MEET THE STAFF
Our NTI staff is committed to providing support to prospective and current students and alumni. The following team members serve as a resource and are available to offer necessary guidance for student success throughout the academic year.
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Rachel Jett is an NTI alum, and she began working as a faculty member for the program in 1998 before being appointed Artistic Director in 2011. She holds an MFA from TISCH in Music Theater Writing and attended Northeastern State University in Tahlequah, OK. She was the first American aspirant to the innovative and esteemed Russian movement coach and teacher Andrei Droznin. She has been teaching Droznin at NTI and various universities and conservatories for 25 years. Rachel was honored at the Connecticut Women’s Hall of Fame in 2018 for her service as an educator. She proudly serves as the Vice President on the Board of Trustees for Writer’s Block Inc in New London. Her theater performances include Mercutio in Romeo and Juliet directed by Erica Schmidt, multiple performances with Synetic Theater in Washington, DC, The Body Artist by Don Delillo, and NOT ONE DAY by Anne Garrete, directed and adapted by Jody McAuliffe. Other Performances: Stag, a short film by Donna DiNovelli directed by Kevin Newbury, When Last Seen written and directed by Donna DiNovelli, and Breathe Right written and directed by Kolton Harris. She was the choreographer for Songs for a New World by Jason Robert Brown directed by Nicole Brewer. She has directed The Wolves by Sarah DeLappe, Love and Information by Caryl Churchill, and She Kills Monsters by Qui Nguyen for Connecticut College. She is grateful for her musical collaborators Eric, Julianne, Shoshanna, Sun Hee, Pearl, and Will. She is the proud mama of Jett and Phoenix.
SOPHIE GREENSPAN
Program Manager
Sophie Greenspan is a dramaturg, arts administrator, and educator. Prior to coming to NTI, she was the Programs Manager at the Jewish Federation of Greater Fairfield County. As an educator, she has worked with students of all ages, from toddlers to undergraduates. She has taught at Brandeis University, Yale Young Global Scholars, and as a Teaching Fellow at Yale University. Sophie has also worked as a freelance opera and theater dramaturg throughout the Northeast. Sophie holds a BA from Brandeis University and an MFA in Dramaturgy and Dramatic Criticism from the David Geffen School of Drama at Yale University.
Rachel Kelsey is an actor, singer, dancer, and creative artist herself. Originally from Omaha, NE, Rachel now travels across the country to offer workshops in a variety of artistic disciplines as well as bring awareness to the institution, otherwise known as the launchpad of the American theater. She graduated Magna Cum Laude with a BFA in Musical Theatre and Business minor from Drake University, in Des Moines, IA. In addition to her time at Drake, she also spent the Fall of 2022 in Connecticut, studying with NTI’s Music Theater program. While traveling for the O'Neill and teaching at various conferences, festivals, and institutions throughout the nation, Rachel is actively involved in the theater scene as well as seeking additional theatrical opportunities.
O'NEILL LEADERSHIP
TIFFANI
GAVIN
Executive Director
Tiffani Gavin brings more than 25 years of experience in theater administration and producing to her position as Executive Director of the Eugene O'Neill Theater Center. After beginning her career in general management at The Public Theater in NY and as a company manager at Blue Man Group, she went on to hold leadership positions in both nonprofit and commercial theater organizations, including Clear Channel Entertainment and the American Repertory Theater. She's been the Manager of the Marquis Theatre on Broadway and has managed productions such as the National Tour of The Phantom of the Opera. As an Executive Producer for Clear Channel Entertainment and later as the General Manager/VP of Production at Martian Entertainment she commissioned and developed new work by emerging artists across the U.S. and internationally.
While producing at Clear Channel, her broad portfolio included Broadway and off-Broadway productions as well as national tours. Among them were Ragtime (National Tour), The Producers (Broadway, National Tour), Hairspray (Broadway, National Tour), Sweet Charity (2005 Broadway Revival), Gumboots (National Tour, European Tour), Squeezebox (Off-Broadway), and Contact (National Tour). She was also the Sr. Director of Professional and International Licensing for Theatrical Rights Worldwide where she acquired and licensed secondary performing rights for musicals such as Monty Python’s Spamalot and The Color Purple. Tiffani is a native of East Norriton, PA, and has a BA from Brown University in both Sociology as well as in Modern Culture and Media with a focus in Mass Media and Cultural Representation.
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MELIA BENSUSSEN
National Playwrighting Conference
Artistic Director
Melia Bensussen is the Artistic Director of Hartford Stage in Hartford, CT, and is honored to be the newly appointed Artistic Director of NPC. A fan of the O’Neill for the last 20 years, she has been a frequent collaborator with NPC, NMTC, and NTI. Melia has directed extensively around the country, staging premieres, developing new works with writers, and directing “classics” especially the works of Federico Garcia Lorca and William Shakespeare. Her most recent collaboration was the premiere of Martín Zimmerman’s Simona’s Search at Hartford Stage and Kate Snodgrass’ The Art of Burning, co-produced by the Huntington Theater and Hartford Stage. Raised in Mexico City, Melia is fluent in Spanish and has translated and adapted a variety of texts. Her edition of the Langston Hughes translation of Garcia Lorca's Blood Wedding is published by Theatre Communications Group. In June 2022 she co-developed with playwright Kristen Greenidge an adaptation of Anthony J. Lukas’ Pulitzer-winning Common Ground for the Huntington. Besides winning the OBIE award for Outstanding Direction, Melia was twice given Directing Awards by the Princess Grace Foundation, USA, including their top honor, the Statue Award for Sustained Excellence. A graduate of Brown University and an alum of the Drama League, Melia served for over a decade as the Chair of the Performing Arts Department at Emerson College in Boston. She is honored to serve on the Arts Advisory Board for the Princess Grace Foundation and is a proud member of SDC, where she serves on the Executive Board.
ALEXANDER GEMIGNANI
National Music Theater Conference
Artistic Director
Alexander Gemingani is an artistic director, actor, music director, orchestrator, conductor, composer/lyricist, and educator. Favorite Broadway acting credits include: My Fair Lady, Carousel (Tony, Drama Desk, Outer Critics Circle and Grammy Nominations), Violet, Les Misérables (Drama League nomination), Sweeney Todd (Drama Desk nomination), Assassins (Theatre World Award), Sunday in the Park With George. Off-Broadway: Road Show at the Public (Drama League nomination) and Avenue Q at the Vineyard Theatre. Regional favorites: Hamilton (original Chicago cast) and Big Fish (Marriott Lincolnshire). Selected T.V./Film: Servant (Apple TV), Empire (FOX - Recurring), Chicago Fire (NBC), Homeland (Showtime - Recurring), The Good Wife (CBS), and season 5 of The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel as Janusz (AMAZON - Recurring). As a music supervisor/music director, Fiasco’s production of Merrily We Roll Along at the Roundabout (also penned new orchestrations), and was Music Supervisor and conductor for the 2020 revival of West Side Story. Also conducted the New York Philharmonic with the concert, Celebrating Sondheim (Live From Lincoln Center). Recently, he served as Music Supervisor, Arranger, and Conductor for Here We Are, Sondheim’s final musical (book by David Ives, directed by Joe Mantello). He is an Associate Professor of Instruction at Northwestern University, Artistic Director of NU's American Music Theatre Project, and has also served as faculty for the National Theater Institute at the O’Neill, NYU Steinhardt, and CAP21. Since 2018 he has been Artistic Director for the National Music Theater Conference at the O’Neill where he has helped shepherd nearly 30 new musicals. His greatest joys are his incredible wife, Erin Ortman, and their beautiful daughter.
To find the rest of the Eugene O’Neill Theater Center staff, please visit theoneill.org/staff.
For job openings with NTI and other O'Neill departments, please visit theoneill.org/work-with-us.