Meet the Team

Lead Organizers

Dominique Alfandre

  • Dominique Alfandre has been producing plays, dances and site specific events for a long time. As Founding Executive Director of Island Moving Company (now Newport Contemporary Ballet), she helped create and presented eight seasons of Open for Dancing, a festival of site specific dances made with community members in iconic Newport landscapes. With Artistic Director Miki Ohlsen, she produced numerous collaborative performances with poets, sculptors, musicians and other artists. Dominique serves on the Boards of the Arts & Cultural Alliance, Newport Performing Arts Center, Newport String Project and the RI State Council on the Arts. She believes that everyone has a great story and a creative spirit inside them.

Jed Hancock-Brainerd

  • Born and raised in Newport, Jed got his BFA in Acting from URI and an MFA in Devised Theater from the London International School of Performing Arts. Today, he is a theater-maker, performance educator and support staff member at Bike Newport. He teaches voice and movement at Salve Regina and offers private lessons in the Alexander Technique.

Molly Sexton

  • Bio coming soon

Anna Basile

  • Anna Basile is a Rhode Island born actor and teaching artist. She received her BA in Theatre from Northwestern University and her MFA in Devised Performance in Physical Theatre from Pig Iron / University of the Arts.

    Creating original works of physical theatre with young performers is Anna’s absolute favorite thing to do, second only, perhaps, to being onstage herself. Anna has produced four original pieces for the Providence Fringe Festival. She worked for two years as a performing arts faculty member at the Lincoln School in Providence. Additional school partnerships include the Rocky Hill School in East Greenwich, Saint Philomena’s in Portsmouth, Beacon Charter School for the Arts in Woonsocket. 

Thomas Palmer

  • Thomas Palmer lives in Newport, Rhode Island and has an expansive view of the Common Burying Ground.  This is his first production with Center Aquidneck.

Rebecca Noon

  • Rebecca is a community arts organizer, deviser, and administrator who lives in Newport. She has created original live community-based performance since 2010, mostly in Rhode Island, but other places too. After four years as the first Director of Community Engagement at Trinity Rep in Providence, RI, Rebecca moved to Minneapolis to lead Community Engagement at the Guthrie Theater where she built mutually-beneficial relationships across the Twin Cities and in greater Minnesota through art-making, responsive events, and co-conspiratorial relationships surrounding the Guthrie’s work. Today Rebecca proudly serves as the Director of Special Projects in the City of Providence’s department of Art, Culture and Tourism.

    Rebecca holds a BFA in Acting from the College of Santa Fe and an MFA in Lecoq Based Actor Created Physical Theatre from the London International School of Performing Arts. She was the 2015 and 2017 RI State Council on the Arts Playwriting Fellow and was named one of TCG’s One to Watch in 2019. 

Elizabeth Woodhouse

  • Elizabeth Woodhouse (she/her) is a choral music educator and conductor with over 20 years of experience working with choruses all across the country from Denver, Colorado to Brooklyn, New York. She is the Founder and Artistic Director of Newport Sings (RI), a non-profit organization that provides opportunities for youth and adults to discover the joy and power of singing in community with others. At Newport Sings she conducts Aquidneck Singers, a multigenerational treble chorus, and QUORUS, an LGBTQIA+ chorus for teens and adults. She also oversees the Newport County Youth Chorus programs and leads Community Sing, a weekly singalong program for adults with disabilities. Elizabeth has prepared and conducted ensembles at Carnegie Hall and Brooklyn Academy of Music (BAM) as well as for a national PBS Kids Commercial.

    Elizabeth is an adjunct professor at University of Rhode Island where she conducts the University Chorus and has previously taught choral methods and conducting courses. She also serves as a student teacher supervisor at Rhode Island College. A 2019-2020 Jubilation Foundation Fellow, Elizabeth received a Bachelor of Music Education from the University of Colorado at Boulder and a Master of Music in Choral Conducting at The Ohio State University, where she was a University Fellow. 

Jane Carey

  • Jane Carey is a Newport native whose working career was off-island as an Art Director and Book Designer for technology, trade and college textbooks at Artech House, Beacon Press and Harcourt Brace. Her local interests include a revival of the city’s cemetery commission and research contributions of Newport’s historic landscapes to the Smithsonian Archives of American Gardens.

Casey Seymour-Kim

  • Casey Seymour Kim is a Rhode Island-based theatre arts performer who has performed professionally on regional stages such as the Gamm, and specializes in improvisation and working on new or original material. Some of the most joyful moments in her arts career have involved her collaborations with Jed Hancock-Brainerd and Rebecca Noon, through the theatre group Strange Attractor, and now through Center Aquidneck. Casey holds an M.F.A. in Interdisciplinary Arts from Goddard College, teaches theatre performance at Rhode Island College, and is a member of the improv troupe Improv Jones.

Research Support

  • Nick Benson

    Third generation American stone carver, stone letterer and owner of The John Stevens Shop

  • John Hattendorf

    King Professor of Maritime History at the United States Naval War College

  • Lew Keen

    Chairman of the Newport Historic Cemetery Advisory Commission

  • George Champlin Mason

    American architect considered the first professional architectural preservationist in the United States

  • Bert Lippincott

    Librarian and Genealogist with the Newport Historical Society

  • Ron Onorato

    Scholarship on American architecture, public sculpture and funerary art

  • Keith Stokes

    Consulting historian for the Rhode Island Black Heritage Society and Rhode Island’s Historian Laureate

  • Theresa Stokes

    Executive Director of the Rhode Island Black Heritage Society

  • Paul Russo

    Stone carver at the John Stevens Shop

The Cast + Crew

Click on the actor’s name where there is a hyperlink to read their reflections on inhabiting their character.

Rebekah Acquah

  • Rebekah Acquah is a visionary storyteller and educator whose passion for resilience and cultural heritage informs her performance as Duchess Quamino. With a background in creative writing and narrative development, she brings depth and grace to the stage, honoring the spirit of lived experience. Rebekah's work bridges faith, history, and empowerment—making each portrayal a purposeful act of remembrance.

John Brennan

  • John is an actor, tour guide, writer, poet, and musician living with his loving family in their Odditorium in Newport. Author of "Ghosts of Newport" and, with artist Rafael Medina, "Newport Live" and "Newport Eats," his poetry appears in several anthologies. He is currently performing at the Newport Playhouse and Firehouse Theatres and leads ghost tours. He wishes to thank his family- Michelle, Mike, Felix, Mackenzie, James, Alicia, Rafael, Arcadia, the Killaveys, and the Bagleys.

Peter Coriander

  • Peter is a native Newporter who has lived in New York, Massachusetts, and Connecticut and returned home in 2021.  He is a humanitarian professional and he serves on several local non profits boards. For fun, he is an exercise enthusiast and enjoys playing with his two poodles. He can usually be found enjoying Newport’s waterfront and many delicious restaurants. Peter has had the opportunity to be an extra in Newport’s locally filmed movie, Amistad. 

Julia Everitt

  • Julia has enjoyed being a part of the Rhode Island theater community as a stage manager, actor, cabaret performer and tech operator. She is very grateful to the friends and family that encourage and support her. She would like to especially thank her friend John, who always makes life more joyful and interesting. She graduated from the University of Maine with a bachelor's degree in History and English and is a native of Newport.g original site-specific plays with the company she co-founded in 2000, The National Theater of the United States of America. In 2016 she relocated to New England, where she and longtime collaborator James Stanley continue to create and perform original projects. (www.hawleyandstanley.org )

Jeff Kerr

  • Jeff is a longtime music educator who has recently moved into Fine Arts Administration as the NPS Director of Fine Arts in Norwood, MA. He learned to play bagpipes right here in Newport with the AOH Pipes and Drums and is now a member of the Old Colony Highlanders Pipe Band out of Lakeville, MA.

Norman MacLeod

  • Norman MacLeod is a retired Episcopal priest living in Newport. He is grateful to take part in this wonderful ensemble effort at the Common Burial Ground. A crowd of his ancestors are interred here and in the Island Cemetery next door. Entering into conversation with them and the host of others whose lives touched Newport over the centuries and found their resting places here is a great privilege.

Dillon Medina

  • Dillon is an actor and creative who lives in Providence with his partner, Kelly Robertson, and their small menagerie of cats. He has lived in RI for 27 years, now.

Deborah Parker

  • Newly a resident of Rhode Island and an amateur genealogist, Deborah is delighted to be working on Life After Life.

Kelly Robertson

  • Kelly (she/her) is an actor and clown based in Providence, where she lives with her partner and three cats! Kelly has a BA in Acting from Dean College and is an alumnus of Atlantic Acting School’s intensive in NYC. Kelly also has certification for teaching applied theatre, which she uses in her work teaching theatre all over New England (namely as the founding Theatre Program Director at The Croft School). Kelly’s worked as an actor with theatres including: Burbage Theatre Company, Wilbury Theatre Group, the Gamm, and Trinity Rep. You might see her in commercials for cat littler and Woobles crochet! Kelly is so excited to be a part of this project, sharing stories from our past, art for the now, and creating community for our future. Thank you to Rebecca, Anna, and her fiancé Dillon!

Teddy Sargent

  • I am Teddy Sargent and I’ve been acting for three years now, I’ve been in many plays involving Newport children’s theater, (NCT)

Emily Shapiro

  • My name is Emily Shapiro, and I’m a farmer/florist, herbalist, and educator based in Providence, RI. My goal is to cultivate a farm project that heals and enriches both the community I serve along with the soil and ecosystem. I hold Level 1 and Level II certificates from Farmacy Herbs in Providence, RI.

Alice Stanley

  • Alice Stanley is a local middle schooler who likes to cook, play fiddle tunes, and practice the dark arts. They also are a visual storyteller, and have written (or begun, anyway) several novels and comics. They love their family, offbeat comedy/fantasy animated tv shows, as well as old B-movies. They speak more fluently in Adventure Time quotes than in English and have a pet rabbit named Clover, whom they love dearly. You can find them at your local library, or in the nearest boba tea shop.

Anne Wachtmeister

  • I am a late bloomer to acting but have always been a goof ball and can spice that silliness up with a little drama queen. I teach middle school and coach girls basketball and am grateful for the awesome community here on Aquidneck Island.

Rachel Balaban

  • Rachel Balaban is a dancer, teacher, and maker. She is founder and director of DAPpers - Dance for All People. As a teaching artist and movement educator, she is committed to helping people access their vitality and health through using their bodies, and to making dance accessible to all populations. Rachel is the inaugural Artist-In-Residence and Teaching Associate at the Warren Alpert Medical School at Brown University. Her focus is to underscore the importance of combining an intergenerational framework with art to empower older adults, caregivers, and young students as they build meaningful connections with each other. When Rachel isn’t dancing, you’ll likely find her swimming, sailing, paddle boarding, biking, reading, or playing with her 2 grandchildren. Being in motion and in community with others is what brings her the most joy.

Bob “Rooster” Conway

  • I currently serve on the Newport Historic Cemetery Commission. I grew up in Warren, RI and attended Portsmouth Abbey School where I was lucky enough to get the lead role in Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead. After spending the past 4 decades in the tech industry, I’m dipping my toe back in the theater waters.

Michael Cavanaugh

  • Native of Western Massachusetts and retired from the Commonwealth of Massachusetts department of Developmental Services.  Veteran of several community theater and college plays and musical productions.  Currently a member of “Quorus”, a division of Newport Sings.  Enjoys reading and trips to New York City to see Broadway shows.

David Ensor

  • David Ensor is a Rhode Island-born actor and teaching artist. He received his BFA in Acting from the University of Minnesota/Guthrie Theater Actor Training Program, where he acted in Chekhov's Platonov, Annie Baker's Body Awareness, Euripides' The Trojan Women, and Shakespeare's The Winter's Tale, among others. Since graduation, he has worked at The Guthrie (Cyrano De Bergerac), The Gamm Theatre (Hangmen, Hamlet), Rochester Civic Theatre (The Importance of Being Earnest), and Cedar Summerstock Theatre (Jesus Christ Superstar, The Pirates of Penzance, Little Shop of Horrors). Outside the theatre, he can be found walking at the Norman Bird Sanctuary, reading books on art history and psychology at Sweet Berry Farm, and listening to music. His favorite musicians include Gordon Lightfoot, Loreena McKennitt, and Joseph Fire Crow. He is a member of Actors' Equity Association.

Jesse Hawley

  • Jesse Hawley is a theater maker, artist, and teacher, and lover of graveyards. She spent 18 years in NYC working with a wide range of downtown theater artists while creating, performing, and touring original site-specific plays with the company she co-founded in 2000, The National Theater of the United States of America. In 2016 she relocated to New England, where she and longtime collaborator James Stanley continue to create and perform original projects. (www.hawleyandstanley.org )

Sarah Jones

  • Born in Providence and raised in Newport, Sarah currently lives and works at an event company in Somerville. She was active in theatre at Swanhurst, YPSPA, the Blue Pelican, and community productions in Newport in the 70s and 80s. She has a theatre degree from Yale, but thereafter chose to focus on family and other interests. In Massachusetts, she supported local theatre in her daughters' schools and around New England.

    This is her first play in a long time and she's very excited to perform the role of Dr. Rice.

Ronan Long

  • Bio coming soon

Paul McLaughlin

  • A transplant from Western Massachusetts.  Recently moved to Newport.  I have been in the service industry for nearly 50 years.  First the restaurant business and now cosmetology.  Big fan of live theatre.  Partial to musicals.  Excited to be a part of this innovative new venture. 

Karen O’Hara

  • AnKaren O'Hara is a founding member of Aquidneck Singers and performed as a nun in “Sister Act” with Little Theater of Fall River in 2018.  Since 1995 she has taken on various roles in “The Nativity of Christ” with life-size puppets at United Congregational Church in Middletown and became its production manager in 2024. Karen also enjoys contra and international folk dancing.

Janna Pederson

  • Bio coming soon

Dave Rabinow

  • Dave is a RI theatre artist, teaching artist, and musician; he is a member of Improv Jones and the Empire Revue and has been seen recently in NOISE (Wilbury Theatre Group) and A MAN OF NO IMPORTANCE (Speakeasy Stage Co.); he has a podcast (TOTAL DAD MOVIES) with his friends Mike & Tooky; his second record (HERE & GONE) is probably available now. www.daverabinow.com

Julie Safford


  • Newport native and a graduate of Rogers HS (go Vikings!). Earned a BS in Wildlife Biology and a BA in English at URI (go Rams!).   

    At present, I am the Lead Teacher Naturalist at the Norman Bird Sanctuary and enjoy sharing -and expanding- my knowledge and love of the natural world with people of all ages. 

    Viva la Lichen! 

R Ben Sargent

  • Ben grew up on Aquidneck Island where he was voted "Most Likely to Win an Oscar" in his senior year at PHS. He went to McGill University and continued to perform while studying math. He then completed formal training at the Moscow Art Theater in 2005 before cofounding Studio Six of the MAT in NYC. He continued to act, teach and direct through 2015. Ben is over the moon to be back at it with Life After Life!

Susie Schutt

  • Susie Schutt, MA, RDT, MHC-A (she|her|hers) is a mental health counselor associate and a registered drama therapist working with schools, recovery centers, and individuals across Rhode Island through Third Person Therapy, Thrive Behavioral Health, and 2nd Act. She is a theatre director and an intimacy director for local colleges and theatre companies. Susie served as The Gamm Theatre’s Director of Education & Drama Therapist from 2014 to 2022. She received her MA in mental health counseling and drama therapy from Lesley University and is a graduate of the University of Michigan, with a BA in sociology and social inequality.

Claudia Traub

  • Claudia is grateful to be working with Rebecca and Jed once again. This is magic and community. Equally grateful to have had the opportunity to perform recently in Once, Indecent and Noise at the Wilbury Theater. And always grateful to be Talya's mother.

Beau Decker

  • 40 years Theater and film work as Writer, Producer, Director, TD and Actor in NYC, NH, RI, MA, NC, GA. Lives Shakespeare and did Renn Faires for 8 years. Directed Macbeth outdoors when Hurricane Gloria was arriving. Writing ghost docudrama during that play. Directing Vampire Rock Opera, and choreographing-directing soon A ROBOT LOVE STORY musical.

Doli Grace

  • Many years in theater and film including national and europe. Lead singer in bands and music covering all genres including barrel house blues and honky tonk from 20s and 30s. Working on 1 Women show and webcast. In spare time she lives brushing her teeth with cheese wiz.

Autumn Jefferson

  • Regional: Cold War Choir Practice,Trinity Rep; Fat Hat, Wilbury Theatre Group; A Midsummers Nights Dream, From Free to Freedom, Mixed Magic Theatre ; BLKS, Playhouse Creatures, Witching Hour Social Club, Romeo and Juliet, BTC. 1776, The Book of Will, Men on Boats, The CTC Film: Join the Club, short; God Talks to an Agnostic, short. Education: BA in Performing Arts with a concentration in Musical Theatre from Rhode Island College. Other: Autumn owes all her successes and accomplishments to the strong work ethic passed down from her mother. Instagram: Autumn_Mist_Actor Website: Autumnjefferson.com

 domenik carl lee

  • domenik (he/they) weaves a creative life around anchors of image-making, performance, mindfulness, and horticulture. A native Rhode Islander, he holds a BA in Dance Performance from Rhode Island College and MFA in Choreography and Performance from Smith College. His photography and videography work through Dandy Lion Media services artists, arts organizations, performance companies, and higher education throughout RI, MA, and CT. dom enjoys additional roles in the arts community as a performer, choreographer, educator, and enthusiastic audience member. They are also passionate about local food production, a Rhode Island Certified Horticulturalist who has been working in farming since 2020. They are thrilled to be joined by Edwin Pastor to document the performances of Life After Life. 

Florrie Marshall

  • Florrie Marshall is a violist, educator, and arts advocate, currently based in Newport, RI, as resident violist of the Newport String Quartet. She is the founder of Sound Bridges International Company and premiered A Tale of One Viola at the 2022 International Viola Congress. A Doctor of Musical Arts candidate at Yale, her mentors have included Ettore Causa, Steven Tenenbom, Dora Mullins, Hye-Jin Kim, and Ara Gregorian. She has performed internationally and served on faculty at Towson University and Indiana University of Pennsylvania.

Caleb Payero

  • Caleb Payero, 7, is a rising young actor and student in Portsmouth Public Schools. With a bright stage presence and natural charm, he is already making waves in local theater. Caleb is also a proud member of the Newport County Youth Chorus, where he shares his love of music and performance. Whether acting or singing, Caleb brings joy, enthusiasm, and talent to every role he takes on. His star is just beginning to shine.

Meredith Rust

  • Meredith has lived in Newport over half of her life. She loves local history, acting and photography. She was active in the off-off-Broadway acting scene while living in Brooklyn for 16 years as an integral part of Wednesday Repertory Company and the American Theater of Actors. She currently lives on the point with her husband Robert and their two cats, Juno and Tiberius.

Quinn Saunders

  • Quinn Saunders (they/them) is a fifth grader at Thompson Middle School and is excited to be in their very first theater production. Quinn has been dancing since they were three years old and currently studies karate, having recently earned their purple belt. When they're not on stage, Quinn loves spending time with friends and family.

Dominique Sindayiganza

  • Dominique Sindayiganza is a photographer who uses his camera to create and celebrate community.

    In his long-term personal photo series, entitled “HOMECOMING”, he focuses on photographing strangers at home.

    He lives in Providence, RI with his wife and 3 daughters. 

Meg Sullivan

  • Meg Sullivan is Rhode Island based educator, artist, and performer. Meg holds an MFA in Performance as Public Practice from the University of Texas at Austin. As a company member of the Rude Mechs theatre collective, Meg toured nationally with their original musical, I’ve Never Been So Happy. In 2011, she moved to Providence to take the reins at The Manton Avenue Project, where she taught playwriting to young people, created community partnerships, and produced play festivals of original works by young people. Meg was awarded the Community Partner Award of Recognition from Olneyville Neighborhood Association in 2023. Meg's collaboration with Heloise Gold, Reunion, was named 2017 Dance Production of the Year by Motif. Other local performance highlights include Ada Lovelace in The Wilbury Group's critically acclaimed production of Cesar Alverez' Futurity (dir. Brien Lang), and her "charming and melancholy" solo performance Veja Doolittle (dir. Susie Schutt) produced by Wilbury in 2014. Meg is on the performing arts faculty at Lincoln School in Providence.

Sonny Wong

  • Sonny is a Rhode Island based theatre maker who enjoys taking on various roles on and off the stage. They've had the pleasure of working with many local companies including CCRI Players, The Gamm Theatre, Contemporary Theatre Company, Spectrum Theatre Ensemble, Burbage Theatre Company, and Mixed Magic Theatre.

Chorus Members

  • JoAnne Hanrahan

  • Emily Leslie

  • Kett Murphy

  • Peter Murphy

  • Anna Shugrue

  • Ellen Zahniser

    Ellen Z is a performing artist, writer, LMT, and dessert lover!! They are extremely excited to bask in the glow of Jed and Rebecca's creations once again, and delighted to spend time celebrating life and death in such good company in such a majestic place. 

    Read about Ellen’s experience in Life After Life HERE.

Thanks to our supporters

The Collective Fund of the Distracted Globe Foundation