Faculty
Georgia Ensemble Theatre
Conservatory Credo
As STUDENTS and TEACHING ARTISTS:
♥ We believe our first, most important responsibilities are to serve and grow as artists.
♥ We believe in selfless-ensemble collaboration. Service to each other will take us further than self-service ever could, so we seek ways to lift each other up and take care of each other.
♥ We find and create opportunities to amplify the people around us.
♥ We believe in “Failing with Pride.” We learn and grow from our mistakes.
♥ We believe in the process over the outcome. We take enormous risks without fear of failure. We trust that a healthy training process leads to a stronger product.
♥ We believe in challenging ourselves and consistently setting the standard higher every time.
♥ We approach each other with respect, kindness, and empathy—Always.
Laurel Crowe (she/her), Education Director/ Scene Study/Improvisation/ Voice/Theatre for Young Audiences Director/Performance Camp Director
Laurel Crowe has the distinct pleasure of being the very first student in the Conservatory back in 1992. Laurel holds a B.A. in Speech and Theatre Arts from the University of West Georgia. She has worked in the Conservatory in every position including Director of the Performance Camp productions Seussical the Musical, Alice in Wonderland, Aladdin, Peter Pan, Willy Wonka Jr., The Little Mermaid Jr., Shrek the Musical Jr., Mary Poppins Jr. and most recently The Lion King Jr. and Matilda the Musical. Laurel appeared as "Mrs. Little" in the 2008 Theatre for Young Audiences production of Stuart Little, and has directed many T.Y.A. productions including Ramona Quimby (2010 and 2013), James and the Giant Peach (2011 and 2012), Aesop’s Fables, Beauty and the Beast, The Lion, the Witch, and The Wardrobe, The Giver, Junie B. Jones the Musical, Stuart Little, A Wrinkle in Time and the original Topher Payne collaboration, S.T.E.A.M. TEAM.
Gabrielle Hines (she/her), Education Manager/ Intermediate Ensemble Director/Musical Theatre/Choreographer
GABRIELLE HINES is a Coatesville, PA native and graduate of Muhlenberg College with degrees in theatre and music. Gabrielle has studied theatre and music at Goldsmiths University in London, England. Past credits include Charlaine in Ain’t Misbehavin’, Grace in Annie, Danielle in Bring it On: The Musical, Lady in Brown in For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide/When the Rainbow is Enuf, and Yvonne in Sunday in the Park with George. Offstage, Gabrielle has directed and choreographed Revival Productions’ Ruby: The Ruby Bridges Story, directed and choreographed Limelight Theatre Company’s elementary, middle, and high school productions of Matilda, and assistant directed Lancaster Bible College’s Ruth, a collaboration with Sight and Sound Theatres. Gabrielle has enjoyed teaching in many capacities: as teaching artists with Philadelphia Young Playwrights, creating curriculums for Revival productions and even coaching cheerleading.
Lauren Frost (she/her), Education Associate/Intermediate & Advanced Teen Ensemble Director/Coach
Lauren Frost recently graduated from Kennesaw State University with a Bachelor of Arts in Theatre and Performance Studies. At KSU, Lauren’s main focuses were stage management and theatre education. She previously worked as a Drama Camp Counselor at the Jewish Community Center. She also was an English Language Arts and Drama teaching intern at the Global Village Project. Lauren is excited to join the Georgia Ensemble Theatre team this summer as a teaching artist and administrative assistant!
Josh Brook (he/him), Musical Theatre/Improvisation/Acting
Josh Brook has been teaching at Georgia Ensemble Theatre for ten years and has learned far more from the kids than he could ever imagine teaching. After graduating from Kennesaw State University, he pursued a full time acting career in Atlanta. Primarily focused in teaching musical theatre, improvisation and acting he also likes to dabble in teaching devised theatre techniques and physical theatre. When not teaching, he professionally acts in the Atlanta theatre scene. Recent Atlanta credits: The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane, Anne Boleyn, Lyle The Crocodile (Synchronicity Theatre) S.T.E.A.M Team, Junie B. Jones, The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, Peter and the Starcatcher (Georgia Ensemble Theatre) Tuck Everlasting (Alliance Theatre). My gratitude and special thanks to all of the imaginative kids that walk into these doors and pour their heart and soul into this extremely difficult yet rewarding work. Many laughs and discoveries to come this summer!
Lowrey Brown (he/him), Film Acting/On-Camera Acting
A graduate of Kennesaw State University, Lowrey Brown has spent the past 10 years acting in and around Atlanta on both the stage and screen. Recent Regional Theatre credits: Edward Foote (Alliance Theatre), Company (Actor's Express), The Hunchback of Notre Dame (Aurora Theatre), Les Miserables (Aurora Theatre), and A Christmas Carol (Alliance Theatre). Recent Tv/Film credits: Dopesick (with Michael Keaton), the upcoming Night Sky, Hillbilly Elegy (Netflix), The Gifted (FOX), The Vampire Diaries (CW). Find out more at www.lowreybrown.com\
Caleb Clark, Adult Scene Study, Audition
Caleb Clark is an actor, fight choreographer, and acting coach, with over a decade of professional experience. He has taught acting at the Aurora Theatre, Stage Door Theatre, the American Shakespeare Center, the University of Houston, Lavilla School of the Arts, Douglas Anderson School of the Arts, and coaches privately as CoachClark. He holds an MFA from the University of Houston’s Professional Actor Training Program, and a BFA from the University of Michigan - Flint. He has appeared in two short films, choreographed the violence for 9 professional productions, and performed in over 40. Atlanta Credits: Roat in Wait Until Dark (Georgia Ensemble Theatre); Young Scrooge / Peter Cratchit in A Christmas Carol (Alliance Theatre); Max in The Play That Goes Wrong (Aurora Theatre); Actor 5 in Bootycandy (Actor’s Express). Coaching: CoachCalebClark.com / @CoachCalebClark. Acting: theCalebClark.com.
Abagail Dawkins (she/her), Audition/Voice Coach/Associate Performance Camp Director
Abagail Dawkins is an actor, singer, storyteller, teaching artist, and arts administrator in the Atlanta area. Since graduating from Kennesaw State University with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Theatre and Performance Studies, with a concentration in Musical Theatre, she has discovered a plethora of opportunities offstage. Her relationship with the GET Education Department started in 2016, and she keeps coming back! GET has provided her a solid ground for personal growth and she couldn't be more pleased to join the Teaching Faculty as a Vocal Coach. Join a class and get ready to make some noise!
Jenna Dorece (she/her), Choreographer/Dance
Jenna Dorece has been a choreographer for our annual performance camp for five years. Favorite GET productions include Annie, Mary Poppins, Seussical, and James and the Giant Peach and The Lion King. Her approach to teaching dance is rooted in meeting the student at their ability level. Everyone can dance, and she proves this is true!
John Doyle (he/him), Storytelling/Digital Storytelling/Stewart Center Residency Instructor
John Edward Doyle Jr. is a Storyteller, Actor and Teaching Artist. He is the founder of Arts Education Integration Agency LLC, a company that integrates creative arts into the educational setting. Originally from Burnsville, Minnesota, John moved to Atlanta to attend Morehouse College. After receiving theater training from Carol Mitchell Leon, John began his professional acting/storytelling/teaching artist career 20 years ago.
John has had the great pleasure to work in different professional theater companies in Atlanta. Some of his favorite productions include: Fly, The Old Settler, Home, Conversation between Barack Obama and Malcolm X…and many others.
John’s passion is also in arts and education and he has had the great opportunity to blend those two in his career. He is a past actor-educator at Kaiser Permanente Education Theatre Programs. While there he became a core company member that toured that state of Georgia doing children’s theater. John also created programming for Kaiser Permanente creating the Male Empowerment Workshop for middle school boys. He is a current performer with Teaching Museum, Georgia Ensemble Theater Arts in Education, Tattle Tales Productions and his own company Arts Education Integration LLC.
John is an accomplished storyteller. Telling, everywhere, from birthday parties, schools, festivals and conferences. John also conducts workshops on how to incorporate storytelling and digital storytelling in the classroom. He is the past resident storyteller at the High Museum of Art. John has also been a dedicated teaching artist and has partnered with such organizations as: the Alliance Theatre for 15 years, Georgia Ensemble Theatre, Kaiser Permanente Educational Theater, Georgia State University All-stars Afterschool, Upward Bound, Boys and Girls clubs, Young Audience, Atlanta Street Theatre, Camp Broadway at Fox Theatre, Fulton County Schools, Atlanta Public Schools, Cobb County Schools, Gwinnett County Schools and many others. Working with students from Pre K – 12th grade.
John’s passion extends to his community service. His social work is what drives and motivates him. Through creative arts and teachings, he creates a space for youth to explore and express themselves in a meaningful and constructive way. John has worked with Bellwood Boys and Girls Club and Donnely Boys and Girls Club teaching drama and poetry. Since 2012, John has volunteered with TLC, a youth alternative program at the Fulton County Juvenile Court House. During his time with TLC, he has facilitated creative writing and theater workshops as well as, co-directing a play written and performed by the TLC youth and in 2016 he was named Fulton County volunteer of the year.
Shannon Eubanks (she/her), Seven Practical Steps to Film and Television Acting/Adult Scene Study Master Class
Shannon's acting, directing, and writing careers have been intertwined for almost 40 years - her directing track started in 1974 with the first staging of THE BOYS IN THE BAND produced South of the Mason-Dixon, continued with 26 productions for eight different theatres over an 18-year span in Los Angeles, winning Drama Critics' Circle Award nominations for ROSENCRANTZ AND GUILDENSTERN ARE DEAD, RICHARD III, and HENRY V, and included the West Coast premiere of Len Jenkins' dark comedy AMERICAN NOTES, originally produced by the Public Theatre in New York. An actor/director engagement at the Alabama Shakespeare Festival brought her back down South, and visiting Atlanta she reconnected with Bob Farley, for whom she'd worked at Alaska Repertory Theatre. Steven Dietz' BECKY'S NEW CAR, OF MICE AND MEN, SEASON'S GREETINGS, SLEUTH, THE MIRACLE WORKER, and four other shows have opened at Georgia Ensemble Theatre under her hand. This summer she was privileged to stage Lauren Gunderson's fascinating play EMILIE: THE MARQUISE DU CHATELET DEFENDS HER LIFE TONIGHT for The Weird Sisters at Aurora Theatre. Concurrently she's co-written two screenplays, four teleplays, served as a staff writer for the Emmy-winning children's series THE REPPIES, and performed in over 150 plays across the U.S., on soaps, series, and television movies for NBC, ABC, CBS, HBO, PBS, Lifetime and the Disney Channel, and in feature films for Warner Brothers, Columbia Pictures, and Twentieth Century Fox. Recently she's had a wonderful experience appearing as Bastianna Natale on The CW's hit show THE ORIGINALS.
Tyler Graham (he/him), Improvisation/Advanced Teen Ensemble/Acting/Film
Tyler has been at the helm of our Advanced Teen Ensemble from the beginning! He started at GET as and Acting Apprentice in the 2017-2018 season, and has since been teaching at GET as well as at the University level. His collaborative approach to creating live theatre with young people is incredibly effective and inspiring.
Janelle Lannan (she/her), Operation Imagination & Theatre Arts Explosion Music Instructor
Miss Janelle (she/her) is best known to Atlanta families with young budding musicians from The Music Class where she has taught since 2012. She originally hails from the multimedia rock/musical theatre scene in New York City with an MFA in Music Theatre from UNLV. However, Janelle credits her early childhood education talent to one of her best friends, Joanna Walchuk, whose calm and "present" demeanor when interacting with children has always been inspiring. Often, Janelle has been referred to as a sort of "Pied Piper" when others observe children she's just met crawl right into her arms and lap. It is possible that you may have seen her on the Act3 stage as Carmen Bernstein in Curtains! or on the DUMC stage in Arsenic & Old Lace, Seussical the Musical, Back to Back Bacharach, Oh! The Humanity! or Dearly Departed. She also volunteers almost every year with the Atlanta Actors Unions' fundraiser Lend Me An Ear: an annual staged reading of Radio Plays from the past, usually held at the Shakespeare Tavern in midtown Atlanta, benefiting the Atlanta Community Food Bank. Past roles: Sally in Cabaret, Polly in Crazy for You, Nanny in Baby with the Bathwater, Polly in Three Penny Opera, among others... (SAG-AFTRA member)
Lexi McKay, Stage Craft/ Playwriting/Production
Alexis 'Lexi' McKay moved to Atlanta after working in Savannah, GA for five years where she worked at Savannah Children's Theater. She has worked her way around Atlanta this past season to learn about all the amazing companies and to gain more knowledge about how to be the best stage manager. She worked at the Jewish Community Center as a counselor for drama camp and stagecraft teacher. She started working at Synchronicity Theater with their Playmaking for Kids Program in February and even worked with them as they transferred to virtual classes. She can't wait to work with Georgia Ensemble Theater this summer and help bring an amazing camp to kids around Georgia. Lexi is currently pursuing an M.F.A. from the University of Alabama. When she’s not stage managing, she is finding a quiet corner to curl up with her dogs and try to get her next play written.
David Reingold (he/him), Lighting Instructor-Design/Tech/Advanced Teen Ensemble
David (he/him) is an Atlanta-based theatre artist. He recently graduated from Penn State with dual degrees in Lighting Design and Theatre Studies, and he is very excited to be back home and working with GET once more! In addition to his work as a lighting designer, David is also a tap dancer, musician, and writer with a particular passion for creating new and relevant theatre. David believes in approaching problems with kindness, in listening fully, and in the immense power of play. davidreingold.net
Angel Fabián Rivera (he/him), Musical Theatre/Voice/Choreography
Born and raised in Puerto Rico, Angel Fabián Rivera has a bachelor’s degree in acting from the UPR in Río Piedras. His theatre performance credits include: Donkey in Shrek: The Musical, Armand in Once On This Island, Hairspray, Mary Poppins, Our Town, Alex & Emma. His first Disney project is a Spanish dubbing voice-actor on West Side Story and now he’s excited to announce his first blockbuster movie The Plane alongside Gerald Butler to come out this year. Angel started his non-profit theater company Artescena where he works with new talent and well known artists who have been in the Puerto Rican industry. He’s always had a passion for teaching and inspiring younger generations to what he believes in. Follow him on IG as @angelfabianrivera. “Remember to always follow your dreams just like I did.”
Mary Saville (she/her), Scene Study/Advanced Teen Ensemble/Curriculum Development/Vocal Technique/Shakespeare
Mary Saville earned a Master’s degree in Theatre Education from Emerson College and a BA in Language Arts Education from Auburn University. She taught high school theatre for 8 years, and has also taught and directed college students and early-career actors of all ages, spanning more than 15 years. She’s been a part of the Conservatory faculty since 2008. Currently, Mary works at GET full-time as Resources Associate. She’s also an actor, and has appeared in Atlanta with Stage Door Players, Synchronicity, the Shakespeare Tavern, the Atlanta History Center, and at GET in Ramona Quimby. She loves working with young people, and is thrilled to return to the Conservatory team this year.
Alexia Shepherd (she/her), Story Drama/Improvisation/Stewart Center Residency Instructor
Alexia Shepherd (she/her) is from Covington, GA, and has been involved with GET since 2022. She has a bachelor’s degree in theatre arts from Columbus State University. Past credits include Cinderella in Cinderella’s Glass Slipper, Mother in Corduroy, and The Wizard in the Wizard of Oz. She also has experience with story drama, and a main focus of improv. She’s done a summer intensive with Social Circle Theater working with teens on their improv skills and plans to host more in the future. She is excited to work with GET again and work with these amazing artists and students!
Spencer G. Stephens (he/him), Conservatory Consultant/Mash-Up Musical Madness Creator
Spencer G. Stephens is an Atlanta-area actor/singer/puppeteer/composer and educator. He has performed for many theatres in the metro Atlanta area including the 2010 production of The Boys Next Door at Georgia Ensemble Theatre. Spencer is a General Company Member of Dad's Garage Theatre where he had done improv since 2004 and a resident puppeteer at the Center for Puppetry Arts where he has performed since 2003. He is a two time Metropolitan Atlanta Theatre (MAT) Award winner and a Suzi Bass Award nominee. Spencer is currently the Assistant Drama Teacher at St. Martin's Episcopal School in Atlanta where he has taught Elementary and Middle School students since 2006. He also serves as a Teaching Artist at Georgia Ensemble Theatre where he has taught summer camps and workshops for youth since 2005. In 2008, Spencer and his writing partner Robin Seidman won the National Children's Theatre Festival at Actor's Playhouse in Coral Gables, FL with their original musical PAINT!: Marc Chagall's Colorful Musical Adventure. Spencer's music has also been featured in three original mini-musicals at the Imagine It! Children's Museum in downtown Atlanta. Spencer is the Middle Grades Theatre Director at the Mount Vernon School.
Akua Taylor (she/her), Intermediate Ensemble/Devising/Playmaking/Stewart Center Residency Instructor
Akua Taylor studied Dramatics and Speech at Fisk University in Nashville, TN. While in college, she had the honor of being a Fisk Jubilee Singer and touring the world singing Negro Spirituals. She received her Bachelor of Arts, Magna Cum Laude, and joined the Phi Beta Kappa honor society. When Akua moved to New York City after graduation, she developed her first teaching artist workshop for the Elizabeth, New Jersey school system called “Reach Higher.” After moving to Atlanta, Akua developed a second teaching artist workshop for abused women and children called “Approve” and facilitated it for six weeks with the Women’s Resource Center to End Domestic Violence in Decatur, GA. As a Producer and Director, Akua was featured at the Atlanta Black Theatre Festival 2017 and 2018 for her play “Song Lake.” Akua earned her Master of Arts in Creative Business Leadership from SCAD in 2021 and has been teaching the subjects of acting, voice, and general performing arts with after school programs since 2002. https://gaarts.org/teaching-artists-registry/akua-taylor/
