Summer Ed Staff

Summer Ed Staff 2010
(Check back often for 2010 staff additions!)

 

 

 

 Education Director
Linda St George

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.
   Working with preschoolers through high school students, Linda has taught theatre and improvisation skills to a variety of students at the Burhyte Ballet.  In addition, she taught Improvisation for the SUNY Brockport theatre department for a number of years.
   Linda also received her MS in Elementary Education from SUNY Brockport.  To conclude her program, Linda's thesis researched "Arts in the Classroom."  She has taught Kindergarten through 5th grade for the past 11 years.  Currently, she teaches 5th grade in Hilton, NY.  In recent years, Linda has worked to integrate the arts into the regular academic curriculum, having students write and perform poetry & plays.  She is experienced in working with students of all ages and abilities.

Lead Teacher
Kara Minute

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!



Lead Teacher
Jessi St George

 

 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! 

Lead Teacher
Dodie Greer

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!

 

 

 

Musical Director
Oscia Miles

 

 

Jennifer Stock-Pollard
Dance Director & Choreographer


 

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.
     For the past 10 years she has been living in Savannah, GA where she taught dance and theatre at a performing arts middle school.  While living in Savannah she was actively involved in theatre and dance through performing, directing, and teaching and choreographing. Her dancers have performed throughout Savannah and for Georgia’s AAHPERD conventions.

 

Accompanist
Cristina Dinella

 

 

 

Improvisation Instructor
 

 

 

Kathleen Grace Fiori
Acting Coach

 

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!

Amanda Foreman
Acting Coach

 

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.

 

Program Intern
Fiona Criddle

 

 

 

 

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.  

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!

 

Dance:  Tap
Courtney Andrews World

 

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.

Vocal Technique
Meg Nutting Tidd

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. 

 

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!)

Back Home Up Next

Downstairs Cabaret Theatre

Admin Offices & Mainstage DCTC & Education Program DCT West (near Hochstein)
20 Windsor Street 540 East Main Street 172 West Main Street
Rochester, NY 14605-2935    

CONTACTS:

OFFICES:   (585) 325-4370 EDUCATION PROGRAM: FAX:  (585) 454-0260
admin@downstairscabaret.com director@dct-sep.com