The Folks at Home

by R. Eric Thomas

February 20 - March 16

OneAmerica Mainstage

a modern family comedy

Roger and Brandon, an interracial couple living in South Baltimore, are doing the very best they can to live their version of the American dream: love, house, solid jobs. Except Roger’s been laid off for months, their mortgage is late…and there might be a ghost in the attic. And that was before both sets of parents decided to move in! This contemporary riff on the beloved family sitcoms of the 70s is a complex yet heartwarming portrait of modern life.

 

Show Resources

Click image below to view our digital program.

Study Guide — Download here!

For Christel DeHaan Student Matinee Information, click here.

Know Before You Go

  • Tickets range from $25 to $86
  • Approximately 2 hours and 15 minutes, including one 15 minute intermission
  • Recommended for 6th grade and above
  • ASL-interpreted, audio-described and open-captioned performances are available on select dates
  • Content Spotlight: Contains mild profanity; discussions of race, gender, sexuality, and age are themes of the play.

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"enjoyable and worthwhile entertainment"
A Seat on the Aisle

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IRT is an inclusive theatre and offers many accessibility options, including audio enhancement, large print programs, and sensory supports.
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Cast Members

Tracy Michelle Arnold
Maureen Littlefield
Tracy Michelle Arnold
Maureen Littlefield

Tracy has appeared at the IRT in Shakespeare’s Will and A Doll’s House Part 2. She is a member of the Core Acting Company at American Players Theatre, where her roles have included Kate in The Taming of the Shrew, Cleopatra in Antony and Cleopatra, Jacques in As You Like It, Lady M in Macbeth, Olivia in Twelfth Night, Judith Bliss in Hay Fever, Beatrice in Much Ado about Nothing, Malaprop in The Rivals, and Blanche DuBois in A Streetcar Named Desire. Other regional credits include the Goodman Theatre, Asolo Repertory Theatre, and Chicago Shakespeare Theatre. “Love to M & G.”

Sean Blake
Vernon Harrison
Sean Blake
Vernon Harrison

Sean has appeared in the IRT’s A Christmas Carol for the past two seasons. Broadway/National Tour: Hal Prince and Susan Strohman’s Show Boat. Regional credits: the Goodman Theatre, the Court Theatre, Chicago Shakespeare Theater, the Kennedy Center, Seattle Rep, Asolo Rep, Alabama Shakespeare Theatre, Pasadena Playhouse, and many more. Sean can be heard on the original cast recording of Hal Prince and Stephen Sondheim’s Bounce. Television credits: Empire (FOX), Chicago P.D. (NBC), and Mixtape (Netflix). Sean is a proud member of AEA and SAG, and is represented by Gray Talent. “Enjoy.”

Olivia D. Dawson
Pamela Harrison
Olivia D. Dawson
Pamela Harrison

Olivia made her IRT debut in Oedipus. She has worked regionally with Steppenwolf Theatre, the Louisville Orchestra, Portland Center Stage, Illinois Shakespeare Festival, New Stages Theatre, Atlanta Shakespeare Company, Milwaukee Repertory Theatre, Milwaukee Chamber Theatre, Madison Repertory Theatre, Theatre Lila, Forward Theatre, Horizon Theatre, Robey Theatre, and Barter Theatre, to name a few. Film/TV: Honk for Jesus, Dopesick, Chicago Med, Empire, Wolfpack (recurring), and Cobra Kai, among others. Olivia was part of the inaugural cohort of the 2020 Arts and Social Justice Fellowship at Emory University and a Spring 2021 Fellow with the Hambidge Center. oliviaddawson.com

Keith Illidge
Roger Harrison
Keith Illidge
Roger Harrison

Keith is honored and thrilled to be making his IRT debut in The Folks at Home. Some of his favorite theatre credits include As Much as I Can tour (Harley&Co.), Marie Antoinette and the Magical Negroes (Story Theatre), The Most Spectacularly Lamentable Trial of Miz Martha Washington (Steppenwolf), The Last Pair of Earlies (Raven), The Meeting (Fleetwood-Jourdain), and Untitled: A One-Man Show (Inis-Nua). Keith is a proud graduate at the Theatre School at DePaul and is represented by Gray Talent. “Seek God first!”  @klou_theartist

Claire Wilcher
Alice, Brittany Littlefield
Claire Wilcher
Alice, Brittany Littlefield

Claire was last seen at the IRT as Mrs. Peacock in Clue. This past holiday season, Claire was the director and head writer of (and acted in) A Very Phoenix Xmas Returns at the Phoenix Theatre Cultural Center. Various other fave credits: Bottom in A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Phebe in As You Like It (Indianapolis Shakespeare Company); Storyteller in Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson, Trekkie Monster/Lucy in Avenue Q (Phoenix Theatre). Directing: Love’s Labor’s Lost (IndyShakes), The Diary of Anne Frank (Booth Tarkington Civic Theatre). Claire is also a certified Intimacy Director with IDC Professionals. clairewilcher.com

Garrett Young
Brandon Littlefield
Garrett Young
Brandon Littlefield

Garrett is honored to be making his IRT debut with this delicious play. Other theatre credits include Lynn Nottage’s Clyde’s (Goodman Theatre/Mark Taper Forum), Trayf (Geffen Playhouse—LA Drama Critics Nomination), My Father’s War (TheatreSquared), Q Brothers’ Christmas Carol (St. Louis Shakespeare Festival—St. Louis Theatre Circle nomination). TV credits include J.J. Abrams’ Duster & NBC’s Chicago Fire, New Amsterdam, Chicago Med, and Chicago Justice. Garrett is a founding member of the Santa Fe–based immersive collective the Exodus Ensemble. Training: the Theatre School at DePaul University & the British American Drama Academy. @garrettryoung

Creative Team

R. Eric Thomas
Playwright
R. Eric Thomas
Playwright

Playwright: Mrs. Harrison (produced by the IRT in 2021), Safe Space, Backing Track, Merland, The Ever Present, Human Resources, and Always the Bridesmaid. Author: Here for It, or How to Save Your Soul in America; a biography of Rep. Maxine Waters, Reclaiming Her Time, written with Helena Andrews Dyer. Television: AppleTV+’s Dickinson, FX’s Better Things. For four years he was a senior staff writer for Elle.com. He won the 2016 Barrymore Award for Best New Play (Time Is on Our Side) and the 2018 Dramatists Guild Lanford Wilson Award. He has been published multiple times in the New York Times, TIME, Philadelphia Inquirer, and others.

Reggie D. White
Director
Reggie D. White
Director
Reggie is delighted to return to IRT after appearing in A Christmas Carol as Fred/Ghost of Christmas Future in 2018. Selected directing credits—Off-Broadway: And in This Corner, Cassius Clay (Atlantic Theater Co), Buzzer (Public Theater—Associate Director); regional: Repertory Theatre of St. Louis, the Williams Project, Bay Street Theater, Alter Theatre Ensemble. Selected Acting Credits—Broadway: The Inheritance (winner of four Tony Awards); Off-Broadway: New York Theatre Workshop, Public Theater, 59E59. Training: Atlantic Acting School, Cal State Hayward. Senior Artistic Producer at Arena Stage and Associate Artistic Director at the Repertory Theatre of St. Louis. reggiedwhite.com
Linda Buchanan
Scenic Designer
Linda Buchanan
Scenic Designer

At the IRT, Linda has designed You Can’t Take It with You, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, The 39 Steps, and more. She has designed hundreds of stage productions at regional theatres across the country and abroad. Awards include the Merritt Award for Design and Collaboration, Jeff Awards for House and Black Snow at the Goodman and I Hate Hamlet at the Royal George, and a Helen Hayes Award for Dancing at Lughnasa at Arena Stage. Linda is a professor emerita of the Theatre School at DePaul University, where she was associate dean and head of the scene design program.

Yao Chen
Costumer Designer
Yao Chen
Costumer Designer

IRT: The Paper Dreams of Harry Chin, The House That Jack Built, The Diary of Anne Frank. Recent projects: Mozart l'opéra rock (Seven Ages, Ltd, Beijing China), Mr. Parent (Boston Playwright Theatre, Geva Theatre Center). Active collaborator with Seattle Children’s Theatre; Shakespeare Theatre of New Jersey; Berkshire Theatre Group; Trinity Repertory Company; Merrimack Repertory Theatre; New Repertory Theatre; Contemporary American Theatre Festival; Children’s Theatre of Charlotte; Lyric Company of Boston; Theatre Square; Orlando Repertory Theatre; Orlando Shakespeare Theatre; Don Gong Theatre in Beijing, China; Expresso Theatre in San Jose, Costa Rica; ;Cayman Culture Foundation, Cayman Island. yao-chen.com, USA 829

Jared Gooding
Lighting Designer
Jared Gooding
Lighting Designer

IRT: The Reclamation of Madison Hemings, Clue. Regional: Writers Theatre, Goodman Theatre, Bristol Riverside Theatre, Florentine Opera Company, First Stage,  DePaul University, Milwaukee Repertory Theater, Victory Gardens, TimeLine Theatre, Madison Children’s Theater, University of Illinois Chicago Theatre, University of Indiana Northwest, Remy Bumppo Theatre, Strawdog Theatre, The Hypocrites, Definition Theatre, First Floor Theater, About Face Theatre, MPAACT, and Pegasus Theatre. Jared was the lighting assistant for The Wiz Live on NBC, and associate designer for Lookingglass Theatre’s tour of Lookingglass Alice in Miami and Denver. Based in Chicago, Jared spends weekends as a professional DJ. goodingdesigns.com

Sharath Patel
Sound Designer
Sharath Patel
Sound Designer

Based in Portland, Oregon, Sharath works nationally and internationally focusing on experimental, commercial, academic, political, and socially conscious theatre. IRT: The Book Club Play. Recent designs: Cleveland Play House, Theatrical Outfit, Portland Center Stage, Repertory Theatre of St. Louis, Seattle Children’s Theatre, ACT, American Rep, Artists Rep, Seattle Rep, Yale Rep, Alabama Shakes. Additional work: New York City, San Francisco, L.A., India, France, England, Germany, Romania. Affiliations: USA829, Theatrical Sound Designers and Composers Association, Arts Envoy for the U.S. Department of State, Resident Artist at Artists Rep. BFA: Ohio University. MFA: Yale School of Drama. sharathpatel.com

Derek A. Graham
Composer
Derek A. Graham
Composer

Derek is pleased to be collaborating with Indiana Rep for the first time. Composer credits include Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein (Cleveland Play House), Incident at Our Lady of Perpetual Help (Asolo Repertory Theatre), In Every Generation (TheatreWorks Silicon Valley), Toni Stone (Milwaukee Repertory Theatre/Alliance Theatre), Protocol (Portland Center Stage), The Chinese Lady (Artists Repertory Theatre). Derek holds an M.F.A. in sound design from Ohio University and a B.A. in music with an emphasis in sound recording technology from Elizabeth City State University.

Samantha Kaufman
Intimacy
Samantha Kaufman
Intimacy

Samantha is an intimacy director, fight director, actor, and teaching artist. She is based in Chicago and works internationally. Samantha is a Certified Intimacy Director with Intimacy Directors and Coordinators. A Certified Teacher with the Society of American Fight Directors. A Jeff award nominated fight choreographer. An award winning actor. She has been a resident artist with Oregon Shakespeare Festival and Prague Shakespeare Company. Regionally, Samantha has worked with theatres such as Lyric Opera of Chicago, Asolo Repertory Theatre, Milwaukee Repertory Theatre, the Repertory Theatre of St. Louis, Cleveland Play House, and others. SamanthaJKaufman.com

Richard J Roberts
Dramaturg
Richard J Roberts
Dramaturg
This is Richard’s 34th season with the IRT, and his 26th as resident dramaturg. He has also been a dramaturg for the New Harmony Project, Write Now, and the Hotchner Playwriting Festival. He has directed IRT productions of A Christmas Carol, The Cay, Bridge & Tunnel, The Night Watcher, Neat, Pretty Fire, The Giver, The Power of One, and Twelfth Night. Other directing credits include Actors Theatre of Indiana, the Phoenix, Indianapolis Chamber Orchestra, and the Edyvean. Richard studied music at DePauw and theatre at IU and was awarded a Creative Renewal Arts Fellowship from the Arts Council of Indianapolis.
Erin Robson-Smith
Stage Manager
Erin Robson-Smith
Stage Manager
Since moving to Indianapolis in 2013, Erin has had the pleasure of working with IRT and its incredible staff. Favorite productions include A Christmas Carol, The Paper Dreams of Harry Chin, Pipeline, Finding Home with IRT; The Hotel Nepenthe and Love Bird with the Phoenix Theatre; The Convent with Summit Performance Indianapolis; Sometimes a Great Notion and Frost/Nixon with Portland Center Stage; and Metamorphoses and Frozen with Artists Repertory Theatre. Erin spent the summers of 2008 and 2009 working with the JAW Festival at Portland Center Stage.  
Claire Simon CSA
Casting
Claire Simon CSA
Casting
Based in Chicago, Claire Simon CSA has worked with the IRT for the past 24 years on casting more than 40 productions, including Clue, Oedipus, Sense and Sensibility, Murder on the Orient Express, Twelve Angry Men, You Can’t Take It With You, Holmes and Watson, Noises Off, Appoggiatura, and many more. Other regional credits include Syracuse Stage, Asolo Theatre, Lyric Opera, Milwaukee Rep, and the Tony Award–winning Million Dollar Quartet. TV credits include Empire, Easy, Sense8, Chicago Fire, Chicago PD, Crisis, and Betrayal. Film credits include Divergent, Contagion, Unexpected, and Man of Steel. Claire has won two Artios Awards.
  • Keith Illidge and Garrett Young in the IRT's 2024 production of The Folks at Home. Photo by Zach Rosing.
  • Keith Illidge and Garrett Young in the IRT's 2024 production of The Folks at Home. Photo by Zach Rosing.
  • Keith Illidge and Olivia D. Dawson in the IRT's 2024 production of The Folks at Home. Photo by Zach Rosing.
  • Tracy Michelle Arnold and Keith Illidge in the IRT's 2024 production of The Folks at Home. Photo by Zach Rosing.
  • Olivia D. Dawson and Tracy Michelle Arnold in the IRT's 2024 production of The Folks at Home. Photo by Zach Rosing.
  • Sean Blake, Olivia D. Dawson, and Claire Wilcher in the IRT's 2024 production of The Folks at Home. Photo by Zach Rosing.
  • Claire Wilcher in the IRT's 2024 production of The Folks at Home. Photo by Zach Rosing.
  • Sean Blake, Olivia D. Dawson, and Claire Wilcher in the IRT's 2024 production of The Folks at Home. Photo by Zach Rosing.
  • Garrett Young in the IRT's 2024 production of The Folks at Home. Photo by Zach Rosing.
  • Sean Blake, Keith Illidge, and Olivia D. Dawson in the IRT's 2024 production of The Folks at Home. Photo by Zach Rosing.
  • Keith Illidge and Olivia D. Dawson in the IRT's 2024 production of The Folks at Home. Photo by Zach Rosing.
  • Keith Illidge, Sean Blake, and Olivia D. Dawson in the IRT's 2024 production of The Folks at Home. Photo by Zach Rosing.
  • Garrett Young and Claire Wilcher in the IRT's 2024 production of The Folks at Home. Photo by Zach Rosing.
  • Garrett Young and Olivia D. Dawson in the IRT's 2024 production of The Folks at Home. Photo by Zach Rosing.
  • Tracy Michelle Arnold, Keith Illidge, and Olivia D. Dawson in the IRT's 2024 production of The Folks at Home. Photo by Zach Rosing.
  • Sean Blake and Keith Illidge in the IRT's 2024 production of The Folks at Home. Photo by Zach Rosing.
  • Olivia D. Dawson, Tracy Michelle Arnold, Garrett Young, and Sean Blake in the IRT's 2024 production of The Folks at Home. Photo by Zach Rosing.
  • The cast of the IRT's 2024 production of The Folks at Home. Photo by Zach Rosing.
  • The cast of the IRT's 2024 production of The Folks at Home. Photo by Zach Rosing.
  • Keith Illidge and Garrett Young in the IRT's 2024 production of The Folks at Home. Photo by Zach Rosing.

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