Fifth-grader having a wild time on stage
Ojai Valley New, March 30, 2018
In the current production of “Macbeth,” at the Ojai Art Center Theater (OACT), director Michael Addison created a new character — Wild Child — portrayed by Topa Topa School fifth-grader Coree Kotula.
Wild Child is a fourth witch, a witch-in-training, bringing a new element to the play, that runs weekends through April 8.
“Why the Wild Child?” asked Addison. “Evil corrupts, as the play shows. To show a child with the witches suggests that evilis learned, not innate. Or the opposite perhaps? What is a witch, a hag, a child — perhaps anyone, perhaps evil is in us all, brought out by learned example. A Wild Child adds a demonic energy, a terrifying warping of what we were told to believe about children.
“What a treat to work with this gifted young person,” Addison added. “And then to discover that she is as focused as any professional in the cast! Her talent is indisputable — but even more remarkable is the self- discipline she shows in her work in the ensemble.”
Kotula said she is excited to work with such an esteemed director. “This is my first Shakespeare experience and I’m honored to play the Wild Child creeping around the scary witches and all the evil action! I also play Lady McDuff’s son and sadly get killed on stage. We have a wonderful cast. Between Lady Macbeth, Lady Macduff, Fleance and the witches, I have six awesome loving moms. Of course, it’s pretty special that my real mom is with me onstage!”
Her mother, Anna Kotula, most recently seen in “Animal Crackers” as Harpo Marx, is one of the three witches. “It has been an all-time highlight in life to be doing this play with my daughter,” said Anna. “Coree has a wonderful time onstage and backstage. I am always quietly thanking my lucky stars that I get to witness her delight and am in awe of her dedication. We witches get such a kick running the lines in the second act with Coree, because she so eagerly stands in for Mac- beth, reciting all his lines by memory!”
Ojai has been fostering the talent of many young actors for years. Recently actress Emily Hahn, who began on the Art Center stage at age 6, returned during the Ojai Film Festival to debut her newest movie, “Beautifully Broken.”
“Macbeth” is a joint production between OACT and the Ojai Performing Arts Theater.
Ojai Valley New, March 30, 2018
In the current production of “Macbeth,” at the Ojai Art Center Theater (OACT), director Michael Addison created a new character — Wild Child — portrayed by Topa Topa School fifth-grader Coree Kotula.
Wild Child is a fourth witch, a witch-in-training, bringing a new element to the play, that runs weekends through April 8.
“Why the Wild Child?” asked Addison. “Evil corrupts, as the play shows. To show a child with the witches suggests that evilis learned, not innate. Or the opposite perhaps? What is a witch, a hag, a child — perhaps anyone, perhaps evil is in us all, brought out by learned example. A Wild Child adds a demonic energy, a terrifying warping of what we were told to believe about children.
“What a treat to work with this gifted young person,” Addison added. “And then to discover that she is as focused as any professional in the cast! Her talent is indisputable — but even more remarkable is the self- discipline she shows in her work in the ensemble.”
Kotula said she is excited to work with such an esteemed director. “This is my first Shakespeare experience and I’m honored to play the Wild Child creeping around the scary witches and all the evil action! I also play Lady McDuff’s son and sadly get killed on stage. We have a wonderful cast. Between Lady Macbeth, Lady Macduff, Fleance and the witches, I have six awesome loving moms. Of course, it’s pretty special that my real mom is with me onstage!”
Her mother, Anna Kotula, most recently seen in “Animal Crackers” as Harpo Marx, is one of the three witches. “It has been an all-time highlight in life to be doing this play with my daughter,” said Anna. “Coree has a wonderful time onstage and backstage. I am always quietly thanking my lucky stars that I get to witness her delight and am in awe of her dedication. We witches get such a kick running the lines in the second act with Coree, because she so eagerly stands in for Mac- beth, reciting all his lines by memory!”
Ojai has been fostering the talent of many young actors for years. Recently actress Emily Hahn, who began on the Art Center stage at age 6, returned during the Ojai Film Festival to debut her newest movie, “Beautifully Broken.”
“Macbeth” is a joint production between OACT and the Ojai Performing Arts Theater.
Director hopes local artists will make
"Macbeth" scary good
Ojai Valley News, March 16, 2018
When the local production of “Macbeth”opens March 16 at the Ojai Art Center Theater, director Michael Addison hopes hi s efforts to bring together actors, artists, musicians, and others in the creative community will provide a multi-sensory production that exposes the pure core of this classic play — power.
A key visual element, he said, will be the nonlinear set design.
“I did not want it to be immediately representational because I felt that would be limiting,” he explained. “It’s clearly a castle, but also out on the heath, in the field, hither and yond. Therefore, we moved in an abstract direction.” Addison brought together designer Kenny Dahle and fiber artist Carol Shaw-Sutton. Dahle designed a n umber of sets for Ojai Art Center productions, most recently for “Animal Crackers.”
“I had seen Carol’s work early on when she first came to Ojai. I was struck by how she manipulates fabric to create haunting images, some which are purely abstract. Some of Carol’s pieces looked like flayed creatures dried out in the sun. The idea I developed with her and Kenny was to mount these fabrics to suggest walls so that we could have ghosts floating in the air or could be portraits hanging on the wall inside a castle, depending on scene and lighting.
“Another element I wanted was a certain decrepitude. Carol and a number of fabric artists workedas a team, drawing on the rich body of talent we have in Ojai. They’ve created pieces to be like trophies or trees in the forest, whatever Claire Cleary the lighting designer makes them appear to be. Team members are from the Ojai Fiber Collective: Kyle Crowner, Pat Edwards, Mary Mohr, and Wendy Osher.
“In the costume department, happily, I’ve worked with our costume designer, Mary Crane, who has a rich background and strong visual eye. For this production, Mary has strongly reinforced the nature of the various characters through fabric and color choices.”To raise the audience’s sensory experience, Addison added a music al score of percussion created by professional percussionist John Lacques. A wide variety of sounds will make up the aural background for the action and bring another dimension to the total effect of the play. Jaye Hersh is the production’s vocal consultant.
What does Addison hope for from all of this preparation? “I’m hoping we will have a production that will scare the bejesus out of people!”
Opening night will be marked with a celebration after the show with Addison and the cast.
Photo caption: Designers (from left) Ken Dahle and Carol Shaw-Sutton examine a flayed-fiber set piece with director Michael Addison.
Photo by Alexander David Schottky
"Macbeth" scary good
Ojai Valley News, March 16, 2018
When the local production of “Macbeth”opens March 16 at the Ojai Art Center Theater, director Michael Addison hopes hi s efforts to bring together actors, artists, musicians, and others in the creative community will provide a multi-sensory production that exposes the pure core of this classic play — power.
A key visual element, he said, will be the nonlinear set design.
“I did not want it to be immediately representational because I felt that would be limiting,” he explained. “It’s clearly a castle, but also out on the heath, in the field, hither and yond. Therefore, we moved in an abstract direction.” Addison brought together designer Kenny Dahle and fiber artist Carol Shaw-Sutton. Dahle designed a n umber of sets for Ojai Art Center productions, most recently for “Animal Crackers.”
“I had seen Carol’s work early on when she first came to Ojai. I was struck by how she manipulates fabric to create haunting images, some which are purely abstract. Some of Carol’s pieces looked like flayed creatures dried out in the sun. The idea I developed with her and Kenny was to mount these fabrics to suggest walls so that we could have ghosts floating in the air or could be portraits hanging on the wall inside a castle, depending on scene and lighting.
“Another element I wanted was a certain decrepitude. Carol and a number of fabric artists workedas a team, drawing on the rich body of talent we have in Ojai. They’ve created pieces to be like trophies or trees in the forest, whatever Claire Cleary the lighting designer makes them appear to be. Team members are from the Ojai Fiber Collective: Kyle Crowner, Pat Edwards, Mary Mohr, and Wendy Osher.
“In the costume department, happily, I’ve worked with our costume designer, Mary Crane, who has a rich background and strong visual eye. For this production, Mary has strongly reinforced the nature of the various characters through fabric and color choices.”To raise the audience’s sensory experience, Addison added a music al score of percussion created by professional percussionist John Lacques. A wide variety of sounds will make up the aural background for the action and bring another dimension to the total effect of the play. Jaye Hersh is the production’s vocal consultant.
What does Addison hope for from all of this preparation? “I’m hoping we will have a production that will scare the bejesus out of people!”
Opening night will be marked with a celebration after the show with Addison and the cast.
Photo caption: Designers (from left) Ken Dahle and Carol Shaw-Sutton examine a flayed-fiber set piece with director Michael Addison.
Photo by Alexander David Schottky
The British theater lovers sent this great review of our "Macbeth"
A letter the theater received about the production.
Dear Directors and Producers,
I feel compelled to write to you regarding the production, which my wife and I talked about for a good hour post show.
We have been on holiday in Ventura and Santa Barbara area and attended a performance of your Macbeth. We live part time in the States and part time near London and are season ticket holders at The National Theatre, where they are also putting up the same show, which we were in audience for a few weeks ago. I must say, that professional production was straight rubbish and we were so very pleased to have been able to see what your little theatre had to offer.
Your set and lighting design was fantastic, with the live music a great addition. It is not very often that we say that Americans do a better job at speaking the speech, though we were proved wrong with this production; so much of the poetry was clear and understandable (not at all with the recent London experience).
Another surprise was your Malcolm playing on the page, which we learned from a few people during intermission, you had lost an actor the prior weekend due to sudden illness, and we thought the replacement was just superb.
MacDuff was wonderful. The Porter amusing, the Witches very good ( I could hear a voice from the UK), the child was a fantastic choice as well, Banquo engaging (another Brit!), Duncan interesting and on and on. In our not-so-humble opinion, the strongest performance came from Ross, and the scene with Malcolm and Macduff moved my stiff lip to tears. I would think to push her up the line at the bow with the two men, she’s just tremendous. Lady Macbeth had riveting moments and with the sexuality she exuded, countering Macbeth was engaging and believable. Overall, a wonderful show with a great ensemble of players.
We wish to congratulate you on creating a very good piece of theatre, I do hope you are happy and proud of the work that your actors put on. Good luck for the rest of the run and thank you for such an enjoyable evening, from two “Shakespearean Snootys. “
Martin and Eleanor
A letter the theater received about the production.
Dear Directors and Producers,
I feel compelled to write to you regarding the production, which my wife and I talked about for a good hour post show.
We have been on holiday in Ventura and Santa Barbara area and attended a performance of your Macbeth. We live part time in the States and part time near London and are season ticket holders at The National Theatre, where they are also putting up the same show, which we were in audience for a few weeks ago. I must say, that professional production was straight rubbish and we were so very pleased to have been able to see what your little theatre had to offer.
Your set and lighting design was fantastic, with the live music a great addition. It is not very often that we say that Americans do a better job at speaking the speech, though we were proved wrong with this production; so much of the poetry was clear and understandable (not at all with the recent London experience).
Another surprise was your Malcolm playing on the page, which we learned from a few people during intermission, you had lost an actor the prior weekend due to sudden illness, and we thought the replacement was just superb.
MacDuff was wonderful. The Porter amusing, the Witches very good ( I could hear a voice from the UK), the child was a fantastic choice as well, Banquo engaging (another Brit!), Duncan interesting and on and on. In our not-so-humble opinion, the strongest performance came from Ross, and the scene with Malcolm and Macduff moved my stiff lip to tears. I would think to push her up the line at the bow with the two men, she’s just tremendous. Lady Macbeth had riveting moments and with the sexuality she exuded, countering Macbeth was engaging and believable. Overall, a wonderful show with a great ensemble of players.
We wish to congratulate you on creating a very good piece of theatre, I do hope you are happy and proud of the work that your actors put on. Good luck for the rest of the run and thank you for such an enjoyable evening, from two “Shakespearean Snootys. “
Martin and Eleanor
Listen to Michael Addison and Richard Camp discuss Macbeth
production on KZSB, Arts Radio with Elizabeth Stewart.
Photo: Flandricka House Photography
Real-life couple to portray the original power couple
Ojai Valley News, March 9, 2018
One of the most famous dysfunctional couples in theater is brought to life in the latest production of “Mac- beth,” set to open March 16 at the Ojai Art Center Theater (OACT ). Macbeth and his love plot and maneuver into the kingship only to lose it all in the end. In between, comes a voluminous spread of emotions, especially between the Macbeths. Bringing these two characters to the local stage will be the task of real- life couple Jessi May Steven- son and Ron Feltner.
“Lady M is a master manipulator,” said Stevenson. “She astutely uses every tactic to control Macbeth, sexually, emotionally, viscerally. Ron and I have an unfair advantage when it comes to intimacy on the stage. We are so comfortable with each other, there is no awkward transition to make love scenes natural or believable. We can get right to the heart of the characters’ passion by channeling a bit of our own.”
The couple first met when Feltner was acting onstage at the Ojai Art Center Theater. “I was immediately drawn to him and not just for the obvious reason,” said Stevenson, “but his talent really made me stop and take notice. At one point in the play, his character addressed a person in the audience, and that night he directed that line to me. It was like getting struck by lightning. I was living in Los Angeles, so I didn’t see him again for months, but we obviously stayed on each other’s radar, because every time I came to Ojai, poof, there he would be.”
“There was some blatant flirting,” said Feltner, “but it wasn’t until we were cast in ‘Twelfth Night’ at the Ojai Art Center Theater that we became a couple. As Orsino and Viola were falling in love, so were Ron and Jessi. We’ve carried that chemistry on the stage quite a few times now, Eddie and May in ‘Fool for Love’ and Anthony and Rosemary in ‘Outside Mullingar.’”
“Ron and Jessi are the sort of actors I love working with,” noted “Macbeth” director Michael Addision, “talented, hardworking, and very open to my input as we develop scenes. It’s such a pleasure to see two actors dig into their characters and use their skills to reveal what they discover about Macbeth and Lady Macbeth.”
“I have always dreamed of playing Lady Macbeth,” noted Stevenson, “arguably Shakespeare’s most famous and frightening female character. What is most fascinating to me about Lady Macbeth is how far and hard she falls. When we first see her, she is stronger and more ambitious than her husband. She is in complete control. That is what makes her descent into a complete physiological breakdown
so unnerving. Her guilt is as all-consuming as her ambition. Even her feelings are too powerful. She destroys herself.”
A joint production between the Ojai Performing Arts Theater and the OACT, the play runs weekends from March 16 through April 8 at the Ojai Art Center Theater.
Photo by Alexander David Schottky
“Lady M is a master manipulator,” said Stevenson. “She astutely uses every tactic to control Macbeth, sexually, emotionally, viscerally. Ron and I have an unfair advantage when it comes to intimacy on the stage. We are so comfortable with each other, there is no awkward transition to make love scenes natural or believable. We can get right to the heart of the characters’ passion by channeling a bit of our own.”
The couple first met when Feltner was acting onstage at the Ojai Art Center Theater. “I was immediately drawn to him and not just for the obvious reason,” said Stevenson, “but his talent really made me stop and take notice. At one point in the play, his character addressed a person in the audience, and that night he directed that line to me. It was like getting struck by lightning. I was living in Los Angeles, so I didn’t see him again for months, but we obviously stayed on each other’s radar, because every time I came to Ojai, poof, there he would be.”
“There was some blatant flirting,” said Feltner, “but it wasn’t until we were cast in ‘Twelfth Night’ at the Ojai Art Center Theater that we became a couple. As Orsino and Viola were falling in love, so were Ron and Jessi. We’ve carried that chemistry on the stage quite a few times now, Eddie and May in ‘Fool for Love’ and Anthony and Rosemary in ‘Outside Mullingar.’”
“Ron and Jessi are the sort of actors I love working with,” noted “Macbeth” director Michael Addision, “talented, hardworking, and very open to my input as we develop scenes. It’s such a pleasure to see two actors dig into their characters and use their skills to reveal what they discover about Macbeth and Lady Macbeth.”
“I have always dreamed of playing Lady Macbeth,” noted Stevenson, “arguably Shakespeare’s most famous and frightening female character. What is most fascinating to me about Lady Macbeth is how far and hard she falls. When we first see her, she is stronger and more ambitious than her husband. She is in complete control. That is what makes her descent into a complete physiological breakdown
so unnerving. Her guilt is as all-consuming as her ambition. Even her feelings are too powerful. She destroys herself.”
A joint production between the Ojai Performing Arts Theater and the OACT, the play runs weekends from March 16 through April 8 at the Ojai Art Center Theater.
Photo by Alexander David Schottky
Casting for Macbeth announced by director Michael Addison
Ojai Valley News, February 23, 2018
The Bard returns to the Ojai Art Center Theater with Macbeth, a joint production between the theater and the Ojai Performing Arts Theater. Taking the helm is director Michael Addison, a seasoned theatrical professional including a long history of Shakespearean productions, as an actor, director and producer. The play opens March 16 and runs weekends through April 8.
“We live in troubled times,” said Addison. “I wanted to do a production of Shakespeare that would be pertinent to us as a culture. First, I considered Merchant of Venice for the anti-Semitism on the alt-right, in American, Europe and Poland. But I’ve done three different productions of Merchant. I’ve played Macbeth, produced Macbeth but never directed it. As I thought about it the fact that the play is driven by a lust for power and how someone consumed by that lust quickly loses their moral ground, I selected it. I think precisely what we see happening in Macbeth is what is going on in our contemporary society. Thinking of the play in those terms resonates with who and what we are.”
Cast in the leads of Macbeth and Lady Macbeth are Ojai thespian couple Ron Feltner and Jessi May Stevenson. “I’ve seen Ron and Jessi in a number of production, most recently in a little play call Outside Mullingar at the Santa Paula theater. I was stuck by two things; the sense of communion between them on stage, Jessi’s open femininity, sensuality and I was really taken by Ron who showed a side of a character with a whole lot of vulnerability. That combination is what I wanted for Macbeth.”
The play is also interesting because of the psycho-sexual dynamics between Macbeth and Lady Macbeth. In my view, Macbeth is a man who has suppressed his desires for advancement, he’s beneath the salt, but his wife is very much aware of his yearnings and she wants him to be powerful. She goads, guides, seduces him to acting out his barely expressed ideal of murdering the king. I find that a very powerful core within the play.
The full cast for Macbeth is:
MACBETH – Ron Feltner
LADY MACBETH – Jessi May Stevenson
LADY MACDUFF – Jolene Rae Harrington
MACDUFF – Richard Kuhlman
MACDUFF’S SON – Coree Kotula
DUNCAN – Daniel Ruark
MALCOLM – Byron Hays
DONALBAIN – James Baker
BANQUO – Nigel Chisholm
FLEANCE – Taylor Wilson
SEYTON (A PORTER) – Bill Spellman
ROSS – Susan Kelejian
LENNOX – Eric Andersen
THE DOCTOR – Lynn Van Emmerik
A LADY – Susanna Joselyn Johansen
CAPTAIN – Clayton McLannock
SIWARD – John Valenzuela
YOUNG SIWARD – Eric Andersen
WITCHES – Anna Kotula, Denise Heller, Aaliyah Mora-Khan
WILD CHILD -- Coree Kotula
MURDERERS – Leonard Klaif, James Baker, Daniel Ruark
“We live in troubled times,” said Addison. “I wanted to do a production of Shakespeare that would be pertinent to us as a culture. First, I considered Merchant of Venice for the anti-Semitism on the alt-right, in American, Europe and Poland. But I’ve done three different productions of Merchant. I’ve played Macbeth, produced Macbeth but never directed it. As I thought about it the fact that the play is driven by a lust for power and how someone consumed by that lust quickly loses their moral ground, I selected it. I think precisely what we see happening in Macbeth is what is going on in our contemporary society. Thinking of the play in those terms resonates with who and what we are.”
Cast in the leads of Macbeth and Lady Macbeth are Ojai thespian couple Ron Feltner and Jessi May Stevenson. “I’ve seen Ron and Jessi in a number of production, most recently in a little play call Outside Mullingar at the Santa Paula theater. I was stuck by two things; the sense of communion between them on stage, Jessi’s open femininity, sensuality and I was really taken by Ron who showed a side of a character with a whole lot of vulnerability. That combination is what I wanted for Macbeth.”
The play is also interesting because of the psycho-sexual dynamics between Macbeth and Lady Macbeth. In my view, Macbeth is a man who has suppressed his desires for advancement, he’s beneath the salt, but his wife is very much aware of his yearnings and she wants him to be powerful. She goads, guides, seduces him to acting out his barely expressed ideal of murdering the king. I find that a very powerful core within the play.
The full cast for Macbeth is:
MACBETH – Ron Feltner
LADY MACBETH – Jessi May Stevenson
LADY MACDUFF – Jolene Rae Harrington
MACDUFF – Richard Kuhlman
MACDUFF’S SON – Coree Kotula
DUNCAN – Daniel Ruark
MALCOLM – Byron Hays
DONALBAIN – James Baker
BANQUO – Nigel Chisholm
FLEANCE – Taylor Wilson
SEYTON (A PORTER) – Bill Spellman
ROSS – Susan Kelejian
LENNOX – Eric Andersen
THE DOCTOR – Lynn Van Emmerik
A LADY – Susanna Joselyn Johansen
CAPTAIN – Clayton McLannock
SIWARD – John Valenzuela
YOUNG SIWARD – Eric Andersen
WITCHES – Anna Kotula, Denise Heller, Aaliyah Mora-Khan
WILD CHILD -- Coree Kotula
MURDERERS – Leonard Klaif, James Baker, Daniel Ruark