Northern Stage Welcomes New Leadership Staff and Board Members for 25th Season

Entering its 25th Anniversary season, Northern Stage is thrilled to welcome actor and educator Robert David Grant back to the Upper Valley as the new Director of Education, and Actors' Equity Stage Manager Brian R. Sekinger as Director of Production. Grant and Sekinger join Northern Stage's Senior Leadership for this pivotal Anniversary season.

Robert David Grant, a Vershire native, makes his return to the Upper Valley after 10 years working in the New York theater and film industry. He first appeared at Northern Stage in 2016 playing the title role in Macbeth, later returning to appear as Edgar in 2019's King Lear. A graduate of Yale School of Drama, Robert has appeared on stage in New York and around the country, including The Pearl Theater, The Guthrie, Yale Repertory Theatre, Barrington Stage Co., McCarter Theatre and more. Robert returned to direct YES Ensemble's Richard III this past spring, solidifying his love for the work being done by Northern Stage's education programs.

Grant will replace longtime Director of Education Eric Love, who will leave Northern Stage in a slow transition process over the next six months. Love will co-direct and adapt (with Producing Artistic Director Carol Dunne) Northern Stage's holiday production of The Railway Children, while at the same time launching a freelance directing career.

Brian R. Sekinger rejoins the Northern Stage family with experience as an Actors' Equity Association Stage Manager, Production Manager, and Educator in the performing arts industry. He was most recently the Production Manager and Stage Management Mentor for the Department of Theatre & Dance at Otterbein University. Previously, Brian was the Production Stage Manager for 13 live and six online productions at Northern Stage. His passion for new musical development and mentoring early career professionals has sent him around the country with companies including the Kennedy Center, Lincoln Center Education, Davenport Theatricals, DreamWorks Theatricals, RKO Stage, Musical Theatre Factory, Prospect Theatre, Playwrights Realm, Folger Shakespeare, Swine Palace, New London Barn Playhouse, and many others.

"I am thrilled that Brian is returning to Northern Stage. In his new position as Director of Production, Brian will build upon our core value of providing radical mentorship and career training, building out our apprentice program and focusing on the recruitment and development of early career artists," says Northern Stage Producing Artistic Director Carol Dunne. She adds, "Eric Love has built and led an extraordinary education program at Northern Stage. Under Rob Grant's leadership, we have the opportunity to focus on the highest level of acting training as Rob will also be a Lecturer at Dartmouth College. With Brian and Rob on our leadership team, Northern Stage's impact will only continue to deepen.

The Northern Stage Board of Directors will welcome marketer Keri Craft, Production and Stage Manager Charmaris Darias, Dartmouth Associate Dean of International Studies Matt Delmont, educator and development professional Patricia Jackson, and emergency medicine physician Alison P.R. Kapadia to the Board for the upcoming season.

Keri Craft enjoyed a career in radio advertising and marketing in Boston before moving to the Upper Valley in 1995, where she continued in sales with Jobson Publishing followed by Red River Computer. She has also held part-time positions with the Rassias Language Group and the New London Barn Playhouse and contributes time to the Howe Library, Montshire Museum and the Children's Hospital at Dartmouth Hero event.

Charmaris Darias worked for seven years as a Stage Manager in Puerto Rico managing productions for several theater companies across the island and working with some of

the most renowned artists in the Puerto Rican theater industry. After helping Northern Stage open the Courtyard Theater last summer as the Production Manager, Darias moved on to the Value Institute Learning Center within the Dartmouth Health system, where she coordinates the center's classes and daily operations.

Dr. Matthew Delmont is the Frank J. Guarini Associate Dean of International Studies and Interdisciplinary Programs and the Sherman Fairchild Distinguished Professor of History at Dartmouth College. An expert on African-American History and the history of Civil Rights, Delmont has published several books on the subject and was awarded a Guggenheim Fellowship and National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) Public Scholar Award to support this research. He has spoken and consulted with Fortune 500 companies, universities, colleges, and community organizations regarding civil rights, diversity and inclusivity, and how to reckon with the history of racism in America.

With 40 years of advancement experience at a wide variety of educational institutions and academic health centers, Patricia (Trish) Jackson begins her tenure as the Chief Advancement Officer for Northfield Mount Hermon School in Massachusetts this June. She has also held senior leadership roles at The New School, Brown University, and Smith, Wheaton and Mount Holyoke colleges. From 2015-18, she served as Interim Vice President for Development and Alumni Relations at the Medical Advancement Office for the Geisel School of Medicine and Dartmouth Health. She also served Dartmouth College as Associate Vice President for Development and Chief of Staff for the advancement division.

Alison P.R. Kapadia, MD, is an emergency medicine physician and member of the Upper Valley community. She was the Site Director of the Brattleboro Memorial Hospital Emergency Department from September 2019 through April 2022, where she led her team through the COVID-19 pandemic. She is also active in diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging work on committees and in day to day work at the Geisel School of Medicine, Brattleboro Memorial Hospital, and Cheshire Medical Center. Alison is a founding member and co-director of Inclusive Upper Valley, a community group organized to support diversity, equity, and inclusion in SAU70.

The newly elected board members will join returning members Chair Jennifer Kaye Argenti, Vice Chair Nancy Murray, Treasurer Jon Spector, Secretary Elizabeth Stedina, and Carolyn Dever, Rachel H. Dickson, David Grant, Jenn Langhus, Jim Lynch, Joe Major, Amy Redpath, Terry Samwick, and Rubi Simon.

The board will focus on continuing the impact that Northern Stage has both on and off the stage and making the company sustainable for years to come. New Chair Argenti, who is a Dartmouth graduate, B.S., M.B.A., and joined the Northern Stage board in 2017, says, "We are thrilled to welcome this incredible class of richly talented, diverse, and passionate board members to serve Northern Stage. Their experience, perspectives, and care will continue to advance the impact of this organization we love and admire and ensure Northern Stage remains a thriving asset for our community for the next 25 years and beyond."

Northern Stage (northernstage.org) is a regional non-profit LORT-D professional theater company located in White River Junction, VT. Northern Stage actively engages its audiences with world-class productions and extensive educational and community outreach programs in its new home, the Barrette Center for the Arts. Founded in 1997, the company has offered more than 150 professional productions of new works, classics, and musicals. Now in its 25th Season, Northern Stage serves over 50,000 people. In 2014, the company launched a new play festival that has cultivated seven world premiere productions and three Off-Broadway transfers, including The New York Times Critic's Pick Only Yesterday. Northern Stage's breadth of programming supports the company's mission of "changing lives, one story at a time."

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