Cabaret: Cast and Creative Team

Charlotte Adair (Assistant Stage Manager) is a first-year B.A. in Theatre and Dance major with an emphasis in design and technology, focusing on stage management. Her recent credits include stage managing Leading Ladies (Cedar Park High School, 2025) and Titanic the Musical (Cedar Park High School, 2025).

Juno Adair (Assistant Scenic Designer) is a third-year B.A. in Theatre and Dance major with an emphasis in design and technology. Recent credits include automation operator in Mary Poppins (Summer Stock Austin, 2025) and Le Nozze di Figaro (Butler School of Music, 2025), assistant technical director for Three Exorcisms (UTNT (UT New Theatre), 2025), and set designer for To Love and Be Loved (UT Studio Series, 2024) and Dance Repertory Theatre (Texas Theatre and Dance, 2024).

Arash Baghipour Aliaba (Assistant Scenic Designer, Projection Programmer) is a M.F.A. in Theatre candidate with a specialization in integrated media for live performance. He explores storytelling through video, space and new technology. Selected film screenings include American Film Institute, Palm Springs International Film Festival, New Orleans Film Festival and Rhode Island International Film Festival. Theatre credits include: Three Exorcisms (2025), Cyphers (2024), Romeo y Juliet (2024), and Fall For Dance (2023) with Texas Theatre and Dance, as well as Sunset Baby (Signature Theatre, 2024) and Diary of A Tap Dancer (American Repertory Theatre, 2024).

Sarah Apple (Stage Manager) is a B.A. in Theatre and Dance major with an emphasis in design and technology at The University of Texas at Austin. Recent credits include assistant stage managing James and the Giant Peach (Texas Theatre and Dance, 2024).

Georgia Beckmann (Dramaturg) is a Ph.D. in Theatre candidate with a specialization in performance as public practice at The University of Texas at Austin. Recent dramaturgy credits include Once in a Hundred Years (UTNT (UT New Theatre), 2025) and Cruising for Emotional Connection (Performance as Public Practice/Crashbox, 2024). She also served as Co-Chair of the Education, Community Engagement and Dramaturgy Committee for The Cohen New Works Festival (2025). 

Angel Blanco (Choreographer) is a M.F.A. in Dance alum. Their work is centered on the body as an act of resistance to oppressive social constructs, amplifying the voices of minorities as we quest towards arriving at future achievable scenarios founded on equity, freedom and community. Their movement is in constant conversation with what it means to be maximal, minimal and necessary, questioning these forms of movement through research laboratories that invite others to collaborate, explore and fail. (all pronouns)

Austin Brion (Sound Designer) has been working in the sound, music and film/TV industry for over 15 years. Selected regional credits include sound design for Company (Roustabout, 2025), which was nominated for Outstanding Sound Design by Austin Theatre Critics Awards, UTNT (UT New Theatre) 2025, and with ZACH Theatre: Waitress, Beautiful, A Carol King Musical, The Lehman Trilogy, The Prom, Natasha, Pierre & The Great Comet of 1812, Head Over Heads and Noises Off. Selected composition credits: The Migrant Kitchen (2016). @austinbrion

Nia Brondo (Assistant Sound Designer) is a fourth-year B.A. Theatre and Dance major at The University of Texas at Austin. She has a background in music and dance, and this will be her first role on a design team. Recent credits with Texas Theatre and Dance include sound board operator on Evolution (2025).

Kay Currier-Graves (Assistant Lighting Designer) is a first-year M.F.A. in Theatre candidate with a specialization in lighting design. She holds a B.F.A. in Theater Design and Technology from The University of the Arts in Philadelphia. Currier-Graves is a Houston-based theatre artist. (She/Her)

Violet Clemons (Costume Designer) is a M.F.A. in Theatre candidate at The University of Texas at Austin. She is a Chicago native and studied costume design at Ball State University, earning her a B.A. in 2019. She has worked around the Chicagoland area in theatre and fashion. Her recent credits with Texas Theatre and Dance include A Beautiful Day in November on the Banks of the Greatest of the Great Lakes (2024), Pretend it's Pretend (UTNT (UT New Theatre), 2024) and Points of Intersection (2024).

Rodolfo Robles Cruz (Director) is a theatre director, playwright and performer. His directing work spans devised pieces, modern classics and new work. Recent credits include In the Heights (Madera Theatre Project, 2025), James and the Giant Peach (Texas Theatre and Dance, 2024) and Sanctuary City (Texas Theatre and Dance Studio Series, 2024). He will be directing Diet of Worms by Nick Hart as part of UTNT (UT New Theatre) in spring 2026. Cruz is a M.F.A. in Theatre candidate with a specialization in directing. rodolforoblescruz.com

Amanda Earp (Assistant Stage Manager) is a third-year B.A. in Theatre and Dance major with an emphasis in design and technology, focusing on stage management, at The University of Texas at Austin. Her recent credits include assistant production managing The Cohen New Works Festival (2025) and serving as head stage management intern for The Lightning Thief at Casa Mañana Theatre (2025).

Sarah Ewing (Assistant Technical Director)

Dee Fitzgerald (Assistant Costume Designer) is a second-year B.A. in Theatre and Dance major with an emphasis in design and technology. Recent credits with Texas Theatre and Dance include EQUINOX (2025) and You Need the Goo! (The Cohen New Works Festival, 2025). She plans to pursue costume design opportunities for both theatre and film.

Amanda Geyer (Assistant Costume Designer) is a first-year M.F.A. in Theatre candidate with a specialization in costume design. Prior to her time at The University of Texas at Austin, Geyer worked as a costume fellow at Berkeley Repertory Theatre for the 2024/2025 season. She has also worked as a costume and wardrobe technician at Utah Festival Opera, The REV Theatre Company and Round House Theatre.

Andy Grapko (Intimacy Director) is a certified intimacy coordinator with Intimacy Directors and Coordinators and serves as the Resident Intimacy Director for the Department of Theatre and Dance, where she teaches in the acting area. Her work has been seen on Hulu, Netflix and the CW. Recent theatre credits include Waitress (ZACH Theatre), Falsettos (Ground Floor Theatre), Hand to God (Southwestern University), Proof (Concordia University), Ride the Cyclone (Texas Theatre and Dance) and Le Nozze di Figaro (Butler Opera Center). www.andygrapko.com

Jason Lee Huerta (Technical Director) is the fabrication technical manager for Texas Performing Arts and a lecturer for the Department of Theatre and Dance. He has a M.F.A. in Scenic Technology from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Huerta currently holds the role of Interactive Sessions and Exhibits Coordinator for the Technical Production Commission of USITT. Most recently, Huerta worked with Texas Theatre and Dance on James and the Giant Peach.

Julia Kreutzer (Assistant Director) is a M.F.A. in Theatre candidate with a specialization in performance as public practice at The University of Texas at Austin. Her work as a director, writer and scholar centers on queer aesthetics. Recent credits include directing Rigged: The Game Show (The Cohen New Works Festival, 2025) and Guys and Dolls (Pittsburgh Musical Theater, 2025). Upcoming projects include directing Ordinary Time (UTNT (UT New Theatre), 2026).

Joshua W. Martin (Scenic Designer) is a M.F.A. in Theatre candidate with a specialization in live design and production (scenic design and integrated media for live performance). A multi-hyphenate dramaturgical scenic designer specializing in new work development and site-responsive performance, Martin’s avid commitment to community-engaged practice and theatre for social change drive pursuits of developing community exchange softwares, devising justice/identity with incarcerated youth, and placemaking in unconventional spaces. UT credits: Eternal Bonds .2, Sanctuary City, Blood at the Root, Pretend it’s Pretend, Romeo y Juliet (asst.), This is Our Youth, the Performing Justice Project, Stars Tell Our Stories, A Beautiful Day in November on the Banks of the Greatest of the Great Lakes, Estorbo Publico, RiverWild, Bread n Butta. Josh-W-Martin.com @DesigningChange

Joe Morales IV (Assistant Projection Designer) is a first-year M.F.A. in Theatre candidate with a specialization in live design and production (integrated media for live performance) at The University of Texas at Austin. Morales is a local Austin resident who began theatre design at James Bowie High School before completing his B.F.A. in design and technology at Emerson College in 2023.

KP Pierce (Lighting Designer) is a M.F.A. in Theatre (lighting and sound design) candidate. Most recently she has designed sound and lighting for Dance Repertory Theatre’s CYPHERS (Texas Theatre and Dance, 2024) and Butler Opera Center’s Le nozze di Figaro.

Nitsan Scharf (Projection Designer) is a third-year M.F.A. in Theatre candidate with a specialization in live design and production (integrated media for live performance). Scharf is a designer, programmer and animator, working in theatre, dance, opera and installation. They received their B.A. in Theatre from the University of Maryland in 2018. Design credits at Texas Theatre and Dance include null(body), This Is Our Youth, Óxido, Sanctuary City and Tooth Fairy. Additional credits include The Ghosts of Versailles. (he/they)

Robin Schuler (Assistant Stage Manager) is a second-year B.A. in Theatre and Dance major with an emphasis in design and technology and a focus in stage management at The University of Texas at Austin. Selected stage management credits include: Singin In The Rain (Garland Summer Musicals, 2024), Three Exorcisms (UTNT (UT New Theatre), 2025), All Engulfing (Cohen New Works Festival, 2025) and Rodgers & Hammerstein’s Cinderella: Youth Edition (Dallas Children’s Theatre, 2025).

Dr. Ellie Jarrett Shattles (Music Director, Keyboard 1) received her D.M.A. from The University of Texas at Austin, and is a pianist and music director in Austin. Recent credits include Parade (Ground Floor), Ride the Cyclone (Texas Theatre and Dance), Grand Hotel (Alchemy), Amelie (St. Stephen's), Peter and the Starcatcher (St. Edward's), and Lizzie (Doctuh Mistuh) among others. In addition to this, she is also a voice teacher at ACC and teaches privately.

Alison Vasquez (Dialect Coach) is a director, playwright, teatrista and assistant professor of practice at The University of Texas at Austin, specializing in acting a voice. She is owner/operator of Rep Matters, co-founder/past executive director of Teatro Audaz San Antonio, and founder/owner of Claridad Voice. She currently serves as Conference Committee member for * Let the Good Voices Roll! * lɛse le bɔ̃ vwa ʁule* Voice and Speech Trainers Association (VASTA) Conference 2025, and Steering Committee member for the Latinx Theatre Commons (LTC). She completed her M.F.A. (The Ohio State University) and Bachelor’s in Acting (University of Northern Colorado). www.alisonvasquezmfa.com

Ella Wetmore (Costume Design Assistant) is a third-year B.A. in Theatre and Dance major with an emphasis in design and technology at The University of Texas at Austin. Recent credits include Twelfth Night, student film Piojo, UTNT (UT New Theatre) productions, and James and the Giant Peach (2024). She is grateful to contribute to the design team for Cabaret and work with such talented designers.

David Gonima (Emcee) is a fourth-year B.F.A. in Acting major at The University of Texas at Austin. Gonima has an extensive background in musical theatre and acting. Recent credits include “Lysander” in A Midsummer Night’s Dream (Texas Theatre and Dance, 2024), “Mischa Bachinski” in Ride the Cyclone (Texas Theatre and Dance, 2023), “The Stable Boy” in Three Exorcisms (UTNT (UT New Theatre) 2025) and “Scarecrow” in The Wizard of Oz (San Pedro Playhouse, 2024), as well as multiple projects in the Cohen New Works Festival.

Hunter Purvis (Rosie / Choreographer in Collaboration) is a fourth-year B.F.A. in Dance major with an emphasis in dance education at The University of Texas at Austin. Originally from Dripping Springs, Texas, she trained in a variety of dance styles, competed at an advanced level and served as co-director of her studio’s junior team. Purvis teaches dance in the Austin area and is a 2025 DEL Arnold Summer Fellow at 92NY. Recent performance credits include SHIFT… (Cyphers, 2024), LONE.LEAN.LESS (EQUINOX, 2025), At This Table (The Cohen New Works Festival, 2025) and Evolution (2025).

Penny Lou Zimmerman (Lulu) is a third-year B.F.A. in Acting major at The University of Texas at Austin. Previous credits with Texas Theatre and Dance include “Gumbo” in A Beautiful Day in November on the Banks of the Greatest of the Great Lakes (2024) “Clara” in Pretend It’s Pretend (UTNT (UT New Theatre) 2024) and “Blue” in a staged reading of Grief Camp (Eliya Smith, 2024). Her most recent project was writing the play Absolute None!, which premiered at The Cohen New Works Festival (2025).

Bella Friedman (Frenchie, u/s Sally Bowles) is a fourth-year B.A. in Theatre and Dance major with an emphasis in performer’s process, also studying with the Department of Radio-Television-Film. Recent credits with Texas Theatre and Dance include “Titania” in A Midsummer Night’s Dream (2024), Transcendence (UTNT (UT New Theatre), 2025), Hamlet (2023) and Mirror, Mirror (UTNT (UT New Theatre), 2023). Friedman has also created and performed in numerous films at The University of Texas at Austin.

Ericka Pugliese (Texas, The Chanteuse) is a senior B.A. in Theatre and Dance major with an emphasis in performer’s process. She has worked professionally in the Austin theatre scene for the past three years. Some of her favorite credits include The Baker’s Wife (Alchemy Theatre) and the world premiere of the original musical Unveiled at the Scottish Rite Theater.

Katelyn Quintanilla (Fritzie) is a second-year B.F.A. in Acting major at The University of Texas at Austin. Recent credits include the staged reading Transcendence (UTNT (UT New Theatre), 2025) as well as (to leave) when you go  and You Need the Goo from The Cohen New Works Festival, 2025.

Heavyn Carter (Helga) is a second-year B.F.A. in Acting major at The University of Texas at Austin. Recent credits include “Tati” in These. Are. The. Keystrokes. (UTNT (UT New Theatre), 2025), “Gertrude” in Hamlet and “Feste” in Twelfth Night.

Katelyn Doyle (Kit Kat Club Dancer, Gorilla / Choreographer in Collaboration) is a third-year B.F.A. in Dance and English student at The University of Texas at Austin. She attended Booker T. Washington High School for the Performing and Visual Arts in Dallas, Texas. This is her first performance with Texas Theatre and Dance. Doyle’s credits with Dance Repertory Theatre include works by Raul Tamez, Meredith Rainey and Jennifer Archibald.

Natalie Tran (Fraulein Kost, Kit Kat Klub Dancer) is a third-year B.F.A. in Acting major at The University of Texas at Austin. Her recent credits with Texas Theatre and Dance include “@” in A Beautiful Day in November on the Banks of the Greatest of the Great Lakes (2024) and “G” in Sanctuary City (2024). She also directed Absolute None! for The Cohen New Works Festival (2025). Tran has extensive experience in theatre, film, and commercial/voiceover work, having been seen on the stages of regional theaters such as Guthrie Theatre, Ordway Center for the Performing Arts, Children’s Theatre Company, Minnesota Opera and Minnesota Orchestra. She is honored to be a part of this thrilling musical with deeply troubling and relevant themes underneath all the glitz and the humor.

Brandt Agosto-Medina (Bobby, u/s Emcee) is a fourth-year B.F.A. in Acting major. Recent credits include “Othello” in Othello, “Bottom” in A Midsummer Night’s Dream and "Slime Monster" in You Need the Goo!. Agosto-Medina plans to continue pursuing performance in both film and on stage.

Christian Ortega (Victor / Choreographer in Collaboration) is a third-year B.F.A. in Dance major at The University of Texas at Austin. He was born and raised in Brownsville, Texas, where he trained in dance at Dance Expressions Studio. Recent credits with the Department of Theatre and Dance include Dance Repertory Theatre’s CYPHERS (2024) and EQUINOX (2025).

Diego Rodriguez (Hans, Rudy (Sailor), Customs Official, u/s Cliff) is a second-year B.F.A. in Acting major at The University of Texas at Austin. Recent credits include “Shrek” in Shrek Jr., “Red” in The Shawshank Redemption (Meridian World School), “Ralphie” in A Christmas Story (Georgetown Palace Theatre) and “Trigorin” in Once in a Hundred Years (UTNT (UT New Theatre), 2025). Film credits include “Tyler” in Beat and Adventures of Zobey. (he/him)

Giovanni Ledezma (Herman, Kit Kat Klub Dancer / Choreographer in Collaboration) is a second-year B.F.A. in Dance major at The University of Texas as Austin. Originally from Grand Prairie, TX, he trained in ballet folklorico for over 6 years before expanding into various dance styles including contemporary, Caribbean, heels, West African and hip-hop. Recent performance credits include Vacíos (EQUINOX, 2025) and KILELE (The Cohen New Works Festival, 2025).

Ella Eavenson (Sally Bowles) is a second-year B.F.A. in Acting major at The University of Texas at Austin. Recent credits include “Hunna” in Three Exorcisms (UTNT (UT New Theatre), 2025), “Fastrada” in Pippin (Casa Mañana) and various projects in UT Austin’s Radio-Television-Film department. (she/her)

Harry Rosenthal (Max, Backing Vocals) is a second-year student at The University of Texas at Austin and is making his debut with Texas Theatre and Dance. Past roles include “Danny” in Grease, “Melchior” in Spring Awakening and “The Baker” in Into the Woods. He has also appeared in several short films and was a Best Actor finalist at the Emerging Film Festival.

Connor Burk (Cliff Bradshaw) is a fourth-year B.A. in Theatre and Dance major with an emphasis in performer’s process at The University of Texas at Austin. Recent credits with Texas Theatre and Dance include James and the Giant Peach and Rigged: The Game Show (The Cohen New Works Festival, 2025). (he/him)

Ethan Sebree (Ernst Ludwig) is a B.F.A. in Theatre Education major at The University of Texas at Austin. Sebree has an extensive history in acting, and recent credits with Texas Theatre and Dance include “Snout/Wall” in A Midsummer Night’s Dream (Texas Theatre and Dance, 2024). Sebree has also worked with University Theatre Guild in multiple shows, most notably as “Benedick” in Much Ado About Nothing and as director of Puffs.

Shaya Harris (Fraulein Schneider) is a second-year B.F.A. in Acting major at The University of Texas at Austin. She was recently seen in The Cohen New Works Festival (2025) in Rigged: The Game Show and The Tragical Comedie of Margery Lyall and has a background in television and film. (she/her)

Roman Losa (Herr Shultz) is a second-year B.F.A. in Acting major at The University of Texas at Austin. He has an extensive background in theatre performance, including Once in a Hundred Years (UTNT (UT New Theatre), 2025), and has appeared in multiple short films and TV episodes through the Moody College of Communication.

Lucas Edwards (Young Boy (Vocalist)) is a 6th grader at Zach Performing Arts Academy and a member of the Zach Preprofessional Company. Recent credits include "Swing" in Campfire (Zach Theater, 2025), "Munchkin Barrister" in Wizard of Oz (Zach Theater, 2025), "Verges/Officer/Boy" in Much Ado About Nothing (Camp Shakespeare at Winedale, 2025), "Thomas Tuck/Ensemble" in Tuck Everlasting (McCallum High School, 2024), and "Baby Bear" in Shrek (AISD Summer Theater Series, 2024).

Trevor Detling (Drums) is a music educator/composer/performer in Central Texas and is so excited to drum for Cabaret at The University of Texas at Austin. He has a music degree from the University of Texas and has traveled the world a few times as a performer and has performed at the prestigious Carnegie Hall in N.Y.C. He has published seven books for drums and percussion and enjoys his time as the Director of Thunder Drums Percussion in Dripping Springs.

Jeff Freeman (Trombone) is in his 22nd year as a member of the music faculty at Prairie View University. Freeman is also an active freelancer in the Austin to Houston area, performing in musical theatre shows with regional theatre companies, high schools, universities, and touring productions. This will be Freeman's third show with The University of Texas at Austin, having previously played in The Three Penny Opera and The Drowsy Chaperone.

Kurt Kumme (Tumpet)

Jake Lampe (Reeds 1) is a highly regarded woodwind specialist performing and recording across many musical genres. Since moving to Austin in 2002 he has performed with artists including Aretha Franklin, The Who, Bernadette Peters, Christopher Cross, Kristin Chenoweth, The Austin Symphony, and on multiple national Broadway productions. He is an alumnus of the Henri Mancini Institute and has received a Latin Grammy Nomination on the 2003 album On The Prowl by Ruben Ramos.

Kathryn Orr (Violin) has been active in the Austin music scene since 2005. She is fluent in classical, jazz, tango, and country, performing with artists such as Willie Nelson and Andrea Bocelli. Kathryn is an avid symphony and theater musician with credits in Vancouver, Houston, and Austin. Among her favorite performances are The Hunchback of Notre Dame, Cabaret, The Sound of Music, and Fiddler on the Roof.

Kris Rogers (Bass) is excited to work on his first production for The University of Texas at Austin Department of Theatre and Dance. National tour credits include: Rent: 20th Anniversary Tour, Avenue Q, Hairspray and 42nd Street.

Dr. Ellie Jarrett Shattles (Music Director, Keyboard 1) received her D.M.A. from The University of Texas at Austin, and is a pianist and music director in Austin. Recent credits include Parade (Ground Floor), Ride the Cyclone (Texas Theatre and Dance), Grand Hotel (Alchemy), Amelie (St. Stephen's), Peter and the Starcatcher (St. Edward's), and Lizzie (Doctuh Mistuh) among others. In addition to this, she is also a voice teacher at ACC and teaches privately.

Dr. Zack Varner (Reeds 2) is an Austin-based performer and composer with a broad stylistic range. His jazz quartet has been featured at the international Copenhagen and Santo Domingo Jazz Festivals. He also performs frequently throughout Central Texas, and some of his recent credits include Red Young's Hot Horns, the Austin Symphony, and the Sahara Swingtet. Dr. Varner is currently a professor of woodwinds at St. Mary’s University in San Antonio.