Red and the Mother Wild

From the ensemble (or, Paean to the Illusion 🙂 ) - Simply put, Transatlantic Love Affair would not be the company it is today without the generous support and mentorship of the ILLUSION THEATER. After our very first Fringe production, Ballad of the Pale Fisherman in 2010, it was the ILLUSION who offered us not only a slot in their 2011-12 season, but the time, space, and resources to flesh out the piece into a full-length show. This support, this faith in our abilities, was trajectory-defining for us as a young company. In the years since, the ongoing mentorship and production support that the ILLUSION has provided has enabled us to create the work we want to make, the way we want to make it. And this is a rare and tremendous gift.

Transatlantic Love Affair creates new work in a singularly collaborative and physical way, where the play is built over the course of an extended rehearsal process from the ideas, talents, and artistry of performers and director alike. It is a process that takes a tremendous amount of time, energy, and creative capital, and requires a level of investment from a producing company that many would shy away from. But the ILLUSION THEATER, seeing in us the seeds of the type of work they had created themselves in their early years as a company, has invested time and again in our process and artistry. They have championed our work, served on our Advisory Board, and become dear friends. It is our great honor to be continuing our partnership with them into their 50th anniversary season - thank you, ILLUSION THEATER, for being a home for new work in the Twin Cities!

Director

Isabel Nelson (she/they) is a performer, director, and theatre creator in the Twin Cities. She received her B.A. from Macalester College in Theatre and Religious Studies, and a certificate in Creating Theatre at the Lecoq-based London International School of Performing Arts (LISPA). She served as Artistic Director of Transatlantic Love Affair from its founding in 2010 until 2021, and during that time conceived and directed Ballad of the Pale Fisherman, Red Resurrected, Emilie/Eurydice, The Devout, and After the Fires. She has been honored with an Emerging Artist Ivey (2012) and with the National Theater Conference's Outstanding Emerging Professional Award (2015). She recently received her M.Div. in Theology and the Arts from United Theological Seminary in St. Paul, MN.

Ensemble

Jack is thrilled to be making his Transatlantic Love Affair debut. He is a Twin Cities-based performer and director, and recently graduated from the University of Minnesota/Guthrie Theater BFA Actor Training Program. As an actor, Jack has performed with theaters such as: the Guthrie Theater (A Christmas Carol), Dark & Stormy Productions (The Physicists), Frosted Glass Creative (Romeo and Juliet, God Save the Human Cannonball), Cedar Summerstock Theatre (The Wizard of Oz, Spamalot, The Fantasticks, Legally Blonde, Church Basement Ladies), and the University of Minnesota (Hamlet, Describe the Night, Pippin, Anne Boleyn).

*AEA Membership Candidate

Ensemble

Mark Benzel (he/him) is thrilled to return to the stage with Transatlantic Love Affair after this summer's 5x5 Fringe show. He is a theatre maker and teacher who seeks out collaborating on new works across disciplines. His curiosity and playfulness through improv, movement, and writing has been seen locally in The Seven Shot Symphony (Ivey Award Winner) and The Sparrow (Live Action Set). Houdini, Little Pilot, Unspeakable Things, etc (Sandbox Theatre), The Big Show (Jon Ferguson Theatre), and will you still love me tomorrow and Dreamless Land (Red Eye Theater). Since last year, he's been also performing improv w/o words with the Improv Movement Project. 

As a collaborative director and creator Mark has worked on The Rule of Three (Four Humors) and frequently with Cincinnati-based duo The Coldharts on Eddie Poe, Unrepentant Necrophile, Edgar Perry, and Edgar Allan, which has appeared in Fringe Festivals across the U.S. and Canada.

Ensemble

Amber is a Twin Cities-based actor and director. You may have seen her work onstage in past Transatlantic Love Affair shows (105 Proof, Solitaire) or offstage (she served as director for 5x5 at the 2024 Minnesota Fringe Festival). While she mainly creates theater under the umbrella of her award-winning theater company, The Winding Sheet Outfit, Amber has also worked on both sides of the stage for companies such as Theatre Pro Rata, Sandbox Theatre, Theatre Unbound, and Tedious Brief Productions to name a few. Amber’s honors include being named as one of 2018’s Exceptional Performative Directors (MN Theater Awards), as one of 2019’s Artists of the Year (CityPages), and as “a magical person” (Shanan Custer, 2020). But one of her greatest honors is getting to work with her friends at TLA whom she admires so, so much.

Ensemble

Peyton McCandless (she/they) is delighted to appear in her fifth show and ninth production with Transatlantic Love Affair, and her fourth TLA remount at Illusion Theater. Since her return to the Twin Cities in 2023, she has performed in The Winding Sheet Outfit's Marie-Jeanne Valet Who Defeated La Bete at Gevaudan (Twin Cities Horror Festival 2023), nimbus theatre's The Brontide, and TLA's award-winning 2024 Minnesota Fringe Festival show, 5x5. In Portland, Oregon, she played the White Dragon in Dragons Love Tacos at Oregon Children's Theater, appeared in multiple devised moment plays as a company member at Speculative Drama, and performed in two shows with Enso Theatre Ensemble (Pride and Prejudice (An Adaptation) and The Romeo & Juliet Project). Previous Twin Cities credits include Twelfth Night and The Good Woman of Setzuan at Theater Pro Rata, and Silkworms (a nun play) at Theatre Unbound. Peytie is also a teacher, director, singer, and certified Global Somatics(TM) Practitioner.

Ensemble

Derek is an actor, writer, designer, builder, puppeteer and musician. A founding ensemble member of Transatlantic Love Affair, he has performed in TLA's Ballad of the Pale Fisherman, Red Resurrected, Ashland, These Old Shoes, 105 Proof, Emilie/Eurydice, After the Fires, and 5x5, as well as directing The Privateer.

Derek is also the illustrator of the children's book, The Princess in the Clouds and is currently working on the long-term project "Song-a-Week", where he is attempting to write a new song every week for a year. To see all of the things that Derek has gotten up to in the past, please visit derekleemiller.com.

Ensemble

Adelin Phelps (She/her/hers) is thrilled to be back with Transatlantic Love Affair. She is a stage, film and voice over artist and has worked and created with Asolo Repertory Theatre, The Jungle Theater, The Guthrie Theater, The Playwright's Center, Yellow Tree Theater, History Theatre, Park Square Theatre, Girl Friday Productions, Carlyle Brown & Company, Theater Latté Da, Dark & Stormy Productions, and many more. Adelin received her B.A. in Theatre Arts from Coe College and studied with The Actors Workout, Guthrie Theater from 2010–2018. She is grateful to be a core and founding member of this company and dedicates this show to Al, Derek, Anna, Willie, Heather, Diogo, and most of all, Isabel. To learn more about her, visit adelinphelps.com. 

*member Actors’ Equity Association

Ensemble

Allison Vincent (she/her)is a performer, director, writer, deviser, and educator.  She has been honored to collaborate with companies and theaters across the Twin Cities, including The History Theater, Jon Ferguson Theater, The Four Humors, Mainly Me, ILLUSION THEATER, The Guthrie Theater, Frank Theatre, Sod House, Strike Theatre, Transatlantic Love Affair, and Walking Shadow.  In addition to performing, Allison is a collaborative artistic director and founding member of Transatlantic Love Affair and a company member of Four Humors Theatre. Allison was a 2022 Naked Stages Fellow, a 2023 Loft/MISA fellow, and 2023 Everwood Farmstead Fellow. She has collaborated as a writer on over twenty produced scripts. 

Lighting Design

Dante (they/she/any) is a freelance lighting designer and technician based in Minneapolis who is excited to return to the Illusion after two years of designing In This Moment Now. Recent design Credits Included: A Jumping Off Point (Jungle), The Pinballs, The Imaginators (Black Hawk Children's Theater) Assistant design credits include Morris Micklewhite and the Tangerine Dress, Annie (Children’s Theatre Company). The Song Poet (Minnesota Opera), Rusalka; Pelleas et Mellisande; The Flying Dutchman (Santa Fe Opera Festival) Sound of Music; The Jungle Book (Glimmerglass Opera Festival)

Stage Manager

Joelle Coutu is excited to be back with ILLUSION THEATER. Joelle has been a stage manager in the Twin Cities for over 20 years for various large and small companies.  She has worked for such places as the Theater Latte Da, Lyric Opera of the North, Skylark Opera, History Theater, Guthrie Theater, Gilbert & Sullivan Very Light Opera Company, Park Square Theater, Triple Espresso, among others.

*member Actors’ Equity Association