TTC Diva Dads

Stephanie Elliott was born and raised in College Station, TX. She has been a lifelong lover of the theatre and at the age of sixteen, she performed in her first musical at The Theatre Company. She was instantly hooked on the charm and community of TTC. Some of Stephanie’s favorite credits from TTC are White Christmas, Follies, and The Rocky Horror Picture Show. From community theatre, to college, and her professional career, Stephanie’s life has always been surrounded by the arts. She holds a BFA in Musical Theatre with an emphasis in Acting from Sam Houston State University. She has acted professionally in Houston as well as had a career teaching middle school and high school theatre. Stephanie currently lives in Houston with her husband and stays at home with their two year old daughter. She hopes to instill her daughter with the same love and appreciation of theatre that TTC instilled in her!

Christina Freeman is a TTC veteran who owes many of her most cherished memories and friendships to her 10-show stint on the illustrious Randy Wilson stage. You may recognize her from such roles as Amalia in She Loves Me, Janet in The Rocky Horror Show, Johanna in Sweeney Todd, Regina in Rock of Ages, and Fruma-Sarah—as well as a suspiciously dainty and heavily bearded bottle dancer—in Fiddler on the Roof.

Throughout her seven years in Aggieland, Christina played nearly as many roles in “real life” as she did at the theater: she served a children’s dance instructor at Pure Energy Dance Productions, a music teacher at Kindermusik of College Station, a summer camp coordinator at The Children’s Museum of the Brazos Valley, an undergraduate writing consultant at Texas A&M University’s College of Education, and a general princess-for-hire around town.

Having returned to her home town of Austin one year ago, Christina is now profoundly honored to spend her days providing one-on-one behavioral therapy to young children with Autism. Christina is a member of Austin’s (now virtual) premier adult show choir, the River City Pops, and she was also recently cast in her first paid production, Mamma Mia! at the Zilker Hillside Theater (postponed until July 2021). Until it’s deemed safe to return to the stage, however, Christina has found contentment in regaling her work colleagues and patients with myriads of songs, dances, and enchanting tales of her beloved home-away-from-home, The Theatre Company.

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Harold has appeared in productions on the TTC stage going back to almost the beginning when it was ‘Magination Station. The first show Harold did when Randy Wilson took over as artistic director was Miracle on 34th Street, in the roll of Kris Kringle. Harold has been in many productions over many years! Some of them include the lion in The Wiz, Daddy Warbucks in Annie, the narrator in Into the Woods, and King Arthur in Spamalot.

Harold has also performed in plays with every group in town…and out of town too! Plus, he’s very proud to have been a part of the cast of the short film Caroline, winner in over 30 film festivals worldwide, and was shortlisted for the 91st Academy Awards for Best Live Action Short Film.

Harold also has the “role” of on air personality in real life at 101.9 the Beat radio station, where he’s also the program director of that station, as well as Classic Hits 107.3

HAPPY FRIDAY! We have not one... BUT TWO amazing guests tonight on #DivaDads 🥳🥳 It’s Mark and Linda Bendiksen! Let us know if you have any questions for this fabulous duo, and be sure to tune in live on YouTube at 8cst 💙
Most people around here know Linda Bendiksen as “Señora B” because, except for a brief stint at Radford University in Virginia, she’s been teaching in CSISD since 1983.  A self-proclaimed Yankee, she was born in Philly, lived near Chicago (hence the love of her Cubbies) and graduated high school in New York. She does NOT like to be up on stage, and admires all of you who do. Her classroom is her stage!
Mark has appeared in productions on the TTC stage going back to 1999, first as Rapunzel's Prince in 'magination Station's first production of Into the Woods, then later as musical con-man Harold Hill in TTC's 2005 production of The Music Man. In 2011, Mark appeared as Benjamin Stone in Stephen Sondheim's Follies and in 2013 he played multiple roles in Spamalot: Dennis, Sir Galahad, the Black Knight, and Prince Herbert's father. His most recent appearance was in the 2016 production of Into the Woods, this time playing the Narrator. 
In addition to his appearances on the TTC stage, Mark was also the orchestra director for Esther: For Such a Time As This and he played in the orchestra for Sunset Blvd. He currently serves on the TTC Board of Directors.
Mark also performs with other local community theatres and just recently finished up a three-week run as Richard Hannay in StageCenter's production of The 39 Steps. Other local credits include multiple productions with Brazos Valley Troupe and Navasota Theatre Alliance. He's also the Music Pastor for Zion Church of Kurten.
When Kate is not traveling, she can be found working music festivals or other events, and more recently has started dabbling in visual arts. She loves to write, read, create, stand up for what she believes in, and dance everywhere she goes. You can follow her adventures on Instagram @MissAllOverThePlace.

So many parts of her life have been shaped by her time at the theatre, and she loves to celebrate and support the family as it has grown over time. She hopes you enjoy her making a fool of herself this episode, whilst thriving in a situation where she gets to be the center of attention and talk a lot.

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Kate is a TTC veteran who never lost her obsession with the theatre and its inhabitants. She was in Legally Blonde, Shrek, Jesus Christ Superstar, Rocky Horror Show, and Spamalot, along with many others while she went to Texas A&M. Born and raised in BCS, she quite literally spread her wings and flew right after graduation and became a Flight Attendant. She is now based in New York City and loves every bit of it.

When Kate is not traveling, she can be found working music festivals or other events, and more recently has started dabbling in visual arts. She loves to write, read, create, stand up for what she believes in, and dance everywhere she goes. You can follow her adventures on Instagram @MissAllOverThePlace.

So many parts of her life have been shaped by her time at the theatre, and she loves to celebrate and support the family as it has grown over time. She hopes you enjoy her making a fool of herself this episode, whilst thriving in a situation where she gets to be the center of attention and talk a lot.

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Chris is a beloved TTC veteran who played some incredible roles. He was scheduled to return to the Randy Wilson Stage this summer to direct The Wedding Singer. Since those plans have gone haywire, we're bringing him on Diva Dads!  

Designer. Director. Educator. Icon. Spelling Bee Champion.

Chris Rogers is a theatre designer, director, and educator working for the past twelve years at various high school and community theatre programs. He has directed and designed over sixty productions including lighting and scenic design experience with The Theatre Company of Bryan/College Station, Texas and Will of the Winds Productions in Lubbock, Texas. Chris enjoys designing in a grand, operatic scale including lavish designs, saturated colors, and texture galore. ONCE ON THIS ISLAND, ROCK OF AGES, THE DROWSY CHAPERONE, and DISNEY'S BEAUTY AND THE BEAST are prime examples of Chris' work. He is a member of the Texas Educational Theatre Association (TETA) and the United States Institute for Theatre Technology (USITT). He was voted by his peers to the Member-at-Large position of the Texas Tech University student chapter of USITT. Currently working on his MFA  degree in Design at TTU with a focus on lighting design, Chris also holds an MA degree in Theatre from Texas A&M University at Commerce and a BA degree in Theatre Arts from the University of North Texas.

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We’re bringing back TTC’s guest director, Rob Gretta! Rob is ultimately responsible for the Diva Dads, having cast the three of them in our production of Mamma Mia. He came to TTC three summers in a row, and we miss him so much! Let us know what you want us to talk to him about!
Rob Gretta has worked professionally as an actor and a director for 30 years. His credits range from new work to Shakespeare, Sondheim to Menotti. Currently, he is the Director of Musical Theater at Indiana University of Pennsylvania and holds a MFA in Directing from Florida State University. 
Some of his directing credits include Anything Goes, Avenue Q, Guys and Dolls, Hello, Dolly! Into the Woods, Jesus Christ Superstar, Mamma Mia, Sunday in the Park with George, The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, and The ThreePenny Opera.
As an actor, he enjoyed playing the Man in Chair (The Drowsy Chaperone), Nathan (Guys and Dolls), Cowardly Lion (The Wizard of Oz), Herr Schultz (Cabaret), Mother Superior (Nunsense), Dottore Lombardi (The Servant of Two Masters), Don Armado (Love's Labor's Lost), and Malvolio in (Twelfth Night).

Andrew Carson also known as 'The Poet Andrew' was born and raised in Bryan, TX and had the wonderful chance to work with The Theatre Company on three different productions (Spamalot, Shrek, Legally Blonde). Andrew is an Actor/Singer/Songwriter/Rapper/Dancer/Producer with an undying love for artistic expression. Texas audiences may also remember 'The Poet Andrew' from his work with some of the top Theaters in Texas from TUTS (Heathers), Alley Theatre/The Dallas Theater Center (All The Way), A.D. Players (Godspell), Stages (Panto), etc. He has also gone on to work in modeling and numerous film/screen projects including 'E' the film, which made its debut at the prestigious Cannes Film Festival in their short film corner division. The New York-based artist has also taken his performance journey to new heights with the release of his single 'New Day' and producing, writing, and creating music that not only speaks to a generation of people but to a community. "The Poet is clearly picking up momentum and his name is spreading to all corners of the world now. An MC with a peaceful message of love & hope, ‘’New Day’’ is a welcome escape from the depressing news that is around us. ‘The Poet Andrew’ is pushing himself up the ranks and is a talent to watch"  -Full article  His debut single 'Lonely Love' and eclectic sound, which is not for the faint of heart, made him a new artist to watch on Spotify and now he is gaining way with his first EP Stargazer. You can check out exclusive new music from 'The Poet Andrew' which can be found on all digital music streaming platforms.

Support The Poet Andrew on Social Media
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Listen to more of The Poet Andrew
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James Cho’s first performance in musical theater ever was on the Randy Wilson stage as an ensemble member of TTC’s 2013 production of Les Miserables. He has appeared in over a dozen productions at TTC including as Billy Bigelow in Carousel, Rapunzel’s Prince in Into the Woods, and Georg Nowack in She Loves Me. Most recently James played Jules and Bob Greenberg in Sunday in the Park with George. He is also co-producer and director of the documentary BCS to Broadway and Back: The Randy Wilson Story. Currently, James is in a workshop production of an original musical, Romeo and Katrina, as the title character Romeo Tran. Romeo and Katrina is written by Christine Hoang, with music and lyrics by Tyler Mabry, and produced by Color Arc Productions in Austin, Texas. A virtual preview of Act I will premiere in October.

https://colorarcproductions.com/

BCS to Broadway and Back: The Randy Wilson Story - https://youtu.be/8-SR4_Ksbi0

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Kristy Petty has been a Theatre Company staple since 2001. Her list of shows number 27 with memorable turns as Dolly in Annie Get Your Gun, Cha Cha DeGregorio in Grease, Patti in Smokey Joe’s Cafe, and Frenchie, a kit kat girl and the big Gorilla in Cabaret. It is hard to imagine meeting someone who has not been directly influenced by Kristy, much less merely know her.

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