"Agatha Christie's And Then There
Were None"
June 2010
Ben Baellow
Ben Baellow - (Philip Lombard) is
thrilled to be making his first appearance with The Bell Road Barn Players.
You may have last seen Mr. Baellow as Rudy in City Theatre of Independence’s
production of King O’ the Moon. He’s also worked with the
Barn Players of Kansas City as Clifford Bradshaw in Cabaret and his first
appearance there was in the musical comedy Lucky Stiff. He is a local,
having graduated from Shawnee Mission South High School where he was appointed
to the position of Crew Head in their elite Repertory Theatre program.
He also remained active in the theatre department at KU while earning
a BA in Economics
Kerri Brock
Kerri Brock - (Ethel Rogers) is
excited to be on stage for the first time with the Bell Road Barn Players.
She has been acting for around 15 years, most recently at the Corbin Mill
Theater in The Wreck. She has also been seen in 15 productions at Paradise
Playhouse and many with Excelsior Springs Community Theater. When not
on stage, Ms. Brock is a stay home mother to her 3 wonderful children,
Kennedy, Karissa and Kael. She would like to thank her family and friends
for all their support, especially her husband, Kenny.
Deborah Buckner
Deborah Buckner - (Emily Brent)
is a Parkville native and Park University graduate who grew up attending
Bell Road Barn Players shows. Through pre-computer college years, she
typed the program for each play, always looking forward to Jenkin David's
delivery of his handwritten notes. Ms. Buckner has most recently appeared
as Penny in You Can't Take It With You for The Barn Players in Mission,
KS.
Nino Casisi
Nino Casisi - (Director) has directed
over thirty productions around Kansas City and five with the Bell Road
Barn Players including California Suite, Sweeney Todd, Anything Goes and
the Kansas City Premiere of Mel Brooks’ The Producers. Some of Mr.
Casisi’s favorite shows that he’s directed are Noises Off,
Nine the Musical, Cabaret, The Great American Trailer Park Musical, Funny
Money, Mel Brooks’ The Producers, Fiddler on the Roof, Crimes of
the Heart, Steel Magnolias and Little Shop of Horrors. When not directing,
Mr. Casisi acts in regional and community theatre productions and some
of his favorite roles include The Cowardly Lion in The Wizard of Oz, Garry
LeJeune in Noises Off, Richard Roma in Glengarry Glen Ross, Joey Vitale
in Tony n’ Tina’s Wedding and Mr. Big in New Theatre Restaurant’s
production of Funny Money starring William Christopher from TV’s
M*A*S*H. He also can be seen in the HBO motion picture Truman starring
Gary Sinise and Robert Altman’s Kansas City starring Harry Belafonte
and Jennifer Jason Leigh. He would like to thank Mike Morrow for his continued
support and Bruno and Bella for understanding his passion for theatre.
He is also currently on the Board of Directors for the Bell Road Barn
Players.
Kevin
ElmoreKevin Elmore - (William Henry Blore)
is performing for the first time with Bell Road Barn Players with the
other members of this fine cast. Though he's performed with the director
in the past, Mr. Elmore is honored to be in his first play directed by
Mr. Casisi. In all, this performance marks many firsts for him. Mr. Elmore
caught the acting bug in 2004 and has been in eight shows since then,
including a performance of And Then There Were None in Blue Springs. Mr.
Elmore would like to thank his wife for assisting him in becoming the
best Blore he could be.
Sam
GershmanSam Gershman - (Dr. Armstrong) happily
rejoins the Bell Road Barn Players as Dr. Armstrong in And Then There
Were None. This is his third show with them, having appeared in Sweeney
Todd and Mel Brooks’ The Producers. Other recent efforts include
Jekyll and Hyde, The Musical and Romeo and Juliet. Besides his acting
gigs, Mr. Gershman enjoys part time work as an analytical chemist and
volunteer work. He is married and thanks his wife for putting up with
his acting hobby.
Cress
HewittCress Hewitt - (Thomas Rogers) is
thrilled to be appearing in his first production with Bell Road Barn Players.
He was a founder of the Excelsior Springs Community Theatre and a member
of the theatre company at Paradise Playhouse Dinner Theatre in Excelsior
Springs. After performing in 34 shows at Paradise, he undertook his first
role as director, when he directed Legends. Most recently he appeared
in the Corbin Theatre Company's production of The Wreck in Liberty. Mr.
Hewitt is publisher of The Lawson Review newspaper in Lawson, and is the
father of three great children, Ryan, Caitlin and Clark.
David
MeachamDavid Meacham - (Sir Lawrence Wargrave)
is very happy to return to the Bell Road Barn Players on the beautiful
Park University campus. And Then There Were None is a bit of a homecoming.
Mr. Meacham appeared in the Barn's 1982 production of Ten Little Indians
(which is the alternate title of this play). Recently, he appeared in
the Fair Based Productions farce The Butler Did It as Louie Fan. Prior
to that, you may have seen him on stages from Penn Valley to Olathe. As
always, he thanks his wonderful wife Sharon for all of her support. Enjoy
the show!
Mike Morrow - (Stage Manager/’Technical
Director) is thrilled to return to Bell Road Barn Players having stage
managed their productions of Anything Goes and Mel Brooks’ The Producers.
This show marks his thirteenth show working with Mr. Casisi as director.
Some of his favorite shows include The Great American Trailer Park Musical,
Nine the Musical, Little Shop of Horrors and Lend Me a Tenor. Mr. Morrow
would like to take this opportunity to thank Mr. Casisi for always being
there and giving him opportunities to work in this “crazy business
of show.” He also thanks Bella and Bruno for their understanding
and support. Mr. Morrow is currently on the Board of Directors for Bell
Road Barn Players.
Michael
NemethMichael Nemeth - (General McKenzie)
is excited to be making his debut with The Bell Road Barn Players. His
most recent work was with the Barn Players where he played Herr Schultz
in the musical Cabaret. In recent years, Mr. Nemeth has had roles in The
Music Man, Annie Get Your Gun and Brigadoon with Leawood Stage Company.
Other productions include leading roles in Arsenic & Old Lace, Harvey,
Move over Mrs. Markham, Who Killed Santa Claus and Hot’L Baltimore.
He also holds an education degree in speech and drama from Missouri Valley
College. A special “Thank you” to Shelly (his lovely wife)
for all of her support.
Chris
TetersChris Teters - (Anthony Marston)
is excited to be back onstage marking his tenth show overall, and second
show under director Nino Casisi, having graced the stage (in numerous
roles) in Mel Brooks’ The Producers. He has previously performed
for Piper High School, where he took on the roles of Ken in Rumors and
Patrick O'Reily in Musical Comedy Murders of 1940. He is extremely thankful
to Mr. Casisi for casting him as Anthony Marston. He is also thankful
to his parents for supporting him and helping with transit from Lawrence
to rehearsal. He would also like to thank his friends and family for coming
out to see this wizard show.
Mick
TurpinMick Turpin - (Fred Narracott) is
a junior currently majoring in Speech/Theatre Education at Northwest Missouri
State University. This will mark Mr. Turpin’s 16th performance in
his acting career thus far. Notable productions he has performed in include
Chicago, Rumors, Fools, and Little Shop of Horrors. This is his first
production with Bell Road Barn Players and he has enjoyed every second
of it. He would like to thank the cast, crew, his family, and girlfriend
for their ongoing support and provided love. Enjoy the show.
Cassandra
WhitneyCassandra Whitney - (Vera Claythorne)
is pleased to be acting among such amazing actors. She has most recently
been seen with the Kansas City Mystery Train delighting audiences over
dinner. Her favorite roles have been Belinda in Noises Off, Juliet in
Romeo & Juliet, and her many roles (on and off stage) with The Vagina
Monologues. Mrs. Whitney graduated in a Bachelor's degree in Theatre Performance
from UMKC and a Bachelor's in Graphic Design. When not on stage, she is
a professional belly dancer and wife. She wants to give thanks to the
love of her life, and her wonderful family for all their love and support.
DIRECTOR’S NOTES
As an adolescent, I had two books that I loved reading.
TEN LITTLE INDIANS was one of them. Agatha Christie wrote this best seller
in 1939 and it has gone through three transformations (in title alone).
AND THEN THERE WERE NONE is the latest name change yet the storyline remains
as it was 70 years ago. As in the original story, 11 people come together
in a new environment for a little mystery and some fun. It happened on
Soldier Island and it happened again on the Park College stage. This cast
has proven to me that different people with different backgrounds can
come together and become a family. We have enjoyed the time we have had
together yet now it’s time to kill them off…one by one.
I would like to thank each of them for their hard work and dedication
to this production, giving it their all and taking each character to another
level. I would also like to thank the crew for bringing their own touch
to their craft, may it be the eerie lighting to the heart-stopping music,
making it a joy to come to rehearsal. I would like to give a special “thank
you” to Chrystal Coltharp and Janie Peak for their constant assistance
with this production. And a special thank you to Mike Morrow for building
this beautiful island resort and allowing this entire cast to create its’
splendor. It’s been a fun ride and I hope you have as much fun watching
as we’ve done creating.
"Agatha Christie's And Then There Were None"
