Meet the creative team
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Ryan Ardelt- Composer, Music Director, Pianist (Accompaniment)
Ryan Ardelt is currently in his senior year at Grand Canyon University. He has performed all over the valley, last being seen in The Phoenix Theatre Company’s The Sound of Music as Rolf and Grand Canyon University’s The Tempest as Ferdinand. Ryan has composed for five mainstage shows at Grand Canyon University and most recently worked on sound designing and composing for Misanthrope. He is ecstatic to be a part of this process and would like to thank Alex, Morgan, Daniella, and the rest of the creative team for taking on this challenge with him and making it all possible.
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Alex Cavanaugh- Librettist
Alex Cavanaugh is unbelievably proud to present Impact: A New Musical. While Alex has written a number of plays, this is his first officially produced work! You may have seen him as an actor in GCU's A Year With Frog and Toad as Frog, Henry V as King of France/Chorus/Gower, or in a number of other productions. He would like to thank Ryan Ardelt for being a fantastic collaborator - hopefully this will be the first of many musicals written together! He would also like to thank Morgan McCall, his family, and (most importantly) Michael Matejka for their support.
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Morgan McCall- Director/Producer
Morgan was bitten by the directing bug last year after working in various theatre roles, primarily as a stage manager. She served as the director for Impact's 24-Hour creation and is overjoyed her team has continued to work together and that the show can be shared with a larger audience. Her previous directing work includes It's a Wonderful Life (GCU Radio Broadcast) and assistant directing Henry V and the college's theatre ministry group The Parables. Morgan will be graduating from Grand Canyon University with a B.A. in Theatre this Spring. She is thankful for her family, friends, and her Creator that inspires her to create in His likeness.
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Daniella Brown- Head Audio Engineer & Sound Designer
Daniella is excited to be ending her sophomore year with this project. After being the sound designer and editor for the first radio show at GCU It’s a Wonderful Life she is excited to tackle editing music for the first time. She is also so honored to be able to mix and edit the original content made by her friends.
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Hannah Hensley- Stage Manager
Hannah Hensley is excited to be a part of Morgan McCall’s second radio production of Impact: A New Musical. Along with this show, Hannah is also stage managing the upcoming main stage production of The Musical Comedy Murders of 1940. After having an incredible experience stage managing for Morgan’s Second Series earlier this school year she was honored to be included in this ambitious and rewarding project. She would like to thank Morgan and Daniella for choosing her and helping her throughout this entire process and the cast for their incredible hard work.
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Em Uranga- Assistant Stage Manager
Em Uranga is a Theatre major with a passion for stage management and technical support. She is thankful for the opportunity to learn new forms of theatre under the mentorship of Morgan McCall and Hannah Hensley. She is very excited to see what the next 3 years hold and she hopes to help tell stories that will impact people’s lives.
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Karson Cook- Assistant Director
Karson is a junior Theatre Education major at Grand Canyon University and is incredibly honored to work alongside Morgan, Nick B., and the entire production team. He was last seen on stage in GCU’s production of The Comedy of Errors as Egeon. Most recently, he served as Scenic/Props Designer for another Second Series Production, Peter/Wendy this Spring. He is currently one of the Assistant Stage Managers for the upcoming Summer production of The Musical Comedy Murders of 1940. He is immensely proud of this department, this production team, and this cast. This process, and this year, have been surreal for all of us. He is so proud to be a part of GCU Theatre and is glad we have been able to create throughout the pandemic. Many thanks to Morgan for allowing him to join her on this process; he could not be more grateful. He would also like to thank Adrian for keeping him grounded (and for stealing his heart), as well as his friends and family for their never-ending love and support.
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Nick Boisvert- Assistant Director
Nick Boisvert is very excited to get to work as an assistant director on this project. This is his first endeavor into the world of directing and he’s learning so much from the ever talented Morgan McCall. You might recognize Nick from his role as George Bailey in Morgan’s last production of It’s a Wonderful Life. Working with Morgan again is a dream come true and he can’t wait to see where this takes him.
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Kiah von Boeck- Assistant Audio Engineer
Kiah is currently a sophomore and is double majoring in Professional Writing and Theatre and Drama. She is thrilled to have the opportunity to be an Assistant Audio Engineer for this production. She was in the cast of GCU’s previous radio production of It’s a Wonderful Life, and is excited to learn about the process of making an audio drama from a technical perspective rather than as an actor.
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Amanda Mendoza- Assistant Audio Engineer
Amanda is a freshman Film student here at GCU. She joined theater as a way to make friends in an unfamiliar place and instantly fell in love with it. After being involved in every show of the season, being part of the original Impact Musical team from the 24-Hour Play event seemed a great way to end the year. It is a blessing to now be a part of the radio production of it.
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MEET THE Cast
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Nicholas Philips
Nicholas (Rhett) is a sophomore Theatre major at Grand Canyon University. He has now been a part of seven Ethington Theatre Mainstage productions including Tempest, The Drowsy Chaperone, Comedy of Errors, Wings, Henry V, The Misanthrope, and Zoni Award Winning Best Musical A Year with Frog and Toad. His previous voice acting experience comes from GCU’s Second Series production of It’s a Wonderful Life, also directed by Morgan McCall. Nick was part of the original team that worked on Impact: A New Musical during GCU’s 24-hour play competition. Nick is very grateful he gets the chance to perform Impact again and is very excited to share his voice and this beautiful project with the world.
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Sydney Marie Skipper
Sydney Marie Skipper (Figment 1) is a sophomore studying Theatre and Drama with a minor in Dance. She is moved by Impact: A New Musical and feels honored to be apart of it during the original festival and the radio broadcast . This has been her first year involved in Ethington’s productions, making her debut as an ensemble member in Wings and Henry V, and having the opportunity choreograph in another second-series Peter/Wendy. She would like to thank Morgan McCall, Ryan Ardelt, and Alex Cavanaugh for the hard work, and constant support through this production. She would also like to give praise to God for the arts, the space and the opportunity to create. She is dedicating this broadcast to her mother, father, and two sisters, Amy and Aaliyah.
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Maddie Burgess
Maddie (Figment 2) is excited to be back in the studio again, after participating in It's A Wonderful Life in December. She is a sophomore Theatre Education major and Business minor at GCU. She has participated in productions at GCU the last 2 years, the most recent being The Misanthrope. This summer she will be returning to Spokane Valley Summer Theatre to perform as Laura Ingalls in the Regional Premiere of Little House on the Prarie. She would like to thank Morgan, Alex, and Ryan for bringing her on with this production, and for their friendship.
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Gretchen Carpenter
Gretchen (Olivia) is a freshman Theatre Education major and is so excited to be a part of this cast as Olivia! After being a part of the original team that first brought Impact to life, she was more than ready to continue being a performer in this project. She has been in the casts of Henry V and The Misanthrope at GCU this year and is looking forward to hopefully being in many more productions here at GCU over the next three years. She is so excited for everyone to experience the heartwarming, silly, and beautiful story that is Impact the Musical. All glory to Him!
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Jessica Rumrill
Jessica Rumrill (Trish) is a current junior Theater and Sociology major at Grand Canyon University. She is so very excited to be bringing this project to light and is so very thankful to the production team for letting her in on this beautiful project. She has been on stage for a while; most recently in GCU's Misanthrope, Wings, and Comedy of Errors. Now she is taking on her first-ever radio project! She hopes you all enjoy this original journey, and she thanks the cast and crew for just being the absolute best.
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