Lewis and Tolkien

In This Program

• About The Play
• Director’s Note
• Company
• Taste of Show
• Dramaturgy: The Authors
• Book List: Middle-Earth, Narnia, and Beyond
• Lobby Gallery
• Print Edition
• More About Taproot Theatre

About The Play

Playing in the Isaac Studio Theatre 

Cast

(In Order of Appearance) 

J.R.R. Tolkien
Jeff Allen Pierce

Veronica
Chloe Michele

C.S. Lewis
Peter Cook

Understudies

J.R.R. Tolkien
James Lyle

Veronica
Ays Garcia

C.S. Lewis
Michael Ramquist

Production

Director
Karen Lund**

Assistant Director
Christopher Kidder-Mostrom** 

Scenic/Sound Design
Mark Lund 

Costume Design
Kilah Williams 

Lighting Design
Tim Wratten 

Stage Manager
Kathryn Louise

Dialect Coach
Leah Fishbaugh 

Dramaturgy
Sonja Lowe 

Setting

The Eagle and Child Pub; Oxford, England; Autumn, 1963

Lewis and Tolkien is approximately 90 minutes, with no intermission.

**The Directors are members of the STAGE DIRECTORS AND CHOREOGRAPHERS SOCIETY, a national theatrical labor union.

As a storyteller myself, I am always fascinated to learn more about the creative minds of other storytellers. It is this curiosity that draws me into Dean Batali’s new play, Lewis and Tolkien—a script that imagines a conversation between C.S. Lewis and J.R.R. Tolkien, taking place towards the end of their lives.

Batali’s script offers us the delightful opportunity to be “in the room” with two great writers and two good friends. In fact, this play presents us with the supposition that these men only became great writers because they were good friends. Without a Tolkien to challenge a young Lewis to look beyond the material world and open his mind to the possibility that God was real, there would likely be no Aslan or Narnia or wonder-filled wardrobes. Without a Lewis to continually spur Tolkien to write the next chapter of his great adventure story, the world of Middle-earth would likely have remained locked up inside Tolkien’s desk.

Like so many other readers, I have been delighted to live, for a time, in the imaginary worlds that Lewis and Tolkien are so famous for creating. However, in this play, it is the story of their real-life friendship that truly fascinates me. What draws two friends like this together? What pulls them apart? And—in the ups and downs that accompany any decades long relationship—what helped their friendship endure?

Lewis and Tolkien is a story that celebrates great imaginations, but even more so, it’s a story that celebrates great friendships. It’s a play that inspires all of us to reflect with gratitude on the friends who have made us who we are today.

Perhaps one of those friends is sitting beside you in the theatre at this moment…

I hope both of you enjoy this show!

Karen Lund

Company

Cast

Peter Cook (C.S. Lewis) (he/him) is thrilled to make his debut at Taproot Theatre in Lewis and Tolkien. He has acted throughout the Pacific Northwest for over two decades in productions ranging from Six Characters in Search of an Author to The Foreigner. Thank you for your support. Enjoy the Show! 

Chloe Michele (Veronica) is thrilled to return to Taproot Theatre after last performing in A Charlie Brown Christmas. Previous credits include 46 Plays for America’s First Ladies and As It is in Heaven. In her free time, she loves to figure skate and travel.

Jeff Allen Pierce (J.R.R. Tolkien) recently understudied Taproot’s The Book of Will; How to Write a New Book for the Bible; and My Lord, What A Night. Other favorite roles include Benedick in Much Ado About Nothing (GreenStage) and Sam in Fully Committed (Lord Leebrick Theatre). Jeff also performed with Island Shakespeare Festival, Theatre22, and Oregon Shakespeare Festival. Thank you, Jennifer, for convincing me to get back on stage – I love you!

Understudies

Ays Garcia (Veronica u/s) (she/her) is ecstatic to be back at Taproot! She is a current student at UW Seattle! Go Dawgs! Some favorite shows are Georgiana and Kitty: Christmas at Pemberley (Taproot), Cinderella (Village), Mamma Mia! (Village), and Snowed In Again (ArtsWest). She would love to thank her incredible family and friends for all their love and support! Shoutout to TJs #138! Representation matters. Maraming salamat! 

James Lyle (J.R.R. Tolkien u/s) is delighted to be joining Taproot Theatre for the first time with this production. He most recently appeared in Holmes and Watson (SecondStory Rep) and Victorian Christmas Cards (Latitude Theatre). He credits the Elvish language appendices from LOTR with inspiring his lifelong study of linguistics.

Michael Ramquist (C.S. Lewis u/s) (he/him/they) has performed widely in the region. Recently he portrayed O’Brien in Radial Theater’s production of George Orwell’s 1984. He is currently developing a solo piece exploring the repressive trauma occasioned by his father’s suicide in 1971.

Production Team

Kathryn Louise (Stage Manager) (she/her) is a Theatre Magic Maker who lives, works, and plays on Coast Salish land. Katt has a double BFA from the University of Montana (Theatre Design Tech & Dance) and was the Production Associate at Taproot Theatre from 2020-2023. In 2023, she and Michelle Rodriguez were recipients of the Melissa Hines Backstage Gregory Award. Recent credits include The Co-Conspirators' Sponsored By The Void, TTC’s Sister Act and The Book of Will (Stage Manager), Cornish’s New Moves (Lighting Designer), and PLU’s Pippin (Lighting Designer). All her love to her handsome husband and cute pupper. kathryn-louise.com

Leah Fishbaugh (Dialect Coach) is honored to continue their dialect work for this production! They most recently coached dialects at Taproot for The Book of Will, but you may have also heard their work in As It is in Heaven (2023), See How They Run (2022), and Bright Star (2019). Thank you to my teachers, without whom I wouldn’t have discovered my passion for voice and speech. All my love to Brandon, Sam, and Frodo. 

Christopher Kidder-Mostrom (Assistant Director) is thrilled to work with the understudies on this production. Chris has previously served as fight choreographer for two shows at Taproot Theatre (The Wickhams: Christmas at Pemberley and A Woman of No Importance), and he has previously directed two of Taproot’s touring Christmas shows. When not at Taproot, Chris is the Artistic Director of Latitude Theatre, and is directing their next mainstage production, Ingvar! The Musical Furniture Saga (a musical about Ikea’s founder) this summer.

Sonja Lowe (Dramaturg) has a BA in Theatre from Seattle Pacific University and an MLitt in Dramaturgy from the University of Glasgow. She is the Literary Manager and Resident Dramaturg at Taproot Theatre Company and contributes dramaturgical research to other regional theatres in the Pacific Northwest.

Karen Lund (Producing Artistic Director) has been on the Taproot staff since 1993 and became Taproot’s Producing Artistic Director in January 2021. Taproot was recently voted the Seattle Times People’s Choice Best of the Northwest for Theatre 2024, and received the 2024 Gregory Award for Outstanding Performing Arts Organization of the Year. Recent directing work includes Taproot Theatre’s Happy Christmas, Jeeves; Sherlock Holmes and the Precarious Position; the award-winning production of The Book of Will; Georgiana and Kitty: Christmas at Pemberley; The Hello Girls, and A Woman of No Importance. She has also directed at several theatres around the country and coast to coast. She is the past president of the board of directors for Theatre Puget Sound, a member of the Stage Directors and Choreographers Union (SDC), a professional voiceover artist, and the recipient of numerous theatre and film directing awards. Karen thanks her amazing family, Mark, Jake, and Hannah.

Mark Lund (Scenic & Sound Designer) has designed many things in many places including a tiny version of The Eagle and Child pub as part of Shadowlands in 2004. Recent favorites include The Book of Will, The Hello Girls, Black Coffee, and Daddy Long Legs. Other design work includes Seattle Shakespeare, Book-It, and award-winning short films. Mark has also voiced many regional and national projects including T-Mobile, The North Face, NHL, FedEx, Amazon and Falco Lombardi in Starfox and Smash Bros for Nintendo. Love to Karen, Hannah, and Jake.

Kilah Williams (Costume Designer) manages the costume shop at Taproot Theatre and works as a costume designer and maker around the Pacific Northwest. She hails from Louisiana but moved to the great state of Washington after finishing her education in Texas, Cardiff, and Milan. Locally she has worked with Island Shakespeare Festival, Seattle Academy, IAJ Media, Chrysalis Circus, Reboot Theatre, and others. 

Tim Wratten (Lighting Designer) has been playing with light for almost as long as he can remember. Light, and how and what we see, is a lasting fascination, and playing with it is great fun. He lives in Shoreline with a potter wife and two cats and has a daughter who is busy as a geologist.

Playwright 

Dean Batali has been a writer and producer on more than 350 episodes of television (including That 70s Show and Buffy the Vampire Slayer). As a showrunner he was executive producer for Hallmark’s Good Witch and Great American Pure Flix’s Destination Heaven. A graduate of The Evergreen State College, Dean’s musical Noah premiered in Olympia, and he directed a later production of that show in his hometown of Tacoma. Before moving to Los Angeles, Dean and his wife, Beth, were members of Taproot Theatre’s Road Company, and during that time they performed in Dean’s one-act Christmas musical, In Those Days. His most recent play is the one-man Charles Dickens: Speaking of Scrooge. Dean is also an author, having co-written the book Watching TV Religiously, which examines television from a spiritual perspective.

Production Crew

Crew

Assistant Stage Manager
Sam Williamson  

Stage Management/Crew Swing
Audrey McGee 

Casting

Casting Director
Bretteney Beverly  

Costume Staff

Dresser
Sam Williamson 

Stitcher
Martha Mitchell 

Scenic and Lighting Staff

Master Electrician
Aiyana Stephens 

Scenic Carpenter
Tim Samland ^† 

Light Board Operator
Clint Bull 

Sound Board Operator
Marty Sisk 

Electricians
Morgan Poirer, Matthew Ray, Madeleine Rush, Jacob Viramontes 

Scenic Strike/Load-In
Ken Harris ^†, Melina Harris ^†, Taylor Malec ^†

† All stage work performed by employees represented by I.A.T.S.E., Local No. 15.

Taste of Show

Stop by concessions before the show to pre-order your intermission refreshments.

Taproot’s concessions menu features Pacific Northwest wine and beer, non-alcoholic beverages, and a variety of snacks, including specialty items chosen specifically for this show.

Food and Drink Specials curated for Lewis and Tolkien:

Snacks

Prancing Pony Blackberry Tart
(Lá Liath Bakery)

Lembas Bread
(Seattle Scone Co.) 

Featured beverages

Forested Lamppost
Vodka / Pomegranate Juice / Orange Liqueur 

Sauron Sazerac
Peychaud’s Bitters / Rye Whiskey / Elderflower Liqueur / Lemon Garnish

The Turkish Delight (NA)
Sparkling Water / Rose Water / Vanilla Syrup / Strawberry Syrup

Dramaturgy: The Authors

C.S. Lewis

Clive Staples Lewis (November 1898 – November 1963) was a British writer, literary scholar, and Anglican lay theologian.

He held academic positions in English literature at both Magdalen College, Oxford (1925 – 1954), and Magdalene College, Cambridge (1954 – 1963). He is best known as the author of The Chronicles of Narnia, but he is also noted for his other works of fiction, such as The Screwtape Letters and The Space Trilogy, and for his non-fiction Christian apologetics, including Mere Christianity, Miracles, and The Problem of Pain.

Lewis was a close friend of J.R.R. Tolkien, author of The Lord of the Rings. Both men served on the English faculty at Oxford University and were active in the informal Oxford literary group known as The Inklings. According to Lewis’s 1955 memoir Surprised by Joy, he was baptized in the Church of Ireland but fell away from his faith during adolescence. Lewis returned to Anglicanism at the age of 32, owing to the influence of Tolkien and other friends, and he became an “ordinary layman of the Church of England”. Lewis’s faith profoundly affected his work, and his wartime radio broadcasts on the subject of Christianity brought him wide acclaim.

Lewis wrote more than 30 books which have been translated into more than 30 languages and have sold millions of copies. The books that make up The Chronicles of Narnia have sold the most and have been popularized on stage, TV, radio, and cinema. His philosophical writings are widely cited by Christian scholars from many denominations.

In 1956, Lewis married American writer Joy Davidman; she died of cancer four years later at the age of 45. Lewis died on 22 November 1963 from kidney failure, at age 64. In 2013, on the 50th anniversary of his death, Lewis was honored with a memorial in Poets’ Corner in Westminster Abbey.

_{Source: Excerpted from Wikipedia contributors. (2024, December 3). C.S. Lewis. In Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Retrieved 18:38, December 13, 2024, from https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=C._S._Lewis&oldid=1260955126}

J.R.R. Tolkien

John Ronald Reuel Tolkien (January 1892 – September 1973) was an English writer and philologist.

He was the author of the high fantasy works The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings.

From 1925 to 1945, Tolkien was the Rawlinson and Bosworth Professor of Anglo-Saxon and a Fellow of Pembroke College, both at the University of Oxford. He then moved within the same university to become the Merton Professor of English Language and Literature and Fellow of Merton College, and held these positions from 1945 until his retirement in 1959. Tolkien was a close friend of C.S. Lewis, a co-member of the informal literary discussion group The Inklings. [In recognition of his literary achievements,]Tolkien was appointed a Commander of the Order of the British Empire by Queen Elizabeth II on 28 March 1972.

After Tolkien’s death, his son Christopher published a series of works based on his father’s extensive notes and unpublished manuscripts, including The Silmarillion. These, together with The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings, form a connected body of tales, poems, fictional histories, invented languages, and literary essays about a fantasy world called Arda and, within it, Middle-earth. Between 1951 and 1955, Tolkien applied the term legendarium to the larger part of these writings.

While many other authors had published works of fantasy before Tolkien, the tremendous success of The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings ignited a profound interest in the fantasy genre and ultimately precipitated an avalanche of new fantasy books and authors. As a result, he has been popularly identified as the “father” of modern fantasy literature and is widely regarded as one of the most influential authors of all time.”

_{Source: Excerpted from Wikipedia contributors. (2024, December 12). J. R. R. Tolkien. In Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Retrieved 18:47, December 13, 2024, from https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=J._R._R._Tolkien&oldid=1262595498}

A Tribute to Friendship

Even in the briefest of summaries, biographers find it impossible to talk about Lewis’ life and work without mentioning his friendship with Tolkien and vice versa. Historian Colin Duriez celebrates the impact that these two writers had on each other in his book, Tolkien and C.S. Lewis: The Gift of Friendship. At the conclusion of this duo-biography, Duriez quotes Lewis’ own description of and tribute to the gift of friendship, “Thinking of the company of friends after a day’s walking, [Lewis] was certainly including Tolkien when he wrote: ‘Those are the golden sessions…when our slippers are on, our feet spread out towards the blaze and our drinks at our elbows; when the whole world, and something beyond the world, opens itself to our minds as we talk...Life—natural life—has no better gift to give. Who could have deserved it?’”

_{Source: Duriez, Colin. Tolkien and C.S. Lewis: The Gift of Friendship. Published: Hidden Springs, 2003
Photo credit: Addison's Walk, Magdalen College, Oxford, looking back towards the College. From gagravarr.org/photos/. Photo by Gragravarr, originally in color.}

Book List:

Middle-Earth, Narnia, and Beyond

C.S. Lewis and J.R.R. Tolkien — two of the greatest writers of the 20th century — created some of the most renowned fantasy worlds and shaped much of the fantasy landscape we know today. Explore their lives, art, and legacy beyond the play!

Becoming Mrs. Lewis: The Improbable Love Story of Joy Davidman and C.S. Lewis
by Patti Callahan Henry

In this historical novel, New York Times bestselling author Patti Callahan Henry creates a portrait of the poet and writer who befriended C.S. Lewis and eventually married him.

Bandersnatch: C.S. Lewis, J.R.R. Tolkien and the Creative Collaboration of the Inklings
by Diana Pavlac Glyer

Written by a leading expert on Lewis, Tolkien, and the Inklings, this book illuminates not only the relationships and community between these writers, but also the way that such connection fosters creativity.

Pictures by J.R.R. Tolkien
Selections and Text by Christopher Tolkien

Fans of J.R.R. Tolkien’s novels get the author’s own vision of his fantasy worlds through his drawings, sketches, and watercolors of Rivendell, Smaug, the Forest of Lothlorien, and his other creations.

Additional Recommendations

from Max Koh, Taproot’s Patron Services Manager:

“Dungeons and Dragons, and its full design, was directly inspired by Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings Series.

“One of my personal favorite albums, Dear Wormwood by The Oh Hellos, is a take on The Screwtape Letters by Lewis.

“Nearly every fantasy book has its roots back to Tolkien and Lewis but I’d highly recommend Babel by R.F. Kuang as they both discuss the Industrial Revolution and post-war Britain in similar lights.”

Lobby Gallery

Unfolding Stories: Watercolors by Sophie Xie

January 20 - March 8

Watercolor is a fluid medium; not just literally, as the water defines the paint’s path, but figuratively, as it allows for chance and serendipity in the painting process. It is not easy to create defined shapes or rigid lines in a watercolor painting. But many artists find a way to work with the fluidity, to explore its potential paths, and to allow its elements to tell stories like no other art medium can.

Just as C.S. Lewis and J.R.R. Tolkien’s paths for storytelling are being told on the stage at Taproot this winter in Lewis and Tolkien, I wanted to bring an artist to the Kendall Center Exhibition Series who would not only share their passion for storytelling, but one who would also show us images of grand cathedrals of the type that the authors might have visited around England.

Sophie speaks of her work in terms of story as well:

Sophie lives in Bothell, WA, with her children. She creates artwork whenever she finds the time, painting whatever excites her heart. Sophie invites others to join her on a journey through her artwork, follow the calling from her inner child, and uncover beauty in her imaginative landscapes.

All items are for sale unless marked by a red dot or NFS. Please visit dreaminwatercolor.com to contact the artist for purchase and to view more of her work.

— Gina Cavallo, Curator & Director of Development, Taproot Theatre

Announcing the 2025 Season: Timed Exposure!

New subscriptions available now!

4-Play and 3-Play subscriptions are available for the 2025 season.

Welcome to Taproot Theatre Company’s 2025 Season: Timed Exposure! This season, the stories on Taproot’s Mainstage are all about revealing truths from the past to give us hope for the future. Timed Exposure is a collection of stories reminding us that history is never static, and everything is connected.

A Raisin in the Sun

Directed by Bretteney Beverly

Experience the power of an American classic. In this riveting drama, a life insurance payout provides a path for Lena Younger’s family to move from their cramped apartment to an affordable home in a historically white neighborhood. This 1959 masterpiece “changed American theater forever” (New York Times) and continues to inspire and resonate today. 15+

March 19 – April 19, 2025

Early Bird Tickets: $30

Make your purchase by March 21 for any performance on or before March 29.

Use promo code EB2025RA online* at taproottheatre.org or by phone at 206.781.9707.

* How to Purchase $30 Early-Bird Tickets: Find the promo code field in the top right of the ticket page. Enter code BEFORE adding "ADULT ticket type" tickets to cart. This offer is valid only for adult-priced tickets in seat levels B & C. Cannot be combined with any other discount and is not valid on previously purchased tickets. Limit 4 tickets per order.

Spring and Summer Acting Camps and Classes available now!

Register today! 

Spring Camps run April 14 – 18!

Summer Camps now open for registration!

Visit our website for the most up-to-date information on Taproot’s Spring Break and Summer Camps for grades Pre-K – 12.

Thank You!

With your help, Taproot Theatre’s 2024 emergency fundraising campaign was a success! We reached 91% of our extraordinary big stretch goal of $1.95 million. And it worked! YOUR theatre is still here, bringing you stories of hope, on the stage and around the state.

Thank you!

With the new year, our new goal is bigger than in the past, but not quite as big a stretch as last year.  We will continue to welcome your support with gratitude. Your gift any time of year makes a big impact on the productions and programs we provide as well as the artists you love to watch and the ones that teach our youngest audiences, the designers and crew who make all the magic happen, and the staff that keeps things on track.

Let’s start this year off well!

Questions? Email Development@taproottheatre.org

Print Edition

More About Taproot Theatre

Taproot Theatre Contributors

Taproot Theatre gratefully acknowledges the following for their generous support of our Annual Fund and Nolte Legacy Fund. This list reflects gifts made between April 13, 2023 and April 13, 2024. If you have any questions or would like more information about making a tax-deductible gift to Taproot Theatre Company

Encore+Taproot Theatre

Staff and Board
Directions and Plan Your Visit
About Taproot Theatre