A comedy about books and the people who love them. When the members of a devoted book club become the subjects of a documentary filmmaker, their intimate discussions of life and literature take on new meaning with the camera rolling. Add in the unexpected arrival of a provocative new member and the sudden inclusion of some questionable titles, and long-standing group dynamics take a hilarious turn. This engaging play is sprinkled with wit, joy and novels galore. “A delightful, fresh comedy.” – Talkin’ Broadway

Written by Karen Zacarias
Directed by Sean Daniels

Run Time: 2 hours, including intermission

Age Recommendation: 13+ (contains some profanity – 8 instances)

Produced with Support From:

Janet and Kim Tenreiro

Performance Calendar

Plan your visit

Prologue: a pre-show lecture is offered free of charge one hour prior to every performance.

Dining & Entertainment

Click here to check out the Geva Café or look below for more options in the area!

Rick's Prime Rib
898 Buffalo Rd.
Rochester, NY 14624
(585) 235-2900

The Pomodoro Grill
1290 University Ave.
Rochester, NY 14607
(585) 271-5000

Edibles
704 University Ave.
Rochester, NY
(585) 271-4910

Palladio Vu Restaurant
125 E. Main St.
Rochester, NY 14604
(585) 423-6767

Gusto
277 Alexander St.
Rochester, NY 14607
(585) 232-7810

Tavern58 at Gibbs
58 University Ave.
Rochester, NY 14605
(585) 546-5800

Eros Restaurant & Bar
37 Charlotte St.
Rochester, NY 14607
(585) 546-2230

Cast & Crew Bios

TOM COINER (Rob) is delighted to return to Geva after being in Rochester last winter for Perfect Wedding. Other theatre credits include A Midsummer Night's Dream, A Christmas Carol and Othello at Denver Center; Saturn: A Play About Food at Superhero Clubhouse; As You Like It, 'Tis Pity She’s a Whore, The Winter’s Tale, Man and Superman, Hair and The Three Sisters at National Theatre Conservatory; Listeners and A Christmas Carol at Actors Theatre of Louisville, Dog Sees God and Direct Object at Hyde Park Theatre; and The Brats of Clarence at Bedlam Faction. Mr. Coiner holds an M.F.A. from the National Theatre Conservatory and a B.A. from Kenyon College.

JOHN GREGORIO (Will) is delighted to be returning to Geva Theatre Center for his first Wilson Mainstage appearance after performing Fire Work in the 2012 reading series. Off Broadway credits include Silent Laughter at The Lamb’s Theatre, The Nuclear Family for The Belt, 365 Days/365 Plays at The Public Theatre. Regional credits include A Christmas Carol at Actors Theatre of Louisville, A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum at North Shore Music Theatre, The Legend of Pecos Bill at the Alliance Theatre in Atlanta and The Mystery of Irma Vep for Dad’s Garage Theatre Co. Television credits include “The Extended Family” (Sundance), “Good Eats” (Food Network) and “Smoking Gun TV” (Court TV).  Mr. Gregorio is a founding member of Dad’s Garage Theatre Company in Atlanta and the Nuclear Family in New York with whom he teaches and performs improvisation around the country.

KRISTEN MENGELKOCH (Jen) is so happy to be part of The Book Club Play and Geva’s 40th Anniversary Season after previously appearing in Company, Perfect Wedding, The Music Man and the 2010 revival of Five Course Love. Calling NYC home, Off-Broadway she has performed with NEWSical the Musical, Forbidden Broadway and appears on the cast recording of FB Goes to Rehab. Regional credits include I Love You Because, Meshuggah-Nuns, The Most Happy Fella, Pete ‘n’ Keely, The Nerd, The Last Five Years and Gypsy. Television credits include “Veronica Mars.” From 2007 to 2009, Ms. Mengelkoch was the co-founder of Ampersand Theatre Company. She holds an M.F.A. in Musical Theatre from San Diego State University and a B.F.A. in Theatre Arts from Emporia State University in her native Kansas. Thanks to Sean, Mark, Katie and Meg. My love to Jonathan. www.kristenmengelkoch.com

AARON MUÑOZ (Alex) is thrilled to make his Geva Theatre Center debut with The Book Club Play. Favorite roles include Bottom in A Midsummer Night’s Dream for Actors Theatre of Louisville; Michal in The Pillowman at Studio Theater in Washington, D.C.; Macduff in Macbeth at Nashville Shakespeare Festival; Pompey in Measure for Measure at Lake Tahoe Shakespeare Festival and Ignatius in A Confederacy of Dunces for Theatrical Outfit, Atlanta. Other theatres include Northern Stage, About Face Theatre, and Shakespeare Festivals in Chicago, Colorado and Alabama. TV and film credits include “The Walking Dead,” Ben 10: Alien Swarm, Cadillac Records, and CBGB (to be released this Spring). Mr. Muñoz holds a B.A. from Columbia College Chicago and a M.F.A from Alabama Shakespeare Festival. Love to Liz.  www.aaronmunoz.com

BRETT ROBINSON (Lily) is thrilled to be a part of such a wonderful ensemble. Recent credits include She Kills Monsters (Vampire Cowboys w/ the Flea Theatre), Bea Authur and the Knights of the Round Table for Ars Nova Ant Fest, Fornicated from the Beatles with The New Ensemble), Heist! and A Midsummer Night’s Dream for Actors Theatre of Louisville. Much love to all her family and friends. BBGBB!

JESSICA WORTHAM (Ana) is thrilled to be making her Geva Theatre Center debut in The Book Club Play. Off-Broadway credits include Green Girl at the Public Theater and Bone Portraits at Soho Rep. Regional credits include A Christmas Story, Crime and Punishment, Twelfth Night, and Humana Festival premieres of The Ruby Sunrise, and Backstory for Actors Theatre of Louisville; The Understudy and Black Pearl Sings! (Bay Area Theatre Critics Circle Award – Best Leading Performance, Female) for San Jose Repertory; Black Pearl Sings! at Virginia Stage Company; Boston Marriage at Capital Repertory; The Ruby Sunrise and A Christmas Carol at Trinity Repertory. Internationally, Ms. Wortham has appeared in Cat on a Hot Tin Roof at English Theatre Frankfurt, and Crimes of the Heart at Vienna’s English Theatre. She received her M.F.A. from Brown University/Trinity Repertory.

KAREN ZACARÍAS’ (Playwright) award-winning plays include The Book Club Play, Legacy of Light, Mariela in the Desert, The Sins of Sor Juana, the adaptation of Julia Alvarez’s How the Garcia Girls Lost Their Accents. Her TYA musicals with composer Debbie Wicks la Puma include Einstein is a Dummy, Looking for Roberto Clemente, Jane of the Jungle, Cinderella Eats Rice and Beans, Ferdinand the Bull, and Frida Libre. Ms. Zacarías is currently working on the adaptation of Helen Thorpe’s nonfiction book on immigration Just Like Us for the Denver Theater Center and an adaptation of Edith Wharton’s The Age of Innocence at Arena Stage. She is currently writing the libretto of The Sun Also Rises for the Washington Ballet, writing a play for the American Revolution series for Oregon Shakespeare Theater, writing a new comedy for Cincinnati Playhouse and beginning a Brazilian themed musical for young people for the Kennedy Center. Her plays have been produced at The Kennedy Center, Arena Stage, The Goodman, Round House Theater, The Denver Center, Alliance Theater, Imagination Stage, GALA, Berkshire Theater Festival, South Coast Rep, La Jolla Playhouse, Cleveland Play House, San Jose Rep, and more. Her awards include 2010 Steinberg Citation-Best New Play, National Francesca Primus Prize, New Voices Award, National Latino Play Award, Finalist Susan Blackburn, Helen Hayes for Outstanding New Play. She is a playwright-in-residence at Arena Stage in Washington, DC and teaches at Georgetown University. She is the founder of Young Playwrights’ Theater, an award-winning theatre company that teaches playwriting in local public schools in Washington, D.C.

SEAN DANIELS (Director) is the Director of Artistic Engagement /Artist-At-Large at Geva Theatre Center after spending five years at the Tony Award-winning Actors Theatre of Louisville as the theatre’s Associate Artistic Director (directing a record 17 productions in four years, including five in the Humana Festival of New American Plays). Earlier this season, Mr. Daniels directed 44 Plays for 44 Presidents and will direct Bob in the Fielding Nextstage in March. Mr. Daniels is the former Associate Artistic Director/Resident Director of the California Shakespeare Theater and before that spent a decade as the Artistic Director/Co-Founder of Dad’s Garage Theater Company in Atlanta. Mr. Daniels has developed new plays with many delightful playwrights including: Two-time Tony Award winners: Greg Kotis (Urinetown), Trey Parker and Matt Stone (Book of Mormon), Pulitzer Prize Finalist Kristoffer Diaz, Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa (“Glee,” “Big Love,” Spiderman), Peter Sinn Nachtrieb, Deborah Stein, Deborah Zoe Laufer, James McLindon, Carly Mensch, Dan Dietz, Jordan Harrison, Steve Yockey Lauren Gunderson, Jake Jeppson (at the Baltic/American Playwrights Conference in Hiiumaa, Estonia) and Monty Python’s Graham Chapman (though he was dead at the time, so we needed assistance from John Cleese and Michael Palin). Sean has been named “one of the top fifteen up and coming artists in the U.S., whose work will be transforming America's stages for decades to come," and “One of Seven People Reshaping And Revitalizing the American Musical” by American Theatre magazine. In Atlanta, he was named “Best Director” twice. In the Bay Area, he earned the Bay Area Critics Circle and Dean Goodman Choice Awards for Best Direction and Best Production. In addition, while leading Dad’s Garage it was awarded “Best Theatre Company” five times in a row. Upcoming projects include a new untitled musical by Greg Kotis and Mark Hollmann (the Tony Award winning team behind Urinetown) about corporate greed, fast food and zombies.

MICHAEL RAIFORD (Scenic Designer), a Scenic and Costume designer based in Austin, Texas, makes his Geva Theatre Center debut with The Book Club Play. He has designed 2O shows at Actors Theatre of Louisville including a dozen world premieres at The Humana Festival of New American Plays. Other regional credits include Cleveland Play House; Central City Opera; Kansas City Rep; The Maltz Jupiter Theatre; Ford’s Theatre in Washington, D.C.; Opera Boston and The New Victory Theatre in NYC. In Austin he designed The Magic Flute and The Mozart Project for Ballet Austin; Rigoletto for Austin Lyric; Tesla and Big Love for the Rude Mechanical’s; 20 years and 100 productions for Zach. Recent Favorites include Ragtime, God of Carnage, Spring Awakening and Hairspray. Currently projects at Zach include the Premier of Mad, Beat, Hip and Gone by Steven Dietz. In addition, Mr. Raiford works as a Creative Consultant in many fields including Architecture, Advertising and yes, even Marching Band and Drum Corps (Artistic Director of The Academy). He received his M.F.A. from the University of Texas at Austin where he also taught design for ten years. He is a Member of United Scenic Artists. To see more of his work visit: flickr.com/photos/michaelraiford/sets

AMANDA DOHERTY (Costume Designer) is currently in her 12th season at Geva Theatre Center as the Costume Shop Supervisor. While at Geva, she has had the opportunity to design costumes for the Wilson Mainstage productions of The Underpants and Shear Madness, the Fielding Nextstage productions of Underneath the Lintel, Race of the Ark Tattoo, Lobby Hero and the Big Theatre for Little People productions of Meet Me Incognito and And Then They Came for Me.  Other designs include work for Kodak, Coca-Cola, Penn State’s University Resident Theatre Company and Cornell University, where she was a resident draper and Assistant Costume Shop Manager.  Her draping skills have also been seen in productions at the Utah Shakespearean Festival and Pennsylvania Center Stage.  She received her M.F.A. in Costume Design and Technology from Penn State University and now happily resides in Rochester with her husband and two Bumpus Hounds.

BRIAN LILIENTHAL (Lighting Designer) makes his Geva Theatre Center debut with The Book Club Play. New York credits include La Mama ETC, Cherry Lane and 29th Street Rep. Regional credits include Actors Theatre of Louisville (over 60 productions as Resident Designer), Milwaukee Rep, Arizona Theatre Co, South Coast Rep, Pasadena Playhouse, Capital Rep, Cleveland Playhouse, Arden Theatre Co, Merrimack Rep, Trinity Rep, The Kennedy Center, Theatre @ Boston Court, Perishable Theatre, Pig Iron Theatre, New Paradise Labs, amongst many. Mr. Lilienthal has designed lighting for operas at Opera Bard Summerscape, Long Beach Opera and Portland Opera Repertory Theatre. He has spent six summers at the National Playwrights Conference at the O’Neill Theatre Center as a resident lighting designer (where he worked on The Book Club Play). He is the recipient of the 2005 Ovation Award (LA) for lighting design. Mr. Lilienthal holds an M.F.A. from California Institute of the Arts. He is currently teaching lighting design at Tufts University. The Book Club Play marks his twelfth collaboration with director Sean Daniels.

MATT CALLAHAN (Sound Designer) makes his Geva Theatre Center debut with The Book Club Play. He served as the Resident Sound Designer at Actors Theatre of Louisville for seven seasons (2004-2011) and for more than 50 productions, including the world premieres of Bob, Elemeno Pea, Ground, Sirens, Wild Blessings, The Hard Weather Boating Party, Slasher, The End, Rock and Roll – The Reunion Tour, Dark Play – stories for boys, Great Falls, This Beautiful City, The Scene, The Unseen, Six Years, Pure Confidence and Hazard County. Recent regional credits include Animal Crackers at Oregon Shakespeare Festival; The Pavilion at Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park; Good People, Mrs. Mannerly, Ghost Writer at Ensemble Theatre Company, as well as designing productions at Cleveland Playhouse, Milwaukee Rep., St. Louis Rep., Arizona Theatre Company, Philadelphia Theatre Company, Walnut St. Theatre, Prince Music Theatre and Steppenwolf Theatre Company Garage and Studio. He served as the Resident Sound Designer for the O’Neill National Playwrights Conference 2008 and 2009.

JEAN GORDON RYON (Dramaturg) serves as New Plays Coordinator at Geva Theatre Center where, among other duties, she produces the Regional Writers Showcase and the Young Writers Showcase. She was dramaturg for 1776, John Bull’s Other Island, That Was Then, Shear Madness, The Underpants, The Clean House, Almost Maine, The Music Man, Company, Perfect Wedding, and Geva’s current production of A Christmas Carol, and she has contributed dramaturgical research and written program articles for several other productions. Ms. Ryon holds a degree in drama from Tufts University and a master’s degree in Arts Administration from Goucher College. Her most recent directing credits in the community include Grace and Glorie, Master Class, Blithe Spirit, Pride’s Crossing, and The Gin Game for Blackfriars, The Chosen and The Immigrant for JCC’s CenterStage, Juno and the Peacock, Da, Translations, Someone Who’ll Watch Over Me, Waiting for Godot, The Kings of the Kilburn High Road, Dancing at Lughnasa, Faith Healer, The Hostage, Love in the Title, The Cripple of Inishmaan, Dublin Carol, and A Moon for the Misbegotten for RCP’s Irish Players, and Romeo and Juliet and Much Ado About Nothing for RCP’s Shakespeare Players. Ms. Ryon is also the Artistic Director of The Geriactors, a traveling troupe of mature actors. 

FRANK CAVALLO (Stage Manager) has stage managed dozens of productions for Geva Theatre Center since first joining the company after it moved into the then newly renovated Richard Pine Theatre. Earlier this season he stage managed Freud’s Last Session. Previous productions include Superior Donuts, Anything Goes, Vigil, The Glass Menagerie, Jitney, 5 Guys Named Moe (twice), Golf With Alan Shepherd, Below The Belt, A Raisin In The Sun, Dancing At Lughnasa, several world premiers for the Reflections New Plays Festival and the occasional A Christmas Carol. He has also stage managed at several other regional theaters, was the production manager for the Rochester Childrens’ Theatre at Nazareth College and has toured for Poetry In Motion with Ms. Salome Jens’ one woman show …About Anne, featuring the poetry of Anne Sexton. He is a member of Actors’ Equity Association, the national union for stage actors and stage managers.

JENNY DANIELS (Assistant Stage Manager) is very excited to be returning to Geva Theatre Center for her fifth season and her first season as an AEA ASM. After studying at SUNY Brockport Ms. Daniels was very grateful to be able to work at Glimmerglass Opera’s Stage Operations department for their 2006 and 2007 seasons. Some favorite past credits at Geva include A Christmas Carol, The Music Man, Over the Tavern, Almost Maine, A Christmas Story, and Sweeney Todd. 

ELISSA MYERS CASTING, Paul Fouquet, CSA Mr. Fouquet, a Rochester native, is honored to be recognized as a Geva Associate Artist. This marks the 15th year of Myers’ and Fouquet’s collaboration with Geva Theatre Center. Broadway casting credits include seven shows, including the Tony-nominated Having Our Say and 25 Off-Broadway Shows. Regional casting includes Denver Center, Cleveland Play House, Alabama Shakespeare Festival and Magic Theatre. Film/TV credits include the upcoming PBS movie Souls on Fire, to air in 2013; three "Movies of the Week" (with Tyne Daly, Claire Danes, Christopher Reeve, Ed Asner and Daniel J. Travanti); five pilots and two PBS specials by Wendy Wasserstein and Terrance McNally (with Bernadette Peters, Nathan Lane, Blythe Danner, Spike Lee and Paul Sorvino); the Peabody Award-Winning mini-series "Liberty,” as well as the Emmy Award-Winning mini-series “Benjamin Franklin,” and “John & Abigail Adams;” and the mini-series “God In America,” “The People v. Leo Frank,” “Dolley Madison” and “Louisa May Alcott.” The office has so far received 15 nominations and has won three Artios Awards for Outstanding Achievement in Casting.