This project is supported in part by a grant from

The National Endowment for the Arts

Regional Arts and Culture Council

Oregon Arts Commission

This project is supported in part by a grant from

The National Endowment for the Arts

Regional Arts and Culture Council

Oregon Arts Commission

The Company

Imago Theatre began in 1979 performing exclusively mask theater in small communities in the Northwest, but it was only six years later, in 1986, that the company's international touring began and continues to this day. Imago's explorations of the stage began as a combination of theatre, movement and the visual arts as influenced by renowned theater master Jacques Lecoq of Paris, France. First working in the realm of physical comedy and mask theater, the ensemble progressed toward creating and staging experimental works, original text works and contemporary adaptations of classics. In 2001 Imago's FROGZ completed a two week run on Broadway and will return to their at the New Victory Theatre for a four week run in May 2002. Artistic Directors Carol Triffle and Jerry Mouawad, trained in the methods of theater innovator Jacques Lecoq with influences from Robert Wilson, Richard Foreman, Alain Platel and Trisha Brown, have created a company that is one of the most innovative theaters in the U S. The ensemble's ingenuity has manifested itself in numerous stage 'theatrics' a tilting stage in Jean-Paul Sartre's No Exit, underground projections of Triffle's Buffo, a giant 14' metallic wheel of Richard Foreman's Symphony of Rats, the underwater soliloquies in Triffle's Oh Lost Weekend, the matrix puzzle of a set in Mouawad's House Taken Over. If you were fortunate to witness Imago's productions of past years you journeyed to some exciting, unusual and fantastic universes. Numerous Drammy nominations and awards, consistent honors from the National Endowment to the Art, Imago's work has been seen on national television on several continents with extensive tours to Europe, Asia and throughout North America.

The Artists:

CAROL TRIFFLE (Co-creator, Co-director)

In a family of ten girls and one boy, Carol became the family clown turning the bedroom, dining room and kitchen into a three-ring circus. Years later in the mid-70's, she debuted on the legitimate stage, performing contemporary dance and ballet. Seeking a more theatrical medium, Carol became inspired by movement theatre after discovering the teachings of Jacques Lecoq. Carol is a third year graduate of the acclaimed L'Ecole Jacques Lecoq. She is honored to have worked directly with Msr. Lecoq as his assistant in 1997 and is one of 40 people authorized to teach his work. . With Jerry Mouawad, Carol co-founded Imago Theatre. Carol has written and directed the following at Imago Theatre - Buffo, Ajax, Ginger's Green, Trailer Park Paradise, Oh Lost Weekend and No Can Do. Her staged theatrics have been presented in Europe, Asia and Russia. She has been recipient of two Oregon Arts Commission Fellowships and has served as a panelist for National Endowment for the Arts. Carol has received Drammy Awards for Best Costume and Best Original Play and was commissioned to create a theater/ dance concert for The Oregon Symphony.

JERRY MOUAWAD (Co-creator, Co-director)

Jerry was stage-struck performing in a seventh grade one-act. He picked up the stage bug again in high school even to the sacrifice of his wrestling career (13 losses, of which 10 were pins). In 1977, he stumbled upon the Hayes-Marshal School of Theatre Arts in Portland. With the Lecoq-based school Jerry was to drawn to theatre's physical aspects Jerry has designed and directed the following at Imago Theater - Phoenicians in the House, Samuel's Major Problems, Symphony of Rats, Half Light, Dead End Ed, No Exit, Blood Wedding Blood Wedding and The Imaginary Invalid. He has staged work for Portland Center Stage, The Portland Opera, and The Oregon Symphony as choreographer, puppet play designer, and writer/director. His excursions into experimental work led to his direction and design of two Richard Foreman plays - Samuel's Major Problems and Symphony of Rats. His commissions include Macy's Passort '95 in San Francisco, The Vancouver School for Arts and Academics, and Jefferson High School. Jerry has been recipient of Oregon Arts Commission Fellowships, The Portland Civic Theater Fellowship and Drammy Awards for Best Actor, Best Set, Best Choreography and Best Original Play.

CATHERINE EGAN (Rehearsal Co-director, Performer) Catherine Egan combines movement and media to create theater for her production company Eggshell. She is the recipient of a 2001 Oregon Artist Fellowship for choreography and recently staged Troyland, a jerky, skittery, bent up adaptation of Euripides' tragedy. A native of the Pacific Northwest, Catherine started performing on stage at the age of five. She calls Portland home but travels often to Baton Rouge for the chicory coffee and dat boudin. Catherine is an avid natural gardener and is working on the perfect ‚clair. Her dream is to be a contestant on the Antiques Road Show. Catherine has appeared in the following Imago Productions: Phoenicians in the House, Buffo, Passport 95, and Ajax. This is her second season touring in FROGZ.

MICHAEL VERTLIEB (Rehearsal Co-director, Performer) From Michael's early playground antics to his most recent performances in college, his life has been a big stage. Recently transplanted to the rainy days of Portland from the flat plains of Missouri, he came in search of the kindred spirit of Dionysus. Leaving performances like Silva Vicarro in 27 Wagons Full of Cotton and 'The Corporal' in The Caucasian Chalk Circle behind in Missouri, he went on as sound operator and assistant director for Jerry Mouawad's Blood Wedding Blood Wedding in Portland. Soon after he was swept away with movement, rhythm and frogs. When Michael is not bouncing, jumping or running you can find him penning away idiosyncratic thoughts in his writing journal. From these journals have emerged the plays Ghost In The Desert and Creamed Corn (premieres at Central Missouri State University, 1998). Michael has appeared in Imago's The Imaginary Invalid and No Exit. This is Michael's third season touring with FROGZ.

DANIELLE VERMETTE (Performer) Danielle is thrilled to be a Frog.

The youngest of ten, her passion for movement and mischief was cultivated at an early age. After spending much of her childhood attending sporting events in support of her older siblings, it was in the theatrical arena that Danielle finally found her niche. Upon graduating with a BFA in performance from Central Missouri State University, she headed west. Soon she was cast in Blood Wedding Blood Wedding at Imago Theatre, and found herself engaged in a process that revitalized her entire outlook on theatre . This began a relationship with Imago that included work on stage and off, and culminated when she was recently cast in FROGZ. Special thanks to friends and family for their continuous inspiration, and to Joan Honeycutt and Dr. Ed See for support and vision.

JONATHAN GODSEY (Performer) In 1989 Jonathan was awe-struck by the overwhelming potential of human motion after his first class in the classical Chinese art of Taijiquan Gongfu. His ensuing years of dedicated practice and research led him to the teachings of Jin Taiyang (Kris Brenner), a 20th generation successor of Chen Family Laojia Taijiquan and indoor disciple of the famous master Chen Qingzhou. The unfortunate departure of his teacher in the summer of 1998 enticed him to explore the possibility of other movement arts. Then he noticed an audition notice for Imago Theater's world acclaimed FROGZ. He had no previous perfomance experience but he thought a matial arts artist could attemp creature theater. The fascinating similarity between Imago's Lecoq based theory and that of Jonathan's previous training fueled his interest. Jonathan has appeared in Imago's Trailer Park Paradise, Oh Lost Weekend and The Imaginary Invalid. He began as an understudy in FROGZ in 1999 and was recently cast in the production. This is his first season on tour with FROGZ.

REX JANTZE (Performer) The curtain rose for the first time for Rex during his junior high school year - much to the demise of his GPA. Haphazardly involved with college, community and professional theater for ten years, the monkey-boy landed with Imago Theatre- and its newly acquired home - in the summer of '93 with a paintbrush, hammer, and a few years of remodeling experience. Since then, Rex has performed, teched, or built numerous productions for Imago and other associated groups. Rex has appeared in Verdad and The Imaginary Invalid at Imago Theatre. His embarkation into FROGZ began in '99 in a "walk-on" part as a behemoth pair of pants and shoes. He anticipates expanding into other body parts in the future.

JEFF FORBES (Light Design, Production Stage Manager) Jeff Forbes is a Portland based lighting designer working primarily in theatre and dance. He is an eight-time winner of the Willie and Drammy Awards for theatre, for such companies as Storefront Theatre, Artists Repertory Theatre, Tygres Heart Shakespeare, and the Musical Theatre Company. He has been lighting director for the Portland International Performance Festival since its inception. His work in dance and performance includes frequent collaborations over the last 15 years with choreographers such as Linda Austin, Mary Oslund, Josie Moseley, Minh Tran, Linda Johnson, Drew Pisarra, Katherine Petersen, Sue Brantley, Do Jump Movement Theatre, and Imago Theatre and the original staging of Talk Radio with Eric Bogosian and Tad Savinar. Jeff is co-founder with Linda Austin of Performance Works NW, for which he serves as technical director. He is has designed lights for the following Imago shows - Verdad, Buffo, Oh Lost Weekend, Blood Wedding Blood Wedding, No Exit, House Taken Over, Trailer Park Paradise, Symphony of Rats and FROGZ.

KATIE GRIESAR (Composer) Katie composes for guitar, antique and toy musical instruments, and found objects and collected sounds. She is a graduate of Vassar College and the American Repertory Theatre Institute at Harvard University. In 1994 she founded Waltzing Mice with Kahlil Aisha and together they scored numerous Imago productions including Symphony of Rats (1997 Drammy, Best Sound Design), Half Light, Ginger's Green and Trailer Park Paradise. Katie also composed the score for Imago's House Taken Over (1999 Drammy winner for best original music) and selections for The Imaginary Invalid, Oh Lost Weekend and No Can Do.

JEFF SIMMONS (Production Coordinator, Audio Engineer) Jeff started out with a great birth in North Brunswick, New Jersey and quickly moved with his parents to and through Louisville, Atlanta, and Kansas City, Missouri. This fast-paced childhood led Jeff to suddenly run into Theatre at Raymore-Peculiar High School in Peculiar, Missouri (odd isn't it?). Falling in love with the stage at Ray-Pec High led him to speedily get his BFA in Theatre from Central Missouri State University in 1998. With that degree under his belt, the next stop was Portland, Oregon where he experienced a mesmerizing show by the name of House Taken Over at Imago Theatre. He was soon lucky enough to be asked to fill the sound engineer position for the world-premiere of Carol Triffle's Oh Lost Weekend, and has since happily worked with Imago. In the little spare time Jeff has left, he enjoys designing sound and composing for other local theatres, as well as recording and performing in the Portland-area band Wooden Nickel. Jeff has appeared in Jerry Mouawad's The Imaginary Invalid at Imago Theatre. He began operating sound for FROGZ in 2000. This is Jeff's first season touring with FROGZ.

DANIEL BRANDT (composer) Daniel has composed for Imago since the company's inception. Keeping active in the film and television industry, he was also the keyboardist for the pop music group, Quarterflash, and has collaborated with composer Thomas Svoboda.

GEORGE SMITH (illustrations for 'Cowboy') is a nationally syndicated cartoonist. He is best known for his strip, The Smith Family. His inspiration for the strip came from his one boy and ten girls of which Carol Triffle is one.

SHAUNA USELMAN (Artistic Consultant) Shauna has worked for Imago Theatre as performer, dramaturg and stage manager in FROGZ, Dead End Ed, Verdad and numerous other productions. Shauna is Carol Triffle’s dughter and Jerry Mouawad’s step daughter She is currently completing a doctoral degree in Environmental Science at the University of Reno, Nevada (which makes her parents proud.)

Imago is a non-profit organization. Ticket sales and fees we receive from our touring productions cover only a portion of our costs. Contributions to Imago are tax deductible and are greatly appreciated. To contact us write:

Imago

Post Office Box 15182
Portland, Oregon 97293-5182

(503) 231-3959

imagotheatre.com

Thanks to Shauna Uselman, Mona Huneidi, Twila Nesky, Lance Woolen, Scott McGregor, Keri Roberts, & others.

Imago Theatre staff

Carol Triffle, Jerry Mouawad ..... Artistic Directors

Barbara Brunkow......... Development Director

Bill Frazier.............. Bookkeeper

George Thorne, Cynthia Furhman. Consultants

Tim Casey.... ..........President, Board of Directors