Dark Tales Playbill
Dark Tales Told on a Cold Autumn Eve
By Jim Dalglish
Directed by Jennifer Kangas & Jim Dalglish
Produced in Partnership with The Academy of Performing Arts, Wellfleet Harbor Actors Theater, Cotuit Center for the Arts, and The Provincetown Inn.
Important Notes:
Water-based fog effects and strobe lights will be used during this performance.
Dark Tales Told on a Cold Autumn Eve is approximately 110 minutes in duration. There will be no intermission.
Please silence personal devices before the show begins.
No recording of any kind is permitted during the show.
Dark Tales contains strong language and adult themes. The play is recommended for mature audiences.
Please show your appreciation of our performers by contributing to the Actors Box located on the lobby bar.
Four Venues…
Academy of Performing Arts (APA)
120 Main Street, Orleans, MA 02653
October 3, 4, 10, 11
(Fridays & Saturdays at 7:00pm)
Wellfleet Harbor Actors Theater (WHAT)
2357 State Highway Route 6, Wellfleet, MA 02667
October 16, 17, 18, 19
(Thursday - Saturday at 7:00pm, Sunday at 4:00pm)
Cotuit Center for the Arts (CCftA)
4404 Falmouth Rd, Cotuit, MA 02635
October 23, 24, 25, 26
November 1 & 2 (Shows ADDED due to popular demand!)
(Thursdays - Saturdays at 7:00pm, Sundays at 1:30pm)
The Provincetown Inn
1 Commercial St, Provincetown, MA 02657
October 29 & 30
(Wednesday & Thursday at 7:00pm)
Creative Team
Jim Dalglish – Playwright / Co-director / Helltown Players Producing Artistic Director
Jennifer Kangas – Co-Director / Lighting Design / Stage Manager / Board Operator
Geof Newton – Sound Design
Jackie Reeves – Poster Art
Academy of Performing Arts Team
Judy Hamer – Producing Artistic Director
Missy Potash – Box Office Manager
Mark Roderick – Set Construction
Nicholas Dorr – Scenic Design
Wellfleet Harbor Actors Theater Team
Christopher Ostrom – Producing Artistic Director
Nicholas Ward – Managing Director
Taylor Kaufman - Technical Director
Rachel Harned – Lighting Design
Emily Pascucci – Stage Manager / Board Operator
Dana Demers – Box Office Manager
Joe Thissle – Theatre Technician
Madison Egan - Theatre Technician
Cotuit Center for the Arts Team
David Kuehn – Executive Director
Kim Baker – Director of Operations
Jason Mellon – Patron and Community Connections Manager
Provincetown Inn Team
Tyler Smittle – General Manager
Cast…
Tate Seidewand & Jim Dalglish– Sam Smith
Tate - Oct. 3 - 30
Jim - Nov. 1 & 2
Geof Newton – The Fisherman
Bonnie Fairbanks – Maria
Samantha McMahon & Denise Page – May
Samantha - Oct. 3, 4 (APA); Oct. 16 (WHAT); Oct. 23, 24, 26 (CCftA); Oct. 29 (Ptown)
Denise - Oct. 10, 11 (APA); Oct. 17, 18, 19 (WHAT); Oct. 25 (CCftA); Oct. 30 (Ptown)
Jacob Rabold – Tony
Ian Ryan – Elliot
Matt Whelan – Dale
Dahlia Viprino – Lorelie
Sara Shatzel Fitzpatrick – Madame X
Shepard Potash – Mattie (voice)
Playwright’s Note:
I’ve always wanted to tell stories set on Cape Cod — stories that draw from its landscape, its people, and its shadowy past. With Dark Tales Told on a Cold Autumn Eve, I set out to create an immersive experience where audiences could feel transported back in time. I wanted to blend original storytelling with reimagined legends of Old Cape Cod — and in doing so, illuminate the way this region’s unique history continues to shape its present.
But how best to tell these tales?
I decided on a blend: legends, myths, tall tales, allegory, contemporary horror, and even a dash of political satire disguised as Grand Guignol. These stories feature pirates, witches, politicos, Pilgrims, mooncussers, and even selkies — yes, I became a bit obsessed with Scottish selkie myths and had to include them. They’re set in evocative Cape Cod locations: Samuel Smith’s Tavern, P’town Harbor, White Cedar Swamp, Horseleech Pond, the Nauset Moors, the Barnstable Jail, Chatham Bars Inn, and even a certain compound in Hyannis Port.
Before I wrote a word, I spent months researching Cape Cod history — poring over its ghost stories, legends, and the fragments of culture that time has nearly erased. I also drew on my years of living on the Cape and my own sense of what makes this sand spit so singular.
For creative inspiration, I turned to the masters: Edgar Allan Poe, E.T.A. Hoffmann, Saki, Hawthorne — and to modern voices like Conor McPherson. I listened to old radio plays and contemporary ghost story podcasts from Ireland and the UK. All of it helped me explore how traditional narrative can come alive in a theatrical setting.
My aim? To frighten, shock, educate, provoke — and maybe even titillate. To give audiences a five-ticket rollercoaster ride they won’t soon forget.
- Jim Dalglish
Dark Tales Cast & Creative Team: (alphabetical order)
Kim Baker
Kim Baker - CCftA Director of Operations
Kim is the assistant to David, our Executive Director. She is the face of the ED and the first person visitors encounter when they come to Administration. A typical day might include preparing payroll, approving invoices, filling the candy dish, creating the weekly newsletter, applying for theater production rights and tax-exempt status for our properties, and walking the resident Pug. Kim’s favorite experience at the Center is going to the Gallery when Michelle is hanging a new art exhibit. When she isn’t at the Center, Kim writes. She is a widely-published poet, and two short plays have been produced. She is an exhibited photographer, NPR essayist, and publishes Word Soup, an online poetry journal that donates all submission fees to food banks. If Kim is not at her desk when you arrive in Admin, she most likely is half inside the copier as big as your car looking for a paper jam.
Jim Dalglish
Jim Dalglish — Playwright / Co-director / Founder Helltown Players
Jim is a playwright, director, filmmaker, and producer with more than 30 plays and films to his credit. These works have been produced and screened around the world and have won awards in New York, Boston, London, and Dublin. A few of his plays have been anthologized in best play collections. Jim has directed more than two dozen theatrical productions, six of which he also independently produced. He has been employed by a variety of theaters in New England as a managing director, marketing director, and box office manager. Jim has a master’s degree in creative writing/ playwriting from Brown University. His thesis advisor was Paula Vogel. He works as the Director of User Experience Research & Strategy at OHO Interactive, where his clients include Harvard University, Yale University, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Vermont, CIEE, and others. Jim is also the Founder/President of Helltown Players, the Cape’s newest theatre collaborative. When he isn’t busy writing, directing, or producing plays and films, he and his husband Rob Phelps enjoy sailing Delphina – their 17-foot O’Day Daysailer – along the sheltered harbors of New England. For more about Jim and to read and download his plays: www.jimdalglish.com
Nicholas Dorr
Nicholas Dorr – APA Resident Designer
Since happily joining the Academy team over a year ago, Nick has created sets for 5 productions together with his Design partner and Master Technical Director, Mark Roderick. He has also recently appeared on stage in "Noises Off" and "Then There Were None" "A Secret Garden.”
Judy Hamer
Judy Hamer - APA Artistic Director
Judy has been directing plays since 1997. She taught drama at Nauset HS for 30-some-odd years and directed summer plays at the Academy. A few favorites: Rent, Hamlet, West side Story, Into the Woods, The Purification, Polaroid Stories, Streetcar Named Desire, Twelfth Night. Right now - having fun at the Academy full time! ❤️
Jennifer Kangas
Jennifer Kangas - Co-Director / Lighting Designer
Jennifer has a B.A. in Education and 20+ years of teaching music and coaching. Along with teaching music K-6, she directed several musicals. Most recently she directed Oliver! at the Academy Playhouse (APA) and was musical director for Nauset Regional High School’s performance of Drowsy Chaperone and the APA’s Winnie the Pooh, Red Riding Hood, Lion King, Kids, Into the Woods, Jr. and Little Mermaid, Jr. She performed with the Champlain Valley Oratorio Society, the Octavio Singers, Cape Cod Opera Company, and in many productions at The Academy Playhouse, Chatham Drama Guild, Harwich Junior Theater/Cape Cod Theater Company, Eventide Theater and Cotuit Center for the Arts. She is currently the resident light and sound designer at APA. When not involved in the theater arts or spending time with family, Jennifer enjoys travelling around the world (from the Arctic to Antarctica, Australia to Africa and everywhere in between). She is a licensed massage therapist, using gentle touch to help ease chronic and acute pain at Kangas Myofascial Massage in Chatham.
Bonnie Fairbanks
Bonnie Fairbanks – Maria
Bonnie is thrilled to reprise the role of Maria Hallett in “Dark Tales” for the Helltown Players; she originally appeared in the role in the 2018 world premiere at Cotuit Center for the Arts. This marks Bonnie’s fifth time partnering with founder/director/playwright Jim Dalglish and third performance with Helltown, having appeared as Alice B. Toklas in “Portraiture” (May 2025), as well as in “Little Devils I” as Mary in “Double D”. She also performed the role of Principal Edwards in the video-drama “Teacher of the Year” (2021) – another world premiere, and both written by Jim.
Bonnie has also regularly appeared in productions at the Falmouth Theatre Guild, Eventide Theater Co., the Woods Hole Theater Company, and Cape Rep. Recent performances include Emma Arkadina in “Stupid Fucking Bird” (Cotuit, 2024), Marty in “Grease” (Cotuit, 2023), Mrs Martini in “It’s a Wonderful Life, the Musical” (FTG, 2023), and Theresa in “Circle Mirror Transformation” (Cotuit, 2022), among others.
Bonnie’s performance is dedicated, as always, to The Parentals.
David Kuehn
David Kuehn - CCftA Executive Director
David Kuehn came to lead Cotuit Center for the Arts nearly 10 years ago after a rich, full career overseeing the classical music division at RCA records. David admits that the only thing typical about his day is that it begins by having morning joe with “Morning Joe” alongside his husband. No morning would be complete without a nice relaxing soak in the hot tub. This ritual prepares David for a whirlwind of daily activities that can include meetings to discuss programming ideas, collaborations with other arts organizations, or more likely, get-togethers to ask someone to support the Center with a donation. After scanning hundreds of emails, David’s daily priorities might be drafting a new business plan in support of the future dream campus; educating himself about ownership of a gas station; talking to producers, directors, and patrons about future plays, musicals and concerts; and checking in with staff about their needs. The Center is humming every day, including evenings, so David’s day does not end at 5pm. David might head to a rehearsal, class, performance, concert, board meeting, gallery committee meeting, Wine & Music Wednesday, or Volunteer Orientation. Driving home around 11pm, David always reflects on how lucky our community is to have this Center, how exciting future expansion will be, and how grateful he feels to live in the arts in one of the most beautiful places in the country. Gratitude is a daily practice. On the rare times that David is not at the Center, you can find him catching up on trashy TV or playing his woefully out-of-tune piano. And if you thought you saw David biking up 6A, you were right. David is an avid biker, relaxing at the beach when he can.
Geof Newton
Geof Newton — The Fisherman / Sound Design
Regularly appearing both on and behind stages across Cape Cod, Geof is thrilled to be revisiting Jim’s Dark Tales, this time as a member of the cast! Stage and screen credits: Noah - The Rainmaker (Sandwich Arts Alliance), Perun - Skazki: A Spell of Ice and Snow (Boston Center for the Arts), Leonato - Much Ado About Nothing (The Little Shakespeare Festival - NYC), Montague D’Ysquith Navarro - A Gentleman’s Guide to Love and Murder (Academy of Performing Arts, Orleans), Leo Clark - Leading Ladies (Chatham Drama Guild), Lloyd the Bartender - N0S4A2 (AMC), sound/music for Jim Dalglish’s Dark Tales Told On A Cold Autumn Eve (Cotuit Center for the Arts/wherever you’re currently sitting), lighting design - Rock of Ages (Barnstable Comedy Club), and sound/music for The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time (Tilden Arts Center). Thanks to Bean and Ellen for all your love and support and to this wonderful cast and production crew and to Jim and Jen for dragging Dark Tales back into the light!
Samantha McMahon
Samantha McMahon – May
Samantha is delighted to be returning for this production of Dark Tales! She previously portrayed “Madame X” in the debut of the show in 2018, and is thrilled to be taking on a new role. She has been performing for 20 years, with favorite roles including The Emcee in Cabaret, Go to Hell Kitty in Chicago, Mercutio in Romeo and Juliet and Pamela/Margaret/Annabella in The 39 Steps. Samantha resides on the Cape, where she is a high school Theater and English teacher.
Jason Mellin
Jason Mellin – CCftA Patron and Community Connections Manager
Jason has been at Cotuit Center for the Arts for over ten years and has done it all! His first CCftA experience was acting in Spamalot in 2013. That summer he took on part time work in the Box Office on weekends, and hasn't left since. In all that time, he has worked on over two dozen productions, acting, directing, stage managing, producing, and creating his own original works. Favorites over the years include Stupid F*cking Bird, Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, These are the Bonus Years, Constellations, One Man, Two Guv'nors, and Stop/Kiss. He has also been a docent in the galleries for student and adult groups, started a poetry writing YouTube series with coworker and inspiration Kim Baker, and is on the programming committees for both the Main Stage and Sigel Black Box Theater. If you have any questions about any part of Cotuit, he's the one to ask!
Denise Page
Denise Page — May
Denise is thrilled to be making her debut with The Helltown Players for this production of Dark Tales! Recent and favorite stage credits include: Lindsay in Godspell (APA); Rose in Gypsy (APA for which she was also Assistant Director); Nancy in Oliver! (APA); Mrs. Gibbs in Our Town (Cape Rep Theater); Miss Hannigan in Annie (APA), Ado Annie in Oklahoma! (APA). Denise is an acting teacher at the Academy of Performing Arts and performs at various concerts on the lower and outer cape, including the ‘Great Music on Sundays at Five’ series in Provincetown. A native of Provincetown, she currently resides in Wellfleet with her amazing family of the human and pet variety and fun fact - has ancestry dating back to the Mayflower!
Missy Potash
Missy Potash – APA Box Office Manager
Missy Potash studied at The American Academy of Dramatic Arts, and The Edge Dance Studio, in LA. In addition to being the box office manager at APA, she is also an actress, dancer, singer & choreographer. Having most recently choreographed The Secret Garden this past March. Some of her favorite stage roles have been: Gloria Stavers - Dreamsville (CCFTA, and coming to APA March 2026), Blanche - A Streetcar Named Desire (APA), Echo - Eleemosynary (CCFTA), Meg - Crimes of The Heart (APA), She - Stage Kiss (APA), Sally Bowles - Cabaret (The Space Between Theater Co./St. George UT), Fairy Mae - The Curious Savage (St. George Musical Theater/St. George UT), and Corrie Bratter - Barefoot In the Park (American Crossroads Theater - formally Simonfest/Cedar City UT). Look for her on the stage this December, as Rapunzel in APA'S production of Into the Woods. She thanks her amazing husband and 3 incredible boys, and her endlessly supportive sisters for everything. She couldn't do it without them.
Shepard Potash
Shepard Potash – Mattie (Voice)
Shepard Potash is a 6yo from West Barnstable and loves performing, playing war with his brothers and doing arts and crafts. This is his second production with Jim Dalglish, who he loves working with. His credits include: Annie (APA), The Playground (CCFTA), Lion King, Jr. (APA), and he just got cast in The Wizard of Oz coming to the APA stage in February 2026. He wants to thank his family and everyone here at APA for making him feel so welcome & have so much fun!
Jacob Rabold
Jacob Rabold — Tony
Jacob is incredibly excited to be involved with his first Helltown Players production with such an amazing group of fellow actors and an outstanding crew. His previous credits include Tom Sawyer (The Adventures of Tom Sawyer) at Acting Out Theatre, the Velveteen Rabbit (The Velveteen Rabbit) at Boston Children’s Theatre, Fyedka (Fiddler on the Roof) at Cotuit Center for the Arts, and most recently Sebastian (Twelfth Night) at the Academy of Performing Arts. He wants to give a big thank you to his family for always supporting his acting endeavors and to Jim and Jen for inviting him to be a part of this fantastic project. You can see him perform later this fall as Race in Newsies at Cotuit Center for the Arts.
Jackie Reeves
Jackie Reeves - Poster Art
Jackie Reeves is a Cape Cod based artist best known for her multidisciplinary artwork that blends figurative and abstract elements through mixed media paintings, animation and large-scale installations.
Mark Roderick
Mark Roderick – Set Construction
Mark Roderick is a local artist and carpenter who can be seen both onstage and off, he works as the technical director for the Academy of Performing Arts and also teaches several art classes on the side when not designing sets with his design partner and Pal-zo Nicholas Dorr.
Ian Ryan
Ian Ryan — Elliot
Ian Ryan is a Cape Cod–based actor, playwright, director, and producer whose work spans more than two decades of regional and community theatre. As a performer, he has appeared in over twenty-five productions, including roles such as Babette in La Cage aux Folles, Schultz in Circle Mirror Transformation, and Ralph in Our Country’s Good (CapeRep). His play 19DEF, first developed in Cape Rep’s Playwriting Lab, was later produced by Helltown Players and invited to the International Dublin Gay Theatre Festival. Ian also co-directed the award-winning Lines in the Sand with Jim Dalglish, which has been staged in Massachusetts, Dublin, and New York. As Secretary/Treasurer and Trustee of Helltown Players, he champions new works by writers with ties to Cape Cod, fostering collaborative and inclusive storytelling while continuing to develop his own practice across acting, writing, and directing.
Tate Seidewant
Tate Seidewant — Samual Smith
Tate is a Cape Cod native who received a B.A. in Psychology and a minor in Theatre from the University of Tampa. He is excited to make his debut in community theatre with the help from Jim and Jennifer on this wonderful yet dark production. Tate developed a love for acting after being a background character for a feature film that was shot on Cape Cod during his early years of high school. His first role in theatre was Pepper in Mamma Mia! during his senior year at Nauset Regional High. He is excited to further his acting career in the future!
Sara Shatzel Fitzpatrick
Sara Shatzel Fitzpatrick — Madame X
Sara is thrilled to be a part of this production! She is a Buffalo, NY, native, but Provincetown is her true home. Sara studied at HB Studio in NYC and played the lead in the Off Broadway production of Girl Gone at the Actors Temple. She played the lead role in Stella in The Jazz Funeral of Stella Brooks at The Provincetown Tennessee Williams Festival, Sugar in Tiny Beautiful Things at the Ptown Theatre and Mildred in The Fantasticks at Ptown Theatre. She traveled to the Dublin Gay Festival to perform in Lynda Sturner's Just Say Yes. Other credits include: Kimberly Akimbo, Working!, Wonder of the World, Bingo!, Picasso at the Lapin Agile and many of Meryl Cohn's productions. Thank you, Jim, for this incredible role. Love to Kevin, Jack, Kaya and our pups: Captain and Tennille. Go Bills!
Dahlia Viprino
Dahlia Viprino — Lorelie
Dahlia is a performing arts student at Cape Cod Community College. They are excited to work with so many new theaters throughout the run of Dark Tales. Recent credits include Cha-Cha (Grease), Kaylee/ Alyssa U.S (The Prom), Mrs. Johnson (The Minutes), Silly Girl (Beauty and the Beast), and Kristin Holub (Night Chills). She would like to thank her boyfriend for introducing her to this show and being so patient driving her to rehearsals, and Jim for writing and directing such a wonderful show. You can look forward to seeing Dahlia perform again this winter in Newsies at CCFTA.
Matt Whelan
Matt Whelan — Dale
Matt Whelan is a performing arts major at Cape Cod Community College. He's been doing theatre for a little over a year now, credits include Kenickie in Grease, Mr. Breeding in The Minutes, Nick/Ensemble in The Prom, and Roger in Grease. You can see him next as Bunsen/Newsie in Newsies at Cotuit Center for the Arts, opening November 25th. He would like to thank his family and friends for their continued support, as well as Jim Dalglish and Jen Kangas for the incredible opportunity to work on Dark Tales!
World Premiere Production
Dark Tales Told on a Cold Autumn Eve
Written and directed by Jim Dalglish
Cotuit Center for the Arts
Black Box Theater
October 11 - 28, 2018
Production:
Playwright/Producer/Director - Jim Dalglish
Set Design - Jim Dalglish
Sound Design - Geof Newton
Lighting Design - Erin Trainor
Costume Design - Brittany Ankiewicz
Props - Jim Dalglish
Stage Manager/Technical Director - Erin Trainor
Geof Newton - Sound Designer
Cast:
Sam - Ian Ryan
The Fisherman - Cleo Zani
Maria - Bonnie Fairbanks
Tony - Brandon Prentiss
May - Diana Young
Elliot - Beau Jackett
Dale - Ian Burgess
Madame X - Samantha McMahon
Lorelei - Mikayla Boyle
Helltown Players Trustees
Jim Dalglish - Founder/Producing Artistic Director/Trustee
Ian Ryan - Secretary/Treasurer/Trustee
John Dennis Anderson - Trustee
Lynda Sturner - Trustee
Margaret Van Sant - Trustee
Meryl Cohn - Trustee Emeritus
Gary Garrison - Trustee Emeritus
Fermin Rojas - Trustee Emeritus
Helltown Players Benefactors
Helltown Players thanks the following individuals and organizations for their support. We would not have succeeded as an organization without you!
Scott Allegretti
Jerry Birdwell
Karen von Bismarck
Barbara Boone
Jadah Carroll
Maureen Condon
Meryl Cohn
Kevin Chandler
John Greiner-Ferris
Jarice Hanson
Elizabeth Hogan
Wendy Levine
Jane Macdonald
Delane & Richard Moser
Pamela Painter
Judith Partelow
Rob Phelps
Carl Pritkat
Laurence Ramin
Fermin Rojas
Patrick Riviere
Mike Syers
Victor Stein
Wenifred Watson
The Jaqueline I. Kroschwitz Fund
Joan Patchen Art and Activism Fund
Provincetown Local Cultural Council
Mass Cultural Council
Cape Cod 5
Dr. Scott Allegretti and Dental, D.D.S. and Facial Technologies Provincetown
Special Thanks To…
Art Devine
Mass Cultural Council
Mass Cultural Council Card to Culture
Carol Sherry
Cape Cod 5
Harwich Community Center
Chatham Community Center
Rob Phelps
Ian Ryan
Mark Downey
Dr. Scott Allegretti and Dental, D.D.S. and Facial Technologies Provincetown
