The Alliance Theatre is proud to welcome the class of 2025 Advisory Board members:
Luis Andino
Luis Andres Andino is a Honduran-American educator from the city of Atlanta. His emphasis is on empowering students to seek higher education, no matter their social-economic or immigration status. Luis works at the Latin American Association, the central hub to help the Latinx community in the Buford Highway corridor. In his spare time, Luis enjoys playing with his dog Sam, working out, playing soccer, eating, and cheering on the Dawgs.
Johanna Brookner
Johanna Brookner was born in the Netherlands and immigrated to the US with her family. She has lived in Michigan, Chicago and now Atlanta. She and her husband started a business with just the two of them 30 years ago and they are now the biggest in their field. They have locations in more than 10 states and hundreds of employees. They have been voted “best company to work for” by the Atlanta Business Chronicle many years in a row.
Johanna has been involved in CARE Int for the last four years as a member of the CARE Women’s Network advisory board. She hopes to be a productive member of the Alliance Advisory Board as well.
Candice Dixon
Candice Dixon has served as a nonprofit leader for more than 15 years wither work centering on place-based funding initiatives, community building, workplace engagement, and programming to cultivate power for women and girls. She is NPower’s Coalition Development Director, responsible for leading Command Shift, a national consortium of corporate, nonprofit, and community leaders accelerating more women of color in technology. Before joining NPower, Candice was the Director of Corporate Partnerships for CHC: Creating Healthier Communities, Corporate Development Officer for Workplace Giving at Habitat for Humanity International, the Director of Women’s Leadership Initiatives for United Way of Greater Atlanta, the National Program Manager for the Women’s Sports Foundation’s GoGirlGo! Program, and worked with the Zeist Foundation on their place-based funding initiative in Atlanta’s Edgewood Community.
Candice studied Communications at the College of Charleston and earned her Master’s in Public Administration from Georgia State University. She is a 2015 graduate of Leadership Atlanta’s LEAD Atlanta Program and served as the program co-chair for the LEAD Class of 2020. Candice is a member of United Way of Greater Atlanta’s Young Professional Leaders and is an Atlanta Advisory Board Member for The Knowledge House. She was also named to the Atlanta Business Chronicle’s 40 under 40 in 2021.
Malaika Dowdell
As a 26-year marketing veteran, Malaika Dowdell first fell in love with Marketing during coursework at Spelman College, where she received a BA (in Political Science), and The University of Chicago Booth School of Business, where she received an MBA with a concentration in Marketing. She stands apart as a marketer because of her ability to implement creative, game-changing solutions while ensuring high-quality implementation in the marketplace. While the majority of her career has been focused within the Packaged Goods space (with Philip Morris, Miller Brewing Company, Coca Cola and PepsiCo), she has most recently enjoyed the opportunity to serve others in roles in the non-profit space with Boys & Girls Clubs of America.
Ms. Dowdell has been recognized by Creative Media Awards, MSN, and MIXX Awards for excellence in marketing and research program development.
Currently, she is President at DNA Marketing, a boutique marketing firm specializing in creative business solutions for small to medium-sized businesses and non-profits. Malaika is grateful each day for the opportunity to explore and create outstanding marketing solutions and advocate for successful small businesses.
Les Flynn
Originally from Brooklyn, Les Flynn relocated to Georgia in 1981 and attended UGA for a Masters in Wildlife Management and an MBA. The last 30 years he has built a career in the environmental remediation industry and raised his three sons. After being a member of his company's Board and holding several C-suite roles for his company, Les now leads unique projects in strategy, growth and technology.
Les also serves as a Board member for the Rainbow Quest! nonprofit. He provides business advice and efforts in support of the nonprofit’s mission of saving LGBTQ+ lives. This is accomplished by expanding availability of the Rainbow Quest! board game to schools, Gay Straight Alliances (GSAs), and other organizations, as well as families. The game is designed to be fun, engaging and educational about LGBTQ+ people, history and culture.
Les is a long-time patron of Atlanta theater, local music, and sports. He is more than thrilled to do even more as a member of the Alliance Advisory Board.
Natalia Garzón Martínez
Natalia Garzón Martínez is an artist and non-profit leader working with the immigrant communities of Buford Highway in Atlanta. Her role as Community Engagement and Special Initiatives Director at We Love Buford Highway allows her to design programs and encounters that bring art, activism, critical thinking, and connectivity to BIPOC communities in Atlanta. Her work for the organization since 2020 has brought diverse programs like the bilingual Voices of a Highway Podcast, the first digital story guide about Buford Highway Latino-owned businesses, a partnership with the Atlanta Opera, and various photography and storytelling projects and exhibitions in the area.
In addition to her non-profit work, Natalia is active in the public humanities sector through her connections to the Bill and Carol Fox Center for Humanistic Inquiry and through her role as Advisory Board Member for the Centro Latinx at Emory University. She is invested in connecting communities to literature and art while making sure that these art forms are meaningful, relevant, and representative for these multidimensional audiences.
Natalia has also worked as a literary translator (French-Spanish) for the Ministry of Culture in Colombia, as an interpreter (Spanish-English) in coffee farms in Guatemala, and as an English tutor for Tibetan monks. Her writing has been published in literary magazines based in Mexico, Guatemala, and Atlanta. In her free time she likes to discover new art (all forms welcome!), make new art (painting, collages, writing), cook, work out, and invest time in meaningful conversations with close friends.
She holds a B.A. from Emory University in English/Creative Writing and French. She was born in Colombia but raised in Costa Rica, Ecuador, and Panama.
Lydia Glaize
Lydia Glaize is a wife, mother, community leader, visionary and compassionate legislator. Lydia served as the United Way/AFL- CIO Labor Liaison for the past 4 years. In this role, Lydia built strategic partnerships with community allies and implemented jointly developed programs around the issues of income, education and health and mental well-being. Connecting the Arts and the Labor Community became a priority pre-Pandemic and continues to date. Prior to this Lydia served as an elected City Councilmember and Mayor Pro for the City of Fairburn, Georgia.
She served as the College Career/Scholarship Administrator for Landmark Christian School, to achieve successful college placement. She increased their college scholarship offerings from 1.3 million annually to $8-$10 M and broadened college options to include offerings from Ivy League Colleges, Military Academies and other Top-Tier Universities. Because of her love for education, she also served as Vice President of the Board of Directors for Fulton County’s first Charter School. Presently, she is learning to make peach preserves.
Meghan Gordon
Meghan Gordon grew up in Celebration, FL – the town built by Disney, where the crossing guard sang melodies from Mary Poppins and everything was magic. Meghan then moved to Milton, GA in the eighth grade, where she did not own flannel or Birkenstocks, did not know what a tailgate was, and was told musical theater made her a nerd. Her first lesson that there are no independent variables on the scale of 1 to Cool has informed everything in her life since. Meghan returned to Orlando and studied international relations and theater arts at Rollins College, and went on to law school at Georgia State expecting to be an entertainment lawyer; but instead graduated with a dual-degree Masters in Taxation and Certificate in Land Use. Today, she is a real estate lawyer with a dual-purpose home office/ art studio.
Tevin Goss
Tevin Goss is a Membership Associate at the High Museum of Art and Woodruff Art's Center and an Atlanta native. An artist with a deep infinite passion for all creative elements within the arts stratosphere, Tevin majored in Illustration at SCAD with a minor in Costume Design. With a love of fashion, costumes and literature, Tevin has worked as a costume shop apprentice and leads a literary club with his friends and colleagues.
Dr. Eve Graves
Dr. Eve Graves is a graduate of Spelman College. She began her professional academic career at The College of William and Mary in Williamsburg, VA., where she received several awards, published several articles, and was elected to head a national professional organization. Dr. Graves was awarded a Teaching Fellowship from the Carnegie Center for Teaching and Learning at Stanford University. At the end of her final residency at the Carnegie Foundation, Dr. Graves decided to pursue work as an intercultural pedagogue by accepting a teaching position at the prestigious Xiamen University in China. She lived and successfully taught Western Theatre History and Literature in China for four and a half years.
Dr. Graves is a published author and is under contract to write a book about Angelina Weld Grimke. She is also working on a series of articles about interculturalism, performance and pedagogy. She enjoyed teaching in the African American Studies at for NYCCT/CUNY and Albany State University (ASU) in the Department of Fine Arts. While at ASU, Dr. Graves helped one of her ASU Speech and Theatre students win the New York Times Maximum Shakespeare Contest, took students to NYC to view plays on Broadway and tour Julliard and Columbia University, brought theatre scholars and artists Kathy Perkins and Pearl Cleage to campus, and directed several plays. She is a recipient of a summer NEH fellowship, several professional awards and she was selected for a three year term as a Fulbright Specialist. However, there is no place like home. Dr. Graves is honored to be the Chairperson of the Clark Atlanta University’s Department of Theatre and Communication Studies.
Della Guidry
Della Guidry owned the corporate event planning company, PRA San Antonio/Austin,TX from Jan 2000- March 2018. She was the Chair for The Carver Development Board from July 2016 to Jan 2022. She is the Founder of Black Women Leadership Alliance and worked with them from Jun 2015 to Jan 2022. She also served on the San Antonio Convention and Visitors Commission (Mayor-Elect position) from 2008 to 2016.
Mallika Kallingal
Mallika Kallingal is a journalist working at CNN with extensive experience as a senior writer, copy editor and producer, who's been a part of several Emmy-nominated teams. Before joining CNN, she was a senior copy editor and reporter at The Times of India in New Delhi.
Mallika is also the Atlanta Chapter president of the Asian American Journalists Association and was awarded the Chapter President of the Year award. She is passionate about mentoring and supporting student journalists and has organized multiple AAJA Atlanta student workshops. Mallika also enjoys playing the piano and has performed classical recitals in Kolkata, New Delhi and Atlanta. She's also performed on the All India Radio (AIR) and taught piano students at the Delhi School of Music. She is very fond of animals and volunteers at a rescue. Mallika lives in Atlanta with her family.
Amy King
Amy King, CPA, is the Conference Benefits Officer of the North Georgia Conference of the United Methodist Church. She administers the pension, health and welfare plans for the clergy and Conference lay employees. She serves as an educator for the clergy and staff and an advocate for the North Georgia Conference to Wespath, the General Board of Pension and Health Benefits. Amy earned a Master of Accountancy from Auburn University. She has fifteen years of experience in the accounting industry, including time in public accounting at both Mauldin & Jenkins and Metcalf Davis (now merged with Warren Averett) and time in the private sector as controller of Oglethorpe University and finance manager at the City of Dunwoody. Amy serves the community as a member of the GSCPA Leadership Council and Business and Industry Advisory Committee, as treasurer of the Atlanta Ecumenical Urban Farm Network, as a coach with the Atlanta Track Club, and as an event volunteer and fundraiser with The Giving Kitchen. She is an active member of Sandy Springs United Methodist Church. In her spare time, she is an avid reader and organic gardener.
Carlton Mackey
Carlton Mackey the Assistant Director, Community Dialogue and Engagement at the High Museum of Art. In this newly created role, Mackey will use complex visual culture to strengthen self-awareness, frame productive public discussion, and engender institutional empathy regarding the fundamental issues defining contemporary society.
Mackey is also the Co-Creator/Co-Director of the Emory University Arts and Social Justice Fellowship Program. The Arts and Social Justice Fellows program brings leading Atlanta artists into Emory classrooms to help students translate their learning into creative expressions of activism in the name of racial and social justice.
Formerly Mackey served as the creator and director of the Ethics & the Arts Program at the Emory University Center for Ethics and a Lecturer in Emory's Department of Film and Media. Mackey is the creator of BLACK MEN SMILE®, a viral social media platform and empowerment movement for Black men to "celebrate the way we see ourselves."
As a community advocate, Carlton serves on the Atlanta Board of Education Ethics Commission and on the Advisory Board of Foreverfamily, an Atlanta non-profit surrounding youth with one or more incarcerated parent with the love of family and providing regular visitation.
Nelly Mauta
Nelly Mauta joined SouthStar Energy in August 2007 and received her Project Management certification in 2014. She is a graduate of U.S.I.U [United States International University]. During her time at SouthStar, she’s been very lucky to serve in various roles and is currently the Manager of System Operations on the Customer Operations team. She is an avid traveler and travelled to 56 countries. She also enjoys hot yoga, hiking, watching chef shows and Survivor as well as listening to her son play the piano and guitar.
Juan Mejia
Juan Mejia immigrated from Colombia and grew up in Metro-Atlanta. After graduating from Kennesaw State University, Juan joined the corporate team for a franchise chain and led the operations and their in-house production team across the Southeast. In 2016, he founded JCM Ventures to aid entrepreneurship and scale organizations.
He earned his real estate license and became a leading force expanding his previous firm’s commercial division. He is involved with the Atlanta Commercial Board of Realtors and the National Association of Hispanic Real Estate Professionals. He met DT Spade's President and decided to partner with the firm to help not only imagine but help build our city. Juan serves various organizations, some of those include: the Atlanta Ballet, Rehabilitation Enables Dreams, Ser Familia, and the American Jewish Committee. He invests in furthering his knowledge through leadership programs like: ARC's Regional Leadership Institute, Hispanics in Philanthropy's Lideres Fellowship, and several others. He has been recognized as a 50 Most Influential Latino in Georgia, 40Under40, 35Under35, and 30Under30 for his community leadership.
Caroline Moore
As a vice president at The Wilbert Group, Caroline Moore sets public relations strategies for her clients which include professional services firms, commercial real estate firms and cultural institutions. She is passionate about the creative process and enjoys using critical thinking to discover and tell exciting stories that resonate with her clients' key audiences. Caroline is also the proud leader of The Wilbert Group’s fellowship program, partnering with nearby universities to recruit top talent and bring exciting career opportunities to recent college graduates.
She is involved with several community and trade organizations that represent her personal and professional interests. In addition to her involvement with Alliance, she is a contributing member of the High Museum, participating in the Young Professionals program and serving on the planning committee for the annual Highball – one of the museum's major annual fundraising events. She is a member of ICSC and has been a member of CREW for several years, supporting the organization's mission to empower women in real estate. She also provides PR support for several Atlanta-based pro bono clients as part of Wilbert Cares.
Caroline is a graduate of the University of Georgia Foundation Fellowship. She is a "double dawg," holding a bachelor's degree in advertising with a minor in sociology, as well as a master's degree in journalism. The performing arts were a major part of Caroline's childhood and she believes her experiences in musical theatre, dance and youth symphony taught her critical life skills needed to succeed in a public relations career. She is excited to support Alliance Theatre and its mission to expand hearts and minds on stage and off.
Zach Nikonovich-Kahn
Zach Nikonovich-Kahn is a nonprofit professional based in Atlanta. He currently serves as the Sponsorship Manager at Atlanta Habitat for Humanity. Zach graduated from the University of Georgia, where he majored in history. He was born and raised in Atlanta, and currently lives in Sylvan Hills.
Kathy Palumbo
Kathy Palumbo is a writer, community volunteer and until her recent retirement, the Director of Programs for The Community Foundation for Greater Atlanta. There she managed the competitive grant programs and developed strategies for community impact. She was a member of the policy committee of the Georgia Grantmakers Alliance, a board member of Funders Concerned about AIDS and on the editorial Board for The Foundation Review. In addition, she participated in a wide variety of community leadership opportunities.
Prior to joining the Community Foundation, Kathy enjoyed 18 years as the Community Services Director of the Atlanta Community Food Bank. Prior to joining the Food Bank, she held several positions in the nonprofit and academic arenas including appointments as adjunct instructor of sociology at Agnes Scott College and community organizer for the Cleveland legal Aid Society. Kathy holds a PhD from Emory, a MSSA from Case Western Reserve University and a BA from the College of Wooster. She and her wife live in Decatur.
Kisan Patel
Kisan Patel is a Consulting Manager at Collective Insights and brings over 7 years of experience across several industries. Collective Insights is a full-service consulting firm that has built a stronghold in the Atlanta community over the last several years.
His responsibilities include working with stakeholders across both business and technology environments and bridging the gap between strategic and tactical execution, and ultimately doing what's best for his clients.
Kisan is a native of Georgia with an undergraduate degree from the University of Georgia, and a certificate in Music Business. With his passion in the arts, Kisan hopes to be an advocate for the theatre in the community and be a part of bringing the theatre's mission to life.
Marion Phillips
Marion Phillips is the Research Manager in the Community and Economic Development department at Georgia Power. She is responsible for researching, analyzing, and visualizing a wide variety of information and data to support our business recruitment team and community development managers. She manages a team of 3 researchers and has been with Georgia Power’s research group for 8 years. Marion participated in the ARC’s Arts Leaders of Metro Atlanta (ALMA) program in 2017 and has been an Alliance Theatre season ticket holder since 2017. Marion received her master’s in City and Regional Planning in 2014 from the Georgia Institute of Technology and a Bachelor of Arts in Sociology from the University of Richmond in 2008. Originally from Memphis, TN, Marion moved to Atlanta in 2012 and now calls Midtown Atlanta home where she enjoys being within walking distance of the Woodruff Arts Center.
Daniel Regenstein
Daniel Regenstein currently serves as Chief of Staff for the Georgia Department of Administrative Services, appointed to that role by Governor Brian P. Kemp in 2019. During Governor Nathan Deal's first term (2011-2015), he served as Special Projects Coordinator; Director of Constituent Services & Operations; Policy Advisor; and Political Director. With more than a decade of experience in state government, Daniel has held other roles at the Department of Economic Development and Department of Revenue.
Wendy Schmitt
Wendy Schmitt has served as Vice President at The Elliot Group, a retained executive search firm headquartered in New York, since 2017. In this capacity she recruits across a variety of industries including restaurants, lifestyle, retail, startups and general tourism with a focus on operations, human resources, finance, IT and brand and performance marketing. Prior to that she spent almost 20 years with Four Seasons Hotels in human resources as Director for the Atlanta property and Corporate Recruiter. In addition to being certified as a Senior Professional in HR, she holds a degree in French from Davidson College and a Masters in International Business from the University of South Carolina. Wendy and her husband have two children and reside in Sandy Springs, Georgia.
Dr. Shenara Sexton
Dr. Shenara Sexton, a Georgia native from Warner Robins, has been a practicing physician for 16+ years and is currently an Associate Dermatologist with Forefront Dermatology. After graduation from Emory University School of Medicine she began her career in Athens Georgia as Owner and Director of Sexton Dermatology. She and her family moved back to Atlanta 4 years ago. She is a member of the Friends Boards of the Georgia Museum of Art and is a co-chair of the Dogwood City Chapter of the Links, Inc. Health and Human Services Committee and Grade Level Sponsor of the Atlanta Chapter of Jack and Jill of America, Inc. She is a member of the National Medical Association, Atlanta Medical Association. She is an avid Arts supporter and abstract painter. She is also CEO and Principal Designer of gift personalization company, FrogHouse Art.
Emily Washburn
Emily Washburn grew up in Mobile, Alabama and attended Duke University where she majored in English with a focus in drama. After college, she moved to Atlanta and worked at Young Audiences, a national nonprofit that places artists in elementary and secondary schools so that children are able to grow through exposure to the arts. She later attended law school at Emory University as a Woodruff scholar, clerked at the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals for Judge Stanley Birch, and practiced intellectual property law at Alston & Bird. Her interest in education, though, inspired a return to graduate school at Vanderbilt University, where she earned a Masters in Education. Since 2003, Emily has taught high school English in Atlanta, first at Woodward Academy and now at Pace Academy, where she earned the school’s Kessler Award for Excellence in Teaching in 2017. Along the way, she has been able to earn a Masters in English from Georgia State University. Emily and her husband James have two teenage sons, Jackson and Jess.
Angie Weiss
Angie Weiss was born and raised in midtown Atlanta. Her interest in theater started in first grade when she was cast in John Stephens’ production of A Christmas Carol at the Academy Theatre. While she had her 15 minutes early, that experience began her lifelong love of Atlanta’s stages. Her day job is in corporate communications and PR – she's worked primarily in the entertainment and hospitality industries and recently took a new role in lighting manufacturing. In addition to going to shows, Angie enjoys eating her way up and down Buford Highway, visiting gardens and the zoo, and hunting for things she doesn't need at thrift shops. She lives in Tucker with her partner, Daniel, and their menagerie of odd pets.
