A 2018 Recap of King’s Alumni in Theater
The performing arts is a competitive place, but King’s students and graduates are finding ways to enter the industry.
It’s a trope that young people come to New York City with aspirations of making it on Broadway. The performing arts is a competitive place, but King’s students and graduates are finding ways to enter the industry. Here is a brief overview—in no way comprehensive—of recent theater highlights.
This summer, Eliza Ohman (MCA ’13) joined the Original Broadway Company of King Kong. Before King Kong, Ohman was universal swing and co-dance captain for Broadway’s Hamilton: An American Musical.
Hope Chavez (MCA ’14) stepped into her full-time role as Program Manager for A.R.T, the Alliance of Resident Theaters.
Maya Pirschel, a theater major at Covenant College who participated in the Fall 2018 New York City Semester in Theater at The King’s College, assistant produced the premiere of the new play, Honor Students, by Mariah MacCarthy with King’s alumna Hope Chavez as lead producer.
Jerron Herman (MCA ’13) was a featured playwright at the Lark Theater Development Company, an extremely competitive position.
Seth Parks (MCA ’15) was promoted to the position of Director of Development for the film company Guy Walks Into a Bar (credits in Elf, Sully). JP Pressley (MCA ’19) served as an intern with them.
This December, Dorea Slagle (MCA ’17) played Madeline in the premier of Elise Maureen Milner’s new play Angels Among Us. She also made her directing debut, directing a reading of Nathan Smith’s new play Crushed at The Sheen Center. After graduating from King’s, Dorea studied at T. Schreiber Acting Conservatory, earning a certificate of professional training in stage acting and on camera acting.
Erin Alaniz (MCA ’18) performed with the Emma Elliot Dance Company in the show More Than Me.
King’s alumnus Andrew Neilson performed a live comedy show which he co-wrote at the Duplex Cabaret.
In September, Brittin Ward (MCA ’18), Kaleb Batman (BUS ’18) and Dorea Slagle (MCA ’17) performed in The Heights Players production of Oliver!
In 2019, Zac Owens (MCA ’18) will star in a Sea Dog Theater production of Associate Professor of English and Theater Chris Cragin-Day’s play The Rare Biosphere. While a student at King’s, Owens workshopped a play of his own, In Loving [A] Memory: A Time Traveler’s Conversations with His Shrink, with Cragin-Day’s guidance.
Abby Tilly (MCA ’20) is currently serving as president and managing director of The King’s Players, which produced Samuel Beckett’s play Waiting for Godot in the fall 2018 semester, directed by professional theater director/producer Bryan Hunt.
Marina Barham (MCA ’20) received an internship as a script analyzer at Nine Stories Productions, which is Jake Gyllenhaal’s film production company.
Caitlin Coates (MCA ’20) did an internship with Pure Creative Arts, a Christian theater organization in the city.
Peyton Price (MCA ’22) and Anna Hopson (MCA ’22) had internships with Sea Dog Theater this semester, where they helped present a number of events, including a benefit concert that showcased a live performance by Vincent D’Onofrio.
“There’s not one single way to articulate the difference between a Christian entering the theater industry and a non-Christian entering the theater industry. Every artist has beliefs they hold that may at some time be challenged,” Cragin-Day says. “The important thing in making the transition into the professional world is finding ways for people to see your work. At King’s we try to plug students into the theater community before they graduate so that when they leave the nest of King’s, they have people to support them as they begin their journey.”