Current NEAP Board of Directors as of June 2025 |
Jenny has worked supporting the arts for over two decades throughout New England. She has produced festivals in Burlington, VT, run the First Night Burlington non-profit and held director positions at several other prominent Western Berkshire and Southern Vermont arts organizations including the Williamstown Theatre Festival, the HiLo Music Venue, Retreat Farm and the Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts. She currently runs Programming for Student Engagement at Bennington College. *ELECTED VOTING MEMBER OF THE BOARD
MICHAEL SAKAMOTO (MA), CO-PRESIDENT Michael (MFA, PhD, UCLA) is a curator, scholar, educator and artist active in dance, theater, music and media. He currently serves as director of performing arts and director of the Asian and Asian American Arts and Cultures program at UMass Fine Arts Center in Amherst, MA. Michael is former faculty at University of Iowa, CalArts, Goddard College and Bangkok University. His creative works have been presented in 16 countries across Asia, Europe and North America. Michael's book monograph, "An Empty Room: Imagining Butoh and the Social Body in Crisis" (Wesleyan University Press, 2022) was shortlisted for the Dance Studies Association de la Torre Bueno Prize. *ELECTED VOTING MEMBER OF THE BOARD |
JENNY CROWELL (VT), CO-PRESIDENT
Marissa is the Senior Director of Operations for FirstWorks in Providence, RI. Prior to that, she served as Executive Director of the Dorset Theatre Festival, in Dorset, VT. She has an extensive career in live event production, having worked with organizations such as the Park Avenue Armory, Irish Repertory Theatre, Monica Bill Barnes Dance Co., Valencia Production Partners, and Bike New York. She has worked on live network television events for Condé Nast Entertainment, Hulu, Netflix, and CW. Marissa spent four years at the International Festival of Arts & Ideas in New Haven, CT as Special Programs Curator. As an avid dance practitioner, Marissa has taught and performed nationally and internationally. *ELECTED VOTING MEMBER OF THE BOARD |
MARISSA HUTTON (RI), VICE PRESIDENT
Vicky is in her 15th year as the Director of Education & Community Engagement for The Colonial Performing Arts Center in Keene NH. Before working at The Colonial she was Program Director of Administration for Apple Hill Center for Chamber Music and teacher of drama and music for the Berkshire Maestros in Berkshire, UK. She holds degrees in Music and Theatre from Indiana University, Salem University with post grad work from the Guildhall School of Music and Drama. Vicky curates international and educational performances for The Colonial Theatre as well as community engagement events in partnership with local colleges, artists and educators.The Metropolitan Opera in Schools program provides annual training and curriculum for Vicky to bring outreach into schools. After traveling to over 26 countries, her vision at The Colonial includes bringing integrated arts education into the Monadnock Region in partnership with local educators and artists who have a shared vision. *ELECTED VOTING MEMBER OF THE BOARD |
VICKY PITTMAN (NH), TREASURER
Katie is a lifelong devotee to the performing arts. She has danced, played the oboe, and participated in plays and choir throughout her life. Her passion is dance, and she graduated Summa Cum Laude with a BFA in Dance focusing on Education and Arts Administration. Katie is currently the Manager of Engagement Initiatives at the Quick Center for the Arts at Fairfield University. She oversees artist logistics, Arts for All education programs, community initiatives, calendar management, and camps. Additionally, she is a commissioner on the Fairfield Arts Commission whose goal is to stimulate, foster, facilitate and encourage the development and appreciation of artistic and cultural activities within the Town of Fairfield. Her biggest goal is ensuring as many people can participate and experience the performing arts regardless of income level, that she is striving to achieve at the Quick Center for the Arts, her time on the Fairfield Arts Commission, and beyond. *ELECTED VOTING MEMBER OF THE BOARD |
KATIE LANG (CT), SECRETARY
Victoria is an artist originally from Michigan who moved to Vermont in late 2021. They have been involved in performing arts since their youth — ranging from dance, choir, band, theater and DJing. No matter where they are located, Johnson always strives to be a part of the community in some capacity through performing arts. They work as the Music Program Manager at BarnArts in Barnard, Vermont, where they arrange a summer music series, music residencies, and school programs for rural schools. When not working, they enjoy attempting to teach themself instruments, crochet arts, and connecting with the land through gardening and communing with plants. *ELECTED VOTING MEMBER OF THE BOARD
Shannon is the Director of the Stockbridge Theatre in Derry, NH. She brings over 25 years of experience in the arts with extensive management experience in both professional and academic settings. Shannon's passion is to entertain and engage audiences, to inspire and enlighten the next generation of arts enthusiasts, and to champion the arts as vital to the soul of every community Shannon has served in leadership positions at the Redfern Arts Center at Keene State College, Arts Brookfield in NYC, the Gerald W Lynch Theater at John Jay College, and most recently the Grunin Center for the Arts in Toms River, NJ. During her tenure at the Redfern Arts Center Shannon was on the board at APNNE, and Monadnock’s Alive Board from 2013 to 2019. Shannon holds an MFA from the University of Texas at Austin and a BS from Northwestern University. She has guest lectured at Theatre for a New Audience, Actors Theater of Louisville, Connecticut College, Queens College, College of Staten Island, and Georgia Southern University. She has also served on grant panels for the National Endowment for the Arts and the Maine Arts Commission. *ELECTED VOTING MEMBER OF THE BOARD
Yvonne is an experienced arts administrator, event curator/producer, educator and activist. She currently serves as the Programming Director at The Yard on Martha's Vineyard, where she has enlivened the Island with the works of artists from around the globe. Yvonne’s focus at The Yard draws upon her expertise with community outreach and programming. She has forged many fruitful partnerships and developed meaningful programs across the Island with great success. Under her leadership, the Yard has presented programs in every town and deepened relationships with the various distinct cultural sectors of the Island. For 10 months, she also served as the Acting Executive Director. Yvonne, holds a Master’s degree in Media Studies from the New School for Social Research (NYC). She began her professional career working with New WORLD Theater (NWT) as part of the senior team that worked to craft a culturally-diverse season showcasing BIPOC and LGBTQ stories, and engaging and empowering diverse communities. This experience forged a strong foundation for Yvonne’s work and personal philosophy. During her 22 years at NWT, she fulfilled the roles of Managing Director and Marketing and Outreach Director. Yvonne went on to serve as Director of Education & Engagement at the University of Massachusetts Fine Arts Center (FAC), creating engagement programs across the Five College area, while forging many new collaborations and partnerships in the region on and off campus. Yvonne is an Afro-Latina nerd. She is married and has three super-nerdy adult children, all working in the arts. They are all fixated on anything Star Wars, Star Trek, MARVEL, Harry Potter, Comicon conventions, SYFY, etc. Yvonne enjoys serving the Martha’s Vineyard community and looks forward to connecting more broadly and deeply with the theater and dance community. *ELECTED VOTING MEMBER OF THE BOARD |
VICTORIA JOHNSON (VT), MEMBER-AT-LARGE
SHANNON MAYERS (NH), MEMBER-AT-LARGE
YVONNE MENDEZ (MA), MEMBER-AT-LARGE
Lucas grew up in New Hampshire and holds a Bachelor of Music in Vocal Performance from Keene State College (KSC Class of ’21). He currently works at Lebanon Opera House (LOH), a thriving year-round presenting arts organization in Lebanon, NH. Having joined the LOH team shortly after graduating, Lucas has loved learning and engaging with the community he grew up in. Lucas’s passion lies in diversity, equity, inclusion, accessibility, and belonging work. Upon entering LOH, Lucas helped launch LOH’s annual Pride Celebration, which tripled in size in one year and currently brings over 30 organizations, artisans, and vendors across the region together, providing resources to a vital segment of his community. *ELECTED VOTING MEMBER OF THE BOARD
DIANE BARGIEL (VT), ENGAGEMENT COMMITTEE CHAIR Diane received her Bachelor of Music degree in clarinet from the Dana School of Music, a Master of Music in clarinet from Michigan State University, Certification in Music Education from Carnegie Mellon University, and a certificate in Arts Administration from New York University. In 2021, she retired from SUNY Adirondack as the last Humanities division chair and Associate Professor of Music. In 2015, Prof. Bargiel received the SUNY Chancellor’s Award for Excellence in Scholarship and Creative Activities and in 1995 while at Susquehanna University, was presented the Dean’s Award for Excellence in Teaching. Several professional highlights included having been president of the New York Association of College Music Programs, president of Pennsylvania Presenters, a board member of Arts Presenters of Northern New England, the Pennsylvania state chair of the College Band Director’s National Association, a member of the first Creative Communities Council of Windham County (VT), a planning committee member for the first Performing Arts Exchange that covered the entire East Coast, and was also a conductor and panelist at the 2000 CBDNA Eastern Regional Conference at Yale University, among numerous other roles and volunteer involvement. A resident of Poultney, Vermont, Diane had served on the first Poultney 2020 planning committee, the board of the Killington section of the Green Mountain Club, and as a board member and executive director of Stone Valley Arts in Poultney. She is currently the manager and principal clarinetist of the Sage City Symphony in Bennington, VT. *APPOINTED VOTING MEMBER OF THE BOARD |
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HOLLY JONES (MA), PROGRAMMING COMMITTEE CHAIR Holly Jones is a field based arts advocate, practitioner, and producer who is passionate about radical accessibility, equitable curatorial practices, and trust-based philanthropy. She is the Producing Director at Jacob's Pillow and serves on the boards of Bridge Live Arts, The Clive & Valerie Barnes Foundation, New England Arts Presenters and The Croft Residency. Jones holds a masters degree in nonprofit leadership from the University of Pennsylvania’s School of Social Policy & Practice and a B.F.A. in Dance from Marymount Manhattan College. She enjoys performing annually in The Bang Group's Nut/Cracked production and teaching community classes at Berkshire Pulse. *APPOINTED VOTING MEMBER OF THE BOARD |
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CHLOE POWELL (VT), MEMBERSHIP COMMITTEE CHAIR Chloe Powell grew up in central Vermont and is the executive director of Chandler Center for the Arts in Randolph Vermont, a multidisciplinary arts organization. She has worked in the music industry for a decade from a variety of angles, programming both independently and with BarnArts, and representing artists as an agent with ALIA Prod. She is passionate about building collaborations across the region and connecting her rural community with the arts from around the world. *APPOINTED VOTING MEMBER OF THE BOARD |