By William Shakespeare
Directed by John Deaderick
Thursday-Sunday
October 29-November 8, 7:30PM
Sunday Matinees at 2:00PM
Nevada Theatre, Nevada City, California
$25 General Admission
$35 Reserved Seating
Shakespeare’s most frequently performed play first hit the stage in 1600. On the surface, Hamlet fits a popular formula of the day: The Revenge Tragedy. Hamlet, however, provides much more than any formula. Its title character is complex, brooding, manic, over-thinking, even at times, brutal. It is a ghost story, a story of broken love, of political usurpation, betrayal. Murder. For centuries the role has been a litmus test for any actor aspiring to greatness, from the original, Richard Burbage, through Edwin Booth, John Barrymore, John Gielgud, Laurence Olivier, Richard Burton, David Tennant, Riz Ahmed and so on. Women have played the role, most notably Sarah Bernhardt. The two female roles, the tragic Ophelia and the widow/bride Gertrude, are equally compelling. Each woman in differing ways attempts to find agency in a world dominated by men.
Our production adds more females to the cast (Why ever not?), dresses its characters after the styles of our day, and seeks beneath received traditional practices in search of truths perhaps buried under the weight of its history. Its stage is free of clutter. We acknowledge our audience and speak directly to them as was the way in 1600.
The bones of the story originate around 1200 in a Danish history. Brother murders brother to seize the crown and bed the Queen, nephew feigns madness in his quest for vengeance, spies are “hoist on their own petard”: it’s all there. Thomas Kyd’s play of the same name appeared in the 1580s. No full text of that work survives, but there are suggestive fragments that indicate it must have been seen or known to a young Shakespeare down from Stratford. Kyd added the ghost, and Shakespeare offered the complex characterizations and an incredible richness of language.
Our hope is to serve this work, give it the respect of which it is eminently worthy. That does not mean keeping it behind glass as some museum relic but digging into it to discover the treasures within.
Director John Deaderick (SAG /AFTRA) first performed in the Nevada Theater in 1981 as the title role in Dracula. He directed Hamlet on this stage in 1995 as a member of The Foothill Theatre Company. His favorite roles in the Nevada Theatre include “Salieri” in Amadeus, “Dysart” in Equus, and Cyrano de Bergerac. John is dedicating this production to the late Dianne Fetterly and the late George Cloud. He cast Dianne as “Polonia” in that earlier Hamlet; George was the quintessential “Lucky” in John’s 1985 production of Waiting for Godot. John recently retired from Sierra College after 40 years teaching acting and theatre history.
CLAUDIUS – Micah Cone
FORTINBRAS, PLAYER – Hunter Reed
LAERTES – Michael La Marca
POLONIUS – Kendall Tieck
HAMLET – Danny McCammon
GERTRUDE – Michaela King
COURTIER, PLAYER KING, GRAVEDIGGER – Ken Miele
COURTIER, PLAYER QUEEN, GRAVEDIGGER – Aubrey Puetz
OSRIC, PLAYER – Miles Wolfers
HORATIO – Brandon Johnson
MARCELLUS, CAPTAIN, PLAYER – David Jordan
BERNARDO – Nicolas Federspiel
GHOST – John Fisher
OPHELIA – Iona Swift
ROSENCRANTZ & GUILDENSTERN – Vicki Columbo & Audrey Delgado
Danny (Hamlet) has been participating in local Nevada County theatre for a couple decades mostly as an actor, improvisor and comedian. You may have seen him last in Off Broadstreet’s Beyond Karaoke as Randy. He is a recipient of the Dr. Leland and Sally Lewis Performing Arts Award and a few SARTA Ellys for acting and directing. His favorite roles include John Wilkes Booth in Assassins, Jason/Tyrone in Hand to God, Trinculo in The Tempest, Rod in Avenue Q, Captain Fisby in Tea House of the August Moon and Leo Bloom in The Producers.
Hunter Reed has been involved in theatre since the age of nine, his favorite roles were in productions of Falsettos, Oliver!, The Sound of Music, and To Kill a Mockingbird. He later expanded into technical theatre, developing expertise in lighting, sound, set construction, and technical direction. Recent roles include Sky Masterson in Guys and Dolls, Ben in The Shorts, and Garry Essendine in Present Laughter. His recent design credits include lighting design for The Drowning Girls, Technical Director for Sense and Sensibility and sound design for Honk!. Hunter is the Theater Manager at Colfax High School. He’s also a father of two and a farmer of many cows.
Micah Cone (Claudius) has performed on Nevada County stages for over three decades, appearing in dozens of theatrical productions. He is thrilled to rejoin Paul Emery Presents and work under the direction of John Deaderick alongside this stunning cast. Micah last appeared in a Paul Emery Presents Production in 2012 as Mitch in A Streetcar Named Desire. Playing King Claudius is a dream come true for him, as he relishes any opportunity to play an out-and-out villain. Offstage, Micah serves as the Production Manager and Artistic Director Assistant for the local arts organization InConcert Sierra.
NO PHOTO
Michaela King is an actor, stand-up comedian, producer, and musician. Raised and now based in Nevada City, she’s delighted to work with such an incredible group of people on this production of Hamlet, and ever grateful to her extraordinary and loving friends and family.
Scott V. Young (Polonius) has been appearing in Nevada County theater productions since 2006 when he played one of the lunatics in John Deaderick’s Marat/Sade. Other favorite productions include Glengarry Glen Ross, Corpse, A Few Good Men, Fool for Love, As You Like It (in which he was fortunate to act with his wife), Cyrano De Bergerac, any play in which he shared a stage with the late great Lisa Moon, and most recently The Skull of Connemara.
John Fisher
Appearing as Hamlet’s father, the ghost, in tonight’s performance has appeared in CATS productions of Turandot (Tartallia), The Golden Child (Reverend Baines), Flower Drum Song (Harvard) and more recently in Snow Falling on Cedars as well as other local productions: Marate/Sade (Dupperet), Waiting for Godot (Lucky), Free Food Forever (Officer Feelgood) and Cyrano De Bergerac (Gascony Cadet/various). This is the fourth project he has had the opportunity to work with John Deaderick and is grateful to be included as a member of such a talented cast.
Michael LaMarca – Laertes
Michael has a degree in Theatre Arts from the University of California Santa Cruz. At university he performed the title role in Büchner’s Woyzeck, directed a production of Aeschylus’ The Libation Bearers in the Barn Theatre, worked in the scene shop and ran crew for two seasons of Shakespeare Santa Cruz. After graduation, he moved to New York City and went to work for the Joseph Papp Public Theatre where he built scenery and ran crew for multiple plays as well as Shakespeare in the Park at the Delacorte Theatre. Returning to California in 1999, he soon married and and began working for his family’s business Sierra Theaters where he helped run three movie theatres in Grass Valley and The Nevada Theatre Film Series in Nevada City. The business was sold in 2023 freeing him up to explore creative projects again. He’s delighted to return to the stage to portray Laertes and work with the esteemed artist John Deaderick and the excellent company he’s assembled for this production of Hamlet.
David Jordan has been performing since he was 16 in High School Theatre. He began acting in improv comedy shows, and took part in plays such as Alice in Wonderland, The Lightning Thief Musical, and Clue: On Stage. His favorite roles include March Hare, Medusa, and Wadsworth respectively. He has experience in directing from his time co-directing The Lightning Thief Musical with Robert Metcalfe. David is also an amateur juggler!
Nicolas encountered the magic of stage performance in his childhood, when he was involved in dancing. Later, he answered the call of studying the classical heritage of various cultures, starting with Mythology, and eventually Epic Literature and Philosophy. In his twenties, he played lead guitar in various rock bands, and after returning to the academic study of classical traditions, he wholeheartedly embraced poetry recitation and dramatic performance. At present, he promotes the Liberal Arts as a path to explore human nature and discover ourselves–a millennial pursuit, at risk in our times when technological surrogates impersonate our destiny as a species.
Vicki Colombo (Guildenstern) is thrilled to be working with the great John Deaderick for the first time. A lifelong performer, she first took the stage at age five and later trained at the Las Vegas Academy of the Arts and the American Musical and Dramatic Academy in Los Angeles. Local credits include Grace in Cinderella, Vivian Fay in On Air, Brooke in Slay Queen: A Murder Mystery, Rosalind Maule in Present Laughter, and Maureen/Lowbutt in Honk!. She hopes you enjoy this tale of princes, players, and poor decisions, and promises she’s only mostly confused about what’s going on in Elsinore.
Mrs. Puetz is a dancer and movement coordinator. She has worked with the Grass Valley Opera, Synthetic Unlimited, C.O.R.E., Nevada City School Of The Arts, Bitney College Prep High School & as a company member in The Movement Alliance Dance Theatre Company. Currently, Aubrey dances with the Nevada County Dance CoOperative & teaches creative movement. She is the Executive Director at the North Columbia Schoolhouse Cultural Center.
Kenny Miele – First Player, Player King, First Gravedigger -is a veteran actor, musician, puppeteer and band leader. He is thrilled to be performing in the glorious Nevada Theater for over the 20th time. He is a member of the American Federation of Television and Radio Artists. As an actor he has performed Off Broadway , as a puppeteer on several television shows, most notably Shining Time Station with Thomas The Tank Engine and Friends. That show won the Emmy Award for best children’s program. He is the leader of the band Cousin Cricket which has been performing throughout the country for over 50 years. Ken is delighted to reunite with John Deaderick under whose direction he garnered an Elly Award Nomination as best actor in Waiting for Godot.
Brandon Johnson (Horatio) has been performing locally for over 30 years and received his BA in Theater Arts from Sacramento State. This is his third production with Paul Emery presents as he previously played Antonio in “The Tempest” and Montfleury in “Cyrano de Bergerac”. He has also had the pleasure of working with Mr. Deaderick at Sierra College, a self-produced production of “True West”, and “The Lieutenant of Inishmore” for The Nugget Fringe. Some other favorite roles that are Hamlet-adjacent include Polonious in “Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead” and Gary in “I Hate Hamlet”!
Audrey Delgado is a local performer, comic and puppeteer. A Shakespeare enthusiast who boasts an eclectic theatre resume including puppeteering bookworms, shadow dragons, pigeons, a goldfish and even Audrey II. Also a local and venturing comic you can catch from Nevada County to Sacramento. Previously, the villain Conrade in Much Ado About Nothing (Lyric Rose/2026) and Bottom (stage reading extravaganza of A Midsummer Night’s Dream/ A Tea Wade Rendezvous 2026), Audrey is delighted and eager to absorb Rosencrantz for a fortnight.