The Players
Lisa Cesnik Ferguson (Producing Artistic Director, Founding Member)is founder and producing artistic director of Rose of Athens Theatre, and beyond the administrative duties that that entails, she works on the productions as a director, actress and more on every production since its incorporation in August 2006. The theater has an ensemble of professional performers, designers and directors from all over the U.S. In addition Lisa is on the board of directors for the historic theater of Athens, GA – The Morton Theatre.
Cesnik moved to Athens, GA by way of Chicago in 2004. She has been working professionally in the theatre since the age of 17, directing (40 + productions), acting (she refuses to count!), teaching, writing and producing for the theatre. She is grateful to have continued to do so regionally, at theatres throughout the U.S., including Chicago, Atlanta, Minneapolis, Richmond, VA, Indianapolis, Columbus, GA, and Highlands, NC. In 2002, while working in Chicago, she received “Critic’s Choice” from the Chicago Reader for her direction of My Dirty Little Secret.
Cesnik enjoys a continuing relationship with the Springer Opera House in Columbus, Georgia, working there from 2004 - present. This 137-year-old theatre was 
dedicated by President Jimmy Carter as the “State Theatre of Georgia”. There, she works with both Ron Anderson and Paul Pierce and teaches at Springer Theatre Academy. At the Springer Opera House she has directed and performed lead roles in over a dozen productions.
She has also been a college instructor since 1998, both full time and part time at University of Georgia, Columbus State University and in the fall 2008 will begin teaching theater at Piedmont College.
Some of her biggest influences? Children, Martha Jacobs, Augusto Boal, and her family – all of these luminaries teach kindness and communion, hard work and the joy of discovery.
Lisa Mende (Founding Core Member) has been a professional film and TV actress in L.A. since 1986, after "walking the walk" in NYC as a theater actress for 10 years.
Her roles include a recurring role on Seinfeld (as “Carole”, the mother of the ugly baby) Sex And The City, Friends – some
representative films are Hollywood Shuffle, Scrooged, Gremlins II, Rodney Dangerfield's last film The Fourth Tenor and this is a mere smidgen of her extensive resume. She leaves town intermittently to perform stand up with the brilliant Dom Irrera.
She moved to Athens two years ago with her darling daughter Jenna and they have never been happier. She was in the inaugural production of Rose of Athens Theatre, The Bible: The Complete Word of God (abridged) and has been an important part every subsequent production, both onstage and off, since December of 2006. Lisa's completely thrilled to be part of this brilliant company.
Joelle Ré Arp-Dunham (Core Member) is happy to be a core member of Rose of Athens Theatre. For Rose of Athens Theatre she delights audiences by acting, directing, designing media and more. She has worked at professional theatres in New York, Ohio, and throughout the southeast in addition to various commercials and country music videos. She has over 30 theatre directing credits, including the current Rose of Athens educational touring production of Classics Aloud! and the much lauded production of Truman Capote’s Holiday Memories in December 2007.
Joelle also directs for film and video in addition to 
designing stage and film media. She holds a B.F.A. in Acting from The Ohio State University and a M.F.A. in Dramatic Media with an emphasis in directing from The University of Georgia, where her tenure culminated in the adaptation, direction and media creation for an interactive multi-media production of A Christmas Carol. She has taught acting classes for fifteen years at various venues including SUNY StonyBrook and UGA, and designed media for George Contini’s solo performing piece Scrapbook.
Kathleen Hogan (Core Member, Development Director) is thrilled to be working with Rose of Athens Theatre. She recently relocated
to Athens from New York City after working as an actress there for the past 15 years. Favorite roles include Gwendolyn in The Importance of Being Earnest, Sarah in Guys and Dolls and the Queen in Richard II. She has worked with Shakespeare & Co. and her film credits include Bride of the Killer Nerd. In January 2008, she took on the position of Development Director and RoA was granted the first proposal that she wrote!
Maria Moody (Core Member) was born and raised in Athens, GA. She graduated from the University of Georgia with a B.A. in
Theatre in 2007. She has been performing since she was 8, when she first played “The Kite" in You’re a Good Man Charlie Brown, and has worked on stages in London, Sacramento and with RoA. She performed in Rose of Athens Theatre’s productions of A Midsummer Night's Dream, The Legend of Sleepy Hollow and Classics Aloud! and also has participated in every aspect from stage manager to education outreach. Maria is thrilled and honored to have the opportunity to work with the talented team of artists associated with the Rose of Athens Theatre.
Ben Reed (Core Member) works with Rose of Athens Theatre as resident actor, designer, writer, fundraiser, technical director and more. He is a graduate of the Savannah College of Art and Design Media and Performing Arts program. Ben was born and raised in Columbus, GA. He is a graduate of the Atlanta Shakespeare Company's apprenticeship program (2007). 
You may also see him in other productions in Atlanta, for instance in The Little Dog Laughed at Theatre in the Square in Marietta. Ben performs in many Rose of Athens Theatre's productions, including A Midsummer Night's Dream, Classics Aloud!, The Legend of Sleepy Hollow, Holiday Memories and The Taming of the Shrew. Most importantly, Ben has the cutest dog in the world - Jackson.
Carole Kaboya (Core Member) lives in Athens, GA but was born in the Democratic Republic of Congo. After moving to South Africa for three years, she and her family relocated to
Atlanta, GA when she was six years old. Her love for theatre developed during her middle school and high school days when she decided to make it a career. Carole has earned several leadership awards is a student at the University of Georgia where she is studying Theatre and Music Business. She is very blessed to be a core member of Rose of Athens Theatre and is very proud of how much it has accomplished in the past few years. Her credits with this company include North Star Light: Pathways to Freedom and A Midsummer Night's Dream. Carole is looking forward to many more exciting seasons with Athens' first professional theatre company!
Olubajo Sonubi (Core Member) He works as a performer with Rose of Athens Theatre and also participates in education outreach. Prior to working with RoA on North Star Light: Pathways to Freedom and A Midsummer Night’s Dream, his experiences included The Exonerated, King Lear, Joe Turner's Come and Gone and the
Black
Theatrical Ensembles's production of The Gods Are Not To Blame. Mr Sonubi graduated from University of Georgia in May of 2006. He is currently in Texas pursuing an M.F.A in acting but will be returning to Rose of Athens Theatre during the Summer of 2008 to reprise his roles in A Midsummer Night’s Dream and perform in The Taming of the Shrew.
Dusty Drake (Performer, Media Designer) grew up in Hartwell, GA. He graduated from Valdosta State University with a 
Bachelor of Fine Arts in Theatre, and worked two summers with the Jekyll Island Musical Theater Festival. Most recently, Dusty had a short play titled Requiem produced Off-Off-Broadway in New York in 2005. Dusty performed in Rose of Athens Theatre’s production of Holiday Memories and will be performing in A Midsummer Night’s Dream and The Taming of the Shrew. Thrilled hardly comes close to describing how excited he is to be working in theater, again!
Vicky Moody (Core Member) You will find Ms. Moody working on almost every aspect of Rose of Athens Theatre, from ticket taking to stage work. Most recently, for Holiday Memories in December 2007 she read the multicultural children’s holiday tale before each performance. To list all her theatrical endeavors would be lengthy. The first performance she remembers was at age five as an angel in a Christmas play. She has over twenty years of experience acting, directing, producing, and working all technical aspects in numerous productions. She has worked with the Island Players in St. Simon’s and currently coordinates the Performing Arts Division of OCAF. She met her husband on stage thirty-five years ago. He was Schroeder and she was Peppermint Patty in You’re a Good Man Charlie Brown.
Michael Kennedy (Core Member) Michael is resident sound designer, and is pretty much good-at-everything-he-decides-to-try. Not a bad talent for a core member of Rose of Athens Theatre! He is terribly humble, is also an inspiration to others when he decides to share. Here’s what he has to say about his theatre company:
“I like working for Rose [of Athens Theatre] because it feels like I'm actually doing theatre. I remember working on Bible [December 2006] and I would go to Jittery Joe's at night to work and it was like...see, this is fun! - Same thing with the first crew watch for [The Legend of] Sleepy Hollow [September 2007]. I remember walking up to Floorspace with all of the dancer studios surrounding it, and for what ever reason it just felt like I was surrounding by creativity…after doing theatre for a while it can be a bit monotonous. It is nice to have a reminder of why you do it.”