Colin Escott (Book Writer) was born in England and currently lives near Nashville, Tennessee. He co-wrote Million Dollar Quartet.
Scott Weinstein (Director) is an award-winning Director and Writer based in New York City. His work as a director has been seen at major regional theaters around the country and he recently won the Joseph Jefferson award for his Actor-Musician, chamber style re-conception of Ragtime with Griffin Theatre, where he is an ensemble member. Scott was the Associate and Resident Director for the Broadway National Tour, Las Vegas and Chicago productions of the hit musical Million Dollar Quartet. He has developed new work at the Rhinebeck Writers Retreat, Pittsburgh CLO, The American Music Theatre Project, The Marriott Theatre, Route 66 Theatre, The Rev, Norwegian Creative Studios and others. Graduate of Northwestern University and proud member of the Stage Directors and Choreographers Society. He is represented by William Morris Endeavor.
Tasha Spear (Associate Director) is thrilled to be back working on Million Dollar Quartet Christmas. She was a part of the World Premiere team last year, as well. Tasha is a New York based director and choreographer. She holds a BA in Critical Theory & Social Justice and an MFA in Theatre Directing. Some credits include Death Deadlines (Director), Miss Julie (Director), Grímnismál (Or, the Magpie Play) (Director), Polyphemus (Director and Co Developer), Grease (Assistant Director), Cabaret (Assistant Director), and Footloose (Choreographer). www.tashaspear.com
Chuck Mead (Arranger and Music Director) is best known for being one of the founding members of three time Grammy nominated, Country Music Association Award winning country music group BR5-49. Between 1996 and 2005 the band released seven successful records before disbanding. In 2006 he started work as Music Supervisor/Director of the Tony Award winning Broadway musical Million Dollar Quartet. A member of the original creative team, he shaped the music for the Chicago, Broadway, West End, Las Vegas, and National Tour productions of MDQ all the while touring the world with his band and releasing four critically acclaimed solo albums. In 2017, Mead oversaw the music for the CMT television series “Sun Records” and in 2021 worked as Music Supervisor for the upcoming feature film “Neon Highway.”
Jonny Baird (Associate Music Director and Copyist) is excited to be a part of the Million Dollar Quartet family as the associate music director and co-music arranger. For the past 5 years he has been Music Supervisor for Norwegian Cruise Line. Shows includes Million Dollar Quartet, Priscilla Queen of the Desert, After Midnight, Winelovers the Musical. Broadway: Annie Revival. Tours: Bring It On, Sister Act. Jonny also orchestrates and arranges music throughout New York City. He was an orchestrator for the Virginia Symphony. Favorite shows he has music directed: Jersey Boys, Ragtime, Bat Boy, The Who’s Tommy, Les Miserables, Double Threat Trio. He holds a B.F.A. in Musical Theatre at Shenandoah Conservatory. He would like to thank everyone at Madison Wells Live for having him. He’d also like to thank his family and friends for the countless support.
dots (Scenic Designer) dots is a design collective based in New York City specializing in designing environments for narratives, experiences and performances. Hailing from Colombia, South Africa and Japan, we are Santiago Orjuela-Laverde, Andrew Moerdyk ,and Kimie Nishikawa. We approach every project with diversity of thought and burning curiosity and, above all, we believe in the value of the whole being greater than the sum of its individual parts.
Diego Garzon (Sound Designer) is a musician, sound engineer and music producer, with only 10 years of experience, he has worked in music and entertainment industry, producing and designing audio content for commercial brands like: Coca Cola, Pepsi, Toyota, Chevrolet and more. As sound engineer, he works for Norwegian Cruise Lines doing the engineering of their new builds, he has worked as associated sound designer and production audio for Jersey Boys onboard Norwegian Bliss and Kinky Boots onboard Norwegian Encore. Diego is currently working as head of sound for the new cruise ship Norwegian PR1MA which will have several productions including SUMMER, The Donna Summer musical.
Izumi Inaba (Costume Design) is so excited to be working on this production with Scott after such a long wait! She is originally from Tokyo, Japan, and now based in Chicago, where she has designed over a couple hundred projects. In recent years, she also enjoys working on regional productions that she gets to collaborate with new artists. In 2019, she was chosen to exhibit at Prague Quadrennial as one of the
featured designers of the United States. Recent projects include Dishwasher Dreams at Writers Theatre and Nightwatch at Goodman Theatre.
Ryan J. O’Gara (Lighting Design) Broadway: Thoughts of a Colored Man. National Tour: Juke Box Hero, A Night with Janis Joplin, Vocalocity and The Little Prince. Various productions for Cirque du Soleil, Norwegian Cruise Line, Tokyo Disney Sea, New York City Opera, Paper Mill Playhouse, Walnut Street Theatre, Drury Lane- Chicago (2019 Jeff Nomination), TUTS, Baltimore Center Stage, Syracuse Stage, North Carolina Theatre, Bucks County Playhouse, Signature Theatre DC, Laguna Playhouse, New Victory Theatre, Lincoln Center Festival, Capital Repertory Theatre and Bristol Riverside Theatre (2016 Barrymore Award). Associate Lighting Designer for over 25 Broadway productions, recently: Ain’t Too Proud, Come from Away, and Hamilton. O’Gara graduated from NCSA.
Chris Steckel (Production Coordinator) manages stages and designs lighting. Select credits: Penelope, Cheek to Cheek, Anything Can Happen in the Theater, Enter Laughing, and Lonesome Blues, A Charlie Brown Christmas (US Tour), Crackskull Row (Irish Rep), Counting Sheep (Recklinghausen Festival), and Spamilton. Non-favorite credits include everything else. For a good time, visit chrisdsteckel.com.
Kendra Arado (Company Manager) Kendra is from Las Vegas and thrilled to be spending this holiday season travelling colder parts of these United States with Million Dollar Quartet Christmas. She has previously worked as a stage manager with Blue Man Group at Luxor and Jabbawockeez and MGM Grand. Most recently she was aboard the Scarlet Lady with Virgin Voyages running exciting productions a sea. If you have made it this far, she appreciates your dedication to reading the program. Enjoy the show.
Evan Bernardin Productions (General Management) is a full-service theatrical management company that provides general management for productions and immersive experiences. Select credits include: Fairycakes, Seven Deadly Sins, Million Dollar Quartet (Tour), Charlie Brown Christmas (Tour), Afterglow, and We Are The Tigers. Additional collaborative projects have included performances at Lincoln Center, The United Nations, The Harvard Club, The White House, Cornell University, Georgetown's Gaston Hall, The Culture Project, The Ohio Theatre and The Metropolitan Museum of Art.
Marquee Digital (Digital Program) is a New York-based tech startup innovating the theatre industry with ground-breaking digital program solutions. The Marquee is a paperless program for the 21st century, employing contactless, eco-friendly, and ADA-compliant technology to create an interactive and highly intuitive experience for audiences at the theatre, opera, art fairs, conferences, and concerts. In the company’s first year, Marquees have been opened in venues across the United States and in more than 80 countries around the globe.