MoCo- Faculty and Staff

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Meet our Great Faculty and Staff!

Dance

Artistic Director, Dance. Reagan Messer is a native of Atlanta and former Boston Ballet Soloist. He continues to dance as a guest artist throughout the United States. Reagan has performed Solar and Golden Idol in La Bayadere, Basilio and Espada in Don Quixote, Siegfried and Jester in Swan Lake, Tybalt in Romeo and Juliet, Blue Bird in The Sleeping Beauty, Slave, Pas d’esclave, and Birbanto in Le Corsaire, Peasant Pas de Deux in Giselle, Sir Kenneth Macmilland’s Winter Dreams, Quasimodo in Michael Pinkd’s Hunchback of Notre Dame, Goro in Stanton Welch’s Madame Butterfly, Twyla Tharp’s In the Upper Room, Tico in Paul Taylord’s Company B, Champion Roper in Rodeo, Red Boy in Lila Yorkd’s Celts, and the lead in Balanchined’s Slaughter on Tenth Avenue. In 1993, Reagan toured Brazil with Fernando Bujones and Friends where he danced Don Quixote Pas de Deux and Gopak. In 1994, he was a finalist at the International Ballet Competition in Jackson, MS. Reagan was Ballet Master for Boston Ballet II from 2000 to 2002 and directed and produced the International Ballet Gala in Atlanta, Georgia featuring artists from Boston Ballet and the Royal Ballet of London in 1995 and 1996. He lives with his wife and daughter in Rindge.

Gretchen Carmel: B.F.A. in Dance/Performing Arts. Dancer, performer, healer and teacher, is a certified Kripalu Yoga teacher, Phoenix Rising Yoga therapist and Reiki practitioner, and has danced professionally throughout the United States. Gretchen has been teaching Yoga classes and workshops since 1993.

Tracy Croteau has been dancing and performing with Moco Arts for over 5 years. She enjoys choreographing and preparing dancers for performances. Previously, she has taught martial arts, in which she holds a black belt. In addition, she devotes time to raising her 2 children.

Sarah Franklin studied with famed teachers Ruth Currier, Daniel Lewis, Phyllis Lamhut, and Truda Kaschman and has performed in NYC for 10 years in her own and other’s works in various venues from 1985-1995 and taught at the Limon Institute, Danspace, and the Ruth Currier Studio. She went on to teach and be the interim Dean of Dance at the Hartford Conservatory. She created and initiated the dance program at Fairfield University where she was also resident choreographer from 1994-2000. Sarah was featured dancer at New Haven’s Education Center for the Arts, for years, in works of Mary Barnett, Sandra Kopell, and Judy Dworin. Most recently in 2007, Sarah performed at Dance Theatre Workshop’s 40up in a piece choreographed by local choreographer Sally Bomer. She takes care of her son Sam who is 7.

Kristen Leach: BS in Education. In addition to teaching dance at Moco Arts, Kristen is currently the Artistic Director for the New Hampshire Dance Institute and holds a winter residency at Vermont Academy. In her free time, Kristen enjoys performing in or choreographing for local theater projects.

Julie Crouteau

Cassandra Tobey

Jess Lamoureux

Photo Coming Soon!
Rayni Collins

Lillian Sutton, Costume Director for Dance

Theatre

Marty Hennum: Artistic Director of Theatre and CAKE. MFA, theatre instructor, advisor and has directed plays and musicals in the Boston area for over 20 years. In 1998, she was chosen "Outstanding Arts Educator" of Massachusetts. Marty directed the assessment of CAKE, a NEA Summer School in the Arts site, by convening the panel of artist educators, members of the NH State Council on the Arts and the NH Dept of Education which developed the evaluation tools and rubrics. She trained and assisted the independent evaluators and oversaw the implementation and assessment of the process and longitudinal studies of the outcomes. Marty lives in Keene with her husband and two children.

JoAnne Mead: BS in Elementary Education and Music Education (Instrumental and Vocal). She has extensive post graduate work in vocal studies. She received her training with teachers from Boston University, Keene State College and Opera Singer Anna Gabrieli. She is known as a Vocal Instructor, Music Director and Soprano Soloist. She has performed as a soloist with numerous choral/orchestral organizations singing oratorio, opera, classical recitals and concerts, to musical theatre. She has performed with Lowell Opera, Granite State Opera, Opera North and Raylynmor Opera Company. She vocal coaches, music directs and teaches workshops in the area school districts. She serves as a Judge/Adjudicator for the New Hampshire Music Ed. Association(NHMEA), for the annual All-State Choral Festival, and has been a Judge/Adjucator for the National Assoc. of Teachers of Singing(NATS).

Deanna Zilske: BA in theatre and a MEd in Elementary Education. After undergrad she worked for Stage One, Louisville’s Children’s Theatre as the Assistant Education Director. After her time at Stage One, Deanna moved to New York City where she taught elementary school in Brooklyn, New York. Deanna currently teaches at Fuller School, musically directs for Keene High School, and musically directs and teaches for MoCo Arts.

Jazmine Carroll, Costume Director for Theatre

Young Arts

Danielle Fitzpatrick: Program Director, Young Arts. Danielle Fitzpatrick has been teaching dance and theater in the tri-state area for more than a decade. She moved to Keene after graduating from the University of Massachusetts at Amherst so that she could pursue a Master’s degree in Dance/movement therapy at Antioch NE. She has taught creative dance, children’s theater and ballet in studio settings, classrooms, preschools, and workshops. In addition to teaching dance, she works as a dance therapist specializing in geriatrics. When she is not dancing, Danielle enjoys raising her two daughters.

Kay Stewart has a B.S. in Early Childhood Education from Framingham State College, and taught preschool and Kindergarten before pursuing private study in music, the arts and professional clowning. She started a business called "Merry Music for Kids" which incorporated the joy of live music with action oriented activities. She plays three types of Ukuleles, a Mandolin, and many percussion instruments from around the world. The business has evolved and been successfully used in preschools, Kindergartens and libraries for over 20 years. When she wasn't in the classroom, she was performing as "Melody the Clown" to the delight of hundreds of children. The delight and laughter of those shows overlap to all the groups she works with. She resides in Swanzey with her husband, and a menagerie of animals.

Staff

George F. Preston, Executive Director brings over 20 years of senior level nonprofit management experience to MoCo Arts. With a BA in Theater Arts from the University of Cincinnati and an MS in Broadcasting and Film from Boston University, Preston has forged a career building sustainable community service organizations as a Board member, an Executive Director and as an active community volunteer. He has an extensive community organizing practice and is a capable builder of broad-based partnerships through advocacy and innovative program design. Much of his career has been centered in the media arts (as founding Board member or CEO of seven community media centers) through which his community building programs and project-based, media oriented andragogy have been recognized nationally and internationally. Mr. Preston lives in Stoddard with his wife and son and is a member of the Planning Board, Pitcher Mountain CSA and Fire/Rescue Department. He thrives in the outdoors during all seasons and enjoys gardening and raising chickens.

Cynthia Cote, Business Manager: Cynthia has a BS in Accounting from Bentley College and MBA from Plymouth State University. She has worked in non-profit accounting for over 15 years in New Hampshire and Vermont. When not dealing with numbers, she enjoys a variety of creative outlets including water color painting at MoCo’s Art School. She lives in Westmoreland with her husband and twin girls.

Dianne McGilvary, Business/Development Office Assistant

Mia Houman: Communications Manager holds a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from Syracuse University & graduated Cum Laude in 2001. Since 2001, Mia has worked as an Assistant Editor at Examgen, an educational software company, and as a Publications Specialist at SRC, a non-profit research organization. In 2006, she began working as a freelance illustrator and graphic designer, creating custom portraits of animals and a line of giftware. Her animal illustrations have been in juried exhibitions at the Everson Museum of Art, the AKC Art Show at the Dog Show, and the New York State Wildlife Art Exhibition. In her spare time, Mia enjoys spending as much time as possible with her husband, dogs, and cat.

Alex Trombly, Facility Manager/Technical Director, is a senior at Keene State College, studying technical theatre. His experience begins in 6th grade, assisting with the technical aspect of performances at his elementary school. He has continued through high school at Monadnock Regional High School, designing the lights, sound, and the set for multiple shows, including, Beauty and the Beast, Seussical the Musical, and Les Miserables. He is the assistant technical director at Keene State College and has also done lighting, sound, and set design as Moco’s technical director for over 30 Moco Arts shows, including The Nutcracker, West Side Story, Peter Pan, and Anything Goes.

Lisa Cook, Volunteer Coordinator

MoCo Art's Front Desk Staff
Kelly Harrigan
Krishni Pahl
Becky Auger

Staff Photos done by

Dance

	Artistic Director, Dance. Reagan Messer is a native of Atlanta and former Boston Ballet Soloist. He continues to dance as a guest artist throughout the United States. Reagan has performed Solar and Golden Idol in La Bayadere, Basilio and Espada in Don Quixote, Siegfried and Jester in Swan Lake, Tybalt in Romeo and Juliet, Blue Bird in The Sleeping Beauty, Slave, Pas d’esclave, and Birbanto in Le Corsaire, Peasant Pas de Deux in Giselle, Sir Kenneth Macmilland’s Winter Dreams, Quasimodo in Michael Pinkd’s Hunchback of Notre Dame, Goro in Stanton Welch’s Madame Butterfly, Twyla Tharp’s In the Upper Room, Tico in Paul Taylord’s Company B, Champion Roper in Rodeo, Red Boy in Lila Yorkd’s Celts, and the lead in Balanchined’s Slaughter on Tenth Avenue. In 1993, Reagan toured Brazil with Fernando Bujones and Friends where he danced Don Quixote Pas de Deux and Gopak. In 1994, he was a finalist at the International Ballet Competition in Jackson, MS. Reagan was Ballet Master for Boston Ballet II from 2000 to 2002 and directed and produced the International Ballet Gala in Atlanta, Georgia featuring artists from Boston Ballet and the Royal Ballet of London in 1995 and 1996. He lives with his wife and daughter in Rindge.

	Gretchen Carmel: B.F.A. in Dance/Performing Arts. Dancer, performer, healer and teacher, is a certified Kripalu Yoga teacher, Phoenix Rising Yoga therapist and Reiki practitioner, and has danced professionally throughout the United States. Gretchen has been teaching Yoga classes and workshops since 1993.

	Tracy Croteau has been dancing and performing with Moco Arts for over 5 years. She enjoys choreographing and preparing dancers for performances. Previously, she has taught martial arts, in which she holds a black belt. In addition, she devotes time to raising her 2 children.

	Sarah Franklin studied with famed teachers Ruth Currier, Daniel Lewis, Phyllis Lamhut, and Truda Kaschman and has performed in NYC for 10 years in her own and other’s works in various venues from 1985-1995 and taught at the Limon Institute, Danspace, and the Ruth Currier Studio. She went on to teach and be the interim Dean of Dance at the Hartford Conservatory. She created and initiated the dance program at Fairfield University where she was also resident choreographer from 1994-2000. Sarah was featured dancer at New Haven’s Education Center for the Arts, for years, in works of Mary Barnett, Sandra Kopell, and Judy Dworin. Most recently in 2007, Sarah performed at Dance Theatre Workshop’s 40up in a piece choreographed by local choreographer Sally Bomer. She takes care of her son Sam who is 7.

	Kristen Leach: BS in Education. In addition to teaching dance at Moco Arts, Kristen is currently the Artistic Director for the New Hampshire Dance Institute and holds a winter residency at Vermont Academy. In her free time, Kristen enjoys performing in or choreographing for local theater projects.

	Julie Crouteau

	Cassandra Tobey

	Jess Lamoureux

Photo Coming Soon!	Rayni Collins

	Lillian Sutton, Costume Director for Dance

Theatre

	Marty Hennum: Artistic Director of Theatre and CAKE. MFA, theatre instructor, advisor and has directed plays and musicals in the Boston area for over 20 years. In 1998, she was chosen "Outstanding Arts Educator" of Massachusetts. Marty directed the assessment of CAKE, a NEA Summer School in the Arts site, by convening the panel of artist educators, members of the NH State Council on the Arts and the NH Dept of Education which developed the evaluation tools and rubrics. She trained and assisted the independent evaluators and oversaw the implementation and assessment of the process and longitudinal studies of the outcomes. Marty lives in Keene with her husband and two children.

	JoAnne Mead: BS in Elementary Education and Music Education (Instrumental and Vocal). She has extensive post graduate work in vocal studies. She received her training with teachers from Boston University, Keene State College and Opera Singer Anna Gabrieli. She is known as a Vocal Instructor, Music Director and Soprano Soloist. She has performed as a soloist with numerous choral/orchestral organizations singing oratorio, opera, classical recitals and concerts, to musical theatre. She has performed with Lowell Opera, Granite State Opera, Opera North and Raylynmor Opera Company. She vocal coaches, music directs and teaches workshops in the area school districts. She serves as a Judge/Adjudicator for the New Hampshire Music Ed. Association(NHMEA), for the annual All-State Choral Festival, and has been a Judge/Adjucator for the National Assoc. of Teachers of Singing(NATS).

	Deanna Zilske: BA in theatre and a MEd in Elementary Education. After undergrad she worked for Stage One, Louisville’s Children’s Theatre as the Assistant Education Director. After her time at Stage One, Deanna moved to New York City where she taught elementary school in Brooklyn, New York. Deanna currently teaches at Fuller School, musically directs for Keene High School, and musically directs and teaches for MoCo Arts.

	Jazmine Carroll, Costume Director for Theatre

Young Arts

	Danielle Fitzpatrick: Program Director, Young Arts. Danielle Fitzpatrick has been teaching dance and theater in the tri-state area for more than a decade. She moved to Keene after graduating from the University of Massachusetts at Amherst so that she could pursue a Master’s degree in Dance/movement therapy at Antioch NE. She has taught creative dance, children’s theater and ballet in studio settings, classrooms, preschools, and workshops. In addition to teaching dance, she works as a dance therapist specializing in geriatrics. When she is not dancing, Danielle enjoys raising her two daughters.

	Kay Stewart has a B.S. in Early Childhood Education from Framingham State College, and taught preschool and Kindergarten before pursuing private study in music, the arts and professional clowning. She started a business called "Merry Music for Kids" which incorporated the joy of live music with action oriented activities. She plays three types of Ukuleles, a Mandolin, and many percussion instruments from around the world. The business has evolved and been successfully used in preschools, Kindergartens and libraries for over 20 years. When she wasn't in the classroom, she was performing as "Melody the Clown" to the delight of hundreds of children. The delight and laughter of those shows overlap to all the groups she works with. She resides in Swanzey with her husband, and a menagerie of animals.

Staff

	George F. Preston, Executive Director brings over 20 years of senior level nonprofit management experience to MoCo Arts. With a BA in Theater Arts from the University of Cincinnati and an MS in Broadcasting and Film from Boston University, Preston has forged a career building sustainable community service organizations as a Board member, an Executive Director and as an active community volunteer. He has an extensive community organizing practice and is a capable builder of broad-based partnerships through advocacy and innovative program design. Much of his career has been centered in the media arts (as founding Board member or CEO of seven community media centers) through which his community building programs and project-based, media oriented andragogy have been recognized nationally and internationally. Mr. Preston lives in Stoddard with his wife and son and is a member of the Planning Board, Pitcher Mountain CSA and Fire/Rescue Department. He thrives in the outdoors during all seasons and enjoys gardening and raising chickens.

	Cynthia Cote, Business Manager: Cynthia has a BS in Accounting from Bentley College and MBA from Plymouth State University. She has worked in non-profit accounting for over 15 years in New Hampshire and Vermont. When not dealing with numbers, she enjoys a variety of creative outlets including water color painting at MoCo’s Art School. She lives in Westmoreland with her husband and twin girls.

	Dianne McGilvary, Business/Development Office Assistant

	Mia Houman: Communications Manager holds a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from Syracuse University & graduated Cum Laude in 2001. Since 2001, Mia has worked as an Assistant Editor at Examgen, an educational software company, and as a Publications Specialist at SRC, a non-profit research organization. In 2006, she began working as a freelance illustrator and graphic designer, creating custom portraits of animals and a line of giftware. Her animal illustrations have been in juried exhibitions at the Everson Museum of Art, the AKC Art Show at the Dog Show, and the New York State Wildlife Art Exhibition. In her spare time, Mia enjoys spending as much time as possible with her husband, dogs, and cat.

	Alex Trombly, Facility Manager/Technical Director, is a senior at Keene State College, studying technical theatre. His experience begins in 6th grade, assisting with the technical aspect of performances at his elementary school. He has continued through high school at Monadnock Regional High School, designing the lights, sound, and the set for multiple shows, including, Beauty and the Beast, Seussical the Musical, and Les Miserables. He is the assistant technical director at Keene State College and has also done lighting, sound, and set design as Moco’s technical director for over 30 Moco Arts shows, including The Nutcracker, West Side Story, Peter Pan, and Anything Goes.

	Lisa Cook, Volunteer Coordinator

		MoCo Art's Front Desk Staff Kelly Harrigan Krishni Pahl Becky Auger