The Minutes Bios
Cast Biographies
Steven Barkhimer* (Mayor Superba) was recently seen at The Hanover Theatre in The Glass Managerie and Julius Caesar, as well as The Interrogation of Lee Harvey Oswald at the Mosesian Center for the Arts and Huntington Theatre’s The Art of Burning. Winner of the Elliot Norton Award for his play Windowmen.
Jennifer Bubriski (Swing) was last seen at The Umbrella as Miss Stephanie/Mrs Dubose in To Kill a Mockingbird. She has also been seen at the Huntington Theatre Company as Pam Annunziata in Hurricane Diane, Louise in Private Lives (Gloucester Stage), Mrs Claus in the regional premiere of The Truth About Santa, the Housekeeper in Man of La Mancha, and Jacqueline in La Cage Aux Folles (Seacoast Repertory Theatre).
Scot Colford (Mr. Hanratty) was last seen at The Umbrella as Joshua in La Cage aux Folles in 2015. He has also played Crane in The Book of Will and Michel in Murder on the Orient Express (Lyric Stage); Vanya in Vanya and Sonya and Masha and Spike (Titanic Theatre); Jim Bayless in All My Sons (Praxis Stage); First Soldier in The Love of the Nightingale (Hub Theatre); Wilhelm Grimm in Shiver (Project: Project); and Mr. Baker in Blood on the Snow (Bostonian Society). He also originated roles in several new plays developed by Fresh Ink Theatre Company such as George in The Earth Room, Daddy Patterson in That Time the House Burned Down, and Bishop Tunstall in Fire on Earth. Additionally, Scot served as the pronouncing judge for the Boston Citywide Spelling Bee for over ten years. scotcolford.com
Eliza Fichter (Ms. Johnson) is an interdisciplinary artist from Massachusetts. She has worked with The Huntington Theatre (Summer Workshop Series - Oxbow), Boston Playwright's Theatre (Kill the Magistrate), BEDLAM and The Nora Theatre (The Crucible), Central Square Theater (The Revolutionists), Underground Railway Theatre (Matchless & The Happy Prince), and Olney Theatre Center (Macbeth, The Comedy of Errors), and is a current Artist-in-Residence at Mount Auburn Cemetery. When she's not making theatre, Eliza also works as a printmaker. elizafichter.com
Dan Kelly (Mr. Breeding) Last seen at The Umbrella Stage Company as Bob Ewell in To Kill A Mockingbird, Levine in Glengarry Glen Ross, and Tartuffe in Tartuffe. Post-COVID roles include Charles in Pippin, Ed in Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time (Firehouse Center for the Arts), Lemml in Indecent (Concord Players), Narrator/Mysterious Man in Into the Woods, Guiteau in Assassins (Colonial Chorus Players), and Richard in Equivocation (Marblehead Little Theatre). Look for Dan as Rothko in Boutcher Theatre Company’s inaugural production of Red opening April 12 in the warehouse behind Sully’s Brand in Beverly.
June Kfoury (Ms. Innes) This is June Kfoury's first appearance at The Umbrella. Most recently she was in Hub Theatre Company’s Love, Loss, and What I Wore as Gingy, a role in which she also originally appeared in Hub’s 2013 Boston Premier production. Other roles include Winifred Snow in Into the Breeches, Clairee in Steel Magnolias (Hub Theatre Company), Carla and Nancy U/S in Grand Horizons (Gloucester Stage), Margaret U/S in The Inheritance (SpeakEasy Stage), the Douglas in Henry IV (Praxis Stage), Sir Edward Clarke in Gross Indecency, Bev/Kathy in Clybourne Park, Julienne Tessman in Hedda Gabler, General Cartwright in Guys and Dolls (The Longwood Players), Nurse in Romeo and Juliet, (Happy Medium), Marie Cote in Reflections of a Rock Lobster (Boston Children’s Theatre), Sister Irene in Sister Act (NextDoor Theater) and Kate Keller in All My Sons (High Tor Summer Theatre).
Jeremiah Kissel* (Mr. Carp) is a 40 year veteran of the Boston theater and film community making his first appearance at The Umbrella. Pre-Covid stage roles include Tevye and Richard Nixon (New Rep), Scrooge (Central Square), Cyrano (Gloucester Stage), and Bernie Madoff (Theater Row, NYC). He is the winner of two Elliott Norton awards (1990, 2014) as well as Boston's highest theater honor, The 2003 Norton Prize for Sustained Excellence. He has appeared in Boston made episodes of Julia (MAX), Body of Proof (ABC), and Castle Rock (Hulu), as well as in The Town, The Fighter, The Great Debaters, The Wrong Car (Lifetime), and Joy (20th Century).
Ryan MacPherson (Mr. Peel) is thrilled to be back at The Umbrella after his roles in Red (Ken) and Tartuffe (Valere), as well as multiple virtual productions during COVID. His favorite previous credits include Ken in The Nance (Vokes Players); Macduff in Macbeth, Ariel in The Pillowman, and Evan in As Bees in Honey Dorwn (FUDGE Theatre); Luke in Next Fall and Japeth in Children of Eden (Wellesley Players); as well as Hal in Proof (Concord Players). Ryan serves as the President/Co-Founder of the NYC-based non-profit theatre company Emergent TheatreWorks. All the love to his favorite person/partner, Evelyn, for supporting him throughout this process. For you, Mom.
Eric McGowan (Swing) is a Somerville, MA resident who has been undergoing temporary dissociative breaks from reality (also known as "acting") for nearly 30 years. Since graduating from Holy Cross in Worcester, MA, Eric has acted in local productions ranging from Shakespeare and other classics to new plays, working with companies such as Titanic Theatre Co., Dream Role Players, and The Gold Dust Orphans. This summer, Eric will be reteaming with Plays in Place for their production of "Revolution’s Edge” at the Old North Church. Eric previously studied classes at Shakespeare & Company in Lenox, MA and Stella Adler Studio in New York City. When not on stage, Eric enjoys teaching drama to elementary and middle school children, showing his students how it is okay to “play pretend” even as a grown-up. Eric is thrilled to be working on such a fascinating show at The Umbrella with such a fantastic cast and crew!
Jason Myatt (Mr. Assalone) is delighted to be working among such an exceptional cast and crew on The Minutes. Previously at The Umbrella, he appeared as Gilmer/Cunningham in To Kill a Mockingbird, Dave Moss in Glengarry Glen Ross, and Robert Lowell in Dear Elizabeth. Jason has been acting in the Greater Boston area for 25 years, performing with Hovey Players, Quannapowitt Players, Acme Theater Productions, Vokes Theater, Greater Boston Stage Company, Publick Theater, Arts After Hours, and Arlington Friends of the Drama, among others. Favorite roles include John Brennan in Coyote on a Fence, Karl/Steve in Clybourne Park, Jack in Maytag Virgin, Roland in Constellations, Marc in Art, Evans in Terra Nova, Donny in Rocket Man, President Smith in November, Clov in Endgame, Colonel Brandon in Sense and Sensibility, George Deever in All My Sons, and Charles in The Clean House. Thank you for performing your civic duty by joining our City Council meeting tonight!
Julie Marie Perkins (Ms. Matz) The Minutes is Julie's first play since she moved back to the Boston area. She has been living first in New York then Los Angeles since 2003 studying with the great clown masters; Avner the Eccentric, Aitor Basauri & John Gilkey. Julie hopes to study with Bill Irwin this summer at the world renowned Celebration Barn, a physical arts training center in Paris, ME. She has a web series she wrote and produced called, All the World's a Cage. She has written and produced many stage and film projects over the years. Currently, she is developing her solo show titled, Binge & Puke and collaborating with two other local writer/performers on a show titled Instant Coffee. Thelandofperkistan.com
Damon Singletary* (Mr. Blake) is excited to return to The Umbrella Stage Company! His last appearance was as Actor 2 in The Colored Museum. He also previously appeared as Troy Maxson in August Wilson's Fences, and Basilius in Head Over Heels. Some of his other recent stage roles include Walter Lee Younger in Raisin in the Sun (New Repertory Theatre); Curtis in Sister Act, Father/Others in Fabulation Or, The Re-Education of Undine and Uncle Henry/The Gatekeeper/Crow in The Wiz (The Lyric Stage Company of Boston); Phil Renaldi in Birdy (Commonwealth Shakespeare Company); Tilney/Sir Robert DeLesseps in Shakespeare in Love, and Rev. Peters/Others in The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time (SpeakEasy Stage Company); Rodney and Fountaine Le Grande in Desire (Zeitgeist Stage Company); and Edwin/ Superintendent in Miss Holmes (Greater Boston Stage Company). Damon lives in Topsfield, MA with his wife Laurie (also an actor and playwright), whose love and support is invaluable.
Richard Snee* (Mr. Oldfield) is delighted to be making his Umbrella debut. He has been working in Boston area theatres for nearly forty years including Speakeasy Stage, Lyric Stage, American Repertory Theatre, Huntington Theatre, Gloucester Stage Company and Merrimack Repertory Theatre. He is a founding member of The Actors' Shakespeare Project and has also worked with Commonwealth Shakespeare. Films include Godmothered; Gone, Baby, Gone; Don't Look Up, The Company Men. He has voice animated characters for several series including Dr.Katz, Home Movies, Science Court, and The Dick and Paula Celebrity Special on FX in which he and his wife, Paula Plum, played the title roles. She was "Paula". He was "The Dick".
Creative Team Biographies
Brian Boruta (Producer) This is Brian’s 47th production with The Umbrella and his 43rd as the Director of Performing Arts, during which time he has earned Best Production nominations for Glengarry Glen Ross, Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson, Red, Angels in America, Equus and Bonnie & Clyde; a DASH Award for Best Play for True West and To Kill A Mockingbird, and Best Musical for Parade and Big Fish. The Umbrella directing credits include: Parade (Dash Award for Best Director of a Musical) Big Fish (DASH Nom.), Hair, Evita, Side Show, Next to Normal, The Rocky Horror Show. Elsewhere: Sweeney Todd, Legally Blonde, Godspell, Seussical the Musical, The Actor’s Nightmare, Sister Mary Ignatius Explains It All for You. Favorite on-stage credits include Billy Lawlor in 42nd Street (DASH Nom.), Judas/John the Baptist in Godspell, Cosmo Brown in Singin’ in the Rain, Austin in True West, and Greg in A Chorus Line. As a designer and educator, Brian has worked with numerous college, high school and community groups including Merrimack College, Goddard College, Framingham State University, The Performing Arts Center of MetroWest, Brookline, Chelsea and Wellesley Public School. His solo piece, UnMasqued, has been workshopped and performed at the Wheeler Theater in Port Townsend, WA. Brian holds a Master of Fine Arts in Interdisciplinary Arts from Goddard College and was named the recipient of the 2014 Framingham State University Young Alumni Achievement Award for his work in the performing arts.
Scott Edmiston (Director) is the recipient of the Elliot Norton Prize for Sustained Excellence for his theatrical work over the past 25 years. He has directed more than 70 productions at theaters including the American Repertory Theater, SpeakEasy Stage Company, Lyric Stage Company, Central Square Theatre, and the Huntington Theatre where he was an artistic associate. Six of his productions have been honored with the Elliot Norton Award for Outstanding Production or Musical: Constellations, Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?, My Fair Lady, A Marvelous Party, Miss Witherspoon, and Five by Tenn. Edmiston is best known for directing American classics such as Long Day's Journey Into Night, The Little Foxes, Anna Christie, and Cat on a Hot Tin Roof. He has directed more than 25 New England premieres, most recently The Thanksgiving Play by Indigenous American playwright Larissa Fasthorse. He teaches acting and dramatic literature at Berklee and previously served as dean of theater at Boston Conservatory at Berklee.
Tree Brock (Wardrobe Supervisor) is proud to be working with The Umbrella Stage Company again after joining them as wardrobe supervisor in Rent, Middleton Heights, The Color Purple and Lizzie, The Musical. They have previously worked as the costume designer with Hovey Theatre doing Witch, Marjory Prime, and Pillowman. They were also costume designer with The Christmas Carol in Waltham. Tree also works backstage and costume work for Drag me to Brunch and Strut. Their company is Red Bark Crafting and believes you should fly your fandom banners proudly.
Chris Brousseau (Audio 1) has worked in central and eastern MA theater for over 20 years as an actor, designer, and technician. He is thrilled to return to The Umbrella after nearly 10 years. Recent credits include Sound & Video Design, Sweat (Footlight Club); Sound Design, Appropriate (Hovey Players); Sound Design, Proof (Footlight Club), Sound Design, Xanadu (Footlight Club); Virtual Theater Technical Direction, Woman in White (Footlight Club), DASH Award; Sound Design, Next to Normal (Riverside Theater Works). More credits & information at chrisbrousseau.com
James Cannon (Sound Designer) is a freelance audio engineer, sound designer, composer, and music producer from Chicago, IL, and currently based in Watertown, MA. Recent theatrical credits include: The View Upstairs (Speakeasy Stage), Well, Straight White Men (Hovey Players), The Rocky Horror Show, Passing Strange (Moonbox Productions), The Last Wide Open, The Old Man & The Old Moon, Head Over Heels, The Colored Museum, Dracula, Rent, Middleton Heights,The Color Purple (The Umbrella Stage Company), NIGHTTOWN: An Operatic Reimagining of James Joyce’s Ulysses (Lowell House Opera), and Spring Awakening (Wellesley Theater Project).
Vanessa C. Hart* (Assistant Stage Manager) is a stage manager and resident of Massachusetts. They stage managed Central Square Theatre’s Ain’t Misbehavin’, Cleveland Playhouse’s Light It Up! (World Premiere), The Attendants 2020 by the NerveTank presented by Arts Brookfield NY, and pssst...The Boot with Beth Morrison Projects, Mad Forest at the Fisher Center at Bard College and Theatre for A New Audience, Rebel and Misfits Productions’ of Uncle Vanya, Sex with Strangers, and Hamlet: See What I See in St. Louis, and Wee Keep Company's Three Sisters and A Wolf in Lancaster, PA.They stage managed at the Peterborough Players from 2017-2021, and they frequently collaborate with the Fisher Center at Bard College. Thank you to The Umbrella for taking a chance on them with their first show back since welcoming a baby in winter 2022! they/them
Janie E. Howland (Set Designer) Recent Umbrella Stage Company credits: The Color Purple. Recent designs include: Operation Epsilon (Southwark Playhouse, UK), In the Deep (Willamette University, OR), Mr. Popper’s Penguins (Wheelock Family Theatre), Thirst (Lyric Stage Company), Machine Learning (Central Square Theatre), Raisin in the Sun/Diaspora (New Rep), Urban Nutcracker (year 8, City Ballet of Boston). Venues include: NYC Dance Alliance, InterAct Theatre (PA), Berkshire Opera Festival, Speakeasy Stage, Mass MOCA, Reagle Players, Actors’ Shakespeare Project, Odyssey Opera, Weston Playhouse (VT), Boston Conservatory of Music, New England Conservatory of Music, North Shore Music Theatre, Ohio Star Theatre (OH), Company One, Merrimack Rep, Gloucester Stage. Adjunct faculty at BSU, WSU, and Wellesley College. Founder of the Prop Co-Op, www.prop-co-op.com, member of USA Local 829. janiehowland.com
Michael T. Lacey* (Stage Manager) is pleased to be back stage managing The Minutes at The Umbrella, having last stage managed Head Over Heels and 42nd Street in the inaugural season on the new Umbrella stage. Previously at The Umbrella, Michael stage managed Big Fish (DASH Winner - Best Stage Manager) and Parade (DASH Nomination - Best Stage Manager). Other stage managing credits include Circle Mirror Transformation (Burlington Players - DASH nomination: Best Stage Manager), 42nd Street (Winthrop Playmakers) and Sweeney Todd (906 Productions). For Tommy & Henry. MAMBO!
Bethany Mullins (Costume Desginer) is a Massachusetts-based costume designer. She has worked on national and international touring productions as a shop manager, technician, and stitcher, including Les Miserables, A Christmas Story, Legally Blonde, School of Rock, and The Phantom of the Opera. Select design credits include: Lizzie, The Musical (Umbrella Arts Center, 2023), Beehive: the ‘60s musical (Greater Boston Stage Company, 2023), Tell Me On A Sunday (Peterborough Players, 2023). Circle Mirror Transformation (Peterborough Players, 2022), All Is Calm (Greater Boston Stage Company, 2021), Always, Patsy Cline (Peterborough Players, 2020), Gertrude Stein and A Companion (Peterborough Players, 2019), and Tru (Peterborough Players, 2018). Endless thanks to Cory and her family for their unwavering support as she continues to play dress-up under pressure.
SeifAllah Salotto-Cristobal (Lighting Designer) is a father, husband, educator, and storyteller who has traveled across the country designing lighting and digital media for Theatre, Opera, Dance, Concerts, and Live Events for the past 18 years. He holds a Master of Fine Arts in Design from the University of Missouri-Kansas City with a focus on Lighting and Projection Design and is the Assistant Professor of Lighting Design and Interim Chair for the Department of Theatre at the University of Southern Maine where he brings his knowledge and experience to help shape the next generation of theatre professionals, focusing on developing complete storytelling and creating a more equitable industry. In the classroom, Seif has a particular interest in creating a more accessible and hopeful classroom. he/him/his www.seif.design
Kira Troilo (EDI Consultant) is a Boston-based creative, and the CEO and founder of Art & Soul Consulting, a new Equity, Diversity & Inclusion consulting firm dedicated to support for theater and the arts. Kira’s groundbreaking EDI work was recently featured in American Theatre Magazine. Kira consults for many local companies in addition to The Umbrella Stage Company — including SpeakEasy Stage, Reagle Music Theatre, Gloucester Stage Company, NEMPAC and Greater Boston Stage Company. Nationally, she has worked at theaters such as Arkansas’ TheatreSquared and Buffalo’s Irish Classical Theatre Company. Last summer, she provided tailored support for the world premiere of Summer Stock: The Musical at Goodspeed Opera House, starring Corbin Bleu. Kira also crafts and shares her own fully-tailored EDI workshop and development sessions with adjudicators, arts educators, theater ushers and volunteers, and boards of directors.
Julia Wonkka (Props/Set Dressing) is a Boston-based props and scenic designer, and is very excited to be working with The Umbrella Arts Center! Previous credits include Central Square Theater: Machine Learning, The Rocky Horror Show, Perestroika (Props Artisan). Moonbox Productions: Legally Blonde, New Works Festival (Props Manager). New England Conservatory: La Calisto, L’Arbor di Diana (Props Manager). Emerson Stage: Are You Someone to Somebody? (Scenic and Props Designer), Marie Antoinette (Props Designer), Three Romances for the Unwell and Otherwise (Scenic Designer). The Hub: Into the Breeches (Asst. Scenic). Mercutio Troupe: The Room in the Attic (Writer/Director), The Painted Handgun (Scenic Designer).
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