written by Moira Buffini
directed by Amy Rummenie
Winner of a 2015 IVEY Award for Overall Excellence!
September 26 – October 11, 2014
Minneapolis Theatre Garage
A tiny, rocky island in the middle of the English Channel. A bitter winter night, two years into the German occupation. A young girl calls on ancient fairy magic, and a beautiful, naked young man washes up on the mine-filled Guernsey beach. Is he an English pilot? Or a Nazi officer? For the women who found him, Gabriel could either be their savior, or the biggest danger they’ve ever met.
Cast
Production Team
| jeanne | Katherine Kupiecki | director | Amy Rummenie |
| lily | Miriam Schwartz | set | Steve Kath |
| estelle | Lily Wangerin | costumes | Sara Wilcox |
| lake | Janet Paone | lighting | Tony Stoeri |
| gabriel | Ross Destiche | sound | Anita Kelling |
| von pfunz | Wade A. Vaughn | props | Robert “Bobbie” Smith |
| fight choreographer | Meredith Larson | ||
| dialect coach | Keely Wolter | ||
| stage manager | Nicole Rodriguez | ||
| asst. stage manager | Vanessa Horrocks | ||
| asst. director | Lucas Skjaret | ||
| german consultant | Ari Hoptman | ||
| blood effects | Tyler Olson |
Reviews
Walking Shadow’s production of Gabriel received a 2014 IVEY Award for Overall Excellence.
“Moira Buffini’s play, Gabriel, keeps you guessing right up to the finish, which is a mark of its worth both as entertainment and as art. Amy Rummenie has directed a cast for Walking Shadow Theatre Company that taps into the emotions with varied and well-measured levels of intensity. The play’s most charged sections are between Katherine Kupiecki as Jeanne and Nazi officer, Von Pfunz (Wade A. Vaughn). Jeanne works with the island’s black market, having to do what she has to do to keep her house safe. Von Pfunz has the power to control the relationship. That said, he is truly mad about her and we find that he truly desires to be loved in return. Unfortunately, for his ego at least, she has declared early on that she finds him unattractive. Vaughn and Kupiecki crackle brilliantly.”
-John Townsend, Lavender Magazine
“Director Amy Rummenie, co-artistic director of Walking Shadow, has wanted to do the play for several years. Her love of the script, and the long time spent contemplating it, show in the strong production. She nicely balances all the elements, and even at two hours and 45 minutes, the drama is edge-of-your-seat compelling.
The primary plot is a menacing game of cat and mouse between Jeanne, the family matriarch (Katherine Kupiecki), and the German commander (Wade A. Vaughn). They are well matched and their exchanges are frequently electrifying.”
-William Randall Beard, Star Tribune
“The historical accuracy of the production is wonderful, beginning with Steve Kath’s detailed set and the players’ use of a real oil lamp to provide some of the lighting. The nuance of the acting also makes the evening both entertaining and provocative. Katherine Kupiecki plays Jeanne Becquet with deep desperation and a shaky sense of morality, but her choices stem from her desire to protect her family; Miriam Schwartz also does a beautiful job distinguishing Lily’s public face from her private fears. As Estelle, Lily Wangerin provoked plenty of laughs of recognition: although Estelle is the perfect image of a bratty kid, she also has a deep need to feel safe and secure that draws the audience’s sympathies… I was engrossed by the acting and fully immersed in the production, which was smartly directed and hit all the right notes of humor and tension without ever venturing into hysteria.”
-Sophie Kerman, Minnesota Playlist
