Warp and Woof
Written in 1904, Warp and Woof contrasts the lives of upper crust London society with the lives of the poor dressmakers who work long hours in a sweatshop to provide those elite with the latest fashions as fast as possible. The play remains incredibly timely and asks important questions about what we require from those who labor to support our lifestyle. The ethics of power, commerce, and labor in a deeply unequal society remains startlingly relevant.
Warp and Woof was written by Edith Lyttelton and directed by Christina Casano.
Tickets are available via the link below.
Biographies
Edith Lyttelton
Dame Edith Lyttelton (Playwright) was a British novelist, playwright, World War I-era activist and spiritualist. She authored seven plays, two of which were inspired by her campaign against sweated labour –Warp and Woof and The Thumbscrew. Her dramatic work also includes several morality plays, a genre she actively promoted through the Morality Play Society. She produced a single novel, The Sinclair Family. Her non-fiction traces her evolving personal and political interests: she produced a biography of her husband (the politician Alfred Lyttelton), a report for the League of Nations, an account of her travels in India and the Far East, and several treatises on parapsychology — including her study of telepathy, Some Cases of Prediction: A Study, published in 1937.
CHRISTINA CASANO
Christina Casano (Director) is a freelance theatre artist and the Artistic Director of The Plagiarists. Based in Chicago, Casano’s training includes a Bachelor of Arts in theatre from Miami University and the Shakespeare Theatre of New Jersey's Summer Professional Training Program. She was selected for Victory Gardens Theater’s Directors Inclusion Initiative for the 2019-2020 season, and served as the assistant director for How To Defend Yourself. Selected directing credits include: Poison (The Plagiarists), Deep Shadows (audio drama series, Eclectic Full Contact Theatre), Anne Frank, Sleepy Hollow (GreatWorks), The Living Newspaper Festival (Jackalope Theatre) and Fighting Words Festival (Babes With Blades). Other favorite projects include Some Like It Red and The Epic of Gilgamesh, etc. (The Plagiarists), Bury Me (Dandelion Theatre), The Light Fantastic (Jackalope Theatre). You can find out more at her website: www.cmrcasano.com.
Cast
Kylie Anderson
Kylie Anderson (Tom Bent) is grateful to be making some theatre with Ghostlight. They graduated from the University of Oklahoma with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in acting. In 2019 they were a member of the The School at Steppenwolf. Kylie has worked with a number of theatre's in Chicago including Redtwist, Remy Bumppo, and Lookingglass. They are currently training at The Actor’s Gymnasium and Circus School in Evanston where they are studying under the Clown Concentration.
Justin Broom
Justin Broom (Percy Wilson) is a graduate of Southern Illinois University with a bachelor’s degree in radio/television and in theater. He recently appeared in the Ghostlight production of The Thirteenth Chair, as well as staged readings of Reality Bites and Must Eat TV 3. Other favorite productions include: Julius Caesar, Stone Soup Shakespeare (Ensemble); Lively Stones, Running With Scissors Theatre Co. (Gov. John Winthrop); Torak the Inadequate, Southern Illinois University (Torak).
Norman J. Burt
Addicted to a room full of laughter, Norm Burt [he/him] (Manson) can usually be found in a crowd somewhere discovering how far a single story can take a conversation. Prior to studying theater performance at Winthrop University, film at the Second City Film School, and improv throughout various institutions in Chicago, Norm spent most of his childhood traversing the U.S., due to his mother’s job in the armed forces. After moving to Chicago in 2014, Norm found his theater home in 2018, joining Ghostlight Ensemble as a company member. His favorite credits include Six Characters in Search of an Author & Picasso at Lapin Agile (Ghostlight Ensemble), The Misanthrope (Shakespeare Carolina), Twilight, LA 1992 (OnQ Productions), Much Ado About Nothing (Ignition Theater Project) and One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest (Theater Charlotte).
Eileen Doan
Eileen Doan [she/they] (Grace Ponsonby/Miss Donaldson) is very excited to be working with Ghostlight! Past virtual readings have included Just So Typically Me with Aston Rep, Hamlet with Hong Kong Live Play Readings, and two developmental readings with Babes With Blades Theatre Company. She was seen most recently in Cambodian Rock Band at Victory Gardens Theatre, City Theatre and Merrimack Repertory Theatre and in a virtual reprise of the touring show Anytown with George Street Playhouse. Eileen is also a singer-musician, with her most recent original album Small Love available to stream everywhere and at eileendoan.com. Eileen is proudly represented by DDO Artists Agency in Chicago. Find her on Twitter and Instagram @eileeneileend.
Jay Españo
Jay Españo [he, him, his] (Lord LickWood) is grateful to be performing albeit, virtually with Ghostlight during this pandemic. He is a multi-talented, cosmopolitan jack-of-all-trades who has collaborated with some of the best people in the entertainment industry around Asia, U.S. and Canada. He completed his master’s degree in film directing at Columbia College Chicago and his thesis short film Mahal garnered several international awards in the film festival circuit. It is currently being developed to a full-length script. An avid yogi, you can catch him every Sunday morning as he teaches live free online classes on Facebook. Much love to Doug for all his love and support.
Reagan James
Reagan James [she/her] (Poppy Price) is an actor, podcaster and stage technician making her virtual debut with Ghostlight Ensemble. Originally from Oklahoma, she attended the University of Alaska in Anchorage where she majored in theatre and communication. She moved to Chicago in 2015 and is absolutely in love with the city and its artist community. Some of her favorite roles have been Shelby Boden in You Are The Blood, the Cat in the Hat in Seussical The Musical, and the Cabdriver in Hellcab. She’s thankful for the chance to be performing and hopes we’ll all be able to meet in person for theatre before long.
Serina Johnston
Serina Johnston (Madame Stéfanie) is a Chicago-based actress who has not let the fact that she is in a panoramic stop her from making art. She is currently lending her voice to the podcast Monocyte as both Doctor Evelyn “Montana” Trixie and Nova Star. Serina is very excited to see what shape art will take once we are in a post parabola world, but until she is fully vaccinated, she’s very excited to make art in safe and socially distanced ways.
Song Marshall
Song Marshall [she/her] (Theodosia Hemming) originally from Los Angeles. She holds a bachelor’s degree in theatre from Flagler College. Since moving to Chicago in 2009, Song has worked with The Other Theatre Co., Blue Goose Ensemble, Raven Theatre, Broken Nose Theatre and she is a company member of Ghostlight Ensemble Theatre and of Terra Mysterium. Favorite credits include; Emma Goode in A Midwinter Night’s Tale (Terra Mysterium), Lady Basildon, in An Ideal Husband (Ghostlight Ensemble Theatre), Tilly in Operation Marshmallow Fluff for Bechdel Fest 7 (Broken Nose Theatre), Understudy of Ruby Faison in Rabbit Summer with RedTwist Theatre. Tilly in Season 5 of the radio drama Immunities by Dueling Genre Productions.
Stephen McClure
Stephen McClure (Mr. Gerald Price) is an actor and creative based in Chicago. He is a company member with the Plagiarists where he's appeared as Matthewson, The Epic of Gilgamesh; Captain Sweet Pea, Ubu II; Malush, Some Like it Red; Nips, Munsterspiel; and Colonel Majors, Season Pass: Deux Over. Other Chicago credits include Timms in The History Boys with Eclectic Full Contact Theatre and Tate in the midwest premiere of finding grafenberg with trip. He would like to thank and recognize both his experience and biologically acquired families for their continual love and support.
Cat McKay
Cat McKay [she/her] (Jessie Byles/Footman) is excited to be working with Ghostlight for the first time and with Christina Casano for the third time! Recent roles include Sophie Wentworth in Rational Creatures, a diverse, queer, webseries retelling of Sense and Sensibility. Season 1 is available on YouTube, and Season 2 is set to begin filming this year. Cat's play, Plaid as Hell, is the 2019-2020 winner of Babes with Blades' Joining Sword & Pen competition and the Margaret Martin award, and will be receiving a full production during the 2021-2022 season (dates TBD). She is represented by Babes n Beaus Talent.
Nevada Montgomery
Nevada Montgomery (Alice Bates) is grateful to join the cast of Warp and Woof! Some of her previous credits are: Ms. Allen in Canamac Productions’ The Defamation Experience, Fayth In Glass Apple Theatre’s, Shadows of Birds, various roles in the South Side Community Art Center’s Imagining Bronzeville In Color And Sound, herself in her one-person show Instersectional Lovin and Yaya in MPAACT’s Mother of the Dark Water Tour. She plays various roles in Murder Mystery productions through American Immersion Theatre. She toured with Great Works Theatre Company. as well as For Youth Inquiry performing theatre for youth audiences. Nevada played leading roles in St. Martin’s Repertory Theater’s productions of No Child and Karma. She earned a bachelor’s of fine arts in acting from Wright State University.
Jessye Mueller
Jessye Grace Mueller [she, her] (Miss Burns/Miss Spencer) is an actor, writer and improviser based in Chicago. Selected credits include: Improvised Jane Austen (iO Chicago, Annoyance Theatre), Ask Your Doctor: A Pharmaceutical Musical, Trigger Happy, Angela of Death (Annoyance Theatre), This American Lie, The Mary Scruggs Works By Women Festival, The Masterpiece Players Present: Improvised Masterpiece Theatre (Donny's Skybox), The Dewey Decimals present Improvised Young Adult Fiction (de Maat Studio Theater), Genuinely Happy!, Headshot: A Geek Tragedy, Music Improv Night - BadMINton (MCL Chicago), Buzzed Broadway (CSz Chicago), and Playoffs (Ghostlight Ensemble Theatre). Jessye has studied at NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts in its Experimental Theatre Wing and has her bachelor’s of arts in theatre and drama from Indiana University-Bloomington. She also studied in The Second City Training Center’s Conservatory and Music Conservatory. You can catch her on the Hello From The Magic Tavern spinoff series Usidore's Fetching Quests and on The Topical a daily podcast from The Onion.
Sydney Ray
Sydney Ray (Lady Jenny Barkstone/Lizzie Green) is an actor and educator based in Chicago. Theatre credits include: The Wild Party (Kate), Music for Theatre Chicago; Into the Woods (Baker’s Wife) and Spoon River Anthology (ensemble/soloist), E.D.G.E. of Orion Theatre; and Ruddigore (Women’s Chorus), Savoyaires. She is an Ensemble Member with Ghostlight Ensemble, and is very excited about the For Your (Re)consideration series. You can find her on YouTube in POST, a Whiskey Delta Films webseries, as the alpha-female-cannibal, Cora. A HUGE thank you to her friends, family and teachers for their continuous support. www.sydneyaray.com
Brittani Yawn
Brittani Yawn (Phoebe Heming) is a performer based in Chicago. Some of her recent credits include Poison (The Plagiarists), The Suffrage Plays (Artemisia Theatre), Season Pass: Deux Over (The Plagiarists) and The Ridiculous Darkness (Sideshow Theatre Company). She has also performed with Black Lives Black Words International Project, Hell in a Handbag Productions, the Annoyance and i.O., among others. Brittani has earned her Bachelor of Art in theatre from Miami University.