Cast: Dan Cobbler, Genevieve Corkery, Cat Evans, Emily Nichelson, Gus Thomas, Jasz Ward and Carl Wisniewski. Understudies: David Lovejoy, Miguel Long, and Venice Averyheart.
Director
Stephen Buescher (he/him) is a Director, Choreographer, Actor, and Educator. He has directed numerous plays at the American Conservatory Theater’s Masters’ Program including The Bacchae, Romeo and Juliet, Taming of the Shrew, Black Maria, Their Eyes Were Watching God, Can’t Play Won’t Play, Black Orpheus, Crazy for the Country, and Galileo. His play The House of Bernarda Alba was presented at the Moscow Art Theater for the Stanislavski Festival. He has directed Man in Love, A Flea in Her Rear, 809 Almond, and Streetcar Named Desire at the University of California San Diego. He has also directed workshop readings at The Vineyard, Manhattan Theater Club, and Roundabout Theater. Stephen’s choreographic work has been seen at La Jolla Playhouse, Roundabout Theater, Shakespeare Theater Company, Center Theater Group, Fiasco Theater, Oregon Shakespeare Festival, Sundance Film Festival, Arena Stage, Seattle Repertory Theater, Old Globe Theater, Theater Calgary, American Conservatory Theater, Shakespeare Santa Cruz, and the Lorraine Hansberry Theater. As an Actor Stephen has been a Company member with Dell ‘Arte International. While performing with the Company Stephen performed original works in Columbia, Hungary, Croatia, Germany, and Greece. Stephen is a Movement Professor at the University of California San Diego and is a graduate of CalArts and the Dell ‘Arte International School of Physical Theater. Stephen is a member of SDC.
Le Bal
Adapted and Directed by Stephen Buescher
Devised by the Trap Door Ensemble
Based on the film by Ettore Scola
May 14 – June 20, 2026
Le Bal is a newly commissioned devised play inspired by Ettore Scola’s iconic film—a sweeping, dialogue-free production that tells the story of political and personal transformation through dance, music, and fashion. Set to a musical score and timeline of the 1920’s through modern day, Le Bal uses movement and sound to capture the emotional pulse of a changing world. From intimate moments to global shifts, this immersive theatrical experience brings decades of U.S. and world history vividly to life.
Assistant Director: Miguel Long / Stage Manager: Taylor Mercado Owen / Scenic Design: Merje Veski / Lighting Design: Richard Norwood / Costume Design: Rachel Sypniewski / Music Composer & Sound Design: Danny Rockett / Make Up Design: Syd Genco / Intimacy Director: Victoria Nassif / Dramaturg: Milan Pribisic / Prop Design: David Lovejoy / Graphic Design: Michal Janicki
Gallery
The result is an inventive performance exploring both triumphant and dark moments of the American experience, leaving audiences to question how much society has truly changed
Emily Werner, Werner’s Theatre Reviews
Buescher’s vision for “Le Bal,” and the work of the amazing cast at Trap Door—Dan Cobbler, Genevieve Corkery, Cat Evans, Emily Nichelson, Gius Thomas, Jasz Ward and Carl Wisniewski—stretch the bounds of what theater can be.
Bill Esler, Buzz Center Stage
Le Bal is an amazing and sometimes puzzling mix of sound and choreography that is never boring. Director Buescher and assistant director/choreographer Miguel Long and cast keep the audience guessing as to where they will go next, until the bitter and violent ending.
Nancy Bishop, Third Coast Review
The feeling I was left with was of something coming to an end, which is a feeling many are stuck on these days in this place. As a tribute to a moment in history, few words would have been as apt. READER RECOMMENDED
Dmitry Samarov, Chicago Reader
Le Bal’s creative team brilliantly brings the same expressionist energy to the stage that Trap Door Theatre’s performers embody so powerfully
Emily Werner, Werner’s Theatre Reviews
A mesmerizing theatrical collage…
The seven-member ensemble is superb across the board.
…this is about as pure an ensemble as I’ve seen
Croydon Fernandez, Stage and Cinema
From the riveting of World War II factory workers to oppositional funerals for cause célèbre victims, Buescher’s staging is a constant parade of ingenious devices. Even without playing named characters, the ensemble captures our fascination, and every kind of emotion, from delight and admiration to horror. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED
– Jacob Davis, Around the Town Chicago
With no lines to memorize, the audience gets to see more clearly all the other things actors do to bring characters and scenes to life—and that is amazing to witness.
Bill Esler, Buzz Center Stage