Purgatorio Wonderland

Purgatorio Wonderland explores the migration experiences of children to explore journeys between worlds, nations and peoples, and the space between life and death. It’s come to me in fragments, dreamlike, influenced by migration tales (of children coming from Central America alone, of refugees on boats) and by the journeys through the underworld and paradise in Dante’s Purgatorio and Mohammed’s Night Journey (which inspired Dante).

This workshop production focused on developing the script with Andrea and the ensemble. Scenes were developed through improv and writing assignments with the students. Songs were developed through writing assignments and then two cast members, Jose and Megan, along with Andrea, composed and developed the songs.

The play follows 4 narratives, and so a huge part of the last couple of weeks were dedicated on figuring how each scene informs the scene that follows. How staging can emphasize the echoes of each story. It’s been a whirlwind of an experience, with losing 2 weeks of in person rehearsals due to COVID and quarantining at different moments of the rehearsal process, to losing two tech days due to quarantine. I’m grateful to the designers, movement director, and cast that experimented with different ways to solve the restriction of always being 6 feet apart.

Now we are at the moment in a workshop process where we will learn from the audience and how they respond. This is the most important step to figure out what needs tweaks in the script.

Thanks to All who worked hard and helped in every way to get to this play and script to where it has gotten to.
                                                               – Alex Correia

About the Cast

Nicole Castillo is a sophomore. She has worked on Urinetown and Evita in the ensemble and been an extra in the movies In The Heights and West Side Story. She’d love to give special thanks to her mom, her boyfriend and the Castillo family. Love you!!

Michel Chahade is a Playwriting/Screenwriting Junior. He is a member of the HB Studio Ensemble, The Russian Arts Theater and he was the founder of Bedlam Ensemble where he acted as artistic directors from 2011-214. Michel has been acting and directing for several years, he’s now very excited to be venturing into the playwriting universe and he’s grateful to be acting in this profound production. Special thanks to everyone who’s been with him through the ups and downs of the spiral of life.

Anya Febus-Fernandez is a sophomore in theatre and performance. Past credits include We All Fall Down (Harriet), UK Tinder Photoshoot (Model), The Little Mermaid (Sebastian), Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (Violet). Anya wants to thank everyone who has supported her on this journey, thank you mami love you.

Jose Galindo is a Sophomore double major in THP and Economics. This is his first role at Purchase College. Special thanks to Lori Klinger, the RTKids Family, the Homlish Family, the Babcox Family, the Barrett Family, and his Family. It wouldn’t have been possible without them.

Julissa Henriquez is a senior at SUNY Purchase majoring in Theatre and Performance. This is Julissa’s first Main Stage performance at SUNY Purchase. Julissa would like to give thanks to her family, pets, and friends. Also, to the professors who have encouraged her to continue creating original work.

Chris Padro is a third year BA actor. Past credits include: All Shook Up (Natalie Haller), Barefoot in the Park (Corie Bratter), and The Wolves (#46). Many thanks to God, her family and friends for all their love and support, and the cast and crew for their amazing hard work!

Nahiem Paris is a sophomore BA Theater/Arts and management major from Buffalo, New York. He was in shows such as Almost Maine as Jimmy, Akeelah and the Bee as Reggie Anderson, Radium Girls Tommy/Dr. Knef, Buffalo State dance company: World grooves. Nahiem would like to thank every one of his friends for pushing him to do better for himself.

Berenice Rojas is a fourth year BA actor from New York City, New York. Past credits include The Wolves (00), Peter and the Starcatcher (Grempkin), and A Doll’s House (Nora). A big Thank you to my mentors, friends, and family.

Veronica Ryzio is a fourth year BA actor originally from Queens, NY. Credits include Short Eyes (Mr. Nett), Men on Boats (Goodman), Twelfth Night (Olivia), and her upcoming Senior Project, The Unspoken Word Collection premiering April 27th. Gracias mami y papi por su inmenso apoyo and to my incredibly wonderful partner for putting up with the Aries shenanigans.#AbolishICE

Megan Siepak is a senior Theatre and Performance major from Odessa, Texas. Her credits at Purchase include Revolt. She Said. Revolt Again., Stop Kiss, No Strings, MacB, BMI, and most recently, A Robot Wrote This. She is grateful for this opportunity for live performance, and for her cast, crew, director, and playwright on this incredible show. She would like to thank her friends, who’ve made New York a state of chosen family. She cherishes you all deeply.

About the Production Team

Production Stage Manager: Kai Liebenstein is a junior BFA Stage Manager from Milwaukee, WI. Previous Purchase Rep credits include: Everything You Love (SM), The Laramie Project (ASM), Bastille Day (ASM), and Earthquakes in London, Other credits include Milwaukee Repertory Theater’s production of Everybody (ASM), and the World Premiere of Lost Girl (ASM). She would like to thank her family, friends and educators for all of their support.

Scenic Designer: Kristen Chang is a senior Scenic Designer from Bayside, NY. Her past credits include: Dance Nation (SD), Civic Duty (SD), Marisol (ASD), and A Bright Room Called Day (ASD). She would like to thank her family for supporting her choice to pursue a career in the arts, her friends for always being by her side, and all her late betta fishes for being the light in her life.

Costume Designer: Maxine Devitt is a fourth year BFA costume design student from New York, NY. Purchase Rep credits include: Fen, We’re Gonna Be Okay (Asst. Costume Designer) and Earthquakes in London (Wardrobe Supervisor). Much love and thanks to her incredible costume design teachers, her father, her sister, and her grandmother Myra.

Lighting Designer: Hailey O’Leary is a third year lighting and sound designer from Stormville, NY. Credits include Right Behind You (SD), Subliminal (SD), and The Wolves (ME). She sends love to her friends, family, and to the people who entered her life and inspired her to be the best she could be.

Sound Designer: Nicole Sliwinski (Sound Designer) is a fourth year lighting designer from Newington, CT. Her past credits include: Eclipse (SD), New Plays Now (SD), and Earthquakes in London (A2). She would like to thank all the wonderful people in her life for their constant support and encouragement.

Technical Director: Kyle McMahon is a third year technical director from Brooklyn, New York. His past credits include The Opera Trilogy (Flyman), Blood Wedding (Master Carpenter), What To Send Up (Technical Director), and Dance Nation (Technical Director). He wants to give a special thanks to all his loved ones at home, and the fantastic team he has worked with.

Choreographer: Erik Osterkil is a Senior in the Conservatory of Dance at Purchase College, with a concentration in Composition and a minor in Arts Management. He has trained everywhere from Fort Wayne to Chicago, San Francisco, Berlin, and Taipei, performing in works by choreographers like José Limón and Jerome Robbins, as well as in several classical ballets. Erik would like to thank the director, production team, and cast for welcoming him into this process, as it has been an extremely rewarding experience.

Assistant Director: Leandra Torres is the assistant director of Purgatorio Wonderland. She is currently completing her spring semester of her Junior year. Leandra has worked with Roundabout Theater company in the past as a lighting designer. Leandra would like to thank you support system- Gabby, Lui,mom/dad and her sister and niece.

Andrea Thome is a Chilean/Costa Rican-American playwright whose recent plays include FANDANGO FOR BUTTERFLIES AND COYOTES, PINKOLANDIA and CYMBELINE (a “translation”). She teaches in Theatre and Performance, directs The Lark’s Mexico-U.S. Playwright Exchange and co-founded satire group FULANA (www.fulana.org). Thanks to the team and ensemble for your beautiful, brave work!

Alex Correia is a director, actor, and educator. He is a graduate of the Directing Program at the Juilliard School where he received the Andrew W. Mellon Fellowship, and holds a BFA in Acting from Marymount Manhattan College. He served as Resident Director for INTAR Theatre during the 2008/09 Season and the Director of INTAR’s Actors Collective from 2006 to 2009. Alex has been a guest director at NYU’s MFA Dramatic Writing Program, Hunter College, Lee Strasburg Institute and at the LARK Play Development Center in NYC. NY Directing Credits include: Coriolanus and Julius Caesar at the Juilliard School, Adults Only by Dean Imperial, Song for the Disappeared by Tanya Saracho, The Leak by Fernanda Coppel, and Where’s My Money by John Patrick Shanley. Assisting Directing Credits include Heart of Robin Hood directed by Joel Sass (Oregon Shakespeare Festival), The Cherry Orchard directed by Andrei Belgrader (Classic Stage Company 2011), Scapin by Moliere directed by Christopher Bayes at the Intiman Theater (Seattle) & The Court Theater (Chicago), and Lysistrata by Aristophanes directed by Andrei Serban at A.R.T. (Boston).

In our teaching and art, the Conservatory values inclusiveness, equality, and excellence. Upholding all of our training is our aim to train and graduate citizen artists: multifaceted people with a strong sense of purpose in approaching an arts education.

What is a citizen artist? Citizen artists seek to discover how their unique voices can contribute to our world. They understand what it means to be an artist, and what they are here on earth to say and do and make.

The Conservatory trains future citizen artists in three degree programs:

+ BFA Actor Training. The BFA is an intensive professional training program offered to a highly select and diverse group of students. The professional training is anchored in four years of study in acting, voice, speech, and movement, complemented by offerings in dramatic literature and analysis, history of the theatre, stage combat, improvisation, mask work, acting for the camera, and the business of acting. As one of five schools in the Consortium of Professional Theatre Training Programs, Purchase is one of a handful of colleges in the world capable of training artists at this level—and of drawing a faculty from the ranks of professional theatre

+ BFA in Theatre Design/Technology. Emphasizing studio and classroom training, our professional training program in theatre design/technology gives students the guidance and support of established and theatre industry professionals. Many of our alumni are recognized at the top of their field, and have received Tony, Emmy, Obie, and Drama Desk Awards, among other honors. Quite literally, Purchase grads are working in or have worked in every theatre on Broadway, in all tristate venues, and with countless touring productions

+ BA program in Theatre and Performance. From traditional theatre to cutting-edge interdisciplinary work, the theatre and performance major encourages creativity, intellectual curiosity, social engagement, and critical thinking. The core requirements combine scholarship and practice to provide students with a strong foundation in theatre history and dramatic literature, with mandatory stagecraft/production courses. Theatre and Performance majors are encouraged to expand the scope of their education by studying abroad, as well as pursuing coursework in other programs of study within the School of Liberal Arts and Sciences at Purchase College