meet our
Summer on Stage
2024 Faculty
Chris Hayhurst – Program Director, Acting, Shakespeare
Chris is a Central Valley native with over 25 years of experience in acting and theatrical production. He has an MFA in Acting from Florida State University’s Asolo Conservatory for Actor Training and his BA in Theatre from California State University, Fullerton.
He is the returning Program Director for Summer on Stage at Murphys Creek Theatre in Murphys, CA. He is elated to be working with such a talented staff and management family. This will be year two, and he can’t wait to get to work!
Chris recently self-produced a touring one-person show called Every Brilliant Thing, which he took from California to the Midwest and Florida. The tour continues to flourish, bringing mental health resource awareness to communities through affiliations with county mental health programs.
Having taught master classes at California State University, Stanislaus, Chris is connected to the pulse of arts education. He is excited to pass on what he knows to the next generation of American Theatre professionals.
TOURS: Every Brilliant Thing. REGIONAL THEATRE: Asolo Repertory Theatre: The Crucible, A Midsummer Night’s Dream Asolo Conservatory: Romeo and Juliet, Antigone, Deadman’s Cellphone, Gremlin Theatre: The Boy’s Room Center Stage Conservatory: The Aliens, A Lie of the Mind, Fool for Love, True West Sierra Rep: The Glass Menagerie, A Midsummer Night’s Dream Stage 3: The Glass Menagerie, Red Stockton Theatre Project: Godspell, Cabaret, South Pacific, Music Man, The Front Page, Man of La Mancha, Dark of the Moon, Scapino, Little Shop of Horrors. OTHER REGIONAL CREDITS: Much Ado About Nothing, Green Man, Equus, The Library, The Last Days of Judas Iscariot, The Seagull, Arsenic and Old Lace, Mother of the Maid, Head Over Heels, Safe House, Reefer Madness, Julius Caesar, Twelfth Night. FILM: Wakeless (Lead), La Perrera (Lead), The Dream Operator (Lead), How Does That Make You Feel? (Supporting), Safe House (Lead)
Traci Sprague – Program Manager, Movement
Traci currently teaches theatre/drama at Delta Charter High School in Tracy, CA. She has directed and performed locally at Prospect Theater Project, Center Stage Conservatory, Stage 3, Merced Shakespearefest, Murphys Creek Theatre, Phoenix Collective, and Shakespeare on the Vine. She earned her BA in Drama from California State University, Stanislaus. She studied crafting political theatre with San Francisco Mime Troupe, Viewpoints with Alexandra Billings, and improv with Sills/Spolin Theaterworks. She led several workshops at Opera Modesto and Stanislaus County schools, including using theatre to teach creativity in the classroom at the County of Education Arts Symposium. Traci served as the Artistic Director for Center Stage Conservatory located in downtown Modesto, where she developed a teen summer theatre conservatory in classical theatre. She has spent the last handful of years focusing on shows that empower queer voices and women.
Sarah Coykendall – Shakespeare
Sarah is a film and theatre artist with 30+ years in the industry. She is the current Producing Stage Director of The Bracebridge Dinner at Yosemite for Andrea Fulton Productions and Co-Artistic Director of Splathouse Productions.
Sarah’s artistic journey began at the tender age of five when she first stepped onto the stage of community and regional theatre productions in her small Sierra Nevada hometown of Murphys, CA.
In her early 20s, Sarah began working with Impact Theatre of Berkeley, where she spent ten years as a proud company member, performing, stage managing, designing, and eventually directing 20+ shows. During this same period, Sarah also began working with Andrea Fulton Productions on The Bracebridge Dinner at Yosemite, initially as the Lighting Technician and eventually as the Producing Stage Director, a title she proudly holds today.
In her late 20s, Sarah embarked on a new chapter in her career, transitioning from theatre to film and video work. She worked on various productions in the Bay Area and Los Angeles. She co-founded Splathouse Productions, a collective dedicated to preserving the spirit of the B-movie on screen and stage. Under the Splathouse banner, Sarah co-directed and co-adapted three film/theatre hybrids of “B-Movie” classics, The Sadist, Eegah, and Plan 9 from Outerspace, in collaboration with Impact Theatre.
In 2017, Sarah’s first feature film, Medias Res, was released on Amazon Prime Video and was called “Gritty and Gripping” by The Daily Dead. Sarah produced, assistant directed, and starred in the film. 2017 also marked her return to her first love of live performance. Since her return to the stage, she has worked with San Fransico’s Awesome Theatre and Murphys Creek Theatre, and is currently the front-woman of the Bay Area-based rock band The Creepy Crawlies.
Robbie Allen – Shakespeare
Robbie is primarily an American TV/film and stage actor. His experience in the entertainment industry extends far beyond acting. He also directs and produces both TV/film and theatre, and has been an Art Director for several feature films and television shows. Film and Television credits include The Redeemer (Lead), City of Gold (Lead), The Silent Natural (Supporting), Lanterns Lane (Supporting), Wild West Chronicles (Guest), and more.
When he isn’t working on set, he loves to be on stage. Robbie previously served as Artistic Director at Murphys Creek Theatre for two years. Trained in classical theatre in New York, Shakespeare is one of his true passions. Some Regional Shakespeare credits include the titular role in Hamlet, Romeo in Romeo & Juliet, MacDuff in Macbeth, Oberon/Theseus in A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Benedick in Much Ado About Nothing, and Edmund in King Lear, among many others. His journey through Shakespeare’s characters has given him an awareness of the limitless depth of rich storytelling. He is excited to pass on this knowledge and passion to the next generation of American theatre artists.
Other Regional Credits include Sierra Repertory Theatre: The Christmas Foundling, The Full Monty Murphys Creek Theatre: The Whipping Man, The Mousetrap, Stage 3: Noises Off, The Crucible, Grapes of Wrath, The Foreigner, Barefoot in the Park.
Ashley Méndez – Set Design & Construction
Ashley is an actress, writer, and scenic designer. She holds a BA in Theatre Arts from California State University, Stanislaus. Her design work has been seen in venues across Northern California, including Cutting Ball Theatre, Magic Theatre, The Ashby Stage, and Prospect Theater Project. She has also worked in collaboration with In the Margin, TheatreSquared, Crowded Fire, and Shotgun Players, among others. Ashley’s artistry revolves around various themes, including the immigrant experience, women’s issues, mental health, queer lives, and the environment. Her selected works include the world premiere of Fran Astorga’s Exhaustion Arroyo: Dancing Trees in the Ravine directed by R. Réal Vargas Alanis, the west coast premiere of Mary Glen Fredrick’s Edit Annie directed by Nailah Harper-Malveaux and Leigh Rondon-Davis, and the world premiere of Deneen Reynolds-Knott’ s Babes in Ho-lland directed by Leigh Rondon-Davis.
Patrick Pearson – Audition & Callback Technique
Patrick Pearson is an Assistant Professor of Theatre and Musical Theatre at Sam Houston State University, where he teaches Directing, Acting, and Stage Management. He is also a freelance director and a member of the Stage Directors and Choreographers Society. Prior to coming to SHSU, he was the Director of Artistic Programming at Ford’s Theatre in Washington, DC, from 2013 to 2018. From 2004 to 2013, he was an adjunct professor and an award-winning freelance director in the Los Angeles/Orange County area. The Kennedy Center American College Theatre Festival has recognized his directorial work at the state, regional, and national levels, and he has served as a National Irene Ryan Acting Judge for several years. Patrick is a native Texan who is thrilled to be working with the next generation of artists.
Ambrose – Stage Combat, Fight Choreographer for A Midsummer Night’s Dream
Ambrose, a fight choreographer-director specializing in historic sword fights, has collaborated with Merced Shakespearefest and other theater companies, bringing thrilling and authentic combat scenes to the stage. With a deep passion for stage combat and extensive training in historical martial art forms, they have honed their skills to infuse each fight scene with a sense of dramatic tension and narrative significance, elevating the storytelling and captivating audiences with the artistry of combat. Dedicated to training actors and performers in the historic art of sword fighting, Ambrose conducts workshops and training sessions to instill a deep appreciation for historical martial arts. Her commitment to pushing the boundaries of stage combat and honoring the legacy of Shakespeare drives her to create dynamic and visceral fight scenes, contributing to the rich tradition of theater.
Kenny Fedorko – Playwriting & Text Analysis
Kenny Fedorko is very excited to be returning to Murphys Creek Theatre’s Summer on Stage for his second season! He holds an MFA in Acting from the FSU Asolo Conservatory for Actor Training. He has worked as a teaching artist with middle and high school students through Pennsylvania Shakespeare Festival and Hudson Valley Shakespeare Festival, as well as an instructor for the Colorado Shakespeare Festival’s Camp Shakespeare. His philosophy is twofold: first – to make Shakespeare understandable, relatable, and fun; second – to provide a space where kids can be wholeheartedly themselves and let loose while being creatively productive.
OFF-BROADWAY credits include Public Enemy and Vanity Fair (Obie Award-winning Pearl Theater Company). He has acted regionally with Curious Theater, Asolo Repertory Theatre, Colorado Shakespeare, Pennsylvania Shakespeare, Colorado New Play Festival, and Yosemite National Park.
FILM: Rachel Hendrix (dir. Victor Nunez). Kenny’s short film Impatience, which he wrote and starred in, was accepted to a half-dozen film festivals, including Bare Bones Film Fest. Additionally, his screenplay Elephant in the Room won the 2023 Best Screenplay Award at the 72 Hour-Kickass Film Festival. Kenny is the recipient of the Paul Newman Trophy for Best Actor at Kenyon College and is a professional clown who has performed 1,500 events in and around New York City. He is currently writing his first book about said foolishness and facilitates multiple writing groups around Denver, focusing on stream-of-consciousness storytelling and expression.
River Hawk – Sound Design
River Hawk is a musician and composer from California’s Central Valley. Though he started his work on stage acting, he quickly joined the band and began writing music and designing sound for shows at local theaters. Over the years, River has composed interludes and engineered sound for multiple productions at Center Stage Conservatory’s Lower Level Studio and the Prospect Theater Project in Modesto, as well as Stage 3 in Sonora. After picking up numerous instruments and playing countless gigs, he received his Bachelor of Music in Jazz Studies for saxophone from the University of the Pacific and Master of Music in Afro-Latin Music from California State University, Los Angeles. River has run a private lessons practice for nearly three years and recently joined the Musicology Academy as a remote instructor. He has experience teaching students between the ages of 8 and 70, covering diverse topics including but not limited to the saxophone, composition, arranging, songwriting, and audio engineering.
Talk to us
(209) 728-8422
Email info@murphyscreektheatre.org
Address 580 S. Algiers St.
Murphys, CA 95247