Meet the Cast of RVP's
Legally Blonde The Musical
Director: Deanne Crook
Choreographer: Deanne Crook
Music Director: Nichole Fauser
Music and Lyrics by
Laurence O' Keefe and
Nell Benjamin
Book by
Heather Hach
Based on the Novel by
Amanda Brown
and the Metro-Goldwin-Mayer
motion picture
Original Production by Hal Luftig, Fox Theatricals, Dori Berinstein, James L. Nederlander, Independent Presenters Network, Roy Furman, Amanda Lipitz,
Broadway Asia, Barbara Whitman, FWPM Group, Hendel/Wiesenfeld, Goldberg/Binder, Stern/Meyer, Lane/Comley, Bartner-Jenkins/Nocciolino and Warren Trepp; Produced in association with MGM Onstage, Darcie Denkert and Dean Stolber.
Legally Blonde The Musical
Is presented through special arrangement with Music Theatre International (MTI).
All authorized performance materials are also supplied by MTI.
Sarah Denton - "Elle Woods"
“Legally Blonde” is Sarah Denton’s first show at River Valley Players. Portraying Elle Woods is something beyond her wildest dreams come true. She is amazed to be here. Growing up, Sarah participated in high school and church theater. Some of her favorite productions were “Seussical the Musical,” “High School Musical: The Musical,” and “Bye, Bye Birdie.” Throughout her life, she spent much of her time in a dance studio. She performed in The Nutcracker with the Moscow Ballet and danced in college. Sarah lives in Princeton with her husband, Matt, and their two children, Ellie and AJ.
Jeremiah Noar - "Emmett Forrest"
This is Jeremiah's ninth show and sixth show with the River Valley Players. Jeremiah was most recently Buddy in River Valley Player's production of Elf. Most recent shows include, Ragtime, Dreamgirls, Seussical, Freaky Friday and Holiday Inn. Jeremiah would love to play many other roles like Henry Jekyll from Jekyll and Hyde. Please enjoy the show!
Trisha Nicole Bagby - "Paulette Buonofuonte"
Trisha is excited to be back at RVP, and to bring a vibrant energy and comedic flair to the stage as Paulette, the lovable and quirky hairstylist with a heart of gold. She was last onstage as Megan Jones in "Puffs" at Cornstock Theatre. Other favorite roles she's played include Katherine in Freaky Friday at RVP, Brenda in "Catch Me If You Can" at Engle Lane Theater, and the enchanting Baker's Wife in "Into the Woods" at Stage 212. Having received her Acting degree in 2017, Trisha is no stranger to captivating audiences with her versatile performances. Trisha hopes to charm you with Paulette's infectious personality and impeccable comedic timing, adding her own unique touch to this beloved musical adaptation to a classic film.
Arlington Stiennen - "Warner Huntington III"
This will have been my sixth show with River Valley Players, and my second after coming back to acting. After Elf made me remember how much I missed acting, I decided to come back to perform again. When I'm not on stage, I'm either gaming, playing trading cards, or DnD.
Jeff Sudakov - "Professor Callahan"
Legally Blonde is Jeff's fourth production at RVP, including Ted Hanover in Holiday Inn, 9 to 5, and Freaky Friday. Jeff has been a professional dancer since he was 15 and has done many productions, ranging from Fiddler on the Roof to Into the Woods and Shakespeare in Something Rotton! Another recent favorite role was Mr. Mushnik in Little Shop of Horrors. Jeff's dream role would be Tevye in Fiddler on the Roof. Jeff's favorite hobby is sharing a fancy dinner with his wife, Monika. He is excited to share the stage with her in this production.
Monika Sudakov - "Brooke Wyndham"
Monika Sudakov is a chef and freelance food and beverage writer who is making her debut at RVP as Brooke Wyndham. This is her first production in 25 years after taking a long hiatus to pursue her culinary career. She is hardly a newbie to the theater. She was a ballet dancer for over 14 years and a parade performer at Disneyland. She also received her B.A. in Media Performance with an emphasis in film and television from Chapman University. Her passions include mental health advocacy, cats, sloths, and being Céline Dion's biggest fan.
Rachel Gorenz-Johnson - "Vivienne Kensington"
Rachel Gorenz-Johnson is thrilled to be playing the role of Vivienne Kensington in Legally Blonde. She was last seen on the RVP stage as Doralee Rhodes in 9 to 5. Rachel has been active in the theater since childhood and has performed at RVP, the Prairie Arts Center, Homestead Festival, IVCC, and Festival 56. Favorite roles include Corrie Bratter in “Barefoot in the Park,” Shelby in “Steel Magnolias,” Maria in “The Sound of Music,” Jo March in “Little Women,” and Louise/Gypsy Rose Lee in “Gypsy.” She also wrote and co-directed the PAC children’s Christmas musicals from 2004-2018 and has served as the director of the Annual Children’s Summer Drama Camp at the PAC since 2003. Rachel holds a B.A. in Integrated Arts from SUNY Empire State College but primarily uses it to do funny voices while reading stories, play pretend, and make super cool Halloween costumes for her kids in her greatest role yet - stay-at-home mom. She and her husband, Eric, live in Princeton with their 3 adorable children - Ella, age 7, and twins Alexander and Nicholas, age 3.
Christine Gaspardo - "Enid Hoopes"
Christine was last seen in the RVP stage as Emily Hobbs in Elf The Musical. She loves performing in the RVP stage and some of her favorite roles have been Violet in 9 to 5, Louise in Holiday Inn, Betty Jean in the Marvelous Wonderettes & Marvelous Wonderettes Caps & Gowns, and A Bird Girl in Seussical! She lives in Henry with her husband Derrik, and their 4 kids, Bella, Bobby, Emma, and Rori. She co-owns Dance Central with her best friend, Deanne. When she isn’t on stage you can find her at one of her kids’ activities or hanging out with her friends and family! She has loved working with this cast and hopes you all enjoy the show!
Heather Gifford - "Pilar"
Legally Blonde is Heather’s first show with River Valley Players! She is excited to be playing Pilar. When she was in elementary school, she played an Oompa Loompa in Charlie and the Chocolate Factory and sang in the children’s choir in Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat. In high school, she played Brenda in The Pajama Game, and was in the chorus for Cinderella. Heather went to The University of Missouri- Columbia and danced in shows for Homecoming and Greek Week. Heather and her husband, Justin, live in Princeton with their darling daughters- June, age 7, and Heidi, age 4.
Laura Wilson - "Margot"
Laura Wilson has been intermittently performing at RVP since she was a scruffy orphan in the 2002 production of Annie. Additional credits include: White Christmas, Hello Dolly, Sugar Babies, Broadway Our Way, Mame, Cinderella, and most recently, Lila Dixon in Holiday Inn. Laura has a master's degree in Library and Information Science from the University of Illinois, and she and her partner Jesse work as children’s librarians in Bloomington-Normal. They live with their tortie cat, Detective Jester, whose favorite games include playing fetch and racing to her automatic feeder.
Olivia Bergfeld - "Serena"
Olivia Bergfeld is going to be playing the role of Serena in this production of Legally Blonde. She’s a Senior at Henry-Senachwine High School. Her first show at RVP was Alice in Wonderland in 2012. Since then, she has been in 9 to 5 (2023), Holiday Inn (2022) at RVP. She has also been in Falsettos as Cordelia, and Into the Woods as Lucinda at Stage 212. Her favorite role that she has played is Dorothy in the Wizard of Oz this previous summer at Stage 212.
Emma Gaspardo - "Kate"
Emma Kay Gaspardo is an 8th grader at Henry-Senachwine JH. Emma loves being onstage in musicals because she loves to sing and dance. She was most recently seen on the RVP stage in Elf. She also like to participate in softball, volleyball, basketball, track, band, choir, speech, and Scholastic Bowl.
Bella Gaspardo - "Sundeep Padamadan"
Bella Gaspardo has been participating in theatre at River Valley Players since she was 5 years old. Her first musical was Alice in Wonderland Jr. This is her 16th production with RVP, but has also enjoyed performing in productions at her school, where she was Recently seen as Missy in The Marvelous Wonderettes: Glee Club. She is currently a junior at Henry-Senachwine High School and participated in band, choir, Mallard Ensemble, Cheer, Track, Theatre, Art Club, and Yearbook Club.
Taylor Rowe - "Aaron Schultz"
Taylor Rowe is so excited to be playing Aaron Shultz in Legally Blonde! Taylor is a sophomore at Henry Senachwine High School. Taylor has been doing RVP shows since 2014 including Freaky Friday, Frozen Jr, Holiday Inn, 9 to 5, School House Rock and was most recently in SpongeBob Jr. Outside of shows Taylor does other activities like Dance, Jobs, Choir, Cheer, Student Council, and much more. Taylor has enjoyed being a part of this amazing cast and hopes everyone comes out to see the show!
Bobby Gaspardo - "Grandmaster Chad"
Bobby Gaspardo is a sophomore at Henry-Senachwine High School. Bobby is an active member of the band and choir. He is also a member of the Mallard Ensemble and MPS Show Choir. He was last seen on the RVP stage in Elf. When is is not performing he enjoys playing baseball and basketball. He also likes to golf. In his spare time he likes to umpire. His future plans are to become a music educator.
Josh Bush - "Kyle B. O'Boyle/Nikos/Dewey/Guard"
Josh is excited to be in his first show with River Valley Players. Josh has been in 4 productions at Prairie Arts Center; Barefoot in the Park, Plaza Suite, Death Trap, and Tuna Does Vegas. In the Tuna show, Josh played 7 different characters so he is used to wearing multiple hats for a show. Josh has a B.S in Elementary Education from Eureka College. Josh works from home as an insurance biller and is the A/V Director of his church. Josh has a 15 year old son, Landon, that lives with him. Josh plays fast pitch softball in the summers and helps out with the Nightmare Haunted Attraction in Princeton.
Lexi Rowe - "LeilanI"
Lexi will be playing the part of Leilani and Kiki the Colorist. Lexi is an 8th grader at Henry Senachwine Jr. High School. Her first show at RVP was Frozen Jr., portraying the role of little Elsa in 2022. Lexi was most recently seen as Karen Plankton in Sponge Bob Square Pants Jr.
When Lexi isn’t performing in a musical you will find her participating in Cheerleading, Volleyball, speech contest, chorus, and the Stark County Show Choir.
Danika Maddex - "H&H Salesgirl"
Danika is a freshman at HSHS and she is excited to be a part of this play. She enjoys dancing, cats, art, and hanging out with friends. Danika participates in a variety of activities at school, including: Volleyball, Cheer, Dance Team, Track, Student Council, and Art Club. She is also a member of Dance Central's Competition Team.
Aryk Shelton - "Carlos"
Legally Blonde: The Musical is Aryk's second show on stage here at RVP, his first being Wonderful Town in 2020. He & his partner Tim have stage managed Church Basement Ladies, Freaky Friday, and Frozen Jr, as well. Aryk likes to have his hands in the dirt working in the yard in his spare time or spending time with Tim. When not doing that, he's often seen strolling around the yard with Tim and their dog (Ellie) or watching a movie with one of their three cats (Jed, Lexi, and Simon)
Easton Stenstrom - "Bruiser"
Easton is a 13 year old Chihuahua. She loves to compete in Agility and received her Agility Trial Champion C-ATCH in 2021. This is her second performance as Bruiser.
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