Kindertransport at Concordia University Texas Theatre

Sophia Staggs is a sophomore, pre-Nursing student at Concordia University Texas. Before CTX, Sophia was involved in plays and musical performances throughout high school. KINDERTRANSPORT will be her first show to play a major role. She is so grateful for this experience, where she has gained new friendships and seen herself grow as an individual as she has navigated trying to learn not only German and British dialects, but also learning to speak German. She thanks her family, friends, and professors for the abundance of encouragement. She hopes everyone enjoys the show as they are transported through a beautiful and heartfelt story.

Tori Thibodeaux is honored to return to the Concordia Blackbox stage to tell this story. She was last seen on this stage as Marina Pisklakova-Parker in SEVEN. Other favorite credits include Damp Swing/Annoying Understudy in Singin’ in the Rain, Russian Dancing Man in Fiddler on the Roof, Miserable Woman in Les Miserables, and Angsty Teen in Spring Awakening. She thanks her friends and family for being her best supporters, and her CTX team for being her cheerleaders.

Kendra Theimer is a senior theatre studies major, minoring in music. You may have heard her in CTX Theatre's radio play specials The Masque of the Red Death (Flossie) and Fibber Mcgee and Molly (Molly). Some of her favorite theatre experiences include playing Effy in The Spitfire Grill, Dr. Kuftinec in 14, Eurydice in Eurydice, directing John Lennon and Me, and qualifying as a region 6 finalist for the Irene Ryan Acting Scholarship at the Kennedy Center's American College Theater Festival in 2021. She would like to thank the cast, crew, and directors for the hard work and an excellent experience!

Anna McCauley is a senior, majoring in Theatre Performance and minoring in Music. Before CTX, she played honorable roles as Winifred Banks in Mary Poppins, Kim MacAfee in Bye Bye Birdie, Lady Larkin in Once Upon a Mattress, Joanne in Godspell, Chava in Fiddler on The Roof, and Narrator in Joseph & His Technicolor Dream Coat. While at CTX, she played Percy Talbott in The Spitfire Grill and received a nomination for the role to compete in the Kennedy Center American College Theater Festival. Anna is excited to play such an honorable role as Faith and to be able to work with a fantastic director, production team, and cast! She hopes this show will encourage everyone to unite and continue sharing kindness and love in this world.

Von Hart Orr is a sophomore psychology major. Her childhood was spent in front of a mirror, learning how to do accents and characters. In high school theatre, she had roles in The Tempest, Pinocchio, and Romeo and Juliet. She enjoyed being cast in roles that were ethereal in nature, such as the Fairy in Pinocchio, and Ariel (a spirit) in The Tempest—probably because her feet don’t usually touch the ground.

Jamen Boroski is a sophomore at Concordia University Texas, majoring in criminal justice& criminology with a minor in Theatre Studies. This is his second college production; last fall, he played Officer Larkin in American Son. He dedicates this performance to his father.

Dr. Kelly Carolyn Gordon (Ph.D. Theatre and Certificate in Women’s Studies, University of Georgia; M.A. Directing, Emerson College; M.S. Organizational Leadership and Ethics, St. Edward’s University; SAG/Aftra Eligible) is the Director of the School of Fine Arts and Director of the Theatre Studies program at Concordia University Texas. A freelance director, actress, dramaturge, and writer, Gordon has taught at Brevard College, UNC-Greensboro, UT-Dallas, and Ohio University. She trained at Piven Theatre in Chicago, and La Mama's International Symposium for Directors in Umbria, Italy, as well as earning a certificate from the Management Development Institute of Harvard’s Graduate School of Education. Her writing has appeared in Theatre History Studies, Lighting Dimensions, The Encyclopedia of Modern Drama, The Dallas Morning News, Ecumenica, and The Encyclopedia of Motherhood. In 2009, she was awarded the Robert A. Schanke Theatre Research Award by the Mid-America Theatre Conference. In 2012, The American Theatre and Drama Society recognized her work with The Vera Mowry Roberts Research and Publication Award. She has recently appeared on Walker, Fear the Walking Dead, and the HBO limited series, Love and Death. Gordon is the granddaughter of actor Eddie Bracken.

Kendra S. Wiley holds an M.F.A. in lighting design from the University of Texas at Austin. Kendra is a theatre designer, dancer, and choreographer who explores the intersection of dance and design in their creative work. Professor Wiley serves alongside Dr. Mary Kay Johnston as co-advisor to the CTX Dance Club. In the summer of 2022, Kendra worked as technical director and scenic designer for Alice in Wonderland at AISD’s Summer Theatre Series. Notable lighting design credits include Lardo Weeping (LOLA, 2022), The Addams Family and Disney’s Newsies (Brentwood Christian School 2022), 12 Ophelias (UT Austin 2019), and Good Country (UT Austin New Works Festival 2019). In 2020, Kendra also designed their own M.F.A. thesis performance, in which they performed a twenty-minute solo dance while controlling the lights from the stage.

Hsiao-Wei Chen is an Austin based visual storyteller, scenographer and artist. She enjoys visual storytelling with diverse skills and broad aesthetic in design of creating both environment and character. Hsiao-Wei is excellent in cooperation, communication and creative thinking with both design and management background. Her works include film, music video, theatre, opera, musical to dance and she is eager to explore more different media storytelling formats. Some of her rewards credits include the 2022 Robert L.B. Tobin Director-Designer Prize of Opera America, USA (Salome, costume design), Silver Remi of Music Video-Student on 2021 54th WorldFest-Houston International Film Festival, USA (Lose Myself, production design), The Audience Award and the New Talent Jury Award on 2019 National Film Festival Youth, Seattle, USA (Lucky Girl, production design), Special Mention on 2019 Kaohsiung Film Festival, Kaohsiung, Taiwan (Chi: the method of breathing, costume design). More of her work: www.hsiaoweichen.com

Madison Murrah (she/her) is a costume designer, actor, cosplayer, and content creator from Dallas, TX. Madison graduated from Texas A&M in 2019 with a degree in Performance Studies: Theatre. Previously, Madison's costuming work was seen in Mr. Burns, a Post-Electric Play, Edit Annie, Throwbacks: Reruns, and Dragonfly Princess at The Vortex Rep; Pippi Longstocking, and Junie B Jones: Jingle Bells, Batman Smells, and Jungle Book: Jangal Ki Kihani at Scottish Rite Theater; and A Midsummer Night's Dream at Cardboard Cinema Productions. See more on Instagram: @madisonmurrah

Calen Croft is a junior, majoring in Applied Music. This is Calen’s 1st production at CTX, and she’s excited to work behind the scenes in a play for the first time!