Author: Lazarus Simmons

Hazel Armenante (she/her) is a Los Angeles native, born and raised in the sun despite her gingerness. She grew up immersed in the LA theatre and musical theatre scene, and has been singing since she could talk. She grew up a stones throw from Paramount studios, and would frequently imagine herself working with all her favorite actors. In pursuit of this, she travelled over 5,000 miles from home to complete her education at Mason Gross. She is excited to see where acting takes her next, whether that be right across the Lincoln tunnel, or home to LA. Hazel is interested in refugee aid, and she has fundraised thousands for UNHCR. She has an untapped mathematician’s brain, a love for songwriting, period pieces, and knitting. I promise she gets out sometimes.

Jacob Genick (he/him) is from the awesome place that is New York! Jacob grew up on multiple forms of expression such as video games, music, anime, and even theatre! Being drawn to the power of what theatre can do for community at an early age through his family and friends, Jacob later
became immersed in the world of theatre when he attended LaGuardia high school. It was there where Jacob met some amazing people that pointed him to the direction of Mason Gross. Throughout his time in MGSA, Jacob met a found family of artists that have changed his life and those that he’s proud to call his colleagues and collaborators. Now that Jacob is about to enter life beyond MGSA, you’ll probably catch him taking long walks listening to Porter Robinson, visiting his local game shop, and thinking about when the next chapter of Deltarune is coming out. Jacob hopes to bring the sense of wonder, community, and honesty that he’s found through Rutgers into everything he does next.

James Harris (he/they) is the son of a seamstress and a plumber from a small town in North Carolina. He grew up under sewing tables and in hay fields, but his favorite place to be was on the joust field at the Carolina Renaissance Festival. On that field he could be Squire or Prince, Pageboy or foolish Jester. From the age of four onward James got to experience the gift of living many lives. There has never been a time in James’s life that he didn’t want to be an actor (except when he was ten and fully convinced he’d be museum curator in London). His love of acting is what led
him to North Carolina School of the Arts at 17 and to Rutgers at 18. He’s made many sacrifices for his art, as all artists do, but he considers it the greatest gift to be an artist. He’s excited to see what lives he’ll live after Rutgers, maybe he’ll get the chance to be a knight in the next one.

As a middle child in sunny Southern California, Jacqueline Vellandi (she/her) first discovered her love for acting at four-years-old as her own secret superpower: Turning on some tears made it so much easier to get her siblings in trouble! While she’s never lost that sense of play, Jacqueline has since matured into a passionate storyteller ready to push every audience member into considering a new perspective. She attended the Orange County School of the Arts through high school and credits her training and performance opportunities at South Coast Repertory with
sharpening her artistic voice and acting skills. Her favorite Rutgers Theatre credits include: #8 in The Wolves, Jenn in Time Stops, and Madonna in We Are Pussy Riot. Jacqueline is a multi-hyphenate artist with a published play, original album, and an exciting new musical in the works. She is a competitive, dog- loving, tap dancing nerd who has never backed down from a challenge.

She still believes her acting is indeed a secret superpower and can’t wait to use it to make a difference.

Julia Jadwiga (she/her) is a proud “Jersey Girl,” whose acting debut was at three years old, when she forced her parents to reenact the story of “Little Red Riding Hood” every day for a five year run. Humans are so odd, complicated, and cruel—and what a joy it is to embody all different kinds of them! Her mission as an artist is to explore the truthful, unbridled human experience through language and performance— from devised theater pieces to coming-of-age indie films. She has a special place in her heart for new play development, especially queer stories. Her Rutgers theater credits include Manke in God of Vengeance, Leigh in At the Wedding, and Martius in Titus Andronicus. In addition to acting, Julia is a playwright, and minored in Creative Writing at Rutgers. She is super excited to be part of Rutgers theater department’s debut Student Works season, directing her play “hell is a middle school girl.” She dedicates everything she creates to all her fellow weird, off-putting girls.

Jillian Mustillo (she/her) is an actor from Brooklyn, New York. While her love for theater began listening to showtunes with her dad, she began pursuing acting rigorously when she had the privilege of attending the Professional Performing Arts School, where she is a proud alumni of the musical theater program. Thanks to the faculty and community there and at Rutgers, she is constantly inspired by theater’s ability to give voice to unheard experiences. She strives to create work that allows others to feel seen. Jillian also has a passion for devised and developmental projects. Her most recent Rutgers credits include “Time Stops”, a new play written by Brian Hilario, and a production of “The Wolves” which incorporated devised work.

In addition to acting, Jillian loves to sing. She performed at Lincoln Center, taking part in the 2022 Mabel Mercer Cabaret Convention. Since then, she continues to work in cabaret performance.

Lilith Freund (she/her) journeyed from sunny San Diego, California to New Brunswick, New Jersey with nothing but
too many suitcases and a love for the arts. She first discovered her passion for the stage performing at the Old Globe Theatre, and later at the La Jolla Playhouse—experiences that immersed her in the joy of play and the power of true artistic collaboration. She then found her way to Los Angeles, where she filmed a musical movie with Simon Fuller and XIX Entertainment. There, she discovered that storytelling on screen could be just as playful, imaginative, and full of artistry. Now on the East Coast, thanks to her Rutgers faculty and family, Lilith has built an incredible team as she continues pursuing her dream of bringing stories to life. She can’t wait to keep learning—hopefully in classrooms that now look a little more like sets and rehearsal rooms.

Maddy Fox (she/her) is a proud New Jersey native! Growing up, Maddy fell in love with drama while watching Turner Classic Movies with her parents (shoutout to Robert Osborne). Childhood heroes were Katherine Hepburn, Cary Grant, and Barbra Streisand. Whether it be sweating it up in Sarah Delappe’s The Wolves, clowning around in The Giant Void in My Soul, or embodying historical characters such as Elizabeth Tudor, Nell Gwyn, and Albert Einstein in her movement class, Maddy is a fiend for a challenge. Alongside her passion for the theater, Maddy loves to read (favorite book: Middlesex by Jeffrey Eugenides!), listen to folk music (favorite artist: Bob Dylan!!), and watch movies with friends (favorite movie: Moonstruck!!!). Maddy is so so grateful for the professors and mentors she has trained with at Mason Gross, who have changed the way her brain works, and how she lives as an artist.

Meg Moynahan (she/they/he) hails from Bloomfield, NJ, just outside the Big Apple. They grew up with a wonderful and very, VERY theatrical family, who sparked Meg’s love for the arts since birth. They danced their little heart out in countless school musicals growing up, having been in no less than 3 productions of Seussical. However, Meg’s interest in devising new pieces began when they were able to write and co-direct a scene for NiCori Studios’ spring show at Don’t Tell Mama’s. Granted, the scene wasn’t very good, but Meg’s perspective on art had entirely shifted: they didn’t just have to be a vessel, they could also be a creator. Alongside being an actor, Meg is also a composer, singer, director, illustrator, and excellent kazooist. They have a borderline obsession with Sondheim, King Arthur, and iced black coffee, and most of their friends worry they are secretly a witch.

Meghana Kumar (she/her) was born and raised in none other than the beloved Garden State. Born to Indian immigrants, she wanted to do the same as they did, carving out a place for herself in the world. She always knew that place lay in the performing arts, doing regional choir and dancing for her entire life, but it was only in high school that she found her true calling in acting. Meghana discovered that the beautiful thing about it was the permission to experience everything to the fullest that people so often brush off in daily life. Since doing so, she has sunk her teeth into the craft, from assistant directing Rutgers Theatre Company’s 2022 production of “Macbeth” to acting in and devising company pieces in Sarah DeLappe’s “The Wolves”. Her favorite thing to do is act (though knitting and dog care are close seconds), and she cannot wait to see where her journey takes her next.