Jessie Rogowski is the founder of Stage & Sips and NYC-based sister company Rooftop Musical Society. This marks her first larger-scale production since moving to Peekskill three years ago, and she’s beyond thrilled to be sharing the stage with a wildly talented group of collaborators she’s recently met and instantly adored. She also just really, really loves Moulin Rouge… in case that wasn’t already obvious, so this has been an absolute dream to put together.

Recent stage credits include Hair (Crissy), Into the Woods (Cinderella), Spring Awakening (Ilse), and Footloose (Ariel), as well as touring the U.S. with indie chamber pop band All Boy/All Girl.

When she’s not on stage or producing immersive experiences, Jessie works as a freelance television editor for Food Network, Peacock, Netflix, Amazon, the Tony Awards, and The Public Theater.

She’d like to thank Adrian for his endless support (and for holding down the fort with their 19-month-old while mommy was off in Montmartre). @jro797

Tim Berryman is a Peekskill-based theatre artist originally from the UK. His past stage credits include A Day in the Death of Joe Egg, Metamorphoses, Footloose, Twelfth Night, Once on This Island, A Year with Frog and Toad, and You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown. Outside of theatre, he is a ukulele player, songwriter, poet, and an avid tabletop game master, with a focus on storytelling and character across his creative work.

Jeff Lyon received a motorcycle and ballet lessons at the age of six, and never stopped either. He was a part of the Avant-guard NYC dance performance scene through the turn of the century performing in, and on top of, theaters, graveyards, parking garages and escalators. This avant-guard became mainstream with the ground braking Immersive event sleep no more, of which Jeff was an original Americancast member performing from 2009 to 2014. 

Candace Lynn Matthews is a Bronx native who received her bachelor’s degree from the conservatory of music at SUNY Purchase College and master’s from the Aaron Copland School of Music in Queens College. Credits include Maria in West Side Story (Opera North) soprano soloist (Carnegie Hall), ¡Figaro! 90210 (Off-Broadway), Stonewall (New York City Opera). Outside of the theater world, Candace toured with Josh Groban as a featured choir member for his Stages tour and was featured singing on the hit Netflix drama, Orange is the New Black. Most recently, Candace has enjoyed working with Off-Brand Opera as Donna Elvira in their all-new English libretto of Mozart’s classic Don Giovanni, as Franziska Nietzsche in Nietzsche - A New Musical and as a swing in their production of Three Penny Opera. Candace is a proud alumnus of The New Voice Festival. She made her European debut singing the role of The Mother in Hansel & Gretel in Narni, Italy and role debut as Dido in Purcell’s Dido & Aeneas in Boise, Idaho.

Joel Weber Knopf is a singer-songwriter, performer, and vegan recipe explorer in the Hudson Valley. He is thrilled to be part of this stage and sips production! @joelknopf

Kristina Koller is excited to return to her musical theatre roots. For the past 12 years, she has built a career as a professional jazz and R&B artist, releasing four full-length albums and performing at some of New York’s most notable venues, including NYC Winter JazzFest, Birdland Theater, Mezzrow, and Smoke Jazz Club. At heart, Kristina is a dedicated theatre performer, having appeared in more than 30 productions. Among her favorite roles are Fantine in Les Misérables, the Cat in the Hat in Seussical, Cinderella in Cinderella, and Sarah Brown in Guys & Dolls.

Michelle is delighted to bring the Moulin Rouge to life with Stage & Sips! She is a dancer and actor, and has performed throughout the Hudson Valley. Congrats to the cast and crew!

Passionate and dedicated to the Art of Dance since she was 13 years old, Melisa is a multi-talented dancer specializing in Tango Social Argentine, Lyrical Jazz, Latin Dance and Folklore. From the age of 13 she started to work in different Artistic Productions making tours in Provinces of Argentina such us Mendoza, San Juan, Santa Fe, Rosario, Río Negro and La Plata. Melisa was dedicated to teaching dance and taught in various studios, until founding her own dance studio in Córdoba, Argentina. Melisa taught and ran the Duo Dance Studio for 14 years. Two years ago, she started working in different cultural events in New York representing Tango Social Argentine. She was teaching as a Tango Instructor in the dance studio called “The Dance Conservatory” in Cortlandt Manor, NY.

Anna Lynk (she/her) is the Artistic Director of Gotham Chorus, a competitive barbershop harmony choir. For many years, she was a soloist in multiple semiprofessional Ukrainian folk dance ensembles. When not performing, she enjoys bike riding and crossword puzzles. 

Justin Wingenroth is a professional dancer and performer whose credits span national tours, regional theatre, and contemporary dance. He appeared in the North American tour of Cats (Mr. Mistoffelees, Pouncival) and the national tour of 42nd Street. His regional theatre work includes productions of The Music Man, Irving Berlin’s White Christmas, and The King and I.

In the concert dance world, Justin has performed with C. Eule Dance, Christopher Caines Dance Company, The Chase Brock Experience, and Peconic Ballet Theatre, in addition to numerous appearances in The Nutcracker throughout the region. He continues to guest with Putnam County Dance Project and collaborates on independent dance projects.

Based in Westchester County, NY, Justin is the Owner and Director of The Dance Conservatory.

Will is a collaborative pianist, music director, educator, conductor and vocal coach from Rockland County, NY. He has been music directing, accompanying, and performing throughout Rockland, Westchester, northern NJ, and CT for over a decade. He currently teaches elementary music and chorus in Port Chester, NY and resides in Stamford, CT. 

Eastman School of Music (B.M. in Music Education, 2014) and the SUNY Fredonia School of Music (M.M. in Collaborative Piano, 2021)

Don is an active accordionist and pianist performing in the New York metropolitan area. Currently Don is president of the American Accordionists’ Association. He is a versatile keyboardist who plays various styles ranging from popular American Standards from the American Songbook, Jazz, R & B and Rock n’ Roll. He performs with various ensembles ranging from duos to large 17 piece jazz bands.

He has performed and accompanied Lenny Welch (hit record “Since I Fell For You”), Joe Piscopo and has performed at Swing 46 in New York City, White Plains Theatre for the Arts, The Westport Theatre, The Cutting Room, Cipriani 42 nd St.,Coney Island Park and other large venues.

Alexa is an Engineer by day and a Set/Costume designer by night! She starred in community theater productions through High School and contributed to the costume/set construction on various student productions at Duke University, with favorites including She Kills Monsters, 9 to 5, and Beauty and the Beast. She has been eager to find a theater group in the Westchester area to create magic with and is so happy to have found Stage n Sips!

Valerie Light is packing her art kit and heading to MontMartre for an evening of mini portraits and sketches of performers. She's a freelance artist focused on narrative and mentorship, with projects ranging from illustrating a baby book about the Hudson Valley to organizing events and excursions like Drawing Out and Drawn to Nature that help connect people with art and the outdoors. Valerie is a teaching artist at New Era Creative Space, leading 5 classes per week on comics and digital art for teens. Her autobiographical comics essays, Gray Areas, appear in a range of anthologies. She's available for art commissions and special events.