Healing TREE UnGala 2021 Online

Perhaps best known for his performances on Broadway in “A Bronx Tale The Musical,” Christopher has been part of the San Francisco cast of the award-winning show “Hamilton.” The Pennsylvania native has also performed in “The Wiz,” “The Winter’s Tale,” and “Guys and Dolls” (Oregon Shakespeare Festival), and has workshopped “Ain’t Too Proud: The Life and Times of The Temptations.” Young conducts workshops, seminars and master classes all over the United States, bringing his experiences and life story to the next generation of theater artists!

Pooya is an Iranian-American actor, writer, filmmaker & Transgender activist. She’s co-producer/star/writer of “Transit “, a short film about love between a trans woman and a cis man, coming out in 2021. Her stage performances include “She,He,Me” for National Queer Theater, dir Sivan Battat, “Our Town” in Pride Plays, dir Jenna Worsham, “Hamlet” in Play On Shakespeare festival, dir Ellen McLaughlin, an award winning one woman show “One Woman”, in United Solo at The Theatre Row, dir Joan Kane, “Galatea”, dir Mo Zhou for the WP Pipeline festival, “The Good Muslim” dir William Carden at EST. She has guest starred on the latest season of “Law & Order: SVU “ dir Mariska Hargitay, “Falling Water” on USA, “Madam Secretary” and a recurring guest star on the crime drama “Big Dogs” on Amazon Prime. She is a member of the advisory council for Ackerman Institute’s Gender and Family Project.

Represented by Headline Talent Agency

Heralded by the New York Times as “a classically trained diva that can stretch from Broadway, Pop, Soul to Opera”, this Emmy nominated songstress N’Kenge slayed the game on Broadway originating the role of Mary Wells in Motown: The Musical which garnered a Grammy Nomination for Best Musical Theater Album. Motown Founder Berry Gordy describes N’Kenge as “the most versatile artist I know” and NY Post called her performance of Mary Wells “ELECTRIFYING.” N’Kenge’s unique, genre-crossing vocal stylings and five-octave range have wowed audiences from New York to Paris to Monte Carlo. This international award winning singer has sung for Presidents and Dignitaries around the globe including President Obama’s historical Commander-in-Chief Inaugural Ball.

N’Kenge is currently in Broadway’s Caroline, or Change Musical and is slated to star in the role of Jazz in Broadway bound musical DANGEROUS written by John Introcaso and Michael Colby. N’Kenge is the writer and creator of “Forever Summer- a Tribute to Donna Summer” that she will perform at Carnegie Hall in 2022. N’Kenge is thrilled to have TV producer Gina Goff helming her TV musical series BLACK BUTTERFLY that she created as well as co-wrote with award winning writer Mary McCallum.

From stage to screen, Christina Bianco’s singular voice and comedic charm have brought audiences around the world to their feet. Bianco captured international acclaim as a YouTube sensation with her ‘diva’ impression videos, gaining over 25 million views. Dubbed ‘the girl of a thousand voices,’ Christina has performed on major television programs such as The Ellen Degeneres Show and The Today Show, in the US, and The Paul O’Grady Show and This Morning, in the UK.

A Two-Time Drama Desk Award nominee, Christina made her West End debut starring in The Menier Chocolate Factory’s hailed production of Forbidden Broadway at the Vaudeville Theatre in London. Most recently, Christina played the iconic role of Fanny Brice at the Theatre Marigny’s celebrated production of Funny Girl in Paris, earning unanimous rave reviews. Christina was awarded the Trophee De Le Comedie Musicale for her performance. Beginning March 2022, Christina will play LV in the new UK tour of The Rise And Fall of Little Voice.

New York credits include Forbidden Broadway; Goes To Rehab (Drama Desk Award Nomination), the one-woman, multi-character comedy, Application Pending (Drama Desk Award Nomination), The Marvelous Wonderettes (Missy), and Newsical the Musical. Other theatre credits include: Hello Dolly (Minnie Fay/Indianapolis Symphony), Rent (Maureen/Weston Playhouse), Beehive (Riverside Theatre) and Joseph And The Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat (Narrator/Drury Lane Theatre).

Television credits include the iTV’s The Imitation Game, POP TV sitcom Impress Me, Hallmark’s, Signed, Sealed, Delivered and frequent voice work for RuPaul’s Drag Race.

Christina has performed her critically acclaimed concerts to sold out crowds in NYC and across the U.S. In the UK, she’s enjoyed extended runs headlining at London’s Hippodrome, Royal Albert Hall’s Elgar Room, Live at Zedel’s, The Charing Cross Theatre, The Edinburgh Fringe Festival, and completed her second UK tour, titled, First Impressions in 2019. She recently made concert debuts in Switzerland, Spain and South Africa and in Australia, at The Sydney Opera House. Christina frequently performs with major US and Canadian symphonies and performs her solo symphony show under the direction of Maestro Jack Everly. Her debut live album, Life Of The Party, is available on iTunes and other major music platforms.

Charles Baker left his mark in Hollywood and the homes of fans across the world as ‘Skinny Pete,’ on the hit AMC show Breaking Bad, which has been nominated for 151 awards and has won 48. Before stepping on Hollywood soil, Baker already had 37 credits to his name and now has moved to Los Angeles permanently with his wife and three children to pursue his craft, which he has been studying for over 20 years. Notable film projects for Baker include To The Wonder, a Terrence Malick film, opposite Ben Affleck, Rachel McAdams, and Javier Bardem, Ain’t Them Bodies Saints opposite Rooney Mara, Casey Affleck and Ben Foster, Wild opposite Reese Witherspoon, and Nicholas Winding Refn’s Neon Demon with Elle Fanning and Keanu Reeves.

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Ren Dara Santiago is a Fili-Rican nurturer and storyteller; a Native NY-er from the X, Yonkers and Harlem. Ren is the inaugural recipient of Rising Phoenix Rep’s Cornelia Street American Playwriting Award: recognizing an emerging playwright of exceptional work ethic, character, and talent. Ren is one of the recipients of the TOW Foundation’s 2019-2020 Fellowships. THE SIBLINGS PLAY was closed before premiering at Rattlestick Playwrights Theater, produced in partnership with Rising Phoenix Rep and Piece by Piece Productions in March 2020 due to COVID-19. Plays: All the Time (Drama Club NYC commission through NEA); I’ll Write You Down in Brick & Mortar (Commissioned by The Theater Co.: Co-Artistic Directors Jen Rowe and Brandon Woolley); The Siblings Play (Cherry Lane Theatre: Mentor Project 2017; Ojai Playwrights Conference 2017; TOW Fellowship Recipient 2020), Something in the Balete Tree (Winner: Playwright’s Week 2019 at The Lark Play Development Center. Finalist: National Playwright’s Conference 2019); SUBLIMINAL (SUNY College commission). Shorts: Building Models; Hard as You Can (En Garde Arts commission); Heard You; In the Shit; Love & Animation; Same Shadow (Second Generation Productions commission); Someone’s Family; Where We At (NY Rep commission). Affiliated Companies: Cherry Lane Theatre, Clubbed Thumb, En Garde Arts, The Lark, Labyrinth Theater, MCC, Ojai Playwrights Conference, Rattlestick Playwrights Theater, Rising Phoenix Rep, SPACE on Ryder Farm, The Theatre Co. Teaching: Carnegie Mellon, The Eugene O’Neill Theater Center, Lincoln Center Theater, MCC Theater, Williams College University, Williamstown Theater Festival’s Community Works, Yale School of Drama, The Young Women’s Leadership School. Residencies: The Lark, Rising Phoenix Rep, C-19 Writers Group.

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Crista Marie is an accomplished aerialist, actress, stunt woman and choreographer. She believes in using her art to inspire activism and change. She holds a BFA from Hofstra University. She started her career working with Words of Choice, touring nationally to advocate for women’s rights and is honored to have been able to utilize her skills as an actress, aerialist and choreographer in SILK. She recently finished touring as the Assistant Artistic Director of Alegria by Cirque du Soleil. Her work has been featured in major motion pictures (THE GREATEST SHOWMAN – ENDERS GAME), off-Broadway houses (The Lynn Redgrave, The Pearl, The Sheen Center), television shows (LAST WEEK TONIGHT WITH JOHN OLIVER) national and international tours, cruise ships and corporate venues. Her work has been featured in The Metropolitan Opera House, LA Opera, Beyonce’s FORMATION World Tour, TIFF, NYC summer-stage, Broadway Bares, Cirque de la Mer, Radio City Music Hall, KCD Worldwide and the CFDA Awards. www.cristamariejackson.com  @crista_marie

Kevin has most recently appeared on television in The Blacklist, The Good Wife, Happyish, Person of Interest, Madam Secretary, Castle, Blue Bloods, Royal Pains and the hit Netflix series House of Cards with Kevin Spacey and Robin Wright. Kevin co-starred with Nancy Travis on the CBS sitcom Almost Perfect, and was the star of Gene Roddenberry’s EARTH: Final Conflict, as “Boone,” which was syndicated worldwide. He has also been on such shows as Greek, White Collar, CSI: NY, Damages, Ugly Betty, Cashmere Mafia, Ghost Whisperer, The Closer, The New Adventures of Old Christine, One Tree Hill, Monk, Crossing Jordan, Judging Amy, Malcolm in the Middle, CSI: Miami, Touched by an Angel, Frasier, and Murder, She Wrote.

His film credits include The Unattainable Story (with Irina Björklund) as well as Paranoia (with Liam Hemsworth, Harrison Ford), Julia with Tilda Swinton, Raising Helen (with Joan Cusack, Kate Hudson) A Cinderella Story, (with Hillary Duff, Chad Michael Murray), American Pie II and Home Alone III.

He starred on Broadway in the 50th anniversary production of The Glass Menagerie with Julie Harris, Calista Flockhart and Zeljko Ivanek, directed by Frank Galati for which he won a Theatre World Award and was nominated for the Drama Desk and Outer Critics Circle Awards. Off-Broadway credits include Dinner With Friends (2000 Pulitzer Prize), directed by Daniel Sullivan and Lemon Sky, directed by Jonathan Silverstein. Regional theatre credits include Bucks County Playhouse’s Other Desert Cities, Adobe Rose Theatre’s Time Stands Still, Denver Center For the Performing Arts’ The Christians, Baltimore Centerstage’s An Enemy Of The People, NY Stage & Film’s Ninety and Pasadena Playhouse’s Defiance.