Team Member Name

Alicia Kot

Costumes Design & Instruction for: Homemade: A Show We Made Ourselves and Beauty & The Beast 

Alicia Kot (she/her) is a costume designer and the co-owner (along with Drew Atkinson!) of Stray Cat Strut ATL, a costume and makeup design studio for film and theater, living in Atlanta, GA. Her professional credits include Leading Ladies at Georgia Ensemble Theater, Cinderella at the Kentucky Ballet Dance Academy and most recently, The Undisturbed, 2021 (film). Alicia has also co-created The Local Aesthetic, a monthly subscription box curated with pieces by Georgian artists. She is excited to continue with her fourth year at PVTC with the completely new online platform. She loves teaching and creating costumes with the campers and cannot wait to see the creativity each camper will bring to their characters.

Brian Herdon

Fight Instructor for Squirrel Girl Goes to College and Beauty & the Beast

Brian Herndon (he/him) is so happy to come back to PVTC to work with these creative, fun, kind cast and creatives! He previously worked with PVTC choreographing the fight sequences for Heathers, The Musical (High School Edition) and Spring Awakening; he also worked as a dialect coach on The Drowsy Chaperone. Brian looks forward to acting again all over the Bay Area, at TheatreWorks, City Lights Theater Company, Marin Theatre Company and San Jose Stage. Brian has an MFA in Acting from the Alabama Shakespeare Festival and studied at the Dell'Arte International School of Physical Theatre.

Dawn Troupe

Director for Beauty & The Beast

Dawn Troupe is participating in her first summer with PVTC. Her recent credits include Off-Broadway: Moby Dick Concert and American Repertory Theater production with Tony Award winning Rachel Chavkin and Dave Malloy. Brothers ParaNormal (Theater Row), Anne of Green Gables (The REV), Year of The Monkey (The Tank), As Much As I Can (The Public Theater/Tour). Regional: Black Oddysey (CalShakes-BATCC nom, TBA “Best Ensemble”), Pool of Unknown Wonders (Oakland Theater Project), In The Red and Brown Water (M.T.C), Once On This Island, Big River, Caroline or Change, Dessa Rose, Book of Days, Ragtime & several workshops Memphis (Tony Award winning), Once Upon A Rhyme, Little Princess, Funkentine Rapture and others (TheatreWorks). Sister Act (Hillbarn-BATCC nom.), Death of a Salesman (O.T.P.), Gospel of Loving Kindness(O.T.P.), Spunk (CalShakes), Aida (Willow), Ragtime (Broadway By The Bay), and Color Purple (Hillbarn).

Drew Atkinson

Makeup Design & Instruction for: Homemade: A Show We Made Ourselves and Beauty & The Beast 

Drew Atkinson (she/they) is a makeup artist and the co-owner (along with Alicia Kot!) of Stray Cat Strut ATL, a costume and makeup design studio, living in Atlanta, GA. She specializes in special effects makeup and prosthetics fabrication. Professional credits include makeup design and prosthetics fabrication for Actors Express’ Angels in America, property designer for Whitetail (2020), and makeup department head for The Undisturbed (2021). Drew has also co-created The Local Aesthetic, a monthly subscription box curated with pieces by Georgian artists. This is her second summer working with PVTC! She is more than ready to see the characters these campers bring to life through makeup design!

Fred Eiras

Set Design & Instruction

Fred Eiras (he/him) joined the PVTC during the summer of 2018. He returned to the Bay Area after 13 years in Kentucky. He has been involved with theatre for 43 years on and off the stage and has enjoyed working with PVTC students, summer campers, MainStage actors, and volunteers. Fred is a set designer, scenic artist, master carpenter, prop builder, actor, singer, stage manager and director. He is also currently the Technical Director of Performing Arts for Sacred Heart Atherton. Fred's motto: " All the world's a stage, but someone's gotta build it first."

Hilary Stevens

Director for Squirrel Girl Goes to College

Hilary Ann Stevens (she/her) Is excited to finally be joining PVTC for their summer camp after many years of teaching for their after school program. A graduate of Shenandoah Conservatory/University, she holds a B.F.A. in Theatre for Youth with a minor in Voice. Hilary has worked with various theatres in the Bay Area and all over the country as an actress, director & teaching artist. Favorite performance credits include: The Odd Couple- Female Version (Olive), Around the World in 80 Days (Aouda), Damn Yankees (Gloria), Man of La Mancha (Aldonza), One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest (Candy Starr), Favorite directing credits include: The Lion King Jr, Jane Eyre, Deathtrap and The Mousetrap.

Jessica Bennett

Acting Instructor for Frozen JR & Frozen KIDS 

Choreographer for Beauty & the Beast

Jess Bennett (she/her) just celebrated five years at PVTC! A Bay Area native, she earned her B.A. at Soka University and then attended The Neighborhood Playhouse in New York. After six years in the Big Apple, she moved back to Redwood City to become a teaching artist. Jess is passionate about training the next generation of theatre-makers & teaches acting, improv and musical theatre classes at PVTC. Directing credits include: The Little Mermaid JR, Seussical KIDS, 101 Dalmatians KIDS, virtual James & the Giant Peach Jr, and all of PVTC’s Broadway camps!

Lindsay Saier

Hair Design for Squirrel Girl Goes to College, Tech Camp, Homemade, and Beauty & the Beast

Makeup Design for Tech Camp

Lindsay Saier (she/her) is thrilled to be returning for summer 2022, marking her 26th year of involvement with PVTC.  Lindsay is a Bay Area artist who is passionate about storytelling through Wigs, Hair, and Makeup Design and Education. She has worked all around the U.S. in educational, regional, tours and on/off Broadway. Most recently she spent 4 seasons as the Wig Master at American Conservatory Theatre, SF.  When she is not with campers she runs her company Bearded Slaier offering flamboyant,hand tied on lace  facial and body hair as well as custom designed creations. Massive thank you hugs to the interns and staff.

Lisa Rozman

Costume Design & Instruction for Squirrel Girl Goes to College

Lisa Rozman (she/her) has designed for many productions around the Bay Area, and was particularly proud to be on the costume team that won a Harriette Hill Technical Award for contributions to A Gentleman's Guide to Love and Murder at SBMT. Other past production include: Oslo (LASC), Rodgers and Hammerstein's Cinderella (FMT), Next To Normal (LASC), Big River (SBMT), The Sound of Music (FMT), and a dozen youth productions at  Sacred Heart Schools.

Lizzie Chapman

Intern Coordinator

Lizzie Chapman (She/Her) is very excited to be working at PVTC this summer! Lizzie holds a BA in Interdisciplinary Dance Studies and a Minor in Theatre Performance from Humboldt State University. Before working at PVTC, Lizzie worked as a teaching artist for many years, teaching drama, musical theatre, and dance to all ages. Favorite director/choreographer credits for youth programs include High School Musical, High School Musical 2, Anything Goes and Grease (SSPA). Lizzie loves taking time to continue to perform in theatre and dance and direct/choreograph when she can! Favorite performance credits include Spamalot (WCT), Heathers: The Musical (PSP), and Hello Dolly (FRT). She has danced as a company member for On3 Dance Company and the Caroline Liviakis Dance Company. Lizzie currently serves as the volunteer Artistic Chair for Pacifica Spindrift Players.

Maddie Rostami

Maddie Rostami (she/they) is a Brooklyn-based teaching artist, producer, and dramaturg. Maddie first joined the PVTC community as an intern in 2011 and has returned every summer since . In addition to her work with PVTC, Maddie is a line producer for Cal Shakes, spearheading the Shahrazad Squad, a community-building project for SWANASA women and non-binary artists. They also read scripts for new play development programs across the country, including the Playwrights Center and the Playwrights Realm. Maddie holds a degree in Theatre and Cognitive Science from Northwestern University, and she is a proud alum of the Berkeley Rep fellowship program.

Maddie Zdeblick

Director for Frozen Jr & Frozen KIDS 

Maddie Zdeblick (she/her) is a Seattle-based teaching artist, director, and PhD student in education at UW Seattle. In research and practice, Maddie is passionate about Disability Justice, educational equity, and innovating new theatrical forms in partnership with students of all ages and abilities. She is also founding Artistic Director of Parachute Players, a multisensory, immersive theatre company, and program manager of Dandylyon Drama’s Creative Adaptive Performance Ensemble (CAPE). Maddie holds a degree in Theatre and Sociology from Northwestern University, with a focus in Theatre for Young Audiences, and is a 2019 graduate of the Washington State Teaching Artist Training Lab.

Noëlle Gibbs

Summer Camp Producer

Noëlle GM Gibbs (she/her) is an interdisciplinary theatre artist living and creating work in the San Francisco Bay Area. Noëlle grew up as a PVTC student from its inception in 1993, giving her a 25+ year history with the organization. Since joining the staff in 2007, Noëlle has worn many hats including associate artistic director, children’s conservatory director, intern mentor, choreographer, producer, production manager, grant writer, and designer. Noëlle has directed over 20 MainStage & 100 year-round class productions in the past decade. Noëlle has also directed at City Lights Theatre Company, Dragon Theatre, and Arabian Shakespeare Festival and worked in the artistic and literary departments at TheatreWorks Silicon Valley, Magic Theatre, Shakespeare Santa Cruz, and Long Wharf Theatre. She teaches acting, directing, producing, and design to students in PreK through adults at PVTC and also served as the director/acting teacher at Crystal Springs Uplands School for two years. In 2014, Noëlle was the proud recipient of the Theatre Bay Area TITAN Award in Directing after having completed the Theatre Bay Area ATLAS program and received a Theatre Bay Area nomination for Best Direction of a Play for I & You at City Lights Theatre Company. Noëlle received B.A.’s in Theatre and Dance from UC San Diego, studied at the Academia dell’Arte in Arezzo, Italy, and continues to explore ideas of collaboration and audience engagement in her work.

Peter Hsieh

Marketing Mentor

Peter Hsieh (he/him) is a marketing professional, filmmaker, and playwright with 11 years of marketing and communications experience in a variety of industries. After graduating from the University of California, Irvine with a B.A. in English, he has worked at American leadership Forum - Silicon Valley, Planet Fitness, and Weltrend Technologies. He is currently a Content Manager at Enara Health, a Bay Area-based health startup and Director of Marketing at Audoir and A.I. company.

Raf Ornes

Music Director for Beauty & the Beast 

Raf Ornes (he/him) began working with PVTC in 1996 when he conducted a production of The Music Man. Since then he has been the music director for many shows for PVTC (adult and youth productions), while concurrently serving as Minster of Music at Valley Presbyterian Church. Raf earned a BS in Electrical Engineering, before returning to study choral conducting at Stanford. He has directed several choirs and other groups at local schools and theatre companies including the Foothilll College, Stanford University, Stanford Savoyards, Ram's Head, Lyric Theatre, and Woodside Elementary School. He enjoys the opportunity to help young performers grow and develop artistically in a supportive environment.

Stacie Doherty

Summer Camp Producer

Stacie Doherty (she/her) relocated from San Diego in 2011 to join PVTC. Stacie has worked as an arts administrator since 2007 and is the managing director of PVTC. While at PVTC Stacie has worked on both Children’s Conservatory and MainStage productions stepping into many roles over the years including arts administrator, stage manager, intern mentor, and producer. Stacie received a B.A. in Theatre from UC San Diego and spent a semester in London studying theatre which included internships at both the Kings Head Theatre and Little Angel Theatre. She worked as the Theatre Manager for four years at the Birch North Park Theatre in Southern California assisting local and touring arts organizations facilitate their events while growing the theater's intern and volunteer program and engaging with the local community. Stacie has stage managed for a variety of productions and festivals including Summer of Love with Adams Entertainment, Don Pasquale, Iolanthe, and Music Man Jr. with Lyric Opera San Diego, SummerFest with the La Jolla Music Society, and U.S. Drag at Dragon Theatre in Redwood City. Stacie is inspired to create a space for youth to explore all aspects of theatre, allowing young artists to work together as an ensemble building skills they can apply both on and off the stage.