VTA Welcomes New Board Members
VTA Welcomes New Board Members
13 July, 2020
The Virginia Theatre Association and Board President Debra Clinton are pleased to announce the appointment of three new members to its Board of Directors. It is with great excitement that we welcome Jennifer Adams as second Vice-Chair of the Technical Division, Desiree Dabney as Member At-Large, and Denise Folley as Vice-Chair of Theatre for Youth Division. Each individual will broaden the scope of VTA with their professional and personal experiences.
Jennifer Adams has worked in costume design for over thirty years. She has taught and designed at Shenandoah University’s Conservatory since 1999, and is currently the director of the Theatre Design and Production program and one of three co-chairs of the Theatre Division. Jennifer holds an MFA from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, and also studied art history, Italian, and fashion design in Florence, Italy. Her regional credits include two years as the resident costume designer for the Allenberry Playhouse, as well as design and/or technical work for many theatres, including Shenandoah Summer Music Theatre, Maryland Ensemble Theatre, Colorado Opera Festival, Santa Fe Opera, Pennsylvania Shakespeare Festival, Totempole Playhouse, and the Tuacahn Center for the Arts.
Desirèe Dabney is excited to be a part of VTA as a Member at Large. A native of Richmond, Virginia, Desirèe is a 2014 graduate from Shenandoah Conservatory in Winchester, Virginia, where she received her Bachelor of Fine Arts in Acting. Since she began acting, singing and dancing at the age of three, Desirèe has performed in over 100 shows! While at Shenandoah Conservatory, Desirèe was featured as a model and actor in more than ten educational videos for the University! She was also a member of an improv group, The Loaf, which has been performing and competing since 2009. In addition, while at Shenandoah Conservatory, Desirèe appeared in the following productions: Your Obituary is a Dance, Rabbit Hole, Sleeping Beauty and the Beast, The Insanity of Mary Girard, The Stinky Cheese Man, To Kill a Mockingbird, A Raisin in the Sun, and The Boy Who Stole the Stars. She also directed several performances which included The Hairpiece, For Colored Girls.She has recently been seen in Times Square Angel (Cookie/Agnes), Warm (Ensemble) a Firehouse Theatre production, Quill Theatre Taming of the Shrew (Hortensio), University Of Richmond Caroline or Change (Caroline), Quill Theatre Red Velvet (Connie) and Virginia Repertory Production of Pinkalicious(Dr. Wink). She has been in over 100 productions including commercials, films, musicals and plays. She is a Teacher at Sparc, Audio Descriptor for Virginia Voice, Mentor, Director and a Richmond Public Schools Theatre Arts teacher at Boushall Middle School.
Denise Folley is excited to jump into the DMR world where she works as a Director and Teaching Artist! A native of Charlottesville, Virginia, she graduated from Davis & Elkins College with a B.A in Theatre Arts. During her time at D&E, she has been able to see all sides of productions. Whether it has been lighting, sound, stage management, or costuming. Her favorite roles she protested with Davis & Elkins College include: Judge Brack in Hedda Gabler; Laurey in Oklahoma!; Mrs. Waddlesworth in The Ugly Duckling and Gertrude in The Dinosaur Musical. When she was not busy she had the opportunity to work with the The Old Brick Playhouse Company where she was an acting and vocal coach for their student productions. After college she spent the last two summer working at Arkansas Repertory theatre as an education intern. During her time away, she had the opportunity to go back to Elkins, West Virginia and participate with Warner’s Bros and The Old Brick Playhouse Company as a Dancing Chef on their Polar Express Train. Last spring, she was in the production of The Book of Will at Live Arts and has just wrapped up her first CPG show, HAMBONE. She now works as a Program Staff Member at Boys & Girls Club of Central Virginia at the Southwood Unit and is currently working with Live Arts as the Stage Manager for their Summer Show IN THE HEIGHTS.
Additionally, current board member Dana Beall (not pictured) will move from Secondary Division Vice-Chair second Vice-Chair for the Theatre for Youth Division.
VTA is appreciative of the commitment of all these individuals, and look forward to their contributions.