Kitchen Theatre Staff
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Rachel Lampert (Artistic Director) is a playwright, director and choreographer. Directing and theatrical choreography credits outside Ithaca include productions at Cal Rep, Arkansas Rep, Portland Stage Company, New York's Public Theatre, Mill Mountain Theatre and Hawaii Opera Theatre. Her concert dance works have been in the repertory of numerous dance companies in the U.S. and abroad.
She is active in the Ithaca arts community beyond the Kitchen, having directed and choreographed at the Hangar Theatre (director: SWEENEY TODD, FALSETTOS, THE SISTERS ROSENSWEIG, CAMELOT; choreographer: 2007 production of HAIR and the 2008 production of LES MIS). Other collaborations include: Ensemble X; Music's Recreation and the Cayuga Chamber Orchestra. Her play BET YOU CAN'T CATCH IT? was commissioned by AIDSWORK of Tompkins County as part of an educational program for teens and toured Central NY for three years. |
At the Kitchen-- Playwright: Main Stage Musicals: BED NO BREAKFAST, COMFORT FOOD, TONY & THE SOPRANO, THE ANGLE OF THE SUN AND PRECIOUS NONSENSE. Main Stage Non-musical plays: THE TRIAL, THE BOOK CLUB, FRANKENSTEIN and THE SOUP COMES LAST. Family Fare: ADVENTURE IN APARTMENT G# (WITH NATHAN HILGARTNER), EMMETT & ELLA'S BIG APPLE ESCAPADE, SCOOT, SIZZLE & SLIDE, THE MOZART MYSTERY, THE ODYSSEY parts 1 & 2, A DECEMBER SUITE, THE SISTERS FITZANDSTARTS and A CHRISTMAS CAROL, among others. Director: THE GLASS MENAGERIE, THE PRICE, MASTER CLASS, TALLEY'S FOLLY, STOP KISS, A DELICATE BALANCE, WHO'S AFRAID OF VIRGINIA WOOLF? among others.
Her trip to China in 1997 to stage WEST SIDE STORY resulted in her writing THE SOUP COMES LAST produced off-Broadway at 59E59 Theaters in Fall 2004. THE ANGLE OF THE SUN (written by Lampert & Pressgrove) was selected by the New York Musical Theatre Festival and to be presented in NYC in September 2007. Rachel is a 4-time recipient of NEA Choreography Fellowships and a CAP Individual Artist Grant. She received a SALT Award for Best Actress 2004. She attended Mount Holyoke College and has a BFA and MFA from NYU Tisch School of the Arts. Raised in Brooklyn, she moved to Ithaca as a trailing spouse right behind her husband David Squires in 1995. They enjoy a wonderful house, two terrific dogs, and the joy of having family join them in Ithaca and friends always visiting. This is her 12th season as Artistic Director – a job she truly loves. |
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Stephen
Nunley (Managing Director) was born and raised in the Buffalo area and received a B.S in Mathematics from Rensselear Polytechnic Institute. Stephen sidestepped a career as a junior high math teacher to become a modern dancer. He has danced for a variety of companies and choreographers around the world and, most notably, was a member of Rachel Lampert & Dancers during the 80's and early 90's. He later became general manager of Eighteenth & Eighth, a popular restaurant in the Chelsea area of NYC. In 2003, he combined his managerial and financial skills and moved to Ithaca to take on his current position. Although his primary responsibility is to maintain and improve the Kitchen Theatre Company's fiscal stability, he is occasionally coaxed out of the office to exercise his other talents. Over the past four seasons he has appeared in a variety of roles on and "next to" the KTC stage, including clarinetist in the chamber ensemble for THE ANGLE OF THE SUN. He currently serves on the board of the Jenna Foundation and the Downtown Ithaca Alliance, in addition to being a member of the Ithaca Rotary Club. |
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Lesley
Greene (Associate Producing Director) is in her sixth season with the Kitchen Theatre staff. Before that, she served on the Kitchen Theatre board, and before that, she completed degrees in physics, geology, and atmospheric science at Cornell University. It wasn't until a chance encounter with Rachel Lampert & Dancers in 1997 that she knew she was destined for a career in the arts!
A flutist from the age of seven, Lesley has performed with many music groups. At the Kitchen, she has composed music for eight Family Fare productions, including SCIENCE FAIR, WINTER TALES, and EMMETT & ELLA'S BIG APPLE ESCAPADE; played flute in THE MOZART MYSTERY and SCOOT, SIZZLE & SLIDE; and acted in THE TRIAL, FOOLS! SCHMOOLS!, WINTER TALES, I HAVE A SONG TO SING O!, and other productions. She is also co-founder of Porchfest, a music festival held on the porches of Fall Creek.
Her husband is Ithaca's only computer scientist/unicyclist/ukulele player, Robbert van Renesse, and they have two theatrical daughters, both at Boynton Middle School. |
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Jody Vander Yacht (Development Associate) is a transplant from Southern Michigan who loves her adopted city and adores working with her fellow staff and board members in this crazy/wonderful work environment. She earned a BA degree in Theater and Communications from Albion College, and worked in both human services management and human resources before moving to Ithaca.This is her fourth season doing grants and gifts work for the Kitchen.
Jody has acted in, directed, and produced many community and youth theater productions, having previously managed a 242-seat community theater space. Her family (hubby Ron Jones and teens Kelsea & Travis) have enthusiastically immersed themselves in the local theatre scene as actors, directors, techies, and mentors. Jody supports their efforts in our thriving arts community by being a board member for the Ithaca City School's Fine Arts Booster Group, a parent volunteer for Running to Places, an IHS "Drama Mama," and the specialty make-up guru for the youth-run troupe Shakespeare in the Basement. |
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Megan
Pugh (Director of Marketing) is in her third season with the KTC. A painter turned graphic artist and NYC transplant, Megan came to Ithaca in 2002 to join EcoVillage at Ithaca with her artist husband and two very creative kids. Megan earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts from Parson School of Design and went on to be a fellow at the Whitney Museum Independent Study Program before shifting to a career in graphics. Her stage credits are limited to writing and directing an adaptation of THE PRINCESS AND THE PEA (at the age of 8) in which she cast her youngest sister as the pea. At the Kitchen Megan prefers to remain behind the scenes and enjoys the culture, creativity and community of working in the Kitchen - a place where she felt at home from day one. |
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Abigail Davis (Stage Manager) was born in Michigan and grew up in Florida. Traveling and experiencing new cultures has always been a strong motivation in her life. So she went to university in London, England at the London Academy of Music and Dramtic Arts majoring in Stage Management and Technical Theatre. After graduating she still wanted to travel, but also wanted to get paid, so she went to work for Celebrity Cruises as a backstage theatre technician. She was quickly promoted to Production Manager and spent 4 years with them traveling the world. Eventually her sea legs gave out and she realized it was time for her to live on land again. This decision brought her to Ithaca, NY and she is excited to be at the Kitchen Theatre Company. |
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Gina Grosso (Production Intern) is a recent graduate from Southern Oregon University with a BA in English with an Emphasis in Creative Writing. She was born and raised in Paradise, California where she was introduced to theatre at an early age by her parents. After three seasons at the Oregon Shakespeare Festival on House Staff, as well as a Dramaturgy Intern in their Literary Department, Gina is excited to explore many other areas of theatre while at KTC. She would like to thank her friends, family, and the staff at the Kitchen Theatre Company for giving her the opportunity to follow her passion. |
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Abigail Smith (Production Intern) is a green-eyed, blond, home-schooled, farm kid from Lodi, New York. A long time resident of the Ithaca area, Abigail first became hooked on theatre through ushering shows at the Hangar Theatre with her older sister. Unable to part with the area, she went on to attend Cornell University where she officially studied Architecture, all the while working in the Theatre department’s costume shop, taking acting classes, and experimenting with scenic design. A career path that would combine all of her skills and interests has not yet made itself clear, but at the moment Abigail considers herself a designer, artist, actress, seamstress, pastry chef, musician, and all around lover of theatre. Still seemingly unable to leave the area, Abigail is thrilled to have the opportunity to pursue her fascination with theatre and apply her skills here at the Kitchen. |
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Carol Spence (Main Stage Season Artist) visual artist and collaborator, has a Masters of Art in Teaching from the Rhode Island School of Design and her drawings, prints, and mixed media works have been shown at regional galleries. She is an art teacher at Ithaca High School and the Fine Arts Dept. Chair. Interdisciplinary inspiration has played a part in her process and she has collaborated on projects with other visual artists, writers, musicians and choreographers. This is the third season that Carol has created original artwork for the Kitchen’s Main Stage Season. |
Rep Studio (Sound Engineering & Technical Production Sponsor) has created over 80 sound scores and compositions for the Kitchen in the past 8 years. Owned by Tim Reppert, REP Studio is one of central New York’s busiest recording studios producing radio and television spots as well as scores for film and video. At the operating helm is producer/engineer/musician Nate Richardson who is REP’s new Studio Guru. REP Studio is where many of the region’s most popular musical groups choose to record their CD’s. |
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