CAST

Ed Gaines (Old Tom Johnson) Best known for his performances in T J Hemphill’s stage plays Perilous Times, Colored Pulpits and Sweet Tea, Gaines has wowed audiences for years.  Ed is featured in the People’s Choice Award winning movie Chasing After You, Break and Run, It’s Not Yours and the new release Shaded Dreams.

Jakari Carson (Young Tom Johnson), a Mona Shores High School grad, is a theater major at Chicago’s Columbia. where he recently starred in Sundays In The Park With George. Jakari would like to thank his family, his beautiful girlfriend and friends for their unending love and support. 1 Corinthians 10:31. Instagram @jakari.Carson

Melanie Lamrock (Sarah van Praag), a student at Central Michigan University. has been featured in The Diary of Anne Frank, Cabaret, Spring Awakening, Animal Farm and Shrek. Melanie is excited to bring her love for acting back home to Muskegon where she studied acting at Muskegon Community College and taught student acting classes after graduating from Reeths Puffer High School.

Diane VanWesep (Pim de Wit) performs frequently on West Michigan stages in a wide variety of shows, most recently in Clue and Moon Over Buffalo. She has appeared in the feature films Coming Up For Air, Pilot Error and Living With the Fosters.

Adam Bell (Dickie Druyf) is the founder and facilitator of The Actors’ Workshop of West Michigan and has been an actor, director, and producer for over 40 years. Adam studied acting and directing with Ed Claudio of The Actor’s Workshop of Sacramento and spent five years immersed in Shakespearean techniques with Jack Lynn. Adam has been part of the West Michigan theatre scene since 1997. He has appeared in productions with Jewish Theatre Grand Rapids, Heritage Theatre, Grand Rapids Civic, Muskegon Civic and Central Park Players. He was most recently featured in MCT’s production of “Anne and Emmett”.

Shelley Irwin (Renate/ Jeanette Braden) Shelley Irwin is the Host and Producer for The WGVU Morning Show, a newsmagazine talk-show format on the West Michigan NPR affiliate and hosts several public affairs TV programs. Shelley has won five consecutive Gracie Allen Awards from American Women in TV and Radio.  On stage, she's joined Circle Theatre productions of The Gin Game and Spoon River Anthologies. She joined Grand Rapids Civic Theatre in the Diary of Anne Frank and appeared in Jewish Theatre of Grand Rapids' Chanukah Shorts! North Carolina credits include Brighton Beach Memoirs, Murder on the Nile and several production roles. Film Credits include Buffalo: The Movie, Coming Up for Air, and Pilot Error. Irwin was named as one of the 200 Most Powerful Business Leaders in West Michigan by the Grand Rapids Business Journal and has been named one of the most 50 Most Influential Women in West Michigan by Gemini Publications. She has represented the U.S. in Long Distance Triathlon and Duathlon World Championships.

Sahara Glasener Boles (Annmarie Dekker) Direct from her acclaimed Chicago performance in Harold Pinter’s The Birthday Party (Lulu). Sahara teaches at Special Gifts Theatre and also performs with her Band, Routine Faces. She has sung with the Tri-Cites Opera in New York, the Cleveland Opera on Tour and the Lyric Opera Chicago.

Cherry Sparks (Ella Mostert) Cherry Sparks, a well known entrepreneur and actress in the Metro Detroit area and former Miss Detroit and Miss King Cobra (for Anheuser-Busch), Cherry has modeled for various companies in print and graced the cover of several hair magazines. She has worked with the Detroit Repertoire Theater, 2nd City, and The Actor's Workshop.  Her interest and commitment to developing her craft has helped her land roles in movies and theater on both local and national stages.  Cherry currently mixes her passion for volunteering and acting by directing teen plays for the non-profit organization, “Teen Hype”.  Cherry is firmly grounded in spiritually and has proven herself as a strong humanitarian who does not hesitate to share her love of  life with others, especially challenged youth. Her ultimate advocacy goal is to help change lives by empowering people to believe in their self-worth. 

Roosevelt Johnson (Anton Smits/Detective) Detroit Repertory Theater veteran,Roosevelt Johnson is known his performances in Listen to the Silence (2021), Gang of Roses (2003) and Diamond Girls (2022). He recently appeared in the Detroit production of Perilous Times...

Brandon Davis (Brooks Johnson) is a graduate of Wayne State University Law School and Central Michigan University and veteran actor. He serves on the board of Muskegon Civic Theater where he is a member of the diversity committee. He is Director of Oversight and Public Accountability for The City of Grand Rapids. A former Prosecuting Attorney in Wayne and Muskegon Counties, he previously led Muskegon County’s Social Justice Diversion Program.

Robin Erdman (Nurse/Stenographer) Robin Erdman has appeared on a number of West Michigan stages. Her favorite roles include The Bird Woman/Mary Poppins, Sonia/Vanya,Sonia, Masha and Spike and M'Lynn/ Steel Magnolias. She is a graduate of University of Michigan-Flint.

Cequoia Davis (Nora Panco) played Vi Moore in Footlose, several roles in Puffs, Vara in She Kills Monsters and Matron Nurse in James and the Giant Peach. A Mona Shores High School grad, she attends Muskegon Community College where she recently played Mimi Marquez in RENT.

Arn Boezart (The Mayor) makes his stage debut in Old Heart. A native of Rotterdam, he emigrated to Grand Rapids with his family in 1955. He served as Executive Director of the Grand Valley State University Michigan Alternative Energy Research Center in Muskegon from 2009 to 2014. His 50 years of public and community service includes careers in state government and the private philanthropic sector.

Da’Kiya Covington (Christine Panco) has appeared in the Muskegon CIvic Theater productions of Disenchanted (The Princess Who Kissed The Frog) and The Old settler (Lou Bessie Preston) and A Christmas Carol (Belle) and Actors Theater in Grand Rapids productions of The Wolves and A Lovely Day.

Alex Bernhardt (Farmer/Policeman) An eccentric character in the West Michigan film and theater community, Alex is currently enrolled in the Television and Digital Media program at Ferris State University. He has acted in stage productions such as Guys and Dolls, Kiss Me Kate, Footloose, Bah Humbug and How I Became A Pirate. His film credits include both cast and crew positions on Coming Up For Air, Pilot Error, Noirmageddon: A Mark Anvil Thriller, The Place They Go To Die and Streetwalker.

Jeffrey Holmes (Hendrik) has appeared in the films Lost & Found in Cleveland and Akhil@ Barney Win The Lottery. He studied acting at Muskegon Community College.

Zion Nelson (Daniel Pecora/Ticket Taker) is studying theatre at Concordia College in Mequon, Wisconsin where he has appeared in Swiss Family Robinson, the Little Mermaid, Medea and The Glass Menagerie.

Robert Cicchini (Captain VanderArk) is an actor, director, and acting professor who lives in Los Angeles. He has amassed over 100 credits in Film (Godfather III, Light Sleeper), Television, (Six Feet Under) and the Theater as both an actor and director. Old Heart is his fourth professional collaboration with producer Roger Rapoport. He directed the award winning 2019 feature film Coming Up for Air, acted in the 2015 film Pilot Error, and directed and starred in the 2012 feature film Waterwalk.

Shannon Huneryager (Meg) Shannon is a singer, music theater artist, teaching artist, and songwriter. Currently residing in Chicago, she performs at venues across the country with a goal of working in all 50.  Favorite roles include Emma Goldman in Ragtime at SSMT, Sonia in Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike at HSRT, and Clara Gordon in Paradise Lost with The Agency Theater.  She is also a soloist with various churches around Chicago. A passionate teaching artist and alumna actor/teacher with the Missoula Children’s Theatre, Shannon currently teaches at the Old Town School of Folk Music. She has adapted four musicals for youth theater and has also written two play adaptations for young audiences. She has a BA from Butler University and an MM in vocal performance from the University of Massachusetts.  She is also an alumna of Columbia College’s Teaching Artist Development Cohort of 2015.

Marty Ferriby (Julia Johnson) directed the Hackley Public Library from 1994 to 2018. A graduate of the University of Michigan she previously directed libraries in Lapeer, West Branch, Pewamo/Westphalia, and Mt. Pleasant as well as the Woodlands Library Cooperative. In 2011 she received national honors in the Carnegie Foundation/New York Times I Love My Librarian competition hosted by Caroline Kennedy.

Producers, Cast and Crew Overbrook Theater

PRODUCERS

Producer: Roger Rapoport

Executive Producers: Mike & Theresa Bernhardt, Katherine Gietzen, F. Martin and Dorothy A. Johnson Family Fund, Ann and Craig Kufta, Arthur J Levy.

Associate Producers: The Urban League of West Michigan, The Jewish Federation of Grand Rapids, Gary Nelund /State Farm Insurance, Muskegon Area District Library, Bill Carlston and Matt Johnson/Nexes Realty, Orville and Susan Cloutier Crain Fund, Pat and Paul Ladas, Richard and Marilyn Witham Fund

Assistant Producers: Nancy and Don Crandell, Chris McGuigan and Gary Neal, Fisher Family Fund, Donna and Scott Lachniet, Bill and Kenna Loxterman, Massie Family Foundation, Marvin and Connie Nash, West Michigan Dock and Market Corp.

PRODUCTION TEAM

Kirk Wahamaki (Director) is presently the Artistic Director of the Muskegon Civic Theatre.  In his storied career, he has directed and produced hundreds of plays and other performances for theaters including the Frauenthal Center for the Arts in Muskegon, the Dogwood Center for the Performing Arts in Fremont, MI, as well as theaters across Indiana.

Lesley Witt (Co-Director)
Stage Manager for Old Heart’s world premiere, Lesley was a production designer for the film Coming Up For Air. A veteran stage manager at Muskegon Civic Theater, she also directs at theaters around the Lakeshore.

Roger Rapoport (playwright) is the producer of three award winning feature films, Waterwalk, Pilot Error and Coming Up For Air.  His books including Angle of Attack and Grounded with Captain Shem Malmquist, Citizen Moore and Hillsdale: Greek Tragedy in the American Heartland.  His articles appear in the Los Angeles Times, the San Francisco Chronicle, the Miami Herald, Stat News, Wired, the Detroit Free Press and Nu? Detroit. A Detroit native he returned to Michigan from California in 2004 and lives in Muskegon with his wife Marty Ferriby. She introduced him to Peter Ferry’s Old Heart after a customer at the Hackley Public Library  she directed wanted to know why this novel was not in the collection. She read it, loved it and now Old Heart is on stage at the Redford. Thank you Marty.

Peter Ferry (author of the Novel Old Heart). Peter’s stories have appeared in McSweeney's, OR, Fiction, Chicago Quarterly Review,  StoryQuarterly, HyperText and Catamaran. He is a winner of an Illinois Arts Council Award for Short Fiction and a longtime contributor to the travel pages of The Chicago Tribune.  He has also written two novels, Travel Writing and Old Heart, which won the Chicago Writers Association Novel of the Year award in 2015.  His short story Ike, Sharon and Me appeared in The Best American Mystery Stories 2017. He lives in Indianapolis and Van Buren County, Michigan with his wife Carolyn. 

Tyler Joslin (Cinematographer, Editor)  has not seen Hamilton, has yet to finish the movie Rent after seven failed attempts, thinks the recent filming of Cats was decent, and saw The Count of Monte Cristo, Anything Goes, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, and Chicago all in the same day at the Stratford Festival in 2004. A couple years later he almost finished a Bachelor's degree in Video Game Design at Ferris University. Inevitably failing as a comedy writer, Tyler can fall back on his 17 years of video production experience working on everything from home movies to television and feature film productions. 

David Darling (cinematographer) After graduating from Grand Valley State University with a degree in Photography & Television Production, David launched his career at a local NBC affiliate in Grand Rapids, MI. Within a few years he moved to Santa Cruz, CA to work as Director of Photography for a weekly television program. After a year in sunny California, David returned to Michigan to head the camera crew for Fubble Entertainment’s Emmy Award winning series, “Come On Over”. He continued to collaborate with Fubble Entertainment for many years where he served as DP, cinematographer and editor.
In 1999 David founded his own production company, D Squared Creative, where he continues to work on a variety of commercial and creative projects. These include music videos, live events, as well as documentary and feature films. Most recently David has played an integral role in the production of the docuseries “Destination Live Music”.

Garth Neustadter (Composer) is an Emmy Award-Winning composer and multi-instrumentalist. He has composed feature-length scores for Warner Bros., PBS, Turner Classic Movies, and China's CCTV. His works have been heard in diverse venues ranging from Lincoln Center to Los Angeles' Nokia Theater, and he has collaborated with directors including James Franco ("TAR," starring Mila Kunis, Jessica Chastain, and Zach Braff). Most recently, his work has been selected to be performed in upcoming seasons by Grammy Award-winning violinist, Hilary Hahn, as part of the Encores Contest. His "lyrical scores" have been praised by The Hollywood Reporter, while The Baltimore Sun says of his music, "The guy is a natural, as his soaring theme makes plain." In 2011, Neustadter became one of the youngest composers to receive a Primetime Emmy Award for his score for the PBS 'American Masters' documentary, "John Muir in the New World." Garth Neustadter gained early attention when he was selected by Hans Zimmer as the First Prize winner of the Turner Classic Movies Film Composers Competition. His achievements have been profiled in USA Today, The Baltimore Sun, The Hollywood Reporter, Variety, Film Music Magazine, DownBeat Magazine and on NPR. He has received multiple awards from ASCAP, including the Morton Gould Award, Jazz Composers Award, and ASCAP fellowship for Film Scoring Studies at Aspen. Most recently, he is a recipient of the prestigious Rappaport Prize for Music Composition. Neustadter is a graduate of the Yale School of Music, where he studied on full scholarship. He also holds degrees in violin and voice performance from Lawrence University. An active performer, his solo appearances span collaborations with Miss America to performances with the Los Angeles Opera Chorus..   

Gene Gamache (Trailer Editor) graduated from the University of Iowa with a BA in film production in 1986.  He then moved to Hollywood to pursue a career in Motion Pictures.  After arriving in L.A., he landed a job at a top motion picture advertising agency and began editing movie trailers.  Over the last 25 years, Gene has worked on campaigns for such movies as Men in Black, Ghost,  Braveheart, Forrest Gump, The Rock, Jurassic Park 3, Marley and Me, The Descendants and Shame.  He has won seven Key Art Awards from the Hollywood Reporters annual competition for motion picture advertising. In 2001, Gene created a production company, Repertoire Films, and produced, directed and edited the award winning documentary film “Houdini”. Gene enlisted the talents of a college friend and writer, Kirk G. Carter to complete the film.  Following the success of “Houdini” Gene and Kirk produced and directed the documentary film “A Circus Life”. After finishing the documentary film “Houdini”, Gene became a magician member of the prestigious Magic Castle in Hollywood California.  Over the last 15 years, Gene has been invited as an inner circle guest at the Official Houdini Séance held annually on October 31st — the anniversary of Houdini’s death.

Bas Blokker (Dialect Coach) is the American correspondent for NRC Media, Holland’s leading newspaper.

Amelia Schmitz (Social Media Marketing) is an actor currently based in Evansville, Indiana. She has her Bachelors in Performing Arts from the University of Southern Indiana and has worked on dozens of stage productions, many independent films, and has had a professional performance contract with RWS Entertainment Company. Amelia is well experienced in verse and heightened language and has had the opportunity to play Helena in A Midsummer Night's Dream and Viola in Twelfth Night. She has years of experience working theatrically with children and regularly performs as various princesses and TV characters for large events. Amelia is an animated, positive actor who loves Jesus and enjoys working in her craft.

Costume Designer: Susan Eyler

Lighting Designer: Tyler Dorman and Trent Klariter

Sound Designer: Tyler Quinn

Technical Director: Bill Hendon

Stage Crew: Carl Dotson, Jen Mrotz-Dotson, Tyler Berquist, Rachel Van Dyke

Production & Historical Consultants: Von Washington and Von Washington Jr.

Script Consultants: Richard Riehle, Eduard Richter, Howie Shapiro

Graphic Designer: James Sparling

Cinematographers/Editors: David Darling, Tyler Joslin, Gene Gamache

Marketing: Alex Bernhardt, Amelia Schmitz

Insurance: Stefan Vanderwater, Waterstone Insurance

Accounting: Jenni Wheeler, Brickley Delong