Directed by Andrew Fridae
July 31 - August 9, 2026
~ The Cast ~
Gillian Rains as Romeo
Gillian has hit the ground running in Sacramento after living on the Central Coast since 2023! They are a recent graduate of PCPA’s Acting Conservatory and spent the last year working with the Kingsmen Shakespeare Festival (Thousand Oaks) and The Great American Melodrama (Oceano). They’re so happy to be back onstage again with such a wonderful cast, and grateful to Andrew & Cody for trusting them with Romeo!
Isabelle Reeder as Juliet
Isabelle is thrilled to be a part of this production and to be playing the role of Juliet. You may have recently seen her in A Chorus Line at Winters Theater Company, or Cinderella at Dixon Community Theater. She is excited to dive into the world of Shakespeare with you!
Wendy Aspegren as Nurse
Wendy is thrilled to be a part of this production of Romeo and Juliet! Over the last few years she has appeared in productions throughout the Sacramento region, most recently at Big Ideas production of Hedda Gabler and The Rhymers of Eldritch at Resurrection Theater.
Jes Gonzales as Lord Capulet
Jes Gonzales has been involved in community theater off and on for almost 30 years, but this is his first time in Winters. He's looking forward to playing Lord Capulet, his first time in that role. Enjoy the show!
Janene Whitesell as Lady Capulet
Janene Whitesell has enjoyed being part of the Winters Theatre Company for the last 10 years. Recently you may have seen her at WTC as Sister Aloysius in Doubt last year. She is thrilled to be Lady Capulet in this summer's production. As with any character she is portraying, her current character is always her favorite character. Enjoy the show!
David Muerle as Lord Montague
David Muerle is a seasoned actor in musicals and melodramas, but this will be his first role in a Shakespeare play. It has been his dream to perform a work of Shakespeare since childhood, and he is very excited to be realizing that dream. Hopefully this will be the first of many Shakespearean roles.
Dannette Vassar as Lady Montague
​Dannette is happy to be returning to WTC as Lady Montague, having previously been seen as Puck (A Midsummer Night’s Dream) and Conrade (Much Ado About Nothing). She is very active in the local theatre community – performing, light designing and as Board President at Davis Musical Theater Company. By day, Dannette is a biology teacher, new teacher mentor and technology lead at Grant Union High School in Sacramento. She would like to thank the staff and crew here at WTC for the chance to “brush up her Shakespeare” and her husband, Arthur, for all his love and support.
Jacob Renard as Mercutio
Jacob Renard is thrilled to make his WTC debut and especially with such a great cast. He is grateful for the opportunity to work with Andrew and Cody. His favorite recent roles include: Sam in After the Blast, Jason/Tyrone in Hand to God, Jason In Take Me Out, and Robert Conklin in Rimers of Eldritch. Jacob is excited to be a part of For Old Times Sake the first feature film to be shot in Orangevale, CA. He thanks his lovely fiancee, Sydney for her support.
Cameron Toney as Benvolio
Cameron has been acting with WTC since 2017. Most recently you may have seen her as Randi Stein in Tom Dudzick’s “Greetings!” last year. A lifelong Shakespeare fan, she is delighted to be in the first production of Romeo and Juliet to grace the WTC stage.
Jim Laferriere as Tybalt
Jim is thrilled to be cast in his first production with the Winters Theatre Company, and to be performing in such a historic venue. He has been active in Sacramento community theatre for 4 years. He would like to thank his family for their amazing support, and thank the Bard for thus far reserving his judgment.
Robert Payawal as Friar Lawrence
Robert is thrilled to return to the Winters stage for Shakespeare. He performed his first Shakespeare play here as Benedick in "Much Ado About Nothing" and is honored to perform as Friar Lawrence. This is Robert's tenth year acting in community theatre productions and he wants to send thanks all of YOU for supporting live, local theatre!
Jen Smuda as Prince of Verona
Jen is thrilled to tread the boards for the first time with Winters Theatre Company. Whilst a stranger to this stage, she is no stranger to the Bard having previously performed in Taming of the Shrew (thrice), Much Ado About Nothing (thrice), Midsummer Night's Dream (twice), King Lear (twice), As You Like It (twice), as well as Measure for Measure, The Merry Wives of Windsor, and 12th Night. This is her second production of Romeo and Juliet having recently played Lady Capulet with the California Volunteer Theater Company. She would like to extend her thanks to her amazing director, the production team, the cast and crew for the warm welcome to Winters Theatre Company as well as a special thank you to her husband Steve for once again sharing her love with the Bard.
Sarah Walter as Paris
Sarah is so excited to be doing Shakespeare again! She’s mostly been working in musical theatre these last few years; you may have seen her swimming Under the Sea, being Legally Blonde, and dancing in Duloc at DMTC. She’d like to thank Andrew and the Winters Theatre Company for this wonderful opportunity.
Jules Caccavo as Chorus / Friar John / Masker
Juliana is thrilled to be making their Winters Opera House debut after 6 years away from performing. Some of their past roles include Helena in A Midsummer Nights Dream, Judas in Godspell, and as Columbina for multiple productions with commedia dell’arte troupe Commedia Evo. They were previously a director for shows within The Great Dickens Christmas Fair, where they were also a performer for 10 years. They would like to thank the cast and crew for making this return such a joyful and welcoming one!
Amy Woodman as Gregory / Watchman / Masker
Amy (she/her) is thrilled to be performing in her first Shakespeare play and first time with Winters Theatre Company! Her previous theatrical work includes productions at the Woodland Opera House, Davis Musical Theatre Company, and FreeFall Stage. She is grateful to be working with a wonderful cast and crew, and hopes you enjoy the show.
Christi van Eyken as Sampson / Watchman / Masker
Christi is delighted to work with Winters Theatre Company again, after previously appearing in the 2023 production of 'Art'. She loves performing Shakespeare; recent roles include Tamora in 'Titus Andronicus' with Big Idea Theatre and Olivia in 'Twelfth Night' with Happy Hour Theatre.
JulieAnn Bornales as Balthazar / Masker
JulieAnn holds an A.B. from UC Davis and is a proud graduate of the Conservatory Program at the Atlantic Acting School in New York City. Previous NYC theater credits include Love Me Tender, Disconnected, Twelve Angry Women & The Dog Logs, the web-series Indie-Pendent Woman, Labeled and the short films Valentine's Day & Just Call Me Nobody. She is thrilled to make her CA stage debut with this production.
Bridget O’Flaherty as Abram / Apothecary
Bridget is excited to be appearing in her first Shakespeare production ever! She has acted in a number of plays at Winters Theatre Company over the last few years and is thankful to Germaine Hupe for the encouragement to finally try to be in a Shakespeare play and to Andrew for the opportunity to be part of this show. Working with the amazingly talented people in this cast and creative team has been an inspiration and so much fun!
Em Stein as Petruchio / Watchman
​Em Stein is a 17 year old actress who loves indie animation, voice acting, and spending time with friends! Her favorite place to be is on a set, and she loves cats!
Evelyn Atwood as Servingman / Citizen / Masker
Evelyn is 20 years old and has been in theater since she was eight years old! She loves to sing and act and is a professional scare actor of six years. She is so excited to be back in a theater troop as the Servingman, a Masker, and a Citizen in WTC's Romeo and Juliet!
Jamie Seibel as Paris’ Page / Masker
Jamie Seibel is a full-time staff member at Woodland Community College. She is playing one of the maskers in addition to Paris' Page. This is her first time being in a play, and she is very thankful for this opportunity to learn and grow in the theatre world.