Ryan Armstrong is so excited to be returning home to St. Louis to get to perform this hilarious show after previously performing it in Chicago! Recent credits include: American Psycho: The Musical (Kokandy Productions) Andy Warhol in Iran (Northlight Theatre), The Best Friggin’ Songs of Second City (Second City), Q Brothers Christmas Carol, Short Shakes! Comedy of Errors (Chicago Shakespeare Theatre), Style & Grace (Black Ensemble Theatre), The Last Session (Refuge Theatre Project – Jeff Nomination – Best Supporting Actor in a Musical). Ryan has also performed at Theo Unique Cabaret Theatre, Pride Films & Plays, Timber Lake Playhouse, Midsommar Flight, & Underscore Theatre. Ryan attended Millikin University

Victor Musoni is an actor, writer, and dancer from Chicago, and is excited to return to St. Louis! REGIONAL: Jitney (Arkansas Rep); Long Way Down(Olney Theatre Center); Toni Stone (Goodman); The Most Spectacularly Lamentable Trial of Miz Martha Washington, Columbinus (Steppenwolf); Q Brothers Christmas Carol(St. Louis Shakespeare); Into the Side of a Hill(Flint Rep); What to Send Up When it Goes Down (Congo Square); Queen of the Night (Victory Gardens); America V2.1, are you ready to smash white things?, No Child (Definition Theatre Company); La Havana Madrid (The Den Theater); TV&FILM: Me,We; The Tensile Strength of Air; 61st Street; WHOLE; Chicago Med and 6×9. Choreography: Long Way Down (Olney Theatre Center); Alaiyo (Definition), Into The Side of a Hill (Flint Rep); Musoni is an ensemble member of Definition Theatre and Congo Square Theatre Company and is represented by Paonessa Talent Agency

Mo Shipley (They/Them) is a multidisciplinary artist from Chicago, IL. Theatre credits include Ginevra Fanshawe in Lookingglass Theatre’s world premiere of Villette, Corduroy (Emerald City Theatre), Southern Gothic (Windy City Playhouse), a puppeteer in Rough House/Adventure Stages’ Stranger and The Shadow, and a collaborator/deviser within Free Street Theatre’s 50 in 50! A City Wide Celebration. Mo has also worked with Chicago Shakespeare Theatre, Forks & Hope, Red Tape Theatre, Trap Door Theatre, Haven, and Strawdog Theatre. You can view some of Mo’s most recent work in I Didn’t Mean to go Mental, a new comedy series from Carly Glenn and Almost Pi Productions. Mo is immeasurably grateful to their partner and chosen family for the boundless support and love. http://www.moshipley.com

Mel Bady is passionate about bringing love into whatever she does. She uses theatre and dance as a tool to empathize with others and to share real human experiences. She graduated with a BFA in Acting from Missouri State University. Since then, she has performed and worked closely with many local companies like St.Louis Black Rep Company, Consuming Kinetics Dance Company, and TLT Productions. Her latest Shakespeare performance was as Hortensio in “Taming of The Shrew” with Chicago-based Stonesoup Shakespeare Company, and Lysander in St. Louis Festival’s “Midsummer Night’s Dream”. Currently, Mel enjoys teaching Drama and Dance at Kipp Inspire Middle School, serving her community as a doula, and most of all, being a Wife and Mother. She is thrilled to have the opportunity to work with St. Louis Shakespeare Festival again.

Steph Paul is a first-gen Haitian-American director/choreographer who clears space for uninhibited physical truth. What comes up must come out. Her work includes Sanctuary City (Steppenwolf Theatre), How to Defend Yourself (New York Theatre Workshop, Victory Gardens, Humana Festival), Where the Mountain Meets the Sea (Manhattan Theatre Club, Humana Festival), The Royale (Kansas City Repertory Theatre, City Theatre, Repertory Theatre of St. Louis), The Wolves (Studio Theatre). Additional credits include Lincoln Center, Shakespeare Theatre Company, Chicago Shakespeare Theater, Goodman Theatre, Definition Theatre. International credits include NYU Abu Dhabi, Royal Opera House Muscat, National Theatre of Scotland. Steph is a Princess Grace Award-winner in Theatre, Helen Hayes Award-winner and a St. Louis Theatre Circle and Jeff Award nominee. She is a proud NYTW Usual Suspect, Chicago Dance Crash Artistic Associate, and SDC member. Steph is also a big fan of curating playlists and watching all of the sports. www.stephpaul.com

Stephen Ptacek is a Chicago-based Sound Designer, Composer, Musician and Audio Engineer. This production marks 10 years of sounds with the Q Brothers, going back to 2013 when he subbed into the Mix For Othello: The Remix. A Small Sample Of Other Sound Design Credits Over The Past 20 Years Includes Nell Gwynn And Q Brothers Christmas Carol At Chicago Shakespeare Theatre, Ever In The Glades At The Kennedy Center, Mies Julie At Victory Gardens, The Skin Of Our Teeth With Remy Bumppo, Killer Angels At Lifeline, The Twins Would Like To Say With Dog & Pony At Steppenwolf, And Faster At The Side Project. When He’s Not Designing He Engineers Live Sound At The Lyric Opera, The Harris Theatre for Music & Dance, The Goodman Theatre, and abroad.

Jesse Klug (Lighting Designer) Off Broadway: The Elaborate Entrance of Chad Deity (Lortel, Hewes Nomination), The Screwtape Letters (Off Broadway and National Tour), The Hunchback Variations, Romulus, and The Hourglass. Regional: Goodman Theatre, Drury Lane, Broadway in Chicago, Chicago Shakespeare, Marriott Theatre, Victory Gardens, Lookingglass Theatre, Steppenwolf Theatre Company, Asolo Rep, Court Theatre, Writers Theatre, Milwaukee Repertory, Geffen Playhouse, Fulton Theatre, Portland Center Stage, Indiana Repertory, American Theatre Company, Shakespeare Theatre Company, Northlight Theatre, First Stage Milwaukee, Timeline Theatre Company. He is a Jeff and After Dark Award recipient. www.jessekluglightingdesign.com

I am a St. Louis native with a background in mental health and personal styling. I enjoy expressing myself and helping others to express themselves through art and fashion. I connected with St. Louis Shakespeare Festival in 2020 during the pandemic for the socially distant installment of A Christmas Carol.

Sam Hayes is a costumer, actor, and director based in St. Louis. They have designed costumes for Prism Theatre Company, Ignite, Take Two, SPAA, ODTC, Quincy Community Theatre, Florida Repertory Theatre, and Bigfork Summer Playhouse, and formerly served as the costume shop manager at Stages.  They served as Shakespeare Festival’s 2021 directing fellow and is thrilled to be back in a new capacity.

Q Brothers Hailing from Chicago and known around the world for their hip hop add-rap-tations of Shakespeare plays and other classic works, the Q Brothers are a collective of humans who make art that rhymes. You might recognize GQ from the movie Drumline, or maybe you heard JQ’s work as composer for Hulu’s new hit TV show The Bear.  From their recent family-friendly album Buggin, to their freestyle-inspired sets at Lollapalooza and Austin City Limits, to DJ’ing dance parties for people of all ages and backgrounds, one thing is for certain – these brothers are about family. They love what they do, and they love doing it for you! @qbrothers1

Postell Pringle is a native of Decatur, Georgia. He’s a playwright, music artist/producer, beatmaker and director/choreographer. Regarding Q Brothers shows, Pos has been ‘round from the get-go. As a creator, co-writer/composer: Long Way Home (w/ Chicago Children’s Choir), Q Brothers Christmas Carol, ms. estrada, Rome Sweet Rome, Rami & Jaliya (working title). He teamed with fellow QBC member Jackson Doran (JAX & POS) to create The Illyria Project, a musical adaptation of Twelfth Night for Theater Latte Da’s NEXT Festival. Pos appeared on Broadway in A Free Man of Color by John Guare, directed by George C. Wolfe (Lincoln Center). Off B’way: The Misanthrope, pen/man/ship, Tartuffe (Moliere In The Park), The Urban Retreat (Public Theater); The Seven (NYT Workshop); Romeo + Juliet (Lucille Lortel); Hoodoo Love (Cherry Lane), Song for New York (Mabou Mines) directed by the late/great Ruth Maleczech. Other shows: pen/man/ship [virtual] (MIP), Our Daughters, Like Pillars (Huntington), The Matchmaker (Goodman), Broke-ology (KC Rep); The Seven (La Jolla Playhouse), A Soldier’s Play (AR Rep). Film & TV: 30 Miles From Nowhere, The Hudson Tribes, Unknown Soldier and Orange Bow. Unforgettable, the Law & Order franchise and a recurring role on Denis Leary’s Rescue Me. As a VO artist Pos has played numerous Gen Z podcasts roles and Rockstar Games’ GTA IV, Red Dead Redemption 2 & GTA: The Lost and Damned. Pos is the co-lyricist for the musical STEP KIDS, alongside Tyrone L. Robinson. As a music artist and producer he’s dropped myriad LP’s and mixtapes, proudly including his 2020 release Hot Sauce From Hell (posluv.com, Spotify). Pos is a member of The Rap Pack. He earned a BA from Bates College and studied acting in London (RADA). He resides with his gorgeous family in ‘do or die’ Bed-Stuy, Brooklyn, NY @posLuv

Jackson Doran is an actor, writer, and arts educator. He has spent the last ten years as an Education Director and Artistic Associate of The Q Brothers Collective, making and starring in ad-rap-tations of classic plays and pieces of literature. Highlights include “ms. estrada” with The Flea in New York, “Long Way Home”.With the Chicago Children’s Choir, a seven year sit down run at the Tony Award winning Chicago Shakespeare Theater with, “Q Brothers Christmas Carol.” He has also toured the world for the past nine years performing in The Q Brothers’ “Othello: The Remix.” Originally commissioned and premiering at The Globe Theatre in 2012, “Othello: The Remix” has travelled to Poland, Germany, UAE, New Zealand, Romania, and Australia with sit down runs at The Edinburgh Fringe and London’s Unicorn Theater. Other theater credits include the Kristoffer Diaz world premiere of “Welcome to Arroyo’s” at American Theater Company, a year-long internship at The Milwaukee Repertory Theater, Funk it Up About Nothin’ (World Tour), playwriting commissions at Steppenwolf, Writer’s Theater, The City of Chicago, and adjunct professorships at Northwestern University, The University of Iowa, UIC, and Connecticut College. He is a member of the Chicago comedy and rap group, The Rap Pack. @jackiedoh99