The Play of Herod: Directors

Kelly Morris, Director

2004—present: The Play of Herod
1988—present: President, Atlanta Camerata
1980—88: President, The Seed & Feed Corporation
1976—present: Founder, Seed & Feed Sacred Harp Singing
1974—present: Founder, Seed & Feed Marching Abominable
1974—present: Singer and programmer, Schola Cantorum of Atlanta
1974—1999: The Play of Herod
1972—79: Director, Kelly's Seed & Feed Theatre, Atlanta

In addition to his directoral expertise, Kelly Morris has been head of publications at the High Museum of Art in Atlanta, Georgia, since 1976. He has edited and overseen the publication of all printed materials of the Museum in that time, including the publishing of more than 125 catalogues and books, including works co-published with Abrams, Hudson Hills, Rizzoli, Yale University Press, University of Washington Press, and University Press of Mississippi.

Link to Interview with Kelly Morris about this production.

Kevin Culver , Music Director

Music Director Kevin Culver is the Choir Master of the Cathedral of Christ the King in Atlanta. In 1976 Kevin co-founded the Atlanta Singers, an internationally acclaimed group which he led for fifteen years. He is known for his collaboration with various theatrical groups in Atlanta. In May of 2003, Culver co-created the Archdiocesan Festival Choir of Atlanta which is comprised of auditioned singers from more than thirty parishes throughout the Archdiocese. Culver and Morris have teamed up to bring ancient music to rapt audiences for several decades.

Morris-Culver Sacred Music-Drama Collaborations in addition to Herod:

2008: Via Crucis with Cathedral of Christ the King Choir (music by Franz Liszt)
2006—2007: Visions of the Cross with Cathedral of Christ the King Choir
2003: Miserere, with Cathedral of Christ the King Choir (featuring Barber's Agnus Dei)
2002: Miserere, with Cathedral of Christ the King Choir (featuring Allegri's Miserere)
2001: Mother of Sorrows, with music by John Tavener and Arvo Pärt
1999—2000: Ordo Virtutum by Hildegard von Bingen
1996—97: Pilgrim Trail (14th-century Spanish music and puppet drama), with Cathedral of Christ the King Choir
1995: Te Deum by Arvo Pärt, with Cathedral of Christ the King Choir
1991—92: Requiem Mysticam, with the Atlanta Singers (meditation on St. Teresa of Avila, with Victoria's Requiem)
1990: Stabat Mater by Arvo Pärt, with the Atlanta Singers
1984—86: Ordo Virtutum by Hildegard von Bingen (12th-century musical morality play)

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The Play of Herod: Singers (2009)

Adrin Akins, Shepherd

Counter-tenor Adrin Akins holds a Bachelor's Degree from Columbus State University, and played French Horn with the Lagrange Symphony Orchestra for 4 seasons. He has sung with many church choirs, including guest solo performances with the Chorus Peregrines based in Dalton, Georgia, and the Decatur First United Methodist Church. He is a member of the St. Bartholomew's Choir, where he also plays Celtic harp. Adrin is working toward a Master's Degree in Music Education with a concentration in Music Therapy from UGA.

Amy Abrames, Midwife/Mother

Amy Abrames has been associated with Herod since the mid-1990s. She started as an Angel, and since the play has started up again has played the part of a Midwife. She has sung with the Christ the King Cathedral Choir for 15 years. During some of that time Amy has also sung with the Schola Cantorum, and has appeared in various musical productions, including Ordo Virtutum.

Heather Almond, Angel/Innocent

Heather has been playing an Angel/Innocent since 2003. Heather's acting/singing resume includes shows with Dad's Garage, Onstage Atlanta, Atlanta Camerata, Atlanta Classic Theater, Village playhouse of Roswell, Schola Cantorum and with Barbara Hawkins. Heather sings soprano in the Saint Bartholomew's Canterbury Choir.

Anne Carroll, Mary

Anne Carroll is a junior at Emory University, studying chemistry. She has been a member of the Herod cast for 5 years, and has loved it for much longer. She is currently singing with the University Worship Choir at Emory, under Tamara Albrecht. She also dances a great deal both in dance classes at school and doing social swing dance.

Richard Carroll, Scribe/Henchman

Richard Carroll is a native Atlantan. Have sung in various local choral groups, including Emory Collegium Musicum, Schola Nova and most recently the Atlanta Schola Cantorum. Has performed in seventeen productions of The Play of Herod. For 24 years Richard has been a Registered Nurse practising on the cardiothoracic surgical unit at Emory University Hospital-Crawford W. Long.

Peter Clayton, Scribe/Henchman

Peter Clayton returns for his fourth year in the Play of Herod. Music plays a significant role in Peter's life. When he is not working in the Finance Department of the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra, Peter has enjoyed performing with various Atlanta choral groups, including the Atlanta Opera Chorus, the Atlanta Schola Cantorum, and the Chancel Choir at Morningside Presbyterian Church. Peter has also had the pleasure of performing with the San Francisco Symphony Chorus, and the Dallas Symphony Chorus.

Cary Cleaver, Shepherd

Cary Cleaver is one of two original Herod cast members, the other being king Herod himself, though she started out in the ranks of the Angels. She photographed and/or performed in almost all of the plays produced by Kelly's Seed & Feed Theater and sang with the Atlanta Schola Cantorum for thirteen years. From 1980 to 1996, Cary ran Georgia's artists-in-education program, and has recently retired from consulting in the field of community arts development and arts in education.

Tami Giusto, Midwife/Mother

Tami Giusto will be in the role of Midwife for the first time this year, although she performed in the role of an angel/innocent several years ago. Tami is a staff soloist at Morningside Presbyterian Church and has enjoyed singing there for 10 years. She has performed in numerous shows with the Atlanta Opera Chorus. Tami works at Children's Healthcare of Atlanta as an I.S. Analyst.

David M. Johnson, Archangel

An accomplished tenor and woodwind player, David M. Johnson has a wealth of experience in sacred and secular music. He has sung with choirs large and small in the United States and in Germany, where he was a Fulbright grantee in 2004. A graduate of Furman University, he has performed with a number of Atlanta-area ensembles, including New Trinity Baroque and Atlanta Schola Cantorum; now a medical student at Emory University, he continues to work with the Emory Concert Choir and as a staff singer at All Saints' Episcopal Church. This is his second year in The Play of Herod.

David R. Kam, Joseph

Returning to the role of Joseph is David Kam, who has been a member of the Herod cast for many years beginning in 1977. He has sung with the Scola Cantorum, the Scola Nova, the Duke University Chancel Singers, The Capital City Opera Company and the Con Spirito Vocal Ensemble as well as performing in other plays produced by Kelly Morris. By day David is a restaurateur and lawyer, practicing in the areas of real estate, corporate, and restaurant law. He has recently begun practicing as a licensed Mediator in the State of Georgia.

Ian Kincaid, Scribe/Henchman

Ian Kincaid joined the Herod cast in 1996 where he met Amy, the Angel/Innocent who'd become his wife. He has enjoyed playing the part of scribe and later as sword-wielding henchman as the production evolved. Ian sings with the Christ the King Cathedral Choir and has also sung with the Schola Cantorum. Ian is a medical illustrator and works with Ultimate Software as an interactive designer.

Anna Lange, Angel/Innocent

A music educator in the Fulton County Schools, Anna has participated in musical theater and opera company choruses and she currently sings in the Atlanta Schola Cantorum. Anna holds degrees in vocal performance from the University of North Carolina and music education from UGA. This will be Anna's second year in the play of Herod.

Andrea Love, Angel/Innocent

Andrea Love is joining the cast of Herod for the first time this year. Originally from Seattle, WA, she is now a sophomore music major at Agnes Scott college, and has also starred in five plays with the Agnes Scott Blackfriars over the past year and a half. In Seattle, she was a member of the Northwest Girlchoir for over ten years, and went on several international tours. At Agnes Scott she studies voice with Dawn-Marie James and participates in Collegiate Chorale, Sotto Voce, and plays piano and sings for the Jazz Ensemble.

Cat Lyons, Angel/Innocent

Cat first performed in the Play of Herod in 2004, and returned to the cast in 2007. Cat works as a zookeeper and exhibit interpreter at Stone Mountain Park's Farmyard and Plantation, and as a kennel assistant at the Lithonia Animal Hospital. She also performs with a comedy improv troup and at Renaissance festivals in Georgia and North Carolina.

Roark Miller, Magus

Roark Miller has been performing in Herod since 2004. He received his Bachelor's of Music in Piano Performance from the Oberlin Conservatory, and his Ph.D. in Musicology from the University of Michigan. He was awarded a Fulbright Fellowship to pursue his dissertation research in Venice, where he studied a group of composers working in Venice during Monteverdi's time. He has published articles in Music & Letters, Studi Musicali, and has written entries for the New Grove's Dictionary of Music and Musicians. Roark has played piano, violin, viola, cello, and viola da gamba in a number of different performing groups in Ohio, Michigan, and New Mexico in addition to Atlanta. Roark earns his living doing employment-based immigration for Morehouse School of Medicine and teaching string instruments and piano in his private studio.

Shannon Orr, Shepherd

Shannon sings with St. Bartholomew's Canterbury and Schola choirs, and is joining the Herod cast for the first time this year. A program manager with Northrop Grumman Information Systems on contract with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, she is also a member of the informal "Sonic Chronic" band that performs at employee events.

Sue Reynolds, Angel/Innocent

Sue Reynolds has sung in various choral groups including the Bristol (UK) Bach Choir, Renaissance & 20th century polyphony & Latin chant in Toronto, Canada, the Atlanta Schola Cantorum and Atlanta Choral Artists, and she has been a staff singer at Peachtree Road United Methodist Church since 2004. Sue has participated in The Play of Herod since about 1993.

Stephanie Roberts, Angel/Innocent

Stephanie currently sings with the Atlanta Schola Cantorum, and has previously performed in the Atlanta area in the Atlanta Celtic Christmas Concert and the Emory Early Music Ensemble. She is the Assistant Director for International Student and Scholar Programs at Emory University, where she is also a part-time student in Public Health Informatics. This is her first year in The Play of Herod.

James Robinson, Herod's Arminger/Son

James Robinson, baritone, received his B.M. degree with double majors in Voice Performance and Music History and Literature from Georgia State University in Atlanta where he studied voice with the late Pete Harrower. He received his M.M. degree from Florida State University also with majors in Voice Performance and Music History and Literature where he studied with Betty Jane Grimm. Currently, Jim is a student of Irene Callaway Harrower.

Robinson has devoted recitals to the music of J. S. Bach, George Frederick Handel, Peter Cornelius and other baroque, classical and romantic period composers. In 1980, he inaugurated Georgia Public Television's Opus series with a performance of Franz Schubert's Winterreise. Jim recently appeared in recital at Saint Peter's Church in New York City where he premiered The Marriage of Heaven and Hell, a song cycle by Atlanta Composer Curtis Bryant. Read more here (pdf). Jim has portrayed Herod's Arminger in the Atlanta Camerata production since 1975.

Jennie Saliers, Angel/Innocent

Jennie performed in the Play of Herod from 1983-1995 and again from 2000-present, and she sang with the Atlanta Schola Cantorum from 1983-1996. Husband Bill Levisay serves as the house manager for Herod performances.

Peyton Sammons, Angel/Innocent

Appearing in The Play of Herod for the first time, Peyton Sammons is a middle school student. She studies voice with Dr. Philip Rogers, and sings in the Rock Spring Presbyterian Church Schola Chorister Program under Christian Schoen and Dr. Wanda Yang Temko. She also sings in her school Chorus, and appeared in school productions of "The Sound of Music" and "Little Women" under the direction of Kathy Kelly-George.

Philip Sasse, Magus

Bass/Baritone Philip Sasse was one of the Magi in Herod from 1993-1999, and again since the show's reincarnation in 2004. Philip has been a member of the professional music staff at Atlanta's Cathedral of Christ the King as a staff singer/soloist/cantor since 1986, and over the years has performed with Robert Shaw and the Atlanta Symphony, The Atlanta Singers, The Colson Chorale, and other area choral groups. A Research Engineer by day, his other claims to fame include seventeen US patents and a successful three-day stint on the game show Jeopardy!

Butch Spivey, KING HEROD

Bass/Baritone Verley "Butch" Spivey has performed the title role in The Play of Herod since the first year, 1974. Mr. Spivey is a United States Administrative Law Judge. He received a Bachelor of Chemistry degree from Stetson University, an MBA from Georgia State University and a J.D. from Emory University. Mr. Spivey is a former Senior Assistant Attorney General in the Georgia State Law Department and served as Georgia's Deputy Secretary of State under former Senator Max Cleland. While at Stetson he was a member of the University Chorus and the Stetson University Quartet and studied vocal performance with Dr. Paul Langston. He studied voice with Patricia Heuermann at Emory University and the late Peter Harrower at Georgia State University.

Mr. Spivey has appeared locally with the Atlanta Symphony, the Atlanta Ballet, Georgia Opera, and Shoestring Opera among many others and has performed opera, oratorio and popular music throughout the United States, Europe, Asia and Mexico. He was a soloist and member of the quartet at the Temple for many years. Mr. Spivey is a Viet Nam war veteran and directed Choirs in Viet Nam and Fort Bragg, N.C. while serving in the Army Medical Service Corps.

Kevin Streiter, Magus

A New Jersey transplant, Kevin has been interested in music of all types for as long as he can remember. He has spent many years playing in alternative rock and jazz bands and has kept his hand in musical projects with friends in Atlanta as well as back north. Kevin has been a member of the bass section in the St Thomas More choir for the last 12 years. This is Kevin's first year performing in Herod. Kevin manages the facilities at the High Museum of Art.

John Yntema, Scribe/Henchman

John Yntema performed in the Play of Herod from 1985-1999 and returns again this year. He has sung with the several church choirs (currently with the Epiphany Episcopal church), with the Atlanta Schola Cantorum for several years in the 1980's, with the Atlanta Symphony Chorus (1992-1993) and with Just Voices (2003-2008).

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The Play of Herod: Consort

Patricia DeWitt, Recorder

Pat DeWitt holds a BA in music concentrating in organ from the University of Florida, and master's and Ph.D. degrees in musicology from the University of Michigan. Fascinated by early music since grad school, where she learned recorders and viola da gamba, she has organized and directed several early music groups in Rome, Georgia. Presently she is organist/choirmaster at the Church of the Transfiguration in Rome. Her co-authored article (with John Haines) on a late 13th century writer on music, Johannes de Grocheio, has been accepted by Early Music History, a prominent refereed journal. Pat is Assistant Vice President for Planning and Institutional Effectiveness at Shorter College. This is Pat's fifth year performing in the Herod Consort.

Paula Fagerberg, Harp

Historical harpist Paula Fagerberg appears regularly as a soloist, lecturer, chamber musician, and a continuo player at university concert halls and early music festivals in the United States and beyond. As a grad student at Indiana University's Early Music Institute, Paula studied the art of continuo with lutenist Nigel North and historical harps with Andrew Lawrence-King; she also holds a B.Mus. in historical harp performance from Clayton College and State University, where she was named a Spivey Scholar and awarded the honor of The University System of Georgia Outstanding Scholar for her graduating class. Paula has concertized in Europe and the Americas, and has appeared in Atlanta with New Trinity Baroque and the Atlanta Baroque Orchestra as well as Atlanta Schola Cantorum. This will be Paula's second year performing with the Herod Consort.

Susan Patterson, Viola da Gamba

Susan Patterson has played cello in Symphonies throughout the Southeast, including the Columbus and Chattanooga Symphonies. On her viola da gamba, Susan has performed with Ritornello Baroque Ensemble since its debut in 2000 as well as various other ensembles. She teaches music at the Atlanta Speech School and holds degrees in music education from Georgia State University and the University of Georgia. Susan studied cello with Eugene Eicher and later privately with Martha Gerschefski and performed in masterclasses for Dimitry Markevitch, Margaret Rowell, and Janos Starker. Her viola da gamba teachers include Martha Bishop, Wendy Gillespie, and Alison Crum and Gail Ann Schoeder. She is the current president of the Atlanta Early Music Alliance and is one of the leadership team of the Appalachian South region of the Viola da Gamba Society of America.

Lynda Anderson, Recorder

Lynda Anderson has been a recorder player since 1972. She has performed with various early music groups in the Atlanta area, most notably THE GOLIARDS OF ATLANTA which specialized in medieval music performance. She has been part of the Herod consort since 1995.

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The Play of Herod: Crew

Herod couldn't be performed without volunteers building the set, running lights and slides and preparing the cider and cookies for after the show!

Bill Scott controls the stage lights. Bill has been associated with Herod since its second year in the old Seed & Feed Theatre downtown. Over the years he has performed a variety of services from projecting the translation slides to running spotlights to driving the truck. Bill also has a long history as a trumpet player with the band Kelly started, the Marching Abominable. During the day Bill is an information specialist.

Spotlight specialist Henry Slack began assisting set-up for Herod in the 1970's, ran lights in the '80's and '90's, and rejoined the lighting crew for Herod in 2008. Like Bill Scott, Henry has been part of the Marching Abominable since it started. Henry's day job is as an indoor air expert for U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

Ellen Wilson has run the translation slides for the past several years. Ellen is in her 4th year as an alto member of both Cathedral Choir and the Schola at the Episcopal Cathedral of St. Philip. She has also sung with Atlanta Schola Cantorum since 2003. By day, Ellen works for Verizon Business.