The EastLine Theatre Board of Directors is Larry Meneses, Matt Rosenberg, Nicholas Ciuffo, and Nicole Savin
EastLine Theatre’s Artistic Director is Nicole Savin
EastLine Theatre’s Associate Artistic Director is Paul DeFilippo
The EastLine Theatre Creative Associates are: Abi Alam, Anjor Khadilkar, Anna Stacy, Aly Kantor, Anthony Noto (Media Director), David Bullen, Deanna Ibrahim, Jill Linden, John Brautigam, Lynn Adler, Matt Rosenberg (Production Manager), Melanie Lipton, Michelle Osojnak, Remi Watts (Technical Director), and Sheilah Barksdale.
Anna Stacy (they/them) is an actor, musician, graphic designer, and medical student from New York. Favorite credits include Touchstone (As You Like It, Match: Lit), Marc Antony (Julius Caesar, Hamlet Isn’t Dead), and Jess (Ugly Lies the Bone, Rites and Reason Theatre). Offstage and outside the hospital, Anna loves horror movies, regardless of quality. For more of what Anna does when they should be studying, check out their website.
Aly Kantor (she/her) is a theatre-maker from Massapequa Park and has been involved with EastLine since 2015. As a performer, you may have seen her on stage in Amadeus, All in the Timing, Laughter on the 23rd Floor, Our Leading Lady, Kimberly Akimbo, The Truth, and 2019’s Shakespeare in Repertory productions. Aly is also an internationally produced, award-winning playwright with multiple works in print through Smith & Kraus and Applause Books. Many of her full-length works began their developmental journey on the EastLine stage, including You Enter the Tavern (formerly Adventurers Anonymous), These Gilded Souls, Blowhole, and The Care and Feeding of Restless Spirits. She hopes to continue writing and developing stories with her EastLine collaborators for years to come! You can find Aly’s work on NPX.
Anthony Noto (he/him) is a singer, actor, music composer, video editor, and director. He is currently the lead singer of the internationally touring rock band Blue Movie. For EastLine he has previous appeared in Amadeus, Columbinus, Treasure Island, and Hand to God. More at his website here.
David Bullen (he/him) is a writer, director, dramaturg, and academic based in the UK. He has a PhD from Royal Holloway, University of London, where he is Lecturer in Drama and Theatre. As with Nicole Savin, he is a co-founder of London-based Theatre of the Gentle Furies; he has been company co-director since 2011. David’s creative and academic interests primarily lie in the adaptation of myth, especially from feminist, queer, and eco-critical perspectives. For EastLine, he has adapted Sophocles’ Antigone (2019) and Aeschylus’ Oresteia (2021). Outside of theatre he can most often be found walking in the woods with his real obsession, his dog Diana.
Deanna Ibrahim (she/her) is an artist, researcher, and educator. She is currently an Assistant Professor at the University of Pittsburgh, where she leverages research to highlight the implications of arts programming for positive youth development and social change. She began performing in musical theater at a young age (Evita, Gateway Playhouse), but soon became involved in theatre for social change as a founding member of Girl Be Heard (Brooklyn, NY). While pursuing a BA in Theatre and Psychology (Muhlenberg College), Deanna used theatre to advocate for gender and racial equity at the White House and United Nations (Switzerland). Drawn to EastLine’s innovative, egalitarian work, Deanna has played Ophelia in Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead (2015), Jane Bennet in Pride & Prejudice (2021), and Catherine in These Gilded Souls (2022).
John Brautigam (he/him) is a composer, lyricist, and musician based on Long Island. He has composed and music directed for many EastLine shows including Antigone, Treasure Island, Buried Child, Macbeth, The Legend of Sleepy Hollow, and Prospero (LIVE!). Aside from his writing, John is a regular at local open mics, directs the Long Island Silent Film Orchestra (LISFO), and plays trombone in the ska/punk band The Going Rate. He enjoys acting onstage whenever he can find the time. More at jbrautigam.com
Larry Meneses (he/him) comes to the EastLine Theatre Board of Directors as an avid supporter, contributor, and fan. His first EastLine show was Gross Indecency and he has been coming back ever since. In addition, Larry brings many years of experience working with not-for-profit and community organizations, in politics, and with government. Larry’s love of theater began when he was eight years old, after his parents took him to see the original Broadway stage production of Bye Bye Birdie. His interest grew at Oceanside High School where he studied with Barry H. Kaplan and at Livingston College in New Jersey, where he studied with Eric Krebs, the founder of the George Street Playhouse. Larry also studied under Peter Lozado at the La Mama Experimental Theater. Recently retired from the Suffolk County Dept. of Labor, Licensing and Consumer Affairs where he worked as a Senior Neighborhood Aide in the Suffolk Works Employment Program (SWEP) helping clients who were engaged in school and vocational training, Larry looks forward to devoting his time and energy to support EastLine Theatre. Larry is the chair of EastLine’s Hispanic Heritage programming.
Lynn Adler (she/her) has been messing around with fabric, thread, paint and more for decades and costume design provides a lovely canvas on which to share her passion. She has costumed for theatres across the country and has been costuming for EastLine since 2018. Lynn also plays the French horn and she holds both a B.A. in Classical Studies from Columbia University and a Master’s level USCG Captain’s License.
Matt Rosenberg (he/him) is a stage manager, actor, and director who has been working in Long Island theatre for more than a decade. He has stage managed over eighty productions across Long Island, and has been with EastLine since 2015. As an actor, Matt has appeared in The Normal Heart, The Butler Did It, and Antigone. Favorite directorial productions for EastLine include The Best Man, The Long Christmas Dinner, and On Golden Pond. Matt studied Technical Theatre at Hofstra University and resides in Island Park. Reach him at matt@eastlinetheatre.org
Melanie Lipton (she/her) is an actor, singer and occasional dancer. She has performed on Long Island for nearly thirty years, and has been happily associated with EastLine (God of Vengeance, Body Awareness, Indecent) since 2018. A graduate of Syracuse University with a BFA in Musical Theatre, she has appeared in regional, stock, and dinner theatre here and in the Midwest, and spent two seasons as a choreographer and teacher at Stagedoor Manor Performing Arts Center. She can be found on a variety of social media platforms as @modhousewife.
Michelle Osojnak (she/her) is an actor at heart, teacher by profession from Queens, NY. She first stepped onto the (digital) EastLine stage through their 2021 Muse Anthology, where she provided voice acting and likeness for Paul DeFilippo’s film, Policy. Michelle has Paul to thank for introducing her to the EastLine family and loving every moment since. Other credits Michelle has contributed to EastLine through the years have been An Oresteia, or What We Have Seen (2021); The Two Gentlemen of Verona (2022); These Gilded Souls: A Jazz Age Ghost Story (2022); The Merry Wives of Windsor (2023); and Hamlet (2024). Over Michelle’s decade-long acting endeavor, she has appeared in original short films for Paper Table Productions and acted in shows like Fiddler on the Roof, Oklahoma!, Three Sisters, Machinal, Gloria, and The Crucible among others. EastLine has given Michelle a home beyond community and college theatre, a sanctuary outside of work, and enriched her life in more ways than she can put into words. Happy to be here!
Nicholas Ciuffo (he/him) is a product security expert and passionate supporter of the arts. Nicholas is a Stony Brook University Alumni and serves as the Lead Product Manager for Platform Security at Microsoft. He joined the EastLine board in 2024 and brings with him an extensive background in technology and security, working to ensure fair, safe, and innovative digital spaces for communities worldwide. As a regular patron of theatre and sometimes pit orchestra performer, Nicholas is thrilled to contribute to EastLine’s mission, championing accessible and transformative storytelling for all. His interests include merging technology with the arts, and exploring ways to make the theatre experience even more engaging and inclusive for modern audiences. Nicholas spends a lot of time cooking and hosting dinner parties, playing tennis, and experimenting with new technologies.
Nicole Savin (she/her) is a theatre-maker from the south shore of Long Island. She holds a BA (Hons) in Drama and Theatre Studies from Royal Holloway, University of London. She has been an EastLine contributor since 2016 and has directed or co-directed productions of Trouble in Mind, Treasure Island, The Truth, Pride & Prejudice, An Oresteia, Long Ago and Far Away, and the infamous Yiddish play God of Vengeance. Favourite EastLine acting roles have included Laura Wingfield, one of a passel of Cyranos, Chana in Indecent, Jill in Equus, and Mrs. Givings in the vibrator play,. Her interests include theatre history, musical theatre, Yiddish theatre, and site-specific performance. Her theatre practise is whimsical, inclusive, and based in re-invention. She is a founding member of the London-based Theatre of the Gentle Furies and spends a lot of her time watching Turner Classic Movies (pre-codes only). Drop a line to nicole@eastlinetheatre.org
Paul DeFilippo (he/him) is an actor, director, playwright, and occasional set designer from Queens, NY. He wrote, directed, and acted in the full-length film Policy, which premiered as part of EastLine’s Muse Anthology. As an actor, he has appeared in numerous productions at Queens College, where he also directed productions of Three Sisters and The Crucible. His best friend is Danielle.
Remi Watts (she/they) is a dedicated lighting, sound, and set designer. She has been working in the theatre since she was young. Her favorite credits include Treasure Island, Peter and the Starcatcher, Cabaret, and Amadeus. Her interests outside of theatre include music, philosophy, and video games. She enjoys creating imaginative and uncommon worlds through her use of technical theatre, but most of all enjoys spending time with her friends and family at EastLine.