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CAST
E. Faye Butler (Ella Fitzgerald)
Anderson Edwards (Piano/Conductor)
Ron Haynes (Trumpet)
Walt Kindred (Percussion)
David Parkes (Norman)
John Whitfield (Bass)
PRODUCTION
Rob Ruggiero (Director)
George Caldwell (Music Director)
Michael Schweikardt (Set Design)
John Lasiter (Lighting Design)
Alejo Vietti (Costume Design)
Michael Miceli (Sound Design)
Charles LaPointe (Wig Design)
Kristi J. Martens (Production Stage Manager)
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BIOGRAPHIES
 E. Faye Butler (Ella) last appeared at Northlight in Dinah Was. She mostly recently completed a successful run of Trouble In Mind at Yale Repertory and Centerstage. National and Regional Tours: Mamma Mia, Dinah Was, Ain't Misbehavin, Nunsense, Don't Bother Me... Regional Theatre: Dancing With The Holy Ghosts (New York Film and Play Festival); Saving Aimee, Gospel According To Fishman (Signature Theatre); The Wiz (La Jolla Playhouse); Seussical (Chicago Shakespeare); Thoroughly Modern Millie, Little Shop Of Horrors (Marriott Lincolnshire); Once On This Island (Centerstage); Purlie (Pasadena Playhouse and Goodman); Polk County (Arena Stage); Crumbs from the Table of Joy (Steppenwolf); Christmas Carol (Goodman); Little Foxes, La Bete, Once in a Lifetime (Court); Could It Be Magic: The Barry Manilow Songbook (Mercury Theatre); Hello Dolly, Hot Mikado, Sophisticated Ladies (Drury Lane Theatre); and others. She is the recipient of 5 Jeff Awards, 2 BTAA Awards, After Dark Award, John Barrymore Award, RAMI Award, 3 Helen Hayes Nominations, Excellence In Arts Award, and an Ovations Nomination.
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 Anderson Edwards (Piano/Conductor) is a global multi-instrumentalist who first worked at Northlight ten years ago as Co-Composer/Musical Director in Keith Glover's Off-Broadway hit Thunder Knocking On the Door. During the show's five year regional run he won the Helen Hayes Award for Best Musical Direction. For the last two years he's been performing bass at the Black Ensemble Theater, most notably in the Jeff-nominated hit Don't Shed A Tear (The Billie Holiday Story), Don't Make Me Over (The Story of Dionne Warwick) and David Barr's Memphis Soul (The Story of Stax Records).
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 Ron Haynes (Trumpet) Born and raised on the West Side of Chicago, Ron Haynes began his career as a trumpeter while in his teens, gigging with various blues artists. He studied at Shaw University in N.C., then transferred to North Carolina Central University where he studied under jazz great Donald Byrd. Amongst his achievements, Ron was the horn section leader for Bernie Mac’s HBO show Midnight Mac with Bernie Mac, later joining the Ohio Players. While playing with Liquid Soul, their CD Here’s the Deal was Grammy-nominated for Best Contemporary Jazz Album in 2001. Ron has also worked with Ramsey Lewis, being featured on Urban Knights IV and The Chicago Project. In 2005, Ron participated in a world tour as a member of Lenny Kravitz’s band. Remaining busy with his solo career, Ron has released two CDs (Cool Work and Can You Hear Me) and is currently working on his third project.
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 Walter Kindred (Percussion) began studying piano at age eight and drums at age eleven, continuing on to Vandercook College of Music and the American Conservatory of Music, where he later taught tap drumming (1971-72) for James Dutton. He has performed, recorded and toured with various artists playing vibes, congas and trap drums, and played vibes and percussion on Broadway for Bubbling Brown Sugar and Your Arms too Short to Box with God. He has performed around the country with artists such as Von Freeman, George Freeman, Chico Freeman, Max Roach, Johhny Hartman, Sonny Stitt, Gene Ammons, AACM, Pete Cosy, Verdin White, Larry Ball, Lewis Ball, Ari Brown, Vandy Harris, and Wayne Bennett, and in the Chicago area with local artists such as Ari Brown, Paula Greer, Sonny Seals, Karl Johnson, and the Note Benders Big Band. He has appeared in the musicals Billy Ekstine, Chicago Golden Soul, and Memory Lane.
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 David Parkes (Norman) is thrilled to be here for his inaugural production with Northlight Theatre. As a company member of Chicago’s TimeLine Theatre, his work includes the roles of George Washington in The General from America, Thomas More in A Man for All Seasons, Lambert LaRue in Pravda, Martin Heidegger in Hannah and Martin (After Dark Award), Howard DaSilva in It’s All True, Henry II in The Lion in Winter, Moe Axlerod in Awake and Sing, John Proctor in The Crucible (After Dark Award), Mr. Manningham in Gaslight, and Warden Whalen in the Chicago premiere of Tennessee Williams’ Not About Nightingales for which he received a Joseph Jefferson citation. Other work in Chicago includes Steppenwolf Theatre’s production of Tennessee Williams’ One Arm directed by Moises Kauffman, as well as productions with American Theatre Company, Eclipse, Apple Tree, Streetsigns, Footsteps, greasy joan, and Piven Theatre Workshop.
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 John Whitfield (Bass) began playing piano at the age of five, and picked up the French horn and bass while in high school. Over the years he has played with great artists including Peggy Lee, Sammy Davis, Billy Ekstein, and many others too numerous to mention. He was the bassist in the house bands at Drury Lane Evergreen Park and the Palmer House in downtown Chicago.
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Jeffrey Hatcher (Playwright) co-authored Tuesdays with Morrie (with Mitch Albom) which appeared at Northlight in 2003. He authored the book for the Broadway musical Never Gonna Dance, and penned the Off-Broadway productions Three Viewings, A Picasso, Scotland Road, The Turn of the Screw, Tuesdays with Morrie, Murder by Poe, Neddy and Fellow Travelers. His plays – including Compleat Female Stage Beauty, Murderers, Mercy of a Storm, Smash, To Fool the Eye, and Work Song (with Eric Simonson) – have been seen at such theatres as Yale Rep, The Old Globe, South Coast Rep, Seattle Rep, Denver Center Theatre Company, Actors Theatre of Louisville, and dozens more in the US and abroad. Mr. Hatcher wrote the screenplays for Stage Beauty and Casanova, and has authored episodes of the Peter Falk series Columbo. He is a member and/or alumnus of The Playwrights’ Center, The Dramatists Guild of America, Writers Guild of America and New Dramatists.
Rob Ruggiero (Director/Co-Conceiver) is a freelance professional director and the Associate Artistic Director at TheaterWorks in Hartford, Connecticut, where, over the course of 13 years, he has directed many critically acclaimed productions. He made his off-Broadway debut directing All Under Heaven, which also toured nationally, including successful runs in Florida and Los Angeles. Mr. Ruggiero’s body of work includes both plays and musicals and his productions have been seen in numerous regional theatres around the country, including Pittsburgh Public, Barrington Stage, Great Lakes Theater Festival, The Muny and The Repertory Theatre of St. Louis, where his hugely successful revival of Take Me Out received nine Kevin Kline nominations and won three, including Best Director of a Play. Ella, which began its development at Florida Stage, has since been seen at a number of regional theatres around the country.
Dyke Garrison (Co-Conceiver) wrote his first produced play, They Also Serve, as a Shubert Playwright Fellow at Occidental College. He went on to write a number of shorter pieces, which have been seen at One Act Theatre, The Marsh and The Guild Theatre, among others. His full-length works include Meadow in the Sky, The Finish Line, Shall We Dance and Dead Languages. His musical What’s on Tonight? Was produced on San Francisco’s own Broadway and his one man-show for Kevin Dixon, All Present, appeared at Theatre Rhinoceros. His one-woman show about Pearl S. Buck, All Under Heaven, written for and with Valerie Harper, premiered at Ms. Buck’s alma mater, Randolph Macon, and went on to productions in New York, Los Angeles and Florida. Mr. Garrison has studied playwriting with Sam Shepard and Oskar Eustis. He is a member of Playwrights Lab of San Francisco and former President of the Board of Directors for the Playwrights Foundation.
Danny Holgate (Musical Arrangements) Broadway: Musical Director and Arranger for Don’t Bother Me – I Can’t Cope and Bubbling Brown Sugar; Musical Supervision and Arrangements for Eubie, Guys and Dolls (revival), Rainbow Jones; and Dance Arranger for Odyssey and It’s Nice To Be Civilized. Mr. Holgate also performed the role of Jimmy Powers in Lady Day at Emerson’s Bar and Grill in New York and was the Musical Supervisor and Arranger for the show. Pre-Broadway shows include Daddy Goodness, Two Faces of Africa, Golden Boy (revival), Stringbean, Sweet and Hot, Aretha – Queen of Soul, Blackbirds of Broadway, Cookin’ at the Cookery and a revival of Storyville. For the past 20 years, he has been a vocal coach, put together club acts or arrangements for various performers, and for many years was the Conductor and Arranger for the legendary Cab Calloway.
George Caldwell (Music Director) is a Broadway veteran who conducted Black and Blue and Play On!, and served in orchestra pits for hits Bring In 'Da Noise, Bring In 'Da Funk and The Full Monty. He was music director for the European tour of Black and Blue, associate conductor for the European tour of Body and Soul, and toured regionally with Thunder Knocking on the Door, Golden Boy and Cookin' at the Cookery. Caldwell has toured the world with the Duke Ellington orchestra (under the direction of Ellington's son Mercer) and the Count Basie orchestra, which received a Grammy award with Caldwell at the piano for The Count Basie Orchestra Live at the Manchestra Craftsman's Guild. He has performed with artists as diverse as George Benson, Savion Glover, Lou Rawls, Elvis Costello, Wynton Marsalis, the Manhattan Transfer, Bobby McFerrin, Cab Calloway, Quincy Jones, Gregory Hines, Dizzy Gillespie and even Brenda Lee. His compositions and arrangements are recorded extensively.
Michael Schweikardt (Scenic Design) collaborated on the American premiere of Frank McGuinness’ The Bird Sanctuary for Pittsburgh Public Theater, as well as Donald Margulies’ Collected Stories and Joe Sutton’s Restoring the Sun. For Bluelight Theatre Company, he designed Golden Boy, Waiting for Lefty, The Big Knife, The Seagull and Amazing Grace. Other credits include All Under Heaven and Tallulah Hallelujah. He has worked at Syracuse Stage, Philadelphia Theatre Company, Williamstown Theatre Festival, Julliard, New York University, HB Playwrights Foundation & Theatre, Abington Theatre Company, Barrington Stage Company, Florida Stage Opera, Riverside Theatre, SoHo Repertory Theatre, The Shakespeare Theatre of New Jersey, Sacramento Music Circus, Contemporary Stage Company, Alabama Shakespeare Festival and TheatreWorks.
John Lasiter (Lighting Design) was the Associate Lighting Designer for the Broadway production of David Copperfield’s Dreams and Nightmares. Off-Broadway, he has designed for Bluelight Theatre Company and Music Theatre Group. Regionally, he has designed for Actors Theatre of Louisville, Centerstage, Cincinnati Playhouse, Dallas Theater Center, George Street Playhouse, Geva Theatre Center, Milwaukee Rep, New Mexico Rep, Pittsburgh Public, South Coast Rep, Syracuse Stage and Virginia Stage. He has designed for opera productions with Eos Orchestra, The Curtis Institute of Music, Glimmerglass Opera, Manhattan School of Music, Opera Delaware, Opera Carolina and Skylight Opera Theatre. Mr. Lasiter also designed lighting for dance performances at Ballet Memphis, Danzantes Los Angeles, Danzantes New Mexico, Irene Hultman Dance, Nora Reynolds Dance and Randy James Danceworks.
Alejo Vietti (Costume Design) New York: Make Me a Song, Tryst, Roulette, The Last Sunday in June, 16 Wounded, 2 X Tennessee, The Wau Wau Sisters, Servicemen, Waiting for Godot, Five Flights, Love's Labour's Lost, Measure for Measure, Othello, Of a White Christmas. Regional: The Alley Theatre Houston, Hartford Stage, Longwharf Theatre, Colorado Ballet, Pasadena Playhouse, Cleveland Playhouse, Ford’s Theatre Washington DC, Signature Theatre Washington, New York Stage and Film, Pittsburgh Public Theater, Theatreworks Hartford, San Diego Rep, Arizona Theatre Company, Saint Louis Repertory Theatre, Philadelphia Theatre Company, Barrington Stage Company, Florida Stage, Hangar Theatre, Rockland Opera, Columbia University, Donetsk Opera Ukraine. Upcoming: Ringling Brothers Barnum & Bailey Gold Unit.
Michael C. Miceli (Sound Design) was the Audio Consultant for Ridge Theater’s Jennie Richee and Ella at Florida Stage and San Diego Repertory Theatre. His sound design credits include The Devil’s Music, Crowns and Ain’t Misbehavin at Hartford Stage and Ella: Off the Record at TheatreWorks, as well as associate sound design for Floyd & Clea Under the Western Sky at Hartford Stage. Mr. Miceli has worked with a variety of artists and clients across the country including Nickelodeon, the Connecticut Forum, Center for Creative Youth and Yale School of Drama. He is currently the Audio Supervisor for Hartford Stage and the founder of his production consulting company, Miceli Production, LLC.
Charles LaPointe (Wig Design) Broadway: Cymbeline, Henry IV, The Rivals (Lincoln Center), The Lieutenant of Inishmoor, Radio Golf, Sight Unseen, Julius Caesar, A Raisin in the Sun, Jersey Boys, Good Vibrations, High Fidelity, Martin Short: Fame Becomes Me, The Color Purple and the the upcoming In The Heights. Off-Broadway: The Lieutenant of Inishmoor, All's Well That Ends Well, The Merchant of Venice, The Long Christmas Ride Home, 100 Saints You Should Know, The Jew of Malta, Some Men, Stuff Happens, The Normal Heart, Two Noble Kinsman, The Glorious Ones, Big Bil and King Lear. Many regional and opera credits including the recent productions of Ray Charles Live! and The Women of Brewster Place.
Kristi J. Martens (Production Stage Manager) is glad to be back at Northlight Theatre for Ella. Previous Northlight credits include Fire on the Mountain, Bad Dates, A Marvelous Party: The Noel Coward Celebration, Pride & Prejudice, and Everything’s Ducky. Other theaters where Kristi has worked include: Drury Lane Evergreen Park (where their production of Singin’ In the Rain won the Joseph Jefferson Award for Best Musical), Drury Lane Oakbrook Terrace, Festival Theater (Oak Park, IL), Theater at the Center (Munster, IN), Pheasant Run Theatre (St. Charles, IL) and Carousel Dinner Theatre (Akron, OH). She was also the resident stage manager for the children’s theatre at Drury Lane Evergreen Park for over 13 years and was an Assistant Stage Manager at the Goodman Theatre for the Mamet Festival.
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