100 Drury Lane
Oakbrook Terrace, IL 60181
Box Office: +1 (630) 530-0111
SCOTT WEINSTEIN (Director) is a Multi-Jeff award-winning Director and Writer based in New York City. He’s thrilled to return to Drury Lane Theatre where he previously directed Rock of Ages, Ring of Fire, and James and The Giant Peach. Favorite credits include Something Rotten (Marriott Theatre), Titanic and Ragtime (Griffin Theatre – Jeff Award); Into The Woods (Pittsburgh CLO), Rent (Theo Ubique – Jeff Award), South Pacific (The Rev Theatre), The North American Premiere of David Greig’s Solaris (Griffin Theatre), World Premieres of Kooman and Dimond’s The Break (Constellation Stage) and The Enlightenment of Percival Von Schmaltz (Adirondack Theatre Festival). Scott was the Associate and Resident Director for the Broadway National Tour, Las Vegas and Chicago productions of the hit musical Million Dollar Quartet. He developed and directed the world premiere national tour of Million Dollar Quartet Christmas, which toured for three years, produced by Gigi Pritzker’s Madison Wells Media. Graduate of Northwestern University and proud member of the Stage Directors and Choreographers Society. He is represented by William Morris Endeavor. Upcoming: World Premiere of We Ain’t Ever Gonna Break Up (Phoenix Theatre Company) www.Scottgweinstein.com
E. FAYE BUTLER (Director) Excited to return to Drury Lane last seen in Chicago! as Mama Morton for which she received the Jeff Award. Supporting Actress Musical. Her career spans over 40 years performing and directing both musicals and plays nationally, internationally. After years of standing in front of the footlights she now enjoys passing forward all the pearls of wisdom given to her during her fruitful acting career. Directing credits include: One Mo’ Time Anacostia Playhouse, Marie and Rosetta Northlight Theatre which will transfer to Milwaukee Rep. (Fall 24’), The Wiz Fulton Theatre, The Color Purple Maine State Music Theatre, (Best Direction) BroadwayWorld, and Vickie Award, Goods Artemisia Theatre (nomination Best Direction Stream) BroadwayWorld, Ain’t Misbehavin Portland Stage, Beyond The Door Tender Touch productions (Fall24’), Ain’t Misbehavin Michigan Ensemble Theatre, Five Guys Named Moe Beverly Arts Center. E. Faye cultivates new works and directs solo performances, cabarets, staged readings. Recipient of nine Jeff, two Helen Hayes, Barrymore, After Dark, three Black Theatre Alliance, Ovation, R.A.M.I., Sarah Siddons, Excellence in Arts, Kathy, Rosetta LeNoire, Guy Atkins, Heller & Hover, two Black Excellence, E.P.I.C. awards. Accommodations Lunt-Fontanne Fellow, inducted into Women in The Arts Museum in Washington D.C., RPS Fine Arts Hall of Fine, Chicagoan of the Year, NewCity Stage Player. For upcoming projects www.e-fayebutler.com
KASEY ALFONSO (Choreographer) is thrilled to join the creative team of Little Mermaid! A performer, choreographer, and educator, her choreography has been seen at Paramount Theatre, Teatro Vista, Northwestern University, University of Illinois Chicago, University of Chicago, Griffin Theatre, Firebrand Theatre, Kokandy Productions, Grelley Duvall, Willow Pill, and The Fly Honeys. UPCOMING : TITANIQUE (Broadway Playhouse, April 2025), CATS (Paramount Theatre, May 2025). Kasey produces a class series called Move | ICONIC, teaching choreography from iconic videos (IG: @kase_face89). Love to Max, Banksy, + Gobi.
ELLIE KAHN (Music Director) Drury Lane Debut, truly an honor. CHICAGO: Buddy: The Buddy Holly Story (Marriott Theatre, Vi Petty/Keys 1), Fun Home (Paramount Theatre, Assoc Cond), Never Better (world premiere, Theo Ubique, MD/Conductor/Mom), Brighter Futures (Paramount Theatre TYA, Music Director); Selected REGIONAL: Run Bambi Run (Milwaukee Rep, Assoc. MD, woodwinds), Just Between the All Of Us (Bloominton IN, NYC, dir. Scott Weinstein). Ellie is a music director, vocalist, keyboardist, coach, improv MD, and Emmy-winning composer alongside angel collaborator, Denise Manning. Member of the music team for SiX (US+int’l) and MD for the Pride band, Too Much Molly Band. @elliekahn_ #FreePalestine
TIJANA BJELAJAC (Scenic Design) is thrilled to make her DruryLane debut with Disney’s The Little Mermaid! Selected set design credits include: Fiddler on the Roof at The MUNY, Cabaret at The Old Globe and Asolo Rep, Dracula A Comedy of Terrors at New World Stages, off Broadway NYC and The Old Globe, The Threepenny Opera, Marvell Rep, off Broadway, NYC, Trafficked at 45.Bleecker st. NYC, Beauty and The Beast at Teatro Colsubsidio, Misi Productions, Colombia, Othello Actors’ Shakespeare Project, Living in the Exile at La Mama, NYC,The Producers at MTH Kansas City… Associate designer: The Magic Flute at Opera Australia, The Egyptian Helen at Teatro alla Scala, Curse of the starving class, Signature theater NYC, Little Shop of Horrors, Westside Theater, NYC…Upcoming production _ Disney’s Frozen at Maltz Jupiter Theater, FL.
Tijana is the recipient of the prestigious Khan Award for extraordinary talents and several nominations and awards for outstanding set designs. website_ teeyana.com, instagram_ @tijanabjelajac
RYAN PARK (Co-Costume Design) Drury Lane: Beauty and the Beast (Jeff nom) Evita (Jeff nom) Paramount: Kinky Boots (Jeff Award) Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (Jeff nom) Children of Eden (MCP, Lincoln Center) Alien/Nation (Williamstown) LatinXoxo (The Public) Dial M for Murder (Old Globe) English with an Accent (Lincoln Center) Operas at The Chicago Lyric, Cincinnati Opera, Juilliard, Curtis Institute, Houston Grand Opera, & Pacific Symphony. Carnegie Mellon Drama Alumnus. USA829 RyanParkDesign.com
ZHANG YU (Co-Costume Design) is a costume designer with extensive experience in theater, opera, musicals, dance, and traditional Chinese opera. In his diverse practice, he blends intercultural elements and interdisciplinary techniques, pushing the boundaries in both art and theater. His accolades include the OPERA America Robert L. B. Tobin Director-Designer Prize for his design of Strauss’ Salome and the 2022 USITT Zelma H. Weisfeld Costume Design & Technology Award. Zhang Yu holds an MFA in Costume Design from Carnegie Mellon University.
RYAN O’GARA (Lighting Design) Broadway- Thoughts of a Colored Man. US Tour- The Wiz, On Your Feet, Million Dollar Quartet, A Night with Janis Joplin, Blippi, Vocalocity, The Walking Dead Experience, The Little Prince. Cirque Du Soleil’s Paramour in Germany. NY- Sanctuary, Tail! Spin!, Useless, Lady Day, The Mysterious Hat, Brazil Brazil, Knuckle Heads Zoo and Black Violin, Pinkolandia, Straight to Hell plus various designs for The Sonnet Repertory Company, Lincoln Center Festival, NYU/Playwrights Horizons and Westbeth Theatre Center. O’Gara is a graduate of the School of Design and Production from the University of North Carolina School of the Arts.
TONY CHURCHILL (Projection Design) is very excited to be back at Drury Lane Theatre, working with Scott Weinstein! He has also worked with Death Becomes Her, Marriott Theatre, Paramount Theatre, FeverUp Productions, Timeline Theatre, Chicago Opera Theatre, Chicago Shakespeare Theatre, Grand Rapids Civic Theatre, the U.S. State Department, Rivendell Theatre, The Cher Show, Q Brothers, and the Museum of Broadcast Communications. He is a proud member of USA 829. Tony has been nominated for nine Jeff Awards for Projections, and awarded one. When not working on media, he enjoys sculpting tiny astronauts in peril, and exploring with his beautiful wife Sara, son Arlo, and rescue pitbulls Cheetoh and Douglass. www.artlabchicago.com
LINDSAY JONES (Sound Design) Broadway: Slave Play (Tony nominations for Best Original Score, Best Sound Design of a Play), The Nap, Bronx Bombers, A Time to Kill. Off Broadway: Privacy (Public Theater), Bootycandy (Playwrights Horizons), Feeding the Dragon (Primary Stages), many others. Regional: Guthrie, Center Stage, ACT, Hartford Stage, Alliance, Goodman, Arena Stage, Chicago Shakespeare, Steppenwolf, many others. International: Stratford Festival (Canada), Royal Shakespeare Company (England), many others. Audio dramas: Marvel, Audible, Next Chapter Podcasts, award-winning “The Imagine Neighborhood.” Film/television scoring: HBO Films’s A Note of Triumph (2006 Academy Award for Best Documentary, Short Subject). Other: Co-Chair of Theatrical Sound Designers and Composers Association (TSDCA). lindsayjones.com.
CASSY SCHILLO (Properties Designer) is thrilled to be with the Drury Lane family and honored to be a recipient of the 2019 Jeff award in Artistic Specialization for Properties design. Drury Lane credits include Fiddler on the Roof, Cinderella, Ring of Fire, The 39 Steps, Grease, A Chorus Line, Elf the Musical, Murder on the Orient Express, Steel Magnolias, R&H The King and I, Evita, Holiday Inn, Forever Plaid, An American in Paris, Mary Poppins, The Color Purple, And Then There Were None, Matilda, Mamma Mia!, Disney’s Beauty and the Beast, Little Shop, Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, South Pacific, Joseph…, 42nd Street, Rock of Ages, The Gin Game, Chicago, Saturday Night Fever, Crazy for You, & Smokey Joe’s Cafe. Jeff Nominated for DL’s Deathtrap as well as First Folio’s Salvage and All Childish Things. Designs in the Midwest include: productions for Marriott Lincolnshire, Theatre Wit, Theatre at the Center, Music Theater Works, Theo Ubique, Griffin, BoHo, Stage Left, Porchlight, Northwestern Opera, Piccolo, Sideshow, Black Ensemble, and Mammals. BFA from University of Wisconsin-Whitewater and training at Tisch School of the Arts. Founding member of To the Point, a theatrical combat troupe that specializes in sword fighting & storytelling. Gratitude and love to Rodion and my family for their eternal support.
TOMMY KURZMAN (Wig & Hair Designer) Drury Lane Debut! Chicago: Judgement Day (CST). Broadway: Uncle Vanya, I Need That, Gutenberg: The Musical!, The Cottage, Peter Pan Goes Wrong, Pictures From Home, The Collaboration, Macbeth, Mrs. Doubtfire, All My Sons, True West, St. Joan, My Fair Lady, Little Foxes, Long Day’s Journey, Bright Star, The King and I and Fiddler on the Roof. Off-Broadway: Little Shop of Horrors (Westside Theatre), Titaniqué, Roundabout, MCC, The Atlantic, The New Group, The Public, Manhattan Theatre Club, New World Stages. Regional: The MUNY, Goodspeed Musicals, The Huntington, Geva Theatre, Arena Stage, MSM. Instagram: @TommyKurzmanWigs
AMBER WUTTKE (Makeup Designer): is delighted to be on the design team of a Disney favorite! Since 2011, her work has been seen on the Drury Lane stage, as supervisor of hair, wigs, and makeup. Past designs include: Beauty and the Beast, A Christmas Carol, James and the Giant Peach, and Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat. Proud UW-Stevens Point B.A. graduate (’10). Continued love and gratitude to her parents, who have supported her love of theatre and Disney from the beginning.
MATTEA MUENCH (Assistant Director) is an interdisciplinary artist and scholar who recently received her BA in Communication from Northwestern University. Mattea’s experience includes working as the Education and Engagement Director of NU’s Imagine U program, the Equity Administrator of WAVE Productions, and as an undergraduate researcher on representation and accessibility in theater for young audiences. Notable credits include the dramaturgy for Sketchbook Theatre’s Romeo and Juliet, the seven new works featured at Chicago Dramatists 10-Minute Play Festival, and NU’s production of Spring Awakening.
MICHAEL LUNDER (Assistant Choreographer) This is Michael’s first time at Drury Lane, as well as his first credit as associate choreographer since moving to the Chicagoland area, and he is so excited about both! Special thanks to Kasey Alfonso for inviting him in, and to the entire cast and team here for letting him be part of your world!
RITA VREELAND (Production Stage Manager) is delighted to return to Drury Lane where she previously stage managed A Christmas Carol. Other favorite recent projects include Ernest Shackleton Loves Me at Porchlight Music Theatre, The Luckiest and Prodigal Daughter at the Raven Theatre, three years of The Polar Express Train Ride, and productions at Mercury Theatre, Victory Gardens, Route 66 Theatre Company, Theatre at the Center, Northlight Theatre in Skokie, and The Galway International Arts festival in Galway, Ireland. She is the proud wife of actor Tom Hickey and mom to eleven-year-old Charlie, and this year she celebrated her 23rd anniversary as a member of Actors’ Equity Association. Thank you for supporting live theatre!
CASIE MORREL (Assistant Stage Manager)
CAITLIN McLEOD (Chicago Puppet Studio; Co-Puppet Designer) is a costume, scenic, and puppet designer. Recent design credits include: Lavender Men (About Face); Blues for an Alabama Sky (Virginia Stage Co); What the Constitution Means to Me (Copley Theatre, Aurora); The Dream King (Teatro Vista); The Very Hungry Caterpillar Show (Chicago Children’s); Trouble in Mind (Timeline); Get out Alive (Haven); The Seagull (Steppenwolf); Sea Change (Cabinet of Curiosity); Exquisite Corpse (Rough House); Stick Fly (Writers Theatre). Craftwork credits include The Goodman, The Kennedy Center, Lookingglass, and Northlight. Caitlin is a co-curator of NBS: Chicago’s Puppet Slam, company member of Rough House, and project manager of the Chicago Puppet Studio. Instagram @CaitlinMcLeodDesign
ZACHARY SUN (Chicago Puppet Studio; Co-Puppet Designer) is a Chinese born – Chicago based interdisciplinary artist who makes puppet performance, installation, writing, and film/animation. Most recently he has created many puppets with the Chicago Puppet Studio in his role as the Studio Coordinator with The Metropolitan Opera, NYC; Out of the Box Theatrics – Off Broadway, NYC; The Goodman; Lookingglass Theatre Company; Whitesnake Productions, Boston. Zachary’s personal work has been presented at Chicago Bulls Halftime Show, Governors Island, Zhou B Art Center, Links Hall, China International Exhibition Center, Power Station of Art, Shanghai Ming Contemporary Museum, Hangzhou Drama Festival (Best in Show Award), Wuzhen Theater Festival. Instagram: @zzzzacharyyyy
TOM LEE (Chicago Puppet Studio; Co-Puppet Designer) is a puppet artist, designer and director based in Chicago. Born in Hawai’i he studied traditional puppetry in Japan. He is a student of Japanese master puppeteer Koryū Nishikawa V with whom he created Shank’s Mare (2015) and Akutagawa (2023-24). His original work has toured the U.S., Japan, France, Bulgaria and Indonesia. Mr. Lee’s puppetry performances include War Horse (Broadway), Florencia en el Amazonas & Madama Butterfly (Metropolitan Opera) and The Queen of Spades (Lyric Opera Chicago). He is the recipient of multiple Jim Henson Foundation grant awards for his original puppetry work and is co-director of the Chicago Puppet Studio and Chicago Puppet Lab. www.tomleeprojects.com