Stoneham Theatre Staff
Weylin Symes, Producing Artistic Director
Weylin assisted in the renovation of the Stoneham Theatre building and has been with the Theatre since its inception, starting as Associate Artistic Director in 2000 and becoming Artistic Director in 2001. Following on the heels of 2005's World Premiere adaptation of Ernest Hemingway's The Old Man and the Sea, he penned last season's original adaptation of Bram Stoker's Dracula. As head of the Emerging Stages program at Stoneham Theatre, he directed the World Premieres of The Girl in the Frame by Jeremy Desmon, Israel Horowitz's adaptation of Edoardo Erba's Marathon and Illicit Conversations, an evening of his own one-act plays. In addition, he directed the critically acclaimed A Prayer for Owen Meany, Richard Greenberg's The Dazzle and The Violet Hour for Stoneham Theatre. Prior to coming to Stoneham Theatre, he directed several productions in the Boston area, including Henrik Ibsen's John Gabriel Borkman and We Bombed in New Haven by Joseph Heller, and spent a year training law enforcement personnel through role-playing exercises in Albuquerque, NM. Weylin graduated from New York University and studied at the Experimental Theatre Wing of the Tisch School of the Arts.
Debra Rafson, Managing Director
Debra is thrilled to be taking on this new role in the Stoneham Theatre team. From 2000-2003, Debra was the Assistant Stage Manager for 12 Mainstage productions and the Stage Manager for over 30 concerts and special events, as well as the Props Master, Company Manager, and a Box Office staff member. From 2005-2011, Debra was a member of the Stoneham Theatre Board of Trustees and participated in committees for Finance, Strategic Planning, and Branding. Her outside professional Stage Management experience includes work at New Repertory Theatre, Brandeis University, the Publick Theatre, and 8 ½ years with the Boston company of the Off-Broadway hit Blue Man Group. As a theatre administrator, she completed a Master of Science in Arts Administration at Boston University, a general management/company management internship at the Huntington Theatre Company, and spent 4 seasons as the Management Associate for New Repertory Theatre. For the past 4 years, Debra has been the Director of Systems and Operations for Graduate & Professional Programs at Emmanuel College. In that role, she worked extensively on data/reporting, enrollment, and marketing, and she was the lead project manager for 2 major software implementations that have revolutionized the department’s student recruitment capabilities. Debra holds a Bachelor of Arts from Brandeis University and completed a Graduate Certificate in Human Resource Management at Emmanuel College.
Carol "Kat" Katinoglou, Management Associate
Artistic/Education
Caitlin Lowans, Associate Artistic Director & Director of Education
Caitlin is the Artistic has directed seven shows for Stoneham Theatre's Mainstage, sixteen for the young company, and Thrill Me [IRNE nomination, best musical, best director] for the Emerging Stages series; most recently My Fair Lady and The Dinosaur Musical on the Mainstage. Other Boston area work includes directing for Fort Point Theatre Channel and StageCoach productions, assistant directing with the Actors Shakespeare Project, the Publick Theatre and New Rep and serving as a dramaturge for the Orfeo Group’s production of Island of Slaves. Caitlin holds an EdM in Arts in Education from Harvard University.
Production
Dave Brown, Production Manager
In the past, Dave has worked at Capital Center for the Arts in Concord, NH and at Merrimack Repertory Theatre in Lowell, MA as Production Manager. Before that, he was a Lighting Designer that worked in the Boston area for 10 years. Dave is married to Harriet Sheets, the General Manager of New Rep Theatre in Watertown, MA.
Marketing and Development
Carol Dempsey, Director of Sales
David Costa, Director of Marketing & Public Realtions
Kelly Gaudet, Membership Manager
Carla Donaghey, Graphic Designer