Written by Neal Szpatura
Produced and Directed by Joe Gunderman
You know imps. Oh, you may never have seen one, but don't they plague your life on a regular basis? It wasn't you who put your car keys on the back of the toilet. You never do that, which is why it took three hours to find them. An imp did it! And you are perfectly capable of picking them up with your five fingers, so it had to be an imp that, just as you touched them, nudged them down into… Oh yes, you know imps.
So a mischievous spirit who somehow manages to do a good deed or two at Christmas can't be an imp, can she? Find out for yourself by streaming "Alexandra The Christmas Imp."
How do programs like this come about? Well, I had intended to do another "Holiday Stories From The Gundie Journal" and was soliciting material for it in the spring and summer. I ended up not being able to corral enough material or time to work on it, but one of the pieces that did come in was Neal Szpatura's "Alexandra." I asked for 10-15 minute scripts for The Gundie, and this was much too long. Never mind, Neal and I could chop it down later… Then, already well into fall, came the schedule of holiday programs for WKSU, and listed was an hour entitled "Holiday Stories from WKSU." When asked in a meeting, Vincent Duffy, Program Director and scheduler of such things, said, "Oh, that's Joe's 'O. Henry' stories from last year and whatever else I put there." "That's only a half hour. Do you have anything else?" "No…"
When I approached Vince after the meeting and asked, only slightly tentatively, if he wanted me to fill it, he looked up at me and immediately said, "Can you?"
Bear in mind, I was in the middle of producing "Ornaments and Icing: Songs and Stories of the Holidays" for NPR and that deadline was looming like a vulture. So of course I said yes!
And I remembered that "Alexandra" was too long. In fact, it was about … a half hour.
It is my rich blessing to work in the freelance world with wonderful professionals for whom voice work is a practiced craft. They love this kind of project, as do I, despite the awkwardness of trying to jam it into all of our busy lives. And they do this for WKSU and for me for free. (As do I. My salary would have remained the same had I kept my mouth shut.) I thank them with all my heart. Especially Cathy Albers, my casting confidant, who came up with Rachel to play "Alexandra."
Perhaps it was an Imp that put the thought in my head to use sportscasters. It sure was fun working with Joe Tait and Mike Snyder again. My thanks to Dave Dombrowski and the Cleveland Cavaliers for facilitating that.
Also, these little radio adventures would be nothing without the original music that underscores them. My over 27-year association with Dave Savord has had many creative moments. This just keeps it going.
Hey, radio is Theater of the Mind, but take a look anyway: Check out the fun we had by viewing the outtakes video. (Windows Media - RealPlayer)
Embracing your inner imp, Happy Holidays
--Joe Gunderman (Gundie) (producer, director, bottle washer)
Who is Joe?
Neal Szpatura Neal's background as a shamanic practitioner, dreamwork teacher and Tarot reader has led him to spend ample time in alternative and nonordinary realities, including the realms of creative writing. Neal's home and family include one wife, one son, two dogs, eight cats and many, many visitors from Haunted Hollow. He may be reached at
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Cathy Albers (Imp-P-R announcer, Mrs. Dolan) - Catherine is a professional actress and a teacher at Case Western Reserve University in the Department of Theater and Dance, where she is the Director of Undergraduate Theater Studies. She is also a Master Teacher in the MFA Professional Actor Training program, run in conjunction with the Cleveland Play House. She has performed on stages throughout the U.S. and is a certified Master Teacher of Michael Chekhov Acting Technique. She is thrilled to be working with this wonderfully talented group of people. Thank you for the opportunity.
John Buck Jr. (Mr. Garrity) is a native of Madison, Wisconsin. He was trained at Northwestern University under Alvina Krause; and at The Academy Of Dramatic Art in Rochester, Michigan, under John Fernald, friend of George Bernard Shaw and guiding light of the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art. Mr. Buck joined the acting company of the Cleveland Play House in 1969, for what would become a nearly 20-year association, and appeared in over eighty productions. He was also a member of Ken Albers' The Actor's Company for their ten-year life span. He has appeared with The Cleveland Orchestra, The Cleveland Lyric Opera, The Milwaukee Repertory Company, The John Fernald Company of the Meadowbrook Theatre, The Ypsilanti Greek Theatre, with Dame Judith Anderson, Bert Lahr and Ruby Dee, in New York with the City Center Repertory Company, and in King Lear at The Roundabout Theatre Company with Hal Holbrook. Mr. Buck performed with the Great Lakes Theater Festival over a fifteen year period. John, and his wife Nancy, are residents of Cleveland Heights.
Paula Duesing (Gramma Peony) has lived and worked in the Cleveland area for the last thirty years as a freelance voice-over talent and actress. She's performed at Cleveland Playhouse, Great Lakes Theater, Dobama Theater, Ensemble Theater, and Actor's Summit, of Hudson, in many varied roles from the young, beguiling Barbara Allen in Dark of the Moon to the brassy harridan Martha in Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolfe. Even raising her baritone voice in song at Cain Park in Fiddler on the Roof. She's also produced a number of productions under Actor's Equity Association, the professional actor's union. As an AFTRA voice-over talent she has done hundreds of local and national commercials as well as non-brodcast narrations, most notably as the voice of the Omnimax Theater at the Great Lakes Science Center. She's even occationlly appeared on camera. Her most recent project is a pilot for t.v. filmed in Cleveland, "The Rudy Connelly Story", which is just getting "shopped around" in LA.
Rachel Douglas (Alexandra) is a working actress from Cleveland Heights. She was last seen in Cleveland Public Theatre’s AtTention Span: A Festival of Ten-Minute Plays and has performed with Doboma’s Night Kitchen, The Illusion Factory, Cleveland Shakespeare Festival and others. Rachel works at Cleveland.com and does freelance reporting and writing. She also sings with the band Gypsy Parade.
Heather Farr (Chlorinda) has performed all over the Cleveland area. She was most recently seen reading various roles in A "Little Box" Reading of The Measure of Men at Cleveland Public Theatre, and before that as Cecily in The Importance of Being Earnest at Olmsted Falls High School (where she is a Junior). Some of her favorite roles include Mary Tilford in The Children's Hour (Beck Center), Anne Frank in The Diary of Anne Frank (both Beck Center and Magical Theatre Company), and Child in Cabaret (Kalliope Stage). Heather recently discovered the freedoms of a driver’s license, and has been taking full advantage of that privilege!
Sheila Heyman (Mad Annie) has been Director of Theatre and an educator at Beachwood High School for twelve years, teaching Public Speaking and Improvisational Comedy for Performance. Prior to her career change to academia, she was a professional actress whose local roles included Paquette in Candie at The Cleveland Play House, Sarraghina in Nine at Cain Park, and The Widow in Taming of the Shrew, Georgette in The School for Wives, Madame Petypon in The Lady from Maxim's and Mrs. Fezziwig and Cynthia, the Silly Sister in A Christmas Carol, all at the Great Lakes Theatre Festival. Sheila was one of the founding members of Cleveland’s own Giant Portions Improvisational Comedy Company and was recruited by Walt Disney World in 1990 as a performer for their improvisational venue, The Comedy Warehouse. She is currently the voice for several crazy (!) toys on the market.
Jim Kisicki (Malvin the Maleficent) received his MFA from Wayne State University. He has been heard locally and nationally on the radio. He has appeared on many stages from Detroit to Miami to Cincinnati to Cleveland. He's been seen on the silver screen in major motion pictures. "I can only say that I'm grateful that this is the 'Theater of the Mind' because I doubt if you could handle seeing me in my green tights, pointed ears, red slippers with curled toes and bells, and bibulous nose. Considering the bulk I carry and the visual you have just conjured up, you should be very grateful that this is radio."
Deric McNish (Vince, Squire Verdant Moss) is currently an MFA acting student at the Case Western / Cleveland Play House Graduate Ensemble. He's happy to make his Ohio radio debut on a "Gundie" production for WKSU. Other voice-overs include a recurring role on WKRW Binghamton's "Guard Duty" as well as national radio commercials. He's performed at theatres across the country and at the Cleveland Play House where he will next appear as Giuliano in "Big Love" beginning March 14th. Deric starred in a film called "White Room" which premiers at the end of January in North Canton. On television he played a recurring role on "Third Watch."
Mike Snyder (himself) has been the Cleveland Cavaliers radio network studio host for 15 straight years. He begins each Cavaliers radio network broadcast, hosts the halftime report which and following most games, he hosts the call-in show. Snyder also serves as co-host of the "Mike Brown Show," which airs every Thursday on News Radio WTAM 1100 and the Cavaliers Radio Network from 7:00-8:00 p.m. Snyder is currently the Sports Director at News Radio WTAM 1100, where he provides updates during afternoons and evenings. He has also been the past play-by-play television voice for University of Akron and Kent State University football and basketball, as well as the radio play-by-play voice for Cleveland Force soccer and Canton-Akron Indians baseball. In recognition of his distinguished career, Snyder was inducted into the Ohio Broadcasters Hall of Fame in November 2000. (Mike and Joe Gunderman worked together at WWWE in the early '90s.)
Joe Tait (himself) has been the voice of the Cleveland Cavaliers for 35 seasons. He is also Vice President of Broadcasting for them, and has become one of the most recognizable and popular members of the Cavaliers. On Nov. 26, 2002, Tait broadcasted his 2,500th Cavaliers game. He also has done play-by-play for the New Jersey Nets, the Chicago Bulls, and for the CBS Radio College Game-of-the-Week. Tait served as the radio play-by-play voice of the WNBA Cleveland Rockers from 1997 to 2003. He also broadcast Cleveland Indians baseball for 16 years. Tait was named the 2004 "Sportscaster of the Year in Ohio." He also received the honor in 1974, '76, '78, '91, '96, '99 and 2002. In addition, Tait was voted the best radio/TV announcer in the area in a poll conducted by the Cleveland Plain Dealer in 1985 and 1986. Tait kept active during the summer of 1992 as the play-by-play voice of the World Basketball League on both SportsChannel America and ESPN. Also, Tait was an instructor in sportscasting at Ohio University (1966-68) and at Mount Union College (1989-1994). In the fall of 1996, Tait was named to the Board of Trustees for Mount Union College in Alliance, Ohio, where he has been the TV voice of the Purple Raiders for 18 seasons. Joe Tait has been inducted into the a list of Halls of Fame: His alma mater Monmouth College Athletic Hall, the Media Hall of Fame by the Sports Media Association of Cleveland and Ohio, the Broadcasters Hall, the Cleveland Sports Legends Hall, and the Cleveland Press Club Hall of Fame. (For all that, Joe and Joe (Gunderman) bonded immediately upon meeting in the late '80s when one word was mentioned: Trains!)
Nancy Telzerow (Blue Fairy) is a Professional actress and an adjunct Professor teaching Radio and TV Announcing at Baldwin Wallace College. She has been seen and heard in national commercials for the past 14 years. Stage credits include: A View from the Bridge, Tom Walker, Side Man, and Cyanide at Tea Time. She is excited to once again be part of this radio cast spreading Happy holidays to all!
David Savord (music) has been in a straight jacket so long, he can no longer straighten his arms. It makes playing the piano difficult. (It must have been an Imp's fault.)
