THE CARNIVAL

PRODUCTION & STAFF

COLE NeSMITH
Artistic Director & Founder of Creative City Project

HEIDE EVANS
Executive Director

MELYSSA MARSHALL
Executive Producer

ARADHANA TIWARI
Director & Show Creator

JULIAN BOND
Composer & Conductor

HOLLY HARRIS
Choreographer

MEREDITH SIMS
Scriptwriter

SAVANNAH WILSON
Stage Manager

JOLIE SPELMAN
Costume Designer & Constructor

ERIC JACOBSEN
Orlando Philharmonic Orchestra, Music Director

JAMIE ERPENBACH
Orlando Philharmonic Orchestra, Director of Artistic Operations

TYLER MANGUM
Technical Lead

BEN GROSSMAN
Lighting Designer

MICAH VACHA
Audio Engineer

MARK HENRY
Lighting Operator

ORLANDO PHILHARMONIC ORCHESTRA

BASS

DON-MICHAEL HILL
principal

FLUTE

COLLEEN BLAGOV
principal

CLARINET

SEOK HEE JANG
principal

PERCUSSION

MARK GOLDBERG
principal

KEYS

HEATHER LANGS

SUN-A PARK

VIOLIN I

RIMMA BERGERON-LANGLOIS
concertmaster

ANNABELLE GARDINER

SARAH WILLIAMS

VIOLIN II

ALEXANDER STEVENS
principal

VICTOR FERRONI

VIOLA

DOUGLAS PRITCHARD
principal

MELISSA SWEDBERG

CELLO

RONALD GARDINER
principal

ISAAC MOORMAN

A note from the Director…

Welcome to The Carnival! Our approach for this show was to celebrate the spirit of Saint-Saëns’ The Carnival Of The Animals invites an exploration of nature, capacity, and self-actualization. We’ve weaved a narrative centered around the Lion, who hails as ringmaster in this menagerie, leading the audience on a reflective and contemplative journey from the outside in. All in good fun- as Saint-Saëns has certainly found humor to match the splendor of the animal kingdom which we’ve animated with movement, dance, and circus art.

The Carnival Of The Animals was forged in 1886 in France however only performed in private until after the composer’s death in 1921. Saint-Saëns stipulated in his will that he wanted the piece published posthumously. And so it was in 1922 Durand France where it met audiences enraptured with the work. A French paper at the time, Le Figaro, reported:

We cannot describe the cries of admiring joy let loose by an enthusiastic public. In the immense oeuvre of Camille Saint-Saëns, The Carnival of the Animals is certainly one of his magnificent masterpieces. From the first note to the last, it is an uninterrupted outpouring of a spirit of the highest and noblest comedy. In every bar, at every point, there are unexpected and irresistible finds. Themes, whimsical ideas, and instrumentation compete with buffoonery, grace, and science. ... When he likes to joke, the master never forgets that he is the master.

“Carnival” is a tradition of its own that’s taken on a multitude of meanings and forms for centuries all over the world. The word is said to come from the Late Latin expression carne levare, which means “remove meat”; a folk etymology derives it from carne vale, “farewell to meat”. In either case, this signifies the approaching fast of lent. At its heart, it is a public revelry and festive ritual which we have fully embraced.

We hope that you join the merrymaking! Sip on something scrumptious and soak up this collection of carnival creatures we’ve curated for your delight.

CAST

MATT RUSH
(LION & RINGMASTER)

Matt Rush is thrilled to have the opportunity to join this roused and ravenous ensemble and bring this Carnival to life! Previous work highlights include: Nat (The Birds), Trip (Other Dessert Cities), Wade (A Tennessee Walk), Judd (Oklahoma), and Demetrius (Titus Andronicus); however, for the past few years, being a daddy to Lincoln and Anabella has been Matt’s favorite role. Many thanks to Cole, Melyssa, and Aradahna for this opportunity. Love to Lindsay.

Mikaela Chatman
(DANCER)

I’m Mikaela Chatman a Business Major at Seminole State and a dancer at heart. My passion for dance started at the age of 2. At 21 years old I still strive to make dance my career. Always remember “Trust yourself that you can do it and get it.” ― Baz Luhrmann

Michael-Anthony Mitchell (DANCER)

Michael-Anthony is a Florida native and has been involved in the arts since he was in Elementary School. Having an extensive background in both choral ensembles and musical theatre he has performed at the educational and regional levels. Some roles to note are The Wolf in Into The Woods and Harry Bright in Mamma Mia. As of late he has been training and performing at the Inez Patricia School of Dance under Artistic Director Ms. Jere' James who has been integral in shaping not only the artist, but the person he is today. He would like to thank his parents and mentors for allowing him to pursue his passions and showcase his authenticity to the world.

Tristan Barron
(DANCER)

Tristan Barron is a professional guest artist from United Ballet Theatre. He dances classical ballet, as well as contemporary. He has competed at many prestigious ballet competitions such as Helsinki IBC, Jackson USAIBC, YAGP, and ADCIBC. Tristan was born and raised in Georgia, he started his ballet training there at the age of 6.

Natalia Alarcón
(DANCER)

Natalia Alarcón is a dancer, choreographer, and dance educator. As a graduate of Columbia College Chicago, she has performed and collaborated with numerous Chicago and Orlando-based dance artists, including Project Bound Dance, Salty Lark Dance, The Dance COLEctive and Khecari, Voci Dance, and Crystal Edwards among others. In 2020, Natalia co-founded Engram Dance Project with Katrina Anne Soricelli, a project-based dance company that premiered its debut performance, The Unraveling in October of the same year. She is excited to be part of yet another amazing show by Creative City Project!

Noah Royak
(Juggler)

Noah Royak was training to be a fireman in high school, he learned to juggle for fun and fell in love with performing. He tried street performing while in college and all of a sudden entertainment started blowing up. Noah quit college to pursue his dream instead of going the conventional route. He worked at Ferrari world in Abu Dhabi for one year. After that he won a scholarship to a clown master class in Canada where some of the best teachers from around the world taught. That landed him a gig in China, where he worked for six weeks. When he came back from that he got a college agent and started doing the college market, where he won juggler of the year in 2021. This led to his first military tour contract, which is next year in Europe.

Buyankhishig Ganbaatar (Contortionist)

Buyankhishig Ganbaatar were Born and trained in home land Mongolia from the age of 6 at the Mongolian National Circus School to learn contortion. Successfully becoming contortionist at the age of 12 started performing contortion alongside of her sister as Contortion Sisters nationally and internationally for several top companies like Cirque Du Soliel Axel, Cirque Du Soleil 45Degrees Reflekt, SAND, Divas, Vive Nous Divas, Cirque Dreams, Cirque Dreams on Broadway, Good Morning America, Universoul Circus, Cirque Musica Symphony, La Tohu Coups de Coeur, Le Monastere…

Zach miller
(Teeterboard Duo)

WeFlip Entertainment is an acrobatic entertainment company based out of Orlando, FL. We specialize in atmosphere and stage shows in theme parks and special events across the country. You may have seen us performing locally at all of the major theme parks, and special events such as Orlando Fringe and Come Out with Pride. To learn more about our company please visit our website www.wedoflips.com or check us out on TikTok, Instagram, and Facebook! Enjoy the show!

THE CARNIVAL

PRODUCTION & STAFF

ORLANDO PHILHARMONIC ORCHESTRA