LTC Board and Staff
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Kate Abila - Board Member
Kate is a creative, customer-focused hospitality professional with extensive experience in management, marketing, and event planning. She is knowledgeable in all aspects of a theater company's operations. She is also experienced as a performer. She connected with LTC as assistant to the director for Lend Me a Tenor and music operator for the Cabaret show.
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Alicia Avalos - Board Member
Alicia has experience in backstage crew for past productions with the San Joaquin Delta College's Community Theatre. She has a Bachelor's Degree in Psychology with a minor in Criminal Justice. She has a variety of experience in marketing, and event planning, as well as case management in the children's unit for a non-profit agency that coordinates services for persons with developmental disabilities. She also has several years experience in playing the piano and began taking piano lessons at age 7. Alicia and her son Blake came to LTC after completing a stage lighting class with LTC's Lighting Designer. Since then Alicia has had the honor of participating in the backstage crew for LTC's production of Fiddler on The Roof and operated the light board for the LTC's 2023 Holiday Cabaret. Blake enjoys helping with the snack bar during LTC productions and had a small walk through role in the end scene of LTC's Fiddler on the Roof. Alicia appreciates sharing time with Blake in their adoration for the arts and is committed to the success of LTC's productions.
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Tina Cole - Board Member
Tina has been an actor, entertainer and coach since the age of 15. From age 19, she has starred in five television series and is best known for playing Katie Douglas on “My Three Sons”, where she won Photoplay Magazine’s People’s Choice Award for the “Most Promising Actress” and was a Golden Globe nominee for Best Actress in a Comedy Series. She has made over 10 albums singing with the “King Family” and “The 4 King Cousins”, with a CD currently on Amazon. Her favorite theatre works include “The Rainmaker” and “I Do I Do”. She was a coach for John Robert Powers for 13 years and directed the Sacramento Children’s Theater for 27 years. She sat on the founding boards for the RiverOaks Community School in Los Angeles and the Sacramento Child Abuse Council. Tina was presented with the prestigious “Golden Halo Lifetime achievement Award” for her 50 years of Television Excellence, by the Southern California Motion Picture Association, the “Vanguard Award for Lifetime Achievement in the entertainment industry”, at the Sacramento Film Festival, and published her autobiography, “MY 3 LIVES…more than Katie from My Three Sons”.
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Todd Gearou - Board Member, President
Todd Gearou is a seasoned actor/director/producer and vocalist who has worn many hats and played many roles on stage, television and in film. He belongs to SAG. He has produced feature films and even produced a segment for The Tonight Show when he was the longtime Producer for ESPN's SportsCenter. He holds two degrees in Theater Arts and Broadcasting for Television. He has written and directed full-length musicals for Fundraisers. In his other life, he works as a Standardized Patient and Instructor at UC Davis School of Medicine.
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Patti Haines - Board Member
Patti minored in Theatre Arts at UC Berkeley and continued in Rhetoric in graduate school. After grad school, she did some commercial work, signed with the Brebner Agency, worked in a few industrial films, as well as in local theater. She has performed with San Jose Civic Light Opera, Peninsula Musical Theatre, and Chabot College, and Palo Alto Players. She has directed some great shows including Blithe Spirit and an adaptation of They Shoot Horses Don't They. As Director of Forensics, She fielded a nationally ranked speech team, well known for competitive theater events.
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Tea Hanks - Board Member
Tea is honoured to be a part of this esteemed production company and hopes to add however they can towards the organization's overall vision. They have been involved in several regional theatre companies and films while earning their Bachelors in Art Studio at Sacramento State. With training in teaching, singing, acting, movement, special effects, and stagecraft, Tea is prepared to assist the organisation in various ways in taking on a supportive role in production. They are determined to give back to their hometown community with the myriad of artistic skills they have acquired to continue presenting the quality productions LTC has become known for.
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Ana Roa Lauritsen- Board Member, Secretary
Ana Roa moved to Lincoln in the early 90's. It was while working at the Lighthouse Counseling and Family Resource Center that she realized how much there is to do for our community. This led her to various organizations to give of her time. In 2016 as she was walking down 5th St. after a community event, she heard music coming from the Civic Auditorium, a long time empty building.. Curiosity led her to open the door and find out what was happening inside. It was the LTC's rehearsals for Annie jr. She chose to volunteer for that production, but her admiration and respect for this newly discovered art moved her to continue to volunteer in more productions. Eventually, she took on the role as house manager and was thereafter accepted a on the Board of Directors and now holds the position of secretary. Although Ana confesses that she will never be on stage, she is committed to assist in any way possible at each production.
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Cary Litchford - Board Member
Cary retired and moved with his life partner to Roseville in 2023. Having spent much of his adult life in the San Francisco Bay Area, he is an award-winning musical director for productions at regional and professional theater companies there. Most recently, he was the musical director and keyboard conductor for our production of “Titanic: The Musical”. Cary studied vocal performance and music education at universities in California and Texas; however, ended up pursuing his Bachelor of Science degree majoring in Computer Science. He was bi-vocational for the bulk of his professional career, working simultaneously in the tech and performing arts industries. In addition to musical direction, his professional theater resume includes vocal coach, piano instructor, and children's camp director. It is Cary’s desire to share his collective work experience and contribute to the continued success and future growth of Lincoln Theatre Company.
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Dawn Maurer - Board Member, Vice President
Dawn has been singing onstage since the age of ten with San Jose Civic Light Opera, SJCMT, Saratoga Drama Group, and West Valley Light Opera. She studied theater and received her B.A. in Creative Arts from San Jose State University. As an adult, she toured with the Fun City Show Company, where she performed for schoolchildren all over the San Francisco Bay Area. Locally, she performed with the Sacramento Children's Theatre under the direction of Tina Cole through Fairy Tale Town, and she has been seen in such roles as Mama Rose in Sutter Street's production of Gypsy and Dolly Biddle in Theatre in the Heights's production of The Kitchen Witches. LTC audiences may remember her as Fiona in the 2019 Season opener, Out of Sight, Out of Murder. Dawn also directed LTC's streaming production of Old Love. Dawn is a credentialed teacher and teaches on the sets of television shows.
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Chris Moore - Board Member
Chris has more than 40 years’ experience working in a broad range of technical capacities for many theaters in both the Bay Area and in the Sacramento theater community. Chris first started with LTC back in the days when we had a just few lights on stands in the audience, plugged in with extension cords. He continues to provide LTC with technical expertise and stage management. Under Chris’ direction we anticipate the continued expansion of our technical staff and capabilities.
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Edwin Nand - Board Member, Treasurer
Edwin is branch manager at the U.S. Bank in Lincoln for 7 years. I have been in banking for 23 years and enjoyed helping the community with their financial needs. I was born in the Fiji Islands and moved to the US when I was two years old. I grew up in Sonoma County and moved to Lincoln in 2006. I’m married with two children, my daughter is 18 and my son is 16 and we enjoy the outdoors and the performing arts. I love living in Lincoln and serving the community that I live and work in.
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Peggy Schechter - Board Member, Executive Producer
Peggy is an experienced and trained singer, actor, director and producer in the art of Theater. She is one of the original founders of Lincoln Theatre Company and has over the last 7 years, successfully produced 23 out of 26 productions for LTC. Peggy is a vocal and acting coach both in the Bay Area and Lincoln and continues to work hard to bring quality performing arts to Lincoln and Placer County.
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Paul Schechter - Board Member, Executive Director
Paul is one of the founders of Lincoln Theatre Company. He served on the board from 2014-2019 and as its president from 2014-2017. He is a retired attorney and has written, acted, directed and produced theater for over 40 years.