Meet the Hudson Valley Team

Davis McCallum

Artistic Director

Now in his ninth season as HVSF’s Artistic Director, Davis is a passionate advocate for the power of the arts to bring people together and create more interconnected and resilient communities. Under his leadership, HVSF established HVStories, a multi-year exploration of the people, history, and culture of the Hudson Valley; and Full Circle, a community engagement program inspired by 2016’s citizen-driven production of Our Town. For HVSF, he has directed productions of Cymbeline, Richard II, The Winter’s Tale, Measure for Measure, Anne Washburn’s Mr. Burns: A Post-Electric Play and the rolling world premiere of Lauren Gunderson’s The Book of Will. Notable productions in New York include Greater Clements (LCT), Lewiston/Clarkston (Rattlestick – Drama Desk nomination for Best Play), The Harvest (LCT3); Stupid Fucking Bird (Pearl), Fashions for Men and London Wall (Mint – Drama Desk and Lortel nomination for Best Revival); The Whale (Lortel Award for Best Play, and Calloway nomination for Best Director) and Pocatello (Playwrights Horizons); Water by the Spoonful (Second Stage – Pulitzer Prize for Drama); and February House (The Public). Other NYC credits include Signature Theatre, The Acting Company, 13P, Clubbed Thumb, Play Company, Page 73, and the New Victory. Regional credits include the Denver Center, Dallas Theater Center, Old Globe, Guthrie, Oregon Shakespeare Festival, the O’Neill, American Shakespeare Center, Williamstown, Humana Festival, others. A graduate of Princeton, he studied Shakespeare at Oxford University as a Rhodes Scholar, and trained as a director at LAMDA. He has taught acting and directing at Princeton and The New School for Drama. He lives in Cold Spring with his family.

Kendra Ekelund Managing Director

Entering her first season as HVSF’s Managing Director, Kendra is a community-focused arts leader whose work expresses a commitment to empowering and uplifting artists, fostering inclusive creative communities, and advancing environmental, human, and financial sustainability in the performing arts. She is thrilled to join the outstanding staff and board at Hudson Valley Shakespeare Festival in planning its next chapter in our first-ever permanent home. Kendra most recently served as the General Manager of the Jacob Burns Film Center in Pleasantville, NY, leading the organization’s capital projects and planning, and overseeing financial management, operations, human resources, cinema and ticketing systems and technology. During her tenure, the Jacob Burns Film Center welcomed over 200,000 visitors annually, expanded their theater facility from three to five cinemas, and strategically enhanced approaches to customer service and visitor experience over several years. Prior to JBFC, Kendra worked in casting and talent management for New York based theater, film, and television projects. Her early career experience off-Broadway at Playwrights Horizons sparked her commitment to supporting theater artists and workers, which continues to inform and inspire her approach to arts leadership. Kendra holds a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Drama from Syracuse University, and a certificate in Arts Management from SUNY Purchase. She is a lower Hudson Valley native, raised in Ossining, and lives in Cold Spring with her husband Bryan, and their son, Alexander.

Terrence O'Brien

Founding Artistic Director

Terrence O'Brien co-founded HVSF with actress Melissa Stern in 1987, and for 27 years, O'Brien was HVSF's artistic leader. During that time, he direct-ed more than 30 of HVSF's productions, garnered significant critical acclaim in major press nationally, and built a very loyal audience who enthusiastically returned to our tent theater year after year. He co-authored, with Stern, HVSF's original Statement of Purpose, he developed and evolved HVSF's signature performance style, and he remains deeply dedicated to the idea that Shakespeare's plays can be made accessible without sacrificing any of their depth and integrity. O'Brien was instrumental in developing the design of the HVSF tent theater and in integrating HVSF's acting style with the theater space. Over several years he developed an informal company of actors and artists, many of whom have developed lasting friendships, marriages, and in some cases, have had children. He performed his original one-man play, Popular Mechanics, for Bedlam in New York City, in Garrison, and in Gainesville, GA. Last May, he directed a cast of prisoners in his own adap-tation of On The Waterfront at Sing Sing Correctional Facility. He is currently adapting Investigating Sex into a theatre piece, and he'll be doing studio work on that project at the Baryshnikov Arts Center this summer. O'Brien is the director of the New World Shakespeare Lab in New York City, a group that seeks to evolve a more spontaneous style of acting Shakespeare. He and his wife, Jane Praeger, live in Manhattan with their daughter, Jenne, and son, Leo.

Collaborating with HVSF to restore wildlife habitat and natural beauty on this landscape.

Alex Bechtel

Composer, Lyricist, Bookwriter (Penelope)

Alex Bechtel creates new works of music, theatre, and musical theatre. Recent composing work: Lightning Rod Special’s The Appointment (“Best of 2019” - NYTimes/Vulture/TimeOut NY; 2023 Off-Broadway Remount) People’s Light’s Alice in Wonderland: A Musical Panto and Shakespeare in Love, Arden Theatre Company’s Treasure Island, Midsummer, and The Light Princess, and seven seasons of new music at Pennsylvania Shakespeare Festival. Bechtel is a Lightning Rod Special company member, and creator/composer of The West, Philadelphia Nocturne, and Cheer Up Dostoevsky. See and hear more at alexbechtel.com

Reza Behjat

Lighting Designer

Reza Behjat is a freelance lighting designer based in New York City. He began his career in Iran, where he worked with some prominent directors for several years. His works have been shown on Off-Broadway and in regional theaters across the United States such as The Public Theater, Playwrights Horizons, Atlantic Theater, Minetta Lane, Lucille Lortel, The Guthrie Theater, Actors Theater of Louisville, Berkeley Rep, Alabama Shakespeare, and many more. Reza won an Obie Award in the design category for his work on two productions of English and Wish You Were Here in 2023. In addition, alongside the cast and the creative team of English, he received a Special Citation from the Obie Award. Also, he is the winner of the prestigious award of The Knight of Illumination for Nina Simone: Four Women in 2019.

Rachel Behrman

Production Operations Coordinator

Rachel is excited to be back at HVSF for her third season! As a NYC based freelancer, she has worked at multiple venues in different capacities. BFA from CalArts.

Dani Berman

Production Assistant

Dani is thrilled to be at HVSF for the summer! Off Broadway: Wolf Play (MCC Theater), Montag (Soho Rep.), Corsicana (Playwright’s Horizons). Regional: The Old Globe, Hangar Theatre Company, New London Barn Playhouse. Education: BFA Stage Management and BA Computer Science, Ithaca College 2022.

Lindsay Brashier

Assistant Production Manager

Lindsay is so excited to return for her second season with HVSF! She is a freelance production manager for theatre and events across the US. BA in Interdisciplinary Studies (Theatre Management, Journalism, Psychology) from San Diego State University. Instagram: @Lindsay.Brashier

Emily Casey she/her

Director of Marketing & Communications

Emily looks forward to sharing this beautiful location with returning guests and new friends in her second season under the tent. She previously worked as the Director of Marketing at Bethel Woods Center for the Arts, the site of the 1969 Woodstock festival. Emily thinks ideas and snacks should always be shared and there really is nothing better than a handwritten note. Emily lives in Beacon and has a hobby of having hobbies (reading, gardening, making crafts, and running at the top of her list).

Oona Curley (they/them)

Lighting Designer (Penelope)

Oona Curley is a lighting and scenic designer. Frequent/favorite collaborators include: Knud Adams, Tara Ahmadinejad, John Anselmo+Crew, Eliza Bent, Martha Graham Cracker, Jordan Fein, Morgan Green, Emma Griffin, Ásta Bennie Hostetter, Qween Jean, Jenn Kidwell, Jes Levine, Gunnar Montana, Kimie Nishikawa, Stoli Stolnack, Awoye Timpo, Annie Tippe, and Whitney White. Oona is a company member of Lightning Rod Special (Underground Railroad Game, The Appointment), Associate Artist: Bearded Ladies Cabaret. Member USA829. MFA NYU/Tisch. oonacurley.com

Calleri Jensen Davis

(James Calleri, Erica Jensen, Paul Davis)

Casting

Glad to be back for their third season with HVSF!

Recent Broadway: Topdog/Underdog, The Piano Lesson, For Colored Girls..., Thoughts of a Colored Man, Burn This, Fool for Love, Venus in Fur, Hedwig & The Angry Inch, The Elephant Man, Of Mice and Men, 33 Variations, A Raisin in the Sun, Chicago, James Joyce’s The Dead Select TV credits include:

“Love Life,” “Dickinson,” “The Path,” “Lipstick Jungle,” Select Film: Love is Blind, I Origins, Another Earth, Heights, Refuge and Peter and Vandy.

Semra Ercin she/her

Director of Development

Semra Ercin joined HVSF in 2021, moving to the Hudson Valley after over 20 years in New York City. As the Director of Development, she is responsible for planning and executing HVSF’s individual, institutional, corporate, and government fundraising initiatives, as well as cultivation events and strategic partnerships. She brings over 15 years of experience in non-profit arts and cultural fundraising, administration, and event planning from organizations such as Brooklyn Academy of Music, Brooklyn Music School, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, and the Princeton Club of New York, among others.

Jo Fernandez he/they

Stage Manager (Henry V)

Jo Fernandez is excited to be under the tent at HVSF! Broadway: The Ferryman, Head Over Heels Other New York: Oratorio for Living Things (Ars Nova); The Appointment (Lightning Rod Special); Wolf Play, soft, Charm (MCC); Only An Octave Apart (St. Ann’s Warehouse); The Underlying Chris (Second Stage), Public Works’ Hercules, Julius Caesar, The Gabriels Trilogy (The Public); If Pretty Hurts Ugly Must Be…, Men On Boats, The Christians, Bootycandy (Playwrights Horizons); Continuity, India Pale Ale (MTC). Regional productions, workshops, and readings for NY Stage and Film, Berkeley Rep, The Old Globe, and Shakespeare Theatre Company. Many thanks to HVSF, the cast and crew, and especially Tyler, Dani, and Colt.

Josh Foreman

Tent Facilities Manager

20 years installing and removing HVSF.

Anna Giacalone she/her

Box Office & Customer Service Manager

Anna is thrilled to return to HVSF for her second season! Anna most recently served as the Associate Producer for Hudson Stage Company’s Off Peak, which had a successful run at 59E59 Theaters this past fall. She has previously held positions at Hudson Stage Company in Armonk, where she worked for three seasons, and Arc Stages in Pleasantville. She holds a BA in English and Communications from Pace University.

Sandra Goldmark

Scenic Advisor (Henry V)

Sandra Goldmark is a former scenic and costume Designer who began working on issues of sustainability, circularity, and climate change over a decade ago. She began by changing her own design practices, then advocating for change in the performing arts industry. She now serves as Senior Assistant Dean for Interdisciplinary Engagement at the Columbia Climate School, and Director of Sustainability and Climate Action and Associate Professor of Professional Practice at Barnard College. From 2013–2019, Sandra founded and operated Fixup, a social enterprise repair service dedicated to healthy and circular patterns of consumption. Sandra is a co-creator of the Sustainable Production Toolkit, a free climate action and sustainability resource for performing arts organizations, and serves on the Board of the Hudson Valley Shakespeare Festival. Her work has been featured in The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, MSNBC, the BBC, The Sunday Times of London, The Daily News, CNN, Forbes, and many more. A graduate of Harvard College and Yale University, Sandra is the author of Fixation: How to Have Stuff without Breaking the Planet

Patrice Hatch she/her

Assistant Box Office Manager

Patrice is very excited to be back at HVSF for her second season! Patrice has previously volunteered for numerous positions, including box office, at Pinewood School of Dance, where her three daughters all danced. She lives in Stormville with her husband and their bunny Pancake.

Palmer Hefferan

Sound Designer (Penelope)

Palmer is a Tony Award® nominated sound designer and composer for theater, audio dramas, and podcasts. She has designed over 75 productions on stages in New York and across the country. In 2022, she was an honorary chair of the American Theatre Wing Gala, which celebrated women theatre practitioners. She received a 2019 Obie Award® for Sustained Excellence in Sound Design from the American Theatre Wing. Highlights from the last decade include seven collaborations with director Lileana Blain-Cruz (Select productions: The Skin of Our Teeth, Tony nomination; Fefu and Her Friends, Drama Desk nomination; Marys Seacole, Obie Award; Death of the Last Black Man In The Whole Entire World), 11 collaborations with director Margot Bordelon and nine with director Saheem Ali.

Mike Inwood

Lighting Designer (Henry V)

Mike is delighted to return to HVSF, where he previously designed The Arabian Nights, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, An Iliad, Our Town, and Rip Van Winkle. With Davis McCallum, Mike designed the New York premiere of Stupid Fucking Bird at the Pearl Theatre Company. Other past designs include productions with Playwrights Horizons, Signature Theatre, Ars Nova, BAM, Philadelphia Theatre Company, The Arden, People’s Light, The Bearded Ladies Cabaret, Opera Philadelphia, Boston Lyric Opera, and Portland Opera.

Angie Janas she/her

Education Associate

Angie Janas is a New York-based actor and educator and is thrilled to be back at HVSF this summer! OffBroadway: Hamlet, Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead, Macbeth, A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur’s Court (The Acting Company) and Stuffed (Westside Theatre). Regional: The Play That Goes Wrong and Pride and Prejudice (Syracuse Stage), The Glass Menagerie (Barrington Stage Company), The Lion in Winter (Repertory Theatre of St. Louis), Romeo & Juliet, The Three Musketeers, and King Lear (HVSF), In Game or Real and The Winter’s Tale (Guthrie Theater) and Steel Magnolias, The Revolutionists and The Merchant of Venice (Gulfshore Playhouse). Angie has served as an HVSF Teaching Artist, led student workshops across the country while touring with The Acting Company and currently teaches Shakespeare for the Chappaqua Summer Scholarship Program. Training: University of Minnesota/Guthrie BFA. Big love to Carl, glad to be back where it all began. angiejanas.com

Rebecca Kanach she/her

Costume Designer (Penelope)

Rebecca is a Barrymore Award-winning costume designer. Theatre Includes: New York: Lincoln Center, Ars Nova’s ANT Fest, La MaMa, The New Ohio, The Guggenheim and Joe’s Pub. Regional includes: The Arden Theatre Company, Baller X, Inis Nua, Opera Philadelphia, Orbiter 3.Academic work includes: Bryn Mawr College, Drexel University, Temple, Swarthmore, UArts. Rebecca is a co-founder and the resident costume designer of The Bearded Ladies Cabaret, and a company member of Lightning Rod Special, She is a MFA graduate from NYU Tisch, USA 829 proud.

Daniel Kelly

Music Director (Penelope)

Composer and pianist Daniel Kelly creates work that explores the meeting place of music with literature, visual art and journalism. He has toured the world as a jazz musician and has been commissioned by performing arts centers throughout the country to transform peoples’ stories into concert-length works celebrating our shared human experience. His Shakespeare in Jazz project sets the Bard’s words to engaging jazz songs. He has performed with GRAMMY-award winning jazz legends Joe Lovano and Michael Brecker, hip-hop star Lauryn Hill, among many others. danielkellymusic.com

@danielkellypiano

Anya Klepikov

Costume Designer (Henry V)

Anya Klepikov designs clothes and spaces for theater, opera, dance, and performance, and is on the faculty at UMass Amherst. Recent theatrical collaborations include the scenery for Diana Oh’s My H8 Letter to the Gr8 American Theater directed by Diana Oh at Smith College and costumes for Anne Carson’s version of Bakkhai directed by Mike Donahue with original music by Diana Oh at Baltimore Center Stage. Anya’s work on this production of Henry V is dedicated to the memory of Tim Vasen, a fearless demystifier of the classics. anyaproductiondesign.com

Tyler Larson he/him

Assistant Stage Manager (Henry V, Love’s Labor’s Lost, Penelope)

Tyler is joyed to be making his HVSF debut! Shout out and thank you to my dear friend Kasson Marroquin!

Broadway: Leopoldstadt, Ain’t No Mo’, Diana: The Musical Broadway Workshops: The Outsiders: A new musical, Bliss Regional: Diana: A New Musical, Coast Starlight, Cambodian Rock Band, The Squirrels (La Jolla Playhouse), Almost Famous (The Old Globe). Regional Workshops: SLAM (La Jolla Playhouse). Education: MFA in Stage Management from UC San Diego, BFA with an emphasis in Stage Management from Texas State University.

Colt Luedtke

Production Stage Manager - HVSF debut!

(Love’s Labor’s Lost)

Broadway: Funny Girl, Chess in Concert OffBroadway: What The Constitution Means To Me (New York Theatre Workshop), Atlantic Theater Company, New York City Center, The Public Theatre Regional: Northern Stage, Two River Theatre, The 5th Avenue Theatre, Paper Mill Playhouse, Arvada Center, Illinois Shakespeare Festival

Grace Maclean

Bookwriter (Penelope)

Grace McLean is a performer, writer, composer. Broadway: Bad Cinderella; Natasha, Pierre.... Off-Broadway and Regional: New Group, MCC, LCT3, The Public, Vineyard, La MaMa, BAM, Weston Playhouse, ART, WTF. TV: The First Lady (Showtime), The Other Two (HBOMax). Her musical In The Green earned her a Richard Rodgers Award for her writing and a Lortel for her performance.

Lincoln Center Writer-in-residence, Larson Grant (‘21), Broadway Women’s Fund’s Woman to Watch (‘21), Civilians R&D Group (‘19-’20), MacDowell Fellow (‘18), Lincoln Center Emerging Artist (‘17). gracemclean.com

Sean McNall he/him Associate Artistic Director / Director of Education

Before joining HVSF’s administrative staff in 2014, Sean spent 12 years as a member of The Pearl Theatre Resident Acting Company in New York City, where he appeared in over forty productions, receiving an OBIE Award for Sustained Excellence of Performance and a Drama Desk Award. His recent productions include Terrence McNally’s And Away We Go, Shaw’s You Never Can Tell, and Henry IV, Part One, directed by Davis McCallum. He and his wife, Abigail, have a wonderful son named Declan. Sean is a member of the Haldane School Board.

Nora McNally-Reif she/her Director of Production

Nora lives in the Hudson Valley with her husband and son. Before joining the team at HVSF, Nora worked as a production manager in New York City. Nora is a graduate of Fordham University and has previously worked at Atlantic Theater Company, Roundabout Underground, Play Company, and most recently as the Associate Production Manager at Second Stage Theater. Nora is a member of Less Than Rent Theater and is passionate about exploring sustainable producing practices.

Yolanda Medina she/her Finance Associate

Yolanda is currently celebrating her 1st year under the tent. She graduated from Lehman College with a BS in Accounting and from Hostos Community College with a AAS in Accounting. She has held positions as a Staff Accountant at HH Brown Shoe Company, Accounting Manager at Structural Contracting Services Inc and Assistant Controller at Atlantic Westchester Inc. After being involved in finance for commerce and construction she is thrilled to apply her financial background in the not for profit sector. She has a daughter Sophia, who is heavily involved in the art of dance.

Tyler Mell he/him Operations Assistant

Tyler has been working with the festival for the last 11 years! Previous credits include Barrett (Titanic), Mr. Boddy (Clue The Musical), Sir Henry (Hound Of The Baskervilles) at Jeans Playhouse. Nicely Nicely (Guys And Dolls) at Priscilla Beach Theatre. CC (Flashdance), Steve Fox (Game Show), Ensemble (Mame) at Arizona Broadway Theatre. BFA Musical Theater from The Boston Conservatory. Favorite productions at HVSF include 39 steps, Richard II, Pride and Prejudice, and Our Town. Love and thanks as always to Mom and Dad. Enjoy! Tylermell.com

Susannah Millonzi

Movement Director (Henry V)

Bedlam: Fall River Fishing, Hedda Gabler, The Crucible (Drama League nom. Distinguished Performance), Uncle Romeo Vanya Juliet, Peter Pan, New York Animals (WSJ Performance of the Year), Dead Dog Park, Twelfth Night(s);

Classic Stage Company: Prometheus Bound (w/ David Oyelowo); David Neumann/Advanced Beginner Group: tough, the tough, 21st Annual Bessie Awards; Clubbed Thumb: Pageant; Regional: HVSF; Shakespeare & Company; Seattle Shakespeare Company (Footlight Award: Best Actor); Georgia Shakespeare Festival; Orlando Shakespeare Company. Choreographer: Bedlam, American Academy of Dramatic Art, HVSF, Orlando Shakespeare Company, Georgia Shakespeare Festival, Milwaukee Repertory Theatre, Esperance. For my mom and dancing babuhs.

Dan Mullins he/him/his

Lighting Director

Dan is pleased to be returning for another season under the tent. When he’s not at HVSF, Dan is the Lighting & Sound Supervisor for Manhattan Theatre Club Stage I & II, as well as other projects in NYC. Dan enjoys spending his time off with his wife and children, Katy, Lucy, and Oliver.

Julia Ohara she/they

Executive Assistant

Julia Ohara is thrilled to be spending her first season under the tent with the HVSF company and patrons. She has been working in non-profit arts and education for ten years, with her most recent role as the A/V Department Assistant at the Omega Institute for Holistic Studies. Julia lives her life guided by creativity, sustainability, embodied play, and collaborative endeavors. Outside of HVSF, you can find her alchemizing with foraged materials, rock climbing, or reading while a delicious candle burns.

Charlotte Palmer-Lane she/her

Costume Shop Manager

Recent Credits: HVSF (Twelfth Night, Romeo & Juliet, Hamlet, King Lear, The 3 Musketeers, Winters Tale, An Iliad, As You Like It, Our Town, The General from America, Richard II); Pennsylvania Shakespeare (Blithe Spirit); Mint Theatre (Rutherford & Son); Syracuse Stage (Pride & Prejudice); Hudson Stage Co (Family Reunion, Other Desert Cities, You will Remember Me); Barrington Stage (Camping with Henry & Tom); Shakespeare & Co (God of Carnage, Heisenberg, Hir); Folger Shakespeare (As you Like it, Bedlam, Pygmalion, The Crucible). Film & TV: Dr Who, “Miss Marple,” The Chronicles of Narnia, “Quiz Show,” “Sneaky Pete.” charlottepalmerlane. squarespace.com

Samir Patel he/him

Development Manager

Samir joined HVSF in March 2021 after a decadelong career in the NYC non-for-profit sector. One of his proudest accomplishments came in the wake of the 2016 presidential election, where a community of artistic supporters came together to develop an unique take on the standard arts fundraiser. Geared towards feminist protest art, over 700 women around the country donated their art to raise critical funds for reproductive rights. Through a spectacular weekend event, the show sold out! Currently, a Hudson Valley iteration is in the works.

Linda Patterson she/her Controller

Linda has been working in the entertainment industry for over 30 years in all areas of finance management, and is currently celebrating her 14th season under the tent. Linda oversees HVSF’s financial operations, including budgeting, expense management, reporting and audits. Before joining HVSF, she worked as a Finance Manager and Coordinating Producer on dozens of critically-acclaimed, nationally-broadcast documentaries. Linda graduated from the University of Delaware with a BA in English Literature, and holds an MBA in Accounting from the Fordham Gabelli School of Business.

Fitz Patton

Original Music & Sound Design

Upcoming Broadway: I Need That Broadway: The Rose Tattoo (Tony Nomination), Choir Boy (Tony & Drama Desk Awards), Bernhart/Hamlet, Three Tall Women, Meteor Shower, Present Laughter, The Little Foxes, The Humans (Drama Desk Award), Our Mother’s Brief Affair, Blackbird, The Father, An Act of God, It’s Only a Play, Airline Highway, The Other Place, Outside Mullingar, Casa Valentina OffBroadway: Greater Clements, The Mother, Torch Song; Napoli,Brooklyn; Yen; Prodigal Son; The Other Place (Drama Desk nomination); and When the Rain Stops Falling (Drama Desk; Lortel Awards). He is the founding editor of Chance Magazine, a serialized art book on performance and design.

Alithea Phillips

Voice Coach

André Pluess

Composer (Love’s Labor’s Lost)

Projects include the Broadway productions of The Minutes, 33 Variations, I Am My Own Wife and Metamorphoses, as well as the Lincoln Center production of The Clean House. His designs/ compositions have been featured at regional theaters throughout the country including the Oregon Shakespeare Festival, McCarter Theatre, Center Theatre Group, Seattle Repertory, Yale Repertory Theatre, Arena Stage, Steppenwolf Theatre, the Goodman Theatre, Chicago Shakespeare Theatre, Berkeley Repertory Theatre, Williamstown Theatre Festival, La Jolla Playhouse, The Huntington, South Coast Repertory and Playwrights Horizons. He has received numerous awards for composition and sound design including multiple Joseph Jefferson Awards, an Ovation Award, a Barrymore Award, a Lortel Nomination and Drama Critics Circle Award. Film credits include the score for Showtime’s feature length documentary The Business of Being Born, as well as the short films Cell Watch, Netuser and War Words. Based in Chicago, André is an ensemble member of Lookingglass Theatre Company.

Melle Powers

Season Facilitator

Melle Powers’ current and recent projects include DEI/Culture for “The Sign in Sidney Brustein’s Window” (BAM & Broadway), Co-Producing the “Celebration of Black Voices” festival for Barrington Stage Company; the development of anti-racism trainings for several NYC metro school districts (working with Boards of Ed, Leadership Teams, faculty and students), and others. Melle teaches at NYU, delivering a course she created called “Resilience.” Melle is a “Certified Diversity Professional” (Diversity Society of America: MFA from NYU.

Rebeca Ramirez she/her

Audience Services Manager

Ms. Ramirez enjoys herself a good meeting or a hike! She is the proud Co-Chair of the Philipstown Trails Committee.

Jack Richards he/him

Assistant Wardrobe Supervisor

Jack is thrilled to be making his debut at Hudson Valley Shakespeare Festival. After graduating with a B.F.A. In Costume Design from Hofstra University in 2019, Jack has gone on to design/work for several theatres in New England (Connecticut Repertory Theatre, ACT of CT, Ridgefield Playhouse, Seven Angels) as well as film & television (American Horror Story, Call Jane, The Independent, Code Name Banshee).

Raven Robledo she/her

Company Manager

Raven Robledo is a New York City-based artistic producer and theater-maker from Los Angeles, CA. Her creative practice was cultivated in Chicago where she earned a BFA in Theater Management from The Theater School at DePaul University, focusing on special programming and events. She has since supported the Producing/Programming teams of major not-for-profits such at The Public Theater, Lyric Opera of Chicago, and Hubbard Street Dance Chicago.

Alejandro Rodriguez

Season Facilitator theatre for social change. They are also a leading innovator of Neutral Mask and Grotowski courses for K–12 classrooms. Recent teaching includes: Anne Frank Center USA, The Dalton School, Tom Todoroff Studio.

Andrew Rovner he/him/his

Audio Director

Andrew is a sound designer, composer, and audio engineer for live performance. His work has been heard at Audible Theater, Yale Repertory Theatre, Steppenwolf Theatre Company, Jackalope Theatre Company, First Floor Theater, Walkabout Theater Company, and others. MFA: Yale School of Drama. BA: Vassar College. andrewrovner.com.

Lana Russell she/her

General Manager

she/her

HVSF: Romeo and Juliet, Mr. Burns a Post-Electric Play, The Tempest, Cymbeline, Much Ado About Nothing, R2, Taming Of The Shrew, The Heart Of Robin Hood, Rip Van Winkle. Other coaching credits include: The Public Theater, The Delacorte: Troilus and Cressida, King Lear, Love’s Labour’s Lost . TFANA: Midsummer Night’s Dream. She is the Head of Voice and Text at the Stella Adler Studio of Acting where she has taught since 1997

Rebeca Ramirez is thrilled to be joining the team at HVSF this year! She has been everything from a theater director and dancer to an arts administrator, small business owner, and advocate for equitable economic development. Prior to opening Cold Spring Cheese, a specialty cheese shop in the Hudson Valley region with her husband, she spearheaded marketing and sponsorship at a variety of business improvement districts. She led commercial revitalization efforts for the awardwinning non-profit cultural partnership of Brooklyn’s central institutions including Brooklyn Museum, Brooklyn Botanic Garden, Brooklyn Children’s Museum, and others. With her husband Timothy Haskell, she co-founded Nightmare NYC’s Premier Haunted House, pioneering the movement for haunted houses in New York City. In her spare time,

Alejandro is a writer, director and facilitator. He’s created numerous roles off-Broadway, played the title role in The Acting Company’s national tour of Romeo and Juliet, and the part of Edgar opposite Billy Porter’s King Lear. His writing has been featured in award-winning collaborations with musicians, choreographers and filmmakers all across the globe. As a facilitator, Alejandro specializes in inclusive communication across diverse populations. The son of two Cuban immigrants, Alejandro earned his degree from The Juilliard School where he received the Michel St. Denis Prize for Outstanding Achievement.

Wolf Clarke Roth she/they Assistant Company Manager

Wolf is thrilled to be returning to HVSF, having played Mercutio in the 2017 touring production of Romeo and Juliet. Wolf has been a Brooklynbased multi-disciplinary artist and educator for over a decade, including being a co-founding producer of the Vainglory Theatre Team, a non-profit Shakespeare company dedicated to performances and workshops free to the public. She has her MFA from the New School for Drama and is a proud member of AEA. Wolf teaches K–12 and undergraduate courses in acting, movement, and

Lana Russell is a producer, director and arts administrator focusing on artistic programming, new play development and advocacy. She is committed to producing theater that is artist/community driven and empowering in practice, process and performance. She has directed, produced and/or developed plays with The Fifth Avenue Theatre, The Civilians, The Lark, Primary Stages, Cal Shakes, Woolly Mammoth, The Public Theater of San Antonio, All For One, Naked Angels, Gettysburg College, Bedlam, New York Stage and Film and Broadway and Beyond Theatricals. Lana is also the creator and Director of OP Forward at The Orchard Project which focuses on actionable futures for artists and works to reimagine and reframe arts resources in order to form new collaborations between industries, expanding the potential for further growth of new work in theatre, audio and TV storytelling. Member, Lincoln Center Theater Directors Lab. MFA Directing, The New School.

Jessica Wegner Shay

Costume Designer (Love’s Labor’s Lost)

HVSF: A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Love’s Labour’s Lost, Cyrano; New York: Lewiston/ Clarkston (Rattlestick); The Performers (Broadway); A Kid Like Jake, All-American (LCT3); Outside People (Vineyard); Suicide, Inc., The Dream of the Burning Boy (Roundabout Underground); OohRah! (Atlantic); Measure for Measure (Acting Co); Next Fall, Armed & Naked in America Selected Regional: Bad Dates, Shipwrecked!, Underneath the Lintel (Long Wharf); Revenge Song (Geffen Playhouse) and Resident Costume Designer (Vampire Cowboy Theatre). Jessica is also a Mom, a Farmer, and Costume Supervisor and Instructor at Fordham University at Lincoln Center.

Claudia Stefany she/her/hers

Wardrobe Supervisor

Claudia Stefany is a freelance Costume Designer and Wardrobe Supervisor in the greater NY/NJ/CT area. She previously served as the Associate Artistic Director at the SHAPE Performing Arts Centre outside of Brussels, Belgium and is currently on the Board of Directors at Elmwood Playhouse in Nyack, New York.

Michele Torres she/her/they/them

Deck Electrician

Michele is a Sophomore Lighting Design major at Marymount Manhattan College. She is so excited to be spending the summer here at the Hudson Vally Shakespeare Festival. Michele has worked on a numerous amount of shows with positions varying between stage-manager, Lighting designer, scenic painter, run crew and front of house staff. At Marymount Michele has worked on Carrie, Head Over Heels, Mr. Burns and Uncle Vanya. Outside of Marymount she has been a part of shows such as A Chorus Line at Talent Unlimited High school and Alessandra Corona Performing Works: Klytaimnestra at the JREC Theater in New York City. She is also a playwright and enjoys working in all mediums. Michele is so excited to be a part of the team as Deck Electrician.

Ken Travis Sound Design (Love’s Labor’s Lost)

KEN TRAVIS Broadway Designs: Aladdin, Jekyll and Hyde, A Christmas Story the Musical, Scandalous, Newsies, Memphis, The ThreePenny Opera, Barefoot in the Park, Steel Magnolias. Numerous New York and regional theaters and companies including: Asolo Rep, The Old Globe, The 5th Avenue Theater, McCarter Theater, Seattle Rep, La Jolla Playhouse, LA Center Theater Group, ACT Seattle, Guthrie Theater, KC Rep, Dallas Theater Center, Playwrights Horizons, The New Group, NYSF Public Theater, CSC, Signature Theater NYC, SoHo Rep,Vineyard Theater, The Civilians, Mabou Mines, and national and international festivals and tours.

Cassandra E. Zeugin Lighting Supervisor

Cassandra E. Zeugin is excited to return for an 8th season at HVSF! She is a production electrician and lighting designer based in New Jersey. Cassandra has worked on numerous Off-Broadway shows, including The Seagull/Woodstock, NY (New Group), Americano (New World Stages), Is God Is (Soho Rep), A Sherlock Carol (2022 and 2021, New World Stages). MBA, Rutgers University, Rutgers Business School. BFA, Rutgers University, Mason Gross School of the Arts. Cassandra would like to thank electrician Bob Morf (1953-2021) for doing the “Bob jobs.” His contribution to the festival remains immeasurable, and he is missed dearly.

The Orchard Project (Penelope)

Over 15 years, The Orchard Project has developed a reputation as a preeminent artistic development laboratory and accelerator for creators of performance and dramatic stories. Works developed at OP have gone on to Broadway to the West End to independent theaters across the world, and include All The Way, Bhangin’ It, An Octoroon, 33 Variations, The Aliens, In the Green, The Appointment, Manual Cinema’s Frankenstein, Amélie: The Musical, and Savion Glover’s BaRoQUe’BLaK TaP CaFe. Work developed at the Orchard Project has gone on to win awards including Obies, Drama Desks, Olivier Awards, and the 2014 TONY Award for Best Play for All The Way.

This Theatre operates under an agreement between the League Of Resident Theatres and Actors’ Equity Association, the Union of Professional Actors and Stage Managers in the United States.

* Member of Actors’ Equity Association, the Union of Professional Actors and Stage Managers in the United States.

CC Member of the Hudson Valley Shakespeare Festival Conservatory Company