CAST BIOS

Elinor Ault (Ghost of Christmas Past/Fred’s Wife/Mrs. Dilber) last performed at MAC as June in Gypsy. Other credits include Matilda The Musical (Acrobat), A Christmas Carol 2019 & 2021 (Fred’s Wife), Paragon Park (Mary Margaret) at The Company Theatre & Shrek, The Musical at Bridgewater’s Family Performing Arts Center. Elinor is a teacher at the Academy at Mass Arts. She would like to thank Dori and Steve for this opportunity as well as all of her supporters, especially her fiancé, William, and her sister, Maggie, for going on this Christmas journey with her!

Maggie Ault (Fleance/Messenger) has previously performed at MAC in Macbeth (Fleance), and Red Hot Patriot (Copy Kid). When not on stage, Maggie works as a paraprofessional and is passionate about the work she does with her students. Thank you to Steve and Dori for the opportunity and to her family and friends for their support!

Jim Cannizzaro (Charitable Gentleman/Ghost of Christmas Present/First Mourner/Undertaker’s Man) is excited to be back working with the Mass Arts Center,  having previously worked with them playing several roles in The Boys Next Door. Recently he was Monsieur Frankenstein in Frankenstein, Lord Stanley in Richard III, Leonato in Much Ado About Nothing, Charlie in Death of a Salesman, Bob Cratchit in A Christmas Carol, Vanya in Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike, Blore in And Then There Were None, Antipholus of Syracuse in The Comedy of Errors,  and King Henry in The Lion in Winter, all for Roundabout Productions. Past favorite roles include Oscar Madison in The Odd Couple, Elwood P. Dowd in Harvey, Mr. Düssel in The Diary of Anne Frank, Charley Gordon in Flowers for Algernon and Stan in Flemming. To the cast and crew of A Christmas Carol, he says “A pleasure to work with you all…break a leg!”

Taejanii Coward (Dick Wilkins/Student/Partygoer) is happy to be in his second show at MAC. His first was A Midsummer Night’s Dream. He has also performed in Elf, the Musical and The Wizard of Oz. Taijanii loves movies, Legos, and books. He thanks his mother for giving him this opportunity!

Nora Daubert (Cockney Singer/Belinda Cratchit/Want/Student) is a 6th grade student at the Montrose School in Medfield, MA and has been a student in the Academy at the Mass Arts Center since 2021. Recent credits include MacDuff’s child in Macbeth, Young Abel in Children of Eden and Young Yonkers in Gypsy at the Mass Arts Center. She played Marty in Madagascar Jr. at Jordan Jackson Elementary School this past spring. Thank you to Katie & Ellie, Dori, and all the teaching faculty at Mass Arts Center!

Summer Jenkins (Fan/Martha Cratchit) is from Foxborough. She loves theatre, and is part of the Junior Performance Team here at the Mass Art Center. Her most recent show was Little Shop of Horrors, where she played Rhonda, and she is currently in Hadestown, where she plays a Fate. She has been performing for the past 7 years old. Her previous shows include Shrek Jr., in which she played Dragon and Gingy, Moana Jr., where she played Moana, and Tangled Jr., where she played Rapunzel!

David J. Kim (Fred) is thrilled to make a debut at the Mass Arts Center. He is grateful for the opportunity to work alongside the talented production team and cast members as he learned so much from all of them. Outside of theater, David works as an immigration specialist at a relocation management company and enjoys checking out hole-in-the-wall restaurants in the local community. If you are interested in following up with more of David’s shows, please come check out Yellow Face in Jamaica Plain in February.

Chrissy Lamont (Belle/The Narrator/Mrs. Cratchit) is thrilled to be back in one of her favorite places! Previous credits with MAC: Ensemble (Lifelines), Ensemble (Broadway Christmas), Eva Perón (Evita) and Sally Bowles (Cabaret). Chrissy was most recently seen as Alice Murphy (Bright Star), reprising her previous role in Cabaret, Diana (Next to Normal) and the title role in Mary Poppins. She is deeply grateful to Steve and Dori for the opportunity to bring this beloved classic to life in a new way. Performing with her boys—Oscar & Simon, and her husband, Nathan—as a family for the first time has been both a joy and a gift! She thanks this lovely cast and dedicated production team for their time and talents, as well as her friends and family for their unwavering support. May we all take to heart the lessons of this show and strive to use our power “to interfere for good in human matters,” especially in times when humanity needs it most. Happy Holidays, everyone!

Nathan Lamont (Ebenezar Scrooge) is grateful to return for his third MAC production, his first since appearing as Cliff in Cabaret. Other loved roles through the years include Hercule Poirot in Milton Players’ Murder on the Orient Express, Mr. Banks in Needham Community Theatre’s Mary Poppins, Scrooge from Creative Spirit’s recurring A Christmas Carol and Riverside Theatre Works’ Scrooge, and Fagin from Bay Colony Productions’ Oliver! He is thrilled not only to be on stage once more with his wife, but also to be able to share it with their two sons for the very first time.

Oscar Lamont (Young Scrooge/Delivery Boy/The Debtor) is thrilled to make his MAC debut! Recent theater credits: Sound Operator (Bright Star), Props (The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe), and Stage Manager (Fairly Stupid Tales). He’d like to thank Steve & Dori for recognizing how much he looks like a younger version of his dad, and all their guidance and patience. He’s also grateful to this cast, his family (especially for getting him into acting), and his friends for all their support. Enjoy the show and happy holidays!

Simon Lamont (Peter Cratchit/Delivery Boy/Ignorance/Student/Street Urchin) is excited for his first MAC show! Recent theater credits: Lieutenant Ward (Annie) and Scenic Design (Fairly Stupid Tales). He would like to thank Steve & Dori for being so cool and sharing their talents, this nice cast, and his family and friends! Simon wants you to know that he does not care about singing, although, according to his parents, he’s great at it. He loves acting, and is very excited to be playing many roles in this show. “Happy holidays, thank you for coming, and enjoy the show!”

Ingrid Larson (Charitable Woman/Mrs. Fezziwig/Partygoer/Second Mourner) is happy to be returning to the stage at the Mass Arts Center. A Christmas Carol is one of her favorite stories by Charles Dickens. You may have seen her previously as Lady Montague/Apothecary in Romeo and Juliet as well as Gentlewoman/Messenger/Third Apparition in MacBeth. She is honored and humbled to once again be working with Director Steve Dooner and first time with Director Dori Bryan-Ployer, her teacher and mentor, both whom she graciously thanks for their opportunities, encouragement , learning and continued nurturing! Ingrid is a local actor, poetess, children’s author and an aspiring screenplay writer. She enjoys spending time in nature, practicing yoga and meditation to restore her mind, body and spirit as well as composing poems and stories. She enjoys Word Find games and making one of a kind decorations, especially for the holidays! To her fellow cast members, it is pleasure to be sharing the stage with you during this joyful time of the year. Thank you all for your support, energy and inspiration. Love to you all!

Declan List (Tiny Tim/Street Urchin/Student) is thrilled to be back with MAC in A Christmas Carol. His past credits include Les Miserables (Gavroche) and Children of Eden, Jr. (Ham/Young Cain) with The Academy at Mass Arts; SpongeBob, the Musical (Ensemble) with Un-Common Theatre Company; and Madagascar Jr. (Zookeeper Zeke) with Jordan/Jackson Elementary School. He would like to thank Dori, Lindsey, Katie, Ellie and Rosalie for making him the performer he is today.

Doug McDougal (Jacob Marley/Old Joe) Is thrilled to be portraying Marley’s Ghost with Mass Arts Center, an organization he first appeared with 40 years ago when it was performing musical reviews as dinner theater in the ballroom of a local hotel. Over the years, he has appeared with MAC as a Muleteer in Man of La Mancha, a homeless individual in Gifts of the Magi, and his all-time favorite: that of Major General Stanley in Pirates of Penzance. Roles with other organizations have included Ali Hakkim in Oklahoma, Drake in Annie, Hysterium in A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum, and Harold Hill in The Music Man. Doug is grateful to Steve Dooner for this opportunity, to Ken Butler for his leadership of this organization and to the fabulous cast and crew of A Christmas Carol for helping to spread Marley’s message of “charity, mercy forbearance and benevolence” to the twenty-first century.

Sadie Walton (Partygoer/Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come) is ecstatic to be making her debut performance at the Mass Arts Center in A Christmas Carol. She has not previously performed in theatre and is excited to participate in her first project. Thank you to Steve and Dori for allowing her the opportunity to be a part of A Christmas Carol. Thank you to friends and family!

J. Michael Whalen (Bob Cratchit) is thrilled to be part of this fantastic cast. Mike is making his fourth appearance overall with Mass Arts Center and the first since January’s presentation of Puffs. He has performed with numerous groups south of Boston, including The Bay Players, Canton Community Theatre, Cohasset Dramatic Club, The Company Theatre, Curtain Call Theatre, Dragonfly Theater, North River Theater, and others. Mike thanks God for His countless gifts and blessings, and his wife Deirdre for her endless love and support. He hopes you enjoy the show, and wishes you a Merry Christmas!

Marianne Phinney (Stage Manager/Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come) is delighted to be part of the  Christmas Carol team! She most recently was the Stage Manager for Macbeth (MAC) and the 24-Hour Play Festival (Walpole Footlighters), where she also stage managed musicals and plays including You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown, Urinetown, They’re Playing Our Song, Godspell, She Loves Me, 6 Rms Riv Vu, and The Road to Mecca. She has also stage managed productions for Amazing Things Theater, Gazebo Players, and the Southwest Repertory Organization. Director: Puffs, Forbidden Broadway’s Greatest Hits, The Odd Couple (Female Version) (MMAS/MassArts, Disenchanted!, Calendar Girls, Radium Girls, Summer and Smoke (Walpole Footlighters), The Crucible, Bad Auditions, Forbidden Broadway: The Farce Awakens, Much Ado About Nothing, and The Women (Needham Community Theatre), multiple Shakespeare in the Park productions (Gazebo Players). Marianne also serves as a dialect coach for local community theaters and has been a judge for the METG High School Drama Festival since 2005.

Steve Dooner (Adaptation/Co-Director) has directed many Shakespeare plays, dramas, and musicals in our local area.  Earlier this fall he directed Mass  Art Center’s Halloween production of Macbeth, and last spring, Shakespeare’s tragic love story, Romeo and Juliet.  This Christmas season, he is happy to take a break from all that tragedy for an uplifting and redemptive journey in an original adaptation of Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol.  In 2013, Steve directed Euripides’ The Bacchae at the Oberon A.R.T. Stage in Cambridge, a production chosen as the A.R.T.’s official selection for the Boston’s first Fringe Festival on the Boston Common.  He has also directed productions of A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Macbeth, Twelfth Night and Romeo and Juliet at the Bay Colony Orpheum Theater in Foxboro, productions of Doubt and A Raisin in the Sun at Massasoit Community College’s Theater, To Kill a Mockingbird, Doubt, Dracula, Blithe Spirit and his own play, Lizzie of Fall River at the Company Theatre in Norwell; and finally, his productions of The Tempest, The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (Abridged), Ghosts Of Appomattox, Picasso at Lapin Agile, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Measure for Measure, and Romeo and Juliet have all appeared here at Mass Arts Center.  When not performing or directing, Steve teaches English and theater at Quincy College.

Dori Bryan-Ployer (Co-Director/Choreographer) is the Artistic Director of The Mass Arts Center and is delighted to be working alongside Director, Steve Dooner, on his adaptation of Dickens’ holiday classic, A Christmas Carol. A Christmas Carol serves as a full circle moment for Dori as she reunites with Steve and cast members, Chrissy and Nathan Lamont, the three who met when Dori directed and choreographed Guys & Dolls nearly 20 years ago. Dori thanks the talented cast and crew of A Christmas Carol for welcoming her into their creative process. It has been my honor to work with all of you!

Lauren Gilgan (Costumer) hails from North Easton, Massachusetts. After graduating high school, she pursued her passion for fashion at Polimoda in Florence, Italy, where she immersed herself in photography, art direction, and fashion history. This spring, she completed the Fashion Styling Program. Lauren has gained valuable experience working with notable magazines like The Collector and The Artribune, as well as collaborating with costume stylists such as Heidi Bivens and art directors KK Obi and Riccardo Maria Chiacchio. Recently, she returned home to take on the role of costume designer for the Mass Arts Center, with her debut production of Macbeth.

Sharon Silberman (Lightboard Operator) is excited to be working on her 6th show with Steve Dooner after a two-year hiatus. Previously Sharon worked as a stage manager for three different community theaters, but retired from stage management in 2022. However, she keeps busy in theater as a lightboard operator.  She would like to thank her child, Flip, for getting her into the crazy world of theater.

Bruce Webster (Sound Design) is incredibly happy to be celebrating his 14th season at Mass Arts Center by working with Steve on another classic. A HUGE shoutout to this amazing cast and incredible design team for providing inspiration for the musical score.  Our journey at MAC has included: Macbeth, The Tempest, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Measure for Measure and Romeo & Juliet, for which Bruce was recently honored with a DASH Consultant Choice Award for “Outstanding Original Music in a Play”. Sending out a massive, heartfelt thanks to my wife Paula for her encouragement and endless, ENDLESS patience.