Growing Up Linda, Valencia, (workshop)

  • Growing Up Linda, poster 2008, Anne Mills Coté

From May 7th-10th 2008, The Cotsen Center for Puppetry and the Arts and CalArts School of Theater presented a full workshop of Growing Up Linda in Valencia, California,

GROWING UP LINDA

Growing Up Linda: Birthday Trauma, ©2005, Marsian De Lellis

Growing Up Linda was an ensemble actor-puppetry performance in which a woman who believes she’s the daughter of a famous ice cream mogul must come to terms with her troubled past.  

PERFORMANCES

Ensemble Theater 2
California Institute of the Arts
24700 McBean Parkway
Valencia, California 91355

Wednesday May 7th, 2008
at 8:00PM

Thursday, May 8th, 2008
at 8:00PM

Friday, May 9th, 2008
at 8:00PM

Saturday May 10th, 2008
at 2:00PM

Saturday May 10th, 2008
at 8:00PM

Growing Up Linda, poster 2008, Anne Mills Coté
poster 2008, Anne Mills Coté

This was the first time Growing Up Linda was performed in it’s entirety.  There were 5 performances over the course of 4 days with two casts. The run time was about 80 minutes.

At the time, I was in my 2nd year as an MFA student in puppetry and scenic design.  For this iteration, I stepped out of performing to direct and to focus on writing edits, self-producing, and leading the overall design team in preparation for the Edinburgh run.

DEDICATION

Performances were dedicated to the memory of actor, Jackie Kay Knox (1976-2006), who had been slated to reprise the title role at both CalArts and then Edinburgh.

Growing Up Linda: Birthday Trauma, ©2005, Marsian De Lellis

PROGRAM

Growing Up Linda
written by
Marsian De Lellis and P.J. McWhiskers
with additional material by Joel Egger

Directed by Marsian De Lellis

Cast

Alanna Blair
Joel Egger
Brett Waldon
Steven Wendt
DanRae Wilson

Scenic Design

Juliana de Abreau

Costume Design

Rachel Weir

Lighting Design

Brandon Stirling Baker

Sound Design

E M Giminez

Video Design

Roz Fulton

Technical Director

Jeff Arbuckle

Properties

Merrianne Nedreberg

Pop-Ups

EuGean Seo

Inflatables

Marissa Parr

Scenic Artists

Lydia Carson
JessieAnna Wilton

Stage Manager

Melissa Jean Cooper

Production Manager

Emily Orcutt-Clenard

Producer

Ian Garrett

Graphic Design

Anne Coté

Assistant Scenic Design

Jamus Grosdidier

Assistant Costume Design

Ariel Boroff

Enter the off-kilter world of Linda Carvel, fictitious daughter of the famed New York ice cream mogul. Add a heavy dollop of puppet tragicomedy, a sprinkle of kitsch-surrealism and the result is more than the recommended daily allowance of weird. Mature audiences.

Joel Egger, Alanna Blair, Steven Wendt, 2008 ©Marsian DeLellis

SCENE OUTLINE

Act I.
Recipe for Disaster

Scene 1
The Enchanted Forest

Scene 2
The Hall of Pictures

Scene 3
Birthday Trauma

Act II.
Chocolate

Scene 4
Thirteen Years Later

Scene 5
LSD Kills

Scene 6
Fudgie The Whale
and the Brown Sea

ACT III:
Food For Thought,
Tripping Down Memory Lane

Scene 7
…Meanwhile At The Detox

Scene 8
She Shares –
A Food-O-Louge

Scene 9
She Overshares –
Little Linda Snack Treats

Scene 10
Fudgie’s Death

Scene 11
The Parade

ACT IV:
Fame

Scene 11
The Sanitarium

Scene 12
How Linda Lost Her Sweet Tooth

Scene 13
Back To The Hall of Pictures

SUPPORT

Contributions

CalArts Office of the President, 
CalArts Provost
Calarts Interdisciplinary Grant Committee 
Cotsen Center for Puppetry and the Arts
Puppet Slam Network
UNIMA-USA  
Atlantic Center for the Arts
Calarts School of Theater
CalArts Ahmason Grant Committee
Lynn Jeffries
JR Lighting

Assistance

Rosalie Alvarez
Lianne Arnold
Matty Baratto
Dan Barsky
Erin Brewster
Nikita Bleeker
Stephen James
Toussaint Jeanlouis
Kacey Kvanne
Sarah Ibrahim
Carla Linton
Kate-Eloise Mallor
Curtis Mueller
Sarah Sowel
Hunter Wells

Previous Casts

Alan Calpe
Peter Deffet
Vanessa Gilbert
David Hanbury
Heather Henson
Jackie Kay Knoxx
Jeff Nosach
Anton Ray
Katie Shook
Jen Swain
Anne Yatco
2007-2008 Performing Objects Lab

Mentorship

Janie Geiser
Susan Simpson
Jon Gottlieb
Paul Zaloom
Lynn Jeffries
Chris Barreca
The Scene Shop
Leslie Tamaribuchi
Carol Bixler
Michael Smith
Steve Lavine
Jermiah Theis

Jacqueline Reid
Jason Thompson
Ben White
Christy Willits
Stephanie Young
Nancy Lupo
Michael Darling
Barb Edwards
Kevin Goold
Don Holder
Mirjana Jokovic