THE ADMINISTRATIVE STAFF

DAWN BUCK (Managing Director) began her career at New Stage in the fall of 1981 as a box office assistant.  Since that time she has worked as box office manager, audience services director, house manager, bookkeeper, business manager and marketing director. Her door, she says, is always open to comments and concerns about the theatre.  Buck’s other professional credits include The International Ballet Competition, Thalia Mara Arts International presenting the World Performance Series and Imageworks films for business.  She is a graduate of Leadership Jackson and recently served on a grant review panal for the Mississippi Arts Commission.  She and her husband David, live in the Fondren neighborhood and have two sons, Ben and Blake.

FRANCINE THOMAS REYNOLDS (Artistic Director) has worked as a professional actress and director for more than 20 years.  Last season she directed A Raisin in the Sun at New Stage which was awarded Best Play of 2007 by the Jackson Free Press readers.  She also directed Biloxi Blues and Doubt during the 2007-2008 season.  In the last five years she has also directed I Love You, You’re Perfect, Now Change, The Crucible, The Trip to Bountiful, The Spitfire Grill and I Do! I Do!  She has appeared in Noises Off!, The Skin of Our Teeth, Moonlight & Magnolias and First Baptist of Ivy Gap at New Stage Theatre.  Her favorite acting roles at New Stage include Laura in The Glass Menagerie, June in Smoke on the Mountain and Chris in Rumors.  Reynolds also has directed plays for theatres in Michigan, Indiana, West Virginia and Florida.  She is an advocate for arts education and served as the president of the Mississippi Alliance for Arts Education, 1995-1997.  She has been listed on the Mississippi Arts Commission Artist Demonstrator Roster and recently developed a one person show about Georgia O’Keefe, which she performed at the Mississippi Museum of Art.  She was the drama director at Jackson Preparatory School from 1996-2005 and was awarded the Best Director Award at the North Mississippi High School Drama Festival in 1998 and 2000. Reynolds has worked as a locations casting director on several films and commercials shot in Mississippi from 1996-2006.  She was the casting director for the locally shot feature film Ballast, which received top awards at the 2008 Sundance Film Festival.  Originally from the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, she enjoys living in Jackson with her husband Chuck.

BILL MCCARTY III (General Manager) is a graduate of the University of Mississippi and has extensive background in wholesale and retail sales and real estate property management with the Jitney Jungle stores. McCarty has volunteered with New Stage for more than 35 years in all areas including production, running crews, lighting and sound design and New Stage fundraising events. He is involved in the day-to-day management, maintenance and production for the theatre.  His favorite design credits are Greater Tuna, A Streetcar Named Desire, The Gin Game and the 1984 production of A Christmas Carol.

SHANNON FROST (Marketing Director) received her B.A. in communication/theatre from Malone College in Canton, Oh. and her M.A. in theatre from Regent University in Virginia Beach, Va. She has served as theatre manager for Regent University’s theatre department and marketing director for Red Clay Theatre in Cleveland, Tenn. Frost is an adjunct professor of theatre management at Belhaven College and assists with the drama department at Christ Life Church of the Highlands in Ridgeland. She resides in Jackson with her husband Joe and their children, Nina (8) and Darby (5).

CHRIS ROEBUCK (Education Director) graduated from Mississippi College with a B.A. in history. He taught for two years at Madison Central High School, where among other responsibilities he assisted with the Drama Club. Roebuck was an acting intern at New Stage Theatre, working with four other interns to take three touring shows across the state. He also worked for the Partnership for a Healthy Mississippi, serving as performance coordinator/co-director of the extremely popular and successful R.A.T. (Reject All Tobacco) Pack performances for the past eight years. Among his numerous professional acting credits, Roebuck has appeared in Treasure Island, A Christmas Carol, You’re A Good Man, Charlie Brown, The Princess and the Pea, Idols of the King, Forever Plaid, The Wind in the Willows, A Raisin in the Sun and The Fantasticks.  In addition to the education touring shows, his directing credits include Lilly’s Purple Plastic Purse and The Zoo Story at New Stage and American Buffalo and Dinner with Friends with Fondren Theatre Workshop.

JESSICA FOXWORTH (Directing Intern) graduated from Louisiana College with a B.A. in Theatre Arts and Psychology. She has been active in theatre since second grade when she played Mistress Mary Quite Contrary. Some of her favorite roles since then have been Ernestine in Cheaper by the Dozen, Maya in Voices, Ophelia in Hamlet, Hedgehog in Wind in the Willows, Sister Phoebe in As It Is In Heaven, and Sir Jasper Fidget in The Country Wife. Foxworth also has directed several plays including Broken Hearts, Where are They Now, The Clown Prince of Wanderlust and The Ballad of King Windowglass. She is delighted to be a part of the New Stage Theatre community.

THE PRODUCTION STAFF

JERRY FARLEY (Production Manager) is very glad to be returning for his second season at New Stage Theatre.  He received a BFA in theatre technology from Northern Kentucky University and has been building shows for the past 14 years.  Some of his most memorable shows are Ride Down Mount Morgan, Conquest of My Brother, Assassins and Noises Off!

BRENT LEFAVOR (Resident Designer) M.A., MFA, was resident lighting designer for Sundance Summer Theatre for 10 years; designed and directed at Promised Valley Playhouse in Salt Lake City for four years; was a founding member, director and designer for Walk-On’s Inc. in Salt Lake City; and worked as a director and designer for three seasons at the Grand Teton Mainstage theatre in Jackson Hole, Wyo. Lefavor worked for 25 years as an associate professor at a local liberal arts college where he directed numerous productions, designed both sets and lights for more than 100 productions, and taught in all areas of theater education. He has designed lights for many shows at New Stage including Gee’s Bend, The Ponder Heart, Hank Williams: Lost Highway, The Skin of Our Teeth, Idols of the King, Ain’t Misbehavin’, Of Mice and Men, Always… Patsy Cline and Catfish Moon. Lefavor also designed the sets for Smokey Joe’s Café, Noises Off and You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown. He also has been seen as an actor in Jackson, appearing as Tevye in Fiddler on the Roof, Cromwell in A Man for All Seasons and C.S. Lewis in Shadowlands.

MARYANISE (Costume Designer) is a graduate of St. Joe, attended Ole Miss as a theatre major and graduated from the American Academy of Dramatic Arts in New York City.  Maryanise has worked professionally in film, television and theatre in New York for more than 20 years.  Some of her New Stage credits include Crowns, Ain’t Misbehavin’, Drawer Boy, Broadway Bound and Marvin’s Room.  This will be Maryanise’s eighth season at New Stage.

JAMES PETTIS (House Electrician/Technical Director) begins his eighth season at New Stage; prior to that he was the scene and lighting designer and technical director at Actors Guild of Parkersburg, W.Va.  Other theatres include Evansville Civic Theatre and Opus Nostrum Dinner Theatre in Ozark, Ala. It has been 19 years since his first technical director position at Playwright’s Repertory Festival. He earned an MFA from University of Southern Mississippi.

LAWRENCE RAYBON (Stage Manager) has been working behind the scenes at New Stage for the past four years.  A Texas native, Raybon works as both sound designer and stage manager for New Stage.  Some of his favorite shows include To Kill a Mocking Bird, Lilly’s Purple Plastic Purse, Idols of the King and I Love You, You’re Perfect, Now Change.  He would like to thank his wife Lesley for all her love and support.

RUTH CRAIG (Production Assistant) recently received a B.A. with Honors in Theatre Studies from Wellesley College where she worked as stage manager, director, and assistant to the production manager. Some of her favorite shows include The Foreigner and Ten Little Indians.  Craig is excited to be joining New Stage’s production team this season.

BOX OFFICE STAFF

MELISSA Tillman (Audience Services Director) is a 2005 graduate of Belhaven College where she received a B.A. in technical theatre. She has worked as a box office associate at Lawlor Events Center in Reno, Nevada and assisted with many box office activities at Belhaven College. Dubinski has stage managed many shows in several parts of the country, including Las Vegas and Tennessee. Her stage managing credits include Oklahoma!, Meet Me in St. Louis, The Wizard of Oz, Taming of the Shrew and Love’s Labours Lost. Her most recent work includes Noye’s Fludd and La Boheme with the Mississippi Opera. She currently resides in Fondren with her husband, Kyle, and has been with New Stage for four seasons.

BARBARA MARTIN (Box Office and Business Office Assistant) is in her thirteenth season at New Stage. First joining the staff in 1997, she has served as box office assistant manager and as box office manager. She also assists with development and business office functions.

BETTY WONG (Box Office Assistant) includes among her New Stage credits consultant for educational tours and long time house volunteer. Other work experiences include the Mississippi International Cultural Exchange Commission and the Mississippi Department of Education. She has served as a consultant to school districts throughout the state of Mississippi. Wong has a B.S. degree in educational psychology from Mississippi State University, and an M.Ed. from Delta State University.

CARLA MARSH (House Manager) received her B.A. in criminal justice with an emphasis in juvenile justice from Jackson State University. She is pleased to be returning to New Stage for her sixth season. Marsh has been employed with the Hinds County Sheriff’s office for 12 years.

THE PROFESSIONAL ACTING INTERN COMPANY

MICHAEL BROWN (Acing Intern) is a Nashville native and recent graduate of Emory & Henry College in Virginia. His mission at New Stage is to grow his professional career and expand his theatre education. A few of his favorite roles include Booth in TopDog UnderDog, Clay in Dutchman, Madam in Maids and Bob in Swimming in the Shallows. He was an Irene Ryan Award nominee, and values the support and love he has received from friends and family.

DORCAS LEWIS (Acting Intern) is a graduate of The Professional Actor Training Program at Chattanooga State Technical Community College. She is excited for the opportunity to work with such a reputable theatre as New Stage. Some of her most recent roles include Sojourner Truth in A Women Called Truth, the Ringmaster in Arkansaw Bear, Thea Elvsted in Hedda Gabler and Eve in The Shape Of Things. In case she forgets, while accepting her first Tony award, Lewis would like to thank her parents for their constant support; her friends for always being there; and Rex and Sherry for teaching her everything she knows.

DAVID LIND (Acting Intern) is delighted to be with New Stage for the 2009-10 season as an acting intern. Originally from San Antonio, Lind moved to Jackson in 2005 to attend Millsaps College and recently graduated with a degree in theatre. Lind was seen on stage as a member of the Millsaps Players in a number of roles including Dr. Dysart in Equus, Sennex in A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum, Lenny in Rumors and Harold Hill in The Music Man. He made his New Stage debut in The Ponder Heart as Lodell.