Our mission: To Challenge and Entertain by CelebratingCollaboration and Diversity.
Founded in 2022, Elsinore is passionate about bringing professional-caliber theatre productions to Chicago. We seek to nurture interest in the Arts by providing access to challenging and rarely performed scripts, working with talented artists of all backgrounds and drawing audiences from the entire Chicagoland area – and beyond! Our aim is to inspire thoughtful conversations, the root of all positive change.
Thank you for choosing to support the Arts. We hope you will spread the word about your theatre experience tonight and look forward to seeing you again soon.
Elsinore is classified as a 501(c)(3) non- profit organization by the standards of the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). Therefore, any donations may be tax deductible to he extent allowed by law. All charitable proceeds and grant monies are used to fund current and future productions.
DIRECTOR'S NOTE
Recently, a poem was brought to my attention: Robert Hayden’s Monet’s “Waterlilies.” I’d like to share it here.
Today as the news from Selma and Saigonpoisons the air like fallout,I come again to seethe serene great picture that I love. Here space and time exist in lightthe eye like the eye of faith believes.The seen, the knowndissolve in iridescence, becomeillusive flesh of lightthat was not, was, forever is. O light beheld as through refracting tears.Here is the aura of that worldeach of us has lost.Here is the shadow of its joy.
"Art is essential. It is air for our soul."
The discovery of this poem while working on A Picasso seemed a cosmic kismet, and it feels necessary for it to accompany our work. Just as the poem above, this play wrestles with the messy intersection of art, beauty, and tyranny. In A Picasso, playwright Jeffrey Hatcher asks us to consider our relationship to art – as both creators and consumers. He asserts that, like it or not, to create beauty in the face of fascism is a deeply political act, as is allowing yourself to be moved by it. In doing so, we remain tethered to our humanity.
Art is essential. It is air for our soul. It feeds us, nurtures us, infuriates us, rouses us, assures us, reminds us. Whether, like me, you believe art to be inherently political, or like our fictionalized Picasso, an apolitical creation of beauty, I think we can at least agree on this: art liberates us.
As we face the darkness ahead, I urge you: Be liberated.
CAST/PRODUCTION TEAM
Cast
in order of appearance
Jamie Ewing
Pablo Picasso
Lori Rohr
Miss Fischer
Production Team
Daniel King
Director
Carly Zamost
Stage Manager
Kieran O’Connor
Set Construction
Quinn Chisenhall
Light Design
Kate Schnetzer
Sound Design
Randy Rozler
Properties Design
Marquecia Jordan
Costume Design
Joe Jones/Elixir Images
Poster Design/Digital Marketing Materials
BIOS
Jamie Ewing (he/him)(Pablo Picasso/Co-Founder)
Jamie has starred in every Elsinore production, portraying “John D’Agata” in The Lifespan of a Fact, “Pastor Greg” in Hand To God, “Leicester” in Mary Stuart, “Reed McAllister” in Shooting Star, “Johnny” in Frankie & Johnny In The Clair De Lune and “George” in Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf? Ewing’s select credits outside of Elsinore include A Doll’s House, Part 2 (“Torvald”), An Ideal Husband (“Lord Goring”), Becky’s New Car (“Joe”), Hamlet (“Hamlet”), A Few Good Men (“Col. Jessep”), These Shining Lives (“Tom Donohue”), Marjorie Prime (“Walter”) and Glengarry Glen Ross (“Williamson”). TV Credits: Chicago P.D., Law & Order, Ballard and the upcoming Apple TV limited series Lucky.
Jamie is managed by Gina Birnbaum / Top Ten Talent Entertainment and represented by Aqua Talent and Lori Lins Ltd.
@slightoffhand
Lori Rohr (she/her)(Miss Fischer/Co-Founder)
Lori has co-starred in every Elsinore production, including The Lifespan of a Fact (“Emily Penrose”), Hand To God (“Margery”), Mary Stuart (“Queen Elizabeth I”), Shooting Star (“Elena Carson”), Frankie & Johnny In The Clair De Lune (“Frankie”) and Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf? (“Martha”). Outside Elsinore, Rohr’s select credits include: A Doll’s House, Part 2 (“Nora”), Wait Until Dark (“Suzy”), Steel Magnolias (“M’Lynn”), August: Osage County (“Karen”), The Other Place (“Juliana”), Necessary Targets (“JS”), Picnic (“Rosemary”), The Last Night of Ballyhoo (“Boo”), Third (“Laurie Jameson”), and Proof (“Claire”). TV Credits: Chicago P.D., Chicago Fire.
Lori is represented by Ambassador Talent.
@lorirohr
Daniel King (he/him)
Director
Daniel is a Queer director who uses theatre to make mischief. He’s drawn to work that centers those on the periphery and blurs the lines between spectator and accomplice. He is a company member with Three Crows Theatre, where his credits include The Night Larry Kramer Kissed Me, and The Drowning Girls, and an Artistic Advisory Board Member of Bump in the Night Theatre.
In 2026, he’ll be working on GSOC’s The Gondoliers and directing Jeffrey Hatcher’s adaptation of Dial M for Murder with Oil Lamp Theater. Additional credits include Fun Home (IU), Gross Indecency: The Three Trials of Oscar Wilde (IU), Seminar (Spartan Theatre), and numerous short plays for Arc Theatre Chicago (Artistic Associate, 2018-2022). MFA Directing, Indiana University- Bloomington. BFA Acting, CCPA at Roosevelt University.
Carly Zamost (she/her)
Stage Manager
Carly is overjoyed to be working with Elsinore! A Chicago native, she recently returned to the city after earning her BFA in Stage and Production Management from Emerson College. Carly’s stage management credits include Ragtime: The Symphonic Concert (Tanglewood & Boston Symphony Hall), No Such Thing (Rivendell Theatre Ensemble), Spring Awakening (ART/New York), Not Calm (NYC Brick Theatre), Cabaret (Majestic Theatre Boston), and Romeo and Bernadette (Skokie Theatre). She also served as Assistant Production Manager for the NHSI Theatre Arts program at Northwestern University. Carly is incredibly grateful to her family and friends for their unwavering love and support.
Kieran O'Connor (he/him)
Set Construction
Kieran is a Chicago native and has been working in its theater scene since 2017. He earned a BFA in Acting from Illinois Wesleyan and splits his time between being a performer and stagehand throughout the city. This is his first time working with Elsinore and is excited to share this piece with everyone.
Quinn Chisenhall (he/him)
Light Design
Previous Elsinore credits: The Lifespan of a Fact. Additional credits include: House of the Exquisite Corpse V (Rough House), Puppet Lab 2023-25 (Chicago Int’l Puppet Festival), Heaven and Lady Di (Grelley Duvall), Clyde’s (Ghostlight), and The Wolves (University of Chicago). BA Theatre Design & Technology, Columbia College Chicago.
Kate Schnetzer (she/her)
Sound Design
Kate holds a BA in Theatre & Drama from Indiana University-Bloomington. Her most recent sound credits include Smokefall for Wild Door Theatre and Refracted Light, Relatively Speaking, Patchwork IV, V, and the mini-play podcast Half Hour Audio Hour (S4, E9-Present) for Eclectic Full Contact Theatre, where she is a company member and resident sound designer. Kate is also a director and actor.
Randy Rozler (he/him)
Properties Design
Randy is “HAPPY,” once again, to be expanding his knowledge, design creativity and scavenger skills as part of the Elsinore team on this production of A Picasso. Randy is an ensemble member with The Artistic Home Theatre where he recently created property designs for their Jeff Recommended productions of Hedda Gabler, By the Way, Meet Vera Stark, Witch and Dying for It. Other recent credits include Malapert Love at The Tank (NYC), A Winter’s Tale at Invictus Theatre and Problem Play at the Color Club. Randy is a graduate of the University of Albany theatre department and has appeared as an actor in many diverse theatre and film roles over the years. He wishes to devote this production to his life partner Mark, his Higher Power and his program of living sober.
Marquecia Jordan (she/her)
Costume Design
Marquecia is delighted to be working with Elsinore on their production of A Picasso! Other Chicago credits: Shakin’ the Mess Outta Misery (Pegasus Theatre Company); Tell Me on a Sunday and Assassins (Theo); Fun Home (Porchlight Music Theatre); Hitt Records, The Time Machine: A Tribute to the 80s and A Taste of Soul (Black Ensemble Theater); Rudolph the Red-Hosed Reindeer (Hell in a Handbag); Big River: The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn and Clue (Mercury Theater). REGIONAL: Slave Play and Ain’t Misbehavin’ (Short North Stage, Columbus, OH). TV: Chicago Stories (WTTW). She received two 2023 Jeff nominations for Big River and Clue and, in 2022, both a Jeff nomination and Black Theater Alliance Award for Sister Act the Musical (Mercury Theater) for Best Costume Design.
Joe Jones (he/him)
Poster Design/Digital Marketing Materials
Joe Jones is the founder and owner of Elixir Images, a full-service marketing and communications agency he has led for more than twenty years. Under his leadership, Elixir Images has become a trusted creative partner for small businesses, nonprofit organizations, hospitality groups, and real estate brands, specializing in video production, digital photography, graphic design, and web development.
Elixir Images has built and executed marketing strategies from the ground up, designed digital and print promotional materials, and developed impactful social media campaigns. His creative work includes producing video and audio commercials that elevate brand visibility and drive audience engagement.
THANK YOU
Very special thanks to David Reutter, Joe Jones and our incredibly talented & dedicated collaborators for bringing this production to life!
Our deep appreciation also goes to:
Greenhouse Theater Center (Hannah Loessberg, Aurelia Dominguez and Jon Yawn)
The Edge Theater (Amelia Seidel and Caitlin McCarthy)
Micah Taylor / direction tour marketing
Roosevelt University Theatre Conservatory (Zoe Snead)
Virginia Wadsworth Wirtz Centers - Northwestern University (Chris Wych)
Babes With Blades Theatre Company (Hayley Rice, Amy Gilman, Ab Rieve and Line Bower)
Chi Arts
The Saints
Joe Mazza / Brave Luxe
Patti Vasquez / WCPT 820 AM
Kathy Scambiaterra
Manny Ortiz
The Ewing Family & Furbabies
The Rohr Family
PRIOR PRODUCTIONS
2022
Edward Albee’s Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?
2023
Terrence McNally’s Frankie & Johnny In The Clair De Lune
Shooting Star by Steven Dietz
2024
Schiller’s Mary Stuart In a New Version by Peter Oswald
Hand To God by Robert Askins
2025
The Lifespan of a Fact by Jeremy Kareken & David Murrell and Gordon Farrell
DONATION CALL
DONATIONS
In these uncertain times, your support of the Arts helps us to literally shine a light!
Elsinore dedicates every tax-deductible donation to crafting the highest-quality productions possible and offering competitive stipends to our talented collaborators. Even your smallest contributions play critical roles in our success. We are grateful for your support and your belief that the Arts matter.