Bob Lucas (Producing Director, Composer, Musical Director, Performer) comes from a singing family tradition. He is a rhythm guitarist, banjo player, old-time fiddler and has a rich tenor voice spanning over three octaves. As a composer and lyricist with Mad River Theater Works, he has collaborated with playwright Jeff Hooper to create Freedom Bound, Black Hats, A Christmas Carol, and Evelyn and the Polka King and has acted as musical director and performed in those plays and many others. Bob was music director and performed in Evelyn and the Polka King at Actors Theater of Louisville, Steppenwolf Theatre, Chicago, and City Theatre in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Moreover, Bob is a songwriter whose words and tunes have been praised by "Melody Maker" and "Pickin" Magazines, and two of his songs appear on Alison Kraus' most recently released CD. Bob's first album, The Dancer Inside You, received a 4-star rating from "Downbeat" Magazine and Bob has recently produced a new CD, Rushsylvania. Bob's musical expertise encompasses folk, bluegrass, swing, rock, and spiritual music of many genres.

Michelle F. Cornell (YouthWorks Director) is a drama teacher and storyteller from Columbus, Ohio. Michelle's acting and directing credits include the Columbus Children's Theatre, the Greater Columbus Arts Council Artists in Schools program, the Muse Machine of Dayton and Artsbridge of Marietta, Ohio and Parkersburg, West Virginia. She has worked as a teaching artist in New York City public elementary and junior high schools and in rural New York State as a public speaking coach for high school students. Michelle has performed as a story teller with the Discovery Place Libraries Summer Reading Program, the Franklin Park Conservatory and the Toledo Museum of Art. She tells stories and presents solo performances in school settings throughout the region and is a proud member of The Story Tellers of Central Ohio. Michelle has an MFA in Stage Direction from The Ohio University School of Theatre and a Masters degree in Education from the Teachers Training Program at SUNY Plattsburgh.

Christopher Westhoff (Managing Director) is a multi-instrumentalist, actor, and educator. He attended Hampshire College, in Amherst, Massachusetts, where he received a B.A. in documentary studies. After graduating, Chris developed and facilitated a documentary arts program at a federally funded GED program for at-risk-youth in Holyoke, Massachusetts. He relocated to the Midwest in 2005 to join Mad River Theater Works. In addition to his work in the performing arts, he has worked as an art handler, installer and administrator at the Massachusetts Museum of Contemporary Art, The Henry Ford, and The University of Michigan Museum of Art. As a lover of story and song, Christopher is proud to be a part of the Mad River team.