Lookingglass Young Ensemble Presents
The Portrait of Madame X
Based on an adaptation of Alexander Pushkin’s Queen of Spades by Tommy Rapley and Dennis Watkins
Written and Co-Directed by Phil Smith
Co-Directed by Louise Lamson
Creative Team
Costumes
The Young Ensemble
Stage Manager
Ilyana Becker
Assistant Stage Manager & Dance Captain
Ezekiel Ruiz
Sound Design and Sound Board Operator
Michael Huey
Lighting Design and Light Board Operator
Ellie Humphrys
Image Design
Matthew Yee
Director of Education
Molly Bunder
Cast
Cast of Characters in order of appearance
Jazzpique/Piano – Jonah Kaufman
Dealum Mahann/Drums – Ajay Singh
The Count/Bass – Avery (Bo) Doran
Ensemble/Guitar – NightHawk Leonard
Odelette – Ellyanna Stearn
Jack – Xavier Irons
Really?/Ensemble of Ghouls – Portia Richardson
Eau Yes/Ensemble of Ghouls – Samantha Gonzalez
Whoanow/Ensemble of Ghouls – Kiran Mali
Dang/Ensemble of Ghouls – Gracie Avila
Madame X/Ensemble of Ghouls – Noa Stern Frede
Liza/Ensemble of Ghouls – Laila Moreau
The Young Madame/Ensemble of Ghouls – Izzy Schafer
John Singer Sargent/Ensemble of Ghouls – Elena Aoyagi Wolcott
With special Guest
Violinist, Greg Hirte
Thank You to Our Young Ensemble Sponsors
The Dunwalke Family Trust
Nancy and Michael Timmers
Laura Jones and Richard Hunt
Lee and Sandy Golub
Amrit and Gurpreet Singh
Lori Ann and Marc Gerdisch
Melinda McMullen and Duncan Kime
Vered Hankin and Jeremy Kauffman
Very Special Thanks To
Dennis Watkins and Tommy Rapley, Kasey Foster, Matthew Yee, Anthony Fleming III and Deanna Dunagan, Amrit and Gurpreet Singh, Lee Golub, Vered Hankin and Jeremey Kauffman, The Lookingglass Young Ensemble Parents and Guardians, Emily Strand and Molly Bunder, Christie Falls, John Singer Sargent and Virginie Amélie Avegno Gautreau, School of Rock, Todd Rosenthal, Jim Steinman and Meatloaf, Peter Girfinn, Gus Kahn and Richard Whiting, Andre Pluess, LoriAnn and Marc Gerdisch, Nikolaj Sorenson, Dan Machalinski, Amanda Hermann, The Security Team at 444 N. Michigan Avenue
Note from Co-Directors Louise Lamson and Phil Smith
Working on The Portrait of Madame X with these talented young people has been a thrill ride from first rehearsal to the last. Together with this intrepid ensemble, we charted an ambitious path (you’ll see) – a path guided by a belief held dear by early Lookingglass artists, and still held dear today; that a bold, new and joyous vision can cultivate a wider enthusiasm. Our whole team, and this certainly includes our team of selfless parents and caregivers, but especially our young actors and creators, kept giving more and more, and from that investment came possibility, and surprise, and discovery, and beauty and growth. We hope that our 2025 Young Ensemble’s resulting positivity, coursing through this strange and haunting story like a live wire, will now live in you, and inspire you to connect more, to be present more, to continue giving, and to never stop reaching – reaching out, across, down, and higher.
We wanted to especially thank our significant donors tonight, The Dunwalke Family Foundation, Nancy and Michael Timmers, Laura Jones and Richard Hunt, Lee and Sandy Golub and Amrit and Gupreet Singh.Without whom this program and this production would not have been possible. We love and thank you!
We hope you enjoy. We can’t help but think you will.
PHIL and LOUISE
About the Lookingglass Young Ensemble
The Lookingglass Young Ensemble (YE) is a group of Chicago-area young adults, ages 13-18, committed to building their theater skills, lifting their voices, and developing their creativity through collaborative creation. While the program has evolved over time, a typical year could include skill-building workshops, rehearsals, and an annual production that weaves together language, visual spectacle, music, and the unique talents and contributions of the ensemble. Inclusive, rigorous, playful, and endlessly creative, the Young Ensemble builds not only better artists, but better collaborators, thinkers, and leaders.
Lookingglass Artists
Lookingglass is an ensemble based company, with a dedicated group of artists composing its roster of Ensemble Members,
Artistic Associates, and Teaching Artists.
Lookingglass Credits include Dr. Astor in Life Sucks, Captain Smollett in Treasure Island, Bass in Big Lake Big City, Ethan in Ethan Frome, Will in Trust and Ivan in The Brothers Karamazov. Other recent regional credits include: Doctor Sartorius in The March, Atticus Finch in To Kill a Mockingbird, Reverend Parris in The Crucible (all at Steppenwolf Theatre Company), Captain Smollett in Treasure Island at Berkeley Repertory Theatre, Phileas Fogg in Around the World in 80 Days at Baltimore’s Center Stage and James Harthouse in Hard Times at the Arden Theatre in Philadelphia. Additional Lookingglass credits include: The Wooden Breeks, Hillbilly Antigone, Metamorphoses, Hard Times, The Idiot, The Vanishing Twin, The Arabian Nights and Up Against It. Other regional credits include work at McCarter Theatre, Seattle Repertory Theatre, Brooklyn Academy of Music (NYC), and The Actors’ Gang (LA). TV and film credits include: Boss, Prison Break, Friends, Chicago Hope, Early Edition, Kissing a Fool, The Dilemma, The Express, Since You’ve Been Gone, High Fidelity and Widows, directed by Steve McQueen. Involved in the Artistic leadership of the company since 2000, he has helped produce over 70 plays. As Creative Producer, he co-serves as the Lookingglass Casting Director, artistic producer of the unGala, and acts as a primary artistic liaison to the Development Department.He is married to fellow Ensemble Member Louise Lamson. They have two boys, Guthrie and Wesley.
Bio as of 2023
Louise has been an Ensemble Member since 2016. Her first play with Lookingglass was The Idiot in 1998 directed and adapted by David Catlin. Other Lookingglass acting credits include: Plantation, Death Tax, Hard Times, The Secret in the Wings, The Wooden Breeks, Icarus (The Getty Villa, LA), The Brothers Karamazov, Our Town, The Arabian Nights, Ethan Frome, Metamorphoses ,and The Little Prince. She has directed the Lookingglass Young Ensemble in The Tin Woodman of Oz (written by Raymond Fox), The Patient Watcher, The Secret in the Wings, and most recently Metamorphoses. She is a Lookingglass Teaching Artist and has partnered with Hawthorne Scholastic Academy and Peirce Elementary School.
Louise collaborated with her husband, Phil Smith, Tom Lee (Chicago Puppet Studio), and Ernie Adams (music) in 22-23 to make the movie, Cyclope, with 700+ students at the Lycée Francais de Chicago. She also toured The Notebooks of Leonardo da Vinci at Shakespeare Theatre Company and The Old Globe. She has toured nationally with other plays including The Secret in the Wings, The Odyssey, Hard Times, and Metamorphoses.
Louise is a graduate of Northwestern University. She is a proud mother of two boys, Guthrie and Wesley.
Bio as of 2023
