Supporting Materials

Free Open Talk by Director Christopher Johnson

Old Flames, Still Waters: Jez Butterworth & The River

Saturday, February 14, 2026, 2:00–3:00 P.M.

Join us for a presentation that will deepen your understanding of the play and hopefully enrich your experience of attending the production. As always, actors from our production will be on hand to present an exciting sneak peek at the play in action!

This open talk is supported in part by a generous gift from Lynn Ratener.

Christopher Johnson (Director) first came to The Rogue in 2011 to play Jewel in As I Lay Dying and now serves as Associate Artistic Director, Play-reading Producer, and Resident Ensemble Member. The recipient of eight Arizona Daily Star Mac Award nominations for Best Director, his directing credits include the Rogue productions of Cloud 9, Romeo and Juliet, Marjorie Prime, Under Milk Wood, Heartbreak House, The Seafarer, Great Expectations, Passage, The Awakening, The Weir, A View from the Bridge, The Beauty Queen of Leenane, Middletown, The Crucible, Three Tall Women, Penelope, and The Picture of Dorian Gray; as well as Rogue’s Play-readings of The Year of Magical Thinking, Lemons Lemons Lemons Lemons Lemons, The Great God Pan, Of Mice and Men, Seascape, Heroes of the Fourth Turning, I Am My Own Wife, Our Country’s Good, Loveplay, Let Me Down Easy, Everybody, The Illusion, No Exit, Don Juan in Hell, A House of Pomegranates, The River, and Elizabeth Rex. Elsewhere in Tucson Christopher has directed boom, Cabaret, The Altruists, and Speech & Debate for Winding Road Theater Ensemble; as well as Wit, Persephone or Slow Time, The Book Of Liz, My Name is Rachel Corrie, Killer Joe, The Rocky Horror Show, Danny and the Deep Blue Sea, Savage In Limbo, Bug, Titus Andronicus, and A Midsummer Night’s Dream for Etcetera at Live Theatre Workshop (where he served as late-night series Artistic Director from 2007-12). Christopher has acted in over 30 plays at The Rogue, is the author of three of The Rogue’s original stage adaptations, has served on the Board of Directors, and creates all of The Rogue’s social media and video content.

Christopher Johnson’s direction of The River is supported in part by
generous gifts from Marianne Leedy and Meg & Peter Hovell

CAST

THE OTHER WOMAN. Bryn Booth*
THE WOMAN. Sophie Gibson-Rush*
THE MAN. Ryan Parker Knox*
ANOTHER WOMAN. Chelsey Jean Smith

*Member of The Rogue Resident Acting Ensemble

Stand-Bys: Shannon Elias

Biographies

Bryn Booth (The Other Woman) is a graduate of the BFA Acting program at the University of Arizona. She was most recently seen as Mariane in Tartuffe, Juliet in Romeo and Juliet, Pegeen Mike in The Playboy of the Western World, Rosaline in Love’s Labor’s Lost, Ellie Dunn in Heartbreak House, and Hermia in A Midsummer Night’s Dream. This is Bryn’s eighth season as a member of the Resident Acting Ensemble and her 33rd show with The Rogue. Some of her favorite shows in which she’s performed here are Romeo & Juliet, The Awakening, Much Ado About Nothing, and Passage. Bryn has also been seen at the Scoundrel and Scamp Theatre as Mag in Lovers and Gowdie in The Love Talker. Bryn is also very active in the Tucson Indie Film Community where she has worked as an actor and writer. Bryn wants to thank Joe and Cindy for giving her the best job she’s ever had with the most amazing people she’s ever met.

Bryn Booth’s performance is supported in part by generous gifts
from Carol Mangold and Denice Blake & John Blackwell

Sophie Gibson-Rush (The Woman) is an actor & musician based in Tucson, Arizona. She is proud to be a resident ensemble member with The Rogue Theatre. She is also the co-founder of Koso Theatre Collective, and the front woman and primary songwriter for critically acclaimed rock quartet Holy Faint. She attended Boston University and London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art where she earned a BFA in acting. She continued her education at Double Edge Theatre studying devised theatre. Favorite acting credits include Elmire in Tartuffe, Widow Quinn in The Playboy of the Western World, Gladys in The Skin of Our Teeth, Marc Antony in Julius Caesar, and Thomasina Coverly in Arcadia. She's honored to be included in The Rogue ensemble—a group of people as kind as they are expert. Always for Jojo with love. IG: @soatgoat

Sophie Gibson-Rush’s performance is supported in part by generous gifts
from Susan Tiss, Marianne Leedy and John Wilson

Ryan Parker Knox (The Man) finds himself in his 52nd Rogue mainstage production having last been seen as Bill Slank in Peter and the Starcatcher. RPK has now lived in Tucson longer than anywhere else in his life with no plans to change his zip code any time soon. Originally from South Dakota, Ryan has worked professionally in Minnesota, Missouri, Florida, and Ohio in his 40+ years on stage. All the love to his partner CM for the support and to their quartet of four-legged dependents who make sure no one ever has solitude or gets a good night’s sleep. 

Ryan Parker Knox’s performance is supported in part by generous gifts from
Kathy Ortega & Larry Johnson, Joan Warfield and Sylvia Pozarnsky & Tom Riley

Chelsey Jean Smith (Another Woman) is thrilled to be returning to the Rogue stage, after previously appearing as Molly in Peter and the Starcatcher and Honor Blake in The Playboy of the Western World. A Jersey native, she’s appeared on east coast stages such as Walnut Street Theatre, Bristol Riverside Theatre, and the Majorie S. Dean Little Theater in NYC. Previous credits include Evelyn Nesbit in Ragtime, Amy in Company, and Catherine in The Foreigner. Recent local credits include Arizona Theatre Company: Ms. Holmes & Ms. Watson: Apt 2B(u/s Ms. Sherlock Holmes), Dial M for Murder (u/s Margot Wendice); Invisible Theatre: Almost, Maine. Though her forever-favorite role is “Mama” to Jude. Smith proudly holds her BFA in Musical Theatre from Shenandoah Conservatory. Sincerest thanks to the Rogue team for their kindness and the opportunity!

Chelsey Jean Smith’s performance is supported in part by generous gifts
from Vicki Ettleman and Ann & Andrew Lettes

Russell Ronnebaum (Music Director) has served as The Rogue Theatre’s Resident Composer and Director of Music since 2019. Some favorite productions include Peter and the Starcatcher, Tartuffe, Marjorie Prime, If on a winter’s night a traveler, Under Milk Wood, The Left Hand of Darkness, Mrs Dalloway, Death of a Salesman, The Awakening, As You Like It, Frankenstein, Moby Dick, and Much Ado About Nothing.

Russell holds a Master of Music degree in collaborative piano from the University of Arizona. He is the assistant director of music at St. Mark the Evangelist Catholic Church in Oro Valley. As a pianist, Russell often performs with the Tucson Symphony Orchestra. Russell made his Carnegie Hall debut in 2016, performing the music of Dan Forrest. 

Recordings, videos, sheet music, and more are available at www.RRonnebaum.com.

Russell Ronnebaum’s music direction is supported in part by generous gifts
from Peggy Houghton & Paul Garner, Shawn Burke and Bill & Nancy Sohn

John Keeney (Guitar, Harmonica, Vocals) is an interdisciplinary artist, thrilled to be working with the Rogue again. He has previously appeared on stage at the Rogue in As You LIke It, Galileo and Much Ado About Nothing, with The Scoundrel and Scamp in There Is a Happiness that Morning Is, and as music director for Two Plays for Lost Souls. He provided guitar and vocals for The Rogue’s productions of The Weir and The Seafarer.

Designers and Production Staff

Cynthia Meier (Costume Design) worked her way through college at Eastern Michigan University by assisting in the costume shop. Most of what she knows about Costume Design, she learned from Katie Holkeboer, the costume designer and professor at EMU. After graduating with her MA in Speech & Theatre, Cynthia stayed on at EMU to teach Costume Design, Costume Construction, Stage Makeup, and Introduction to Technical Theatre while designing the university mainstage plays and supervising the costume shop. She has designed costumes for each and every one of The Rogue plays since 2005. 

Cynthia Meier’s costume design is supported in part by
a generous gift from Katherine Jacobson

Joseph McGrath (Scenic Design) worked in the scene shops at West Virginia University and the Juilliard School of Drama while he was studying to become an actor. He served as Technical Director for Arizona Theatre Company from 1987–88, and opened his own scene shop, Sonora Theatre Works, in the 1990s. Joe has designed and built scenery for Ballet Tucson for most of their ballets for over 20 years, as well as various projects with UA Opera Theatre. He has designed each and every set for The Rogue since its inception in 2005.

Joseph McGrath’s scenic design is supported in part by
generous gifts from Susan Dick and Donna Rudolph

Deanna Fitzgerald (Lighting Design) is a member of United Scenic Artists whose lighting design credits include theatre, dance, opera, circus-themed, puppets, architectural lighting and more. She is a yoga and meditation teacher, and conducts classes and workshops focused on using these and other “quietive” practices to aid creative process. Deanna is the author of The Heart of Light, published in January 2022. She now resides in New England, where she is she is the Dean of the School of Fine Arts at the University of Connecticut. Deanna has been smitten with her Rogue family since 2014 when she designed their extraordinary creation, Jerusalem, and has since designed a couple dozen Rogue productions, including some of these favorites of hers: The Left Hand of Darkness, Sweat, The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time, Penelope, The Secret in the Wings, Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein, Beauty Queen of Leenane, Celia A Slave, Tales from the Jazz Age, and The Picture of Dorian Gray. She is grateful for every moment she gets to spend making things with The Rogue, and for the great friends and lighting collaborators, Shannon Wallace, Peter Bleasby, and Connor Greene, who make it possible for her do that.

Deanna Fitzgerald’s lighting design is supported in part by 
a generous gift from Rick & Debby Apling

Hannah Al-Baiaty (Stage Manager) is excited to continue her work with The Rogue Theatre after previously stage-managing Peter and the Starcatcher, Romeo and Juliet, Marjorie Prime, If on a winter's night a traveler, The Skin of Our Teeth, Love's Labor's Lost, Under Milk Wood, The Left Hand of Darkness, The Seafarer, Great Expectations, Twelfth Night, and Passage. Hannah earned her BFA in Technical Theatre Production and Design from the University of Arizona. Hannah's previous credits include serving as Stage Manager for the Under Construction Series: Ralph Lemon & Friends at Park Avenue Armory, Helen Simoneau Danse's Flight Distance at Joyce SoHo, Tucson Folk Festival, Arizona Repertory Theatre's productions of Avenue Q, Assistant Stage Manager for Eugene Opera's production of Nixon in China and Assistant Production Manager for Pipeline Theatre Company's world premiere of Byuioo. Additionally she spent five seasons as a Costume Technician for The Gaslight Theatre. Hannah would like to thank her husband, beautiful baby boy, family, and friends for their endless support and love.

Hannah Al-Baiaty’s stage management is supported in part by
a generous gift from Barbara Martinsons & Larry Boutis

Shannon Wallace (Associate Lighting Design, Production Stage Manager) first came to The Rogue in 2015 to stage manage The Picture of Dorian Gray, and now serves as their Production Stage Manager and Operations Manager. She has worked on over 30 shows with The Rogue, some favorites include: The Bridge of San Luis Rey, The Grapes of Wrath, Curious Incident, Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein, As You Like It, If on a winter’s night a traveler and Peter and the Starcatcher. She holds a Bachelor of Fine Arts from the University of Arizona, with a dual emphasis in stage management and lighting design. During her college years, she worked on over 25 productions with Arizona Repertory Theatre and dabbled in production & company management at Arizona Theatre Company and the Contemporary American Theatre Festival. After graduating, she continued to expand her breadth of experience to include different arts management positions such as Operations Assistant at Mudlark Theater Company. Apart from a one-year sojourn to Chicago, The Rogue has been her home for almost 10 years, and she is grateful every day to be a part of this vibrant and loving community.

Shannon Wallace’s production stage management is supported
in part by a generous gift from Marianne Leedy

Christopher Pankratz (Property Master) Christopher’s Rogue acting credits include Peter and the Starcatcher, Cloud 9, Tartuffe, Romeo and Juliet, The Playboy of the Western World, If on a winter’s night a traveler, The Skin of Our Teeth, Love’s Labor’s Lost, Under Milk Wood, The Left Hand of Darkness, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Great Expectations, The Awakening, As You Like It, A View from the Bridge, Moby Dick, The Crucible, Much Ado About Nothing, King Lear, and The Grapes of Wrath. Christopher also directed An Enemy of the People, Constellations and The Sun Also Rises for the John and Joyce Ambruster Play-Reading Series. Christopher formerly taught theatre at Flowing Wells High School where he wrote and produced numerous new plays including The Longest Day of April, The Story Seller’s Tale, and You Can’t Make Wine from Raisins, which are available online for licensing and performance. While attending the University of Arizona, Christopher earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts, as well as a master’s degree from the College of Education.

Christopher Pankratz’s work as prop master is supported in part by generous gifts
from Eloise Gore & Allen Hile and Kay Crofoot & Robin Oggins

Nanalee Raphael (Costume Shop Supervisor) has known from age five that she would work in theatre. Of course, she thought it would be as an actor, not as someone who flings fabric around. She feels blessed that she has always been employed in costuming, for both professional and academic theatres, and has never had to have a “day job.” Until moving to Tucson in 1995, she was peripatetic in her work situations, desiring to work with theatres all over the country. She has worked as a costume designer, costume director and/or draper in professional theatres in Michigan, (Hope Summer Repertory, Holland), Wisconsin (American Players Theatre, Spring Green), Illinois (Goodman, Wisdom Bridge, and Steppenwolf, Chicago), New York (The Public, NYC), Arizona (ART & ATC, Tucson), at Shakespeare Festivals in Vermont and New Jersey, and California (The Old Globe, San Diego). She received both her Bachelor's and Master's degrees in Costume Design and Technology from Syracuse University. She is one of the “Pioneering Seven,” the first group of women to study full-time at Dartmouth College.

Peter Bleasby (Master Electrician) has been actively involved with lighting for theatre and other entertainments for 70 years. That is not a typo! Professionally it includes stints with BBC Television, and with UK lighting designer Richard Pilbrow for the opening of the National Theatre (Director: Laurence Olivier). Non-theatrical lighting has included Commercial/Industrial, Cathedrals, Major Sports Venues and Fashion Shows. He assisted with The Rogue’s initial lighting rig at the Historic “Y” in 2009 and has been the master electrician for every show since the 2013/14 season. His most recent contribution was the design and oversight of the $95K LED lighting installation in time for Tartuffe - the 100th production - in September 2025. From light bulbs in coffee cans to LED lights with internal software, it’s been an amazing  technological journey, but always in the service of the productions.

Connor J. Greene (Assistant Master Electrician) first came to The Rogue as a volunteer electrician on Miss Julie in 2016. In 2018, he interned for Peter Bleasby on The Grapes of Wrath. Starting with The Awakening in 2020, he began drafting for Deanna Fitzgerald’s designs. In 2021, when a piece of lighting technology misbehaved during Twelfth Night, he became a special projects electrician. Now, in 2025, Connor is excited to serve as The Rogue’s Assistant Master Electrician. He is looking forward to the learning and growth that comes from making good art with the wonderful community who supported and fostered him throughout his entire career. Connor holds a BFA from the University of Arizona, with an emphasis in lighting design. He was a Journeyman Electrician for Williamstown Theatre Festival in 2019, a freelance electrician in NYC from 2019-2020, and the Lighting Programmer for Arizona Opera Company from 2021-2023. He would like to thank his families of both blood and water.

Kara Clauser (House Manager) has been involved with the Rogue for more than a decade as a box officer, volunteer usher, and now house manager. She studied ecology and geographic information systems at the University of Arizona, and has a day job as a scientist at the Center for Biological Diversity.

Megan Coy (House Manager, Box Office Staff) is excited to return to the Rogue after taking a few years away! As the resident stage manager in 2019-2020, she worked on Middletown, Long Day’s Journey into Night, Moby Dick, and The Beauty Queen of Leenane. In 2020, she decided to leave the Rogue to be home with her daughter Eleanor and has now welcomed a son, Esben. Always looking for a creative outlet, Megan started her jewelry business, Coy Creative, in 2020 as well! Prior to working at the Rogue, she worked in marketing and production at The Magik Theatre in San Antonio, traveled internationally with a touring production, and graduated from the U of A in 2013 with a BFA in Theatre Production. She is so excited to be back with her friends at the Rogue!

Matt Elias (House Manager, Sound Consultant) is constantly seeking out art whether it be theatre, music, television or video games. He became enamored with live performance at The Rogue Theatre in 2014 while joining his wife, Shannon, as an usher. His experience as a touring musician, his penchant for audio production and his general obsession with how stuff works, makes him useful in all sorts of tight places throughout the production process. Nowadays you’ll see him as House Manager, trading off shows with Woods Fairchild and you might not see him sneaking a peek at each of those shows from behind the scenes. Matt has experience as a Master Bicycle Technician, Emergency Medical Technician, Fire/EMS 911 Dispatcher, and most recently a Production Brewer at Dragoon Brewing Company.

Thomas Wentzel (Box Office Manager, Program, Website) is a Scientific Programmer for the National Solar Observatory and holds a Ph.D. in Physics from the University of Arizona. Previously he has worked as a Data Manager for several prevention programs in the Arizona Cancer Center and the Mel and Enid Zuckerman Arizona College of Public Health. He has served on the Board of the Tucson Men’s Cooperative, editing its newsletter for five years, and on the Executive Committee of Sons of Orpheus—The Male Choir of Tucson. He has sung with Furry Day Singers, Sons of Orpheus, AwenRising and Arizona Repertory Singers, and has performed with Tucson Art Theatre in Viktor Slavkin’s Cerceau and Clifford Odets’ Waiting for Lefty. Thomas has designed and built The Rogue Theatre Web site (with great assistance from Bill Sandel and Bryan Falcón in creating the 2020 Website update), and serves as Webmaster and Business Manager. He has also served on The Rogue’s Board of Directors since the founding of the theatre.

Shannon Elias (Box Office Associate, Volunteer Coordinator) got her first big break in theatre at age 11 when she was cast as the Wicked Witch of the West in The Wizard of Oz in school. After that first applause, she was hooked. She began at The Rogue Theatre as an usher in 2008, and volunteered in various roles until she was hired to the box office in 2018. She made her debut on The Rogue stage in The Oresteia in 2020 and has since appeared in The Playboy of the Western World, The Skin of Our Teeth, Babette’s Feast, The Left Hand of Darkness, and the staged-readings of Everybody and The Sign in Sidney Brustein’s Window. She also worked backstage with The Rogue as Assistant Stage Manager for The Awakening, Mrs Dalloway, A Midsummer Night’s Dream and Love’s Labor’s Lost. Shannon holds a Bachelor of Arts in Theatre Arts from the University of Arizona with a minor in Special Education and Rehabilitation Psychology.

Our Thanks

Performance Schedule

Supported by the Arizona Commission on the Arts with funding from the State of Arizona and the National Endowment for the Arts. Support is also provided by generous grants from the Arts Foundation for Tucson and Southern Arizona, the Community Foundation for Southern Arizona, and the Shubert Foundation.