Bio: Meredith Levy is excited to be a part of Studio Roanoke’s genesis. A newcomer to Roanoke, she hails from New Jersey and has known that theatre was her future since she was three and tap dancing on her fireplace, belting songs from Annie. She worked with the Saddle River Youth Theatre from 6th grade through high school, performing in 14 productions and interning as choreographer, stage manager, and dance captain for select productions. She was a member of Ramapo High School’s University Program of Theatre Arts, where she enrolled in college-level art classes that ranged from modern dance, to scriptwriting, to film analysis. It was also the UP program that secured her an internship with Skyline Theatre Company as the choreographer’s assistant for HAIR. She performed in over 21 productions throughout her high school career, though her favorites were Sweeny Todd (ensemble), Into the Woods (The Baker’s Wife), and Les Miserables (Eponine), and her senior year assistant directed the drama Life Under Water.

Now at Hollins University as a Theatre Arts Major (and potentially a double major in English) Meredith is thriving. Aside from taking advantage of Hollin’s stellar dance and writing programs, she is enjoying being a part of Hollins Theatre. She was part of the ten-minute play festival on campus, playing Gail in Anything For You. She played the mean “Ms. Griggs” in the J-term children’s theatre production Ramona Quimby and was part of the dance ensemble in Hollins most recent production, Chicago. Ever eager to explore all the facets of theatre she can, she was honored to intern as Stage Manager for Studio Roanoke’s The Biology Lesson, and Other Experiments.

Why Theatre?
Well, there are probably a million answers to that question, but when you come right down to it, it’s the only thing I’ve ever been interested in. My mom found me tap dancing on our fireplace hearth and belting out “Tomorrow” from ANNIE when I was 3, and all I said was “I’m going to be Annie on Broadway, Mom!” Clearly, that never happened, but the love of theatre has only grown since then.

How did you get involved in Studio Roanoke?
Todd asked me if I wanted to Stage Manage THE BIOLOGY LESSON, which was a play we’d analyzed in class. I went with him to look at the space…I think it was when we were in the upstairs apartment that I thought: “I need to take this internship.”

What’s the best theatre experience you’ve had?
There have been too many. I have had some great roles, from "Peter Pan” to “Eponine”. Probably the most fun and the most gratifying though, at least from a technical standpoint, was assistant directing LIFE UNDER WATER, one of the fall drama’s we did my senior year. Jonathan Samarro, the director, was one of my favorite teachers and I learned so much from him and the entire experience. And I also got to call the show, which was pretty cool.

The worst?
ROMEO AND JULIET, hands down. I was in the eighth grade, and I played the Nurse, and all the other cast members were older than me. The director was great, but I didn’t really fit in with the cast; I just wasn’t old enough.

What’s your favorite thing about Studio Roanoke?
I’m really excited about the fact that Studio Roanoke is all about new plays! I thinks it’s great that new playwrights have the space as an outlet to test out their work, get their names out there, etc.

Least favorite?
Um…the fact that it doesn’t have a fridge yet.

If you could choose any play at any theatre, what would you most like to work on?
Tricky, and again, so many possibilities. I’ll settle for playing Catherine in PROOF…anywhere!

What do you hope people say about you?
Positive things.

What do you think we say about you?
Um…Oh Goodness, this is awkward. I guess they say…I’m responsible?

What we actually think of Meredith is…
Meredith is one of the hardest working and one of the most profesional theatre artists any of us at Studio Roanoke have ever worked with. It is hard to believe that she is only finishing her first year at Hollins University. She is so much more than merely responsible, she is every single thing that you can hope for in a stage manager. She is dedicated, passionate, knowledgable, efficient, detail oriented, tactful, diplomatic, punctual, and extremely pleasant even when overworked and overstressed.

One of her greatest assets as a stage manager is that she has practical experience in nearly every other aspect of theatre work there is, so she knows first hand how to address (and avoid) the issues which might arise from any of the collaborators on a production. We've been very fortunate to have Meredith keeping our very first production on track and owe a lot of the success of that first opening to her hard work behind the scenes.

We've also seen her on stage at Hollins, and are looking forward to a future opportunity for her to demonstrate her abilities as a singer, dancer, and actress at Studio Roanoke. Hats off, Mere, you were amazing.

Oh, and we bought a fridge.

We're always looking for volunteers. If you would like to get involved, just stop by and tell us! If you aren't in the neighborhood, drop us a line at 540-343-3054 to tell us you want to help and we'll suggest some ways to get you started. Or, you can email us at info@studioroanoke.org.