A Woman By Design

Elizabeth Ware

Elizabeth Ware is well known to Alaska audiences through her work with Cyrano's Theatre Company and as Libby, her one-woman show which has been performed throughout Alaska and the Lower 48, earning a 4-star review from The Scotsman at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival and featured at a Festival of Making Theatre in Athens. Libby was presented at the Last Frontier Theatre Conference in 1999 where she has also appeared in three of Edward Albee's plays; Agnes in A Delicate Balance, Mommy in The American Dream and B in Three Tall Women. For ten years she produced and was a featured actor with the Indiana Shakespeare Festival where her roles included Titania in A Midsummer Night's Dream, Kate in Taming of the Shrew, Beatrice in Much Ado About Nothing, Isabella in Measure for Measure, and Hermione in The Winter's Tale. As a guest artist with the Chamber Drama Theatre in Vladivostok, Russia, Elizabeth performed Titania in their production of A Midsummer Night's Dream at the Pacific Rim Theatre Festival. Memorable roles in Alaska include Masha in Chekhov's Three Sisters, and Sara in Henry and Sara. She taught Acting and Acting Shakespeare in the UAA Department of Theatre where she has directed The Heidi Chronicles, Sense and Sensibility and Antigone. Elizabeth was educated at the USIU School of Performing Arts in San Diego and holds a Master's in acting from Kent State University. David Edgecombe is a Professor Emeritus of Theatre at the University of Alaska Anchorage. He has a BA from California Western University, MA from San Diego State University and a Ph.D. from Kent State University. In addition to his extensive experience in live theatre, Dr. Edgecombe has published numerous articles on subjects as varied as the life of Shakespeare, Russian actor education and interpreting plays for the hearing impaired. He is the author of the book Actor Training During the Age of Shakespeare. He was the Founding Artistic Director of the Indiana Shakespeare Festival, a position he held for more than a decade. He is active in the theatre educators' professional organization, the Northwest Drama Conference. For that group he served as Critic's Forum Director, Vice President and President. He is a member of the American College Theatre Festival where one of his productions won regional awards. Dr. Edgecombe is also a playwright and his play Libby received a national tour and won a four star rating at the Edinburgh Fringe Theatre Festival. In addition to directing productions for the University of Alaska Anchorage, he works for Cyrano's Off-Center Playhouse and is a board member and participant of the Edward Albee Last Frontier Theatre Conference.