hails from Santa Barbara, California. She holds an AB in History from Princeton University and an MFA in Theater Management from the Yale School of Drama where she received The Morris J. Kaplan Award. She gained practical training at the Guthrie Theatre in Minnesota, Berkeley Repertory Theatre, the Magic Theatre in San Francisco, and Yale Repertory Theatre. Additionally, she served as the Marketing Director at Ensemble Theatre Company of Santa Barbara, and is currently the Program Manager at the International Festival of Arts & Ideas. A founding member of Prospect Theater Company, Melissa has fostered growth through solid fiscal and business administration in support of Prospect’s mission “to connect theater’s present to its past-in order to build its future.”