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Abby Anderson (Miranda/Antonia) is delighted to be making her North Dakota Shakespeare Festival debut! She is currently pursuing an MFA in Theatre Performance at the University of Southern Mississippi. Professional credits include New Orleans Shakespeare Festival, Sierra Repertory Theatre, Forestburgh Playhouse, Coeur d’Alene Summer Theatre, and a national tour with Chamber Theatre Productions. Favorite roles include Lady Macbeth (Macbeth), Morticia (The Addams Family), Shelby (Steel Magnolias), Truly Scrumptious (Chitty Chitty Bang Bang) and Joanna (Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner). Abby received a BFA in Musical Theatre from Rider
University. She is excited to share this experience with her partner, Mark!
El Armstrong (Sound Designer) is a Denver based sound and video designer whose credits include: DCPA: Miss Rhythm•The 39 Steps, • Great Wall Story; Fahrenheit 451 • Charlies Aunt • Ah, Wilderness. Arvada Center: Elf Curious Theatre Company: Denver Stories, • Citizen • Skeleton Crew The Victorian Theatre: Dead Man Walking• Voices in the Dark (Ovation Award – Best Sound Design) •The Creation 17th Avenue Playhouse: Metamorphosis • Picasso at the Lapin Agile The Edge Theatre: American PHAMALY
Evita • Fuddy Mears •The Immigrant• Our Town • It’s A Wonderful Life • The Glass Menagerie • The Fantasticks • The Elephant Man • The Diviners Aurora Fox Arts Center: Porgy and Bess • Arabian Nights• Myth • Painted Bread • Crumbs • Something Wicked This Way Comes • Xanadu • Fully Committed • The Miracle Worker * Moby Dick, The Musical • Little Shop of Horrors. Primetime Emmy nominated video editor and Grammy nominated sound engineer. Colorado Theater Guild Award (Henry): Special Achievement in Theater Technology and Engineering. This is El's first season with NDSF!
Cheryl Brodzinsky (Scenic Designer/Props Master) has been teaching, designing sets and props, and painting at Red Rocks Community College since 2016. She moved to Denver in 2014 after completing her MFA in Theatre Arts, emphasis in Scenic Design, at San Francisco State University. Companies Cheryl has worked with include Northglenn Youth Theatre (CO), Phamaly Theatre Company (CO), Vintage Theater (CO), Palo Alto Children’s Theatre (CA) and Hillbarn Theatre (CA). Some of her recent scenic designs include The Enchanted Bookshop with Northglenn Youth Theatre and Trail to Oregon with Red Rocks Community College. In addition to teaching and designing at RRCC, Cheryl enjoys the role of Mommy to Jonathan and Ava. Her work can be seen at www.cherylbrodzinsky.com
Stephanie Faatz Murry- (Founder/Producing Artistic Director) is currently a Denver-based theatre artist, teaching, directing, producing and performing in the area. She holds a B.F.A. in Musical Theatre from SUNY Fredonia, an M.F.A. in Acting from the University of Arkansas and a certificate in Classical Acting from the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art (LAMDA). She is so excited to share her love of classical theatre with the ND/MN community for a 7th season! Keep up with her theatrical adventures at www.stephaniefaatzmurry.com.
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Veronica Lee Folkedahl (Artistic Associate) is overjoyed to be stepping into a new position with the North Dakota Shakespeare Festival this year! She previously appeared onstage as Lady Abess/Etc., Peaseblossom/Hippolyta, Horatio/Gertrude, Ursula, and Sampson/Apothecary. Outside of the theatre, you can probably catch her sipping on local coffee, playing bingo with her besties, or having a cozy night playing Animal Crossing with her babycat. If you’re a Grand Forks local, you may have seen her recently as Dragon in Shrek, or the production of The Lion, The Witch & The Wardrobe she directed! Some favorite roles include Sandra (Big Fish), Mayzie (Seussical), Beggar Woman/Lucy (Sweeney Todd), Rosie (Mamma Mia) and #11 (The Wolves). Veronica would like to extend a gigantic, love-filled thank you to Stephanie for this opportunity, and for her never-ending support over the past 6 years.
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Tyler Hebert (Stephano, u/s Trinculo) is beyond excited to make their North Dakota Shakespeare Festival debut! Tyler is a recent graduate of the University of North Dakota with his BFA in Musical Theatre. Some of his favorite roles include Erik (Unnecessary Farce), Tommy (Carrie), Jason (Rabbit Hole), Bill (Mamma Mia!) and Parolles (Unrehearsed Alls Well That Ends Well). He is excited and grateful to be joining the company this summer!
Sydney Kamel (Ariel, u/s Miranda & Antonia) is a rising senior Musical Theater major at Syracuse University! She is excited to dive into Shakespeare after recently returning from a semester studying at Shakespeares Globe theater in London. Earlier this summer, Sydney closed a show in NYC where she originated the role of “Ailbhe” in Riders to the Sea with Off Brand Opera. She will later finish her time at Syracuse with the role of “Adelaide” in Guys and Dolls and then she will swing for Syracuse Stage’s regional production of Christmas Carol. Some of her other favorite roles include “Imogen” in Cymbeline, “Natalie” in Next to Normal, “Madame Thenardier” Les Mis and “Cinderella” in R&H Cinderella. Sydney is so overwhelmed with gratitude for her friends and family who give her so much love and support!
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Julie Knief (Swing/House Manager- covering Ariel, Caliban, Alonso and Stephano) is currently a student at Red Rocks Community College, pursuing a degree in Musical Theatre. She has been singing since childhood, and first took up acting in her high school's program, Centerstage Theatre Company. There, she was in such shows as Beauty and the Beast, Little Shop of Horrors, and Rock of Ages. Since her start at Red Rocks, she has been in such productions as The Revolutionists and Evil Dead: The Musical. Outside of school, she also performs in murder mystery dinner theater shows. She is an advocate for diversity in the world of theatre, particularly for plus-size performers.
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David Ian Lee (Director) has directed plays, operas, films, and campaign videos across the country. In 2019, David simultaneously directed plays in two separate states, placing his work at the forefront of what would become the Zoom-theatre movement. In response to the historical
pandemic of 2020, David became a champion of virtual theatre, directing, producing, and
shepherding content that is both innovative and ethical. He has served as a director or assistant
director in New York for the Pearl Theatre Company, Manhattan Theatre Source, Flux Theatre
Ensemble, and Boomerang Theatre Company. As a playwright, his works include mass, Liberty & Joe DiMaggio, Sleeper, and The Curing Room, which has seen multiple international productions and has been translated into French, Greek, and Afrikaans. As an actor, he has performed internationally and with theatres including Utah Shakespeare, Sedona Shakespeare, New York Classical Theatre, The Actors Theatre of Louisville, Arizona Repertory Theatre, Milwaukee Repertory Theatre, and Nashville Repertory Theatre. David is a founding Producing Artistic Director of Pipeline-Collective, a company that celebrates the craft of the actor, dynamic
storytelling, and theatrical magic on a shoestring budget; through multi-faceted programming –
including a dark night series, an internationally recognized play development program, and
events benefiting charitable organizations – Pipeline extends the reach of the arts and
empowers theatremakers to tell their stories. David currently serves as the Director of the
Theatre Conservatory at Montverde Academy, where as part of the 22/23 season he directed
productions of 9 to 5, The Wolves, and a new adaptation of W.E.B. DuBois’ The Comet; this fall,
he will direct productions of Stephen Sondheim and James Lapine’s Sunday in the Park with
George and Larissa FastHorse’s The Thanksgiving Play. David received his BFA in Acting and
Directing from the University of Arizona and his MFA in Directing from Illinois State University.
He is a proud graduate of New York's William Esper Studio and was a 2021 cohort of the La
Mama International Virtual Directors’ Symposium. Favorite credit: Father to Beckett Harrison
Lee , on which David collaborated with his wife, Karen. Learn more by visiting pipeline-
collective.com, montverde.org/the-arts/theatre, or davidianlee.com.
Matthew Murry (Prospero- Colorado) is to be a part of NDSF's seventh season! He previously appeared as Oberon/Theseus, Hamlet, Dogberry, Feste and Mercutio at ND Shakes. Matthew is a Denver-based artist, originally hailing from Uhrichsville, Ohio. He holds an M.F.A. in Acting from Indiana University, a B.A. in Theatre with a Minor in Music from Muskingum University, and a certificate in Commedia Dell'Arte Performance from Antonio Fava's International School of Comic Acting. Some favorite roles include Prospero (The Tempest), Macbeth (Macbeth), Earl of Kent (King Lear), Garry LeJeune (Noises Off), George Tesman (Hedda Gabler), and The Man in Chair (The Drowsy Chaperone). While in South Korea, Matthew wrote, directed, and performed in several musicals including The Legend of Robin Hood. For more info, visit his website: www.matthewmurry.net. Matthew wants to thank his lovely wife for making all of this possible!
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Josh Paine (Ferdinand/Sebastian) is astoundingly excited to be making his North Dakota
Shakespeare debut! Having started his collegiate experience at Morehouse College, he
completed his B.A. in Theatre Arts at Illinois Wesleyan University. Some of his favorite credits
include, Balthasar in Romeo and Juliet, Lord of the Underworld in Eurydice, and Jim Seig in Our
Man in Madras. Josh is eternally grateful to his family and friends for the absurd amount of love
and support they’ve given him.
Ren Patton (Stage Manage/Asst. Director) is an aspiring actor and director currently living in Lakewood, CO. They have spent most of their life acting and recently has had the opportunity to explore and work in other fields of theatre. Their recent credits include stage managing Dog Sees God, playing The Son in The Trail to Oregon and finally, their directorial debut in Mosquitoes by Lucy Kirkwood. They are thrilled to get a foot into working with professionals in theatre and are grateful to those who have supported their work on and off the stage.
Susi Segura (Costume Apprentice) was born in Irapuato, Guanajuato Mexico but now lives in Lakewood, Colorado. She has acted in plays and musicals from early childhood all the way up to her last years in high school. She also cosplays in her spare time and has done so since 2016.
Cosplaying ignited a love for costume construction, leading them to pursue a degree in the arts.
They recently graduated from Red Rocks Community College and have worked as a dresser
and stitcher for a few shows there as well. Most recently she was assistant costume designer for
the production of Monstersongs at Red Rocks Community College Theatre.
Laura Shatkus (Prospero- North Dakota) is an actor, director, producer, and writer originally from Chicago where she worked and trained for over a decade before receiving an MFA in Acting from the University of Arkansas in Fayetteville. She is happy to be back in Grand Forks with Stephanie Faatz Murry and her team of talented artists, after performing as Lady Capulet in Romeo and Juliet in 2017. Chicago and Regional Theatre credits include extensive work with The Hippodrome Theatre (where she is a company member), Florida Repertory Theatre, TheatreSquared, The Gift Theatre, 16th Street Theatre, Mary-Arrchie, and Collaboraction, among others. In 2020, Laura co-created and co-produced Hold Fast, a site-specific performance piece devised, delivered, and performed at households and community sites in pandemic isolation in Northwest Arkansas, for which she received the Arkansas Arts Council’s Artist Fellowship. Recent film and TV credits include: Tulsa King (Paramount +), Mindcage (Lionsgate), Follow Your Heart (Hallmark), Freedom’s Path, and, most recently, The Magician’s Raincoat, a children’s film in which she reached her final form by playing a wicked witch. www.laurshatkus.com
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Kevin Snyder (Alonso, u/s Ferdinand/Sebastian) is a freelance actor, director, and educator with a BFA in Acting from Nebraska Wesleyan University. Credits include The Merry Wives of Windsor, Tecumseh!, The Passion of Dracula (Tecumseh Outdoor Drama), To Die For (Ensemble Stage Theatre) As You Like It (The Frog and Peach Theatre), and The Comedy of Errors (The Alpha NYC). Kevin has also worked as an adjunct professor of theatre and guest director (The Lightning Thief, Dog Sees God) at Red Rocks Community College in Lakewood, Colorado.
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Mark Swift (Trinculo) is a current MFA theatre performance graduate candidate at USM. Mark is thrilled to be making his debut with the North Dakota Shakespeare Festival. Previous credits include Comedy of Errors (Hoosier Shakespeare Festival), Measure for Measure (Hoosier Shakespeare Festival, A Woman of No Importance (Walnut Street Theatre), Dracula (Hedgerow Theatre), and Almost Maine (Wings of Paper). Mark is an alumni of the Hedgerow Theatre fellowship program and Rider University where he graduated with a BA in Theatre Performance.
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Ammon Underhill (Caliban, u/s Prospero) is a graduate of the Red Rocks Community College Theatre program, and extremely excited to be performing with the North Dakota Shakespeare Company! After a few years of stepping back from the theatre to pursue his Massage Therapy license, he is eager to get into the work and perform with this incredible team. Some of his credits include; Matt from Dog Sees God, Scott from Evil Dead: The Musical, and Brad from The Rocky Horror Show.