What We're Up Against

By Theresa Rebeck

Eliza, an intelligent and impetuous female associate at a male-dominated architecture firm, challenges boundaries and sexist rules in her dog-eat-dog profession. Watch as she takes a whack at outdated office politics to break through the glass ceiling and rocks the architecture world to its core in this in-your-face dark comedy.

For mature audiences only, due to strong language.

SHOW PHOTOS

2016 Performance Dates

November 11, 12, 18 & 19 at 7:30 p.m.
November 13 & 20 (ASL interpreted) at 2 p.m.

Ticket Information

Adults - $10
Seniors (55 and over) - $7
Non-KSU Students (17 and under) - $7
KSU Students - Free with current ID

• Tickets go on sale October 31.
• Purchase tickets online, by phone or in person at the Box Office.
• Visa, MasterCard and Discover accepted. Checks and cash accepted in person at the Box Office.
• Tickets purchased online or by phone will be available at Will Call.
• Will Call opens one hour prior to curtain time and closes when the performance begins.
• Kent State Students: Free admission with current Kent State ID. Seats must be reserved in person at the Box Office.
• No refunds for purchased tickets. Exchanges for the same production can be made by contacting the Box Office prior to the reserved performance date.
• Tickets held at Will Call will be forfeited if not picked up by curtain time.

Tickets sales begin Monday, Oct. 31 at 8 a.m.

Cast

Maya Nicholson: Eliza
Maya is majoring in theatre production with a minor in marketing. She graduated from Copley High School in Copley, Ohio as the President of her Thespian Club, where she performed in Smokey Joe’s Café, The Drowsy Chaperone, and Little Shop of Horrors; she has also directed George Washington Slept Here and Copley’s Got Talent (the annual talent show). She acted in Kent State Stark's Voices from Hurt Street as various characters, one being “Winifred Oprey” doing a play-off of the Oprah Winfrey Show, and she was costume design assistant for I Love You Because and assistant stage manager in Spring Awakening. Last season she performed as the sassy sister, Libby, in The Maiden’s Prayer, Melanie, the outspoken sister in Lewis Black's One Slight Hitch, Francis, in Blur and most recently, Ginette, Sandrine and Rhonda in Almost, Maine. She is also currently enrolled in theatre courses, and aspires to be a director in theatre, film and television.

Faith Carpenter: Janice
Faith has been acting on and off since she was little. She was in two plays and two musicals in high school. she played Mrs. Webb in Our Town, Linus in You're a Good Man Charlie Brown, Rat in The Wind in the Willows, and Violet Beauregard in Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory. She assistant directed five productions, including Miss Nelson is Missing, The Little Mermaid, And a Child Shall Lead, Charming, and Gran's Guide to Defeat an Ogre and performed in The Bicentennial Project and These Shining Lives at Kent State Stark.

Ben Seeley: Stu



 

 

Thomas Meadowcroft: Ben


 

 

Nick Barrett: Weber


 

 

Production Team

Brian Newberg: Director
Brian Newberg is an Associate Professor of Theatre and Theatre Director at Kent State University at Stark. Brian’s directing experience (over eighty production credits) includes Broadway, Regional, Equity Waiver, industry showcases, new work development, and many college productions. He has extensive experience as an actor (over seventy production credits) in the New York City, Philadelphia, San Francisco, Los Angeles and Oregon areas. He has also served as an Associate Artistic Director for a regional theatre company, run his own private acting studios, and taught at a number of colleges on the west coast before coming to Kent State. Brian is a member of the Stage Directors and Choreographers Society (SDC) and received his M.F.A. in Directing from the University of California, Irvine.

Louis Williams: Scenic & Lighting Designer
Louis Williams is the resident technical director, and scenic and lighting designer, at Kent State Stark and has designed over 200 productions in 30 years in theatre, opera, ballet and rock-n-roll. This includes work with such theatre companies as: The American Ballet Theatre II, The Joffrey Ballet II, The Arizona Theatre Company, The Children’s Theatre Company of Minneapolis, The Kenley Players, The Ohio Light Opera, The Cleveland Opera, The Cinncinnati Opera, Southern Arizona Light Opera Company, Carousel Dinner Theatre, The Agora, Cleveland Ohio, The Temple Of Music And Art, Tucson, Arizona, ChildsPlay Inc, of Phoenix, Arizona, and The Scottsdale Civic Center, Scottsdale, Arizona. Read more.

Ron Jarvis: Sound Designer
You might recognize Ron Jarvis as a performer, producer, music director, and/or composer for such stalwart North East Ohio acts as The Buckeye Biscuit Band, Ital, First Light, Alex Bevan, Pat Dailey and, most recently, Macaw; the American Worldbeat Band. He is also an adjunct faculty member at Kent State where he has taught Art of the Theatre and Theatre Criticism classes as well as the three part series of Sound Design and Technology classes for the Entertainment Arts and Technologies certificates program. Ron has worked with world renowned directors Vincent Dowling (composition for The Winter’s Tale at Kent State) as well as Ping Chong (Blindness: The Irresistible Light Of Encounter at La Mama Theatre in NYC) and has served as a live mix consultant at Geauga Lake and Cedar Point Amusement Parks. Although his first sound design for Kent State Stark was for the 2002 production of Dancing at Lughnasa, since 2007 he has designed many of the Kent State Stark theatrical productions including Oklahoma!, The Marriage of Bette and Boo, Into the Woods, The Revenger’s Tragedy, The Mikado, Crazy for You, Dating is Tough to Do...and Funny, Too!, Songs for a New World, Plumfield, Iraq, Evil Dead: The Musical and Anton in Show Business.

Stephen Ostertag: Costume Designer
Stephen is a theatre graduate of Kent State University, who is excited to be involved in the Kent State Stark theatre scene, where he was costume designer for Almost, Maine and Spring Awakening, costume design assistant for The Crucible, scenic/lighting design assistant for the production of Buried Child, crew for One Slight Hitch and was part of the writing ensemble for Voices from Hurt Street. Some of his favorite onstage credits include Lennie in Of Mice and Men, The Cowardly Lion in The Wizard of Oz, and Nick in Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf. Stephen also enjoys directing, writing and designing. When not busy with his two children, Stephen runs the Silver Star Youth Theatre Company with his wife, Tricia.

Breanna Morton: Stage Manager
Breanna is a sophomore at Kent State Stark, majoring in Theatre Management. She graduated from Hoover High School in North Canton where she performed in Les Misérables and Beauty and the Beast; worked on Peter Pan, Aida, Harvey, The Paper Chase, Wizard of Oz, and It's a Wonderful Life; and she also was stage manager for It's Murder in the Wings, You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown, Aladdin Jr., Blur, Almost, Maine and The Bicentennial Project, and recently performed as Frances in These Shining Lives. She hopes to one day move to New York City and work as a stage manager for Broadway shows.

Layla O'Neal: Assistant Stage Manager


 
 

Benjamin Sherwood: Scenic/Light Design Assistant


 
 

Justin Miller: Sound Design Assistant


 
 

Ryan Lucas: Sound Design Assistant


 
 

Princess Pointer: Costume Design Assistant



 
 

David Sponhour: Crew
David has been active in theater for over 30 years. He has performed on many local stages, and acted at Kent State Stark in Cat’s Paw, Buried Child, One Slight Hitch and These Shining Lives, where he is a full time theatre student. David served as assistant director for Voices from Hurt Street, sound design assistant for The Maiden's Prayer and The Bicentennial Project, and crew for Spring Awakening, Blur and Almost, Maine. He is also a founding member of “Scared Scriptless," Canton’s premiere professional Improv troupe. Some of his favorite past performances include Crumpet in Santaland Diaries, Comet in The Eight: Reindeer Monologues, Jerry in Zoo Story, and Hal in Proof starring All My Children’s David Canary. He spends what little free time he has with his wonderful, spectacular, and supportive wife, Christine.

Anthony Antoniades: Crew
Anthony Antoniades appeared in Huck Finn’s Story, Dating Is Tough To Do...And Funny, Too!, Plumfield, Iraq, Buried Child, Blur and These Shining Lives at Kent State Stark, where he also stage managed Songs for a New World and Evil Dead: The Musical, served as lighting design assistant for Anton in Show Business and served as crew for Almost, Maine and The Bicentennial Project. He is a theatre major at Kent State.

Stephanie Martzaklis: Crew


 
 

David Wright: Crew