Staff

Meet SCCT’s amazing team of Directors, Teaching Artists, and Staff!
Click image to read bio.

Interested in teaching a class for San Carlos Children’s Theater?
Contact Executive Operations Director Vanessa Poon at
vanessa@sancarloschildrenstheater.com

Executive Directors

Executive Directors

Vanessa Poon

Executive Operations Director

She/Her/Hers

Caitlin Savage

Executive Artistic Director

She/Her/Hers

Vanessa Poon

Executive Operations Director

Vanessa Poon, She/Her/Hers, Executive Operations Director

Vanessa was introduced to SCCT when her daughter performed in her first production in 2019. Both daughters participated in the virtual SCCT productions and classes throughout 2020-2021, and she is grateful for the sense of normalcy and joy it provided to them during this challenging time. As a SCCT parent volunteer, Vanessa has gotten to know the theater program through her roles as a green room parent, costume coordinator, and producer.   She is impressed with the confidence and skills her children have developed thanks to their involvement with SCCT. Most importantly she recognizes the value of the close bonds her children have developed with their fellow participants, and the safe space it offers them to be who they are. Vanessa joined the Board in 2022 because she strongly believes in the value that a children’s theater brings to the community. Professionally, Vanessa has worked as an investment professional at educational and developmental institutions, most recently Stanford University’s Endowment.

Caitlin Savage

Executive Artistic Director

She/Her/Hers

Caitlin Savage, She/Her/Hers, Artistic Director

Caitlin has been working with children of all ages for over 15 years, from theater and dance to gymnastics and movement classes. She has spent years under the mentorship of many amazing arts educators in the Bay Area. In 2012, Caitlin received her MFA from Mills College and began working for Crystal Springs Uplands School as their middle school dance and theater instructor. She has also choreographed, directed and taught with SCCT and Portola Valley Theater Conservatory for many years.

Staff

Staff

Joanne Chow

Accountant

She/Her/Hers

Laura Cox

Costume Designer

She/Her/Hers

Eve Dutton

Marketing Manager

She/Her/Hers

Joanne Chow

Accountant

She/Her/Hers

Joanne Chow, She/Her/Hers, Accountant

Joanne has been taking care of the financial records for the theater since February 2014. Working with the theater has been a very enriching experience, and she enjoys watching the productions, especially the musicals. Joanne also works for SCEF and Healthy Cities Tutoring.

Laura Cox

Costume Designer

She/Her/Hers

Laura Cox, She/Her/Hers, Costume Designer

Laura completed her costuming education at Canada College and now shares her talents with theaters throughout the Bay Area. She enjoys working with youth actors and mentoring students interested in costume design. During her free time, Laura creates costumes for her own enjoyment and loves participating in a wide variety of local costumed events.

Eve Dutton

Marketing Manager

She/Her/Hers

Eve Dutton, She/Her/Hers, Marketing Manager

Eve first became involved with SCCT in 2001 as a parent volunteer and later as a member of the Board of Directors. She now works on SCCT marketing, communications, and special events, as well as advising the theater’s Youth Advisory Board. She comes to SCCT with a background in journalism and publicity. Eve has been involved in productions with several local theaters, including NDNU, San Francisco Ballet, Peninsula Youth Theater, Hillbarn, and San Carlos Kiwanis.

Teaching Artists

Teaching Artists

Karen Althoff

Teaching Artist and Choreographer

She/Her/Hers

Ruth Bennett

Teaching Artist and Vocal Director

She/Her/Hers

Maya Bilbao

Teaching Artist & Program Assistant, Director, Choreographer

She/Her/Hers

Lisa Bock

Teaching Artist, Director and Vocal Director

She/Her/Hers

Karen Althoff

Teaching Artist and Choreographer

She/Her/Hers

Karen Althoff, She/Her/Hers, Teaching Artist & Choreographer

Karen Althoff is a teaching artist for SCCT classes and camps and a choreographer for SCCT productions.

Ruth Bennett

Teaching Artist and Vocal Director

She/Her/Hers

Ruth Bennett, She/Her/Hers, Teaching Artist & Vocal Director

Ruth Bennett has been teaching music at the San Carlos Charter School in San Carlos for many years.

Maya Bilbao

 Resident Teaching Artist & Program Assistant, Director, Choreographer

She/Her/Hers

Maya Bilbao, She/Her/Hers, Resident Teaching Artist/Choreographer

Maya Bilbao joined the SCCT team in 2021. She is a Director, Choreographer, Teaching Artist, and also Program Assistant as of 2025. Maya has experience being an actor onstage for most of her life and loves being able to work behind the scenes. Maya has an Associates degree in Psychology and Child Development and is currently working toward her BA in Theater Arts with a cross-disciplinary focus.

Lisa Bock

Teaching Artist, Director and Vocal Director

She/Her/Hers

Lisa Bock, She/Her/Hers, Teaching Artist, Director and Vocal Director
Lisa has been on the SCCT team since 2016 as a Director, Vocal Director and Teaching Artist, directing mainstage plays, school outreach productions, and show choir groups.  She also volunteers at her local elementary school teaching music and directing plays, and leading a kids show choir group performing locally in the community. 
 
Lisa studied Marketing at Purdue University and moved to CA after college. She started her career working in real estate development, traveling around the West Coast, but once she became a mother, Lisa decided to try a new career path teaching for SCCT. Growing up a theater, choir and band kid in Indiana, music is her passion! Lisa found the SCCT Community through her audition for The Sound of Music in 2010 and has been enjoying productions from both sides of the stage since.

Samantha Borthwick

Teaching Artist and Choreographer

She/Her/Hers

Brittany Caine

Teaching Artist and Director

She/Her/Hers

Roxie Dobrer

Teaching Artist, Vocal Director

She/Her/Hers

Danny Giray

Teaching Artist and Choreographer

He/Him/His

Samantha Borthwick

Teaching Artist and Choreographer

She/Her/Hers

Samantha Borthwick, Choreographer

Sam holds a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Theatre Performance and a minor in Musical Theatre from Chapman University. She is an alumni of SCCT and performed in over 30 productions with SCCT in her youth. She is so excited to join the team as a teaching artist and choreographer!

Brittany Caine

Teaching Artist and Director

She/Her/Hers

Brittany Caine, She/Her/Hers, Teaching Artist and Director

Brittany has been teaching and directing with SCCT since 2014. She is grateful that her work never feels like work, and she relishes each and every opportunity to work with the amazing teachers and young people who are part of SCCT. Some personal highlights include Frozen Jr, Honk Jr, Tuesday story drama classes, and working with Junior Assistant Directors (JADs). She holds a BA from Smith College and an MFA in Theatre for Young Audiences from the University of Central Florida.

Roxie Dobrer

Teaching Artist, Vocal Director

She/Her/Hers

Roxie Dobrer, She/Her/Hers, Teaching Artist, Vocal Director

Danny Giray

Teaching Artist and Choreographer

He/Him/His

Danny Giray, Teaching Artist and Choreographer

Danny, fondly know as “Danny G” has worked with SCCT for many years in both main-stage and school productions as a Choreographer. His casts took First Place at the Redwood City Hometown Holiday Festival twice. He works during the school year in San Carlos and Redwood City Schools teaching dance. Danny is in several bands with a wide variety of genres. He was a Master-Artist for the Wolf Trap Foundation for the Performing Arts and was the Artistic Director of the Young Extensions Children’s Dance Theatre. He also taught an outreach program for Zohar School of Dance in Palo Alto, teaching underprivileged youth where he received several California Arts Council Artist-in-Residence awards.

Danny was a founding member of Citi-Centre Dance Theatre, performing modern jazz and he also performed for the Berkeley Ballet. He directed a traditional Southern Philippine dance and music ensemble called Kulintang Dance Theatre and was a former student of Kulintang Master Danongan Kalanduyan. He has taught dance at San Francisco State University and for the San Francisco Ballet’s “Dance In Schools” program.

Daniel’s background includes training in jazz, modern, ballet, musical theater, Southern Philippine music and dance, hip-hop and children’s dance therapy. He has choreographed the musicals Footloose, Little Mermaid, Big Fish, In the Heights, Big Fish, 9-5, Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat and Pipin, to name a few, for high schools around the Bay Area. He is now an active member of Kultura Kapwa, a traditional Philippine ensemble and The Autonomous Region, a Filipino-American Jazz ensemble that rehearse and perform at the historic International Hotel Manilatown Center.

Gary Gerber

Teaching Artist and Director

He/Him/His

Caitlin Gjerdrum

Teaching Artist and Vocal Director

She/Her/Hers

Kerawin Heaney

Teaching Artist

She/Her/Hers

Melanie Magnani

Teaching Artist, Choreographer & Puppet Maker

She/Her/Hers

Gary Gerber

Teaching Artist and Director

He/Him/His

Gary Gerber, Teaching Artist and Director

Gary Gerber has been directing theater productions up and down the Peninsula for decades (with kids and adults). He has extensive experience teaching kids theater, science and math, and has coached many youth sports teams. Gary especially likes working with middle schoolers (and yes people think he’s crazy for it) and has helmed programs for them and kids of all ages at SCCT including Show Direction, Camp Director, and even preschool programs. In his “spare time” Gary also fronts a rock and roll band, and loves it when the kids come to gigs and rock out with the band.

Caitlin Gjerdrum

Vocal Director

Caitlin Gjerdrum, Teaching Artist & Vocal Director

Caitlin grew up with Palo Alto Children’s Theater and went on to work there after college before heading to the east coast where she took classes and taught at Berklee College of Music. Caitlin returned to the Bay Area and now directs and teaches classes at SCCT.

Kerawin Heaney

Teaching Artist

Kerawin Heaney, Teaching Artist

Kerawin has been teaching theater for over 10 years. She has taught at CMT musical theater camp, Midpen Media Center, Fringe Benefits Theater, and now she is thrilled to work at the San Carlos Children’s Theater. Kerawin has a strong background in improvisation and a love of Shakespeare. She graduated from the University of Southern California with a degree in Theatre Arts, with experience in directing, acting, and playwriting.

Melanie Magnani

Teaching Artist, Choreographer and Puppet Maker

She/Her/Hers

Melanie Magnani, She/Her/Hers, Teaching Artist, Choreographer & Puppet Maker
Melanie has been in shows with SCCT since 2013. Her first show was SCCTs 100th production of the Wizard of Oz. She has been teaching since 2019. Her favorite part of a show is the final day of tech where everything magically comes together. She’s also enjoys making props and puppets for the shows. Some of her creations have been featured in Into the Woods, Frozen jr, Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, and The Hobbit.

Margaret Marshall

Teaching Artist, Director and Vocal Director

She/Her/Hers

Melanie McBride

Teaching Artist and Vocal Director

She/Her/Hers

Kaori Nakano

Teaching Artist and Vocal Director

She/Her/Hers

Becca Rosenberg

Teaching Artist and Choreographer

She/Her/Hers

Margaret Marshall

Teaching Artist and Director

Margaret Marshall, Director and Vocal Director

Margaret Marshall has been directing, vocal directing and coaching young actors in the community since 2005. Her shows with SCCT include productions on the main stage as well as outreach communities including Roy Cloud School, Sandpiper Middle School and Clifford School. Margaret performs whenever possible as a soloist around the Bay Area and teaches drama at Hillsdale High School in San Mateo.

Melanie McBride

Teaching Artist and Vocal Director

Melanie McBride, She/Her/Hers, Teaching Artist and Vocal Director

Kaori Nakano

Teaching Artist and Vocal Director

Kaori Nakano

Kaori earned her BA from Kobe College and MA in Vocal Performance from the San Francisco Conservatory of Music, where she studied with Herman Leroux and won first place in the American Art Song Competition. She holds teaching credentials from San Francisco State University and Kodály Levels 1 & 2 from Holy Names University.

Kaori teaches TK–8 music in Bay Area schools, offers private piano and voice lessons, and serves as Musical Director at Broadway Babies. A 2023 Teacher of the Year recipient, she has also worked with the San Francisco Girls Chorus, local choirs, and her own Kirakiraboshi Children’s Choir. She is excited to share her love of music with SCCT.

Becca Rosenberg

Teaching Artist and Choreographer

She/Her/Hers

Becca Rosenberg, She/Her/Hers, Teaching Artist & Choreographer

Becca Rosenberg has been participating in SCCT programs since 2015 as an actor, Junior Assistant Director, tech crew member, and Teaching Artist. She is passionate about arts education, teaching transferable performance skills, and empowering students to find joy in movement, music, and storytelling. She is currently an Interdisciplinary Honors student at the University of Washington, majoring in Psychology and Gender, Women, and Sexuality Studies. Becca is constantly inspired by her fellow staff members, dedicated volunteers, and motivated students, who make her feel so grateful to be part of this community!

Gary Stanford Jr.

Teaching Artist and Choreographer

He/Him/His

Carrie Welter

Teaching Artist and Vocal Director

She/Her/Hers

Ro Wu

Teaching Artist and Assistant Director

She/Her/Hers

Caitlin Berka

Teaching Artist and Vocal Director

She/Her/Hers

Gary Stanford Jr.

Teaching Artist and Choreographer

He/Him/His

Gary Stanford Jr, Teaching Artist & Choreographer

Gary is a Choreographer for shows and teaches dance in the Broadway Rising Stars program. Gary Stanford Jr. is a Bay Area theater stage director, choreographer and actor of 25 years. He has won over 100 State Talent Championships with P.S. Performance Studio. He is a multiple Theater Bay Area nominee and specializes in Diversity and Inclusion in musical theater. He is president and owner of the San Jose-based theater company, North California Arts Collective that creates outreach programs throughout the Bay Area.

Carrie Welter

Teaching Artist and Vocal Director

She/Her/Hers

Carrie Welter, She/Her/Hers, Teaching Artist and Vocal Director

Carrie is thrilled to be back teaching at her theatrical home! She holds a BA in History from Boston University and performed, teched, and directed a number of projects there. Carrie is currently pursuing her master’s degree, and when not teaching theater, she utilizes her performance skills in the museum field leading tours and field trips. She was heavily involved in SCCT shows growing up and is honored to be giving back to an organization that means so much to her.

Ro Wu

Teaching Artist and Assistant Director

She/Her/Hers

Ro Wu, She/Her/Hers, Teaching Artist

Caitlin Berka

Teaching Artist and Vocal Director

She/Her/Hers

Caitlin Berka, She/Her/Hers, Vocal Director

Caitlin has been a teaching artist, director, and vocal director with SCCT since 2020. Trained in both classical and contemporary vocal styles, Caitlin performed extensively in college and graduate school with the Stanford Savoyards, Ram’s Head Theatrical Society, the Asian American Theater Project, and the Victorian Theatricals Society. She has taught high school theater since 2012 and founded the Mid-Pen Drama Program at Mid-Peninsula High School in 2016. She also performs across the Bay Area with the rock band Doll Parts. She lives in San Francisco with her partner and two cats, Peanut and Chutney.

Melian Bilello-Rodriguez

Vocal Director

She/Her/Hers

Sawyer Kelly

Choreographer

She/Her/Hers

Grace Kara

Teaching Artist

She/Her/Hers