Westport Country Playhouse announces its 2022 Joanne Woodward Internship class of seven theater career aspirants who will enhance their professional skills and gain on-the-job experience working directly with Playhouse senior staff from June through mid-August. The seven interns were selected from nearly 250 applicants.
Named in honor of actress, director, and the Playhouse’s former artistic director, the Joanne Woodward Internship program is one of the nation’s preeminent theater training opportunities for emerging professionals. Internships have formed a vital part of the Playhouse’s mission since 1946. Among the alumni of the Playhouse’s program is composer Stephen Sondheim.
“We are thrilled to welcome our new interns to the Westport Country Playhouse,” said Jenny Nelson, who is the Roz and Bud Siegel director of education and community engagement at the Playhouse. “It is our hope that these talented, young people will gain authentic knowledge about their craft as well as offer guidance to our staff about ways we can amplify young people in our community through the art of theater.”
Westport Country Playhouse’s 2022 Woodward Internship class:
Corinne Brager, company management intern from Richmond, VA, is a senior at Elon University, pursuing a double major in arts administration with a management concentration and drama theater studies with a dance minor. She has worked in administration, advisory, and audition management. Her experience in both performance and administration fuels her passion for new works and creating inclusive theater communities.
Christopher Conte, marketing intern from Darien, CT, is a rising junior at Sacred Heart University with a double major in strategic communications, PR & advertising, and musical theater. He is actively involved with his university’s theater arts program, currently serving as the co-recruitment chair. He has worked in many different areas of theater including acting, directing, costume design, and stage management.
Kathryn Duffner, wardrobe intern from Middletown, CT, recently graduated with a BA in theater from Southern Connecticut State University where she was awarded the Theatre Scholar Award and summa cum laude Latin honors. During her time at SCSU, she held the positions of president and costume crew head for her campus’s drama club, The Crescent Players.
Alix Livermore, development intern from Marblehead, MA, is currently a sophomore at Wesleyan University studying theater and biology. This past year, she acted in student productions playing a grandma, a young boy, and a judge. In her free time, she enjoys running, baking, and trying to find really old books.
Nick Nuñez, education intern from Stratford, CT, is a sophomore theater performance major at Wagner College in Staten Island, NY. He has been a part of the performing arts community for years. His most recent credits include “The Last Days of Judas Iscariot” and “The Other Shore & Dance Project 2021” with Wagner College Theatre. He has worked with students of all ages since he was a freshman in high school at various camps and schools. During the winter of 2021, he organized and facilitated a 4th-8th grade student online theater workshop with the Stratford Recreation Department and throughout the year works in their arts department.
Nick Schons, props intern from Fargo, ND, recently graduated from Concordia College in Moorehead, MN, with a bachelor of arts in theater. He works as a freelance scenic designer and scenic artist in the upper Midwest and recently returned from being a scenic artist at the Utah Shakespeare Festival for their 60th Anniversary season. www.nickschons.weebly.com
Abigail Wilson, stage management intern from South Salem, NY, is a rising senior at Pomona College in Claremont, CA, majoring in math and theater, with a focus in stage management. Her recent credits include “House of Desires” on the Pomona College Mainstage, and an outdoor dual student thesis production of “Twelfth Night.” She has been working in technical theater since middle school,
In addition to immersive work in their respective departments, interns attend weekly seminars featuring a variety of guest speakers, including Playhouse staff members, visiting designers and artists, commercial producers, and more. Interns receive a living wage stipend and housing in Fairfield, CT.
The 2022 interns were hired through the Playhouse’s recently restructured recruiting process to promote equity, diversity, and inclusion in the workplace. Hiring panels, comprised of the department’s manager, other department members, and a staff member from a different department, carefully reviewed all applications and asked identical questions of all candidates, creating an equitable environment.
In addition to the Woodward Internships, the Playhouse supports the Staples High School and Fairfield Ludlowe High School Senior Experience programs, in Westport and Fairfield, CT, respectively, designed for seniors to gain a comprehensive overview of an organization and real-world experience prior to graduation. This year’s Playhouse participants are Leah Chapman from Staples, and Sophia DelGuadio from Fairfield Ludlowe.
Woodward Internship Program sponsors include Anna Czekaj-Farber. Support for the 2022 Education and Community Engagement Program comes from the Eunice and David Bigelow Foundation; Stephen Corman; Anna Czekaj-Farber; The David and Geri Epstein Foundation; George A. and Grace L. Long Foundation; Judy and Scott Phares; Adolph and Ruth Schnurmacher Foundation, Inc.; and Roz and Bud Siegel. 2022 Season Media Sponsors are Moffly Media and WSHU Public Radio.
Westport Country Playhouse’s 2022 season includes the Tony Award® and Pulitzer Prize-winning pop/rock musical, “Next to Normal,” about a family’s loss and their endurance with music by Tom Kitt, book and lyrics by Brian Yorkey, and directed and choreographed by Marcos Santana, April 5 through April 24; “Straight White Men,” about a father’s relationship with his three adult sons, written by Young Jean Lee and directed by Mark Lamos, May 24 through June 5; “Kim’s Convenience,” a comedy that inspired a Netflix series about a Korean family who own a Toronto convenience store, written by Ins Choi and directed by Nelson T. Eusebio III, July 5 through July 17; Obie Award winner and Pulitzer Prize finalist “4000 Miles,” about two unlikely roommates, written by Amy Herzog and directed by David Kennedy, August 23 through September 4; and Los Angeles Drama-Logue winner and Pulitzer Prize nominee “From the Mississippi Delta,” an inspiring coming-of-age journey, written by Dr. Endesha Ida Mae Holland and directed by Goldie E. Patrick,October 18 through October 30. The complete schedule is available at www.westportplayhouse.org. All play titles, artists, dates, and formats are subject to change.
All audience members are required to show proof of vaccination and to wear masks while inside the Playhouse to ensure the actors stay safe and healthy to avoid performance cancellations. For updates on Covid-19 health and safety protocols at the Playhouse, visit https://www.westportplayhouse.org/visit/covid19safety/
