Kassie Misiewicz

Artistic Director

479.326.4010 | kassie@triketheatre.org

Kassie founded Trike Theatre in 2008. MFA in Theatre for Youth from Arizona State University, BA in Theatre from University of Notre Dame. Before starting Trike Theatre, Kassie was the co-founder and first artistic director of TheatreSquared in Fayetteville, AR, Director of Education Outreach at Seattle Children’s Theatre and Associate Artistic Director at First Stage Children’s Theatre in Milwaukee. Currently, she is a national arts integration consultant with Focus5 and a national teaching artist with the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, D.C. Kassie loves to travel with her family have spontaneous dance parties in the kitchen. “There is no innovation and creativity without failure. Period.” & “Courage starts with showing up and letting ourselves be seen.”- Brene Brown

Paul Savas

Executive Director

479.326.4009 | paul@triketheatre.org

Paul joined Tricycle Theatre for Youth as its Executive Director in September 2017. He holds a Master of Fine Arts in Acting with a concentration in Theatre History, with the late Dr. Oscar Brockett, from The University of Texas at Austin, 1996, and a Bachelor of Arts in Philosophy with a minor in Theatre from Trinity University in San Antonio Texas, 1991. Savas has been a professional theatre artist and administrator for over twenty years and has worked as an actor (proud member of Actors’ Equity Association), director (former member of the Society of Directors and Choreographers), fight choreographer, executive director, and artistic director. He’s even been employed to play the didgeridoo. His work as Executive and Artistic Director of The Warehouse Theatre in Greenville South Carolina was recognized with the Metropolitan Arts Council’s Spirit of Collaboration Award in 2010 and as one of Greenville Business Magazine’s Upstate’s 50 Most Influential People of 2012. He is proud to now call Northwest Arkansas his home and is the proud father of little Nancy Annalynn Capps Savas. He has very little time for anything other than taking care of Nancy and running Trike! And wouldn’t have it any other way. “Just ‘cause somethin’ ain’t been done don’t mean it can’t be did.” Shel Silverstein

COURTNEY VRABLIK

Director OF DEVELOPMENT

479.464.5084 | COURTNEY@OVATIONSNWA.ORG

Shannon R. Miller

Production CONSULTANT

shannon@triketheatre.org

Shannon joined Trike Theatre in 2017. He holds an MFA from the University of Southern Mississippi and a BFA from Marshall University. Shannon Miller began his career in 1987 as a stage technician for touring rock bands. From 1987 through the present, he has embarked on a series of challenging career opportunities that fostered his teaching, leadership, entrepreneurial strengths, and talents for entertainment design and technology. During this time, he has held positions at a variety of universities and professional theatres, including Marshall University (WV), Utah Shakespeare Festival, Millikin University (IL), Chicago Designs, Southern Arena Theatre (MS), Southern Opera (MS), Theatre West Virginia, Public Theatre of Kentucky, Barnstormers Theatre (NH), The University of New Orleans, McNeese State Univeristy (LA), Maltz Jupiter Theatre (FL), and University of Louisiana at Lafayette. Mr. Miller has also completed various designs and consultations for groups such as Christian Youth Theatre through his company, SRMDzynes. He is the founder of The Lakefront Youth Theatre Experience, a post-Katrina youth arts initiative and volunteer organization in New Orleans. These varied assignments have provided him with a unique perspective for problem solving in a variety of circumstances with many different personalities, educational backgrounds, artistic visions, and production challenges.

Wesley Saucier

senior Marketing Manager

479.464.5084 | wesley@triketheatre.org

Wesley joined Trike Theatre as Front of House and Marketing Manager in August of 2018. She has a BA degree in Theatre Performance from Mcneese State University in Lake Charles, Louisiana and a BA in Speech Pathology & Audiology with a minor in Sociology from the University of Louisiana at Lafayette. Though she is primarily the “Liason of Information” for Trike. She has also served as a Teaching Artist for Trike’s Summer 2018 exploratory camps. Wesley has also performed professionally with Arkansas Staged,  and was a voice over talent for local commercials in Louisiana.

Laura Happel

Assistant Technical Director/Master Electrician

laura@triketheatre.org

For 30 years Laura has kept asking “Is it ART yet?” Survivor of many many many theatrically theatrical Theatre Seasons in (41 of the 50 states) where we (the tech crew) attempted to keep the drama on the stage where it belonged, and often succeeded in failing to do so. Laura’s managed to get a good education in how Theatre actually works despite the reckless pursuit and unsuspected earning/ bestowal/ give-it-to-her-so-she’ll-stop-asking-questions-we-have-no-answers-to, of an MFA. To write it all down is too much, but to talk about it with new friends is divine.

“Logic will get you from A to B. Imagination will take you everywhere.”

-Albert Einstein …

Elijah DeWitt

Assistant Technical Director/Master Carpenter

elijah@triketheatre.org

Elijah is thrilled to be joining the Trike Theatre production team. As a native Arkansan and a graduate of the University of Arkansas, where he earned his BA in Theatre, it is a privilege to continue contributing to the Northwest Arkansas theatre community. Elijah has worked with many venues, including The Walton Arts Center, The AMP, TheatreSquared, Arkansas Shakespeare Theatre, The Momentary, Opera Fayetteville, and The University of Arkansas Theatre. While working in almost all aspects of theatrical production – designing lights, building sets, working backstage, and even soldering LED connections for a Blue Man Group tour – the most fulfilling aspect of his career has been meeting and collaborating with so many wonderful people. Designing lights for the inimitable Liz Callaway’s iteration of Every Brilliant Thing at TheatreSquared was an early professional highlight that will be hard to match.

“My feeble language skills could not bear the weight of such a laden experience.” – Alison Bechdel

Jessica Sudduth

Senior Education Manager

479.464.5084 | jessica@triketheatre.org

Jessica joined Trike Theatre in 2020 after more than a decade in education as a music teacher. She studied music education at Boston University (M.M.) and University of Arkansas (B.M.) and has taught music, choir, and voice in Northwest Arkansas since 2004. In addition to teaching in the public schools and community groups, Jessica also worked with the Symphony of Northwest Arkansas’ educational outreach program and operated Jubilee Music, a music studio specializing in the needs of young learners. She was thrilled for the opportunity to return to one of her passions — the theatre — with Trike and use her teaching experience to support creativity in learning through arts integration.

Justin Mackey

Resident Actor/Teaching Artist

479.464.5084 | justin@triketheatre.org

Justin Mackey is returning to Trike Theatre as one of our Resident Actor/Teaching Artists and could not be more grateful to have the opportunity to bring theatre to young audiences once again! Justin has worked with Trike in several different capacities since 2019 after graduating with his M.F.A in acting from the University of Arkansas.

FRAN SILLAU

Artistic/Inclusion consultant

479.464.5084 | fran@triketheatre.org

Fran Sillau (He/Him/His) is a multidisciplinary theatre artist with a disability and a member of the GLBTQIA community. Fran has worked professionally as a playwright, director, producer, education coordinator, teaching artist, arts administrator, grant writer, and inclusion consultant. He has been working extensively within the world of Theater For Young Audiences (TYA) for over twenty years.

Fran spent seven years collaborating with theatrical producer Deborah Denenberg (Dodger Productions and Big League Theatricals) on The Doll Maker’s Gift, a property for which he obtained permission from the author. He then assembled the creative team, co-wrote the book, and directed the world premiere at the Rose Theater in 2019. The Omaha World Herald said “Families should flock to this one.” He currently is working on his second collaboration with Ms. Denenberg, set for production in 2023. Fran is currently collaborating with Bay Area Children’s Theater and serving as Artistic and Inclusion consultant with Trike Theatre. He is a past Aurand Harris Fellow with The Children’s Theatre Foundation of America and a winner of The Access Grant from The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, where he is a frequent contractor.

Fran serves as the Director of Accessibility at The Rose Theater, where he is leading an expansion of the popular Every Single Child Program (a multi-layered program that serves an average of 35,000 students each year at more than 70 school buildings). The expansion will develop production and residency programming for students in self-contained special education classrooms in the Omaha area. He also directs mainstage productions at the Rose; some of his credits include Shrek: The Musical, Go,Dog.Go! and the Omaha premiere of Hanna’s Suitcase.

He also serves as Executive Artistic Director of Circle Theatre, Omaha’s theater for individuals of all abilities. Circle Theatre has produced several TYA plays. Under his leadership, the Circle co-commissioned My Broken Doll, a play based on the life of holocaust survivor Beatrice Karp and adapted by Ernie Nolan, and Over the River, a play about friendship by Ellen Struve. Both plays recently toured the state of Nebraska. In December of 2016, Sillau directed a regional premiere of A Charlie Brown Christmas. This production incorporated American Sign Language, Shadow Interpreting, Audio Description, as well as actors with various physical and developmental disabilities. He is also currently developing new original TYA work for The Institute For Holocaust Education and Great Plains office of the Anti-Defamation League.

Fran currently serves as the United States representative to International Inclusion Arts Network, a program of The International Association of Children’s Theatre Companies (ASSITEJ). He is also an Emerging Leader fellow for Theater for Young Audiences USA. He holds an MFA specializing in directing and inclusion from Goddard College.