Tova Halpern

Founder and Artistic Director

Tova has been a professional Director and theatre arts educator for the past 18 years. Tova graduated with her B.A. in theatre arts from Rutgers University in 2006. While at Rutgers, she revitalized the Hillel Theatre Company, directing and producing for the company four shows in two years. After graduating from Rutgers,Tova went to work on Broadway at Richard Frankel Productions, producers for “Hairspray,” “Stomp” and "Young Frankenstein.” After gaining a true Broadway experience, Tova went back to school and received her Masters in Educational Theater from NYU. With her enthusiasm and love for theater and education, Tova founded "Fresh Theatre Arts."

Professional Memberships and Awards

Teaching Artist Guild (TAG)
American Association of Theatre and Education (AATE)
Association of Teaching Artist (ATA)
Association for Theatre in Higher Education (ATHE)
Educational Theatre Association (EdTA)
Association of Teaching Artists (ATA)
KAPPA DELTA PI International Honor Society In Education (KDP)
Dean’s List, 2004-2005, Douglass College, Rutgers University
Rising Star Award from the Rutgers Hillel, Rutgers University
PHI ETA SIGMA National Freshman Honor Society, Barry University

Jessica Nappa

Artistic Coordinator and Musical Theatre Specialist

Jessica graduated with a Bachelor of Music in Voice Performance from Westminster Choir College. She began working as a director and music director with New Jersey Repertory Theatre while she was still in high school. As a performer, Jess has toured nationally and internationally, most notably as Snow White in the Snow White International Tour. She performs with regional theatres including McCarter Theatre Center, The Growing Stage, and Castle Shakespeare Repertory, the latter which she does yearly as the leading ladies in Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet and Macbeth. Jess is also a professional chorister with The Same Stream Choir and can be heard on their previous and upcoming recordings wherever you stream music. Jess discovered her love for singing at age 2, and love for theatre when she appeared in her first show at age 6. In both performing and directing, Jess's goal is to help children discover how music and theatre can inspire, empower, and transform lives.

Nava Chefitz

Art Specialist/Party Motivator

Nava Chefitz is a college student working on getting a bachelor's degree in fine arts at Mason Gross School of the Arts at Rutgers University. Nava has experience in a variety of arts. She has been dancing since she was 3 years-old, playing piano since she was 10 years-old, and has been in multiple high school theater performances. In high school, Nava found time to do many extra curricular activities while keeping up with her studies, mastering her time management skills. This has proved useful in college to balance her classes, labs, homework, social life, and participation in the University Choir. Nava also enjoys working with children. She has been a sleep-away camp counselor multiple times at camp Moshava IO, where Nava attended since she was a camper. She was also a group leader for three years at Congregation Ohev Emet and has assisted Fresh Theater Arts with productions and Bat Mitzvahs. Nava channels her bursting energy to help motivate children to express themselves through the arts.

Megan Midgley

Dance

Megan Midgley recently graduated as a Ed.M Dance Education Candidate with K12 Teacher Certification at Rutgers University’s Graduate School of Education. She completed her full-time student teaching at Trenton Central High School under the mentorship of Elizabeth Zweirzynski, Ed.M in December of 2022 where she taught ballet, modern, jazz and hip hop to all of the dance students. She is currently the co-director of Evolution Dance and Performing Arts Academy in Brick, New Jersey, where she teaches hip hop, contemporary and improvisation. Along with directing the studio, Meg has choreographed for all ages to perform at regional and national dance competitions where she has received three choreography awards. Meg completed her 200 hour RYT Yoga Certification in December of 2020 through Even Flow Yoga in Red Bank, New Jersey, and teaches vinyasa classes all over Monmouth and Ocean County. Professionally, Meg is a company member of Cardell Dance Company based out of Philadelphia under the direction of Silvana Cardell. Meg’s passion for performing led her to tour the company’s two well known works, “Supper! People on the Move” and “Deer’s Cry,” in four different cities along the East Coast. Prior to her graduate studies, Meg graduated with a BA in Dance from Georgian Court University in 2018 where she performed in pieces by Silvana Cardell, Sidra Bell, Brian Sanders, Ten Hairy Legs, Gregory King, Megan Mazarick and Steven Vaughn. While attending University, she studied abroad in Vienna, Austria where she performed and participated in the Impulstanz Dance Festival. Other training Meg has completed was the Parsons Dance Company intensive where she studied and performed with the company for three consecutive years at Marymount Manhattan College. She also participated in the Pilobolus Summer Intensive where she performed at Jacob’s Pillow alongside Momix and the Pilobolus company. She graduated from Howell High School in the Freehold Performing Arts Center with a focus in dance, in 2014. She competed on the company team of Center of Dance Arts where she performed in the styles of tap, hip hop, jazz, contemporary and musical theater.

Luke Ferrell

Acting/Directing/Technical Theatre

Luke is a New Jersey based teaching artist and stage director. He is currently studying theater arts, history, and education at Rutgers University, where he also directs and serves on production staffs for productions with Livingston Theatre Company and Cabaret Theatre. Some of his directing and teaching artist credits include The Hunchback of Notre Dame, the Little Mermaid, Annie, High School Musical 2, Singin' in the Rain, Sweet Charity, the 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, and Heroes of the Fourth Turning. He is thrilled to be able to share his love and passion for theatre with young thespians!

Dennis Connors

Acting/Directing

Dennis is excited to be a part of the FTA team. Dennis was last seen in Matilda at The Growing Stage. Other theatre credits include Disney’s The Beauty and the Beast (Cogsworth), Cinderella (Wesley), Grease (Roger), and many more. Dennis will be making his feature film debut as a principle actor in the horror film, The Canyonlands. Dennis was pleased to be nominated for Best Supporting Actor in a Audioplay for his role as Magnus in the hit podcast Six Minutes. In his spare time, he loves coaching, playing video games, and raising two German shepherds. Keep up with what’s next at www.DennisConnorsActor.com!

Katelyn Loss

Musical Theatre/Dance

Katelyn graduated with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Acting (concentration in Musical Theatre) and a minor in Dance from Slippery Rock University. She recently moved to New Jersey where she has been performing and teaching theatre, dance, and yoga classes! Since moving to New Jersey, Katelyn has had the opportunity to perform regionally as Clarice in Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer at The Growing Stage and P.B. in One Slight Hitch at Hunterdon Hills Playhouse. Some of her other favorite past theatre credits include Ella in Cinderella, Sister Mary Leo in Nunsense, Vanessa in the World Premiere of Techies: The Musical, and Ophelia in Hamlet. Outside of performing, Katelyn has been teaching young performers for over 6 years, and has enjoyed seeing all ages and abilities blossom into the artists they want to be. Her goal as a teaching artist is to encourage students to fully explore their inner performer, utilize theatre and dance as a way to express themselves, and gain confidence in the amazing and unique humans they are. Katelyn is so excited to be a part of the FTA team, and she can't wait to share her love for theatre with her students!

Matt Abad

Assistant Teaching Artist

Matt Abad is currently working towards his BA Theatre Studies major at Montclair State University. Matt enjoys performing! His previous roles include Mamma Mia (Ensemble) , Into the Woods (The Baker), Grease (Roger), and Footloose (Ren McCormack). Matt would like to thank the Fresh Theatre Arts team for allowing him to come aboard and create shows and entertain all of you!

Kayleigh Wharton

Musical Theatre

Kayleigh has always had a love for the arts, and it’s been a central part of her life for as long as she can remember. From participating in a number of musicals to recently performing in various music gigs, she is passionate about using her voice and creativity to connect with others. She is so excited to work with kids and share her love for the arts with them. The arts have had such a positive impact on her growth, and she hopes to inspire the next generation to experience that same joy, confidence, and sense of self through the arts.

Natalie Moses

Digital Marketing and Communications Manager

Natalie Moses is a recent MBA graduate from Binghamton University’s School of Management with a concentration in Marketing. Natalie has been passionate about the arts for as long as she can remember. She participated in choir and musical theatre throughout her high school career. She spends her free time listening to music and singing, reading, watching tv, and exercising. In addition to her artistic background and passions, Natalie is a very organized and business savvy individual with a strong foundation in business and marketing. She aims to combine that education and knowledge with her deep passion for entertainment and the arts to succeed in her career. With a creative approach and a strategic mindset, Natalie is dedicated to growing the company’s online presence and engaging with its community. Leveraging expertise in digital marketing, content creation, and audience engagement, Natalie works to amplify the company’s mission and drive its success in the educational theatre space. Through innovative campaigns and thoughtful storytelling, Natalie aims to connect with audiences and elevate the company’s brand.

Alex McCulley

Improvisation

Alex is thrilled to be a part of Fresh Theater Arts. Some favorite roles have included playing Pippin in Cornerstone Playhouse's production of "Pippin," Jack Kelly in Faith Center's "Newsies," and Beast in DGS' "Beauty & the Beast." A competition dancer for nearly 10 seasons, Alexander has taken classes at Broadway Dance Center and Rockefellar Center. A member of the ensemble of the Papermill Playhouse Broadway Show Choir for 4 years, has toured the tri-state area. Some of his favorite venues include NJPAC, MetLife Stadium and SOPAC. Alexander is also an Ordained Minister, a black belt, and a Scottish Lord (the proud owner of 11 Sq feet in Scotland)

Stephanie Beda

Acting/Directing

Stephanie has been a theatre lover for her whole life. Starting out in her JCCs Rising Stars theatre program Stephanie has been acting and singing and preforming pretty much every chance she got. She went on to attend and then graduate The New York Conservatory for Dramatic Arts with a degree in Film, Television and Theatre arts where she learned various theatre techniques such as the Meisner technique and the Suzuki method which helped her learn how to use her voice and body to create a story and become a strong actress. She has worked on plenty of film sets and has her own IMDB page. Stephanie pours her heart into her craft and now having become a mother wants to share her love of theatre and music with every child that wants to explore their creativity and passion. She’s looking forward to working with Fresh Theatre Arts and commits to their goal of educating children in this beautiful craft with smiles and laughter and heart.