Pride Films and Plays Welcomes New Artistic Ensemble Members

Pride Films and Plays announced today that David Leeper, James Nedrud, Robert Ollis, and Raphael Schwartzman had joined the company as New Artistic Ensemble Members. Learn more about each new member below.

David Leeper recently completed the West Coast Premiere of At The Flash at the Celebration Theatre in West Hollywood after the successful World Premiere in Chicago at The Center on Halsteds' Hoover-Leppen Theatre. Both shows were under the direction of David Zak. His background includes leading roles in David Mamet'sOleanna, Lanford Wilson's Fifth of July, Tom Dudzick's Greetings, Christopher Durang's Titanic and Bobby Gould in Hell and numerous stage readings and workshops. He studied at the Portland Actor's Conservatory, South Coast Repertory Theater and CSU Fullerton as well as private coaching. David is also a playwright and screenwriter including being the co-writer of At The Flash. (davidwleeper.com)

James Nedrud is grateful and humbled to be an ensemble member of Pride Films and Plays! A trained actor/singer born and raised in Montana, he moved to Chicago for school and opportunity receiving his BFA in Musical Theatre from the Theatre Conservatory at the Chicago College of Performing Arts. His most recent role was Russell in Pride Films and Plays production of Under a Rainbow Flag, a performance that earned him a non-Equity Jeff nomination for Best Supporting Actor in a Musical. He was also in Pride Films and Plays production of Kill Your Boyfriends which was presented as part of the Naked July Festival at the National Pastime Theatre. Other than stints at the Grand Canyon Dinner Theatre in Arizona and the Red Barn Theatre in Frankfort, Indiana, James has worked with many Chicago area theatres including Chicago Shakespeare Theatre, Porchlight Music Theatre, Metropolis Performing Arts Center, Bohemian Theatre Ensemble and Emerald City Theatre Company. Favorite roles include Joe Gillis in Sunset Boulevard, Raoul in The Phantom of the Opera, Barfeé in Spelling Bee, the Tin Man in the Wizard of Oz, and Charles Darnay in the Midwest regional premiere of A Tale of Two Cities the Musical. He would like to thank David Zak and the entire artistic ensemble of Pride Films and Plays for welcoming him!

Robert Ollis was nominated for a Jeff Award for his music direction of Pride Films and Plays' Under A Rainbow Flag by Leo Schwartz, which won two non-equity 2013 Jeff Awards: Best Musical and Best New Work! As a founding collective member of Bailiwick Chicago, Robert has served as Co-Music Director of Elton John's AIDA, as orchestrator and assistant conductor of Jeanine Tesori'sViolet and as music director of the musical revue Show Us Your Love. He has also music-directed casting auction productions of Thoroughly Modern Millie, Anything Goes andMame for Victory Gardens Theatre, plus Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat and Damn Yankees for Bailiwick Chicago. Robert music directed an acclaimed production of Sondheim's Assassins at the Viaduct Theatre with The GoForth Productions. Robert received a non-equity Jeff Award for his musical direction of Kiss of the Spider Woman and a nomination for A Man of No Importance, each at Bailiwick Repertory. In recent years, he has also music-directed such varied shows asMy Favorite Year, The Cousins Grimm, The Who's Tommy and Dennis DeYoung's The Hunchback of Notre Dame. On the cabaret scene, Robert has accompanied Alexandra Billings at Feinstein's in New York City, and has worked with singers Andrea Marcovicci, Danni Smith, Jeremy Rill, Bethany Thomas and Cheryl Szucsits. He has played the piano for productions ofBombs Away, First Lady Suite and Patience and Sarah, and has served as the arranger and music director for a number of musical revues of show tunes by leading Broadway composers. He was part of the musical teams of such Bailiwick Repertory favorites as Parade, The Christmas Schooner, Bare: the Musical and A Kiss from Alexander.

Raphael Schwartzman is thrilled to work with PFP as an Artistic Ensemble member. Lighting design credits with Prideinclude The Gay Screenplay Weekend, The All-American Genderfuck Cabaret, and The Night Larry Kramer Kissed Me.Raphael has acted in Chicago productions including After the Quake (State Theatre), Three Musketeers (Theatre-Hikes), andGiovanna D'Arco (Chicago Opera Theatre), and he has performed internationally in Teatro CENIT's original production ofWoyzeck: Fragments in Solitude. Raphael has directed with Tabula Rasa Theatre and the Royal Nonsuch Presents, and works as a teaching artist with Child's Play Theatre. He is the co-Artistic Director of his performance group SINS Theatre, which develops original performances through ensemble collaboration. Raphael graduated from Butler University with a Bachelor of Arts in Theatre.

For more about Pride Films and Plays, visit www.pridefilmsandplays.com.

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