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Oregon
Saturday, March 1, 2025 @ 7:30PM
PLAYWRIGHTS' THEATRE OF EAST HAMPTON IN ASSOCIATION WITH ROBIN AREN PRODUCTIONS PRESENT A STAGED READING OF
Oregon
by Laura Darrell
Directed by Allen O’Reilly
Starring Rebecca Hoodwin, Katie Rodgers, Teresa DeBerry, Andrea Harum Schiavoni & Minerva Scelza
Produced by Robin Aren & Josh Gladstone
Oregon is a play about a family's struggle to confront the ubiquitous challenges of honoring life in the presence of death. Three generations of women navigate end-of-life care when their 88 year old matriarch’s body starts a negative feedback loop. Together they battle wills, confront the terrifying option of medically assisted death, and ultimately find inspiration through deep self reflection to honor the woman they all dearly love. With patient guidance and grace from their courageous hospice nurse, they balance their pain of impending loss with humor and resilience, processing the lessons and rewards found in loving and losing that challenge us all.
Cast and Production
REBECCA HOODWIN (Cathy)
Rebecca Hoodwin began her professional career as 21-year-old ‘mom’ Mrs. Eggleston to Harvey Korman in LITTLE ME, continuing this ‘motherly’ tradition as Golde in FIDDLER ON THE ROOF, including productions with Theodore Bikel and Harvey Fierstein. Favorites include Music Theatre of Connecticut’s DRIVING MISS DAISY; Fraulein Schneider in CABARET, directed by Andrew Glant-Linden ; PAJAMA GAME with Hal Linden; LORELEI with Carol Channing; and a memorable day as Guenevere opposite Rock Hudson; She played Coral Starkey in the World Premier
Series of Doublewide by Stephen Spotswood at Vermont Stage; Ouiser in Stomping Ground Theatre Company’s STEEL MAGNOLIAS; Clairvoyant Madam Romonovitch in NYMFs Night Tide; Arvide Abernathy in GUYS AND DOLLS at ACT of CT; Rita in THE CHESAPEAKE CHICKS at Theatre for the New City; and Emerging Artist’s Spark Theatre Festival production of OBSERVANT by Pamela Weiler Grayson. On camera credits include NURSE JACKIE; ESPN w/David Ortiz; AS THE WORLD TURNS; and ARTHUR with Dudley Moore.
Series of Doublewide by Stephen Spotswood at Vermont Stage; Ouiser in Stomping Ground Theatre Company’s STEEL MAGNOLIAS; Clairvoyant Madam Romonovitch in NYMFs Night Tide; Arvide Abernathy in GUYS AND DOLLS at ACT of CT; Rita in THE CHESAPEAKE CHICKS at Theatre for the New City; and Emerging Artist’s Spark Theatre Festival production of OBSERVANT by Pamela Weiler Grayson. On camera credits include NURSE JACKIE; ESPN w/David Ortiz; AS THE WORLD TURNS; and ARTHUR with Dudley Moore.
TERESA DEBERRY (Joan)
Teresa DeBerry has been a professional actor, director and choreographer throughout the Eastern United States for 40 years. As a professional actor, Teresa has performed with The Alliance Theater, Bay Street Theater, Cleveland Playhouse, Georgia Shakespeare, Cleveland Public Theater, Karamu Theater, Theater Emory, Oberlin Summer Theater Festival, Theater in the Square and Horizon Theater among many others. Teresa is also an experienced audio book narrator, with more than 60 titles to her credit. She is very excited to be a part of The Oregon team and to share this brilliantly poignant piece of theatre.
KATIE RODGERS (Jennifer)
Katie Rodgers is a New York based performer. She graduated with her MFA from SCAD, received her BFA from NYU Tisch. She grew up in South Florida and was born in Little Rock, Arkansas. She was last seen as Stella Kowalski in “A Streetcar Named Desire,” at The Bay Street Theatre. Some past favorite credits include Carole King in Beautiful and Maria in the Sound of Music. When not acting, Katie is auditioning, writing, working on music or honoring her love of discovering new things.
Photo by Deborah Lopez
Photo by Deborah Lopez
MINERVA SCELZA (Jamie)
Minerva Scelza holds a theater arts degree from New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts and founded and ran a nonprofit theater company for eight years in New York City. She has appeared in five films over the last several years, most notably Soft Voice, a short independent Iranian film that is being widely shown in Iran and winning several awards. Her very first film role was as Joey in Caddyshack. She has acted in a number of East End theater productions including Romeo and Juliet, Love, Loss, and What I Wore, and co-produced an award-winning short film, Home. She has also directed and produced East End theater productions in English and Spanish. Minerva values her community greatly and serves as the executive director of a local non profit, OLA. Thank you to Tien and Sky.
Photo by Karen Sanchez
Photo by Karen Sanchez
ANDREA HARUM SCHIAVONI (Ellis/Reed/Morgan)
Andrea Harum Schiavoni has performed as a vocalist with multiple and varied groups since the age of 8, earned an undergraduate degree in music and journalism, and began acting in more recent years appearing in local productions of Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike (Masha) directed by Allen O’Reilly, The Vagina Monologues and Love, Loss and What I Wore directed by Valerie DiLorenzo, The Premiere (Gail Weathers) directed by Sam Pezzullo which premiered this Fall in the Hamptons Film Festival, A Christmas Carol Radio Show (Ghost of Christmas Past/Tiny Tim) directed by James Arboth and Baby Grand (Anne) directed by William Zolla II in the LUV Short Play Festival NYC 2025. Andrea, also, fronts a rock cover band of her dearest friends.
NANCY THOMPSON (Stage Directions)
Nancy Thompson (Stage Directions) is really happy to be part of this reading of “Oregon” at LTV. Having earned her BA in theater from LIU many, many years ago, she is excited to be back on stage. Nancy is a retired English teacher and the House Manager at Bay Street Theater.
LAURA DARRELL (Playwright)
Laura Darrell is an actress, playwright, and producer based in NYC and Portland, Maine. As an actor she has performed internationally, Off-Broadway, and regionally, as well as on multiple cast albums, two recurring roles on television, and multiple feature films. Her first full length play Oregon was developed with Bespoke Plays during the pandemic and was subsequently produced at Music Theater of Connecticut in their inaugural staged play reading series. She is so excited for this next iteration! As a producer, she released an EP of alternative folk music with Mad Attic Records, as well as co-produced three festival favorite short films with director/producer Pete Rohan of Rohan Audio. She is currently producing an animated series starring Malin Akerman, Dan Fogler and Eddie Kaye Thomas called Anything Animated Series (a micro budget Family Guy), as well as a new musical with award winning writer and filmmaker, Marc Brener. Also in development is her second full length play about the clash of probate law with idealized dreams of inheritance.
ALLEN O'REILLY (Director)
Directing credits include: The Crucible, Twelfth Night, The Woman in Black, Driving Miss Daisy, Rumors, Babe in Toyland and Bard’s Best! (adaptor) and Macbeth for Bay Street Theater. For Robin Aren productions: Vanya, Sonia, Masha and Spike, As You Like It and in summer 2025, Much Ado About Nothing. Allen has also directed Shakespeare Touring productions of Macbeth, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Taming of the Shrew, Romeo and Juliet and Julius Caesar. Children’s Theater: Miguel’s Shakespearean Adventure! (Also, co-author), Jungle Book, The Emperor and The Nightingale, Mighty Myths and Legends! (co-adaptor) and The Frog Prince. Allen has acted at Bay Street Theater, Cleveland Play House, Geva Theatre, Clarence Brown, The Alliance Theatre and was an associate artist at Georgia Shakespeare for twenty-four seasons. TV/film credits include Chicago Fire, Sleepy Hollow, TURN: Washington’s Spies, The Wicked Trilogy, Bobby Jones, Stroke of Genius, The Assassin’s Code, and The Enormity of Life. Allen is The Director of Education and Community Outreach at Bay Street Theater.
Photo by Ismael Fernandez
Photo by Ismael Fernandez
ROBIN AREN (Producer)
Robin Aren is a producer, choreographer, and creator based in New York City and The Hamptons. Founder of Robin Aren Productions (RAP) producing credits include Christopher Durang’s Tony Award winning Vanya, Sonia, Masha and Spike at The Bay Street Theater, I’m Gonna Marry You Tobey Maguire at London’s Southwark Playhouse, a co-production with Neo-Political Cowgirls A Midsummer Night’s Dream at LongHouse Reserve, How To Dance In Ohio on Broadway, Edinburgh Fringe, Comedy Barn and The Rise Wellness Retreat at Topping Rose House, as well as investment support on SUFFS and Sondheim’s Here We Are. Choreography credits include The Boston Conservatory, Harvard, The Museum of Fine Art, A Quiet Evening of Dance by William Forsythe with Sadler’s Wells London, The Netherlands Choreography Competition, and Gibney Dance Theater. She earned a B.F.A. in Contemporary Dance Performance from The Boston Conservatory, with additional training from The Forsythe Company in Frankfurt Germany, The Neighborhood Playhouse in Manhattan.
The Playwrights' Theatre of East Hampton was founded by Mitzi and Perry Pazer.
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