Meet the Tulls

NPT is thrilled to announce our newest company members: David & Kate Stopa Tull. After their vital contributions to our inaugural Festival season (David as a performer, and Kate as our dramaturg), we unanimously decided to offer the Tulls company membership with NPT. Much to our delight, they enthusiastically said yes! We are eagerly looking forward to their contributions in the seasons ahead. Read on to learn more about David and Kate.

The Tulls

David and Kate love Columbus. They love the Columbus Zoo. They love the Metro Parks. They love going to see the best minor league baseball team in the best minor league baseball stadium in the country. They love that they can get beer and sweet corn in their ice cream. They love the Blue Jackets. They love that they can work as theatre artists in Central Ohio where they feel personally rewarded by the quality of the work, and valued by the community that supports it.

David Tull

After growing up in Cincinnati, DAVID TULL recently moved back to Ohio after spending several years training and working professionally as a theatre teacher and performer around the Midwest. He holds an MFA in Theatre Arts from the University of Iowa, where he trained in Meisner and Grotowski technique, new play development, and Shakespeare performance. He is also a graduate of the University of Notre Dame, where he earned a BA in Film, Television, and Theatre. He has performed for The Old Creamery Theatre Company, Riverside Theatre Shakespeare Festival, Iowa Summer Repertory Theatre, and Summer Shakespeare at Notre Dame. He has taught theatre at various levels from first graders to adults for Coe College, Riverside Theatre, and the University of Iowa among others. Since moving to Columbus last winter, David has been involved in over a dozen productions with various companies in the area, including performances as Tybalt and Feste in the inaugural season of New Players Theater Festival. At NPT, David will be a company performer and also develop the company's education programs.

Kate Tull

KATE STOPA TULL is a Columbus native, returning here after earning a BA in Theatre from Marymount Manhattan College and an MFA in Dramaturgy from the University of Iowa. In New York, she worked for the Lark Play Development Center, the National Alliance for Musical Theatre, and the New 42nd Street, Inc. At Iowa, she served as production dramaturg on Moliere's TARTUFFE, Giraudoux's THE MADWOMAN OF CHAILLOT, Kevin Murphy and Dan Studney's REEFER MADNESS: THE MUSICAL, and Shakespeare's AS YOU LIKE IT and THE WINTER'S TALE. She also taught undergraduate courses in Playscript Analysis and Theatre History and developed many new plays with members of the Iowa Playwrights' Workshop. She is an active member of the Literary Members and Dramaturgs of the Americas (LMDA) and was selected for the 2009 Dramaturgy Debut Panel by the Association for Theatre in Higher Education (ATHE). Since marrying David in Columbus last December, Kate has worked as a freelance dramaturg, director, and educator with NPT, Actors' Theatre of Columbus, MadLab Theatre and Gallery, Shepherd Productions, and Columbus Children's Theatre. At NPT, Kate will serve as resident dramaturg and contribute to the marketing and development efforts of the company.

Many, many thanks to everyone at New Players for inviting us on board. Let's tell some stories!

Encore!

New Players Theater kicks off its sophomore season with a special encore presentation of Underneath the Lintel.  Presented for two nights only, this quirky and charming "twisty mystery of a tale" features NPT co-founder Mark Mann in a tour-de-force role that won him the Central Ohio Theater Critic's Circle Best Actor award last season.  

When a Dutch librarian finds a book returned 113 years overdue, his curiosity transforms him from a mild-mannered civil servant into a globe-trotting detective.  As his search leads him around the world and into surprising revelations of a long-forgotten past, he ultimately discovers what can only be described as a miracle. 


Smartly directed by NPT co-founder Tim Browning, you'll be delighted by both the intellectual mystery and emotional depth of this one-of-a-kind story.  Richard Ades of The Other Paper called Mann's performance "unfussy and wryly amusing, it's simply masterful!"  Don't miss the opportunity to see it for yourself!

2 PERFORMANCES ONLY on October 14th & 15th at the Columbus Performing Arts Center (549 Franklin Ave).  Curtain time is 8:00 p.m.  At the door, tickets are pay-what-you-want; or $15 in advance for guaranteed seating.  Purchase advance tickets here!

Two Households...

both alike in dignity / In fair Verona where we lay our scene / From ancient grudge break to new mutiny / Where civil blood makes civil hands unclean....and it begins tonight!  See The Hot Spot to the left for details.

The Cast

THE HOUSE OF CAPULET Peter Sampson – Joseph W. Vasquez Gregory – Keelan O’Sullivan Tybalt – David Tull Capulet – Ken Erney Lady Capulet – Kim Garrison Hopcraft Juliet – Kelly Hogan Nurse – Danielle Mann	THE HOUSE OF MONTAGUE Balthasar – Austin Andres Benvolio – Drew Eberly Montague – Shane Egan Lady Montague; Sister John – Catherine Cryan Romeo – Christian Boomgaarden
THE HOUSE OF ESCALUS Escalus – Emily Bach Abraham – Phil Cunningham Paris – John Henry Carter V Mercutio – Joe Lusher Children – Cassidy Hopcraft and Dylan Hopcraft	CITIZENS OF VERONA Rosaline – B. Emerald Cavoto Livia – Brigid Ogden Friar Laurence – Matt Hermes Apothecary – Simon Dowd

Attitude, Gratitude, Latitude

 

Friar Laurence (NPT member Matt Hermes),
Romeo (Christian Boomgaarden) and Juliet (Kelly Hogan)

With less than 2 weeks to go until the start of the "Summer of Shakespeare," it's all hands on deck, and damn the torpedos!
The excitement and anticipation for the approaching premieres has given an additional boost to the high spirits of the casts and crews of Romeo + Juliet and Twelfth Night.  The Town House has been a-bustle 6 nights a week for the last 5 weeks, and this past weekend, the energy and hard work migrated to our performance location, the Mill Run Amphitheatre (more about that below).  Everyone is thrilled to be "in the space!" 



Mill Run Amphitheatre

A good part of that thrill is owed to guests of the May 21st Cabaret and participants of NPT's Kickstarter campaign.  With the funds raised by both events, NPT's summer programme is paid for.  Thank you to everyone who donated time, goodwill, and dollars to the effort.  None of this risk-taking would be possible without your pledge of faith!

Speaking of faith...no small miracle occurred when, after NPT was jilted by its original performance space, the Mill Run Owners Association enthusiastically stepped in with its support and offered NPT the Mill Run Amphitheatre - complete with ample parking, a variety of on-site vendors, sponsored restrooms, and, frankly, an unbeatable setting.



We're in love - with the Mill Run Amphitheatre!

 







21...22...23...

May 21 = Life (with NPT) Is A Cabaret!

NPT is proud to present and showcase some of the finest local voices and musicians in a fundraiser cabaret to help benefit our "Summer of Shakespeare!"  Starting at 6:30 at The Town House, live jazz and blues, a silent auction, and light hors d'œuvres will go perfectly with the contentment of helping support one of central Ohio’s newest theatrical ventures.  Just $10 will purchase admission to this relaxing evening, and $3 more buys tickets for beer and wine.  Scheduled performers as of this posting include Tim Browning,* Kim Garrison Hopcraft, Pam Welsh-Huggins, Dani Karshner Mann,* and Deb Colvin-Tener.  Get your tickets from any NPT member! - soon you'll be able to purchase them right here at our site.  See The Hot Spot to your left for details, mark your calendars, and plan to attend!

May 22 = Underneath the Lintel at Otterbein

If you missed it the first time around, or you'd like to catch it again, Mark Mann will be reprising his "masterful" performance as The Librarian in Glen Berger's Underneath the Lintel on the campus of Otterbein University.  The performance begins at 7:00 p.m. at Towers 310, and donations to NPT are welcome and encouraged!

May 23 = Kickstarter Campaign Concludes!

Speaking of donations...as of this posting, we have $305 to go to call our campaign a success, and to collect the promised monies.  So far, $3,695 has been raised, which is 92% of what we need.  Our heartfelt thanks to the 45 backers who've offered that support and become part of our history!  We have exactly 7 days - 7 DAYS ONLY! - until our deadline on May 23.  Join our campaign, and play with us!

Life (with NPT) is a Cabaret!

On Saturday, May 21, NPT is proud to present and showcase some of the finest local voices and musicians in a fundraiser cabaret to help benefit our "Summer of Shakespeare!"  Starting at 6:30 at The Town House, live jazz and blues, a silent auction, and light hors d'œuvres will go perfectly with the contentment of helping support one of central Ohio’s newest theatrical ventures.  Just $10 will purchase admission to this relaxing evening, and $3 more buys tickets for beer and wine.  Scheduled performers as of this posting include Tim Browning,* Kim Garrison Hopcraft, Pam Welsh-Huggins, Dani Karshner Mann,* and Deb Colvin-Tener.  Get your tickets from any NPT member! - soon you'll be able to purchase them right here at our site.  See The Hot Spot to your left for details, mark your calendars, and plan to attend!
Thank you so very much to our audiences and supporters for making Underneath the Lintel, which closed this past Saturday, such a resoundingly successful start to NPT's inaugural season.  Now, on to the next!  Rehearsals for Romeo + Juliet are well underway, and the first read-through for Twelfth Night happens this week.  Adding to the excitement of these beginnings is the progress of NPT's Kickstarter Campaign.  So far, $2,180 has been raised, which is 54% of what we need.  Our heartfelt thanks to the 23 backers who've offered that support and become part of our history!  We have exactly 2 weeks - 2 WEEKS ONLY! - until our deadline on May 23.  Join our campaign, and play with us!

* NPT Members

"Masterful" One-Mann Show

Here's what else The Other Paper's Richard Ades thought of NPT founder Mark Mann's performance in Underneath the Lintel last Friday night.
Tonight and Saturday night are your last two chances to see the show at Café Bella!  See The Hot Spot to your left for info on ticketing and reservations.
Bonus!  We will be scheduling an encore performance of Lintel later this month - check back here for details!