"All the world’s a stage,
And all the men and women merely players;
They have their exits and their entrances;
And one man in his time plays many parts.”
Perform It! Young People's Stage Company
Artistic director:Gwen Dudley Gwen Dudley has been involved in theater for 15 years, her first ever play being Perform It’s production of Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night's Dream. In that time Gwen has acted, worked tech, designed sets, directed, and choreographed for over 25 productions. After spending seven years as a dance instructor specializing in Ballet and Acro, Gwen decided to switch gears and join the staff of Perform It!; the group that began her love of theater.
Gwen’s favorite on stage roles, so far, include Olive in The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee with The Village Players, and Beatrice in Much Ado About Nothing with Perform It! Stage Company. She is now excited to combine her love of teaching with her love of theater as director of Perform It! Stage Company! |
Assistant director:Penny O'Connor The first thing you need to know about Penny O’Connor is that by the age of thirteen, she had read the Complete Works of William Shakespeare (yes, even that poem with the turtle). Since that time, she has continued to re-read, study, and watch her favorite dozen plays (never reading Troillus and Cressida again, thank you very much!)
But enough about Shakespeare – Penny is a homeschooling mother of five, with an Associate’s Degree in a Liberal Arts program called “Teacher Preparation”, which is the first two years of a teacher certification program. She worked for several years as a museum educator at the American Textile History Museum, developing and presenting educational programs for grades 4-7 school groups. She then developed and presented a high school level Art History class at Exeter Classical Christian School for five years. For the past two years, she had been teaching an Introduction to Shakespeare class for the younger siblings of our Perform It! Families. Penny brings to Perform It! a love of Shakespeare’s incomparable language, an enthusiasm for teaching, and a commitment to helping our talented young actors shine. She is very happy to begin working under the able leadership of Director Gwen Dudley. |