2017 PARTICIPANTS
STUDENTS
Ashley Fink ’18
Becky Lafon ’19 Theatre/Political Science
Connor Wright ’18
Coralie Tyler ’20 Theatre/Film
Eliza Renner ’18 Theatre/Education Studies
Galen Fastie ’20 Theatre
Kaitlynd Collins ’19 Theatre
Logan Warshaw ‘20.5 French
Madeleine Russell ’19 Theatre
Maria Bobbitt-Chertock ’20 Undeclared
Maxwell Scott Leslie ’18 Film
Michael Frank
Miguel Castillo
Nia Robinson ’19 Sociology
Quincy Simmons ’18
Sam Martin ’19 Theatre/American Studies
Sebastian LePointe ’18 Theatre/Environmental Studies
Shannon Gibbs ’18
Shenisis Kirkland ’20 Undeclared
Stephen Chen ‘19.5 Theatre/Japanese Studies
Timothy Hansen ’18 Theatre/English
Toria Isquith ’19 Theatre/English
PROFESSIONAL ARTIST VOLUNTEERS
Ro Boddie, New York, NY (Actor/Teaching Artist) Ro Boddie is a television and screen actor living in New York. He was most recently in The Skeleton Crew at The Old Globe and Three Sisters / No Sisters at Studio Theatre. Regional credits include The Mountaintop at Cleveland Playhouse, Blueprints to Freedom at La Jolla Playhouse and KC Rep, Stupid F@&king Bird, Seven Guitars, andKing Hedley II at Cygnet Theatre, Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom at Baltimore Centerstage and Philadelphia Theatre Company, Seven Guitars at No Rules Theatre (Helen Hayes nomination for Best Actor), and Angels in America at Forum Theatre. Television credits include Elementary, The Good Wife, Person Of Interest, and Unforgettable. Mr. Boddie received the Craig Noel Award for Actor of the Year 2016 and is a graduate of the University of North Carolina School of the Arts.
Tara Giordano ‘02, New York, NY (Artistic Director) is a Helen Hayes Award Nominee, a recipient of the Washington DC Arts Commission Fellowship, and a 10-season company member of PTP/NYC. Her acting credits include roles Off-Broadway and at top regional venues: Arena Stage, Shakespeare Theatre, Kennedy Center, Folger Theatre, New York Theatre Workshop, Primary Stages. Experienced in voiceovers, she has recorded over 40 narrations with Audible, Graphic Audio, and HowCast and voiced characters for the Marvel Comics series Captain America, Guardians of the Galaxy, and X-Men. On camera work includes the feature films YellowBrickRoad and Ex-Girlfriends, and commercials for AT&T. Ms. Giordano has worked with students at Middlebury College, Boston University, Stephens College, and Juniata College as a Visiting Assistant Professor in Theatre and Guest Director. She is a graduate of Middlebury College, an MFA recipient from The Academy for Classical Acting at George Washington University, and a current Artist-in-Residence at New Victory Theatre in NYC.
Kristen Connolly ‘02, New York, NY (Actor, Teaching Artist) Kristen Connolly is a film, television, and stage actress based in New York. She currently appears in the CBS action-drama series “Zoo” and HBO’s The Wizard of Lies opposite Robert De Niro and Michelle Pfeiffer, directed by Barry Levinson. She also starred in “The Whispers,” an ABC drama produced by Steven Spielberg. Prior to that, Ms. Connolly co-starred opposite Adrien Brody in Houdini, the four-hour miniseries directed by Uli Edel for the History Channel. Concurrently to filming season two of “House of Cards,” she shot the independent film A Good Marriage opposite Joan Allen and Anthony LaPaglia, directed by Peter Askin. Her list of film credits includes The Bay, The Cabin in the Woods, Revolutionary Road, The Happening, and Confessions of a Shopaholic. On television, she has appeared on “Law & Order: Criminal Intent,” “New Amsterdam,” “Mercy,” “Nurse Jackie,” and “Life on Mars.” Her theatre credits include Love’s Labor’s Lost and Othello at The Old Globe, Measure for Measure and All’s Well That Ends Well at Shakespeare in the Park in New York, as well as King Lear at The Public Theater. She received her M.F.A. from Yale School of Drama.
Jeremy Holm, Vergennes, VT (Teaching Artist) is best known for portraying ‘Agent Nathan Green’ on House of Cards and Mr. Sutherland on the USA series Mr. Robot. He was raised in the Rocky Mountains where he received a B.A. from Colorado State University, and later earned an M.F.A from the University of Wisconsin, Milwaukee. Since then, he has performed onstage at BAM, Cherry Lane Theatre and Mint Theatre in New York City, internationally at The Shanghai Theatre Center in China, and in major regional houses like Arena Stage, Milwaukee Repertory Theatre, Clarence Brown Theatre, Repertory Theatre of St. Louis and The Cleveland Play House to name a few. He has appeared on multiple television shows including “Limitless” (CBS) “The Blacklist” (NBC) “Unforgettable” (CBS), “Happyish” (Showtime), “The Americans” (FX), “American Odyssey” (NBC), “Law & Order” (NBC), and five seasons of “Primetime: What Would You Do?” (ABC). His feature film, The Judge, is available on Blu-Ray and features an all-star cast including Robert Downey, Jr., Robert Duvall, Vera Farmiga, Billy Bob Thornton and others.
Megan Ketch, Los Angeles, CA (Screenwriter/Actor/Teaching Artist) is a screen and stage actress who lives in Los Angeles. Her credits include: FILM: THE INCREDIBLE JESSCA JAMES (Jim Strouse), LOUDER THAN BOMBS (Laika Productions, Independent Feature), THE BIG WEDDING (Lionsgate) THEATRE: CONTINUITY (Cape Cod Theatre Project), A HATFUL OF RAIN (Berkshire Theatre Festival), DOUBLE INDEMNITY (The Old Globe), ONE SLIGHT HITCH (Williamstown Theatre Festival), DRIVE-IN DREAMS and CLAP YOUR HANDS (59E59), MACBETH (Chautauqua Theatre Co.) THE CHERRY ORCHARD (CSC). TV: JANE THE VIRGIN (CBS), AMERICAN GOTHIC (CBS), NIGHT SHIFT (NBC), RECKLESS (CBS),UNDER THE DOME (CBS), THE GOOD WIFE (CBS), BLUE BLOODS (CBS), GOTHAM (ABC pilot), FOREVER (CBS), LAW & ORDER: SVU (NBC), and A GIFTED MAN (CBS). Megan is a graduate of the NYU Graduate Acting Program.
Alan Petherick, Los Angeles, CA (Screenwriter/Teaching Artist) is a Production Designer and Screenwriter based in Los Angeles. “I moved to Los Angeles in 1992 to begin a career in filmmaking. Six humbling months later I got my first job as a Production Assistant on the film, Kalifornia. A few months later I landed a gig as an un-credited stunt double in My Boyfriend’s Back, a direct-to-video teenage zombie movie. I took every job that came my way, working in production, casting, the camera department, as an assistant director, in post-production, before finally landing in the art department. I am now a Production Designer with twenty years of experience. I have worked in commercials, music videos, television, and film. Those jobs were my film school. I’ve been fortunate to work alongside a great many talented filmmakers including Spike Jonze, Tony Scott, Nick Cassavetes, KK Barrett, Michael Bay, Linus Sandgren, and the mad Swedes at Traktor. I still enjoy learning something new with each project.”
Naomi Shafer ‘11.5, New York, NY (Playwright/Teaching Artist) was initiated to the world of clowning when she performed in Russian orphanages as a 12 year old. Since then, she has been interested in how performance can shift power dynamics. Naomi works for Clowns Without Borders, an organization that brings professional performances to refugee camps, conflict zones and sites of crisis. Her written work has been performed at an array of theaters, including Actors Theatre of Louisville, Middlebury College, the New England Youth Theatre, and Winston-Salem Children’d museum. Naomi holds an M.B.A. in Conscious Business (Marlboro College) and a B.A. in sociology and playwriting (Middlebury College).
Keith Randolph Smith, New York, NY (Playwright/Actor/Teaching Artist) has appeared on Broadway in: JITNEY, AMERICAN PSYCHO, FENCES, KING HEDLEY II, PIANO LESSON, SALOME, and COME BACK LITTLE SHEBA. Keith’s Off-Broadway credits include: JITNEY(Second Stage), FABULATION (Playwrights Horizons), INTIMACY(New Group), FIRST BREEZE OF SUMMER (Signature), HOLIDAY HEART(MTC), BEFORE IT HITS HOME(Second Stage). Regionally, Keith has worked at The Old Globe, Goodman, La Jolla Playhouse, Seattle Rep, Huntington, Cleveland Playhouse, Actors Theatre of Louisville, City Theatre-Pittsburgh, and others. Keith received his training at the American Academy of Dramatic Arts.
Joseph Varca ‘02, New York, NY (Associate Artist/Actor/Teaching Artist) Joseph Varca is an actor and filmmaker based in New York. He is a co-creator of The Village of Vale and a recipient of a Kevin Spacey Foundation: Artist of Choice Award and a New Victory Theater LabWorks Development Residency. Recent work in theater includes; Off-Broadway: Pentecost and Monster (PTP/NYC); LoveSick or Things That Don’t Happen (Project Y, 59E59th); Macrune’s Guevara (@ St. Clements). Other: The Village of Vale (Invisible Dog Art Center) Poor Jesse (Sam French OOB Festival); Undressing Cinderella (Project Y) Cut; Song For A Future Generation (The Management); A Man of Wealth and Taste (Harkness Dance Festival); As Far As We Know (New Works, New Directors Fellowship @ NY Theatre Workshop); Lucky Girl (McCarter Theater Center). Film/TV: American Genius (National Geographic Channel), Bastards of Young, Listen My Children (Chiller TV), Bristel Goodman (Palm Springs International Film Festival). He co-founded Redux Productions whose work in theater and film has been seen at the NYC Fringe Festival (Amerika – Best Ensemble Award and I Was Tom Cruise – Outstanding Play Award) the TriBeCa Film Festival and the Austin Film Festival. He is a graduate of Middlebury College.
Dana Yeaton ‘79, Middlebury, VT (Faculty Mentor) teaches playwriting and performance at Middlebury College. He is the recipient of the “New Voice in American Theatre” award from the William Inge Theatre Festival, the Heideman Award from the Actor’s Theatre of Louisville, and the Moss Hart Award from the New England Theatre Conference. Working with composer Andy Mitton ’01, he wrote book and lyrics for the original musical “Swing State,” which was featured at the 2012 New York Musical Theatre Festival. His plays in print include Alice In Love, The Big Random, Helen At Risk, Mad River Rising, Men In Heat, and Midwives. He has taught at the University of Tennessee, University of Vermont and at the Vermont Governor’s Institute on the Arts. He is Founding Director of the Vermont Young Playwrights Project.
