Rough Crossing

The Cast

 

CHRISTINA MARIA ACOSTA | DEATH OF A SALESMANCHRISTINA MARIA ACOSTA
(MISS FORSYTHE)

is a second-year MFA candidate at Yale School of Drama, where she most recently appeared as Anita in Jelly’s Last Jam. Other School of Drama credits include Natasha in Chekhov’s The Three Sisters; Paulina in The Winter’s Tale; Lady Montague in Romeo and Juliet; Dell in Grace, or the Art of Climbing (Carlotta Festival of New Plays, 2008); and Lucrezia in 99 Ways to Fuck a Swan. At Yale Cabaret, she has been seen as Billie Holiday in Lady Day at Emerson’s Bar & Grille, Kesa in See What I Wanna See, Audrey in Little Shop of Horrors, and Ms. Walker in The Who’s Tommy. Back to top.

 

STARLA BENFORD | DEATH OF A SALESMANSTARLA BENFORD* (THE WOMAN)

made her Yale Rep debut in the 2007 production of Trouble in Mind. Her New York credits include A Streetcar Named Desire, Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, Macbeth on Broadway; The Vagina Monolgues (also National Tour); Macbeth, Stonewall Jackson’s House (Theatre for a New Audience). Other theatre credits include the Irish premiere of Doubt (The Abbey Theatre, Dublin); Hold Please (The Old Globe); Trouble in Mind (CENTERSTAGE); A Streetcar Named Desire (The Cleveland Play House); From the Mississippi Delta (Stamford Theatre Works, Connecticut Critics Circle Award); The Oresteia, Slaughter City (American Repertory Theatre); Antony and Cleopatra (Shakespeare Theatre); The Venetian Twins (Guthrie Theater); and Denial (Long Wharf Theatre). Film and television: Half Nelson, United 93, A Perfect Murder, the Law & Order trio; and upcoming: the feature 13 and Showtime’s Nurse Jackie. Ms. Benford is a graduate of the American Repertory Theatre at Harvard University. Back to top.

 

LA TONYA BORSAY | DEATH OF A SALESMANLA TONYA BORSAY* (JENNY)

is excited to return to Yale Rep where she last appeared as Darlene and Princess Parquett in dance of the holy ghosts in 2006. Her other regional theatre credits include Blues for an Alabama Sky (Crossroads Theatre Company, Passage Theatre Company), I Am a Man (Philadelphia Theatre Company), A Raisin in the Sun (Indiana Repertory Theatre), and Monte Carlo (Denver Center Theatre Company). Off-Broadway credits include Mrs. Drinkwater in Des Moines, Georgia in The Exonerated, James Baldwin in Civil Sex; Macbeth and Woyzeck (The Public Theater). Her film and television credits include First Breath, It Takes Two, Work, Born on the Fourth of July, Law & Order: Criminal Intent, Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, The Wire, Ed, As the World Turns, One Life to Live. Education: BA, University of North Texas; certificate, Moscow Art Theater School; MFA, New York University. Back to top.

 

THOMAS JEFFERSON BYRD | DEATH OF A SALESMANTHOMAS JEFFERSON BYRD* (BEN)

made his Yale Rep debut in Trouble in Mind in 2007. His other theatre credits include the recent Broadway revival of Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom (Tony Award nomination; Theatre World Award for Outstanding Broadway Debut); Trouble in Mind (CENTERSTAGE); Crowns, Two Trains Running, The Piano Lesson (Alliance Theatre); Gem of the Ocean (Actors Theatre of Louisville); Hamlet, Fences, Miss Evers’ Boys (Indiana Repertory Theatre); Spunk (Dramalogue Award, San Diego Repertory Theatre); Good Boys (American Conservatory Theater); The Darker Face of the Earth (Oregon Shakespeare Festival); and Flyin’ West (Long Wharf). Film and television credits include MacArthur Park, Girl 6, Clockers, Get on the Bus, Set It Off, Bulworth, He Got Game, the Academy Award-winning Ray, Bamboozled, Living Single, Law & Order: Criminal Intent, and the Emmy Award-winning Lackawanna Blues. Mr. Byrd received his MFA from California Institute of the Arts. Back to top.

 

AUSTIN DURANT | DEATH OF A SALESMANAUSTIN DURANT (BERNARD)

made his Yale Rep debut earlier this season in Passion Play. He is a second-year MFA candidate at Yale School of Drama, where his credits include Jelly’s Last Jam, I Am a Superhero, Romeo and Juliet, and Peer Gynt. His other stage credits include The Who’s Tommy, Kids These Days, Recess (Yale Summer Cabaret); The Illusion, The Pilgrim Papers, One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest (Berkshire Theatre Festival); Mum Puppettheatre and Philadelphia Theatre Workshop. He received his BA in Theatre from Temple University. Back to top.

 

CHARLES S. DUTTON | DEATH OF A SALESMANCHARLES S. DUTTON* (WILLY LOMAN)

A graduate of Yale School of Drama, Mr. Dutton’s previous Yale Rep credits include the world premieres of August Wilson’s Joe Turner’s Come and Gone and Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom. His other stage credits include the Broadway premieres of Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom and The Piano Lesson, receiving Tony nominations for both; and his one-man show From Jail to Yale…Serving Time on Stage. His film and television appearances include Q & A; Alien 3; Menace II Society; Rudy; A Low Down Dirty Shame; Cry, the Beloved Country; Nick of Time; A Time to Kill; Get on the Bus; Cookie’s Fortune; Gothika; Secret Window; Honeydripper; The Express; the upcoming Legion and Fame; The Piano Lesson; Roc (NAACP Image Award); The Murder of Mary Phagan; House; The Sopranos; Oz; Without a Trace (Emmy Award); and The Practice (Emmy Award). His directing credits include First Time Felon (HBO); The Corner (Emmy Award); Sleeper Cell (Showtime); Racing for Time (Lifetime); Under (A&E pilot); Against the Ropes; and upcoming, The Obama Effect. This performance is dedicated to Pam Jordan, who has made the Drama Library a home for thousands of School of Drama students over the course of her 42 years of devoted service to Yale. Back to top.

 

ATO ESSANDOH | DEATH OF A SALESMANATO ESSANDOH* (BIFF LOMAN)

was last seen as Carlyle in the Roundabout Theatre Company production of Streamers by David Rabe, directed by Scott Ellis. His other theater credits include the Huntington Theatre Company production of Streamers (IRNE nomination for best actor); Mother Courage and Her Children with Meryl Streep, directed by George C. Wolfe (The Public Theater); the title role in Native Son (Intiman Theatre); the title role in Macbeth, The Three Sisters, Measure for Measure (Manhattan Theatre Source); The Blowin of Baile Gall (Irish Arts Center); Luminescence Dating (Ensemble Studio Theatre); and Joshua James’s Tallboy Walkin’ (Trilogy Theatre). His film and television appearances include Nights in Rodanthe, Blood Diamond, Prime, Garden State, Hitch, Saving Face, Falling for Grace, Brother’s Shadow, Law & Order, Conviction, Important Things with Demetri Martin, Line of Fire, Commander and Chief, and Third Watch. www.atoessandoh.com Back to top.

 

MARK SAGE HAMILTON | DEATH OF A SALESMANMARK SAGE HAMILTON* (WAITER)

is pleased to return to Yale Rep, where he appeared in the 2004 production of King Lear with Avery Brooks. His New York credits include Richard III (American Theatre of Actors), Ontological Detective (Blue Heron Arts Center), Running Out of Gas (American Globe Theatre), The Tempest (Theatre at Riverside Church), and Thirst (Provincetown Playhouse). His regional credits include King Lear, Gypsy (Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park); A Streetcar Named Desire (Hartford Stage); Romeo and Juliet and The Tempest (Elm Shakespeare Company). Mr. Hamilton is a member of the Theatre Artists Workshop and a graduate of Fairfield University. He earned his MFA at Ohio University. Back to top.

 

STEPHEN McKINLEY HENDERSON | DEATH OF A SALESMANSTEPHEN McKINLEY HENDERSON* (CHARLEY)

has appeared on Broadway in August Wilson’s King Hedley II, the revival of Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom, Dracula the Musical, and Drowning Crow. His Off-Broadway credits include August Wilson’s Jitney directed by Marion McClinton (Drama Desk, OBIE, and AUDELCO Awards), which received the 2002 Olivier Award for Outstanding Drama when it transferred to London; Stephen Adley Giurgis’s The Last Days of Judas Iscariot directed by Phillip Seymour Hoffman (The Public Theater); and two shows in Signature Theatre Company’s 2007 season dedicated to August Wilson. In 2008, he was a cast member of August Wilson’s 20th Century readings at The Kennedy Center. Film and television work includes Everyday People, which premiered at Sundance in 2004, and New Amsterdam (Fox). Mr. Henderson is a Professor and former Chair of the Department of Theatre and Dance at University at Buffalo, State University of New York, as well as a member of the LAByrinth Theater Company, The Actor’s Center, and a Fox Foundation Fellow. Back to top.

 

BILLY EUGENE JONES | DEATH OF A SALESMANBILLY EUGENE JONES* (HAPPY LOMAN)

previously appeared in the Yale Rep productions of Richard II and Breath, Boom. His New York theatre credits include the Broadway productions of Passing Strange, Radio Golf, A Raisin in the Sun, Gem of the Ocean; and Off-Broadway: The Three Sisters, Waiting for Godot (Classical Theatre of Harlem), and The Actor’s Rap (Acorn Theater). His regional theatre credits include the world premieres of The Good Negro, Gee’s Bend, and Living Room in Africa; Jitney, Fences, Angels in America, Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom, The Wild Duck, Guys and Dolls, Ain’t Misbehavin’, Spunk; and productions of Shakespeare’s Othello (title role), Hamlet, Macbeth, As You Like It, The Merchant of Venice, All’s Well That Ends Well, Julius Caesar, and Henry IV, Parts I and II. Film and television: Hexed, High Ambitions, The Peanut Man: The Story of George Washington Carver, Comic View, Wishbone, and Madison Heights. He is a graduate of Yale School of Drama. Back to top.

 

STANLEY WAYNE MATHIS | DEATH OF A SALESMANSTANLEY WAYNE MATHIS* (STANLEY)

most recently appeared as Sterling in August Wilson’s Radio Golf at Kansas City Rep. His New York credits include the Broadway productions of Wonderful Town; Kiss Me, Kate; You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown; The Lion King; Jelly’s Last Jam; Oh, Kay!; as well as St. Louis Woman (City Center Encores!) and Real Black Men Don’t Sit Cross Legged on the Floor (New Federal Theatre; AUDELCO Award, Best Ensemble Cast). His regional theatre credits include Caesar in Gem of the Ocean (Seattle Rep), Gabriel in Fences (Bristol Riverside Theatre), Blues for an Alabama Sky (Cleveland Play House), “Master Harold”…and the boys (Triad Stage), Of Mice and Men (Dallas Theater Center), Day of Absence (CENTERSTAGE), and Spunk (Mark Taper Forum). His film and television appearances include Magic Sticks, Dark Streets, Santa Baby, the Sundance Special Jury Prize winner Brother to Brother, Late Night with Conan O’Brien, Saturday Night Live, and Law & Order. Back to top.

 

HOWARD W. OVERSHOWN | DEATH OF A SALESMANHOWARD W. OVERSHOWN* (HOWARD)

is making his Yale Rep debut. His New York credits include the Broadway production of Julius Caesar with Denzel Washington; Yellowman (Manhattan Theatre Club; and regional theatres: Long Wharf, McCarter Theatre, The Wilma Theater, American Conservatory Theater); Blue (Roundabout Theatre Company); and Beauty on the Vine (Epic Theatre Ensemble). Other regional credits include Rosencrantz and Gildenstern Are Dead (CENTERSTAGE); Passion Play, The Great White Hope (Arena Stage); The Merry Wives of Windsor, Henry V, School for Scandal (The Shakespeare Theatre); and Hamlet (Shakespeare & Co). Film and Television: Body of Lies with Russell Crowe, Pride and Glory with Edward Norton, Dead Canaries, 13 (upcoming) with Jason Statham, Kings, Law & Order, Law & Order: Criminal Intent, Law & Order: SVU, All My Children, As the World Turns, and Guiding Light. Back to top.

 

TIJUANA T. RICKS | DEATH OF A SALESMANTIJUANA T. RICKS* (LETTA)

A graduate of Yale School of Drama, Tijuana made her Yale Rep debut in the 2002 production of Breath, Boom. Her other regional credits include The Women of Brewster Place, The Musical (Arena Stage, Alliance Theatre); Stick Fly and The Overwhelming (The Contemporary American Theatre Festival). Her film and television appearances include The Savages with Phillip Seymour Hoffman and Laura Linney, The Architect with Viola Davis, The Girl in the Park with Keri Russell, Law and Order (Sgt. Royce), Law and Order: SVU, Law and Order: Criminal Intent, Guiding Light (Nurse Maggie), Conviction, 30 Rock, Six Degrees, and All My Children. Back to top.

 

KIMBERLY SCOTT | DEATH OF A SALESMANKIMBERLY SCOTT* (LINDA LOMAN)

a graduate of Yale School of Drama, appeared at Yale Rep in Wole Soyinka’s A Play of Giants and as Molly Cunningham in August Wilson’s Joe Turner’s Come and Gone, for which she received Tony and Drama Desk Award nominations when that play moved to Broadway. Off-Broadway credits include Mabou Mines’ Lear and The Gospel at Colonus (Gorky Art Theatre, Moscow). Regional theatre credits include Jeff Whitty’s The Further Adventures of Hedda Gabler, Our Town (South Coast Repertory and in rep at Oregon Shakespeare Festival); Doubt, Kenneth Lin’s Po’Boy Tango (South Coast Rep); Restoration Comedy (The Old Globe); Julius Caesar (Mark Taper Forum); Going to St. Ives (Salt Lake Acting Company); The Comedy of Errors (Shakespeare & Co.); and Huntington Theatre, Arena Stage, Sundance Institute Theatre and Playwrights Lab, Southern Writers Project/Alabama Shakespeare Festival, and Pacific Playwrights Festival. Film credits include The Great Buck Howard, World Trade Center, K-Pax, The United States of Leland, Downtown, Bellyfruit, The Waterdance, Batman and Robin, Batman Forever, The Client, Falling Down, Flatliners, and The Abyss, as well as many television credits. Ms. Scott is a Beinecke Fellow at Yale School of Drama this spring. Back to top.

 

 

*MEMBER OF ACTORS’ EQUITY ASSOCIATION, UNION OF PROFESSIONAL ACTORS AND STAGE MANAGERS IN THE UNITED STATES.