12 Angry Jurors at Bennington Theater

Mary Jo is a retired college president who made her community theater debut in 2019. Most recently she appeared in Monument Arts and Cultural Center's South Pacific (Bloody Mary), Bennington Theater’s Scrooge in Rouge (Vesta Virile), Fort Salem Theater’s Mary Poppins (Mrs. Brill), Dorset Players, 9 to 5 (Detective and Ensemble), Kiss Me Kate (Ralph, Pops), and Little Women (Hannah). She performed in Bennington Theater’s It’s a Wonderful Life: A Radio play (Foley Girl) and in Hubbard Hall’s Grant’s Ghost (Julia Dent Grant). Mary Jo has also enjoyed working as producer, stage manager, crew, ensemble, house manager and usher for various local productions.

Becky is thrilled to be making her debut at Bennington Theater. She has been involved in over 36 plays with the Dorset Players spanning 26 years. She has been on stage and behind the scenes as make-up artist, producer, house manager, usher, box office, stage manager & board member.

Doug has performed with Oldcastle, Dorset Theater Festival, and Hubbard Hall where he played Tartuffe in Tartuffe, Harpagon in The Miser, and Rosencrantz in Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead. A graduate of Bennington College, he works at SVMC. He thanks David and John for this opportunity to play.

Kathleen trained in Meisner and Method techniques in NYC. She was artistic director/cofounder of Ravenswood Theatre in NYC. Bennington Theater performances—Scrooge in Rouge, Murder by the Book, The Back Porch Gang, Bridge Theory, Giving, Coffee with the Boss, Snowball, In the Rooms Where My Memories Live, The Way Out, Love Letters. Contact: katberg13@gmail.com

April is a writer-performer from Houston TX whose credits include Equinox Murder Mystery (Dorothy); Scrooge in Rouge (caroler); Murder by the Book (narrator). She co-wrote & starred in Rooms where My Memories Live. She’s the facilitator of Writers for Recovery at Turning Point Center of Bennington.

SXR GRIPP is a straight-up loon. Zeen.glasseyeballs.com/bio/

Rick moved to Bennington with his wife, Jenn, in 2018. He served for five years as a criminal defense attorney for the indigent accused and a year as a middle school teacher at Sacred Heart Catholic School. This is Rick’s second stage performance. Rick earned his BS in Biology, BA in Psychology, and BA in Political Science from the University of California, Irvine, his JD from the University of New Hampshire, and his MBA, Entrepreneurship, from San Diego State University. Rick currently serves as Business/Legal Advisor to Actyon Discovery, Inc. located in San Diego California.

Leo is an actor from Fort Worth, Texas currently residing in Massachusetts. He was a part of the inaugural class at the Art Of Acting Studio in Los Angeles. Having his Ghent Playhouse debut in “All My Sons” as Chris Keller, and then his second show at Ghent in “The Outsider” as Dave Riley, he is thrilled to take on the role of Juror number 8. He would like to dedicate all performances to his friends and family who have supported him and his son, Oliver.

David is celebrating 51 years in the theater this year. He has a BFA in acting and was in the Master’s Directing program at the University of Texas-Austin.

12 Angry Jurors marks Hope’s seventh production since moving here from NYC in 2022. Most recently, she appeared as Miss Hannigan in Annie and Yente in Fiddler on the Roof at the MAC Center.

Jackie is a “realistic actress” with a teaching day job. Her favorite past performances include Ida in The Cemetery Club; The Narrator in The Rocky Horror Show; Rima West in Dolly West’s Kitched; and Helga ten Dorp in Deathtrap. Special thanks go out to her husband Butch for his love, support, and continued willingness to eat take out; her stepchildren for welcoming her into their lives, and her daughter Sam – who remains Jackie’s greatest production.

Tom was born in Glens Falls NY and grew up as an only child in a rural farming community with his two best friends, his dog and his imagination. He spent his early years drawing cartoons and dreaming of starships. Inspired by a high school English teacher, he fell in love with acting but has never performed outside of classes in high school and college. He moved to VT in 1998 for new opportunities and currently works for a local Civil Engineering company. This production will be his debut performance at Bennington Theater.

Chris was born and raised in Philadelphia, Chris moved his family to the VT area three years ago. A licensed architect by day, Chris has always been interested in photography, writing, sketching, and music, and recently added acting to his pursuits. He is thrilled to be a member of the 12 Angry Jurors cast!

David is a 40-year stage veteran as an actor, playwright, and director. His most recent regional credits include writing and directing his play Macbethany (Fort Salem Theater); appearing as the Stage Manager in Our Town and as Bottom in A Midsummer Night's Dream (Fort Salem). Previously, he played Harry Heywood in It's A Wonderful Life: A Radio Play (Bennington Theater). Before moving to Vermont in 2023, he enjoyed a long theater career in the Washington DC area, California, and England. Training: Bennington College, Royal Academy of Dramatic Arts. Many thanks and much love to the other David for everything!

John is a physician turned filmmaker, actor, director, and educator. He studied architecture at Dartmouth and was a member of the Dartmouth Players. He has M.D. from Cornell and an MFA in film directing from the American Film Institute. He worked in Hollywood for over 20 years and has produced projects for United Artists, 20th century Fox, Warner Brothers and ABC television. He directed and designed Bennington Theater’s debut community theater production, Scrooge in Rouge.

Alexandra is excited to come back to stage manage for Bennington Theater! She graduated as a Theatre major last May from Wheaton College. She has been a part of backstage theater since the 7th grade and started stage managing during college, her first production as an ASM in Rent.

Todd is a retired construction project manager and contractor. After moving to Bennington in 2020, he made the leap into theatrical set construction. Beginning in 2021, he worked on a number of productions at BPAC/Bennington Theater (The Haunting of Hill House, Souvenir, Fully Committed, Sheepdog, Slideshow, and Scrooge in Rogue). He has also worked on productions at Monument Arts and Cultural Center (The Sound of Music, Fiddler on the Roof, Annie, Million Dollar Quartet and South Pacific). Todd enjoys hiking and projects around the house He also volunteers with The Kitchen Cupboard Food pantry at GBCS. He is a member of the Bennington Theater Board of Directors. He is very excited to be a part of 12 Angry Jurors.

Janet has over thirty years of experience in theatrical endeavors. Most of her experience is in acting and directing. This is her first foray in costuming.

Teri is a long-time resident of Bennington and a huge fan of the theater. This is my first opportunity to work as assistant to the costumer.

Kaiya has directed, performed, and designed for theater. Dramaturge for the award-winning production of Sheepdog (2022). She is BT’s Production Manager, and now, it’s new Executive Director.

Ethan is a Vermont-based Director of Photography. Coming up through lighting and grip on major motion pictures and television shows in affiliation with IATSE 491 of the Carolinas and Savannah, GA, his experience led him to gain key credits on numerous short and feature films, including award-winning shorts such as EXPOSURE (2020) - DP, and the follow-up prequel, ZIR (2022) - DP. This year, as BT’s Sound Engineer, Ethan designed, integrated, and optimized a d &b Audiotechnik sound system installation for Bennington Theater.

Alexey is a media specialist and independent filmmaker, and photographer. He has written, directed, filmed, and edited, and has collaborated with filmmakers, directors, and creative agencies on projects not limited to documentary filmmaking, reportage, post-production assistance, and marketing packages. His dream is to create independent artwork and find opportunities to connect with fellow filmmakers and music artists to produce video pieces together. He is BT’s Marketing and Media Coordinator.