Ionéu Program
The show will run for approximately 90 minutes minutes.
*No Intermission*
Dive Into Ionéu
Ionéu is an original work shaped by the spiritual currents of the Jonah story. Its central figure flees a divine calling—clear, urgent, and unwelcome—and is swallowed by a great fish, not as punishment but as a vessel of reckoning. The story unfolds in Loàga, a land once unified around a vast, sacred lake. More than water, the lake is a life-giving, spiritual force—central to the Gàni people and their clans, shaped by fishing, storytelling, and devotion. But after the Égàti clan turned away and returned with violence, the region fractured. Traditions scattered. Faith dimmed. In this broken world, prophecy, memory, and myth press in on the present.
Ionéu is for anyone who has fled a truth too heavy to bear—and found, in darkness, the mercy they did not expect. It walks in Jonah’s shadow: into the deep, through silence, and toward something worth rebuilding.
Message from Executive Director
Dear Friends,
Welcome to the world premiere of Ionéu, a story that emerges from the soul of the Athenaeum Center’s mission: to awaken culture through Beauty and to offer the world a new encounter with truth and mercy.
At its core, this work is a meditation on justice, memory, and the healing power of grace. It explores the tension we all carry—the longing for restoration, and the cost of truly receiving it. In a time marked by sorrow and fracture, Ionéu invites us into a deeper reflection on what it means to be made whole.
As we offer this new work, I am reminded of the words of our new Holy Father, Pope Leo XIV, who addressed the world with a message as simple as it is urgent:
“God loves us, God loves you all, and evil will not prevail.”
That same hope animates the heart of this production. Thank you for being with us tonight. Your presence affirms that Beauty still matters, and that new stories—rooted in ancient truth—still have the power to move, awaken, and transform.
With gratitude,
Lawrence Daufenbach
Executive Director / Founder
Athenaeum Center for Thought & Culture
Artists
Emma St. Kathryn
Director
William Rushman
Ioné
Jeremy Cox
Ioné
Derrick Williams
Uren, Égàti Marauder
Elijah Cox
Šé, Young Ioné, Égàti
Louise "Scout" Gregory
Tigàno, Péga
Emma Delaney
Teller
Erika Walton
Teller / Giàla
Samantha Buckley
Teller
Jack Oleg
Teller, Àmetài
Jessika Cutts
Spirit of Authorship, Gràkà, Égàti Outcast
Makari Robinson-McNeese
Spirit of Wonder, Gràkà, Égàti Outcast
Laura Herronen
Spirit of Creation, Tàtàni, Gràkà, Égàti Outcast
Sky Yela
Musician / Instrumentalist
Emma Fulmer
Teller (U/S), Àmetài (U/S), Giàla (U/S)
Eliana Payne
Péga (U/S), Tigàno (U/S), Dancer Swing
Characters
IONÉ: A bitter, reluctant prophet called to deliver a divine warning to his enemies.
UREN: A wise, compassionate fisherman who offers Ioné refuge at sea.
ŠÉ: Uren’s guarded nephew, wary of Ioné and shaped by loss.
PÉGA: A faithful orphan whose innocence and trust challenge Ioné’s hardened heart.
THE TELLERS: Mystical narrators who guide the story through song, movement, and prophecy.
THE SPIRITS: A silent, divine presence that moves through the story unseen—guiding, confronting, and calling souls toward truth.
TIGÀNO: Ioné’s adopted kid brother, the memory of whom plague’s him with guilt.
ÀMETÀI: Ioné’s father, a lost child of the scattered Zëvulenites of Isràël.
GIÀLA: Ioné’s mother, child of the Dildàfi clan of Loàga.
ÉGÀTI: the lost Fienkorsi tribe of Loàga, a people consumed by violence and deceit.
TÀTÀNI / THE MOURNING DOVE: A divine force that calls to Ioné.
GRÀKÀ / SEA CREATURE: A divine force of reckoning and transformation.
Production Team
PLAYWRIGHT: Jacob Daniel Groth
DIRECTOR: Emma St. Kathryn
ASSISTANT DIRECTOR: Naava Ofri-Akman
STAGE MANAGER: Isa Pardilla
ASSISTANT STAGE MANAGER: Levi Denton-Hughes
TECHNICAL DIRECTOR: Mike Goebel
LIGHTING DESIGNER: Angela Kvitek
SOUND DESIGNER: Colin Kovarik
SCENIC DESIGNER: Kevin Scott
MUSIC DERECTOR: Sky Yela
PUPPET DESIGNER: Kristoffer Neumann
COSTUME DESIGNER: Ashley Guinn
INTIMACY COORDINATOR: Madeline Meyer
FIGHT COORDINATOR: Madeline Meyer
COSTUME DESIGN ASSISTANT: Abigail Wojtaszek
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Zach Martinez
The Voice of the Playwright
“Ionéu isn’t a simple adaptation—it’s an excavation.”
Playwright Jacob Daniel Groth began Ionéu with a single line—half-musing, half-confession. What followed was a journey through mythology, language, and the soul of a reluctant prophet.
Inspired by the Book of Jonah, Ionéu is not a retelling, but a spiritual mirror. It explores a world where monsters may carry mercy, and running from grace only leads us deeper into it.
Groth writes with poetic force, mythic imagination, and emotional honesty. His play does not give answers—it asks the kind of questions that leave us changed.
“I hope people walk out feeling they’ve been asked questions rather than given answers.”
— J.D.G.
Directors Note
“Your visitation has planted a seed, Ioné. I’ll see that it takes root.” ~ Jacob D. Groth
Welcome to this shared experience of Ionéu: A Retelling! This neo-Greek tragedy of epic proportions is an adventure of land and of sea, of external battling and of internal warfare, of festering bitterness and of unrelenting mercy.
During this largely ensemble-devised work you are about to enjoy, we pose deep-digging questions for your reflection: How can justice be enacted in a deeply broken world? When do we put limitations on forgiveness? What is the true measure of mercy?
Throughout the process of building this performance, the artists involved have engaged in dialogue concerning the profound themes of the work: conflicting belief systems, grief and vengeance, psychological suffering, active compassion, and cultural inheritance. In an age of algorithmic-driven media and the non-consensual hijacking of our thoughts and decision-making, I invite you to sit back and reflect with us for the next 90 minutes.
I ask you: where is mercy needed in your life?
Sheen Circle
Noel and Michele Moore
Charles and Ellen Mulaney
St. Alphonsus Parish
James and Molly Perry
Michael Errin Rios
Ted and Sally Smith
Dante Circle
Sally Blount
Kenneth and Barbara Kaufman
Dennis and Laura Quaid
Scruton Circle
Anonymous
Erwin and Nancy Aulis
Franz and Melia Berkemeier
Joe and Maggie Carrozza
Alietia Caughron
David Cavicke
Michael and Lois Harring
Tom Brusstar and Susan Hasegawa
Jordan and Molly Hill
Don and Dorsey Jastrebski
Gabrielle Jastrebski
Brendan Jubulis
Ken and Barbara Kaufman
James J. and Mary F. Keil
Thomas and Emily Kelly
Taylor Luiso
Evan and Alex Lutomski
Neal and Susanne McNamara
Lauren and John Paul Mulhern
William and Melanie O’Hara
Neal J. and Jennifer A. Reenan
Mark and Eleanor Schneider
Brian and Lytle Smith
Joseph and Mary Clare Starshak
