Alix Feinsod

Alix is a performer and teacher based in Oakland. Alix has been performing in musicals around the Bay Area all her life with Stagedoor, YMTC, The Marsh, and The Thrillpeddlers. She also writes and directs plays for her students to perform. In past years, Alix designed costumes for the Magic Theater and other companies. She is so excited to be in her third Dance Along Nutcracker!

Crystal Liu

Crystal Liu is a San Francisco Bay Area-based theatre artist and music nerd, and thrilled to be a part of the Dance-Along Nutcracker! She has felt and witnessed the healing powers of theatre from the age of nine and has sought to deepen her understanding of the craft ever since. Crystal has performed with, worked backstage for, and held administrative positions in theater companies and youth theatre programs all over the San Francisco Bay Area. She holds BAs in Theater and Anthropology from Yale University and is particularly interested in theatre that focuses on education, youth, and marginalized communities. Recent performance credits include Lady Macbeth in Macbeth (Theatre Rhinoceros), Betty 2 in Collective Rage: A Play in 5 Betties (Pear Theatre), and various roles in Terror-Rama IV: In Space! (Awesome Theatre).

as Drosselmeyer

Zelda is a singer/composer/actor. Zelda records and releases original music as well as scores for original film and stage productions with band Gelb Rot Blau and performs at SF’s premier nightclub Oasis in drag parodies and musicals. Favorite roles include Dr. Leonard "Bones" McCoy in Star Trek Live, Giles in Buffy Live: Once More With Feeling, Judy Garland in Tuck'n' Roll Players' Club.

as Mrs. Stahlbaum

Jas Cook

Jas Cook (they/them) is a local Bay Area drag queen, dancer, performer, and teacher. They are so excited to join this wonderful cast! The holidays are so special and Jas is happy to bring this holiday classic to life. They would like to thank their partner Max, roommates Sarah and Kenn, and their family for all their support.

as Lucy

Laurent J.L. Hall

Laurent J.L. Hall (he/him/his) is a queer performer currently based in San Mateo with an extensive theater and dance background, having appeared in over 50 shows since he was five years old. Some of his favorite credits include: the arguably titular Achilles in ARISTOS: The Musical (Tartarus Productions), Benji in Edith Can Shoot Things And Hit Them (Pacifica Spindrift Players), and the Lead Peppermint in The Nutcracker (Studio 4 Dance Theater). In addition, he has 16 years of ballet training, currently with Haoexpression Studio, and several voice acting credits, most notably on the award-winning audio drama Station Arcadia (Nikki). Coming back to The Nutcracker after transitioning is not something he could have ever even dreamed of, and he’s more than honored to be here.

as Fritz

Marilynn Fowler

Marilynn Fowler returns for her sixth season with the Dance-Along Nutcracker. She began dancing simultaneously with Page Hodel’s Box Dance Troupe and Voice Farm’s Oblong Rhonda. Her choreography credits include The Cool Ones, Way Out West, Hillbillies on the Moon, Rocky Horror Superstar, Rocket Girl, License to Kiss, The Untamed Stage, Club Inferno, and Cyberotica. She has worked with the Sick & Twisted Players, the Tuck & Roll Players, Artfull Circle Theatre, Teatro Zinzanni, the Thrillpeddlers, and countless drag luminaries. Her dance inspirations are James Brown and Ann-Margret.

as Lucy's Mom

Allen Sawyer

Allen Sawyer, is a San Francisco-based playwright and director. He began his theatre career at the legendary Valencia Rose and also performed stand up at the Rose’s revolutionary Gay Comedy Open Mic. Collaborating with John F. Karr, Sawyer created several musicals at Theatre Rhinoceros, notably Talking to the Sun, Dirty Dreams of a Clean Cut Kid, and Some Men Do. With the ArtFul Circle Theatre Sawyer helmed Jungle Red, Those Damn Calla Lilies, Christmas with the Crawfords, Way Out West, and Women’s Prison Christmas. He wrote and directed Gross Indulgences: The Trials of Liberace and Whatever Happened to Sister George. For his troupe the Hot Pants Homo Players, Sawyer penned a trilogy of plays, inspired by pulp paperbacks. Sawyer has directed shows at Theatre Rhinoceros, The New Conservatory Theatre Center, Feinstein’s at The Nikko, and many other San Francisco venues. This is his third Dance Along Nutcracker.

Cast Director

Pete Nowlen

Appointed Artistic Director of the San Francisco Lesbian/Gay Freedom Band in August 2013, Pete Nowlen is one of Northern California’s busiest musicians. He is the founder and driving force behind Sacramento’s VITA Academy, dedicated to revitalizing classical music through innovative community and audience engagement and school music programs. Other conducting credits includes the Sacramento, Auburn, Camellia, UCD and CSUS Symphonies and more than a dozen major productions ranging from La bohéme to the Rocky Horror Show. Pete was a member of the French horn section of the Sacramento Symphony for 10 years. He has performed with the San Francisco Symphony, Opera, and Ballet Orchestras, served as co-principal hornist of the International Orchestra of Italy, and has been a prize winner and finalist in international solo competitions.