MEET JESSICA ROBBLEE
Gretel the Prostitute and Clarice the Servant in Frankenstein

At the Theatre Company: All the Way, Lord of the Butterflies, Drag Machine. Other Theatres: After the Revolution, Homebody Kabul, Rabbit Hole, Aphrodisiac (Curious Theatre), This (Boulder Ensemble Theatre), Gidion’s Knot (Sis Tryst Productions), 5 Lesbians Eating a Quiche (square product theatre), Siren Song: A Pirate Odyssey, Duck Duck Dupe, Trunks (a live comic book), Yesterado, Unbeweaveable (Buntport Theater for Young Audiences), Waiting for Obama (New York International Fringe Festival) and The Odyssey: A Walking Tour (Buntport Theater). She is a co-writer, co-director, and actor for Young Audiences productions at Buntport, an artistic company member at Curious Theatre Company, and a writer-performer for the Denver Art Museum’s family theatre programs.

• Hometown: I don’t have one.  My Army family (mom, dad and brother) are my hometown, I think. 
• Training: Davidson College and the University of Northern Colorado in Greeley
• What was the role that changed your life? Cha-Cha DeGregorio in Grease. Playing this role during 9^th grade at the community theatre on Camp Zama, Japan, showed me that the theatre community is incredibly fun, creative, free and smart. That pure-fun experience is what drew me back to taking acting classes years later … and that choice changed my life trajectory entirely.
• Why are you an actor? Acting is playing … in the smartest, most alive, most connected, and most exploratory way you can.  It helps me understand and respond to all the craziness, wonderment, and difficulty of living.
• What would you be doing for a career if you weren’t an actor? I would be a florist. That’s my first thought. I wanted to be a florist when I was 5 years old, because I was obsessed with colors and rainbows and jobs that involved colors and rainbows … and now I’m in love with gardening.  It’s magical how all the pieces come together, and how the plants respond to your care and do miraculous things. Which sounds like directing. So, I’d be a director. And a writer. And an actor. And a gardener.
• Ideal scene partner: Will Ferrell. Come on, that man is fearless and talented and so much fun.


More Colorado theatre coverage on the DCPA NewsCenter


• Why does this production of Frankenstein matter? This play embodies how our impulse to explore the unknown sits right next to our intense fear of the unknown.  What do we do with these two, sitting side by side, staring at us … imploring us to do and to fear doing? What are our responsibilities as we seek and cross new frontiers?  Also, this piece examines the pain and heartbreak of an individual trying to get others to acknowledge his humanity. What a sad thing, to have to make that argument to your fellow beings. The creature’s plea to be understood as human reminds me of the Black Lives Matter movement. Why does this completely justified, utterly logical movement spark such outrage and fear in parts of our community?  Why are we so threatened? Of course we’re not perfect. Of course there’s work to be done.
• What do you hope the audience gets out of seeing Frankenstein? Questions about who the Creatures of our world are, and why they are denied humanity – and how they are changed by that denial.
  
• Finish this sentence: “All I want is …”
  “… for us to know each other better, so we can care about each other more. And smiles on the street, great books to read, songs on the air, and stories and jokes that encourage us to keep going when we are feeling like we can’t.  And for Rice Krispies Treats to be good for you. Like, really, really good for you.”





Learn more about Buntport Theater’s ‘Siren Song’ for all ages



Photos above and right by John Moore for the DCPA NewsCenter.


 

Frankenstein: Ticket information
• Through Oct. 30
• Stage Theatre
• ASL interpreted, Audio-described and Open Captioned performance: Oct. 23
• Tickets: 303-893-4100 or BUY ONLINE
• Groups: Call 303-446-4829 


Previous NewsCenter coverage of Frankenstein:
Photos: Opening Night of Frankenstein
Video series: Inside look at the making of Frankenstein
Five things we learned about Frankenstein at Perspectives
Photos, video: Your first look at the making of Frankenstein
Frankenstein: On the making of a two-headed monster
Frankenstein and race: It IS a matter of black and white
Breathing life into the Frankenstein set: ‘It’s alive!‘
A Frankenstein ‘that will make The Bible look subtle‘
How Danny Boyle infused new life into Frankenstein
Casting set for Frankenstein and The Glass Menagerie
Introducing DCPA Theatre Company’s 2016-17 season artwork
Kent Thompson on The Bard, The Creature and the soul of his audience
2016-17 season announcement

More 2016-17 DCPA Theatre Company ‘Meet the Cast’ profiles:
Aubrey Deeker, The Glass Menagerie
Thaddeus Fitzpatrick, Frankenstein
Meridith C. Grindei, Frankenstein
Sullivan Jones, Frankenstein
Mark Junek, Frankenstein
Charlie Korman, Frankenstein
Amelia Pedlow, The Glass Menagerie
Jessica Robblee, Frankenstein
John Skelley, The Glass Menagerie
Wesley Taylor, An Act of God

Follow the DCPA on social media @DenverCenter and through the DCPA News Center.