Ghostlight Program

La Luna Productions presents
By Carol Fisher Sorgenfrei
Directed by Penny Bergman
Conceived by Penny Bergman &
Carol Fisher Sorgenfrei
Streams October 28 – November 1, 2021

Ghost Light: The Haunting
By Carol Fisher Sorgenfrei
Directed by Penny Bergman
Conceived by Penny Bergman &
Carol Fisher Sorgenfrei
Streams October 28 – November 1, 2021
Cast of Characters:
Keiko (Kay) Tamiya/Jonathan Hecht................Elaina Davis*
Bryan Eamon Quinn......................................Mark Campbell*
Hellen Gates Porter......................................Marlena Lustik*
Lynn Berry...........................................................Michi Barall
Detective.....................................................Michael G. Chin *
Entertainment Guru........................................Mami Kimura*
Witch................................................................Emily Kuroda*
Ross....................................................................Peter Lundin
Lennox............................................................Gerardo Vallejo
* Members, Actors' Equity Association
Time: 2008-2011 / Locations: New York, Los Angeles, Japan
There will be a three minute intermission

Creative Team
Music
Yukio Tsuji
Editor
Teresa Cicala
Ghost Light Logo Design
Gary N. Nomura
La Luna Logo Design
Spencer Potter
Technical Director
Eric Nightengale
Assistant Director
Tyler McCombe
Publicity
Daniel Demello – DDPR
Photography
Michael Blasé
Showbiz Show & Fanfare
A.J. Gundell, A.J. Gundell Music, SESAC
We wish to express our gratitude to the Performers’ Unions:
ACTORS’ EQUITY ASSOCIATION
AMERICAN GUILD OF MUSICAL ARTISTS
AMERICAN GUILD OF VARIETY ARTISTS
SAG-AFTRA - through Theatre Authority, Inc.
for their cooperation in permitting the Artists to appear on this program.
GHOST LIGHT is dedicated to the
memory of all our beloved ancestors

SOCIAL MEDIA
www.ghostlightplay.com
@ghostlight2021
#GhostLightThePlay
lalunaproductions@gmail.com
Presented by La Luna Productions as a fundraiser for Cape May Stage,
Ghost Light: The Haunting is a timely tale that reminds us to #Stopasianhate and
#stopaapithate. A portion of donations made to Cape May Stage will be donated to
stopaapihate.org to help forward their important mission to effectively address
anti-Asian racism and to end all forms of structural racism leveled at Black,
Indigenous, and other communities of color.
To make a donation to Cape May Stage, please visit:
http://capemaystage.showare.com/GhostlightDonations
About Cape May Stage:
Cape May Stage is a professional Equity theatre company, featuring traditional,
contemporary and new works in an intimate setting. Since 1988, actors, directors,
and playwrights from around the country have set the standard for excellence by
providing world-class theatre in a unique and historic venue.
Learn more: capemaystage.org
Special Thanks to:
Indiegogo and Fractured Atlas Donors
Cady McClain
Devil in the Machine
Richard Hornby
And all the actors and creative teams from developmental readings and the Equity
showcase productions in NY and LA.

Notes from the Producer/Director
When the horrible attacks on Asian, Asian American and Pacific Islanders grew to
outrageous proportions during the COVID-19 pandemic I know I had to do something.
Racism, violence and discrimination against vulnerable communities requires action. As an
artist/theater maker/storyteller I believe the enduring tale of Oiwa’s revenge serves as a
cautionary reminder that evil deeds will be punished.
Roy Steinberg, Cape May Stage’s fearless leader, agreed. This benefit project was launched
as a fundraiser for CMS, #stopasianhate and #stopaapihate (#stop Asian American Pacific
Islander hate). We finally received permission to create the benefit in August, 2021 from
Actors' Equity. They mandated that the actors be recorded in their homes with only 25
hours of rehearsal/taping time. And that the show would have a mere four day streaming
window.
Huge gratitude to the actors all donating their time, talent and homes for the cause.
The creative team gathered remotely from Italy, New York and Los Angeles to craft this
“digital theatrical experience” and take zoom storytelling to the next level.
We hope you enjoy the result and DONATE to express your appreciation.
YOTSUYA GHOST TALES, the kabuki (classical Japanese theater) play based on the legend
of a horribly betrayed woman named Oiwa, was our first inspiration. It was the fantastic
kabuki Onbo Canal scene where 2 ghosts on either side of a door floating in the river
appear to haunt their murderer that attracted me first. The revenge story of a woman in
feudal Japan, a good person done wrong, whose only method to get even was to haunt the
man who betrayed her, appealed to this 21st century feminist. When visiting friend and
sister Japanese theatre colleague, Carol Fisher Sorgenfrei in Berlin, I mentioned
researching YOTSUYA GHOST TALES and wanting to update it to contemporary times. Carol
said, "I'd like to write it." Though we'd each created international hybrid plays in venues
around the world, GHOST LIGHT is our first collaboration.

Notes from the Producer/Director
The story of Oiwa, a perennial favorite in Japan, has been adapted into at least 30 plays,
films, anime, manga, woodblock and modern prints. The 1825 play by Namboku Tsuruya IV
inspired a whole generation of Japanese horror movies, then borrowed by Hollywood (The
Ring, The Grudge) filmmakers.
As Carol immersed herself in research, she saw more and more surprising parallels with
MACBETH, one of Shakespeare's greatest plays. Like Oiwa's faithless husband, Macbeth is
seduced into evil by unbridled ambition and tormented by the ghosts of those he murdered.
We decided to set the play in the world of the theater.
On a pilgrimage to Oiwa's shrine in Tokyo, we offered her flowers, incense and a lovely note
humbly requesting her permission and blessing to present her story, our way. This ancient
Japanese ritual insures all is safe and secure on stage, on set and in the audience. Those
who neglect it risk suffering the wrath of Oiwa's ghost. Yet another connection to
Shakespeare: the infamous "curse of the Scottish play."
It takes some "mighty big show biz cajones" to pull this off. We hope Oiwa-sama blesses
you as she's blessed us in GHOST LIGHT: THE HAUNTING.
Penny Bergman
October 2021

Notes from the Playwright
Doubling for Keiko/Jonathan is intended to be a tour de force for the actor: borrowed from
kabuki (including Yotsuya Ghost Tales), this theatrical tool displays a star performer’s versatility,
and is not a matter of psychology, subtext or economics. The rapid switching, as detailed in the
script (using a double, often in full view of the audience), enhances the theatricality. Therefore,
any other major role doubling (ie, Lynn/Entertainment Guru or Hellen/Detective) should be
avoided if economically feasible, although the script is written to make such double casting
possible.
No character specifically designated as female should be played by a male actor. If doubling is
necessary, the playwright prefers, whenever possible, that these actors (and those designated as
F/M) be female. This directive intentionally subverts the all-male traditions of both kabuki and
“original practices” Shakespeare. In this spirit, however, it is okay to cast a female actor as
Bryan or the Detective. By making Jonathan a “whiteface” role, the artificiality of race is
highlighted, just as the artificially of gender is shown by the dual roles themselves.
In July, 2018, Sandra Oh became the first (and so far only) Asian American female nominated for
an Emmy in a leading role. She did not win. Thus Keiko’s win is all the more remarkable. In earlier
versions of the script, Bryan’s Emmy acceptance speech noted that Keiko was not only the first
to win, but the first nominated in that category.
Until such time as Asian heritage performers and female actors are equitably represented on
stage, the author asks that her directives regarding casting be honored.
Oiwa’s actual grave is in Tokyo. The idea of a “hometown grave” in Fukushima is an invention.
SOME BACKGROUND:
Yotsuya Ghost Tales (1825), the basis for part of the plot, is a classic kabuki ghost/revenge play
featuring Oiwa, Japan’s most famous (and terrifying) female ghost. Although no English version of
the entire kabuki play exists, translated scenes and summaries are available in Karen Brazell,
Traditional Japanese Theatre (1998) and James R. Brandon and Samuel L. Leiter, Kabuki Plays on
Stage, vol. 3 (2002). Together, they offer a full picture of the original kabuki play.
For some similarities between Macbeth and Yotsuya Ghost Tales, see Carol Fisher Sorgenfrei,
“Supernatural Soliciting: Pathways from Betrayal to Retribution in Macbeth and Yotsuya
Kaidan,” in New Theatre Quarterly (Feb., 2015).

Notes from the Playwright
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
Ghost Light: The Haunting was co-conceived by playwright Carol Fisher Sorgenfrei and
the play’s first director, Penny Bergman. An Equity Showcase Production directed by
Penny Bergman, took place at TBG Theatre, New York, Oct. 20-Nov. 8, 2015, produced
by La Luna Productions (under the auspices of Fractured Atlas) and Devil in the
Machine.
As the play continued to be developed, Ophelia’s Jump Productions graciously hosted a
staged reading in 2016, as did the Association for Asian Performance in 2017.
Funding for 2014-15 staged readings in Los Angeles and New York, and for the 2015
Equity Showcase, provided by grants from the UCLA Academic Senate Council on
Research, UCLA Terasaki Center for Japanese Studies (Sasakawa Faculty Grant), and
donations from many individuals via Indiegogo.
The co-conceivers will donate a portion of their profits to humanitarian, scientific
and/or environmental organizations aiding people and places affected by Japan’s
March 11, 2011 triple disaster, an event with serious, ongoing consequences for the
entire world.
I wish to thank the incomparable Penny Bergman, director/dramaturg/producer
extraordinaire, without whose tireless efforts this play would not exist.
Thanks also to all the actors and audience members who, over the many readings and
early productions of this play, offered valuable insights that helped me improve the
script. Special thanks in this regard to Areum Jeong and Elaina Erika Davis whose
insights (though they may not have realized it at the time) offered me crucial “aha!”
moments, resulting in solutions for early script problems. And finally, my sincerest
gratitude and love to the very first readers, some of whom are no longer with us, who,
one memorable afternoon in my living room, let me hear the characters’ voices for the
very first time: Richard Hornby, Virginia Crosby, Betty Bernhard, Leonard Pronko,
Chuck and Storme Leeb, and Tom and Laurence Rimer. Their spirits shine throughout
this work.
Carol Fisher Sorgenfrei
October 2021

Bios
Elaina Davis (Keiko (Kay) Tamiya/Jonathan Hecht) is an actor
and writer living in New York City. A graduate of Ruth Asawa San
Francisco School of the Arts and The Juilliard School, Elaina has
worked in theatre, film, television, commercials, print, and voiceover.
Notable audiobooks include Memoirs of a Geisha, Kira-Kira,
When the Emperor Was Divine, and Confessions. When not
storytelling, she lends her energy and passion to championing
mental health initiatives and social justice movements. For more,
please visit elainadaviscreator.com
Mark Campbell (Bryan Eamon Quinn) was most recently seen
touring the country as Scar in The Lion King. Before that, he was
in the world premiere musical ‘Josephine’ opposite Deborah Cox.
National tour credits include Mamma Mia, Guys and Dolls, and
the original Phantom in the 25th Anniversary tour. He has
performed in countless regional theatres around the country and
can occasionally be seen as George Washington on the Fox show
Sleepy Hollow. www.markcampbellactor.com
Marlena Lustik (Hellen Gates Porter) Broadway: Foxy, Pousse
Café, Days in the Trees. Off Broadway: The Effect of Gamma Rays
on Man-In-The-Moon Marigolds, One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s
Nest. Regional theatre: Long Wharf, Goodspeed Opera House,
Kennedy Center. TV and film credits: Rodeo Red and the
Runaway, With All Deliberate Speed, the cult films My Brother
Has Bad Dreams, Times Square. Recent theatre: Lion in Winter,
Outside Mullingar, Barefoot in the Park, Other Desert Cities.

Bios
Michi Barall (Lynn Berry) is a New York City based actor,
playwright and scholar. She has performed in off-Broadway and
regional theatres across the country. Her dance theatre piece,
Rescue Me, was produced at the Ohio Theatre and her musical,
Peer Gynt and the Norwegian Hapa Band, was produced by Ma-Yi
Theatre at ART/NY. She is a graduate of Stanford, NYU Graduate
Acting, and Columbia’s PhD program in Theatre and Performance.
She has taught at Columbia, NYU, MIT and is currently teaching
at Purchase College
Michael G. Chin (Detective) Fight Master with The Society of
American Fight Directors, and a member of SDC. He has
choreographed fights on Broadway, Off B'way, Off Off B'way and
in Regional Theatres. He has taught at Juilliard and is currently
on adjunct faculty at Pace University and at Muhlenberg College.
He also works as a professional actor and stuntman having
acted/fought on “John Wick 3”, "Blue Bloods", "Madam
Secretary", "Blacklist" and "Blindspot" among other shows.
Mami Kimura (Entertainment Guru) Originally from Japan, she
has worked in various productions of Film, TV, Theatre, Web
Series, Commercials and Voice-Over in NYC. Her roles have
expanded from comedy to drama, ranging from “Immigrant
mother” to “Tech savvy professional” to “Sexy villain”. For more
info & reels: www.MamiKimura.com SAG-AFTRA/AEA

Bios
Emily Kuroda (Witch) I am very pleased and honored to be
working on his amazing project.
Peter Lundin (Ross) A current student of Theatre at The City
College of New York, Peter is always looking for new experiences
to learn and grow from. He would like to say "arigatou" to Penny
Bergman for allowing him the opportunity to take part in this
production.
Gerardo Vallejo (Lennox) Texas native, classically trained
in singing and acting, most recently headlined his own
concert ‘A Gentleman In New York’ at Feinstein’s/ 54 Below.
He has been seen onstage singing at Carnegie Hall, Joes Pub
at The Public Theatre, Green Room 42. He is an avid activist,
being involved in organizations that push democracy towards
a fair and just future.

Bios
Penny Bergman (Director) Awards: EMMYS: All My Children,
Live from Lincoln Center. Nominations: 9 DGA, 13 EMMYs. Writer,
Director/ Producer: Museum, Old is the New Young, Ghost Light ,
The 39 Steps, Sakura – The Bandit Princess, KITV-Honolulu, It’s
Only a Play, Moonlight and Magnolias. Editor, B.H. Barry Fights
for Everyone. DGA, Actors Equity, SAG-AFTRA. Trained with
National Living Treasure Nakamura Matagoro. MFA, University of
Hawai’i - Manoa. Producing Artistic Director, La Luna
Productions.
Carol Fisher Sorgenfrei (Playwright) Author of sixteen plays,
including the multi-award winning Medea: A Noh Cycle Based on
the Greek Myth (Samuel French), the acclaimed Israeli
production The Dybbuk: Between Two Worlds (with director Zvika
Serper), the flamenco-kabuki fusion Blood Wine/Blood Wedding,
and A Wilderness of Monkeys, a revenge comedy sequel to The
Merchant of Venice. Carol is Professor Emerita of Theatre at
UCLA. She writes on postwar Japanese and cross-cultural
performance and is also a translator and director
Eric Nightengale (Technical Director) Member of New Circle
Theatre, Concrete Temple Theatre and Anthropological
Theatricals in New York City, and The Acme Corporation in
Baltimore. Served as artistic director of 78th Street Theatre Lab
from 1995 thru 2008. Recent projects include the podcast THE
CHRONICLES OF WALLACE SPRAGUE, DOG PSYCHIATRIST, a
Seoul-New York joint creation performance video, and a film
version of KENNEDY: BOBBY’S LAST CRUSADE, filmed offbroadway
at St. Clements Theatre, now available on Broadway
On Demand.

Bios
Yukio Tsuji (Music) has been working as a composer and as a
performer for more than 200 productions over the years and he
has been the house composer/musician at Lamama ETC for over
twenty five years. He composed and performed on Broadway
production “ SALOME “ with Al Pacino, directed by Estelle
Parsons, Two more productions with Al Pacino "OEDIPUS" and
"FATHER" Composed and performed on the title music of the
movie “ YEAR OF THE DRAGON". He is so excited to be working
with Penny Bergman again.
Teresa Cicala (Editor) is an eight-time Emmy recipient who has
worked in the entertainment industry for over twenty years. She
has edited for multiple television series, including General
Hospital, One Life to Live, The Chew, Say Yes to the Dress, 90
Day Fiancé, Pawn Stars, and Tiny House Nation. She also
produced and edited the feature film Women and Sometimes
Men, as well as the Emmy-Nominated web series Tainted Dreams.
Currently, Teresa is living in Los Angeles with her pup, Charlotte.
Tyler McCombe (Assistant Director) Is excited to be back
working with Penny on Ghost Light. Tyler as worked with Penny
on other shows including “It’s Only a Play”, “Museum”, and
“Art”. Tyler has also worked on different productions with the
Dramatist Guild Foundation. He has performed with Gallery
Players. You can follow and contact him at @TylerMcCombe on
all social media.