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by Eli Lynn
adapted from Joseph Addison directed by Damon Bonetti Co-Producers Pam & Gresham Riley
The Philadelphia Artists Collective returns to site-specific work as they present the world premiere, meta-theatrical adaptation of CATO (Remixed) in the historically significant site of Carpenters’ Hall.
Barrymore Award Winning Playwright Eli Lynn (The PAC's Citrus Andronicus) adapts Joseph Addison’s original text, exploring the similarities between the tumultuous political landscape of Ancient Rome, Revolutionary-era America, and our current divided nation. Written in 1712, Addison's play was frequently referenced by the Founding Fathers. The expressions “Give me liberty or give me death” and “I regret that I have but one life to lose for my country”, are paraphrased from Cato. Addison's play offers an ahistorical, almost melodramatic portrayal of history, with Cato as the saintly exemplar of Roman patriotism and virtue. Lynn's adaptation maintains much of Addison's original text, but breaks apart the seams of the play with new text and metatheatricality. It gives space for the other characters - particularly the women and African characters - to dig into the history and rhetoric of Cato, and draws a sharp line from the centuries-old adulation of Rome through our own modern myths of America. Staged in the room where the First Continental Congress convened, PAC's original adaptation of Cato explores how political rhetoric has evolved (or not), and asks audiences to question who is worth putting on a pedestal, how we construct our own mythology, and whether we can build a future by looking backward. 
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DESIGN/PRODUCTION TEAM:
Director - Damon Bonetti Playwright - Eli Lynn Production Manager - Hunter Smith Stage Managers - Jenny Glickman, Kai Scott Dramaturg - Chaz Martin Production Designer - Aidan Pells Costume Designer - Teal Knight Intimacy Director - K O'Rourke Fight Director - Eli Lynn |
CAST:
CATO - Peter Schmitz SYPHAX - Anthony Martinez Briggs JUBA - Caroline Strange SEMPRONIUS - Brian McCann MARCIA - Anna Faye Lieberman LUCIA - Madeleine Garcia PORTIUS - James Kern MARCUS - Zach Valdez |
When I was first sent Addison's Cato to read, I have to be honest, I hated it. (How's that for a first sentence?) I found the play shallow, self-important, and transparently sycophantic, and apart from a few moments of interesting rhetoric about war, the whole thing felt like a self-congratulatory screed with an interracial love story thrown in to titillate Georgian gentry. How on earth was I going to write an adaptation of this?
Then I began digging into the history behind the play, and fascinating threads began to emerge. Western culture has for centuries been built on a bedrock of reverence for the Roman Republic. Figures from this era were lionized as early as the first century, flattened of their complications and repurposed into patriarchal iconography with a golden patina of antiquity that upper classes could see themselves reflected in no matter what they believed. In this way, Addison's figure of Cato resembles our own American conception of people like George Washington and Thomas Jefferson - figures so ensconced in mythology that they can be wielded as political defense by literally anybody. Can we rub our eyes and step away from this blinding mythos for long enough to see our own humanity? Can we let our vision adjust and point ourselves at a future unobscured by an ahistorical afterimage? I think we can. But I think the path lies in historically marginalized voices, and it's historically tricky to get anyone to listen to those. I hope this play gives space for those voices, not just rhetorically, but with heart and warmth and complexity. I hope it challenges people to consider who we pedestal and why, and whether those "pillars" are actually load-bearing.
- Eli Lynn
Then I began digging into the history behind the play, and fascinating threads began to emerge. Western culture has for centuries been built on a bedrock of reverence for the Roman Republic. Figures from this era were lionized as early as the first century, flattened of their complications and repurposed into patriarchal iconography with a golden patina of antiquity that upper classes could see themselves reflected in no matter what they believed. In this way, Addison's figure of Cato resembles our own American conception of people like George Washington and Thomas Jefferson - figures so ensconced in mythology that they can be wielded as political defense by literally anybody. Can we rub our eyes and step away from this blinding mythos for long enough to see our own humanity? Can we let our vision adjust and point ourselves at a future unobscured by an ahistorical afterimage? I think we can. But I think the path lies in historically marginalized voices, and it's historically tricky to get anyone to listen to those. I hope this play gives space for those voices, not just rhetorically, but with heart and warmth and complexity. I hope it challenges people to consider who we pedestal and why, and whether those "pillars" are actually load-bearing.
- Eli Lynn
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Peter Schmitz - CATO
(he/him) Peter Schmitz teaches Theater History and Dramaturgy at Temple University’s Department of Theater, where he is an Adjunct Professor. Lately, he had been researching and writing about the deep and fascinating history of theater in Philadelphia and surrounding areas. Please listen to his excellent and exciting podcast "Adventures in Theater History: Philadelphia". You can find it on any podcasting app, YouTube, or Spotify! Peter’s recent book, also called [italics] Adventures in Theater History: Philadelphia, can be found wherever fine books are sold! www.aithpodcast.com |
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Anthony Martinez Briggs - SYPHAX
(they/them) Anthony has a crush on fashionable sneakers, well-cultivated herbs, and science fiction novels written by black femme authors. They are a Wilma HotHouse company member, Bearded Ladies Associate Artist, and the recipient of the 2023 F. Otto Haas Award for Emerging Artists. They wear many hats including but not limited to writing, teaching, facilitating, music making, and overall theater artist-type things. As a performer, they are excited to be making their debut with PAC. They have performed with The Wilma Theater, Theatre Exile, Ninth Planet, Arden Theatre, Philadelphia Theatre Company, Long Wharf Theatre, Bearded Ladies Cabaret, and Applied Mechanics, among others. They are also known as “Us”: emcee and original member of the band ILL DOOTS, seen on theater stages throughout the Philly area and in music venues nationwide. Follow @ILLDOOTS on all social media and all music streaming platforms. They stand on the shoulders of many. Love you, Tess. |
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Caroline Strange - JUBA
(she/they) Caroline Strange is an Alaskan born actor, singer, writer. Remember, everything changes all of the time. Insta: @CarolineOrStrange New York: London Assurance, Belfast Girls (Irish Rep Off-Bway), Love’s Labour’s Lost (BGLTB), In the Shade (Workshop). Regional: The Bluest Eye (Guthrie Theatre), Tiny Beautiful Things (Merrimack Rep), The Tempest, Metamorphoses, Into The Woods, We Are Proud To Present…, (Playmakers Rep), Cinderella, The Diary of Anne Frank, (People’s Light), Macbeth, Beauty and the Beast, Steel Magnolias, (RedHouse Arts), Mrs. Dalloway (Workshop), …Georgia McBride (Hippodrome). International: Belfast Girls (English Theater Düsseldorf) Commercial: Value City Furniture, Microsoft, CVS, OSJL. Film: Providence. Training: MFA, UNC-Chapel Hill Professional Actor Training Program. |
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Brian McCann - SEMPRONIUS
(he/him) Brian McCann is a Philadelphia based actor. He has worked most recently with New Light Theater in their production of Our Town. With The PAC he has performed in The White Devil ,Alls Well That Ends Well, Maria Martin, He Who gets Slapped, The Sea Plays, Mary Stuart and Duchess of Malfi. He has also worked at Lantern Theater Company, Act II Playhouse, Arden Theater Company, Delaware Theater Company, 1812 Productions, Pennsylvania Shakespeare Festival and The MacCarter Theater to name a few. Brian also performs with Comedy Sportz. |
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Anna Faye Lieberman - MARCIA
(she/they) Anna Faye Lieberman (she/they) is so excited to be back with the PAC, where they were last seen in Jane Eyre. They are a scrappy, queer, theatre artist based in Philly and NYC. Passionate about the development of new works and the subversion of classics, they shape characters with their expansive, wacky imagination. They want to unleash your inner weirdo. Recent credits include: The 39 Steps, (Virginia Theatre Festival), Peter Panto, A Christmas Carol (People’s Light), Fun Home (New Light Theatre), Head Over Heels (Theatre Horizon), The Playboy of the Western World, 10 Dates with Mad Mary (Inis Nua), Into The Woods (Arden Theatre Co.), Carroll County Fix (Azuka Theatre). UArts BFA Musical Theatre, Class of 2020. Love to Dan, Dale, and LP. For Grandma. @annaliebz www.annafayelieberman.com |
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Madeleine Garcia - LUCIA
(she/they) Madeleine is excited to join their PAC family once again for the quarter of the century! Recent credits: Quixotix Professor Qui (InterAct), Children of the Sun (PAC), Citrus Andronicus (PAC - Barrymore for Outstanding Ensemble), Christmas Carol (People’s Light). She sends her love to Evan, the Schaeffer family, her mom, sister and Tita. |
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James Kern - PORTIUS
(he/him) James is super thrilled for this PAC debut! As a passionate fan of classical language this just feels like home. Thank you to the whole PAC team for having me and being so wonderful. To my wild son Asher who inspires my imagination every single moment. My loving wife, the best partner anyone could ever hope for. To my mom, my biggest fan and the bestest nana ever and to my father, the whole reason I love classical text. Love. |
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Zachary Valdez - MARCUS
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Damon Bonetti - Director
(he/him) DAMON BONETTI is a Philly based actor, director, musician, professor and Producing Artistic Director for The PAC. As director: QvK, The White Devil, He Who Gets Slapped, Blood Wedding, The Sea Plays and Changes of Heart. He recently performed with the company in The Dance of Death and Children of the Sun. As a director he has worked at Rutgers University - Camden, Hedgerow, CCTC and Passage Theater where he received a Barrymore Nomination for Outstanding Director for True Story. As an actor he has worked at most of the area theaters and is a founding member of 100th MERIDIAN where he directed THEY'VE ALL GONE AND WE'LL GO TOO and performed in T.REXTASY. Damon teaches at Rutgers - Camden and earned his MFA at the FSU/Asolo Conservatory. www.damonbonetti.net |
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Eli Lynn - Playwright
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Hunter Smith - Production Manager
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