Jeannette Rainey, General Producer and President of the Board
Jeannette has worked with Generic Theater in various capacities for more than 16 years. In addition to duties as President of the board, in the last 18 months she has also acted in a staff capacity as General Producer. Professionally, Jeannette draws from a background in mortgage banking, regulatory compliance, marketing and paralegal work. Jeannette has been an award winning Realtor for the last 16 years. As General Producer, she manages and facilitates multiple main-stage events and productions, including pre-production, marketing, production, box office, and post-production operations. As President of the Board, Jeannette serves as liaison for the theater to community groups, citizens, city departments and leadership, visiting artists and production personnel, ensuring effective communications and good working relationships for future business. Jeannette has a Bachelor of Science degree from Christopher Newport University in Government Administration & Public Affairs with a minor in music. Additional field specific study includes an ABA 2 year paralegal certificate and concentration in real estate.
Philip Odango, Executive Director
A passionate problem-solver with over 10 years of cumulative agency, client-side and entrepreneurial experience, Philip leads with a balanced acumen of business strategy, creative direction and global leadership. Prior to The Generic, Philip founded The Foppish Dandies Theater Co, which produced over a dozen regional plays. Earlier in his career, he was Senior Art Director at Virginia Beach interactive marketing agency, and Visual Information Specialist for the U.S. Air Force, and founded several creative startups. He is currently Creative Director of an international children’s medical NGO headquartered in Norfolk where he provides vision and creative development for a range of strategic brand development and fundraising. He served three years on The Generic’s Board and has directed several productions, including original work. As Executive Director, Philip oversees The Generic’s brand marketing, corporate communications, community outreach, and collaborative partnerships and opportunities, and works within teams to reinforce The Generic Theater’s programmatic pillars of enriching, entertaining, educating and empowering. Alongside Jeannette, Philip develops strategies to build capacity for the organization and financial sustainability. Philip is a graduate of Old Dominion University where he studied Human Factors Psychology.
Matthew Friedman, Co-Artistic Director
Matthew is co-founder and co-owner of Frame25Productions, specializing in professional web design, print design, and online marketing. Matthew has designed countless book covers, including The New York Times bestseller, “Conversations with God” series. Matthew is also a filmmaker, director and screenwriter. In 2003, Matthew was selected to the Sundance Institute’s Screenwriters Lab Program, a 5-day intensive program with some of the best screenwriters in the film industry. Matthew most recently achieved national recognition as one of the directors for the Doritos commercial voted funniest Super Bowl commercial by USA Today (see CrashTheSuperBowl.com or MansBestFriendCommercial.com). As Co-Artistic Director, Matthew participates in director selection, play selection, producing, managing computers and online accounts, various production and creative assistance. Matthew has directed The Generic Theater’s productions of “Enron”, “The Art of Murder” and “Darwin in Malibu” and produced The Generic’s digital shorts. Matthew has a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Virginia in English.
Jennifer Murphy, Co-Artistic Director
Jennifer is the owner of Aurora Graphic Studio, a full service graphic design firm. As Co-Artistic Director, Jennifer participates in season show selection, designs and creates concepts for theater publications, and generates relationships with media outlets to ensure positive community relations. Jennifer has a Bachelors of Science from Virginia Tech in Industrial Design.
