Emerald City Theatre School Teacher Bios

Aaron Aubrey was born and raised in Albuquerque N.M. where he began singing and acting in church and school. He recently moved to Chicago after several years of traveling and working around the country in various historical dramas and regional theatres, ranging from Vermont all the way to the southern tip of Florida. Aaron has always had a particular love of children’s theatre because children remind him of the power of theatre and that it is possible to let go and truly believe in the world of the story as it’s told. As always he is excited to be a part of a creative team and thankful for his many opportunities.

Hannah Baker graduated from Gordon College in Wenham, Massachusetts with a B.A. in Theatre Arts and English Literature this past May. She has returned to her native city, Chicago, where she has been working with various theatre companies as a stage manager and with the Bird and Baby Theatre Company as a teacher in their young company ages 6-18. She is very excited to be working with Emerald City and share her love of theatre with her students.

Aaron Benham is a local actor, singer, and piano player. He has a BFA in Musical Theatre from Emerson College in Boston and has performed onstage and off (as music director) in Boston, New York, and now Chicago. In Chicago, Aaron has worked with Chicago Folks Operetta, Porchlight Music Theatre, City Lit, and Broadway in Chicago. He teacher private piano lessons and coaches young singers when he is not in a rehearsal or class. He loves working with kids and sharing his passion for performing.

Annie Brady loves to use her imagination! That's why she is ecstatic to be teaching at Emerald City. Annie has worked with children of all ages in the wonderful lands of Alaska and Belize! As a student at Loyola University Chicago, Annie studies Theatre and Human Services. She enjoys all aspects of theatre, including acting, props design, assistant stage managing and, of course, teaching! She hopes to inspire her students and help them grow into creative and confident individuals through the magic of theatre.

Courtney Cales is excited to be joining Emerald City Theatre this term as a teacher after spending the summer as an education intern with summer camp. A senior at Loyola University Chicago, she is double majoring in Theater and Communication where she loves to act, sing, and stage manage. She previously worked as an intern at CityDance @ Strathmore in Bethesda, Maryland as well as a camp counselor back home in Florida. She has always loved working with kids and couldn’t be more thrilled to combine her two passions: theater and education!

Melanie Camras has been working/playing with Emerald City since September '09, and enjoys it immensely. Not only does she get to teach, she also gets to accompany songs on the piano sometimes! She earned a B.A. in drama from Washington University in St. Louis, and has worked for several touring children's theatres, including Bridgework, Missoula, Omaha Theatre Co, Bright Star, and National Theatre for Children. Melanie also teaches 0 to 5-year-olds at The Music Playhouse and private in-home piano lessons. On top of all that, she's a certified yoga instructor who is available to teach private yoga, singing, and piano lessons to beginners of all ages. Love and gratitude to all who have touched her life!

Alex Cirves (Education Intern) is a 2010 graduate of Christopher Newport University in Virginia where she received her BA in Theatre with a concentration in Acting and a minor in Dance. She is also a proud brother of Alpha Psi Omega, the national theatre honor fraternity. Some of her favorite projects include playing Cat VanAuken in the world premiere of Exiles From the Sun at the NYC Fringe Festival; teaching dance at Woodberry Forest School; doing voiceover work for the original recording of Rosemary Trible's first book, Fear to Freedom; assistant teaching classes for the Virginia Theatre Association workshop at CNU; and playing a zombie in the most recent music video from the band GWAR, "Zombies March." Having recently moved to Chicago, she is incredibly excited to get her theatre career started with Emerald City and to learn more about being on the teaching side of theatre. Let the wild rumpus begin!

Emily Cross Emily Cross is thrilled to be joining Emerald City as a teacher after interning with the department this past fall. She started playing in theatre and music in elementary school plays, workshops, and community theatre in Hillard, Ohio. Emily graduated from Butler University with a B.A. in Theatre, having performed as Anne Frank at the Children's Museum. She then made "the big move" to Chicago, working with Redmoon Theater, Serendipity Ensemble, and Columbia College. She is currently teaching at John Casablanca's in Oakbrook and is ready to continue learning and growing at Emerald City!

David Ello is an actor, writer, musician, and chai connoisseur. He studied acting and directing at the University of Houston where he received his B.A. in Theatre and later relocated to Chicago in pursuit of snow and original play development. As a teaching artist, he has collaborated with multiple educational institutions, including Chicago's Emerald City Theatre School, Black Bear Academy, Houston Independent School District, and Houston's InterActive Theatre. During David's time with InterActive, he managed and performed in the touring unit and directed for the mainstage, touring, and public school residency program. Currently, David can be seen performing on the harp in his interactive kids musical King David: LIVE!, awakening heroes and history makers in the next generation. Check out www.kingdavidlive.com for more info!

Shannon Evans, hailing from beautiful Minnesota, has been a resident teaching artist with Emerald City since 2005. Shannon works throughout Chicago as a theatre director, producer, designer, actor, painter, and educator. She received her B.A. in theatre arts and philosophy from Loyola University Chicago. With Emerald City, she has taught ages 3-18 years through Theatre School classes, camps, after school residencies, puppet workshops, birthday parties, and special events. She also enjoys face painting with lots and lots of glitter.

Katie Gonring graduated from the BFA program at the Chicago College of Performing Arts. A Milwaukee native, Katie has worked with various children's and professional theatre companies in Milwaukee and Chicago. She also founded and has spent the last 7 years working with the Dominican Musical Theatre camp in Milwaukee. She is thrilled to have the opportunity to work with Emerald city and share her passion for teaching this wonderful craft with her students.

Julia Gordon is thrilled to be teaching at Emerald City Children's Theatre! A graduate from Roosevelt University's Chicago College of Performing Arts (BFA Musical Theatre, 2009), she enjoys singing, dancing, acting, performance of all kind, and especially teaching! While appearing in many Chicago-area shows, even A Nutty Nutcracker Christmas and Pinkalicious at Emerald City, this is her first time at the head of the classroom. She enjoys teaching through Emerald City for the opportunity to watch kids grow weekly. Julia plans to continue her own education in teaching.

Melissa Harrison is excited to be teaching for Emerald City, where she has taught for the past year. She has also appeared onstage for Emerald City in Dr. Dolittle, Jolly Rogers, and A Nutty Nutcracker Christmas. She is a graduate of Wayne State University with a degree in Theatre, and has also studied at the Moscow Art Theatre in Moscow, Russia. She is a Detroit native, where she taught theatre camps for seven years and appeared in numerous productions. Melissa is also a private voice and piano instructor, and is looking forward to sharing the joy of musical theatre with her Emerald City students!

Sarah Maria Hess is a Cleveland native and theatre artist She is a firm believer in the integral importance of arts in schools and is so thrilled to be working with Emerald City Theatre. A graduate of Ohio University, Sarah is an alum of the improv troupe Black Sheep, Inc. She recently moved to Chicago and is currently studying at iO Chicago.

Helen Lattyak has been a teacher with Emerald City for many years and usually works with the 3.5 – 5 summer camp classes! She is a company member of TUTA theatre company where she has designed props and stage managed. When she is not busy at TUTA or with Emerald City, Helen stage manages around Chicagoland. A few stage management credits include: Little Shop of Horrors, Doubt, and Be My Baby for Peninsula Player Theater; Iron with Apple Tree Theater; and Spit Fire Grill the Musical with Provision Theater Company. Helen is a proud graduate of the Loyola University Chicago Department of Theatre.

Anderson Lawfer has been in Chicago for almost 10 years and has performed with over two dozen theatre companies. He is an ensemble member at Strawdog Theatre where he has been seen in Red Noses, State of the Union, Marathon '33, among others. He is a regular contributor to Paper Machete: A Live Weekly Magazine. He also hosts a few different game shows including The Game Show Show...and Stuff! and Theater Wars! He has written numerous radio plays and essays and his blog: Reviews You Can Iews has become a Chicago Theatre staple.

Aaron Lawson is a Chicago actor from St. Louis, Missouri. He's been in many children's theatre shows around the Chicago area including Junie B. Jones at Emerald City, Robin Hood with Windy City Players and The Giver at Adventure Stage Theatre. He has also worked with Climb Theatre in Minnesota where he and another actor would teach a short class for middle schoolers after each performance of the play My Anthem. Aaron also has training in music and improvisation. He has a BA in theatre from Eastern Illinois University.

Michael Leon is thrilled to be teaching at Emerald City! He graduated with his BFA in Theater from Florida International University. Originally from Miami, Florida, Michael's youthful imagination and wonderful rapport with both children and teenagers has lead him to teaching theater for the past seven years. He honed many of his teaching skills at Miami Children's Theater, where he taught numerous theater courses and also served as lead director of their summer camps for three consecutive years. Recently he has worked at Northlight Theater, as both a teaching artist and a camp counselor. Michael is an actor here in Chicago and will be in Emerald City's upcoming production of Junie B. Jones: Jingle Bells, Batman Smells.

Nina Liewher is thrilled to be joining Emerald City Theatre this term as a teacher after spending the summer as an education intern with summer camp. She will be graduating next spring with her Bachelor's Degree in Theater Performance from Columbia College Chicago after transferring from UIC and Harold Washington College. Nina also studied at the Second City Training Center in their Acting and Improv programs. She fell in love with performing at the tender age of 6 when her kindergarten class put on a musical in which she was a cow that meowed. You can often find Nina running along the lake front path and in any Jimmy John's eating a Beach Club sandwich.

Aileen McGroddy is a teacher as well as the Marketing and Events Manager at Emerald City Theatre. As a teaching artist, she has worked with Redmoon Theater, The University of Chicago, Little Black Pearl Art Center, The Clearview School in New York, and NIRMAN in India. She is also a freelance director and physical performer in Chicago. Aileen is a founder of Chicago’s all-female clown troupe, The Harlotry & Necromancy Appreciation Society. She graduated from the University of Chicago with a degree in Interdisciplinary Studies in the Humanities.

Andy McGuire earned his B.A. in Theatre from Central College in Pella, IA. In 2008, he had his first experience teaching theatre as a director for the Pella Shakespeare Youth Troupe. Since then, Andy has taught for a number of theatre companies in Iowa, maintaining his relationships with them and returning to work with these companies as often as possible. After his adventures in Iowa, he moved to Minnesota to tour across the Upper Midwest as an Actor/Educator for the CLIMB Theatre Company. In September of 2011, Andy relocated to Chicago, where he works with several local theatre companies, including the Emerald City Theatre.

Stacey Mead is excited to join Emerald City Theatre this term as a teacher after spending the summer as an education intern with summer camp. She is fresh on the Chicago theatre scene from Louisville, KY, having recently completed a year-long Outreach Internship and Teaching Artist position at Walden Theatre. While an undergraduate student, she spent 3 years leading Harper Theatre Club, a free after-school theatre program dedicated to keeping kids engaged and out of trouble. She has also trained with Zachary Scott Theatre in Austin, TX. Stacey holds a B.S. in Theatre Studies from the University of Evansville, and her directing credits include: The Dining Room and The Yellow Boat with the University of Evansville; Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead with Harlaxton College; Journey and My Life as a Boy Scout with Walden Theatre.

Whitney Minarik is thrilled to be working with Emerald City Theatre School. She graduated from Wayne State University in Detroit, and studied abroad at the Moscow Art Theatre School and in Greece with the University of Detroit Mercy. Whitney's favorites roles at Wayne State included Claire in Proof, Sydney in The Altruists, and Bridgey in Oz, a children's play about the author of the Wizard of Oz. Chicago credits include working with Red Tape Theatre, Midtangent Productions, Ludicrous Theatre, and Moving Dock. Whitney is also a proud member of The Murder Mystery Company.

Samantha Nicodemus has always been highly supportive of children discovering the arts. After being in Emerald City’s If You Take a Mouse to School and The True Story of the Three Little Pigs, she has seen how theatre for young audiences enables kids to think creatively while using logic and reason. Sam has found teaching theatre is a great way for children to not only learn acting fundamentals but also learn how to build a community in the class and use creative problem solving. Sam has found great joy teaching her students to grow as artists and hopes they continue to grow as artists in life.

Ernie Nolan is the proud Associate Artistic Director of Emerald City Theatre. He has written/directed/choreographed over 15 productions for Emerald City. He has also directed The BFG and The Giver (Chicago Playworks) as well as Frindle, U:BUG:ME, Twice Upon a Time, and The Dinosaur Musical (Coterie Theatre). A graduate of The University of Michigan and The Theatre School at DePaul University, he is Vice President of the board TYA USA. This year he is visiting faculty at The Theatre School at DePaul University.

Caryn Ott started dancing at the age of three in Milwaukee, WI. She started performing theatre in high school and moved to Chicago to attend Roosevelt University for Vocal Performance. Since graduation, Caryn have sang and danced her way across many Chicago stages such as Emerald City (of course), Light Opera Works, Noble Fools, Bailiwick, Theatre at the Centre, Metropolis, House Theatre and more. She found her love of teaching when she taught at First Stage Theatre in Milwaukee, WI and directed/choreographed Light Opera Work's Summer Camp. She is psyched to be apart of Emerald City Teaching Staff to inspire children to open their minds to the world of theatre!

Amanda Pintore graduated with her B.A. in Theatre with an emphasis in directing last May. Over the last few years she has worked for several children's theatre companies including the Rose Theatre, Lexington Children's Theatre, Seattle Children's Theatre, and CLIMB Theatre in the twin cities. She just moved to Chicago and is ecstatic to be working with Emerald City!

Caleb Probst is from Michigan originally, and has called Chicago home since 2005. He holds a BFA with Honors in Drama and Education Studies from Syracuse University. Caleb began teaching for Emerald City in 2007 and became the Faculty Manager for the Theatre School in 2011. He has directed productions of Peter Pan, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Wicked, and Alice in Wonderland for the Youth Ensemble, has taught numerous camps and classes, and has appeared on stage in Emerald City’s Peter Pan. In addition to his work with Emerald City, Caleb acts, directs, writes, and teaches for a number of theaters in Chicago and around the country. He is a company member of Barrel of Monkeys where he works as a teaching artist and performer, and has also worked with Remy Bumppo, Vitalist, The State, Project 891, and Chicago Shakespeare.

Janell Rinne (Education Intern) holds a BFA in Musical Theatre from Missouri State University. While in Chicago, she has performed with Theatre at the Center in Guys and Dolls (Ensemble) and It's Beginning to Look a lot Like Christmas (Swing). Janell has also worked with Village Players of Oak Park, Wishbone Theater Ensemble, and Akvavit Theatre. While at Missouri State University, Janell took part in numerous productions, some of which include Anything Goes (Purity/ Dance Captain), Little Women: the Musical (Meg), A Chorus Line (Lori/ Dance Captain), and Zorro (choreographer). When not performing, nannying and teaching dance are favorite pastimes. Janell currently works with Navy Pier Entertainment at Winter Wonderfest and plays a dancing doll.

Andrew Ritter is thrilled to be teaching with Emerald City Theatre School. He started working with kids when he was in High School where as a freshman he began the first of 7 summers as a camp counselor. After graduating from Middlebury College in Vermont with a degree in Theatre & Psychology he immediately went off to Thailand where he taught ESL at Loei University for a year. He moved back to Chicago and worked in the North Suburban Special Education District for a few years and also became a private tutor for children with autism. As an actor he has performed with several children's theatre companies including Emerald City, American Eagle Productions and Novel Ideas. Andrew currently teaches improvisation and musical improvisation to adults and children at The Second City and he directs the improvised kids show Storytown every Saturday morning at iO Theatre.

Beth Schmeski graduated from The Theatre School at DePaul University with a BFA in Dramaturgy and Dramatic Criticism and worked as a teaching artist at The Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum. She then moved across the country to work at Seattle Children's Theatre, where she served as the Administrative Intern, and graduated from the Teaching Artist Apprenticeship Program. Now back in her hometown, Beth is the Audience Services Coordinator here at Emerald City Theatre Company, and also teaches Story Drama at the Tinley Park Park District.

Lisa Siciliano is an actress, director, writer, producer, and educator who hails from Cleveland, OH. She loves teaching theatre and has been an instructor for numerous programs from pre-k through college! Since moving to the Windy City in the fall of 2008, Lisa has taught with Lifeline Theatre, American Theatre Company, ARCC Ballet, the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, the Swedish American Museum, and, of course, Emerald City where she is also the Education Manager. Lisa graduated cum laude and with distinction in the theatre studies major from Yale University in 2005. She is currently a graduate student in the Master of Science in Education program in elementary teaching at Northwestern.

Rachel Sherman Rachel Sherman could not be more excited for the opportunity to work with Emerald City Theatre! As a Chicago native, Rachel took a break from the Windy City to earn her BA in Theatre Arts and Communication Studies at The University of Iowa. At Iowa, Rachel got the opportunity to perform in numerous original productions, including the role of Vivian in Bloodlines for Iowa's New Play Festival 2010, Ana in The Third Garden, Rachel in Gone Postal, and Josephine in Triangle. Rachel was a member of the performing group The Shining Lights from 2004-2007 and was their dance and vocal captain from 2005-2007. Rachel was a teaching mentor for Deerfield High School's Celebration of the Arts program and is a trained classical singer of 10 years. Rachel is the recipient of The Jerome and Marie Feniger Award (2010), The Paul Horwitz Compassion Scholarship (2007) and was named Division 1 Superior Vocalist in 2006. Rachel can also say the alphabet backwards flawlessly.

Jacqueline Stone hails from Rocky Point, NY and has a B.A. in Theatre from the Univ. of Maryland. Her other training credits include The Second City, Improv Olympic, The Annoyance, and Victory Gardens. For the past fifteen years, she has been acting, directing, teaching, and writing across the United States. She is proud to be a founding company member and Executive Director of TUTA Theatre Chicago, and has appeared in numerous productions. She is also a founding company member of the acclaimed all-women's improv group Sirens. Jacqueline is a faculty member at The Second City, Columbia College, TUTA Theatre, and Education Director for Emerald City Theatre Company. She has taught numerous acting and improv workshops across the country including the Chicago Improv Festival, Miami Improv Festival, Duke University and many more.

Danny Taylor joined Emerald City for The Wizard of Oz, will be performing this Spring in Snow White as Performed by Professor TJ Barker's Troupe of Theatricals, and has helped teach/accompany a variety of Emerald City classes, including the Advanced Youth Ensemble production of Cats. Holding a double BA from Hope College in Dance and Theatre, Danny's Chicago credits include: Company, Griffin Theatre; The Master and Margarita, The Good Soul of Szechuan, and Old Town with Strawdog Theatre; Tupperware, An American Musical Fable and That Sordid Little Story with The New Colony; 1776 with Signal Ensemble. Danny is a proud New Colony company member, where creating story and character through a collaborative ensemble effort is a daily challenge. He hopes to bring this creativity into the classroom while teaching this Spring!

Leah Isabel Tirado Leah Isabel Tirado has been able to build her creative repertoire through the University of Wisconsin with Madison as a backdrop to her education. She fondly recalls performing everything from lost rumba beats to classic madrigals, jazz standards to rock originals, beloved musicals like, Guys and Dolls to social topic dramas like Dog Sees God. Most of her time was spent with the Wisconsin Singers as their vocal captain, The Children's Theatre of Madison, and as the lead singer of The Big Payback. These ensembles not only nurtured her love of performing, but also allowed her to give back to her community by teaching young musicians and actors across the Midwest. Having relocated to Chicago, Leah is continuing her pursuit of happiness through performance and education, she is very eager to continue her adventure with Emerald City as a teacher after interning with the department this fall!

Katie Utterback Katie Utterback is overjoyed to begin teaching with Emerald City after interning with the department this past fall. She recently graduated from Butler University with a B.A. in Theatre. Although she loves to act, she also has spent multiple semesters working with kids from all over Indianapolis and loved teaching them about the magic of theatre! She previously worked as a camp counselor in New Hampshire and is super pleased to be in Chicago (only 3 hours from mom and dad!)

Nicole Vann completed an internship at Emerald City last fall and is thrilled to be joining the teaching staff. She graduated with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in theatre from Millikin University in 2006. She is currently pursuing her Masters of Education in Elementary Education at DePaul University with the hopes of better combining her love of the arts with curriculum and education. In addition, she has taught theatre at Camp Marimeta for Girls and the Indiana Repertory Theatre Summer Conservatory. Nicole believes the arts are an invaluable tool for learning and should be used in the classroom in every way imaginable! Working with the children through Emerald City has been an amazing experience and Nicole hopes to continue to grow as both an educator and an artist.

David Robert Weber is finishing his BFA at UIC under the direction of Yasen Peyakov. He is a proud member of the first Atlanta Shakespeare Apprentice Company studying under Laura J. Cole and Drew Reeves and was on staff their as an Artistic Associate until 2007 where he played many title roles and was on staff as an education artist as well. He started working with Emerald City this past summer with the Rock n Roll Musical Camp at Gov. State University and is thrilled to be part of their teaching staff.

Alice Wedoff has been teaching theater to children for almost half her life, starting with summer camps in her native Oak Park when she was in high school. She has been teaching various classes and camps through Emerald City for the past four years and loves having the opportunity to work with kids of all ages in exploring performance. As a professional actress, Alice has worked with many theaters around Chicago, including Redmoon, The Hypocrites, Chicago Dramatists, Victory Gardens, Stage Left, Festival Theater, Theater Wit, and Pegasus Players, with whom she received a Jeff nomination for her solo performance in The Shape of a Girl. She is a company member of TUTA Theater and has performed in several shows with them. Alice holds a B.F.A. in acting from Syracuse University and spent a year studying physical theater at Ecole Lecoq in Paris, France.

Megan Westbrook has been an active member of the theater and theater for youth community since her early years and is so excited to be expanding this love to theater education. She received her BFA in Music Theater from Shenandoah University and has since acted in, stage managed, been the make-up artist for and assistant directed youth theaters including Discovery Story Theatre, Winchester Little Theatre, and Glaize Studio Theater. She founded and was the production coordinator for Engine Room Theatre, a stage/sound technician for Lakeshore Theatre, and stage manager for On the Spot Productions. Currently, she is tapping into Chicago's awesome resource of youth outreach programs to take her love of youth development to all the many places it can grow and be put to good use. She is very grateful to Emerald City for this amazing opportunity and to all of her friends and loved ones in the teaching field who have generously taught her so much.

Emily Williams (Education Intern) is currently pursuing her BA in theater at Columbia College and couldn't be more excited to be joining Emerald City as an education intern. Emily knew she was meant for a life in theater when she was cast in her first play as an Oompa Loompa and had the absolute time of her life. She is thrilled to be combining her passion for performing with her love for teaching.