T H E M I S S I O N

Artistic Director

Rhys is an award-winniing director and theatre educator. Before moving to the Shenandoah Valley, Rhys served as the Education Manager of the Public Shakespeare Initiative at The Public Theater in NYC from 2016 to 2021. Prior to that, he held positions at the Birmingham REP and the Chichester Festival Theatre in the UK. Favorite directing credits include Iphigenia at Aulis, Someone Who'll Watch Over Me, Henry V, Journey's End, King John, Clive Barker's Revelations, and the world premiere of Lisa McGee's The Heights for the National Theatre Connections Festival. 

Rhys is a recipient of the 2004 Directors Guild of Great Britain Award and a Sunday Times Award for innovation, and he is a member of the Lincoln Center Theater Directors Lab.

Executive Director

Sarah is an actor and acting coach who has performed Off-Broadway, in Great Britain, and regionally throughout the United States. She’s worked locally as a director and/or teaching artist with Eunoia Theatre, Friendly City Players, Mary Baldwin University, Bridgewater College, and Silk Moth Stage, where she also serves as an artistic associate. Favorite roles include Artemisia Gentileschi in Artemisia’s Intent (Silk Moth Stage), Celia in As You Like It (Valley Shakespeare Festival, CT), Alison in Fun Home (4th Wall Theatre, NJ), and Mina Harker in Dracula (The Old Rep, Birmingham). Originally from New York, she holds a BA in theatre from Sarah Lawrence College and completed the conservatory program at The Atlantic Acting School. She earned her MA with distinction from the Royal Birmingham Conservatoire in the UK.

Literary Director

Garret is a playwright, theatre scholar, and educator from Washington, D.C. Garret’s plays have received staged readings and productions throughout the United States and abroad, including such venues as The Kennedy Center, Cleveland Play House, The Grandel, and the Orkater Theatre in Amsterdam. He has presented original drama and scholarship through the Association for Theatre in Higher Education, the Mid-America Theatre Conference, the Southeastern Theatre Conference, the International Theatre Institute, and some of his work can be found in Third Coast Magazine, 3 Elements Review, and Southern Theatre. Garret is currently a doctoral candidate in the College of Visual and Performing Arts at Texas Tech University. Eunoia credits includeThe Giant of Galway (playwright) andThe Woolgatherer (director).

Executive Producer

Alison has over 25 years of experience in administrative and operational support for a variety of health and education-related programs, primarily within the Shenandoah Valley. She holds a BA in Speech Communication from James Madison University. She has served as producer on Eunoia Theatre’s productions of Medea, The Woolgatherer, Here in the Light: A Cabaret in Celebration of Women’s History Month,and What the Constitution Means to Me. Earlier independent production credits include Sarah Ruhl’s Eurydice and Stephen Crane’s The Blue Hotel. She has worked on a number of community theatre productions in the area, assisting with costumes, props, sets, and publicity. And she has performed in plays such as Hurlyburly, Marcus is Walking, Under Milkweed, Sylvia, Dearly Departed, Alan Ball One Acts, and most recently Eunoia’s workshop production of Puttin’ Back.

Director of Community Partnerships

Michael has been involved in Harrisonburg's community theatre since the early 2000s as an actor, a director, and in other areas of production. Roles include Stanley Kowalski in A Streetcar Named Desire, Henri in Life x 3, and Phil in Hurlyburly. Most recently he played Cliff in Eunoia's production of The Woolgatherer and co-produced What the Constitution Means to Me. Michael has directed Sarah Ruhl’s Eurydice as part of an interdisciplinary arts and humanities series he led in the fall of 2023. He has also adapted and directed Stephen Crane's The Blue Hotel and has organized and participated in a number of staged and literary readings in the area. Michael teaches philosophy at James Madison University and works for the university's library. His poetry and prose have appeared in Poetry International, Arion, Chicago Quarterly Review, UCity Review, New Orleans Review, and elsewhere.

Technical Director

Catherine Holcomb is a designer, technician, and producer who has worked within the entertainment industry for 8+ years. Disciplines include lighting design, sound engineering, and technical production management. She holds her Bachelor of Arts from James Madison University and currently serves as the Lighting Shop Supervisor at the School of Theatre and Dance. Theatre credits include A Midsummer Night’s Dream and Sunday in the Park with George (Lighting Design).

Associate Director

Becca is a director and artist based in Virginia with specialities in management, coaching, and devising. Theatre credits include: directed works such as Rachel Cusk’s Medea (Eunoia), What the Constitution Means to Me (Eunoia), Circle Mirror Transformation (James Madison University), new work The House on Linardi Street, and Lysistrata (The Phoenix Theatre), and roles including Helen of Troy (The Trojan Women). She graduated from the Center for Performing and Fine Arts in 2020 and holds a B.A. in theatre (directing) from James Madison University. Follow along with her work at beccastehle.com.