Arden Thomas

April 17 - 21, 2024
Lineage Performing Arts Center, Pasadena, CA

Choreography by Corey Wright
Music Direction by Emily Shisko
Directed by Arden Thomas

Set Design by Bradley Thordarson and Arden Thomas
Costume Design by Linda Muggeridge
Lighting Design by Brandon Baruch
Audio Engineering by Nichole Baffone
Photography by David Haskell

based on the novel by Jane Austen
written by Kate Hamill

Lineage Performing Arts Center
November 2023

Directed by Arden Thomas
Costume Design by Linda Muggeridge
Set Design by Taylor Wesselman and Arden Thomas
Lighting Design by Gregory Crafts
Sound Design by Nichole Baffone
Photography by David Haskell

The Musical Comedy Murders of 1940 by John Bishop
Lineage Performing Arts Center
April 2023

Directed by Arden Thomas
Costume Design by Linda Muggeridge
Scenic Design by Taylor Wesselman
Lighting Design by Matthew Perelman
Fight Choreography by Christian Rendon
Photography by David Haskell

Click here for the trailer

Review:
”It is difficult enough to simply direct large casts of actors. However, as Sequoyah High School's theater and humanities teacher, Arden Thomas must also oversee the entire production. I was extraordinarily impressed with her latest work for the school, The Musical Comedy Murders of 1940. Arden managed not only to create a beautifully looking production -- set, lighting, and costume -- that easily rivals the 99-seat theaters in LA, but also nurtured some incredible performances from the young actors of the large ensemble cast. Most importantly, after the curtain call, watching the cast and student production team, it was clear that the students looked upon Arden not just as director/producer but also as a loving mentor/teacher.” —Kevin Delin, Los Angeles-based scientist, writer, and playwright, last seen on stage at Rogue Machine Theatre’s storytellers’ slam, Rant & Rave

Music by Michael Gore; Lyrics by Dean Pitchford; Book by Lawrence D. Cohen; based on the novel by Stephen King
The Boston Court Theater
November 2022

Directed by Arden Thomas
Music Direction by Lisa Sedaris
Pit Band Direction by Ben Ede
Choreography by Lindsay Johnson
Costume Design by Arden Thomas and the Cast
Lighting Design by Gregory Crafts
Sound Engineering by Nichole Baffone
Poster Design by Marin Vesley
Photography by David Haskell

Head Over Heels
Book by Jeff Whitty, Adaptation by James Macgruder, Music by the Go-Gos
Sequoyah School Gryphon Plaza
April 2022

Directed by Arden Thomas
Music Direction by Lindsay Dodoras
Choreography by Lindsay Johnson
Lighting Design by Gregory Crafts
Costume Design by the Sequoyah High School Advanced Theater class: Rachel Knell, Sofie Wilson, Oskar Golwala, Brooklyn Waller, and Arden Thomas
Photography by David Haskell

Much Ado About Nothing by William Shakespeare
The Gamble House Lawn
November 2021

Arden Thomas, Director, Costume Design, and Sound Design
Elliot Davis, Assistant Director
Lindsay and Dimitris Dodoras, Instrumentation
Simon Listiak, Composer
Collette Wilson, Poster Design
David Haskell, Photographer

Working - Localized Version
Adapted by Nina Faso and Stephen Schwartz, with additional contributions by Gordon Greenberg and songs by Lin-Manuel Miranda, Craig Carnelia, James Taylor, Stephen Schwartz, Mary Rodgers, and Micki Grant, based on the novel by Studs Terkel. Localized format conceived by Daniel C. Levine for ACT of CT.

April 2021
A Covid times filmed production. All dances filmed on location at Sequoyah High School; all monologues filmed at cast members’ homes.

Directed by Arden Thomas
Choreography by Jasmine Ejan
Musical Direction by Lindsay Dodoras
Costumes by the cast and Arden Thomas
Cinematography by Matthew Listiak
Monologues filmed by cast members or their parents
Sound engineering by Dimitris Dodoras
Video editing by Jason H. Thompson of PXT STUDIO
Aerial videography by Dominik Giapis

Our film and webpage are dedicated to Debbie Deems, who lent us her father’s truck for “Brother Trucker,” and who supported us through it all. Rest in peace, beloved, darling Debbie. d. May 24, 2023.

Notes:
Playwright Stephen Schwartz created the Localized Version of Working, giving theater companies permission to replace the original monologues in Working: the Musical with monologues based on interviews conducted with local community members. We wanted to hear from local folks about how their school or working lives were affected by issues in 2020-2021 such as Covid, the wildfires, and the Black Lives Matter movement, so we interviewed fifteen people for thirty minutes each and crafted monologues word-for-word from the interviews.

selections from Heathers
By Kevin Murphy and Lawrence O’Keefe
Music Direction by Lindsay Dodoras
Directed by Arden Thomas

a Covid times Vimeo production, April 2020
Dimitris Dodoras, Video Design
Lindsay and Dimitris Dodoras, Sound Design

Like so many productions across the country and the world. our show was shut down on Friday March 13, 2020. Of course we all thought the school would re-open in just a few weeks, so we kept rehearsing online. When it became obvious that we were not going to re-open at all for the rest of the school year, we pivoted (to use a Covid term!) and worked to create a quality film shot entirely in our own homes, recorded on GarageBand, and pieced together by our design team. I couldn’t be prouder of the work our students did on this production.

Radium Girls by D. K. Gregory
Grove Theater Center
November 2019

Directed by Arden Thomas
Lighting Design by Gregory Crafts
Scenic Painting by Anna de Schlobuhm de Cruder
Costume Design by Arden Thomas and Anne Hughes
Special Effects Make-Up by CandyJo Dahlstrom
Photography by David Haskell

by John August and Andrew Lippa
Music Direction by Tom Unterseher
Porticos Art Space
April 2019

Arden Thomas, Director
Nick Davidge, Image and Video Design
Arden Thomas and Anne Hughes, Costume Design
Kevin Vasquez, Lighting Design
James Ferraro, Sound Design
Brenda Varda, Vocal Coach
Youssif Kamal, Acting Coach
Adela Villaba, Poster Design
Sophie Root-Stevens and Ian Chang, Photography

by Susan Glaspell
Porticos Art Space
November 2018

Arden Thomas, Director
Taylor Wesselman, Scenic Design
CandyJo Dahlstrom & Arden Thomas, Costume Design
Kevin Vasquez, Lighting Design
James Ferrero, Sound Design
Jay Martin & Eamon Lee, Poster Design
David Morrison, Photography

by Tom Stoppard
Porticos Art Space
November 2018

Arden Thomas, Director
Taylor Wesselman, Scenic Design
CandyJo Dahlstrom & Arden Thomas, Costume Design
Kevin Vazquez, Lighting Design
James Ferrero, Sound Design
Jay Martin & Eamon Lee, Poster Design
David Morrison, Photography

Review:
”After watching this production of The Real Inspector Hound, now my daughter really wants to get into theater!” — Dan Stevens (Downton Abbey, The Beauty and the Beast)

by John Cariani
South Pasadena Theater Workshop
December 2017

Arden Thomas, Director and Costume Design
Jeff Mann, Scenic Design
Ashley Weaver, Lighting Design
James Ferrero, Sound Design
Youssif Kamal, Acting Coach
Aris Demopoulos, Poster Design
T. Kane, Photography

Review:
”Almost, Maine really hangs on the actors' abilities to commit to a certain truth that is developed in the exchange between the characters. Sequoyah's production was a real lesson in the fundamentals of acting -- the kids dared to lean on each other to make their music, a very impressive accomplishment for a young cast and a great way to begin a theater training program.” — Abigail Desler, director (Steppenwolf, Boston Court, Echo Theater, LA Phil)

by Rick Elice
Grove Theater Center
April 2018

Arden Thomas, Director and Scenic Design 
Geo Wood & Arden Thomas, Costume Design
Adam Latham, Lighting Design
James Ferrero, Sound Design
Jessica Martin & William Hickman, Fight Choreography
Hannah Meyers, Poster Design
Sharon Kim, Piano
Keita Katsumi, Percussion
David Morrison, Photography

Review:
”Sequoyah's rendition of Peter and the Starcatcher truly grabbed my heart and didn't let go. Director Arden Thomas made sure the narrative through-line was legible for the students and the audience, not an easy thing to do with this structurally complex piece. She encouraged each and every student to risk something in their work and to discover performances they didn't know they could achieve. As a result, we were all invited to go on a journey that was at once full of adventure, peril, and love. Bravo!“ — Abigail Desler, director (Steppenwolf, Boston Court, Echo "Theater, LA Phil)

by Paula Cizmar
Carrie Hamilton Theater @ The Pasadena Playhouse
April 2017

Arden Thomas, Director and Costume Design 
Nick Davidge, Scenic Design 
Kelley Finn, Lighting Design
James Ferrero, Sound Design
Meg Mordecai, Poster Design — art with permission by Guy Denning
David Morrison, Photography

Review:
”What an incredible experience—to walk into the Carrie Hamilton Theatre and see eight teenaged girls fully immerse themselves into Antigone X! Director Arden Thomas took a huge risk in casting the play with all females — but her work paid off. They were fierce, they were committed, and every word mattered to them. I got chills watching, knowing that I was witnessing one of those moments where theatre is so special and why it matters in our lives.”
— Paula Cizmar, playwright of Antigone X

by William Shakespeare
Sequoyah School
December 2016 and January 2017

Arden Thomas, Director and Costume Design
Elizabeth Tobias, Music
Jeb Meyers, Acting Coach
Jay Martin, Poster Design
Sophie Root-Stevens, Photography

Twelfth Night is the first performance ever produced at Sequoyah High School, which was founded in 2016. We chose Twelfth Night as a festive celebration of the our new community, and we performed in the round at the Sequoyah K8 campus to strengthen the connections between our two campuses. We then toured the production to various retirement homes in Pasadena and Altadena. Congratulations to our first ever cast at Sequoyah High School!

by Naomi Wallace
Stanford University
November 2005

Arden Thomas, Director
Erik Flatmo, Scenic Design
Connie Strayer, Costume Design 
Michael Ramsaur, Lighting Design 
Mandy Khoshnevisan, Sound Design
Mandy Khoshnevisan, Photography

by Bertolt Brecht
Stanford University
April 2007

Arden Thomas, Director
Erik Flatmo, Scenic Design
Connie Strayer, Costume Design 
Michael Ramsaur, Lighting Design 
Mandy Khoshnevisan, Poster Design
Tony Khalife, Drums
Mandy Khoshnevisan, Photography

by Edward Albee
The Dragon Theater
April 2008

Arden Thomas, Director
Ron Gasparinetti, Scenic Design
Arden Thomas & Monica Cappuccini, Costume Design

Reviews: 

"Albee's humor is best served not with passion but with bloodlessness. And Dragon gets it." - Marianne Messina, MetroActive, February 2008

"'A Delicate Balance' won Albee the first of his three Pulitzers, and it is replete with all the hallmarks of the playwright’s most famous work: the dry, dark humor; the slightly absurd situation played out with life-or-death seriousness; the pent-up angst that eventually breaks forth with savage force, shattering the placid veneer of everyday American life. Dragon’s production hits these notes solidly. Under the direction of Arden Thomas, the cast succeeds in bringing home the central questions of Albee’s play: What does friendship mean? On what is it truly based? How far do our obligations to friends and family extend? And what of our obligations to ourselves? Albee’s premise is direct enough, and the cast’s performances sufficiently honest, that audience members are likely to ask these questions of themselves during the play, as well as after." -  Kevin Kirby, Palo Alto Weekly Weekend Edition, February 22, 2008 

"When 40-year friends Harry and Edna decide to invite themselves to Agnes and Tobias' house for an extended visit, the household gets down to claws, fangs and pack war. With a bar on one side, a couch on the other and mixed drinks everywhere between, Dragon Productions director Arden Thomas and set designer Ron Gasparinetti visually spell out Albee's in vino veritas formula: to remove mask, use plenty of lubrication. Dragon Productions creates the kind of show that causes different people to root for different characters, given the same evidence. Despite lots of language, there is never a dull moment." - Marianne Messina, MetroActive, February 2008