A Real Piece of Work

Robin Carlisle

Alex 1
Robin Carlisle (he/him) is thrilled to be making his Minnesota Fringe debut with A Real Piece of Work. Previous credits include Hillary Clinton (Wellstone: A Minnesotan Musical), Ricky (The Gravedigger's Union), and Soothsayer (Julius Caesar). He is grateful for this opportunity to perform as his true self, and sends his love to all the Queer actors out there struggling.

Ross Flores

Gregory
Ross Flores (he/him) is a comedian, actor, and dancer originally from New York but now located in Minnesota, specifically the great city of Saint Paul. Ross has been performing for about three decades. Some of his favorite scripted roles have been Patsy in Spamalot at the Mac-Haydn Theatre and Kyle in Season 3 of Out Cold, an audio drama podcast. In the Twin Cities, Ross has been seen at Brave New Workshop's Dudley Riggs Theatre, Strike Theater, Bryant Lake Bowl, Open Book, Jungle Theater, The Hive Collaborative, and more. He has also performed comedy all over the world, including, but not limited to, Minnesota, Germany, Norway, New York, Illinois, North Carolina, Rhode Island, and Maine. He's thrilled to be performing in Fringe for a second year. Find him on Instagram: @rofloflo

Catherine Hansen

Terry
Local writer and performer Catherine Hansen (she/her) is delighted to be working with Eric B. Jacobson once again on the TRP stage (having acted with him in Dream of Me for the Fringe in 2024). Some of her favorite past roles are Lillian in Gudlung with Dangerous Productions for the Twin Cities Horror Festival, Caroline Cushing in Frost/Nixon with TheatreX, and the Mai in The Mai with Out of the Mist Celtic Theatre. Catherine also creates comedy including her original sketch show Almond Ice Cream and David Sedaris for the Fearless Presents festival in May of 2025. She is a member of the Catacomb Collective, and contributes to The Nordly.

Kevin T. Houle

Director
Kevin T. Houle (he/him) has been a director, stage manager, actor, educator, technician, and administrator in community, educational and professional theaters for almost 50 years. He has a M.F.A. in Directing from the University of Utah and a B.A. in Drama from Augustana College in Sioux Falls, SD. This is his third collaboration with Eric B. Jacobson and his seventh MN Fringe production, including the sold-out hit ‘Stuck in an Elevator With Patrick Stewart’ in 2013. He has directed over 40 plays in the Twin Cities for Fearless Theatrical Creations, Lakeshore Players, TEASE, Heritage Theatre Company, Lex-Ham Community Theater, Northwestern College, hipp•kitten theatreworks, and Child's Play Theatre Company among others. He lives in Saint Paul with his wife Heather and their daughter Kate.

Eric B. Jacobson

Playwright, Producer, Kyle
Eric B. Jacobson (he/him) is an actor, playwright, director, and cat dad based in the Twin Cities. He previously performed at Theatre in the Round in Team Rand-McKay’s Works in Progress (MN Fringe 2023) and Dream of Me (MN Fringe 2024). He also wrote, produced, and performed in Unbelievable! (MN Fringe 2022) and wrote and produced The Ends (MN Fringe 2021). He is the Artistic Director of Fearless Theatrical Creations, where he produced Fearless Five: Power and a reading of The Gravediggers Union by Brian James Polak. He is thrilled to work with Kevin T. Houle again and this amazing, talented, and fun cast. Special thanks to his wife Chini for all her support of his big dreams and artistic pursuits. ericbjacobson.com

Chini Murali

Stage Manager
Chini Murali (she/her) is an engineer and project manager by day who uses her organizational skills for the power of good in the theater by night. This will be her third time stage managing and all three times have been at TRP! She's thrilled to be working with this talented cast and to bring this delightful play (written by her husband!) to life. When not in the rehearsal room, you can find Chini studying the cello, learning Italian, dancing West Coast Swing, and spending time with Eric and their two ridiculously cute cats.

Phi Hamens Nelson

Matt
Phi Hamens Nelson (he/him) is 762 years old, and has been acting professionally since 2020. He has appeared in several films (Wheel and Foot, C.L.A.I.R.E., Tim, etc.) and plays (Quinceañera, TV Terror the Musical, Romeo and Juliet, Three Sisters, etc.) plus a few audio dramas (The Pit Below Paradise, How it Ends) and TV shows (We the People with Lauren Lake, Sins on 7th Street). This is Phi’s Fringe debut.

Annie O'Neill

Mina
Annie O'Neill (they/them) is excited to participate in their first Fringe Festival show. Some favorite roles have included Viola (Twelfth Night), Mrs. Gibbs (Our Town), and Miss Lark (Mary Poppins). Outside of the theatre, Annie enjoys using ASL with friends, puzzling at home, and cuddling with their cats.

Adriana Surmak

Alex 2
Adriana Surmak (she/her) is not a stranger to the Fringe stage: they made their acting debut at the Festival in 2023 (Works in Progress). They've since performed locally in plays (It's An Honorable Life, Mystery on the Mississippi), more often in improv (Vilification Tennis, Double Blind), and, if you are very lucky, karaoke (Vegas Lounge).

William H. Sikorski

Henry
William H. Sikorski (Bill) (he/him) lives in Wisconsin and works as an R&D Vice President at 3M. He is grateful that evening rehearsals generally ended before his morning meetings began. He thanks Eric and Kevin for the opportunity to work with them (again) and with this wonderful cast. He thanks you for supporting live theater: every performance is a conversation between artists and audience, and your presence makes this possible.

Christopher Taykalo

Murphy
Christopher Taykalo (he/him) is delighted to be making his Minnesota Fringe Festival debut with Moral of the Story Productions. Most recently, he was involved with Fearless Theatrical Creations’ staged reading of The Gravediggers Union (Ralph). Additional acting credits include: Lakeshore Players: Anything Goes (Eli Whitney), A Christmas Carol (Fezziwig/Poor Man), Urinetown (Joseph “Old Man” Strong), She Loves Me (Maraczek); Morris Park Players: Ragtime (JP Morgan/Ensemble); StageWest: Bat Boy, the Musical; Theatre in the Round: Jeffrey, Great Expectations, Misalliance, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Man of La Mancha; Outward Spiral: As Is; Park Square Theatre: Julius Caesar. Training: BA Theater, St. Olaf College.

Jeremy Williams

Phil
Jeremy Williams (he/him) is an actor, director, writer, and educator based in the Twin Cities. He holds an MEd in theatre education and has been working as a theatre artist for over 30 years. This is Jeremy’s second time performing in the Minnesota Fringe Festival. He has acted in local shows such as Bernhardt/Hamlet, All's Well that Ends Well, and Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead.