Who’s Who in The Great Beyond
LOGAN ANGELCYK
Boy
Logan was born with a passion for theatrics. He is thrilled to join TheatreFEST at North Carolina State University. Logan has most recently appeared on stage at Raleigh Little Theater, performing in Looking for Roberto Clemente. Logan studies acting, vocals and music with The Alli Mae Carnes Studio. Along with acting, he enjoys playing the piano, creating comedy routines and performing magic tricks. Logan would like to thank his family, friends, teachers, cast and crew for their encouragement and support of his passions.
NICOLAS BARBATO
Rex
Nicolas comes to North Carolina by way of New Jersey. He has just finished his first year as drama instructor and one-man theatre department at Guilford Technical Community College in Greensboro. Acting credits include: (Film) Boardwalk Empire, The Deuce, Maniac, The Good Cop, Monsters Inside Me; (Stage) Playwrights Horizons, Cleveland Play House, New York Shakespeare Exchange and MFA Case Western Reserve University. Thank you too my loving wife and best friend, Erika.
JESS BARBOUR
Monica
Jess is an actor, choreographer, and teaching artist. While this is her third production with NCSU, choreographing Urinetown and Jekyll & Hyde, she is excited to be a part of her first TheatreFEST show! Jess holds a BFA in Theatre from Elon University and studied under Bill Esper at The Esper Studio in NYC. By day, she trains medical professionals as a Standardized Patient with Duke University Medical School and the American Board of Anesthesiology. Break legs to the cast and crew!
ABBE FRALIX
Rene
Abbe is a classically trained actor based in Raleigh, NC. Previous TheatreFEST credits: Assassins (Byck), Holmes and Watson (Swing). Other credits include Macbeth (Macbeth and others), Hamlet (Gertrude), with Steadfast Shakespeare; The Road to Mecca (Elsa), Evita (Mistress), with Burning Coal Theatre; Love’s Labour’s Lost(Rosaline) with Prague Shakespeare; and Prince Hal (Henry IV/Glendower/Pistol) with Scrap Paper Shakespeare. Abbe holds a MFA from Mary Baldwin University. All love to Pat! abbefralix.com
JACKSON GRIFFIN
Swing
Jackson is thrilled to join the cast of The Great Beyond as a swing! He is a recent NC State graduate with a major in history and a minor in theatre. His NC State University Theatre credits include: Nick Bottom in A Midsummer Night’s Dream, French Narrator in The Spongebob Musical, Officer Lockstock in Urinetown The Musical, Holmes #2 in Holmes and Watson, Black Stache in Peter and the Starcatcher, and most recently, John Utterson in Jekyll & Hyde. Jackson wants to thank his family, friends, and every teacher along the way for their endless love and support!
DANICA JANELLE JACKSON
Emily
Danica, (she/her), is the assistant director of performance at NC State. Danica also serves as a dialect coach and intimacy director for multiple companies in the area. She will also be bringing the first ever Shakespeare in Performance class to Prague this July! After a long hiatus from being on the stage, she is very excited to return alongside such a phenomenal cast. Extreme gratitude to family, friends, and students for your unwavering support. You make it all worthwhile. www.danicajenelle.com
MAYA NOOR
Swing
Maya is so excited to participate in her very first TheatreFEST! Maya, is an actor, director and writer from Raleigh, NC! They are a recent BFA acting graduate from Millikin University with recent acting credits including The Moors, Romeo and Juliet, and She Loves Me. She also recently directed a production of Seascape with Sharks and Dancer as well as Descendants the Musical. Maya thanks both NCSU and Mia Self for the opportunity. Enjoy the show!
MICHAEL PARKER
Coach Mayes
This is Michael’s fourth TheatreFEST, and he is feeling absolutely privileged to have the opportunity to work with such a wonderful cast and production team! Recent roles include Sebastian in The Tempest (STC), Walter Jenkins in All The Way (Justice Theatre Project), and Stasiek Eisenberg in Ogrodowa Street. He also recently directed A Midsummer Night’s Dream for STC and, Coming Back For Me for Cary Playwright’s Forum.
EMMETT WALLS
Boy
Emmett is a 14 year old student currently enrolled at Ligon Middle School. He is incredibly excited to be working on this show with recent credits including Butterfly Wings with Burning Coal as part of the Oakwood Cemetery Play (Young Eagle), Beauty and the Beast with Ligon Middle School (LeFou), and Cats with Burning Coal as part of the Burning Coal Summer Camp (Asparagus). Emmett thanks you for coming to the show and hopes you enjoy!
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
Jayme 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, Hair & Makeup 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 Peter and the Starcatcher, The Spongebob Musical, Ragtime, Urinetown, Cabaret, The 39 Steps, and Jekyll & Hyde. An actor as well, she has designed or performed with area theaters including Honest Pint Theatre Company, Raleigh Little Theatre, Sweet Tea Shakespeare, Henderson Rec Players, South Stream Productions, and Bare Theatre. Ms. Parker holds a Bachelor of arts in anthropology from Georgia State University and a Juris Doctorate from North Carolina Central University.
ROBYN WARFIELD
Lighting & Sound Design
Robyn holds an MFA with scenographic traditions from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro in design concentrating in lighting and scenery. Prior to her becoming part of the University Theatre staff, she was the resident lighting designer and master electrician for the Children’s Theatre of Charlotte. She was an integral part of the creative team for a new hip hop musical, Grimmz Fairytales, which was nominated for the 87th Drama League Awards in Outstanding Digital Theatre, Individual Production, for its filmed version during the winter of 2020. While at the Children’s Theatre of Charlotte, she had the pleasure to design and assist many shows that are new works that promote kindness and the ability to see growth and strength in each and every person including oneself. Not just working in Theatre for Young Audiences, she started out at theatre companies like Shakespeare & Company in Lenox MA, that concentrate on classical and contemporary works. Robyn has also designed for various dance companies in the Northeast. rkwdesign.com
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!
GABRIELLE NOAH
Stage Manager
Gabrielle is a communication major with a concentration in public relations with minors in journalism and theatre.
JOHN CHEEK
Assistant Stage Manager
John is a rising junior in computer science with a minor in creative writing. This will be his third show on the crew for University Theatre, previously being an assistant stage manager for Jekyll & Hyde and a production assistant for Peter and the Starcatcher. He is very excited to be a part of TheatreFEST 2024 and is very thankful for his family and friends who continue to encourage and support his passion for theatre.