Summer Ed Staff 2010
(Check back often for 2010 staff additions!)
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Education Director |
Linda
St George
began her career in
theatre 30 years ago as Linda Bray. She received a BFA in Acting &
Directing from Montclair University in New Jersey and performed in various
summer stock and dinner theatres, including the Dam Site Dinner Theatre in
Tinton Falls, NJ; Creative Theatre in Englewood, NJ; Vincennes Summer
Theatre in Indiana, and the Westgate Dinner Theatre in Toledo, OH.
For a number of years she could be seen on the Brockport Summer Theatre
stage, playing favorite roles such as Nancy in Oliver!, Charity in Barnum,
Sally Bowles in Cabaret, and "Fred" in Once Upon a
Mattress. She is no stranger to the DCT stage, having performed
as Sister Leo in Nunsense II, Agnes in I Do! I Do!, and as
part of the ensemble in Puttin' On the Ritz. She
also designed costumes for the acclaimed, Godspell, and has
performed in several staged readings. Summer 2005 marked her NYC
debut in a production of Last Period, written by her husband, Dick.
In the fall of 2007, Linda designed costumes and props for In the Beginning,
and created five original puppet characters for the production. |
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Lead
Teacher |
Kara Minute,
a Rochester, NY native holds a
BFA in Performing Arts from Adelphi University. She is delighted to be
returning as a teacher for the Downstairs Cabaret Summer Education Program!
Kara is very familiar with the DCT after performing in some of their past
shows including I Love You, You're Perfect Now Change, Water Coolers, and
Shout!
Some of Kara's most recent credits include Oliver Twist with Children Stage Adventures as a Director/Educator, and performing in the Pennsylvania Renaissance Faire season and Mt Hope Estates A Dickens of a Christmas 2009. She has also completed 3 seasons with the Merry Go Round Playhouse Youth Tour, and has been granted many other opportunities to direct/teach theater to young adults and children. One of Kara's many goals is to help play a part in keeping the magic of theater alive! |
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Jessica
St George
has grown up in theatre, having performed on the SUNY Brockport Summer Stage at the age of five, and even making her DCT debut when she was 8. Jessi received ballet training with
Nancy Burhyte , studied tap with Courtney Andrews World, and modern and jazz with Samantha Kenney. Currently, she is a BFA candidate at SUNY Fredonia, with a concentration in Acting, and a Dance minor. She has been seen in Eugene O'Neill's Where the Cross is Made, as well as Victor Victoria. She was also selected to dance a pas de deux in the Spring Dance Ensemble concert, and performed in Wake Robin in this year's concert. Last year she performed in Autobahn, Charles Dickens' A Christmas Carol, the Fredonia Dance Ensemble Concert, and Romeo and Juliet. She also performed in JCC's Hair last summer. This past year she performed the role of Amy in Company, and was part of the ensemble in Kiss Me Kate. She has appeared in nearly 20 different productions at area theatres. Past roles include Little Red (Into the Woods), Annie (Annie), and Andrea (Once on This Island.) Jessi is excited to be returning to the Summer Education Program for her fifth season! |
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Lead Teacher |
Dodie Greer is a Rochester native, who works in elementary education full time and has been active in theater for over 15 years. She traveled for 6 years with the repertory theatre company “Covenant Players”. She lived out of a suitcase acting, directing and singing across most of the US and Canada and also performed for three years in Australia. Dodie has performed in Henrietta Community Theater’s productions of Three Murders and It’s Only Monday and performed the lead role of Pistache in Can-Can. She has also taught drama to children and teens in Henrietta for 5 years. She truly enjoys seeing her students grow in confidence and have great fun while learning drama. Dodie says she can’t wait to meet her new students and teach them to love acting as much as she does! |
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Musical Director |
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Jennifer Stock-Pollard |
Jennifer Stocks-Pollard
is a native of Rochester. She is thrilled to be back and working with
Downstairs Cabaret Theater’s Summer Education Program. She holds a
Bachelors in dance performance from Eastern Michigan University and a
Masters in dance from SUNY Brockport. She received her teaching
certification from University of Georgia. Jennifer has been dancing and
active in theater since she was six years old. Some of her performance
credits include Guys and Dolls, A Funny Thing Happened on the Way
to the Forum, and The Nutcracker. She has directed and
choreographed Annie, Wizard of Oz and Cinderella. |
Accompanist
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Improvisation Instructor |
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Kathleen Grace Fiori |
Kathleen Grace Fiori is absolutely thrilled to join the Downstairs Cabaret Theatre for their Summer Education Program! A Rochester native, Kathleen Grace graduated from Pittsford Mendon High School in 2008 and will be entering her junior year at SUNY Fredonia this fall as a BFA Musical Theatre major. Professional credits include My Antonia (Antonia Shimerda) at the Reg Lenna Theatre, Jamestown, NY; film credits include The Fredonia Experience (Host). Kathleen Grace has been seen on the Fredonia stage in productions including Charlotte’s Web (Narrator), Company (Jenny), Kiss Me Kate (Ensemble), Christmas Carol (Charity Worker), Sylvia Plath: Three Women (Woman 1), as well as several One Act productions; and was the recipient of the Mary Joyce Schaefer Scholarship award this spring. Kathleen Grace stays active on campus as Vice President of Golden Key International Honour Society, Vice President of Alpha Psi Omega, and Treasurer of the Performing Arts Company. She is excited to work with the wonderful team at DCT this summer! |
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Amanda Foreman
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Amanda Foreman is a Rochester native, and a recent graduate of SUNY Fredonia with a B.A. in Theatre Arts. She is also a graduate of Finger Lakes Community College, and the National Theater Institute in Waterford, CT, where she had the chance to study at the St. Petersburg State Theater Arts Academy in St. Petersburg, Russia. Amanda began performing at a young age in elementary school plays, and as a dancer in The Nutcracker with the Rochester City Ballet. During college, Amanda has had many opportunities to perform, design, stage manage, and direct. Her favorite past credits include Little Red Ridinghood in Into The Woods, Agnes in The Shadow Box, Stage Manager for The Star Spangled Girl, and Director and Designer for 4.48 Psychosis. She is the first recipient of the Michael J. Loughlin Award for Creative Uniqueness from SUNY Fredonia. In the future, Amanda plans on performing in as much children's theatre as she can. She is very excited to be working with the Downstairs Cabaret Theatre and its education program. |
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Program Intern
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Master Class Artists |
Our days are filled with fun and learning! On occasion, we bring in area professionals to teach a class or seminar. Master Classes help students to appreciate different art forms, and exposes them to a variety of skills, strategies, and styles that they can apply to their work. |
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YOUR PICTURE HERE! |
DO YOU HAVE A SPECIAL TALENT? We'd love to offer our students Master Classes in all sorts of subjects -- Mime, Auditions, Voice, Dialects, Dance - all genres, Acting, Directing - you name it! If you have a skill to teach, please contact us! We can trade theatre tickets or student tuition! We may also be able to arrange a small stipend. Email us if you are interested!
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Dance: Tap |
Courtney Andrews World - Courtney World is a dance performer, choreographer, and teacher based in Rochester, NY. She holds an MFA in Performance and Choreography from The College at Brockport and a BA in Dance from the University at Buffalo. She has performed at Jacob’s Pillow Dance Festival and the International Dance Festival NYC with James Hansen’s Assemblage Dance Company and has performed in numerous works choreographed by Bill Evans, including both tap and modern dance. She currently performs with BIODANCE, Geomantics Dance-Theater, and Kista Tucker Dance, in addition performing in her own work, which has been presented at by ArtWalk Alive!, American College Dance Festival, ImageMovementSound Festival, and Rochester Contemporary Dance Collective. Courtney has a wide range of experience teaching a variety of dance forms to students of all ages. She is currently an adjunct lecturer at The College at Brockport and Nazareth College. For many years she taught at private dance studios and has taught creative movement in after-school care programs at St. Monica’s School and St. John the Evangelist School. She has taught master classes offered by Hamlin Recreation, DanceRochester!, The College at Brockport’s Student Dance Organization, and Downstairs Cabaret Theater’s Summer Education Program.
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Vocal Technique |
Meg Nutting (Tidd)
- was born in Skaneateles, NY and is a
graduate of the Boston Conservatory with a BM in Vocal Performance. She has
been teaching private lessons to students of all ages since June of 2008.
Upon graduating from Skaneateles High School, Meg attended Queens University
in Kingston, Ontario, Canada where her roles included Sister Mathilde in
Poulenc’s
Dialogues des carmélites as well as
cast in Donizetti’s L'elisir d'amore. Upon transferring to the Boston
Conervatory Meg has appeared in several Opera Scenes including Puccini’s La
Bohème (Café Scene) where she starred at Musetta. She is currently teaching
lessons in the Rochester area as well receiving lessons from Dr. Robert
McIver (Eastman School of Music). Meg is very excited to return to the Downstairs Cabaret SEP after working there in 2008 as a voice/acting coach.
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What
a CRAZY STAFF!
This pic is from our "Fantasy Day" during Theme Week in Session 2 (2007). Notice all the Harry Potter fans? We've got Molly Weasely, Trelawny, Flitwick, Hermione, and a couple of Hogwarts' girls. We've even got a muggle! (And then there's Belle, Tiger Lily, and the Snow Queen!) |
