ANTWON SESSIONS

Owner & Artistic Director of Namari Dance Center

Some of Antwan’s credits include: Assisting for Georgina Louchiey who’s the Artistic Director/Co Owner of RISPA. He’s danced for Tracy Vogt 

of Philadanco, Kim Robards of Kim Robards Dance, Kiki Ely of ATLA, Stephan Reynolds of Cirque Du Soleil, and Jeffrey Page former choreographer for So You Think You Can Dance and Beyonce. Not limiting himself to concert dance, Antwan was the principal dancer for Sea Beach Resort in Egypt for a year, he also danced in former Danity Kane member D. Woods in her music video “Best You Got”  toured China with pop artist Christah Ray as well as toured with artist Nikki Jane. He is now the Founder of Lamorris Namari Contemporary Ballet Company, Owner of Namari Dance Conservatory and  Artistic Director/Owner of Namari Dance Center.

DACIA JAMES LEWIS

Dacía James Lewis is a best-selling author, speaker, and choreographer whose charismatic personality fills every space with excitement and inspiration. She is a creative executioner whose resume reads of the top television shows, films, and commercials.

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Dacía has worked with the best entertainers in the industry—like Stevie Wonder, Kanye West, and Mary J. Blige to working with actors such as Tracee Ellis Ross, Jennifer Hudson, and Jamie Foxx.​

JASON LOCKHART

Jason Lockhart is a Talent Agent from Los Angeles who relocated to the Southeast market in 2017 as the Head of TV & Film at one of the most prestigious agencies in Atlanta. He is also an accomplished filmmaker, having worked with National Lampoon and sold two feature films as an award-winning Writer/Director, one of which The CW picked up as a Movie of the Week. Having grown up as a child actor, Jason has over 25 years of experience & education in the industry, but after bouncing around several seats in Hollywood, he finds it most rewarding behind the talent agent's desk, helping others pursue their dreams. In 2020, that passion led to him becoming a #1 Best Selling author for his book Ask an Agent: Brutally Answered Questions for Actors of All Stages, and he continually writes for Backstage Magazine as one of their "Expert Contributors."

BREE SHANNON

Bree Shannon is an alumnae of the Atlanta Workshop Players and the amazing, life-changing, impactful AWP Tour Company. With over 20 years of entertainment experience, she recently retired from Carnival Cruise Lines where she traveled all over the world and performed as a featured vocalist and dancer in their main stage production shows. She is currently a vocal teacher and works with local bands and productions in the city. She has recently been appointed as the founding drama teacher for a new charter school called Atlanta SMART Academy, where they focus on math, science and the arts. Bree has several commercial, voice-over, on-camera acting and theatre credits and is a member of the Actor’s Equity Association and SAG/AFTRA.

Bree loves sharing what she has learned and experienced. Even as a professional she is continually training to improve her own skills and abilities, and working to maintain knowledge of all the different
acting techniques. She is very excited to be teaching at the place she’s always considered HOME. So happy to be back AWP!

DEAN CUDWORTH

Actor and stunt performer known for: MacGyver, Nashville, The Goldbergs, The Fosters, Scorpion, Castle, Drop Dead Diva, Devious Maids, Bones...

JEN KELLEY

Jen Kelley is a co-founder and casting director at Big Picture Casting in Atlanta, Georgia. Jen began her career as a talent agent in Los Angeles, California, where she represented talent on sitcoms, feature films and national commercials.

In 1996, Jen moved to Atlanta and joined one of the top talent agencies in the Southeast. She worked in all of the agency’s departments during her 14-year tenure. With a desire to foster a more focused and creative involvement in the entertainment industry, she and Rita Harrell formed Big Picture Casting and became casting directors in 2011.

Big Picture Casting casts principal talent for feature films, television, commercial, industrial and new media projects from coast to coast. Jen is also co-author of The Actor’s Guide for Kids, as well former head writer, producer and director at Sketchworks Comedy, Inc., one of Atlanta’s premiere sketch comedy troupes.

CANEDY KNOWLES

See Canedy in Odd Mom Out, Friends From College, Blue Bloods, The Blacklist, Rescue Me, Enchanted, The Departed, Chicago City Limits (resident & touring company). She performs with the award-winning Off-Broadway improvisational company  Chicago City Limits in New York and around the country and is the director of their national tour company where she developed the improvised dating game, LovesStruck.  She has performed with ImprovOlympics, LA TheatreSports, The PIT, UCB and at the LA Comedy Festival and is an original member of Luck Of The Draw-The Fully Improvised Musical.  On television, she was able to use her improvisational skills to make audiences believe she was a real person in ABC's hidden camera show, What Would You Do? and improvised over 70 songs in less than 24 hours for the loyal fans of AT&T. 

ED WAGENSELLER

Ed has been working in film and television as an actor for almost 3 decades.  He is an Associate Professor of Performance in the Theatre Department at UNCW where he has been coaching and directing in some capacity since 1995.  His focus has always been in performance whether for the stage or screen. Ed has worked with most major networks including but not limited to HBO, Netflix, Starz, FOX, NBC, ABC, and CBS. His approach is pragmatic and can be implemented immediately in any professional situation. For more information on Ed Wagenseller visit his website at www.EdWagensellerActor.com

SUSAN G REID

Susan G. Reid is a director, producer, coach and teacher of actors, advocating for the empowerment of all artists. Current projects focus on harnessing the power of storytelling to educate and foster conversations around social change. Her codified acting approach provides a safe, inclusive space for open conversation, where actors push boundaries as they seek truth and honesty in their work.

Currently a Professor of Practice in Acting/Directing for Georgia State University’s School of Film, Media and Theatre, Reid is an active member of the Atlanta theatre community, ranked among the top theater directors in Atlanta. She also works with Houghton Talent Agency as a special advisor to talent.

CLIFTON GUTERMAN

He’s formerly served for four seasons as the Alliance Theatre’s Artistic Assistant, as Casting Director and National New Play Network Producer in Residence at Actor’s Express, and as Associate Artistic Director and Casting Director for eight seasons of Atlanta’s second-oldest professional theatre, Theatrical Outfit.

Clifton is also a member of the Advisory Committee for The Georgia High School Musical Theatre Awards (The Shulers). He chairs the Artist Advisory Council, is a contributing writer for ArtsATL, and was in the Arts Leaders of Metro Atlanta’s class of 2020. Clifton has directed locally with Alliance Theatre, The Atlanta Opera, and Theatrical Outfit. He’s further cast productions for Actor’s Express, Agnes Scott College, Horizon Theatre, Theatrical Outfit, and True Colors Theatre Company.

As an actor, Clifton has appeared locally on multiple Off-Broadway stages and has many top regional theatre acting credits to his name. He has appeared in several Atlanta-filmed movies, TV shows and commercials. Clifton holds a BA in Drama from the University of Georgia and an MFA in Performing Arts from the Savannah College of Art and Design.

He and his husband Chad live in Cabbagetown.

JACK ALCOTT

Since graduating from The University of North Carolina School of the Arts in 2019 with a BFA in acting, Jack Alcott has been working consistently, most recently starring opposite Michael C. Hall in the 2021-2022 revival of hit TV-show Dexter on Showtime, the most watched premium cable series of the year. Prior to that, Jack performed opposite veteran actor Ethan Hawke, in Showtime’s The Good Lord Bird, which won a Peabody award in 2021. Jack has appeared in many other television shows from The Blacklist to Champaign Ill and has a robust theatre resume to match, performing everything from Mamet to Shakespeare and beyond. Jack spends his time bouncing back and forth from New York, Los Angeles, and his hometown of Franklin TN, but will always have a soft spot for Atlanta and AWP, where he spent almost 10 years as both a camper and counselor. Jack is thrilled to be back and looks forward to reuniting with his AWPeeps once again!