How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying at Manatee Performing Arts Center

Prior to his move to Bradenton, Rick was the Entertainment Director for the USO of Metropolitan New York and the organizer of the Miss USO Contest. His USO troupe was featured on the Today Show, Good Morning America, Fox News, Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade and on The Miss America Pageant. The same USO troupe performed as part of the USO Celebrity Tours in the Middle East, Europe, and the Baltic. Other directorial credits include numerous shows at Surflight Theatre in New Jersey, Theatre by the Sea in Rhode Island, The Arundel Playhouse in Maine, Wolford Hause Dinner Theatre in Virgina, New London Barn Playhouse in New Hampshire, Stage Door Canteen Theatre at the National World War II Museum in New Orleans, Westbank and Duplex Theaters in New York City, and on many cruise ships. He has served on the faculties of Wagner College on Staten Island and Academy of Music and Dramatic Arts in New York City. Rick is the past President of the Florida Theatre Conference, Past President of the Florida Association of Community Theaters, and is the past President of the board for the American Association of Community Theatres. Rick was honored as a recipient of the Fellows Award from AACT. Rick most recently directed MPAC’s productions of Titanic, Chaplin, Mamma Mia!, Pippin, I Do!, I Do!, Winter Wonderettes, Matilda, West Side Story, Barnum, Mary Poppins, Cabaret, Newsies, Hunchback of Notre Dame, A Little Night Music, The Producers, Boynton Beach Club, Assassins, 42nd Street, Chess, The Little Mermaid, Secret Garden, and Into the Woods.

ick is happy to be a part of the How to Succeed production with Rick, Kristin, and Neal. In the past few months, Rick has been Musical Director for Titanic, Chaplin and The Will Rogers Follies. Rick has been Musical Director for many decades with Manatee Players including previously serving as musical director for How to Succeed at the old Manatee Players building sometime in the late 1980s or 1990s. Some of Rick’s favorite Manatee shows are Sweeney Todd, Sunday in the Park with George, West Side Story, and Newsies, to name a few. Rick has won local and national awards for Musical Direction and is glad to be back doing what he enjoys most. Rick is a retired music teacher, who is originally from New Jersey.

Ken is a freelance production designer in Fashion & Costume Design, Stage Design and Lighting. He holds an MFA in Theatrical Design (set, costume & lighting) from the University of Texas-Austin. As a freelance designer, he has worked at many of the nation’s leading regional repertory theatres including: Long Wharf, Goodman Theatre-Chicago, Seattle Repertory, La Jolla Playhouse, The American Repertory Theatre, Theatreworks-Hartford, CT. His NYC credits include work on five Broadway productions including Wicked as Associate Costume Designer which won the 2004 Tony for best costume design. As Director of Production, he designed over 125 productions at Oldcastle Theatre Company over the last thirty-two seasons. He was Resident Costume Designer for Feld Entertainment Inc., designing many productions including Disney on Ice, Sesame Street Live and Jurassic World Live Tour. His work has been represented worldwide.

Michael most recently served as Assistant Lighting Designer on Asolo Rep's world premieres of Knoxville and Hood. This winter was Michael's 16th season with the Sarasota Opera, where he is the head electrician and assistant lighting designer. First designing for Manatee Performing Arts Center in 2007, his most recent lighting design was Chaplin this past winter. Other recent lighting designs include Westcoast Black Theatre Troupe's From Birmingham to Broadway and Float like a Butterfly and The Players Centre's Falsettos, as well as shows at Florida Studio Theatre this past summer. He is a graduate of Booker High School's VPA Theatre program as well as Florida State University's School of Theatre. Michael is the Treasurer of IATSE Local 412, the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees.

Caren Brady is celebrating 35 years as a Fairy Godmother for all things costume. A graduate of Bluffton College, Caren started her career at Stagecraft Theatrical in Cincinnati Ohio and eventually opened her dream business, Cincinnati Costume Company. This shop costumed productions throughout Ohio and the nation. After losing Cincinnati Costume Company in a fire in 2007, Caren joined Cincinnati Landmark Productions as their Costume Shop Manager, Costume Designer, and Props Mistress and served there for over 12 years. Now Caren is beginning a new chapter, here at Manatee Performing Arts Center. She is thrilled to be working with this cast and production team. Much love to family and friends who always support the crazy costume lady!

Kristin has been a part of the Manatee Players since she was twelve years old in a variety of capacities and has been the Production Manager for fourteen years. Kristin’s most recent stage management credits include Titanic, Chaplin, Mamma Mia, Matilda, Mary Poppins, Cabaret, Newsies, The Hunchback of Notre Dame, A Little Night Music, and The Producers. Other favorite stage management credits include Assassins, 42nd Street, Chess, The Little Mermaid, Secret Garden, Into the Woods, Tarzan, Les Misérables, Miss Saigon, My One and Only, Shrek, Whorehouse, Anything Goes, Evita, The Boynton Beach Club, and the award winning productions of Sweeney Todd and Sunday in the Park with George. She also was co-stage manager for Pippin, I Do, I Do, Nunsense, Winter Wonderettes, You’re A Good Man Charlie Brown, West Side Story, and Barnum. Kristin recently co-directed/choreographed MPAC’s productions of The Will Rogers Follies and You’re A Good Man, Charlie Brown. She has enjoyed being a part of the crew working sound for several productions. Kristin graduated with Honors from the University of Florida with a degree in psychology and a minor in sociology. She worked for several years with at-risk youth in Manatee County. “Thank you to the volunteer crew who work so tirelessly to make the magic happen!”

group of people! Most recently, Neal stage managed our production of The Will Rogers Follies, and Neal was seen both onstage and backstage as ASM for our productions of Titanic and Chaplin. He previously co-directed MPAC’s production of You’re A Good Man Charlie Brown. Stage Management credits include Cinderella, Damn Yankees, Buddy – The Buddy Holly Story, Ain’t Misbehavin’, Pirates of Penzance, Calendar Girls, Nice Work If You Can Get It, Nine, Anna in the Tropics, The Full Monty, Wit, and It’s A Wonderful Life. Neal has also served as Co-Stage Manager for Titanic, Pippin, I Do, I Do, Nunsense, Winter Wonderettes, You’re a Good Man Charlie Brown, West Side Story, Mary Poppins, and Barnum and as ASM on Chaplin and Newsies, The Producers, Sylvia, and Children of a Lesser God. “Thanks to Rick, Rick, Kristin, and the entire cast, crew, and production team for all your hard work!”