New leadership at the Community Theatre, as Merritt & Steve move on….

The organizational structure of the Community Theatre has been changed in the wake of the departures  (June 1st) of Merritt Olsen & Steve Judkins – here’s the way things will be set up, in this report from Jan Bollwinkel-Smith:

The San Juan Community Theatre board of trustees is pleased to announce new management roles for three of its current staff.  Mary Blevins has been named Chief Administrative Officer; Susan Williams, Artistic Director; and John Shaller, Production Manager.  The changes come after the resignations of both longtime SJCT executive director Merritt Olsen and production manager Steve Judson.

“The Board is pleased to create a new management structure by promoting within our Theatre Family.  We are indeed fortunate that our staff includes such qualified and outstanding people who have been part of the Theatre for years,” said SJCT Board President Pat Nieman.

Mary

Olsen announced his resignation effective June 1.  He and his wife Janet are moving to South Dakota where they will be closer to children and grandchildren.  Judson is moving to San Diego to resume his career in professional theater, as well as to sharpen his skills in automation console programming.

A graduate of the University of Puget Sound with a degree in Business Administration, Blevins moved to San Juan Island in 1979 with her husband Tom to become part owners of San Juan Canvas.  As they raised two sons, Justin and Colin, Blevins did part-time bookkeeping work for several local nonprofits, including San Juan Community Theatre beginning in 2001.

She became the Theatre’s full-time Business Manager in 2009 and is excited about her new position as Chief Administrative Officer.

Susan

“With the great staff we already have in place and the Board’s support, I’m looking forward to a smooth transition into this new phase of my career,” said Blevins.

Williams also graduated from University of Puget Sound; her degree was in Art Education.  She later studied painting at the Honolulu academy of Arts and acting at Freehold Acting Studio in Seattle. With her husband Keith Busha, she produced the independent film, Dreams of Damanhur, which has been featured in several film festivals.

Since 1975, Williams has acted, produced, directed and been costume or set designer for numerous plays on San Juan Island.  Her first island appearance was in a Straights Production of Guys and Dolls; she also acted in Stage Left’s Lion in Winter and this SJCT season’s The Ladies Man; and her directing credits include the 2010 production of Madwoman of Chaillot. Williams has also served on the SJCT board; and most recently, has been on staff as the costume mistress for the Theatre.

John

Shaller also has a long relationship with Friday Harbor.  His parents moved to the island in the seventies, when he was majoring in Technical Theatre at the University of Washington.

After completing his schooling, Shaller worked overseas as a computer programmer and I.T. manager-first in Zurich, Switzerland, then in Hong Kong, and eventually in Chiang Mai, Thailand where he lived and worked for more than 15 years.

In 2009 Shaller and his family moved to Friday Harbor to be with his mother who is still living in the same house Shaller helped build.  Shaller began volunteering at SJCT, working in all aspects of technical theater and was hired to be Judson’s production assistant in 2011.

Blevins, Williams and Shaller will assume their new positions on June 1.

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