Lindsey Chester
Executive & Artistic Director
Lindsey has been working for the past two decades years with performers aged 3 through adults, here in Santa Cruz County. A graduate of The University of Edinburgh, Scotland, UK. She holds a BSc. in Neuroscience, with a focus in Child Psychology, Learning & Memory. Lindsey is also an avid performer and has been seen on the Cabrillo Stage in Beehive the Musical, as Janis Joplin, Mary Poppins as Ms. Andrew, Kiss Me Kate; as a Bianca Girl, as General Mathilda Cartwright; in Guys and Dolls and as a Pick-A-Little Lady in The Music Man. She finds time to give private voice & acting lessons to about a dozen students, children through adults and enjoys spending time her husband and daughter.
All About Theatre was founded in 2003. We are honored to bring together amazing theatrical talent from around the United States, including local talent, as part of our educators. Here’s a snapshot of some of our most recent talent.
Mikaela Reed
Director
Coming Soon!
Andrew Roubal
Director & Choreographer
Andrew Roubal is a proud member of Actors’ Equity Association for over 10 years with credits spanning the country. He holds a BFA in Musical Theatre from California State University, Fullerton, where he performed in notable productions like Cabaret, You're A Good Man Charlie Brown, A New Brain, and concerts featuring Stevie Nicks and Reba McEntire. Andrew landed his dream role out of college as Mark in the Broadway National Tour of A Chorus Line. From here he continued to work professionally around the country from Goodspeed Opera House to teaching and coaching locally and abroad. Over the past six years, Andrew has delighted audiences at Walt Disney World with performances in shows like Beauty and the Beast, Mickey's Magical Friendship Faire, and the ABC Christmas Morning Parade. Andrew is thrilled to be returning home to Santa Cruz, where he started his journey in theatre at AMTSJ and Cabrillo Stage performing in The Music Man, Annie Get Your Gun, Guys & Dolls, Kiss Me Kate and The Tinman in The Wizard of Oz. Andrew is proud to be an original Director & Choreographer for All About Theatre working on Bye Bye Birdie, Oliver, A Chorus Line, Sweet Charity, Footloose and Guys & Dolls. He is honored to return home and share his love of theatre, music and dance with a new generation of students!
Garret Esparza
Musical Director & Vocal Coach
A classically trained vocalist and pianist who became enamored with the theatre as a young adult, Garret Esparza’s first love has always been music. He has performed on stages across the country and a few abroad, sung in just about every style of choir and vocal ensemble you can name, taught piano and voice to many young artists, and is stoked to work with All About Theatre for the first time!
Performance credits include How The Grinch Stole Christmas North American Tour, South Pacific in Concert at the Hollywood Bowl, Les Miserables in Concert at the Hollywood Bowl, John Williams Tribute Concert at the Hollywood Bowl, The King & I at Fullerton Civic Light Opera, South Pacific at Saddleback Civic Light Opera, Barnum at Saddleback Civic Light Opera, and Cabaret at The Maverick. Garret holds a BFA in Musical Theatre Performance from California State University Fullerton, where he honed his skills in many productions. He played memorable roles such as Bat Boy in Bat Boy: The Musical, Beethoven in Dog Sees God, Hot Blades Harry in Urinetown, and rocked out in the Front & Center concert series starring Stevie Nicks, Chicago, and Reba.
Kylan DeGhetaldi
MUSICAL Director
Kylan deGhetaldi was born and raised in Santa Cruz. Classically trained on the piano and violin, he was drawn to the ragtime style early on and learned Scott Joplin's "Maple Leaf Rag" at age 9. By 11, Kylan was hired to play for a local production of Little Shop of Horrors and was hooked. Since then he's worked on dozens of musicals, as well as with the music departments at UCSC, Cabrillo and several local middle/high schools. In 2016, he joined the pop/jazz sensation Postmodern Jukebox, touring with the band for several years and performing in over 50 cities on 4 continents. Kylan continues to appear at ragtime piano festivals and is the founder and director of the Santa Cruz Ragtime Festival. A church organist, he also enjoys competing as a tournament Scrabble player and is known as one of the fastest anagram solvers in the world. He continues to be inspired by his 11-year-old daughter who shares his passion for music and the performing arts.
Maritza Pozzi-Loyola
Gymnastics
Maritza began gymnastics at the age of 4 when her parents realized they needed to place her in a padded environment where she could tumble freely and safely; thus began a lifetime passion for the sport. She partnered gymnastics with dance until she transitioned to competitive cheerleading in her teens. Maritza has been coaching gymnastics and competitive cheerleading for over 20 years, and now spends her days as a Kindergarten teacher at Watsonville Charter School of the Arts where she integrates her knowledge of children's movement into her classroom. In her free time she enjoys hiking all over Northern CA with her husband and two children and watching live theatre and documentary films. She has a degree from UCSC in Sociology, a Master's from USF in Sport Management, and a teaching credential from Cal State TEACH.
Mara Frey
Choreographer
A native to Santa Cruz, Mara Frey grew up dancing and taking classes of all styles around town. At age 6 she started with tap and ballet until she found Synergy Studios at age 11 and began to train with Joy Smith in Jazz, Hip Hop and Street Jazz. Mara found her love for choreography during her involvement with Harbor High's dance team, Escapades. She began to focus more on contemporary jazz and choreographed several numbers for the team. Dance has always been a part of Mara's life weather it was on a team or doing Zumba at the gym. There is this beautiful self-connection one finds within themselves through dance. Mara has always been drawn to the freedom of dance and they way movement gives her the confidence to be her wonderful creative self. Now working on her second musical production at All About Theatre, she has found a new passion teaching youth to express themselves and find their own creative power; no matter how goofy movement can be.
Melanie Camras
Music Director
Miss Melanie has been singing since 1988, playing piano since 1992, acting since 1996, and performing/teaching music/theatre with various children’s theatre groups across North America since 2001. She has a B.A. in drama from Washington University in St. Louis, and musical theatre has long been one of her greatest passions. She started with All About Theatre in June 2015, and really enjoys the kids, families, and her fellow teachers. Miss Melanie also teaches private piano and voice lessons, and provides childcare.
Brad Roades
Director
Brad is delighted to be working with Next Stage on this inaugural product of Bingo the Winning Musical. Locally Brad has directed, Batboy and Addams Family for All About Theatre. His work for AAT also includes the productions of Spring Awakening, Billy Elliot, Chitty Chitty Bang Bang and Matilda the Musical at the Rio Theatre. Brad won the Mimi Steinberg playwriting award at Brandeis University where he studied writing and directing with Martin Halpern, David Wheeler, Michael Murray and Edward Albee, Jayne Anne Phillips, Geoffrey Wolff and others. He has had his plays produced off Broadway and in Boston and is principal investor in the Whitefire Theater in Sherman Oaks California. His day job is as a provider of learning and information tools to Academic Libraries working for ProQuest.
Brance Souza
Choreographer & Instructor
Brance William Souza is a freelance dancer in the Los Angeles community. He holds a BFA in Dance Choreography and Performance from California Institute of the Arts and has trained in ballet, contemporary, and modern techniques. Brance yearns to bridge "more classically" codified and stylized movement and incorporate that vocabulary with musical theater while living in the concert dance world. Brance is so very excited to step away and get back to his roots returning to AAT to teach and also for a second season on the artistic staff with Cabrillo Stage. Los Angeles credits include music videos: "You're Gonna Miss Me When I'm Gone" by Rev. Shawn Amos, as well as America's Got Talent Finalist Butterscotch in her music video "Accept Who I Am". He currently freelances with companies in the LA area as a principle dancer for B. Dunn Movement, under the direction of Brigette Dunn Korpela, as well as fabe, under the direction of Mallory Fabian.
Mazera Cox-Goulter
Music Director
Mazera Cox-Goulter has worked as a pianist and musical director in Santa Cruz County over the past 16 years, holding an AA and Bachelor's in Music from UCSC. She accompanies high school musicals and choirs, colleges, community groups, elementary and high school theater, to professional musical theater, opera, vocal recitals, churches, and individual vocalists and instrumentalists. Mazera is the pianist for jazz singers at Cabrillo College, a music instructor at Good Shepherd Catholic School, a music director for community to professional theater in the County, and the main pianist at Resurrection Catholic Church in Aptos. She also teaches piano, coaches theory, and works miscellaneous jobs in the County. Her most recent endeavors were musically directing Cabrillo Stage's Chicago, Beauty & The Beast and Beehive the Musical, the past few summers. Mazera is happy to be here, and has been a pianist and musical director with AAT since the beginning of the company, almost 20 years ago.