Staff

Stephanie Barton-Farcas . Artistic & Development Director. Director
Founding member Stephanie has a doctorate in Business Administration from Somerset University in England and a BFA in Theater from the California Institute of the Arts. Favorite directing experiences include Displaced, SubUrbia (2004 OOBR Winner), Buried Child and Stumps. She is the author of a two book set on grant-writing used in the Red Cross and Soros Foundations worldwide. She has taught fundraising in Eastern Europe and the US, and traveled extensively working with refugees and war-torn communities. Favorite acting roles include Nuclear Family and Talk Show (both Off-Broadway), Jenny Diver in Threepenny Opera, Gwen in Fifth of July, Josie in Steaming and her shows with Nicu’s Spoon, ‘The Swan’, ‘Skin Tight’ and ‘Elizabeth Rex’ for which she won the 2008 NY Innovative Theatre Award for Best Actress in a lead role, playing Queen Elizabeth I. She is a member of AEA, SAFD and SAG. She is also a wife and the mom of a lovely daughter. She has been in the films ‘Sleepy Time Gal’ (finalist in 2008 at Sundance), ‘Backward Looks, Far Corners’, ‘Sour Times’ with Media at Large as well as ‘Finding’ in NYC. She was recently seen in ‘Wit’ in Spring 2010 at the Spoon and is a accent coach throughout the NYC area. She is represented by Eileen Haves at Eileen Haves Talent - 212-249-0033 and her voice over demos can be heard at http://stephaniebartonfarcas.voice123.com.

Steven Wolf . Associate Artistic Director. Lighting Designer. Production Management Steven Wolf has a BFA in production design with a concentration in lighting design from Suny Fredonia. He is the Associate Artistic Director for Nicu’s Spoon and some of his design credits with them include To Kill a Mockingbird, the OOBR award winning Suburbia, and most recently Tales of the Lost Formicans and Richard III. He is also the Assistant Lighting Supervisor at Queens Theatre in the Park where he has designed the lights for their production of Broadway Song and Dance Part II. His other design credits include the fall 2002 (Menus A&B) and spring 2003 (Menus A,B,&D) EAT Fest, The Joan Jonas exhibition at the Queens Museum of Art (winter 2003-04),Theatre in the Flesh’s theatre movement piece Blood and Honey (June 2005) and Repo Opera, a rock musical (July-August 2005).

Katherine Rosin . (917) 438-9223 . Press Representative
(United Stages) has been working in the entertainment industry since 1995. As a publicist and marketing expert, she has skillfully implemented various campaigns in film, theatre, and dance. Rosin’s roster of clients include: The Bridge Theatre Company, Brooklyn International Film Festival, Dangerous Curves Productions, Emerging Artists Theatre, Groove With Me, Irish Arts Center, The Lady Cavalier Theatre Company, The New York Innovative Theatre Awards, NY Neo-Futurists, Nicu’s Spoon, Pascal Productions, Sign-A-Song, Third Man Productions, Von Ussar Danceworks, Watermark Ensemble, WET’s Risk Taker Film Series, Wordplay, and Woodshed Collective. More information can be found at Katie Rosin at www.kampfirefilmspr.com.

Pamela Mitchell . American Sign Language Projects Manager
Pamela has interpreted off-Broadway shows for Performers Access Studio in The Real Inspector Hound, continues to be an avid member and participant of Nicu’s Spoon Theater. She has interpreted plays such as The Little Prince, co-acted in Stumps and was the voice of the Deaf woman in the reading by Raymond Luczak’s, Love In My Veins. Has interpreted other off-Broadway plays which include, Freeda Peoples at the Billie Holiday Theater, Inc., Girl Scouts’ 90th Anniversary celebration at Madison Square Garden, Promise of the Park with Theater In Motion, The World in Her Hands: The Helen Keller Story, The Nutcracker, and Roots of Rap with the Interborough Repertory Theater (IRT), New York Revels at the Peter Norton Symphony Space and Five ‘Til at The Dixon Place Theater. She also interprets music such as Gospel, Folk, Country, Jazz, and Rap concerts and enjoys storytelling for both the young and the “young at heart”. During the Summer of 2008, Mitchell was honored to take on her first acting role as the lead role as MATTIE CHEEKS in No Niggers, No Jews, No Dogs, written by John Henry Redwood, with Nicu’s Spoon Theater. It was both a challenge and learning experience while having the pleasure of working with and the suspport of seasoned and talented actors and actresses…and our director. Mitchell is a Nationally Certified ASL/English Sign Language Interpreter. She holds a Professional Certificate in ASL/English Interpretation Projects (ITP) from Fiorella H. LaGuardia Community College. Currently pursuing her Bachelors Degree in Business, Specializing in Corporate Communication, with a Minor in Pre-Med Psychology, at Baruch College. Mitchell is continuing her studies at Baruch for her Masters Degree in Psychology, Specializing in Industrial/Organization while pursuing her certification of interpretation.

Michelle Kuchuk General Theater Manager - Michelle first took a stab at directing at her community theater on Cape Cod, but it wasn’t until she took a few directing classes at NYU that she fell in love with the creativity involved in helping an actor develop a character. She is currently Co-Directing the Fall Musical ‘23 Coins’. She has been involved with Nicu’s Spoon since 2008, having assistant directed the world premiere of A Kite Cut Loose in the Middle of the Sky and stage managed Spoon’s summer show, Hiding Behind Comets.

Damon Law . Company Composer . Web Technologist . Graphic Designer
Damon is a self-trained musician/composer who has been producing music professionally since 1991. He has worked collaboratively with the artistic staff of Nicu’s Spoon since 2001. He has composed original works and contributed previously written material for Nicu’s Spoon productions of Displaced, To Kill A Mockingbird, George Orwell’s 1984, Murder Of Crows, Suburbia, Ordinary People, and The Little Prince. He has worked with The Oregon Shakespeare Festival Association, Storefront Theater, and performing artists such as VVV, Digital Overload, and Written In Ashes. He has written music for film, theater and multimedia installations. He is a graphic designer/technologist by trade. Damon Lives in Portland Oregon with his family and telecommutes to NY when he can’t be there in person.

Pamela Butler . Administrative Director . Director.
Pamela has been involved in indie theatre in New York since the 1990’s, has directed and produced works for the New York International Fringe Festival, and has worked with Gallery Players in Brooklyn, Henry Street Settlement and Nicu’s Spoon (directing ‘Murder of Crows’ and ‘Skin Tight’). She is also acting as dramaturg and administrator for the day to day efforts and development of the company.

Alvaro Sena. Associate Administrative Director. Actor. Crew. Alvaro Sena made his first main stage appearence with Nicu’s Spoon in The Little Prince. He is a brazilian actor and moved to NY thinking of the expansion of his career.His professional training started in Brazil when he was a student at the University Of Arts of Parana where his coursework included History of Theater, Acting , Literature, Makeup, Costume and Scenic Design classes. His acting credits include Garcia Lorca, Shakespeare, Eugene Ionesco and others like Brazilian authors Maria Clara Machado and Nelson Rodrigues. He has worked as an intern for Cultural Foundation of Curitiba, a program where he had to travel to poor areas bringing the magic of art and teaching Literature and Acting to kids who did not have access to the arts. He also has worked as a production assistant and booked commercials as well. In NY he has attended acting classes at Michael Howard’s, SFT and Theatre Dance at The Broadway dance center. He’s thrilled to be a member of this company, excited to be involved with such people and already thinking about projects with them.

Julia Berman Resident Stage Manager
Julia is currently studying theatre, concentrating in stage management and set design, at Connecticut College, along with a government minor. Recent stage management credits at Connecticut College include: Naga Mandala, Uncle Vanya, and A Servant To Two Masters. Julia has had the pleasure of stage managing No Niggers, No Jews, No Dogs and Richard III with Nicu’s Spoon. In the summer of 2008, she also completed an internship with The Splinter Group.

Rien Schlecht . Resident Costume Designer. Mask Maker
Rien holds a BA in Fine Arts from Southwest Minnesota State University. Some of her past design credits include: Weathervane Theatre: All That Jazz, Beauty and the Beast, A Man of No Importance, Annie, Miss Saigon. Southwest Minnesota State University: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, Harvey, Pippin, Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?. Marshall Area Stage Company: A Midsummer Night’s Dream. Her wardrobe/Construction Credits include for The Actors Company Theatre: Home. Skylight Dance Theatre: Daughters. Weathervane Theatre: A Man of No Importance, Miss Saigon, Annie, Tom, Dick and Harry, My Fair Lady, Jump and Jive, Cash on Delivery, West Side Story, All That Jazz, Why Not Stay for Breakfast?, Beauty and the Beast, Hit the Road Jack and Aida.

Bram Weiser . American Sign Language Readings Coordinator. Box Office. Bram is a Nationally-Certified (RID) Sign-Language Interpreter and got his first taste of Nicu’s Spoon when he facilitated communication among Deaf and hearing actors, staff and crew for their productions of “Stumps”, “Buried Child” and ”Kosher Harry”, the latter of which was a co-production with New York Deaf Theatre (NYDT), experiences he won’t soon forget. In addition to being an ASL Coordinator with Nicu’s Spoon, Bram’s involvement in the theater community at large also includes being the Media Relations Coordinator for TOYS Theater, work on the Stage Crew for various NYDT productions, and a stint as Stage Manager for Staged Readings of the new rock musical, “The Cure”.

Nick Linnehan . Education Projects Director. Actor. Writer. Director
Nick is an avid director, actor, and writer Previously he has been busy writing three new original new works; His first play, The Real Story, was produced in 2001 by the Post Theatre Company and his second play, Identity (award winning), was recently produced twice by Queens College, and once by Manhattan Repertory Theater, and lately by Nicu’s Spoon Theater. Currently, he is developing a new play; Erosion: Life on Life’s Terms. He has worked as a director for many children’s shows and taught several drama classes for children over the last 9 years. Nick graduated from CW Post at Long Island University with his BA in Theater and holds a Master’s Degree in Education from Queens College. www. freewebs.com/nicklinnehan

John Trevellini . Technical Director
John graduated in 2005 with his Master of Fine Arts in Dramatic Writing from Carnegie Mellon University. He’s twice received the Schubert Fellowship at Carnegie Mellon. He is a member of Phi Kappa Phi, the Writers Guild, and Dramatist Guild. He lives in Queens with his beautiful wife and three children. He headed the build crew in our new space and will direct and act in many of the 2008 reading series plays.

Oliver Conant Actor. Writer. Literary Director
Oliver is a life long New Yorker and a second-career stage and film actor who began acting as a teen in Robert Mulligan’s Warner Bros movie Summer of ‘42, playing Benjie, a role he reprised in a sequel, Class of ‘44. In high school he appeared on Broadway in the Jean Kerr farce Finishing Touches with Barbara Belgedes as his mother, Robert Lansing as his father and James Woods as his brother. After these experiences he left acting for other interests. He attended Sarah Lawrence College, concentrating in Literature, History and Philosophy, and went on to earn advanced degrees in English and Comparative Literature at Columbia University, studying Shakespeare under Edward Tayler and Frank Kermode. He has taught English, Humanities, Shakespeare and Acting at colleges and universities and in private and public schools in New York and New Jersey. Since the early 1980s his book reviews and essays have appeared in printed journals, including American Book Review, Dissent, The Common Review, The New Leader, The New York Times Book Review, and others. In 2006 his short story, ‘Our Triangle Thing,’ was published in the anthology 20 over 40 from the University of Mississippi Press. Oliver’s film and theater reviews can be found on the site www.stageandcinema.com In 2000, he returned to the stage as both actor and director, taking the role of Hamm in Philip E. Price’s production of Samuel Beckett’s Endgame in Greenport, New York. He went on to direct two outdoor Shakespeare plays for Greenport’s Stage, A Midsummer Night’s Dream and As You Like It, along with an evening of avant-garde plays by Kenneth Koch, and Actors Shakespeare, a selection of scenes from Hamlet, Midsummer Nights Dream and As You Like It. Subsequently he served as assistant director, co-director and associate director for three more Shakespeare plays, As You Like It, Romeo and Juliet, and Hamlet, this time for Queens Shakespeare Co. He has played fathers, doctors, janitors and homeless men in short and student films, including one produced by his son Benjamin, and has appeared in an even wider variety of plays, including The Brothers Karamazov (as Fyodor) Animal Farm (as Boxer) and an absurdist musical comedy, Kabbalah (as the ghost of Sheik Mohammad Yassin). For Nicu’s Spoon, Oliver played Luddy Beddowes in both the initial and the Off-Broadway run of Elizabeth Rex. At present he is in the Frog and Peach production of Richard III at the West End Theater. He is also the dramaturg for a new play about Ezra Pound that will be a reading on November 9th, 2008 at the Workshop Theater.

Phillip Chavira Phillip recently was AD + SM for both ‘Beautiful Thing ‘ and ‘W;T’ at Nicu’s. He was also AD for LOVE ME (Planet Connections), As You Like It (Frog & Peach), & AD, SM + costume designer for Erosion: Life on Life’s Terms (Nicu’s). He has also regionally directed, costume and makeup designed for Theatre-by-the-Grove|PA, and many children shows with LimeLight Productions|AZ. He was PSM for A Perfect Ganesh (Synaptic Productions|NY), stage managed Holding Out (Manhattan Rep) and was production manager / founding member of sketch comedy troupe Company (Pittsburgh, PA). BA from Indiana University of PA. LM