Who We Are

David Stern

Artistic Director

David Stern has been working in the theatre for over 35 years, running drama programs at Swarthmore College, The Middlesex School, Springfield High School, and most recently Kimball Union Academy. With an MFA in theatrical design from Rutgers University, David has worked professionally as a designer and director throughout New England at companies including The Merrimack Repertory Theatre, New Jersey Shakespeare Festival, North Country Center for the Arts, The Weston Playhouse, and the New Ensemble Theatre which he founded in 1993.  From 2014-2020 he served as Artistic Director at Main Street Arts in Saxtons River, where he, and much of the “Wild Goose” team led productions including “Sweeney Todd”, “Jesus Christ Superstar”, “Chicago”, “The Secret Garden”, “Bat Boy”, “Equus”, “Hedwig and the Angry Inch”, and the touring production of “Jacques Brel.”

Sandy Klein

Creative Director

Sandy designed the costumes for Main Street Art's Bat Boy, Sweeney Todd and Jesus Christ Superstar where she met David Stern. It has been a dream for many years to work with David in a more permanent fashion. Wild Goose Players is that dream realized. "In the latter half of my life I find myself fascinated by small collaborating groups of artists actively working to break out of conventional theater and filmmaking and to discover ways of storytelling that better reflects our changing world."

Libby McCawley

Key Collaborator

Libby has worked with a number of area theater groups over the years, both on and off the stage, including Wild Goose Players, Main Street Arts, The Vermont Theater Company, and The Apron Theater Company. She is honored to be a part of the development of Wild Goose Players, as it begins its journey in the area. A long-time resident of Putney, Libby works at Oak Meadow in customer relations and as the assistant to the registrar.

Liz Guzynski

Costume and Design

Liz is an artist who has walked the long and winding path. After fleeing the ivory towers of academia, she frolicked in many artistic disciplines: painting with everything from watercolor to encaustic, botanical illustration, and beadwork, to name a few. She stumbled into theater work via the fortunate coincidence of living in a small town populated by diverse artists and performers working hard for no good reason except the joy of building a creative community. Lacking any discernible abilities as a performer, she found that theater’s backstage puzzles and opportunities perfectly suited her magpie design skills. Costuming has been a joyous challenge drawing on every facet of her life: artistic design, building, research (including thrifting!), and collaborating with other artists. She has costumed Chicago, The Secret Garden, Equus, and Urinetown under Director David Stern; assisted with Vermont Suitcase Company productions and NEYT shows under Sandy Klein. She has worked backstage on Jesus Christ Superstar and other local productions.



Liz lives in Bellows Falls, VT with her ridiculously supportive husband and four selfish cats.

John Hadden

Key Collaborator

John Hadden (director of Capote's Christmas Memory and Hamlet for Wild Goose) is a theater maker, writer, builder, teacher and actor living on a small farm compound in Landgrove, VT. He is a founding member of Shakespeare & Co in Lenox, MA and recently ran the Hubbard Hall Theater Company in Cambridge, NY. He is a three-time “Berkie” winner who has played Romeo, Hamlet, Iago, Richard II, Leontes, MacBeth, Lear, the Merchant, the Bastard, the Fool, Scrooge and Salieri in regional theaters, as well as roles on film, radio and TV. He has directed about fifty productions here and abroad. His own plays and a short film have been seen at PS 122, LaMama, EST, Wharton Salon, Colonial (Pittsfield MA), Gloucester Stage, Nat’l Arts Club, Boston International Film Festival (award). A solo show based on his book Conversations with a Masked Man: My Father, the CIA, and Me (Arcade, 2016) was directed by David Stern. John has taught at universities and schools; he is a Vermont Teaching Artist with a BFA from SUNY Purchase and a writing MFA from Goddard College.  More at johnlhadden.com

Of John’s work as a Shakespeare director, NY Times theater critic Ben Brantley wrote, “The play shimmers with a deep humor and startling glimpses of melancholy … And you can understand every word…”

Morganna Ekkens

Key Collaborator

Morganna Ekkens has been performing on stage for over twenty five years. A native of the Monadnock region, she discovered her love of theater at Moco Arts in Keene, NH and that passion led her to NYC, where she attended The American Musical and Dramatic Academy. Morganna has performed in productions with Wild Goose Players, Main Street Arts, Springfield Community Players and The Vermont Theater Company, as well local film companies Wayward Ark Productions and Either/Or Films. Additionally, you can find her behind the scenes helping produce cabaret performances, building props and costumes, designing hair and makeup and more!! Presently, she works at the staffing agency Barton Associates as a Staffing Consultant Group Manager. Morganna lives in Bellows Falls, VT and is honored to be a part of this extraordinary community of creative talent and to help bring vibrant performance art to Rockingham!