Sasha Abby VanDerzee has been involved with Company One since its beginning, but officially joined the staff and Board of Directors in 2000. She was the Board President from 2016-2022, and she now serves as the Board President Emeritus. She attended Clark University, where she met the founders, and has a Doctorate in Organizational Leadership & Communication from Northeastern University. She currently oversees Boston Saves, the Children’s Savings Account program that is implemented by The City of Boston.

John Oluwole ADEkoje is a graduate of Humboldt State University with a MFA in dramatic writing and an MA in film production. He is national award winner of the Kennedy Center: ACTF-Lorraine Hansberry playwriting award for the play Streethawker as well as the 2006 Roxbury Film Festival’s Award for Emerging local Filmmaker for the documentary Street Soldiers, which shown at Le Festival du Film Panafricain (Cannes) and Festival des Films du Monde (Montréal). He is currently the playwright-in-residence at Company One and an Affiliate Artist at the Providence Black Repertory Theatre. He teaches Theatre at Boston Arts Academy.

Innovator. Entrepreneur. Educator. Nicole is Director of Development at MITRE Corporation where she creates enterprise level strategy for learning and growth. Nicole previously led strategy and operations for the New England Venture Capital Association’s Hack.Diversity. Before joining the NEVCA, Nicole built Boston based startup – Savanna Technologies. Nicole steered the company through the MassChallenge, Boston accelerator and as an Alumni In Residence, Nicole was Chair of the Women Founder’s Network. Prior to joining Savanna, she worked as a strategy consultant and has extensive experience in healthcare and finance. She enjoys teaching Economics at Harvard College and previously taught at the United States Military Academy at West Point. Nicole is a contributing author to a book on personal finance and has authored research on economic development in conflict environments. Nicole was also recently appointed as a Civilian Aide to the Secretary of the Army for the state of Massachusetts. Nicole is a graduate of Tuskegee University and holds an MBA from the Kellogg Graduate School.

Ju Yon Kim is Professor of English at Harvard University. Her research and teaching interests include Asian American literature and performance; modern and contemporary American theater and drama; and cross-­racial and intercultural performance. She is the author of The Racial Mundane: Asian American Performance and the Embodied Everyday (NYU Press, 2015), which received the 2016 Lois P. Rudnick Book Prize from the New England American Studies Association for best book in American studies published in 2015 by a New England area scholar. Her articles have appeared in Theatre Journal, Modern Drama, The Journal of Transnational American Studies, Modernism/modernity, Theatre Survey, and the Journal of Asian American Studies. She is currently working on a second book project on suspicion and performance.

Linda  is an Adjunct Lecturer at the Harvard Graduate School of Education and Cambridge College, Puerto Rico, where she teaches courses in school design, school observation and organizational structures. She also serves as a senior fellow for High Tech High Graduate School of Education. She founded, co-founded and led three schools in the Boston Public Schools (Tobin Bilingual Middle School for the Arts, Fenway High School, Boston Arts Academy). She also founded three distinct non-profits (El Pueblo Nuevo, Center for Collaborative Education and Center for Artistry and Scholarship) and was co-founder and co-director of Perrone Sizer Institute for Creative Leadership, a year-long graduate certificate program that develops innovative leaders who integrate education, artistic, and community-based resources to transform the lives of youth and families. As an experienced leader in education, Linda mentors and coaches teachers and principals, and consults nationally and internationally on issues of educational reform, leadership, teaching with a commitment to racial justice and equity, and the critical role of arts and creativity in schools. Linda is also the author of  two widely praised books: The Hardest Questions Aren’t on the Test and When Grit Isn’t Enough. Her newest book, co -edited with two of her former graduate students, is about to be published as open access, Building Democratic Schools and Learning Environments: A Global Perspective. Linda blogs about many of these issues at www.lindanathan.com

Antonio Ocampo-Guzman is an actor, director, and theatre teacher originally from Bogotá, Colombia. He is an Associate Professor and Chair of the Department of Theatre at Northeastern University. Antonio trained as an actor with the Teatro Libre de Bogotá; after further studies in voice and physical theater in England, he spent three years as an actor and an artist-manager at Shakespeare & Company in Lenox, Massachusetts. In 1998, Antonio completed his training with renowned Master Teacher Kristin Linklater (author of Freeing the Natural Voice). He adapted this popular practice into Spanish and the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM), the largest university in Latin America, published his La Liberación de la Voz Natural: el Método Linklater in 2010, with re-printings in 2013 and 2015. He is a consultant for the Center for Voice Studies (CEUVOZ) in Mexico City, where he runs a Linklater Voice Teacher-training Program. He is a proud member and President of the Voice & Speech Trainers Association (VASTA). Antonio earned a Master of Fine Arts degree in Directing in 2003 from York University in Toronto, Ontario. Several of Antonio’s articles and essays about his experiences as a bilingual theatre artist have been published in, among others, American Theatre Magazine, the Voice & Speech Review, the Stanford Shakespeare Encyclopedia, Paso de Gato (Mexico) Back Stage East, Dramatics Magazine and the online journal Borrowers and Lenders. Antonio has been on the faculty at Arizona State University, Florida State University, Emerson College and Boston College. He has taught workshops and master classes at Walnut Hill, Shakespeare & Company, The Linklater Studio, The Andrea Southwick Studio, The New Theatre Conservatory, FSU/Asolo Theatre Conservatory, the Atlanta Shakespeare Tavern, the Concord Players, Working Classroom, and the Hampshire Shakespeare Company. Internationally, he has taught in Argentina, Austria, Hong Kong, Mexico, Catalunya, Ireland, Canada, Greece, Sweden, Panama, and Colombia.

Mason is a proud founding member of Company One, where he has acted in over a dozen productions including: Bengal Tiger at the Baghdad Zoo (Uday); (Assassins (Sam Byck) (IRNE Award, Best Supporting Actor in a Musical); The Last Days of Judas Iscariot (El-Fayoumy); Den of Thieves (Flaco), Jesus Hopped the A Train (Valdez) (2004 Elliot Norton Award, for Best Fringe Production); Twilight: Los Angeles, 1992 (IRNE nomination, Best Ensemble Cast). Also in Boston: Sugan Theatre Company: Talking to Terrorists; Zeitgeist Stage: Flesh & Blood; A.R.T.: Three Sisters; New Repertory Theatre: Romeo & Juliet; A Girl’s War (IRNE Nomination, Best Supporting Actor). Regional: Gloucester Stage Company: The Heidi Chronicles. Mason is an M.F.A. candidate in Theatre Education at Boston University.

Michael Tow is a Certified Financial Planner with over 15 years experience in the Financial Services Industry. After working many years as an Account Vice President at UBS, Michael opened his own boutique firm New Boston Financial in 2005. Michael demonstrates his belief in giving back to the community through his involvement in a variety of organizations. He is the President of the Board of the Asian Community Development Corporation (ACDC), a member of the board of the Massachusetts Workforce Investment Board, a member of the board of the Governor’s commission on Asian American affairs, on the advisory committee of the Asian American Civic Association, on the advisory committee of the Massachusetts Asian American Commission and the past President of the Friends of the Needham Elderly.

Salma is a Palestinian American, born in Jordan, who came to the US to further her education and ended up staying and making a new home for herself in Cambridge MA. She’s an electrical engineer by training, a social justice activist by disposition (and necessity), and an educator at the Learning Incubator at the School of Engineering at Harvard University. Salma is passionate about collective liberation and is always inspired by and searching for ways to integrate the arts with activism. She is a founding member of the Center for Arabic Culture where she served on their board of directors as secretary for two years, and a founding member and former curator and PR representative of the Boston Palestine Film Festival for five years, and a past board member and clerk for Company One’s board of directors. She’s also on the advisory board of Women in Film & Video New England. Salma was a host on Truth and Justice Radio, a live program on WZBC Newton. Salma is also an actor; she discovered that latent passion by chance at a mature age. She has been in several indie films and local theatre productions, most importantly BENGAL TIGER AT THE BAGHDAD ZOO with Company One, and SCORCHED with The Theatre Project in Maine. But what she loves most is being Giacomo’s mother.

salma@companyone.org

John Beck started at ArtsBoston in 2001 and has been Deputy Director since 2010. In this capacity he leads ArtsBoston’s growing market knowledge, cultural data, and capacity building programs, including the ArtsBoston Audience Lab, ArtsBoston Audience Initiative, and The Arts Factor Impact Report. Mr. Beck also develops earned revenue strategies and manages the organization’s finances and HR while assisting the Executive Director with planning and fundraising initiatives. He is a frequent presenter on audience development/diversification, data-driven strategies in the arts, and the role of arts service organizations and has presented at the Association of Performing Arts Service Organizations Conference, National Assembly of State Arts Agencies, National Arts Marketing Project conference, and many local gatherings. Mr. Beck is a graduate of Tufts University and has an adorable son named Chester.

Heidi Brooks is the Chief Operating Officer at the Schott Foundation for Public Education. Prior to joining the Schott Foundation, Heidi was an SVP and Director of Charitable Giving at Citizens Financial Group where she headed the Citizens Charitable Foundation, and worked with senior executives to determine and execute strategy for Citizens’ community outreach efforts in our 12-state footprint. Brooks previously spent several years as Director of Community Relations for John Hancock Financial, a subsidiary of Toronto-based Manulife Financial, and doing consulting and business development at The Bridgespan Group, a nonprofit strategy consultancy. Prior to business school, Brooks worked in Africa, Asia, and Latin America managing, designing, and auditing development programs for Africare, Catholic Relief Services, the International Finance Corporation, the Asian Development Bank and others in the field of international development. She has worked in 15 countries and traveled to 78. Brooks holds a B.A. in Government and International Studies from the University of South Carolina, an M.A. in International Affairs from the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies, and an M.B.A. from Harvard Business School. Fluent in French and Spanish, conversant in Vietnamese, she is an award-winning salsa dancer, and loves skiing, scuba diving, biking to work and singing Vietnamese folk songs. She loves spending time with her wonderful husband and two energetic little girls.

Mary Chin has been the Director of Social work at the Boston Medical Center for over 20 years. She is currently the President of the Board of Directors of the Asian American Civic Association (AACA), an organization that focuses on workforce development to help immigrants achieve self-sufficiency. Mary has volunteered for AACA for nearly 30 years. Mary is also a member of the Board of Directors of Action for Boston Community Development (ABCD). She is also a member of ABCD’s Health Services Committee and the Employment and Training Committee. Mary has been Vice-Chair of the Massachusetts Board of Registration for Social Work for over 4 years. She is also a member of the Advisory Board of the South End Neighborhood Action Program. In the past, Mary served as member of the Board of Directors for the American Cancer Society, for the Literacy Volunteers of America, and for the National Association of Social Work. Mary has helped many organizations in accomplishing their missions through her leadership and dedication.

Elisa Choi was Vice President for Company One’s Board of Directors until March 2017 and now serves on the Advisory Board. Previously, she served as a core member of the Company One Theatre Board of Directors Leadership Team, playing a major role in the oversight and decision-making for organizational strategic planning and Board development. Dr. Choi works as a physician, practicing in Internal Medicine, Infectious Disease, and HIV medicine, with a particular interest in reducing disparities in care, and in providing clinically competent care that is sensitive to patients’ gender, sexual orientation, ethnicity, and race. Dr. Choi has been an active member of the Asian American & Pacific Islander (AAPI) community for many years, serving on numerous Boards of AAPI community organizations. Currently, Dr. Choi is in her second year as Chairperson leading the Commonwealth of MA Asian American Commission (AAC), which is the only state government organization that advocates exclusively for and on behalf of the Asian American & Pacific Islander communities of MA. In addition to her Chairperson role providing oversight to the entire AAC, Dr. Choi also leads the Health and Human Services Committee of the AAC, as Committee Chair. Prior to her AAC Chairperson role, Dr. Choi started her service on the Executive Board of the AAC as Vice Chaiperson. Additional Board of Director roles are with NAAAP-Boston (National Association of Asian American Professionals, Boston Chapter), the Korean-American Citizens League of New England, and MAP for Health (Massachusetts Asian & Pacific Islanders for Health), a Massachusetts non-profit Asian/South Asian/Pacific Islander community-based organization that works for fairness, equality, and inclusion for these communities in health care planning, disease prevention, primary care access, and service delivery. Dr. Choi is the former Board Chair, and current Board Chair Emeritus, of this organization. Recently, Dr. Choi was elected to be the next Governor of the MA Chapter of the American College of Physicians, and will be the first female Governor to hold this role. Dr. Choi is a passionate supporter of the arts, and has also been a long-standing patron of the Boston theatre scene. She is a steadfast devotee of all Company One Theatre productions. Dr. Choi ardently supports the Company One Theatre mission to “change the face of Boston theatre”, and feels proud and privileged to be a part of the Company One Theatre family.

echoi@companyone.org

Lydia R. Diamond’s plays include: Stick Fly (produced by Alicia Keys under the direction of Kenny Leon, will open on Broadway at the Cort theatre on November 18, 2011; ’10 Irne Award – Best Play, ’10 LA Critics Circle Awards, ’10 LA Garland Award – Playwriting, ’08 Susan S. Blackburn Finalist, ’06 Black Theatre Alliance Award – Best Play), Voyeurs de Venus (’06 Joseph Jefferson Award – Best New Work, ’06 BTAA – Best Writing), The Bluest Eye (’06 Black Arts Alliance Image Award – Best New Play, ’08 American Alliance for Theatre and Education Distinguished Play Award), The Gift Horse (’05 Theadore Ward Prize, Kesselring Prize 2nd Place), Harriet Jacobs, Stage Black, and Lizzie Stranton (2008 Boston University Playwriting Initiative Commision). Theatres include: Arena Stage, Chicago Dramatists, Company One, Congo Square, Everyman Theatre Company, Goodman Theatre, Hartford Stage, Huntington Theatre Co., Jubilee Theatre, Kansas City Rep, L.A. Theatre Works, Long Wharf, Lorraine Hansberry Theatre, McCarter Theatre Co., Mo’Olelo Theatre Co., MPAACT, New Vic, Playmakers Rep, Plowshares Theatre Co., Providence Black Rep, Steppenwolf, TrueColors, The Matrix, Underground Railway Theatre, Actors Theatre of Louisville, and The Contemporary American Theatre Festival. Lydia’s plays have been produced at Universities around the country including: Duke University, Howard University, Emerson College, Boston University, Northwestern University, University of Wisconsin, Columbia College Chicago, Spelman College, University of California – San Marcos, and University of Maryland. Lydia has been commissioned by: Steppenwolf, McCarter, Huntington, Actor’s Theatre of Louisville/Victory Gardens, Humana, Boston University, and The Roundabout. Stick Fly and Harriet Jacobs are published by NU Press, Bluest Eye, Gift Horse, Stage Black – Dramatic Publishing. Lydia was a 2007 TCG/NEA Playwright in Residence at Steppenwolf, an 06/07 Huntington Playwright Fellow, 2009 NEA/Arena Stage New Play Development Grant Finalist, is a TCG Executive Board Member, a Resident Playwright at Chicago Dramatists, an Honorary Doctorate of Arts Recipient from Pine Manor College, and a recent recipient of the Huntington Theatre’s 2011 Wimbley Award.

Jamal Gathers is a property manager with Housing Management Resources in Roxbury, MA, whose mission is to “provide high quality affordable housing that strengthens communities.” He is the former Director of Purchasing & Inventory Control at Be Our Guest, Inc., and is a licensed real estate agent and \active member of the Roxbury Community. Jamal is a huge theatre supporter, as well as a lover of opera and classical music, and is committed to C1’s mission: “Company One has put forth such provocative productions that have made me, time and time again, question the status quo, and what is going on in our society.” Jamal also understands the importance of using theatre to articulate a community’s key social issues. His goal is to “bring the issues that are portrayed on stage back to the community for recognition and discussion,” and to use C1’s Community Engagement Committee as a means for further building C1’s relationships in communities of color.

Thomas is an investment professional with Palladin Consumer Retail Partners, a consumer-focused private equity firm in Boston, and is currently a member of the Company One Finance Committee. Thomas has a performing arts background as a classically-trained vocalist and has been an active member of the Greater Boston community since moving from Los Angeles in early 2015. In addition to Company One, Thomas has been actively involved with the Social Innovation Forum, an accelerator program that helps innovative nonprofit organizations and social impact businesses gain visibility, expand their networks, and build capacity in order to secure next-stage funding. As a member of the non-profit evaluation committee, he was one of only a handful of industry professionals tasked with interviewing and evaluating potential organizations for the 2016 nonprofit cohort, and as an impact investing mentor, he was one of several mentors charged with guiding six social impact startup companies through a 12-week incubator program that culminated in a series of fundraising pitches and presentations. Additionally, Thomas is a member of the Private Equity Association of Boston and volunteers with YouthVenture, a United Way-funded youth entrepreneurship program that provides startup capital and consulting to youth-led ventures aimed at addressing social and economic issues in local communities.

Devin Hill is a Managing Director at JP Morgan Securities and formerly Bear Stearns where he has worked for almost 20 years. He has been a Back Bay resident for over 20 years where he currently resides with his 12 year old daughter. Devin has always had a passion for the arts and entertainment and has been involved in numerous Boston arts organizations. Most recently Devin served on the BalletRox Board of Directors, with a three year term as president. BalletRox is a non-profit dance company that produces the Urban Nutcracker and is involved with scholarship dance students and extensive school programs. He is an advisor to the Boston Tap Company and help them launch their organization. Devin has been a member of the Boston Ballet Young Partners Board. He is currently on the Alumni Board for his High School alma mater, the Middlesex School. Devin was a Company One Board member until 2017. He holds a BA in Economics from Arizona State University. His primary hobby is attending all the many wonderful events such as sports, art, music and theater in Boston.

Cuong is the director of programs of Mott Philanthropic, a consultancy founded in 2008 that works with individuals and foundations to increase the impact of their giving. In his role, Cuong helps clients design, implement, and assess their grant making, which focuses on local and national issues, including arts and culture, education, climate change and just transition, and fiscal policy. Cuong previously worked at Philanthropic Advisors, where he also was director programs. Prior to this, Cuong worked at Hunt Alternatives Fund, a family foundation in Cambridge, Massachusetts, where he launched the foundation’s new program to support arts for young people in Eastern Massachusetts. He has also worked for the City of Boston Mayor’s Office, where he oversaw all grants made from the City’s general fund, including those for arts organizations, out-of-school programs, and early childcare providers. Cuong was also the performing arts manager at the Boston Center for the Arts, the living/arts editor at the South End News, and a development intern at the American Repertory Theater.

Chobee started Chobee Hoy Associates Real Estate Inc. in 1990. Chobee loves what she does and encourages others to do the same. Chobee adores her clients and sees herself as a problem solver. Her clients will come to her with a challenge and she will go that extra mile to find a home that fits their needs and budget. Chobee currently manages over 20 real estate agents and her leadership has allowed her company to become one of the most successful agencies in the Brookline area. Chobee’s triumphs have been quoted in many popular Boston publications; the Boston Globe, Boston Magazine and the Boston Business Journal; as well as national publications, such as Forbes, Frontdoor, Moving and the New York House Magazine. Chobee has thorough knowledge of the real estate market, especially the Brookline market. Chobee’s knowledge and admiration of Brookline has not only brought her success, it’s also inspired her to become a community advocate. Chobee volunteers with many local non-profit organizations. She enjoys participating in fundraising events and is on the Boards of the Brookline Arts Center and the Coolidge Corner Theatre. She is also active in the Massachusetts Democratic Party. Chobee was raised in Charleston, West Virginia and she currently resides in Brookline, MA.

Vinca L. Jarrett, Esq. is an entertainment lawyer and president of FilmPro Finance, a financial consulting service for investors and producers funding one-off films and building film slates. She has worked on slate financing deals with banks including CIBC, West LB, Bank of America, Merrill Lynch and ICB. Her top tiered clients have included Cosmic Entertainment, APG, Icon, and Focus Films. Filmpro has served as the holding company for financing distribution of films that include DIE HARD 4, THE DAY THE EARTH STOOD STILL, and ALIENS VS. PREDATORS. Film projects as counsel and/or finance consultant have included PEACE, LOVE AND MISUNDERSTANDING (directed by Bruce Beresford starring Jane Fonda, Catherine Keneer & Elizabeth Olsen) which premiered at Toronto International Film Festival in 2011; THE PERFECT GAME (directed by William Dear, starring Clifton Collins Jr., Cheech Marin & Moises Arias) released theatrically in April 2010, THE FOURTH KIND (starring Milla Jovovich & Will Patton) which released in Fall 2009 and surpassed $50M in worldwide profits; THE CAVERN, released by Sony Pictures in 2006; and THE STRANGLER’S WIFE, a Roger Corman film distributed worldwide in 2003. She has also been involved in numerous documentaries including FAR OUT ISN’T FAR ENOUGH: THE TOMI UNGERER STORY a film by Brad Bernstein, which premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival in September, 2012; WITCH HUNT, narrated by Sean Penn which premiered at the 2008 Toronto International Film Festival and aired on NBC in 2009; THE SURGE by Deborah Scranton shown on PBS’s Frontline in 2008; and TOUCHING THE GAME: CAPE COD which aired on the WB in 2004/2005. Vinca is an Associate Producer of the Off-Broadway Play 5 LESBIANS EATING A QUICHE currently running at the Soho Playhouse and produced by Tony Award Winning client John Pinckard (Clyborne Park, American Idiot, Hair). She also represents Golden Horde Entertainment whose Off-Broadway hit FREUD’S LAST SESSION has recently opened in Los Angeles starring Judd Hirsch and Tom Cavanagh. Vinca is counsel to the leading U.S. arthouse cinema, the COOLIDGE CORNER THEATRE FOUNDATION. She has represented several tax credit jurisdictions including Puerto Rico, Louisiana and Arizona, and helped to create the first film tax credit in Massachusetts. Vinca moderated two TV panels at Cannes for Bloomberg TV in 2012, one on bank financing with bankers from National Bank of California, 120db, Coutts and National Bank of Canada, the other on the feature Lawless with its Executive Producers Cassian Elwes and Rob Barnum; has been interviewed on NPR’s All Things Considered (2011) on the economic relevance of film tax credits; and appeared on Fox Business News (2010) on issues of studio financing, as well as been featured in several film industry periodicals. Vinca has co-chaired the prestigious BLOOMBERG INTERNATIONAL FILM & TV FINANCE SUMMIT held biannually in LA and NY since 2003. She speaks around the world on film finance addressing investors, financiers and industry professionals, and has appeared as a key note speaker at Cannes, Berlinale, Toronto, and Turks & Caicos, as well as at Harvard University, MIT, Boston University, Emerson, Boston College, UCLA, NYU and NY Film Academy. She is currently the co-creator and co-host of SHOW ME THE F#©K!NG MONEY: HOW TO INVEST, RAISE AND RECOUP MONEY IN THE FILM INDUSTRY which is based on her book of the same title. Vinca is on the Board of Directors of Interlock Media, a documentary film non-profit organization, and a Board Member of Company One and a co-chair of the annual gala committee.. She has been Chairperson of the Arts & Entertainment Committee of the Boston Bar Association, served as Board Chair of ImprovBoston, and been a Board of Advisor to the Golden Trailer Awards. A native New Yorker, whose extended family is based in Los Angeles, she currently resides in Boston, Massachusetts. Please see www.filmprofinance.com and www.vincajarrett.com for more information.