PRODUCTION & STAFF BIOS
PRODUCTION BIOS
Arden Phanes (They/Them) – Assistant Director
Arden is a theatre artisan who experiences ADHD and Autism. They are excited to be a part of their third production with Phamaly, and present it to you. Yes, YOU! Aren’t you lucky? Anyway, Arden has their BA from University of North Carolina Greensboro and has been working consistently in the industry for the last six years. You may have seen them most recently working with Bewilderness Theatre Company as Co-Director for So Your Mom and Dad Broke Up, at the Denver Fringe Festival, or as the Stage Manager for Bad Jews at Wheat Ridge Theatre Company. Their upcoming projects include writing and developing original plays, so stay tuned! Thank you for supporting this production! “No pride for some of us without liberation for all of us.” - Marsha P. Johnson
Trent Hines (He/Him) – Music Director
Trent is a Henry-Nominated Music Director. Some of his favorite productions include: Musical Director/Keyboard/Conductor for ‘Dreamgirls’ at Lone Tree Arts Center; Musical Director/Pianist/Conductor for ‘Into the Woods’ at The Arvada Center; Pianist/Conductor/Actor for ‘The Wild Party’ at Denver Center for the Performing Arts; Musical Director/Pianist/Conductor for ‘Something Rotten’ at the University of Northern Colorado; Musical Director/Pianist/Conductor for ‘Memphis’ and Musical Director for ‘Raisin’ at Little Town Hall Arts; Musical Director/Pianist/Conductor for ‘Blues in the Night’ at the Aurora Fox.
Claire Hayes (She/Her) – Choreographer
Claire Hayes (she/her) is D-E-L-I-G-H-T-E-D to return to choreograph with Phamaly! Claire is a Denver based choreographer, director, and accessibility movement consultant. Her previous works include A Chorus Line (Co-Choreographer), Indescribable (Accessibility Coordinator), and Spring Awakening (Assistant Director). When she is not in the theater, you can find her reading, painting, or spending time with her loved ones. She would like to thank the cast, crew, and production team for creating a truly one-of-a-kind bee. She would also like to thank Ben for his trust and friendship. Please enjoy the show! @clairej.hayes
Nicholas Renaud (He/Him) – Scenic Designer
Nicholas Renaud (he/him/his) is excited to be working with Phamaly again! Previous credits include A Chorus Line, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, The Rocky Horror Show, The Spitfire Grill, Alice, Honk, Chicago (Phamaly); Sense & Sensibility (TheatreWorks Co. Springs); This is Modern Art, SantaLand Diaries (Off Center, DCPA); MilkMilkLemonade (Shrewd Production, Austin Tx, B. Iden Payne Nom). Nicholas is a Denver based scenic designer and also a resident scenic design assistant with the DCPA Theatre Company where he has assisted over 75 productions. Training: BFA from Emerson College, Boston, MA. www.NicholasRenaudDesign.com
W. Alejandro Melendez (He/Him) – Lighting Designer
Alejandro Melendez is an LA-based Latiné lighting designer working in theatre and opera. Previous Phamaly credits include A Midsummer Night's Dream and The Rocky Horror Show. Additional design credits include productions for Local Theatre Company, Theatreworks, the Odyssey Theatre Ensemble, and the Center for New Performance. Alejandro was recognized as an Emerging Creative at USITT 2024 and holds an MFA in Experience Design & Production from CalArts. To connect with Alejandro and see more of his work find him on Instagram @wamelendez
Alexandra Ligh (She/Her) – Costume Designer
Alexandra is thrilled to return for her second show with Phamaly! She previously designed the costumes for Miss Holmes. Additional costume design credits include Hope and Gravity (BETC), The Ballot of Paola Aguilar (BETC), and A Midsummer Night’s Dream (Mary Moody Northen Theatre). Alexandra is grateful for the friends, family, and collaborators who have supported her throughout the making of this show!
Mark Derryberry (He/Him) – Sound Designer
This is Mark’s first sound design for Phamaly. He is excited to be a part of Phamaly’s production. Mark has designed over 25 musicals for local theaters, he won a Marlowe award for his design of “Into the Woods” at The Candlelight. He also has a recording studio in which he records local and national artists. He thanks his wife of 44 years, children and grand children for their love and support.
Cheryl Brodzinsky (She/Her) – Props Designer
This is Cheryl’s 6th or 10th year with Phamaly. She is delighted to return! Cheryl received her MFA in Theatre Arts form San Francisco State University. Cheryl teaches scenic and props design at Red Rocks Community College, where recent credits include Cabaret, The Sins of Sor Juana, and Stu for Silverton. Previous credits with Phamaly include Into the Woods, Annie, Pygmalion and Tiny Tim’s Christmas Carol. She has also designed and painted with theatres including Curious, Northglenn Youth Theatre, Vintage, and Benchmark.
Megan Wilson (She/Her) – Stage Manager
Megan Wilson is elated to be working with PTC for the third time. Her first show, Miss Holmes, was exactly one year ago and she has loved every moment of creating with Phamaly! Megan is an advocate for education, compassion, and collaboration in and outside of theatre spaces. She is grateful to her mentors and her family who have never stopped encouraging her. “I believe in the magic and authority of words.” - René Char - Happy Spelling!!
Michelle Schovaers-Wagley (She/Her) – Assistant Stage Manager
Michelle Schovaers Wagley (Assistant Stage Manager) is thrilled to be working with Phamaly again for her 3rd year and excited to be backstage for this go around. She has a BA in Theatre Studies - Stage Management, and an MSA in Accounting. Some SM credits include: COLORADO – Miss Holmes, Spring Awakening (Phamaly), First Lady of Television (CNPF), Newsies (Performance Now), The Piano Teacher, Blackademics, Five Guys Named Moe (Vintage), JAPAN – Disturbance, Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, Hand to God, The Who’s Tommy¸ Two Gentlemen of Verona, Big Bad Musical, TEXAS – God of Carnage, A Real Boy, Spake, Going Dark, Cabaret, W;t, CALIFORNIA - Palm Springs Follies, UTAH - Peter Pan, The Foreigner, Hamlet, Stadium of Fire. Thanks to this amazing cast and crew for the fun and laughter. To Steven, I-L-O-V-E-U.
Jaycee Howard (She/Her) – Crew Lead ASM
Jaycee is thrilled to be a part of new opportunities and the creation and uplifting of new art! They graduated from UNCO in 2022 with a degree in Design and Technology with an emphasis in Stage Management. She is currently working as a social media manager for The Underground's productions at The Stanley Hotel. Recent credits: Anastasia (ASM), RENT (SM), Local Lab 13-Stockade (SM), Something Rotten! (SM), 2020 Speaks (SM). They would like to thank the cast for taking on a big show with grace, and the production team for their support, collaboration and artistic expertise. Please keep seeing and supporting theatre and art in all forms.
Alyssa Miller (She/Her) – Dramaturg
Alyssa is thrilled to be back for her second production with Phamaly! Previously, Alyssa served as the dramaturg and text coach for Phamaly’s production of A Midsummer Night's Dream (2023). Alyssa has worked as a professional dramaturg and assistant director with the Hudson Valley Shakespeare Company, the Colorado Shakespeare Festival, and the Denver Center Performing Arts. Alyssa holds a B.A. in English from Yale University, and a Ph.D. in English from CU Boulder where her dissertation explored Shakespeare, feminism, and queer theories.
Krystal Brown (She/Her) – Assistant Props
This is Krystal’s first time working with Phamaly Theatre company. She is very excited to work with and get to know new people. She graduated with a technical theatre degree from Red Rocks Community College. Krystal has always loved storytelling and she is so happy to share this amazing story with you all. Enjoy the show!
STAFF BIOS
Corinne Melon (she/her) – Managing Director
Corinne is an arts administrator, vocal coach, and opera stage director dedicated to bringing equity to the arts and advocating for performers. Prior to working at Phamaly, she served as the Executive Director for the Arapahoe Philharmonic, bringing a renewed focus on artistic excellence to the company. Corinne founded and served as the Executive Artistic Director of Denver Immersive Opera, a company dedicated to supporting female identifying and LGBTQAI+ artists while creating immersive operatic productions that resonate with modern audiences. She has also served as the Production Manager for Boulder Opera Company and Company Manager for Boulder Music Institute. Corinne holds a Performer’s Certificate in Voice from the University of Denver, a dual MM in Opera and Musical Theatre Performance from Arizona State University, and a BM in Voice Performance with a minor in Theatre from Middle Tennessee State University. Corinne lives with anxiety and depression.
Ben Raanan (he/him) – Artistic Director
Ben Raanan is a disabled theatre maker and advocate originally hailing from Chicago, Illinois. His artistic focus is centralized around creating artistically rigorous theatre with, for, and about the disabled community. Ben is the Artistic Director at Phamaly Theatre Company, the longest running disability theatre company in the United States. Ben received his BFA from Drake University with a concentration in directing/musical theatre, and his MFA in directing from DePaul. Some of his favorite directing credits include: Spring Awakening, My Name is Asher Lev, Spitfire Grill (Phamaly Theatre Company), Cost of Living (Renaissance Theatre Works + Curious Theatre Company), Macbeth (Spectrum Shakespeare), Antigone: Born Against, Eleemosynary, Bob: A Life In Five Acts, Crumble: Lay Me Down Justin Timberlake (Ensemble Theatre Cincinnati) Mockingbird (Falcon Theatre).
Erin Banthoff (she/her) – Operations Manager
Erin is a Denver-based theatrical artist always searching for the next creative opportunity. By day she navigates the creation of stigma abolishing theatre with Phamaly Theatre Company, on staff since 2019, proudly working as the Operations Manager. By night she is trying to find time for everything else: performance, podcasting, costuming, design, directing, and learning to cook better than your mama can. Every day she is thankful for her supportive circle and partner in crime, Jeremy Althoff. Erin lives with Hashimoto’s Disease, Fibromyalgia, and Anxiety.
Annie Jacobs (she/her) – Technical Production Manager
Annie joined Phamaly in December of 2019. She moved to Denver from Connecticut where she had been the Director of Production at ACT of Connecticut. Prior to that, she had spent over a decade production managing in New York theatres, including APAC, Queens Theatre, and Prospect Theatre Company. Her time in New York also included working at Showman Fabricators. While there, her projects included Broadway's Sweeney Todd, The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, Disney's The Little Mermaid, Disney World's American Idol Experience and NBC's The Late Show with Jimmy Fallon. Annie is an alumnus from the Theatre School at DePaul University and the School of Drama at Yale University.
Lauren Lynch-Eidson (she/her) – Marketing & Communications Manager
Lauren (she/her) hails from Clarksville, TN and earned an MFA in Arts Administration from Texas Tech University. She has had a passion for accessibility in the arts for many years, spending three+ years volunteering in-person and virtually for A.B.L.E. Ensemble, a Chicago-based theatre for, with, and by individuals with developmental disabilities, and volunteering at Phamaly before becoming a full-time employee.Lauren is also an Adjunct Professor in Arts and Culture Management at The University of Denver, and a newly published playwright. Previously, she had the privilege of working at Wonderbound Ballet, Chicago Shakespeare Theater, and the Eugene O’Neill Theater Center among others. When she's not at work, you can find her playing board games, singing with the Denver Women’s Chorus, or stealing cuddles from her dog, Harry Pupper, and her husband, Eric. She lives with Generalized Anxiety Disorder and Depressive Disorder.
AJ Watson (He/Him) – Production Accessibility Manager
AJ is very excited to be entering his first year with Phamaly. Originally from the east coast and earning his chops in the world of film and television, serendipity brought him to the company after walking down the street, newly arrived in Denver and deciding to go to a performance of Alice in Wonderland presented by Phamaly! From there he volunteered backstage for Vox Vergere and then A2’d for Spring Awakening.
Grace Tate (She/Her) – Community Engagement Manager
Grace is originally from Houston, Texas and attended college in Boston, Massachusetts earning a bachelor’s degree in Psychology. She is passionate about community building and engagement, fostering accessibility in the arts, and the importance of mutual aid. She also pursues all sorts of personal artistic endeavors! She embroiders, sews, and paints in her free time, and has a background in scholastic lighting design. She is excited to join Phamaly and create meaningful connections.
LITERARY ARTISTS
Rebecca Feldman
Rebecca Feldman is the conceiver of The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee for which she won a Lucille Lortel Award, Drama Desk and Tony Nomination for Best Musical. She directed its world premiere at Barrington Stage Company in the summer of 2004. Rebecca is Associate Producer on TRANSPARENT, the MUSICAL FINALE and served as Staff Writer on the finale as well. She is currently developing an episodic drama with Big Kid Pictures, called LA COYOTE, which has been selected to the WeForShe’s 2019 Writeher List. She is an alumna of the Lincoln Center Director's Lab as well as the AFI Directing Workshop for Women where she won the Jean Firstenburg Award for Best Short. Her short films include, MY FIRST TIME DRIVING (AFI Jean Firstenburg Award, Best Short at Lake Arrowhead Film Fest, Best of Shorts at Outfest), A/V CLUB (TV Pilot, NYTVF), UBER ALICE (Woodstock Film Fest), DEAD CAT (Producer, Tribeca Film Fest) and IRVING (Official Selection Rhode Island Film Fest, Official Selection USA Film Fest, Ft. Lauderdale Film Fest, Atlanta Jewish Film Fest).
William Finn
Mr. Finn is the writer and composer of Falsettos, for which he received two Tony Awards, Best Book of a Musical (with James Lapine) and Best Original Score. He has also written and composed In Trousers, March of the Falsettos and Falsettoland (Outer Critics Circle Award for Best Musical, two Los Angeles Drama Critic's Awards, two Drama Desk Awards, the Lucille Lortel Award, and Guggenheim Fellowship in Musical Composition). Mr. Finn wrote the lyrics to Graciela Daniele's Tango Apasionado (music by the great Astor Piazzolla) and, with Michael Starobin, the music to Lapine's version of The Winter's Tale. His musical, Romance in Hard Times, was presented at the Public Theater. Recently, he wrote Painting You for Love's Fire, a piece commissioned and performed bye the Acting Company, based on Shakepeare's sonnets. For television, Mr. Finn provided the music and lyrics for the Ace Award-winning HBO cartoon "Ira Sleeps Over," "Tom Thumb and Thumbelina," "Pokey Little Puppy's First Christmas," and, with Ellen Fitzhugh, two "Brave little Toaster" cartoons. Mr. Finn has written for Vogue, Harper's Bazaar, and The New Yorker. A graduate of Williams College where he was awarded the Hutchinson Fellowship for Musical Composition, Finn now teaches a weekly master class at the NYU Tisch Graduate Program in Musical Theatre Writing. His most recent projects include Elegies, A Song Cycle (Lincoln Center) and The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee which ran on Broadway and has been produced nationally and internationally, as well.
Rachel Sheinkin
Broadway: The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee (Tony, Drama Desk awards); Off Broadway: Striking 12 (Lucille Lortel nomination), Off-Off: Serenade. Regional: Guthrie, Little House on the Prairie; Center Theater Group, Sleeping Beauty Wakes(Los Angeles Ovation Award); London: Blood Drive. Residencies, fellowships, commissions include: Eugene O'Neill National Theater Center, Baryshnikov Dance Foundation, MacDowell Colony, Manhattan Theatre Club, Deaf West, McCarter Theatre, Playwrights Horizons. Rachel is a volunteer mentor for TDF's Open Doors program, a visiting instructor at Yale School of Drama, and adjunct faculty member of NYU's Graduate Musical Theater Writing Program.
