

(Four/Kevin/Lawyer) recently appeared in Much Ado About Nothing in the role of Antonio at The Shakespeare Theatre Company, Radiance as Paddy at Axial Theatre, Geva Theatre Center, Seattle Repertory Theatre, The Old Globe, Merrimack Rep, McCarter Theatre Center, Florida Stage, Coconut Grove Playhouse, Alliance Theatre, Shakespeare Festival St. Louis, more(Four/Kevin/Lawyer) recently appeared in Much Ado About Nothing in the role of Antonio at The Shakespeare Theatre Company, Radiance as Paddy at Axial Theatre, Geva Theatre Center, Seattle Repertory Theatre, The Old Globe, Merrimack Rep, McCarter Theatre Center, Florida Stage, Coconut Grove Playhouse, Alliance Theatre, Shakespeare Festival St. Louis, Portland Stage and Kansas City Rep. Cruz is an associate artist at INTAR in New York and has performed at HERE Arts Center, Cherry Lane, Ma-yi Theater Company and The Ensemble Studio Theatre. Film and television includes Sex and the City(film); Trouble in the Heights; Jack, Jules, Esther and Me; Girls; Nurse Jackie; Blue Bloods; Person of Interest;Law & Order; and The Cosby Show.

Tina Fabrique

Tina Fabrique

(Five/Dean Hagen/Mother/Grandmother) appeared at Cleveland Play House as Ella Fitzgerald in Ella, Mother Vera in Abyssinia and Amanda in The Glass Menagerie. Broadway and national tours include Dessa Rose; Bring in Da Noise, Bring in Da Funk; Ragtime; Ella; How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying; Once on more(Five/Dean Hagen/Mother/Grandmother) appeared at Cleveland Play House as Ella Fitzgerald in Ella, Mother Vera in Abyssinia and Amanda in The Glass Menagerie. Broadway and national tours include Dessa Rose; Bring in Da Noise, Bring in Da Funk; Ragtime; Ella; How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying; Once on This Island; Harlem Song; Gospel at Colonus; The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas(with Ann-Margret); The Wiz; and South Pacific (with Robert Goulet). Off-Broadway appearances include 70, Girls, 70(Encores!); Angel Levine; and as a soloist at Radio City Music Hall. Regional credits include Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom;Hairspray; Trouble in Mind; The Old Settler; Crowns; Comedy of Errors; Women of Brewster Place; Constant Star; and Spunk. Television includes multiple episodes of Law & Order: SVU andLaw & Order: Criminal Intent. Fabrique sang the theme songs for the acclaimed PBS series Reading Rainbow (along with the recently-released companion app) and the documentary Mad Hot Ballroom.

Larissa FastHorse

Larissa FastHorse

(Three/Arella/Natalie) is best known these days as a playwright and choreographer, but she began her career as a ballet dancer turned actress. She transitioned out of dancing through the role of Iris Kelly, the bitchy ballerina, in the first European tour of Fame: The Musical. Fasthorse returned to her more(Three/Arella/Natalie) is best known these days as a playwright and choreographer, but she began her career as a ballet dancer turned actress. She transitioned out of dancing through the role of Iris Kelly, the bitchy ballerina, in the first European tour of Fame: The Musical. Fasthorse returned to her home in Santa Monica, California, and originated roles in new plays at local theatres including The Chance, Beverly Hills Playhouse, the Autry’s Wells Fargo Theatre, and Disneyland. But it was her film and television roles as Waitress, Home Finance Woman, and Magical Ballerina that inspired her to stop acting and start writing. Today she is represented by Jonathan Mills at Paradigm Talent Agency, New York, and she works with theatres all over the country. She is a proud member of the Sicangu Lakota Nation and is thrilled that Sean Daniels lured her back onto the stage

Deborah Zoe Laufer

Deborah Zoe Laufer

(Playwright) was previously at Cleveland Play House for a 2013 New Ground Theatre Festival reading of Informed Consent. Laufer is recipient of the Helen Merrill Playwriting Award, The Lilly Award and has twice received the LeCompte du Noüy grant from the Lincoln Center Foundation. Her works include Leveling Up, more(Playwright) was previously at Cleveland Play House for a 2013 New Ground Theatre Festival reading of Informed Consent. Laufer is recipient of the Helen Merrill Playwriting Award, The Lilly Award and has twice received the LeCompte du Noüy grant from the Lincoln Center Foundation. Her works include Leveling Up, which just finished playing at Steppenwolf Theatre Company; Sirens; Out of Sterno; The Last Schwartz; Gulf of Westchester; Fortune; Meta; and Miniatures. Her play End Days was awarded the American Theatre Critics Association Steinberg citation and appeared at Ensemble Studio Theatre through a Sloan Foundation Grant. End Days has been produced in Germany and Russia, is listed in The Burns Mantle Yearbook as one of the best regional plays of 2008, and is published by Smith & Kraus in The Best Plays of 2008. Her works have been produced across the country, including Actors Theatre of Louisville’s Humana Festival, Portland Stage, Florida Stage, Marin Theatre Company, and The Hippodrome Theatre, with grants from the Edgerton Foundation and the National Endowment for the Arts. Her works have been developed at PlayPenn, The Eugene O’Neill National Playwrights Conference, Williamstown Theatre Festival, The Ojai Playwrights Conference, The Missoula Colony, The Cherry Lane Alternative, The Dramatists Guild Fellows Program, New Georges, The Lark Play Development Center, Asolo Repertory Theatre and the Baltic Playwrights Conference. She’s received a National New Play Network rolling world premiere and an NNPN commission. She is a member of the BMI Lehman Engel Musical Theatre Workshop and Dramatists Guild.

Jessica Wortham

Jessica Wortham

(One/Jillian) is thrilled to be returning to Cleveland Play House for the New Ground Festival after last appearing here in Informed Consent. Regional theatre highlights include Twelfth Night, A Christmas Story, Crime and Punishment, and the Humana Festival premieres of Marginal Loss and The Ruby Sunrise with Actors Theatre more(One/Jillian) is thrilled to be returning to Cleveland Play House for the New Ground Festival after last appearing here in Informed Consent. Regional theatre highlights include Twelfth Night, A Christmas Story, Crime and Punishment, and the Humana Festival premieres of Marginal Loss and The Ruby Sunrise with Actors Theatre of Louisville, Outside Mullingar with TheatreWorks Silicon Valley, The Second Girl with Contemporary American Theater Festival, A Servant to Two Masters and Othello with Pittsburgh Public Theater, An Enemy of the People with Gulfshore Playhouse, Henry VIII with Shakespeare Theater of New Jersey, The Book Club Play with Geva Theater Center and The Understudy and Black Pearl Sings! (BATCC Award for Best Leading Performance) with San Jose Rep. Internationally, she has performed with Vienna's English Theatre and the English Theatre Frankfurt. She has also appeared on the FX series “The Americans” and holds an MFA from Brown University/Trinity Rep. jessicawortham.com

Matt Callahan

(Sound Designer) designed sound for The Kite Runner, All Hail Hurricane Gordo, My Fair Lady and Intimate Apparel at Cleveland Play House. Regional credits include Comedy of Errors, Animal Crackers, Oregon Shakespeare Festival; The Pavilion, Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park; Good People, Mrs. Mannerly and Ghost Writer, Ensemble Theatre more(Sound Designer) designed sound for The Kite Runner, All Hail Hurricane Gordo, My Fair Lady and Intimate Apparel at Cleveland Play House. Regional credits include Comedy of Errors, Animal Crackers, Oregon Shakespeare Festival; The Pavilion, Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park; Good People, Mrs. Mannerly and Ghost Writer, Ensemble Theatre Company of Cincinnati; and productions at Geva Theatre Center, Milwaukee Rep, The Repertory Theatre of St. Louis, Arizona Theatre Company, Philadelphia Theatre Company, Walnut Street Theatre, Prince Music Theatre and Steppenwolf Theatre Company. Callahan was resident sound designer at Actors Theatre of Louisville for seven years. Productions there include Bob; Elemeno Pea;Ground; Sirens; Wild Blessings; The Hard Weather Boating Party; Slasher; The End; Rock and Roll — the Reunion Tour; Dark Play, or Stories for Boys; Great Falls; This Beautiful City; The Scene; The Unseen; Six Years; Pure Confidence; and Hazard County. Callahan served as resident sound designer of the Eugene O’Neill Theater Center’s National Playwrights Conference in 2008 and 2009.

Jennifer Matheson Collins

(Stage Manager) stage managed Cleveland Play House productions of The Good Peaches, Luna Gale, Ken Ludwig’s A Comedy of Tenors, Fairfield, Maurice Hines is Tappin’ Thru Life, Informed Consent, Breath and Imagination, A Christmas Story, Woody Sez, Rich Girl, The Devil’s Music: The Life and Blues of Bessie Smith, more(Stage Manager) stage managed Cleveland Play House productions of The Good Peaches, Luna Gale, Ken Ludwig’s A Comedy of Tenors, Fairfield, Maurice Hines is Tappin’ Thru Life, Informed Consent, Breath and Imagination, A Christmas Story, Woody Sez, Rich Girl, The Devil’s Music: The Life and Blues of Bessie Smith, A Carol for Cleveland, A Night With Janis Joplin (at both CPH and Arena Stage in Washington, D.C.), The Trip to Bountiful and This Wonderful Life. Other recent credits include: Angels in America (Millennium Approaches and Perestroika), A Christmas Carol, The Santaland Diaries, and The Who and the What (Kansas City Repertory Theatre). Previously, she was a full-time faculty member at Northwestern University, overseeing the stage management program. From 2000 to 2007, she was a resident stage manager at Chicago Shakespeare Theater on Navy Pier, where selected credits include Passion, Marionette Macbeth, Hamlet, Seussical the Musical, A Flea in Her Ear, Kabuki Lady Macbeth, A Little Night Music, Sunday in the Park with George and Pacific Overtures. Other Chicago credits include Death of a Salesman, Waiting for Godot, Floyd Collins, Jitney, The Odyssey and A Christmas Carol (Goodman Theatre). She earned a Bachelor of Science, Theatre and a Bachelor of Arts, Anthropology from Kansas State University and is a proud member of Actors’ Equity Association.

Amanda Doherty

(Costume Designer) is currently in her 13th season at Geva Theatre Center as the costume shop supervisor. While at Geva, she has had the opportunity to design costumes for Wilson Mainstage productions of The Book Club Play, The Underpants and Shear Madness; Fielding Nextstage productions of Stranded more(Costume Designer) is currently in her 13th season at Geva Theatre Center as the costume shop supervisor. While at Geva, she has had the opportunity to design costumes for Wilson Mainstage productions of The Book Club Play, The Underpants and Shear Madness; Fielding Nextstage productions of Stranded on Earth, Underneath the Lintel, Race of the Ark Tattooand Lobby Hero; and Big Theatre for Little People productions of Meet Me Incognito and And Then They Came for Me. Other designs include work for Kodak, Coca-Cola, PennState University Resident Theatre Company, and Cornell University, where she was a resident draper and assistant costume shop manager. Her draping skills have also been seen in productions at the Utah Shakespeare Festival and Pennsylvania Centre Stage. She received her Master of Fine Arts in costume design and technology from PennState University and now happily resides in Rochester, N.Y., with her husband and two Bumpus Hounds.

Brian J. Lilienthal

(Lighting Designer) designed The Kite Runner and Informed Consent for Cleveland Play House. New York credits include La MaMa E.T.C., Cherry Lane Theatre and 29th Street Repertory. Regional theatre credits include Milwaukee Repertory Theatre, Arizona Theatre Company, South Coast Repertory Theatre, Huntington Theatre Company, Pasadena Playhouse, Capital Repertory Theater, more(Lighting Designer) designed The Kite Runner and Informed Consent for Cleveland Play House. New York credits include La MaMa E.T.C., Cherry Lane Theatre and 29th Street Repertory. Regional theatre credits include Milwaukee Repertory Theatre, Arizona Theatre Company, South Coast Repertory Theatre, Huntington Theatre Company, Pasadena Playhouse, Capital Repertory Theater, Geva Theatre Center, Arden Theatre Company, Merrimack Repertory Theatre, Trinity Repertory Theatre, The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, Theatre at Boston Court, Perishable Theatre, Pig Iron, New Paradise Laboratories and more than 60 productions as Resident Designer at Actors Theatre of Louisville. Brian also designed lighting for Bard SummerScape,Long Beach Opera and Portland Opera Repertory Theater. He spent eight summers at the National Playwrights Conference at the O’Neill Theater Center as a Resident Lighting Designer. He is recipient of the 2005 Los Angeles Stage Alliance Ovation Award for Lighting Design. Brian holds a Master of Fine Arts from California Institute of the Arts and teaches lighting design at Tufts University.

Elissa Myers Casting, Paul Fouquet, CSA

(Casting) credits include Poisoner’s Handbook, Becoming Helen Keller, and Mystery of Matter, PBS. Other PBS projects include The Abolitionists, Dolley Madison, Alexander Hamilton, John and Abigail Adams, Benjamin Franklin (Emmy Award), Liberty (Peabody Award), God in America, People vs. Leo Frank, Louisa May Alcott, Great Performances (Artios Award in more(Casting) credits include Poisoner’s Handbook, Becoming Helen Keller, and Mystery of Matter, PBS. Other PBS projects include The Abolitionists, Dolley Madison, Alexander Hamilton, John and Abigail Adams, Benjamin Franklin (Emmy Award), Liberty (Peabody Award), God in America, People vs. Leo Frank, Louisa May Alcott, Great Performances (Artios Award in Outstanding Achievement in Casting), and Murder Of A President for American Experience. Feature films include Hank and Asha (Audience Award at Slamdance 2013) and The Union. Theatre credits include seven Broadway shows, including Tony nominated Having Our Say, as well as 26 Off-Broadway shows. Regional theatre casting in the past two years includes Denver Center, Geva Theatre, Cleveland Play House, Alabama Shakespeare Festival, Magic Theatre, Arena Stage, Alley Theatre, George Street Playhouse, and Arizona Theatre Company. The office has so far received 16 nominations and has won three Artios Awards for Outstanding Achievement in Casting.

Michael Raiford

(Scenic Designer) is a scenic and costume designer based in Austin, Texas. Cleveland Play House designs include In the Next Room, or the vibrator play; The Kite Runner; Inherit the Wind; The Chosen; and Well. His 20 Actors Theatre of Louisville productions include 12 world premieres for Humana Festival. more(Scenic Designer) is a scenic and costume designer based in Austin, Texas. Cleveland Play House designs include In the Next Room, or the vibrator play; The Kite Runner; Inherit the Wind; The Chosen; and Well. His 20 Actors Theatre of Louisville productions include 12 world premieres for Humana Festival. Other regional credits include Geva Theatre Center; South Coast Rep; Playmakers Rep; Central City Opera; Kansas City Repertory Theatre; Maltz Jupiter Theatre; Ford’s Theatre (Washington, D.C.); Opera Boston; New Victory Theatre;The Lyric, Oklahoma City: Kitchen Dog, Dallas. In Austin: The Magic Flute and The Mozart Project, Ballet Austin; Rigoletto, Austin Lyric; Tesla andBig Love, Rude Mechanicals and 100 productions at ZACH Theatre. He is a creative consultant/director in: architecture, advertising, and, yes, marching band and drum corps. His Master of Fine Arts is from The University of Texas at Austin, where he taught for 10 years. He is a member of United Scenic Artists.

Sponsors

Alfred P. Sloan FoundationCase Western Reserve University School of MedicineMetroHealth
THE CHRISTMAS HOUSE

THE CHRISTMAS HOUSE

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