GREATER TUNA Tour to Stop in Galveston This April,
Featuring Q&A with Jaston Williams
Right Angle Entertainment and A Rising Tide Theatrical Group have announced the all
new national tour of GREATER TUNA.
The hilarious hit comedy about the third smallest town in Texas where the Lion's Club is
too liberal and Patsy Cline never dies, is coming back to theatres, this time with co-
creator Jaston Williams sitting in the director's chair. Each performance will be followed
with a Q&A.
GREATER TUNA will play The Grand 1894 Opera House for a limited three-
performance engagement on Saturday, April 8, 2017 at 3 and 8 pm; Sunday, April 9,
2017 at 3 pm. Tickets may be purchased at The Grand Box Office, 2020 Postoffice
Street, by calling 409.765.1894, 800.821.1894 or online at www.thegrand.com.
Although written and first performed over thirty years ago, the residents of Tuna could
not be more up-to-date. Contemporary politicians and The Religious Right have put the
basis for the comedy in GREATER TUNA back on the front pages of today's newspapers.
Vera Carp is still leading the Smut Snatchers of the New Order in their campaign to
clear the library shelves of dirty books like "Huckleberry Finn" and "Romeo and Juliet".
Elmer Watkins speaks up for the KKK, Petey Fisk argues for animal rights, and a
Celebrity Murder is on the front page. UFO Sightings? A Fat, Overbearing Talk Show

Host? Celebrity Murder? It's not the cover of Time Magazine, it's GREATER TUNA and
it's Hilarious!
With its humble beginnings at a Sixth Street cabaret in Austin, Texas in 1981, GREATER
TUNA came from the minds of master comedians Jaston Williams and Joe Sears, along
with original director Ed Howard as the imaginative authors who parlayed the sketch
into the critically acclaimed production which has entertained audiences across the
country ever since.
Co-creator Jaston Williams will direct this all new tour starring the fresh talent of Ryan
Bailey, Tim Leavon and Will Mercer. Assisted by lightning-quick costume changes, the
actors will portray all characters: men, women, children and animals. This multi-award
winning comedy is a funny, loving portrait of rural America -- big hearts, small minds
and all.
According to Williams, "One of the things I am proudest of was Greater Tuna being
named Play of the Century by Texas Monthly. Some people tend to think of the shows as
an act for Joe Sears and myself, but the reality is that Greater Tuna is a seriously
constructed play produced all over the country with other actors. I can say, I know these
characters when I see them and I see them in this wonderful cast we have decided to
work with."
This fresh new take on GREATER TUNA reunites several of the original design team to
include costumes by Broadway designer Linda Fisher and sound design by Ken
Huncovsky. The creative team is rounded out with lighting design by Ovation Award
winner Luke Moyer and scenic design by Michael Krauss.
For its April return to The Grand 1894 Opera House, the Greater Tuna tour features a
new cast and production. Joe Sears and Jaston Williams have "hung up their wigs,
dresses, and high heels," and Jaston Williams has stepped into the role of director.
Following each performance, Director Williams will lead a Q & A that's bound to be as
entertaining as the show!
For ticket prices and more information call The Grand's box office at 409.765.1894,
800.821.1894, or visit The Grand's website at www.thegrand.com. Listed on the
National Register of Historic Places, The Grand 1894 Opera House is located at 2020
Postoffice Street in historic downtown Galveston's Cultural Arts District and is

recognized as "The Official Opera House of the State of Texas." All major credit cards
accepted.
For additional information, visit your friends in Tuna at www.TunaTouring.com, and on
Facebook: www.facebook.com/greatertuna and Twitter @greatertunatour.
ABOUT THE PRODUCTION TEAM:
Jaston Williams (Co-Creator, Director) Jaston is known nationally as the co-author, co-
star and producer of the four award-winning plays in the Greater Tuna cycle. His
performances have played on and off Broadway at the Kennedy Center, the Edinburgh
International Arts Festival, the Spoleto Festival U.S.A. and all over America. Jaston
received the L.A. Dramalogue Award for both Greater Tuna and A Tuna Christmas. A
Tuna Christmas was published in "Best Plays of 1995." For several years, he toured in
Larry Shue's The Foreigner. He performed in The Fantasticks and directed the musical
Bad Girls Upset By The Truth. Jaston received the Texas Governor's Award for
Outstanding Contribution to the Arts by a Native Texan and has performed at the White
House on three occasions. He has appeared at Austin's State Theatre in Eugene
Ionesco's The Chairs and at ZACH Theatre in Jay Preston Allen's Tru, for which he
received the Austin Critics Table Award for Best Actor in a drama. He has also appeared
at the ZACH Theatre in Te Laramie Project, Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike and
A Christmas Carol. Jaston's autobiographical play, I'm Not Lying, was the first of his five
solo shows, all receiving critical acclaim in performances across the country. The others
are Cowboy Noises, Camping With Gasoline, Blame it on Valentine, Texas and his latest
Maid Marian in a Stolen Car. Jaston has been seen recently with friends Joe Ely,
Kimmie Rhodes, Jimmie Dale Gilmore and Jo Carol Pierce in their performance piece,
Is There Life After Lubbock? as well as shared the stage with Lauren Lane in his new
work A Wolverine Walks into a Bar. Jaston is the recipient of the 2013 Texas Medal of
the Arts and has been inducted into the West Texas Walk of Fame.
Ken Huncovsky (Sound Designer) The National Tours of ANN - The Ann Richards Play
(& Broadway), Tuna Does Vegas, A Tuna Christmas (& Broadway), REd White And
Tuna, and The Foreigner. Regional credits include: The Greater Austin High School
Musical Theatre Awards, A Wolverine Walks Into A Bar, Blame It On Valentine, Texas,
Tru, Camping With Gasoline, Cowboy Noises, Windblown, Hillbilly Heaven, Small Town
Girl, Trail of Tears, A Funny Thing Happened On The Way To The Forum, The Cow
Patty's, The Fantasticks, Peter Pan, The Wizard of Oz, The Chairs, and American Fiesta.
Currently, Ken is the Production Supervisor at The Long Center for the Performing Arts
in Austin.

Linda Fisher (Costume Designer) created the original costumes for Greater Tuna first at
Hartford Stage Company, then off-Broadway in 1982, and later for the Embassy
Communications/Norman Lear Television special of Greater Tuna which aired on HBO.
Her Broadway productions include A Tuna Christmas, Painting Churches, Bus Stop,
Foxfire, and Morning's at Seven for which she later designed tours and the film version
for CBS Cable. Other film/TV credits include Heart of Midnight, The Private History of a
Campaign That Failed, and Pudd'n-head Wilson, as well as Rachel River for American
Playhouse and The FinAl Verdict for TNT, the pilot for the short-lived NBC series Prince
Street, and Stephen King's The Langoliers, an ABC miniseries. Ms. Fisher's other Off-
Broadway credits consist of 52 productions at 19 theatres including the Manhattan
Theatre Club, Playwright's Horizons, the Phoenix Theatre, The Roundabout, and
American Place as well as several workshop productions for the New York Public
Theatre. Regional credi
s include 132 productions at 28 theatres. A few regional theatres for which she has
designed costumes are the Guthrie Theatre, Long Wharf Theatre, Arena Stage, Alaska
Repertory Theatre, and the Williamstown and Berkshire Theatre Festivals. Ms. Fisher
received her BFA in costume design from The University of Texas and completed her
MFA from Yale University School of Drama. Union affiliations: United Scenic Artists
Local 829 and Costume Designers Guild Local 892.
Luke Moyer (Lighting Designer) Luke is the resident lighting designer for the NoHo Arts
Center and Open at the Top, and his recent credits include Blame it on Valentine, Texas,
Discord, The Light Bulb, One November Yankee, Red Room, Having it All Dracula
(Ovation Award), Yo Ho Ho! A Pirates Christmas, East of Berlin, Departures, Pirates of
Penzance, Feed, Jerusalem, Barnum, Elizabeth Rex (Ovation Award), Lizard, and the
full staging of Angels In America. He is also the resident lighting designer for the
American Academy of Dramatic Arts. Luke began his career at the Main Street Stage in
Massachusetts where he designed PMS, Apartment 3A, Irma Vepp, and Collected
Stories. He has designed many shows for The Company Rep including Six Degrees of
Separation, Camino Real, Split, The Comedy of Errors, The Fantasticks, The Pension
Grillparzer, Season's Greetings, Twelfth Night, Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead,
and Play Strindberg. More west coast credits include Deathtrap (Ovation Award),
Shooting Star, Year Zero, Grace and Glory, All Night Strut, Celadine, A Long Christmas
Ride Home, Recent Tragic Events, The Intern, The Last Pitch, Generator Girl, and
Why's The Dog Howlin' Mama?
MICHAEL KRAUSS (Scenic Designer) is a native North Carolinian and recent graduate
with an MFA in Scenic Design from The University of Texas at Austin. His most recent
credits include Charlotte's Web and jj's arcade at the ZACH Theatre, Suor Angelica and

Gianni Schicchi at the Butler Opera Center. Prior work includes Three Decembers and
At the Statue of Venus (BOC), Enter a Woman, Pretty Enough (UT), world premiere of
Refugia (The Moving Company & UT), Fame! (UT), and Advance Man (UT New
Theatre). He is currently working in television and film, but his first love will always be
theatre.
RIGHT ANGLE ENTERTAINMENT & A RISING TIDE THEATRICAL GROUP (Co-
Producers)
Right Angle Entertainment is a Production Company specializing in the production,
management and distribution of live theatrical and concert events. RAE has worked
with diverse brands and companies such as NBC, FremantleMedia, Character Arts,
Lucasfilm, DreamWorks Theatrical, S2BN, Ad Astra / For the Record and Cirque du
Soleil Theatricals. Co-Founders Alison Spiriti and Justin Sudds have over 35 years
collective experience in presenting on the road, managing artists, producing new work
and love collaborating with their partners to bring the most innovative work to life on
stage.
A Rising Tide Theatrical Group, LLC is a multi-faceted entertainment company founded
in 2013 by Denton Yockey and Scott Galbraith who, together, have 70 years' experience
in both non-profit and commercial theater. Inspired by the adage "a rising tide lifts all
boats," A Rising Tide (ART) exists to lift audiences, artists, and producers alike. Most
recently, ART aided the world premiere of the new musical Idaho! at The Smith Center
in Las Vegas. Galbraith's career has included producing, presenting, venue operations,
marketing, directing, and acting, and he was recently called upon to train emerging arts
leaders in China. Yockey, whose background also includes acting, directing, teaching,
and producing plays, musicals and children's theatre has run four not-for-profit theatres
and overseen more than 300 productions.
ABOUT THE CAST:
RYAN H. BAILEY, a native of Park Forest, IL, has been living in Texas since 1996, and
currently resides in Fredericksburg, TX with his wife Tommie and daughter Rachel. He
has been acting since his first year of college in 1994 at Lewis University near Joliet, IL,
when as a student merely working in the theater scene shop, got caught playing the
piano backstage one day and was asked to read for the younger lead role of Buddy in The
Diviners, and he has been hooked ever since. Ryan has had no formal training, and since
moving to Texas, he has performed in around three dozen community Theater

Productions throughout the Hill Country area. Some favorite roles include Camille
Chandebise in A Flea in her Ear, Max in Lend Me A Tenor, Smee in Peter Pan,
Rapunzel's Prince in Into the Woods, Pharoah in Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor
Dreamcoat, Feste in Shakespeare's Twelfth Night, Sancho in Man of La Mancha,
Mortimer Brewster in Arsenic and Old Lace, Pseudolus in A Funny Thing Happened on
the Way To The Forum, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart in Amadeus, and most recently
Garry Lejuene in Noises Off! Ryan has also played a variety of the roles originated by
Jaston Williams in two separate productions each of Greater Tuna and A Tuna
Christmas, the most recent ones being produced in 2015 at the Fredericksburg Theater
Company. Additionally, Ryan enjoys nature photography, woodworking, playing piano,
drawing, model building (basically anything artistic), and multiple other aspects of
theater, including directing, light and set design/construction, musical direction, and
original music composition for plays. Ryan is currently employed as a surgical
technician at Hill Country Memorial Hospital in Fredericksburg, TX.
TIM LEAVON is an American artist better known for his work as a stage and film actor.
He first burst onto the stage as the Mischievous Monkey in his 2nd grade production of
The Mighty Circus and has been essentially reprising that role ever since. After being
unceremoniously removed from his high school theatre program and leaving The
University of Montevallo without a BA in theatre, Tim found a home in the bustling
theatre community of Birmingham, Alabama where he first appeared in Equus at
Theatre Downtown, winning the award for Best Actor by the Hobo Awards for his role as
Alan. He then went on to fortuitously appear in productions of Greater Tuna and Tuna
Does Vegas at Terrific New Theatre under the legendary Carl W Stewart. He spent a year
touring as a lead cast member with Birmingham Children's Theatre Company. Tim is
also a cast member of Birmingham's premiere improv comedy group Ugly Baby with
whom he has appeared at the Del Close Marathon in New York and the Spontaneous
Combustion festival in Atlanta. He was also featured with Ugly Baby as one of 3
'Funniest People in Birmingham' in B-Metro Magazine. He then moved to Los Angeles
to study the film industry, appearing as lead in films Roomies, Shepard, You Have
Arrived, and Halloween Hell House. He can also be seen as lead in the web series Web-
Camelot and L.A. Nites. He completed improvisational and character training at UCB
West and Groundlings Theatre and has since returned to Alabama as their Native Son to
start his Production Company Cool Beans who's first projects include We Are Frogs Now
and Courtin' Carl.
Will Mercer grew up in Wimberley, TX, playing the piano and singing in church. As a
High School student, Will was an active member of the Speech and Debate team,
competing at the State and National level. Will attended Texas State University where he
earned a BA and MA in Communication Studies. After college, Will spent 25 years in
corporate America serving in leadership positions in the areas of Training and

Development, Change Management, and Leadership Development. He now works for
himself as an Organizational Development Consultant and Software Developer focusing
on small and mid-size business. In addition, Will has taught in the Communication
Studies department at Texas State University as an Adjunct Instructor for 28 years. Will
was honored to receive the Outstanding Alumni Award from the department in 2009.
Will has been performing in the vibrant Central Texas community theatre scene for
many years. Some of his favorite roles include Wardell in Sordid Lives, Inspector Kemp
in Young Frankenstein the Musical, and Clifton in Who's in Bed with the Butler. In
2015, Will had the opportunity to tackle Greater Tuna. Will ?rst met these characters in
1985 as an audience member at the Paramount Theatre in Austin, TX. It was the ?rst
live, professional theater he had experienced. Needless to say, he fell in love with the
theatre and the show. Playing Thurston, Elmer, Bertha, Yippy, Leonard, Pearl, R.R.,
Rev. Spikes, Sheriff Givens, and Hank resulted in Will receiving the 2015 Best Leading
Actor in a Play (Comedy) from BroadwayWorld Austin. Will currently resides in Austin,
TX, with his husband of 3 years. Will has two grown children who also live in Austin. He
enjoys cooking, coffee, and making great theatre!
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