The Farnsworth Invention Creative

Director

John Fraissinet

John is pleased to be finally bringing Farnsworth to life after a two year Covid interruption in its planning. He has performed in 30+ shows in Northern NJ and produces/directs and is on the Board at theaters in Montclair (Studio Players) and Teaneck (TNT). Some favorite roles have been Robert in "Boeing Boeing", Avram in "Fiddler on the Roof", Charle in "August: Osage County", the Emperor in "New Clothes for the Emperor", the Snail in "A Year with Frog and Toad", Krojack in "Don't Drink the Water" , Gage Holland in "Clark Gable Slept Here". Love to talented, beautiful Donna.

Asst. Director

Donna Fraissinet

Donna has also appeared in Almost, Maine; Yes, Virginia; Motherhood Out Loud; Three Viewings; The Glass Menagerie, and Don’t Drink the Water

Producer/Costumes

Beatriz Esteban-Messina

Beatriz was an arts educator and high school principal for 40 years. Since retiring in 2011, she has worked on over 50 shows both on and off stage. In 2018, she received an NJACT Perry Award for “direction of an original play,” Pets & Their Humans. Additionally, she has been nominated for “best featured actress” in Moon Over Buffalo & To Kill a Mockingbird, and for directing 'Night Mother. Beatriz is president of Teaneck New Theatre, and a board member with Nutley Little Theatre and Hudson Theatre Works where she also runs their Children's Stage Project. She welcomes this lovely cast to the TNT family, and hopes you will enjoy this fascinating true story from television history.

Stage Manager

Fred Alvaro

Fred is thrilled to return to live performance as a part of this amazing production. Prior credits include Pseudolus in Forum, Joseph in Dreamcoat, Dr. Seward in Dracula, Farquaad in Shrek and countless others. Love to Amanj, Droovy, MamaBelle, Louvris, Doots and Chubalub!

Costumes

Julia Sharp

Julia, a retired professor of fashion, is pleased to be working on The Farnsworth Invention with John and this group of talented actors. She has costumed over 50 plays for the professional (Equity) theater at Centenary University. Favorite shows include Blithe Spirit, The Cripple of Inishmaan, The Liar, Deathtrap, Born Yesterday, Madeline’s Christmas, and the musicals Peter Pan, and A Christmas Carol. She is also the author of several textbooks including ones on textiles, and on the use of design elements in creating apparel and costumes.

Lighting Design

Drew Villafuerte

Drew “Droovy” is a full-time percussionist and wedding entertainer with his company Other Members Entertainment LLC. Droovy also enjoys composing, and designing sound and lights for musical theater, and has been honored to receive Perry nominations for Best Sound Design of a Musical and Best Original Musical of 2019, winning the latter.

Lighting Design

Brian Uychich

Brian is a Hackensack resident who is very excited to be a part of Farnsworth. He is the co-owner of Other Members Entertainment with business partner Droovy! Collectively they have done over 1,000 private events. Whenever he is not preforming, or helping with a stage set up, Brian’s time is spent with his son. His favorite role is playing Dad!

Sound Design

Keith Raulerson

Keith has been part of several productions at Nutley Little Theater, as well as other productions for Studio Players Theater and Apricot Sky Productions in Montclair. He is proud to be joining Teaneck New Theatre’s production of The Farnsworth Invention to help create a memorable atmosphere with such a talented team.

Tech

Cameron Alvaro

Cameron is a senior at David E. Owens Middle School. She is thrilled to be a part of the Farnsworth team, having previously appeared in community and school theater preductions, including Alice in Wonderland, Willy Wonka, and countless others.

Tech

Allegra Alvaro

Allegra is a sophomore at New Milford High School, where she is a member of the school’s marching band, and a stage crew member for the theater arts department. Allegra is thrilled to be a part of The Farnsworth team. Prior credits include The Wedding Singer, Willy Wonka, High School Musical and 1776.

Original Creative Team

Aaron Sorkin (playwright)

Academy-Award®-winning writer and renowned playwright Aaron Sorkin graduated from Syracuse University with a B.F.A. in Theatre. He made his Broadway playwriting debut at the age of 28 with the military courtroom drama A Few Good Men, for which he received the John Gassner Award as Outstanding New American Playwright. The following year saw the debut of his off-Broadway play Making Movies, and in 2007 he returned to Broadway with The Farnsworth Invention. Mr. Sorkin will return to the theater and make his Broadway debut as a librettist with the production of Houdini. The musical, which will star Hugh Jackman, will be based on the life of legendary magician Harry Houdini and will feature music and lyrics by Oscar and Grammy winner Stephen Schwartz.

In 2011, Mr. Sorkin won the Academy Award®, Golden Globe, Critics Choice and British Academy of Film and Television Arts Award (BAFTA) for Best Adapted Screenplay for The Social Network. The film, directed by David Fincher, was nominated for eight Academy Awards, including Best Picture, was named Best Drama at the Golden Globes, and appeared on over 350 critics’ lists of the top ten films of 2010. In 2012, Mr. Sorkin adapted Moneyball along with Steve Zaillian and story by Stan Chervin. The film, which was was directed by Bennett Miller and starred Brad Pitt, won Mr. Sorkin the Critics Choice Award and New York Film Critics Award for Best Adapted Screenplay. It also earned four Academy Award® nominations, including Best Picture and Best Adapted Screenplay.

In 1993, Mr. Sorkin’s film adaptation of A Few Good Men was nominated for four Academy Awards®, including Best Picture, and five Golden Globes, including Best Screenplay. He followed this success with the screenplays for ">Malice, starring Alec Baldwin and Nicole Kidman; The American President, starring Michael Douglas and Annette Bening; and Charlie Wilson's War, starring Tom Hanks, Philip Seymour Hoffman and Julia Roberts. Mr. Sorkin next adapted Steve Jobs, the Walter Isaacson biography of the late Apple co-founder.

For television, Mr. Sorkin created and produced the NBC series The West Wing, which earned nine Emmy nominations in its first season. The series went on to win a total of 26 Emmy Awards, including the prize for Outstanding Drama Series four consecutive times. For his work on the series, Mr. Sorkin twice received the Peabody Award and the Humanitas Prize, as well as three Television Critics Association Awards and Producers Guild Awards, a Golden Globe Award and a Writers Guild Award. He also produced and wrote the television series Sports Night for ABC, which won the Humanitas Prize and the Television Critics Association Award. Additionally, Mr. Sorkin created the series Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip. The series took place behind the scenes of a live sketch comedy show and received five Emmy nominations in 2007. Sorkin's HBO hit series The Newsroom debuted in 2012, bringing in an average of 7 million viewers per episode. Set behind the scenes at a cable news show, the show featured an ensemble cast headed up by Jeff Daniels, Emily Mortimer and Sam Waterston.