Amahl -- David Falatok is a sixth-grader at St. Sebastian School in Akron who makes his Weathervane debut with this production. For the past four years, he has been a member of the St. Paul’s Choir of Men and Boys, a Royal School of Church Music-affiliated choir in residence at St. Paul’s Episcopal Church in Akron. He is proud to have attended a RSCM singing course for men and boys in Montreal, Canada. He lives in Akron.
Mother -- Jean Blair has enjoyed a multiple-decade relationship with Weathervane. Most recently, she was the Mother Superior in the 2006 production of The Sound of Music, for which audiences awarded her the Chanticleer for Best Featured Actress in a Musical. Most recently, she appeared in the ensemble of Sweeney Todd at the University of Akron School of Music, on whose faculty she serves as a special lecturer/voice teacher. Also at UA in the recent past, she appeared in Side by Side by Sondheim and Kiss Me, Kate. Longtime residents of this region may recall seeing her in several Kenley Players productions: she was Anna Leonowens in The King and I, the Inkeeper’s Wife in Man of La Mancha and Sister Berthe in The Sound of Music (the latter role being one she got to repeat in a Goodyear Community Theater production of the same show). She lives in Akron.
King Kaspar -- Daniel Doty is a tenor who is equally at home on the opera, theatre or concert stage. He has sung the role of Kaspar in Bowling Green and Toledo as well as Chicago. He has appeared with the symphonies in Muncie, Indiana; Urbana, Illinois; Marion, Ohio; and with Ohio community bands in Medina and Wadsworth. His performances have found him in a variety of settings from church sanctuaries to concert halls, and at such locations as the Celle di Puccini (Puccini’s summer home) and Severance Hall. As participant of the Opera Theatre and Music Festival of Lucca, Daniel spent six weeks in the Tuscan village of Lucca (Italy) singing operatic arias at various venues associated with Lucca's most famous son, Giacomo Puccini. He has appeared in master classes with such Metropolitan Opera stars as Martina Arroyo and Angela Brown. A past guest artist with the Masterworks Festival, Daniel worked with David Geier, Assistant Conductor for the New York Philharmonic Orchestra. Daniel holds a bachelor of music education degree from Bowling Green State University. He is also an ordained minister and holds a Master of Divinity degree from Garrett-Evangelical Theological Seminary, Evanston, Illinois. Currently, Daniel is senior minister at Trinity United Church of Christ in Wadsworth. He lives in Wadsworth with his wife, Amy, and their children, Kristian, Sean, and Kaetlyn.
King Melchior -- Paul Kroeger has performed dozens of roles in Broadway musicals and in operas for over 30 years in Northeast Ohio, New York City and London. He has been seen as Sky Masterson in Guys and Dolls, MacHeath in The Threepenny Opera, Cervantes/Quixote in Man of La Mancha and in such operas as The Marriage of Figaro, Carmen, La Traviata and Don Pasquale. He holds a bachelor’s in instrumental music education from Baldwin-Wallace College and a master’s in vocal music from the Cleveland Institute of Music. He teaches voice and trombone privately and maintains a small business, Meistersinger Decorating, named after the opera about tradesmen who sing. He lives in Cleveland.
King Balthazar -- Willyum R. Warren, Jr., makes his first Weathervane appearance with this production. He is the co-founder and co-owner of WAF (We Are Family) Enterprises, a professional speaking/performing business that offers motivation and counseling to families and children through words and music. He is also the creator of TWWE, the Willyum Warren Experience, a business he started to promote himself as a performer, entertainer and motivational speaker. As the first African-American firefighter/paramedic hired by the city of Cuyahoga Falls, he shares stories of breaking the color barrier that make audiences laugh, cry and reflect on their own lives. Born and raised in Harlem, New York, he studied music at the City College of New York. He has appeared on a variety of local stages in a number of roles: Laughter on the 23rd Floor (Kent Stage), The Sam Cooke Story (the Cleveland Play House) and Say It with Music (North Canton Playhouse). He now calls Akron his home, which he shares with his wife, Anita Warren, and their children, Tasha and Tyler. He says his goal is to retire in 2008 and then perform on a full-time basis.
Page -- Rufus Malone will be familiar to Weathervane audiences who enjoyed his performance last season in Smokey Joe’s Café. He is a self-employed actor/director with credits at the Cleveland Play House and Playhouse Square Center's Ohio Theater among others. He lives in Akron.
The Shepherds
Emily -- Renee Armbruster makes her Weathervane debut with this production, but she is no stranger to the stage. She returns to the stage after a nearly 20-year absence, during which she has followed her sons with all their various sports and activities. Her performance credits include several productions at the late Goodyear Community Theatre, including Fraulein Kost in Cabaret as well as roles in How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying, Oklahoma! and A Chorus Line. Off the stage, she holds a bachelor’s in sociology/criminal justice from the University of Akron, is employed as youth coordinator for the city of Stow, and sings in her church’s choir. She enjoys travelling with her husband, Kevin, and sons, Kyle and Cory, on their annual summer trips to Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, as well as a recent favorite excursion to Kauai, Hawaii. She lives in Tallmadge.
Michael -- Michael J. Griffith, Jr., is an Akron resident whose last two stage roles were at Copley High School, where he played Jud Fry in Oklahoma! in 2003 and Nicely-Nicely Johnson in Guys and Dolls in 2002. His performance resume also includes a role in Cinderalla at Our Lady of the Elms High School in Akron. He studied computers/information systems at the University of Akron and puts these skills to work each day in the field of tech support for Teleperformance in Akron.
Bartholomew -- Karl Wortman last appeared on stage at the Akron Civic Theatre in the 2006 outing of the annual Christmas Music Spectacular under the direction of Larry Wilgus. He cut his theatrical teeth in several high school musicals, including Lil’ Abner, She Loves Me, Godspell and A Little Night Music. While serving in the United States Air Force, he also played Bob Cratchit in a production of A Christmas Carol and performed with Band Wagon, a traveling music group. He and wife Marilyn live in Akron and have four children – Marcie, Michelle, Tiffany and Nathain. This former high school student of Amahl… director Sandra J. Schlub is a deacon for his church and is employed in the shipping department of the Akron headquarters of Coltene/Whaledent, an international manufacturer of dental products.
Dorothy -- Barbara Trotter gets to wear a “different hat” with this production as she is also employed by Weathervane as its Volunteer Coordinator. She holds an M.A. in Communications from the New York Institue of Technology. She teaches speech and communication courses at Stark State College of Technology in North Canton. Barb began volunteering with Weathervane Community Playhouse in 2000, working backstage on props crews. She designed costumes for the productions of Arsenic and Old Lace and Proof, both in 2003. She served as the costume coordinator for Weathervane's May 2006 production of Angels in America: Perestroika and was lighting designer of the 2007 production of String of Pearls. A member of the Weathervane Women’s Board, Barb lives in Akron.
Peter -- William Hamilton is a freshman at the University of Akron majoring in international business. He is a graduate of Archbishop Hoban High School in Akron, where he took to the stage in such productions as Mame, Into the Woods, How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying, Ten Little Indians, Honk!, Arsenic and Old Lace and Godspell. Most recently, he appeared as part of the ensemble in Sweeney Todd at the University of Akron. For Morrison Playmakers in Seville, he was the keyboardist for productions of Honk! and The Jungle Book. His hobbies include piano, singing, speaking Spanish and study-abroad programs. He lives in Clinton.
Evangeline -- Sue Smith makes her debut on the Weathervane stage with this production, but she has been involved behind the scenes for the past nine years in a variety of roles. If you call the Box Office for tickets on a Monday or Tuesday, chances are it will be Sue who takes your ticket order. She also chairs the theater’s auditions committee, greeting and signing the hopeful throngs who come to audition for plays and musicals. This Weathervane Women’s Board member serves frequently as a house manager, usher, Boutique volunteer and she has served on committees for the gala, Chanticleer and the search committee for the theater’s executive director. Outside of Weathervane, she has sung in church choir for 31 years and with the now-disbanded Chansonettes Women’s Ensemble. Her hobbies include music, theater and films, volunteerism and travel. A native of Altoona, Pennsylvania, she and husband Richard raised three children (two boys, one girl) and have called Cuyahoga Falls home for many years.
Benjamin -- Tom Boyes is a registered nurse by trade but has many performance credits on his resume. Most recently, he appeared in the Hiram College production of The Music Man. Since 1995, he has sung with the Ravenna Community Choir. He enjoyed a nine-year stint playing Santa Claus for the city of Ravenna and served for six years as the emcee of the Ravenna Balloon A-Fair. He lives in Kent.
Lucas -- Bogdan Pecic returns to Weathervane after a decade’s absence. His three previous Weathervane roles were all written by William Shakespeare: The Taming of the Shrew, The Merry Wives of Windsor and Julius Caesar. His other stage credits include On Golden Pond at Stow Players as well as various theatrical programs at The Chapel in Akron. He graduated with a bachelor’s in accounting from the University of Akron and holds a master’s in hospital administration from the University of Pittsburgh. He is employed by Summa Health System as a registered nurse. He and his wife, Barbara, are the parents of three children and grandparents to five (with one more on the way!). He lives in Cuyahoga Falls.
Elizabeth -- La’Nette Searcy A newcomer to Weathervane, she is a junior at Kent State University working toward her bachelor’s degree in musical theater. At KSU, she has appeared in several productions, including Lysistrata, Hai, 365 Plays/365 Days, Rosencrantz & Guildenstern Are Dead and Jar the Floor. This Cincinnati native lives in Kent.
Carolyn -- Patty McQuaide is a newcomer to the Weathervane stage whose offstage employment is with Fifth Third Bank, where she serves as the lead customer-service representative. She and her husband, Norm, have two children (Scott and Megan) and they make their home in Barberton.
Matthew -- Denzel Washington is a ninth-grader at Firestone High School in Akron who makes his performance debut with this production as well as shares the stage with his mother, Nichol L. Virden. This honors student aspires to become an actor and lists singing and sports among his hobbies. He lives in Akron.
Veronica -- Tasha Tucker is a ninth-grader at Cuyahoga Fals High School and takes to the Weathervane stage for the first time with this production. At her school, she is a member of the 9th Grade Choir and recently performed in the fall play, Macbeth. With this production, she shares the stage with her father, Willyum R. Warren, Jr. She is learning to play piano and she sings with her family’s performing group, Focus, which has performed in churches, nursing homes and other venues in Akron, Cuyahoga Falls and Cincinnati. Currently, Tasha holds the title of 2007 Destiny Youth Academy Talent Show Champion. Outside of music and performing, her hobbies include drawing and writing. She loves animals and has written a book entitled Cheetah. A resident of Akron, she aspires to be an entertainer (on stage or on screen, she says).
Katherine -- Jan Good sings for the choir at Trinity United Church of Christ in Wadsworth and now lends her vocal talents to this production, her Weathervane debut. When not singing, she owns and manages Good’s Farm Produce Market and serves on the board of Medina County Educational Service Center. In this production, she shares the Weathervane stage with her husband, Dale. The couple makes their home in Medina and are parents to three grown children and grandparents to three.
Christopher -- Dale Good For his trips to Akron for rehearsals and performance, this Medina resident has enjoyed a constant driving companion in his wife, Jan, who also appears in this production. Retired from Babcock and Wilcox, he has sung with the Greater Canton Men’s Chorus and now makes his Weathervane debut as one of this prodction’s shepherds.
Babila -- Katie O’Connor is a junior at Green High School who last appeared on our stage in the winter 2007 production of Romeo and Juliet. In our 2005 production of Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, she sang and danced as one of the wives. Her other theatrical credits include many productions at the Players Guild Theatre, North Canton Playhouse, Green High School and Theater 8:15. She lives in Uniontown.
Josephine -- Elizabeth Cardarelli is a senior at Our Lady of the Elms High School in Akron who takes to the Weathervane stage for the first time with this production. At her school, she has acted in The Wind in the Willows, You Can’t Take it with You and The Really Hip Adventures of Go-Go Girl. She is also a member of the St. Cecilia Girls Choir at St. Paul’s Episcopal Church in Akron, with which she traveled to England in 2004.
Angela -- Katie Schnee is a junior at Copley High School, where she sings with the Women’s Chorus and Copley Chorale. She has appeared on stage at Weathervane in four of the past eight annual outings of Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, and her most recent role here was as Lady Montague in last spring’s Romeo and Juliet. Also on her performance resume are roles in productions at Our Lady of the Elms School and St. Hilary School. Her performances of “class A” pieces for the Ohio Music Education Association have earned her two “1” ratings for excellence in vocal performance. In her spare time, she enjoys horseback riding and Irish dancing. She aspires to attend college college in the New Mexico/Colorado region to major in veterinary studies and minor in theater. She lives in Fairlawn.
Jeremy -- Nichol L. Virden is a graduate of Akron’s Buchtel High School and makes her Weathervane debut with this production. In her off-stage time, she works for Old Republic Title. She shares the Weathervane stage proudly with her son, Denzel Washington, who is also a shepherd in this production. She and husband Randy call Akron home. In her spare time, she enjoys reading and says she loves her “real-life” roles as a mother and wife.
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