Education Administrators and Instructors

Joseph Fuqua

(Summer Program Director) is 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, Pap in Big River, and, Thomas Allen in Dark of the Moon. 

Seryozha “Sasha” La Porte

(Director of Education & Outreach) is an actor, musician, and lucid dreamer who hails from the land of Russia. After being adopted and coming to America, he immediately took to the stage. Seryozha is an alumnus of Rubicon’s Summer Education Programs (Shakespeare/Musical Theatre), Ventura College (Psychology/Theatre), and of the Pacific Conservatory for the Performing Arts (PCPA). On top of working as the new education associate at Rubicon Theatre, he also works as an actor on the stage and in film/television. Some of his hobbies include playing fiddle, piano, tennis, and creating/editing videos. Seryozha’s mission in life is to help people rediscover their imaginations. 

Patrick Vest

(Acting Instructor Ages 19+) Patrick Vest is a professional actor/director/fight choreographer who has been a working actor for over 30 years. He received his MFA in acting from the Alabama Shakespeare Festival. He has worked all over the country, recently with two summers at the Utah Shakespeare Festival. Those of you who have seen plays at the Rubicon may remember him from “Moonlight and Magnolias,” “Taking Sides,” and “Almost, Maine.” He also has staged many fights for the Rubicon. His approach to acting and training actors is largely text based work, exploring the character through what they say and what is said about them, and the basic Stanislavski approach.

Jen Moran

(Youth Acting Instructor) Jen Moran is an educator and actor with a B.A. in anthropology from the University of Chicago. Raised in the Chicago theatre community, she has worked onstage and backstage since childhood. In Los Angeles, she taught enrichment classes, created art curriculum for schools, and created and produced a Fluxus Art Festival in Hollywood that blended performance, visual art, and community activism to bring attention to the needs of an underserved East Hollywood neighborhood. Most recently, she directed Into the Woods at Oak Grove School in Ojai, reaffirming her commitment to teaching and directing young artists. In the classroom, Jen pairs reflective practice with solid technique, helping students build confidence, imagination, and craft. She views theatre as a joyful, therapeutic way to explore the world and our place in it.

Xander Young

(Education Associate) Xander Young is a Ventura-based actor and playwright who has taught theater arts for the past four years. He earned his bachelor’s and master’s degrees from the University of California, Santa Cruz, where he adapted Mother Courage and Her Children for the modern stage, and he holds a teaching credential in theater arts from California State University, East Bay. With Rubicon Theatre Company, he designs after-school programs for students in grades K–12. Recent roles and positions include Guildenstern in Hamlet; Borachio and Balthasar in New Canon Theatre Company’s award-winning production of Much Ado About Nothing; Julius Caesar in Julius Caesar; and stage manager for EnActe Arts’ The Jungle Book: Rudyard Revised.