A Christmas Carol

MARK CAPRI After training at The Royal Academy of Dramatic Art, Mark Capri began his professional career in the UK, at the Royal Shakespeare Company, and at theaters around England. He toured India and Southeast Asia, and appeared on numerous British TV spots, as well as “Star Wars: Episode V – The Empire Strikes Back” (1980), before coming to New York in On Approval, at the Roundabout Theatre, for which he was given a Theatre World Award. Other film roles include: Steward with Bloodied Nose in “Titanic.” Numerous TV spots (“Hacks,” “Frasier,” “Modern Family,” “Whoopie,” “90210,” “Awkward,” etc. ) augment a leading stage career in over a hundred plays in New York (on and off Broadway ), throughout the regional theater system and on tour, both home and abroad. You may remember him as Higgins in My Fair Lady, Arthur in Camelot, Dickerson in 1776 or Hermocrates in The Triumph of Love, all for the Santa Barbara CLO at the Granada Theatre. 

REGINA FERNANDEZ has a warm heart making her Ensemble Theatre debut! Recent regional credits include Shapeshifter in House of Joy at the Repertory Theatre of St. Louis, Bumbrake/Teacher in Peter and the Starcatcher at the Oregon Shakespeare Festival, Ayah in The Secret Garden at the Denver Center for the Performing Arts, Marianne Dashwood in Sense and Sensibility and Ann Deever in All My Sons at the Arvada Center for the Arts and Humanities. TV/Film credits include NBCUniversal’s “Good Girls,” Nickelodeon’s “Side Hustle” and WatchEyeStudios’ “OTISE.” Warm thanks to Todd, ATB Talent, Jamie, Jonathan, and Michael Donovan Casting! All my love to my family and Harry! Instagram: MabuhayItsRegina

CHARLES DICKENS (Author) in full Charles John Huffam Dickens, (born February 7, 1812, Portsmouth, Hampshire, England—died June 9, 1870, Gad’s Hill, near Chatham, Kent), English novelist, generally considered the greatest of the Victorian era. His many volumes include such works as “A Christmas Carol,” “David Copperfield,” “Bleak House,” “A Tale of Two Cities,” “Great Expectations” and “Our Mutual Friend.” Dickens enjoyed a wider popularity during his lifetime than had any previous author. Much in his work could appeal to the simple and the sophisticated, to the poor and to the queen, and technological developments as well as the qualities of his work enabled his fame to spread worldwide very quickly. His long career saw fluctuations in the reception and sales of individual novels, but none of them was negligible or uncharacteristic or disregarded, and, though he is now admired for aspects and phases of his work that were given less weight by his contemporaries, his popularity has never ceased. The most abundantly comic of English authors, he was much more than a great entertainer. The range, compassion, and intelligence of his apprehension of his society and its shortcomings enriched his novels and made him both one of the great forces in 19th-century literature and an influential spokesman of the conscience of his age.

PATRICK BARLOW (Playwright) Besides his version of Lew Wallace’s Ben Hur, Patrick Barlow’s Olivier-nominated adaptation of A Christmas Carol has played off-Broadway and London’s West End while his 4-person adaptation of The 39 Steps has played in over forty countries worldwide, winning Olivier, Helpmann, Moliere and Tony Awards and making Patrick the most performed playwright in America for 2012/13. Most recently, his rewriting of John Milton’s Comus has played to critical acclaim at Shakespeare’s Globe Theatre. Patrick is also celebrated in the UK for his two-man theatre company National Theatre of Brent, whose comedy epics include Wagner’s Ring Cycle, The Charles and Diana Story, The Messiah, The Wonder of Sex, The Arts and How They Was Done, The Black Hole of Calcutta, The Life and Times of the Dalai Lama and Zulu! They have won two Sony Gold Awards, a Premier Ondas Award for Best European Comedy and the New York Festival Gold Award for Best Comedy. Other screenwriting includes “Van Gogh” (Prix Futura Berlin Film Festival), “Revolution!!” (Best Comedy Jerusalem Film Festival) and the BAFTA-winning “The Young Visiters.” Publications include “Shakespeare: The Truth!” and “The Complete History of the Whole World.” Patrick has also appeared in “Absolutely Fabulous,” “Shakespeare in Love,” “Notting Hill,” “Nanny McPhee” and “Bridget Jones’s Diary.” He is currently writing theatre versions of The Hound of the Baskervilles and Dracula.

JAMIE TORCELLINI (Director) returns to ETC where he previously directed The 39 Steps, and Tell Me on a Sunday, and starred in The Mystery of Irma Vep, and School for Lies. Broadway shows include CATS (Mr. Mistoffelees), Little Johnny Jones (Standby to Donny Osmond), Me and My Girl (Standby for Jim Dale), Jerome Robbins Broadway, Man of La Mancha (Barber), Beauty and the Beast (LeFou), and the original company of Billy Elliot. Regional credits: Drag – The Musical (Drunk Jerry), Hamlet, Young Frankenstein (Igor), Spamalot (Patsy), My Fair Lady (Alfie Doolittle), The Producers (Max Bialistock), You Can’t Take it With You, Tuna Christmas, Man of La Mancha (Sancho), and starred in a dozen productions of Me and My Girl. As a Director, Jamie has mounted several productions of The 39 Steps, The Mystery of Irma Vep, My Fair Lady, The Producers, Me and My Girl, How to Succeed…, West Side Story, Life Could Be a Dream, The Andrews Brothers, Kiss Me Kate, The Legend of Georgia McBride, Matilda, Something Rotten, and Beauty and the Beast. He also assisted on both Stuart Little films starring Gena Davis and Hugh Laurie. Jamie has been a teacher of Musical Theatre and Tap at AMDA, Comedy Improv for several institutions, and for 2 years toured internationally as a backup singer/dancer for Liza Minnelli.

STEPHEN GIFFORD (Scenic Designer) Stephen’s past designs for ETC includes Emma, Venus in Fur, The Best Brothers, Good People, Crime and Punishment, Bell, Book and Candle, and Opus. His scenic design work has been featured at numerous theaters nationally and internationally including: The Grand Ole Opry, The Chicago Theatre, Madison Square Garden, The El Sett, Abdel Halim, and Studio One Theaters (Riyadh, Saudi Arabia), Sacramento Music Circus, The Walnut Street Theatre, 5^th Avenue Theatre, Juneau Lyric Opera, La Mirada Performing Arts Center/McCoy Rigby, 3D Theatricals, The Laguna Playhouse, and many more.  He has garnered many awards and nominations for his work and was awarded The Bob Z Award for career achievement in set design by the LADCC. www.stephengifforddesign.com

HELENA KUUKKA (Lighting Designer) is thrilled to make her Ensemble Theatre Company debut. Some of Helena’s favorite designs in opera include The Barber of Seville, Eugene Onegin, Semele and As One (Opera Santa Barbara), The Marriage of Figaro and Eugene Onegin (Florida Grand Opera), Aida (Vancouver Opera, Portland Opera), La Traviata and The Merry Widow (Kansas City Lyric Opera), Rockland (Pine Mountain Music Festival) and Samson and Delilah & Norma (Tulsa Opera). Her dance designs include The Jungle Book, Carmen, Giselle, Vampire’s Ball and Firebird for Orlando Ballet as well as Dracula, Giselle, Swan Lake, The Little Mermaid, and several contemporary works for Ballet Memphis. Helena is also a frequent designer at Lyric Theatre of Oklahoma where her credits include productions of Carousel, Kinky Boots, Titanic, Oklahoma, Dreamgirls, Ragtime, Hello Dolly, Newsies, Mamma Mia, and the world premiere of When We’re Gone.  Upcoming projects include An American Dream for Opera Santa Barbara, The Prom and The Sound of Music for Lyric Theatre of Oklahoma and Into the Woods for Tulsa Opera. A native of Helsinki, Finland, Helena now resides in Santa Barbara, CA.

RANDALL ROBERT TICO (Sound Design) A Christmas Carol is the thirteenth sound design and/or score for ETC, the others being Carmen Jones, Sleuth, American Son, Lillian, Tenderly, Measure for Measure, Everything is Illuminated, The Invisible Hand, Macbeth, and Husbands and Wives, directed by Jonathan Fox, and The Legend of Georgia McBride and Baby Doll, directed by Jenny Sullivan. Also with Sullivan are Jackie Unveiled at the Wallis, The Baby Dance: Mixed, and the most recent production of Twilight: Los Angeles, 1992 at Rubicon Theatre Company. Other recent works include Anna Karenina for DCPA and Astoria Part One & Two for Portland Center Stage (PCS), directed by Chris Coleman. More with Coleman and PCS are Othello, Anna Karenina, Shakespeare’s Amazing Cymbeline, The Imaginary Invalid, and Snow Falling on Cedars. With director Nancy Keystone and Critical Mass Performance Ensemble are After Iphigenia at the Getty Villa, Apollo at the Kirk Douglas Theatre (Garland Award and an Ovation Award nomination), Ameryka (2016 Ovation nomination), Suzan-Lori Parks’ The America Play (Theatre @ Boston Court), Antigone (Portland Center Stage for which he won a Drammy Award), The Ahkmatova Project, Dr. Faustus, The Rover, and Measure for Measure. Further works include Hamlet, The Winter’s Tale, the vocal score for David Hare’s version of Mother Courage, and music and sound design for The Glass Menagerie, all directed by Jessica Kubzansky, original music for Magic Fruit (Cornerstone), Shishir Kurup director, and composer/sound designer for the 2014-16 Launch Pad program at UCSB with director Risa Brainin.

KEVIN WILLIAMS (Properties Designer) is a recovering actor and L.A. native who has spent over two decades working as a designer, fabricator and consultant for clients such as Walt Disney Imagineering, HUB Network, Red 5 Studios and Twentieth Century Fox among many others. Notably, he was the resident Production Designer for interactive theatre company, Delusion, for seven years: Lies Within (2014), His Crimson Queen (2016), Lies Within VR series (2017), The Blue Blade (2018) and Reaper’s Remorse (2021.) Kevin is the Prop Department Supervisor for UCLA’s School of Theater, Film & Television and lives in Orange County with his incredible family. Proud member of S.P.A.M.

JOHN ENRICO DOUGLAS (Music Supervisor) is a pianist, music director, composer, songwriter and arranger. He is on adjunct faculty in the SBCC music department teaching piano, and on staff as accompanist. Previously, John has worked at ETC on music for their production of It’s a Wonderful Life: A Live Radio Play, and the benefit concerts The Great American SongBook and Limericks and Lyrics (with Kenny Loggins). John has served as music director for hundreds of musicals, revues and shows with Santa Barbara–area professional and community theater companies, colleges, high schools, junior high schools and summer theater camps. He was recognized in 2017 by the Santa Barbara Independent Magazine as a “local hero” due to his work with junior high and high school band and theatre programs. John won SB Independent Indy awards for best musical direction for Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, directed by ETC’s own Brian McDonald at the Rubicon, Ventura, and for Next to Normal at Center Stage Theater. John wrote songs and music for six musicals with City at Peace at Center Stage, for A Village Fable and Pinnochio at Santa Barbara High School, for Brecht’s Arturo Ui at Westmont College, Musical Comedy Murders of 1940 at Circle Bar B Dinner Theater, and Much Ado About Nothing at UCSB. John’s discography dates from 1975. He released a Latin–jazz album with his band, Songon, in 2021. John has toured with The Pointer Sisters, Eddie Fisher and Donald O’Connor, and has accompanied Alan Cummings and Gregory Porter, among others.

JESSICA HARO (Production Stage Manager) began stage managing in 2016, and got her start in professional theatre as a props assistant for ETC’s Baby Doll in 2017. She has been working with ETC as an assistant stage manager and production stage manager since 2019’s It’s a Wonderful Life: A Live Radio Play. Most recently she served as Assistant Stage Manager for Carmen Jones. Her non-ETC stage management credits include A Christmas Carol at The Alcazar Theatre in Carpinteria, The Producing Unit’s How to Transcend a Happy Marriage, American Dance & Music’s Up Close at The Dance Hub and SBCC Dance’s Collective Collaborative 2021. Jessica would like to thank her parents for supporting her pursuit of a career in the arts.

ANNA JENSEN (Dramaturg) has a Ph.D. in Theater Studies. She has translated and adapted plays by Henrik Ibsen, including Hedda Gabler and When We Dead Awaken. She has served as production dramaturg for over 25 plays. Some of her favorites include Macbeth and Bad Jews (dir. Jonathan Fox), Good People (dir. Jenny Sullivan) and The Baltimore Waltz (dir. Tom Whitaker). She works as the Director of Isla Vista Arts for UC Santa Barbara.

EDUARDO MARTINEZ (Assistant Stage Manager) is currently a film production student at SBCC with interests in directing and cinematography. His love of theater began in 2021. Over the last year he has worked on Little Shop of Horrors, Harvey and The Play That Goes Wrong. This production marks Eduardo’s first with Ensemble Theatre Company. He looks forward to learning more about theater and hopes to direct a theater production in the future.