ACTRESS BIOS

Click on the headshots for full-sized pictures.

Stephanie Angelil.
Stephanie Angelil , a Florida native, is a graduate of the University of Delaware and has studied at Weist Barron , T. Schreiber Studios and Induloop in Manhattan. She has appeared in several independent films including The Runner, Lovesick and Lenny and Oz; student films for NYU, NYFA and SVA and participated in the 2002 FringeNYC Festival. Her latest work in the theatre, an original play, Jane Ho is expected to go Off-Broadway in the near future. She is currently a dancer with The City Kitties and is doing children’s theatre with The Treehouse Shakers. Stephanie is delighted to be participating in The Vagina Monologues and thanks her family, friends and all those who support her.

Susan Bucci.
Susan Bucci has been performing in theater for close to 30 (yes, 
30) years. Recently, she has been performing with the Spotlight On Company in roles as varied as  the Wicked Witch in The Wizard of Oz, Mother Nature, a Hooter's waitress, and a three-breasted housekeeper. Very sharp-eyed TV and movie watchers may have glimpsed her in Law and Order, Third Watch, Ed, Maid in Manhattan and The Royal Tennenbaums.

Ebony Coles.
Ebony Coles comes from a family of actors and actresses but didn’t catch the acting bug until she graduated from high school. “I was adamant about getting a business degree. So I enrolled at Pace University and began taking classes for acting on the side.” While attending Pace, Ebony became an active student at HB studio acting school. She studied at HB Studio for 3 years. But it wasn’t until Ebony graduated from Pace and received her BA in Marketing, that she felt comfortable to begin fully pursuing an acting career. When asked why she went to school for a business degree she responds with, “The key to a successful acting career is knowing how to best market yourself. This is a hard business and you need all the help you can get.”
Her credits include 5 independent films, “This is it”, “Charming”, “Sada’s Soul”, “The Green Valley” and “Sisters of Diego”. Ebony has a few theater credits to date which include, “Urbane Qualities”, “The Morriset Canvas” and her first production with Cuchipinoy “Angel on my Shoulder”. She is extremely excited about being apart of  “The Vagina Monologues” and strongly believes in the efforts of the V-Day Worldwide Campaign. 

Lynn Compton.
Originally hailing from Las Vegas, Nevada, Lynn is currently pursuing her BFA in Drama at New York University's Tisch School of the Arts.  For the past year, she has been studying at the Stella Adler Academy of Acting in Manhattan and trying to figure out what to do when it snows during the winter.  Past stage credits include The Face on the Barroom Floor, The Curate Shakespeare As You Like It, W.A., and Blind Date.  She has just recently started to venture into film and has appeared in several NYU student production including Bothered and Bewildered.  Lynn has studied at the Utah Shakespearean Festival and although she enjoys all types of theatre, her true passion lies in classical acting.  She is both thrilled and honored to be working with the fabulous cast and crew of _gaia studios for the first time!

Nirene DiNardo.
Nirene is a graduate of Rutgers University with a degree in the Arts.  She has been studying with Penny Templeton for the past two years.  She has directed her own short film, which lead her to the role of Mary in the independent film Lovesick.  Nirene can most recently be seen on Close Up TV News on Pax TV and off Broadway in The Man Of Your Dreams.  This is her first time taking part in The Vagina Monologues, and is very excited to be a part of something that will help make a change in other women’s lives. Everyone involved has been amazing! She would like to give a special thanks to the directors, stage managers, cast and the people at Maxwell’s for their support.

Diane Harper.
Diane Harper a native of Highland Park, NJ graduated from Rutgers University with a bachelor of arts in Communication.  A novice to theater, Diane is thrilled to be a part of V-day and The Vagina Monologues.  Diane currently works as Social Worker and hopes that this play will inspire others to join the fight in ending violence against women around the world.  Diane would like to thank her family and friends for all of their support!!!
Sacha Iskra. 
Sacha is honored to be performing Crooked Braid in The Vagina Monologues.  Stage credits: Ragtime, DeBaun Performing Arts; Winter Wonderland with Flying Ship Productions; Captain Gravy’s Wavy Navy! with AIM Creative; Pocahontas with Westco Productions; Queenie in LaChiusa’s Wild Party with Allegro Productions, Pirates of Penzance and A Christmas Carol with Fulton Opera, Yum-Yum in The Mikado with the Iron Mountain Stage.  Dance:  Jersey Voices with the Chatham Players; CeBIT in Hanover, Germany for Olympus.  Sacha has also been a part-time lecturer for vocal performance at Rutgers, is a recipient of the West Side Dance Project NYC dance scholarship and is currently studying opera at the Juilliard School. Other favorite roles: Katherine in The Vagabond King, Titania in A Midsummer Night’s Dream, and Eve in The Apple Tree.  Many thanks to all, especially Edz. 

Racheline Maltese. 
Racheline is an actress, writer and model living and working in NYC.  Recent performance credits include:Avenge!, Miss Milligan's Third Grade Class Presents Animal Farm and several independent films. She is a member of the Genesis Repertory Company, and was recently the centerpiece on a billboard in downtown Manhattan. Additionally her writing has been published in a range small press literary magazines. Racheline has trained at Atlantic Theater Company Acting School and is planning to attend NIDA's summer program in January 2005 (it's Australia, summer works like that).
 

Elna Miller.
Elna Miller and her vagina are tickled pink to be a part of this memorable V-Day production.  Elna is an experienced performer with a wide range of stage and film credits in New York and near her hometown in the San Francisco Bay area.   She has recently appeared in the ongoing dinner theatre spoof, “My Big Fat Geek Wedding” with Hanging Cow Productions.  In addition, she has played leading roles in several Black Box Series productions at the Gallery Players and has appeared in original one-act festivals at Expanded Arts, NYU’s I-2 Actors and TSI.   Film credits include the award winning feature film, “Closer Than the Boy Nextdoor” (Ugly Betty Productions) and several independent shorts. 

Martinique Moore.
Introducing Martinique Moore with her first time appearance in THE VAGINA MONOLOGUES, born and raised in New Jersey she has been acting since the early age of 7 and featured in plays such as "Cry of The people", "You Can Run But You Can't Hide", "Looking For Love", "A different Kind of Hope",and several Independant features. She has an Assoc. degree in Early Childhood Education, and is currently a Rutgers University student majoring in Television & Media with a minor in Social Work. She dedicates all her performaces to the memory of her late mom Ellen Ragland. Catch her next in "Changing Faces"! 
 

Sultana Pashalidis. 
Sultana is a graduate student who is working on her Masters in Psychological Services and Behavioral Sciences, with a Professional Diploma in Marriage and Family Therapy. She has an extreme interest in Human Sexuality and is currently working for Eve's Garden in Manhattan, NY. She is also Events Coordinator for the television show, "Sex in College" based out of Columbia University. Her interests include Psychodrama, which is the integration of Psychology and Theater for therapeutic purposes. She makes a daily conscious effort to enhance her life experience and maintains a positive attitude. One of her life goals is to provoke people to be their best selves and and live life to their highest potential. She wants to be the spark, the catalyst of many awakenings, within herself and others. She is excited to work in the realm of V-Day concentrating on Domestic Violence, as her mother was the first pioneer against domestic violence in her life, and would like to pay tribute to her and all women who have had difficult life circumstances.  Her message to people is that "nothing is irreversible!"

Anna Payumo. 
Anna graduated with a BS in Marketing from Rutgers  University, where she minored in Theater Arts.  At Rutgers, she was  Assistant Stage Manager for Hedda Gabler, Stage Manager for As Five Years  Pass, and performed in Tender Offer for the Director's Project 2002. In the  past, she has performed in numerous plays, including Antigone, Twelve Angry  Women, Fiddler on the Roof, South Pacific, and Pippin.  Her work with  Cuchipinoy includes stage managing Who Am I for the Spotlight On 2002  Halloween Festival and her performance in Now I Lie for the Nine Muses Reading Series. In the Spotlight On Next Great American Playwright Festival  2003, she played Lissa in Sex as part of the Women Vs. Men production. She is also currently acting in Rain Delay at the Deron School in Montclair
 

Tammy Tunyavongs. 
Tammy is delighted and honored to be performing "My Angry Vagina" and the Juarez segment of "Memory of Her Face" as a part of The Vagina Monologues. She most recently finished a production of Rashomon as the Wife, which was one of her most challenging and favorite roles thus far. She is a member of Genesis Repertory in NY and has also worked at Brundage Park Playhouse, Mystic Vision Players, Baird’s Jewel Theatre, Allegro Productions, Playwright’s Ink, and several others in NJ.  She is currently working on a computer game in NY where she will be lending her voice for several of the characters, and she will also be playing the part of Kim in Rain Delay, a 1-act festival in Montclair (March 19-21, 26-28).  Thanks to the cast and crew for a wonderful experience, and love to friends for their support. 

Leah Vesonder. 
Leah is very excited to be working at _gaia for the time! She is currently directing the original one act All Across the Green Lit Sea and co-producing Moon Over Buffalo. Leah is thrilled to be a part of such a large group of people who are working to help the victims of violence throughout the world.

MORE TO COME!