STAFF

PETER G. ANDERSEN

Producing Artistic Director; he/him

Peter Andersen is a graduate of Carnegie Mellon University’s MFA directing program; he is also a graduate of Emerson College where he obtained his BFA in Acting. Formerly, he was the education manager at Writers Theatre in Glencoe. He has also worked at Steppenwolf Theatre Company as an Education Apprentice and Multicultural Fellow.

Directing projects include: Pericles (Catskill Mountain Shakespeare) Romeo & Juliet (OPFT); A Midsummer Night’s Dream (OPFT); Macbeth (NIU); Measure for Measure (Montana Shakespeare in the Parks); The Rise and Fall of Little Voice (The Gift Theatre); A Midsummer Night’s Dream (Catskill Mountain Shakespeare); Our Town (Roosevelt University); At Your Own Risk (University of Chicago); The Kennedy Plays (CMU); 21 (CMU); As You Like It (CMU); The American Myth (Shakespeare and Company);  The Cafe Collections; O/A: The Sophocles Project.  He has also worked for The Royal Shakespeare Company, Chicago Shakespeare, TimeLine Theatre, Huntington Theatre Company, Oregon Shakespeare Festival, Yale Repertory Theatre, Writers Theatre, and American Players Theatre as an assistant and associate director.

As an actor he has performed in several seasons at Shakespeare & Company (Lenox, MA); Actor’s Shakespeare Project (Boston, MA); and Company One (Boston, MA); he has also performed in New York City and Chicago.

RACHEL J. JONES

Communications Coordinator; she/her

Rachel J Jones is a local Chicago actor, teaching artist, and proud company member of Oak Park Festival Theatre. She had the privilege of playing Juliet in Romeo and Juliet (OPFT, 2024) and Hermia in A Midsummer Night’s Dream. (OPFT, 2023)
 
When she’s not acting, Rachel has worked in marketing for seven years. She oversees all graphic design, social media, digital, and print marketing efforts at Oak Park Festival Theatre. Rachel has a BFA in Acting from the University of Cincinnati’s College-Conservatory of Music (CCM), and a certificate in Shakespearean Performance from the Stella Adler Studio of Acting in New York City.
 
More Rachel at www.racheljjones.actor

KATHRYN KRAUSE

Business Manager; she/her

Kathryn Krause is a Project Manager/Operations Leader with a decade of experience in increasing revenue, leading teams, and data-driven process improvements. Kathryn has a BA in Drama at Trinity University and has trained in improv comedy and sketch comedy writing at both Second City and iO Theatre. She is heavily involved in the sketch comedy scene in Chicago and regularly acts, writes, directs, and produces shows with her sketch group, Supper Club. 

Kathryn lives in Chicago with her husband and 50+ plants.

JACK SHORT

Box Office Manager; he/him

Jack studied piano at the University of Toledo before moving to the Chicago area, where
he worked extensively as a music director and accompanist for area theaters’ as well as
performing with area bands and cabaret artists.

With over 20 years of experience in arts management, Jack has held roles in ticketing, finance, fundraising, grant writing, and HR at organizations including Apple Tree Theatre and Stage 773. Jack worked with the Alzheimer’s Association during Covid and currently serves as Parish Administrator at Grace Episcopal Church in Oak Park.