Childsplay Academy Instructor Bios

Kristin Hailstone: Kristin has been a professional teaching artist and working actor with Childsplay for many years. She studied acting at Scottsdale Conservatory Theatre and earned her BA in Theatre from Arizona State University in 1997. Recent classes for Childsplay include Pirates!, Treasure Trunk Travels and workshops for the Girl Scouts.

Jon Gentry: Jon has been a company member of Childsplay for 25 years. He graduated from Arizona State University with a degree in Secondary Education. Jon is also a member of the Arizona Commission On The Arts Education teaching roster. He has been involved in teaching residences in schools all over the state of Arizona and was a part of the initial planning and implementation of the Childsplay Summer program, White Mountain Arts Program and Summer On Stage, a collaboration between Childsplay, Arizona Theatre Company and The University Of Arizona Extend University and Theatre Department.

Katie McFadzen: Katie is a Childsplay veteran, having worked with the company as an actor, educator, and Associate Artist since 1993. She was most recently seen as Amazing Maisie in Seussical. Katie also performs with a variety of Valley theatre companies, including Phoenix Theatre, Arizona Theatre Company, and AZ Jewish Theatre. She received her BFA in Acting/Directing from the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater in 1986, and went on to earn her MFA in Theatre for Youth at Arizona State University, in 1990. As a roster artist for the Arizona Commission on the Arts, Katie brings her passion for theatre and experience as a drama specialist to classrooms across the Phoenix area.

Debra K. Stevens: Debra K. has been with Childsplay since 1982 and most recently was seen as Mme. Defarge in A Tale of Two Cities. During her tenure with Childsplay she has worked as an actor, teacher, director, choreographer, playwright, and is currently an Associate Artist with a focus on education. Other favorite roles include: Charlotte in Charlotte’s Web, Stacy in Lost and Foundling, Nurse and other roles in Romeo and Juliet, Annabellee in Still Life With Iris, Joy in The Yellow Boat, Helen Keller in The Miracle Worker, and Emily Dickinson in The Belle of Amherst. Debra has also narrated Hamlet for Center Dance Ensemble and played Essie in You Can’t Take It With You for Phoenix Theatre. For Actors Theatre she portrayed Sister Woman in Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, Maya in The Archbishop’s Ceiling, and Karen in Dinner with Friends. Debra is on the Arizona Commission on the Arts roster as an Artist-in-Education. She received a BA in Speech and Theatre from Western Kentucky University and a Master’s in Theatre from ASU.

Sarah Roberts: A musician, actor, dancer and teacher, Sarah has taught drama and music in youth programs across the Valley, including the Mesa Arts Center, City of Tempe Young Actors Summer Program, and Arizona Theatre Company. Sarah attended Carnegie Mellon University and received her BFA in Drama in 1997. She was a co-founder of The Hunger Artists Theatre Company in New York and continues to perform both as an actor and singer-songwriter.

Dwayne Hartford: Dwayne has been an actor, director, playwright and teacher for Childsplay since 1990. A member of the Arizona Commission on the Arts Roster of Artists, he has taught playwriting and creative drama residencies in many schools around the valley. Dwayne's adaptation of A Tale of Two Cities will be published this year by Dramatic Publishing (his third published work). He is originally from Maine and received his BFA in musical theatre from the Boston Conservatory.

Molly LaJoie: Molly is a graduate of the University of Notre Dame and the American Musical and Dramatic Academy in New York City. She has performed in all three of Childsplay’s productions of Seussical. She has also worked at Phoenix Theatre, Broadway Palm West and Arizona Broadway Theatre. Molly teaches dance at Mesa Arts Academy and most recently choreographed Disney’s Mulan, Jr. for Greasepaint as well as co-choreographed Phoenix Theatre’s Lucky Star. Molly has also been teaching triple threat classes at Childsplay the last 3 years as well as the spring break camps High School Musical and Footloose. She is looking forward to this exciting summer with Childsplay!

Yolanda London: This is Yolanda’s fourth season with Childsplay. She joined the company in the 2004-05 season to play DeeCee in PowerPlay. Yolanda is also an experienced teaching artist, serving residencies in public and private schools, and teaching year-round in the Childsplay Academy. Some favorite Childsplay roles include Pryce in Lost and Foundling, That Grace in Junie B. Jones and A Little Monkey Business, the title role in Interrupting Vanessa, Bird Girl in Seussical, and the Library Lady and other roles in Tomas and the Library Lady. Previously she worked at the Fulton Opera House in Lancaster, Pennsylvania.

Jodie Weiss: Jodie has extensive experience as an actor, director, choreographer, and costume and makeup designer. She has taught drama at all levels, working with students from Kindergarten to adulthood, in preschools, summer camps and theatre settings. She received her BFA in Theatre Performance at ASU in 1985, and went on to earn an MFA in Musical Theatre from San Diego State University in 1992. Jodie is a regular in Childsplay productions and will be seen on stage this season.

Ricky Araiza: Ricky is in his third season with Childsplay. This season he was seen in Charlotte’s Web and In my Grandmother's Purse. He has taught with Summer Academy for two summers as well as various workshops and residencies for Childsplay. Last summer he choreographed a summer production of High School Musical for Childsplay's Summer Academy.

Laurie Trygg: Laurie is a full-time dancer, actor and choreographer. She just finished choreography on Childsplay's Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day. For the past 6 years she has choreographed the Childsplay summer Master Class Musical (including last year's Urinetown), and also directed and choreographed many Triple Threat classes. This season's other choreography credits include Urinetown (Childsplay Masters Musical), Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat (Valley Youth Theatre), Caroline, or Change (Black Theatre Troupe), the AriZoni Award Ceremony, and the Phoenix Boys Choir Christmas Concerts and Spring Pops concert. Laurie has received 6 AriZoni Nominations and 3 AriZoni Awards for Choreography. She was recently seen on stage in PT's Crazy For You and Childsplay's Seussical. She is a former music teacher and currently plays piano and sings at her church.

Kellie Taylor: A former Childsplay Academy student, Kellie has returned to the company as a teaching artist. She graduated magna cum laude from Arizona State University in 2004, earning a BA in Theatre. As a theatre instructor, Kellie specializes in improv, make-up, mask-making, and puppetry; she also created the Young Actor’s Studio for the City of Tempe in 2000 and currently coordinates a high school youth ministry.

Jamie Sandomire: Jamie is a Junior at ASU majoring in Theatre with a concentration in acting. She most recently appeared as Soupy Sue in ASU's mainstage production of Urinetown the Musical, as Thump in Cagebirds at the Prism Theatre, and as Monica in the ASU Tour Bus production of Black Butterfly, Jaguar Girl, Piñata Woman, and Other Superhero Girls Like Me. In her hometown of Tucson she worked at Once Upon A Time, assisting with children's magical themed birthday parties and educational workshops and performing as "Princess Jamie" on Friday nights. She loves working with kids and can't wait to start summer academy!

Craig Kosnik: Craig will be a second year PhD student at ASU in the Theatre for Youth program next year. He received his BA in Theatre from Gannon University (Erie, PA) in 2002 and his MA in Theatre Education from Emerson College (Boston, MA) in 2005. Before moving to Tempe, Craig was an adjunct professor at Mercyhusrt College and Allegheny College teaching courses in Theatre Appreciation and Production Design. He was also actively involved in the Erie Playhouse's Youtheatre program, where he was an acting teacher, camp instructor, and the producer/director of the Summer Play Series for the past seven years. Some of Craig's favorite shows he has directed include: The Princess Marries the Page, Red Sneaks, and Wiley and the Hairy Man. Craig has also been an artist in residency at the Curley Middle School in Jamaica Plain (Boston) and has created digital stories with children at the Phoenix Children's Hospital.

M. Yichao Wang: Yichao is a Junior at ASU studying Theatre and English with focus in TYA (Theatre for Young Audiences) and Playwriting, is very excited to be working with Childsplay this summer. Having served as Musical Director for Valley Youth Theatre's Playmaker's Youth Troupe and Director for the HaHa's Teen Improv Troupe as well as the Jester'Z Teen Troupe, Yichao has taught classes for youth in Improvisational Acting, as well as in Voice with a focus on musical theatre performance. He also has over 12 years' experience in classical piano training and has played on keyboards in the pit of various productions, including most recently VYT's production of Cats and High School Musical at the Herberger Theatre Center. As an actor, Yichao is a regular performer with the Jester'Z improv troupe in Tempe and has performed with numerous local companies and theatres.

Jeremiah Clay Neal: (playwright U:Bug:Me!) recently completed his MFA in theatre for young audiences from Arizona State University. U:Bug:Me! is currently scheduled for world premiere at the Coterie Theatre in Kansas City next summer. Other writing credits include The Kid Who Ran for President, an adapted musical for family audiences, The Things I Learned from a Clown, an original play for family audiences, and Breaking the Silence, a play for mature audiences inspired by working with teens in recovery facilities. Neal has been a teaching artist for over 6 years, most recently concluding a residency with Tumbleweed Youth Center (a center for homeless teens). Additionally, Neal has presented nationally at the American Alliance for Theatre in Education Conference the past two years, presenting original plays, and the International Arts in Society Conference in Edinburgh Scotland, representing Theatre for Young Audiences.

Kate Haas: This is Kate Haas' first year working at Childsplay's Summer Academy, but growing up, she took opportunities to teach/work with others whenever possible. She organized a Girl Scout theatre retreat and instructed one of it's classes. As President of her high school's National Honor Society, she tutored fellow students in math and science. During her time at Arizona State University, where she earned her B.A. in Theatre, Kate worked as an algebra/geometry TA one summer for Johns Hopkins Center for Talented Youth. And last season, as a tour actor in A Thousand Cranes, Kate and her castmates conducted lecture/demonstrations on acting for Washington District schools and brought theatre into the classroom in a residency at Andalucia Elementary School.

Gabrielle Van Buren: Gabby earned her Bachelor's Degree in Theatre Arts from Arizona Sate University. She has taught multiple classes this past year for Childsplay Academy including Movin' and Groovin' and Story Journeys. Currently Gabrielle teaches Acting Techniques for Christian Youth Theatre and served as a teaching artist for Free Arts of Arizona; a valley origination that provides theatre and art classes to under privileged youth. Along with teaching theatre Gabrielle is the Experiential Program Manager for the non-profit origination Junior Achievement, working in JA Biztown, a simulated town that focuses on economics education.

Allie Couture: Allie began teaching theatre to children while recieving her BA from Bridgewater State College, near Boston, MA. She has taught youth theatre programs at both BSC and UMass Dartmouth, as well as for charity arts camps run by Britney Spears and Usher. A professional actor, Allie calls NYC home and has performed at regional theaters across the country and on the high seas with Disney Cruise Lines. She is thrilled to join the Childsplay family!

Israel Jimenez: He is a graduate of the Pacific Conservatory of the Performing Arts where he was trained professionally in acting, voice and dance. Israel also holds a B.A. in Theatre from the College of Santa Fe in New Mexico. He has worked with young actors in a variety of acting and film schools including the PCPA Education and Outreach Program, The Young Actors Camp, and Performing Arts Workshops in Los Angeles. This season Israel played Tomas in the Childsplay national tour of Tomas and the Library Lady and returned to join the cast of Childsplay’s Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day at the Tempe Center of the Arts.

Jodie L. Weiss: Jodie has been with Childsplay for over twenty years (with a 16 year break in the middle!) She had appeared as, Gertrude in Suessical, Branwen in Sleeping Beauty, Mom in Interrupting Vanessa , Lucille in Junie B Jones, Mrs. Jewls in Sideways Stories from Wayside School. Her early productions include; Ozma of Oz, The Little Prince, Mythic Proportions, The Pushcart Wars, and The Masque of Beauty and the Beast. While she was away, Jodie received her MFA from SDSU, had two wonderful boys and managed to keep acting through it all. Jodie is an Associate Artist and Teaching artist with Childsplay.