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DIRECTORS NOTE Neil Simon’s Lost in Yonkers might just be my favorite play. I’d be hard pressed to think of a show that I enjoy more, that gives you lots to laugh about, but also catches you off guard with some lovely heartfelt moments. We previously brought this show to life as part of our inaugural season here at The Dio. Ten years ago, Lost in Yonkers was the first full production that came to our permanent home here in Pinckney. Back then, our stage had four feet less depth and we were operating with a total of six lights. We had purchased the lighting fixtures used from the movie set of Oz The Great and Powerful which had completed shooting here in Michigan. The lights were huge. One light could’ve lit the entire dining room. But, with some ingenuity (and tinfoil), Dio co-founder Matt Tomich was able to focus them only on the stage. We had no lighting system back then either. So, once again, Matt got creative, connecting each light to a wireless light switch. We could do two things with those lights – turn them on and turn them off. Now with about ten times more lights hanging over and around our stage, all connected to one computer, things look a lot brighter and we can do much more than just turn the lights on! As our first show, most people hadn’t heard of us, or expected little of the quality we might produce in our intimate new home. With a total of 1,042 available seats for our original run of Lost in Yonkers, we sold 362. We’re happy to report that ten years later, our summer plays normally see about three times that number of guests! We’re thrilled you’re here! Your support has made ten years possible. We know that so many of you reading this see every show, every season, at least once! And knowing it brings us such joy! We also must send a huge thank you to our amazing donors for their support. Because of you, we made it to Season 10, including 18 months of closure during the pandemic. Our list of donors continues to grow too, which is probably the biggest compliment we could receive. If you’d like to consider becoming one of our awesome donors, or even to sponsor one of our shows, check out www.musesofdionysus.org, or turn to the inside back cover of this program for more info! Ticket sales alone only cover a fraction of the cost that it takes to bring one of our seasons of shows to life, and our generous donors step up year after year to help with any additional costs. We’d love to add your name to our team of theatre creators in Season 11, coming to you in 2024! And so, here we are, bringing this wonderful show about family, their struggles and their love for each other, back to life on our stage as part of our historic 10th Season! It’s hard to believe that we’ve been here for ten years now. Time really does fly when you’re having fun! They don’t call it “a play” for nothing! Steve DeBruyne Dio Co-Founder Director of Lost in Yonkers

The Cast Presents Lost in Yonkers Book by Neil Simon Directed by Steve DeBruyne Assistant Directed by Kelsi Fay Set, Lighting and Sound Design by Matt Tomich Costume Design by Norma Polk Props by Eileen Obradovich Wig Design by Chloe Grisa Lost in Yonkers takes place in an apartment above “Kurnitz’s Kandy Store” in Yonkers, New York, August, 1942. The entrance leads directly from upstairs to the candy store below. *There will be one intermission during this production. Dylan Benson as Jay Donovan Leary as Louie Vaan Otto as Arty Olive Hayden-Moore as Grandma Steve DeBruyne as Eddie Amy Schumacher as Gert Luciana Piazza as Bella

Dylan Benson (Jay) is brand new to The Dio and couldn't be more delighted to be part of the cast for Lost in Yonkers! His favorite credits include 9 to 5 the Musical (Joe), Digging Up Dessa (Nilo), Much Ado About Nothing (Claudio), and The Lion King (Scar). Dylan is currently pursuing a Theatre Arts degree at Eastern Michigan University, and is thrilled to be performing at such an esteemed regional theatre. He would like to thank Marlene Inman and Liz Jaffe Smoot for always believing in him and for encouraging him to audition for this show. Steve DeBruyne (Eddie) is a graduate of The American Musical and Dramatic Academy in NYC, and was seen around the country on The National Broadway Tour of The Full Monty as Malcolm. Favorite Dio credits: Rock of Ages (Lonnie), Forever Plaid (Frankie), and The Hunchback of Notre Dame (Quasimodo) which earned him the Best Lead Actor in A Musical Wilde Award presented by EncoreMichigan.com. Other regional: Tracy Jones (Mackenzie) at Williamston and Tipping Point Theaters, Little Shop of Horrors (Seymour) at The Encore, Joseph...Dreamcoat (Joseph) at The Cabaret in Colorado and Fiddler on the Roof (Perchik) at La Comedia in Ohio. Steve also originated the role of Clarence, the bumbling Guardian Angel, in Kathie Lee Gifford's original musical version of It's a Wonderful Life. Olive Hayden-Moore (Grandma Kurnitz) is a vocal performance graduate from the University of Houston School of Music. She has performed in several productions at The Dio, including The Drowsy Chaperone (Mrs. Tottendale), Cabaret (Fraulein Schneider), Steel Magnolias (Clairee), and A Gentleman’s Guide to Love and Murder (Miss Shingle), as well as Follies (Hatti) at Theatre NOVA. While in Texas, Olive’s credits included operatic roles such as Mozart’s Le Nozze di Figaro (Cherubino) and Bizet’s Carmen (Carmen), as well as appearing as the featured soprano soloist for several years with the Arkansas Symphony Orchestra in Handel’s Messiah. She is delighted to be returning to the Dio in this formidable role. With love and thanks to her family and friends for their love and encouragement. Abby and Alex, you are my shining stars. Donovan Leary (Louie) is returning to The Dio’s stage after his debut in The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time (Uncle Terry/Reverend Peters). Donovan has been seen on stages all across Michigan, and has starred in various productions including Something Rotten (Nostradamus), Grease (Kenickie), and The Diaries of Adam and Eve (Adam). When not onstage, Donovan fills his time with disc golf, board games, and laughing with his amazing friends. Vaan Otto (Artie) is excited to return for his second show at The Dio. His previous credits include Home for the Holidays (Young Christopher) at The Dio, A Thousand Faces (Young Lon/Creighton) World Premiere cast at The Encore, Pippin (Theo) at Nicely Theatre Group, A Christmas Story (Flick) at The Encore, and Into The Woods Jr. (The Baker) at Brighton Scranton Middle School. He sends thanks to Matt and Steve, his voice coach Marlene Inman and his acting coach Liz Jaffe Smoot. Love to Mom, Dad, and Carson. Luciana Piazza (Bella) is thrilled to be back at The Dio! She was last seen on The Dio stage as Chiara in The Bridges of Madison County. Other regional credits include: Summer of Love (Holly) at Penny Seats, Thoroughly Modern

Millie (Miss Dorothy) and A Christmas Story (Mother) at Riverbank Theatre, The Full Monty (Pam Lukowski) and Brigadoon (Jane Ashton) at The Encore, Christmas At Pemberley (Jane Bingley) at Open Book, and As You Like It (Phoebe) at Water Works Theatre. Many thanks to family and friends for their ongoing support. With love and special thanks to Rick Bodick: teacher, mentor, friend. Lucianapiazza.com Amy Schumacher (Gert), the artist formerly known as Amy Smidebush, is thrilled to return to The Dio after assistant directing A Christmas Survival Guide, Gutenberg! the Musical! and Jenny’s House of Joy, in which she also played Clara Casey. Her performance career includes numerous shows at The Encore and The Palace Theatre of Brown County as well as her one-woman cabaret shows New York State of Mind and What the Hell IS a Smidebush? at Don’t Tell Mama in Manhattan. Additionally, she has spent the past six years running her online boutique, www.AmyFoxyStyle.com. Special thanks to Bryce for his unending love and support. Creative Team Steve DeBruyne (Director) has directed all but three of the shows presented at The Dio over the past ten years. Favorite Dio directing credits include The Hunchback of Notre Dame, The Great American Trailer Park Musical, Dracula the Musical and RENT, which earned him the Best Director of a Musical Wilde Award for excellence in professional theatre, presented by EncoreMichigan.com. “Huge thanks to Matt, Eileen, Norma and Mom and Dad for an excellent ten years of theatre making teamwork! Wanna go for ten more?” Kelsi Fay (Assistant Director) is a multi-hyphenate artist residing in the metro-Detroit area. They dabble in playwrighting, clowning, mime, Shakespeare, directing, dramaturgy, and playback improv. You may remember Kelsi from their work in The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time last summer here at The Dio. It’s been great working with this team again, and this time from behind the table. Kelsi would love to thank their friends and family for their love and support. Have a good show! Eileen Obradovich (Props) is thrilled that The Dio has been in our community for 10 years! Eileen has been doing props for over 21 years. Thanks so much to Steve and Matt for inviting me to join their beautiful theatre from the very first production. A special thanks to Joyce and Diana for their love and support. Please enjoy Lost In Yonkers! Norma Polk (Costumes) has been a part of The Dio’s creative team for nine years. She started designing and building costumes in earnest about 15 years ago. Some of her favorite contributions at The Dio include Daddy Long Legs, Dracula, Violet (Wilde Award for the Best Musical in 2015), Proof, Cabaret, Barefoot in the Park, and The Bridges of Madison County. She received her Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from Carnegie Mellon University. Matt Tomich (Set Design/Lighting Design/Sound Design) is thrilled to be celebrating our 10th season in Livingston County. Bringing back our first every production and trying to create a design that was different from 2013 has been a lot of fun. Favorite designs include: Daddy Long Legs, The Bridges of Madison County, The Hunchback of Notre Dame, The Wild Party, Jenny’s House of Joy and The Curious Incident.

DONORS - 2023 ü PATRON $1-$99 JEN AUSTIN TRESSA MCGUIRE DAPHNE HODDER SPARKLE BOX BY JULIE HARDIE LISA GRAIN ANNE LAWRENCE CHAD AND VASHAUN DEBRUYNE SARAH BROWN SABRINA DAHLGREN JAN BINGHAM KIM WHITE KEVIN REGAN RON BAUMANIS DAVID LAHEY KURT ANTHONY KRUG JAMES AND JOAN BEAUDOIN ü FRIEND $100-$249 STEPHANIE LADD ANGELA DELVERO WENDY KATZ HILLER CHRIS ROBERTS : COUNTS CATHERINE MELDRUM ROBERT AND MICHELLE HUTCHINSON SUE AND BOB TAYLOR IN MEMORY OF PAT TESSMER BARB LEAHY ERIK GABLE LAUREN BRYNE : DUNN JOAN PIATT NANCY WEAKS LINDA LAVEY INESSA GANKIN KEVIN CORR SUSAN SEPSI LINDA HURST SWAN GERMAIN LOUIE CHEN MONICA MCCLUSKEY MOLLY GREEN SUE AND RON HOLLIS THOMAS MATE GEORGETTE HANSEN ROBIN SHOLLACK MIKE BOHLAND RHONDA MCCONVILLE Congratulations to our 2022 Wilde Award Winners! Your dedication to your craft shines through every time you take the stage. For a complete list of the winner’s check out our website! WWW.DIOTHEATRE.COM

DONORS - 2023 ü SPOTLIGHT $250-$499 COLLIN AND ANGELA OTTO WENDY JAFFE KEVIN AND NANCY REGAN KEITH AND CONNIE BARBER WALTER AND LOIS SCOTT CAROLE BURRELL HOWARD AND NANCY MANSON YVONNE WILLIAMS AL AND REE PRUEHS LISA AND JIM MERTE TOM AND SANDY BERRILL MICHAEL AND CARY KALOWICK MARCUS CALDERON JEFF AND BRENDA LANE JANE MURDOCK FRANK AND JO DELVERO BRAD VINCENT WILLIAM AND PATSY OATES ü BACKSTAGE $500-$999 LEIGH HANSMANN/OKC LAW MARILYN LALONE SCOTT AND SHERI CHISHOLM JOHN AND NANCY LUCAS CATHERINE KERR GRAHAM AND KATHRYN PUTNAM BARBARA DENTON ü ANGEL $1,000 + JOYCE OBRADOVICH ROBERT STRAUSS MICHAEL AND PAM CARTER MARY LOU CLARK ANGIE NAGY BETH LIDDLE MARGARET PATTERSON EILEEN OBRADOVICH GRANT BOWBEER JENNIFER FLEMING JENNIFER DUNCAN NICHE REALTY ANNE AND DICK BAUMAN KRISTI TODD DEBORAH DUGAN KRISTI M TODD CHRISTINA COUNTS CURT AND KATHY WAUGH DAN AND JANET EGELER PAT STILLWELL JIM AND TERRI KOBE SEAN AND ANNE DONEVAN FRED AND SUE GOETZ NORINE BIBICOFF BRANDI SOLDO CAROL MORROW