Our People

Meet the Team

  • Email
    Preferred Pronouns: She/Her/Hers

    Susanna is a director, artistic producer, and teacher. Prior to joining Weston, she was Associate Producer and Director of the Studio at New York’s acclaimed Theatre for a New Audience (TFANA). At TFANA, she produced shows such as Shakespeare’s Pericles directed by Sir Trevor Nunn, the world premiere of Adrienne Kennedy’s He Brought Her Heart Back In A Box, Measure for Measure directed by Simon Godwin, and award winning productions of Thornton Wilder’s The Skin Of Our Teeth and An Octoroon by Branden Jacobs-Jenkins. Prior to joining TFANA, Susanna was Artistic Producer and Resident Director at Center Stage in Baltimore where she developed the theater’s ground breaking Third Space Initiative and produced My America, which commissioned monologues by Christopher Durang, Neil LaBute, Lynn Nottage, and others. For Weston, she has directed Hair, Ring of Fire, and The Fantastic. Directing credits in New York and Baltimore include Sense and Sensibility by Kate Hamill, the world premiere of Mud Blue Sky by Marisa Wegrzyn, Crimes of the Heart by Beth Henley, Open the Dark Door by David Nugent, and Visiting Day by Andy Bragen. Additional directing credits include The Lacy Project by Alena Smith, You Can't Take It With You by Kaufman and Hart, John Webster’s The Duchess of Malfi, and Marat/Sade by Peter Weiss. Susanna is on faculty at the David Geffen School of Drama at Yale University and has taught at the New School, Brooklyn College, University of Chicago, the University of Rochester, Bard College, Columbia University, and NYU. She holds degrees from Yale University, Columbia University, and the University of Chicago.

  • Email
    Preferred Pronouns: He/Him/His

    Andy is a strategic thinker, data nerd, and problem solver. He is grateful for the opportunity at Weston to balance his creative spirit and business acumen. Andy earned his MFA from the American Conservatory Theater.

  • Meghan is a central New York native and earned her BA in Theatre and Communications, and Creative Non-fiction Writing from St. Lawrence University. She comes to Weston after 12 years of experience in non-profit guest services management. Meghan began her career in technical theatre and has worked in costume departments at Barter Theatre, Glimmerglass Festival, Colorado Shakespeare Festival, and The Young Vic. She and her shoe collection currently reside in Manchester, VT with her family.

  • Email
    Preferred Pronouns: She/Her/Hers

    Robin is originally from Roswell, GA, and earned her BFA in Stage Management from the University of North Georgia/Gainesville Theatre Alliance. She is so excited to be returning to the great state of Vermont, having previously worked at Dorset Theatre Festival and Northern Stage as Box Office Manager. She has also worked at TheatreSquared in Arkansas and Gulfshore Playhouse in Florida as well as touring the country with StarQuest Dance Competition. Robin can't wait to meet and get to know the Weston patrons - she's been compared to the likes of Elle Woods and it's not just because her favorite color is pink.

  • Email
    Preferred Pronouns:

    Olívia is an emerging writer and director hailing from NYC. She is thrilled to be back in Vermont, where she spent many of her earliest years. Prior to joining Weston, she worked at various production companies on projects in all stages of production. She holds an MFA from the Feirstein Graduate School of Cinema and is excited to put her experience to use as Weston's Creative Media Manager. A mycelium enthusiast, Olívia is eager to connect with, engage, and grow audiences — and she hopes to see you at the theater this season!

  • Email
    Preferred Pronouns: She/Her/Hers

    Emily, a Londonderry native, is thrilled to be back home in Weston working with this dynamic team and the extended Weston Playhouse Theatre community. Emily brings to the position a lifelong dedication to the arts that includes a dance performance background, extensive dance and movement teaching experience, and decades of non-profit and creative small business leadership. In the non-profit realm, Emily directed the efforts of CREATE!, a Brooklyn based organization that developed long term partnerships between NYC’s world-class artists and its public school educators that served to guide and inspire thousands of children each year. In recent years, Emily has worked on the business side of DESU DESIGN, a high-end design and manufacturing outfit that produces and distributes elegant and innovative products for the home. After 25 years in NYC, Emily recently returned to the mountains with her husband Dave, and their two children Ryder and Liv.

  • Email
    Preferred Pronouns: She/Her/Hers

    Rebecca is thrilled to return to her home state of Vermont and to join the team at Weston after nearly two decades as an arts administrator and director in NYC. Prior to joining Weston, she worked to support theatres nationwide as the Associate Director of Membership at Theatre Communications Group. In NYC she was a 2019 Drama League New York Directing Fellow, a member of Lincoln Center Theater Directors Lab, a directing observer on Hadestown, and a three-time Leadership U(niversity) Serving the Field grant recipient through TCG and the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation. Her directing work has taken her to The Public Theater, Cleveland Play House, BAM, and The Bushwick Starr. Her training includes Williamstown Theatre Festival, SITI Company, SDC Foundation Observership Class, and a B.S. in theater from Skidmore College, where she’s also been a frequent guest director.

  • Email
    Preferred Pronouns: He/Him/His

    James is originally from Temple, TX where he grew up with his very large family. He attended the University of Evansville where he received his bachelor's degree in Theatrical Design & Technology. After graduating in 2015, James made his way to the Vermont area where he worked at Northern Stage for seven years as their Props Master and Director of the PAC Program. Although James has spent the majority of the past decade here in Vermont, he is still waiting for his inner Texan to get used to the Vermont winters, but he does love the beautiful Vermont summers! James is excited to start his Weston tenure with the amazing upcoming 87th season.

  • Visit lortel.org for more information.

  • Michael Cassara, CSA | Owner/Casting Director
    [email protected] / www.michaelcassara.net
    office: (212) 564-6700 / pronouns: he/him/his

Founding Director — Tim Fort

Founding Director — Malcolm Ewen

Founding Director — Steve Stettler

2024 Seasonal Staff

Administration

General Management Associate — Madison Maiella

Events & Patron Engagement Assistant — Katie Fitz

Hospitality & Logistics

Hospitality & Logistics Coordinator - Michele Metzger

Hospitality & Logistics Assistant — Quincy Campbell

Travel, Transportation & Tour Manager — Anna Yates

Housing & Covid Safety Manager — Megan Hamblen

Marketing & Audience Services

Assistant Box Office Managers — Whitney Bishop & Rachel Zwerver

Outside Services

Scene Shop — Upstate Scenic

Graphic Design — Aly Perry (alyperry.com)

Auditor — McSoley McCoy & Co.

Web Design — Andy Butterfield

Information Technology — Silloway Networks

Playbill Sponsorship — Willy Appelman

Piano Tuning — Little Valley Piano Tuning

Photography — Rob Aft, Andy Butterfield, Olívia Ramos Reed, Hubert Schriebl, & Scott Zielinski

Legal Services — Langrock Sperry & Wool, LLP / Paul Frank & Collins PC

Medical Consulting Services — Dr. Trey Dobson, Southern Vermont Medical Center

House Physician — Roger Fox, MD

Property Services — Harrington’s Caretaking Services / Kramer Plumbing & Heating Services

Creative Staff

Directors — Susanna Gellert, Kate Galvin, John Simpkins, Sherry Stregack Lutken, & TBA

Choreographers — Nathan Fister, Natalie Malotke & Felicity Stiverson

Music Coordinator — Jeremy Yaddaw

Music Directors — Tommy Bergeron, Darren Cohen, David M. Lutken, Larry Pressgrove

Designers — Tracy Christensen, Jessica Crawford, Charles Coes, Dawn Chiang, Gregory Graham, Sun, Hee Kil, John Lasiter, Summer Lee Jack, Maggie Jackson, Frank J. Oliva, Mike Tracey, Lee Savage, Mara Ishihara Zinky, Scott Zielinski

Production Stage Managers — Audrey Brown, Lia Jennings, Michele A. Kay, Emily Provence

Assistant Stage Manager — Kali Ashurst

Production

Technical Director —Asher Mason

Associate Production Manager — Ryan Poulin

Costume Shop Manager — Clare Jordan

Associate Costume Shop Manager & Cutter Draper — Rae Ann Sip

Wardrobe Supervisor — Isabel Urbanski-Farrell

Stitchers — Brianna Leilani Cabrera, Mariana Considine

Costume & Wardrobe Assistants — Jamie Mattheus, Judith Bossi

Lighting Supervisor — Evan Carlson

Assistant Lighting Supervisor - Victor March IV

Staff Electrician — Courtney Phillips

Audio Supervisor — Martin Nachsin

Assistant Audio Supervisor — Natalie Papai

Audio Assistant & A2 — Alexander Jones

Carpenter & Stage Hand - Patrick Ziegler

Charge Artist — Kenton Jones

Properties Supervisor — Ryan Brooke

Assistant Properties Supervisor — Gabby Goldman

Props Assistant — Madison Young

Production Assistants — Emily Provence, Sami English

Young Company Stage Manager — Emily Provence

 2024 Full Company

Board of Trustees

Officers

Michael Neff | Chair of Board and Executive Committee; Trustee: Finance and Investing Committees
Warwick, Bermuda; Managing Director of Bermuda and Group Head of International Wealth Management at the Bank of Butterfield; Executive Board member of the Bermuda Stock Exchange, the Bermuda Chamber of Commerce, and the Bermuda Bankers Association; Over 30 years of experience in financial services and financial risk management in US, Europe, and the Far East.

Claire S. Stern | Vice Chair of Board; Chair: Development Committee; Member: Executive, Trustee: Diversity, Equity, Inclusion & Belonging (DEI&B), Finance, Governance, Gala, and Nominating Committees. Weston, VT and Newton, MA; Currently, a comprehensive development consultant for organizations large and small following a development career at Boston's Combined Jewish Philanthropies and St. Francis House; long-time Trustee, Executive Committee member and Chair of the Development Committee at Judge Baker Children's Center; Corporation member of Beacon Academy; past Board member Jewish Family Service Metrowest.

Wayne Fisher | Treasurer of Board; Chair: Finance Committee; Trustee: Governance Committees
Ludlow, VT, New York City, NY and Bonita Springs, FL; On the Board of the Zurich American Insurance Companies and chairs its Audit Committee. Chief Risk Officer in Zurich, Switzerland, prior to retiring from Zurich Insurance. Fellow of the Casualty Actuarial Society and served as the organization’s President in 2014.

Francis P. DeVine Jr. | Secretary of Board; Chair: Governance Committee; Trustee: Executive, Finance, Buildings and Grounds Committees
Belmont, VT; Retired; Former Vice President J.P. Morgan & Co. and J.P. Morgan Chase, Chief Financial Officer for The Hewitt School, NY, NY; Board member, Okemo Valley TV.

Trustees

Ludy Biddle | Chair: Buildings and Grounds Committee; Trustee: Executive, Governance, Diversity, Equity, Inclusion & Belonging (DEI&B) Committees. Shrewsbury, VT; former Secretary, Weston Playhouse; Currently executive director of NeighborWorks of Western Vermont, a non-profit housing organization; member of Community Development Council, Federal Reserve Bank of Boston; Governor’s Housing Council, Vermont; Clean Energy Action Team, Vermont; and board member for Spring Lake Ranch, Cuttingsville, VT.

Gwen Gautsch | Belmont, VT; Active member of the Belmont community; Board Member of Mount Holly Community Association, passionate about the theater with a previous career as a professional actor; currently works as a consultant and contracted individual managing multi-million-dollar initiatives as a portfolio, programs and project manager; expertise in developing and implementing global and regional strategies has consistently contributed to long-term growth and achieving strategic objectives.

Wayne Granquist | Chair Emeritus of Board; Trustee: Executive, Finance, and Planned Giving Committees. Weston, VT; Consultant to non-profit organizations and regional economic development efforts; current Board member Vermont Public Radio and Southwest Vermont Medical Center; former Chair, Dartmouth-Hitchcock Health System; held senior positions in US Senate staff and White House; former President Fairfield County National Bank (CT); former President, Stratton Corporation; former partner, Manchester Capital Management.

Claudia Harris | Landgrove, VT; Broker-Owner at Mary Mitchell Miller Real Estate; current Board member Vermont Association of Realtors (VAR) and South Central Vermont Board of Realtors (SCVBR); chaired the 2020 realtor workgroup under Vermont Governor Scott’s Return to Work/ReStart Vermont Taskforce; chaired a special ad hoc fundraising committee that raised over $18,000 for seven southern Vermont hunger-relief organizations; advanced EMT and active with the Londonderry Volunteer Rescue Squad (LVRS); Landgrove, VT's Town Moderator and Grand Juror.

David Katz | New Trustee (2024) Weston, VT; David graduated from the University of Vermont in 1976 and returned with his family in 2019 when they bought their first house in Weston. In the pandemic, they attended all of Weston's tent shows, and have been supportive members of the Producers Circle. David was a former board member for the traveling youth soccer program, Potomac Soccer Association, for many years. David is currently senior counsel of the Corporate & Financial Services Department for Willkie, Farr & Gallagher.

Barrie Koegel | Trustee: Diversity, Equity, Inclusion & Belonging (DEI&B) Committee. Warren/Weston, VT and Harlem, NYC, NY; In the winter of 2000, she crisscrossed the state in an RV camper wrapped in lawn signs, as an organizer for Democratic primary nominee Bill Bradley for President. Since then, she has been working at the intersection of politics, communications and nonprofit administration for a variety of social justice causes. Most recently, she serves as the COO at National Black Theatre, which was founded in Harlem in 1968 by the late visionary artist and activist Dr. Barbara Ann Teer. 

Vicky Linville | Trustee: Buildings and Grounds Committee. Weston, VT, and Rowayton, CT; Retired following a long career in the Ski industry including a skiwear buyer for Saks Fifth Avenue in NYC and a Skiwear Stylist for Beconta, Inc.; Former President and Board Member, Woman Flyfishers Club of NY; Member, Blue Flames Steel Band.

John T. McHugh | Head of Strategy Task Force; Member: Finance and Investment Committees. Weston, VT and Mendham, NJ. Retired; Former Partner with Accenture providing management consulting services to clients in the Financial Services Industry. Board President. Court Appointed Special Advocates (CASA) of NJ. Trustee of Park Avenue Club, Florham Park, NJ.

Linda Oskam | Trustee: Development Committee. Manchester VT and Palm City, FL; Board of trustees: Manchester Community Library and Southern Vermont Art Center. Co-Chair Weston Playhouse Gala 2016 and 2017.

Michael Plaut | Weston, VT and Paris, France; Consulting and interim strategic business leader for early-stage companies in the US and France focused on finance, market outreach, organization and culture building, and operating effectiveness; Non-profit volunteerism focuses on cross-cultural and multilingual communication.

Bill Watson | Chair: Diversity, Equity, Inclusion & Belonging (DEI&B) Committee. Member: Development, Planned Giving, and Gala Committees. Grafton, VT; President, Grafton Firefighters Association; active firefighter & licensed EMR; Minister & Deacon Chair, Grafton Community Church; former board member and development chair for National Women’s Hall of Fame & Volunteers of America for Western NY; retired journalist, Rochester, NY and Washington, DC.

Jim Wilbur | New Trustee (2024). Background in chemical engineering, chemical and agricultural genetics analysis, and business. Former chair of the Stratton Foundation board and of the Vermont Humanities Council. Worked with the Nature Conservancy to preserve over 3,000 acres of land in Windham and Londonderry. Treasurer of the South Londonderry Free Library and treasurer of the Mountain Valley Health Council.

Trustees Emeritus

Richard H. Adams

Paul Adamsbaum

Carol P. Cox*

Beverly O. Fonner

David Fubini

Charles M. Goodwin

Rocco Maggiotto

Barbara Morrow

Amy Van Nostrand

Rebecca Y. Robinson

Robert L. Schwartz

Patrick Walsh

Janet Warren*

Morrison D. Webb

Anthony C. Wood

Robert H. Young

James Young

Tim Fort | Founding Director

Malcolm Ewen | Founding Director

Steve Settler | Founding Director

“*" represents a deceased Emeritus member. We are forever grateful for the passion and commitment they brought to our organization.