Director’s Note
In the press release for this show it says that we’re performing CYMBELINE as a “sleek hour and forty minute one act” but you will notice, dear audience, that we have an intermission and our total run time is more like two hours and twenty minutes. Which might seem lengthy, but what if I told you it is just over half of the length of time CYMBELINE runs without cuts? More to the point, what if I told you that we had every intention of fulfilling that original goal, but in the process of rehearsal found that not only did we need to give the story room to breathe, but that even with all of our cuts (and there are many) there was still just a whole lot of play there, because CYMBELINE is a monster of a show, and even stripped down to 12 actors (15 roles) and 2 acts, it demands the space you make for it, and then some.
According to scholarly consensus, CYMBELINE, never one of the “big hits”, was an experiment, the second in an attempt by Shakespeare and Company to create a new genre of hybridized tragedy and comedy (“The Romances” as we call them), plays that would capture the absurdity of human experience and the depths of human depravity, tempered by the divine grace of forgiveness and redemption. Like its predecessor, PERICLES PRINCE OF TYRE, and its better known successors, THE WINTER’S TALE and THE TEMPEST, there is a rather haphazard story, an over-abundance of ideas, and more than a few inconsistencies. Notoriously, it is named after a supporting character who is instrumental to the plot, but not the most developed personality on the stage, and its most revered material is a song that is sung by supporting characters late in the game, and right when the plot needs to be chugging along. It also contains one of Shakespeare’s best female characters, some of his most beautiful speeches, and more than handful of genuinely funny moments. Every production of the show must thus wrestle with whose story is being told, the tone in which to present it, and how to keep the audience engaged plot twist after plot twist. In some ways, every production succeeds, but also fails to “fix” this play which is not necessarily broken, but almost certainly comes to us either incomplete or overly ambitious, a formidable amount of baggage to contend with, either way.
Which may or may not be why we have so many suitcases on the stage.
“It may not be possible to do a good production of CYMBELINE”, I told the cast on day one of this process, “but you can definitely do a really interesting one,” and I think we deliver. Will it be good? To be honest, I’m not sure what the standard of “good” is for CYMBELINE. It’s such an odd duck of a piece, at once unwieldy and intimate, deeply sad and ludicrously bizarre, and again, just a really big show, onto which it is hard to pin any kind of concept, when it often seems obvious Shakespeare, himself, was struggling to find a tone and stick with it. “CYMBELINE happens to good people,” and “Friends don’t let Friends CYMBELINE,” is something I would jokingly say to colleagues when they asked me how the show was going, but as much of a challenge as it has been, there has also been much reward. As a story of a young woman, a family, and a nation all finding their identity in a quickly transitioning world, it became impossible not to find moments and people in the piece to relate to. As an exploration of what it means to wake up and discover your life is not your life anymore, but some crazy journey you’re gonna have to go on whether you want to or not, I found it had just as much to teach me about resilience as the religious allegory at its center had to say about redemption.
I am not selling this, am I? Well, I suppose you shall just have to sit through it then and decide what, exactly, CYMBELINE is about. And who. Maybe you’ll find, as many of us did, that it’s sort of kind of about everything. And nothing. And nobody. And everybody.
And you.
Stuart Bousel
Cast
Carl Lucania (Cymbeline) is thrilled to be returning to the boards and the bard in his debut at Berkeley Shakes. He’s performed Shakespeare in the such diverse locales as the woods (Atmos Theater) and in bars (SF Theater Pub). On San Francisco stages he’s worked with Custom Made Theater (Passion, Six Degrees of Separation) and at The Exit (Life on the Ocean Wave, San Francisco Olympians Festival).
Carl studied acting and music at SFSU, fronted some local bands you’ve never heard of and occasionally writes short plays and songs.
Alejandra Wahl (Queen/Soothsayer) is an East Bay actor/singer/director/teaching artist. Previous roles include Maria (Yerma, Shotgun Players), Stacey (A Nice Family Gathering, Altarena Playhouse), and Cat (References to Salvador Dali Make Me Hot, Custom Made Theatre). Alejandra serves as the Director of Programming for Marin Shakespeare’s Shakespeare in Prison program. A board and company member of Berkeley Shakespeare Co., Alejandra is elated to (finally) make her stage debut with the company.
Her performance Is dedicated to her parents, for always prioritizing her theater and arts education no matter where they were in the world, and in particular her father, who taught her kindness, curiosity, and how to always see the best in people.
Elana Swartz (Imogen) (she/her) is an actress and model based in San Francisco. She is originally from the beautiful Shenandoah Valley in Virginia and was working throughout the Washington DC and Maryland area before moving to the bay in 2021. Some of her favorite roles include Olivia in Twelfth Night, Helena in A Midsummer Night’s Dream: The Musical!, and Hero/Seacoal in Much Ado About Nothing (Berkeley Shakespeare Company), Madge Owens in Picnic, Nina in The Seagull, and Tinkerbelle in the original production of Stained Glass. She would like to thank her incredible friends and family for their love and support!
Phillip Leyva (Posthumus) is a Bay Area actor and educator originally from the San Joaquin Valley. Some of Phillip’s favorite roles include Georg Nowack in She Loves Me (Pinole Players), Macbeth in Macbeth (Berkeley Shakespeare Company), Igor in Young Frankenstein (Pittsburg Theatre Company), and Gomez in The Addams Family (Pittsburg Theatre Company). He holds a BA in English from UC Berkeley and an MA in teaching from Saint Mary’s College of California. Phillip is a founding member of Berkeley Shakespeare Company.
You can catch him on stage later this year as Sir Galahad in Ghostlight Theatre Ensemble’s production of Spamalot and Wadsworth in Onstage Repertory Theatre’s production of Clue.
Isaac Kumpula (Iachimo) is proud to be making his Bay Area acting debut with Berkley Shakespeare Company after moving to California in 2023. A recent Alaskan expat, he landed on the golden coast after a summer in Michigan performing at Tibbits Opera House in their production of Grease (Johnny Casino) and working behind the scenes as a carpenter and chorus wrangler on strike nights. A lover of Shakespeare’s work since first stumbling through the opening scene of Hamlet in 6th grade, he is grateful to practice bringing ole Willy’s words to life outside of his hometown of Anchorage. Serial theater enthusiasts may have seen his technical side at work as the designer and builder of The Bard SF’s set of Much Ado About Nothing in November of 2023.
When not waxing poetical on the stage, he can be found getting into trouble at local karaoke joints, haunting beaches at night, and struggling with the big questions in life ie. is a hotdog a sandwich or a taco?
Skyelar Clouse (Cloten/Captain) is happy to be back working with Berkeley Shakespeare Company for a second time. You may have seen her before as Tom Snout (The Wall) in A Midsummer Night’s Dream, The Musical! Some of her more recent credits include Sheila Birling in An Inspector Calls, Mayor Matilda Hyde in All Shook Up, and #00 in The Wolves. She’d like to thank her friends and family for their constant love and support as well as her cast mates and Stuart for making this rehearsal process one of the best she’s ever been a part of.
Enjoy the show!
Lisa Wang (Helen) is delighted to return to Berkeley Shakespeare Company, where she was last seen in their productions of King Lear (Regan), Twelfth Night (Maria), and Much Ado About Nothing (Don John). In addition to Berkeley Shakespeare, Lisa has performed with various groups including: Actors Ensemble of Berkeley, Contra Costa Civic Theatre, San Leandro Players, and the Playwrights Center of SF. Lisa is also an improviser and company member at BATS Improv in San Francisco, where you can catch her performing improvised theatre regularly.
More at improv.org. Thank you for supporting live theater!
Francis Serpa (Cornelia) is happy to be back in Live Oak Theater where they previously played that important being Earnest, and the time travelling ghost of Elvis Presley, both with Actors Ensemble of Berkeley. Last summer they played Cecil in AEB’s production of A Room With a View in John Hinkle Park, and you can see them there again this summer in Much Ado About Nothing. Some fun Shakespearean roles they’ve played in the past are Romeo, Oberon, and Julius Caesar. Francis began acting while a student at College of Marin and earned a BFA in Theatre at UC Santa Barbara.
Valerie Fachman (Belarius) happily makes their Berkeley Shakespeare debut with Cymbeline, having also played Queen Margaret (Richard III), Lear (King Lear), Titania, (Midsummer Night’s Dream), and, on tour eons ago, both Ophelia and Gertrude (alternating). Other enjoyable experiences working with Director Stuart Bousel include his play Pastorella, Exit the King, and a plethora of staged readings with his Olympians Festival, at the Exit Theatre SF. They began their career in Chicago, but over the last 18 years in SF Val played with PianoFight (Stupid Ghost, etc), Custom Made Theatre Co. (How I Learned to Drive, BATCC & TBA nominations), Awesome Theatre, Shotgun Players (Our Town), Collected Works (The Balcony @ The Old Mint), Boxcar (Hedwig), Left Hand (Spring Awakening), & most often with Performers Under Stress (Mrs. Warren’s Profession, Sam I Am, Scamoramaland, You Need To Read Poetry!,There is a Happiness Which Morning Is, etc), which she co-ran with Artistic Director Scott Baker. Val also does an occasional commercial, plays fiddle (CMC student), and sings (A1) with Conspiracy of Venus a cappella ensemble. She’s been a playwright (Failure 2 Communicate, ’10), and a songwriter, too.
You can catch them in The Comedy of Errors with Marin Shakespeare, later this summer. THANK YOU for supporting live performance!
Aisha Rivera (Guiderius) is a Mexican-American poet, artist, and actor. They hold a Bachelor’s Degree in Psychology and Theatre Arts from California State University, Fullerton. Acting credits include Yerma (Shotgun Players), Dead Man’s Cellphone (Upstage Napa Valley), Two Gentlemen of Verona (Shakespeare Napa Valley), and more. Their poetry is published in the bilingual anthology: Poetics without Borders/Poetica Sin Fronteras published by Grupo Editorial LAMA. Aisha is the current Napa County Poet Laureate (2023-2025) and also serves on the Board of Arts Council Napa Valley. Aisha believes strongly in the importance of diversity, equity, and creating meaningful art. Aisha is excited to be making their Berkeley Shakespeare Company debut.
Melanie Kibbler (Arviragus) (she/they) is thrilled to be making their Berkeley Shakespeare debut! Recent credits include Macbeth at Marin Shakespeare Company, Tick, Tick…Boom! at Pinole Community Players and Camelot at Contra Costa Civic Theater. Prior to living in the Bay, Melanie acted in Chicago with companies including Babes with Blades and Nothing Special Productions. Love to KitKat and Slinky and all of the friends who have supported her on this journey.
Abe Karplus (Philario/Caius Lucius) is excited for his first Berkeley Shakes production. Abe has been acting since the age of four, most recently with Actors Ensemble of Berkeley and with the BL Rocky Horror shadowcast. Outside of the theater, he’s a software engineer, designing satellites to bring internet access across the globe.
Erika Bakse (Cloten/Captain u/s) is so excited to return to Berkeley Shakespeare, and as a villain, no less! Previously, she trod the boards with Berkeley Shakes in their production of KING LEAR in the roles of Curan, various servants and the Storm! Prior local credits include Basilia in THE MARRIAGE OF FIGARO and Sis in PANHANDLE, both with Actor’s Ensemble of Berkeley, as well as Charlotte in THE REAL THING at Masquers Playhouse.
Much love to her daughter, Elise, for letting mommy go to rehearsal and not stealing all the donuts, and to her husband, Reg, for his patience with their rambunctious toddler and years of love and support.
Stuart Bousel (director) is a San Francisco based playwright, director, and all around theater maker. His original plays include Everybody Here Says Hello! (recipient of the 2014 TBA Award for Outstanding New Play, nominated for the BATCCA for Best Original Play), Pastorella, The Edenites, The Exiled, Juno En Victoria, and Housebroken. His directing credits include Merchant of Venice, M. Butterfly, Prelude To A Kiss, The Crucible, Grey Gardens, Six Degrees of Separation, The House of Yes, The Lion in Winter, and Passion, all for Custom Made Theatre Company, and Twelfth Night, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, and The Frogs, all for Atmostheatre/Theatre in the Woods. Under the banner of the SF Theatre Pub, which he also co-founded, he directed Measure for Measure and Taming of the Shrew, and adapted Henry IV and Henry V into The Boar’s Head. Most recently he directed The Fantasticks at Chanticleers, and will next be helping to run the SF Fringe with the EXIT Theatre, where he has been on staff for more than ten years.
Once again, we would like to thank our wonderful friends at Pittsburg Theatre Company.
We are so grateful for your ongoing support.
Be sure to check out their upcoming season at the historic California Theatre in downtown Pittsburg!
We would also like to thank Sara Nicole Mindful Photography for capturing our show with such artistry!
saranicolemindfulphotography.pixieset.com
Berkeley Shakespeare Company 