Shakespeare's Macbeth Shows Law Students Are Also Extraordinary Performers Outside of Class

     UM Law students-along with faculty members, alumni, administrators, and even the 11-year-old son of a staff member-drew enthusiastic reviews for four performances of Shakespeare's Macbeth at the School of Law in early February.

     Prof. Marc Fajer, who directed the project, moved the setting of the play from the Scotland of Shakespeare's time to a Caribbean island in the mid-1900s. "The descriptions of the horrors of Macbeth's reign suggest modern police states like the Duvalier and Trujillo regimes. In addition, the supernatural elements of the play fit nicely into island traditions like Voudon and Santeria," he explained.

     Headed by third-year law students Yaphett Powell as Macbeth and Elizabeth Ermel as Lady Macbeth, the cast brought a wide range of backgrounds and performance experience to the production.

     Here is a list of cast members, followed by their brief biographies, which appeared in the playbill:

Click here for pictures of the play.

WHO'S WHO

     MICHAEL ARNONE '03 (Caithness/Donalbain) is a Kansas City native who, in his first year of law school, somehow found time to take his first shot at acting.

     JUDE BAGATTI '75 (Dowager Lady Ross) has appeared as supernumery for the Florida Grand Opera in Cristoforo Columbus, Carmen, Rigoletto and Ariadne auf Naxos. An award-winning, exhibited fine art photographer, she also "performs" her poetry, is a public speaker, and presents workshops on travel and memoir writing. Her achievements include sub-4-hour marathons and climbing to the top of Kilimanjaro. A licensed Massage and Reiki therapist, Jude, formerly of Coconut Grove, resides in South Miami. She is also a member of the Florida Bar.

     DAVID BOLEN '01 (Sergeant/First Murderer) is a mimic who is also really good at pretend and the hiding part of "hide and go seek." His theater experience ranges from stand-up comedy to Rabbi Spielman in the law school production of Fires in the Mirror. Bolen writes "Drunk Tank Fiction," a monthly column in Power Studios Merging Art newspaper. His stories can also be found under Personal Pages at the on-line magazine Hotread.com. Currently, he is buffooning his way through a novel that he hopes sells well so he can live out his fantasy of househusbandry.

     NEIL COX '01 (Angus) is currently completing the requirements for the JD/MBA degree. He was born in Port-of-Spain, Trinidad and grew up in Philadelphia, where he attended Temple University. Neil has traveled to Mexico, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, Greece, France and Egypt.

     MICHAEL CUMMINGS '01 (Siward) devised, wrote and performed various comedy sketches while at boarding school in England. He later became a Chartered Accountant and as part of that work, wrote and presented various lectures on technical accounting matters and business strategy. Michael was last seen on University of Miami stage in Fires in the Mirror where he played Norman Rosenbaum.

     ALYSON DION '03 (Young Macduff) graduated from Nova Southeastern University in May 2000 with a B.S. in Legal Studies and minors in both Psychology and Latin American and Caribbean Studies. In 1998, she spent seven weeks in the Amazon Rainforest in Iquitos, Peru, aiding in sustainable development projects. At the age of ten she began clowning professionally at children's birthday parties, making balloon animals and the like, which made law a natural career choice. Special thanks to her family and friends for their love and support (and for making me audition) and especially, her father, Ronald Dion (UM J.D. '76), who has continuously encouraged her love of the law.

     KEITH DURKIN '03 (Young Soldier) graduated from Tulane University in May 2000. His previous acting credits include university roles in Sexual Perversity in Chicago and Hurlyburly.

     ELIZABETH ERMEL '01 (Lady Macbeth), aka Elizabeth Scott in theatreland, performed with Acting Equals Theatre Co. at Trilogy Theatre (NY) in Lou Gehrig Did Not Die of Cancer (Barbara), Lunchtime (Avis), After The Fall (Maggie) and The Last Night of Ballyhoo (Sunny). She also performed with I2 Actors at NYU in The Big Funk and 'Dentity Crisis at the Red Room and Kraine Theatre. Hailing from New York, she studied acting at The Lee Strasberg Theatre Institute. She wishes to thank Yaphett, her partner in crime, and Marc, for giving her the opportunity to do what she loves most.

     MARC FAJER (Director) has been on the UM Law faculty since 1988. His directing credits include As You Like It, Hot L Baltimore, A Little Night Music, The Merchant of Venice, A Midsummer Night's Dream, Rosencrantz & Guildenstern Are Dead and Sweeney Todd, at Stanford University; Twelfth Night at the University of Washington; and Side by Side by Sondheim and Fires in the Mirror at UM. Significant acting roles include Toby in Twelfth Night, Malcolm in Macbeth and Senex in A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum.

     JASON GIBSON '02 (Choreographer) has served in many roles in the performance arena including choreographer for the Expressions Dance Company (1996-1999), actor in the UM Orientation Legal Ethics Skit (the one who unethically signed in fellow classmates), and as a dancer, actor and choreographer in a Student Thesis Play/Project entitled Songs We Can't Sing. In 1996-1999, he was also a member of the Harvard-Radcliffe Black C.A.S.T. (Community and Student Theater). Jason has also modeled for Designer Pierre Rutledge (1997-1998).

     BRANT HADAWAY '01 (Duncan) has previous theatre experience dating back to his days at St. Pete Jr. College, where he played Captain Bluntschli in Shaw's Arms and the Man and Stephen Minch in The Star Wagon by Maxwell Anderson. He also appeared in community theatre and performed in several musical groups in Florida and Los Angeles. He holds an M.F.A . from the University of Southern California School of Cinema-Television, worked as an Assistant Film Editor in Los Angeles, and produced and directed numerous TV commercials while living in Prague, Czech Republic.

     ALTHEA HARRIS '02 (Lennox) was born and raised in Washington, D.C., and is married to Robert N. Harris (UM J.D. '96). She is an evening student with an exciting day job in the federal government. This is Althea's acting debut (although she admits to several small performances daily).

     JON INNES '01 (Stage Manager) graduated from Samford University with a BSBA. He performed in Hauslerween 1998 and was Stage-Manager of Equity Playhouse 1999. He desires to practice in the field of intellectual property and corporate law somewhere in the Southeast, but will settle for any job at the moment. He is the Managing Editor of the Res Ipsa Loquitur, Treasurer of Bar & Gavel, Treasurer of the National Lawyer's Guild, Chair of LAFAC, and belongs to a few other extracurricular organizations, but still manages to attend class.

     VALERIE JACKSON '96 (Hecate) completed an L.L.M. in international law in 1997. She has appeared in two different equity playhouse productions and two of the ethics plays during 1L orientation. She has no other theatrical experience.

     LISSETTE LABROUSSE '01 (Witch) is thrilled to be performing for the first time in a play. Despite being an amateur actress, she has danced classical ballet on stage at the Jackie Gleason Performing Arts Center during her high school and college years with the Conservatory of Fine Arts. The Company performed each year for elementary school students in the Dade County District. Lissette also appeared at the Caribbean Marketplace as a dancer in a Haitian Folkloric ensemble formed by Club Creole, a student and community based organization for young Haitian Americans.

     FELICIA MARTIN (Porter) is a graduate of Florida State University ('99), with a degree in Creative Writing. Currently, she is an intern with the CBS sports desk and a staff associate in the UM School of Law. She does not have any children and is not married (yet), but has a serious boyfriend. She is the daughter of Ralph and Linda Martin of Carol City. Felicia's goal is to complete her first novel and become a famous author. This is her first time on stage.

     GREGORY MCFARLANE '02 (Menteith) began his acting career here at UM, appearing in Equity 2000 as Mrs. Butler (from the notorious Butler v Wolf Sussman case). He was also involved in the fall 2000 Orientation Skits. He is now Band Director for Equity 2001 scheduled for March 3rd at Actor's Playhouse. He has also performed musically for Hope Day at the Fairhaven Retirement home. He hopes to some day be on VH1's "Behind the Music"

     MARGUERITE MENDEZ '02 (Witch) grew up in London and graduated from the University of Wales at Cardiff. In high school she took part in plays and public poetry reading competitions, and in classical and modern plays at college. While living in New York she was a writer's assistant at The Cosby Show, and also studied filmmaking at NYU. She opted for law school instead because she was intrigued by the idea of being a grownup.

     PATRICK MONTOYA '01 (Banquo) grew up n North Miami and attended Davidson College where he lettered in football for four years. After graduating, he spent a year on a Watson Fellowship studying dance in Spain and Brazil. His prior stage experience was in Madrid, Spain, where he appeared as The Ghost in Elanor Brujo and Juan in Yerma. By an odd coincidence, he was also murdered in both these roles.

     SANITHA NARAYAN '01 (Lady Caithness/Servant) is from Clearwater, Florida. She last performed at the age of 8 as the lead in the Hindu Temple of Florida's Diwali (new year) play. The stress of fame led her in other directions. She is co-editor-in-chief of the law school yearbook and will begin practicing corporate law in the fall.

     HAZEL NICHOLSON (Witch) is an administrator in the Litigation Skills Program at the law school. Jamaican born, she came to the U.S. at age 17. Stage-struck since childhood, she's managed to keep one foot on the stage (either acting, singing or dancing) from the age of 11. In New York, she was very active in community theater, and performed in off Broadway productions of Raisin, Don't Bother Me I Can't Cope, Soul Gone Home (Langston Hughes,) and Neil Simon's Chapter Two. She served as Chairperson for the Equitable Life Assurance's corporate choir from 1984 - 1991 and as the Artistic Director for the NBN Players (a community theater group) from 1985-1989. Hazel's artistic expressions come in many forms; she enjoys acting, singing, writing poetry and short plays. However, despite her involvement in the performing arts, she would prefer "to be knee deep in turpentine, painting pictures on some mountaintop somewhere."

     YAPHETT POWELL '01 (Macbeth) was born in Atlanta and raised in South Florida. A self-proclaimed 'Master of Time Management,' he graduated with honors from the University of Florida while managing a fitness center, interning in the UF athletic department, and playing semi-professional football. This past summer, he lived in Toronto, Ontario, splitting time between taking law school courses and acting courses. Currently, he attends law school full time, works two jobs (as a law clerk and a personal trainer), volunteers to mentor and speak to youth in the community on a regular basis, and performs as a fitness model and actor. Relevant performance experience includes multiple characters in "Fires in the Mirror" (1999), and motivational speaking engagements, including the Commencement Speech for the College of Health and Human Performance at the University of Florida.

     SARATHI RAY '03 (Second Murderer), a graduate of the University of Connecticut, takes the stage at UM in his first Shakespearean play. He is very excited to kill people on stage. His prior acting experience includes acting in community theatre in his native Indian language.

     TOM REGNIER '03 (Macduff) has acted with such theatrical groups as the New York Theatre Ensemble, New Jersey Shakespeare Festival, and New York Gilbert & Sullivan Players. Favorite roles include Lysander in A Midsummer Night's Dream, the title role in The Hostage, Oswald in Ghosts, and Algernon in The Importance of Being Earnest. This production of Macbeth represents his sixth Shakespearean role. Outside of theater, his proudest accomplishment is having managed the Libertarian Party's successful 1998 campaign to achieve equal ballot access for minor parties in Florida.

     LINDA ROCKETT '02 (Lady Macduff/Lady Ross) is convinced that she landed her current role due to her "previous acting" response on the audition questionnaire: an elusive "will disclose after decisions are made" provoked curiosity, resulting in this, her American debut. Friends and family have long-awaited the day when Linda would focus her melodrama on FORMAL productions. A Boston native, Linda's decision to study at UM is reaffirmed daily, when enjoying the bone-thawing temperatures that heat the Bricks.

     PETE RUSSELL '01 (Malcolm) is from the State of Ohio, thus explaining his undying support for the Cleveland Indians. He received his B.A. in Political Science/Soviet Studies from the University of Akron and a Masters in City and Regional Planning from the Ohio State University before coming to Miami. While in law school he has participated on the school's ATLA trial advocacy team in 2000 and will serve as the team's captain for the 2001 competition. Theatrical experience in community and university theater includes Paul in A Chorus Line; Mordred in Camelot; Chino in West Side Story; chorus member in Cinderella and Hello Dolly; tech crew in Company, Nuts and Extremities and McNair in 1776.

     JANET SEITLIN '79 (Seyton) enjoyed a storied career during the Golden Age of the University of Miami's Ring Theatre in 1971-72, where she was unforgettable as the drunken lady on the piano in the premier of The 307th Defense of Hermann Goering. Audiences cheered her as the flutist in Androcles and the Lion and Jacques Brel is Alive and Well and Living in Paris. Perhaps most memorable was her final class scene from A Doll's House and her recitation of Hamlet's speech to the players, for which she earned an A+. She has carried her acting career into her current role as a professional mediator in Miami-Dade County. She is renowned for her ability to convince the plaintiff of the strength of the defendant's case whilst simultaneously persuading the defendant of the implacability of the plaintiff's case under the mask of entertaining both sides with songs and dance and snappy patter. She is, as well, an adjunct professor at the law school, teaching acting skills to lawyers in her Mediation Skills Workshop.

     CYNTHIA SIKORSKI (Servant), director for alumni relations at the School of Law, received a B.A. in English from UM. Her prior theater experience includes Mrs. Potts in Picnic, an old woman in Late Frost, and a maid in The Lesson.

     DAVID SIKORSKI '15 (Fleance), is a fifth-grade student in the music magnet program at the South Miami Elementary School of Arts. He has attended UM's Summer Theatre Academy and especially enjoyed his role as the Mad Hatter in Alice in Wonderland. Although the piano is his first instrument, he also plays the cello, steel drums, mandolin, bells and recorder.

     JONATHAN SIMON (Doctor) has been acting like he knows what he is talking about for a long time. His roles include several lead parts in high schools, three lines in a grade B horror movie directed by his brother (Brain Dead 1989, recently released on DVD), Michael Miller and Rabbi Hecht in Fires in the Mirror and a long running performance as a Law Professor at the University of Miami School of Law.

     HOWARD TANNER '03 (Young Siward), has been passionate about theater since a young age, playing a minor role in a melodrama staged at the downtown theatre in Littleton, Colorado by his eighth grade class. In 1993, Howard came in third place in the Colorado State Speech and Debate State Tournament in Lincoln Douglas Debate, and he competed in the National Speech and Debate Tournament in Kansas City, MO. Howard speaks fluent French and Portuguese and has a strong interest in anthropology. He currently is an evening division student planning to specialize in international law.

     VINCE TRIMARCO '02 (Ross) is taking the stage for the first time since his junior year of high school, where he portrayed Barney Rubble in a stage production of The Flintstones. (Truly) Along with his partner, Vince won the School of Law's Advanced Moot Court Competition last fall (to say nothing of his five-day reign as WWF Intercontinental Champion back in 1997). When not trying to keep pace with his talented castmates in a "serious" role, he is studying for a career in Entertainment Law, Computer and Internet Law, or Criminal Law.

      '00 (Assistant Director) is in the LL.M. program in Estate Planning. As a drama major at Vassar College, she appeared as a Mammoth in The Skin of Our Teeth and Olga in Three Sisters as well as directing and producing small shows including Bournemouth, an unpublished student play, and scenes from Noel Coward's Blithe Spirit. She also is a graduate of the National Theater Institute in Connecticut, where she danced for Fergie, Duchess of York. As an intern at the Goodman Theatre in Chicago, she had the privilege of working on the original studio production of Marvin's Room by Scott McPherson. At the law school, she has appeared as Roslyn Malamud in Fires in the Mirror and as Dean Hausler in Hauslerween'97, which she also produced.

Click here for pictures of the play.
Share it with others