Judges: Preliminary Round |
March 10 and March 11 |
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Robbie Montgomery is the owner and resident matriarch of Sweetie Pie's and Sweetie Pie's at the Mangrove, the nationally acclaimed soul food restaurants she founded in her hometown of St. Louis, MO and star of “Welcome to Sweetie Pie’s” on OWN, the Oprah Winfrey Network. Robbie’s restaurants have attracted a popular following among both local St. Louis residents and celebrities alike. Prior to running her own restaurants, Robbie toured the U.S. singing backup for Ike and Tina Turner during the 1960s. Her stint as an Ikette launched a singing career that spanned over 20 years, including gigs as a background singer for The Supremes, Stevie Wonder, James Brown, Pattie LaBelle and The Rolling Stones, among others. When a collapsed lung ended her singing career, she returned to St. Louis to reinvent herself utilizing her other formidable talent -- as a cook. Robbie is picking up speed with plans for her biggest and most ambitious endeavor yet -- Sweetie Pie's: The Upper Crust in Grand Center. Active in charity outreach programs, Miss Robbie helps provide job training to formerly incarcerated men and women and food to those in need.
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Gary F. Bell is Artistic Director of Stray Dog Theatre. Gary has been a theatre professional for more than 30 years. After training in New York City, he joined the American Ensemble Studio Theatre where he studied with director Stanley Harrison. Bell is a member of Actors’ Equity and the American Guild of Variety Artists. He co-founded Stray Dog Theatre in 2003. |
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Sara Burke is the owner and director of The City Studio Dance Center in St. Louis, Missouri which she founded in 1986. Sara is a choreographer, dancer, dance instructor, photographer, author and diversity arts consultant. She has danced around the world. One of her biggest goals and accomplishments was to learn Dunham Technique from the legendary Katherine Dunham. She studied with Miss Dunham in East St. Louis in the 1970’s and danced with the Dunham Company. Sara is a Commissioner on the Regional Arts Commission (RAC); serves as Secretary of The Regional Arts Commission; serves on the boards of: Dance St. Louis, Diversity Awareness Partnership (DAP), DanceBrazil in New York City and she is also on the National Board of Directors for the Cleo Parker Robinson Dance Company in Denver. Sara is an advisor for Rustbelt to Artist Belt: At the Crossroads and also a member of the Americans for the Arts and a member of the International Association of Blacks in Dance (IABD). |
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Marsha Parker, Director of Theatre at Lindenwoood University - Belleville.
More information coming soon! |
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Anthony "Redd" Williams is a St. Louis native who brings cutting edge movement and choreography to the world of hip hop dance. He has performed with the likes of Lady Gaga, Beyonce, Jennifer Lopez, Adidas, Mariah Carey & Corbin Bleu just to name a few. He has choreographed for the likes of Nelly, Starbucks Coffee, P Diddy & has appeared in countless music videos, commercials & live television performances. Redd is currently working for COCA here in St Louis where he is Artistic Director of their Hip Hop Dance Company. He has traveled all over the world teaching Hip Hop dance to thousands of students & is so excited to be back home in St Louis sharing his knowledge and gifts bringing a new Life to the Hip Hop Community. |
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Phillip Dunlap is currently Director of Education for Jazz St. Louis, a musician and educator. As a musician, Mr. Dunlap performs throughout the United States and abroad with his own group, the Legacy Jazz Quintet, and as a sideman having performed with musicians such as Jimmy Cobb, Terell Stafford, John Pizzarelli, Houston Person, Harold Jones and Sara Gazarek. Phillip is also a faculty member of American Voices and in the summer of 2009 traveled to Afghanistan where he was artist in residence at Kabul University’s School of Music and at the National Institute for Music. In 2010 he also became Adjunct Professor of Music at the University of Missouri – St. Louis. |
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Ron Gibbs is a St. Louis native to was a working actor and director in New York City for 16 years until he left in 2002 to become the Managing Director at STAGES ST. LOUIS. Ron was Susan Stroman’s assistant for 7 years, including performing in and assisting Susan on "Showboat", for which Ms. Stroman won her second Tony Award. During his stint in New York, Ron was lucky enough to work with the likes of Mickey Rooney, Eartha Kitt, Elaine Stritch, and the irrepressible Carol Channing. |
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Jeffery Matthews is the Coordinator of Acting and Directing for the Performing Arts Department at Washington University in St. Louis, where he teaches acting, voice and speech, and directs departmental productions. He was the Artistic Supervisor of The Imaginary Theatre Company, the professional touring company of the Repertory Theatre of St. Louis, from 1989-2009 He has also worked with The Muny, Stages, St. Louis, and Theatre Project Company. |
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Zoe Vonder Haar is a St. Louis actress and choreographer. She toured in the First International Company of “A Chorus Line” for 2 ½ years before returning to her home town of St. Louis to raise her family. She has since performed in over 75 productions in her career. A resident actress at Stages St. Louis, Zoe also performs regularly at The Muny, The Repertory Theatre of St. Louis and is a member of the “American Musical” which performs throughout the school year at the Sheldon Concert Hall. She received the first Kevin Kline Award for Outstanding Actress in a Musical for her role of Dolly Levi in “Hello Dolly!” and was again nominated for her role of Ms. Pennywise in “Urinetown the Musical”, and Mrs. Higgins in “My Fair Lady”. Zoe shares her passion for musical theater by teaching dance and choreographing at 7 area schools. |
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Rick Dildine is the Executive Director of Shakespeare Festival St. Louis and the Director of the MFA Arts Management & Leadership program at Webster University. He was most recently Managing Director of Chicago’s About Face Theatre, whose work has been recognized with the Pulitzer Prize and the Tony Award. For seven years he was with the Stephen Foster Theatre in Kentucky, serving as Artistic Director from 2005-2008. From 2006-08, Dildine was the Producer of the Brown University/ Trinity Rep New Plays Festival and Playwriting Coordinator for the graduate playwriting program at Brown University, all under the leadership of Pulitzer Prize-winner Paula Vogel. Rick also spent two seasons as a member of the acting company at the Warehouse Theatre in South Carolina. Rick is a member the Stage Directors and Choreographers Society. |
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Timothy O’Leary has been General Director of Opera Theatre of Saint Louis since October 2008 and described by Opera News magazine as an "energetic young visionary." Previously, Mr. O'Leary served on the senior management team of New York City Opera, served as Managing Director of New York’s downtown Gotham Chamber Opera, and worked as a fundraiser for Broadway’s Roundabout Theatre Company, New York's Alliance for the Arts, and Theatre for a New Audience. He has also worked as a stage director and assistant stage director for companies including New York City Opera, Glimmerglass Opera, Florida Grand Opera, Opera Colorado, and others. Mr. O’Leary’s training includes an apprenticeship with San Francisco Opera’s Merola Program, graduate studies at Columbia University in Theatre Management, and an undergraduate degree in English and Drama from Dartmouth College. |
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Amy Scheers is the Director of Dance at COCA, guiding the artistic vision for their three Student Dance Companies (Ballet Eclectica, COCAdance, and COCA’s Hip Hop Crew), as well as the nationally recognized Pre-Professional Dance Program. She is also the creator & artistic director of The Little Dancer, a story ballet that has become a tradition at COCA. Scheers previously was Company Manager & Ballet Mistress for Alexandra Ballet and taught for Alexandra School of Ballet. Scheers began her dance training in St. Louis and performed many principal roles with the Butler Ballet, and went on to perform with Ballet Theatre Pennsylvania under Artistic Directors Trinette Singleton and Nana Badrena. In 1995, she began teaching in New Jersey at Montgomery Dance Arts and assisted in the founding of the Belle Meade Ballet. |
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Stellie Siteman, Artistic Director of Max & Louis Productions, is an actress, director and producer whose experience encompasses theater, film, T.V., Cabaret, Print, and Radio commercials both regionally and nationally. She has appeared in the Max & Louis Productions of "It Had To Be You" and "The Lady With All the Answers" Regional Thearecredits: "Unbeatable, The Musical";"Guys and Dolls";"Roman Holiday";"The Music Man"; "Bye, Bye Birdie"; "Mame"; "Fiddler on the Roof"; "Annie"; "Afterplay"; "Fat Men in Skirts"; "Torch Song Trilogy"; "The Food Chain". Television credits: Truman (HBO), Inside America's Totally Unsolved Lifestyles (ABC Special) |
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Scott Schoonover, conductor, founded Union Avenue Opera in 1994 with the intention of giving valuable performance opportunities to talented artists and musicians. He has led UAO to critical acclaim for the past 17 years in over 40 productions and 140 performances. In the 2012 UAO season Mr. Schoonover will conduct performances of Acis and Galatea, Un ballo in maschera and Das Rheingold. He has also appeared with other local opera companies including Muddy River Opera in Quincy, Illinois (The Mikado, L’elisir d’amore and the world premiere of Abe the Musical) and will return to conduct The Merry Widow in May, 2012. Scott has also conducted several productions for Winter Opera St. Louis (Rigoletto, Samson et Dalila, Don Pasquale and Werther), and in 2010 conducted the world premiere of Barbara Harbach’s O Pioneers! at the University of St. Louis, Missouri. Also active as a choral conductor and accompanist Scott is the Artistic Director and Conductor of the newly formed Missouri Women’s Chorus and has appeared with the St. Louis Women’s Chorale, Bel Canto Chorus, Gateway Men’s Chorus. He serves as the Director of Music at Union Avenue Christian Church. |
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Ed Reggi is an Emmy award winning actor, emcee, comedian and producer of live theatre. Reggi was raised in the Big Apple and lived across the street from the NBC Studios where he spent most of his youth sneaking on the set of the Bill Cosby Show to learn the ropes from the comic master, Bill Cosby. Reggi mastered improvisational comedy while training at Chicago’s historic The Second City and later with its’ founder Paul Sills. With Sills, Reggi worked with Valerie Harper, Avery Schreiber, Edie McClurg and Fred Willard. He’s a proud member of Actor’s Equity Association and serves on the local Liaison Committee. Professional credits include: Funny Thing Happened On The Way to the Forum, Fiddler on the Roof, She Loves Me, Camelot, Anything Goes, The Musical of Musicals: The Musical and Something’s Afoot. Reggi is also a proud alum of the Commercial Theater Institute of New York City and was named Artist of the Year by Young Audiences of St. Louis. Today, Reggi is the force behind digital engagement at the St. Louis PBS television station, The Nine Network of Public Media. Through his leadership at the Nine Network, St. Louis community members can develop 21st century communication skills and become empowered to tell compelling stories about themselves and their communities. |
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Lee Nolting is the Director of Student Recruitment and Pre-Professional Program as well as Artistic Director or COCAdance. Nolting was trained in St. Louis, Chicago, Las Vegas, Los Angeles and New York. Before her teaching career, Nolting was a professional dancer with Dean Martin's Golddiggers, and numerous local and touring productions. Nolting was fortunate to work with Miss Katherine Dunham in East St. Louis. From 1982 – 1991, she was the ballet mistress, rehearsal assistant, jazz and tap instructor for the Katherine Dunham Museum Children’s Workshop under the direction of Darryl Braddix. It was during this time that Nolting was able to meet and work with Alvin Ailey in connection with the show he staged as a tribute to Miss D, “The Magic of Katherine Dunham” as well as The First Annual Black Dance Festival in Atlanta, Ga. In 2003, Nolting was recognized by the National Foundation for Advancement in the Arts for her encouragement and support of students who have been recognized for their exceptional artistic achievements. Nolting is Artistic Director of COCAdance. |
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Gene Dobbs Bradford has been the Executive Director of Jazz St. Louis since February 1999. Mr. Bradford has received many honors, including the St. Louis Business Journal’s “40 Under 40,” “Most Influential People in St. Louis” and “Inclusive Leadership” awards. Under his leadership, Jazz St. Louis received the 2006 “Excellence in the Arts” award from the Arts and Education Council of Saint Louis and its flagship program “Jazz at the Bistro” was named one of the ten great jazz clubs in the country by Wynton Marsalis in USA Today. He holds a bachelor’s degree in double bass performance from the Eastman School of Music and an MBA from Washington University. From 1994-99, he was Director of Operations for the Saint Louis Symphony Orchestra
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Scott L. Schoonover is excited to be back in St. Louis working as a freelance Designer and Mask Craftsman. Scott holds a BA from Saint Louis University and an MFA from the University of Iowa. His work has been seen on stages in Tulsa, St. Louis, Iowa City, Massachusetts, and Chicago. In St. Louis he has worked with Shakespeare Festival St. Louis, St. Louis Shakespeare Co., The MUNY, SIUE, and most recently the scenic painter for The New Jewish Theatre’s The Last Night of Ballyhoo. As a Mask Maker Scott has studied traditional Balinese Mask Carving in Indonesia and leather mask creation in Chicago and Bali. He crafts masks for theatrical and commercial interests. Additionally Scott has developed a Mask Making and Performance workshop that he travels to local St. Louis schools. You can check out more of his work at www.sls-creations.com. |