Vlad Messing workshops constantly in clown and associated methods and is committed to a lifetime of learning and discovery in the art and craft of theatre. Vlad is a Twin Cities theatre nerd and is very grateful and thrilled to have the opportunity to perform with Live Action Set. Vlad wants to thank all the theatre teachers in the Twin Cities, and all the local theatre artists and organizations who create original work, and all the patrons who maintain the healthy and vibrancy of our flourishing local arts scene.
Alys Ayumi Ogura started modern-ballet lessons as a child under the guidance of Mika Kurosawa, who later became to known as the “godmother” of Japanese contemporary dance. She has been performing in the Twin Cities since 2010, and has worked with Hauser Dance, Kinetic Evolutions Dance Company, Emily Johnson/Catalyst Dance, Emily Gastineau, Marylee Hardenbergh, Vanessa Voskuil, Company Blu (Italy) and Sandrine Harris (CT), among others. Her upcoming 2016 projects so far include “Who Moved My Child” by Melissa Birch and “Census” by Aniccha Arts at Northern Spark 2016 in June. She is working with MotionArtand SEVEN DANCE on their upcoming performances.
Rachel Petrie is a singer/actor/dancer...in that order...or, at least, that's the order in which she learned how to do all of those things...and she is happy that she gets to do a bit of all of those things in The Sparrow. Rachel is also a writer, producer, & director. Rachel also likes to make floral bouquets out of various materials (fauxfleurs.weebly.com). Upcoming projects: The Funny (at the Bryant Lake Bowl & Bedlam Theater in June) and Apple Picking at the 2016 Minnesota Fringe Festival.
Jennifer Pray is a Twin Cities based dancer, choreographer, and teacher. She is the choreographer and co-director of Dance & Other Behaviors, and an independent performing artist. She has created work for Threads Dance Project, Iowa Dance Theatre, the Minnesota Museum of American Art, and at festivals, galleries and museums. Her teaching and performance credits span the United States, the Netherlands, and the Caribbean. Jennifer is currently a company member with Threads Dance Project, directed by Karen Charles, and STRONGmovement, directed by Darrius Strong, and has performed professionally with Ballet Minnesota, Live Action Set and Kinetic Evolutions and as a professional guest artist with James Sewell Ballet, Ballet Arts Youth Ensemble, and Iowa Dance Theatre. Principal roles include Andrew Rist's Cinderella and The Rite of Spring, Swanhilda in Coppélia, Titania in A Midsummer Night's Dream, and the Sugar Plum Fairy in The Nutcracker. She is a summa cum laude graduate of The University of Iowa and holds a B.A. in Dance & International Studies with Honors.
Megan Reilly is a lighting and media designer who recently moved to the Twin Cities from Austin, TX. In Minneapolis/Saint Paul she has designed video for Open Eye Figure Theatre and New Century Theatre as well as lighting, video and sets for Macalester College, where she is an assistant professor. Her Austin credits include work for Whirligig Productions, Hidden Room, Trouble Puppet, Glass Half Full, Salvage Vanguard, the Rude Mechanicals, Tutto Theatre Company, Cambiare Productions, Rubber Repertory, the Butler Opera Center, the Fusebox Festival, and theCohen New Works Festival. Other projects have been with Playhouse San Antonio, Divergence Vocal Theater (Houston), Lakes Region Summer Theatre (Meredith, NH), New Conservatory Theatre Center, The Actor’s Collective, Lunatique Fantastique, and the EXIT Theatre (all in San Francisco, CA). She has received international recognition for her design-driven performance work and is a two-time recipient of the B. Iden Payne award for Outstanding Lighting Design.
Peter Rusk is an artist, writer and performer based in and from Minneapolis, MN. In the past he has worked with Open Eye Figure Theatre, Theatre Forever and the Jungle Theatre, as well as writing and producing his own projects and being a core artist of Dangerous Productions. The Sparrow is his first show with Live Action Set and he is very excited.
Eve Schulte is a dance performer and instructor based in Minneapolis, MN. She grew up training at Minnesota Dance Theatre, and transitioned to company member in 2007. She just concluded her seventh season with the James Sewell Ballet and will be returning in the fall. This summer, she returns as co-director for Blue Lake's International Ballet Ensemble (based in MI), which will have her teaching and showing work with two dozen American dance students in France, Germany, and Denmark. She recently debuted her first choreographic feat set on a professional company ("Any Offered None," JSB's Ballet Works Project 2016). She has collaborated with Live Action Set on three different projects thus far and is constantly illuminated by the process. Thanks to Noah and Joanna, and to the entire Sparrow cast, for the discovery, the ponderings, and the journey.
Kathleen T. Willard is a small human with a lot of curiosity who spends her time engaging in the arts in whatever way possible. Recently, she has performed in Twelfth Night with Shakespeare & Company and Treasure Island with Theatre in the Round Players. Kathleen's life ambition is to become Xena, the warrior princess. This is her first production with Live Action Set.
Mark Benzel is a theatre maker and teacher who is thrilled to be working with Live Action Set again. In addition to his performances with Live Action Set (The Seven Shot Symphony, The Big Low Down, and The Happy Show), Mark has worked with companies such as Sandbox Theatre (The Little Pilot, Unspeakable Things, and The Horse, The Bird, The Monkey and The Dancer), Theatre Forever (The Big Show), Dolan//Heeringa (My Life is All but Over), Red Eye (Will You Still Love Me, Tomorrow and Dreamless Land), The Coldharts (Edgar Allan, The Unrepentant Necrophile) in addition to Walking Shadow and Theatre Pro Rata. He thanks friends, family, and fellow collaborators for all the inspiration and support they give him with every leap. Special thanks to TP, M, and PP.
Torre Edahl is originally from Pittsburgh, PA, and made her way to Minnesota to attend Carleton College, where she graduated with a BA in dance and sociology/anthropology in 2014. While there, she had the pleasure of studying closely with Judith Howard and Jane Shockley. Upon graduating, Edahl moved to the Twin Cities, where she has freelanced with a number of companies and independent choreographers. She has also produced her own choreography at the Minnesota Fringe Festival, and was a 2015-2016 Art(ists) on the Verge Fellow, commissioned to create an interactive performance installation at The Soap Factory by Northern Lights.mn, supported by the Jerome Foundation.When not in the studio, Edahl works as the school coordinator at Zenon Dance Company & School and as a production and administrative assistant for Live Action Set.
Deanna Gooding is from Londonderry, New Hampshire and started dancing when she was five years old. When she was eighteen she moved to San Francisco, CA to study at San Francisco Conservatory of Dance where she trained for two years. Deanna has attended summer programs including American Academy of Ballet and LINES Ballet. Professionally, Deanna has worked with Oakland Ballet, Burns Work, and since 2014 she's danced with James Sewell Ballet.
Robert Haarman is a dance theater maker imploring the world to soften and tolerate the subtle. Upcoming endeavors are improvisitorial performance in Future Interstates at Cowles Center, and 9X22 at the Bryant Lake Bowl with Lindsay Forsythe in October.
Cate Jackson is a twin cities performer and graduate of UMN and the National Theatre Institute/Complicite. She has appeared at Theatre in the Round, Nimbus Theatre, Maximum Verbosity, Phoenix Theater, and Bryant-Lake Bowl, and last worked with Live Action Set in Crime and Punishment Fringe '14 and CandP '15.
Benjamin Kolis is a devisor, director, and actor based in Minneapolis. He has co-authored three books, most recently Thinking Diagrams: Processing and Connecting Experiences, Facts, and Ideas which is coming out in the next couple of months. He also paints houses.
Sam Kruger is a performing artist currently based in Minneapolis. He holds a BA in theatre from the University of Minnesota, and is a graduate of L'École Philippe Gaulier. Sam has worked with The Moving Company, Open Eye Figure Theatre, and at The Guthrie Theater.
Jennifer Mack is a lover and fighter, a performer/dancer, choreographer, teacher, mom, and proud resident of North Minneapolis. This is her first production with Live Action Set, but has admired their work from afar for many years and excited to be apart of "The Sparrow". Her professional performing career includes: 4 seasons with St. Paul City Ballet/St. Paul Ballet, 6 seasons with Continental Ballet and as founding member of Alternative Motion Project (AMP) in several notable Principal and Soloist roles. She has also been blessed to work in Montreal, Hungary, Ireland, Colorado, New York, Wisconsin and Minneapolis/St. Paul as a guest artist with: Curio Dance, Dance & Other Behaviors, Debra Jinza-Thayer's Movement Architecture, Eclectic Edge Ensemble, James Sewell Ballet, Jagged Edges Ensemble, Kari Jensen's Moving Arts Ensemble, Kim Robbards Dance Company, MN Opera, Offleash Area, Rainy Day Cabaret, Ray Terrill & Dancers, Rosy Simas Dance Project, Spandrel, Szeged National Ballet, Vox Medusa Dance Company and other numerous independent choreographers including commercial work for Aveda, Best Buy, Cost Cutters, and Sherwin Williams Paint. Her choreography has also been performed in Hungary, Ireland, MN, NYC, and WI including being selected for 'Harvest Contemporary Dance Festival' in Chicago, several 'Rhythmically Speaking' and 'Renovate' Choreographer's Evenings in Minneapolis, MN and awarded a Cultural Arts Grant through Eau Claire, WI in 2012. Jennifer graduated Magma Cum Laude with a B.A. in Dance Performance and a B.S. in Arts Management & International Business from UW-Stevens Point. She is currently a member of Christopher Watson Dance Company and continues working as a freelance/independent dancer, choreographer and instructor; while in the process of starting up a new project, "The Open Door Project" to debute in 2017. You can also catch her next at Christopher Watson Dance Company's 25th Anniversary Show. She would like to thank Noah & Joanna for this wonderful opportunity and all the craziness they deal with and work they do, the fabulous cast for their work and energy, Jim & Sue Mack, Matt & Zuzu Marka just for their love and support to keep going.
Eric Marinus served on Noah's pirate ship in Theatre in the Round's Treasure Island, and now he's lost at sea in The Sparrow. You'd think he'd learn. But he's happy to be working with Noah, Joanna, and the rest of this hearty crew in his Live Action Set debut. He is more often seen in the ensemble with Transatlantic Love Affair--105 Proof (which will have a run at the Illusion Theater in November), Emilie/Eurydice, These Old Shoes, Ash Land, and this winter's upcoming TLA project in the Dowling Studio.