River timms
playwright
River Timms is hopefully better at writing plays than they are at writing bios. They are a Nashville based artist currently working as Woven Theatre’s Resident Playwright and Literary Manager. River’s plays are punctuated with fantasy and influenced by video games and anime as much as they are influenced by Sarah Ruhl and Tony Kushner. Their first full length play ‘Opus’, a modern fantasy tale, was produced by Woven in September 2018. As a queer person, River tends to focus on LGBT characters and the stories they have to tell.
Cast
Jack Tanzi
Noah
Jack Tanzi (Noah) recently graduated from Belmont University with a Bachelor of Arts in Theatre and Drama and he is thrilled to be making his Woven Theatre debut in this exciting, scary, and QUEER new work! Notable credits include: Christopher Robin (The House at Pooh Corner), Quasimodo (The Hunchback of Notre Dame), Flotsam(The Little Mermaid, and Princeton(Avenue Q) Online: www.jacktanzi.comIG: @scoobysnackjack
Fiona Soul
Cynthia
Fiona is an actress and voiceover/radio talent who is grateful for the grace to work in the arts. "Tall Tales" is Fiona's first show with Woven Theatre Company and some of her Tennessee theatre credits include: "Beneatha's Place"/ Verge Theater Company, "Murder at the Masquerade"/The Murder Mystery Company, "Father of the Bride"/Lakewood Theatre Company, "The Piano Lesson"/Circle Players, "Avenue Q"/Street Theatre Company, "Little Shop of Horrors"/Mel O'Drama Theater, and "Marisol"/Actors Bridge Ensemble.
"I appreciate the guidance, patience, and encouragement shared with the vibrant and talented cast and crew of "Tall Tales." I am extremely thankful for the awesome opportunity to work with Woven Theatre Company."
Amos Glass
Dustin
Mr. Glass is thrilled to be back on the stage in this amazing new work by River Timms. He has previously appeared at the Nashville Rep as Penelope Pennywise in URINETOWN THE MUSICAL, Amy in COMPANY, Kate Monster/Lucy in AVENUE Q, Henry Clay in BLOODY BLOODY ANDREW JACKSON, and Mother in A CHRISTMAS STORY. Other local roles include Mary Poppins in MARY POPPINS, Mrs. Wormwood in MATILDA (ATPro); Patsy Cline in ALWAYS… PATSY CLINE, Mrs. Kendal in ELEPHANT MAN, Glinda in WIZARD OF OZ, Miss Lynch in GREASE (Studio Tenn); Abigail in DAUGHTERS OF SALEM, (Nashville Children’s Theatre); The Moll in THE CRADLE WILL ROCK (Nashville Opera); Diana in NEXT TO NORMAL (Boiler Room Theatre). Amos writes and performs with MAS Nashville, and produced his first one-woman cabaret, FUN, in 2018. Offstage he can be found spoiling his pit bull, Eve. Love and gratitude to her friends and family, always and especially to Mister Jack. Enjoy the show, and thank you for supporting live theatre in Nashville!
Josh Inocalla
Jimmy
Josh Inocalla, like his predecessors Clint Eastwood and Chet Baker, was found at a gas station a few days ago. Experts say he was probably there for four or so days before that. You can follow him and the cost of petrol on Instagram @instocalla
Cody Hartman
Micah
Cody Hartman is happy to be in Tall Tales as Micah. He thanks Woven Theatre and of the artists it took to make this show happen. He apologizes in advanced if this show scares you. Love you, smooches. Follow @codytheghartman on Instagram to see more about his improv and theatre.
Sam Kell
The Elder
Sam Kell (The Elder) recently graduated from Lipscomb University with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Theatre and he is so excited to make his debut for Woven Theatre in this spoopy yet important new work. Credits include: Peter (Silent Sky), Judas(Godspell), Tom Davenport (Inherit the Wind), and Leonardo (Bloodwedding). Much love to Lauren his family for their continual support. Get Spooked.
Creative Team/Staff
William Kyle Odum
Director/Sound and Set Designer/Producer/Artistic Council Member
William Kyle Odum is from Harlem, Georgia but now calls Nashville home. He currently works at the Harpeth Hall School as an Assistant Technical Director, IT specialist, and as a Director. Although Kyle has a degree in directing he is also a sound designer, light designer, and set designer has worked with many theatres and schools across the Nashville area including The Nashville Children's Theatre, The Nashville Rep, Studio Tenn, NSF, TSU, Belmont University, Fisk University, Verge Theatre, and Pipe-line Collective. Recent credits include the World Premiere of Opus: The Totally Real Not Made Up Story of a Boy and his Skeleton, TRUTH/DARE and the Pitchforks with Woven Theatre, Smart People and Inherit the Wind with the Nashville Rep, Kimberly Akimbo and The Flick with Verge Theatre and Ghost and Dragons Love Tacos with the Nashville Children's Theatre. Coming up he is providing the sound design for Pipeline and A Streetcar Named Desire at the Nashville Rep. He is also a Co-Founder and an Artistic Council member with Woven Theatre Company and serves as a producer on all productions. Mr. Odum holds a B.F.A. in Theatre Directing and is a member of the Theatrical Sound Designers and Composers Association (TSDCA) and the Association of Sound Designers (ASD). woventheatre.org
Sam Lowry
Video Designer/Fight Choreographer/Producer/Artistic Council member
Sam Lowry is an Atlanta born theatre artist who now calls Nashville home. He holds a B.F.A in Directing from Belmont University. Along the way he has served as a director, designer, actor, dramaturg and stage combat choreographer. He is attracted to powerful, intimate theatre that provokes thought and discourse.
River Timms
Playwright/Co-Sound Designer/Resident Playwright/Literary Manager/New-Works Co-Director
River Timms is hopefully better at writing plays than they are at writing bios. They are a Nashville based artist currently working as Woven Theatre’s Resident Playwright and Literary Manager. River’s plays are punctuated with fantasy and influenced by video games and anime as much as they are influenced by Sarah Ruhl and Tony Kushner. Their first full length play ‘Opus’, a modern fantasy tale, was produced by Woven in September 2018. As a queer person, River tends to focus on LGBT characters and the stories they have to tell.
Erica Jo Llyod
Woven Artistic Council Member/Producer/New Works Co-Director
Erica Jo Lloyd is originally from Cedar Rapids, Iowa where she created theatre with a variety of organizations including Theatre Cedar Rapids, Urban Theater Project of Iowa, Brucemore Classics, and Brucemore Children's Theatre and she founded the Underground New Play Festival which will be producing it's 100th new play in 2019. Now a resident of Nashville, Erica is thrilled to be a part of Nashville Repertory Theatre as the Artistic Associate where she gets to work on the Ingram New Works Project; one of the coolest things of which she's ever gotten to be a part. She holds a BFA in Theatre Directing and Arts Administration from Viterbo University but her true love is playwrighting. Erica is devoted to bringing more roles for women to the stage. She's delighted to join the Woven team.
Elena Spradlin
Stage Manager/Props Master
Elena Spradlin graduated from Austin Peay State University in 2016 with a degree in Acting/Directing. She has lived in East Nashville with her partner, Josh, since 2017, and was last seen in and assistant directed Mr. Burns a post electric play. She will also be in Chaffin's Barn's upcoming production, Ollie's Diner.
Jenysa Erskine
Assistant Stage Manager/Run Crew/Assistant Props Master
Jenysa E. is a current Senior at Middle Tennessee State University and senioritis kicked in 2 years ago. She is finishing her Theatre degree with a focus in Performance and Stage Management. Working with the cast and crew of Tall Tales has been a wonderful experience and she would do it all over again to get a chance to work with such amazing humans! Always know she is the scary thing that goes bump in the night! Let’s get spooky!
Daniel Devault
Lighting Designer
Daniel is a professional theatre artist based in Nashville, TN. He previously designed lights for Woven Theater’s 2018 production of Opus. Some recent lighting designs include Mr. Burns (Verge Theatre Company), Maidens (Tennessee Playwrights Studio), and Sherlock Holmes: The Final Adventure (Chaffin’s Barn Theatre). Daniel has worked throughout middle Tennessee for a variety of companies such as Nashville Repertory Theatre, Cirque Dreams, and Southern Stage Productions. He is on full time Artistic staff as a Stage Manager/Designer/Director at Chaffin’s Barn where his lights can be seen in the current production of The Wedding Singer. Daniel is also the Founding Artistic Director of The Humanity Theatre Project here in Nashville. He holds a B.A. in Theatre Performance and Design from Roanoke College.
Emily Peck
Costume Designer
This is Emily's first show the Woven Theatre Collective. She works at Nashville Repertory Theatre as their Rentals Manager as well as freelancing in costume design and construction. Other credits include Assistant Costume Designer for Nashville Rep's Shakespeare in Love, Costume Designer for Doubt at University of Northern Iowa, and Assistant Costume Designer for Hamlet and Love's Labors Lost at American Shakespeare Center.
Director’s Note
“Whenever I'm asked why Southern writers particularly have a penchant for writing about freaks, I say it is because we are still able to recognize one. I think it is safe to say that while the South is hardly Christ-centered, it is most certainly Christ-haunted. The Southerner, who isn't convinced of it, is very much afraid that he may have been formed in the image and likeness of God. Ghosts can be very fierce and instructive. They cast strange shadows, particularly in our literature. In any case, it is when the freak can be sensed as a figure for our essential displacement that he attains some depth in literature.”
-Flannery O’Connor
Suffocation for those that are deemed ‘other’ is specifically prevalent in the Christ-Haunted South, Tall Tales explores what being othered by your community can do. Each person reacts differently. Some run away, some stay and fight, while others become complacent with the judgment and bile a community can exhibit. Being gay or queer in the Deep South is a wholly unique experience when compared to other places. The Christian church, regardless of the denomination, drips and surges through the ground water here. Being a horror play, our monster is a manifestation of that trauma: the feeling of being hated or condemned or rejected from a part of society in which you thought you belonged. Our monster is being afraid to kiss your boyfriend in public for fear of being beaten. It is wondering which words you’re allowed to use because you don’t know what might ‘out’ you. Tall Tales beautifully handles the nuisances present in these issues while leaving light at the end of the tunnel. At times, it’s funny and lighthearted, and then, in an instant, it turns into a cacophony of horror that settles down into an underlying dread and terror that lingers in the back of your head.
As queer person in the world and particularly a queer person in the South seeing my community take the stage is important. This need for representation has changed over time. In the past we struggled and fought to simply be acknowledged. We fought not for our stories to be told but for the world recognize that we exist. Often this would take the form of the catty gay best friend, or sassy gay. Was it base and derivative? Absolutely, but the acknowledgement was something. As acceptance has grown our need for meaningful representation has also grown. Now we need to be seen as full humans with thoughts and feelings, wants and need, loves and hates.
Partners
Onlyadulttoy.com
Woven Theatre has partnered with Only Adult Toy for Tall Tales. During the month of October a portion of all sales from Only Adult Toy will go to support Woven Theatre. Also they have been generous enough to give 20% off for anyone that mentions Woven Theatre when shopping with Only Adult Toy.
If you liked what you saw please consider donatiing to our indiegogo
Special Thanks
Nashville Rep, The Barbershop Theatre, The Harpeth Hall School, Graham and Nettie, Jan Augusty, Adam Wilsman, Josh Kiev, Stephanie Hamiliton, Dixie Currey, Roobert, The Kids, Claudia Barnett, Tessa Bryant,