Rust

April 25 - May 25, 2025

Director: Laura Kepley
Playwright: George Brant
Memoir by: Eliese Collette Goldbach
Stage Manager: Joel Rathbone
Assistant Stage Manager: Camille Henderson
Artistic Director: Nathan Motta
Scenic Designer: Ben Needham
Projection Designer: T Paul Lowry
Lighting Design: Michael Boll
Costume Design: Tesia Dugan Benson
Sound Design: Megan Culley
Wardrobe: Lady Jen Ryan
Technical Director: Jeremy Paul
Intimacy Director: Julia Fisher
Scenic Painter: Justine Schneider
Production Manager: Colin Anderson

Cast:
Eliese - Kelly Strand
Actor 1 - Bob Ellis
Actor 2 - Eric Fancher
Actor 3 - Kristie Lang 

Press:
Plain Dealer Preview Article, by Joey Morona
Ideastream Preview Article, by Kabir Bhatia and Ygal Kaufman
Podcast with George Brant, by Academy Tech Talk: The Podcast
Cleveland Critics Circle Review, by Mark Horning
Cleveland Scene Review, by Gwendolyn Kochur
Cleveland Critics Circle Review, by Dr. Yuko Kurahashi

Plot Description: This is the true story of one woman’s experience in the steel industry, her struggle to find peace, and the courage she summoned to rebuild her life. What she uncovers in the belly of a Cleveland steel mill is much more than molten metal and grueling working conditions. Under the steelyard’s orange flame, she finds hope. Adapted from the memoir by Eliese Colette Goldbach.