Classes of 1970s – 1990s
Mary Burkin BA 1970 starred as “Momo” in the AEA production of The Humans, at the Coachella Valley Repertory Theatre.
LeVar Burton 1976 was honored with the National Humanities Medal at the White House. He was also named the 2024 Changemaker of the Year by the Shorty Awards.
Karen Knotts BFA 1977 toured a one-person show, Tied Up in Knotts, in the summer of 2023.
Tim Dang BFA 1980 directed the East West Players production of Spring Awakening starring fellow SDA alumni Eric Renna BA 2022 and Thomas K. Winter BA 2022.
Carlyle King MFA 1980 wrote and directed Sunny’s Closet which premiered at the Road Theatre.
Anthony Edwards 1982 performed in The Counter at the Roundabout Theatre.
Frank Ferrante BA 1985 performed in a one-person show, An Evening With Groucho, which originated as a senior class project at USC at the Bing Theatre under the mentorship of William C. White and was filmed and broadcast on PBS TV nationally in 2022. The program was featured in Newsweek, Variety, The Saturday Evening Post and on Gilbert Gottfried’s Amazing, Colossal Podcast. Frank performed his interactive comedy in Chicago’s Theatre District as the host of the cabaret/cirque show Cabaret ZaZou. The Chicago Tribune chose Frank as a top ten theatre performer of 2019. In 2021, Frank received a star on the Palm Springs Walk of Stars for his 35 years of contributions to the theatre.
Grant Heslov BFA 1986 served as Executive Producer for How to Build a Truth Engine, which screened at SXSW. Heslov and his business partner George Clooney have adapted their screenplay Goodnight and Good Luck for Broadway.
Mark Spatny BFA 1987 served as the visual effects co-supervisor/ producer for an eight-episode cyberpunk time travel TV series The Peripheral streaming on Amazon Prime Video. Spatny was also elected as the 2023 chair of the Los Angeles section of the Visual Effects Society.
Cynthia Santos DeCure BA 1988 was promoted to Associate Professor of Acting at the David Geffen School of Drama at Yale. Additionally, Santos DeCure served as a vocal/dialect coach for Quixote Nuevo at Denver Center and Cymbeline at NY Classical, and performed in Elm Shakepeare’s production of The Tempest as Alonso. Her co-edited book, Latinx Actor Training, was published in March 2023 by Routledge.
Keith Levy MFA 1988 (aka Sherry Vine) was featured in the Netflix film, Sitting in Bars with Cake.
Jeff Parker BFA 1989 appeared in the NBC series Chicago Fire. Parker made his debut at the Lyric Opera of Chicago in Proximity, a trio of contemporary operas. Additionally, Parker starred as President Obama’s Education Secretary Arne Duncan in a piece called The Walkers, composed by Daniel Bernard Roumain with a libretto by Anna Deavere Smith and directed by Yuval Sharon.
Edgar Landa BA 1992 directed an outdoor production of Richard III at Off Square Theatre/Thin Air Shakespeare in Jackson Hole, WY.
Rodric David BA 1994 served as executive producer for the independent film Wander Women, which was written by and starred fellow alumni Scarlett Bress BA ’20 and Olivia Singer BA ’20.
Michelle Lopez-Rios BFA 1995 was named the Chair of Performance in the Theatre School at DePaul University in Chicago.
Kevin Mambo BFA 1995 was seen in the film Rustin. He also won a Helen Hayes award for his work in August Wilson’s Radio Golf at Round House.
Timothy Dowling BA 1996 wrote the upcoming film Loose Cannons for Lionsgate, which will star Travis Kelce.
Warren Skeels BFA 1998 directed the thriller The Man in the White Van.
Penelope Lowder BA 1999 was a commissioned playwright for Center Theatre Group’s 2022 L.A. Writer’s Workshop where she developed a play about African American erasure in Los Angeles titled Barbara George. Lowder was nominated for the Golden and Ruth Harris Commission. Past works produced and developed by Lowder at Skylight Theatre Writer’s Workshop include A Drop of Sun in 2019, West Adams (L.A. Times Critic’s Pick for 2020) and Monsters in the Woods in 2022.
Class of 2000s
Jennifer Westin BA 2000 produced the film A Real Pain, which premiered at the Sundance Film Festival and was nominated for a Golden Globe Award for Best Picture Musical or Comedy.
Tasha Ames BFA 2001 won the award for Best Featured Performance at the LADCC Awards for her work as Eva in Circle X Theatre Company’s Do You Feel Anger? alongside fellow SDA alumna Charlotte Gulezian MFA ’13.
Bellamie Blackstone BA 2001 was nominated for an Emmy Award for Outstanding Game Show for Wheel Of Fortune.
Charl Brown BA 2001 starred in the Broadway musical Tammy Faye at the Palace Theatre. He also led a workshop of the new musical From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler at McCarter Theatre Center.
Stark Sands BFA 2001 starred in the musical Swept Away at Arena Stage in D.C. and later at the Longacre Theatre on Broadway. Fellow alum Alice M. Pollitt BFA ’15 served as the Assistant Stage Manager on the production.
Meghan Finn BA 2002 serves as artistic director for The Tank, a Manhattan-based non-profit arts presenter and producer serving emerging artists. She also directed The Lydian Gale Parr.
Ian Gotler BFA 2002 served as a writer and producer on the film Poolman and is a co-founder and producer for the production company Barry Linen Motion Pictures.
Kate Cannova BA 2003 received a Tony Award nomination for Best Revival of a Play for A Doll’s House starring Jessica Chastain and Arian Moayed in 2023, and two Tony Award nominations in 2024 for An Enemy of the People and Cabaret at the Kit Kat Club. Additionally, Cannova produced for Broadway: Swept Away and Once Upon a One More Time. Cannova also produced the revival of The Secret Garden at the Ahmanson Theatre starring Sierra Boggess.
Kelli McNeil-Yellen BA 2003 co-produced and co-wrote a feature film, Daruma, which premiered at Dances with Films in Hollywood at the TCL Chinese Theatre.
Patrick J. Adams BFA 2004 starred as Philip in CBC’s drama series Plan B.
Erin Anderson BFA 2004 has appeared as a recurring guest star on the last six seasons of Law & Order: SVU as defense attorney April Andrews. She also recurs as Ainsley on And Just Like That, and will appear in new episodes in the upcoming third season on MAX.
David Magidoff BA 2004 starred as Teddy Reed in the Showtime limited series, Dexter: New Blood.
Joshua Allen BA 2005 was nominated for an Emmy Award for Outstanding Drama Series for his work as Writer/Co-Executive Producer of The Morning Show.
Katrina Coulourides BFA 2005 designed the set for The Road Theatre Company’s production Mercury.
Rose Harwood BFA 2005 co-produced and acted in Land of Gold, now streaming on MAX (premiered at Tribeca in 2021) and produced the feature documentary Invisible (which also premiered in NYC in 2021), now available on Amazon Prime.
Alexander LoCasale BFA 2005 oversaw the operation of Torchlight, Sony Pictures’ advanced visualization facility.
Adam Ray BFA 2005 starred in the Netflix special Dr. Phil Unleashed.
Samantha Ostrander BA 2005 became the Production Stage Manager for the ongoing Castle Fantasy Faire show at the Disneyland Resort.
Ryan Eggold BFA 2006 appeared in Roundabout Theatre Company’s production of Yellow Face at the Todd Haimes Theatre.
Shiloh Goodin BA 2006 can be seen in the touring company of The Life of Pi.
Alexis Roblan BA 2006, MFA 2009 was selected to participate in the Geffen Playhouse’s residency program, The Writer’s Room, for the 2023/2024 season. Additionally, Roblan won first place in the Echo Theater Company’s 2023 New Play Competition for the work Javelina.
Michael Schwartz BA 2006 wrote, directed and produced Snatched, starring Emmy Award winner Tatiana Maslany for 20th Digital Studio/Disney. The short film, now streaming on Hulu, features a number of Trojans in its cast and crew, including fight choreographer Zoe Swenson Graham ’07, photographer Devin Begley BFA ’08 and actor Alexander Panagos BA ’20.
Boni B. Alvarez MFA 2007 was awarded the Celebration Theatre’s 2024 Chuck Rowland Pioneer Award for groundbreaking and distinguished achievements in LGBTQ+ playwriting and arts advocacy. In 2024, Latino Theater Company and Playwrights’ Arena joined forces to present his play, MIX-MIX: The Filipino Adventures of a German Jewish Boy.
Beck Bennett BFA 2007 will next be seen in James Gunn’s upcoming Superman film.
Deborah Ann Woll BFA 2007 starred in Arena Stage’s production of Angels in America, Part One: Millennium Approaches, which won the Helen Hayes Award for Best Ensemble in a play.
Jimmy Fowlie BFA 2008 was nominated for an Emmy Award in Outstanding Writing for a Variety Series for his work on Saturday Night Live.
Donald Webber Jr. BFA 2008 was seen on Broadway in Purlie Victorious, starred in the musical adaptation of The Preacher’s Wife at the Alliance Theatre in Atlanta. He performed in the star-studded Broadway revival of Our Town, as well as the the Broadway revival of Glengarry Glen Ross alongside Kieran Culkin, Bob Odenkirk and Bill Burr.
Brian Jordan Alvarez BFA 2009 was nominated for a Critics Choice Awards for Best Actor in a Comedy Series for his work in The English Teacher.
Griffin Behm BFA 2009 serves as Lighting Director at Production Club and designed the tunnel entrances for Super Bowl LVIII.
Troian Bellisario BFA 2009 stars in the new show On Call, which is currently streaming on Amazon Prime.
Briga Heelan BA 2009 performed as Cinderella in the Broadway Britney Spears jukebox musical Once Upon a One More Time at the Marquis Theatre in New York City.
Peter Vack BFA 2009 published his first novel, Sillyboy.
Class of 2010s
McKinley Belcher III MFA 2010 starred as Detective Michael Ledroit in the Netflix limited series Eric and in Netflix’s limited series Zero Day. He also starred in Ken Urban’s A Guide for the Homesick at DR2 Theatre.
Tucker Bryan BFA 2010 starred as Mr. Salt in the CMT San Jose production of Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory.
Veronika Dash BA 2010 executive produced and starred as Emily in the film Before I Go.
Khalia Davis BA 2010 served as the assistant director for the world premiere Broadway-bound musical Hippest Trip: The Soul Train Musical at ACT in San Francisco, where she also appeared onstage in ACT’s Christmas Carol.
Sara Fox BA 2010 received their second Emmy nomination for Best Costume Design/Styling for High School Musical: The Series.
Ian Littleworth BA 2010 co-starred in the Milwaukee Rep world premiere of Run Bambi, Run.
Ben Sidell BA 2010 is a pastry chef and the founder of pop-up bakery “SweetBoy.”
Lizzie Zerebko BA 2010 performed in the Laguna Playhouse production of The Rainmaker alongside fellow alumnus Nick Tag BFA ’11.
Amielynn Abellera MFA 2011 can be seen in the new MAX drama series The Pitt.
Raphael Corkhill MFA 2011 can be seen in the CBS/Paramount+ series FBI, and appeared in Netflix’s Rebel Moon, on NCIS: Hawai’i and Mrs. Davis.
Mark Jacobson BA 2011 played the role of Gabe Kaplan in the Hulu original series Welcome to Chippendales and was seen in the Netflix original series Obliterated. He also starred as Alan in the Geffen Playhouse production of The Engagement Party.
Karan Soni BA 2011 starred in the film A Nice Indian Boy, was seen in Deadpool vs. Wolverine, and served as director and guest starred on the hit TV series Abbott Elementary. Soni was also cast in the lead role in the Andrew Sandler thriller Fade to Black.
Erika Soto BA 2011 was nominated for Best Actress at the LA Theatre Bites Awards 2023 for performing as Beatrice in A Noise Within Theatre’s production of Much Ado About Nothing.
Ramón Valdez BA 2011 serves as the Managing Director of Rogue Machine Theatre.
Trevor Adams 2012 runs the popular D&D podcast Plunders and Blunders.
Erin Anderson BFA 2012 received two Emmy Award nominations for Outstanding Lighting Design/ Lighting Direction For A Variety Special and for Outstanding Lighting Design/Lighting Direction For A Variety Series.
Larkin Bell BA 2012 performed in the film Winter Spring Summer or Fall which premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival.
Gabrielle Bourne BFA 2012 starred as Tiffany in the Amazon Studios film Air starring Matt Damon.
Alanna Darby BA 2012 played Drusilla/Merchant/Miller in the Actors Theatre of Louisville’s production of Dracula: A Feminish Revenge Fantasy. Darby also performed in Center Theatre Group’s pre-Broadway tryout of A Transparent Musical as Maura and Rabbi Raquel’s understudy.
Zach Kaufer BA 2012 serves as the Director of Play Licensing for Dramatists Play Service/Broadway Licensing, overseeing professional and amateur licensing worldwide for the DPS, Stage Rights and Playscripts imprints.
Arthur Keng MFA 2012 was featured as the recurring role of Teddy Washington Chen on the AMC show Lucky Hank starring Bob Odenkirk.
Alexander Ludwig 2012 starred in the sci-fi series Earth Abides and in Bad Boys 4.
Evan Moore BA 2012 served as a producer on the Netflix series Sweet Tooth. Moore served as a VP at Robert Downey Jr.’s production company, Team Downey.
Joe Orrach MFA 2012 leads the Theatre Arts Department for the East Bay Center for the Performing Arts in Richmond, CA.
Pete Ploszek MFA 2012 will appear in the upcoming final season of You on Netflix.
Manuel Prieto BFA 2012 serves as the Boston Court Pasadena’s Executive Director. Prieto joins Artistic Director Jessica Kubzansky to co-lead the organization.
Jon Rudnitsky BFA 2012 was featured in the film I Love You Forever and was also seen in Stealing Pulp Fiction with fellow SDA alumnus Karan Soni BA ’11.
Diana Vaden BA 2012 performed in Once Upon a One More Time on Broadway and in Death Becomes Her in Chicago.
José Angel Donado BA 2013 was featured in an American Family Insurance commercial.
Whitney Ellis MFA 2013 wrote, directed, produced and acted in the film The Work, which was an official selection of the Academy Award and BAFTA qualifying LA Shorts International Film Festival
Steven C. Fisher BA 2013 performed in the first stop of the rolling world premiere of The Hispanic/Latino/Latina/Latinx/ Latine Vote by Bernardo Cubría.
Hayley Keown BA 2013 appeared in the final season of The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel playing opposite Rachel Brosnahan. Keown appeared in Season 3 of FX’s Reservation Dogs, and will perform in the indie comedy Re-Election. She also appeared alongside Mark Wahlberg in the action comedy feature film The Family Plan (Apple Original Films).
Chelsea London Lloyd BA 2013 was featured in the Netflix feature film We Have a Ghost.
Madhuri Shekar MFA 2013 served as the screenwriter and executive producer for the film The Immortal King Rao. The film adaptation of her play, A Nice Indian Boy, premiered in 2024, and she served as one of the writers.
Victoria Tam BFA 2013 served as Assistant Art Director for the Disney+ series The Mysterious Benedict Society, which won an Emmy Award for Outstanding Art Direction/Set Decoration/Scenic Design, and as Assistant Art Director for Poolman.
Charlotte Mary Wen BA 2013 performed in the Australian company of Hamilton.
Thomas Anawalt MFA 2014 appeared in South Coast Repertory’s production of A Christmas Carol.
Fiona Collinson BA 2014 and Joanna Brodecki BA 2014 co-produced and starred in the play Cry It Out, which performed at the Gene Frankel Theatre in New York.
Kara Connolly BA 2014 released a new music album, California Queen.
Riley Rose Critchlow BFA 2014 was cast in The Surrender, directed by alumna Julia Max. She also appeared in The Jessica Cabin, written, directed, and co-starring SDA alum Daniel Montgomery BA ’07.
A.J. Helfet BA 2014 was in a production of The 39 Steps at the Sherry Theater in North Hollywood with Steven C. Fisher BA ’13.
Virginia Ma BFA 2014 joined the cast of General Hospital and appeared in the Tubi original movie The Final Heist.
Sara Mardam-Bey BA 2014 was nominated for an Emmy Award for Outstanding Structured Reality Program as the Senior Story Producer for Love Is Blind.
Peter Mitchell BA 2014 was featured in a guest role on the MAX television show The Other Two.
James Morosini BA 2014 will direct the psychological horror film Mommy’s Home for Lionsgate.
Madigan Stehly BFA 2014 was nominated for an Emmy Award in Outstanding Lighting Design/ Lighting Direction For A Variety Special for his work on the 66th GRAMMY Awards.
Tonatiuh BA 2014 stars in the new film adaptation of Kiss of the Spider Woman.
Amelia Brookins BFA 2015 conducts primary research on the collections of costume rental houses. In 2022, her master’s dissertation, Suited and Sorted: Costume Houses through the Lens of Information Organizations became part of the permanent research collection at the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.
Roland Buck III BA 2015 appeared in the FX series American Sports Story: Aaron Hernandez.
Isaac Jay BA 2015 performed in the new play Tune In at Interact Theatre Company. Jay also starred in the animated film Yellowbird, streaming on MAX, as well as in the world premiere of Back Porch by Eric Anderson at the Victory Theatre Center.
Jay Lee BA 2015 performed alongside Michael Yapujian BA ’17 in Antaeus Theatre Company’s production of The Importance of Being Earnest.
Luke Lenza BFA 2015 was featured in the Marvel feature film Wakanda Forever.
Veronica Long BFA 2015 starred as Mariah Martinez in the Hallmark film Lights, Camera, Christmas!. Additionally, Long starred in the Hallmark film A Winning Team.
Victoria Moy MFA 2015 was awarded an Opera America IDEA Grant for her libretto Immortal Labia. Moy was also featured in Opera America Magazine in an article exploring operas about science and science fiction.
Katie Peabody BA 2015 performed as Brigid Blake in the Coachella Valley Repertory production of The Humans, directed by Adam Karsten.
Daniel Rashid BA 2015 co-wrote, directed and edited the short film Hit Friends, which premiered at the independent film festival Dances With Films. Additionally, Rashid’s film Almost Winter received the Annapolis Film Festival Award for Best Narrative Short Film. Rashid’s short radio play The Adventures of Chip Clancy: Intergalactic Detective premiered on the Blackbox Radio Podcast. Rashid also appeared as Ben Krennick in an episode of Fear the Walking Dead on AMC.
Kapil Talwalkar 2015 starred in the independent film Paper Flowers based on a viral HuffPost Article. He also starred in the Hallmark Channel film My Dreams of You.
Sedale Threatt Jr. MFA 2015 co-starred in the Echo Theater production of How It’s Gon’ Be by JuCoby Johnson alongside fellow SDA alumni Nona Parker Johnson MFA ’20 and Michael Howard-Dossett MFA ’21. The production was directed by SDA faculty member Ahmed Best, featured sound design by Alysha Bermudez BFA ’19, and the costume design was by SDA faculty member Ann Closs-Farley, co-costume design by Sophia Grose BFA ’23 and assistant costume design by Blu Moreno BA ’23.
Will Tranfo BFA 2015 co-starred as Young Douglas in the Frontier Studios film The Veil.
Nicole Wolf BFA 2015 played Maria in Manny Wolfe, winner of Best Short Film at the Edinburgh Film Festival 2024, which she also produced. Her directorial debut Arthouse featured fellow alumni Christian Henley MFA ’16, Patrick Reilly BFA ’15 and Will Tranfo BFA ’15, as well as SDA faculty David Warshofsky.
Katie Baker BA 2016 and Jon Rudnitsky BFA ’12 played siblings in the holiday romantic comedy Our Little Secret.
Alica Daine Benning BFA 2016 wrote and produced the original new work Grown at the RefrAction Lab Showcase in Chicago.
Zachary Cantrell BFA 2016 can be heard in the cold case audio podcast drama Two Dead Girls in Jubeliene.
Caribay Franke BA 2016 served as production manager for Diavolo Architecture in Motion, which performed at the Saraya to commemorate the 30th anniversary of the Northridge Earthquake.
Dor Gvirtsman BA 2016 was seen in the season finale of Accused.
Christian Henley MFA 2016 appeared in A Noise Within’s The Skin of Our Teeth alongside fellow alum Yannick Haynes BFA ’24 and current students Veronica McFarlane, Landon M. Robinson, Micah Schneider and Maya Sta. Ana.
Bella Hicks BA 2016 starred as Frenchy in the La Mirada Theatre for the Performing Arts production of Grease. Bella also was featured in the Disney California Adventure limited run of Rogers: The Musical at the Hyperion and was seen in South Coast Repertory’s Prelude to a Kiss.
Alexandria Lewis BA 2016 understudied as Opal in Fat Ham, the modern-day adaptation of William Shakespeare’s Hamlet, on Broadway.
Perry Mattfeld BFA 2016 was seen in the 2024 film, The Idea of You, as well as the 2022 film Mending the Line. She was also cast in the Hulu comedy Chad Powers.
Shane Paul McGhie BFA 2016 starred as Jake Gordon in the TubiTV film The Getback. McGhie also appeared in Grey’s Anatomy and can be seen in the film Last Days of Basic Cable.
Tyler Miclean BA 2016 wrote the new play Bad Sister, which starred alumna Molly Chiffer BFA ’17, and premiered at the New York Theatre Festival.
Ashley Morton BFA 2016 performed in Coachella Valley Repertory’s The 39 Steps.
Chantal Nchako MFA 2016 starred in Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F.
Michael Sturgis BA 2016 co-starred in the world premiere of Crabs in a Bucket, as well as Clarkston, at The Echo Theater Company.
Ashley Rose Wellman MFA 2016 won the Ted Schmitt Award for Outstanding New Play at the LA Drama Critics Circle Awards for the play Kill Shelter.
Molly Chiffer BFA 2017 wrote, directed, produced and starred in the film Kissing Kerouac, which featured Ashley Morton BFA ’16 as a co-producer. Additionally, Chiffer directed the Greater Hartford Academy of the Arts Half Day’s production of The Prom musical.
Amanda Cook BA 2017 is serving as the special events coordinator at the Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum.
Inda Craig-Galván MFA 2017 was a featured playwright in CTG’s L.A. Writers’ Workshop, her play A Hit Dog Will Holler had its Chicago premiere at The Den Theatre, and her play Pleasant was workshopped at the Powers New Voices Festival at the Old Globe Theatre.
Bella DeLong BFA 2017 starred in the Andy Fickman (Race to Witch Mountain) horror film Blue Light.
Michael DiNardo BA 2017 finished his first repertory season at Will Geer’s Theatricum Botanicum. He is also working as the treasurer for the immersive interactive USC-led company Last Call Theatre, and will be the Creative Lead/Director for its upcoming show in Winter 2025.
Stephen Jensen BFA 2017 was on the sound design team for Tony Award winner The Outsiders and Tony nominated Here Lies Love.
Alikhan Lochin BFA 2017 appeared in the world premiere musical Because It’s Sunny in L.A. (Especially Skid Row) at The Hudson Backstage Theatre.
Gabriela Ortega BFA 2017 directed the Disney+ short film Beautiful, FL. Her short film Huella was also selected to participate in the 2024 Gotham Week Project Market.
Zachary Roozen BFA 2017 produced and acted in the narrative film Happy Endings Funeral Parlor which was featured on the cover of Deadline and ABC News.
Jonathan von Mering BFA 2017 appeared as Francisco/Ceres in the Shakespeare Center of Los Angeles’s immersive production of The Tempest alongside Paul Stanko BA 2013. Von Mering also had roles in MAX’s The Flight Attendant and Julia, CBS’s FBI, ABC’s Big Sky and Alexander Payne’s The Holdovers starring Paul Giamatti.
Justin Chien BFA 2018 will appear in the second season of Netflix’s Avatar: The Last Airbender.
Eric Yamil Cruz MFA 2018 starred in the Teatro Victoria Espinosa production of Pedazos de Cartón.
Ali Gallo BFA 2018 starred in the Netflix film Incoming.
Camron Jones BFA 2018 starred in the short film Chocolate with Sprinkles, which won the HBO Short Film Award showcase at the American Black Film Festival.
Adrian Lurie BA 2018 is the CEO and co-founder of Dragonfruit Media, a video content agency for some of the world’s leading brands.
Aneesha Madhok BA 2018 starred in the film Bully High. For her performance she was awarded Best Actress at the Mumbai International Film Festival.
VyVy Nguyen BA 2018 starred in Sung Kang’s werewolf comedy Shaky Shivers.
Jack Tavcar BA 2018 appeared in Serving the Hamptons on MAX.
Quinn Blades BA 2019 performed in the Broadway company of Harry Potter and the Cursed Child.
Jacob Bond BFA 2019 appeared in the Netflix film All The Light We Cannot See.
Derek Christiansen BFA 2019 and fellow alum Ruby O’Brien BA ’20 served as projection designers for the immersive off-Broadway Dungeons & Dragons experience The Twenty-Sided Tavern, which featured sound design by M. Glenn Schuster BFA ’20.
Nathaniel Foster BFA 2019 wrote the independent comic book series Beatbox and Tune.
Miles Fowler BA 2019 starred as Tim in the feature film Bottoms.
Ido Gal BA 2019 co-produced the Broadway debut of The Sign in Sidney Brustein’s Window which starred Oscar Isaac and Rachel Brosnahan.
Will Hariton BA 2019 serves as the Development Coordinator at Kenan Thompson and John Ryan Jr.’s production company Artists For Artists.
Edina Hiser BFA 2019 served as the costume designer for the Central City Opera production of The Light in the Piazza.
Aja Houston MFA 2019 led an all-ages writing workshop at the site of Alison Saar’s statue, To Sit A While, as part of a partnership between the Lorraine Hansberry Foundation and Center Theatre Group.
Caitlin Kilgore BA 2019 received an award for Best Lyrics/Lyricist at the Hollywood Independent Music Awards for a song they wrote and recorded called “Fury and Fire.”
Ashley Long BA 2019 played Christine in the film The Phantom produced by John Watson and Maggie Phillips.
Tristan McIntyre BA 2019 joined the cast of The Outsiders for the musical’s world premiere at the La Jolla Playhouse as a swing for the role of Randy.
Nirvan Patnaik BFA 2019 was seen in the short film Bageecha.
Sophia Pesetti BFA 2019 served as the Associate Production Manager for Ragtime at New York City Center.
Bukola Ogunmola MFA 2019 starred as Dionna in the Boston Court Pasadena production of Measure Still for Measure.
Natalie Rousseau 2019 appeared in the film Tossers, which screened at SXSW.
Calahan Skogman MFA 2019 was cast in Kogonata’s upcoming film A Big Bold Beautiful Journey. Skogman also published a book, Blue Graffiti.
Manny Spero BFA 2019 starred in the film Bolt From the Blue, which premiered at the Austin Film Fest.
Gideon Jeph Wabvuta MFA 2019 wrote Family Riots, which was produced at the National Gallery of Zimbabwe.
Class of 2020s
Amanda L. Andrei MFA 2020 was selected as a participant for the Theatre Communications Group’s 2023 Rising Leaders of Color program. The participants formed a cohort of three highly talented early-career BIPOC theatre journalists who demonstrate the potential to impact the field in a positive way.
Tyler Joseph Ellis BA 2020 performed in the Open Jar Studios Production of White Rose: The Musical. Ellis served as a panelist on the The Power of Social Media for Performers panel at BroadwayCon 2023. Additionally, Ellis performed as Percival in the musical An Entirely Ordinary Town, and also joined the cast of the first national tour of Shucked.
Miguel Angel Garcia BA 2020 was cast as a lead in the Amazon pilot Band, a drama created and executive produced by Daniel Barnz.
Noa Gardner MFA 2020 received Theatre Communications Group’s Edgerton Award. Gardner’s play A Small Man was featured as part of the South Coast Repertory’s Pacific Playwrights Festival.
Ben Hirschhorn BFA 2020 performed in the world premiere of Room 1214 at 59E59 Theater B.
Ellen Murray BA 2020 was a Fulbright semifinalist for her proposed PhD theatre project in 2021. In 2023, Murray started her PhD in Theatre on a full scholarship at the University of Otago in New Zealand. Her travel essay “A Tempest of Dread at the End of the World” was published in the award-winning quarterly magazine Hidden Compass.
M. Glenn Schuster BFA 2020 won a Robby Award for Best Sound Design for their work on the Artists at Play production, This Is Not a True Story.
Chelsea Sik BFA 2020 can be seen in YouTube’s Alan’s Universe, and in the video game Apex Legends.
Maria Zhang BA 2020 starred in Avatar: The Last Airbender on Netflix.
Brit Baltazar BA 2021 served as director for Pirates Wanted, an interactive and immersive pirate adventure from Last Call Theatre. Fellow alumna Ashley Busenlener BA ’19 served as the project’s creative lead.
Nick Benson BFA 2021 starred as Jessup Diggs in The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes.
Kameron J. Brown BA 2021 was featured in a Meta Quest Ad campaign for television and radio, in addition to being featured as guest star on an episode of the CBS series S.W.A.T..
Lorena Estefania Gonzalez MFA 2021 was seen in the film Switch Up, which screened at SXSW.
Dylan J. Locke BA 2021 performed as Ma in the Artists At Play’s production of The Dance and the Railroad.
Charrell Mack MFA 2021 starred in the independent film Earth Machiavelli, which screened at the 2023 15th Annual Lady Filmmakers Festival.
Zaira Paredes-Villegas BFA 2021 served as Production Stage Manager for IAMA Theatre’s production of Arrowhead.
Grace Power BA 2021 released a single titled “Water Worship Pray.”
Abby Rowland BA 2021 made her directorial debut with Rotation Theatre Company’s production of Hamlet.
Galen J. Williams MFA 2021 was seen in Olney Theatre Center’s Fela! and Geffen Playhouse’s The Brothers Size.
Grafton Reyes Doyle MFA 2022 served as the executive producer for On Our Way, the feature directorial debut of Sophie Lane Curtis.
Nick Kassoy BA 2022 served as Associate Music Director and piano conductor for Prelude to a Kiss at South Coast Repertory.
Hannah Marie Lloyd BA 2022 performed in the first national tour of Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer: The Musical.
Zine Tseng 2022 won a Gotham TV Award for Outstanding Performance in a Drama Series for her performance in Netflix’s 3 Body Problem.
Thomas Winter BA 2022 performed in L.A. Theatre Works’ audio play Zeni, Dean of the Diamond by Mas Moriya.
Emily Arancio MFA 2023 stars as Zinnia in the independent drama Motherland, produced by MPI Original Films.
Talha Barberousse BFA 2023 was seen in the film Black Heat, which premiered at the American Black Film Festival in Miami Beach.
Brandon Mel Borkowsky BFA 2023 can be seen in the Broadway revival of Sunset Boulevard.
Payton Jane BA 2023 served as production designer on the film Dead Mail, which screened at SXSW.
Natasha Nutkiewicz BA 2023 was selected as one of 16 screenwriters for Series Mania’s Writer’s Campus.
Devin Craig MFA 2024 joined the cast of MAX’s The Sex Lives of College Girls.
Kenzie Gross BA 2024 performed in the Hollywood Fringe Festival dramedy Moonshine and Canned Pasta.
Jordyn Holt BFA 2024 made her professional theatre debut in The Belles Are Swingin’ at the Garry Marshall Theatre.
Kate Schaaf BFA 2024 and Amelia Anello BFA ’24 served as assistant designers on Center Theatre Group’s production of American Idiot. Lexa Ornes BA ’24 served as Music Director Apprentice. ■
This article appeared in the 2024-2025 issue of Callboard magazine. Read more stories from the issue online.