Bertolt Brecht argued that to understand the complexities of the world, one must learn to see complexly. Yet today, in an age in which our vision is increasingly arrested by commercial media, complex seeing has become vastly more difficult. In response, Big Picture Group uses theatre as a lens through which the often obscure dynamics of contemporary life might be brought into focus. Our mission: to see, differently.
The
Group :
Roger
Bechtel [Artistic
Director] has directed
.duck, Sisters 3.0, and
True + False for Big Picture
Group, and will direct
their upcoming original
production titled True
and False. As a director
and actor, he has worked
Off-Broadway and at a
number of regional theatres,
including the Yale Rep,
the McCarter, and the
Utah Shakespeare Festival.
He has an M.F.A. in acting
from the Yale School of
Drama, and a Ph.D. in
dramatic theory and criticism
from Cornell University.
Currently, he is the director
of graduate studies at
Miami University of Ohio.
His book, Past Performance:
American Theatre and the
Historical Imagination,
is forthcoming from Bucknell
University Press.
Stephanie
Ehemann [Managing Director]
is very proud to be the
managing director of Big
Picture Group. When she
is not immersed in budgets,
bank accounts, and company
meetings Steph also freelances
around Chicago as a stage
manager and assistant
stage manager. Regional
credits include Dependent
Study with BPG, She Stoops
to Conquer and Waiting
for Godot with Signal
Ensemble Theatre, Animal
Farm with Bailiwick Repertory
and several productions
with First Folio Shakespeare.
She will be rejoining
Signal Ensemble this upcoming
season as stage manager
for Closer and Hamlet.
She received her BA in
Theatre Arts and Business
from Illinois Wesleyan
University in 2003. Steph
would like to thank Roger,
Allan and Andrew for asking
her to make BPG her home
and as always love to
Tony.
Allan
Aquino [Associate
Artistic Director]
BPG: “Boy”
in Dependent Study, “Relling”
in Duck, “Storyteller”
in True + False. Other
Chicago credits include:
“Kono” in
world premiere of Lady
Chaplin and Her Tramp
(Piven Theatre), multiple
roles in 365 (Piven and
DCA), “Randeep”
in Jataka (Tireswing),
multiple roles in Midnight
Children (Rasaka), and
“Messenger”
in Comedy of Errors (First
Folio). National Tour:
“Tybalt” in
Romeo and Juliet and “Polynices”
in Oedipus Cycle (National
Players). TV/Pilot: "Leonard"
in Wingmen (Rising Productions,
showing at 2007's Chicago
Comedy TV Pilot Competition).
Currently: fixing the
website in his underwear.
ILYMaC.
Andrew
Schneider [Associate
Artistic Director] is
a multimedia-artist and
performer living in New
York City. In addition
to designing the video
for all of BPG's shows,
he has worked on video
for The Wooster Group
as well as The Builder's
Association in New York.
Andrew's solo performance
work has been featured
at P.S. 122, The Tank,
and Sony Tech Wonder Labs.
His multimedia work has
been featured on Wired,
Rocketboom, and Make magazine.
Andrew
will complete his Masters
Degree at the Interactive
Telecommunications program
at NYU in May. More at
andrewjs.com.
Margaret
Hartmann [Company Member]
Margaret Hartmann is a
Chicago based lighting
designer who'se most recentcredits
include; Live Feed for
Plasticene at National
Pastime, Circus Crashers
for Wise Woman Fools at
The Actors Gymnasium,
and an installation for
The Ice Factory. Margaret
is also dealing with a
biography project exploring
senses of calm and control.
Thanks to mom, roommates,
and BPG for making all
of these projects successful.
Brendan
Hendrick [Company Member]
has been freelancing in
props and
scenery for three years
now, working on everything
from BPG's summer production
of ".duck" to
prop shopping for the
Goodman Theatre. He'd
like to thank everyone
he knows for their support,
Cheers!
Amanda
S. Johnson [Company
Member] Most recently,
she assistant stage managed
Aren't We All with Remy
Bumppo Theatre company.
Other Chicago stage management
credits include War of
the Worlds with Metropolis
Theatre, The Merry Widow
with Light Opera Works,
.duck with Big Picture
Group, The Wooden Breeks
with Lookingglass, and
Accent Arpino with Joffrey
Ballet. Regionally, she
has worked with Olney
Theatre Center for the
Arts, Boston Ballet, Universiry
of Wisconsin Madison,
and Jekyll Island Musical
Theatre. Amanda is a proud
member of AGMA and a graduate
of Illinois Wesleyan University.
Erin
Liston [Company
Member] True +
False marks Erin Liston's
fourth production with
BPG.Last summer she appeared
as Olga in Sisters 3.0.
The year before, she was
seen as Peterson in .duck,
and designed costumes
for dependent study. Erin
recieved her BFA from
Illinois Wesleyan University.
As always, endless thanks
and love to Mom, Dad,
Mike, Col, Jen and Pat.
Simone
Roos [Company
Member] earned
her BFA in Theatre Arts
from Illinois Wesleyan
University in 2003. A
proud member of Big Picture
Group, she played the
roles of Mrs. Sorby in
their premiere production
.duck and Masha in Sisters
3.0. Other recent Chicago
credits include Noises
Off! with Buffalo Theatre
Ensemble, Hamlet &
A Midsummer Night's Dream
with First Folio Shakespeare
Festival, and Design for
Living with Circle Theatre,
for which she received
a Jeff Citations nomination
for her performance as
Gilda. Simone can also
be seen in Signal Ensemble's
upcoming production of
Hamlet in April-May. Much
love and many thanks to
her incredibly supportive
friends and family, especially
Mom, Dad, Jocie, Matthew,
and Dave.
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