Blue Masque Hall of Fame

• Meredith Fox ’07
• Tonry Lathroum ’91
• Cliff Odle ‘90

Tonry Lathroum is a prestigious lighting designer who currently acts as the Resident Lighting Designer and Technical Consultant for Greenbrier Valley Theatre. A Member of the United Scenic Artists Local 829, Tonry boasts over thirty years of experience and a thriving list of over 600 credits of design, designing approximately 15 to 20 productions a year for a variety of customers.

After graduating from Catawba in 1991 with a Bachelors in Technical Theatre and Design, Tonry traveled across the country, working at various theatres such as the Off Square Theatre Company, the Wohlfahrt Haus Dinner Theatre, Three Rivers Entertainment, Penobscot Theatre, Crane School of Music at State University of New York Potsdam, The Cumberland County Playhouse, and many concerts, videos, commercials, and corporate events across the country.

Tonry was awarded the Broadway World Nashville Best Professional Lighting Design for his work on Duck Hunter Shoots Angel at the Cumberland County Playhouse, where his lighting was praised as “the perfect illumination… focusing our attention when needed and casting gorgeous atmospheric effects.”

Some of his most recent work include Frankenstein, Steel Magnolias, Next to Normal, and Forever Plaid at Greenbrier Valley Theatre, the State Professional Theatre of West Virginia. As an avid rider and mechanic, when not hiding in a dark theatre, Tonry can usually be found somewhere close to his antique motorcycles. 

Meredith Fox graduated from Catawba College in the class of 2007.  While a student, she earned her B.F.A. in Musical Theatre and minors in Dance and Music.  On the main stage, Meredith performed in The Marriage of Figaro directed by David Pulliam, Sweeney Todd directed by Missy Barnes, and the world premier of The Machine Play or I’m Not Nadine written by Janice Fuller and directed by Beth Homan, for which Meredith was nominated for an Irene Ryan award.  For the mainstage, Meredith choreographed The Mystery of Edwin Drood, As You Like It, and How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying.  She also frequently performed and choreographed for the Danceworks concerts each semester.  Outside of her formal studies, Meredith was an active member of the Blue Masque, Alpha Psi Omega, and Catawba Singers.

Since graduating from Catawba, Meredith has had an eclectic professional journey:  She earned her M.F.A in Physical Theatre at Accademia dell’Arte in Arezzo, Italy with satellite modules in Torino, Berlin, and Milan.  She had a career as an award-winning competitive ballroom dancer and certified dance instructor with the Fred Astaire franchise studios.  She also earned her teaching certifications in Elemental Body Alignment System.  And as a professional actor, she loves crisscrossing between musical theatre, Shakespeare, and devising (to name a few). 

Meredith came back to Catawba to serve as Assistant Professor of Dance, Musical Theatre, and Movement from 2013-2018.  For the mainstage, Meredith served as movement director for The Comedy of Errors, Eurydice, and The Conference of the Birds, and choreographed Little Shop of Horrors, Rent, Reefer Madness, and Anything Goes.  Additionally, Meredith directed several Danceworks productions, including Alice in Wonderland: A Dance Adaptation, a Salisbury community collaboration with Steppin’ Out Dance Company and Lee Street Theatre, as well as The Outrageous Dance Project 2.0, a collaboration with Ballet Pensacola, then under the direction of Catawba Alumnus Richard Steinert.  

Meredith now lives in San Francisco with her wonderful husband and life partner, Derek.  She is still a working actor-creator/dancer/singer, choreographer, movement director, and arts educator. Only the universe knows what adventures await Meredith when she returns to San Francisco and beyond.

Cliff Odle, Catawba Class of ’90, is a playwright, actor, director, and professor. A native of New Jersey, he has been involved with theater around the country in places like Boston, New York, and San Diego. He has taught acting, playwriting, screenwriting, and dramatic literature courses at the University of Massachusetts, Boston, Emerson College, Wheelock College, Boston University, and Bates College. He currently is an Assistant Professor in Drama at the University of North Carolina School of the Arts.

He has worked with esteemed theater and screen artists such as August Wilson, Kirsten Greenidge, Lydia Diamond, Tony Todd, Charles Brown, Keith David, and Viola Davis among others. His written work includes: Lost Tempo, Our Girl in Trenton, Running the Bulls, The Petition, and Slammin’ The Bones. His acting highlights include Narrator in Passing Strange (Boston area debut production), Henry Brown in Race, Troy Maxon in Fences, and Old Mister/Minister in The Color Purple. Plays he has directed include: Amadaus, Agnes of God, Yellowface, and The Colored Museum, and Topdog/Underdog. He is also the proud father of two children, DC and Clifford.

His theatrically eclectic career comes from his diverse and eclectic experiences at Catawba. It was at Catawba that he found his footing as an actor (Waiting for Godot, Dutchman, various short plays), a director, (Home at Six by Lee Falk), and playwright (His first play, Twists of Sobriety). He has also explored other media as Station manager for Catawba’s WNDN radio station and as a contributor to the campus literary magazine, The Arrowhead. He became politically involved as a member of SGA as chair of the College Union Board, a member of the short-lived campus political party, The Stooges (unofficial), and as a delegate member of NCSL (North Carolina Student Legislature).

• Robin Tynes-Miller ’12
• Jonathan Padget ’93
• Amelia “Amy” McCachren ‘83
• David Hagy
• Gray Hawks ‘93

Robin Tynes-Miller '12 co-founded Three Bone Theatre in Charlotte in 2012. She has served as its Founding Artistic Director over the first nine years, recently stepping into the Artistic and Operations Director role, the company's first full-time position. Born and raised in the mountains of North Carolina, she attended Catawba College and earned her BFA in Musical Theatre Performance before moving to Charlotte. In Charlotte, she has spent her career working with local theatre organizations as a teaching artist, marketing and ticketing professional, actor, and director. Favorite directing credits include THE VAGINA MONOLOGUES (2013), THE (CURIOUS CASE OF THE) WATSON INTELLIGENCE (2016), EVERY BRILLIANT THING (2018) and THE CHILDREN (2022). An avid student of and advocate for racial justice, she believes that anti-racism and anti-oppression work is the only way forward for the industry. She currently lives in Charlotte with her husband, their baby, and a plethora of pets.

Jonathan Padget '93 has spent more than a quarter-century in the nation’s capital, where his career highlights include reviewing over 100 professional theatre productions for Metro Weekly Magazine, writing and editing arts coverage for The Washington Post, and creating “The Blue Lagoon: A Musical,” produced in Washington, New York, Los Angeles and Orlando. After shifting his professional focus to public relations and corporate communications, he became a senior writer at United States Postal Service headquarters, where his theatrical background informs news and feature stories for the country’s 655,000 postal employees. Padget is a 1993 Catawba graduate in English.

Amelia (Amy) McCachren '83 - From a young age, McCachren dove headfirst into theatre, following the footsteps of her beloved faculty father, Hoyt M. McCachren, Jr. As a student, she excelled in every aspect of the program from actor to designer. After graduating, she went on to be a theatre instigator, inventor, and educator extraordinaire as part of the Horn In The West Theatre Company as a performer and costumer. Eventually climbing to the title of costume shop manager/ director where she spent her time designing new pieces for the company. Amy then earned a Masters in Christian Education and began building a phenomenal youth program at Mt. Moriah and directed/designed ministry programs for John Calvin Presbyterian in Salisbury. After returning to Catawba to earn her teaching certificate, Amy then was requested to help found and cultivate the American Renaissance Charter School in Statesville, being a major player in the creation of the school’s organization and curriculum. Twenty years later, Amy continues to teach at American Renaissance where she takes pride in her upper-level students creating original plays as part of their end of term festival.

David Hagy is a Catawba Theatre Arts faculty emeritus who served as the music director for the program and has since spread his talents across the Salisbury community and the surrounding area. David graduated with a Bachelor of Music in violin performance and soon after received his doctorate from Yale University. He has had a hand in many of the amazing fine arts events occurring in Salisbury, including being at the forefront of establishing the annual performance of the Nutcracker Ballet. As a conductor, he also boasts titles from the Philharmonia Orchestra of Yale, the International Music Program of the North Carolina School of the Arts, the Norwalk and Stamford Symphonies, Western Massachusetts Youth Orchestras, and guest conductor of the Omaha and Indianapolis All-City Orchestra. Currently, David is acting as both the Orchestra Director at Wake Forest University and is on his 35^th year of leading the Salisbury Symphony as both conductor and music director.

Gray Hawks ‘93 was a transfer student from Brevard College when he arrived at Catawba in 1990. From his first visit, he fell in love with everything Catawba offered. He loved it so much, he finagled extra time at Catawba to add on an English major, and sneak in some extra shows.

He graduated in '93 with a double major in Theatre Arts and English Literature. 

After Catawba, Gray moved to Richmond, VA, and worked with Theatre IV for several years, performing children's theatre along the East Coast. He also entertained kids for Paramount's Kings Dominion in their Mega-Mess-A-Mania show as the Professor of Slimeology. 

Gray moved to Wilmington, NC in '96 intent on getting into film. He initially worked with many local theatres, but took a step away from theatre about 15 years ago to pursue acting for the camera. 

On camera credits include “Outer Banks”, a recurring guest star role in the Oprah Winfrey show “Delilah”, and the movie, “When We Last Spoke” playing Cloris Leachman's son in her final film. He can currently be seen as a crazed Gamecocks fan in a recent SC lottery ad. 

He recently wrapped production on the upcoming mini-series “George and Tammy,” where he played opposite Jessica Chastain, and he will be seen in the newest season of “Hightown” on the Starz network.

Earlier this year, he took a position with Actor's Arsenal studio in Wilmington, where he coaches actors, and teaches on camera acting classes for kids, teens, and adults. He loves every minute of it.

• John Starmer, Class of 1997, Director of Production for New York City based Jazz at Lincoln Center
• Jim Lally (d), Class of 1995, remembered fondly as a charismatic, keenly intelligent, caring, larger than life individual who was loved by everyone he came in contact with.   

John Barrett Starmer has spent the last decade as the Director of Production for the New York City based Jazz at Lincoln Center.  After earning his B.A. in Theater Arts from Catawba in 1997, he’s had the pleasure of working in the performing arts across the United States and the world including places as far as Prague, Seoul, Stratford-upon-Avon, and Brooklyn.  In 2006, Starmer earned his M.F.A. in Technical Design and Production from the prestigious Yale School of Drama.

After graduation from Catawba, John began work as a carpenter and production assistant for the Tony Award-winning American Repertory Theatre, simultaneously serving as a rigger for Glimmerglass Opera.  In 2001 He became Assistant Technical Director for the New York City Opera, followed by stints working in a variety of technical and leadership roles with Yale Rep

, The New Haven International Festival, Avenue Q Vegas, and The Shakespeare Theatre in DC. In 2006 he became Production Manager for the International premiere production of the opera Don Juan in Prague presented at the Czech National Theater and Brooklyn Academy of Music.  In 2007 He started work as Production Manager/Technical Supervisor for Jazz at Lincoln Center, where, in 2012 he was promoted to Director of Production.

James “Jim” Lally, ‘95 died in the early hours of June 17, 2021. Jim was a light upon this earth who shared his gifts of a rare intelligence, quiet grace, and human compassion with everyone he encountered. 

Jim was born on October 9, 1973, a date he swore was used in every Law & Order episode (every version) as the day of the crime. Jim was well known as a caring, larger than life individual who was loved by everyone he came in contact with. But he was perhaps best known and enjoyed (or maybe not) for his gift of humor. No one could spend time with Jim without likely embarrassing themselves with a whole lot of not-quiet laughter. 

Whether delighting dinner guests with his passion for gourmet cooking, teaching leadership change at Columbia University, or devouring one of the many weighty historical tomes that graced his bookshelf, Jim was a true Renaissance man. He was capable of excelling in any endeavor he undertook. In 1995, he received a BA in Theater Arts from Catawba College. While he landed roles in many films and tv shows, he might have been most proud of the fact that James Earl Jones left Jim a voice mail thanking him for the cornbread recipe that Jim had shared on set. Or that time Jim got into a passionate argument with Meatloaf—while in a hot tub. What those of us of a certain generation regarded as a true accomplishment was his role of stand-in for Pacey in Dawson’s Creek. 

Ultimately, though, Jim was fascinated by change, and the human capacity to grow. He directed his quick-study expertise to organizational process improvements, which led to Project Management Professional (PMP) certification--the first tool he acquired to embark on a career as a self- employed expert in organizational improvements. Jim went on to earn a master's degree at St. Joseph's University in Organization Development and Leadership, adding academic credentials to an already intuitive understanding of leadership and organizational growth. Earlier this year, Jim joined the consulting firm of Mazars as Director of Organizational Change, where his passion for servant leadership became a guiding principle for instilling effective leadership and change processes within organizations of all types. Jim remained ever the actor, but helping organizations improve was an appropriate vocation for Jim, as his care, kindness, generosity, and brilliant humor enriched the many, many lives of the people who knew him. 

Jim is survived by his wife Jane M. Sigda, his best friend and a woman he loved with all of his being. Jim and Jane joked that they imprinted on each other in childhood and were always meant to be. He is also survived by Maxwell James (12), his mini-me, his partner in shenanigans, and his most beloved son. Jim’s favorite place to be was wherever Jane and Maxwell were (and of course, Lucille, the family dog). 

He is also survived by his mother, Rosemary (Brennan) Lally McClure, Sharon (Donald) Weigner, Michael (Amber) Lally, Maureen (John) Shermer, Theresa (Brandon) Atkins (and more nieces and nephews than one can shake a stick at, all of whom he adored). He is predeceased by his father, Edmund James Lally, Sr., his brothers, Edmund James Lally, Jr., and Stephen Joseph Lally (Jillian). Jim also leaves behind a wide cadre of friends whom he admired and who, to a one, avow that Jim changed their lives for the better. 

• Scott Burrell, Class of ’94, Director of the Dear School of Creative and Performing Arts, Northwestern State University, Natchitoches, LA.
• Rae Geoffrey, Class of ’95, Managing Director of the Wortham Center for the Performing Arts, Asheville, NC.
• William Gilmore, Class of ’85, a Los Angeles-based story Producer, Writer, Editor and sometimes Cinematographer.
• Christopher Zink, Catawba College Theatre Arts Professor.

Scott Burrell ‘94 - After graduating from Catawba College in 1994 with a BA degree in Theatre with a minor in Communication Arts and an emphasis in Directing, Scott earned an MFA in Directing from Virginia Commonwealth University. He also earned a Teacher Certification in the prestigious  Michael Chekhov Acting Technique.  

He has been committed to all facets of theatre at the university level ever since.  

Before becoming Director of The Dear School of Creative and Performing Arts at Northwestern State University, Scott was the Chair of the NSU Theatre and Dance program for 12 years. He has also been a member of the theatre faculty there since 1998. During his tenure, at NSU, Scott has graduated successful students who have moved into all areas of professional theatre and dance. Before the pandemic, five NSU Theatre/Dance alumni were on Broadway. He was voted NSU Faculty Advisor of the Year in 2017.

Under his guidance, the theatre & dance program at NSU grew its enrollment by 30 percent, established a BFA in Dance, created four faculty lines and was awarded more than $300,000 in grants. Scottis currently coordinating a $500,000 renovation of NSU's A.A. Fredricks Auditorium and continues to serve in a variety of leadership roles both on campus and as an active member of the University of Louisiana System’s Management and Leadership Institute.  

Rae Geoffrey, a 1995 Catawba College graduate, is passionate about the power of the arts to connect people and build better communities — a passion that was fueled through the excellent training program at Catawba College. With more than 20 years as an arts professional, she has worked as a performer, educator, administrator, and theatre manager throughout the Southeast and Chicago. 

Rae Currently serves as the Managing Director for The Wortham Center for the Performing Arts in Asheville, NC, a venue that serves 55,000 Asheville residents and visitors each year through an impressive array of performing arts programming and services.

She also serves on the Board of Directors for Arts NC, is Past President of the North Carolina Presenters Consortium, is a representative of the Dance Touring Initiative through South Arts, a Grant Panelist for the North Carolina Arts Council, and an adjudicator on the Artsmarket Showcase Selection Panel. Rae is a YWCA “Woman of Influence,” a Leadership Asheville graduate and Executive Director Roundtable Member, and an International Delegate to the Atlantic Presenters Association in Canada.

William Gilmore - After earning his Theatre degree in 1985, Bill interned as an actor for Louisville Children’s Theater, where he appeared as a Baby Giant in The Brave Little Tailor, a giant Squirrel in The Great Race, and numerous characters that all met untimely ends in a seven-man production of The Scottish Play. Before moving to New York, he helped found Southwest Florida’s Theatre Conspiracy while directing and appearing in their inaugural production of K2.

Once in New York, he landed the role of the Count in a national tour of Phantom of the Opera, appeared Off-Broadway as the Ape Man in The Island of Dr. Moreau, and performed in an ultra-realistic version of Moliere’s Les Précieuses Ridicules, because – as the director stated – a great playwright like Moliere would never stoop to writing a slapstick comedy.

Gilmore’s directing credits include The Baby Dance, Baby With The Bathwater, Zastrozzi, and our own James ”Parkie” Parker’s adaptation of Moliere’s The Imaginary Invalid. More recently, Gilmore’s work has been as a content writer and producer for companies like Disney, NatGeo, and HGTV, and as an editor for projects with HBO, Paramount, and Universal. His work can currently be seen across the spectrum of cable programming for such series as House Hunters, Dog & Beth: On the Hunt, The Real Housewives of New York, The Real Housewives of New Jersey, and I'm Married to a. . .

Christopher Zink, who came to Catawba’s Theatre Department in 1995 as Technical Director and Lighting Designer, was “bitten by the Theatre Bug” his sophomore year of high school. He studied Theatre in college before leaving to work as a carpenter for Seaside Music Theatre in Daytona Beach, FL, where, though his exceptional work ethic, he was promoted to Master Carpenter and later Technical Director. He earned his IATSE Union card while working as a stagehand for the Peabody Auditorium and the Ocean Center, also in Daytona Beach.

He completed his BFA in Scenic Design at Western Carolina University while simultaneously working full-time as a production technician for the newly constructed 8,000-seat Ramsey Center Coliseum on campus. After receiving his degree, ‘Zink’ was hired by the University of Southern Mississippi originally as Scene Shop Manager, and was again promoted (“work ethic”J) to Auditorium Manager. Here, he also earned his MFA with an emphasis in Theatre Production and Lighting Design. In his first faculty position, he served as Technical Director and Lighting Designer for the Givens Performing Arts Center at Pembroke University, where he also taught Stagecraft, Lighting Design, and Introduction to Theatre courses.

His theatrical career includes more than 120 Technical Direction credits, 110 Lighting Design credits, 30 Scenic Design credits, and 10 Directing credits. 

• Lisa Ray Stafford ’90
• Paula Barnhardt Baldwin ’77
• Tiffany Yvonne Cox ’07
• Justin Dionne ’07

Stafford is a freelance Equity stage manager based in New York City. At Catawba, she majored in theatre arts with minors in English and psychology. After receiving a Master of Theatre Education Degree from UNC-Greensboro, she taught high school theatre in North Carolina for almost 23 years. Since arriving in New York in October 2016, she has stage managed 17 productions or readings, including the developmental production of Allen Knee’s Little Women, The Man Who Was Peter Pan, and The Astonishing Times of Timothy Cratchit. In January 2018, she made her Off Broadway debut as the Production Stage Manager for the new play, The Chekhov Dreams. She also serves as a production assistant for the Broadway Stage Management Symposium, founded by Broadway Stage Manager Matthew Aaron Stern. 

Baldwin graduated Magna Cum Laude from Catawba and earned a Master of Fine Arts in Acting/Directing from UNC-Greensboro in 1979. She was a professional actress for 16 years in various venues in the Southeast and Midwest. A Cabarrus County native, she returned from New York City to Charlotte in 1995 and began a 24-year teaching career with Charlotte/Mecklenburg Schools. In 2014, her students were recognized with the Distinguished Play Award at both the regional and state North Carolina Theatre Conference Play Festivals. In 2009, she was the recipient of the Metrolina Theatre Association Award for Best Lead Actress in a Drama for her portrayal of Annie Nations in Foxfire. She has appeared in several productions at Central Piedmont Community College Summer Theatre and directed The Mousetrap there in 2018. 

Cox graduated from Catawba College with a BFA in Musical Theatre. As a professional actress, she has performed at the American Players Theatre, The House Theatre and CPCC, and on many television shows, including Chicago Fire, Jane the Virgin, Adam Ruins Everything, and Grey’s Anatomy. 

Dionne studied Theatre at Catawba College and at graduate school at Florida State University. While in Salisbury, he helped to build The Norvell Theater and spearheaded efforts to renovate a 1920s warehouse into a performing arts center which became Lee Street Theatre. He serves as the Executive Director for the Cain Center for the Arts, which will bring a $25 million arts and community center to the Lake Norman region of North Carolina.  Justin has spent the last 10 years developing his passion for arts/nonprofit leadership and the opportunities that exist for strengthening communities through the power of the arts. 

• David R. Latham
• Mia Self
• Linda Kesler
• David Pulliam 

David R. Latham '86 has worked in technical theatre with theatre, dance, music and opera companies for the past 32 years. A 1986 theatre arts graduate from Catawba College, Latham’s technical theatre expertise and design work have won acclaim in America and abroad.

Mia Self '92 is a Catawba theatre arts graduate. Also holding an M.F.A. in directing from the University of Mississippi, Self has worked as a professional actor, playwright, director, and college professor.

Linda Kesler '83 holds the 1983 B.A. in theatre and B.S. in business administration from Catawba College. Also the recipient of an M.F.A. degree in arts administration from Virginia Polytechnic Institute, Kesler has worked professionally in both theatre education and theatre management.

David Pulliam 
David Pulliam has been a member of the Catawba theatre arts department faculty since 1986.  With an M.F.A. in theatre design from the University of Alabama, Pulliam has designed scenery for over 50 plays at Catawba.

• Ralph Leonard Roberts
• John Daniel Harris 
• Craig Grigg
• Janice Fuller

Ralph Leonard Roberts was born in Salisbury and attended Catawba College in the late 1930’s. Roberts’ began his long running professional acting career when he made his Broadway debut in the 1948 revival of Angel Street. To help finance his acting passion, Roberts’ also became a masseur, with a clientele largely made up of actors and actresses. Marilyn Monroe was a client and close friend.

John Daniel Harris received his Catawba theatre arts degree in 1982.  Afterward graduation, he moved professionally from production technical director to stage director of musicals and operas. Harris was the former CEO of Virginia Scenic, one of the premier scenic studios for opera, until he sold that business, and has served as chief operations officer at the Castleton Festival in Virginia.

Craig Grigg, a proud member of the Honors program while at Catawba, earned his B.A. degree in theatre with minors in English and German. His Broadway designs have been seen in more than sixty productions, beginning in 1997. These include Finding Neverland, Cabaret, Bullets Over Broadway, Big Fish, Kinky Boots, The Addams Family, Harvey, Cripple of Inishmaan, and Blithe Spirit, among many others.

Janice Fuller grew up in Salisbury, before earning degrees in English at Duke University and the University of North Carolina at Greensboro. Recently retired from the Catawba English Department, Fuller’s work as a poet has brought her wide acclaim. An avid supporter of the Blue Masque, several of Fuller’s plays were first produced at Catawba in collaboration with Theatre arts faculty and students.

• Karl Hales
• Kannan Menon
• Patrick Orndorff
• Jasika Nicole

Karl Hales has acted locally in thirty stage productions, while directing twenty-seven more. He also served as the emcee of the Sportscasters and Sportswriters Association Awards Ceremony for twenty-eight years. And, football fans know Hales as the public address announcer at Catawba College since 1980.

Kannan Menon earned the B.A. degree in theatre from Catawba College in 1974 and the M.F.A. in theatre directing from Tisch School of the Arts in New York City. Currently an attorney working with a small New York investment banking firm, Menon has professional theatre credits in both America and abroad.

Patrick Orndorff is currently the production manager for the Resident Ensemble Players at the University of Delaware. Prior to that, he was technical director for the Alley Theatre in Houston.  Orndorff received the B.A. degree in theatre from Catawba College in 1987 and has worked in professional theatre ever since.

Jasika Nicole is a 2002 Catawba College theatre graduate.   Nicole is best known for her role as agent Astrid Farnsworth in the hit Fox sci-fi series Fringe. She has additional professional credits on the New York stage and in film. Nicole also writes, is an illustrator, and lends her voice to several popular animated shows.

• Ashton Byrum '91
• Terry Ward '86
• Richard Seagle '78
• Denise Stewart '95

Ashton Byrum has a professional career that spans 25 years with performances in My Fair Lady, Grease, Fiddler on the Roof, The Will Rogers Follies, The Producers, A Christmas Carol, West Side Story and Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, among others. Byrum is a 1991 Catawba graduate in musical theatre.

Terry Ward is in his 28th year as the only full-time featured magician at Walt Disney World. The headliner for Disney's "Diamond Horseshoe Review and Medicine Show" for many years, Ward is also a highly sought after performer and master of ceremonies for conventions and Fortune 500 companies. Ward is a 1986 Catawba graduate in theatre arts.

Richard Seagle has designed for numerous North Carolina theatres, including Salisbury's Piedmont Players. Other theatres include the Asheville Community Theatre, Highland Repertory Theatre, Parkway Playhouse, Mars Hill University Theatre, and Southern Appalachian Repertory Theatre. Seagle is a 1978 Catawba graduate in theatre.

Denise Stewart is known throughout the Southeast for her one-woman show, "Dirty Barbie and Other Girlhood Tales."  In addition to her playwriting and acting skills, Stewart is a sought after public speaker in the corporate and business world.  She is a 1995 Catawba graduate in theatre arts.

• David Newell
• Donna White Cory
• Tim Ross
• Fred Inkley

David Mueller Newell was owner, director, and manager of ATTCO, Inc. in Honolulu, Hawaii from 1968 until 2005. His theatrical design and production company served theatre, film, conventions, tradeshows, and various other production based needs throughout the Pacific. ATTCO has offices and production shops on three of the islands and employs over 90 technicians. A 1961 Catawba College graduate in drama, Newell also attended graduate school at the University of Washington in Seattle, Wash.

Donna White Cory currently teaches master classes in musical theatre for the University of Cincinnati, is director of the dance program for the Bishop's School in La Jolla, Calif., and is guest instructor/choreographer for Ballet Pensacola in Florida, as well as Idyllwild Arts in Idyllwild, Calif. Cory's other professional experience includes work at numerous California theatres and educational institutions, such as the La Jolla Playhouse, the San Diego Academy of Arts, and San Diego's Globe Theatre. A 1982 Catawba College theatre arts graduate, she also holds the M.F.A. in theatre from the University of Mississippi.

Tim Ross has performed in over 50 equity/professional theatre productions, appeared in twenty-three feature films, eight television shows, and done twenty-five commercials. Calling Charlotte home, Ross has also been with WFAE public radio for the past 15 years. He is the main fill-in for their morning and afternoon news shows, as well as the producer of Charlotte Talks, a popular WFAE radio show. Ross is a 1986 Catawba College theatre arts and speech communication graduate.

Fred Inkley has performed on Broadway in the lead role of Jean Valjean in Les Miserables and in its national touring company. Inkley has also acted in the original Broadway casts of The Addams Family and A Tale of Two Cities. Other New York and national tour appearances include Beauty and the Beast (the Beast), Annie (Broadway revival), Of Thee I Sing, and The Boys From Syracuse. Inkley is a 1988 graduate in musical theatre from Catawba College.

• Cindy Gudger Baldwin
• Nancy Pipkin-Hutchinson
• Mike Wiley
• Bethany Sinnott.

Cindy Gudger Baldwin has been a leader on the North Carolina theatre scene for 40 years. Her proudest moments have come from her long work with children's theatre. Currently a teacher at the Claxton School for the Arts and Humanities in Asheville, Baldwin, among other responsibilities, directs musicals using over 100 4th and 5th graders. 

Baldwin has also stage managed Western North Carolina educational, community, and professional theatre productions for decades, including those at the Southern Appalachian Repertory Theatre, North Carolina Stage Company, and Asheville Community Theatre, where she has directed as well.

Among Baldwin's many other and varied Asheville theatre related activities are yearly responsibilities with their Bele Chere Festival, work with an all-female comedy group, LYLAS, and casting responsibilities for commercials and movies filmed in the area.

Nancy Pipkin-Hutchinson is currently on the faculty of the International Academy of Design and Technology in Sacramento, Calif., where she teaches courses relating to sketching, drafting, construction, and the design of theatre costumes. In addition, Pipkin-Hutchinson is a very busy California Bay Area costume designer.

With theatre graduate study at the University of Michigan-Ann Arbor and a Master of Fine Arts degree from the University of California-Davis, Pipkin-Hutchinson has performed professional costume design responsibilities in Sacramento, Calif., for B Street Theatre, Sacramento Theatre Company, Capital Stage, and California State University.

She has also designed for California's Aurora Theatre Company, Sierra Repertory Theatre, The Foothill Theatre Company, Falcon's Eye Theatre, and Solano Youth Theatre, among many others. Pipkin-Hutchinson's professional responsibilities in wardrobe, cutting, shop management, as well as other costume related areas, are extensive.

Mike Wiley is a professional actor, playwright, teacher, and originator of one-man plays.

Wiley, as writer, director and actor, tours his numerous one-man shows to theatres, community centers, and schools throughout the Southeast.  With a Master of Fine Arts degree from the professional acting program at the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill, he uses his many theatre talents to bring audiences to a Montgomery bus boycott or a Jackie Robinson major league baseball game or the trial of the man who murdered Emmett Till.

During this year, the film version of one of his plays took the best film award at the Black International Film Festival.  This fall, Wiley has acted in an August Wilson play, as well as started work on the filming of yet another screen adaptation of one of his plays.   Next spring, he hopes to create a one-man production in which he will play, among others, John Coltrane, Thelonious Monk and Nina Simone.

Bethany Sinnott taught Catawba College Shakespeare classes every semester for 41 years. She also worked on all but one of the theatre arts department's Shakespearean productions during those years.

Sinnott also served Catawba students as director of the Hurley School of Humanities, chair of the department of English, and director of the college honors program. Among other honors, she was selected for Catawba's Swink Award for outstanding classroom teaching and the Trustee Award for outstanding service to the College.

With faithful attendance at almost all of the Catawba theatre productions over her years, amounting to several hundred, Sinnott was selected to be an honorary Blue Masque member and later made an honorary Blue Masque patron.

Sinnott was recognized by the South Atlantic Association of Departments of English with its outstanding teacher award in 2006.

• Richard Steinert
• Mike Yionoulis
• Dayna Anderson0

John Bell is currently the president and CEO of Tampa Theatre, Tampa Florida. A talented actor, as well as all-around theatre student while at Catawba, he is remembered for his strong performances in plays such as The Birthday Party, Midsummer Nights Dream, and House of Blue Leaves.

Upon graduation from Catawba, he was chosen as program coordinator for the North Carolina Arts Council in Raleigh, N.C. Three years later, he moved to Greensboro to become the managing director of The Carolina Theatre. Under his direction, this historic movie palace, built in 1927, was transformed into Greensboro's primary performing arts center. Bell was next selected, in 1985, for his current position at the Tampa Theatre, where he is responsible for the overall preservation, restoration, programming and direction of the 1926 1,446-seat historic theatre facility. Under Bell's leadership Tampa Theatre has received many awards and gained national attention. LIFE magazine listed Tampa Theatre as “One of America's 21 Wonders,” Delta Sky Magazine recognized the theatre as one of the “Top Ten Iconic Show Places in the World,” while USA Today called it “One of the Top Ten Places to Revel in Cinematic Grandeur.” A national leader in theatre management and restoration, Bell is president-elect of the League of Historic American Theatres.

Richard Steinert is currently artistic director of Ballet Pensacola, Pensacola, Florida; on the University of West Florida dance faculty; and is scholar-in-residence at The Bishops School in La Jolla, California. Steinert's strong interest in dance, while still a theatre arts student at Catawba, helped influence the initiation of the department's musical theatre major soon after.

Since graduating from Catawba College, Steinert has served as director of Ballet Arkansas, director of Ballet Theatre in Hartford, Connecticut, and as a founding director of Connecticut Contemporary Ballet Theatre. His choreographic work on more than 30 original ballets was sanctioned by such funding organizations as the National Endowment for the Arts, the Rockefeller Foundation and the Ford Foundation. He has held seats on the Board of Directors of the Midwestern Arts Alliance, the Alcoa National Choreographic Awards, and was appointed by President Bill Clinton to a seat on his Arts-In-Education Committee. Steinert's choreographic work is critically acclaimed for its innovation and collaborative blending of theatre and dance.

Mike Yionoulis is a composer and songwriter who works in film, television and theatre. Yionoulis first gained success as a composer while still a student at Catawba College with his rock musical Oedipus Rox, a contemporary musical theatre adaptation of Oedipus Rex. He also distinguished himself as one of Catawba's leading performers in productions such as Pippin, West Side Story, A Chorus Line, and Hair. Since graduation, his work as a composer and sound designer for theatre have included the New York premieres of Three Days of Rain at the Manhattan Theatre Club, Everett Beekin at Lincoln Center Theatre, The Maiden's Prayer at the Vineyard Theatre, as well as the critically acclaimed Ohio State Murders, which received the 2008 Lortel Award for Best Revival. He wrote the music and lyrics for The King Stag which premiered at the Yale Repertory Theatre, while his Flights of Angels, still in development, received a workshop production at New York's Second Stage, with an all-star cast including Brian D'Arcy James in the title role. Yionoulis' most recent work is Redhand Guitar which was a finalist for the Richard Rodgers Award and received a workshop production at the Arena Stage in Washington, D.C.

Professor Dayna Anderson has been with Catawba College's theatre arts department since 1981. A specialist in performance theory, Anderson has gained recognition for her work with actors who are just beginning their performance art, particularly women. Selected for post graduate study in acting, her experiences include study with the National Endowment for the Humanities and the American Theatre Association's Conference on Women in Theatre. Many other post graduate acting studies have been in the Alexander Technique. Anderson's long commitment to the Alexander Technique has lasted for twenty-five years, culminating with her recent graduation from the Alexander Alliance in Philadelphia and marking her as a teacher uniquely versed in both the American and British approaches to the Alexander Technique. Also a director, more than fifty percent of her productions have been at Catawba where she has offered students a wide and meaningful range of performance opportunities. Honored by Catawba College for her pedagogical skills and creative teaching she was awarded the Swink Award for Classroom Teaching.

• Bill Tatum '70
• Jerry Moore '74
• Ginnie Patton '79
• Jim Gloster '84

Bill Tatum has been a working actor for 40 years. In preparation, Tatum starred in many Blue Masque productions while at Catawba College. Lending his acting talents to productions such as Billy Budd, Becket, J.B., You Can't Take It With You, Barefoot In The Park, The Dark of the Moon, and numerous others, he earned the Sidney Blackmer best actor award before receiving his B.A. in theatre arts. In New York, Tatum quickly earned his entry into the Actors Equity Association in 1971 and the Screen Actors Guild, as well as the American Federation of Radio and Television Artists, soon after. His union cards in hand, he has performed on the Broadway stage in productions such as Man of La Mancha; in off-Broadway theatres such as the Equity Library Theatre, Playwrights Horizons, and Provincetown Rep; and has done extensive work in numerous regional theatres throughout the United States. Tatum has been seen on television in such diverse shows as Law and Order, The Chris Rock Show, and One Life To Live. In addition, he has appeared in over 100 television commercials. His film work includes The Thomas Crown Affair and Plutonium, among others. Tatum is married to the Tony Award winning Broadway actress, Karen Ziemba.

Jerry Moore, a Rowan County, N.C. native, graduated with a Catawba College interdisciplinary major in "Literature and the Arts." This concentration of English, theatre, and music courses resulted in numerous entrepreneurial adventures both as student and professional. As a part of his Catawba studies, Moore directed a production of Tennessee Williams' The Glass Menagerie, featuring both college and community players. Following this production, he raised enough capital from members of the Salisbury community to form "Playmoore Productions" with the plan to tour non-equity professional productions. Moore's first venture was the very popular musical Godspell. After gaining exclusive rights to originate and produce the first non-equity tour of this musical, his production of Godspell was cast in New York and toured the southeast  and mid-west United States for almost two years. This production of Godspell launched Moore's professional career as well as that of soon-to-be Broadway and television star Scott Holmes, also from the Catawba College class of 1974. Moore then based his center of operation in New York City, where, among other activities, he worked on national bus and truck tours of Broadway shows. Moore's meteoric career was cut short by his early death in 1987.

Ginnie Patton has made her living for the last 20 years as a wardrobe supervisor and costumer in New York. Originally from Hershey, Pennsylvania, Patton was active in all areas of theatre while at Catawba College and received the theatre department's two most coveted awards, The Florence Busby Corriher Outstanding Achievement Award in 1978 and The Augustine Daly Award for   "outstanding student of the year" in 1979. Upon graduation, Patton went directly to the University of Illinois where she received a Master of Fine Arts in Costume Design. After arriving in New York, she first worked with the New York Shakespeare Festival, then with Playwrights Horizons, where she dressed the original production of Driving Miss Daisy. Drawn also to film work, she has worked on many Woody Allen films, including Bullets Over Broadway and Mighty Aphrodite.  Other feature film work has included being wardrobe supervisor for Barbra Streisand in The Mirror Has Two Faces and working with stars such as Sandra Bullock, William Hurt, and Meryl Streep on their films. She also found time to serve ten years as wardrobe supervisor for the television series Law and Order: SVU. Patton was recently an additional wardrobe supervisorfor the HBO mini-series John Adams and is currently principle wardrobe supervisor for the HBO series Boardwalk Empire.

Jim Gloster has made Charlotte, N.C. the center of operation for his successful theatre, television, and film career. A talented Catawba College performer, receiving numerous Blue Masque acting awards; director, chosen to direct a Blue Masque main stage production; and designer, Gloster was honored with the theatre department's Florence Busby Corriher Outstanding Achievement Award in his senior year. Upon graduation, it didn't take long for Charlotte to discover Gloster's many theatre talents. Gloster received Charlotte's Best Designer Award for productions performed in 1991, 1992, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1998, and 2004. While also discovering his theatre talents in demand as an actor and director, he somehow found time to begin working in film and television. Gloster received the 2001 Art Directors Guild Award for "outstanding production values in  a TV movie" for The Last Brickmaker In America, starring Sidney Poitier. He was nominated for the same award in 2004. Gloster currently makes his living in art direction for feature films and television. Recent credits include Talladega Nights, She's Out of My League, and The Other Guys. He has just finished his third season, in the same capacity, on the HBO series, Eastbound And Down. The recent film, Aphasia, which he wrote and directed, is currently touring various film festivals across the country.

• Billy Burke '38
• Dr. Susan Vick '67
• Reid Leonard '76
• Greg Alexander'81

Billy Burke was dubbed "Salisbury's Mr. Music" in a Salisbury Post article written in the 1950s. Born September 30, 1917, Burke had his first piano lesson at age nine. Upon finishing high school, he entered Catawba College, continuing his musical training there while cleaning the music building to pay his tuition. But, Burke's dream of finishing his college degree and becoming a concert pianist were ended by the Great Depression. Instead, he entered Salisbury Business College before working in a series of business related positions, including 30 years as employment manager for N.C. Finishing Company, 19 years as personnel manager at Zimmerman's Clothing Store, and another 10 years in the same capacity for Leon's Clothing Store. During these years he continued his musical career, playing for weddings, concerts, churches, accompanying singers on radio and television, becoming the official pianist for the Miss Salisbury beauty pageants, and numerous like events. One of his proudest moments came when he was asked to compose the music for Catawba College's production of "Huck Finn" in 1954. He wrote 13 songs for the first production and added 2 more when the script was updated for another run in 1958. He has played with the Salisbury Symphony Orchestra, while musical selections from "Huck Finn" have been performed by the North Carolina and Salisbury Symphony Orchestras. The Blue Masque named its highly coveted musical award in his honor, The Huck Finn Award. Burke was named Salisbury's "Young Man of the Year" in 1952. And, he has attained the rank of Life Master in the American Contract Bridge League.

Dr. Susan Vick graduated from Catawba College in 1967 with a major in drama. A Blue Masque president and recipient of numerous on-stage and off-stage awards, Vick's many student accomplishments were recognized with the Florence Busby Corriher Outstanding Achievement Award. Upon graduation, Vick toured with the National Children's Theatre before entering Southern Methodist University where she completed a master of fine arts in directing. After teaching at Bowdoin College in Maine and Appalachian State in North Carolina, Vick entered the University of Illinois, Urbana Champaign, where she completed her Ph.D. in theatre. She then joined the faculty at Worcester Polytechnic Institute, Worcester, Massachusetts in 1982 and is currently professor of drama/theatre and director of theatre. At WPI, Vick was the first woman to win the Trustees Award for Outstanding Teaching. Other honors include the Alpha Phi Omega Service to Students Award. She has been recognized twice by "Who's Who in Entertainment" and is included in "Who's Who in America, Millennium Edition."  In addition to the numerous plays directed at WPI, Vick has staged productions in Boston, Northampton, Amherst, and has thrice toured productions to the Edinburgh International Festival Fringe in Scotland. She has written plays that have been produced off-Broadway and in regional, educational and international venues. Vick is a published poet and has adapted several of Shakespeare's plays for children's theatre.

Reid Leonard graduated cum laude in 1976, with a double major in theatre and English. A native of Lexington, N.C., Leonard excelled in virtually all areas of theatre while at Catawba. Using his training as actor, director, playwright, and designer, Leonard accepted, upon graduation, a teaching position with the Greensboro City Schools. Recipient of the Terry Sanford Award "for creativity and innovation in teaching," he also received numerous statewide theatre awards while teaching at first Page High School and then Weaver Education Center. In addition, for 12 summers, Leonard was also a drama instructor at the Governor's Schools of North Carolina in first Laurinburg and then Winston-Salem. Upon completion of the master of fine arts in directing from Northwestern University, Leonard became a member of the Catawba College theatre faculty for two years. Beginning in 1986 to the present, Leonard has been the director of Piedmont Players Theatre in Salisbury. In this capacity, he has directed and designed sets and lights for 150 plays, to date. And, while director he also oversaw the purchase and renovation of the Meroney Theatre, Piedmont Player's primary theatre structure, as well as the Norvell Theatre, Piedmont Player's youth theatre facility. Piedmont Players was recognized in 2003 for its outstanding work in community theatre by the North Carolina Theatre Conference. Author of several plays, Leonard's stage adaptation of Clyde Edgerton's "Walking Across Egypt" continues to be performed throughout the southeast.

Greg Alexander, a native of Charlotte, N.C., began his study of theatre at Catawba in 1977. A strong and versatile actor, musician and general theatre practitioner, Alexander twice won the department's "outstanding actor award," as well as the Augustine Daly Award for "outstanding theatre student of the year."  Upon leaving Catawba, Alexander was accepted into the Actor's Theatre of Louisville apprentice program in Louisville, Kentucky. Additional early professional training and experience included work with the Clyde Vinson Studio in New York, the Philadelphia Theatre Company, the Williamstown Theatre Festival, and the People's Light and Theatre Company in Malvern, Pennsylvania. In 1989, Alexander was asked to be a part of the fledgling Fantasy Theatre For Children in Sacramento, California. Twenty-one years later, he continues to serve the Northern California theatre audiences as actor, director, and writer. Currently a member of the B Street Theatre acting company, his productions for youth, such as "The Golden Harp," a musical which he wrote and directed, reach out to over 200,000 students yearly. His acting performances for B Street Theatre have ranged from the one-man show "I Am My Own Wife," the Pulitzer Prize winning play in which he played 32 characters, to a leading role in "A Christmas Carol." His directing duties for B Street have included the critically acclaimed adult drama "Wit," as well as numerous youth productions, such as "Junie B. Jones." Alexander has also performed with the Foothill Theatre Company, Sacramento Theatre Company, and California Stage Company, among others.

• James R. (Epp) Epperson 
• Nina Louise Tucker
• Mark Fincannon 
• David H. McCorkle 

James R. (Epp) Epperson spent twenty-six years at Catawba College before retiring in 2002. The Jefferson-Pilot professor of theatre arts, Epperson served as theatre arts department chair for the last seventeen of those years, while also acting as associate dean and then dean of the school of performing arts. Under his leadership, the theatre arts department was repeatedly listed by the Princeton Review as one of the top undergraduate theatre programs in the nation. Epperson has been honored by Catawba College with the "Trustee Award for Outstanding Service;" by the North Carolina Theatre Conference with the "Herman Middleton Service Award," as well as with the "Marian Smith Distinguished Career in Theatre Award;" and by the Kennedy Center American College Theatre Festival with its "John F. Kennedy Medallion of Excellence."  Also a director, with over eighty productions to his credit, the Blue Masque established the "Jim Epperson Outstanding Student Director Award" in his honor. Epperson served on the board of the Southeastern Theatre Conference, where he presided as college/university chair; the board of the North Carolina Theatre Conference, acting as its president and playwriting chair; and the Kennedy Center American College Theatre Festival, serving on its regional executive committee and as its playwriting chair. He holds the Ph.D. from Florida State University and M.A. and B.A. degrees from the University of Arkansas. Married to the former Lucinda Covington, he has two children, Heather and Robert, and two grandchildren.

Nina Louise Tucker worked at Catawba College for forty-two years before retiring in 1986. A native of Cheraw, South Carolina and a 1944 alumna of Catawba College with a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration, Tucker first served as secretary to the college registrar, then as associate registrar, and later as assistant to the vice president for planning and academic services. Tucker has been honored by Catawba College with the "Trustee Award for Outstanding Service," the "Exemplary Life Service Award," the "Distinguished Alumnus Award," and the "O.B. Michael Outstanding Alumnus Award." "The Louise Tucker Staff Council Award" and "The Louise Tucker Endowed Scholarship" have also been established at Catawba in her honor. Described as "a fountain of knowledge about Catawba and its people," Tucker's dedication to and knowledge of the Blue Masque have covered all but its first fifteen years. In retirement, as when she was a Catawba student and staff member, she serves as an ambassador for the Blue Masque. Tucker's longtime service to Catawba's theatre arts was first recognized by the Blue Masque when she was made an "Honorary Member of the Blue Masque." She was later honored with the "Blue Masque Lifelong Patron" designation.

Mark Fincannon received his B. A. degree from Catawba College in 1980 with a double major in theatre arts and speech communication. Soon after graduation, Fincannon formed, with his brother, Fincannon and Associates, a motion picture and television casting company. Now, a veteran casting director for thirty years, he has been responsible for casting over 125 feature films, 100 television movies of the week, seven television mini-series, and hundreds of hours of television series, including three full seasons of "Matlock" and six seasons of "Dawson's Creek."  Fincannon is a member of the Academy of Television of Arts & Sciences and has won their 1998 Emmy for the casting of Tom Hank's H.B.O. series, "From The Earth To The Moon."  He is currently casting the seventh season of "One Tree Hill," as well as launching a new television series for LIFETIME TV entitled "Drop Dead Diva."  A member of the Casting Society of America, his casting company was nominated in 1998, 1999, 2000, 2004 and 2006 for their casting award. While at Catawba, the theatre arts department awarded Fincannon the 1979 "Florence Busby Corriher Special Achievement Award," its highest student honor. He and his wife Sharon have four daughters, Christian, Mary, Naomi, and Heather.

David H. McCorkle completed his theatre degree at Catawba in 1963. Upon graduation McCorkle moved to New York City, finding roles in off-Broadway, off-off Broadway, summer stock, and touring productions. In these productions he worked with such notables as Barbara Harris, Carol Channing, and Terrance McNally. In 1986 McCorkle completed the masters degree in social work from New York University, receiving their "Chancellor's Award for Community Service." As a social worker and psychotherapist, he incorporated his theatrical knowledge into a vital part of helping children recover from trauma and mental illness. Working with the Jewish Board of Family and Children's Services and as a facilitator for their Sanctuary Project, he coordinated, among other services, a program for performing artists living with HIV. Championing therapeutic theatre, he uses drama techniques in therapeutic climates for vulnerable youth and those that care for them. As a consultant for the "Sanctuary Model" he has traveled across America, and most recently Northern Ireland and Scotland as a trainer in these techniques. He was also involved in assisting with emotional recovery following 9/ll. McCorkle is now a board member of Creative Alternatives of New York in which he "interweaves the metaphoric world of theatre with group psychology."

• Florence Fransioli Busby Corriher
• Cecile Rowe Bost
• Burnet M. Hobgood
• Hoyt M. McCachren, Jr.
• Robert B. Hill
• James E. Parker
• J. Denise Nuzum Perrino
• Scott Holmes

Florence Fransioli Busby Corriher joined the Catawba faculty in 1925. Shortly thereafter, she founded the Blue Masque drama club, the first club on the new Salisbury campus and directed its first production, The New Poor. In addition to directing high quality productions and developing Catawba's first academic studies in theatre, Corriher was also very active in the state drama association, serving as its president and directing award-winning productions for its yearly play festival. She died in 1979.

Cecile Rowe Bost was Catawba's first theatre arts major, graduating cum laude in 1946. After graduation Bost distinguished herself as a pioneer in radio and television, becoming one of the first female newscasters in North Carolina. She served as president of the North Carolina Chapter of American Women in Radio and Television, was named to the Broadcast Pioneers Library in Washington, and was listed in Who's Who of American Women. Bost died in 1991.

Burnet M. Hobgood joined the Catawba faculty in 1950. He established the department of drama and speech, developing its first full major in drama. Under his leadership, Catawba theatre gained national attention because of its innovative programs, which included bringing budding playwrights to campus for premier productions, and international acclaim when it represented the United States at the first International Festival of Amateur Theatre in Monte Carlo. Hobgood died in 2001.

Hoyt M. McCachren, Jr. spent 41 theatre seasons at Catawba before retiring from its faculty in 1994. An undergraduate theatre major at Catawba, McCachren also holds an M.A. from the University of Oregon and the Ph.D. from the University of Georgia. Joining the theatre faculty in 1957, he served as theatre arts department chair from 1974 to 1983, then served as dean of the school of performing arts from 1983 until 1991. McCachren was recognized twice with the Catawba Trustee Award for Outstanding Service, while the North Carolina Theatre Conference presented him with its Distinguished Career Award.

Robert B. Hill received his degree in theatre from Catawba in 1961. He later gained the MFA degree in theatre from Southern Methodist University before teaching at the University of Southern Mississippi from 1970 until his retirement in 2000. Accomplished in teaching, technical theatre, acting, and directing, Hill received the Mississippi Theatre Association Award for Career Contributions to Theatre and had two USM productions selected to be performed at the Kennedy Center American College Theatre Festival in Washington, D.C.

James E. Parker retired from the theatre arts department in 2003 after 33 years of service. Holding the MFA in theatre from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro, Parker was the department's costume designer for most of his tenure, while also teaching many of its technical theatre courses. As a director, among others, he mounted 14 Shakespearean productions. He adapted plays, taught performance and literature classes, and acted. Parker was awarded Catawba's Swink Award for Outstanding Classroom Teaching.

J. Denise Nuzum Perrino, theatre arts teacher in Fairfax County, Virginia for 30 years, graduated from Catawba's theatre department in 1974. In addition to teaching at two high schools and two middle schools during her career, she has directed hundreds of productions, and is an area theatre leader and mentor. The recipient of numerous teaching and directing awards, Perrino was most recently chosen to direct a production at the American High School Fringe Festival in Edinburgh, Scotland.

Scott Holmes is a 1974 Catawba theatre and music graduate. He has appeared in numerous productions on Broadway and in Broadway touring companies, including Evita, Grease, The Robber Bridegroom, Shenandoah, and The Rink. Holmes is best known for his 31-year run as Tom Hughes in the daytime drama, As The World Turns, for which he has received best supporting actor and best actor awards and nominations. His nightclub act, Alone For The First Time, is another extension of his strong talent.