About Me…
I am a professional Actor, Director and Educator currently splitting my time between Iowa City and Chicago. I have worked professionally all over the country for the last 25 (!!!) years, and have been a member of the Actor’s Union for the last ten. I came to Iowa City in 2008 for the Riverside Shakespeare Festival. I fell in love with the town (and with a person), and that’s kept me here (mostly) ever since. I’ve worked a fair amount as an actor for Riverside and Old Creamery Theaters and directed a number of productions for City Circle Acting Company, which has been such a wonderful blessing. Bizarrely, I’ve also found a great deal of work as a choreographer in the area, and that’s kept me busy at City High, Kirkwood Community, and a number of other theaters here. I’ve also done a great deal of teaching in the area at the high school and college levels, both as a guest artist and on my own. I hold an M.F.A. in acting and directing from the University of Missouri-Kansas City and I’m also a founding member of the Alaska Shakespeare Festival.
Approach/Style…
I believe every time you act is an opportunity to change someone’s life, even if it’s only for the space of a few hours. What other art form affords a direct line to another person like that? I am frequently at my most open, generous, and kind as a performer. I like to direct the play in front of me: by that, I mean I like to take the cast I have, discover quickly what their strengths and passions are, and use them to create a very personalized, heartfelt experience for both them and the audience!
Thoughts on Newsies…
Well first, it’s my TCR debut! That’s extremely exciting all by itself. I’m really looking forward to Newsies because of how beloved it is by both actors and audiences. I believe one of the missions of theatre is to lift the burden of life off of the audience for an hour or two, and I think Newsies accomplishes that incredibly well.