Circle of Leadership
Sara Pillatzki Warzeha - Board President
Sara (Dakota/German descent) is a theatre maker and educator in the Minneapolis/St. Paul metro. Currently a 3rd year Theatre Historiography PhD student at the University of Minnesota Department of Theatre and Dance, Sara is researching Indigenous performance. She is also currently an Artistic Associate of Directing and Production Management at New Native Theatre, teaches for St. Olaf College and Stages Theatre Company, and has directed for UMN, UMN Morris, MSU Mankato, NNT, Stages, Minneapolis Musical Theatre, Black Dirt Theatre, and many others. She is a new momma, lover of vinyl records, orange cats, and canoe adventures with her husband Brian.
Board Treasurer
Emily Ware - Board Secretary
Emily is a classically trained opera singer and a former student of the Wisconsin Conservatory of Music and the University of Wisconsin - La Crosse. She is currently a Resource Coordinator, currently assisting with Marketing and Fiscal at another local Non-Profit: Workforce Connections, Inc. She enjoys helping others in all aspects of her life and is thrilled to have a chance to bring the beauty of Shakespeare to everyone and make it more accessible. She was a part of Twelfth Night, playing the role of Olivia before joining Theatre from the Ground behind the scenes. Theatre and music have been a passion for her from a young age, getting her first taste of the real power of Shakespeare with Richard III and Titus Andronicus. She is thrilled to be able to help, hopefully, light that spark for others.
Allen Ebert - Board Member
Allen Ebert is a veteran of the United States Army. He credits Army Community Theatre for providing soldiers and family members an opportunity to participate in and experience theatre. It is where he learned many skills and formed lifelong relationships. It was this experience that put him on the path to become a theater art professional. He graduated with a degree in Theater and Drama from the University of Wisconsin Madison. Currently Allen is the Executive Director at the Children’s Theater of Madison (CTM). CTM is a member of Theatre for Young Audiences/USA known as TYA/USA and a resident company of the Overture Center for Performing Arts. Allen also directs and performs in the Madison area. Previously Allen was the Executive Director of the award winning La Crosse Community Theatre and spent three years in Vicenza, Italy where he served as the Entertainment Director of Soldiers’ Theatre, an Army Community Theatre. Allen served on the Wisconsin Association of Community Theatre board of directors and was a past president. He recently received his 10 years of service pin for his service to the American Association of Community Theatre. Over the past 23 years Allen has directed, performed, adjudicated and conducted workshops at state, regional and national theatres.
Kelley Manson - Board Member
Kelley Manson works in client relations for a local financial firm. Her degree is in communications and public relations from the University of North Dakota. Kelly has a background of working in fundraising and development for several local nonprofits and a history of volunteering at theatres since childhood. She is married with two young daughters and lives in La Crosse.
Chuck Charbeneau - Artistic Director/Founder
Chuck Charbeneau started acting while studying computer science at Michigan Technological University with a production of “The Royal Hunt of the Sun” directed by the RSC alumna, Tim Hardy. Having caught the bug, he continued his studies in the Music, Theatre, and Dance BFA program at Oakland University. He studied and performed Improvisational Theatre at the Improv Olympic in Chicago and stages around the country, and has been teaching and performing theatre and improv professionally for nearly three decades. Since the moment he was exposed to Shakespeare as an actor, he has had an interest and love for the words, specifically how they are used by an actor. He had the opportunity to see The Back Room Shakespeare Project - (BRSP) in Chicago, picked up Samuel Taylor's book 'My Life with the Shakespeare Cult,' and fell in love with the idea of performer lead and implemented theatre, specifically Shakespeare. From that idea, Theatre from the Ground was born.