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For Immediate Release:
Forward Theater Presents the Potent Mystery The Other Place,
Beginning January 15th at Overture Center
Madison, WI – Forward Theater Company continues its 2014-15 season with The Other Place by
Sharr White. This cleverly-constructed play was an Outer Critics Circle nominee for
“Outstanding New Off-Broadway Play” in 2011. It is presented in the Playhouse at Overture
Center, January 15th – February 1st.
Featuring Tracy Michelle Arnold (American Players Theatre), The Other Place is a
psychological drama about Juliana Smithton, a neurological research scientist whose life seems
to be coming undone. Her husband has filed for divorce, her daughter has run away with a much
older man, and her own health is in jeopardy. But in this critically-acclaimed work, nothing is
what it seems. Scene by scene, this mystery unfolds as fact blurs with fiction, past collides with
present and the elusive truth about Juliana bubbles to the surface. The result is a haunting story
that explores the fragile boundaries of reality in one woman’s struggle with identity and
ultimately, forgiveness.
The Other Place also marks the Madison directing debut of Brenda DeVita, American Players
Theatre’s new Artistic Director. “I’m thrilled to be working with Forward Theater on a play such
as this,” said Ms. DeVita. “The Other Place is such a compelling piece of theatre – it passes
through dimensions and dares us to keep up. There is a state of physical and mental flux that
keeps you guessing, and I think Forward Theater audiences will be quite moved by the journey."
Forward continues to spotlight Wisconsin theater artists - the cast of The Other Place features
Tracy Michelle Arnold (Spring Green), FTC Advisory Company Members William Bolz and
Georgina McKee (Madison), and Steven Koehler (Milwaukee).
Tickets
Tickets are now on sale. They may be purchased online at OvertureCenter.org, in person at
Overture Center’s ticket office, or by calling (608) 258-4141.
Previews (first Thursdays): $20 for the general public
Adults Thursdays/Sundays: $38
Adults Fridays/Saturdays: $44
Seniors (62+) Thursdays/Sundays: $36
Seniors (62+) Fridays/Saturdays: $38
Students Thursdays/Sundays: $27
Students Fridays/Saturdays: $29
Student/Educator Night
The production will have one preview performance, Thursday, January 15th at 7:30 pm. For this
performance only, $10 tickets are available to high school and college students and educators.
Simply ask for the student/educator discount at the box office when purchasing your tickets.
Student Rush
Student Rush tickets will also be available to high school and college students for $15 apiece,
one hour prior to each regular performance, at Overture Center's ticket office. Students can buy
up to two tickets, and must present a valid student ID.
Pre-Show Talks
FTC will present FREE pre-show talks on the Rotunda Stage, one hour before the curtain time,
prior to all Thursday and Sunday performances. (Thursdays 1/15, 1/22, and 1/29 at 6:30 pm, and
Sundays 1/18, 1/25, & 2/1 at 1:00 pm.) These talks will give audiences some additional
background on the play, the author, and the production elements that bring the play to life. No
tickets or reservations are required.
Sponsors
The Other Place is generously sponsored by Madison Community Foundation, UW Health, WPS
Insurance, American Family Insurance, Dane Arts, Michael Best & Friedrich LLP, US Bank,
Wisconsin Arts Board, and Brava Magazine.
This play was also supported in part by a grant from the Wisconsin Arts Board with funds from
the State of Wisconsin and the National Endowment for the Arts, and by Dane Arts with
additional funds from the Evjue Foundation, Inc., the charitable arm of The Capital Times.
Artist Biographies
Tracy Michelle Arnold (Juliana) is pleased to make her Forward debut alongside Brenda
DeVita, who directs her for a third time, having previously put her through her artistic paces with
Anne Hathaway in Shakespeare's Will and Madame de Merteuil in Les Liasons Dangereuses at
American Players Theatre. Since 1999, Tracy has appeared in over forty APT productions and is
proud to call it her artistic home. She has also worked in Milwaukee (Milwaukee Chamber
Theatre, Renaissance Theatreworks, Next Act and Milwaukee Rep), Madison (Madison Rep and
Madison Opera) and Chicago (Goodman, Steppenwolf, Northlight, Chicago Shakespeare Theatre
and Writers Theatre), garnering two Jeff Award Nominations for Mrs. Erlynne in Lady
Windermere's Fan at Northlight Theatre and Amanda in Private Lives at Chicago Shakespeare
Theatre. Tracy is happily married to fellow APT actor and all-around nice guy, Marcus
Truschinski.
William Bolz (The Man) is a member of Forward’s Advisory Company, and is proud to be a
part of bringing high quality theater to Madison. With Forward, he was last seen in The
Farnsworth Invention, while working on his MFA at the UW. He’s been active in local theater
for years, appearing with Madison Rep, APT, CTM, Strollers, Broom Street, Mercury, and
Madison Theater Guild. Most recently, William played Jacob Marley in CTM’s A Christmas
Carol.
Georgina McKee (The Woman) is delighted to be back on stage with her favorite theater
company, where she was previously seen in A Thousand Words and 44 Plays for 44 Presidents!
She is a Madison native and a proud member of Forward Theater’s Advisory Company. Her
other recent credits include: Venus In Fur and Handle With Care (Stageworks Theatre, Tampa
FL), Jackie & Me (First Stage Children’s Theatre), Sunday In The Park With George (Skylight
Music Theatre), Crimes of the Heart (Chamber Theatre), Sylvia and Mary’s Wedding (Next Act
Theatre), Reasons To Be Pretty (Renaissance Theaterworks), A Christmas Carol (Milwaukee
Rep). Other regional credits include productions with American Players Theatre, The Oregon
Shakespeare Festival and Fireside Dinner Theatre. Georgina holds a BFA in Acting from
Southern Oregon University in Ashland OR.
Steve Koehler (Ian) is pleased to be making his Forward Theatre debut in The Other Place.
Best known as “Lloyd” from Guys on Ice, Steve recently played Fred/Petruchio in Four Seasons’
Kiss Me Kate at the Memorial Union Theatre. Other credits include: The Sound of Music (Georg
Von Trapp) and The Spitfire Grill (Caleb) with Skylight Music Theatre; Lend Me a Tenor (Tito)
and Rabbit Hole (Howie) with Milwaukee Chamber Theatre; and Victory Farm (Wolfgang) with
American Folklore Theatre. Guys on Ice was recently filmed by Wisconsin Public Television.
Watch for it this coming March! Steve teaches physics and acting at Milwaukee High School of
the Arts.
Jennifer Uphoff Gray (Director/FTC Artistic Director) directed Forward Theater’s productions
of From Up Here, Sons of the Prophet, Good People, 44 Plays for 44 Presidents, A Thousand
Words, The Farnsworth Invention, Moonlight and Magnolias, In the Next Room or the vibrator
play, All About Eve, and Why Torture is Wrong, and the People Who Love Them. Before helping
to found Forward Theater, she directed Love’s Labour’s Lost for Milwaukee Shakespeare (“Best
of 2008”) and The Diary of Anne Frank for Madison Repertory Theatre (“Best of 2008”). Other
credits include; the national tour of Copenhagen, associate director of Copenhagen, Cabaret, The
Blue Room (starring Nicole Kidman) and The Life on Broadway. Off-Broadway, she directed the
world premiere of the musical Suburb. Jen grew up in the Madison area and is now raising her
family on the near west side.
About Forward Theater Company
Founded in 2009, FTC creates a home base for Wisconsin theater professionals and audiences
that expands the cultural and economic life of the greater Madison area.
For more information, please contact Communications Director Scott Haden, (608) 234-5001,
[email protected].