Director - Ms. Liana Knapp holds a Bachelor’s of Music degree in Music Education with vocal Performance Honors and a Master’s of Music degree in Music Education from Syracuse University. Mrs. Knapp spends her summers teaching at Syracuse Children’s Theater, and over the past 7 years, has taught over 40 musicals there. Outside of teaching, Mrs. Knapp is a passionate choral singer, avid reader, and enthusiastic home chef. Bringing Beauty and the Beast to life has been quite the undertaking, and Mrs. Knapp could not have made it happen without the contributions of so many amazing individuals. Thank you so much to the Phoenix Chorus and Drama Boosters for their constant support and hours of fundraising, planning, and volunteering. Mrs. Knapp would also like to thank all of the parents, family members, and community members who took the time to help us with our set, props, costumes, and donations. This show would not be possible without all of your hard work! A huge thank you to our creative team, Mrs. Spereno, Ms. G, Mrs. Jackson, and Ms. Kaylor for their support, creativity, and friendship. Mrs. Knapp would also like to thank her husband and her family for supporting her through the chaos that is musical season! Finally, THANK YOU to the incredibly talented JCB students of the cast, crew, and pit who have worked so incredibly hard to make this production a reality. Mrs. Knapp is SO proud of you!
Music Director - Ms. Liza Grethel holds a Bachelor of Music degree and Performance Certificate for Clarinet Performance from The Crane School of Music at SUNY Potsdam and a Master’s Degree in Music Education from Ithaca College School of Music. Ms. Grethel has been a band director in Phoenix since 2000 and has enjoyed working on the musical every year since 2006. The last 2 years have been especially exciting for Ms. G. as she has been able to see her own daughters together on the JCB stage! Ms. G. would like to thank all of the musical staff and students for making it so fun to work on musical productions at JCB. A huge thank you to all the students who are working so hard this year on preparing their music and rehearsing in the pit – the music is incredibly demanding and it is so rewarding to see the dedication that these students have displayed. A special thank you to all the professional musicians who have come to work with our talented pit students – you all add so much to our production! Ca-Caw!
Choreographer- Miss Amanda Kaylor is a first grade teacher at MAM elementary. This is her third year with the Phoenix School District and the second production she is so proud to be a part of. Amanda has been dancing throughout her entire life and developed a love of teaching dance in high school and college. Amanda attended SUNY Brockport for her undergraduate and graduate programs and was able to develop an even greater love and understanding for dance while completing her education. Miss Kaylor would like to thank her dance captain Sadie Grethel for her leadership in this role and support of others when Miss Kaylor couldn’t be there. She would also like to thank all of the cast for their commitment to learning these difficult dances and persevering through the hardships of learning something they had never done before. This has been another wonderful experience and the end product shows everyone’s hard work coming together.
Accompanist - Mrs. Lisa Jackson is thrilled to be back accompanying her eighth musical at JCB! Beauty and the Beast holds a special place in her heart, as it was her first pit experience way back in the day when she taught in Pulaski. Lisa holds a Bachelor of Music and a Master of Science in Education, both from Nazareth College. Since 2014, Lisa has worked as the Phoenix high school chorus accompanist. Outside of school, Lisa teaches private piano lessons and is a member of Vote for Pete, a local band that covers fun music from the 1960's to today. She would like to thank the team of directors and everyone else involved with Beauty and the Beast for making this be such an enjoyable part of her life. And of course, a special thank you to her family for their never ending love and support!
