Staff
Cydney Patrice Cleveland, Technical Director and Teaching Artist, has an Associates degree from Harold Washington College. Cydney began working with Storycatchers when she was a junior at the Young Women's Leadership Charter School of Chicago.
Rachel Hauben Combs, Development Manager, has worked as a development officer or consultant with several Chicago companies, including About Face Theatre, Remy Bumppo Theatre, and the League of Chicago Theatres. Prior to moving to Chicago, she worked with numerous organizations in Omaha, NE, including the Blue Barn Theatre, Opera Omaha, and the Nebraska Theatre Caravan. She holds a BFA in Acting from the State University of New York at Purchase. She is pursuing a Masters in Creative Writing at DePaul University.
Ozivell Ecford, Program Manager and Teaching Artist. He holds a Bachelor of Fine Arts from International Academy of Design and Technology in Multi-Media Design and Interactivity. In addition to being an actor, Oz is a musician and composer and performs with the band Kick Bricks.
Hillary Johnson, Program Manager and Teaching Artist. Hillary began working with Storycatchers in 2005 when she served as the lead teaching artist from the CCC Fiction Writing Department for the Teens Together Playwriting Ensemble. Hillary holds a Master of Fine Arts (Creative Writing) from Columbia College Chicago (CCC) and a Bachelors degree (Philosophy and Photography) from SUNY Purchase College in New York. She is also the founder and lead instructor at Calm Chicago, the mind & body center where she teaches tai chi and meditation.
Myron Silberstein, Composer and Teaching Artist, is an award-winning classical pianist with extensive experience as music director, pit orchestra performer and vocal coach. Teaching experience includes Columbia College Chicago and supplemental education services for Chicago Public Schools, as well as private lessons in New York City, Pittsburgh and Chicago.
Nancy McCarty, Executive Director, has a Masters of Education Degree from Loyola University Chicago. She did her undergraduate work in theatre production, design and technology at Northern Illinois University. Nancy met Storycatchers when she was teaching fifth grade at Stockton Elementary School. Prior to her teaching career, she spent 25 years working in the Chicago film, theatre and event industry.
Meade Palidofsky, Founder and Artistic Director, is director, lyricist and award-winning playwright. Since 1984 Meade has created and led Storycatchers' signature programs. As a result of her writing background and interest in social change, Meade developed and refined the unique Storycatchers process: Using personal story writing as a springboard for personal growth. Her years of devoted work have made her an acknowledged expert in the specialized area of youth development through the arts.
Alyssa Sorresso, Program Manager and Teaching Artist has a Masters in Applied Drama from the University of London Central School of Speech and Drama. She is a graduate of the University of Michigan where she received a Bachelor of Theatre Arts degree-focusing on theatre and social activism through the Prison Creative Arts Project. Alyssa began working with Storycatchers in 2004.
Chris L. Terry, Teaching Artist, is a Fiction Writing MFA candidate at Columbia College Chicago, where he also does retention work through African-American Cultural Affairs. He has taught writing for the True Star Foundation and Columbia College CCAP's Act/Write outreach program. His writing has appeared in SmokeLong Quarterly, Knee-Jerk and Razorcake.
Ethan Ucker, Program Manager and Teaching Artist, works as an arts educator with multiple Chicago organizations, as well as Storycatchers Theatre. He has directed for the Chicago Fringe Festival, and in 2006, he worked with men serving life sentences at the State Correctional Institute at Graterford, PA. Ucker studies juvenile justice policy as a Research Analyst for the Children and Family Justice Center at the Northwestern University School of Law. He received his undergraduate degree from Swarthmore College in Swarthmore, Pennsylvania.