We thank our Indiegogo campaign donors

We thank our Indiegogo campaign donors:

Amadores de Salchichas Incorporado (ASI!)

Leonora Bernstein

Astrid Blont van Weeden

Domenico Scarlatti Johansson

Performances at Venue #6: The Theater at the 14^th Street Y

343 East 14^th Street at 1^st Avenue

TUE 8/16 @ 9:30 (FringePLUS show followed by celebration at Durden Bar, 213 East 13^th Street at 2^nd Ave), SAT 8/20 @ 1:45, MON 8/22 @ 6,

While Manfred-son-of-Manfredo and Jethro of Toulouse are almost real, Ibn Sa’id, Al-Mu’tamid, Ibn Ammar, Ibn Kharuf, Ibn Abd Rabbihi, Ibn Quzman, Abu Nuwas, Guillaume de Loris, Dominic, Waldo, Guilhem de Saint Didier and the Troubadours are historical people. The Ordo Predicatorum’s actions in the Albigensian Crusade can be seen as a dress rehearsal for their accomplishments in the Spanish Inquisition. I have learned so much about the refined and cruel actions of humans through reading about Andalusia and its neighbors during this time period. This election year, let’s remember the past.

I am indebted to Arthur John Arberry’s and James Bellamy and Patricia Owen Steiner’s translations of Ibn Sa’id, Sakari’s study on and Modern French translations of Guilhem de Saint Didier, and Jaafar Abu Tarab’s translations of Abu Nuwas. The conflicting theories of Boase, Abu Haydar, Menochal, Stendhal and Nelli have informed this work.

Thanks to DeLisa White, Bricken Sparacino, Kirk Bromley, Ellie Covan and the folks who helped develop this play since 2011.

Gilbert “Lucky” Pearto (Lighting Design) is a resident lighting designer in New York. His credits include working on a multitude of productions such as the Alicia Keys "Black Ball," BET's Christmas Party, and Ariana Grande's performance at the 2015/ 2016 NYC Gay Pride Parade. Upon starting his own company, Luckys Lighting, many more opportunities have arose to provide high-end lighting equipment to smaller productions. Lucky has an affinity for giving his service to shows orchestrated by nonprofits as well as to the rising stars of the theater industry.

Victoria Scott (Waldo, Marquesa de Polonhac, Priest) is thrilled to be a part of this talented ensemble! A graduate of the Neighborhood Playhouse School Of The Theatre, she was recently seen in "This Will Only Hurt For A Minute" with the Nylon Fusion Theatre Company. Before that she appeared in "After Zero" at the Hudson Guild Theatre. Some favorite roles include: Goergeanne in "Five Women Wearing the Same Dress"/ Snow Globe Productions and Ann in "Chasing Pavement"/ The Looking Glass Theater. Last summer she shot the indie film, "Flatbush Luck", which was just released to film festivals. She thanks all of her friends and family for their continued support and encouragement.

Katie Astra Barnhard* (Stage Manager) Broadway: Fish In The Dark; If/Then. Off-Broadway: Magdalen; Stalking the Bogeyman; Atomic: A New Musical; In a Bar of a Tokyo Hotel; How Deep Is the Ocean? (NYMF 2012). Rehearsal Stage Manager for Actors Studio Drama School MFA Rep Seasons. AEA Member and graduate of Hofstra University.

Cast and Crew Bios:

* Denotes Actor or Stage Manager who is a member of Actors Equity Association
Francesco Andolfi (Al-Mu’tamid, Dancer, Marcabru, Renato the Recreant) is an Italian actor who's been living in the city for almost seven years. He came to the States to study acting at the Stella Adler Studio of Acting. Proud to make is New York Fringe debut, he was previously a part of the Roman Fringe Festival with a piece he co-wrote. Aiming to work internationally, he's been pursuing a theatrical career while developing his writing skills. In fact his play DEFENCE had its debut at the Planet Connections Theater Festivity. During the same festival he was Ajax in a revival of Drones, by T.Pennino, for which he got a nomination as best leading actor. He's a member of KIT, which will bring the Mandrake Roots to Vassar College in October. He fondly remembers playing Dorian Gray(The Picture of Dorian Gray), Orestes (Iphigenia in Tavris), and Lear (King Lear).

Whitney Gail Aronson (Graphic Designer) is Associate Artistic Director of August Strindberg Rep, where she has has staged four of Strindberg's plays: "Burnt House," "Dance of Death," a stage reading of "Gustav Adolf," and "Kristina" (1903), the history play upon which the Garbo film "Queen Christina" was based. She holds an MFA in Directing from The New School for Drama.

Tatyana Kot (Choreographer) was born and grew up in the Soviet Union. She trained and performed with a local ballet company in Kazakhstan. Got an MA in History and Archeology in Russia. When it was time to get a "real" job she moved to NYC, where she could continue to dance, act and model.

Recent work: "Body:Anatomies of Being" with Blessed Unrest, "The Chaplin plays" with Nylon Fusion theater company, nomination for the Best Actress for "Flow" with ETdC theater company at Planet Connections theater festivity, just returned from the tour to Japan with K2Dance company.

Tatyana is a breast cancer survivor and advocate.

Kristina Leath-Malin (Web Designer) is a Feminist Horror Scholar & Filmmaker who resides in Brooklyn NY. She has studied writing, video editing, computer animation and design. She has curated 4 mixed media gallery exhibitions including a powerful 9/11 piece direct from her experience as an employee of the towers.(http://productionchick.com/WINDOWS.html) She was also a featured fractal artist in Curate NYC 2015 and Art Takes Times Square. Her short science fiction film “The Fall” placed at the Indie Gathering film festival and currently she is working on her documentary about The Black Women in American Horror – My Final Girl.

Elizabeth Contessa (Assistant Stage Manager) is a design and production student at Temple University’s School of Theater, Film and Media Arts, expected to graduate in fall of 2019. She has worked with various creative teams for productions such as Cherchez La Femme (La MaMa), Blankets and Bedtime: 3 Restless Plays (Planet Connections Theatre Festivity) and The Gig (Main Street Musicals). A newcomer to FringeNYC, she is thrilled to be making her Fringe debut with such an amazing group. She expresses much love and gratitude to her friends and family for their enduring support.

Theo Dage (Dramaturg) marks his New York theatrical debut and a return to theatre after a nearly twenty year hiatus with his participation in this show. A classmate of Janet Bentley’s at the University of South Florida, he worked as an Assistant Stage Manager for An Italian Straw Hat, as well as tech manager for The Public Domain theatre group in Tampa in the 1990’s, and acting in various roles both in college and community theatre. Since leaving theatre, he has been in the medical field, first as a Paramedic and then as a Pediatric ICU nurse; while he loves being a part of saving lives, he still believes that the arts make life worth living.

“The Troubadour Struck by Lightning”

An AEA approved Showcase

Mary Sheridan* (Dominic, Kitchen Wench) is thrilled to be working with Janet, Ed & this amazing team! Her favorite NYC theatres to work at include: The Culture Project, Urban Stages, Theatre Row Theatres & the Bowery Poetry Club. Her past favorite roles include: Alma in Summer and Smoke, Savage in Savage in Limbo, Ophelia in Hamlet & Ann in All My Sons. Mary is also a cabaret artist, has done several short films with J. Boyett (www.jboyett.net) & is a graduate of Yale University. www.marysheridan.net

Timothy Weinert *(Giscard, Guilhem de Saint Didier) is psyched to be working on this hilarious production with such a talented group of individuals! I have been doing theatre in New York City for the past 12 years, I took a couple of years away and this production brought me back. Many thanks go out to my amazing family and friends (who are my family) for their consistent and unwavering support throughout the years – I couldn’t be doing it without you!

Credits include - Alcest ; The Misanthrope, Biloxi Blues; Selridge at The Walnut Street Theatre, Man of La Mancha; Pedro, Jekyl and Hyde; Stride; Bucks County Playhouse. New York Credits include: Witness for the Prosecution; Leonard Vole, Sweet Bird of Youth; Tom Jr.; Sam; The Reckoning; (original production), John Watson; Conversations with a Kleagle; (original production), Hamlet, Rosencrantz & Guildenstern are Dead, Steve Ghent; The Great Divide (Metropolitan Playhouse), Streeter; Thunder Rock (Regroup Theatre). TV and Film include, One Life to Live, As the World Turns, The Fugitive Chronicles as well as independent film work: Tomorrow Comes Today, F**k New York. Tim works as a producer and actor with Who’s on First Films (www.woffilms.com) and is a member of AEA and SAG/AFTRA. www.timweinert.com

Catharism, Bogomilism, Waldensianism – what on earth would 13th century heresies have to do with life today, and why bother talking about them? Well, one man’s heresy is another man’s faith, and faith certainly seems to have a great deal to do with how people behave towards other people, especially when you tie it up with politics – and it always gets tied up with politics. In the 13th through the 15th centuries, when faith mixed with politics, we got the Crusades and the Inquisition; today we get – well, you can see what we get, just read the news. In the 13th through the 15th century, the Islamic world had a celebrated tradition of romantic poetry that included both heterosexual and homosexual romance – there was supposed to be ‘rules’ about it, but nobody really paid much attention to them. The Cathars and the Bogomils believed that the world itself was evil – created by Satan, and that only the soul was intrinsically good, trying to get back to God. The Church wanted ideological and practical purity; and was willing to go to extreme measures to ensure it. The Troubadours just wanted to create a world where everyone was free to love who they wanted; and so the ideal of ‘Courtly Love’ was born – a way for Love to continue in a world where Hate seemed to rule.

Katie Astra Barnhard* (Stage Manager) Broadway: Fish In The Dark; If/Then. Off-Broadway: Magdalen; Stalking the Bogeyman; Atomic: A New Musical; In a Bar of a Tokyo Hotel; How Deep Is the Ocean? (NYMF 2012). Rehearsal Stage Manager for Actors Studio Drama School MFA Rep Seasons. AEA Member and graduate of Hofstra University.

Mary Baynard (Madonna/Harold) - Mary is thrilled to be a part of this hilarious group of artists. She is a graduate of the New Studio on Broadway Musical Theatre program at Tisch School of the Arts, NYU. NYC credits include Britney in Chariot of Fairies (Nylon Fusion), Louise in The Storm (AEA Showcase, Strindberg Rep), Josie in Hot Summer in the City (Nylon Fusion), Female Soloist in Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson (AEA Showcase, Piper Theatre), Mina in Dracula (Theatre 68), Lola in Uncle Giff's Christmas Special (Gene Frankel), Kate in The Wild Party (Tisch), and April in Company (Tisch). Mary has also appeared on national television and in international commercials. Many thanks to Sana at STMG and much love to her family.

Ed Malin’s (Playwright) work has been anthologized in Plays and Playwrights 2015 and performed at Theater for the New City, Nylon Fusion, Samuel French, The Brick, Wide Eyed, New York Madness, Dixon Place, Frigid NY and ManhattanTheatreSource. His play Generic Magic Realism received a 2013 NYITA nomination for Outstanding Solo Performance for Nat Cassidy. Ed's plays are available from www.indietheaternow.com and www.temeritytheatre.org This Fall, Ed is excited to work with New York Madness and Wide Eyed Productions again.

Bryan Cash (Photographer) has been in the field of photography for only a short time. After completing his studies at SVA only just a year and a half ago Bryan has already worked on a variety of collaborations ranging from fashion shows to theatre performances as well as several advertising campaigns. After Only 6 months into the field of photography he was even asked to show his unique style on cityscapes at a Chelsea gallery. Titled "Never (K)New York" the series showcased 15 pieces of city/landscapes photos that most people never knew existed in the 5 boroughs of the greater New York. Bryan is best known for his use of vibrant yet realistic colors as well as his unique backgrounds tailored specifically to each shoot. Bryan is currently working on building his business from the ground up with his soon to be launched website as well as Facebook page. You can currently view his work on Instagram @streetwalkerstudios

Andy Evan Cohen (Music Director) is a 16-year FringeNYC veteran, having participated as FringeNYC podcast coordinator, composer, sound designer, actor, and music director (2001 Excellence Award winner for The City Wears A Slouch Hat.) Andy's many non-FringeNYC credits include sound design for off-Broadway's In Bed With Roy Cohn, I Know What Boys Want, and A Midsummer Night's Dream (MasterWorks); original music for Nylon Fusion's Unmentionables (NYIT Nomination); sound design for Theatre4thePeople's In Vestments (NYIT Award winner for overall production); sound and projection design for Blankets and Bedtime and The Chaplin Plays (Planet Connections award nominees); video design for T. Schreiber's Natural Life (2016 NYIT Nomination); and sound for New Light Theater Project's In The Soundless Awe (2016 NYIT Nomination). Education: Oberlin and The Manhattan School of Music.

Michael Hagins (Ibn Sa’id, The Chief) is the artistic director of C.A.G.E. Theatre Company. He is an award-winning director, playwright and fight director, and recently was nominated for Outstanding Lead Actor for Step1 Theatre's production of Who Am I for Planet Connections Theatre Festivity. Michael is a veteran of FringeNYC, having directed productions of The Girl With Her Hands in the Sand, Two Gentlemen of Verona: A Swashbuckling Comedy!, and A 1940's Comedy of Errors. He also did the critically acclaimed choreography for the productions of Call of the Siren and Everscape. Thank you to everyone reading this for supporting this production and the arts, and please continue to make theatre special!

Hennessy (Medicine Man, Dancer, Ibn Ammar, Cercamon, Gandolfo the Gay) Raised in Hawaii, braised in NYC. Graduate of Marymount Manhattan College & current student of ESPA Primary Stages. Creator of solo-work: How To Pee Standing Up: a story about a boy whose penis never grew in.