Words of Praise

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I have also had the pleasure of observing Kat’s work on community projects. Her strong social conscience and dedication to the community at large have been an asset for VSC and the Hampton Roads area. While working at VSC, she continually sought more responsibilities and opportunities to link to the wider community, pushing VSC beyond the walls of the theater to have more impact. Often these projects were ones that Kat designed, proposed to senior staff, and brought to fruition. The community ties that she built while working at VSC have grown into publicly lauded partnerships that continue to benefit the company.

Kat’s main goal -one that I also share- is to serve her community via art that stimulates and transforms those in its path.

For every collaboration we’ve had, there was extensive planning and acute attention to detail to make sure we would reap a result beneficial to the audiences we served. I believe Kat will always be in service of the greater good of humanity and it is theater that allows her to flourish in this way. She uplifts as a director, encourages as a collaborator, and inspires as an educator. I mentioned earlier that her vision is strong, but not eclipsing. She provides space to shine with whomever she works with.

As the Production Stage Manager at Virginia Stage Company, I worked with Kat on several mainstage shows. I have always found her work to be thorough and her attention to detail to be exemplary.

Kat has that rare talent of being able to not only see the big picture, but to be able to impart her vision to the cast in a way that encourages them to grow as actors and to bring greatness to their roles. She brings talent, patience and vision to the table and creates a positive rehearsal atmosphere.

Kat is a wonderful collaborative planner, always contributing new ideas, building on the thoughts and preferences of others, and taking her students’ backgrounds, interests, and identities into careful consideration.

She is also a dynamic facilitator, someone who I found especially our high school students connected with quickly. I both co-taught with Kat (where I found her to be a positive supporter of my work, as well as someone who pushed me to think in new ways) and observed her teaching, and her ability to adjust in the moment to the responses of students is an element of her teaching that stands out to me.