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Season • Tickets • Core Artistic Company • About ATKC • Sponsors • Contact Us • Media Kit
Left to right: Walter Coppage, Tom Mardikes, Elizabeth Robbins, Gary Holcombe, James F. Mitchell, Mark Robbins, Greg Mackender, Gregg Markowski
and
Carol Patterson (not pictured)
Actors Theatre of KC recently appointed four new members to its team of Artistic Directors:
 Melinda McCrary |
 John Rensenhouse |
Walter Coppage, actor:
Walter has a distinguished career as an Equity Actor in Kansas City for the last 12 years. He has performed major roles in many Kansas City theatres. He’s also appeared in numerous national radio and television commercials, and has served for a number of years as the spokesperson for Children International. Walter is very active in the growing Kansas City film industry, performing in a number of feature films, TV movies, independent films and industrials. Some of his favorite stage roles include Eugene in Yellowman; Othello; Touchstone in As You Like It; Uncle Peck in How I Learned To Drive; Testifier Polyneices in The Gospel at Colonus; Mr. M in My Children! My Africa!; Buks in Valley Song; and Jekyll in The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. Walter’s performances have led the Kansas City Star to declare him “an up and coming talent to watch for”, “a delight to behold”, “one of KC’s finest actors”, and “arguably the most successful minority actor in the region”.
Gary Holcombe, actor:
Gary has been an artistic force in the community since moving to Kansas City from New York some 12 years ago. He has played major roles for every major theatre in Kansas City, and spent over 20 years working professionally on Broadway, in television and in film. Gary portrayed Scrooge for seven seasons with the Kansas City Rep, and has played major roles at the Rep for over ten seasons, appearing in three to four productions per season. He has been recognized with three “best actor” awards from the Squire, and one Drama Desk Award for his portrayal of John Barrymore in I Hate Hamlet. He most recently recreated his interpretation of Daddy Warbucks in Starlight Theatre’s production of Annie, a role he has recreated over fifteen hundred times. Gary will be seen in the upcoming premiere of Convenience at the Unicorn Theatre and continues to work as an artist in the Kansas City and St. Louis area. He now brings his expertise to the classroom, where he recently began teaching in the UMKC Department of Theatre, with the Graduate Training Program.
Greg Mackender, composer:
Greg has been a theatre composer for nearly 20 years and has worked extensively with the Missouri Repertory Theatre, Heart of American Shakespeare and the Coterie. He operates the successful production studio ReSounders, where he has created sound scores and compositions for numerous independent films, television programs and animated films.
Tom Mardikes, producer and sound designer:
Tom has long been a theatrical sound designer of national note, as well as chair and producer of the graduate theatre program at UMKC. For 20 years he was the resident sound designer for Missouri Rep( Emperor Jones, Indian Ink, The Tempest, Machinal, Death of a Salesman), has been resident designer for Heart of America Shakespeare since 1994 (Macbeth, Julius Caesar, Hamlet), and has designed in St. Louis, Cleveland, New York, Boise, Dallas, Houston, Santa Cruz, Miami and more. He served as a board member with the KC Spirit Festival (1992-1997).
Gregg Markowski, stage manager and lighting designer:
Gregg began his current position as the finance director of Kansas City Ballet in 1993 and completed his M.S. in Accounting from UMKC’s Bloch school in 1995. Mr. Markowski had a long and adventurous career as a stage manager and lighting designer for many performing arts companies including Kansas City Ballet, Creede Repertory Theatre, Yale Repertory Theatre, Missouri Repertory Theatre and the Ensemble Company for the Performing Arts before joining the administrative staff at Kansas City Ballet. Mr. Markowski received a M.F.A. from Yale (1988) and a B.A. in theatre from UMKC (1982).
James F. Mitchell, production manager and stage manager:
Jim has over 20 years experience in stage management, operating at the highest national level with Missouri Repertory Theatre and other theatre companies in the KC area. He has served as production manager for the Heart of America Shakespeare Festival, Dartmouth Summer Repertory Theatre and Creede Repertory Theatre, as well as the Kansas City Points of Light Celebration and Arts Fest at Crown Center. Stage management credits include King Lear, The Tempest, The Glass Menagerie, Oleanna, Romeo and Juliet, M Butterfly, Our Town, The Misanthrope, The Seagull, True West, Richard III, Three Tall Women, Hay Fever, Hamlet, Julius Caesar, Inherit the Wind, and A Christmas Carol.
John Rensenhouse, actor:
John was born and bred a Kansas Citian and returned to make his permanent residence here in ’97. He has traveled the country over working at many of the most prestigious theaters including the Oregon Shakespeare Festival, the Arena Stage in Washington D.C., Hartford Stage, the McCarter Theatre in New Jersey, Repertory Theatre of St. Louis, Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park, San Jose Rep, Milwaukee Rep and the Pioneer Theatre in Salt Lake City. He performed in the national Broadway tours of The Lion King and Noises Off and once upon a time was a loveable bad guy on a soap opera called The Edge of Night
Elizabeth Robbins, actor and guiding light:
Elizabeth was an Equity Actor for 24 years, having worked in Chicago, San Diego and Kansas City. For her last 16 years she made her home in Kansas City, where she performed leading roles for all major professional theatres. Notable roles include Isabella in Measure for Measure, Beatrice in Much Ado About Nothing, Rosalind in As You Like It, and the title role in Molly Sweeney. She has been the recipient of numerous “Best of Kansas City” acting awards, including "Best Supporting Actress" for her portrayal of Mae Pollitt in Cat on a Hot Tin Roof and "Best Actress in a Comedy" for her role as Teresa in Memory of Water. Elizabeth taught acting and voice and speech courses at various educational institutions in the Greater Kansas City Area with students ranging from elementary school to college, and has conducted theatre workshops from Jacksonville, Florida all the way to San Luis Obispo, California.
Elizabeth passed away on July 11, 2006, but her indomitable spirit continues to inspire and motivate the company in its ongoing mission. Fino a domani.
Mark Robbins, actor and director:
Mark has been an Equity Actor for the past 28 years, with more that 125 professional roles to his credit, performing in Chicago, Boston, Phoenix, Tucson, St. Louis and Kansas City. He has performed leading roles as Macbeth, Oedipus, and Richard III, and has worked as a leading actor for every major professional theatre in Kansas City. He is a director of note in Kansas City, having directed for the Unicorn Theatre (where he received a Best of Kansas City award for Best Director), the American Heartland Theatre, UMKC's Graduate Training Program, and the Heart of America Shakespeare Festival.