Ira David Wood III | Executive Director
Ira David Wood III is the Founder and Executive Director of Theatre In The Park. A graduate of The NC School of the Arts, he was raised in Enfield, NC and became his hometown’s first Eagle Scout. Summers during his college years were spent as a leading actor in The Lost Colony, the oldest outdoor drama in the country. Upon graduation, he became the first Theatre Arts Consultant for the Department of Public Instruction. A year later, he became Director of The Children’s Theater of Raleigh. He immediately set about the task of broadening the organization’s scope. During this process, the organization established a home in the Pullen Park Armory, changing its name to Theatre In The Park and quickly becoming the largest community theatre in North Carolina.

Consistently voted Best Local Actor in a decade of public opinion polls, David is the only two-time recipient of The Medal of Arts, presented to him by The Raleigh Arts Commission. During his thirty year tenure at Theatre In The Park, he has been presented three keys to The City of Raleigh, had a week named in his honor and received The Order of The Long Leaf Pine—one of the highest tributes this state can bestow on one of its citizens. He has been presented The Builder of Bridges Award from The Babcock Center Foundation in South Carolina and The Halifax Resolves Award from his home county. In honor of his many achievements, Raleigh’s City Council voted unanimously to rename the theatre’s facility “The Ira David Wood III Pullen Park Theatre.”

He has often been credited with raising the bar of theatrical excellence in this area, as well as initiating dynamic outreach programming now adopted by many other theatre organizations. Under his leadership, the theatre’s annual Shakespeare In The Park series created a resurgence of interest in the plays of William Shakespeare. When Memorial Auditorium sat largely unused and undervalued, David produced the first series of theatrical productions on its stage, beginning a process of rediscovery and expansion which eventually resulted in the renovation and expansion that has produced the current BTI Center for the Performing Arts. He was the first person to bring together all the city’s performing arts groups in a single production in order to demonstrate the quality and variety available to area audiences.

While devoting the majority of his time to Theatre In The Park, David has also managed to accumulate impressive film and television credits, having appeared on screen with such stars as Christopher Walken, Natalie Wood, Cliff Robertson, Burt Reynolds and Louise Fletcher.

Though his list of acclaimed theatre roles is unrivaled in our area, David is probably best known and loved for annually portraying the miserly Ebenezer Scrooge in his own musical adaptation of A Christmas Carol, which celebrated its 32nd year of production this past holiday season. With two international tours to its credit, and having played to over one million people, the production is now cited as “... one of the most successful shows in North Carolina theater history.”

An award-winning playwright, David’s additional works have been produced throughout the United States. He is also a contributing writer for the book MURDER IN DEALEY PLAZA and is currently at work on two novels. The proud father of two talented young people, Evan Rachel Wood and Ira David Wood IV, David and his wife, Ashley, remain extremely happy to call North Carolina... “home.” Click here to contact David by email.

Stephen Barlow | Financial Director
Steve has many years experience in both accounting/finance and marketing in the corporate world as well as with several not-for-profit organizations. Most recently he was the Comptroller for the Northwest North Carolina Chapter of the American Red Cross. Steve was with Piedmont Airlines for twenty years, was a senior accountant for half of those years and last held the position of Director of Marketing. He holds a B.S. from Georgia Tech and currently lives in Raleigh with his wife, Lyn. Click here to contact Steve by email.

Ashley Wood | Executive Assistant
A graduate of Salem College, Ashley Hobson serves as Theatre In The Park's Executive Assistant. Among managing the office and other duties, she handles Ira David Wood's schedule and manages his appearances, making sure he's always in the right place at the right time. She is also in charge of the Theatre's Archives, helping to maintain a record of Theatre In The Park's rich history. Ash is often assisted by her own helper, Miss Priss and her silly little puppy, Snuggles, who has no qualms at all about having a cat for a sister. Click here to contact Ashley by email.

Adam Twiss | Development Director
Adam brings a diverse professional background to his role at Theatre In The Park including several years in public accounting with Coopers and Lybrand, in Boston, General Manager of The Hampshire House (Cheers), in Boston, and Northwest Regional Sales Manager for Cranium and Scene It? games, in Seattle.

Adam began his professional theatre career as an actor in Raleigh. He went on to earn his MFA with honors in Acting and Directing at the Trinity Rep Conservatory (Brown University/ Trinity Rep Consortium), in Providence, RI. He is the only recipient of both the Richard Kavanaugh Award for Acting from Trinity Rep and the Rita and London Lloyd Award for Artistic Excellence from the Rhode Island College Arts Foundation.

Adam has directed and performed with theatres throughout the country including world and regional premieres with Trinity Rep, Perishable Theatre, Newgate Theatre, Mirror Stage, Seattle Children’s Theatre, Theatre in the Park, and Burning Coal Theatre Co. Adam has taught Acting, Theatre Appreciation and Design and Production at Rhode Island College, Brown Unversity/ Trinity Rep Consortium, and University of Washington; he is a member of the actor’s unions AEA, SAG and AFTRA.

Adam earned undergraduate degrees at Brandeis University (BA Economics), and Massachusetts college of Art (BFA Architecture). While developing his interests in theatre and visual art, Adam was involved in many extracurricular activities. He helped lead Brandeis University to the NCAA Championship in Soccer, earned honors for his senior thesis on urban housing project redevelopment at Massachusetts College of Art, and was awarded “Best in Show” for a juried painting competition in Boston.

Adam lives in Cary with his wife, Andrea, daughter, Isabel and son Elijah. Click here to contact Adam by email.

Stephen J. Larson | Technical Director
Stephen is the resident scenic and lighting designer for Theatre In The Park, where he is also technical director. He holds an MFA from Tulane University, and retired from the U.S. Army Reserves after 20+ years of honorable service in 2004. He served in Desert Storm and Operation Iraqi Freedom, and was a combat photographer. Steve has exhibited his photography at april&george gallery & wine bar, Galaxy Cinema, and at Pharmalink’s general offices in Research Triangle Park. He has five photographs published in the April issue of Our State Magazine. Stephen's design credits include: Off-Broadway: NYC, Katmandu; Regional Theatre: Southern Repertory Theatre, New Orleans, 3 Hotels, A Raisin in the Sun; The Contemporary Arts Center, New Orleans, From the Mississippi Delta, An Evening With Duke Ellington; Le Petit Theatre du Vieux Carre, New Orleans, M. Butterfly, Look Homeward, Angel, Jake’s Women, and Hello, Dolly; Shakespeare Theatre, Washington, D.C., MacBeth and Merchant of Venice; Theatre In The Park, The Man in the Desert, An American Daughter, Briarpatch, Galatea, The Lion in Winter, Sweet Bird of Youth, The Rocker, The Faraway Nearby, and Spinning into Butter. Several of his designs are used as props for the internationally acclaimed production of Ira David Wood’s A Christmas Carol. Click here to contact Steve by email.

Erin West | Office Manager
Erin joined the Theatre In The Park office staff in February 2006 after being a volunteer for just over one year. She wears many hats here at the theatre in addition to serving as the full-time Office Manager. She continues to volunteer her time on most of the technical crews for TIP’s mainstage shows. In February 2007, she was the Stage Manager for the world premiere of Peter Colley’s The Man in the Desert, directed by Michael Lilly. Erin is also Assistant Stage Manager for Theatre In The Park’s annual musical production of Ira David Wood III’s Briarpatch. She is eager to be stage managing two shows for Theatre In The Park’s 60th Anniversary Season: The History of America, Abridged, directed by David Henderson, and Angels in America: Parts 1 and 2, directed by Adam Twiss.

Erin is a founding board member of Jailbreak Theatre Company, located in Fuquay Varina, under executive director Mike Raab. Before giving her life to TIP and JTC, some highlights of her theatre experiences are: Stage Manager for Love Echoes, an original Wake Drama production, and Sound Designer for The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe, a Wake Tech Children’s Theatre production. In addition, she is credited as assistant director for a handful of independent films directed by Rob Underhill for Wake Drama and Rusty Lantern Films. She previously worked as a chiropractic office manager, and continues to expand her knowledge of natural health. Erin’s elusive spare time is spent sleeping, babysitting, enjoying all things Harry Potter, and reading books by Nicholas Sparks. Click here to contact Erin by email.