Board

Darrilyn Peters -Chair

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.

Allie Stickney -Vice Chair

Allie Stickney has been President/CEO of Wake Robin, a non-profit, life-care community of 335 residents in Shelburne, since 2006. She has had a long career in non-profit management, having served as President/CEO of Planned Parenthood of Northern New England based in Williston, and Planned Parenthood of the Columbia/Willamette in Portland, Oregon. Allie also serves on the Board of Local Motion and is a slow but happy biker and runner.  She resides in South Burlington.

John Shullenberger - Secretary

John is an attorney and legislative consultant who lives in Jericho with his spouse Dianne, a fiber artist.  John graduated from Northwestern University School of Law and practiced with the Legal Assistance Foundation of Chicago and taught at the legal clinic at Northwestern. He and his family moved to Vermont in 1978; and he served as Executive Director of Vermont Legal Aid for nine years before entering private practice.  His current practice focuses on public policy advocacy for a number of non-profit organizations that provide a variety of services to Vermonters, including services to senior citizens; developing affordable housing and conserving farmland and important natural areas and historic structures; improving access to health insurance and health care for cancer patients and others; supporting Vermont's efforts to prevent and control the use of tobacco and advocating for smoke free environments; improving access to justice for low income, elderly and disabled Vermonters; and   He is a passionate supporter of civil liberties and political and artistic freedoms.  John served for almost twenty years on the Jericho Select Board; and is a member of several non-profit boards.  He and Dianne have two children and four grandchildren.

Christopher Kaufman Ilstrup - Treasurer

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.

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.

Dale Azaria

Dale Azaria is a graduate student at the University of Vermont Rubenstein School of the Environment and Natural Resources. She is a recovering lawyer, having practiced law for more than 15 years, much of that time as a Staff Attorney and General Counsel for Pizzagalli Construction Company in South Burlington, Vermont. Dale loves the way theater allows you to immerse yourself inside other people's lives for a few hours and emerge later with a better understanding of yourself and others. Dale lives in Burlington with her husband, Alan Matson, and their two teenagers, who have dabbled in theater but seem to be migrating towards music.

Brenda Bisbee

Ducky Donath

Ducky Donath has lived in Burlington for over 30 years.  She and her husband Frank have been long-time supporters of Vermont Stage Company as well as philanthropists for other local not-for-profit organizations.  

Glenn McRae

Glenn McRae made his one and only 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 University of Vermont at the Transportation Research Center and teaches in the Public Administration program. He is married to Hollie Shaner-McRae and together they are enjoying city living and walking to Vermont Stage Company performances.

Judy Raven

Judy Raven depends on the arts to interpret the world and make life bearable and has been a devotee of Vermont Stage since the early years. Professionally, she was executive director of Shelburne Art Center and managed and curated its gallery. She directed the marketing departments of a Vermont publishing company and a video distribution business, and did public relations and media for the Vermont Department of Health. In distant memory she performed for a brief time as a paid actor. Judy is active with the Shelburne Energy Committee and the Shelburne Water Quality Stewardship program.

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 the United Way.  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. 

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.