2024 Actors and Staff
Matt Fama (Papa Pureheart-Fred Miller “The Ox Pasture Incident”/Costard, “Love’s Labours
Lost”/Friar Tuck-King Queen, “Interactive Robin Hood”) Matt Fama is a New York-based actor and playwright who is absolutely stoked to be making his Shakespeare in the Valley/New Hampshire debut! Favorite roles include Buddy (Elf), Murdoch/Charles (Titanic), Silvius (As You Like It) and Barnardine (Measure For Measure). Matt spent a summer with Boston’s Commonwealth Shakespeare Company and holds a BFA in acting from LIU Post. Credits as a playwright include “Distilled Dissonance” at Post Theater Company. Many thanks to Donna and the entire TUTS team for this amazing opportunity, his teachers over the years for their words of wisdom, his friends constant support, and most importantly, his family for their everlasting love and support every step of the way! Enjoy the shows! Huzzah!
Sarah Friedman (Mary Scannell “The Ox Pasture Incident”/ Maid Marian “Interactive Robin Hood”/ Rosalind “Love’s Labours Lost”) is a classically trained singer and theatrical performer based in Paramus, New Jersey. Regionally, she has performed at Hunterdon Hills Playhouse (Sherlock Holmes Returns!), and in the New York Theatre Festival (Rowena), as well as sung with the Shir Adat choir in Lexington, KY as a Guest Vocalist. Sarah has also done 2 national tours with Chamber Theatre Productions (Encore!) across 25 states. Favorite roles from her college days include Hermia (A Midsummer Night’s Dream) and Agnes Evans (She Kills Monsters: Virtual Realms). Sarah is a graduate of SUNY at Fredonia with a BFA in Musical Theatre and a minor in Dance. During her spare time, she enjoys reading, playing piano, practicing stage combat, and going Israeli Folk Dancing with her mother.
Chase Guthrie (Patrick Scannell, “The Ox Pasture Incident”/Don Armado, “Love’s Labours
Lost”/Hector Heckler “Interactive Robin Hood”) A Kansas boy based in NYC, Chase is an actor, writer and artist. Favorite roles include: Sir Andrew Aguecheek in “Twelfth Night” with Shakin’ the Table Productions, Dromio of Syracuse in “Comedy of Errors” at The Macdonald Theatre, Stu Wilson in “Alone it Stands” at 59E59 Theaters and Man in “A Bell Tolls”, directed by Monte D Montelegre. He loves old pirate movies and playing TTRPG’s with his friends. Chase is the biggest “silly little guy” you know! You can find him and his work @the_chase_guthrie on Instagram.
Lyon Hamill (Malfateur, “The Ox Pasture Incident”/Berowne, “Love’s Labours Lost”/Little
John, “Interactive Robin Hood”) Hailing originally from Bermuda, Lyon is a New York City-based actor that is very excited to make his debut at Shakespeare in the Valley. As a graduate of Southern Methodist University’s acting program and after spending a few summers working with Colorado’s Theater Aspen, Lyon looks forward to putting his Shakespearean training to work in this outdoor setting. Favorite roles include George H. Jones (Machinal), Edward Bloom (Big Fish), and John Dashwood (Sense and Sensibility). In addition to acting on stage, you can find Lyon playing drums in the NYC based Latin surf punk band, NEVERHOME. Special thanks for Donna for this opportunity.
Brody Rogers (John Sinclair-Callum, “The Ox Pasture Incident”/Boyet-Jacquenetta, “Love’s
Labours Lost”/Sheriff Naughtygams “Interactive Robin Hood”) Hailing from the San Francisco Bay Area, currently based out of NYC, Brody is thrilled to make his Shakespeare In The Valley debut! He is especially excited to make his third consecutive appearance in “Love’s Labours Lost” (going for the world record!) Recent Off-Broadway credits include “Bacchae” (Dionysus) and “When We Dead Awaken” (Inspector). Recent off-off Broadway credits include: “Frankenstein” (Victor Frankenstein), “As You Like It” (Adam, William), “Troilus and Cressida” (Achilles). He received his BA in Drama at the University of California, Irvine.
Belle Rue (Mrs Miller-Zella Lee “The Ox Pasture Incident”/Princess, “Love’s Labours
Lost”) is a singer, actor and dancer based in NYC, recently having made her New York debut in La MaMa’s The Edge of Nature. Originally from Southern California, Belle’s love for performing began in the Inland Empire with shows like Urinetown (Hope Cladwell), Into the Woods (The Baker’s Wife), A Christmas Carol (Future), and The Little Mermaid (Attina). Belle is a graduate of The American Musical and Dramatic Academy where her love for music and theater thrived under teachings of brilliant current and past performers. Belle is excited to be making her Shakespeare in the Valley debut this season!
Peter Sansbury (Will Miller, “The Ox Pasture Incident”/Ferdinand, “Love’s Labours
Lost”/Robin Hood, “Interactive Robin Hood”) Hailing from the NYC area, Peter is no stranger to Shakespeare in New England, having worked with The Camden (Maine) Shakespeare Festival, playing Lysander (A Midsummer Night’s Dream). Other Shakespeare and classical credits include Romeo (Romeo and Juliet) and Guildenstern (Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead). Most recent productions include appearing as a Guest Artist with Iona University: Gerald Croft (An Inspector Calls) and Clifford Anderson (Deathtrap). He has also appeared in tv commercials for Acura. Peter thanks his family and friends for their constant love and support.
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Sean T. Ward (Cal Q. Lating, “The Ox Pasture Incident”) fell in love with acting at St. John’s Prep playing Cléante in their production of Molière’s “The Miser”. After taking a long hiatus from acting to become a US Marine, build a career, start a family and launch two businesses, starting with a principal role in the 2016 feature film “Wish for Christmas”, followed by featured and background roles in several films and television shows, Sean has realized his life-long dream of filmmaking. Sean appeared in TUTS’ 2021 production of “Lovers”, in 2022's "Love Letters" and "Couldabeen Hamlet” and had the starring role in 2023’s world premiere musical, “The Spoon River Project”. Additional theatre credits include live-action dinner theater, “Saltonstall” (multiple roles) and “The Mousetrap” (Sgt Trotter). Sean is the Founding Executive Producer of Dreamscape Productions, a NH-based independent film production and distribution company. He appeared in their 2022 film “Everwinter Night” (Winner of Best Picture at the Central Florida Film Festival, currently streaming on Amazon) and the 2024 offering “Round The Decay” currently in post-production. Sean just wrapped a role in the upcoming Wickeypix production of “Plummet to Adventure” starring Monty Python founder Terry Gilliam. When not acting, or making movies, “in his spare time”, Sean owns and operates multiple businesses.
Mark Mannette (Guest Director, “Interactive Robin Hood”) received his MFA in Directing
Shakespeare and Renaissance Literature in Performance from Mary Baldwin University in partnership with the American Shakespeare Center. While in Staunton, he performed with ASC’s professional resident company and directed productions at the Blackfriars Playhouse. He has directed plays in several states and founded theatre companies in Maine, Florida, Virginia, and North Carolina. Mannette studied acting with Tina Packer of Shakespeare & Company, Richard Iglewski of the Guthrie Theatre, and Phoebe Brand, a member of the legendary Group Theatre. He is a member of Actor’s Equity and the Screen Actors Guild. In recent years he has played Sherlock Holmes (Baskerville) and Hercule Poirot (Murder on the Orient Express) both adapted by Ken Ludwig. In film, he can be seen in “Home on the Range”, “Contested Plains”, and the forthcoming “Sod & Stubble”. Mark is currently the Director of Theatre at Newman University where he has directed such productions as “Hamlet”, “The Winter’s Tale”, “Dante’s Inferno”, and “As You Like It”. In 2015 and 2016 he served as the Head of Shakespeare in the Valley’s Shakesperiment (Apprentice) Company, directing multiple shows including “Two Gentlemen of Verona”, “Love’s Labours Lost” and “Twelfth Night”. A native of Maine, Mark is delighted to return to New England.
Donna Devlin (Director/Playwright, Miss Di Rexion “The Ox Pasture Incident”, Director/Playwright “Interactive Robin Hood”) Having begun her career in musical theatre, Donna was accepted into and attended NYU's prestigious Tisch School of the Arts before switching her attention to film and television. This actress/producer/director/writer initially cut her teeth in the realm of television and film; starting a production company while still in college and moving on to creating, writing, producing and/or directing projects featured on (among others) MTV, Fox TV, Canada's CTV and Much Music. Her work has garnered daytime Emmy nominations and awards at the Cannes, Houston and Vancouver Film Festivals. She has worked for Warner Brothers TV and the Canadian Broadcast Corporation, as well as being an award-winning producer and/or director of numerous national tv commercial campaigns before being invited to serve as one of N.H.'s first female Film Commissioners. Since returning to her "first love" (theatre), she's attended the world-renowned Royal Academy of Dramatic Art in London, U.K. and has appeared in London as Gertrude (HAMLET) and Maria in the world premiere of TWELFTH NIGHT: THE MUSICAL, among others. She’s a veteran of day and prime time television, feature films and many broadcast tv commercials as well as NYC, regional and national theatrical tours and her work has been featured in Time Out and as a “Pick of the Week” by the NY Post. She has directed, produced and/or written over 70 productions and, in addition to the dozens of newspaper and magazine articles written about her unique approach to Shakespeare (including The New York Times and numerous Boston Globe articles) she counts as some of her biggest honors having both her production of AS YOU LIKE IT (and her performance as Rosalind) selected as “The Best of The Best” by the Greater Boston Area
Theatre Critics Awards and receiving a 2011 NH Governor’s Special Commendation for her body of work and accomplishments. Favorite roles include Beatrice (MUCH ADO ABOUT NOTHING) Lady Macbeth (MACBETH) Katherine (The Taming of the Shrew) Juliet (Romeo and Juliet) Adriana (THE COMEDY OF ERRORS at Murphys Creek Theater, CA) Aldonza (MAN OF LAMANCHA) Amy (COMPANY) and Cinderella (INTO THE WOODS). As well, she has served on the Fundraising Steering Committee for award-winning Broadway and Off-Broadway producers, The Transport Group Theatre, and consulted with them on their media strategy for the Obie and Drama Desk award-winning musical, THE QUEEN OF THE MIST starring Tony nominee Mary Testa. Prior to the pandemic, Donna collaborated (book and lyrics) on TATTERHOOD, a new musical (that was workshopped and debuted here at Theatre Under The Stars) and played Joan of Arc in best-selling author John Reed’s latest play, JOAN PUCELLE. Donna was selected to sit on the National Board of Directors for the Women in Arts and Media Coalition, where she was Secretary as well as Chair of the PR/Marketing Committee. Donna is the Founding Producing Artistic Director of Theatre Under The Stars and its’ Shakespeare in the
Valley Fest. HUZZAH to the hard-working casts! THANKS to God, early mentors Tina Packer (Shakespeare & Co) and Peter Oysten (Mermaid Theater, London) and our many sponsors and patrons. And LOVE to fiancée (and frequent co-star and co-founder of TUTS/SITV) Will Hammond!
Stephen Sangster (Company Manager) graduated from the Radio & Television Program at Algonquin College in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada in 1984. With 20 years of experience in the Vancouver and Toronto film and television industry along with 10 years of experience in post production he brings a vast array of talent to the table. Feature Film Credits include “I Robot”, “Marmaduke”, “The Grey”, “3000 Miles to Graceland”, “The Lizzie McGuire Movie”. TV Series Credits include “Zoey’s Extraordinary Playlist”, “Are You Afraid of the Dark”, “Robyn Hood”, “Impulse” Stephen is currently working in Toronto, Ontario, Canada as a Location Manager.