Really Rosie Company Bios
Jeanne Klein (Director) has led the KU Theatre for Young People since 1987, directing more than 20 productions for young audiences. Her recent directing credits include Where to, Turelu?, Tomato Plant Girl, Afternoon of the Elves, Selkie, The Ugly Duckling, Wolf Child, Ramona Quimby, Pippi Longstocking, and Little Monster. Jeanne’s studies with and about child audiences have been published in the Youth Theatre Journal, Stage of the Art, TYA Today, Theatre Research in Canada, Canadian Theatre Review, and the Journal of Dramatic Theory and Criticism. Before coming to KU, where she earned a doctorate in theatre in 1987, Jeanne taught and directed at Ohio Northern University and Gladwin High School in Michigan. She holds degrees from Michigan State University and Western Michigan University.
Michael D. Johnson (Musical Director and Pianist), a native of Marion, IA, received his Bachelor of Arts degree in Russian from the University of Utah and a Master of Arts degree in Russian Literature from the University of Iowa. He is currently a doctoral candidate in the KU Department of Slavic Languages and Literatures, where he twice has received the Kuhlke-Nelson Russian Theater Fellowship, and is writing a dissertation proposal on the Polish writer Stanislaw Przybyszewski's reception in, and influence on, Russian "Silver Age" culture and theater. Michael has directed over a dozen musicals in the Salt Lake/Park City, UT, and Iowa City, IA, areas. Among these are The Wizard of Oz (Sundance Summer Theater, Provo, UT), Nine, Nunsense, and Nunsense 2 (Salt Lake Acting Company), Sweet Charity, Guys and Dolls, Grease, and The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas (Park City Performances). He has also appeared on stage in Park City as "Hysterium" in A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum and "Bazzard" in The Mystery of Edwin Drood. Earlier this season he was music director for Cabaret. He has also been musical director for A Grand Night for Singing and an accompanist for the KU Men's Glee Club and John Staniunas' Musical Theatre class.
Leslie Bennett (Choreographer) is in her second year as an assistant professor of theatre and film and resident movement coach for The University Theatre. She holds a Master of Fine Arts degree in theatre education from the Boston University School for the Arts. Leslie previously taught acting movement and improvisation at Emerson College and was a movement instructor for the Boston University School for the Arts Opera Department. An accomplished vocal performer and choreographer, Leslie is recognized as an Actor Combatant by the American Society of Fight Directors in Rapier and Dagger, Knife Fighting, and Unarmed Combat.
Mark Reaney (Scenic and Lighting Designer) is professor of theatre and film at KU. He received his Master of Fine Arts degree in scenic design from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and taught for three years at the University of Tulsa before moving to KU. A winner of national and international awards for scenic design and a pioneer in the use of computer graphics in theatre design, Mark is currently head of the Institute for the Exploration of Virtual Realities. i.e.VR is a research group actively exploring the links between real-time computer simulations and theatrical performance. Mark's original VR technology and designs for KU's productions have won international acclaim and the attention of both theatre and computing professionals all over the world. After staging five VR productions at KU, a collaboration with the University of Kent at Canterbury, England, produced the exciting 2000 VR production of A Midsummer Night's Dream. And the 2001 production of the children's theatre piece Dinosaurus introduced the use of real-time virtual characters in the form of giant dinosaurs.
Anna Wieczorek (Costume Designer) was born in Rzepin, Poland. She moved to Lawrence from Virginia in May and began work on her Master of Fine Arts degree in scenography. Really Rosie is her first design project. Anna holds undergraduate degrees in elementary and special education from the University of Zielona-Gora in Poland. She also holds teaching certificates in Alaska and Virginia. Anna’s husband, Darek, is her high school sweetheart. They have two children, a son, Jerzy, who is a college sophomore in Boston, and a daughter, Natalia, an eighth grader at Southwest Junior High. . Scenography is a brand new and exciting adventure for Anna, whose life motto comes from her parents, “Let your life have the color of your imagination.”
Erin Evangeline Burns (Rosie) is a junior theatre major from Kansas City, MO. Erin was seen earlier this season in the Inge Theatre production of Fefu and Her Friends. A National Hispanic Merit Scholar, she has also performed in Jungalbook, Iphigenia at Aulis, Afternoon of the Elves, and South Pacific. Erin holds the Claire Reinhold Scholarship and, this summer, will participate in the KU Summer Theatre in Greece project.
Ariel Dowdle (Chicken Soup) is a freshman vocal performance major from Lawrence. This is her first KU production, although she appeared in several shows at Tonganoxie High School.
Larissa Ejzak (Voice of Kathy's Mother) is a sophomore theatre and physics major from Wheaton, IL. A National Merit Scholar and a member of the National Society of Collegiate Scholars, Larissa has appeared in several 609 projects and The Vagina Monologues.
Kate Giessel (Voice of Rosie's Mother) is a sophomore from Larned, majoring in theatre and linguistics. This is her first KU production.
James Horton (Johnny) is a junior theatre major from Elkhart. Previously he performed in The Magic Flute and South Pacific. He also danced in the University Dance Company production of Missa Brevis. Off-campus James has performed in productions of The Music Man, Bye Bye Birdie, and Texas Legacies.
Leslie Long (Voice of Johnny's Mother) is a senior theatre major from Broken Arrow, OK. Earlier this season season she appeared in Fefu and Her Friends and was assistant director for Lulu. Last spring she played various roles in the 10-Minute Play Festival productions. Leslie also was a member of the cast for Tony and Tina’s Wedding at the Lawrence Community Theatre. She attended Tulsa Community College, where she appeared in productions of the female version of The Odd Couple and Nunsense and won the "Best Actress" Award for 2000.
Caitlin McDonald (Alligator) is a junior theatre major from Bismarck, ND. Previously she played multiple roles in the 10-Minute Play Festival , Sara Kate in Afternoon of the Elves and Regan in Lear's Daughters. A National Merit Scholar, Caitlin is a Loren Kennedy Trainee for The University Theatre this year.
Katherine McRobbie (Kathy) is a senior theatre major from Overland Park. A Loren Kennedy Trainee for The University Theatre this year, Katherine performed last season in Iphigenia at Aulis. She has appeared off campus in productions of Evita, Once on This Island, and Mother Courage and Her Children. Katherine holds the Charles “Buddy” Rogers Scholarship.
Joshua W. Vignery (Pierre) is a senior theatre major from Goodland. Last spring he was one of the Bühnenarabiter in The Magic Flute; earlier he appeared in As You Like It.
