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The UNC Department of Communication Presents

A Feminist World, 2091, Or:

How I Learned to Expertly Judge Inadvertent Human Intrusion Into the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant

Digital Program

Presented by the  Performance Studies Unit in the Department of Communication

November 11-15, 2021

Black Box Theater Swain Hall

 

Time and Place

IN THE 1980S AND 1990S THE UNITED STATES UNDERTOOK EFFORTS TO DEVELOP “PERMANENT” STORAGE FOR NUCLEAR WASTE. THIS ENDEAVOR LED SANDIA NATIONAL LABORATORIES TO PRODUCE A PAIR OF “EXPERT JUDGMENT REPORTS” FOR THE U.S. DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY. ONE OF THESE REPORTS, “EXPERT JUDGMENT ON INADVERTENT HUMAN INTRUSION INTO THE WASTE ISOLATION PLANT,” GRAPPLES WITH POTENTIAL THREATS TO THE HOPEFULLY PERMANENT NUCLEAR WASTE STORAGE FACILITY.

 

THERE WILL BE NO INTERMISSION.

Written by                   Chandler Lawrence Classen

Directed by                 Joseph Megel* & Chandler Lawrence Classen

* The director is a member of the Stage Directors And Choreographers Society, a national theatrical labor union.

The Cast 

 

The Scenario Players:

Hailey Clodfelter                                             Passerby, Cult Member 3, Willow 

Mary Greer                                                      Kontrolnik, Cult Member 1, B.

Natalie Paige King                                          Robot 2, Cult Member 2, Saja

Alice Mccracken Knight                                  Robot 1, Semaj Senaj, Mary

 

The Men:

Isaac Nahson Cannon                                    Michael

David Bedford                                                 Harrison

Al Julian                                                          Bernard

Lai (Mike) Wei                                                 Wendell

 

And:

Trey Thurman                                                 as the Stage Manager

 

 

The Artistic Team 

Production Stage Manager & Sound              Naveed Moeed

Lighting Designer                                           Jeremy Diamond

Asst. Lighting Designer                                  Charlie Raschke

Projection Designer                                        Judson Rebel Greer

Costumes/Props/Asst. Stage Manager          Jurnee Lopez

Asst. Stage Manager                                      Trey Thurman

Technical Director                                           Will Bosley

Fight Choreographer                                       Benjamin Penninger-Tarlton

 

 

Staff

Marketing: Evan Davison, Alayna Fennell, Claire Walsh, 

Box office Manager: Izzy Gianna D’Alo

Process Series Producer:  Heather Tatreau

 

Thank You’s from Chandler Classen

Thank you to my wonderful spouse, Alexis Kluth, for encouraging me even when I doubt myself (especially when I turned to you one day and said, “I might start writing a play”).

Thank you to Joseph Megel for your incredible commitment to this project from the very beginning. 

Thank you to Renée Alexander Craft for your continued support in my scholarly and creative work, and for reminding me that the two are often separated unnecessarily. 

Thank you to the actors and actresses who read the first draft, your comments were invaluable in helping me improve the play including Thadddaeus Edwards, Chris Chiron, Joey Richards, and Elisabeth Lewis Corley.  

Thank you to Joey Richards for your insight. 

Thank you to Mike Palm and Bill Balthrop whose class on discourse first enabled me to encounter the ideas that would later blossom into this play. 

Thank you to the UNC COMM Department for supporting this project. 

Thank you to the performance studies students whose sense of wonder and curiosity and brilliance makes academic labor worth it.

 

Additional Thank You’s

Heather Tatreau, DaVon Clack, Olivia Hopkins, Jonah Hodges, Elisabeth Lewis Corley, Renee Alexander Craft, Mark Robinson, Imani Williams, Wesley Wood, Joey Richards,

Heather Tatreau, Evan Davison, Izzy Gianna D’alo, Alayna Fennell Anna Kunz, Mary Emma Clements, Julia Scott Dow, Nykolas Zollbrecht, Maeve Donohue

 

Director’s  Statement

 

It’s such a thrill to be back inside a real theatre, especially the newly reconditioned and renovated black box theater in Swain Hall. This project represents just the beginning of exciting performances that will happen in this space for years to come. I am so pleased that our first production features the work of Ph.D. Student Chandler Lawrence Classen. “A Feminist World, 2091” was developed in the Performance Studies’ Advanced Projects Class and reflects the creativity combined with a deeply engaged scholarship in which so many of our students excel. We are so pleased to present this work to you and look forward to the future. We also thank Al Julian and David Bedford, who donated so much time and energy to participate in this performance along with our talented student cast.  

 

 

BIOGRAPHIES

Acting Company

 

Isaac Cannon (Michael) is a second-year Business Major at UNC-CH. Most of his acting experience was gained from participating in Interpretive events in Speech and Debate while in high school. Isaac is also a member of the Chapel Hill Players (CHiPs), a comedy improv group at UNC. Isaac began his comedy and acting career out of a love for the arts and for people. He seeks to entertain and spread joy through his performances. 

 

David Bedford (Harrison) is a local Independent Filmmaker and Actor. Had roles in both Elle Rose and in Jack’s Big Break. He’s performed in 15 combined commercials & industrials; directed & produced by: I love Productions, Myriad Media, Able & Co., Millbrook Productions to name a few. 

 

Hailey Clodfelter (Passerby, Cult Member 3, Willow) is a freshman here at UNC-Chapel Hill. She has been actively involved in theatre since she was a young child with her most recent role being Laura in The Glass Menagerie. She is excited to be a part of A Feminist World 2091 and hopes you all enjoy it! 

 

Mary Greer (Kontrolnik, Cult Member 1, B.) is a second-year student at UNC-CH who hopes to pursue Business or Information Science. This is Mary's first production as she found a love for acting her first year during a first-year seminar. She hopes to encourage others to follow their hearts, even if it pulls them out of their comfort zone.

 

Al Julian (Bernard) entered the world of film and television writing, acting and production a short 9 years ago after long careers in clinical psychology and law. Since then, he has authored a dozen feature length screenplays and a variety of teleplays, shorts and commercials.  His feature thriller FEVER DREAMS was picked up by MBUR Films for distribution and is now streaming on Amazon Prime, Plex and TUBI platforms. Al is also an actor with dozens of acting credits in the past few years. He has been the spokesman for Beco Electric Co. for the past 6 years and has completed over 30 television and radio commercials for them. 

 

Alice McCracken Knight (Robot 1, Semaj Senaj, Mary) is a sophomore Dramatic Art major with an intended double major in Communications with a concentration in Performance Studies. Originally from Boone, NC, Alice has been acting since they were a kid. They are so excited to be creating in-person theatre again, and aside from this performance Alice is spearheading the devised process for a new work through LAB! Theatre that will open in late April. In her free time, Alice loves to read, bike, hike, and sing.

 

Natalie Paige King (Robot 2, Cult Member 2, Saja) is a sophomore at UNC, planning to double major in communications with a concentration in performance studies and psychology. 

 

Trey Thurman (Stage Manager) Born and raised in Greensboro North Carolina, Trey Thurman is an aspiring actor. He is new to the acting scene and is most pleased that Director Megel gave him a shot in this play. He plans to further pursue film acting post-graduation. 

 

Lai (Mike) Wei (Wendell) is a second-year English Major at UNC-CH. He gained his acting experience back in high school by participating in numerous musicals and plays. He started acting out of curiosity to experience others’ lives. Outside of theatre, he is most passionate about playing tennis and reading literature.

 

The Artistic Team

 

Chandler Lawrence Classen (Playwright & Co-director)  is a PhD student at UNC Chapel Hill in performance studies who explores how communities make sense of and find ways to enact lively relations in the midst of environmental crisis. He is a first time playwright. As a performance studies scholar, he engages posthumanism and queer ecology to interrogate questions of extinction and the possibility for alternative hope and alternative ways of knowing. He is currently working on projects that attempt to grapple with performance as a response to ecological crises that amplify the threat of extinction. His work currently appears in Feminist Media Studies.

 

Joseph Megel (Co-Director) is Artist in Residence and Teaching Professor in Performance Studies at The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill where for the past 14 years he has run the Process Series: New Works in Development. He is currently Artistic Director of StreetSigns Center for Literature and Performance.

 

Jurnee Lopez  (Costumes/Props/Asst. Stage Manager) has been involved with theater and acting since high school. This will be her first time working with costumes, props, and backstage with the crew. 

 

Naveed Moeed (Production Stage Manager) (he/him) is a local critic, writer, actor, photographer and producer. He is thrilled to be working with Joseph and the wonderfully talented cast and crew of A Feminist World 2091. He last acted as Tiresias in a Zoom version of Antigone and most recently stage-managed the Department of Communications, Writing for the Screen and Stage program showcase, Long Story Shorts. During the pandemic he has spent most of his time building websites, writing, working on antiracism with the local Quaker community and joining with local grassroots movements to increase awareness of racial justice issues.

 

Jeremy Diamond (Lighting Designer) is a North Carolina based lighting designer and master electrician. He is a recent graduate from the UNC Greensboro where he earned an BFA in design and production with a concentration on Lighting Design and Technology.here! I'm Jeremy Diamond, a North Carolina based Lighting Designer and Mlectrere Charlie Raschke (Asst. Lighting Designer) is a North Carolina based Lighting Designer, Programmer, and Technician. His credits include work at Theatre Raleigh, North Raleigh Arts and Creative Theatre, BHS Dance, and EHS Arts, as well as freelance. He is versed in a wide variety of lighting consoles and works in concert, theatre, and dance industries. He is thrilled to be a part of this incredible project! 

Judson Rebel Greer (Projection Design) is a first-year student at UNC from Melissa, TX. This is his first time working tech for a production, but he was excited for the opportunity and has had fun with the new experience. Judson is also a member of the men’s cross country and track teams at UNC.

 

 

 

COVID POLICY 2021/2022
  • Performance Studies in the Dept. of Communication is committed to the safety and wellbeing of our patrons, students,  artists, and staff. We will be following state, industry, local and University safety guidelines.

  • All attendees will be required to wear face coverings at all times while indoors.
     

  • All performance locations have increased sanitation measures throughout the building and new protocols are in place to improve safety including:
     

    • Hand sanitizers

    • More frequent cleaning of high-touch surfaces

    • HEPA filtration units

    • With the exception of onstage performances, artists, crew, and staff will be required to wear masks

PROOF OF VACCINATION

In accordance with community safety guidelines, audiences must wear a face covering when indoors, and we strongly encourage everyone to be vaccinated to help protect the health of our whole community. Proof of vaccination will not be required at this time.

SOCIALLY DISTANCED SEATING

We anticipate full seating for our 2021-22 season. If conditions warrant, we will offer socially-distanced performances. 

GUIDANCE FOR THOSE FEELING UNWELL

For the safety of all our artists, patrons, and staff, we ask all patrons who feel unwell to please stay home. 

CANCELLATIONS OF PERFORMANCES DUE TO COVID-19

If we are able to capture high quality recordings we will do so and share performances virtually. 

 

We will notify all patrons of any cancellations as soon as they are announced, so we ask all patrons to please make sure we have a correct email address. We will also post updates on Facebook and Twitter.

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