Theater Alumni
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2010
Megan Hadley along with Kelsey Cramer ('08), Tom Frank ('10), Lauren Vick ('10) and Dionne Laviolette ('07) founded Buoyant Theater Collective in the Twin Cities. Since the summer of 2011, they have produced John Kolvenback's Love Song, Featuring Jason Andrews ('12), Cramer, Josh Vogen ('07), Emily LeClair ('08) and David Middlecamp ('01). They staged the original performance piece Mama's Boy, created and peformed by Scotty Gunderson ('10), with Clara Kundin ('12) as co-director/stage manager. In January, 2012 they staged Chekhov's classic Three Sisters, directed by Laviolette. FInd them at Buoyant Theatre.
Eric Heimsoth has been acting steadily in the Twin Cities since graduating with his St. Olaf Theater Degree. Recent credits include performances in A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum for the Jungle Theater, The 500 hats of Bartholomew Cubbins at the Children's Theatre Company, Playing Tony in West Side Story for Anoka Community Theater and Cousin Kevin in Paul Bunyan Playhouse's The Who's TOMMY, Next up Eric will appear as Schroeder in Your a Good Man Charlie Brown at Bloomington Civic Theater.
Devin Horne spent the first year after graduating from St. Olaf teaching English in Germany. He began taking classes at the Peoples Improv Theater in New York last winter. Currently Devin is working in front of the camera in student films and a web series.
Tim Otte, since graduating with a theater degree, Tim has been workshopping new plays with the Playwrights' Center in Minneapolis as well as serving as Technical Director for their annual Playlabs Festival. He worked with The Moving Company on Come Hell and High Water and with members of the Tectonic Theater on a new play by company member Leigh Fondakowski. Tim also designed lights for Upright Egg and Buoyant Theater Collective. His long poem for the theater entitled The Sometimes Grace of Saint Simon of the Water premiered at the Minnesota Fringe Festival in August 2011, directed by Ole alum Ted Eschweiler ('10). METRO magazine published his short play THE WEDDING in February 2012 and his poetry has appeared in journals such as The Alembic and The Talking Stick.
Hannah Leigh Sorenson is currently in her second year of post-graduate actor training at the Yale School of Drama, earning her MFA in Acting. This year at Yale she's worked on Macbeth, as Lady Macbeth, Angels in America: Perestroika and a new play called Outlaw Jean.
2009
Jack Adams, After working for two years at Best Buy Corporate in Richfield, Minnesota, Jack relocated to Los Angeles in the fall of 2011 to pursue work with a video game accessory company. Focusing on developing a career in the film industry, he is avidly networking around the city and laying a foundation for future endeavors while also maintaining strong ties to the St. Olaf LA alumni network.
Angela Gulner graduated from the American Repertory Theatre Institute for Advanced Theatre Training at Harvard University in 2011. Currently working as an actor in Los Angeles, she has appeared as Viola in Janos Szasz's production of Twelfth Night and is appearing in the upcoming feature film Oh Sophia.
Ross Lambrecht, after working as a directing intern at the Guthrie Theatre, Ross traveled to Germany in 2011 to work as a directing intern and performer at the National Theater Mannheim. In January he moved to New York City to pursue a career in the performing arts.
Martha Stuckey, after spending a year teaching and performing in Spain, Martha began studies in the fall of 2011 with Pig Iron Theatre's School for advanced Performance Training, a Lecoq based training program in Philadelphia, PA..
2008
Kristyn Art is the Head of Arts at Sotogrande International School in Sotogrande, Spain.
Maren Searle is pursuing her MFA through the Professional Acting Training Program at UNC-Chapel Hill.
Colin Christie, Since graduating with the St. Olaf Theater degree, Colin has worked in the professional theater as an actor, designer, and stage manager with several theater companies in three different cities: Minneapolis, Nashville and Chicago. Colin made Chicago his home in 2009, shifting gears to a career as a freelance artist and graphic designer, working with several theater companies designing scenery, show posters, logos and marketing materials. In a recent note Colin tells us, "The training and education I received pursuing the St. Olaf Theater major taught me, most importantly, to be a well-rounded artist. The liberal arts approach to the Theater major allows all students to experience every facet of the stage, from acting and directing to design and technical production. Professors encourage students to pursue all of these fields with passion, and it is one of the many reasons I feel that my St. Olaf Theater education has prepared me to be an "Artist in the Real World".
Shayna Melgaard, An American Studies major, is finding that her heavy involvement with the St. Olaf Theater has blossomed into a career in arts administration. Shayna is the Associate Manager of Production and Theater Operations for the Varsity Theater of Minneapolis. She writes, "I work in an old Art Deco Theater that has been transformed into a live music and entertainment venue. We have theater ghosts too - just like at St. Olaf!"
Nick Sahli has primarily turned his creative energy toward visual arts under the pen name 'Rossi' and has found success through several art shows in Minneapolis. His featured galleries appear on ambigram.com and tessellations.org, as well as his own website www.thatrossiart.com. Continuing with his theater interests as well, Nick finds time for improvisation at The Brave New Workshop Union on a weekly basis.
2006
Megan Hughes,completed her MFA in acting last spring at the New School for Drama. She has since been busy working on a short film in Phoeniz, AZ that is scheduled to be submitted to various festivals. This winter, Megan will be back in NYC to continue auditioning.
Eva Nelson served as an acting apprentice at the Great River Shakespeare Festival after graduation. She also worked at a number of Minneapolis theaters including Frank Theatre and the Gremlin Theater. Shifting gears toward a career in education, Eva is currently pursuing a MEd (Life Science) degree. Her stage time will serve her well with a daily audience of high school science students soon to come!
Matt Trucano is the Artistic Director/Co-Founder of Chicago's Bricklayers Theater Company. Matt tells us, "My work in the theater department and in the college as a BA student prepared me really well for many of the ins and outs of working in the theatre, specifically in the young life a of a professional ensemble." In the spring of 2011 the Bricklayers traveled from Chicago to Minneapolis for a run of their production of Mother Courage, featuring Barbara Berlovitz and directed by Marianna Araoz, focusing on extensive mask work with her Paris company.
Max Wojtanowicz, After earning his theater major at St. Olaf, Max spent two years in the performing apprenticeship program at Minneapolis' Children's Theatre. Now a freelance actor and singer who has worked with many area theaters, Max was featured as Cliff in Frank Theatre's production of Cabaret in the spring of 2011. Max played the Tin Man for the Children's Theatre company's holiday 2011 offering. The winter of 2012 will find him playing Christopher Wren for Shadowplay Theatre's production of The Mousetrap, at the Minneapolis Theatre Garage. Max also workshopped pieces for Theatre Latte Da's Prosody songwriting initiative that pairs local composers and lyricists for the purpose of creating new music theater songs.
2005
Ryan Shipley appeared in the Minneapolis Musical Theatre production of Zanna, Don’t! in June 2009. This was Shipley’s fifth production with the Minneapolis Musical Theatre. He also performed in MMT’s production of The Secret Garden in March, 2009. He has appeared on stage in numerous plays and musicals with theater groups throughout Minnesota. He also has served as Dance Captain, Assistant Director or Director for productions performed at the St. Olaf Theatre, Bloomington Civic Theatre, Theatre Limina and the Minneapolis Fringe Festival. In 2005, he was a directing intern for the Guthrie Theater’s production of A Christmas Carol.
2004
Elizabeth Braaten Palmieri recently moved to Columbia, Missouri for her husband's position at the University of Missouri. Early spring 2011 she performed in a production of Proof directed by St. Olaf alum Emily Rollie, a Ph.D candidate in the Theatre Department at MU. Elizabeth is also employed by TRYPS Children's Theatre where she teaches classes and has directed Seussical, The Musical and As You Like It.
Maren Bush has since earned an MFA in Acting at the University of California, San Diego. She is now a freelance actor living in Brooklyn, NY. In the fall of 2012, Maren found herself on the set of a new mini-series called The Men Who Built Amerca, playing Margaret Carnegie, mother of Andrew Carnegie. The piece will air in 2012 on The History Channel.
Kira Lace Hawkins is completing her third and final year toward the Master of Fine Arts in Acting at Penn State University. She plans to jump into the Chicago Theater scene after graduation. Through the Penn State program, Kira has studied for a month in London, performed in the National Arts Festival in South Africa and studied film for two weeks in Toronto. Last year Kira received Penn's Manuel Duque Award for excellence in acting.
Laura Holway is a freelance choreographer and arts educator living and working in Minneapolis. She was the recipient of the 2011 Red Eye Theatre Isolated Act Award, through which her evening-length work entitled I Like You was produced.
2003
Karen Dabney received her MFA in Directing from New School for Drama, NYC and is currently working towards a PhD in Theater History at the University of Colorado-Boulder. Recalling her time at St. Olaf, Karen says, "Being a part of the theater community, even though I wasn't a theater major, meant the world to me. I didn't have the confidence to pursue a BA inTheater, but since St. Olaf, my world has revolved around theater. Thanks for starting the fire!"
Kristin Franklin-Hammergren, has performed at a variety of regional theaters and festivals around the country including the Guthrie Theatre, Actors Theater of Louisville, Pangea World Theater, Chicago's Akvavit Theater Company, The New York Fringe Festival and The Humana Festival. She also performed as an associate company member for the Asolo Repertory Theater in 2009-2010. Kristin received her MFA in acting from the FSU/Asolo Conservatory for Actor Training in 2010. Also a playwright, one of the plays Kirstin co-wrote "Life in the Middle" is published by Playscripts, Inc. She is currently living and working in Chicago and writing her third play.
Alex Morf earned a double major in Theater and English while at St. Olaf and also succeeded as a nationally ranked wrestler. He holds an MFA in acting from the American Conservatory Theater in San Francisco. Alex is a full-time actor based in New York City and has worked at regional theaters across the country including: American Conservatory Theater, California Shakespeare Theater, Shakespeare Theater of New Jersy, Children's Theater Company, Frank Theater as well as in television and off-Broadway. Alex recently opened to rave reviews for his work in the Actors Theater of Louisville's Dracula.
David Wagner followed his St. Olaf Theater degree as an acting apprentice with the Actors Theater of Louisville. Since then, he has earned a master's degree in international education while serving as Associate Dean of Admissions for St. Olaf College. Dave played a big part in the inauguration of the St. Olaf Merit Scholarship in Theater, new in 2010.
Erik Wallin, Shortly after graduating from St. Olaf, an internship at Washington D.C.'s Kennedy Center for the Arts turned into a key position on the performance currating staff. This position took Erik around the world scouting cutting edge works to bring to American Audiences. In 2010, Erik became General Manager of New York's famed St. Anne's Warehouse Theatre, another leader in innovative international theater programming.
2002
Kristina Mitchell received her graduate degree in acting from the London Academy of Music and Drama (LAMDA) and is now acting in Los Angeles. She also produces the Vagina Monologues each year (her first production was part of St. Olaf's Quade One Act Festival) the proceedes of which go to various charities. Last year she raised over $3,000 for Darfur.
2000
Kurt Anderson is a Los Angeles based actor who has appeared on Ugly Betty, Big Love, Veronica Mars and Parenthood, among many other television shows. He was also seen in the fourth installment of the Die Hard Series, titled Live Free or Die Hard. Kurt continues to be involved in Parson's Nose Productions, a theater company that adapts classic theater (Shakespeare, Moliere, etc.) to 50 minute productions and then tours to elementary schools. It is a very popular program that is funded and run by the Geffen Theater, where the pieces also perform as part of their Saturday Series for young audiences. Additionally, Kurt produces through his company, Should Productions. Check out more on his IMDBpage . From Kurt, "Thanks so much to all of you for the continued support and love that you send me. I feel truly blessed to have all of you in my life."
1999
Todd Coulter is an Assistant Professor ot Theatre and Dance at Colby College in Waterville, ME.
1990
Doug Scholz-Carlson earned an MFA in acting from the Professional Actor Training Program at the University of Washington, Seattle, in 1994. He is Associate Producing Director, acting company member and Fight Choreographer for Winona's Great River Shakespeare Festival. Doug's work as a fight choreographer has also been featured in Minnesota Opera's world premier of Silent Night. The St. Paul Pioneer Press wrote of his work, "...the opera's opening battle, which is one of the the most vivid and breathtaking pieces of stagecraft to ever grace the Ordway Stage." Upcoming projects for Doug include sirecting Lucia di Lammermoor for Austin Lyric Opera of Texas, playing Dromio of Syracuse in The Comedy of Errors at the Repertory Theater of St. Louis, and working on King Lear and The Compleat Wrks of Wllm Shkspr (Abridged) for the Great River Shakespeare Festival's 2012 Season.
