Professional Faculty

AMANDA MELBY has worked as a professional actress for over 30 years, is a proud member of SAG-AFTRA and AEA and has lived and worked in Los Angeles, Washington, DC, Cleveland and Minnesota before coming to Phoenix in 2004. 

Amanda can be seen in the feature films RAISING BUCHANAN with Rene Auberjonois and M. Emmet Walsh, FUNNY THING ABOUT LOVE with Jon Heder, Barry Corbin and Pat Finn, LOCKER 13 with Ricky Schroeder, Jason Spisak and Jon Gries, JAKE’S CORNER with Richard Tyson, Danny Trejo and BJ Thomas, NETHERBEAST INCORPORATED with Darrell Hammond, Steve Burns, Dave Foley and Jason Mewes, THE MAJESTIC with Martin Landau and Jim Carrey, among others.  Her short film credits are numerous.  Her television credits include CANDID CAMERA (TV Land), S.I.S. (Spike TV), BOSTON PUBLIC (Fox), and SCREEN WARS (AZTV).  

Her Los Angeles theatrical credits include understudying for Peri Gilpin as Gwendolyn in FRASIER GONE WILDE: THE IMPORTANCE OF BEING EARNEST at the Mark Taper Forum, starring as Sonia in the LA premiere of LIFE x 3, as Doris in SAME TIME, NEXT YEAR at the Long Beach Playhouse, and as Amy in the premiere of CHENILLE STEMS AND COCO MIDRIB.   Regional theatrical credits include the Cleveland Play House, Porthouse Theatre, Dobama Theatre and Cleveland Shakespeare Festival, Actors Theatre of Phoenix, Arizona Theatre Company, Phoenix Theatre, Theater Works and Theatre Artists Studio.  

She also works in commercials, industrials, voice over and print, regionally and nationally for companies such as Courtyard by Marriott, Culver's, McDonald's, Pier One, and Jack in the Box.

She is the owner/Head Coach of Verve Studios and was a Faculty Associate at ASU teaching Screen Acting and Advanced Screen Acting for over 9 years.  

In addition to acting and teaching, Amanda also works as a producer, director and spokeswoman.  She is the current Local President of SAG-AFTRA AZ-UT and was the Executive Director of IFP Phoenix 2005-2011.  She is a four-time Emmy® nominee for her work as Producer and Host of the television show Screen Wars and the Raising Buchanan trailer, was honored with the 2007 Phoenix Film Foundation Board Member of the Year, with the 2008 Layne Award and was nominated for the 2011 Governor’s Arts Award for her contributions to the Arizona Entertainment Community.

She has studied in Howard Fine’s Master Class in LA, Gunnar Rohrbacher’s Sitcom Master Class in LA and at HB Studio in NY.  Amanda is an accomplished cellist and holds a BA in theatre and English from Concordia College, Moorhead, Minnesota.  

She is repped by the Leighton Agency (Arizona), Bankston Talent Agency (New Mexico and Texas),  the Talent Shop/Production Plus (Detroit) and Artist Management Agency (San Diego).  www.AmandaMelby.com.

LAURA WINSTIN, a native Chicagoan, has been involved in the theatre for more than 35 years. Starting out as a dancer, Laura moved into the realm of acting when she began her college career.  She pursued her passion leading her to New York to study with the National Shakespeare Conservatory.  Her love of Shakespeare and the classics has been a mainstay for her.  While in New York, Laura performed with the Conservatory Theatre, exploring new works, both as an actress and director.  She appeared in multiple MTV videos, several films and a variety of voice overs. Returning to Chicago, she completed a Master's in Fine Arts for the Theatre School at DePaul and began working in the Chicago theatre scene and teaching Voice and Speech at The Center Theatre and The Organic Theatre.  She has appeared in Love' Labour's Lost, The Maids, And Miss Reardon Drinks A Little, Another Part of the Forest to name a few.  She co- wrote and directed The Unripe Fruit which was mounted throughout the Chicago Public School system.  She has trained with the Royal Shakespeare Company as well as The Moscow Art Theatre. Laura's passion embraces developing new talent, directing, writing and being on stage in a collaborative setting.  During her free time she is the mother to 3 teenage girls and loves hiking and horseback riding.

Wes Martinez is a Mexican (of indigenous people) actor, writer, and comedian based in Los Angeles. Wes has been performing improv comedy for over 10 years (Upright Citizens Brigade, The Second City, iO West) and now primarily focuses his time working on television and film as an actor. He has worked on Emmy award winning comedies like Modern Family, Young Sheldon, and PEN15,  while also taking on roles in dramas like Yellowjackets, Outer Range, and Sneaky Pete. Wes' favorite genre is multi-cam and has had the pleasure of working on shows like United States of Al, Coop & Cami Ask The World, and The Fairly Odd Parents (live action)!  

WES IS BILINGUAL IN ENGLISH & SPANISH

Wes' IMDB

A veteran actor in the Valley for over 30 years, GENE GANSSLE has played hundreds of roles in theatre, film, radio and television. He received his BA in Theatre and Communications in 1985 from the University of Redlands, California. He’s received a variety of awards for his acting and production work, including seven AriZoni Awards in local theatre. He’s been teaching actors of all ages for over twenty five years and continues to perform, audition and create. Gene is a lecturer in performance and production at ASU in the School of Film, Dance and Theatre and is proud to teach at Verve Studio. Gene is an award-winning actor, producer and sound designer in the Phoenix market and is represented by Dani's agency.

ASHLEY FAULKNER is an Arizona native with a strong passion for acting and music. Working in many mediums, she will always find her way to a film set or stage. She graduated from Arizona State University with a degree in Theatre and Film Studies. Recently, Ashley has had the opportunity to act in Steel Magnolias (Zoni nomination), Crimes of the Heart as Babe, The Heiress, and Baby With the Bathwater. She recently played Izzie in Rabbit Hole at Theatre Artists Studio. Ashley has had the privilege of studying with Amanda Melby, Elayne Stein, Barbara Acker, and Susan K. Brigham. She has been working professionally since 2009 and is signed with the Leighton Agency.

NAVARIS DARSON began his love affair with improv over 20 years ago, and he credits his solid improv foundation to two stellar college improv troupes: Easy Baked Improv (Berry College) and To Be Named Later (Valdosta State University). Upon moving to Los Angeles, Navaris continued his improv education at the world-renowned Groundlings Theatre and School, which has inspired and produced five-decades

worth of astounding comedic talent – including SNL cast members, sitcom actors, and film stars. Over the years, Navaris has had the great fortune to perform regularly in several Groundlings mainstage shows,

and he has guest-performed with a number of incredible improv troupes all over Los Angeles.

In 2013, after becoming a Groundlings Sunday Company alum, Navaris discovered his passion for teaching, and since moving to Phoenix, Arizona in 2022, he continues to teach at The Groundlings virtually. As an improv instructor, Navaris stresses connection, specificity, and the importance of making joyous choices, and he greatly enjoys working with students to help them develop improv skills that will benefit them professionally and personally.

As an actor, Navaris most recently performed in the 2023 Phoenix Theatre Company production of the musical Dreamgirls, and his TV acting credits include Better Things, Will & Grace, The Other Two, American Horror Story, and 2 Broke Girls. IMDB

DAISY GALVIS (SAG-AFTRA) received her BFA in Theatre at Florida International University in Miami, FL

After moving to NYC, she completed the 2-year program William Esper Studio with Terry Knickerbocker.

Through the years, she has also studied at Larry Moss Studios, UCB, Groundlings, and Lesly Kahn Studios.

She has starred in multiple episodics such as Arrested Development, Mom, MacGyver, American Rust and the upcoming Sinking Spring (Apple+TV) to name a few. Currently, her national pharma commercial is still running. IMDB

TONY MARK is an Emmy Award Winning Filmmaker with over 15 years of teaching film, theater and screenwriting.

He is a well-rounded filmmaker/photographer with experience in feature films and television as a Director, Producer, Editor, Post Production Supervisor and Photographer. After attending New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts Film Program, Tony went to Hollywood in 1994 to pursue his career as a filmmaker and in 2010 moved to the Cayman Islands where he became the festival director of the Cayman Island International Film Festival.

He has taught on and off throughout his career and in 2018 moved to Scottsdale and now in 2023 has began teaching his professional techniques to Arizona filmmakers and actors.

STEVE CORONA has over 18 years experience in the entertainment industry, working in: theatre, film/tv, voiceover and audiobooks. His MA in Theatre Arts from MN State University taught him the craft of acting, while instilling an appreciation for the collaborative nature of performance arts. His major acting credits include: Breaking Bad, The Lone Ranger (Disney), and The Harder They Fall (Netflix). As a dialect coach, Steve has worked with actors from around the world in over 40 accents. Some of his notable clients include: Helen Mirren (Oscar winner for The Queen), Gerard Butler, and Jason Isaacs. Steve enjoys combining his passion for dialects & accents with his love of storytelling as an audiobook narrator. He was recently nominated for a SOVAS Award for Audiobook Narration, and 3 AUDIE Awards for audiobooks in the historical fiction, thriller, and fantasy genres. 

Matthew Wiener has previously directed It’s Only a Play, Twist Your Dickens, 39 Steps and Noises Off, along with several scripts in past new play festivals at The Phoenix Theatre Company. For almost 20 years he was the Producing Artistic Director at Actors Theatre of Phoenix where he produced over 100 shows and directed almost 50. Prior to that he was the Associate Artistic Director for Arizona Theatre Company. He has also directed at Southwest Shakespeare Company, ASU Music Theatre and Opera, Mesa Community College, North Coast Repertory Theatre, Black Theatre Troupe, Childsplay, Arizona Jewish Theatre Company, The Fulton Theatre, The Children’s Theatre Company, and others. He was a founding board member of Arizona Theatre Alliance and has served on panels for Theatre Communications Group, Arizona Commission on the Arts, Phoenix Office of Arts and Culture, Tucson/Pima Arts Council and the Nevada Arts Council. Matthew holds an MFA from the Yale School of Drama and is a proud member of the Stage Directors and Choreographers Society.

PROFESSOR MICHA ESPINOSA, Arizona State University, School of Music, Dance, and Theatre, has used her personal history and extensive knowledge as a theatre artist and actor as a springboard to examine and contextualize the experience of Latinos/as/xs in theater and film. Her creative and academic writings linking actor training politics, pedagogy, identity development, and ethics have led to Professor Espinosa’s appointment as affiliate faculty with the School of Transborder Studies and the Sydney Poitier New American Film School at Arizona State University. Professor Espinosa is the award-winning editor for the book, Monologues for Latino Actors: A Resource Guide to the Contemporary Latino/a Playwrights, Scenes for Latinx Actors, and Latinx Actor Training. As a performer, her career has spanned 35 years and she has worked in film, television, theatre, commercials, and print/commercial modeling. Over the last ten years, her work has been rooted in activism, empowerment, climate activism, and border consciousness. As the inaugural Artistic Director for Fitzmaurice Institute, she teaches throughout the Americas, Europe, Asia, and Africa. She has also been instrumental in helping to found the Fitzmaurice Voicework Institute through her fundraising capabilities, program, and special method creation.  She was recently the creative director and lead producer for the South African short film, Lament at the Liesbeek.

DWAYNE HARTFORD is the artistic director at Childsplay in Tempe, Ariz., where most of his plays for young audiences have premiered. He started at Childsplay as an actor in 1990.  He thought he would be there for just one production, but 32 years later, he is still committed to Childsplay's mission.  Over the years he has directed numerous productions at Childsplay, as well as for other companies in the Phoenix area and in Maine.  The first play he wrote, Eric and Elliot, received the 2005 Distinguished Play Award from the American Alliance of Theatre & Education (AATE). The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane received the same award in 2018. Other plays include:  Rock the Presidents, The Color of Stars, A Tale of Two Cities, and The Imaginators.   Dwayne’s plays have been produced around the country, including at Seattle Children’s Theatre, Dallas Children’s Theatre, Chicago Children’s Theatre,  People’s Light and Theatre, and South Coast Repertory. Dwayne comes from the very small town of Smithfield, Maine.  He earned a BFA from the Boston Conservatory, and did graduate work in directing at Boston University. Dwayne lives in Phoenix with his dog, Henry. 

JAMIE CASTRO has been casting film and television for over 15 years. She is currently casting the upcoming feature film ABOVE THE LINE & SNOW ANGELS.  Before starting her own company - Castro Casting - she was a Casting Director with Linda Lowy where she worked on GREY'S ANATOMY, SCANDAL, STATION 19, FRIDAY NIGHT LIGHTS and INVENTING ANNA to name a few. Jamie has spent a lot of the quarantine staying connected to actors via coaching and career consultations which she still does today. Castrocasting.com

JULENE RENEE began her career as a dancer with the Academy Awards and many films, most notably as Kate Winslet’s ‘Feet’ in, “Titanic”. She transitioned into acting as series regular on the Nickelodeon variety show, “Roundhouse”  followed by an improv gameshow hosted by David Alan Grier, “Random Acts of Comedy” . Julene appeared as a guest star on many network sitcoms including “Two Guys and a Girl” with Ryan Reynolds. In 2003, she was chosen by Robert Zemeckis to perform in the first Motion Capture feature film, “Polar Express” starring Tom Hanks. Over the next 15 years, Julene developed Performance Capture technology alongside many great minds with the films, ‘Beowulf”, “Disney’s A Christmas Carol”, “Mars Needs Moms”... 12 of those years were spent with James Cameron on “Avatar”. Julene is the Spiritual Movement Designer and performer for the Na’vi people. Her job required training the Actors and Stunt performers for the upcoming Avatar 2,3,4,5 film sequels. With the expansion of Avatar, Julene trained 40 acrobatic artists for Cirque Du Soleil's world wide arena show, “Toruk. The First Flight”. She also designed movement for Disney’s Imagineering and performed motion expression for a 9’ Shaman Robot at "Pandora Land”, part of Disney’s Animal Kingdom in Florida. Julene is the Director & Co-creator of the theatrical stage show “Opera Fusion” starring Soprano, Cherie Valaray.  Currently, she is Visionary Designer for her own company, Sparkle Bubble, inc. Julene's IMDB

DAVID BARKER staged over 175 fights throughout the southwest, with companies including the Arizona Theatre Company, Actors Theatre of Phoenix, Ensemble Theatre Project (CA), Childsplay, Institute for Studies in the Arts, North Coast Rep (CA), Southwest Shakespeare Company, Arizona Jewish Theatre Company, Phoenix Theatre, Lyric Opera Theatre, Shakespeare Sedona, Ensemble Theatre, Teatro Bravo, Black Theatre Troupe, Stray Cat Theatre, Orange Theatre, University of California, Grand Canyon University, Cuesta College, Emily Ann Theatre (TX), Hale Centre Theatre, Theatre Works, Tempe Center for the Arts, Mesa Community College, Scottsdale Community College, Life Teen Films and dozens for Arizona State University where he is a Professor of Theatre.  His fights received the American College Theatre Festival’s Meritorious Achievement Award, 24 ariZoni Theatre Award nominations, 6 ariZoni Theatre Awards and the Tribune Newspapers’s Honorable Mention for Best Choreography. He is a Recommended Actor/Combatant by the Society of American Fight Directors and served as Fight Captain to B.H. Barry.  He lives in Tempe with his wife Eileen. They have four children and five grandchildren. Through his work he intends to glorify God, from whom all good things come.  www.davidbarker.org

RICHARD POWERS HARDT has a BA in Theatre Arts from Northern Arizona University and has been acting, designing, writing and directing theatre in Arizona for over 40 years. Richard was a co-founder of The Shakespeare Theatre and Off-Center Productions. He worked with numerous theatres around the Valley and received ariZoni Award nominations for both directing and design. He is currently a member of the Board of Directors at Theater Artists Studio and is Vice President of the ariZoni Theatre Awards.