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Alumni Page

All-of-us Express Children's Theatre has been around since 1989. During that time many children and young adults have been involved and gone on to . . what? Do you ever wonder where they are now? Here's what a few people have shared with us. (The graduation dates are either what folks have told us, or are what our records indicate was their last year of involvement with All-of-us Express.)

Short Notes

Abby Mason has started a website ( DearAbigail.net ) for creating a community of and giving advice to young women. Abby has been working as an actress (IMDB entry). She was the Lion in our 2002 Wizard of Oz and the Caterpillar in our 2003 Alice in Wonderland.

Keith Parham has been working as a lighting designer. Keith was involved from the beginning (1989) through 1993.

Long Notes

Cathy Conley  

Cathy Conley '93 is engaged, and is living in New York.

Since appearing as the Red Queen in the 1990 production of Alice in Wonderland, Cathy's pursuits have ranged from the academic to the creative. She graduated from MIT with a degree in Chemical Engineering and a concentration in Theatre Arts. Working in product development at Proctor & Gamble, she remained active in local professional theater, finally landing a role on tour with Theatre IV in 2000. She then quit engineering to move to New York to pursue a stage career. After a number of small roles way, way off Broadway, Cathy has found a mix of performance and science as a Senior Sales Representative and Trainer for Merck and Co. [Current as of November 2008.]

Jeanine (Wheeler) Tiser  

Jeanine (Wheeler) Tiser '96.

Jeanine was involved in AECT from Aesop Says (1993) through Run to the Roundhouse Nellie (1996), and says: "I work with a community music school in Lexington KY, as piano/trumpet teacher, music therapist and administrative assistant, while finishing up my MM in musicology and teaching Music Appreciation (aka Bach for Jocks) at the University of Kentucky. When I have time to think about it, I guess my life might be boring – I've just been too busy to notice lately. I taught music in schools around Lansing for a few years before coming back to school, but I was too shy to get involved at AECT again while I was there. [More about Jeanine.]

 

Mary Hershkowitz '97.

Mary Hershkowitz was with All-of-us Express from the beginning, having been cast as Roo in the very first production, Winnie the Pooh. She went on to be cast in almost a dozen other shows, serve on nearly every crew and serve as Assistant Director. Since that time, Mary has graduated with honors from NYU's Tisch School of the Arts with a BFA in Drama. While at Tisch, she studied at the Stella Adler Conservatory of Acting, with her studies focused on drama therapy and educational theater, emphasizing the use of drama with children. [More about Mary.]

Damona Resnick-Hoffman  

Damona Resnick-Hoffman '96 is recently married and is living in the Los Angeles area.

Damona is the Director of Alternative Programming for the Sci-Fi Channel. In this position she oversees creative elements, including story, casting and production of unscripted shows such as Ghost Hunters, Destination Truth and Scare Tactics. She previously served as Director of Talent Diversity Initiatives for NBC, and was a casting administrator for Paramount Network TV. [Current as of April 2009.]

Craig Van Kempen  

Craig Van Kempen '01 is in graduate school at The University of Michigan-Ann Arbor.

Craig began at All-of-us Express as a wolf cub in Winnie-the-Pooh. At age 15 he played the Beast and at 17 directed his first show. Realizing from his experiences at All-of-us Express that he wanted to work with kids, he later became the Camp Director at Miniwanca Boys Camp. Craig has a B.A. in Theatre and German from UM-Ann Arbor and has studied and taught in Germany, as well as performing in may plays in and out of college. "All this would not have been possible without the lessons I learned acting, working and playing at AECT." [Current as of November 2008.]

Meredith Blackman  

Meredith Blackman '03 resides in Chicago, in the Lincoln Park neighborhood.

Meredith pursued the fine arts for several years after leaving All-of-us Express. She performed in musicals, choral competitions, dance performances and vocal recitals throug Haslett High School, Richard Fracker's voice studio and Happendance. After graduating from high school, she went to the University of Illinois at Ubana-Champaign to pursue a degree in theater. [More about Meredith.]

Holly Nelson  

Holly Nelson '03 is currently living in the Los Angeles area.

Holly is an Admissions Counselor for The American Academy of Dramatic Arts, a prestigious training facility for theater as well as film acting. [Current as of November 2008.]

Mark Daugherty  

Mark Daugherty '04 resides in Los Angeles with All-of-us Express alumnus Katy Kettles.

Mark first appeared with All-of-us Express in the 2002 production of The Prince and the Pauper. He continued to be an active member till his final–and favorite–show Treasure Island. He continued to study all aspects of the arts and was privileged to have the opportunity to dance with several dance companies throughout Michigan and in Chicago, and model in national ads for the YMCA, Motorola and Sony. Mark went on to further his education and was accepted in Western Michigan University's prestigious Musical Theatre program. After a year at Western, Mark decided to conclude his collegiate studies and make the big move to Los Angeles. [More about Mark.]


Alumni who are currently involved with the Theatre may be found on the Who's Who page.

Photos from our first Alumni Reunion on December 19, 2008!
(More photos on the Alumni Facebook group.)

If you'd like to be included on this page, please send an email to Lisa Lees ( lisa at allofusexpress dot org ) with a short blurb and a photo (Lisa can crop and resize). Tell us when you were involved, what your favorite role or show was, what you're up to these days, what part theater still plays in your life, et cetera. We will not post personal contact information here (though we'd like to have it); for that there is an Alumni Facebook group.

Comic art © 2008 by Lisa Lees.



It is the mission of All-of-us Express Children's Theatre to offer young people of all backgrounds, cultures, and lifestyles the opportunity to produce professional quality plays, study many aspects of the dramatic arts, and develop valuable life skills while providing outstanding entertainment to the community. It is the policy of AECT to provide equal opportunities to all eligible persons without regard to age, color, creed, gender identity, disability, height, membership in any labor organization, national origin, parental status, political identification, race, religion, sex, sexual orientation, or weight.


Content copyright © 1989-2010 by All-of-us Express Children's Theatre.