Creative Team

PAUL SLADE SMITH (Playwright) Paul Slade Smith was named one of "50 To Watch" -- "writers of exceptional merit and promise" -- by The Dramatist magazine in 2007. He turned to writing after fifteen years as an actor in Chicago, where his credits include the Goodman, Steppenwolf, and Chicago Shakespeare theatres. Unnecessary Farce, his second play, received four award nominations in its world premiere at Michigan's BoarsHead Theater. Mr. Smith's first play, Hymn & Carol, premiered at Chicago's Shattered Globe Theatre, and will be seen this season at the BoarsHead. His original song from that show, "Mary's Lullaby," was included on the CD Broadway's Greatest Gifts: Carols for a Cure 2007. Mr. Smith left Chicago to join the national tour of The Phantom of the Opera, which he left to join the national tour of Wicked, which he has yet to leave. The playwright is a member of the Dramatists Guild of America.

KRISTEN COURY (Director) is the Founder and Producing Artistic Director of Gulfshore Playhouse, and has directed all the productions thus far, including: Oleanna, Doubt: A Parable, Tartuffe, Married Alive!, A Doll's House, Beau Jest, and Romeo and Juliet: Redefined. For Hot Summer Nights at the Kennedy: Skylight, Five Women Wearing the Same Dress, and Oleanna. She made her feature film directorial debut with Friends and Family, a comedy starring Tony Lo Bianco and Tovah Feldshuh, which was released around the US and Europe, and can now be seen on DVD and Cable TV worldwide. Kristen directed the first production of Waiting for the Glaciers to Melt, a new musical by Tony Award®-Nominated Brian Lane Green. Kristen has directed several new works, produced a CD and worked on a variety of musicals in various stages of development, including Steel Pier on Broadway, a Broadway-workshop of The Jazz Singer and Houdini at the Goodspeed Opera House. Kristen worked in production/management for Walt Disney Theatrical Productions (working on international productions of Beauty and the Beast and King David), Andrew Lloyd Webber's Really Useful Company (Sunset Boulevard on Broadway and Joseph... on Tour), and for London's English Shakespeare Company in the Press and Marketing Department. Kristen was featured on the November 2008 issue of E Bella Magazine, has received the distinction as one of the "Top 40 Professionals Under 40" in 2008 by Gulfshore Life Magazine, and is listed in the Who's Who of American Women.

ROBERT F. WOLIN (Scenic Designer) Regional: Honour, A Doll's House (Gulfshore Playhouse), Comedy of Errors, Othello, Romeo and Juliet, Cymbeline (Alabama Shakespeare Festival), Anything Goes, Pump Boys and Dinettes, Much Ado About Nothing, Dames at Sea, Man of La Mancha, Amadeus and several others (Porthouse Theatre), Hello, Dolly!, Seven Brides for Seven Brothers (Gretna Playhouse), Dial M for Murder, Middle Ages, Sugar Bean Sisters, Boys Next Door, Absurd Person Singular (Florida Rep), A Number, Art, Three Days of Rain and several others (Northern Stage). Off Broadway: An Evening with Quentin Crisp, Fraulein Else, Queen of Hearts, Shivaree, and several productions for The Glines. Assistant Designer on Broadway: Young Frankenstein, The Producers, Flower Drum Song, Never Gonna Dance with Robin Wagner, Liza's at the Palace with Ray Klausen. Current project is designing all six productions for the Florida State University School of Theatre 2010-11 season. Other design work: All live-action shows and the Christmas show for Hershey Park 2006 and many events as a Freelance Art Director for MTV Networks Special Events. www.RFWolin.com

JENNIFER MURRAY (Costume Designer/Props Mistress) is thrilled to be returning to Gulfshore Playhouse!After graduating from Syracuse University with a B.F.A. in Design/Technical Theater, Jennifer has been fortunate enough to spend her time on the road working at various theaters along the east coast as a designer, stitcher, and wardrobe supervisor. She returns to Naples after spending the last six months working as the Wardrobe Supervisor for the Merry Go Round Playhouse in Auburn, NY. Jennifer would like to thank her GSPH family for the opportunity to work on this amazing season! www.jenniferannemurray.com

CURTIS LEE JONES (Technical Director/Lighting Designer) Curtis is happy to return to Naples for another exciting production with Gulfshore Playhouse. A graduate of East Carolina University with a BFA in Production and Design, Curtis has served as Technical Director for Hot Summer Nights at the Kennedy, the Orlando Shakespeare Festival The Opera Company of North Carolina and Florida Studio Theatre just to name a few. Curtis is also an accomplished scenic, lighting and sound designer whose work has been seen at many regional theatres and on several national tours. Past productions for Gulfshore Playhouse include: "Romeo and Juliet: Redefined", "Oleanna", "Life x 3", "Married Alive", "Another Night Before Christmas", "Doubt: a Parable" and "Tartuffe", "Honour", "Beau Jest" and "A Doll's House".

ANNA ALEX (Sound Designer) is excited to make her Gulfshore Playhouse debut! She is a recent graduate of Northern Kentucky University as a Corbett scholar. Her credits there include sound design for Urinetown: The Musical, Guys and Dolls, Taming of the Shrew, The Aaronsville Women, Shock and Awe, Nightjars and Cats. She also spent the last two years as Resident Sound Designer for New Stage Collective in Cincinnati where she worked on Caroline or Change, Bug, Take Me Out, Jerry Springer the Opera, and Striking 12. Most recently Peach State Summer Theatre used her skills as Sound Engineer/Designer for White Christmas, Disney's Mulan and Secret Garden. Love and thanks to my family for their support and Annie for always being by my side.

JOHN MURDOCK (Production Stage Manager) John is so thrilled to be joining everyone at Gulfshore. John now a NYC resident is also a proud Naples native, and couldn't be happier to be back. NYC Credits Include: Broadway: Finian's Rainbow, Broadway Beauty Pageant 2010, 2011, Broadway Backwards 5, Off-Broadway: Tess: A New Rock Opera (NYMF 2010), Loaded (w/ Kevin Spirtas), Fela!, Horton Foote's Orphan Home Play Cycle, Binding (3 Innovative Theatre Awards). John currently serves as the Production Stage Manager for ReVision Theatre in Asbury Park, NJ; previous productions at ReVision: The Rocky Horror Show, The Bikinis (World Premiere), The Who's Tommy, The Full Monty, Funny Girl, Kingdom. Special thanks to my sister Jessica for being my life long best friend, and to my amazing family for all of their support. John attended Baylor University. John is a proud member of SMA and AEA. John can be found on the web at www.johndmurdock.com

All Shows at The Norris Center:
755 8th Ave South, Naples FL 34102