SETTING

The action of the play takes place in three times and locations:

July 1930; Edgard, Louisiana, 40 miles west of New Orleans

March 1960; Detroit, Michigan

Autumn 1990; Chicago, Illinois

COMPANY

Silas LeTour........................ Geoffrey Barnes*
Olivia Dotson ..................... Jasmine Bouldin
Vincent ............................... Christine Dye*
Marlene Hartfield .............. Burgess Byrd*
*Actor is a member of Actors’ Equity Association, the union of professional actors and stage managers in the United States.

PRODUCTION TEAM

Director ................................................. Daryl Harris
Projection Designer.............................. Tyler Gabbard
Sound Designer..................................... Kevin Semancik
Stage Manager & Console Operator.... Giselle Audero
Technical Coordination........................ Brian Lloyd
Producer .............................................. Joshua Steele

ARTIST BIOS FOR BOTH PRODUCTIONS

GISELLE AUDERO (Stage Manager; UGLY, SILAS) is excited to join the folks at Memorial Hall for the Resilience Staged Reading series. A native of Los Angeles and a recent graduate of the University of California at Santa Cruz, she came to Cincinnati to join the Cincinnati Artists’ Theatre as their Resident Stage Manager.

GEOFFREY BARNES* (Silas, SILAS) is thrilled to be a part of this project and to have the opportunity to work with this wonderful group of artists! Credits include: Gabriel in FENCES, A FLEA IN HER EAR, MACBETH and THE WINTER’S TALE with the Cincinnati Shakespeare Company. Other credits include MARIAN: OR THE TRUE TALE OF ROBIN HOOD at Know Theatre of Cincinnati, HANDS ON A HARDBODY (Ronald McCowan) with Ensemble Theatre Cincinnati, Seattle Children’s Theatre, the ZACH Theatre in Austin, Texas, American Globe Theatre and the Storm Theatre Company in NYC. “Be well, stay safe, and yes...please wear a mask. Thank you.”

NOAH BERRY (Stevie, UGLY LIES THE BONE) has spent the last four years touring the country in various musicals and regional productions. Before the pandemic, he could be seen in the National tour of BUDDY: THE BUDDY HOLLY STORY (Jerry Allison). Other favorite tours and regional credits include the National tour of SPAMALOT (Ensemble), LITTLE SHOP OF HORRORS (Seymour), [TITLE OF SHOW] (Hunter Bell), and THE 25^TH ANNUAL PUTNAM COUNTY SPELLING BEE (Leaf Coneybear). Noah is very thankful to be able to bring a bit of art to these troubling times. Much love to his family, friends, and his Sunshine.

JASIMINE BOULDIN (Olivia Dotson, SILAS) is a Cincinnati native who attended Northern Kentucky University to obtain a BA in Acting. After taking a five-year hiatus from performing, she’s been making strides to be more present in Cincinnati’s acting scene. She’s been a member of OTRImprov since 2017. She made her Cincinnati Fringe Festival debut in 2018 and has since also appeared in the Festival with Performance Gallery in KUMFERTED (2019) and HIVE MIND (2020). She’s been featured in independent films such as “Slasher” (written and directed by Jonathan Rowan, 2019) and “Wildfire, OH” (written by David James, 2019). 

BURGESS BYRD* (Marlene Hartfield, SILAS) is delighted to perform with a great group of folks in a show that's not over a Zoom call. Recent credits: "Monologues of Hope" Cincinnati Playhouse in The Park, "Say Their Names" with Pones, Monologues For Us By Us with Cincinnati Black Theatre Collective, GLORIA: A LIFE at Human Race Theatre, and THE FROG PRINCESS at Ensemble Theatre Cincinnati. Some of her favorite credits include SKELETON CREW (Faye) with Ensemble Theatre Cincinnati, A RAISIN IN THE SUN (Lena) with Cincinnati Shakespeare Company, MERCHANT OF VENICE (Shylock) with UT Austin, AVENUE Q (Gary) with Showbiz Players, and the solo show PRETTY FIRE (Charlayne) with Know Theatre of Cincinnati. “Thank you for being here!”

CHRISTINE DYE* (Vincent, SILAS) is delighted to be part of this production alongside fellow actors for whom she holds great admiration. She is an actress who has enjoyed a 30-year career on stage and has now added film and television to her resume as well.  She takes get pride in reading the words of her longtime friend, Derek Snow. She would also like to show her gratitude to you, the audience for supporting this project, and hopefully many more to come.

LINDSEY FERRENTINO (Playwright, UGLY LIES THE BONE) is a prolific playwright who writes with, according to The New York Times, “a muscular empathy which seeks to enter the minds of people for whom life is often a struggle of heroic proportions”. Whether writing about a female burn survivor or the first leading role for a person with Down Syndrome, Lindsey has been called “a brave playwright of dauntless conviction whose unflinching portraits are hard to come by outside of journalism."

Her produced plays include UGLY LIES THE BONE (Roundabout Theatre Company, The National Theatre, UK, NYT Critics Pick), the “barrier breaking” AMY AND THE ORPHANS (Roundabout Theatre Company), THIS FLAT EARTH (Playwrights Horizons), and THE YEAR TO COME (La Jolla Playhouse, Roundabout Theatre Company - upcoming). Other plays include KOKOMO, MAGIC MAN MOONLIGHT ON THE BAYOU and PARADISE BAR AND GRILL. Ferrentino is the recipient of the 2016 Kesselring Prize, Laurents/ Hatcher Citation of Excellence, ASCAP Cole Porter Playwriting Prize, Paul Newman Drama Award, 2015 Kilroys List, finalist for the Susan Smith Blackburn, Catalyst Award for Entertainment Industry Excellence, NYU Distinguished Young Alumna Award, nominated for the Outer Critics Circle John Gassner Award, and is the only two-time finalist for the Kendeda Playwriting Prize.

Lindsey’s play THE YEAR TO COME will be produced in Fall 2020 at Roundabout Theatre Company.

​Lindsey is also a screenwriter, with various projects in development. Most recently announced, she is adapting the screenplay for the film Not Fade Away, for Annapurna Pictures starring Emily Blunt. David O. Russell and John Krasinski are attached as producers.

​She is currently under commission from Roundabout, The Geffen, Manhattan Theatre Club, and South Coast Rep. She holds a B.F.A. from New York University's Tisch School of the Arts, and has two M.F.A.'s in playwriting from Hunter College and The Yale School of Drama.

TYLER GABBARD (Projections Designer; UGLY, SILAS) is a designer and arts administrator based in Los Angeles. He returns to Memorial Hall after designing the set for last year's RING OF FIRE. He has designed sets, projections, props, and lighting for more than two dozen productions at local venues including The Carnegie, Cincinnati Chamber Opera, New Edgecliff Theatre, Kincaid Regional Theatre, Northern Kentucky University, Falcon Theatre, and Commonwealth Theatre Company and at venues in New York City and Los Angeles. By day, Tyler is the Box Office and Patron Communications Manager for the Lisa Smith Wengler Center for the Arts at Pepperdine University. Previously, he was the Events and Publicity Manager for the School of the Arts at Northern Kentucky University and the Vice President of the League of Cincinnati Theatres. He holds a Bachelor of Fine Arts from NYU/Tisch. tylergabbard.com

KATIE GRONEMAN (Jessie, UGLY LIES THE BONE) is a proud Cincinnati native and graduate of Indiana University in Bloomington where she studied performance. She is an Ensemble Theatre of Cincinnati acting apprentice alumna, who has also been seen at Know Theatre Cincinnati in Serials and as part of the Cincinnati Fringe Festival. shows. She is very excited to have just finished recording THE ELECTION OF MS. REBECCA’S THIRD GRADE CLASS as an audio play for the Know. She has filmed commercials for Macy's, Gold Star Chili, Bob Evan's, KY Lottery, and Cradle Cincinnati, to name a few.  Recent film credits include the Amazon Prime series “Wildfire” and the movie “Hard Kill” starring Bruce Willis  Some of her favorite performance moments to date are RABBIT HOLE (Izzy), the off-Broadway tour of THE JEWELER’S SHOP (Anna), and recording her own stories for FBi Radio when she lived in Australia. Follow along on IG: @katie_groneman

DARYL HARRIS (Director, SILAS, THE UNINVITED) is a Full Professor in the Theatre and Dance Program in the School of the Arts (SOTA) at Northern Kentucky University. He is a 52-year veteran of traditional, experimental, educational, and applied theatre. He has studied and worked throughout North America, Europe, Africa, Asia and Australia. In addition to teaching diverse interdisciplinary theatre courses, Daryl also acts in, directs and costume-designs theatrical productions. His primary passion: engaging scholars and communities transculturally and transnationally across disciplines.

LINSEY ROGERS (Kacie, UGLY LIES THE BONE) is so thankful for this opportunity to return to live theatre! AKA The Wandering Linstrel, she has performed professionally all over the world as a violist, fiddler, pianist, vocalist, and actress. Locally she has worked with Know Theatre of Cincinnati, Cincinnati Shakespeare Company, Cincinnati Landmark Productions, and The Carnegie. Favorite local theatre credits include DARKEST NIGHT AT THE GNARLY STUMP (Band), JESUS CHRIST SUPERSTAR (Annas), THE WINTER’S TALE (Musician), and GUYS AND DOLLS (General Cartwright). She is also a competitive pinball player and co-hosts the What The Flip pinball stream on Twitch. She’d like to thank the countless people who have supported her crazy career choice, including you for keeping live theatre alive! www.facebook.com/TheWanderingLinstrel

SPRING STARR PILLOW (Voice / Mom, UGLY LIES THE BONE) graduated from Northern Kentucky University with a degree in Musical Theatre Performance and holds Master’s Credits from the University of Cincinnati in Education and Counseling. She is currently employed as the Education Specialist for Wordplay Cincy. Spring is a very active part of the initiative to combine theatre and education. She has developed several after school and in school workshops combining curriculum and drama in the Tri-state schools. Spring has worked for several tri-state theatres, including Ensemble Theatre, Children’s Theatre of Cincinnati, Covedale Theatre, and The Showboat Majestic, and was a featured cabaret performer at The Celestial. Spring has also had the privilege of singing and writing with David Kisor, a prolific children’s song writer, on several nationally recognized CDs and play projects through Growing Sound. In her spare time, Spring enjoys writing poetry, short stories, plays and music, rehabbing old homes, singing with her band No Guarantees whenever possible, and spending time with her boys, Nick, Eli, and Max and her dogs, Sophie and Herman.

KEVIN SEMANCIK (Sound Designer; UGLY, SILAS) is a sound designer and audio engineer who is currently based out of Cincinnati, OH. Most recently he served as the head audio engineer at the Second Stage Tony Kiser Theater and the Park Avenue Armory in New York City. Recent sound design credits include: Forestburgh Under the Stars with Forestburgh Playhouse, Pride and Prejudice with Cincinnati Shakespeare Company, Curious Incident… with Xavier University and The Exes at Theatre Row. Kevin holds an MFA in Sound Design from The University of Cincinnati - CCM. www.semanciksound.com 

DEREK SNOW (Playwright, SILAS) has been in the Cincinnati theatre community as an actor, writer and director for over 35 years. A graduate of the School for Creative and Performing Arts, Derek then continued his education in New York City before returning after graduation to teach dramatic arts to inner-city youth in the public school system. He has been with the popular physical theatre group Performance Gallery for the past 18 years. His written work has been produced in Atlanta, New Jersey and Sydney, Australia. He recently had his latest short play, WIND KILL FACTOR, read for a sold-out audience at Ensemble Theatre Cincinnati, and is thrilled to be bringing SILAS, THE UNINVITED to audiences for the first time.

JOSHUA STEELE (Producer) is the manager of historic Memorial Hall, where (in non-pandemic times!) he hosts more than 250 performances and events annually. He has been included as one of “10 Who Are Advancing The Arts” and named “Cincinnati theatre’s most impressive multitasker” by the Cincinnati Enquirer, and has been called “the definition of a contemporary impresario” by Cincinnati Citybeat. Earlier in his career, Joshua co-founded the upstart theatre company New Stage Collective, was General Manager of the Vocal Arts Ensemble, and served as Managing Director of Theatre at The Carnegie, where his productions of PARADE and CHICAGO were named “Best Musical of the Year” by the League of Cincinnati Theatres. Apart from his full-time endeavors, Joshua is an active performer, a part-time voice instructor for Northern Kentucky University’s Department of Theatre, and enjoys writing plays and musicals. He holds graduate degrees in arts administration and business administration from the University of Cincinnati, and a degree in vocal performance from The Ohio State University. Joshua lives in Cincinnati with his wife, Brooke, and their daughters, Daphne and Selene.

PHILLIP WEBSTER (Director, UGLY LIES THE BONE) is a musician, actor and all-around dilettante who’s been onstage and behind the scenes at the Horizon Theatre (Atlanta), the Georgia Shakespeare Festival, Prince George’s Co. Shakespeare in the Park, The Carnegie and New Stage Collective, among others. He is also veteran of the US Air Force and a graduate of the Defense Language Institute’s Arabic program.  Phillip is the creator of two podcasts, a historical news program called Queen City Bulletin and the upcoming Froghammer Shakespeare Radio Hour, a behind the scenes look at Northern Kentucky’s longest-running and most bizarre classical theatre company.

AARON WHITEHEAD (Kelvin, UGLY LIES THE BONE) is happy to be making his second appearance at Memorial Hall, having played Mitchell in the October reading of CRY IT OUT. Working by day at a Cincinnati non-profit, Aaron spends his evenings involved with as much theatre as possible. Some of Aaron's recent local appearances include The Elephant Man (Merrick) with Center Stage Players, The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas (Melvin) at Warsaw Federal Incline Theater, and Dry Land (Janitor) at Clifton Performance Theatre. Aaron was rehearsing the role of Anthony in The End of the Rainbow at the Carnegie when COVID-19 hit, cancelling the show. Aaron was also scheduled to direct The Last Night of Ballyhoo at Mariemont Players, but this was rescheduled for autumn 2021. Aaron is glad to have the opportunity to be involved with theatre that has such strong social relevance as a means of speaking out for marginalized voices in these difficult times.

*Actor is a member of Actors’ Equity Association, the union of professional actors and stage managers in the United States.

SPECIAL THANKS

Brant Russell

Kevin Crowley

Torie Wilkins