Applause -- Godspeed, January 30-February 22, 2026

APPLAUSE

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SIGHTLINE

BY JANICE SINDEN

WWelcome to the theatre!

This is one of the most engaging times of our year when we host the Colorado New Play Summit. Now in its 20th year, this festival features readings of four works in development plus full productions of two world premieres. Over February 14 and 15, theatre aficionados will enjoy:

Readings: Lemuria by Bonnie Antosh, Influent by Isaac Gómez, You Should Be So Lucky by Alyssa Haddad-Chin, and The Myth of the Two Marcos by Tony Meneses

World Premieres: Godspeed by Terence Anthony and Cowboys and East Indians by Nina McConigley and Matthew Spangler

Since its founding in 2005, the Summit has offered 95 readings, of which 47 have gone on to full production including The Book of Will, American Mariachi, and The Reservoir. These readings provide a pipeline of new works that contribute to the future of the American theatre.

Also on our stages are an all-new tour of Meredith Willson’s The Music Man, the return of Mark Twain Tonight! featuring Richard Thomas in the iconic role, and the book-turnedmovie, Water for Elephants, brought to life through stunning puppetry and stage effects.

Your presence demonstrates a commitment to sustain this incredible artform. Similarly, Denver voters gave resounding approval for the Vibrant Denver Bond, enabling us to provide a safer, more welcoming theatre experience. Thank you for your ongoing support that makes this work possible.

Vladimir Script

Warm regards,

Janice Sinden

Janice Sinden, President & CEO

H O N O R I N G O U R E L D E R S

The Denver Center for the Performing Arts honors and acknowledges that it resides on the traditional and unceded territories of the Ute, Cheyenne, and Arapaho Peoples. We also recognize the 48 contemporary Indigenous Tribes and Nations who have historically called Colorado home.

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APPLAUSE

VOLUME XXXVI • NUMBER 3 • JAN – FEB 2026

EDITOR: Suzanne Yoe

DESIGN DIRECTOR: Kyle Malone

DESIGNER: Paul Koob

CONTRIBUTING DESIGNERS: Lucas Kreitler, Kyle Malone

CONTRIBUTING WRITERS: Misha Berson, Lisa Bornstein, Lisa Kennedy, Madison Stout, Collin Van Son

Applause is published six times a year by Denver Center for the Performing Arts in conjunction with The Publishing House, Westminster, CO. All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part without written permission is prohibited. Call 303.893.4000 regarding editorial content.

Angie Flachman, Publisher For advertising 303.428.9529 or sales@pub-house.com coloradoartspubs.com Applause magazine is funded in part by

Denver Center for the Performing Arts is a non-profit organization that engages and inspires through the transformative power of live theatre.

BOARD OF TRUSTEES

Ruth Krebs, Chair

Hassan Salem, Immediate Past Chair

Jerome Davis, Vice Chair

David Jacques Farahi, Secretary/Treasurer

Nicole Ament

Marco D. Chayet

Yosh Eisbart

Christopher Hayes

Elizabeth Hioe

Deb Kelly

Robert Kenney

Kevin Kilstrom

Lynn McDonald

Susan Fox Pinkowitz

Manny Rodriguez

Alan Salazar

Richard M. Sapkin

Martin Semple

William Dean Singleton

Sylvia Young

HONORARY TRUSTEES

Navin Dimond

Margot Gilbert Frank

Jeannie Fuller

Robert C. Newman

Cleo Parker Robinson

Robert Slosky

Nicole Ament

Marco D. Chayet

David Jacques Farahi

Ruth Krebs

Susan Fox Pinkowitz

Hassan Salem

EXECUTIVE MANAGEMENT

Janice Sinden, President & CEO

Jamie Clements, Vice President, Development

Chris Coleman, Artistic Director, Theatre Company

John Ekeberg, Executive Director, Broadway & Cabaret

Angela Lakin, Vice President, Marketing & Sales

Glen Lucero, Vice President, Venue Operations

Laura Maresca, Chief People & Culture Officer

Lisa Roebuck, Vice President, Information Technology

Charles Varin, Managing Director, Theatre Company & Off-Center

Dr. Reginald L. Washington

Judi Wolf

HELEN G. BONFILS

FOUNDATION BOARD OF TRUSTEES

Martin Semple, President

William Dean Singleton, Vice President

Kevin Kilstrom, Secretary/Treasurer

Allison Watrous, Executive Director, Education & Community Engagement

Jane Williams, Chief Financial & Administrative Officer

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DRAMATIC LEARNING: WHERE CREATIVITY MEETS CURRICULUM

By Madison Stout

What if learning math felt like rehearsing a dance? What if science came alive through movement and storytelling? At the Denver Center for the Performing Arts, this isn’t hypothetical; it’s the foundation of Dramatic Learning, a program that integrates theatre into core subjects.

ACT. CREATE. GROW. Theatre Education at the DCPA

For nearly 30 years, the DCPA has partnered with Colorado educators to bring arts integration into classrooms, helping students become better learners and better humans. Whether it’s acting out the digestive system in a biology unit or using costume renderings to explore character development in literature, the program helps students connect with academic content through creativity, collaboration, and kinesthetic learning.

“All students deserve to feel seen in their learning,” says Allison Watrous, Executive Director of DCPA Education & Community Engagement. “Arts integration honors different learning styles and invites students to be agents in their own learning.”

Arts integration isn’t just about making learning fun; it’s about making it effective. In Denver classrooms, DCPA teaching artists collaborate with educators to co-teach lessons that align with state standards. From Shakespeare and stage combat to science-based improvisation, students experience learning with their minds and bodies.

And the results speak for themselves. The New Victory SPARK study, which tracked students over three years, found that performing arts education led to:

• 50% increase in creative thinking through improvisation exercises

• 55% growth in teamwork skills, with students choosing larger, more diverse teams

• 10% rise in hope for the future, compared to a 5% decline in the control group

• 20% greater interest in the performing arts, especially among students from under-resourced schools

These findings reinforce what educators at the DCPA have known for a long time: the arts don’t just enrich education, they transform it.

Together, arts integration makes core curriculums more dynamic, memorable, and meaningful while equipping students with both academic mastery and 21st-century skills. It also improves academic performance. Students involved in arts programs show enhanced memory, focus, and literacy skills.

And perhaps most importantly, they’re more engaged. “When students are doing the work — creating, performing, reflecting — they’re not just learning facts,” Watrous says. “They’re learning how to think, feel, and connect.

“If you’re a teacher, or know one, who wants to bring creativity into the classroom, reach out,” Watrous encourages. “And if you have a young person in your life, take them to the theater. Go on an artist date. Spark their imagination.”

To learn more about Dramatic Learning or bring it to your school, reach out to education@dcpa.org.

BECAUSE ARTS EDUCATION ISN’T EXTRA — IT’S ESSENTIAL.

WATCH THE VIDEO

LAUGHTER TEARS HAIRSPRAY

salon owner Truvy

set up shop on the

The colorful cast of regulars and employees that frequent her establishment include a mother-daughter duo planning a wedding, a woman who’s “been in a bad mood for 40 years,” and a mysterious newcomer. Through laughter, tears, and a thick fog of hairspray, these women face trials and triumphs armed with their greatest strength: each other.

BY LISA KENNEDY

I GODSPEED : A WESTERN REWRITTEN

“I always loved westerns as a kid — the showdowns, the gunfights, all that,” playwright Terence Anthony said during a video conversation. His own contribution to the genre, Godspeed — a rousing saga about a formerly enslaved woman on a mission in post-Civil War Texas — is having its world premiere at the Denver Center Theatre Company.

In the popular imagination, the Western has made a home in the theater. The movie theater, that is.

After all, film captures the big sky we westerners dwell beneath. It depicts a vastness that humbles the heart but has also fueled ravenous ambitions. Cinema spent much of its first 100 years making manifest onscreen the designs of Manifest Destiny. Yet, in more recent decades it’s offered up revisions of those earlier stories — for good reason.

This is something the playwright gleaned over time. “At a certain point, I realized, ‘Oh wait a minute, why are all the Indians the bad guys all the time? What’s going on?’” He began paying a different sort of attention.

Anthony reels off a few of his favorite westerns, including two that fall under the revisionist rubric and feature black actors with storylines: 1985’s Silverado with Danny Glover and Lynn Whitfield as siblings and homesteaders, and John Ford’s 1960 drama Sergeant Rutledge, about the eponymous army man (portrayed by Woody Strode) being tried for the sexual assault and murder of a white woman.

“The genre of the Western is just such an amazing vehicle for talking about all the things American. All the

things that led to where we’re at today,” Anthony said, joined by the play’s director, Delicia Turner Sonnenberg. “You can really trace back to how the west was ‘won,’ and the histories that were covered up. That a quarter or more cowboys were black, but we never saw that in books or films.”

The black quasi-cowboy protagonist of Anthony’s creation is actually a formerly enslaved woman named Anna who rechristened herself Godspeed. The play is set in Texas, shortly after the Civil War’s end. But it is no Juneteenth celebration. Texas is roiling. The once enslaved are unsure of where to go, how to begin negotiating their new lives: Is there a way to reset economically their relationship to their enslavers?

As for Godspeed, she has retribution in mind. For that dark if righteous payback, she totes a gun with one bullet.

Godspeed is one of the two plays getting its world premiere having had a well-received staged reading during the 2024 Colorado New Play Summit. (The other, Cowboys and East Indians, also wrestles with the ethos of the West.) Its settling in the Kilstrom is cause for applause but also curiosity. How does a genre so doggedly cinematic yield to the intimacy of the theater? Indeed, the script seems to call for cinematic gestures, like intertitles and maps charting Godspeed’s journey from Mexico up through Texas toward a reckoning. It’s easy to imagine the creative team defaulting to visual projections to nudge the storytelling. Cue Sonnenberg.

“Some of the vocabulary of the western — or just the West — is land and sky,” the director said. “I’ve been think-

ing a lot about that. Because we’re in the round instead of a proscenium. All of our theatricality is old school theatricality because it’s just a floor and an audience all around. So, the things that are strong in the play have to be strong in the production, and that is the relationships between the people.”

Sonnenberg is the founder and former artistic director of MOXIE Theatre, a San Diego-based company focused on presenting works by Women+ creatives. “Delicia has told me she usually doesn’t do ‘boy plays,’ so I was very honored that she was interested,” Anthony recalled, smiling.

But then how many plays have a protagonist as ferocious and mysterious as Godspeed? “A person shows up, then we find out it’s a woman, then we find out that she’s changed her name from Anna to Godspeed, and she’s on a journey,” said Sonnenberg. “It grabbed me from the very first scene. And then there’s the dream sequence, right? And then we get a two-person scene and half of it’s in Spanish!” Sonnenberg said that last bit with a hint of marvel.

Because Anthony has paired his thorny hero with — well, in a different era, Peklai Cobos, might have been called “sidekick.” The play’s not having any of that. A Mexican woman of Coahuiltecan descent, she often gives Godspeed as good as she gets — answering, arguing, advising, always in untranslated Spanish. It’s a gesture that will please some and fluster others.

“I think theater is at its best when it’s subversive,” Sonnenberg said about the playwright’s choices. Not just his refusal to translate Peklai’s dialog but his interest in a period of American history in which post-Civil War opportunity was met with the rise of Jim Crow suppression and violence.

At a certain point, I realized,

“Oh wait a minute, why are all the Indians the bad guys all the time? What’s going on?”

—

TERENCE ANTHONY, PLAYWRIGHT

In navigating the facts and context of the era, the duo found a partner in dramaturg Arminda Thomas. “I am drawn to stories about Reconstruction, and this one is a Reconstruction story in an underexplored setting (South Texas), and with a larger scope than most of those stories, that looks back to the Middle Passage, the annexation of Texas, the Spanish conquest...there’s a lot to dig into!” she wrote in an email.

“Part of what drew me to the play is the ballsiness,” Sonnenberg says. “I like swagger and it has it. There’s real muscularity in the writing. Like, ‘I’m gonna tell you a story and it’s gonna be good, and here we go!’”

Or, to borrow a phrase, “Giddy up!”

RICHARD THOMAS TAKES ON MARK TWAIN

Best known for playing John-Boy Walton in “The Waltons,” Richard Thomas has enjoyed an award-winning career in TV, film, and stage appearing across the nation in Twelve Angry Men and To Kill a Mockingbird. Now — as the only actor authorized to perform Mark Twain Tonight! — he takes on the role of Samuel Clemens made famous by Hal Holbrook. “When the estate reached out and told me they wanted to run this again and they thought Hal would probably be happy if I did it, I immediately said I would love to,” explained Thomas.

Mark Twain Tonight! offers more than one reflection of public life that will resonate with audiences today. While Holbrook performed the show for more than 50 years, assembling the play from a large cache of Twain’s writings, the material was made available to Thomas to develop his own spin on the piece.

“Actors are intrepid researchers, and Twain is just a bottomless well,” concluded Thomas. “You can just keep drawing good water from it without running dry. I’ve always loved him before in a more general-audience way, but this is giving me a great opportunity to go deep. And he’s a wonderful companion. He has insights, he makes you laugh, and he makes you think.”

GODSPEED

JAN 30 – FEB 22 • KILSTROM THEATRE

ASL Interpreted and Audio Described performance: Feb 8 at 1:30pm

Stay for a post-show discussion: Feb 10 & 17

Includes ASL Interpretation, Audio Description & Open Captioning READ THE FULL ARTICLE

MARK TWAIN TONIGHT!

JAN 31 • BUELL THEATRE

THE GEOMETRY OF SPECTACLE HOW WATER FOR ELEPHANTS UNLOCKS THE THIRD DIMENSION

BY COLLIN VAN SON

MMost musicals are two-dimensional. That’s not a put-down; it’s a spatial reality. Stages are two-dimensional surfaces, and the actors who travel them are typically limited to two degrees of freedom: they can move upstage or downstage, stage right or stage left. A notable exception is if the show in question also happens to be a circus. Then the actors are welcome to fly.

From the trapeze to the tightrope, Water for Elephants is emphatically three-dimensional. But accessing what circus designer and co-choreographer Shana Carroll calls “real estate in the air” isn’t just an artistic challenge — it’s also an engineering one.

“It’s a lot of geometry,” says Carroll, describing the network of pulleys, wires, and slings whose sheer complexity occasionally brought rehearsal to a screeching halt. Countless hours were spent troubleshooting and reconfiguring. “We did not make our lives easy,” Carroll admits. “We do things on the stage that are kind of crazy to do, rigging-wise.”

In addition to behind-the-scenes headaches, this complexity delivers some remarkable feats of showmanship. Carroll points to the moment when the cast raises the center pole of the Benzini Brothers’ circus tent; what would normally take 30 minutes of pre-show preparation, the cast accomplishes with real-time choreography.

Much like pitching a big top, choreographing Water for Elephants was a team effort. When Jesse Robb joined the project as a co-choreographer, it marked the start of a collaboration that he and Carroll fondly refer to as their “arranged marriage.” The two soon found that their experiences working for Cirque du Soleil allowed them to develop a common movement language, one that evolves over the course of the show.

Robb describes the show’s early choreography as “very utilitarian,” a reflection of the intense physical labor that a circus requires of all its members. But as protagonist Jacob Jankowski begins to acclimate to life on the road, the choreography gradually takes on the unabashed spectacle of Depression-era circus. “You get a little bit further into act one,” says Robb, “and you’re looking at very Broadway-esque moments in [‘The Lion Has Got No Teeth’]. And then ‘The Grand Spec’ at the end of act one, the language is very much old-school presentational circus. So the choreographic language changes dramatically throughout the show.”

For Carroll, a former trapeze artist, this combination of 1930s old-school circus and modern-day artistry is a major part of the show’s appeal. As a veteran of several traditional circuses, she enjoys recalling her horseback entrances and the onstage poker games she played against an elephant.

“I love the artsy theatrical circus that I now do,” she says, “but I really have so much reverence for the roots... And marrying them — doing in a traditional context some of the newer contemporary language — is really satisfying for me, because I actually don’t like when it’s so delineated.”

The importance of unspoken physical language is a theme that Carroll and Robb return to frequently. And when building out such a language, it helps to have what Carroll calls “that little glossary in your head,” a way to find the right pairings of physical movement with an emotional moment.

Through the risks they entail and the images they create, different circus techniques lend themselves to different metaphors. Aerial taps into freedom and liberation. Ground acrobatics calls to mind community and interdependence. Three-high stacking evokes a sense of victory — or at least it always has to Carroll, who at one point in the process found herself needing to revise her personal glossary.

During the show’s development, director Jessica Stone wanted to employ three-high stacking to depict the practice of red-lighting, in which Benzini employees are hurled from a moving train when their services are no longer required. But to Carroll, the violence of red-lighting clashed with her understanding of the three-high stack as a victorious, uplifting image. Eventually, however, she came to realize that, “oh no, if we make it about danger and about the risk and the stakes, we can change that imagery.”

It’s a lot of geometry. We did not make our lives easy. We do things on the stage that are kind of crazy to do, rigging-wise.

— SHANA CARROLL, CO-CHOREOGRAPHER

This kind of collaboration, cross-pollination, and flexibility is nowhere more evident than in the show’s cast. Most circus performers are specialists in a particular discipline such as tumbling or juggling. But in the case of Water for Elephants, the show’s relatively small cast — there are only seven dedicated circus performers — means that versatility is at a premium. As a result, the artistic team was constantly on the lookout for what Carroll calls “unicorns,” performers who could not only soar on a trapeze but could juggle a knife and tumble as well.

While the Benzini Brothers are fictional, the most successful real-life circus of the 1930s — Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey — is still around today, preparing to kick off a new tour in 2026. For Robb, the enduring appeal of the circus has a simple and personal explanation: “I know my impetus [in becoming an artist] was wanting to run away to Cirque du Soleil when I was 20 years old, and it was the idea of finding a community of like-minded people.”

The way Carroll sees it, the power of circus comes back to mechanics. “If five people are doing a trick and two people are throwing and one person’s catching, [you can’t ignore] the trust and the fact if one person doesn’t do their job, someone dies. It really is just the most profound way of showing interconnectivity and interdependence.”

WATER FOR ELEPHANTS

FEB 11 – 22 • BUELL THEATRE

ASL Interpreted, Audio Described, and Open Captioned performance: Feb 22 at 1pm

NEXT UP FROM BROADWAY

HELL’S KITCHEN

Alicia Keys’ Hell’s Kitchen (April 14-26) is not just a musical — it’s a love letter to New York City, adolescence, and the power of finding your voice. Loosely based on Keys’ own teenage years in Manhattan Plaza, the show pulses with the energy of 1990s Hell’s Kitchen, blending R&B, soul, and hip-hop into a theatrical experience that feels both personal and universal.

Critics have called the musical “a rousing delight” (Entertainment Weekly), “a glorious tapestry” (Variety), and “easily the best new musical at the Public since Hamilton” (TheaterMania). But Hell’s Kitchen isn’t just about accolades — it’s about connection. The story of a young woman navigating family, ambition, and identity resonates far beyond the streets of New York. Keys reimagines some of her most iconic songs — “Fallin’,” “Perfect Way to Die,” and “Girl on Fire” among many others — to serve as emotional anchors, offering audiences a fresh lens on familiar hits.

As the show travels the country, it brings with it a message that’s both timely and timeless: that music can be a lifeline, and that every city has its own rhythm worth listening to. Hell’s Kitchen is poised to inspire a new generation of theatergoers — one soulful note at a time.

Chris Coleman, Artistic Director

Charles Varin, Managing Director

presents

GODSPEED

BY Terence Anthony

WITH

CG, Christopher Halladay, Erica Cruz Hernández, Colton Pratt, Gareth Saxe, Zurin Villanueva, Khiry Walker

STAGE MANAGERS: Chandra R.M. Anthenill, Malia Stoner

SCENIC DESIGN BY Tanya Orellana

SOUND DESIGN BY Noel Nichols and UptownWorks

FIGHT DIRECTION BY Samantha Egle

COSTUME DESIGN BY Nicole Jescinth Smith

DRAMATURGY BY Arminda Thomas

CASTING BY Grady Soapes, CSA and Amber Snead, CSA Murnane Casting

DIRECTED BY

LIGHTING DESIGN BY Charles R. MacLeod

VOICE AND DIALECT BY Nathan C. Crocker

PRODUCTION MANAGEMENT BY Peggy Carey and Jeff Gifford

Delicia Turner Sonnenberg

The video and/or audio recording of this performance by any means whatsoever is strictly prohibited.

THE

KILSTROM

THEATRE

• JAN 30 – FEB 22, 2026

Originally produced and featured in the 2024 Colorado New Play Summit at the Denver Center Theatre Company, Chris Coleman, Artistic Director.

SEASON SPONSORS ADDITIONAL SUPPORT

Supported

CAST

(In order of appearance)

Jacob/Pettus/Felix Khiry Walker

Nelson Bendy Christopher Halladay

Godspeed ................................................................................................................................................................................................ CG

Mama Zo/Lucinda Tanner Zurin Villanueva

Peklai Cobos

Erica Cruz Hernández

Benjamin Mauck Colton Pratt

John Bendy/Kent Gareth Saxe

SETTING Texas. 1865.

GODSPEED will be performed with one 15-minute intermission.

Costume Design Assistant Shoshi Brustin

Stage Manager............................................................................................................................................ Chandra R.M. Anthenill

Assistant Stage Manager Malia Stoner

Stage Management Apprentice Sage Goetsch

The Actors and Stage Managers employed in this production are members of Actors’ Equity Association, the Union of Professional Actors and Stage Managers of the United States.

ACTING COMPANY

(In order of appearance)

KHIRY WALKER (Jacob/Pettus/ Felix). OffBroadway: Sally and Tom, Much Ado About Nothing (Public Theater); Blues for an Alabama Sky (Keen Co), and Three Musketeers (Classical Theater of Harlem). TV/Film: Open House, “The Chair Company,” Law and Order: Organized Crime.” Podcast Series: “Can You Dig It?” Khiry thanks the ancestors, his family, and friends for their guidance, love, and support.

CHRISTOPHER HALLADAY

(Nelson Bendy) is thrilled to be making his DCPA debut!

A New York City based actor who has worked nationwide. Christopher has appeared in numerous Off-Broadway, regional plays, television shows (e.g. “Law & Order: SVU,” “Mr. Robot,” “Blue Bloods,” “Ray Donovan,” “FBI,” and many more), and feature films. He also teaches at the University level, currently at and The American Academy of Dramatic Arts in New York City. Thank you, Terence and Delicia, for inviting me back to return to the role of Nelson, originated at the 2024 Colorado New Play Summit. IG: @halladaychristopher. Complete list of credits at christopherhalladay.com

CG (Godspeed) (They/Them). New York credits include: Six Characters (Lincoln Center LCT3) and Mr. Oatmeal (Fresh Fruit Theater Festival). Regional theater: House of the Negro Insane. TV/Film:

WHO’S WHO

“Cockroach,” “The Bear,” “Queer as Folk,” “The Folly of Paris, or, the Original Snub,” and “Acts of Crime.”

ZURIN

VILLANUEVA (Mama Zo/Lucinda Tanner) is originally from Brooklyn, NY. Broadway: The Lion King, Mean Girls, and Shuffle Along. First National Tour: Tina Turner Musical (Tina) and The Book of Mormon Regional credits include: Teenage Dick (Woolly Mammoth), Ragtime (Barrington Stage), Ain’t Misbehavin’ (Crossroads), and Million Dollar Quartet (PCLO). TV/ Film: “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel,” “Insatiable,” and Murder Mystery 2 on Netflix. A proud graduate of Howard University’s BFA program. Zurinspired.com. “Stay Booked: The Rules of Business on Broadway”.

ERICA CRUZ

HERNÁNDEZ

(Peklai Cobos) (She/Her) is excited to make her DCPA debut! NYC/Off-Broadway credits: Skirball and Clubbed Thumb. Select regional credits: Central Square Theater, Indianapolis Shakespeare, American Shakespeare Center, American Players Theatre, Goodman Theatre, and Aguijón Theater. TV/Film: “Law & Order: SVU,” “Chicago PD” (NBC), and “Power Book IV: Force” (STARZ). Independent features: A Place to Be (Iconoclast/Amazon) and the upcoming Legado. Erica is a recipient of the Kate Neal Kinley Fellowship, the first in her family to pursue higher education, and holds an MFA from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. AMOR a mi familia y mi Jess! @theecruz

COLTON PRATT (Benjamin Mauck) (He/Him).

Colorado credits include: Henry IV/V, Sense and Sensibility, The Little Prince, Othello, and Twelfth Night (Theatreworks); Marry Poppins, In Her Bones, Water by the Spoonful, Guadalupe in the Guest Room (Fine Arts Center); and The Mousetrap (Arvada Center). He is based in Colorado Springs and has been in over 20 productions with Theatreworks and the Fine Arts Center. BFA, Colorado Mesa University. He thanks his loving family, especially Rachel and Finn.

GARETH SAXE (John Bendy/ Kent). At the DCPA: The Suffragette’s Murder, Anna Karenina, You Lost Me, Much Ado About Nothing, and Hotter than Egypt. Broadway credits include: Heartbreak House, The Homecoming, and The Lion King Other New York credits include: Nikolai and the Others (Lincoln Center), Harper Regan (Atlantic), The Winter’s Tale and Richard III (The Public), and Echoes of the War (The Mint). Colorado credits include: Coriolanus, All’s Well That Ends Well, Romeo and Juliet, and Twelfth Night (Colorado Shakespeare Festival); The Mousetrap and Noises Off (Arvada Center); and Art (Aurora Fox). Film credits: Public Enemies and Day Night, Day Night. Training: Colorado College, NYU MFA

PLAYWRIGHT

TERENCE ANTHONY is a playwright and TV writer based in Los Angeles. TV credits include the Paramount+ show “Lawmen: Bass Reeves” and an upcoming series

for Netflix He is currently developing a limited series with Escape Artists Entertainment. Terence’s plays have been seen at the Alcove/Lortel Theatre, Colorado New Play Summit, Bay Area Playwrights Festival, PlayPenn Conference, Chicago Dramatists, RADAR LA Festival, and Great Plains Theatre Conference. Theater credits include: The House of the Negro Insane (world premiere, Contemporary American Theater Festival, 2022 + National Black Theater Conference, 2022), Burners (2017 Ovation nominee), Euphrates (Max K. Lerner Playwriting Fellowship), Tombolo (O’Neill Conference finalist).

DIRECTOR

DELICIA TURNER SONNENBERG is an award-winning director whose work has been celebrated for its boldness, creativity, and commitment to diverse storytelling. Credits: DCPA (debut), The Old Globe, Alley Theatre, La Jolla Playhouse, South Coast Repertory, Theatre Calgary, Round House, Two River, Actors Theatre of Louisville, Utah Shakespeare, NJ Rep, and MOXIE Theatre (Founder/ Former Artistic Director), among others. Passionate about mentoring the next generation of theatre artists, Delicia has also directed plays for the University of California San Diego, Rutgers University, University of San Diego, Sonoma State, University of Redlands, Palomar College, as well as San Diego State University.

CREATIVE TEAM

PEGGY CAREY (Production Manager) is the newest of the PM team, joining as Associate Production Manager in 2022. Before then, she worked at The Public Theater (New York, NY) as an Associate Production Manager where she managed readings, developments, and events, and hired stage management teams. Additionally, she helped to originate the Ithaca Fringe Festival as

Production Director and has also worked at Actor’s Workshop of Ithaca, Eugene O’Neill Theater Center, Sie Film Center, and the Kitchen Theatre and studied in both London and the National Theatre Institute.

NATHAN C. CROCKER (Voice and Dialect Coach) is excited to be working at the DCPA for the first time. Pre-Broadway coaching credits: A Wonderful World: The Louis Armstrong Musical and Ain’t Too Proud. Off-Broadway: Keen Company and Roundabout Theatre Company. Regional coaching credits: South Coast Repertory The Old Globe, McCarter Theatre, Utah Shakespeare Festival, Oregon Shakespeare Festival, Huntington Theatre, American Players Theatre, Chautauqua Theatre Company, Two Rivers Theatre, Milwaukee Chamber Theatre, Village Theatre, George Street Playhouse and Crossroads Theatre Company. Nathan is the Head of Voice and Speech for The Old Globe/University of San Diego Shiley Graduate Theatre Program. Certified teacher of Knight-Thompson Speechwork and Fitzmaurice Voicework. AEA. nathanccrocker.com

SAMANTHA EGLE (Fight Director) (She/Her). In addition to the DCPA, her work has been seen on the stages of Asolo Repertory Theatre, Opera Colorado, Theatreworks, Arvada Center, Phamaly Theatre, Curious Theatre, Aurora Fox, Lone Tree Arts Center, and Denver Children’s Theatre among others and numerous educational institutions. She is the founder of Humble Warrior Movement Arts, a Certified Teacher with the Society of American Fight Directors, Advanced Actor Combatant with Fight Directors Canada, a Certified Intimacy Director with Intimacy Directors and Coordinators, former Resident Artist at Arena Stage, and Chairperson the International Order of the Sword and the Pen. humblewarriormovement.com

JEFF GIFFORD (Director of Production) is entering his fourteenth season at the DCPA and oversees everything you see on the stage except the actors. Working with this amazing team of artists and artisans is the highlight of his career. Guiding world premieres to their first opening night is especially gratifying and Jeff has worked on more than 50 of them. Among his favorites are  The Book of Will,  Dinner with Friends,  The Violet Hour,  The Beard of Avon, and the new musical  Rattlesnake Kate. Jeff holds an MFA from California Institute of the Arts.

CHARLES R. MACLEOD (Lighting Designer) At the DCPA (300+ productions/40 seasons): Recent designs include: Little Shop of Horrors, Elephant & Piggie’s “We Are in a Play!”, Clyde’s, In the Upper Room, As You Like It, Sweat, Native Gardens, One Night in Miami, Appoggiatura, The Diary of Anne Frank, Lydia, The Merry Wives of Windsor, 1001, The 39 Steps, Gem of the Ocean, All My Sons, Death of a Salesman, Lord of the Flies. For DCPA Cabaret: The Other Josh Cohen, The Improvised Shakespeare Company®, Xanadu, First Date, The Secret Comedy of Women (Denver and national tour), The Last Five Years, Always… Patsy Cline. For DCPA Education: Corduroy, Goodnight Moon. Mr. MacLeod has been a member of the Theatre Company since 1983. charlesmacleod.com

NOEL NICHOLS and UPTOWNWORKS (Sound Designer) (They/She).

UptownWorks is a collaborative design team specializing in theater, film, podcasts, installations and other media. UptownWorks has designed with Geffen Playhouse, La Jolla Playhouse, Berkeley Repertory Theatre, South Coast Repertory, Goodman Theatre, New York Theatre Workshop, Studio Theatre DC, INTAR, The Lortel, Ensemble Studio Theater, Berkshire Theatre Group, Miami

New Drama, Baltimore Center Stage, CU Boulder, Barrington Stage, National Black Theatre, Classic Stage Company, Hartford Stage, Signature DC, The Kennedy Center, and others. This design was led by Noel Nichols (noelnicholsdesign.com) with Bailey Trierweiler (btsounddesign.com) and Daniela Hart (uptownworksnyc.com). All received MFAs in Sound Design from the Yale School of Drama.

TANYA ORELLANA (Scenic Designer) (She/Her) designs performance spaces for theatre, opera, and immersive experiences. Her work has been seen in venues across the US including Berkeley REP, American Conservatory Theatre, The Huntington, The Guthrie, Pasadena Playhouse and The Greek Theatre. Select credits include: Fun Home directed by Logan Ellis (The Huntington), Octavio Solis’ Mother Road directed by David Mendizábal (Berkeley Rep), Shayan Lotfi’s What Became of Us directed by Jennifer Chang (Atlantic Stage 2); María Irene Fornés’ Fefu and Her Friends directed by Pam MacKinnon and Qui Nguyen’s Poor Yella Rednecks directed by Jaime Castañeda (American Conservatory Theater); and For The People by Larissa FastHorse and Ty Defoe directed by Michael John Garcés (Guthrie Theatre). She received her MFA in Scenic Design from CalArts and is a recipient of the Princess Grace Fabergé Theatre Award.

NICOLE JESCINTH SMITH (Costume Designer) (She/Her). Recent regional theatre credits include: Deceived (2025) and Trouble in Mind (2021) (The Old Globe); Fences (2026) and The Mirror Crack’d (2025) (The Alley Theatre); and the world premiere of A Room in the Castle (2025) (The Folger Theatre). TV/Film: “The Chair Company” (HBO), “Up Here” (Hulu), and Ramy (A24). Ms. Smith has an Emmy nomination for her work on Season 2

of “POSE” (FX). Her commercial work includes campaigns for brands like Adidas and Zillow. She has an MFA, University of Tenn. Knoxville and BFA University of Miami

AMBER SNEAD, CSA (Casting) is originally from Southern California and began her career as a performer. She is passionate about discovering talent and committed to promoting diversity and inclusivity in her work. Her goal is to create an audition space where everyone feels supported and empowered to showcase their best work. Amber has over a decade of experience, with a background spanning both coasts, including casting for Broadway, off-Broadway, tours, regional, and Los Angeles theatre. Most recently, she was casting at Binder Casting and ARC Casting, working on projects like Disney’s The Lion King on Broadway and the North American tour.

GRADY SOAPES, CSA (Casting) is the Director of Casting and Artistic Producer with the Denver Center for the Performing Arts. Grady has cast over 100 DCPA productions and workshops including Rattlesnake Kate, Theater of the Mind, The Chinese Lady, The Who’s Tommy, and The Wild Party. Choreography credits include A Christmas Carol (3 seasons), Twelfth Night, Goodnight Moon, Anna Karenina, As You Like It, Drag Machine, Lord of the Butterflies, DragON (Denver Center); A Gentleman’s Guide to Love and Murder, Natasha, Pierre and…, Into the Woods, The Liar (Arvada Center); Comedy of Errors (Colorado Shakespeare Festival). Grady also works as a Casting Director for Sylvia Gregory Casting where he has cast multiple commercials, TV, film, and video game projects.

ARMINDA THOMAS (Dramaturg). Broadway: The Sign in Sidney Brustein’s Window. Other New York credits include The Wash,

The Swamp Dwellers, Wine in the Wilderness, The Great Privation, and Wedding Band Regional credits include: Leroy and Lucy (Steppenwolf Theatre), Trouble in Mind (Hartford Stage), Wedding Band (Stratford Theatre Festival), and Jazz (Marin Theatre Company). Previously archivist and dramaturg for Dee-Davis Enterprises, where she was an executive producer for the Grammy Award-winning audiobook, “With Ossie and Ruby: In This Life Together”, Arminda is currently resident dramaturg and co-producer of CLASSIX.

STAGE MANAGEMENT

CHANDRA R.M. ANTHENILL (Stage Manager) (She/Her). DCPA debut. Regional: The Comedy of Errors, One of the Good Ones, Empty Ride, Stir, English, The Merry Wives of Windsor, Exotic Deadly, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Trouble in Mind, What You Are, Tiny Beautiful Things, Globe for All (2017–2025) (The Old Globe); Derecho, The Garden, 2020 POP Tour (La Jolla Playhouse); Fun Home, Beachtown, Roz and Ray, Into the Beautiful North, Outside Mullingar, The Oldest Boy, Oedipus El Rey, Honky (San Diego Rep); El Huracán, Mud Row, The Last Wife, Bad Jews, Spring Awakening, Assassins, and Company (Cygnet).

MALIA STONER (Assistant Stage Manager) (She/Her). At the DCPA: Little Shop of Horrors, The Suffragette’s Murder, The Lehman Trilogy, Rubicon, The Color Purple, The Chinese Lady, Rattlesnake Kate, A Christmas Carol, A Doll’s House, The SantaLand Diaries, Colorado New Play Summit Other theaters: Mousetrap, Waitress, I Do! I Do!, Million Dollar Quartet (Arvada Center); Aubergine, Small Mouth Sounds, Around the World in 80 Days (TheatreWorks); The Winter’s Tale, One Man, Two Guvnors (Colorado Shakespeare Festival); Beehive the 60’s Musical (Lone Tree Arts Center); Lab 11:

You Enjoy Myself (Local Theatre Company); Coppelia (Colorado Ballet Academy); Nutcracker (Colorado Dance Theatre).

THEATRE COMPANY LEADERSHIP TEAM

CHRIS COLEMAN (Artistic Director) is passionate about the connection between stories and community. He joined the DCPA Theatre Company as Artistic Director in November of 2017 and has directed Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, Hamlet, A Little Night Music, Hotter Than Egypt, Much Ado About Nothing, Rattlesnake Kate, Twelfth Night, A Doll’s House, Anna Karenina, and Oklahoma! Previously, Chris served as Artistic Director for Portland Center Stage in Oregon for 18 years. Under his leadership, PCS renovated the city’s historic Armory into a new home, saw annual attendance nearly double, workshopped 52 new plays that went on to productions at over 100 theaters around the US and UK, and became a national leader in how theaters engage with their community.

In 1988, Chris founded Actor’s Express in Atlanta (in the basement of an old church), a company that continues to be a cultural force in the Southeast today. He has directed at major theaters across the country, including Oregon Shakespeare Festival, the Alliance Theater, Dallas Theater Center, Baltimore Center Stage, Actors Theatre of Louisville, ACT/Seattle, the Asolo, Pittsburgh Public, 59E59, and New York Theater Workshop. He and his husband, actor/writer Rodney Hicks, live in Reunion. Since moving to Colorado, he has hiked Dominguez Canyon, wandered the Cliff Dwellings of Mesa Verde, explored a working mine in Creede, and rafted down the Arkansas River.

CHARLES VARIN (Managing Director) and his team are responsible for the administrative, financial, and business operations for Theatre Company and Off-Center productions and other artistic initiatives. Since joining the Theatre Company in 2006, he has played a major role in executing the artistic vision of the organization and facilitating the production of shows such as Theater of the Mind, Sweet & Lucky, The Unsinkable Molly Brown, Sense & Sensibility the Musical, The 12, Sweeney Todd with DeVotchKa and many more. Charles is passionate about artistic innovation and firmly believes in DCPA’s long-standing commitment to new plays and new voices.

In addition to DCPA staff, the following crew worked

Kai Kramer, Loren Martin, Katie Marting, Nikki Mayer, Lisa Pedraza, Ava Rast.

The Director and Fight Director are members of the STAGE DIRECTORS AND CHOREOGRAPHERS SOCIETY, a national theatrical labor union.

The actors and stage managers employed in this production are members of Actors’ Equity Association, the union of professional actors and stage managers in the United States.

Backstage and Ticket Services Employees are represented by the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees, Moving Picture Technicians, Artists and Allied Crafts of the United States and Canada. (or I.A.T.S.E.)

The scenic, costume, lighting and sound designers in LORT Theatres are represented by United Scenic Artists, Local USA-829 of the IATSE.

The Denver Center for the Performing Arts (DCPA) is one of the largest non-profit theatre organizations in the nation, presenting Broadway tours and producing theatre, cabaret, and musicals. In its 2024/25 season, the DCPA offered 988,930 guest experiences, generating a $390 million economic impact.

The Theatre Company is grateful for the funds provided by the Scientific and Cultural Facilities District. Special thanks also to grants from the Helen G. Bonfils Foundation; and contributions from corporations, foundations and individuals. The Theatre Company is a division of the Denver Center for the Performing Arts, a non-profit organization serving the public through the performing arts.

The Theatre Company operates under an agreement between the League of Resident Theatres (LORT) and Actors’ Equity Association, the Union of Professional Actors and Stage Managers in the United States; and the Stage Directors and Choreographers Society. The Theatre Company also operates under an agreement with Denver Theatrical Stage Employees Union, Local No. 7 of the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees, Moving Picture Technicians, Artists and Allied Crafts of the United States and Canada.

TAKING PHOTOS AT THE THEATRE

We welcome you to take photos in the theatre before and after the performance. If you post on social media, please credit, and tag the DCPA and the design team:

@denvercenter

Playwright: Terence Anthony

Director: Delicia Turner Sonnenberg

Scenic Designer: Tanya Orellano

Costume Designer: Nicole Jescinth Smith @Nickystyles007

Lighting Designer: Charles R. MacLeod

Sound Designer: Noel Nichols and UptownWorks @noelevision @uptownworks

Voice and Dialect Coach: Nathan C. Crocker

Fight Director: Samantha Egle

Dramaturg: Arminda Thomas @frailingminda

Casting: Grady Soapes, CSA @grayzvader and Amber Snead, CSA/Murnane Casting

Photos and the video and/or audio recording during any part of the performance by any means whatsoever are strictly prohibited

PLEASE BE ADVISED

• LATECOMERS and those exiting the theatre are seated at predetermined breaks in designated areas.

• CHILDREN 4+ are welcome in our theatres and must be ticketed.

• ASSISTIVE LISTENING DEVICES, LARGE PRINT PROGRAMS & BOOSTER SEATS are available in most theatres. Ask an usher to direct you.

• BRAILLE PROGRAMS are available with 2 weeks’ notice to accessibility@dcpa.org

The Theatre Company is constituent of Theatre Communications Group (TCG), the national organization for not-for-profit resident theatre companies.

The costumes, wigs, lighting, props, furniture,scenic construction, scenic painting, sound and special effects used in connection with this production were constructed and coordinated by the Theatre Company’s Production Staff.

GO BEHIND THE SCENES

Find out how costume designers, set builders, propmakers, and technical specialists create our shows from scratch.

Behind-the-Scenes Tours take place Mondays and Saturdays at 10am

During these walking tours, you will experience recent updates to our storied performance spaces and discover the people and processes that bring theatre to life.

$12 • 2-hour guided tour

LEGACY GIVING

Leave a legacy. Make a pledge that safeguards the future of theatre. By doing so, you’ll become a member of the Encore Society, a dedicated group of patrons who have made long-term commitments to the DCPA in their estate plans.

HERE’S HOW TO GET INVOLVED

Take advantage of tax-wise giving: Speak with your tax advisor about transferring appreciated stock directly to the DCPA, or direct part or all of the RMD from your IRA directly to us. We pay no capital gains, so your direct transfer contributions often go further than personally taking your distribution and making donations out of the proceeds.

Make a gift in your will or revocable trust: Give a tax-free gift for any DCPA designation that can be updated at any time.

Designate the DCPA as a beneficiary: Name the DCPA as a beneficiary of a retirement plan, IRA, insurance policy, or other account.

As a member of our Encore Society, you’ll receive invitations to special events, access to discounted show tickets, and more member-only perks!

PRESERVING A CLASSIC: MEREDITH WILLSON’S THE MUSIC MAN

BY LISA BORNSTEIN

WWhat makes something obsolete – and conversely, what makes it a classic? The very premise of Seven Brides for Seven Brothers – the abduction of young women to care for the brothers – keeps it off most stages these days. The King and I requires heavy alterations to overcome its condescension toward the culture of Southeast Asia.

One might guess The Music Man, nearly 70 years old, would fall into that category. Meredith Willson’s 1957 musical was drawn from his own childhood, as well as his days playing the piccolo for John Philip Sousa’s legendary band. In tiny, fictional River City, Iowa, con man Prof. Harold Hill rolls into town, promising to fix an entire town’s problem by teaching its youth to play band instruments.

But director Matt Lenz sees much relevance in it to our present day.

“I do think there is something to be heard differently today in terms of what’s happening in society,” Lenz says. ”It’s a little bit stuck in its ways, and a little fractured, and a little cynical,” he says of River City. “And I love that the arts can come in and get them to harmonize, literally, and to change their minds”

The Denver tour is an entirely new production, a partnership between director Lenz and choreographer Josh Bergasse who previously collaborated on the 2017 production of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory

“It’s chockfull of those amazing songs,” Lenz says. “The first thing I thought was I need somebody like Josh to do this with me because there are these huge, athletic, fantastic dances in it.”

With a 34-member cast and 10 who are dancers first, the show is bringing back the full choreography that used to be a hallmark of musical theatre.

“We’ve got to make sure we have a crew of real dancers in this, in kind of the old-fashioned way they did musicals,” Lenz says. “I don’t think there are tons of shows on the road these days that surprise people with that full-on dance.”

While little had to be eliminated from the show for today’s audiences, the designers met with an eye toward how today’s audiences would see, hear, and feel, and what they could do to celebrate the musical’s core while reaching those theatergoers.

“The first thing we talked about was the rhythm of the show, which starts right off the bat with the train,” Lenz explains. Its rhythm serves to underlie the heart of the show — a small town that doesn’t want to be thrown off its rhythm.

I love that the arts can come in and get [the residents of River City] to harmonize, literally, and to change their minds. — MATT LENZ, DIRECTOR

“‘Rock Island’ is dialogue that…becomes musicalized when the train starts up and you start to hear the rhythm of the train,” Lenz says of the opening number. “I want to find a way to carry that through even more. Is there something to keep them in a kind of rhythmic lockstep? There’s something about that town just clicking along, and everything being the way it is, and then that relaxing, and then that scaring some people to death.”

And that’s a sensation that never falls into obsolescence.

MEREDITH WILLSON’S THE MUSIC MAN

FEB 27 – MAR 1

BUELL THEATRE

ASL Interpreted, Audio Described, and Open Captioned performance: Feb 28 at 2pm

READ THE FULL ARTICLE

BY JOANNE OSTROW

W FINDING YOURSELF IN COWBOYS AND EAST INDIANS

When her play, Cowboys and East Indians, has its world premiere, playwright Nina McConigley thinks it’s going to be mind-blowing for her mother, who was born in India and lives in Wyoming, to see actors wearing saris onstage at the Denver Center for the Performing Arts.

Growing up in Casper, as “the other kind of Indian in Wyoming,” McConigley said, there wasn’t another sari in sight. Nor an Indian grocery store or restaurant. Her Indian/Irish-American family moved to Wyoming when she was a baby. Her mother found it difficult to adjust to the emptiness and new culture, while Nina grew up feeling confused and isolated.

“The play isn’t so much about race; it’s about not seeing a version of yourself and what that does,” McConigley said. “Wyoming is one of the least racially diverse states, and it is a different kind of growing up.”

She hopes the play, co-adapted by Matthew Spangler from her semi-biographical short story collection of the same name, reinterprets the American West for audiences. “I hope it gives people a different look at Wyoming and the idea of rural immigration.”

Like her main character, “I did live back home with my family when my mom had cancer. When I wrote the short story, it was about anxiety for me. So much of my sense of Indian-ness was through my mom and I did think, if I lose her, I don’t know what’s going to happen.”

Now a professor at Colorado State University, her new novel, How to Commit A Postcolonial Murder, will be published simultaneously with the world premiere of Cowboys and East Indians, which was a hit at the Denver Center Theatre Company’s 2024 Colorado New Play Summit, delivering a smart mix of culture-clash comedy and pathos that sparked tears and laughter in a staged reading.

McConigley and Spangler met in their hometown of

Casper and followed each other through middle and high school, each harboring a love of the West, the sparse landscape and the people. DCPA Director of Literary Programs Leean Kim Torske, the show’s dramaturg, is also from Wyoming and co-commissioned McConigley and Spangler to adapt the short stories for the Denver Center Theatre Company.

Best known for his stage adaptation of The Kite Runner, Spangler is a playwright and professor of performance studies at San José State University where he teaches courses in how refugees and asylum-seekers are represented through the performing arts. One of his other plays, The Beekeeper of Aleppo, co-written with Nesrin Alrefaai and based on the bestselling novel by Christy Lefteri, will receive its second UK tour this spring.

When she wrote Cowboys and East Indians, McConigley said, she never thought of the story as a play.

Spangler recalled the pair participated in a 2022 panel discussion in Casper and hypothetically talked about how they might approach adapting Nina’s collection of short stories for the stage. Eventually, this hypothetical discussion would lead to a real commission and collaboration.

Although popular culture is full of Irish, Italian, Chinese, Jewish, and other New York City immigration stories, McConigley notes a lack of stories about rural immigrants. “While it is difficult being an immigrant anywhere,” she said, “unlike cities with diverse ethnic populations, Casper is very monocultural. I just wanted to write about my experience of growing up, brown in Wyoming, really.”

When there is no reflection of yourself in the world around you, your identity is in question. “There was a brief moment as a kid when I [described myself as] ‘Arapaho,’” McConigley said. “Easier than explaining…”

For Spangler, who has generations of Wyoming fami-

ly history, “the play essentially is about loneliness, how we deal with loneliness, and how we try to create senses of belonging to mitigate loneliness. Sometimes those spaces of belonging are risky.”

“There’s something about [the Wyoming] landscape that’s beautiful, striking, and also its own metaphor for loneliness,” Spangler said.

McConigley recalls visiting numerous book clubs around Wyoming when Cowboys and East Indians came out, “and having many people say to me, ‘I’ve never thought about race in Wyoming.’ And I just thought, ‘What a privilege, you never had to. You just aren’t in the minority.’”

The play isn’t so much about race; it’s about not seeing a version of yourself and what that does.

— NINA MCCONIGLEY, AUTHOR OF “COWBOYS AND EAST INDIANS”

For his part, Spangler said, “to be able to write a play set in our hometown and work with people I’ve known for decades is something I never thought I’d be able to do.”

Cowboys and East Indians is ultimately a hopeful play that’s packed with wide-ranging emotions and that subverts expectations in multiple ways. “I was surprised people cried during the New Play Summit,” McConigley said. “The play is hopeful. It asks you to look at those around you, and you don’t know the story within them. You just don’t know. I think the play surprises a lot of people. Watching the audience was so interesting, you can visibly see the audience stressed, then relieved, then a little bit confused….”

Both express gratitude to the Colorado New Play Summit and Denver Center Theatre Company. “We learned so much from that workshop,” McConigley said. “The fact that they financially supported us to write this play….” As a mother of young children and a full-time professor, she said, there’s no way she could have done it otherwise. “I’m definitely wearing a sari on opening night. My mom, too.”

COWBOYS AND EAST INDIANS

JAN 16 – MAR 1 • SINGLETON THEATRE

ASL Interpreted and Audio Described performance: Feb 1 at 1:30pm Stay for a Post-Show Discussion: Jan 28, Feb 12, Feb 24

1. BELONGING

We build a respectful and empathetic culture through our active commitment to equity, diversity, inclusion and accessibility.

2.

COLLABORATION

We produce our best possible work together by engaging people with diverse perspectives, lived experiences and talents around our shared goals.

3.

COMMUNITY

We cultivate open, responsive, affirming relationships and partnerships for a greater collective impact.

4.

CREATIVITY

We embrace innovation and imagination in our daily work to advance our mission.

5.

INTEGRITY

We act responsibly, with honesty, accountability and transparency.

6. SUSTAINABILITY

We prioritize the wellbeing of our team, our finances and the environment to ensure our thriving future.

Learn more about what drives the DCPA, and where we’re going, at denvercenter.org/plan

HENRY’S EX-WIVES GET THEIR SAY (AND SING) IN SIX

EXCERPTED FROM A 2023 APPLAUSE ARTICLE BY

MISHA BERSON

Need a refresher course on who the “six” wives of King Henry VIII were? Here’s a quick rundown:

Henry’s first and longest union (two decades) was with a smart, assertive Spanish princess, Catherine of Aragon, who despite many pregnancies only produced one viable child with the monarch, christened Mary. Assuming Catherine would never produce a male heir to his throne, Henry divorced her.

Wife No. 2 was lovely Anne Boleyn, who also gave birth to a daughter (the future Queen Elizabeth I), but alas, no son. To be rid of her, Henry accused Anne of adultery and though historians now doubt her guilt, she was tried and executed.

Next up? Jane Seymour. She produced a male heir, who became King Edward VI — but she died 12 days after his birth.

This condensed version omits a lot of political and personal rivalry among Henry, his wives, and their relations and courtiers. But what you get from SIX is its own unique take on the women’s experiences and a big jolt of pizazz: sparkly royal mini-dresses and teeny crowns, catchy tunes and punchy lyrics as the wives (or ex-wives, they remind you) belt out solos, boogie and are each other’s backup singers.

SIX JAN 7 – 11, 2026

BUELL THEATRE

The king then turned to Anne of Cleves, a sort of mail order German bride. Henry loved Thomas Holbein’s flattering portrait of her but rejected her in the flesh. Uncrowned, her marriage annulled, Anne still enjoyed a cushy life at court — and unlike poor Anne Boleyn, kept her head on.

On to Katherine Howard, a fun-loving young woman Henry called his “blushing rose without a thorn.” That is, until dalliances with two other men led to her own execution.

Catherine Parr was his final bride and reportedly a faithful nurse to the ailing monarch. (After his death she remarried, only to perish in childbirth herself soon after.)

ASL Interpreted, Audio Described and Open Captioned performance: Jan 10 at 2pm

READ THE FULL ARTICLE

GO ALL IN

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AND MUCH MORE!

4 WAYS TO ENJOY THE VERY BEST OF BROADWAY KEEP THINGS FLEXIBLE

Mix and match with 10- or 20-pack vouchers valid for most shows this season.

Choose our 5-Show Package and experience the best of Broadway — in Denver! ELEVATE YOUR EXPERIENCE

Customize a flexible package of 4+ familyfriendly shows tailored to your crew.

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UPCOMING ADDED ATTRACTIONS

Complement your 2025/26 season with perennial Broadway hits and fresh new shows that have been taking the industry by storm!

PROUD PARTNER OF THE DENVER CENTER FOR THE PERFORMING ARTS

CCBS Colorado’s Dillon Thomas is known as Your Reporter in Northern Colorado, but around here, he’s better known as Colorado’s connection to the Denver Center for the Performing Arts. CBS Colorado’s team of Your Reporters covers Colorado’s vibrant arts scene like no one else and Dillon’s coverage of the DCPA is unique and far-reaching. His commitment has put him on the road with America’s top traveling productions, including MJ the musical, TINA — The Tina Turner Musical and SIX. “Telling the stories of these extraordinary performers and showing our viewers the long hours behind the scenes and the intense effort these shows require is one of my great honors,” Thomas says. “I’m very proud to represent CBS Colorado and showcase all the incredible talent that the DCPA brings to our theatres throughout the year.”

We are so grateful to our partners and to the thousands of donors and event participants over the years that have helped to improve and enrich the lives of those in our community.

— THE DENVER POST COMMUNITY FOUNDATION

PROUD SEASON SPONSOR OF THE DENVER CENTER FOR THE PERFORMING ARTS

TThe Denver Post is proud to support the Denver Center for the Performing Arts, both through sponsorship of its acclaimed theatre productions as well as with grant funding through The Denver Post Community Foundation. The longstanding partnership with DCPA has given countless individuals of all ages, the opportunity to experience and develop a lifelong appreciation for the arts.

The Denver Post Community Foundation believes in giving back to the communities in which it serves and proudly supports hundreds of nonprofits’ programs and events. Support is given in many ways: through The Denver Post Community Foundation, employee volunteering, and inkind advertising.

The Denver Post Community Foundation, a recognized 501 (c)(3) nonprofit agency, raises funds through individual and corporate donations, through its unique Signature Events and Programs and through the annual holiday Season To Share campaign. The overall mission is to improve and enrich the lives of those in the Denver community through support of programs that benefit arts and culture; children and youth; education and literacy; and the provision of basic human services. To date, more than $13,250,000 has been raised and distributed.

• Signature Events and Programs

These well-established events and programs have become staples in the community. They offer partners, participants and volunteers something unique each year. They include: Pen & Podium Literary Lecture Series, Passport To The Arts, and the Colorado State Spelling Bee

• The Denver Post Season To Share

The Denver Post Season To Share holiday fundraising campaign supports metro Denver nonprofit organizations that help low-income children, families, and individuals move out of poverty toward stability and self-sufficiency. Each year, grants are awarded to more than 50 deserving nonprofits with programs focused on children and youth, health and wellness, homelessness, and hunger. These grants are made possible through the generosity of Denver Post readers, the broader community, corporate donors, and our valued partners. Donations are matched and accepted year-round. To learn more, visit seasontoshare.com .

Together We Can Make A Difference denverpostcommunity.com

SET THE STAGE FOR A PERFECT DAY

From intimate vows to grand celebrations, our theatrically trained designers will set the stage for your perfect day. With personalized care every step of the way, we’re here to ensure your “I do” gets the standing ovation it deserves.

[The arts] inform, inspire, and uplift while bringing the community together.

— ANDY AYE, CO/AZ/NV/NM MARKET LEADER, GIS

PROUD SPONSOR OF WATER FOR ELEPHANTS

TThe arts are a significant part of making Denver an amazing place to live and work. U.S. Bank believes in the power of play, which includes the arts, because it brings joy, encourages creativity, teaches problem-solving skills, and builds emotional learning. That is why U.S. Bank is a long-time supporter of the magnificent programs and spectacular performances at the Denver Center for the Performing Arts (DCPA).

The arts educate, promote understanding, broaden our perspectives, and enable communities to share rich cultural experiences. Denver is fortunate to have a thriving arts community, which is home to some of the nation’s finest theatres, museums, and artists.

“We’re proud to serve the DCPA because it provides the best in live entertainment, in addition to education for all ages through the art of theatre,” said Andy Aye, Global Industrials and Services Market Leader for Colorado, Arizona, Nevada and New Mexico. “We know the critical role that the arts play in our society. They inform, inspire and uplift while bringing the community together.”

In 2023, the U.S. Bank Foundation committed $96.4 million in corporate contributions to nonprofit organizations across the entire enterprise, $3.1 million of which was invested to Colorado nonprofits. Those contributions had an emphasis on community development diversity and inclusion, financial education, and the environment. Additionally, its employees volunteered more than 360,000 hours, demonstrating that employee engagement is a major component of its community success.

“The DCPA brings us together to appreciate our diversity of thought, perspective, and talent,” said Aye. “I am always amazed at how much we share when we all laugh or gasp during a key moment in a performance. It is a sense of participation and belonging that strengthens our community. Supporting the DCPA is making an investment in ourselves, the arts, and the place we call home.”

DCPA TEAM

DCPA

Janice Sinden President & CEO

Donna Hendricks Executive Assistant, President & CEO

Julie Schumaker Manager, Board Relations

ACCOUNTING & FINANCE

Jane Williams CFAO

Sara Brandenburg Director, Accounting Services

Jennifer Jeffrey Director, Financial Planning & Analysis

Kristina Monge Associate Accountant

Rachel Rodriguez Manager, Accounting

Jennifer Siemers Director, Accounting

BROADWAY & CABARET

John Ekeberg Executive Director

Administration

Ashley Brown Business Manager

Alicia Bruce General Manager

Lisa Prater Operations Manager

Garner Galleria Theatre

Abel Becerra Technical Director

Jason Begin+, Anna Hookana+ Core Stagehands

DEVELOPMENT

Jamie Clements Vice President

Sarah Darlene Manager, Grants & Reports

Julia Dunn Manager, Donor Engagement & Legacy Giving

Kara Erickson-Stiemke Manager, Annual Giving & Stewardship

Emily Kettlewell Director, Operations

Caitie Maxwell Senior Director, Major Gifts

Marc Ravenhill Director, Donor Relations

Sarah Smith Coordinator

Megan Stewart Associate Director, Special Events

EDUCATION & COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT

Allison Watrous Executive Director

Stuart Barr Technical Director

Leslie Channell Director, Business Operations

Lyndsay Corbett Teaching Artist & Manager, Bobby G

María Corral Director, Community Engagement

Heather Curran Teaching Artist & Manager, Playwriting

Elliot Davis Evening Registrar & Office Coordinator

Rachel Ducat Executive Assistant & Business Manager

Rya Dyes Registrar & On-Site Class Manager

Gavin Juckette Teaching Artist & Manager, TYA Engagement & Music

Timothy McCracken Head of Acting

Rick Mireles Manager, Community Engagement

David Saphier Teaching Artist & Manager, In-School Programming

Charlotte Talbert Librarian

Rachel Taylor Teaching Artist & Manager, Literary Engagement & Resiliency

Justin Walvoord Teaching Artist & Manager, Shakespeare in the Parking Lot

Samuel Wood Director, Education & Curriculum Development

EVENT SERVICES

Tara Miller Event Sales & Operations Director

Brook Nichols Event Technical Director

Aidan Gagner Video Engineer

Michael Harris Lighting Designer

Stori Heleen-O’Foley Event Technical Manager

Shane Hotle Audio Engineer

Kris Lawan,

Savannah Singleton Event Captains

Danielle Levine, Blair Quiring Senior Sales & Event Managers

Jacob Noon, Phil Rohrbach Sales & Event Managers

Benjamin Peitzer Event Technical Lead

Kaden Richter Audio Engineer

INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY

Lisa Roebuck Vice President For security purposes, the IT team has been omitted.

MARKETING & SALES

Angela Lakin Vice President

Whitney Testa Executive Assistant, Marketing & Broadway

Communications

Suzanne Yoe Director

Heidi Bosk, Brittany Gutierrez Associate Directors

Todd Metcalf Media Producer

Creative Services

Kyle Malone Director

Sofia Contreras,

Lucas Kreitler Graphic Designers

Paul Koob Senior Graphic Designer

Noelle Norris Traffic Coordinator

Digital

Michael Ryan Leuthner Director

Erin Bunyard Senior Strategist

Harper Anne Finch Manager, Social Media

Hannah Selwyn Manager, Email

Sergio von Kretschmann Manager, Web

Insight & Strategy

Emily Kent Director

Dan McNulty Analyst

Marketing

Claire Graves Director

Emily Lozow Associate Director

Maddie Lamb, Emmy VanLangevelde, Julie Whelan, Managers

Mikayla Woods Coordinator

Ticketing & Audience Services

Jennifer Lopez Director

Jessica Alverson*, Zeah Edmonds*,

Lauren Estes*, Amanda Foust, Jen Gray*,

Noah Jungferman*, Oliver Knight*, Reagan

Luchte, Brett O’Neill*, Claudia Ruiz*,

Holly Stigen*, Asheala Tasker*,

Rob Warner* Ticket Agents

Kirsten Anderson*, Scott Lix*,

Liz Sieroslawski*, Greg Swan* Subscription Agents

Jon Collins Manager, Subscription

D.J. Dennis*, Edmund Gurule*,

Hayley Solano*, Andrew Sullivan*, Bronwen VanOrdstrand*, Alfonso Vazquez*, Max McCord* Counter/Show Leads

Billy Dutton Associate Director, Operations

Katie Davis, Claire Hayes, Ella Mann,

Lane Randall Managers, Box Office

Chris Leech VIP Ticketing Associate

Katie Spanos Associate Director, Subscriber Services

Group Sales

Jessica Bergin Associate Director

Elias Lopez,

Valery Owen Associates, Group Sales & Education

OFF-CENTER

Charlie Miller Executive Director & Curator

OPERATIONS

Sarah Arzberger, Danielle Freeman Managers

Aaron Chavez Lead

Ruben Cruz, Jordan Latouche Engineers

Simone Gordon Director

Kyle Greufe Senior Analyst

Maria Herwagen Junior Analyst

Brandon LeMarr Associate Director

Alison Orthel, Tara Perticone Analysts

Joseph Reecher Senior Engineer

PEOPLE & CULTURE

Laura Maresca CPCO

Equity & Organization Culture

Seán Kroll Specialist

Human Resources

Brian Carter Senior Business Partner

Andrew Guilder Recruiter & HR Generalist

Michaela Johnson Mailroom Assistant

Paul Johnson Manager, Payroll & Compliance

Jocelyn Martinez Business Partner

Kinsey Scholl Manager, Operations

THEATRE COMPANY

Administration

Charles Varin Managing Director

Emily Diaz Business Admin./ Asst. Company Manager

Jessica Eckenrod Line Producer

Alex Koszewski Company Manager

Ann Marshall General Manager

Artistic

Chris Coleman Artistic Director

Grady Soapes Artistic Producer & Casting Director

Leean Kim Torske Director, Literary Programs

Madison Cook-Hines Literary Assistant

Costume Crafts

Kevin Copenhaver Director

Chris Campbell Assistant

Costume Shop

Janet MacLeod Director/Design Associate

Meghan Anderson Doyle Design Associate

Katarina Kosmopoulos First Hand

Ingrid Ludeke, Carolyn Plemitscher Drapers

House Crew

Douglas Taylor+ Supervisor

James Berman+, Will King, Dave Mazzeno+, Kyle Moore+, Heather

Sparling+ Matt Wagner+ Stagehands

Joseph Price+, Kelley Reznik+ Technicians

Lighting Design

Charles MacLeod Director

Connor Baker+ Production Electrician

Lily Bradford Assistant

Paint Shop

Kristin Hamer MacFarlane Charge Scenic Artist

Melanie Rentschler, Sasha Seaman Scenic Artists

Production

Jeff Gifford Director

Julie Brou

Scene Shop

Eric Moore Technical Director

Albert “Stub” Allison, Robert L. Orzolek, Josh Prues Associate Technical Directors

Jeremy Banthoff, Tyler D. Clark, Kyle Scoggins Scenic Technicians

Wynn Pastor Scenic Technician & Purchasing Agent

Louis Fernandez III Lead Scenic Technician

Brian “Marco” Markiewicz Lead Carpenter

Scenic Design

Lisa Orzolek Director

Nicholas Renaud Assistant

Sound Design & Technology

Alex Billman Supervisor

Meagan Holdeman+, Timothy Schoeberl+, Dimitri Soto+ Technicians

Stage Management

Anne Jude Supervisor

Chandra R.M. Anthenill, Wayne Breyer, Corin Davidson, Kristin Dwyer, Elizabeth Ann Goodman, Harper Hadley, Sage Hughes, Nick Mason, Melissa J. Michelson, Christine Rose Moore, Nick Nyquist, Brooke Redler, Malia Stoner Stage Managers

Sage Goetsch, Dylan Hudson, Hannah Iverson, Casey Pitts Apprentices

Wardrobe

Heidi Echtenkamp Supervisor

Robin Appleton^, Amber Krimbel^, Lauren LaCasse^, Lisa Parsons Wagner^, Nicole Watts^, Kami Williams^ Dressers

Wigs

Diana Ben-Kiki Supervisor

Abby Schmidt^, Marisa Sorce^ Hair/Wig Technicians

VENUE OPERATIONS

Glen Lucero Vice President

Kristi Horvath Director

Merry Davis Financial Manager

Jane Deegan Administrator

Samantha Egle Manager, Event Operations

Facilities

Craig Smith Director

Dwight Barela, Mark Dill, Bryan Faciane, John Howard, Iver Johnson Engineers

Saleem As-Saboor, Adriana Fuentes, Carmen Molina, Judith Primero Molina,

Juan Loya Molina, Blanca Primero Custodians

Michael Kimbrough Manager, Engineering

Oscar Fraire Manager, Custodial

Brian McClain Supervisor, Custodial

Patron Experience

Kaylyn Kriaski Manager, Patron Experience

LeiLani Lynch, Aaron McMullen, Stacy Norwood, Wendy Quintana, Kelci Rigsby, Valerie Schaefer, Ashli Townsend Managers on Duty

Kelly Breuer, Nora Caley, Robin Lander, Melanie Mason, Barbara Pooler, Ayden Smith House Managers

Safety & Security

Quentin Crump Director

Timothy Allen, Jodi Benavides Lead Security Officers

Administrative Assistant/ Office Manager

Matthew Campbell Production Manager

Peggy Carey Production Manager

Prop Shop

Meghan Markiewicz Supervisor

Sara Pugh Associate Supervisor

Bennet Goldberg, Ashley Lawler Artisans

Adena Rice.

Prop Carpenter

David Bright, Ariana Cuevas, Ethan Kemberlin, Jack Leatherwood, Ian Nelson, Ashley Skillman, Zach Stemley, Pamela Winston, Tori Witherspoon Security Specialists

DENVER LANGUAGE SCHOOL

PROUD CORPORATE MEMBER OF THE DENVER CENTER FOR THE PERFORMING ARTS

DDenver Language School is the only Denver Public School K-8 charter school offering Spanish and Mandarin immersion (K-8) and French (6-8). DLS is committed to providing students with a diverse and globally oriented education, encouraging them to be curious, critical thinkers, and preparing them for the workforce of tomorrow. Its unique model enhances problem-solving and critical thinking; strengthens cognitive ability, flexibility, and creativity; and builds cultural understanding. The curriculum fosters empathy, adaptability, and open-mindedness, and DLS’s holistic approach combines academic rigor.

DLS is proud to be the number one charter school in Denver on the state School Performance Framework and 28th of 1,825 schools in Colorado, placing DLS in the top 1.5% of all Colorado schools.

“Choosing Denver Language School has been one of the best decisions we’ve made for our children,” said Monica W., parent of DLS students. “Not only are they becoming fluent in another language, but they are also developing a deep appreciation for different cultures. We see their confidence, curiosity, and problem-solving skills growing every day, and we know they are being prepared to thrive in a global world.”

The Denver Center for the Performing Arts (DCPA) provides Denver with access to world-class theatrical performances and arts programming. These experiences expand creativity, encourage selfexpression, and foster cultural awareness, offering opportunities to engage with the arts in meaningful ways. As a Denver community member, DLS is highly invested in supporting the arts and the DCPA, working to nurture a diverse and interconnected world.

We see [our children’s] confidence, curiosity, and problem-solving skills growing every day, and we know they are being prepared to thrive in a global world.

— MONICA W. PARENT