A Rain of Seagulls
and Our Vanya, Ourselves

Alan Berks is a playwright and actor whose plays have been produced in Minneapolis, Chicago, San Francisco, Phoenix, Indianapolis and New York. He has been seen on stage in many of those same cities and looks forward to playing Walker in Three Days of Rain at Paul Bunyon Theater this summer. His latest play Everywhere Signs Fall, starring Tracey Maloney and John Middleton and directed by Leah Cooper, opens April 18 at Gremlin Theatre in St. Paul.

Jason Bohon is also the artistic director of 3 Sticks theater company, where he has directed A Midwinter Night’s Dream, The Ice Palace and Borderlines. He recently played Frank in Sarah Ruhl’s Melancholy Play at Bryant-Lake Bowl. He has also worked with Theater Latte Da, Minnesota Orchestra, Mischka Productions, Seattle Children’s Theatre, New Jersey Shakespeare Festival, Kansas City Repertory Theatre and Theatre de la Jeune Lune. He has an master’s of fine arts from the London International School of Performing Arts.

Leah Cooper’s Twin Cities directing credits include Anton in Show Business for Starting Gate; Do You Want to Know a Secret for Fortune’s Fool; WASP, The Vánek Trilogy and The Unveiling for Ministry of Cultural Warfare; and Glorious Noise, It’s Just a Job and Listen at the Minnesota Fringe. She is currently the interim producing director of Theatre de la Jeune Lune and formerly the executive director of the Minnesota Fringe.

Whitney Drury balances her time between teaching theater at North Central University, acting in the Twin Cities and being the co-artistic director of Ex Alia Productions. Her favorite past roles include the baker’s wife from Into the Woods and Zlata in Necessary Targets. Whitney would like to thank her friends and family for their continual support and love.

Amelia English is excited to be working with MoCW for her first time. In 2007 she was seen holding a lantern in CityCeased at the Lakewood Cemetery, choreographed some dances for flying monkeys, hand knit sailor hats for the crew of the Pequod, dressed as a giant sponge at the state fair, built a sasquatch costume, taught zombies to disco dance and learned a lot about flour, among other things.

Matthew Foster has been the artistic generalissimo of the Ministry of Cultural Warfare for eight years. He’s the communications director for Minnesota Fringe and does freelance graphic design and Web development (chezpixel.com). His résumé is on file for future consideration. Beth in H.R. can dig it up if you’re interested. And there are lemon bars in the break room!

Franklin Heller has performed in Festival of Lights with Illusion Theater, The Hollow with Gallery Theatre, The Belle of Boolavogue with Lex-Ham Community Theatre, The Odd Couple with PBR Players, Annie Get Your Gun and You Can’t Take It with You with Lyric Arts, and The Music Man with Lakeshore Players. He has also performed with Stevie Ray’s Improv in the Park and Brave New Institute’s Six Ring Circus.

Leigha Horton’s recent theater, film and voice-over credits include the Children’s Theatre Company’s Tale of a West-Texas Marsupial Girl, every show produced by MoCW in the past eight years, The Monster of Phantom Lake, Chasing Windmills, the voice of the Fringe (2005 Minnesota Fringe podcasts) and gigs for Best Buy, H&R Block, Home Depot, Ameriprise Financial, Walker Art Center, Centex Homes and Lifetime Fitness. For Leigha’s musings on the business, visit www.leighahorton.com.

This is Reid Knuttila’s third directing project with the Ministry, following In Defense of Sin (My Friends’ Best Stories) and The Unbearable Lightness of Being American. He’s also been seen on the stage with the Ministry’s most recent Fringe Festival show, The Tyranny of God’s Love. His next directing project is for No Refunds Theater’s production of What’s Done in the Dark at the Red Eye Theater, opening February 29.

Meron Langsner is the emerging playwright in residence at New Repertory Theatre in Watertown, Mass., through the National New Play Network, as well as a doctoral candidate at Tufts University and part-time faculty member at Emerson College. His plays have been performed around the country and overseas, including here at BLB with Theatre Limina. Meron holds an master’s of fine arts in playwriting from Brandeis University and is an alumnus of NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts. He is a proud member of the Dramatists Guild and the Society of American Fight Directors.

Kevin McLaughlin returns to the Ministry’s stage after playing, among other roles, a space alien, a lecherous nurse, a repressed teen and MoCW founder Matthew Foster himself. Kevin wrote and performed comedy for ten years with Hot Dish and has appeared with Ensemble Productions, No Refunds Theatre, Outward Spiral, Fully Reciprocal Theater, ComedySportz and in the 2003 Fringe hit Soulless, Bloodsucking Lawyers.

Erin Mihalik is enjoying her debut with the Ministry of Cultural Warfare. She recently fled to Minneapolis from Nashville, Tenn., where she was only offered age-appropriate (and the occasional gender-inappropriate) roles. She was last seen in Lyric Arts’ The Sleeping Beauty as Grandmother. She would like to humbly thank the summer that she was a lifeguard and refused to wear an SPF and 8 years of nicotine addiction for making this all possible.

Anna Olson’s childhood tragedies include: being sat on by a horse at camp and breaking her arm while imitating Tootie from “The Facts of Life.” Next up: The Triangle Factory Fire Project with Minnesota Jewish Theatre!

Anthony Paul most recently appeared in Gumball Geezus (Chopping Block), Bash: Latterday Plays (Balance Theatre Project) and The Primitive (Cheap Theatre). Anthony has served as a producer, director, and/or writer for Tom Thumb, Serendipity and American Autobahnics with Chopping Block where he is co-artistic director. He also directed The Mystery of Irma Vep here at the Bryant-Lake Bowl. Anthony is a member of the Minnesota Fringe board of directors.

In her Ministry debut, Lacey Piotter is delighted to be appearing as Blanche. It has been wonderful to have a break from her day job of running the Garden Gnome Liberation Front, which incorporates freeing innocent garden gnomes from the wild gardens of the surrounding suburbs. She was last seen singing and dancing in the Flowershop Project’s world premiere of (Almost) Got It Made, as Molly. Oh, girls!

Jen Scott has worked as an actor/improviser/musician since moving to the Twin Cities in 1998. Jen did a Wikipedia search on Chekhov to write this bio. (Poor Chekhov! He had the TB!) Jen also did a search on Bea Arthur. (Bea Arthur is referenced by the Beastie Boys, Rufus Wainwright and in an episode of “Garfield and Friends”!!!) This is Jen’s first show with the Ministry, and she’s thrilled to be among such amazing, funny people.