SHRINES at Ronin Theatre Collaborative

Connor Wanless (Paul) is thrilled to be making his live Ronin debut. He was last seen in their virtual production of Cyrano (de Guiche), and not seen running lights for Six Rounds of Vengeance. They’ve performed with multitudinous beloved companies across the state since 2013, including Phoenix Theatre, Arizona Theatre, Childsplay, Hale, Stray Cat, All Puppet Players, and Southwest Shakespeare. Selected recent credits: USC’s Wintertime(Jonathan), Mesa Encore’s Toxic Avenger (Toxie), and FlagShakes’ Much Ado (Claudio). Thanks to Cody, Melody, Jonathan P., Kody & the design team, and most especially Bobby. Love and healing for Rodney. B.A. Theatre, Univ. of Southern California. (He/They)

Melody Knudson (Becks) is honored to work with Ronin Theatre Collaborative and some of her favorite artists in brining to life the world premier of this beautiful story by the ever talented Ashly Rose Wellman. Favorite past roles include Vanda in Venus in Fur (AriZoni winner) and Nora in A Doll’s House (Ronin Theatre Collaborative); Ophelia in Hamlet and Marianne Dashwood in Sense and Sensibility (Southwest Shakespeare Company); Elaine Harper in Arsenic and Old Lace (Don Bluth Front Row Theatre-AriZoni nominee); Mash in Stupid F-ing Bird (Stray Cat Theatre); Maggie Cuttler in The Man Who Came to Dinner (Hale Centre Theatre-AriZoni nominee), and Lenya in Fools (Brelby Theatre Company). Offstage, Melody is a licensed associate counselor specializing in helping young adults move forward after childhood trauma. When she’s not onstage, or in session, you can usually find her baking and hanging out with her husband and their dogos.

Betsy Smith is honored to help bring Shrines to life and to explore the complicated and lasting echoes of grief through this story. Betsy’s acting journey was sparked by years of improv training, leading her to roles most recently in B3’s Much Ado About Nothing, The Just, Ronin Theatre’s Made In America and Phoenix Theatre Company’s 24-hour Theatre Project. Betsy holds Bachelor of Science Degrees in Mathematics and Accounting from Penn State University and works as a Budget and Grants Accountant at A New Leaf. Offstage, she cherishes the support of her partner, Joseph, and their cats and horses.

Shari Watts (Lynn) is thrilled to appear for the first time with Ronin Theatre Company in this original production with this talented ensemble of artists. She has her BFA from UoA in both Speech and Theatre and has performed throughout the State in local and professional theaters. Recent appearances include Kimberly Akimbo (Kimberly) Order Chaos Theater Company, Grace and Glorie (Grace) Black Theatre Troupe, and Grand Horizons (Nancy)Stage Left Productions. She thanks Cody, Van, the Ronin staff and crew, and this cast for the amazing experience of mounting this work and to you for supporting live theatre.

Mark Hackmann (Gordon) is honored to join Ronin for the first time, although he's worked with most of the cast and crew before. He's been seen around the valley over the years in Legally Blonde (Calahan), Fantasticks (El Gallo), Man Who Came To Dinner (Whiteside), Urinetown (Lockstock), A Christmas Carol (Christmas Present), Plaza Suite (Roy Hubley), Lend Me A Tenor (Saunders), Footloose (Rev. Shaw), Pippin (Charles), She Loves Me (Kodaly), I Hate Hamlet (Barrymore), The Nerd (Axel), 1940's Radio Hour (Johnny), Sgt. Rough (Gaslight) and Titus (Curious Savage), among other roles. Mark is a retired software engineer.

Meghan van Dobben(Abby) is so excited to be joining Shrines as prop designer. This is her first prop designing credit, though she’s made some impressive fake poop in the past. Thank you to Robin for welcoming her on board and Van for dealing with her yet again.

Van Rockwell is thrilled to return to Ronin Theatre Collective under Cody’s leadership. He previously directed Made in America and Dracula in Tombstone, and performed in A Doll’s House and Playboy of the Western World. His directing work includes productions with Don Bluth Front Row Theatre, Scottsdale Desert Stages, Fountain Hills, Starlight, Actor’s Youth, Limelight, Sun City Grand Drama Club, and Mesa Encore. Next, he’ll direct Exit, Pursued by a Bear for Main Street Creative Arts Center. Deep thanks to the Ronin team, his designers, mom and dad (RIP), friends, pets, and the cast for their support and brilliance

Ashley Blanford is honored to make their Assistant Directing debut with Shrines! They have been part of the theatre world for just over a year as an adult, after spending all of high school immersed in the arts. Working on this powerful and one-of-a-kind production has been a truly meaningful experience. They are grateful to the amazing Shrines team and to Ronin Theatre—winner of three Zoni Awards—for fostering such a passionate and creative environment. They can’t wait to see what the future holds for Ronin!

Marissa J.P Avery is excited to be making her Assistant Stage Managing debut with Shrines! Her past theatre experiences lie in Front of House management and administration, with some run crew and stage performance here and there. She’s extremely grateful to Ronin Theatre Company and Van Rockwell for taking a chance on her for this position, and is honored to be able to witness the incredible Art that this show’s creatives bring. Marissa is also grateful to her parents and brother, George, for their encouragement, and to her dogs for their unconditional emotional support.

Sidney Kolinski is a graduate from Arizona State University with a bachelors of arts in Film and in Psychology. Her education has provided insight into consent forward practices in film and mental health safety protocols. Having worked on 20+ independent films in stunt coordination and directing, she is experienced in full-body movement and on-set safety. She is currently aiming to gain a masters in psychology and to further broaden her training as an Intimacy Director. She is beyond thrilled for her first year working with Ronin as their in-house Intimacy Director.

Kody Hernandez (they/them) is Ronin’s new Designer in Residence, and this is their second season with the Collaborative! They are an Arizona native who attended Phoenix College and NAU where they studied Theatre and Gender Studies. Kody has worked at organizations such as Childsplay Theatre, Arizona Broadway Theatre, Land of Oz North Carolina, and The Phoenix Symphony where they are the 2025-26 season lighting designer. Their experience with Land of Oz has heavily influenced their work and design concepts with RTC- a combination of traditional and guerilla theatre techniques that create a unique experience for every audience.

Cody Goulder (Scenic Design/Artistic Director) is an award-winning theatre artist in the valley. As Artistic Director of Ronin Theatre Collaborative, Goulder has overseen production on a variety of plays in various roles. Per his Technical Theatre background, Goulder has done scenic work for such companies as Kingsman Shakespeare Festival, Redondo Beach Civic Center, Brelby Theatre, and Fresh Baked Theater. Thank you all so much for coming to see Shrines and supporting original work on the Valley.

Meghan van Dobben is so excited to be joining Shrines as prop designer. This is her first prop designing credit, though she’s made some impressive fake poop in the past. Thank you to Robin for welcoming her on board and Van for dealing with her yet again.

Melody Knudson is honored to work with Ronin Theatre Collaborative and some of her favorite artists in brining to life the world premier of this beautiful story by the ever talented Ashly Rose Wellman. Favorite past roles include Vanda in Venus in Fur (AriZoni winner) and Nora in A Doll’s House (Ronin Theatre Collaborative); Ophelia in Hamlet and Marianne Dashwood in Sense and Sensibility (Southwest Shakespeare Company); Elaine Harper in Arsenic and Old Lace (Don Bluth Front Row Theatre-AriZoni nominee); Mash in Stupid F-ing Bird (Stray Cat Theatre); Maggie Cuttler in The Man Who Came to Dinner (Hale Centre Theatre-AriZoni nominee), and Lenya in Fools (Brelby Theatre Company). Offstage, Melody is a licensed associate counselor specializing in helping young adults move forward after childhood trauma. When she’s not onstage, or in session, you can usually find her baking and hanging out with her husband and their dogos.

Connor Wanless (he/they) is thrilled to be making his live Ronin debut. He was last seen in their virtual production of Cyrano (de Guiche), and not seen running lights for Six Rounds of Vengeance. They’ve performed with multitudinous beloved companies across the state since 2013, including Phoenix Theatre, Arizona Theatre, Childsplay, Hale, Stray Cat, All Puppet Players, and Southwest Shakespeare. Selected recent credits: USC’s Wintertime(Jonathan), Mesa Encore’s Toxic Avenger (Toxie), and FlagShakes’ Much Ado (Claudio). Thanks to Cody, Melody, Jonathan P., Kody & the design team, and most especially Bobby. Love and healing for Rodney. B.A. Theatre, Univ. of Southern California