Andrew May

Andrew is very happy to be back at Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park, where he was last seen in productions of Murder on the Orient Express and Circle Mirror Transformation. Other credits include the Broadway national tour of War Horse, Williamstown Theatre Festival, Pearl Theater, Milwaukee Repertory Theater (six seasons), Great Lakes Theatre (nine seasons), Utah Shakespeare Festival (three seasons), Idaho Shakespeare Festival (five seasons), Studio Theatre DC, Barrington Stage Company, Goodman Theatre, Cleveland Play House (six seasons), City Theater Company (four seasons); and many more. Film and television credits include Striking Distance, Big Love, 227, Duet, Babe Ruth and What She Doesn’t Know. He would like to dedicate his performance to Dr. Lezlie Cross whose love and support means everything to him. XOX!

Burgess Byrd

Burgess is delighted to be returning to the Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park, last seen as Headmistress Francis in School Girls; Or, The African Mean Girls Play in the 2021-2022 season. Select regional credits include Cynthia in Sweat and Faye Davison in Skeleton Crew (Ensemble Theatre); Lilli-Anne in Barbeque (Human Race Theatre); Lena Younger in Raisin in the Sun and Mrs. Prism in Importance of Being Earnest (Cincinnati Shakespeare Company); Miss Leah in Flying West (Falcon Theatre); Washing Machine in Caroline or Change (New Stage Collective); and the one-person solo performances as Charlayne Woodard in Pretty Fire and Neat (Know Theatre of Cincinnati). As a guest artist, Burgess played Shylock in Merchant of Venice (The University of Texas at Austin) and Rose in Fences (University of Wisconsin – Madison). Film Credits include Inconceivable, Bones and All and the upcoming film, Challengers.

Kevin Cristaldi

Kevin is pleased to return to Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park, where he last appeared in The West End, and played the evil Bob Ewell in To Kill a Mockingbird. New York credits include (A)loft Modulation (the american vicarious), A Peregrine Falls (Loading Dock Theatre), A Midsummer Night’s Dream (Masterworks Theater Company), A Dish for the Gods (Lion Theatre), Message to Michael (Rattlestick Playwrights Theater) and The Dirty Talk (Center Stage). Regional credits include When I Come to Die (Kansas City Repertory Theatre), The Exonerated (Florida Studio Theatre), Last of the Red Hot Lovers (Schoolhouse Theater), An Actor’s Carol (Cape May Stage), The Dumb Waiter (Hudson Theatre Works), Eddie Legs (Lillian Theatre, Los Angeles), The Miser (Hartford Stage), The Importance of Being Earnest (Two River Theater), Hamlet (Arden Theatre Company) and The Last Station (Vermont Stage). On television, he has appeared in Succession, The Blacklist, Numbers, Medium, The Unit, Gilmore Girls, Criminal Minds and Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Visit www.KevinCristaldi.com.

R. Ward Duffy

Ward is overjoyed to be returning to the Playhouse for his ninth production, having previously appeared in Alias Grace, To Kill a Mockingbird, Speaking in Tongues, Othello, The Understudy, A Flea in Her Ear, The Caine Mutiny Court Martial and A Christmas Carol (1994 – Yikes!). In New York, he has appeared at Manhattan Theatre Club, Lincoln Center, New Dramatists and Cherry Lane Theatre, among others. Most recently, Ward has appeared in the world premiere of Kathryn Chetkovich’s The Formula and The Tempest (Santa Cruz Shakespeare); and TheaterSquared’s world premiere of Linda Bloodworth-Thomasons’ play Designing Women. Other regional credits include the world premieres of Love (Marin Theatre Company); When Tang Met Laika (Denver Center Theater); productions for the Repertory Theatre of St. Louis; Portland Center Stage; Hartford TheaterWorks; George Street Playhouse; Kansas City, Indiana, Asolo and Merrimack Repertory Theatres; and The Old Globe. On television, he plays Deputy Director John Van Leer on FBI and FBI: International. Other credits include Madame Secretary, Blindspot, Blue Bloods, Shades of Blue and Law & Order (Criminal Intent and SVU). He lives in New York city with his wife, actress Henny Russell, and their dog, Bailey.

Kenneth Early

Kenneth is honored to be a part of the cast of A Christmas Carol here at Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park. He has been seen in Playhouse productions including Once On This Island, Misery, To Kill a Mockingbird and Jitney. Some of his other regional credits include Who All Over There, Pipeline, Red Velvet, The Whipping Man, Grey Gardens, Dancing Princesses and Alice in Wonderland (Ensemble Theatre Cincinnati); Taming of the Shrew, Macbeth, Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom, Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner and Of Mice and Men (Cincinnati Shakespeare Company).

Annie Fitzpatrick

Annie is delighted to return to Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park after appearing in Alias Grace, A Prayer for Owen Meany, To Kill a Mockingbird, Pride and Prejudice, Hank Williams: Lost Highway and seven seasons of A Christmas Carol. She was a founding member of The New Group Theater Company in New York City and toured both nationally and internationally with Murder a La Carte. Regionally, Annie has performed at The Repertory Theatre of St. Louis, Geva Theatre Center, Florida Stage, Florida Studio Theatre, Cincinnati Shakespeare Company, Know Theatre of Cincinnati, Port- house Theatre and The Human Race Theatre Company. Television and film credits include Chicago P.D., Army Wives, Those Who Kill, Fun Size, Milk Money, Broken Hearts, The Old Man and The Gun, Dark Waters, White Noise and the upcoming films Mr. Manhattan and Hauntology.

Ryan Wesley Gilreath

Ryan is grateful to be returning to the Playhouse as Bob Cratchit for the excit- ing new telling of this fantastic story. His television and film credits include Bike Riders (with Austin Butler); Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil and Vile (Netflix); Forrest Mars in The Food That Built America; Jack Miller in TURN; Robert Op- penheimer in American Genius; Charles “Doc” Robinson in Gold Fever and the pilot Guilty (FOX). Theatre credits include Ensemble Theatre Cincinnati (Maytag Virgin, Riptide, Tribes, Other Desert Cities, Next Fall, 33 Variations and Mary’s Wedding), The Human Race Theatre Company, Seven Angels Theatre and Florida Repertory Theatre. He recently completed writing the feature horror film Sourland, as well The Toys That Built America and The Food That Built America (History Channel). Big thanks to family, friends, Blake and the Playhouse family. Ryan hopes this story ignites love and caring throughout the year. Happy holidays! He can be found (sometimes) on Instagram @Wildwesleyjames.

Shonita Joshi

Zane Kramer

Zane is excited to make his Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park debut. He is currently a second grader at Terrace Park Elementary. His previous theatre credits include Sven in Frozen, Rooster in Annie and Pongo in 101 Dalmatians (Performing Arts Inc. in Anderson, Ohio). Zane is also a swimmer, soccer player and LEGO lover. He would like to dedicate his performance to his family and friends who have been supportive in helping him achieve his acting dreams. Follow him on Instagram @thezanekramer.

Taha Mandviwala

Taha is delighted to return for this new chapter of A Christmas Carol at Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park! He is a BA theatre graduate from the University of Kentucky, and he was a member of the 2016-17 Bruce E. Coyle Acting Intern Company at the Playhouse. Taha recently made his Broadway debut in Life of Pi in New York City. Regional credits include Murder on the Orient Express and past seasons of A Christmas Carol (Cincinnati Playhouse); Tiny Beautiful Things (Ensemble Theatre Cincinnati); The Taming of the Shrew and Witness for the Prosecution (Great Lakes Theater and Idaho Shakespeare Festival); and Romeo & Juliet and Love’s Labour’s Lost (Santa Cruz Shakespeare Festival). Taha also enjoys his time as a personal trainer for his coaching business, Koalaty Movement, and is passionate in bringing parkour into the arts community. Be sure to follow him on Instagram @manlykoala or visit tahamandviwala.com for more!

Grace Manning

Grace is thrilled to be making her Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park debut in A Christmas Carol. She is a seventh grader who loves singing, dancing, reading, traveling and musicals/theatre. Her previous play credits include Charlotte in Cinderella, Brigitta in Sound of Music, Shawanda in Elf the Musical Jr, the youth ensemble of The Wiz Jr and Joseph in the Technicolor Dreamcoat. She would like to thank the cast, crew and production team for this exciting and fun opportunity. Grace would also like to thank her family and friends for their love and support.

Kelly Mengelkoch

Kelly is so happy to return to share this wonderful holiday story! As a resident ensemble member at Cincinnati Shakespeare Company, she has recently per- formed in The Importance of Being Earnest and The Rewards of Being Frank (which was a co-production with New York Classical Theatre, off-Broadway at the A.R.T. theatre in New York City). Recently, she has been seen in Let the Right One In (University of Cincinnati College Conservatory of Music) and This Is Tom Jones! (The Human Race Theatre Company). Locally, she has also worked with Ensemble Theatre Cincinnati, Know Theatre of Cincinnati, New Stage Collective and Xavier University. Her film credits include Dark Waters, Perception, Old Man and the Gun, A Kind of Murder, Healing River and C.S.A.: The Confederate States of America. Visit her website at kellymengelkoch.com.

Dina Monk

Dina is thrilled to return to Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park for another festive season, after appearing as Mrs. Fezziwig in Mr. and Mrs. Fezziwig’s Holiday Party last season. Chicago credits include Private Lives (Raven Theatre), Jane Austen’s Emma and A Midsummer Night’s Dream (First Folio Theatre), The Madness of Edgar Allan Poe: A Love Story (Oak Park Festival Theatre) and Southern Gothic (Windy City Playhouse). Regional credits include As You Like It: Books in Brooks (Montana Shakes!) and The Winter’s Tale and Love’s Labour’s Lost (Notre Dame Shakespeare Festival). You can also see her in the IMAX film Dinosaur Discoveries: A Holographic Adventure playing at the Houston Museum of Natural Science. She received her BFA in Acting from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign and completed the Midsummer in Oxford program with the British American Drama Academy in association with Yale School of Drama. Dina is represented by Heyman Talent Agency. She thanks her family and friends for their love and support, especially Mary, Maggie, David and Lakmal, who made this possible. You can visit dinamonk.com for updates.

Maggie Lou Rader

Jefferson A. Russell

Jefferson is pleased to be returning to Cincinnati for the holidays. Previous Playhouse credits include Jitney, Shakespeare in Love and Two Trains Running (a co-production with Milwaukee Rep). Regional credits include Everyman Theatre (Resident Company member), The Lion in Winter, Sense and Sensibility, The Skin of Our Teeth, Flyin’ West, Pipeline, Murder on the Orient Express, Gem of the Ocean and Blues for an Alabama Sky. Additional credits include Shakespeare in Love (Baltimore Center Stage); Fences and Ragtime (Ford’s Theatre); Father Comes Home from the Wars, Two Trains Running, Ironbound, Fahrenheit 451 (Round House Theatre); as well as productions at Arena Players, American Players Theatre, Hangar Theatre, Signature Theatre, Marin Theatre, Olney Theatre, Pioneer Theatre, Rep Stage, Folger Theatre, Woolly Mammoth Theatre, Dallas Theatre Center, Goodman Theatre and Gulfshore Playhouse. Voicework includes Circle Round and Who, When, Wow Podcasts. National Tours include Harlem and Color Me Dark at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts. Jefferson earned a BA from Hampton University in Sociology and Criminal Justice, an MFA from George Washington University Academy of Classical Acting. He is a former Baltimore police officer and a founding member of Galvanize, a network for Artists of Color.

Aaron Schilling

Aaron is thrilled to be back at Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park after performing in last year’s production of Murder on the Orient Express. Originally from Northern Kentucky, he has spent the last few years performing in the Atlanta area. Regional credits include Titanic, Ragtime, The Seagull, Shenandoah and Sleepy Hollow (Serenbe Playhouse); Macbeth, Romeo and Juliet, Journey’s End (Atlanta Shakespeare Company); The Wickhams: Christmas at Pemberley (Theatrical Outfit); and La Cage Aux Folles (Out Front Theatre Company). He was most recently seen in Cincinnati Landmark Production’s The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee at the Incline Theater. Aaron received his BFA in Performing Arts at Western Kentucky University and spent a year touring with the Atlanta Shakespeare Company. Endless love and gratitude to my incredible family, friends and my future wife, HB, and thank you to everyone out there supporting live theatre.

Seava Sierra King

Seava is thrilled to make her Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park debut. She is currently a seventh grader at Villa Madonna Academy. Her credits include Young Don and Youth Ensemble in Singing in the Rain (The Carnegie), Sarah Brown in Guys and Dolls, Jr. (Northern Kentucky University’s MainStage) and Melody in Musicville (The Carnegie). Seava acts, dances, sings and plays piano. She has appeared in television commercials, print ads and runway modeling. Seava would like to thank her team: Mama, Daddy, Grandma, Jonnie-Lynn, Mrs. Slater and Chelsea, for her current success.

Zach Stone

Zach is thrilled to be making his Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park debut! He is an actor, director and teaching artist based out of Louisville, KY. Recent credits include Nick Bottom in A Midsummer Night’s Dream (three witches shakespeare); various characters in North by Night: More Heroes of the Underground Railroad, Black History Hall of Fame and Rosa Parks & Friends (Bright Star Touring Theatre); and Yank in The Hairy Ape (Bootstraps Louisville). Zach holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Theatre Arts from the University of Louisville. He currently works as an Administrative Associate at Commonwealth Theatre Center, where he also teaches conservatory classes and outreach programming. Zach would like to thank his family, friends, mentors, cat and most importantly, their partner Caisey for their constant support. They would also love it if you followed them on Instagram @zstoneactor. Enjoy the show!

Rory Sheridan

Rory is pleased as punch to be making his Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park debut. Local credits include Brighton Beach Memoirs (The Human Race Theatre Company), Neverwhere (Know Theatre of Cincinnati), A Few Good Men (Cincinnati Landmark Productions), Cabaret (Warsaw Federal Incline Theater), The Pillowman (Falcon Theater) and Saint Joan (Diogenes Theatre Company). Other credits include Heimwehen (FFT in Düsseldorf, Germany), Death of Nations (Performance Space 122), The Conveniences of Modern Living (New York City International Fringe Festival) and The Prince Hamlet (WhyNot Theatre in Toronto). He is a graduate of New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts and New York Law School. He lives in Cincinnati with his wife, Alice, and two cats. Follow him on instagram @rorysnake, @hellisemptycomic or @machocatcomics.

Oscar Syroney

Oscar is thrilled to be making his Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park and profession- al debut in this new production of A Christmas Carol. He has previously enjoyed summer camps at the Playhouse and Cincinnati Shakespeare Company, where he played Prospero in The Tempest, Mal in The Addams Family and Cedric in Puffs. Oscar also played Donkey in his school production of Shrek the Musical Jr. He is an eighth grader at Walnut Hills High School and, in his free time, loves gaming, listening to music and watching movies. He dedicates his performance to his sister, dad, mom and dog, Sophie.