AARON SHAPIRO, Executive Director and co-founder of Studio BE as well as President of the Executive Board, graduated with two B.A’s from Barat College of DePaul University where he received Departmental Honors in both Economics and Acting/Directing. As a child he performed in several productions with the L.A. Opera Company, the Los Angeles Children Chorus, and regularly worked as an extra in TV shows, commercials, movies, and music videos. After college Aaron founded Oracle Productions and opened their 40-seat black box theatre in Wrigleyville where he served 4 years as Artistic Director. He has worked professionally in Chicago as a director, stage manager, producer, actor, production manager, electrician, carpenter, sound technician, run crew, technical director, scenic designer and lighting designer for Collaboraction, American theatre Company, The House Theatre, The Lincolnshire Mariott, Writers Theater, Shattered Globe, Theatre Wit, Devonshire Players, Downers Grove Players, Pegasus Players, Museum of Contemporary Art, Northwestern University, Route 66, Victory Gardens Greenhouse and Biograph, Teatro Luna, Teatro Vista, Timeline, Next, About Face, The Entertainment Project, T.U.T.A., Light Opera Works, Albany Park Theatre Project, and Pinebox Theatre

TAMARA DREW, Artistic Director of Youth Programming, Director of Education and Co-Founder of Studio BE, Miss Tamara couldn’t be more proud of how the Studio BE program, learners, and community have grown in the last three years. With a degree in Theatre and Sociology from Millikin University, Miss Tamara continues to fulfill her personal mission of providing social perspective and excellent performance art training to the leaders of tomorrow through Studio BE. Miss Tamara has her hands in every Studio BE program, from Company, to Showstoppers, our In-School outreach programs and Accelerated Dance Troupe. She proudly facilitates a style of learning that is applicable beyond the stage. She wishes love and congratulations to all of our Studio BE high school seniors who will become alumni of our program in a few short weeks, and thanks them for giving her so much to be proud of!

MAC VAUGHEY, Studio BE Executive Board Vice President & Developement Director, is a graduate of Brown University and recipient of the University’s Weston Prize for Theatrical Design.  He is the resident Lighting Designer at the 16th Street Theater in Berwyn, recently named the Chicago Reader’s “Best Emerging Theatre Company.”  Mac is also an Artistic associate for Teatro Luna, and Premiere Theatre & Performance, and a company member at Walkabout Theatre.  Additionally, Mac’s work has been seen at the American Theatre Company, Redmoon Theatre, Chicago Shakespeare Theatre, Collaboraction and Climax Nightclub.  Mac has also worked with Infamous Commonwealth, The Sinnerman Ensemble, Open Eye Productions and many other theatre companies.  Mac also serves as head of the lighting department for the Next Theatre in Evanston, Light Opera Works, Timeline Theatre Company, and the American Theatre Company.  Mac can also be found at Chicago Spotlight Inc, as rental manager.

ROBERT-ERIC WEST - is a graduate of Butler University with a BA in musical theatre including concentrations in vocal performance and pedagogy as well costume, hair and make-up design. He began his career at the age of six as a member of a youth theatre studying with the acclaimed children’s theatre director and author Nora MacAlvay, returning later in life as the company’s artistic director.  Robert-Eric spent 13 years as a vocal coach and musical theatre history instructor at Indiana University where he also founded the Monroe County Children’s Theatre.  For the past eight years he has supported his bohemian theatrical life as a make-up artist and artist trainer for Prescriptives, Shu Uemura and Giorgio Armani Cosmetics at the national level and has had his work appear on stage, screen and print. Spanning almost 40 years, his career has taken him from one coast to the other but he will always call Chicago home.  He has performed, designed, directed and taught workshops and Master classes for the Dunes Arts Foundation, Candlelight, Festival Players Guild, Drury Lane, Oracle Productions and Indiana Repertory Theatre, just to name a few. With his real passion in the art of performance, Mr. West’s (as his students call him) drive is to instill in each of the young lives he helps to mold that nothing is out of their reach and his biggest joy is to see the breakthrough moment when student becomes who they were truly meant to BE.

KATIE MINIX (Scenic Artist & Administrative Asssistant) graduated from Loyola University with a B.A. in Theatre emphasizing in set and lighting design. Her past productions include set designer for Lonesome West and The Diviners as well as the lighting designer for Wit and Savage in Limbo.

KATE MASIAK (Stage Manager & Assistant Director) graduated from Florida State University with a B.A. in Theatre with an emphasis in directing. Her directing credits include Rabbit, Closer, Bleed Like Me, Still Life with Iris, True Man; A Musical and The Problem. She has worked on such Studio BE productions as Rent, Romeo & Juliet, Jungle Book, Little Shop of Horrors, Urinetown & No Strings Attached.

AIMEE RADICS (Music Director & Voice Instructor) graduated from Ithaca College majoring in Music and Theater.  Aimee’s credits as a music director include Tick…Tick…Boom, Dirty Rotten Scoundrels, A Chorus Line, Sweeny Todd, Songs for a New World and Into the Woods. Aimee can also be found performing around town with her cabaret group Catalyst!

ALEX JADOS (Assistant Dance Instructor) Alex graduated from Western Illinois University in 2008 with a Bachelor’s Degree in Communication.  While studying at WIU, Alex also served as Vice President and Head Choreographer of her dance troupe, GBCC Dance Troupe.  Alex was also involved with University Dance Theatre. After graduating, she moved on to become the Communications Director of Dance Chicago, working with different dance companys across Chicagoland. In the Fall of 2010 she volunteered as Assistant Dance Instructor at Studio BE for the Dance Troupe program and also choreographed the Spring Musical “Little Shop of Horrors”.

MERCEDES INEZ MARTINEZ (Education Intern) was born in the mountains along the Mexican/New Mexican border in El Paso,Texas. She just graduated with a degree in Theatre/Psychology and Studio Art from Loyola University Chicago and currently is studying guitar and voice. She draws inspiration from her belief in Buddhist philosophy of interconnectedness between all things. Her driving force is the belief that art can be used as a cathartic creative outlet for anyone and hopes to one day materialize this through a career in Expressive Arts Therapy and Arts education integrated into every school’s curriculum. She founded the Experimental Performance Arts Workshop Series (EPAWS) which includes and integrates all forms of art. The workshops took place at an Edgewater Community Center as part of the Edgewater Arts Initiative and she will continue having performances, open mics, workshops, classes and exhibitions throughout the year at various venues throughout Chicago. She has exhibited at Metropolis Coffee Co. which she will exhibit at again in Oct 2011. She has also exhibited at Minx Parlor in River North District, Chicago Fringe Festival, Teatro Luna’s 10×10 performance, Glenwood Art Festival and various places throughout Chicago. In the past she has performed in SAVAGE IN LIMBO, 24 HOUR THEATRE PROJECT, POETRY OUTLOUD (where she sung her lyric poetry), Shakespeare’s AS YOU LIKE IT and directed a production of the mini-operetta PHILIP GLASS BUYS A LOAF OF BREAD by David Ives at Loyola University, which you can see on youtube at “Philip Glass Loyola”. She recently just adapted the novel EINSTEIN’S DREAMS by Alan Lightman which she directed at Loyola in Fall 2010 and recently coordinated performance artists for various art events in Edgewater called “Third Saturdays” this past summer. She also recently acted in, as well as sound designed the production TIME OF YOUR LIFE on Loyola’s main stage. She has been seen in the Vagina Monologues at Loyola where she exhibited art work and sang, as well as did sound and lights for the productions CREATION MYTHS and THE FUNNIES  She is currently the lead vocalist/ percussionist of the bands Modern Gypsy Collective and DJ & MC Benz and will be singing with Sones de Mexico at the Benito Juarez Performing Arts Center on November 19, 2011.

LAUREN RANKIN (Music Director/Vocal Instructor) graduated from Northwestern University with a B.A. in Theatre and Music Theatre. She has been vocally trained in operatic Bel Canto, musical theatre, and speech-level singing since she was twelve years old. Currently, she is a working voiceover actor, having voiced TV and radio commercials for Walgreens, Tampax, McDonalds, and Sears in the past two years. Favorite musical theatre credits include *Carousel*, *Company*, and *Candide*.

IAN MCCABE (Comedy Club Instructor)  is excited to begin working with Studio BE. In Chicago, Ian is a member of the performance ensemble at Roger Park’s ‘One Group Mind,’ a long form improvisation troupe. He also plays on a ComedySportz Rec-League team along, and as an understudy for the college-touring improv troupe, MissionImprovable. Ian has studied at the Second City, iO, and the Annoyance. He can be seen performing around town with his two-man-comedy-powerhouse Screwtape. Before moving to Chicago, Ian worked regionally with The Kaleidoscope Players (Raton, NM) and the South Carolina Repertory Company (Hilton Head Island).

STEPHANIE WEBER (Satellite Comedy Instructor) is a comedian and playwright that performs comedy regularly throughout the city. She can be seen improvising with Second City’s Improvised House Ensemble on Saturday nights as well as with Peach of the Neighborhood at The Playground. She also writes and performs sketch comedy with the Del Award winning group Warm Milk. Her plays have been produced throughout the city. She studied at Second City, iO, and Annoyance Theatre and graduated from North Park University with a degree in Theatre.

CLAYTON CROSS (Firece Dance Troupe Instructor) received his training from La Petite Dance Co., Coleman Academy, and Midland Community Theatre. He graduated in 2002 with a B.F.A. in Ballet and Modern Dance from Texas Christian University. Clayton performed in Summer Stock productions as well as in community theatre in such roles as Don Lockwood in “Singin’ in The Rain”, Riff in “West Side Story”; and the wedding singer in “Tony ‘n’ Tina’s Wedding”. Clayton apprenticed with River North Dance Chicago for two summers and for the 2003-2004 season before becoming a company member. Clayton performed in the company for 8 seasons traveling nationally, and internationally. He currently teaches, and choreographs for M.A. Dance, a Texas based traveling convention circuit. Clayton has taught for M.A. Dance for the past 13 years, and teaches for various high schools and dance studios across the nation.