A.C.T. Staff
Staff
Pam MacKinnon
Artistic Director
Biography
Pam MacKinnon is in her fifth season as A.C.T.’s fourth artistic director. She is a Tony, Drama Desk, and Obie Award–winning director, having directed upwards of 80 productions around the country, off Broadway, on Broadway and in London. Her Broadway credits include Beau Willimon’s The Parisian Woman (with Uma Thurman), David Mamet’s China Doll (with Al Pacino), Wendy Wasserstein’s The Heidi Chronicles (with Elisabeth Moss), Edward Albee’s A Delicate Balance (with Glenn Close and John Lithgow), Edward Albee’s Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?, and Bruce Norris’s Clybourne Park. Other recent credits include Christopher Chen’s The Headlands and María Irene Fornés’s Fefu and Her Friends (A.C.T.), the world premiere of Downstate (Steppenwolf Theatre Company, London’s National Theatre, off-Broadway’s Playwrights Horizons); Lydia R. Diamond’s Toni Stone (Roundabout Theatre Company, A.C.T., and Arena Stage), Kate Attwell’s Testmatch (A.C.T.), Edward Albee’s Seascape (A.C.T.), and Christopher Chen’s Communion (A.C.T.). She has been recognized as among the 25 Most Influential San Franciscans of 2020 by San Francisco Magazine, along with Jennifer Bielstein. Pam is the most recent past president of SDC, the national union representing stage directors and choreographers.
Jennifer Bielstein
Executive Director
Biography
JENNIFER BIELSTEIN (Executive Director) joined A.C.T. in 2018. She serves on the board of Theatre Forward, is a member of the International Women’s Forum and the Advance SF Advisory Panel, was part of Mayor Breed’s Economic Recovery Task Force, and is the immediate past-president of the League of Resident Theatres (LORT)—an organization that represents 76 theaters nationwide—having previously served as LORT’s vice president; chair of its Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion Committee; secretary; and on multiple union negotiating teams. She has been recognized as among the 25 Most Influential San Franciscans of 2020 by San Francisco Magazine, along with Pam MacKinnon, and as one of the Most Influential Women in Bay Area Business by the San Francisco Business Times in 2021. Before relocating to the Bay Area, Bielstein was the managing director of the Guthrie Theater in Minneapolis, managing director of Actors Theatre of Louisville, and executive director of Writers Theatre in Chicago. She has also worked for Steppenwolf Theatre Company, About Face Theatre, Northlight Theatre, and the Lincoln Park Zoo, as well as served on the boards of the League of Chicago Theatres, the Arts and Cultural Attractions Council, and other civic boards. She has received the Center for Nonprofit Excellence’s Pyramid Award of Excellence in Leadership, has been recognized as one of Louisville’s Business First’s 40 Under 40, was named by Twin Cities Business as a Person to Know, and a Minnesota Business magazine Real Power 50 member. Bielstein is a graduate of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, attended Stanford’s Graduate School of Business Executive Program for Nonprofit Leaders in the Arts, and received an MBA from Bellarmine University, where she received the MBA Faculty Merit Award, was inducted into Beta Gamma Sigma, the honor society for business programs and in 2021 was recognized as a Distinguished Alumna.
PeopleExtra
Artistic Director Emerita, Carey Perloff
Producing Director Emeritus, James Haire
Conservatory Director Emerita, in memoriam, Melissa Smith
Young Conservatory Director Emeritus, Craig Slaight
Artistic
Andy Chan Donald*, Associate Artistic Director
Joy Meads, Director of Dramaturgy and New Works
Aleksej Aarsaether, Producer of Performance Residencies & Rentals
Katie Craddock, Literary Manager & Casting Associate
Commissioned Artists
Kate Attwell; Ryan Nicole Austin, Beau Lewis, & Adesha Adefela; Julia Cho & Seret Scott; Eisa Davis; Aleshea Harris; Naomi Iizuka; Craig Lucas & David Zinn; Will Power; Mfoniso Udofia; Anne Washburn; Lauren Yee; Karen Zacarías
Production
Martin Barron, Director of Production
Jack Horton, Associate Director of Production
Michael Anderburg, Conservatory Production Manager
Costume, Hair, and Makeup
Jessie Amoroso, Costume Director
Kinsey Thomas*, Costume Shop Assistant
Mika Rubenfeld, Costume Shop Administrator
Kelly Koehn, Craft Artisan
Peter Gravenor, First Hand
Jessica Carter, Wigs, Hair, and Makeup Manager
Alexander Class, Wig Supervisor
Prop Shop
Abo Jose Greenwald, Prop Shop Supervisor
Robin Maegawa, Prop Shop Assistant
Crew (Local 16)
Stephanie Killian, Head Props
Shawn Annecston, Head Carpenter
Brandon Gage, Flyrail
Ian Roth, Head Sound
Eddie Masias, Head Electrician
Wardrobe (Local 784)
Mary Montijo, Head Wardrobe
Diane Cornelius, Wardrobe Assistant
Administration
Audrey Thesing, Office Associate
Human Resources
Chrystal Ellis Sweazey*, Director of Human Resources
Alejandra Maria Rivas*, EDI Manager
General Management
Louisa Liska, Director of General Management & Operations
Amy Dalba*, General Manager
Sam L. Wong, Company Manager
Nina Fay, COVID-19 Safety Manager
Emma Penny, General Management Associate
Finance
Jim Sivori*, Chief Financial Officer
Ning Xiao, Controller
Eric Law, Senior Accountant
Yvonne Chen, Staff Accountant
Information Technology
Thomas Morgan, Director
Joone Pajar, Network Administrator
Operations
Leopoldo Benavente, Manager of Facilities and Operations
Jeffrey Warren, Associate Facilities Manager
Matt Stewart, Facilities Crew Member
Development
Caitlin A. Quinn, Director of Development
Sasha Habash, Deputy Director of Development
Nicole Chalas, Associate Director of Development
Irma Ramirez, Director of Special Events
Will Gaines, Associate Director of Individual Giving
Derek Collard, Special Events and Donor Engagement Manager
Kevin Dolan, Development Operations Specialist
Malaika Kirkwood, Development Assistant
Katie Maggard, Development Researcher and Prospect Manager
Marketing & Public Relations
Adam Thurman, Director of Marketing & Communications
Syche Phillips, Deputy Director of Marketing
Kevin Kopjak/Prismatic Communications, Public Relations Counsel
Samantha Lomax, Senior Digital Manager
Sarah Sugg, Video Content Producer
Laura Clatterbuck, Lead Visual Designer
Dani Karonis, Graphic Designer
Nakia Gibbs, Digital Marketing Associate
Ticket Services
Jorena de Pedro-Viernes, Box Office Manager
Mark C. Peters, Subscriptions Manager
David Engelmann, Head Treasurer
Sienna Sherman, Head Treasurer
Elizabeth Halperin, Assistant Head Treasurer
Andy Alabran, Treasurer
Jane McKay, Treasurer
Audience Services
Megan Murray*, Director of Audience Services
Jerry Chirip, Audience Services Associate
Sudeshana Karki, Audience Services Concessions Manager
Bernadette Fons, Audience Services Concessions Associate
Joe Henkin, House Manager
Sadie Li, House Manager
Traci Mar, House Manager
Genevieve Pabon, House Manager
Tuesday Ray, House Manager
Mark Saladino, House Manager
Bartenders
Ramsey Abouremeleh, Philip Aung, Mimi Bui, Yamilette Carrion, Aramis Cedeno, Matthew Day, Terri De Martini, Warren Duprey, Clara Fulks, Chris Hayes, Anthony Hernandez, Anthony Hoey, Sam Hoffman, Fred Izard, Emiliano Jimenez, Stan Joe, Robert Jones, Tyler MacDonald, Yamel Alexandra Miranda, Susan Monson, Shawn Paton, Austin Poznoski, Damian Samuel, Todd Van Fleet, Vannessa Williams, Kacey Wilson, Tygre Wolf, June Yee
Ushers
Susan Allen, Rodney Anderson, Felix Bishop, Serena Broussard, Philip Carberry, Myah DeStefans, John Doll, Katherine Dominguez, Molly Donoh, Lindsey Drew, Christine Ford, Mileta Foster, Gerry Garber, Claire Eugenia Gerndt Jr, Jaiyah Gordon, Carol Grace, Aron Gruber, Kathleen Keeler, Alec Le, Sharon Lee, Steven LeMay, John Light, Palima Lukins, Maria Markoff, Kescha Mason, Val Mason, Kenneth McKellar, Meechai McKellar, Felix McTague, Mary O’Connell, Nathaniel Paluga, Isabel Poling, Audrey Soss, Melissa Stern, David Tavernas, Christopher Willers, May Yasui
Safety
Loren Lewis, Ambassador
Jesse Nightchase, Ambassador
Angel Rodriguez, Ambassador
Idriss Sow, Ambassador
Education & Community Programs
Juan Manzo*, Director of Education & Community Programs
Shannon R. Davis, Director of Community Connections
Natalie Greene, Associate Director of Education
Elizabeth Halperin, Student Matinee Coordinator
Anelisa Montoya, School and Community Programs Coordinator
Teaching Artists
Andy Alabran, Reyna Brown, Yari Cervas, Janel Chanté, Callie Floor, Caela Fujii, Kathryn Gubler, Lauren Kivowitz, Anne Kobori, Josh Matthews, Brennan Pickman-Thoon, Annie Rovzar, Kimiya Shokri, Real Vargas
Conservatory
Peter J. Kuo*, Director of the Conservatory
Fran Astorga*, Conservatory Manager
Kelsey Tremewan, Conservatory Adult Programs Coordinator
Library
Joseph Tally, Head Librarian
Library Volunteers
Theresa Bell, Laurie Bernstein, Helen Jean Bowie, Bruce Carlton, Barbara Cohrssen, Richard Dillenbeck, Ken Holsclaw, Emerald Keehan, Martha Kessler, Nelda Kilguss, Barbara Kornstein, Gail MacGowan, Vineet Mishra, Connie Pelkey, Dana Rees, Dave Sikula, Roger Silver, Jane Taber, Susan Torres, Joyce Weisman, Jean Wilcox, Marie Wood, Joann Wu
Studio A.C.T.
Mark Jackson, Director of Studio A.C.T.
Emily Cooper, Young Conservatory and Studio A.C.T. Associate Programs Manager
Liz Anderson
Heidi Carlsen
Frances Epsen-Devlin
Deb Fink
Paul Finocchiaro
Margo Hall
Maya Herbsman
Monique Jenkinson
Drew Khalouf
Peter J. Kuo
Carolina Morones
Thaddeus Pinkston
Mark Rafael
Kate E. Ryan
Chauntee’ Schuler Irving
Elyse Shafarman, MA
Dee Dee Stephens
Mia Tagano
Jomar Tagatac
Laura Wayth
Valerie Weak
Young Conservatory
Jill MacLean, Director of the Young Conservatory
Emily Cooper, Young Conservatory and Studio A.C.T. Associate Programs Manager
Justin P. Lopez, Young Conservatory Assistant
Noah Babcock, YC Summer Associate
Veronica Fealy, YC Summer Associate
Andy Alabran, Acting, Voice & Dialect
Kimberly Braun, Musical Theater
Janel Chanté, Musical Theater, Acting
Meredith Joelle Charlson, Dance/Choreographer
Gwynnevere Cristobal, Musical Theater, Acting
Jane Erwin, Musical Theater, Voice
Allison Gamlen, Cabaret
Nancy Gold, Physical Character, Acting
Andrew Mondello, Musical Theater, Acting
Brennan Pickman Thoon, On-Camera, Acting
Thaddeus Pinkston, Accompanist, Musical Arranger
Leandra Ramm, Cabaret, Voice, Private Coaching
Ely Sonny Orquiza, Acting, Devised Theater
Kimiya Shokri, Acting, Devised Theater
Valerie Weak, Acting, Shakespeare, College Prep
Krista Wigle, Musical Theater, Voice
Conservatory Accompanists
Robert Allen, Daniel Feyer, Paul McCurdy, Thaddeus Pinkston, Naomi Sanchez, Katelyn Tan
San Francisco Semester Faculty
Natalie Greene, Physical Theater
Mark Jackson, Performance Making
Peter J. Kuo*, Collaboration Building
Michael Mohammed, PhD, Voice
Anna Marie Sharpe, Acting Styles
Jack Sharrar, PhD, Cultural Landscapes
Dee Dee Stephens, Acting Styles
Professional Development
Dillon Heape, Ben Quinn, Mark Rafael, Radhika Rao, Katie Rubin, Domenique Salerno
*denotes a member of the Staff EDI Committee
A.C.T. is a constituent of Theatre Communications Group, the national organization for the nonprofit professional theater.
A.C.T. is a member of Theatre Bay Area, the Union Square Association, the San Francisco Chamber of Commerce, and the San Francisco Convention and Visitors Bureau.
A.C.T. operates under an agreement between the League of Resident Theatres and Actors' Equity Association, the union of professional actors and stage managers in the United States.
The directors and choreographers employed by A.C.T. at the American Conservatory Theater are members of the Stage Directors and Choreographers Society, a national theatrical labor union.
The scenic, costume, lighting, and sound designers in LORT theaters are represented by United Scenic Artists, Local USA-829 of the IATSE.
The scenic shop, prop shop, and stage crew are represented by Local 16 of the IATSE.
A.C.T. is supported in part by an award from the National Endowment for the Arts.
A.C.T. is supported in part by a grant from the Grants for the Arts.