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All Is Calm: The Christmas Truce of 1914 was developed and produced by
Cantus Vocal Ensemble and Theater Latté Da in Minneapolis, MN, December 2007.
The show premiered Off Broadway in 2018 produced by Laura Little Theatricals.
All Is Calm: The Christmas Truce of 1914 is presented by special arrangement with Broadway Licensing, LLC, servicing the Dramatists Play Service collection. (www.dramatists.com)
NOTE TO AUDIENCE: The videotaping or audio and/or visual recording of this production is
a violation of United States Copyright Law and an actionable federal offense. All is Calm uses artificial smoke and haze during the performance.
Special Thanks to Jason Fassl, Laura Hirano, Charlie Marn, Elise Sparks, and Quorum Architects.
At this time we would like to thank our patrons for their generous support. As a small independent theatre company, ticket sales only cover a portion of our expenses. The support of our donors enables Vanguard to produce new and innovative works, pay our artists, and bring a new generation of theatre to the stage. Since our founding in 2022, Vanguard has received generous donations from the following. We would like to thank the following:
Anonymous
Susan Ahrens
J. Mark Baker
Bob Balderson
Mary Boyle
Laura Braza
Randal Brotherhood
J. Max Carithers
Cynthia Courtney
Craig and Cindy Corrie
John M. Crocker Jr. and Polly Hawkins
Mary Beidler Gearen
Grace Graves
Barbara Haig
Andrew F. Hawkins
Brent Hazelton
Arthur Heitzer
The Hirano Family
Jeffery Kalenak and Kathleen Muldowney
James Kaplan
Dan Kazemi
Konrad Kuchenbach
Paula Lewein
Sean Marks
Charlie Marn and Kathleen Hawkins
Jim and Cindy Marn
Joseph J. Marn
Mike and Nancy Marn
Nicholas Marn
Frank Martinelli
Sherry Miller
Alex Meltsner
Jill Nadeau
John Pollack
Jonathan Riker
Sara Risley
Eugene Robbins
Jessica Rotier
Jan Serr and John Shannon
William Smolen
Scott Sorensen
Shayne Steliga
Mary Stearns
Linda Stephens
Josie Trettin
Steve Watts
Cora Vogt
Jill Zager
If you enjoyed the performance, consider making a tax-deductible donation to Vanguard Milwaukee. This work would not be possible without the support of our donors. For more info and to donate, please visit our donor box profile.
Directors Note
On Christmas eve, in 1914, an astonishing truce began in the midst of a gruesome war. Men, who moments earlier had been shelling each other, began to sing, play games, and exchange souvenirs instead. All Is Calm posits that this truce couldn't have happened were it not for music; for it was the singing and sharing of patriotic songs and carols that first connected the men, stuck in their separate trenches. This musical connection created the circumstances for the expanded trust of the truce to emerge. When war resumes, we fear music may never be possible again, but of course, it's always possible to put down arms, to see each other as fellow human beings, and to sing. Thank you so much for joining us for All Is Calm. We're glad you're here.
- Jill Anna
CAST
Ryan Cappleman
Ryan Cappleman is a performer, musician, teaching artist, (mostly) retired choreographer, and dog dad based in Milwaukee. Recent credits: Gabe in DAIRY HEIRS, Music Directing/Keyboard for the world premiere of SOMETHING IN THE WATER, Music Directing/Keyboard THE BACHELORS (Northern Sky Theater), Dirty Bob in LUMBERJACKS IN LOVE, and Music Directing/Keyboard GUYS ON ICE (Milwaukee Rep). Other highlights: 3 Footlights Awards for Outstanding Choreography (HAIRSPRAY, SWEENEY TODD, and PIRATES OF PENZANCE, Skylight Music Theater), performing Off Broadway in WAITING...A SONG CYCLE at the Cherry Lane theater, collaborating with Christopher Jackson (the original George Washington in Hamilton) for his Broadway BASH Concert at the Marcus Center, original cast albums of HELL'S BELGIANS (music director, keyboard, arrangements) and the upcoming SOMETHING IN THE WATER, and adjunct faculty member at UW Parkside (since 2021). Endless gratitude to Jill Anna, Paula, George, this cast, and the incredible men who lived this piece.
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Tomás Dominguez
Warren Gerds, a theater critic in the Green Bay area says, “[Tomás] Dominguez owns a clear, crisp, classically trained voice...” A Wisconsin native, he performs locally and abroad in various music ensembles and on stage. He earned his MM from DePaul University and BM from UW-Eau Claire. Recent credits include CARMEN, SISTER ACT, COSÍ FAN TUTTE, AMAHL AND THE NIGHT VISITORS, ALL IS CALM, BEING EARNEST, SONGS FOR A NEW WORLD, LITTLE SHOP OF HORRORS, MARY POPPINS, THE BARBER OF SEVILLE, THE ELIXIR OF LOVE, and LA CENERENTOLA. He is grateful for the love and support from his family and friends in his fourth production with Vanguard. QEPD EGD.
Hugo Dums
Hugo Dums is excited to be making his debut with Vanguard Milwaukee! He is a current theatre major at the University of Wisconsin Parkside. Recent credits include: MR. BURNS: A POST ELECTRIC PLAY, WAITING FOR GODOT, and TRUE WEST. Hugo is, however, no stranger to the area! He is excited to be back in Milwaukee after a summer of LOVE'S LABOR'S LOST with Summit Players Theatre. Hugo loves ALL IS CALM because it seamlessly blends real life quotes with stunning vocal arrangements to create a moving story of hope. He is honored to be a part of this beautiful production and hopes you enjoy the show!
Seth K. Hale
Seth is thrilled, excited, ecstatic, humbled, and shocked to be a part of this project. He’d like to take a moment to thank his friends/family, the team at Vanguard, and of course the academy for all they’ve done to support him and allow him to be a part of this. He was a part of Vanguard’s concert version all the way back in the long long ago of 2022 and it was honestly one of the most fulfilling projects he has been apart of, coming back to a fully realized version is a dream come true. If you’d like to stay up to date with Seth’s film and commercial endeavors (or if you need an actor that looks and sounds like him) visit www.sethkhale.com
Daniel Kerkman
Dan, who was also a member of the 2023 production, is very grateful to once again be joining the cast and crew of Vanguard MKE in this moving and thoughtful production of All Is Calm. Other recent credits include, COSI FAN TUTTE with Brew City Opera, and INTO THE WOODS, SHE LOVES ME, THE SECRET GARDEN, and SOUTH PACIFIC all with Forte Theatre Company. A long time prior to the above Dan performed with a variety of companies including Florentine Opera, Skylight Opera Theatre, Milwaukee Opera Theatre, First Stage Milwaukee, Madison Opera for the Young, Great Lakes Opera, Bel Canto Chorus and others. Enjoy the performance und Frohe Weihnachten!
Adlai Kim
​Nicholas Lin
Nicholas Lin is a tenor based out of Milwaukee and the greater Chicago-land area. This past season he made his Central City debut as Nick in La fanciulla del West, his Milwaukee Opera Theater debut as Oronte in Alcina, and his Brew City Opera debut as Tamino in Die Zauberflöte. Groups he’s performed with include the Florentine Opera Company, Music of the Baroque, Opera for the Young (Count Almaviva in The Barber of Seville), and the Chicago Symphony Chorus. As a concert soloist, Nicholas has sung Handel’s Messiah and Bach’s Magnificat in D with the Milwaukee Symphony orchestra, the Mozart Requiem with the Northwestern Summer Chorus, and the role of Colas in South Loop Symphony’s semi-stage production of Bastien and Bastienna. He is very excited to be making his Vanguard debut! When he’s not performing, you can find him editing or filming videos for Milwaukee Rep and other Milwaukee artists.
Eddie Lupella
Eddie Lupella is thrilled to be working on this incredible piece with this insanely talented cast. A Milwaukee based performer, he could last be seen as a supernumerary in Florentine Opera's Carmen and earlier this year in Milwaukee Opera Theatre's Rusalka covering the role of Vodnik. Other roles include Crespel in Tales of Hoffmann, Sarastro in The Magic Flute, and Brad in the Rocky Horror Show.
​Joe Picchetti
Joe Picchetti is thrilled to be returning to Vanguard Milwaukee with this beautiful annual tradition of ALL IS CALM. This is his third return to this piece after having been a part of Vanguard’s inaugural concert performance back in 2022 and again for the fully staged 2023 production. Regional credits include performances with Milwaukee Repertory Theater, Northern Sky Theatre, Renaissance Theaterworks, Forward Theatre, Skylight Music Theatre, Milwaukee Chamber Theatre, Milwaukee Opera Theatre, and Children’s Theatre of Madison, as well as being a founding member and performing with Summit Players Theatre. Much love to his family, friends, Maddy and Poe for their never-ending love and support.
​Zach Thomas Woods
Zach Thomas Woods has worked as a performer, director, and playwright in the greater Milwaukee area for more than 10 years. He has appeared at Milwaukee Chamber Theatre (MOON FOR THE MISBEGOTTEN, GREAT EXPECTATIONS), Next Act Theatre (GOD’S SPIES, THE TIN WOMAN, RED HERRING, LAUGHTER ON THE 23RD FLOOR), First Stage (GOOSEBUMPS, FINDING NEMO, RUDOLPH THE RED-NOSED REINDEER, SPONGEBOB, BIG FISH), Skylight Music Theatre (THE FULL MONTY, LES MISERABLES, HAIR, URINETOWN), Optimist Theater (CYMBELINE), and Northern Sky Theater (LOVE STINGS). Directing credits include JULIUS CAESAR, EVITA, FOOTLOOSE, ARSENIC AND OLD LACE, DEATH BY DESIGN, and THE MISS FIRECRACKER CONTEST. An award-winning playwright, Woods’ latest show, ‘NEATH THE HILLS OF BASTOGNE, received a staged reading in 2019 through Milwaukee Chamber Theatre’s Montgomery Davis Play Development Series and a full production at Sunstone Studios in 2022. Currently, Woods works as the Associate Director of Education at the Milwaukee Rep.
SWINGS
Isaac Brust, Joe Nolan, and Coltyn VonDeylen
CREATIVE TEAM
Jill Anna Ponasik, Director
Jill Anna is honored to be working with Vanguard Milwaukee on ALL IS CALM, a piece with deep personal meaning for her. Most of the time, Jill Anna can be found at Milwaukee Opera Theatre, where she has been Artistic Director since 2009, programming, producing, and delighting in the ways artists and audiences can connect through music-theater. Beyond MOT, Jill Anna collaborates widely with other organizations in Milwaukee, including The Florentine Opera, Skylight Music Theatre, Renaissance Theaterworks, The Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra, Present Music, Early Music Now, Aperi Animam, Quasimondo Physical Theatre, and UWM. Despite the 327 miles that separate them, Jill Anna remains especially close to Nautilus Music-Theater in St Paul, MN. www.milwaukeeoperatheatre.org
Paula Foley Tillen, Music Director
Paula Foley Tillen has been a professional musician in the Milwaukee area for more years than
she cares to think about. She has served as music director for hundreds of productions from the junior high to professional levels, and has been active at Milwaukee ComedySportz since 1985. She is a lead teacher at First Stage Theatre Academy, and director of music at Southminster Presbyterian Church in Waukesha; in addition, she remains much in demand as a musical director, pianist, vocal coach, and accompanist. Paula’s arrangements and compositions are found in the catalogues of several national publishing houses as well as online at sheetmusicplus.com and musicnotes.com. Her music has been performed by community, high school, university, and all-state choirs around the USA and Canada, as well as locally, by the East Side Chamber Players, UWM choirs, Master Singers of Milwaukee, Milwaukee Opera Theatre, Skylight Music Theatre’s KidsWrites, and Kohl’s Wild Theatre at the Milwaukee County Zoo. Paula is certified as a yoga and meditation instructor, and as a Reiki master practitioner.
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Liv Mauseth, Stage Manager, Production Manager
Liv Mauseth (they/he/she) is a Milwaukee based stage manager. Some previous shows they’ve stage managed are: MY NAME IS RACHEL CORRIE, ANTIGONE, ALL IS CALM: THE CHRISTMAS TRUCE OF 1914 (Vanguard Productions); TOIL AND TROUBLE (Sunstone Studios); JULIUS CAESAR, RICHARD III, and MIDSUMMER NIGHTS DREAM (Bard and Bourbon); and a virtual reading of LOVE AND INFORMATION in partnership with the Girl Scouts of America. They were the assistant stage manager for the staged reading of LE/LA by Liz Shipe (Milwaukee Chamber Theater), and in 2017, the regional International Championship of High School A Cappella competition.
​Carrie Johns, Assistant Stage Manager
Carrie Johns (She/Her) is a Milwaukee based stage manager and theater maker who has worked with many local theater companies since 2018 including First Stage, Chamber Theatre, Kohl's Wild Theater, Summit Players Theatre, Next Act Theatre, Optimist Theatre, and Cabaret MKE. Recent local favorites include: Macbeth, Henry IV Part I, Laughs in Spanish, The Tempest, Ride the Cyclone, Goosebumps the Musical, and Old Wicked Songs. When not in a theater Carrie also enjoys working as a sailor aboard tall ships and telling puns. Big thanks to her supportive family and friends.
Cassie Gherardini, Costume Designer
Milwaukee-based costume designer, technician, and interdisciplinary artist, Cassie (she/her) is honored to return to the Western Front this year. She has previously worked with Vanguard as Assistant Costume Designer on 2024’s production of ALL IS CALM. Favorite credits include… Design: FIDDLER ON THE ROOF and 42ND STREET (Falls Patio Players); MUCH ADO ABOUT NOTHING, TWO ROOMS, and ST. JOAN (Marquette Theatre). Assistant Design: LOVE’S LABOURS LOST (Summit Players). Technical and crafts: A MIDSUMMER NIGHT’S DREAM and MACBETH (Summit Players). Cassie holds a BA in Theatre Arts with an emphasis in Costumes from Marquette University and an MA in Education from Alverno College. When not at the theatre, she can usually be found behind the pottery wheel in her attic studio. www.cassieg.art
​AntiShadows Theatrical Design, Set and Lighting Design
AntiShadows LLC is a Milwaukee-based theatrical design and lighting rental company providing illumination for more than 500 productions spanning theater, musicals, opera, ballet, concerts, film, and corporate events. Design credits include work with American Players Theatre, Milwaukee Repertory Theater, Milwaukee Ballet, First Stage Children’s Theater, Northern Sky Theater, Skylight Music Theatre, Milwaukee Chamber Theatre, Renaissance Theaterworks, Next Act Theatre, Forward Theater Company, Milwaukee Opera Theatre, and many others. AntiShadows is equally proud to support independent creators, artistic projects, and experimental work: great stories deserve great lighting, no matter the scale.
Portfolio and information at www.AntiShadows.com
Kate Kowbel, Dialect & Text Coach
Kate Kowbel (she/her) is an educator, director, theater artist and dialect & text coach, who focuses on cultivating and maintaining the fine arts in education. A graduate of the Peck School of the Arts at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, and in 2017, Kate became a faculty member of the Theater Department at PSOA, where she teaches theater education and storytelling. She has served as the dialect and vernacular coach for the Bristol Renaissance Faire for the past eight seasons, and this coming summer will mark her sixteenth season as a performer. Additionally, Kate has worked as a teaching artist with Milwaukee Chamber Theater, In Tandem Theater, Milwaukee Shakespeare Company and the Milwaukee Repertory Theater. She has been the director of Horlick Theater Arts at the Academies of Racine-Horlick since 2010. In 2016, Kate was nominated for the Excellence in Theater Education TONY Award.
Kate Akerboom, Co-Dramaturg
Kate is thrilled to return to Vanguard as dramaturg on this year’s production of All is Calm. A Chicago-based librarian, historian, and theatre creative, Kate believes in bringing stories to life with accessibility and accuracy. Other dramaturg credits include On the Verge (Forest Theatre Company), Blues for Mister Charlie (Echo Theatre Collective) and I Never Saw Another Butterfly (UW-Green Bay). They also direct and perform at the Bristol Renaissance Faire. Their training includes an M.A. in Public History from Southern New Hampshire University and B.A in Theatre Performance and History from University of Wisconsin-Green Bay.
ADMINISTRATIVE TEAM
George Lorimer, Executive Artistic Director
George is the Founder and Managing Artistic Director of Vanguard Milwaukee. His work as a producer with Vanguard includes ALL IS CALM, MY NAME IS RACHEL CORRIE, and ANTIGONE. Onstage George has appeared locally with Milwaukee Rep (TITANIC, A CHRISTMAS CAROL, AS YOU LIKE IT), Door Shakespeare (ROMEO AND JULIET, EMMA), Optimist Theatre (MUCH ADO, TAMING OF THE SHREW), Summit Players Theatre (MUCH ADO, MACBETH), Skylight Music Theatre (JULIET AND ROMEO), Vanguard Milwaukee (ALL IS CALM). Regionally he has appeared with the Ohio Light Opera, The Contemporary Theatre of Ohio, and the College Light Opera Company. His education includes the College of Wooster, the Atlantic Acting School, and Milwaukee Rep's Emerging Professional Residency Program.
Jake Badovski, Marketing Director
Jake Badovski is delighted to return to Vanguard Milwaukee in LUNGS. After graduating from the University of Minnesota and attending the Gaiety School of Acting in Dublin, Jake enthusiastically returns to his hometown of Milwaukee, continuing to perform and create meaningful stories as an actor, director, photographer, designer, and teaching artist with other incredible art-makers. Some of Jake's previous credits include LOVE'S LABOUR'S LOST, A MIDSUMMER NIGHT’S DREAM, THE GOOD DOCTOR, THE HOBBIT, SHE KILLS MONSTERS, THE WINTER'S TALE, SKIN OF OUR TEETH, and ANTIGONE. Thank you for supporting the necessity that is the arts and Vanguard Milwaukee, this season and always!
​Jared Brandt Hoover, Company Manager, Co-Dramaturg
Jared is a proud core member of Vanguard, he has been with them since the very beginning with the first “All is Calm.” Jared has also been seen in Milwaukee and Madison regionally in productions at the Milwaukee Rep, Skylight Music Theater, Renaissance Theaterworks, Outskirts Theatre Co. and Forward Theater. He feels incredibly blessed that he continues to make art with his good friends and would like to specially thank George and Joshua for their support and kinship both on and off the stage. Jared also owes his gratitude to Mom, Dad, Ethan, Conor, Vicki, Mimi and Papaw for always guiding me in the right direction.
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