Lean Ensemble Theater’s Action PlanLean Ensemble Theater has not done enough to stand with Black, Indigenous and People of Color (BIPOC) artists and patrons. Today we begin again, with profound urgency and hope. We will actively take meaningful steps to support racial equality. In the coming weeks, months and years, we commit to [the three goals outlined in this StratML rendition]This is how we begin the work. Our upcoming commission of the play Mitchelville, a project which we have been developing for over 2 years, is a step in the right direction, but only a step. This is a living document. Commitments will be achieved and new ones will be added. We will make mistakes and we will own them. Through all of this, we wish to be held accountable. If you see us lagging behind, please let us know.Lean Ensemble TheaterLET_d06bc280-43ff-11eb-b492-83331983ea00Lean Ensemble Theater is a 501(c)(3) charitable organization.Lean Ensemble Theater StaffTaylor HarveySocial Media DirectorErika KramerBranding/Website & QuaranLean ProducerNick NewellDirector of Lean Lab & New Play DevelopmentAmanda WaltonAdministrative Coordinator & Patron ServicesBlake WhiteFounding Artistic & Executive DirectorChristopher WilsonTechnical Director/Resident Sound DesignerLean Ensemble Theater BoardMary BriggsVice President -- Mary M. Briggs served the Hilton Head Symphony Orchestra for eight years, first as Executive Director, and for seven years as President and CEO. Under her guidance, the Orchestra grew to be one of the area's leading cultural organizations. Nationally recognized, Briggs was named Vice-President of the Level Five Orchestras in the National League of American Orchestras, was selected to attend the Sphinx Medals of Excellence event at the United States Supreme Court, and invited to attend Carnegie Hall Youth Program training. Locally, Briggs serves as Chairman of the Advisory Board of Women in Philanthropy, is a member of the Hilton Head Rotary, the Greater Island Council, the Community Visions Board of Directors, the Arts and Cultural Council of Hilton Head, and the Hilton Head Symphony Orchestra Chorus, often serving as chairman and co-chairs of various committees.Steve HasleySteve and his wife Sandy West moved to Hilton Head full time six years ago from Columbus Ohio. However, like many people they had been coming to the island for many years. In Columbus, Steve led the Columbus office of Lee Hecht Harrison, an international career management firm. He spent over 25 years with LHH in Cincinnati, Indianapolis and Columbus. Presently, Steve is a senior consultant with Lighthouse Consulting, LLC, a Human Resources consulting firm, specializing in executive coaching and organizational/team/leadership development, which Sandy and he started in 2007. Steve received a BA from Muskingum College in New Concord, Ohio, and a Masters of Divinity and a Doctor of Ministry degree in Organizational Behavior from McCormick Theological Seminary in Chicago. He is a retired ordained minister in the Presbyterian Church, USA. His love of the performing arts began at Muskingum and continues today. He is excited about helping the Lean Ensemble Theatre become a well-known regional (and beyond) theatre company.Myla LernerPresident -- Myla Lerner is a Tony Award winning Broadway Producer- (Pippin- Best Musical Revival 2013). Other notable productions in the past decade include: What the Constitution Means to Me, The Heidi Chronicles, If/Then, Lady Day, Glengarry Glen Ross, Priscilla Queen of the Desert, End of the Rainbow, Lombardi and HAIR. For the past forty years she has actively supported the Arts and Philanthropic causes in New York City, San Francisco and Washington, D.C. Since moving to Hilton Head she has continued to do so. She is currently a trustee with the National Council for the American Theatre with Theatre Communications Group. She is married to Larry Kramer, former President and Publisher of USA Today.Joe MaguireJoe is President & CEO of Wolverine Development Corporation in East Lansing, Michigan and past board president of Michigan State University's Wharton Center for Performing Arts. A graduate of Northwestern and Columbia Universities, he is also currently Adjunct Professor at Michigan State University School of Planning, Design and Construction. Joe and Jeanne Maguire reside in Palmetto Dunes.Carolyn MalesAs a writer and theater habitué, Carolyn finds that going to a fine play is like reading a good book. When the curtain rises, we escape into a new world; after the curtain falls, we leave thinking about the world we live in in a new way. Carolyn writes about the arts, travel, recreation, personalities, business and social issues for print (articles and books) and online publications. Her past work includes TV video production, scriptwriting, editorial and photo editing, public relations, grant writing, and organizational development. Today as a development editor, Carolyn assists authors with characterization, narrative flow, plot, style, and marketing.Cathy NairneInner Circle Chairperson -- Cathy and her husband Michael moved to Hilton Head full time in 2008 after spending time in Atlanta, Chicago, and 18 years in Boston. During her working career, Cathy taught in secondary and post-secondary schools, worked in Marketing for Burroughs/Unisys, and was the Instructional Development/Consulting Manager for Information Mapping, Inc. During her years in Boston, she was active in several neighborhood groups and worked on the Groundwater Development project for the South End area. Since moving to HHI, Cathy’s been involved with Literacy Volunteers of the Lowcountry, and has served on the boards of Bear Creek Golf Club and also its Women’s Golf Association. She’s been a member of the LET Inner Circle for the last four years, serving as its chair for the past two. Cathy has a BA and MA from the University of South Florida, and an Ed.S. from Georgia State University. After having performed in high school productions, her acting “career” was on hold until she participated in the Lean Ensemble Theater’s benefit production of Love, Loss and What I Wore. She’s happy to have met Myla Lerner through a mutual friend, and is glad that one thing led to another.Lisa SniderTreasurer -- Almost all of Lisa’s professional life was finance oriented. With an undergraduate degree in international business she joined Continental Bank in Chicago in their international auditing department. After getting an MBA from Northwestern University she moved to multinational lending for the remainder of her time with Continental. She was a senior research analyst with Wagner Investment Management in Denver. During this time she also served in many capacities with the non-profits, The Women’s Foundation of Colorado (investment chair and board chair), Judi’s House, Project Pave and numerous school and church organizations. Most recently, Lisa served on the Arts and Cultural Strategic Planning Committee for the Town of Hilton Head. She continues to be involved in the implementation of the recommendations that were approved by the Town Council. The culmination of these experiences led to being the Executive Director of Colorado Ballet for close to four years during a time of numerous challenges. It made all the difference in understanding a performing arts organization’s finances and options and cementing her support for the arts in the community and schools. Lisa and her husband, Bill, split their time between Denver and Hilton Head with the tilt in time to Hilton Head.Bo PearsonSecretary -- Bo is a full time resident of Hilton Head, to where he and his wife Penny moved in 2001, after vacationing here almost every year since 1971. The quality of the music and theater arts in Hilton Head was a significant motivator in this move. They were thrilled with the founding of LEAN Ensemble, and became immediate subscribers and supporters. Bo is a Native of Louisville, KY, with a BA degree in Economics from Washington & Lee University. He and Penny were longtime patrons and supporters of Actors Theatre of Louisville and the Louisville Orchestra He spent 35 years in the thrift and consumer banking industry as an executive officer and board member, and concluded his career as a commercial call and loan officer for Fifth Third Bank. He was active in residential and commercial real estate financing and development. He was involved with various partnerships with city, county, and Kentucky Housing Corporation in development of affordable housing and properties qualifying for low income housing tax credits as part of the regeneration and renewal of inner-city areas. He served on the board of several non-profit corporations active in these areas. Bo and Penny live in Moss Creek. They have been regular patrons and supporters of the theater and orchestra, and of the Hilton Head Choral Society, where Bo has served as board member and president.Tim RidgeTim and his wife Mona moved full-time to Hilton Head Island in 2012 and immediately became involved in many civic and cultural activities. Tim has been a Project Impact mentor in the public schools since 2012. He is a past president of the VanLandingham Rotary Club and a Board member. He served two terms on the Board of the Hilton Head Symphony Orchestra and two years as Board Chair. He has served on the Town’s Venue Committee and was a participant in the Visioning process. He is a member of the Greater Island Council. His interest in theater began with writing and acting in a sixth-grade play. He has seen more than 600 plays and musicals (and has the playbills to prove it!). At Harvard, he was President of the Dudley House Drama Society and acted, directed and produced a number of plays. Tim had a thirty-five year career in management consulting with three major international consulting firms. At his last firm, Mercer, he was Midwest Region Head, a world-wide partner, and a member of both the firm’s U.S. Board of Directors and Global Leadership Group. He served on the Executive Committee of the Cleveland Opera and The Cleveland Play House. He was a volunteer with the Arts & Business Council of Chicago where he and another retired consultant created a Board Development Consulting practice. A Boston native, Tim and Mona have lived in Cleveland, Detroit and Chicago. He has an AB in Government from Harvard College. He is excited about the future of Lean Ensemble Theater!Charlie RussCharlie was born in New York City but has lived and worked in various other places including, Atlanta, Fairfield County, Connecticut, Dayton, Ohio and Denver, Colorado. He retired to Maui, Hawaii and lived there with his wife, Dianne for ten years before settling at Palmetto Bluff in Bluffton where they have lived for the last eleven years. Charlie is a graduate of Amherst College and the Columbia University School of Law. He worked on Wall Street in private practice and eventually was General Counsel for three international public companies in Connecticut, Ohio and Colorado. In his capacity as Chief Legal Officer he advised the Boards of Directors of such companies on all their legal matters and managed large staffs of attorneys which handled all legal matters for the companies. During his career and since retiring he has served on the Boards of numerous nonprofit organizations including a minority dance company and the YMCA. He currently serves on the Boards of Bluffton Self Help in Bluffton and Second Helpings on Hilton Head.Blake WhiteFounding Artistic & Executive Director -- Blake White founded Lean Ensemble Theater in the winter of 2015 as a celebration of theatre-- the artists that create it as well the patrons who support it. Directing credits for LET include Barefoot in the Park, A Doll’s House Part 2, Good People, The Clean House, Tribes, Vanya & Sonia & Masha & Spike, The Glass Menagerie, and God of Carnage. On stage, Blake has appeared in Who Am I This Time?, The Importance of Being Earnest, The Underpants and The Waverly Gallery. Elsewhere as a director, Blake has staged productions of Shear Madness (Southeastern Summer Theatre Institute), All My Sons (The Warehouse Theatre), The Lonesome West (Brown County Playhouse), The Glass Menagerie, Boeing Boeing (The Shuler Theater), Matt and Ben, The Pavilion, The Savannah Disputation, The Lady With All the Answers and Venus in Fur (South Carolina Repertory Company). As an actor, he has been seen on the stages of Actors Theatre of Louisville, Actors Workshop of Boston, The Shuler Theater, Brown County Playhouse, South Carolina Repertory Company, Cider Mill Playhouse, among others, as well as several off- and off-off and not close to broadway companies. Blake has also provided spoken word narration in concerts with the Hilton Head Choral Society and the Hilton Head Symphony Orchestra. Blake is a member of the Stage Directors & Choreographers Society as well as the boards of the Hilton Head Symphony Orchestra, Lean Ensemble Theater and the South Carolina Theatre Association, where he chairs the professional division. 2019/20 season: The Humans, Death of a Streetcar Named Virginia Woolf.Randie WolfeRandie and her husband, Michael, a retired attorney, moved to Bluffton full time three years ago from Chicago. They had traveled back and forth between both their homes for many years, and were delighted to end up in this piece of paradise. Randie was a Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW), and spent most of her career working with adolescents and families in many different settings. She moved into the business aspect of the profession, and did Healthcare Marketing and later became Director of Behavior Health for a large Community Hospital in the Chicago area. Randie has a BS in Psychology from Barat College in Lake Forest, Il and an MSW from Loyola University in Chicago. Once moving to Bluffton, she served on the Inaugural Committee to form the Belfair Charitable Fund. Randie and her husband moved from the suburbs to downtown Chicago where they spent 20 years prior to moving to the Lowcountry. They moved into the city to be able to enjoy all the wonderful things the city had to offer, such as Theater, The Chicago Symphony and Steppenwolf Theater. She was delighted to discover Lean Ensemble Theater, and to “lean in” to bring innovative theater to the Lowcountry.Kelly JolleyOf Counsel -- Kelly regularly counsels health care providers, not-for-profit corporations, and technology vendors on corporate compliance standards, best practices and corporate governance matters, and on the potential collateral consequences of business decisions. She routinely defends clients in government investigations and litigation, helps providers and businesses negotiate complex transactions, and serves as counsel to several healthcare companies and non-profit associations. Her broad base of experience and deep knowledge of the health care industry allows Kelly to help her formulate creative solutions to multi-faceted business issues and aggressively defend the interests of her clients. Kelly is a frequent speaker for community, heath, and business organizations on fraud and abuse, privacy and security compliance, non-profit governance, and business liability issues. She is a leader in the health care and legal communities. Kelly previously served as Chair of the South Carolina Bar’s Health Law Section Council, Vice-Chair of the American Health Lawyers Association Liability and Litigation Practice Group, and President of the South Carolina Women Lawyers Association. Kelly is rated AV Preeminent® by Martindale Hubbell. She was made a Fellow of the American Bar Foundation in 2014, has been recognized by SuperLawyers in health care law since 2012, and named in Best Lawyers of America in health care law and data privacy law in 2018.The Lean EnsembleMegan BowersMegan Bowers is an actor/comedian based in New York City. She is an ensemble member of LET after appearing as in Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike, The Underpants, Tribes and Bad Dates. Favorite credits include: Wren in Five Lesbians, Matt Damon in Matt and Ben, Little Sally in Urinetown, Nellie in Floyd Collins, and Bunny Lingus in Saucy Jack and the Space Vixens. When she's not performing sketch and improv comedy at such venues as Carolines on Broadway, the UCB Theater or the basement of a tile shop, she can be seen hosting at The Ride. In 2015, she was honored to perform at the NY Comedy Festival, and to be named third on her mother's "comics to watch" list.Terry CermakTerry Cermak is a founding ensemble member of LET and has designed lighting and scenery for The Glass Menagerie, The Waverly Gallery and The Clean House, scenery for The Underpants, Buyer and Cellar, Tribes, Constellations, Who Am I This Time? and Bad Dates as well as lighting for A Dolls House Part 2 , If You Forget Me and The Christians. After starting out in the burgeoning West Coast regional theatre scene, he spent 9 years at Richmond’s TheatreVirginia as Technical Director, Lighting Designer and Production Manager. He spent 11 years as Production Manager for the Alabama Shakespeare Festival, where he designed lights for the premiere productions of A Lesson Before Dying and Fair and Tender Ladies. Born in Chicago, he returned to work at the Goodman Theatre, where he was the Production Manager for world premieres of works by August Wilson, Carol Burnett, and Stephen Sondheim, and he designed lighting for The Guys directed by Robert Falls. He has been affiliated with the Arts Center of Coastal Carolina for over 16 years and designed lights and/or sets for more than 40 productions, including Les Miserables, Aida, 42nd Street, and Singin’ in the Rain. Terry lives in a cottage on the Carolina Coast with beautiful wife and artist Cynthia, their dog, and two cats. Together they forage a life out of theatre, art, music, books, food, libations, and nurturing each other. Their creative endeavors are inspired by and dedicated to the memory of their son Henry.Zach ConradZach has been a part of the Lean Ensemble family since 2015 and is thrilled to continue working with the many talented artists that make up this incredible company. Among his favorite credits: Tribes, Guys and Dolls, As You Like It, The Last Five Years, Shopping & F&%king, The Glass Menagerie, The Andrews Brothers, Macbeth, No Exit, Cloud 9, and also various dance workshops and concerts. Originally from Indiana, Zach has been working professionally in stage management for over a decade. When not in the rehearsal room, Zach enjoys spending time with his cat, Dahli and going on day trips to Savannah. He is currently the Technical Director at Marion University.Chip EganClifton “Chip” Egan is dean emeritus of the College of Architecture, Arts and Humanities at Clemson University. He received his BA in theatre from Hanover College and his MFA in scenography from Northwestern University. Chip began his academic theatre career at Clemson University in 1976 eventually serving as chair of the department of performing arts for nine years during which time the Robert Howell Brooks Center for the Performing Arts was planned and constructed. He is a past president of the South Carolina Theatre Association and the Southeastern Theatre Conference (SETC) and currently serves on the SETC Nominations Committee. Chip is now a freelance director/actor/designer who works regularly at the Warehouse Theatre and Centre Stage in Greenville, SC. He recently served as the Interim Director of the Clemson University Emeritus College as well as Interim Artistic Director of The Warehouse Theatre. He and his wife, Diane, have two married children and five grandchildren.Tom EvansDirecting The Diviners at the Circle Rep in New York in 1980 was the most high powered gig Tom ever had. The script was by Jim Leonard, who'd been Tom's student at Hanover College. When Jim began writing Tom advised he look for guidance to the plays of Lanford Wilson, a founder of Circle Rep. Through delightful coincidence, Lanford was dramaturge for the New York production. In 2010, when Tom staged Talley's Folly in Indiana, in an "Author's Note" Lanford opined: I'm thrilled to hear Tom will be directing my play. It was great fun hanging out with Jim Leonard and Tom and the "Diviner's" cast--lord, how many years ago? A time I look back on very fondly! And Tom worked such a magical spell on The Diviners--his is a talent and sensitivity I'll be happy to take advantage of for Talley's Folly." Best review Tom ever got.Barbara FarrarBarbara Farrar is no stranger to Hilton Head audiences. Between 2001 and 2014 she acted twelve major roles at the now defunct SCRC--among them Wit, Doubt, Foxfire, Yellow Dog Crossing, Rabbit Hole, and most recently, The Cocktail Hour and Skull in Connemara. Most of these were directed by her husband, Tom Evans. Barbara has worked in theatre as an actor, director, acting coach, or administrator for fifty-odd years. In 1992, to advance her career she settled in New York City. In 1996, she was cast as a Broadway stand-in for Estelle Parsons in the two-character play, Grace and Glorie. Playing opposite Lucie Arnaz, Barbara went on for Estelle for thirty percent of the run. In the summer of 2014, Barbara turned her 11th performance of Grace at the Shuler Theatre in Raton, NM, where she also played 'Lady Bracknell' in The Importance of Being Earnest.Bill GormanBill is honored to be returning to Hilton Head as an ensemble member of the Lean Ensemble Theater, where he appeared in The Importance of Being Earnest and The Underpants. At the invitation of Blake White, he enjoyed working with the South Carolina Repertory Company where he appeared in The Seafarer, Golf With Alan Shepard, The Cocktail Hour, Skull in Connemara and Park Your Car in Harvard Yard. Bill has appeared in numerous theaters in New York City and upstate NY where he lives with his wife and family. Favorite roles include: Willy Loman in Death of a Salesman, Scrooge in A Christmas Carol, Don Quixote in Man of La Mancha, Orgon in Tartuffe, George in Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf. Off ­Broadway credits include: Dr. Lanyon in The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, Basil in The Diviners and Caesar in Julius Caesar.Nora LeahyNora Leahy, a Chicago-based theatre artist, is thrilled to be an ensemble member with LET. She is the playwright behind 2019’s world premiere of If You Forget Me, played Laura in The Glass Menagerie and served as resident costume designer for the 2015/16 season. As a playwright, her work has been developed and/or produced at The Shuler Theater (Raton, NM); The New Colony (Chicago, IL); The Greenhouse Theater (Chicago, IL); Victory Gardens (Chicago, IL); and Jackalope Theatre Company (Chicago, IL). Her play THE BRIDGE was a finalist for the 2017 Woodward Newman Drama Award. Nora currently serves as the Managing Director of Jackalope Theatre Company in Chicago, and was named one of "The 50 People Who Really Perform for Chicago" by Newcity Stage in 2019. www.noraleahy.comIan McCabeIan McCabe is an actor, writer and director. Ian has studied comedy, writing, and clown in Chicago and Philadelphia. Ian has appeared in Chicago's The Waltzing Mechanics, Process Theatre Group, Caffeine Theatre, NewBeast Theatre Works and First Folio Theatre. Other regional credits include Cardinal Stage, Two Pigs Productions, Southeastern Summer Theatre Institute, The Shuler Theater, South Carolina Repertory Company, Actors Theatre of Indiana and Bloomington Playwrights Project. He is also an experienced teaching-artist and community engagement professional. Ian is proud to be a founding ensemble member with Lean Ensemble, where he is the former associate artistic director and began the education program. Ian has directed LET's productions of The Underpants and Tea at Five and appeared in Tribes, Constellations and The Importance of Being Earnest.Matt MundyMatt Mundy is a founding ensemble member of LET and has been seen in The Glass Menagerie, The Underpants, Buyer and Cellar, Good People, Who Am I this Time? and Every Brilliant Thing. A New York resident, some of his recent credits there include: Midsummer Night's Dream (NY Classical Theatre), New York Water (Depot Theatre), Swiss Family Robinson (NYMF), The Baby Dance, Othello (Barrow Group Theatre), Romeo & Juliet, Much Ado (Pearl Theatre Co.), In a Heartbeat (Schicker Prod.), Irrationals (Shenango Prod.), Killgore! (Upright Citizens Brigade). Other fun regional and touring shows include, A Prayer for Owen Meany (Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park), Brighton Beach Memoirs (Portland Stage), The Glass Menagerie (Shuler Theater), You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown (Two River Theatre Co), Red, The Last Five Years, Foxfire (SCRC), Reel Music (Florida Studio), I Hate Hamlet (Cape May Stage), WB Concerts' Euorpean Tour of Grease! Matt is a founding member of Core Artist Ensemble, NYC. A voice over artist, he also has a few silly characters floating in commercials around the country. Also, he can never sufficiently thank his dear family and friends, always leaning forward with their love and support. But he tries. MattMundy.comNick NewellNick Newell, a founding ensemble member of LET, has appeared in God of Carnage, Good People and Who Am I This Time? and directed The Waverly Gallery and Buyer & Cellar. Nick also founded and serves as director of LET's new play initiative, Lean Lab. He co-founded the Hilton Head Island New Play Festival, and was the Artistic Director of the Book Players. His Off-Broadway credits include: Taming of the Shrew and Elvis People. His regional theatre credits include shows at Trinity Repertory Company, American Repertory Theatre, Dorset Theatre Festival, Chester Theatre Company, New York Stage and Film, Mill Mountain Theatre, Actors Shakespeare Project, Wellfleet Harbor Actors Theatre and South Carolina Repertory Company. His film credits include: Neo Noir (Sundance Selection) and Locked In (with Eliza Dushku). Nick directed the world premieres of Sheet Cake Sliding at Theatre of NOTE in Los Angeles and The Baristas at SCRC. He is a Professor of Theatre at Georgia Southern University and is a graduate of the Moscow Art Theatre School and Institute for Advanced Theatre Training at Harvard University. Sarah NewhouseSarah Newhouse is delighted to join Lean Ensemble Theater as ensemble member after having directed If You Forget Me and appearing in Good People, The Waverly Gallery and Tribes. She is a founding company member of the Actors’ Shakespeare Project, with whom she has performed more than twenty roles in 11 years. Some of her favorites productions include King Lear, Macbeth, The Merchant of Venice, Medea, Twelfth Night, Love’s Labour’s Lost, Taming of the Shrew, and The Comedy of Errors. She has performed throughout New England at such venues as American Repertory Theater (The King Stag), Boston Playwrights (The River Was Whiskey), Central Square Theater (Distracted), The Charles Playhouse (Shear Madness), Gloucester Stage (The Norman Conquests), Lyric Stage Company (Lost in Yonkers), New Repertory Theatre (DollHouse), and Stoneham Theatre (Miracle on 34th Street), and most recently Puck in Midsummer Night's Dream with ASP. She has also been fortunate to have travelled as far as Taiwan and Moscow with international play festivals. While living in NYC, Sarah worked at Playwrights’ Horizons, Kraine Theatre, Manhattan Punch Line, & LaMama, Etc., to name a few. Film credits include ‘Feathers’, ‘The Legend of Lucy Keyes’, ‘Dischord’, ‘Beneath Contempt’, and ‘Bleed For This.' Ms. Newhouse is a graduate of Hampshire College and the A.R.T. Institute for Advanced Theatre Training at Harvard University. She currently serves on the board of directors of the Theatre Community Benevolent Fund, and lives in Watertown, MA with her husband & son.Tony Penna Tony's regional theatre credits include productions at The Warehouse Theatre, SC Repertory Company, Lean Ensemble Theater, Center Stage SC, Cincinnati Playhouse, Huntington Theatre Company, Shuler Theater, Berkshire Theatre Festival, and four seasons as Resident Lighting Designer at Actors Theatre of Louisville. His NY theatre credits include off-off-Broadway scenic and lighting designs with Eleventh Hour Theatre Company at The Culture Project for La Mama and Medicine Show. He is a member of United Scenic Artists and the resident design staffs of The Warehouse Theatre and Lean Ensemble Theater. He teaches stage lighting, stage management, and computer drafting in the Performing Arts Department at Clemson University where he also serves as Director of Theatre. For LET, Tony has designed scenery and lighting for God of Carnage and lighting for Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike, The Underpants, Buyer & Cellar, Tribes, Constellations, Tea at 5, Good People , The Importance of Being Earnest, Who Am I This Time? Bad Dates, Barefoot in the Park and The Humans.Katie RasorKatie Rasor has been the dramaturg for LET's The Glass Menagerie, The Waverly Gallery, Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike, The Underpants, Buyer & Cellar, Tribes, The Clean House, Constellations, Tea at 5, Good People, The Importance of Being Earnest, as well as all programming for Lean Lab. Other dramaturgy credits: Baristas at the South Carolina Repertory Co; Three Sisters, Not Waving, and Home at the Williamstown Theatre Festival; Copenhagen and The Onion Cellar at the American Repertory Theatre; Taming of the Shrew and Much Ado About Nothing at the Actors Shakespeare Project; Sheet Cake Sliding at Theatre of NOTE; and Write Now at Indiana Repertory Theatre. She co-founded the Hilton Head Island New Play Festival, which she wrote about for The Routledge Companion to Dramaturgy. She holds an MFA in Dramaturgy from the American Repertory Theatre/Moscow Art Theatre School Institute for Advanced Theatre Training at Harvard University and a BA from Hanover College. Katie has served as a Teaching Fellow at Harvard University, a Visiting Assistant Professor at The University of Evansville, Hanover College, and Bridgewater State University, and is the Dramaturgy Advisor at Georgia Southern University.Libby RicardoLibby is thrilled to join the ensemble with LET, having previously appeared in The Underpants and If You Forget Me. Other South Carolina credits include Inherit the Wind with the Arts Center of Coastal Carolina, A Midsummer Night’s Dream with Shakespeare Rep, and Irena’s Vow with Centre Stage. Favorite credits include Viola in Twelfth Night, Juliet in Romeo and Juliet, and Rosaura in Life is a Dream. Libby holds a BFA from New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts and an MFA in Performance from the University of Georgia. Outside of her collegiate training, Libby has studied acting on three continents, including a stint at the Bali Conservatory in Indonesia. Libby is an Assistant Professor of Acting and Directing in the Department of English, Theater, and Liberal Studies at the University of South Carolina at Beaufort. Her emphasis in her teaching and research is the promotion of theater skills as life skills, including extensive work with simulated patient programs. Libby lives in Bluffton with her husband, George, and their precocious sons, Marlowe and Barrett.Amanda SoxAmanda Sox is an actor, director, and teaching artist based in Greenville, SC. She holds a BFA in Theatre Arts with an emphasis in Acting from Elon University, where she also studied directing and costume design. She trained in improv and sketch comedy at The Groundlings School in Los Angeles as well as Upright Citizens Brigade LA. Amanda was the Assistant Director on Lean Ensemble Theater’s production of A Doll House, Part 2. Select directing credits include: 44 Plays for 44 Presidents, and A Marriage Proposal. Select acting credits include: The Cake (Jen) and In The Next Room, or The Vibrator Play (Catherine Givings) at The Warehouse Theatre; The Importance of Being Earnest (Gwendolen), Who Am I This Time? (Kate), at Lean Ensemble Theater; Constellations (Marianne), Moonlight and Magnolias (Ms. Poppenghul) at Mill Mountain Theatre; A Christmas Carol at Virginia Stage Company; Night of The Iguana at Berkshire Theatre Festival; Rough Magic at The Hangar Theatre. Amanda has produced and co-produced theatre in Seattle and The New York International Fringe Festival. She was a costume design assistant for Bob, Elemeno Pea, and Heist! at Actors Theatre of Louisville. Select costume design credits include: Cat on a Hot Tin Roof (Spartanburg Little Theatre), and The Odd Couple (Mill Mountain Theatre). She is a teaching artist for The Warehouse Theatre in Greenville, SC.Prentiss StandridgePrentiss is thrilled to be an ensemble member with LET after appearing in Tribes and Constellations and assistant directing Good People. A native of Greenville, SC, she serves as a teaching artist for The Warehouse Theatre and the Metropolitan Arts Council there. At the Warehouse, she has been seen in In the Next Room, or The Vibrator Play, Twelfth Night, All My Sons and Eurydice. Other upstate credits include The Last Night of Ballyhoo (Centre Stage). Regional Credits: The Burial at Thebes, A Christmas Carol, and Tiiny Disasters at The Guthrie Theater in Minneapolis, and The Winter’s Tale, Much Ado About Nothing, and Pericles with the Hudson Valley Shakespeare Festival in New York. She is a graduate of the SC Governor’s School for the Arts and Humanities, and received a BFA in Acting from the prestigious University of Minnesota/Guthrie Theater BFA Actor Training Program. Jim StarkJim Stark is a founding LET ensemble member known to Lowcountry audiences from his work with South Carolina Repertory Company in such shows as A Final Evening with the Illuminati, A Night in November, Gutenberg! The Musical! and Seeing Red: A Story of Vincent Van Gogh. For LET, Jim appeared as Vanya in Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike and Velasco in Barefoot in the Park. He has worked as an actor, director, teacher and fight director for theaters from HHI to Boston to New Mexico. Jim is a SAFD Certified Teacher of Stage Combat.Jeffrey Scott WatkinsJeffrey Scott Watkins is a founding ensemble member of Lean Ensemble Theater, where he has been seen on stage in God of Carnage (Alan) and The Waverly Gallery (Howard). Jeffrey's Broadway credits include: Les Miserables (Couferac). National Tours: Jesus Christ Superstar (Pilate), Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat (Pharaoh) and Les Miserables (Grantaire). Locally, he has performed at South Carolina Repertory Company In The Pavilion (Peter), Oh Coward (Man 1) and Venus in Fur (Thomas). He has also performed at the Arts Center of Coastal Carolina in Some Enchanted Evening, Mame, Razzle Dazzle, Cole, The Full Monty, Hooray for Hollywood, Spamalot and 42nd Street. His film roles include: Loving Generously and Leading Generously (Eddie) and a starring role in the independent feature Perfect Cowboy (Tyler). He would like to thank his wife Kathleen, and his two proudest productions, Caleb and Dillon, who have changed his world.Peggy Trecker WhitePeggy Trecker White has been working in professional theatre for over 25 years. She is a proud graduate of the University of Michigan with a BFA in Musical Theatre. While on tour with the 2nd National Tour of Miss Saigon, Peggy decided to further her training and went on to earn an MFA in Acting from ART & Moscow Art Theatre's Institute for Advanced Theatre Training at Harvard University. Regional theater credits include American Repertory Theatre, Interlochen Shakespeare Festival, The Warehouse Theatre, Reprise! Broadway's Best, Michigan Opera Theatre, Ordway Music Theatre, South Carolina Repertory Theatre, NY Fringe Festival, the Piccolo Spoleto Festival and Lean Ensemble Theater. She has performed internationally in Abu Dhabi, Russia, Germany, Italy and Switzerland. Favorite roles include: Katharine Hepburn in Tea at Five, Desiree Armfelt in A Little Night Music, Gertrude in Hamlet, Marty in Circle Mirror Transformation and Ben Affleck in Matt & Ben. She is the Director for the Intermediate Musical Theatre Production at Interlochen Center for the Arts Summer Camp and recently assistant directed the opera Il Viaggio a Reims in Kiel and Lubeck, Germany as well as Verona, Italy. Peggy is a founding ensemble member of LET and has appeared in God of Carnage, Vanya & Sonia & Masha & Spike, Tea at 5, A Dolls House Part 2 and The Christians. She has directed The Humans, Bad Dates, Constellations as well as the benefit reading of Love, Loss, and What I Wore. 2020/21 season: Art, Death of a Streetcar Named Virginia Woolf.Blake WhiteBlake White founded Lean Ensemble Theater in the winter of 2015 as a celebration of theatre-- the artists that create it as well the patrons who support it. Directing credits for Lean include Barefoot in the Park, A Doll’s House Part 2, Good People, The Clean House, Tribes, Vanya & Sonia & Masha & Spike, The Glass Menagerie, and God of Carnage. On stage, Blake has appeared in The Humans, Who Am I this Time?, The Importance of Being Earnest, The Underpants and The Waverly Gallery. Elsewhere as a director, Blake has staged productions of Shear Madness (Southeastern Summer Theatre Institute), All My Sons (The Warehouse Theatre), The Lonesome West (Brown County Playhouse), The Glass Menagerie, Boeing Boeing (The Shuler Theater), Matt and Ben, The Pavilion, The Savannah Disputation, The Lady With All the Answers and Venus in Fur (South Carolina Repertory Company). As an actor, he has been seen on the stages of Actors Theatre of Louisville, Actors Workshop of Boston, The Shuler Theater, Brown County Playhouse, South Carolina Repertory Company, Cider Mill Playhouse, among others, as well as several off- and off-off and not close to broadway companies. Blake has also provided spoken word narration in concerts with the Hilton Head Choral Society and the Hilton Head Symphony Orchestra. Blake is a member of the Stage Directors & Choreographers Society as well as the boards of the Hilton Head Symphony Orchestra, Lean Ensemble Theater and the South Carolina Theatre Association, where he chairs the professional division. Mimi WycheMimi Wyche is delighted to join LET as an ensemble member, after appearing as Bracknell in The Importance of Being Earnest and Ethel in Barefoot in the Park. Mimi has performed on Broadway, in fifteen Off-Broadway productions, and in over thirty regional plays and musicals. Highlights include Mrs. Lovett in Sweeney Todd at the Guthrie Theater, MN; The Duchess in Once On a Summer’s Day at Ensemble Studio Theater, NY; and as The Subscriber in “ the Race To Urga” at the Mitzi Newhouse Theater, NY. She has worked with such directors as John Guare, Trevor Nunn and Julie Taymor, and as soloist in Meredith Monk’s Carnegie Hall premiere. Trained as a classical singer, Mimi has sung with opera companies, symphonies, and performance art productions across the country. She has written six one-woman shows, one of which, Eaten Alive, toured colleges in the US and Canada for five years. Mimi is currently working on a new piece entitled: Depression!: The Musical.Jenny ZmarzlyJenny, an LET founding ensemble member, was in Leans's inaugural production of God of Carnage, as well as The Glass Menagerie, Vanya & Sonia & Masha & Spike, The Clean House, Good People, The Importance of Being Earnest, A Dolls House Part 2, If You Forget Me and The Christians. Previous productions include: To Kill a Mockingbird, Arts Center of Coastal Carolina; Moonlight and Magnolias, SCRC; Into the Woods, A Midsummer Night's Dream, Annie, Main Street Youth Theatre; and The Glass Menagerie, The Shuler Theater. Originally from Cleveland, Ohio, Jenny holds a masters degree in education and is a middle school English teacher when she is not acting. When not on stage or in the classroom, Jenny tries to keep up with her four very busy children and her fabulous husband.Lean PartnersArts & Cultural Council of Hilton Head Culture HHIGaylord & Dorothy Donnelley FoundationTheatre Communications GroupSouth Carolina Theater AssociationShubert Foundation, Inc.Hilton Head Island-Bluffton Chamber of CommerceEspy Lumber CompanySouth Carolina Arts CommissionGannettTo be the southeast’s theater destination that stimulates conversation through topical, entertaining and professional programming which delves into every element of the human condition._d06bc47e-43ff-11eb-b492-83331983ea00Lean embraces theater’s vibrant relevance through diverse, ensemble based programming which compels thought, sparks emotion and inspires dialogue._d06bc686-43ff-11eb-b492-83331983ea00PassionToo much drama, not enough theatre! Passionate. Thought-provoking. Lean Ensemble Theater celebrates the vibrancy of live performance by inviting audiences to lean forward and look at the world in a different way.ThoughtLean Ensemble will leave you talking and thinking about what you've seen and heard long after you've left the theater.TalkTalkbacks and other interactive events will offer the opportunity to exchange ideas and share comments and experiences with the Company and audience. Lean places vital importance in its core values to listen, learn, respect and play.ListeningLearningRespectPlayEducationSEEK EDUCATION._d06bc924-43ff-11eb-b492-83331983ea001Lowcountry of South CarolinaGeorgia’s Coastal EmpireLean Ensemble Theater leadership and staff will engage in equity, diversity and inclusion training provided by an outside professional, in order to become a company whose structure and board governance is more representative of the population of the Lowcountry of South Carolina as well as Georgia’s Coastal Empire.TrainingEngage in equity, diversity and inclusion training._d06bcfd2-43ff-11eb-b492-83331983ea001.1AlliancesBE A STRONGER ALLY. _d06bd1ee-43ff-11eb-b492-83331983ea002We will tell more inclusive stories and pursue BIPOC artists to share them. We will have rehearsal rooms and performance spaces where diverse opinions may be shared safely. We will have BIPOC theater-makers in artistic leadership positions and on design teams. We will have an ensemble membership that better reflects the entirety of the American theater. These commitments are an effort to balance the power dynamic, both on stage and off.StoriesTell more inclusive stories._d06bd40a-43ff-11eb-b492-83331983ea002.1We will tell more inclusive stories and pursue BIPOC artists to share them. We will have rehearsal rooms and performance spaces where diverse opinions may be shared safely. We will have BIPOC theater-makers in artistic leadership positions and on design teams. We will have an ensemble membership that better reflects the entirety of the American theater. These commitments are an effort to balance the power dynamic, both on stage and off.ArtistsPursue BIPOC artists to share inclusive stories._d06bd64e-43ff-11eb-b492-83331983ea002.2BIPOC ArtistsBIPOC PatronsRooms & SpacesProvide rehearsal rooms and performance spaces where diverse opinions may be shared safely._d06bd842-43ff-11eb-b492-83331983ea002.3Theater-MakersPlace BIPOC theater-makers in artistic leadership positions and on design teams._d06bdb8a-43ff-11eb-b492-83331983ea002.4BIPOC Theater-MakersMembershipOffer an ensemble membership that better reflects the entirety of the American theater._d06bdd92-43ff-11eb-b492-83331983ea002.5ListeningLISTEN MORE._d06bdf86-43ff-11eb-b492-83331983ea003Our post show discussions have covered a wide range of topics, from suicide to religion to the hearing impaired, but we have never focused on race relations.Race RelationsProduce work that engages conversation on the long history of race relations._d06be1c0-43ff-11eb-b492-83331983ea003.1We will produce work that engages conversation on the long history of race relations on Hilton Head, as well as the world outside our island.Voice & SpaceProvide a space where those who feel like they have no voice will be welcome and will be heard._d06be3c8-43ff-11eb-b492-83331983ea003.2We will provide a space where those who feel like they have no voice will be welcome and will be heard. Difficult and uncomfortable conversations can safely occur in a place that is worthy to hear them, and we will strive to be that place.2020-06-302020-12-21https://www.leanensemble.org/aboutOwenAmburOwen.Ambur@verizon.net