Alexis Duermeyer
Founder & Executive Artistic Director
Alexis has over two decades of experience in theater education. She has founded Backyard Kids’ Theater with the goal of creating a safe, inspiring and inclusive space where she can offer premiere theater training while making every child, regardless of experience, feel proud and valued.
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Alexis has recently returned to the Bay Area after serving as Artistic Director of The Random Farms Kids’ Theater in Westchester County, NY. In addition, she has taught children of all ages throughout the country with programs such as Camp Broadway, Broadway Bound Kids, The Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade and The D.A.R.E dance program. Over the past 20 years, Alexis has worked with thousands of students on both the east and west coasts. Alexis’ students have appeared on Broadway in Matilda, Dear Evan Hansen, School of Rock, Fun Home, Kinky Boots, How the Grinch Stole Christmas, Billy Elliot, Mary Poppins and Les Miserables. On TV in Saturday Night Live, The John Oliver Show, Billions, John Mulaney and the Sack Lunch Bunch as well as many
films and major motion pictures.
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Alexis has a B.F.A. from the Tisch School of the Arts (NYU) where she studied at the Atlantic Theater Company as well as musical theater at Cap 21. During her time as an actor, she appeared in numerous productions throughout New York City as well as National Tours. Alexis is a member of Actors Equity Association. She is so thrilled to create and grow Backyard Kids’ Theater in the Bay Area where she first fell in love with musical theater.
Anna Vorperian
Associate Artistic Director
Anna Vorperian is a Marin County native and a seasoned performer. She started tap and jazz classes at the age of 6 and a year later performed in her very first show Guys and Dolls with Marilyn Izdebski Productions. At the age of 13 she began assisting Marilyn with directing and dance classes and has gone on to work with many other companies throughout the north bay such as North Bay Theatrics, Stapleton School of the Performing Arts, The YES Foundation and Montessori de Terra Linda. She has been studying classical, contemporary and musical theater vocals since the age of 9 and it is one of her many passions. When not directing or teaching youth programs she herself can be found performing on numerous stages in the Bay Area. Some of her favorite roles include: Magenta (The Rocky Horror Show), Audrey (Little Shop of Horrors), Reno Sweeney (Anything Goes) and Marian Paroo (The Music Man). Theater has always been a place of great happiness for Anna and has always inspired her to challenge herself in ways she never knew possible and she hopes to be able to inspire the same in the younger generations.
Gillian Eichenberger
Musical Director / Private Voice Teacher
Gillian Eichenberger has been singing and playing piano since before she could read, picking out melodies by ear and discovering that music could be both a challenge and a comfort. Raised on her dad’s record collection, Gillian grew up loving everything: jazz, show tunes, and the wild joy of rock. Twenty-five years of piano study, fifteen years of vocal training, and with theater studies at San Francisco State University, she’s now a professional musical theater performer (with companies like Marin Theatre Company, Marin Shakespeare Company, The Mountain Play, Shotgun Players, and Berkeley Playhouse), and the lead singer for the Taylor Swift tribute band Swifty. She’s been teaching voice privately for 10 years, and has served as a director and musical director at Stanford University, Novato Theater Company, Redwood High School, and Throckmorton Theater.
She is proud to have grown up surrounded by the thriving art community in Marin, and credits her time in the Bay Area theater scene with her development as an artist and as a human being. She’s passionate about creating a supportive environment for her students that encourages experimentation with both vulnerability and strength.
Hannah Passanisi
Program Director
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Hannah is honored to be apart of backyard kids theater company. She has been doing theater across Sonoma County for over 10 years. She grew up doing youth theater and has done many of the shows we do at BKT herself when she was little. Hannah made her Directorial debut at 18 when she directed a dual language version of Aladdin.
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When not at Backyard kids she is onstage herself. Some of her favorite credits include The Prom (Emma Nolan), Little Women (Meg) Guys and Dolls, Young Frankenstein (Sonoma Arts Live), Spamalot (Novato Theater Company), Hello dolly, Tuck Everlasting, and Matilda (Spreckels).
Hannah takes pride in helping future generations find their passion for theater in the way she did.
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Heather Gobbeé
Program Director
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Heather Gobbée is Sonoma County Arts Educator of the Year and presently teaches Visual & Performing Arts at Adele Harrison Middle School, Art & Yoga Therapy for neurodivergent adults with De Colores Arts, and directs with Backyard Kids Theater in Sonoma. Heather is a professional actor (AEA), Certified Yoga Therapist (C-IAYT), and Movement Educator with an MFA in Acting from Brandeis University and CA Teacher Certification in Theater Arts, PreK-12. Heather has performed and taught drama, improvisation, puppetry, yoga, and creative movement for children and adults across NYC and CA. Heather is an excited and active SFBAPG member, workshop committee coordinator, and educator and performer for the SFBAPG 70th Anniversary Northern CA Puppetry Festival. In 2024, Heather built giant lighted puppets with Andrew Kim, Animal Cracker Conspiracy, and Donovan Zimmerman and “Under the Sea, Cardboard & Me!” a Reuse, Rebuild, Reimagine Junk Puppet workshop for National Endowment of the Arts Recipient Open Source Gallery’s KoKo NYC family program.
Melody Payne Alonzo
Operations Manager
Melody is a Pennsylvania native, born into a big, musical family and has been singing for as long as she can remember. She trained with All Access Productions in Long Island, NY, with whom she went on 5 nationwide tours, performing an anti-bullying show in middle and high schools all across the country. Melody is a trained follow in partner dances including East Coast Swing, Lindy Hop, West Coast Swing, Blues, and Fusion. She is also a blues/fusion instructor alongside her husband. Since moving to California in 2011, Melody has performed on many stages from Sacramento to the Bay. Some of her favorite roles include Brooke/Vicki in Noises Off (Novato Theater Company), Sylvia in Sylvia (Sonoma Arts Live), Apostle in Jesus Christ Superstar (Berkeley Playhouse), Chrissy in Hair (Missouri Street Theater), and Penny Pingleton in Hairspray (Rocklin Community Theater, Elly Award Winner - Best Supporting Actress). Melody currently resides in Oakland with her husband, Justin, and dog, Artichoke.
