It’s with great joy that Rubicon Summer Education returns to Villanova Prep for a second season under the stars. Outdoor summer theatre was something I grew up with in San Diego, and It’s deeply satisfying to see that it hasn’t lost any of its charm.

 Last year, COVID protocols seemed to be changing almost daily. For nearly two years prior to that, all live performances had ceased. Because Rubicon mainstage was still dark going into the summer of 2021, we weren’t sure where our company of young actors would be learning their craft, let alone whether we’d be able to present our efforts in person as full productions. Thanks to some remarkable generosity on the part of Nancy Ventura and the staff at Villanova Preparatory, this beautiful outdoor location became our summer home. We will always be deeply grateful to the staff at Villanova for opening their arms to us last year when we needed it most, and we thank them again for welcoming us back. I can’t imagine a more lovely spot to sit, have a picnic, watch the sun go down, and see a show. 

 May you have as memorable an experience tonight as I did when I was only five years old and my parents took me to see theatre in the park in San Diego.

Kirby Ward

COREE KOTULA (Rosalind)

just finished her first year at Nordhoff High School and will be entering her sophomore year in the fall. This will be the 15-year-old actress’s eighth year with Rubicon and overall, her 43rd production. Her experiences with this amazing theater have shaped who she is as a performer as well as a person. Some previous work with Rubicon includes the role of Puck in the 2021 Summer Season production of A Midsummer Night’s Dream, the role of Annie in the 2020 Summer Season production of Annie, and (this one may be her favorite of all) the role of The Hen in the 2019 production of Into the Woods. She has also enjoyed playing the role of Matilda in the Simi Valley Cultural Art Center’s production of Matilda. Coree is absolutely, positively elated to be playing Rosalind in As You Like It this year and she hopes you enjoy the show!

JOANNE LEE (Jacques)

graduated from Villanova Prep in May and will be starting college at UCLA this fall. She highly values performance as both a storytelling medium and a vessel for conveying important messages, and she is honored to be returning for her fifth Rubicon show. She thanks her freshman year English teacher, Mr. Carroll, for introducing her to As You Like It and Louis and Joseph for their ever-brilliant direction in bringing it alive.

JACK FREDERICKS (Orlando)

is a freshman at Buena High School. This is his debut performance with Rubicon. When he’s not studying his script, he enjoys reading and hanging out with friends. He is looking forward to taking drama and water polo in the fall.

SOPHIE MASSEY (Celia)

is a rising sophomore at NYU Tisch where she is studying drama through the Stella Adler Studio of Acting in New York City. She is so happy to have such a wonderful place with a great theater community to come home to in California (and to do Shakespeare!). Previous roles include Popova (The Bear, Stella Adler), May (Fool For Love, Stella Adler), and Elle Woods (Legally Blonde, Nordhoff High School).

HARRISON LOVE (Duke Senior / Frederick)

graduated from Oak Grove High School after an exciting and fun-filled senior year where he got to play Captain Von Trapp in The Sound of Music, author a children’s book on dinosaurs, and go on an amazing senior trip to Hawaii. He’s looking forward to continuing his studies in acting and film at SBCC – and beyond!

LEO KEARNEY (Touchstone)

graduated from Dos Pueblos High School last month and will attend UC Berkeley this fall, majoring in theater. With Rubicon, he has performed as Monsieur Thenardier in last year’s Les Miserables and as Ross/the Bloody Captain in Macbeth. Other roles he has performed include King Arthur in Spamalot, Linus in You’re A Good Man Charlie Brown, Jud in Oklahoma!, and Prince Eric in The Little Mermaid. He hopes you enjoy the show!

GREG GILLETTE (Oliver)
graduated from Foothill Technology High school and will be attending Ventura College this year. He has been working with the Rubicon Theatre Company since he was six years old, most recently seen as Javert in Les Miserables last summer. Enjoy the show!

KELSIE HOJ (Phoebe)

is going into her third year at UCLA’s School of Theater, Film, and Television. Previous Shakespeare work includes Cordelia in King Lear with the Shakespeare Company at UCLA and Dromio of Syracuse with Nordhoff Drama. Other notable work includes Shelby in Steel Magnolias. After eight years she is excited to be returning to Rubicon for her second summer production to work with this creative team and hopes you enjoy the show!

EMMA POULTNEY (Silvius)

is a rising junior at Nordhoff High School and is looking forward to the second half of her high school years. You may have seen her most recently in Nordhoff’s Something Rotten as the Sad Little Egg, or as Juror #4 in 12 Angry Jurors. In her five years performing in the Rubicon Summer Program, she has played Hermia in the 2021 Summer Season production of A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Andrea in the 2019 Summer Season production of Once on This Island, and is looking forward to broadening her horizons as Sylvius in As You Like It.

SOFIA SEHATI (Madame LeBeau)

graduated from CAVA in June and will be attending Golden Valley Charter School. She enjoys watching movies, tv shows, doing her skincare routine, shopping for skincare, playing tennis, reading, and being with her cousins. This will be her first show ever with Rubicon. She is incredibly excited to be challenged, meet new people, and gain confidence in public speaking and acting, but also gain confidence by talking to and meeting new people.

MALIA MOONEY (Corin)

is excited to be involved in the Rubicon’s summer program for yet another year! Getting the opportunity to Assistant Stage Manage and perform in As You Like It has been such a joyous and enlightening experience for her as an actor. Malia has previously studied at Ventura College and Southern Oregon University and is looking forward to applying to MFA programs in the fall. A couple of her most recent favorite roles include Jasper in The Mystery of Edwin Drood and Rhonda in Almost Maine. She would like to thank Joseph Fuqua, Louis Lotorto, Gabi Baltzell, Karyl Lynn Burns, and the entire cast for continuously inspiring her, sparking her love for theatre, and reminding her to be fearless.

ANANYA BADAMI (Sir Oliver Martext)

is currently going into her senior year at Oak Grove School in Ojai. She enjoys roller skating at the skate park and spending all of her money at Barnes and Noble. Previous work with the Rubicon includes Titania in the summer 2021 production of A Midsummer Nights Dream and Ensemble in Les Miserables. She was recently seen as Maria in Oak Grove School’s production of The Sound Of Music. She is so excited to be participating in the Rubicon’s summer programs this year!

SABRINA EBRIGHT (Audrey)

graduated from Rancho Campana High School in June. She loves acting and dancing. This is her third production with the Rubicon after being a part of both A Midsummer Night’s Dream and Les Miserables last year.

DARWIN ROWLAND (Adam / William)

will be attending Newbury Park High School’s Theatre Program this fall. He enjoys playing and singing music on a variety of instruments with his band, No Idea. He previously was Marius in Rubicon’s 2021 production of Les Misérables and played Bottom in their 2021 production of A Midsummer Night’s Dream.

CHIYA NEWMAN (Dame Amiens)

graduated Nordhoff High School in 2021 and spent one year as a Theatre & Dance major at UC Davis, and is transferring to study theatre at the Pacific Conservatory for Performing Arts for the next two years. Chiya is very excited about her return to the Rubicon since Into The Woods in the summer of 2019 where she was featured as Granny. She wants to thank her friends and family for all of the support they give in her studies. 

EVERETT CAMPBELL (Charles / Jakey)

will be going into his senior year of high school at Newbury Park High this fall. He enjoys hiking, cycling, and playing dungeons and dragons. This is his first time working with the Rubicon Theatre but he has also played Oberon in A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Malvolio in Twelfth Night, and Stephano in The Tempest.

JOSEPH FUQUA (Director) 

is the founder of Rubicon’s Fearless Shakespeare program, now in its twelfth year. A graduate of the Yale School of Drama, his Broadway and Off-Broadway credits include Brighton Beach Memoirs and 110 in the Shade at Lincoln Center. Regionally, Joseph has appeared at Actors Theatre of Louisville, Arena Stage, Shakespeare Festival of Dallas, Dallas Theatre Center, and opposite Mary Jo Catlett at Ensemble Theatre. On television, Joseph guest-starred in “The X-Files,” “The Profiler,” “Brooklyn South,” “The Pretender,” “Chicago Hope,” “Star Trek: Deep Space Nine,” and “Becker.” Film credits include J.E.B. Stuart in “Gettysburg” opposite Martin Sheen, a role he reprised in “Gods and Generals.” In 2000, Joseph joined Rubicon Theatre as the first company member. Roles at Rubicon include the title role in Hamlet (Indy Award), The Boys Next Door (Indy Award), The Rainmaker (Robby Award and Rep Award), All My Sons (Ovation Award),  Bruce Wagner in Conviction, Professor Henry Higgins in My Fair Lady, Marshal Johnson in The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance, and, most recently, Pap in Big River.

LOUIS LOTORTO (Assistant Director and Verse/Text Coach)

is thrilled to be collaborating with Joseph Fuqua again for his fifth summer season with Fearless Shakespeare! With an acting resume steeped in Classical Theatre, Louis has worked professionally as a regional theatre actor for over 30 years, including performing at some of the country’s prestigious Shakespeare theatres: the Oregon Shakespeare Festival in Ashland, Or; The Shakespeare Theatre in D.C.(Helen Hayes Award Nominee); and the California Shakespeare Festival among others and has performed in 20 of the 36 plays in the Shakespearean canon, including the Rubicon’s production of King Lear as the Fool. Louis’ passion is Language and his mission is making heightened text accessible to young actors, taking the intimidation factor out of the equation by teaching how to navigate the muscularity of the verse and making the words come alive off the page. Borrowing from Hamlet’s advice to the Players, Louis teaches to ‘suit the action to the word, the word to the action.’ and believes that if you can act Shakespeare well, you can act anything well. Favorite Shakespearean Actor he’s worked with: Sir Ian McKellen. Favorite Shakespeare Play: Macbeth. Favorite Shakespeare quote: “To thine own self be true….”

GABI BALTZELL (Production Stage Manager)

is the Production Stage Manager for the Fearless Shakespeare production of As You Like It. Gabi is currently a student at UCSB in the undergraduate programs for Theater and Film and Media Studies and is working towards an emphasis in directing. Gabi had experienced stage management during her time as an actor at Ventura College and found a love for helping others grow and succeed in their work towards putting on a production. She hopes to be a helping hand as students in the show pursue their own college careers in theater and film.

SPENCER PRICE (Sound Designer/Engineer)

is a graduate of UCLA with a B.A. in theater. He has sound designed for shows including Everybody! and Pericles: Prince of Tyre. He’s excited to be working for the Rubicon Theatre Company again after sound mixing for their most recent production of Lonesome Traveler Generations. 

KENNY HOBBS (Soundscape)

Kenny Hobbs and Kendog Productions are pleased to be to returning to the Rubicon Theater. He has done Sound Design for the Main Stage as well as the Summer Youth Programs, Cabaret Series, and Benefits for the Rubicon Theater. Other credits include 2 Ovation nominations for Fools and Master Harold and the Boys at the Rubicon for Sound Design. Some of his favorite designs are, Steel Magnolias, Our Town, Outsiders, David and Lisa, Little Women, King John, Night Watch, and Julius Caesar. Music Man, Babes in Arms, Once Upon A Mattress, Forever Plaid, Bye Bye Birdie, Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, Seussical, In The Heights, and Footloose, are among his favorite musical Sound Designs. He also enjoys his time working with VHS Drama and VUSD Company.

LILLIAN HANNAHS (Costume Designer)

[she/they] is thrilled to be working for the Rubicon Theatre for the first time! They received a BA (Hons) in Costume with Textiles in 2017 and has been working in Southern California as both a Cutter/Draper and Designer in the following years. Recent credits include work as a Draper for Santa Barbara City College’s production of Something Rotten, and the University of California, Santa Barbara’s Spectral Frequencies, Seagull, and Molière’s Tartuffe, as well as designing for She Kills Monsters: Virtual Realms and various independent projects. Clothing is a language, and she is honored to have the opportunity to work with some incredible young actors, translating that language to their characters!

SARAH WILLEY (Prop Master)

is a miniature clay artist and photographer who lives in Ventura with her daughter, Vivian. Sarah uses her treasure hunting skills combined with imagination and creativity to create the ideal prop for the scene. This is her first time working as the Prop Master for the Rubicon Theatre Summer Education Program.

MASON GARCIA (Technical Director and Head Carpenter) 

serves as the company’s Associate Technical Director. He received his Bachelor’s degree in Industrial and Systems Engineering from California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo in 2016. Mason has helped produce a plethora of entertainment and artistic endeavors. These include 4 award-winning Rose Parade floats, numerous festivals, and dozens of arena shows for major bands and artists. The Rubicon Theatre has always been a place Mason has held close to his heart. His love for this theatre is steadfast because it was a place he originally got his start in the arts.

JULIA DONLON (Company Manager)

is beyond honored to serve as this year’s Company Manager. Born and raised in Oxnard, California, Julia graduated from Pepperdine University in 2019 with a bachelor’s degree in Theatre Production Design with an emphasis in Stage Management. She spent the years following doing theatre onboard a cruise ship in New Zealand, around Los Angeles, and now Ventura County. Previous credits include Beauty and the Beast JR., The Little Mermaid JR., Les Miserables, and Lonesome Traveler Generations (Rubicon), Crazy for You, Die Zauberflöte: The Magic Flute, Curtains, The Good Prisoner, The Women of Lockerbie, Medea, and Well (Pepperdine University), as well as The Abode (Pepperdine and Edinburgh Fringe Festival). She is passionate about theatre and human connection, planning to continue pursuing a theatrical career in New York. She would like to thank her family and boyfriend for supporting her endlessly!

SAM COHEN (A2)

is excited to be working on tech and assisting the Sound Designer in Rubicon’s summer program. He discovered his love for technical theatre this past year at Agoura High School where he will be a sophomore this fall. He was the audio engineer on four shows this past year, Our Town, the Senior IB one-acts, You’re a Good Man Charlie Brown, and Cinderella, where he was also responsible for mixing the orchestra and vocals. Sam would like to thank everybody at Rubicon for this opportunity, and, hopes this is just the beginning! He’d also like to thank his family for their love & support.

Head of Summer Education Programs, Kirby Ward

Kirby Ward has served as Director of Rubicon’s summer youth programs since 2018. Born and raised a California boy, he’s the second son of San Diego theatre parents Don & Bonnie Ward and has been referred to as the “quintessential song & dance man.” In high school, he decided his path was the “family business.” Teen directing efforts led to student productions at the University of Southern California under the guidance of John Blankenchip. Demonstrating particular skill with musical staging, Kirby caught the attention of Debbie Reynolds who he worked with for many years, appearing with her onstage in her act and staging specialty material for her and Donald O’Connor. He’s entertained queens, presidents, first ladies and dignitaries with his work as a multi-faceted entertainment artist on nearly every continent on the globe. As an actor, Kirby is an Olivier Award nominee. As a director he has been honored with Critics’ Circle Awards in San Diego and Boston and his Rubicon productions of Big River, Return to the Forbidden Planet and She Loves Me were Critic’s Pick in the LA Times.