Lisa Peterson (Adapter / Director) is a two-time OBIE Award-winning writer/director. Her
works include An Iliad, written with Denis O'Hare (NYTW, OBIE and Lortel Awards); The Good Book (co-written with O'Hare, Court Theater and Berkeley Rep); The Waves (adapted from Virginia Woolf with composer David Bucknam, NYTW). Lisa is renowned for directing new plays and classics across the country; recently she directed the world premiere of Doug Wright's Good Night Oscar on Broadway. She was Associate Director at Berkeley Rep, Center Theatre Group, and La Jolla Playhouse. She is a recent recipient of the Gordon Davidson Award for Lifetime Achievement. Upcoming writing projects include The Song of Rome with O'Hare, and The Idea of Order with composer Todd Almond.
Tanya Orellana (Scenic Designer) (she/her) designs performance spaces for theatre and opera.
Originally from San Francisco's Mission District, she is a core member of the award-winning
ensemble Campo Santo. Previous collaborations with Lisa Peterson include The Kind Ones by
Miranda Rose Hall at The Magic, Timon of Athens and Coriolanus at Utah Shakespeare Festival.
Recent collaborations include Poor Yella Rednecks: Vietgone 2 directed by Jaime Castañeda,
Fefu and Her Friends directed by Pam MacKinnon, Oedipus directed by Jenny Koons at The
Getty Villa, The Industry's Sweet Land, an immersive opera directed by Yuval Sharon and
Cannupa Hanska Luger, and LEAR by Marcus Gardley, co-directed by Eric Ting and Dawn
Monique Williams. Tanya received her MFA in Scenic Design from CalArts and is the 2016
recipient of the Princess Grace Fabergé Theatre Award. She is a member of Wingspace
Theatrical Design and an organizing member of La Gente: The Latine Production Network. tanyaorellana.com
Sarita Fellows (Costume Designer), born in Freetown, Sierra Leone, her more recent works
include projects such as Death of a Salesman, Broadway; Drinking in America, Audible Minetta
Lane Theater; Theater of the Mind, Denver Center of Performing Arts; Elyria, Atlantic Theater
Co; A Midsummer's Night Dream, Portland Center Stage, Blues for an Alabama Sky and Sweat,
Guthrie Theater; Joy and Pandemic and Our Daughters Like Pillars, Huntington Theater; Seize
the King, Alliance Theater; A Bright Room Called Day, Public Theater; Fefu and Her Friends,
American Conservatory Theater. In the dance world, Sarita has worked with choreographers
such as Liz Lerman, and Edisa Weeks. MFA in design from Tisch School of Design. Sarita also
instructs at the University of Connecticut and Princeton. Recent awards include; Outstanding
Achievement in Costume Design (The National Black Theater Festival 2022). Lily Award (2020).
Russell H. Champa (Lighting Designer) previously designed Desire for The Acting Company at
59E59 Theatre. Current and recent projects include The Diving Bell and the Butterfly (The Dallas
Opera), Josephine's Feast (Magic Theater), Fefu and Her Friends (American Conservatory
Theater), Becky Nurse of Salem (Berkeley Repertory Theatre), Everest (Lyric Opera of Kansas
City), and Thresh|Hold (Pilobolus). Broadway credits include China Doll (Gerald Schoenfeld
Theatre), In the Next Room (or the vibrator play) (Lyceum Theatre/Lincoln Center Theater) and
Julia Sweeney's God Said "Ha!" (Lyceum Theatre). New York work includes Playwrights
Horizons, Theater For A New Audience, The Public Theater, Second Stage Theater, Manhattan
Theatre Club, and New York Stage and Film. Regional work includes Steppenwolf Theatre
Company, The Wilma Theater, Trinity Repertory Company, California Shakespeare Theater, the
Mark Taper Forum, and The Kennedy Center. Thanks J&J! PEACE. russellchampa.com
Sinan Refik Zafar (Sound Design) Broadway: What the Constitution Means to Me (also
NYTW, National Tour). National Tour: What to Send Up When It Goes Down (also Playwrights
Horizons, BAM, A.R.T.) Off Broadway includes Letters From Max (Signature); Which Way To The Stage, All The Natalie Portmans (MCC); To My Girls (Second Stage); The Vagrant Trilogy,
Cullud Wattah (The Public); Wish You Were Here, What To Send Up When It Goes Down (Playwrights Horizons); English (Obie Award), Shhhh (Atlantic); and Montag (Soho Rep).
Regional includes Kennedy Center, Guthrie, Mark Taper Forum, Berkeley Rep, Williamstown
Theatre Festival, and more. SinanZafar.com
Masi Asare (Original Songs) Broadway: Paradise Square (lyrics, Tony/Outer Critics Circle
nominee). Off-Broadway/International: Monsoon Wedding (lyrics), Notes From Now (contributed music/lyrics). Commissions: Theatre Royal Stratford East, Barbara Whitman/Grove,
Lilly Awards, Concord Theatricals. In development: Delta Blue (music/lyrics), The Family Resemblance (book/music/lyrics, O'Neill), Rishvor (book/music/lyrics), Marian, or the True Tale of Robin Hood (music/lyrics). Her spy musical Sympathy Jones (music/lyrics), and Marvel
super hero play Mirror of Most Value have collectively had 100+ productions. Honors:
Dramatists Guild Fellow, Billie Burke Ziegfeld Award, Theater Hall of Fame Grant, Women to
Watch on Broadway. Degrees: Harvard, NYU Tisch. Masi is on the theatre faculty at
Northwestern.
Xavier Clark (Voice and Speech) is a bilingual Voice & Speech practitioner who studied voice
under Alithea Phillips and Ursula Meyer, and apprenticed with Dawn-Elin Fraser. He recently
served as the Dialect Coach for TFANA's Orpheus Descending and as the Voice and Speech
Coach for The Acting Company's National Tour of Romeo and Juliet and The Three Musketeers.
He is on Faculty with the Stella Adler Studio of Acting and Powerhouse Theatre at Vassar
College. Training: RADA, NYU Tisch (BFA) and UC San Diego (MFA).
Jesse Cameron Alick (Dramaturg) is a dramaturg, producer, poet, playwright, essayist, artistic
researcher and science fiction expert. Jesse is the Associate Artistic Director at the Vineyard
Theater in NYC where he is a dramaturg and producer. Jesse is an active freelance dramaturg at
various off-Broadway theaters in the city, nationwide and in the UK. Jesse studied writing with
Adrienne Kennedy and has taught theater courses, lectured at classes and mentored students at a
myriad of programs, currently teaching at NYU.
Margaret Lee (Associate Director, Staff Director & Movement Coordinator) is a Hawaii-born,
NYC-based director/movement director. Current: Install Director of Scarlet Night (Virgin
Voyages' signature immersive show). Past: Director for Moxie Arts NY (3 commissioned World
Premieres), From A To Double D by Mandy Murphy (IRT Theater), The Golden Spike by Don Nguyen & The Lobbyists (BRIC House Artist Studio), Resident Director of immersive nightclubtheatre
Eschaton. While serving as Artistic Director of Chicago troupe 33rd Street Productions,
she focused on fostering cross-disciplinary creativity with artists primarily in STEM, in addition
to helming productions of Ordinary Days by Adam Gwon, Venus in Fur by David Ives, and
Company by Stephen Sondheim. She has been fortunate to assist Kathleen Marshall, Marcia
Milgrom Dodge, and David Mendizabal at theatres such as The Old Globe, MCC Theater, New
York Stage & Film, and Long Wharf Theatre. Margaret is a Drama League Directors Project
Alumna, a member of Roundabout Directors Group, a Fled Collective member, and an SDC
Associate Member. LeeMargaret.com
Janice Paran (Text and Script Consultant) (she/her) is an independent dramaturg and consultant
supporting new work in theater, opera and dance. She has worked closely with numerous writers
and artists, including Annie Baker, Nilo Cruz, Christopher Durang, Beth Henley, Branden
Jacobs-Jenkins, Emily Mann, Ife Olujobi, Dael Orlandersmith, Denis O'Hare and Lisa Peterson,
Phantom Limb Company, Polly Pen, Sarah Ruhl, Mfoniso Udofia, Stephen Wadsworth and
Tracey Scott Wilson. Formerly the Director of Play Development at McCarter Theatre in
Princeton NJ, she also worked for several years as a dramaturg and program associate for the
Sundance Institute Theatre Program, both in the U.S. and internationally.
Laura Schutzel, CSA (Casting) is thrilled to cast for The Acting Company. From 2003-2020,
she worked with Tara Rubin Casting on Broadway, off-, and regional productions. Selected
credits, in addition to TAC: NY Casting Director for The History Boys and The Farnsworth Invention, and Associate Director on many others (Broadway), Yale Repertory Theatre (15
seasons), Westport Country Playhouse, Second Stage, 2ST Uptown, LaJolla Playhouse, Berkeley
Rep, The Old Globe. BA (Smith College), MFA Directing (OU). Member, CSA; Artios Award
for Excellence in Regional Theatre Casting with Tara Rubin and Amy Potozkin, 2019. In her
free time, she sees plays and shares audition tips. @Laura_Schutzel
Stephanie Weinzapfel (Production Stage Manager) is thrilled to join the company of Odyssey
after seven years with the Production Department at Tennessee Performing Arts Center in
Nashville. Selected credits include the National Tours of Rent, Hairspray, and Cirque Dreams Illumination; Tours with multiple television and film personalities, and numerous local productions across the Midwest.
Cello Blanks (Assistant Stage Manager) (they/them) is a stage manager based in Brooklyn, NYC
with a BFA from NYU Tisch School of the Arts. Cello pursues stage management with an
emphasis in Theatre for Social Justice, Racial Trauma, and LGBTQ+ History. Recent projects
include: Sleep No More (Punchdrunk, NYC), Jagged Little Pill (RCI Theatricals), The Shining
(Opera Paralléle), and The Wanderers (Roundabout Theatre Company). Big thanks to my friends
& community for keeping me grounded!
Matthew Lott (Associate Costume Designer) is an NYC-based Costume and Set Designer for
Theatre, Opera, and Dance. He received his MFA at NYU Tisch -- Design for Stage and Film,
and an MA in Theatre -- Critical Theory and Dramaturgy from Univ. of Nebraska Omaha. New
York credits include the world premiere of the Lucy Thurber play A Daughter and Some Sons,
Director Lisa Rothe; An Ideal Husband, Director Janet Zarish; Twelve Ophelias, Director
Nemuna Ceesay; Rhinoceros, Director Alex Moggridge. Associate Costume Designer on
Drinking in America, Director Mark Armstong; Wicked Bodies, Choreographer Liz Lerman.
Danielle DeLaFuente (Assistant Scenic Designer) (she/her) is a Chinese and Latina scenic
designer based in New York and is thrilled to be the Assistant Scenic Designer on this show! Her
recent design credits include The Boy Who Kissed the Sky (Company One), While We Wait (The
New School), The Sitayana (The Tank), and Incognito (Bay Street Theater). Her recent associate
design credits include Twelfth Night (The Old Globe), Once Upon a Bridge (American Players
Theater), Blues for an Alabama Sky (McCarter Theater Center), and Mr Parent (Lyric Stage
Company). She would like to that Tanya and the entire team! danielledelafuente.com.
Row Walters (Production Manager and Audio Supervisor) is thrilled to join The Acting
Company family again on tour. She is a freelance production manager, sound and lighting
designer & technician in Philadelphia, Atlanta, and New York City. Most recently she has been
production managing independent films across the country. Favorite shows include Legally Blonde (Kidz Theater), A Hard Time (FringeArts), Sunday in the Park with George (Temple
University). Row has her BFA in Lighting Design from Syracuse University. Much Love to
Daria and Otto.
Anna Dorodnykh (Rehearsal Props Lead) Off-Broadway: Love & Science (Props Designer), A Sherlock Carol (Deck/Props), Romeo & Bernadette (Deck/Props) Regional: CSTC - Atlanta, West Side Story (Associate Director), Int'l Tour: The Original Broadway Production of Evita (Resident Director, China Tour).
Elisaveta Alekumova (Production Assistant) is a recent graduate from Messiah University with
a triple emphasis in theatre acting, directing, and tech. This summer she worked as an assistant
stage manager for Pride and Prejudice and Lear as well as a stage manager for Todrick the Not-So-Terrible with the Texas Shakespeare Festival. She is excited and grateful for the opportunity to work with The Acting Company.
Courtney "Cody" Ainey (Hair Consultation) is a New York based Stage and Film HMU
Designer/Supervisor from New Orleans, LA. She is eager to amplify storytelling through hair,
committed to sharing her zest for life, and passion for styling all hair types - specifically natural
textured hair. When the conversations arise that center the importance of Black Hairstylists in the
Theater/Film industry, Cody desires to be the one who's called. Her passions include learning
more about film production, community advocacy & outreach, abstract acrylic painting, and
gardening.
Esther Bermann (Company Manager) is excited to join The Acting Company again after
working with them in 2020 on a tour in conjunction with The Juilliard School. As a freelance
stage manager, her credits include New York Theatre Workshop, Soho Rep, The Public Theater,
New York City Center, NYMF, NYU, and Bushwick Starr. Additionally, she has over 20 years
of dance and theater performance experience and has worked in the administrative offices of
Dance/NYC and Pentacle. She holds a BA in dance and drama from University of California,
Irvine.
Rob White (Technical Director) is very excited to be working on The Acting Company's
production of Odyssey. He has two decades of experience building scenery in professional and
academic settings. Some notable national tour builds include, SpongeBob the Musical, Frozen, and the 25th anniversary national tour of Riverdance.
Alissa Shea (Lighting Supervisor) is very excited to be working her first contract with The
Acting Company. They attended The University of Florida and have previously worked with
Pacific Conservatory Theatre, Maine State Music Theatre, Chamber Theatre Productions, and
most recently on tour with FELD Entertainment's Disney on Ice. She is very excited for each
audience member to experience their own Odyssey through our production.
Margarita R. Herrera (Wardrobe Supervisor) is thrilled to join The Acting Company on her
first national tour! An alumna of NYU Steinhardt's Educational Theatre program, her off-Broadway credits include The Chinese Lady (Wardrobe Supervisor, Ma-Yi Theatre at The Public), Richard III and As You Like It (Wardrobe Dresser, Shakespeare in the Park), The Whitney Album (Wardrobe Supervisor, Soho Repertory), and various works at The Juilliard School and Manhattan School of Music. She would like to thank her family, friends, and her beloved cats, Gwen and Liza, for their support.