Meet our Staff - Cape Fear Regional Theatre

About Us

Meet the Staff

Artistic Director

Mary Catherine Burke, a Connecticut native, is a graduate of Southern Methodist University in Dallas, Texas. She joins CFRT after nearly 20 years of experience as a Director, Dramaturge, Assistant Director, and Artistic Director. She got her start as an Assistant Director to film legend Arthur Penn (director of “Bonnie & Clyde” and “The Miracle Worker”) working on the two-time TONY-Award-winning Broadway production of Fortune’s Fool. She also assistant directed for Jonathan Lynn (“My Cousin Vinny”, “Clue”, and “The Whole Nine Yards”) on the off-Broadway production of A Mother. A Daughter. And A Gun. starring Olympia Dukakis.

She came to CFRT from Dede Harris Productions, an 11-time, TONY Award-winning commercial producing office. She served as the Director of Programming for the New York Musical Theatre Festival (NYMF), the largest musical theatre festival in the United States. Burke spearheaded the effort to create autism friendly performances for the children’s series at NYMF, and raised foundation funding to underwrite these performances. Her tenure oversaw the most shows that went on to subsequent production or commercial licensing.

As a director she has worked commercially including Nick Jr. Live’s Move to the Music, a national tour of nine of your favorite Nickelodeon brands, which is toured across the country in 2020. At Regional Theatres such as The REV, Amphibian Stage Productions, Mile Square Theatre and The Goodspeed Opera House, and in NYC at The New York Musical Theatre Festival, The Flea Theatre, Loft 227, Studio TISCH, ARS NOVA, EST, Theatre for a New City, Vital Theatre Company, she loves to work on style hybrids and the development of new plays and musicals. Her work has been hailed as “the next off-Broadway hit” by the NY Times, “extraordinary” by The NJ Star Ledger and “Incisive” by the Dallas Morning News.

At CFRT she has directed Music City, Clue, The Unofficial Bridgerton Musical Party, and The Addams Family. During her 7-year tenure the organization’s budget has grown from 1.3MM annually to over 2MM annually and increased the number of people served from 43,000 to over 60,000. She is passionate about theatres reflecting the community they serve. She is a #proudstagemom to Rolo, her 8-pound Morkie who has now graced the CFRT stage in three productions!

Managing Director

Ella Wrenn joins with a decade of experience as an arts administrator both in non-profit regional theaters and commercial NYC productions. She received her degree in Theatre Arts/Business from The University of Puget Sound in Tacoma, WA. Prior to her arrival at CFRT, Ella worked as a Company Manager with Brierpatch Productions in NYC on the off-Broadway productions of The Other Josh Cohen and Cagney: The Musical. She also toured with Interactive Introverts, the live tour created by YouTube sensations Dan & Phil. While she comes to CFRT most recently from a commercial background, her passion for live theatre finds its truest expression in non-profit regional theatres, where service and community are at the core of producing.

Administration:

Marc de la Concha, Education Director
Ashley Nicholl Owen, Marketing Director
Tierra Holmes, Business Manager
Rosalind Arango, Development Associate
Jennifer Sell, Education Associate
Sean-Riley Cunningham, Company Manager
Martha Conti, Bookkeeper
Janis Long, Box Office Manager
Sarah Rauenzahn, Facilities Associate
Willie Wright, House Manager
Craig Adams, House Manager
Deb O’Neil, Concessions
Joyce Shakir, Concessions

Production:

Charles Johnson, Production Manager
Nat Conti, Technical Director
Troy Morelli, Lighting & Sound Supervisor
David Louder, Costume Shop Manager
Zachary Finch, Master Carpenter
John F. O’Neil, Production Stage Manager
Jessica Wexler, Stage Manager
Erin Burkhardt, Sound Mixer

About Us

Meet the Staff

Artistic Director

Managing Director

About CFRT

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