Our Staff and Board Staff Bios | Board Bios | Teaching Artists Bios Executive Director - DAVID MARQUIS David is the founder of Marquis Studios and has been its Executive Director since the Company's inception in 1977. He brings to his work as an educator his considerable experience as a theater artist of many capacities. David began his artistic career in London, where he studied and taught acting for five years. From 1985-1989, he sat on the Board of Directors for the Puppetry Guild of New York. In 1988-90 he was a site reporter for the National Endowment for the Arts theater program. From 1992-2000 he was a member of the Board of Directors of the New York City Arts in Education Round table. He is a founding member of the Association of Teaching Artists and currently sits on the Board of Trustees of PRATT Institute. His work as a puppeteer has toured the United States and has been placed prominently in many international festivals. As a teaching artist for the last 34 years, David has taught innumerable classroom and professional development workshops. Subjects include puppetry, theater arts, writing, video editing, literacy, and mask-making. In the late 1970s, his work with video and computer-generated images of his own design was the first integration of this technology into puppet theater in the United States. Former Managing Director - NIKOLAI SHISHKIN Nikolai Shishkin is a theater director and arts administrator. He spent 20 years of his artistic career with the Moscow Regional Puppet Theater, 10 of them as the Artistic Director of the 75-person company. He has directed over 30 professional productions in various companies and holds degrees in theater from the Moscow State University of Culture and Arts and St. Petersburg National Academy of Theater Art. He has gained significant recognition in his field and received numerous awards at festivals around the world. For the last 15 years, Nikolai has lived and worked in New York. Project Manager - CASSIDY JONES Cassidy began as Project Manager at Marquis Studios in October 2005. Previously, she served as the Education Coordinator at Roundabout Theatre Company. She has a Bachelor of Arts degree in both Theatre and Business Administration from Baldwin-Wallace College in Berea, Ohio. Cassidy is pleased to serve as the liaison between Marquis Studios teaching artists and the schools in which our residencies take place. Financial Manager - VASSILI SHISHKIN Vassili has worked for Marquis Studios since 2001, when he graduated from Hartwick College with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Economics. He has worked in almost every department of the company in positions ranging from art supply assistant to bookkeeper. Currently he is the Financial Manager as well as Art Supply Manager. His previous work experience was primarily in Internet and Computer Technology-related fields. His other interests include the stock market, music, writing and street/park/dj biking. Development Associate - SHIRA BACKER A native of Atlanta, Shira Backer graduated from Barnard College in 2006 with a degree in philosophy. Before coming to Marquis, she spent a year working as Youth Program Associate at the Hudson River Museum in Yonkers, where she served as support staff for the museum’s Junior Docent Program and designed curricula for after-school art and history clubs. Shira is currently helping plan an astronomy-themed bike tour that will take place in Westchester County in the summer of 2008. Office Assistant - KITANA ANDREWS Kitana very happily became the Office Assistant at Marquis Studios in October 2007. Before joining the Marquis team Kitana worked at the New York Public Library of the Humanities and Social Sciences as a Library Technical Assistant. She holds a Bachelor of the Arts from Sarah Lawrence College and paints as well. > Board Bios > Teaching Artists Bios Home | About Us | Consulting | Residency Programs | Parent/Child Workshops | Staff Development Workshops | Kid's Art Gallery | Video Gallery

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