Ideation: September 9 – 24 2022

“Ideation”

By Aaron Loeb

September 9, 2022 - September 24, 2022
Sept. 9, 10, 15, 16, 17, 22, 23 and 24 at 8 pm, and Sept. 11 and 18 at 2 pm


Premiered September 2022
Presented by iTheatre Collaborative

A group of corporate consultants are called back to the home office and tasked to ideate this scenario: A global pandemic will soon kill more than a million people, so how do we dispose of the bodies without causing mass panic? And go! Written in 2013, Andrew Loeb's darkly comic thriller presciently peers into the corporate-speak world as the lines between right and wrong are blurred. The question of what the team isn't being told looms ever larger, becoming harder to ignore and threatening to tear them apart.

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Cast (Alphabetically)

Christopher Haines is in the cast

Christopher Haines *

as Ted

Chris is a member of Actor's Equity Association, is a theatre veteran with over thirty years of experience as an actor, stage manager, writer, director and designer. He graduated in 1991 from Duke University. Some of his stage work includes: as an actor, the title roles in The Collected Works of Billy the Kid and Danton's Death, Richard Nixon in Frost/Nixon, Father Flynn in Doubt, Jack Lawson in David Mamet's Race, Ralph in Frozen, Orson Welles in Orson's Shadow, the Librarian in Underneath the Lintel, the Third Man/Doctor in Baltimore Waltz, Prospero in The Tempest, Vladimir in Waiting for Godot, Alan Seymour in Picnic, Vernon Gersch in They're Playing Our Song, and Mr. Rich in Celebration. He has directed such productions as The Thanksgiving Play, A Bad Friend, Deathwatch, Dogg's Hamlet/Cahoots Macbeth, The Congresswomen, Cat's Paw, Molly Sweeney, The Fish Must Die and Carolina on Our Minds. As a designer his work includes Topdog/Underdog, A Raisin in the Sun, Gunplay, Peter Pan and Wendy, Wizard of Oz, The Colored Museum, The House of Bernarda Alba, and Horn in the West, a 1500-seat outdoor amphitheater in Boone, NC. In 1994, Mr. Haines collaborated with the internationally acclaimed director, Lee Breuer (founder of Mabou Mines), on his project Wrath of Kali, as the director of videography, both in its debut in Phoenix and in New York City. Other design work in video, photography and media includes the Daniel Lentz Group's A Crack in the Bell, such plays as Jack, Reel to Real, Romeo and Juliet, Sweet Thunder, and Don't Bother Me, I Can't Cope, and he has worked as the director of photography on the feature films Wake of the Hero and Means of Escape, and was the production designer for the independent film Hack. In 2002, he co-founded iTheatre Collaborative in Phoenix. His work at iTheatre has garnered national attention and recognition with invited performances at the National Black Theater Festival in Winston-Salem, NC, the Black Arts Movement Festival in Austin, TX and the Last Frontier Theatre Conference in Valdez, AK. For iTheatre, he has produced over forty productions in the Valley with numerous regional and world premieres.

*Member of Actors’ Equity Association, the Union of Professional Actors and Stage Managers in the United States.

More About Christopher
Phillip Herrington is in the cast

Phillip Herrington

as Brock

Phillip is thrilled to be back for his third production with iTheatre Collaborative after 9 Circles and Building the Wall. Recent credits include Proctor in The Crucible at Theatreworks, Orlando in As You Like It and Grumio in Taming of the Shrew at Southwest Shakespeare Company. Phillip has an MFA in Acting from The University of Illinois Urbana/Champaign, and has been teaching theatre at Apollo High School in Glendale for the past 17 years. He lives in Phoenix with his wife, Ella, and their eight — yes, EIGHT — hilarious children.

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Carrie Ellen Jones is in the cast

Carrie Ellen Jones

as Hannah

Carrie Ellen is thrilled to be back at the Kax, where she has previously been seen as Gillian in Permanent Collection at iTheatre and a lunchtime theatre production with Class 6 Theatre (Always Sunny in Phoenix.) She is returning to the stage after a three-year pandemic and injury hiatus, and especially is grateful that this return is alongside such talented castmates and with a unique, thought-provoking script. Other Valley credits include Livingstone in Agnes of God at FHT, Ann in All My Sons at Theater Works, Friederkee in All Through the Night at Theater Works, Lisa in Verdict at Desert Stages, Veronica in God of Carnage at Ghostlight), Sister Rita in Runner Stumbles at FHT, and Sally in Tally's Folly at FHT. Her real-life roles of wife, mom and educator keep her plenty busy when off-stage! Carrie dedicates this show to her Fearsome Foursome pal, B.J. and his mom, Frances.

More About Carrie Ellen
Sebastian Kunnappilly is in the cast

Sebastian Kunnappilly *

as Sandeep

Sebastian is thrilled to be working on his first project with iTheatre Collaborative. He has appeared on stage in various productions in Boston, Minneapolis, Los Angeles and Phoenix, and has been a proud member of Actors' Equity Association since 2005.

*Member of Actors’ Equity Association, the Union of Professional Actors and Stage Managers in the United States.

More About Sebastian
Super Smack is in the cast

Super Smack

as Scooter

Super Smack is a pop rapper and actor who recently returned to his hometown Phoenix after 8 years in NYC. As a pop artist, he has toured 25 cities and has more than 200,000 music streams on Spotify. Also known as Juan Drigo Ricafort, his acting roles include Harold Hill in The Music Man at the Vanguard Theater, Graffiti Pete in In the Heights at the Olney Theatre, and #BARS at the Public Theater, Off-Broadway. He's thrilled to be returning to Herberger Theater Center after 20 years. Love and gratitude to God, Ma, Pa, Cayenne, and his whole family for their guidance and support.

More About Super

Playwright

Aaron Loeb

Aaron is a California playwright whose work has been performed around the country. His full-length plays include The Trials of Sam Houston, opening at Dallas Theater Center in 2018, Ideation, which premiered Off-Broadway in 2016, The Proud, Alcestis (Doesn't Live Here Anymore), Brown, First Person Shooter, Blastosphere (with Geetha Reddy), and Abraham Lincoln's Big, Gay Dance Party, which had its Off-Broadway premiere in 2010. Among the honors Loeb has received are the Will Glickman Award for Best New Play in the Bay Area (Ideation, 2013), two Bay Area Theater Critic Circle Awards for Best New Play (First Person Shooter in 2007 and ALBGDP in 2008), Outstanding Play from the New York International Fringe Festival (ALBGDP in 2009), GLAAD Media Award Nominee (ALBGDP in 2009), and seven Emerging Playwright Awards from PlayGround. He is a member of the Dramatists Guild, Inc.

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Creative Team (Alphabetically)

Greg Lutz is part of the creative team

Greg Lutz

Director

Greg is honored to be directing again for iTheatre Collaborative. The joy and wonderful success of his previous iTheatre Collaborative direction, Eat the Taste, has set the pace for iTheatre Collaborative's 20th Anniversary Season's opening show of Ideation. Greg has been in theatre for 40 plus years and studied under teachers such as Charles Nelson Reilly, Paul Kent, Paul Mantee, and E.E. Moe and Syd Morrison at the Megaw, both in Los Angeles and Phoenix. He also enjoys writing and directing award-winning murder mysteries for his local entertainment company Murder Ink Productions, along with managing and writing for Las Vegas lounge singer/comedian extraordinaire, Jackie Fontaine. Greg has enjoyed a fulfilling stage career with recent appearances in iTheatre Collaborative’s riveting production of Pass Over. He has also appeared on many Valley stages such as the Black Theatre Troupe's recent production of A Soldier’s Play. Greg has also enjoyed great success in film and television with credits such as Mayor Bernhardt in the CW's series Roswell, D.A. Brent Dalton in CBS Interrogation and Rev Pat Robertson in the Netflix's Come Sunday. Greg feels blessed to be working with such talented actors. "The actors in Ideation have made my job easy. It has been a pleasure watching them bring this intricate story (written in 2013) to life!" Greg would like to thank the crew, cast for their dedication, blood sweat and "ideating." Also, a big thanks out to E.E. Moe of the Megaw Actor's Studio and Matt Englehart at FORD RBA Talent for their help and support.

More About Greg
Super Smack is part of the creative team

Trian Bailey

Production Stage Manager

Jacob Nichols is part of the creative team

Jacob Nichols

Sound Design and Operation

Jacob is an artist and recent graduate from ASU. Along with performing, he has directed two short films. Video and visual media production is where he is trained, but he has also worked to design projections and sounds for live stage performances. Jacob thanks his mother, friends, Charles St. Clair, and iTheatre for all of their support.

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Christopher Haines is part of the creative team

Christopher Haines*

Set & Lighting Design

Chris is a member of Actor's Equity Association, is a theatre veteran with over thirty years of experience as an actor, stage manager, writer, director and designer. He graduated in 1991 from Duke University. Some of his stage work includes: as an actor, the title roles in The Collected Works of Billy the Kid and Danton's Death, Richard Nixon in Frost/Nixon, Father Flynn in Doubt, Jack Lawson in David Mamet's Race, Ralph in Frozen, Orson Welles in Orson's Shadow, the Librarian in Underneath the Lintel, the Third Man/Doctor in Baltimore Waltz, Prospero in The Tempest, Vladimir in Waiting for Godot, Alan Seymour in Picnic, Vernon Gersch in They're Playing Our Song, and Mr. Rich in Celebration. He has directed such productions as The Thanksgiving Play, A Bad Friend, Deathwatch, Dogg's Hamlet/Cahoots Macbeth, The Congresswomen, Cat's Paw, Molly Sweeney, The Fish Must Die and Carolina on Our Minds. As a designer his work includes Topdog/Underdog, A Raisin in the Sun, Gunplay, Peter Pan and Wendy, Wizard of Oz, The Colored Museum, The House of Bernarda Alba, and Horn in the West, a 1500-seat outdoor amphitheater in Boone, NC. In 1994, Mr. Haines collaborated with the internationally acclaimed director, Lee Breuer (founder of Mabou Mines), on his project Wrath of Kali, as the director of videography, both in its debut in Phoenix and in New York City. Other design work in video, photography and media includes the Daniel Lentz Group's A Crack in the Bell, such plays as Jack, Reel to Real, Romeo and Juliet, Sweet Thunder, and Don't Bother Me, I Can't Cope, and he has worked as the director of photography on the feature films Wake of the Hero and Means of Escape, and was the production designer for the independent film Hack. In 2002, he co-founded iTheatre Collaborative in Phoenix. His work at iTheatre has garnered national attention and recognition with invited performances at the National Black Theater Festival in Winston-Salem, NC, the Black Arts Movement Festival in Austin, TX and the Last Frontier Theatre Conference in Valdez, AK. For iTheatre, he has produced over forty productions in the Valley with numerous regional and world premieres.

*Member of Actors’ Equity Association, the Union of Professional Actors and Stage Managers in the United States.

More About Christopher