Playbill | Meet the Creative & Production Team
MIA SELF
Director
Mia is the assistant director of acting and directing at North Carolina State University. She has a BA in theatre from Catawba College and an MFA in directing from the University of Mississippi. Mia worked as a professional actor, voice and text coach, playwright, and director around the Southeast and Midwest before beginning her career in theatre education in 2004. She is a proud board member of the North Carolina Theatre Conference (NCTC).
JAYME MELLEMA
Scenic Design
ayme is the resident scenic designer, instructor, and theatre artist for North Carolina State’s University Theatre. Select designs at University Theatre include Ragtime, Men on Boats, Our Town, Bright Star, Cabaret, The Royal Family, Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, Love/Sick, The Secret Garden, The 39 Steps, Around the World in 80 Days, Little Shop of Horrors, The Burial at Thebes, The Heidi Chronicles, Chicago, and Rent. Jayme has also worked as a freelance designer for such venues as The Peabody Institute – Johns Hopkins University, North Carolina Theatre Conservatory, The Princeton Festival, Wolftrap Opera, The Children’s Theatre of Charlotte, Guilford College, Duke University, and Calvin University. As a theatre artist and creator, Jayme has also been a projection designer, writer, director, devisor, puppet creator, and an alternative reality experience collaborator. He earned his MFA in Scenic Design from the University of North Carolina School of the Arts and prior to becoming a designer he was a professional scenic artist. jaymemellema.com
LAURA J. PARKER
Costume Design
Laura has been with University Theatre since 2010. She has been designing and creating costumes for theatrical productions and historic re-enactors since 1999, with a focus on historically accurate clothing reproductions and historically inspired fantasy costuming. Previously, Ms. Parker was the resident costume designer and instructor of costume design at William Peace University. Her favorite costume design credits for University Theatre include Hay Fever, The Secret Garden, Around the World in 80 Days, and Murder at the Howard Johnson’s. She has done freelance costume design for area theaters including Honest Pint Theatre Company, Sweet Tea Shakespeare, South Stream Productions, and Bare Theatre. She can often be found acting with local and regional theaters, and performs improv comedy with Raleigh’s Village Idiots. Ms. Parker holds a bachelor of arts in anthropology from Georgia State University and a Juris Doctorate from North Carolina Central University.
PATRICK MATHIS
Lighting and Sound Design
Patrick holds an MFA in Theatre Design and Technologies from Utah State University and a BS in Information Science and Technology from Mercer University. They have worked in theatre and live entertainment across the nation and internationally in the areas of technical theatre, as well as lighting and media design. Outside of their academic and theatre focused work, Patrick is the founder and CTO of the Entertainment Engineering Collective, a group of international artists focused on bringing streaming and media support to emergent artists and theatre companies. Patrick is also a proud partner and tech specialist at subTEXT Solutions Dramaturgy, a member of CITT/ICTS, USITT, and Actors Equity. They are beyond excited to be a part of the NC State family and take part in the magic being made at the University Theatre.
DAVID JENSEN
Technical Direction
David has been working at University Theatre since 2002. David attended Appalachian State University and UNC-Greensboro, where he studied theatrical design and production. He worked in Atlanta for seven years as a freelance theatre carpenter and technical director at most of the theaters in the metro area as well as many exhibit/design shops. David would like to remind everyone that the Arts NC State programs are open to any NC State student — Get involved!
JAY LINEBERRY
Stage Manager
Jay is a senior in business administration and theatre studies. They are excited to stage manage their very first show! Other involvement with UT includes wardrobe crew on A Midsummer Night’s Dream and Squidward in The SpongeBob Musical.
JULIA ROBBINS
Assistant Director | Dramaturg
Julia is a fifth-year student in arts studies – music with double minors in entrepreneurship and theatre. This is Julia’s fifth show with UT and her second show assistant directing. She has enjoyed every second of this production and is extremely proud of all the hard work put in by actors, crew, and staff. She would like to thank UT and Mia Self for giving her the opportunity to learn more about directing and the process of how a professional show is created start to finish. Julia would also like to thank all her family and friends who continue to support her journey in the arts!
MAGGIE BERRY
Assistant Stage Manager
Maggie is a first-year student in chemistry. She is making her debut at University Theatre. Previous show credits include being the stage manager in plays such as Frozen Jr., The Little Mermaid Jr., and Afraid of the Dark at her previous high school. She would like to thank their family and friends who continue to encourage and support her passion for theatre. Maggie hopes you all enjoy the show!
RYAN JONES
Assistant Stage Manager
Ryan is a senior in computer science and mathematics. He has been behind the scenes of six University Theatre projects during his time at NC State – usually as a spotlight operator, captions operator, scene/lighting shop worker, or any combination of the four. He is excited to venture into stage management for the first time and has had a great time working with the cast throughout the entire process of bringing the show to life!