GWYNNETHE GLICKMAN is a mother and artist from Newbury MA. Gwynnethe is elated to be reprising her role as Fred especially since it is her first show at the Firehouse since the beginning of the pandemic. Gwynnethe feels so lucky to be making art again with a community of talented artists whom she adores like family. Gwynnethe would also love you challenge you all in the new year to find ways to reduce waste and your carbon footprint whenever possible because climate change is painstakingly real and even the smallest efforts matter. Gwynnethe recently performed as Sugar in Tiny Beautiful Things at Northern Essex Community College.

Gwynnethe has previously appeared in Adventures in Zoomland: A Stay at Home Panto! (2020), A Christmas Carol Panto! (2019), A Peter Pan Panto! (2019) A Cinderella Panto! (2018), and Much Ado About Nothing (2018), among many other productions at Theater in the Open.

Violet Howard as Maria/ fritz

VIOLET HOWARD (she/her) is a senior that goes to Lynn Classical High School, and is very excited to be joining TITO for the first time. She’s been performing in her school’s theater groups since sixth grade, as well as being in the drumline in the Lynn All City Marching Band since ninth grade. She hopes to go to a college in New Jersey and persue a degree for theater or music in the near future.

Violet makes her Theater in the Open debut with A Nutcracker Panto.

Vanessa Rossi as the wind-up ballerina

VANESSA ROSSI is a singer, performer, and creative director living in the Newburyport area. She has been working with Theater in the Open since 2015, and has appeared most recently in the Firehouse production of Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat (2019). As a vocalist, Vanessa has spent many years performing as a solo musician and playing in bands, and recently released her first solo album.

Vanessa has previously appeared in Jack and the Beanstalk (2018) and Snow White: Through the Looking Glass (2017) at Theater in the Open.

Sierra Gitlin as the mouse queen

SIERRA GITLIN has been working with Theater in the Open as an actor since 2017, performing in Antigone, The Tempest, Metamorphoses, and Poe. She has appeared as Medea and in several pantos. Sierra serves on the Board of Directors of Theater in the Open.

Katie Formosi as cilly

KATIE FORMOSI (she/her) is an actor moonlighting as a bookseller. Katie has been working with Theater in the Open since 2018 but was a fan of the group long before that. Along with Theater in the Open, she has performed with Shawn Terenzi’s Academy of Dance, Northern Essex Community College’s Top Notch Players, George Washington University’s Generic Theater Company, UMass Amherst’s Student Theatre Guild, Dive In Productions, and the Pentucket Players. As a student through UMass Amherst’s University Without Walls, she is studying Foreign Language Education.

Katie has previously appeared in A Cinderella Panto (2018), Julius Caesar (2019), A Christmas Carol Panto (2019), among other performances at Theater in the Open.

Joy powers as petrushka

Teddy told JOY POWERS (she/her) that she could write her bio in character as Petrushka, but since Petrushka doesn’t talk, Joy has decided to take care of this one. Joy is a very lucky Massachusetts native who got to travel the country as a circus clown, first with Circus Smirkus, and then with Ringling Brothers Barnum and Bailey Circus! She is also a founding member of The Piccolini Trio, and created and toured with Cirque Us. Joy is now proud to have her number one dream job - being a therapeutic clown with The Laughter League, serving the children and families of Boston Children’s Hospital and Hasbro Children’s Hospital. Joy is also an artist: she works in concrete sculpture, mural painting, gouache, and lots of other things. Follow her art page on instagram: @joypowersart! <3

Joy has previously appeared in A Christmas Carol Panto (2019), A Cinderella Panto (2018), and Through the Wardrobe: A Winter Wonderland Panto (2017) with Theater in the Open.

Keenan Jackson as a soldier

KEENAN JACKSON is a part of his 6th Theater in the Open Panto. Still in high school, Keenan is continuing to build his career in the arts before he studies film and film production in college. He has been a Workshop counselor for 2 years. A member of NHS theatre, he first auditioned at 14 for Theater in the Open, had a lead role, and never looked back. Cant wait for what the future holds.

Keenan has previously appeared in A Christmas Carol Panto (2019), A Cinderella Panto (2018), Through the Wardrobe: A Winter Wonderland Panto! (2017) among many others at Theater in the Open.

This is SAM WALKER here, I am so pumped to be back and in action with the Theater in the Open Panto. Enjoy the fun and humor for there is plenty! Happy Holidays and remember to bother Teddy during his monologue.

Sam has previously appeared in A Christmas Carol Panto (2019) at Theater in the Open.

Mikayla bishop as a mouse

MIKAYLA BISHOP is thrilled at the opportunity to join the TITO team and help out behind the scenes for this magnificent production! Mikayla is a teaching artist and graduate of Emerson College with a B.A. in Theatre Education and a concentration in Acting. When she's not running around with kiddos in a classroom teaching theatre or in a forest teaching nature skills, Mikayla can be found across the north shore singing songs and playing make-believe. Favorite credits include work as an actor, teaching artist, and historical interpreter with History Alive, Inc. (including Hester Prynne in The Scarlet Letter and Nathaniel in Two Points Off the Weather Bow), Spider in James & the Giant Peach (Emerson Stage, dir. Robert Colby), and Malcolm in a virtual adaptation of Macbeth in conjunction with the Shakespeare Institute in Stratford-upon-Avon. In 2018-2019, Mikayla was a recipient of a Fulbright scholarship in Gran Canaria, Spain where she taught in the bilingual public school system as a drama specialist, using theatre to teach other curriculum.

Mikayla makes her Theater in the Open debut with A Nutcracker Panto.

ADRIANNA NEEFUS AS A MOUSE

ADRIANNA NEEFUS is a North Shore based actor and performing arts American Sign Language Interpreter. She is a graduate of the University of New Hampshire. Notable credits include Queen Elizabeth with the Connecticut Renaissance Faire, and various rolls with Mystery Cafe Dinner Theater. Adrianna is delighted to be making her debut with Theater in the Open.

Adrianna makes her Theater in the Open debut with A Nutcracker Panto.

NADIA TOTH AS A MOUSE

NADIA TOTH has performed with area theater companies since 2015. Her favorite roles include Iris in Still Life with Iris, ensemble in Poe, and Veruca Salt in Willy Wonka. She has enjoyed many sessions of Summer Arts Workshop since 2016.

Nadia has previously appeared in POE (2017) at Theater in the Open,

Kate Ventimiglia as a mouse

KATE VENTIMIGLIA is a 7th grade Humanities teacher at Marblehead Community Charter Public School who has been performing with various community theater companies since she was 15. She dedicates today’s performance to her students and mini dachshund puppy, Bidu.

Katie has previously appeared in The Tempest (2019) with Theater in the Open.

SOPHIA TODD AS A MOUSE

SOPHIA TODD 15, is appearing in her first holiday panto with Theater In the Open. She studied Shakespearean texts, and acting with Theater in The Open over the summer of 2021, and has attended the TITO summer camp since 2012. Sophia has been playing violin for 9 years, and is a part of the symphony ensemble in the Northeastern Massachusetts Youth Orchestra. Sophia is excited to be a part of the holiday panto, and to be in the cast of The Nutcracker!

Sophia makes her Theater in the Open debut with A Nutcracker Panto.

JARED STROMSKI AS A MOUSE

JARED STROMSKI has been involved with Theater in the Open for over 10 years; and performed in 2014, and again in 2018, haunting the trails of Maudsley State Park. Previously he has been behind the stage operating the lights for his school plays and musicals.

Jared makes his Theater in the Open debut with A Nutcracker Panto.

CHRISTOPHER DOYON AS A MUSICIAN

CHRISTOPHER DOYON is an educator who made his start teaching vocal and instrumental music to middle school and high school students. Though he has not performed on stage recently, Christopher has shared his diverse musical talents with audiences in New Hampshire and Massachusetts including work on a musical production of The Merchant of Venice. Christopher holds degrees from Saint Anselm College and Southern New Hampshire University.

Christopher makes his Theater in the Open debut with A Nutcracker Panto.

RIVER WYNNE as a musician

RIVER WYNNE first encountered Theater In the open when he attended a performance of the company’s winter panto, Through the Wardrobe in 2017. He has attended Summer Arts Workshop four years running, and has written and preformed classic-rock Halloween parodies in TITOs Maudslay is Haunted since 2018. As a flutist, he has also participated in several concerts with the Northeast Massachusetts Youth Orchestras flute choir.

River makes his Theater in the Open debut with A Nutcracker Panto.

Tyler Girard as an Usher

TYLER GIRARD is a North Shore-based actor, designer, and overall creative, is returning to Theater in the Open almost 15 years later after performing in Maudslay is Haunted as a child. Tyler returned to the theatre world in 2020 with Third Citizen Theatre Company and their production of Othello, for which Tyler is the Design Lead / Director of Visual Communications. Tyler’s more recent acting credits include the Minstrel (Once Upon a Mattress), Alfred (Rosencrantz & Guildenstern are Dead), and Hero/Phoenix (Phoenix Rising). When offstage, Tyler can be found playing videogames or crafting a new recipe in the kitchen.

Tyler makes his Theater in the Open debut with A Nutcracker Panto.

Michael J. Blunt as an usher

MICHAEL J. BLUNT is thrilled to be back on stage with Theater in the Open. Past credits include the Boston Theatre Marathon with the Open Theatre Project, Twelfth Night (The Firehouse Center for the Arts), As You Like It, Hamlet, Othello (Third Citizen Theater Co.), Love! Valour! Compassion! (Zeitgeist Stage Company), A Midsummer Night’s Dream (Waterbury Symphony Orchestra), and many more. As a signed model (Model Club Inc), Michael participates in various film and photography projects throughout the Northeast.

Michael has appeared in Once More Unto the Ballot Box and Adventures in Zoomland (2020), A Christmas Carol Panto (2019), The Tempest (2019), and A Peter Pan Panto! (2019) at Theater in the Open.