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Letters of Reference
Kind words from equally kind people.
Hunger Artists Ensemble Theatre
P.O. Box 13348
Denver, CO 80201
303.893.5438
March 6, 1995
To Whom It May Concern,
Hunger Artists Ensemble Theatre has had an ongoing collaborative relationship with Jeremy Cole since 1991. Hunger Artists is in its sixteenth season as a theatrical production company comprised of directors, actors and designers. Mr. Cole has directed four productions for the company.
Hunger Artists has found the collaboration with Mr. Cole to be artistically challenging and fruitful. As evidenced by the four plays he has directed for our company -- Lanford Wilson's Talley and Son, Anne Commire's Starting Monday, Playing With Fire (after Frankenstein) by Barbara Field and Good by C.P. Taylor -- Mr. Cole seeks out scripts which do not necessarily tread the safe road. Rather, he looks for strength in writing and a variety of stylistic approaches. He has successfully experimented with non-traditional casting and environmental theatre. He communicates with actors and designers with precision and ease. Theatre artists, theatre audiences and theatre critics generally agree that Mr. Cole's work is among the most respected in the community.
Unlike many in the theatre, Mr. Cole is not only a prolific theatre artist, he is a voracious theatre-goer. Expansion of knowledge and continuation of learning in his craft seem very important to him. His work with Hunger Artists has not been restricted to directing; he has also acted and designed for the company. His pursuits in these areas feed his work as a director.
If I can be of further assistance, please do not hesitate to contact me.
Sincerely,
Curt Pesicka
President
The Denver Post
1560 Broadway
Denver, CO 80202
303.820.1394
February 17, 1994
I am writing in regard to Jeremy Cole, director.
As the theater critic for The Denver Post, I have had several opportunities to enjoy Cole's work on offerings as diverse as productions of Children of a Lesser God, The Lady and the Clarinet, for colored girls..., and the regional premieres of Eastern Standard and Beirut (performed in an amazingly well-utilized environmental space).
Cole brings insight, imagination and sensitivity to every project he approaches, and he is not afraid to take a chance. Even though some plays are less successful than others, for the most part the name of Jeremy Cole attached to a production means an evening of interesting, intriguing theater that is more than a notch above the ordinary.
(His additional talents include acting, costuming and lighting.)
During the past three years he has received eight nominations in varying categories from the Denver Drama Critics Circle (of which I am a voting member), and his Eastern Standard was named Best Ensemble Performance of 1990-91.
If you have any questions, I would be glad to answer them.
Sincerely,
Sandra Dillard-Rosen
Theater Critic
Joanne Greenberg
29221 Rainbow Hill Road
Golden, CO 80401
December 29, 1995
TO WHOM IT MAY CONCERN
I have been an admirer of the artistic work of Jeremy Cole ever since he came to Denver. I have seen Jeremy and not known of his work directing until Starting Monday, which is a wonderful play but which benefitted infinitely by Jeremy's creative take on what is essentially a grim and tragic piece of art. His direction and dramaturgy are capable of bringing a kind of balance to the darkness of most modern plays that allows their images to come through without having the audience fall into despair.
A case in point is his direction of the play The Investigation, which is the testimony of Auschwitz survivors (by Peter Weiss). Jeremy saved the play from its almost numbing horror and made it bearable because I know that the words alone would have been awful -- he made positive choices that were creative without going for cheap effects. The old standard Separate Tables benefitted from his light touch and his Macbeth was amazingly creative, intelligent and integrated. This demonstrates his range.
I am eager to see the next thing he does.
Joanne Greenberg
Author, I Never Promised You a Rose Garden, In This Sign, etc...