Guest Artist Bios

Candace Neal - Lady Dilworth

Candace Neal is an actor, illustrator, and writer who has performed across the country and is delighted to return to the Charlotte stage — her old stomping grounds. After spending most of her life performing, she expanded her storytelling to the page, writing and illustrating over ten original Young People’s Concerts and family concerts, as well as illustrating two children’s books.

Notable stage credits include Finding Nemo: The Musical (Dory), Chicago (Velma), and Gypsy (Louise). Passionate about making the arts accessible to young people, Neal is always exploring new, colorful, and cartoonish ways to spark joy and inspire creativity.

She is endlessly grateful for her sweet husband and kiddos and loves working alongside her talented artsy family every day at Neal Studio Graphic Design.

Sayuki Peterman - violin

Sayuki Peterman, a 17-year-old violinist based in Charlotte, North Carolina, is a junior at Marvin Ridge High School. She currently studies with Monica Boboc of the Charlotte Symphony Orchestra and Dr. Carolyn Huebl of Vanderbilt University.

Peterman has served as concertmaster for many orchestras including the Charlotte Symphony Youth Orchestra, NC All-State Honors, and Youth Orchestra of Charlotte, and is the co-founder of the Charlottebased music outreach nonprofit, Harmonious Hearts .

Peterman has received many accolades for musical performance, including first prize in the NC MTNA Strings Competition (2023 and 2024), the Symphony Guild of Charlotte’s Young Artist Competition (2024), the YOC Concerto Competition (2022), the Blackerby Young Artist Competition (2020), and is a recipient of Rotary Club of Charlotte Music Scholarships (2024).

Outside of school, Peterman spends her summers participating in various international music festivals such as the Heifetz International Music Institute, Boston University Tanglewood Institute, and Green Mountain Chamber Music Festival.