The After Party

Episode 10 - Theatre During a Pandemic

In the final episode of season 1, Raven is joined by theatre makers Debora Crabbe and Kerry McGee to talk lessons learned in the theatre industry during the pandemic. Debora Crabbe is a two-time Helen Hayes Award winning actor and teaching artist in the DC metro area. Born and raised in Ghana, she has been in the US since 2002. Her love for theatre blossomed while at a very young age as one of five girls in her family. She loved to entertain her sisters and parents and this grew into performing in church and in plays. She graduated in 2012 with a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree with a concentration in acting from the Virginia Commonwealth University in Richmond, Virginia. Since then, Debora has been acting in the metro area at various theatres and around the country. She was last seen in Round House Theatre’s production of School Girls; Or, the African Mean Girls Play where her and her ensemble received the Helen Hayes Award for Best Ensemble. Her other Helen Hayes Award was as a leading actress for her portrayal of Rosalind in Keegan Theatre’s production of As You Like It, The Musical. Aside from acting, Debora is the current co-chair of the Arts and Activism Board for the theatre company The Conciliation Lab based in Richmond, Virginia. When Debora is not acting, she is either teaching theatre to children ranging from ages 4-17 or teaching medical students. Kerry McGee is the Artistic Director and Marketing Director for We Happy Few, a DC-based classical theatre company. She also works as a freelance director, actor, and marketing consultant. She's currently directing and adapting an audio mystery series featuring Loveday Brooke, Lady Detective for We Happy Few. The mystery plays are accompanied by a physical package of clues so that the listener can solve the case along with the detectives. Previous directing projects include Lovers' Vows (Helen Hayes Recommended), Treasure Island, and Henry V with We Happy Few. Notable stage roles include Charlie Chaplin in Pointless Theatre Company's Visions of Love, Mayor Soch in dog & pony dc's Beertown, and Edgar Allan Poe in We Happy Few's A Midnight Dreary. Kerry is a teaching artist with Arena Stage and is a member of the teaching staff at George Washington and Georgetown University's medical schools and has an MFA in Theatre Pedagogy from Virginia Commonwealth University.

Episode 9 - Adventures during a Pandemic

Raven is joined by Alice Petzold to talk about adventures and where to find them during a pandemic. Alice Petzold, is the Founder of A Game Coaching, providing coaching to individuals and team. The work yields innovative, effective leaders and unprecedented partnership. https://www.linkedin.com/in/alice-petzold-pcc-8205ab/  [https://www.linkedin.com/in/alice-petzold-pcc-8205ab/%C2%A0] Alice is proud to be part of the College of Charleston Executive MBA Program. Sessions are hybrid with some in person and some virtual.  Alice is a Professional Certified Coach (International Coaching Federation credentialed) and Accomplishment Coaching certified leadership coach with 10 years of coaching and training coaches. Her client roster is comprised of executives and senior managers in organizations that range from multi-national corporates to high-growth, international tech start-ups. In addition to coaching, Alice is proud to be a Leader and coach trainer for Accomplishment Coaching’s Washington DC Program and lead for the Accomplishment Coaching DEIJ Media Review Initiative.  Throughout her career, Alice has focused on working with senior executives to expose and enhance their innate abilities to lead effectively. Alice combines her wide business experience in industries ranging from start ups to sports properties, consumer packaged goods, technology, retail, financial, consulting, and service to enable executives and organizations to fulfill their goals and objectives and enhance team performance.  Alice is a master in collaborating with teams to design and creating bespoke programs that combine a business focus with personal development, leadership creativity, and interpersonal relationships.  Clients report that working with Alice creates an incubator for unprecedented partnership, acceleration of team and organizational performance. Petzold has a strong suit of delivering direct communication with compassion and a sense of humor fostering leadership and accountability cultures.  Prior to coaching, Alice had a successful career in Sports and Entertainment Marketing Partnerships working with the Cleveland Cavaliers, The International Olympic Committee, NASCAR and select agencies. Alice earned a master’s degree in Sports Administration and Facility Management, Ohio University’s internationally acclaimed Center for Sports Administration.

Episode 8 - Finding balance in a pandemic

Michelle Akin joins Raven in this episode to talk about balance - in and out of the pandemic. Michelle is a Master Certified Coach working with creatives who are ready to break up with their bullshit excuses and get their art out into the world. As a singer, songwriter, fiction author, and video producer, Michelle has made a name for herself as an authority on what it takes to push past creative blocks and tap into intuition and inspiration. Her online creative community, "Break Up With Your Bullshit," is filled with tons of artists, sharing their work and lovingly calling each other out on their BS. She is a mom of one and lives in New Jersey with her husband, mother-in-law, brother-in-law, and two very handsome dogs.

Episode 7 - Bars and Restaurants in a Pandemic

Raven is joined by Alison Anne who is leading the Restaurant Revolution as bars and restaurants re-open post-COVID. She believes that the key to greater financial success in the hospitality industry (and all industries) is employee engagement and well-being, from ownership right down to the dishwashing team. Alison is the founder of Alison Anne Coaching and is an 18-year vet of the Baltimore and Washington, DC restaurant industry. She started out hosting and bussing tables at a small family-owned sports restaurant in her hometown a week after she turned 17, and when she left the industry, she was the Communications and Events Director, plus AGM and floor manager and staff therapist and whoever else they needed her to be at a 500-person capacity sports bar in downtown DC. Alison's time working as a server/bartender — while pursuing a full-time acting career — provided her with incredible time management skills, financial management expertise, and healthy coping mechanisms. And as she moved up the ladder into leadership, Alison gained an essential understanding of what it takes to be a good manager, in terms of both maximizing profits and supporting her people. When she worked somewhere, everyone made more money! After helping some of her friends figure out how to get their raises and ideal schedules, Alison entered the Accomplishment Coaching Coach Training Program with the goal of beefing up her coaching skills so she could help other people get those things too. Alison soon discovered that to make an impact on all of her restaurant employee family, She wanted to support management teams to create healthier, more engaged teams with an eye towards increased revenue, decreased turnover, and overall improved employee well-being. Alison helps bars and restaurants identify techniques and policies that are affecting management and employees in both positive and negative ways, develop new policies and practices, and create workplaces that hire effectively and then hang onto their employees. The restaurant industry is a people industry, and Alison supports businesses to reach their business goals by putting their people first!

Episode 6 - Fitness during a pandemic

Jennifer Hopkins joins the party this week to talk fitness and wellness, which underwent quite the transition during COVID. Jennifer shares from her unique perspective of creating JHOP Virtual Dance & Fitness in June of 2020 and transitioning back into in person classes as we move into the after times. Jennifer J Hopkins is a performer, choreographer, and director for stage productions across the country. She is also an adjunct Professor of Acting at George Washington University and Head of the Musical Theatre Dance Department at Metropolitan School of the Arts. Also known as 'JHOP' in the fitness industry; Jennifer has been a pilates professional and group exercise instructor for nearly 10 years. Last year she founded JHOP Virtual Dance & Fitness where she has reached fitness lovers across several countries and continues to bring dynamic, weekly online content for movers everywhere.