TEACHING ARTISTS

Chris Joyce is a screenwriter, playwright, producer, director and actor based in Georgetown. A graduate of The American Academy of Dramatic Arts and a member of the Actors’ Equity Association, Chris went on to act in regional productions such as South Pacific, Grease, and As You Like It. He also guest starred in a classic episode of NBC’s Family Ties called “4 Rms Ocn Vu”, as well as the CBS soap Capitol. He then segued to a brief career as a stand-up comic, before writing and directing two full length plays, Jerusalem Avenue and Kill Switch, the latter of which he adapted for the screen as the film Ghosts Never Sleep, starring Tony Goldwyn, Faye Dunaway and Sean Young. The film won best screenplay at the Long Island Film Festival. His short film about high school speech and debate, Forensics, appeared at a mockumentary film festival, Mockfest.

Daniel Pintauro is best known for his eight year run as Jonathan Bower on ABC-TV’s Who’s The Boss?. He began his professional acting career at the age of 2 as a model and commercial actor, at age 3 he began a 5 year contract role on CBS-TV’s daytime drama As the World Turns, which was followed by his acclaimed film debut as Tad in Stephen King’s “Cujo.” Theater credits include “Gross Indecency: The Three Trials of Oscar Wilde,” and Puck in Hangar Theater’s production of “A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Allen Ginsberg in the acclaimed “beat” in the New York International Fringe Festival, and most recently played the lead role of Tony Whitcomb in the longest running play in U.S. history – “Shear Madness.” Daniel made his professional New York debut at The Duplex in the one man show” The Velocity Of Gary (Not His Real Name).” He is a graduate of Stanford University with a degree in Directing from the Drama Department with a minor in English.

Originally from southern Connecticut, Jamee graduated from the University of Texas at Austin with a BFA in Theatre. She has since completed a master’s degree and a Doctorate in Higher Education with an emphasis in Performance. Jamee has worked in the Theatre world in Austin for over 25 years. She has enjoyed directing both professional and educational productions. Her work includes Having Our Say, Brighton Beach Memoirs, Wings, Shadow Box, Godspell, Grease, The Miracle Worker, Our Town, and The Crucible as well as many other classic and original productions. She was a long time Theatre instructor for both AISD and Austin Community College. And she is currently teaching Theatre courses for Temple College. Jamee has also been active in Austin’s Film industry for over fourteen years. She is the founder and Executive Director of The Attic Film Fest and has produced and directed Documentaries and Short Films. She has served as a Casting Assistant for Casting Agent Beth Sepko and Third Coast Extras for productions such as: Second Hand Lions, Spy Kids III Video, and PBS’s Photo Novelas, among others. Jamee was also honored to serve on the Board of Reel Women, a local non-profit organization for women in the film, television and video industry.

Kali McBurney Taha is a New Jersey native and newcomer to Georgetown. She is a 2013 graduate of New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts with a BFA in Drama and a lifelong lover of musical theatre. She has enjoyed performing in various original works in New York City, as well as singing in the choir for the Off-Broadway production of Lucas Hnath’s “The Christians” at Playwrights Horizons. Before moving to Texas, Kali worked for Wingspan Arts, an arts enrichment organization in New York City, where she organized after-school programming for several public schools. Catch Kali onstage at the Palace in many productions!!

Kathryn Sterling, called Mrs. Kat by her younger students, is an Actor, Artist, Writer, Director, Professional Balloon Twister and Teacher of Improvisation, Playwriting, Acting, Audition Technique, and Meisner Studies. A 2001 graduate and former Company member of The American Academy of Dramatic Arts, Kat found from a young age that her gift was her imagination. As a Teaching Artist for The Georgetown Palace, Zach, and the brand new Hutto Community Education Program, Mrs. Kat strives to encourage the imaginations of Theatre students of all ages and nurture a life long love of Theatre and an appreciation of the Arts. Kat is Vice-President and Visual Arts representative on the Board of Directors of Hutto Arts Today. She has directed numerous plays, including Amadeus, The Foreigner, and Aladdin Jr. Her latest acting roles include originating the role of Agatha in Tristan Mercado’s Trolls, a Wild Card pick for FronteraFest at Hyde Park Theatre, Mrs. Dunbar in Footloose at the Palace, and Rona Lisa Peretti in The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, which she also directed.

Molly is excited to join the Georgetown theatre community. She has been acting and writing in the Austin area for the last 8 years. Her recent acting credits include Pocatello, Waiting for Lefty and The Great God Pan (Street Corner Arts), Middletown (Hyde Park Theatre), Going with Jenny (Penfold), Trevor (Cap T), As You Like it (Shrewd Productions), and I Heart Wal-Mart (Cap T). She has also written and performed 3 one person plays Actor of the Year, Lady Without a Baby, and MS, which was selected as Best of the Fest for FronteraFest. Before coming to the Austin area, Molly received her M.F.A. in Acting from the University of Arkansas and before that her B.F.A in Acting from Avila University.

Nikki has been entertaining people for as long as she can remember. She grew up doing community theatre in and around Park City and Salt Lake City, Utah, and went on to graduate with a degree in Communication and Film from the University of Southern California. Now an Equity actor, she has performed in regional productions of To Kill A Mockingbird and The Miracle Worker. Nikki earned her SAG/AFTRA card co-starring in shows like The Gilmore Girls, The Young and the Restless, Promised Land and Touched by an Angel. Nikki is thrilled to be a part of the Georgetown Palace community and to pass on her love of the performing arts to others who are interested in the entertainment industry.

Rob Nash’s solo theatre and standup comedy have been seen internationally at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe, The Montreal Comedy Arts Festival, Atlantis Cruise Lines and the New York off-Broadway venue Ars Nova. He’s been featured on Comedy Central and VH1. Under the direction of Jeff Calhoun (Newsies, Bonnie and Clyde, High School Musical, High School Musical II, Grease, Gray Gardens, Brooklyn and Broadway’s Deaf West Production of Big River), Rob’s magnum opus, Holy Cross Sucks! received its World Premiere off-Broadway production, at Ars Nova (K-Pop, Natasha, Pierre and the Great Comet of 1812), and enjoyed 14 rave reviews, including The New York Times, and won Top 10 Broadway and off-Broadway shows of 2005 by Time Out New York Magazine. Holy Cross Sucks! was shot as a TV comedy special last December at Austin’s VORTEX. Rob studied musical theatre at Theatre Under the Stars’ Humphries School of Musical Theatre in Houston, Texas. Rob began his standup and improv work in Austin’s Laff Stop (now Capitol City Comedy Club) and Velveeta Room. He has lived in Houston, Los Angeles, San Francisco, New York and now resides in his second hometown, Austin. Rob is currently an MFA graduate student at Texas State University studying Dramatic Writing. He has taught acting, improv, sketch, standup comedy and character work at CAP 21 Studios at NYU, St. Edwards University in Austin, and The Straz Center for the Performing Arts in Tampa, Theatre Under the Stars in Houston, Zachary Scott Theatre in Austin and the Palace in Georgetown. He has 10 cumulative years of K-12 teaching as a Theatre teacher, a Special Education teaching assistant and a substitute.

Sarah Anne Hoagland is excited to be back for another season with the Palace Education Department! You can find Sarah Anne onstage, backstage, and teaching around the Palace! Sarah Anne is a graduate of the Professional Program at Broadway Dance Center NYC (concentrating in Musical Theatre & Tap). While in NYC, Sarah Anne trained under Richard J. Hinds (Newsies), Charlie Sutton (Kinky Boots), Justin Boccitto, and Nick Kenkel (Legally Blonde). Sarah Anne also holds a BA/BS in Dance Performance and Hospitality/Event Management from Texas Tech University, where she graduated with top honors and was the banner bearer for The College of Visual and Performing Arts. During her time at Tech, Sarah received many choreography awards from peers and faculty. Sarah Anne was a member of The Texas Tech Dance Company and Vice President of Chi Tau Epsilon. Sarah Anne also had the opportunity to represent Tech and perform at informal and gala concerts of the American College Dance Festival. You can catch Sarah Anne in Season Two of ‘Rockette Summer Intensive’ on the MSG varsity channel, where her time with the Rockettes is featured. During her time with the Rockettes, Sarah trained under Eileen Grace, Kristin Altfather, and Annie Gibbons-Syke. Sarah Anne also has trained heavily under Acia Gray of Tapestry Dance Company and incorporates Acia’s tap syllabus into her teaching methods. For more information on Sarah Anne visit: www.sarahannehoagland.com

Jesee is originally from Chicago, IL. She has studied dance for more than 20 years under various professionals including Lisa Boehm (Ballet), Frank Boehm (Jazz), Randall Newsom (Ballet, Graham Technique), Judith Chitwood (Ballet, Horton Technique), Paula Frasz (Modern, Tap, Musical Theatre), Karen Williamson (Ballet, Modern), Lila Dole (Spanish), Danny Herman (Broadway Jazz, Tap), Rocker Verastique (Broadway Jazz), Kenney DeCamp (Jazz, Performance), and Joel Hall (Jazz). Jesee moved to Austin in 2006 after graduating from Northern Illinois University with a Bachelor of Science in Business Management (Human Resources) and a Bachelor of the Fine Arts in Dance Performance and Education. She currently choreographs and performs in and around Austin, including multiple performances per year at the Georgetown Palace Theatre. Jesee taught ballet, pointe, modern, tap, and jazz for ten years prior to moving to Austin. She was a founding member of the award winning competition group “Petite Feet” with DancEncounter in Geneva, IL. While attending Northern Illinois University, Jesee was the director and producer of Art for Life, an AIDS benefit concert associated with Dance for Life in Chicago.

Brittany Johnson is a dance educator and choreographer with a BFA (Bachelor of Fine Arts) in Dance and a Minor in Management from Sam Houston State University. Brittany began dancing at the age of three in Austin. She has advanced training in ballet, tap, jazz, modern, contemporary, hip-hop, improvisation, partnering, and Pilates. Brittany has performed for notable artists such as Andy Noble, Dionne Sparkman Noble, Dana Nicolay, Evelyn Toh, and Vincent Calleros. She performed at The Vortex Theatre as a part of The Austin Tap Ensemble and danced professionally for Nicolay Dance Works in “A Wynne Home Alice.” Brittany also performed in two works at the American College Dance Association (ACDA) South-Central Conference, both of which were chosen for the ACDA Gala Concert. In addition to performing, Brittany presented her own choreography in several shows at SHSU, and set work at McNeil High School on both the McNeil Majestics and the McNeil Sapphire Dancers. Brittany is a strong believer in fostering a love of dance within her students and is excited to share her passion for the art form.

Rose holds a Bachelor of Music degree in Vocal Performance from Central Washington University. She has numerous musical theatre performance credits including ten productions with the Palace Theatre. Favorite Palace roles include flying across the stage as Peter in Peter Pan and rockin’ out as Shulie in School House Rock Live. Rose is also an active music director, most recently serving as MD for Palace productions of West Side Story and Annie. She has served as music director for several Palace Education shows and loves working with the students in these programs. Rose is a member of the National Association of Teachers of Singing and has been teaching singing for over a decade.

Veronica DeSantos Ryan has been performing in various ways since before the age of ten, and can often be seen on stage here at The Palace. Veronica has a degree in Journalism from Ohio University with specializations in English, Music, Theatre, and Dance. She is a former Teach For America alumni and a former middle school Language Arts teacher. She has worked in Round Rock ISD, and in South Texas in Brownsville ISD and Harlingen CISD as a teacher, athletic coach, and academic teams coach. While in Harlingen, Veronica had the privilege of helping to direct the music for The Little Mermaid Jr. for Harlingen High School South, as well as spending a summer teaching music with the Summer on Stage daytime performance camp for HCISD. She also performed in various community theatre productions in South Texas as well as sang with the South Texas Chorale. In the Austin area, she is currently a performing princess for Lexi’s Little Princesses, a member of the Songs for Young Whippersnappers entertainment group, and a member of the vintage singing trio The Vintage Dreams. She loves bringing her passion of music and acting to children of all ages.

Leah Knight began her classical studies at the age of three with violin, piano and voice lessons. Ms. Knight began her professional music career as a recording artist, recording country and gospel albums for Nashville studios and Armed Forces Radio. Leah has performed as soloist in the Austin area and by invitation at international venues including the Moscow Conservatory of Music, Russia. Her most notable roles include “Virtu” from L’incoronazione di Poppea, “Tatiana” from Eugene Onegin, “Die Erste Dame” from Die Zauberflöte (Salzburg, Austria), “La Contessa” from Le nozze di Figaro, Nella in Johnny Schicchi , title role in Suor Angelica and “Martha” in A Secret Garden for which she won a Best Actress in a Supporting Role “Sammy” award. Leah completed her Bachelor’s under the University of Texas’s Martha Deatherage and her Master’s in Music under Rose Taylor with the role of “Tatiana” in Tchaikovsky’s Eugene Onegin, in tandem with a disquisition on Tatiana’s literary origins, serving as her Master’s Thesis. Ms. Knight began her professional opera career with Sarasota Opera and Des Moines Metro Opera. Leah most recently performed “Alice” in Falstaff with Spotlight on Opera and soprano soloist for Mozart’s REQUIEM with St. William Symphony. She maintains a busy teaching and performance schedule while Music/Vocal Director for CYT Austin and the Georgetown Palace Theater Education. Any free time is spent learning new instruments, recording, and enjoying her two sons, and daughter. Leah looks forward to getting to know the up and coming talent at the Georgetown Palace Theater!

Ms. Stokes has been a featured soloist at the Royal Academy of Music in Paris, France, Heidelberg, Germany, Belfaux, Switzerland, the Los Angeles Premiere Chorale, the Cambridge Singers, and locally with Austin Vocal Arts Ensemble, Austin Choral Society for Sacred Music and the Austin Singers. Ms. Stokes has sung under the baton of world famous conductors including Zubin Mehta, Andre Previn, Simon Rattle, Gerard Schwartz, and Roger Wagner while a member of the L. A. Master Chorale. She has sung with artists Jessye Norman, Florence Quivar, Frederica Von Stade, Dawn Upshaw and others. She also sang on the internationally award winning recording of Alexander Nevsky by Prokofiev with Andre Previn conducting the Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra as a member of the Los Angeles Master Chorale. Locally, she has sung with Chorus Austin with Ryan Heller, Conductor and as guest artists of Austin Symphony with Peter Bay, Conductor. Opera roles include Sister Angelica, “Suor Angelica”, Countess, “Le Nozze de Figaro”, Elsa, “Lohengrin” and musical theater highlights include Mother Superior, “Nunsense”, Hodel, “Fiddler On the Roof”, and Sister Margaretta, “Sound of Music”. Ms. Stokes instructed children for commercials spotlighting Stevie Wonder. She has taught as an adjunct voice professor at Mary Hardin Baylor and for Tarleton Central Texas.

Sabrina is a local vocal and violin private instructor, choir director, and performer with a Bachelor of Music Degree in Choral Studies with a Vocal Performance Certificate from the University of Texas at Austin. HOOK’EM!! She started singing publicly at the age of fourteen but has been immersed in the musical world, both classical and popular, at age four. Sabrina began performing in musicals in high school and immediately caught the bug. During her senior year of high school, Sabrina auditioned and won the regional awards (Joci Awards) in San Antonio which took her to the National High School Musical Theatre Awards (The Jimmy Awards) in NYC where she made her Broadway debut. Sabrina is a veteran actress of the Palace Theatre having performed in several shows such as West Side Story as Maria, Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat as the Narrator, Miss Nelson is Missing as Cheryl, and Tarzan to name a few. She loves sharing her passion for music to all her students and has recently directed a few musicals- Aladdin Jr.; Rogers and Hammerstein’s Cinderella. Sabrina hopes to dive more into the musical arts and change the world one note at a time.

Roxane moved to Georgetown in 2002 from Indiana. She first experienced theater in high school in six different musicals. She has a B.S. in Chemical Engineering from Purdue and a M.A. in Counseling from Liberty University. Roxane has also trained in dance and piano. She has professional experience teaching both children and adults. In addition, she has worked with Autistic children using Rapid Prompting Method (RPM), Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) and the Son-Rise Program from the Option Institute.

Trina has been performing in and around Austin since she was 7. A regular performer at the Palace, she was the driving force behind creating the Inclusion shows for the theatre. Trina also is a mother to a young adult with Autism. Her son graduated from high school on the honor roll despite being minimally verbal. Trina attended Blinn Junior College and majored in Theatre and on a scholarship for French Horn. When not on stage she keeps busy writing and was published in local newsletters and The Austin American Statesman. She looks forward to engaging the minds and unique personalities of this group and encouraging them to explore the gift of expression.

Bert Keefer knew from a young age that Theatre was his business. He is an Actor, Foam Smith, Props Master, and Director. Bert specializes in special effects makeup ,prosthetics and mold casting, foam smithing, character development, voice acting, acting, and audition technique. Bert has directed numerous plays, including Aladdin, Barefoot in the Park, and The Addams Family: The Musical. His latest acting roles include William Barfee from The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, Ezekiel Foster from White Christmas, Edna Turnblad from Hairspray, and Uncle Fester from The Addams Family: The Musical. Bert is also Vice-President on the Board of Directors of Hutto Arts Today. He is excited for the opportunity to work with the Georgetown Palace.

Courtney Satterfield is very excited to be joining the Georgetown Palace Theatre community. A native of nearby Hutto, Courtney graduated from Stephen F. Austin State University with a BA in Theatre and a teaching certification. Courtney has acted as Stage Manager and Assistant Stage Manager for numerous Palace productions and looks forward to continuing to do so. Courtney has also designed sets and lights, created props, and acted as light and spotlight operators for various productions.

Teaching Artists (New)

TEACHING ARTISTS

Chris Joyce

Daniel Pintauro

Dr. Jamee Kennedy

Kali McBurney-Taha

Kathryn Sterling

Molly Fonseca

Nikki Wheaton

Rob Nash

Sarah Anne Hoagland

Jesee Smart

Brittany Johnson

Rose Yurcina

Veronica Ryan

Leah Knight

Sarah Stokes

Sabrina Mari Uriegas

Roxane Dahl

Trina Sherman

Bert Keefer

Courtney Satterfield

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