Remy Bumppo Announces New Associate Artists

Remy Bumppo Theatre Company is pleased to announce that Mike Durst, Yeaji Kim, Christopher Kriz, Joe Schermoly, and Ellen Willett have been the first to be named Associate Artists of the company. The newly created Associate Artist program honors the work of these talented collaborators and will give them more opportunities to work with the company on future projects.

Remy Bumppo Producing Artistic Director, Nick Sandys, spoke to the excitement at the expansion of the company: "It is doubly exciting for us to welcome these new Associate Artists not only because they have lifted the quality of our productions in the past and hopefully will in the future, but also to bring on board their smarts and their own artistic visions as we look for those future collaborations. We trust their work, their thoughtfulness, and their passion, and Remy Bumppo is all the stronger for their friendship and skills."

ASSOCIATE ARTISTS:

Mike Durst is a Chicago based Lighting Designer and is also an ensemble member with A Red Orchid Theatre. His designs for the 2018 - 2019 season include not only Remy Bumppo's Frankenstein, but also shows with Goodman Theatre, Chicago Sinfonietta, Facility Theatre, Detroit Public Theatre, and A Red Orchid Theatre. Recent work includes designs for The Huntington Theatre, The McCarter Theatre Center, Court Theatre, Detroit Public Theatre, Olney Theatre Center, American Blues, Red Orchid, and others. Off Broadway credits include Primary Stages, 59e59, and Cherry Lane. Mike is a lecturer of Lighting Design at The University of Chicago and a consultant on theatrical renovations including the Gray Center at The University of Chicago and The Circle Theater in Los Angeles. He is twice a recipient of Chicago's Jeff award, L.A.'s Ovation award, and San Diego's Craig Noel award. Mike is a member of IATSE Local #2 and United Scenic Artists 829.

Yeaji Kim is thrilled to join the team of Remy Bumppo's Associate Artist Group. Yeaji is a scenic and projections designer who believes a space is completed by the people who live in it. Born and raised in South Korea, she came to the states in 2012

for her MFA at University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Her works have been

seen in Chicago and New York. Selected Chicago credits include scenic and projection designs for The Skin Of Our Teeth (Remy Bumppo), Great Expectations (Remy Bumppo & Silk Road Rising), Psychonaut Librarians (The New Colony), Wild Boar (Silk Road Rising), Ordinary People (Citadel Theatre) and A Walk in the Woods (The Den Theatre). Yeaji also worked on the operas El Retablo de Maese Pedro (Bard College, NY) as a set designer and assisted Gloria - A Pig Tale (Metropolitan Museum of Art, NY). Her love of combining illustrations and video projections has brought her frequent collaborations with a variety of artists. Yeaji is the recipient of the Michael Merritt Award prize for Best Exhibit Student Designer in 2014, the KCACTF award of Honorable Mention with Scenic Design. yeajikim.wix.com/yeajikim

Christopher Kriz is an award winning composer and theatrical sound designer based in Chicago. Winner of 4 Joseph Jefferson Awards with a total of 18 nominations, Kriz has designed for companies including Goodman Theatre, Steppenwolf, Northlight, Court Theatre, Writers Theatre, Chicago Shakespeare Theatre, Victory Gardens, First Folio, Timeline Theatre and dozens of others. Previous Remy Bumppo designs include: Frankenstein, hang, Born Yesterday, Pygmalion and The Life Of Galileo. Some selected Chicago credits: The Santaland Diaries, The Magic Play, Carlyle (Goodman Theatre), Constellations, Monster (Steppenwolf Theatre), Red Velvet (Chicago Shakespeare), Savior (Chicago Symphony Orchestra), Roz and Ray, Hand To God, The House That Will Not Stand (Victory Gardens Theatre), Mary's Wedding, Silent Sky, Captain Blood (First Folio), Paradise Blue, Sunset Baby (Timeline Theatre), Cosmologies, Pilgrims, A Life Extra Ordinary, Good For Otto (The Gift Theatre) and The Columnist (American Blues Theatre). Some recent regional credits: Roz and Ray (Seattle Repertory Theatre), Sticky Traps (Kansas City Repertory Theatre) and many summer seasons at Peninsula Players. Kriz is a proud member of United Scenic Artists 829.

Joe Schermoly is scenic designer and technical director working throughout Chicago. He has been honored to design for Remy Bumppo in four of the last five seasons, working on Frankenstein, Puff: Believe It or Not, Pirandello's Henry IV, and Travesties. Other Chicago design credits include: Yasmina's Necklace (Goodman Theatre), Constellations (Steppenwolf Theatre), Hand to God, Samsara (Victory Gardens); The Antelope Party, Naperville, The Watson Intelligence, Mr Burns, Seven Homeless Mammoths, Completeness (Theatre Wit); American Idiot (The Hypocrites); Linda, Birdland, Wastwater and Lela & Co. (Steep); Pocatello, Titanic, Spelling Bee, Flare Path, Punk Rock, Port, Constant Wife (Griffin); Stupid f-ing Bird, Idomeneus, The Ugly One (Sideshow); The Seafarer, Lay Me Down Softly (Irish Theatre of Chicago). Joe grew up in Johannesburg, South Africa, finished high school in Kansas City and studied scenic design at Northwestern University. He has received one Equity Jeff Award, two After Dark Awards and five Jeff Nominations for his sets in Chicago. www.joeschermoly.com

Ellen Willett is the Production Manager for Remy Bumppo and is also a Company Member with The Inconvenience, an Artistic Associate with Sideshow Theatre Company, and an Artistic Associate with Steep Theatre Company. She regularly makes theatre and events with the talented folks at Definition Theatre Company, About Face Theatre, Timeline Theatre Company, E.D.G.E. Theatre, the Grant Park Music Festival, and many more. For fun, she plays hockey with the South Side Storm and fosters hound dogs with Houndsong Rescue.

ABOUT REMY BUMPPO THEATRE COMPANY:

Remy Bumppo Theatre Company is an ensemble based theatre company that believes in the power and beauty of language, the emotional effects of timeless ideas, and conversation as an agent of change. As our motto think theatre suggests, the plays we produce will make you think - actively - about the complex issues we face as people, as a community, and as humankind.

Since its inception in 1996, the Company has produced a blend of modern classics, new adaptations, and complex contemporary works, all presented in an intimate setting with clarity, wit and passion. We invite audiences to engage directly with the art through conversation with the artists.

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