Board
Glenn McRae
Chair
Glenn McRae made his one and only post adolescent stage appearance in a high school production of Harvey and then disappeared, resurfacing briefly to learn lighting design with the White River Valley Players in Rochester, VT. He has never disappeared from the audience and has been a season subscriber for a number of years before joining the board of VSC in 2007. For a day job he works at The Intervale Center in Burlington and teaches at UVM. He is married to Hollie Shaner-McRae and together they have recently bought a house in Burlington and are enjoying the walk to Vermont Stage Company performances.
Brendan S. Keleher
Treasurer
Brendan Keleher has over twenty-five years of experience working in local governments and private voluntary organizations in Vermont. He lives in Burlington with his wife Kathy a certified nurse midwife. He enjoys very much the Board's interaction with the Vermont Stage creative team and most of all the performances.
Brian M. Lansbury
Vice Chair
Brian Lansbury is Corporate Counsel at Dealer.com in Burlington. Prior to that role, he spent seven years in the law department at GE Healthcare (formerly IDX Systems Corporation) in South Burlington. Before going into the law, Brian studied fine arts at the University of Vermont, focusing on pottery, and received an MBA from the Yale School of Management. Brian grew up in New York City in a theater family, so theater has always been an integral part of his life. He truly believes in the power of the Vermont Stage Company’s work (and theater in general), as well as its value to the community and exceptional ability to reflect on the human condition and expand horizons. Brian lives in Burlington with his wife and two sons.
Betsy Allen-Pennebaker
Betsy spent most of her twenties in Europe, where she fell in love with theater in two languages, courtesy of cheap student tickets. She was thrilled to find Vermont Stage Company when she moved to Burlington to be with her now-husband, Andrew. Betsy has a BA in English from Williams College, an MA in German from UVM, and a second master's and a doctorate from the University of Oxford. She is also trained in Shiatsu massage. Having happily forgotten just about everything she learned in grad school, Betsy is now co-owner (with her husband) of Vermont Design Works, a web design and online marketing company, and also manages buildings in Burlington, Winooski, Hinesburg, and Costa Rica. She and her husband live in the Old North End with too many cats.
Brenda Bisbee
Before Brenda Bisbee left the Boston area she had taught for many years at an independent elementary school and had been a research assistant at Wellesley College - Center for Research on Women. When she and her husband retired to VT about 20 years ago, they became active volunteers for various non-profits. Currently her focus is VT Stage, VT Women's Fund, VT Humanities Council and VT Committee of the National Museum of Women in the Arts. During the summer she runs an informal B & B for her children, grandchildren and relatives from all over the country. In the winter Brenda is a dedicated cheer leader for VT Stage.
Jennifer Blanchard
Ducky Donath
Susan Hong
Susan Hong, Board member since 2003, is a partner in the marketing and design firm of Stockbridge Communications, Inc. She holds a degree in English literature from Middlebury College, and her love of words and drama make her an avid supporter of VSC’s goal to make fine theater that matters. She studies modern dance and ballet, sits on the Programming Committee of the Flynn Theatre, and is an active guardian ad litem in the Chittenden Family Court.
Christopher Kaufman Ilstrup
Christopher Kaufman Ilstrup was born in Burlington and grew up in Vergennes. He attended his first professional theater performance at a very early age - a Vermont Shakespeare Festival production of A Midsummer Night's Dream at the Royall Tyler Theater at UVM. He's been hooked ever since. He majored in Dance and Drama at Kenyon College and studied with teachers from the Royal Shakespeare Company in London, England. He has been a community organizer for almost 20 years, often bringing theater projects into his work including serving as co-producer of the Vermont Stage Company/Sandglass Theater "Barnstorming Tour" in 1999. He was the founding Executive Director of R.U.1.2? Queer Community Center in Burlington. He currently works as a Philanthropic Advisor for the Vermont Community Foundation where he specializes in civic engagement, economic development and diversity and equity issues for the Foundation. He holds a Master of Science in Community Development from the London School of Economics and is a 2004 graduate of the Vermont Leadership Institute at the Snelling Center for Government.
Darrilyn Peters
Darrilyn Peters began reading plays with a high school friend and has been wildly enthusiastic about the theater (and reading) ever since. Most of her professional work has been in the area of public health program development and evaluation, although she did own an independent book store in Maine for 10 years before she and her husband, Charles Gluck, returned to Vermont in 2000 to be nearer grandchildren. After helping evaluate Vermont's anti-smoking program for six years, Darrilyn chose part-time work at a local bookstore. She holds an undergraduate degree from Berkeley and graduate degrees from University of Pennsylvania and Harvard.
John Shullenberger
Joe Speidel
Joe is the Director of Community Relations at the University of Vermont and has also held positions at UVM in Career Services and Development and Alumni Relations. He earned a Bachelor's degree and a Master of Arts degree in Counseling Psychology at Boston College, as well as a Master of Education degree in Higher Education and Student Affairs from UVM in 2001. He is a 2009 graduate of the Snelling Center's Vermont Leadership Institute. Joe's community involvement includes the Burlington Legacy Project (Co-Chair), the Champlain Initiative, the Burlington Community Coalition, and Mobius, the Mentoring Movement. He and his wife, Maura O'Sullivan, live in the Old North End. They moved to Burlington in 1994, intending to leave after two years, and haven't found a reason to yet.
Susan Walker
Susan Walker is the Associate Director of Career Services at Middlebury College. In that role, she specializes in developing internship opportunities for students in the arts and serves as liaison to the College’s arts departments. Before moving to Vermont in 1986, Susan was a corporate outplacement consultant in New York City for seven years. Susan has worked in the fields of publishing and direct marketing, and has taught English as a Second Language and English Composition at the University of Vermont, Champlain College, and St. Michael's College.
Ruth Wallman
An almost native Vermonter, Ruth Wallman's extensive theater background includes running a children's theater in Princeton, NJ, an MFA from Yale Drama School and performances off-Broadway, abroad, and with most of northern Vermont's theater companies. She is the Executive Director of the Lake Champlain Islands Chamber of Commerce, and has served on the VSC Board since 2004.
Martha Ming Whitfield
Martha Ming Whitfield is an arts manager, dancer, and dance educator who is passionate about the arts and the creative process. She is currently Festival Manager for the Lake Champlain Chamber Music Festival, and works as a freelance arts consultant. Until August 2008 she was Education Manager for The Royal Ballet in London, and hass also worked for the Flynn Center in Burlington, the Vermont Arts Council, and American Repertory Ballet. She sits on the Programming Committee of the Flynn Center, and sings with Bella Voce Women's Chorus and the Vermont Symphony Orchestra Chorus.