Artist Biographies

BRUCE CROMER (EBENEZER SCROOGE) Bruce has appeared in A Christmas Carol at Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park since 1997, including eight years as Bob Cratchit; other Playhouse credits include Speaking in Tongues (2012), King Lear (2001) and Barrymore (1999). Directing credits for the Playhouse’s outreach touring plays include Touch the Names and The Tempest. Regionally, Bruce has appeared in more than 180 professional stage productions with the Alabama Shakespeare Festival, Ensemble Theatre Cincinnati, Cincinnati Shakespeare Company, The Repertory Theatre of St. Louis, Santa Fe Stages, Clarence Brown Theatre, Milwaukee Repertory Theater, Dayton Philharmonic Symphony, Seattle Children’s Theatre and The Shakespeare Theatre of New Jersey, etc. Bruce played Kim Burke in the 2019 film Dark Waters, with Mark Ruffalo. He is now a retired professor of acting at Wright State University, and a proud member of Actors’ Equity Association since 1981. He is always delighted to share the stage with his beloved son, Charlie.

CHARLIE CROMER (YOUNG AND MATURE SCROOGE/GHOST OF CHRISTMAS FUTURE) Charlie is honored to return for his third year in Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park’s A Christmas Carol. He has appeared nationally in lead roles with the Berkeley Impact Theatre, Eureka Suitcase Classics and 7 Stages Atlanta. His shadow play, The Asylum of Dr. Moreau, won Critic’s Pick for Best Drama at the Orlando International Fringe Festival. Regional credits include Of Mice and Men, Romeo and Juliet and Titus Andronicus at the Cincinnati Shakespeare Company. He also narrates a number of books on Audible. Charlie earned his MFA from the University of Georgia and is a proud member of Actors’ Equity. He lives in Yellow Springs, OH, with his wonderful new wife, Lauren.

PAULINA DE LA PARRA (MARY (SCRUBWOMAN AT FEZZIWIG’S)/MRS. DILBER/RICH CAROLER/STREETS) Paulina is a Mexican actress, singer and writer now based in New York City. She started her acting career in her beloved Mexico City, participating in the original cast of Vive un Nuevo Musical! as well as playing Elphaba in Wicked, Eponine in Les Misérables and Belle in Beauty and the Beast, among others. Since moving to New York, some of her most recent work includes Tonya Pinkin’s Truth and Reconciliation: Womyn Working It Out! at the #HealMeToo Festival, and Vocal Ease (Feinstein’s/54 Below) as a lead vocalist, and she was part of the Manhattan Film Festival’s winning movie musical Plus One. Paulina is also heavily involved and passionate about charity work, traveling and making the world a more human and empathic one through art. Her goal is to portray Mexico (and Latinas!) in a positive light. Website: paulinadelaparra.com Instagram: @paulina.de.la.parra

ANNIE FITZPATRICK (MRS. FEZZIWIG/PATIENCE/STREETS) Annie is delighted to return for her sixth season of A Christmas Carol. Past Playhouse productions include Alias Grace (2019); A Prayer for Owen Meany (2016); To Kill a Mockingbird (2016); Pride and Prejudice (2014); and Hank Williams: Lost Highway (2012). She recently appeared in The Roommate at American Stage and The Wolves at Ensemble Theatre Cincinnati. She was a founding member of The New Group in New York City and toured nationally and internationally

with Murder a la Carte. Regionally, Annie has performed at The Repertory Theatre of St. Louis, Geva Theatre Center, Florida Stage, Florida Studio Theatre, Cincinnati Shakespeare Company, the Know Theatre of Cincinnati, Porthouse Theatre and The Human Race Theatre Company. Television and film credits include Chicago P.D., Lifetime’s Army Wives, A&E’s Those Who Kill, Dark Waters, The Old Man and the Gun, Fun Size, Milk Money, to be, and Broken Hearts.

PARKER FLAUTT (PETER CRATCHIT/GREGORY/APPRENTICE AT FEZZIWIG’S/STREETS) Parker is excited to make his debut at Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park as Peter Cratchit. He is currently a seventh grader at the School for Creative and Performing Arts. His previous play credits include Genie in Aladdin, Scar in The Lion King and Augustus Gloop in Charlie and the Chocolate Factory at Spotlight Productions, and Grumpy Cat in Interview with Internet Cats at SCPA. He has also done radio commercials for the Cincinnati Zoo and Bear Paddle Swim School.

RYAN WESLEY GILREATH (BOB CRATCHIT/SCHOOLMASTER OXLIP/GUEST AT FEZZIWIG’S) Ryan is ecstatic to be returning to his hometown for this amazing production. Recently, he has been writing for Season Three of The Food That Built America on the History Channel. His acting work can be seen on Netflix where he plays Deputy Westerlund in the film Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil and Vile, starring Zac Efron. He also plays Forrest Mars in Season One of The Food That Built America. Other television and film credits include Jack Miller on TURN (AMC), Oppenheimer in American Genius (National Geographic), Gold Fever (Discovery Channel) and the pilot Guilty (Fox), opposite Cuba Gooding, Jr. Theatre credits include Seven Angels Theatre (Burning Desire, starring alongside Lou Diamond Phillips), Ensemble Theatre Cincinnati (Riptide, Tribes, Other Desert Cities, Next Fall, Mary’s Wedding), the national tour of Echoes of Ireland, The Human Race Theatre Company (Ears on a Beatle) and Florida Repertory Theatre (Deathtrap). Big thanks to his wonderful family, the cast and crew, Blake, Suann, Andrea and the Playhouse family for their generosity and support, and to Lynn Myers and Cincinnati for being AWESOME!

ASHLYNN ISABEL HEZLEP (BELINDA CRATCHIT/GUEST AT FEZZIWIG’S/STREETS) Ashlynn is excited to return with A Christmas Carol to be with loved friends — especially after this long pandemic absence of theatre. She’s a seventh-grader at Milford Junior High School where she enjoys playing the French horn in their band and attending football games with friends. A big thank you to the Playhouse for having Ashlynn return this year. Thank you to friends and family for supporting her. She wishes the cast and crew all the best this season.

MAEADA KING (BUSINESS PERSON WITH NEWSPAPER/GUEST AT FEZZIWIG’S/CAROLER/STREETS) Maeada is a recent 2020 graduate with a Bachelor’s of Fine Arts in Theatre from the University of Kentucky. She has performed in two short new plays — False Face by Silas House and Happy House by Kara Lee Korthron — and in a new staged reading of Killing of a Gentleman Defender by Carlos Murilla. She

loves the Lord. She can make a mean mac and cheese, is always willing to help out others and is ready to work as hard as she can to succeed as an intern with Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park.

TAHA MANDVIWALA (MR. SOSSER/DICK WILKINS/TOPPER/ MAN WITH SHOE SHINE) Taha is beyond thrilled — after a nearly 20-month hiatus — to be returning to the stage for A Christmas Carol! He is a 2016 BA Theatre graduate from the University of Kentucky, and he was a member of the 2016-17 Bruce E. Coyle Acting Intern Company here at the Playhouse. Recent regional credits include The Taming of the Shrew and Witness for the Prosecution at Great Lakes Theater and Idaho Shakespeare Festival, Romeo and Juliet and Love’s Labour’s Lost at Santa Cruz Shakespeare Festival and Disgraced at Virginia Stage Company. Playhouse credits include Treasure Island, Shakespeare in Love, A Christmas Carol, as well as touring productions of Pinocchio, Robin Hood, and The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe. Taha also enjoys his time as a parkour instructor and NASM-certified personal trainer among the Cincinnati movement community. He sends you the best wishes in health and happiness, and warmly welcomes you back to the Playhouse and the joy of live theatre.

SARA MASTERSON (BELLE/CATHERINE MARGARET) Sara is thrilled to be returning to Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park for her fifth holiday season! Her credits include Next to Normal (Syracuse Stage), Fun Home (Portland Center Stage), Mamma Mia! (Bucks County Playhouse), The Secret Garden (Idaho Shakespeare Festival/Great Lakes Theater), How to Succeed in Business … (Arts Center of Coastal Carolina), Love Story (Playhouse Square) and A Little Night Music (New London Barn Playhouse). She is a proud graduate of the Baldwin Wallace Conservatory of Music. Love to Daniel and her family. Visit saramastersonactor.com or follow her on Instagram @saraemasterson.

MATTHEW McGINN (CONSTABLE AT FEZZIWIG’S/ UNDERTAKER/RICH CAROLER/STREETS ) Matthew is an actor originally from Summit, New Jersey. He is a graduate of the Stella Adler Acting Conservatory and has had the pleasure of working with theatre companies such as the Shakespeare Theatre of New Jersey, Premiere Stages and the Pixie Dust Players, among others. When he’s not on a stage or on a film set, you can find him on a basketball court, in his room writing or with a guitar in his hands. Matthew looks forward to working with such an amazing theatre as Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park for an entire season and hopes everyone will come out to see their shows this season!

KELLY MENGELKOCH (MRS. CRATCHIT/LAUNDRESS/STREETS) Kelly is especially elated to be back with her A Christmas Carol family! Locally, she has been a resident ensemble member with Cincinnati Shakespeare Company for 17 years, also working with Ensemble Theatre Cincinnati, Know Theatre of Cincinnati, The Human Race Theatre Company, Xavier University Theatre, Tantrum Theatre and the New Stage Collective. Most recently, she

appeared in Romeo and Juliet and The Guys. Other regional work includes St. Croix Festival Theatre, The Old Creamery Theatre Company and Kansas City’s New Theatre. Film credits include Dark Waters, The Old Man and the Gun, A Kind of Murder, Perception, Healing River and C.S.A.: The Confederate States of America. For more information, visit kellymengelkoch.com. Thank you, Playhouse, for bringing the gift of theatre back this holiday season!

DANIEL PETZOLD (FRED/GUEST AT FEZZIWIG’S) Daniel is delighted to be returning to Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park for his third year of A Christmas Carol. His New York credits include Switzerland (59E59 and Hudson Stage Company), Pushkin (the american vicarious) and In the Line (Project Y Theatre). Regionally, he’s been seen in American Son (Florida Studio Theatre); Measure for Measure, Macbeth, Love’s Labour’s Lost and Twelfth Night (The Old Globe); Tom Stoppard’s trilogy, The Coast of Utopia (Shotgun Players); Three Sisters (Berkeley Repertory Theatre); A Bright New Boise (Aurora Theatre Company); Any Given Day and Another Way Home (Magic Theatre); Julius Caesar and Romeo and Juliet (Pacific Repertory Theatre); as well as performances with the San Francisco Shakespeare Festival, the Marin Shakespeare Company and Livermore Shakespeare Festival. He had a great time appearing on one episode of FBI on CBS last season. He holds a Bachelor’s of Art from University of California Berkeley and Master’s in Fine Arts from The Old Globe/University of San Diego. Love to Sara. Visit danielpetzoldactor.com and follow him on Instagram @_danielpetzold.

GIANNA PORFANO (ROSE/POULTERESS/GUEST AT FEZZIWIG’S/ POOR CAROLER/STREETS) Gianna is thrilled to be joining the Playhouse this season as part of the Bruce E. Coyle Acting and Education Intern Company. Born and raised in New Jersey, Gianna is an actor, singer and teaching artist working in regional theatre and voiceover. Most recent credits include Into the Woods, Ragtime and A Midsummer Night’s Dream (Scranton Shakespeare Festival). Gianna is also an avid songwriter and musician. She is a proud graduate of NYU Tisch School of the Arts, where she studied at the Lee Strasberg Theatre and Film Institute, and the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (London, UK), earning her BFA in Theatre. Thank you, Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park, for this opportunity!

GREG PROCACCINO (JACOB MARLEY/OLD JOE) Greg’s Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park credits include A Christmas Carol (19912021), The Caine Mutiny Court-Martial (1996) and Romeo and Juliet (1978). Off-Broadway, he appeared in Second Chance. His regional credits include theatres such as Ensemble Theatre Cincinnati and theatres in Washington D.C., Maryland, Virginia, Kentucky, California and Ohio. On television and in film, he has appeared in The Greater Good (2006 FAIF Film Festival award winner), Heartburn, Best Friends, A Mom for Christmas, This Train, Little Man Tate, Crossing Fields, Milk Money, Murphy Brown, Hawk, Tanner ’88 (as a regular) and 2004’s Tanner on Tanner. He was nominated for an Emmy Award in 1990. Greg has directed over 40 stage productions in and around the Cincinnati area. He is the director of theatre at Thomas More University.

DOUGLAS REES (MR. FEZZIWIG/GHOST OF CHRISTMAS PRESENT) Doug is delighted to return to Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park for his seventh turn in A Christmas Carol. Seven years ago, he was seen on the Marx stage in Sherlock Holmes and the Adventure of the Suicide Club; more distant, he appeared in Macbeth in the 1981-82 season as a member of the first-ever intern company at the Playhouse. Other credits include the world premiere of Michael Hollinger’s Opus (Arden Theatre Company, Philadelphia), as well as the subsequent New York City premiere at Primary Stages; many appearances at the Mint Theater Company in New York City; The Beauty Queen of Leenane, All in the Timing, Compleat Female Stage Beauty and as Scrooge in the world premiere of Christopher Durang’s Mrs. Bob Cratchit’s Wild Christmas Binge (City Theatre Company, Pittsburgh); the world premiere of Michael Hollinger’s Ghost Writer (Arden Theatre); Resurrection Blues by Arthur Miller (The Wilma Theater, Philadelphia); Travesties (Pittsburgh Irish and Classical Theatre); and Romeo and Juliet, The Cherry Orchard and All the Rage (Pittsburgh Public Theater). Television appearances include 30 Rock and F.B.I.

MAKENZIE RUFF (MARTHA CRATCHIT/GUEST AT FEZZIWIG’S/ STREETS) Makenzie is an actor based right here in Cincinnati. She recently graduated from Northern Kentucky University where she received her Bachelor’s of Fine Arts in Musical Theatre. There she starred in many productions including Cabaret (Sally Bowles) and Pride and Prejudice (Lydia Bennett). Makenzie is thrilled to be working with Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park as an intern. You may have seen her in the Off the Grid performance of Nancy Brew Zoom Dunnit as Melody Turner earlier this year. Some of her favorite professional credits include Beauty and the Beast (Belle), American Idiot (Extraordinary Girl), Casper the Friendly Musical (Bettina), Gentleman Prefer Blondes (Lorelei Lee), and The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe: ON TOUR (Lucy). She would like to thank Mom and Dad, her family and her friends for their bottomless river of support towards her success in the arts. She wants you to always remember to Dare Greatly!

BENJAMIN SHEFFER (BOY SCROOGE/GUEST AT FEZZIWIG’S/ IGNORANCE/STREETS) Benjamin is so thankful that live theatre is back, and he is excited to be performing once again with the wonderful cast of A Christmas Carol at Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park. His local performances at the The Anderson Center theatre include Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (Charlie), Mary Poppins (Michael), Into the Woods (Jack), Elf (Michael) and Matilda (Bruce). An eighth grader at Nagel Middle School, Ben enjoys going to amusement parks, singing, acting, traveling and skiing. He would like to thank Miss Tina and Miss Cheryl at Performing, Arts, Inc., for instilling in him a love of theatre, and his family for supporting him. He hopes this production of A Christmas Carol brings joy and happiness to your holiday season!

BRITNEY NICOLE SIMPSON (GHOST OF CHRISTMAS PAST/ MRS. PEAKE) Britney is immensely grateful to join Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park for a third season of A Christmas Carol! Theatre credits include Cyrano (Two River Theater); The Tempest, The Most Spectacularly Lamentable Trial of Miz Martha Washington, Into the Woods, Cyrano, The Taming of the Shrew and Richard II (The Hudson Valley Shakespeare Festival); Nina Simone: 4 Women (Seattle Repertory Theatre); Beauty and the Beast, The Odyssey, The Yeomen of the Guard, The Wiz, Guys and Dolls, the world-premiere production of Head Over Heels and The Cocoanuts (The Oregon Shakespeare Festival); and The Wizard of Oz and Fiddler on the Roof (PCPA Theaterfest). She studied at The Pacifi c Conservatory of the Performing Arts. She does every performance for her love of Jesus, and dedicates this show to her family, friends and her fi ancé who is the best man she knows and the love of her life. It is a privilege and an extraordinary blessing to have survived this past year and a half with loved ones and to be able to do this work again.

SABIAN SWAN (GEORGE/CHARLES/APPRENTICE AT FEZZIWIG’S/ BOOTBLACK/STREETS) Sabian is excited to be returning to the stage for A Christmas Carol. He has a gift for performing, and has participated in school plays, sings and plays the violin, piano, drums and trumpet. Sabian has attended acting camp at Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park and The Young Actor’s Toolbox, taken boys’ ballet classes at the College-Conservatory of Music and most recently completed a course at the New York Film Academy. Offstage, Sabian is pursuing an F1 racing career and races go karts. He also enjoys spending time with his family and friends, seeing Broadway plays, swimming and meeting new people. Sabian hopes you enjoy the show!

BRAYLEN UNDERWOOD (TINY TIM/MATTHEW/GUEST AT FEZZIWIG’S/STREETS) Braylen is super excited to be making his professional acting debut with Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park. A seventh grader at School for Creative and Performing Arts, he studies steel drums and musical theatre in addition to being a drama major. He most recently played the lead role of Ian McWorthy in their school production of Brief Interviews with Internet Cats, and he was a member of the ensemble for Matilda prior to that. He thanks all the SCPA teachers and staff for their ongoing support.

ATHENA UPDIKE (FAN/GUEST AT FEZZIWIG’S/WANT/STREETS) Athena is very excited to be joining Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park! Athena recently appeared in The Hunchback of Notre Dame and Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat at The Carnegie in Covington. Other favorite roles include the title role in Annie, Ariel in The Little Mermaid, Charlie in Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory and Lavender in Matilda. When not acting, Athena enjoys cheerleading, playing percussion in band, dance and creating art. They would like to thank their family for supporting them in their theatre endeavors, and a special thank-you to Maggie Perrino at The Carnegie.

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DAVID WHALEN (MR. CUPP/PERCY/RICH MAN AT FEZZIWIG’S) David is delighted to return to Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park for this joyous production! Previous appearances at the Playhouse include The Lifespan of a Fact, Misery, Shakespeare in Love and A Prayer for Owen Meany. He has performed in over 100 productions across the country at such theatres as The Guthrie Theater, Roundabout Theatre Company, South Coast Repertory, Alley Theatre, Pittsburgh Public Theater, Philadelphia Theatre Company, Baltimore Center Stage, City Theatre Company, Arden Theatre Company, Folger Theatre, Hartford Stage, Everyman Theatre, Round House Theatre, Huntington Theatre Company, Laguna Playhouse, McCarter Theatre Center, Syracuse Stage, The Repertory Theatre of St. Louis and Gulfshore Playhouse, among many others. Awards include Performer of the Year by the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette; nominated/received Kevin Kline, Barrymore and Helen Hayes awards. Recent Film and television credits: FBI: Most Wanted, Cyril, Child Warfare and playing George Washington in The American Constitution. Other Film work includes: The Loudest Voice; American Pastoral; Southpaw; The Last Witch Hunter; The Fault in Our Stars; Jack Reacher; Insomnia; Checkmate; The First Seal; 61*; The Christmas Tree; Black Dahlia; My Bloody Valentine; Indictment: The McMartin Trial; Without Warning; and Three Rivers. Visit www.davidwhalenactor.net for more.

HOWARD DALLIN (PLAYWRIGHT)

Howard’s 35 professional years in theatre were mostly focused on directing plays and corporate training videos. He is currently a writer and educator. As an actor, Howard acknowledges “that the stage has had a narrow escape.” His adaptation of A Christmas Carol for Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park was heavily influenced by the 1951 movie starring Alastair Sim as Ebenezer Scrooge. In addition to adapting the story for the stage, Howard directed the first two productions at the Playhouse. The first production was okay, but the script clearly needed more work. It was former Playhouse Producing Artistic Director Ed Stern who coached Howard through a series of revisions that allowed Scrooge to be a participant in the action rather than a mere observer. Michael Evan Haney, who was the production’s first-ever Bob Cratchit, eventually took over directing the work and has fashioned it into an endearing holiday classic.

MICHAEL EVAN HANEY (DIRECTOR)

Michael served as Associate Artistic Director for the Playhouse from 2002 to 2013. His productions here include Summerland, Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike, A Delicate Ship, Double Indemnity, Speaking in Tongues, The Understudy, The History of Invulnerability, Blackbird, Crime and Punishment, The Clean House, A Christmas Carol (1993-2018), Hiding Behind Comets and The Syringa Tree, among many others. Off-Broadway, he directed Around the World in 80 Days at the Irish Repertory Theatre. International credits include the English Theatres of Vienna and Frankfurt. Regional productions include Samuel Beckett’s Happy Days (Open Eye Theatre in Minneapolis); All My Sons (Alabama Shakespeare Festival); The Drawer Boy (Actors Theatre of Louisville); Freud’s Last Session and Souvenir, for which he earned a Kevin Kline Award for direction (The Repertory Theatre of St. Louis); The Humans, Grounded, An Iliad, Tribes and others (Ensemble Theatre Cincinnati); and Scotland Road (Pacific Resident Theatre, Drama-Logue Award for direction). As artistic director of the Allenberry Playhouse, Michael directed more than 30 plays, including Bus Stop, Shirley Valentine, Love Letters (with Shirley Jones) and The Secret Garden. Michael began his career as an actor appearing on Broadway, off-Broadway and at many regional theatres: Arena Stage (including their 1973 historic tour of the Soviet Union of Our Town),

Great Lakes Shakespeare Festival in the first American production of Dickens’ Nicholas Nickleby. Michael and his wife Amy Warner appeared in the films Dark Waters with Mark Ruffalo, and as Cate Blanchett’s in-laws in Carol. They now reside in Minnesota. In 2013, he received the Rick Steiner Lifetime Achievement Award for Excellence from the League of Cincinnati Theatres.

JAMES LEONARD JOY (SET DESIGNER)

James’ Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park productions include A Christmas Carol (1991-2021), Sylvia (1997), Inspecting Carol (1994), Hot ’N Cole (1992), The Cocktail Hour (1992) and Top Girls (1986). His Broadway credits include Ned and Jack, Take Me Along, Peter Pan, State Fair, Play On! and Regina at New York City Opera. Regionally, he has designed for The Old Globe Theatre, Huntington Theatre Company, Alliance Theatre Company, Cleveland Play House, Kansas City Repertory Theatre, The Guthrie Theater, Pasadena Playhouse, Chicago Shakespeare Theater, Goodspeed Opera House, Arena Stage, Ford’s Theatre and Roundabout Theatre Company in New York, among others. James has designed corporate theatre shows extensively for such clients as McDonald’s, Toyota, General Motors, General Electric and Takeda Pharmaceuticals, and various theme park shows for The Walt Disney Company, Busch Gardens Tampa and SeaWorld San Antonio.

DAVID MURIN (COSTUME DESIGNER) David’s Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park credits include A Christmas Carol (1992-2021). His Broadway credits include Steel Magnolias, Mixed Emotions, A Change in the Heir, Ned and Jack, Blues in the Night, Devour the Snow, A Talent for Murder, The Caine Mutiny Court-Martial and Gorey Stories (supervisor for Edward Gorey’s designs). His off-Broadway productions include Crimes of the Heart (directed by Kathleen Turner), The Foreigner (with Matthew Broderick), The Holy Terror, The Middle Ages, Ladyhouse Blues, Translations, The Common Pursuit, Birds of Paradise, The Baby Dance, The Fourth Wall and Down the Garden Paths. Regionally, David’s designs have been seen at Alley Theatre, Paper Mill Playhouse, McCarter Theatre Center, George Street Playhouse, Arizona Theatre Company, Long Wharf Theatre and Huntington Theatre Company. He has produced designs for made-for-television movies and the long-running ABC soap opera Ryan’s Hope, for which he received an Emmy Award in 1981. His designs were also seen in the 2007-08 edition of Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus. He has just begun his 32nd year serving on the design faculty of Rutgers University’s Mason Gross School of the Arts.

KIRK BOOKMAN (LIGHTING DESIGNER) Kirk’s Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park credits include more than 70 productions, including Million Dollar Quartet (2018), Summerland (2017), A Delicate Ship (2014), Speaking in Tongues (2012), The Fantasticks (2010), A Christmas Carol (1991-2018), Sing Hallelujah! (2004), Proof (2003) and The Mystery of Irma Vep (2001). His Broadway credits include The Sunshine Boys (with Jack Klugman and Tony Randall), The Gin Game (with Julie Harris and Charles Durning) and Gentlemen Prefer Blondes. Additional New York off-Broadway productions include Closer Than Ever (off-Broadway); Right You Are and What Then (Ohio Theatre); The Cook (Intar 53 Theatre); Recent Tragic Events (with Heather Graham, Playwrights Horizons); Shanghai Moon (with Charles Busch, Drama Department); The Green Heart (Manhattan Theatre Club); and productions of Mondo Drama, Havana Is Waiting, Force Continuum, My One Good Nerve (starring Ruby Dee), The Shawl, Rude Entertainment, The Book of Liz (with David and Amy Sedaris), Les MIZrahi,

Hope is the Thing with Feathers, As Thousands Cheer, June Moon, Bedbound, Playboy of the Western World, Eclipsed, The Importance of Being Earnest and Major Barbara.

DAVID B. SMITH (SOUND DESIGNER/COMPOSER) David’s Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park credits include more than 70 productions, including Thunder Knocking on the Door, Beehive, Dracula, Dark Paradise: The Legend of the Five-Pointed Star, Everything’s Ducky, A Little Night Music, Wit, Sweeney Todd, The Notebook of Trigorin, To Kill a Mockingbird and all productions of A Christmas Carol. Regional credits include Golden Boy (Long Wharf Theatre), Arena Stage, Ordway Center for the Performing Arts, The Repertory Theatre of St. Louis, Paper Mill Playhouse, Birmingham Theatre, Cleveland Play House, Huntington Theatre Company and New York Shakespeare Festival. David has designed Sinfonia orchestral enhancement systems for the national tours of West Side Story, Annie, Jekyll and Hyde, Evita, Steel Pier, The Phantom of the Opera, Ragtime, Titanic, Seussical, Miss Saigon, Cinderella, The Music Man, Porgy and Bess, Oliver! and Oklahoma! Las Vegas credits include KÁ, Le Reve and Love; London credits include Les Misérables. David is a founding Partner and Director of Research and Development for Realtime Music Solutions and Dean of the School of Professional Studies at NYC College of Technology (CUNY). He holds multiple U.S. patents for music performance systems. David received a Kevin Kline Award for outstanding sound design for Dracula. His compositions have been played across the country.

STEPHEN SKILES (ASSOCIATE DIRECTOR) Stephen’s Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park credits include A Christmas Carol (1998, 2003-2006, 2011- 2016 and assistant director in 2010, 2019), Witness for the Prosecution (2006), Much Ado About Nothing (1999), Gross Indecency (1998) and the Bruce E. Coyle Acting Intern company productions of Plunge (1999) and And Then They Came for Me (1999). Additionally, he directed the Playhouse acting intern company productions of The Wrestling Season and By the Sea, By the Sea, By the Beautiful Sea. Stephen is the director of theatre at Xavier University, where he most recently directed American Idiot, The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night Time, The Aliens, Rent, Spring Awakening, Mr. Burns: a post-electric play and The Last Five Years. He holds a bachelor’s degree in Theatre from Hanover College and an MFA in Acting from Ohio University. He completed further study at the Royal Shakespeare Institute. Stephen has performed or directed at The Repertory Theatre of St. Louis, Ensemble Theatre Cincinnati, Cleveland Play House (assistant director), Ohio Shakespeare Festival, The Bang and the Clatter Theatre, Phoenix Theatre, Cincinnati Shakespeare Festival, Kentucky Shakespeare Festival, Monomoy Theatre, Sinclair College and the University of Akron, among others. He is a member of Actors’ Equity Association and an associate member of the Stage Directors and Choreographers Society.

REBECCA N. CHILDS (MUSIC DIRECTOR)

Rebecca has been the music director for Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park’s production of A Christmas Carol since 2002. She was also the rehearsal pianist for the Playhouse’s production of Tenderly: The Rosemary Clooney Musical (2014). She has been a musical director/vocal coach/accompanist for school, community and professional theatres in New Orleans and the southern Ohio area, and she has music directed shows for her alma mater, Miami University, and the University of Dayton. At The Carnegie, Rebecca was vocal director and assistant conductor for Carousel, for which she won an Acclaim Award, and vocal director for The King and I, The Sound of Music and West

Side Story. She was music director for Mad Anthony Theatre Company’s The Story of My Life and Sondheim on Sondheim. She was also musical director for CCM Drama’s production of Coram Boy. Rebecca is an adjunct instructor at the University of Cincinnati’s College-Conservatory of Music. Rebecca was privileged to join three other CCM faculty who taught a musical theatre program in Beijing in 2018. She served as music director for La Comedia’s 2018 productions of The Color Purple and White Christmas, for the 2019 productions of Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, Newsies and Elf, the Musical, and for the 2020 production of The King and I. Rebecca received the Cincinnati Arts Association Overture Awards 2017 Arts Educator Award for excellence in arts instruction. She is also the proud mother of Erin Crouch and grandmother to Jack and Andrew Crouch. Rebecca is honored to continue her association with the Playhouse and A Christmas Carol.

DEE ANNE BRYLL (CHOREOGRAPHER) Dee Anne is very pleased to return to Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park for her 21st year as choreographer for A Christmas Carol. Playhouse credits include Tenderly: The Rosemary Clooney Musical (2014), Pride and Prejudice (2014), Marry Me a Little (2009), The Clean House (2006) and The Glass Menagerie (1999). Additional credits include work at Xavier University Theatre, Ensemble Theatre Cincinnati, The Carnegie, Cincinnati Landmark Theatre and Commonwealth Theatre Company. Dee Anne has been a director/choreographer for shows including Mamma Mia!,Meet Me in St. Louis, Life Could Be A Dream, Five Women Wearing the Same Dress, The Sound of Music (2015 LCT outstanding production), Chicago (2013-14 LCT winner of outstanding musical 2013-14 and outstanding direction of a musical), Falsettos, Parade (2012-13 LCT winner outstanding musical), Big River and Some Enchanted Evening. She won a 2006 CEA for her performance as Maggie Jones in 42nd Street. She and her husband, Edward Cohen, were awarded the 2010 Acclaim Trailblazer Award for contributions to Cincinnati theatre. In January 2015, she was awarded the 2015 Freddie G Broadway Junior Spirit Award presented and sponsored by Freddie Gershon (CEO of Music Theatre International) and his wife Myrna. Dee Anne holds faculty positions at Northern Kentucky University and Xavier University and is an Artistic Mentor for JumpStart Theatre - Cincinnati.

STEPHANIE KLAPPER, CSA (CASTING DIRECTOR)

Stephanie is thrilled to continue her 10th season of collaboration with Blake Robison and Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park. Select shows she has cast for the Playhouse are Once on This Island; Alias Grace; You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown; TheThanksgiving Play; Two Trains Running and Cincinnati King. Her award-winning work is frequently seen on Broadway, off-Broadway, regionally, on fi lm, television and streaming media. She is dedicated to continuing to expand and champion diversity, equity and inclusion in the business. Connecting creative, caring people to each other to make extraordinary things happen is amongst Stephanie’s greatest joys. She is passionate about arts education and working with creative teams to develop new work and expand the scope of established work. She is a member of the National Board of the Casting Society of America, Casting Society Cares and New York Women in Film.

ANDREA L. SHELL (STAGE MANAGER)

Andrea is excited to be celebrating her 21st season with Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park, having worked on more than 90 productions, including 20 world premieres. This season, she takes the reins of the department, succeeding Jenifer Morrow as the Production Stage Manager. A highlight of every season for her is stage managing A Christmas Carol. Favorite Playhouse credits include

Alias Grace; The Last Wide Open; The Roommate; Treasure Island; Be Here Now; Mr. Joy; Erma Bombeck: At Wit’s End; Jane Eyre; Disgraced; Bad Dates; The Revolutionists; I Loved, I Lost, I Made Spaghetti; The North Pool; Merrily We Roll Along; As You Like It; Behind the Eye; The Understudy; Blackbird; Durango; Around the World in 80 Days; Altar Boyz; Smoke on the Mountain Homecoming; Reckless; Ace; The Clean House; A Picasso; One; Abracadabra (2002-2007); The Bible … (abridged); and Dark Paradise. She has also stage managed at Dallas Theater Center, The Old Globe, Cincinnati Ballet, Alliance Theatre, The Second City, and Ingenuity Festival of Cleveland. In 2014, Andrea joined the adjunct faculty of Xavier University’s Theatre Program, and in 2018, she became a contributor for Dramatics.org, writing backstage articles for their online content. Andrea is a proud member of Actors’ Equity Association. She would like to thank her family, friends, Dylan and Scott for their unending support.

BROOKE REDLER (SECOND STAGE MANAGER) See bio on pg. 50

BRANDON T. HOLMES (ASSISTANT STAGE MANAGER) Brandon is excited to be back with Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park, having worked as a stage management intern during the 2010-11 and 2011-12 seasons. Playhouse credits this season include the world premiere of The West End. For eight seasons, he was the Production Stage Manager for Ensemble Theatre Cincinnati where he managed over 40 productions. Highlights with ETC include Fun Home, The Mountaintop, Hedwig and the Angry Inch, An Iliad, Grounded, Violet, Pipeline, The Humans, Skeleton Crew and Hands on a Hardbody. During the summers, he works with The Lexington Theatre Company where he has stage managed productions of A Chorus Line, The Music Man, Legally Blonde, West Side Story and Newsies. He has stage managed other regional productions including Hello, Dolly!, The Drowsy Chaperone and Side By Side by Sondheim (LOOK Musical Theatre); Red, White & Broadway, Golden: MTWichita at 50 (Music Theatre Wichita); and workshops with Cincinnati Shakespeare Company and Cleveland Play House. Brandon is a proud member of Actors’ Equity Association. He would like to thank his family, friends and A.J for their continued love and support.

JESSICA LUCAS (ASSISTANT STAGE MANAGER) Jessica is thrilled to be making her debut at Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park. Previous Assistant Stage Management credits include Mamma Mia, The Hunchback of Notre Dame, My Fair Lady, The Secret Garden, and King Lear with Great Lakes Theater and Idaho Shakespeare Festival; A Christmas Carol with Great Lakes Theater; Dial M for Murder, And Then There Were None and Love’s Labor’s Lost with Idaho Shakespeare Festival; and Luna Gale with Cleveland Play House. Stage Management credits include Pride & Prejudice, Macbeth, A Midsummer Night’s Dream and Wait Until Dark with Great Lakes Theater and Idaho Shakespeare Festival. Jessica earned her BA in theatre from the University of Scranton and is a proud member of Actors’ Equity Association. GF and ELF, you are the best.