Meet Crown Theatre
Hello, Welcome to Crown Theatre! We are a Non Profit 501 C-3, producing theatre in South Austin/Buda/Kyle. We strive to make live theatre accessible, educational, and fun. Our mission is to create a thoughtful and inclusive theatre home where we cultivate meaningful experiences through high quality performance and education for the South Austin/Buda/Kyle area.
Andreá Smith (Co-Producing Artistic Director)- Andreá has been active in the Austin theatre scene for nearly two decades as an actor, director, producer, set designer, costumer, and choreographer. She’s worked on a range of theatre productions, from Shakespeare to musicals, and everything in between, and has garnered 10 B. Iden Payne nominations (and a few wins) along the way, including: Best Director of a Play for Youth, Wiley and the Hairy Man, (Second Youth Family Theatre), Outstanding Set Design, Wiley and The Hairy Man, (Second Youth Family Theatre), Outstanding Featured Actress in a Play for Youth, Charlotte’s Web, (Scottish Rite Theatre), Outstanding Small Cast Performance, Storm Still, (The Vortex), Outstanding Cast Performance, The Rover, (Hidden Room Theatre). Andreá is a former board member of the Hidden Room Theatre, and Penfold Theatre, as well as a company member for The Vortex and Shrewd Productions. By day, she works in Human Resources at a tech company, and she is the founder of an official 501(c)3 nonprofit, bakingforgood.org; which uses the power of flour to raise funds for Austin-based nonprofits in need.
Tobie Minor (Co-Producing Artistic Director)-Tobie is the Director of Stage Combat and teaches Movement at Texas State University and is the co-founder of Violent Crown. He has been a certified Advanced Actor Combatant and has been with the Society of American Fight Directors (SAFD) since 2000. He has choreographed violence at Texas State, Zach Theatre, Austin Shakespeare, Austin Playhouse, Hidden Room Theatre, and Penfold Theatre to name a few. He has been nominated and won many awards both locally (B. Iden Payne) and internationally (Falstaff Award), and his choreography has been featured at the Blackfriars conference and on The Globe stage in London. He is an award wining actor who's credits include several short films, commercials, voice over work, and a rather lengthy list of stage productions in Austin, Chicago, Colorado, and many points between, working with theaters like Creede Repertory, Austin Shakespeare, Zach Theatre, Austin Playhouse, Chicago Shakespeare, Stage Left Theatre, Looking Glass, Hidden Room, and Penfold Theatre.
Amy Minor (Managing Director)- Amy started her acting career at the age of 16, touring Germany playing Luisa in The Fantasticks, as well as understudying Mary in Jesus Christ Superstar. She’s performed in numerous musicals professionally in Kansas City (Heartland, Coterie) and Chicago (Lifeline, Chicago Jewish Theatre). Locally, you may have seen her play her dream role Petra in A Little Night Music at the Georgetown Palace Theatre, or in The Funnybun Family Picnic with Pollyanna Theatre. Amy has a BFA in theatre from Stephens College, is married to an incredible actor/fight choreographer named Toby Minor, and has two amazing sons, Aiden and Liam. She serves on the board to two local professional theatres (Penfold, Hidden Room) and is an avid supporter of the theatre programs at Fuentes and Chapa Middle Schools. By day, she is a realtor, helping the wonderful people of Austin find their dream homes. #minordetailsmatter
Jennifer Jennings (Co-Education Director)- Most recently seen eating up all the okra as Weezy the Talking Goat in the Rolling World Premiere of Alabaster by Audrey Cefaly, Jen is honored to be a founding member of The Crown Theatre with her beloved quaranteam. Fairly new to the production side of theatre, she served as assistant director for the Vortex Rep’s Summer Youth production of Alice’s Wonderland in 2019 and as assistant music director for Sing Muse in 2013. She is slated to direct Summer Youth Theatre 2021 for the Vortex Repertory. Favorite shows include Much Ado About Nothing (Penfold Theatre), Agent Andromeda (Sky Candy), The History of King Lear (The Hidden Room), The Great American Trailer Park Musical (Austin Theatre Project), Still Now (Shrewd Productions), Lear (Vortex Rep), Wild Horses (Vortex Rep; 2018 B. Iden Payne Outstanding Actress in a Drama; Robert Faires' Top 10 (+1) Theatre Riches of 2017; 2018 Austin Critics Table Performance by an Individual), Storm Still (Vortex Rep; 2018 B. Iden Payne Small Cast Performance in Scripted Theatre), Terminus (Vortex Rep; B. Iden Payne Outstanding Cast Performance), and Sing Muse (Vortex Rep; B. Iden Payne Outstanding Original Score). Jen is an elementary school counselor by day with 16 years experience in public education, and she is currently pursuing her Master’s in Psychology to join her Master’s in Education. She is raising her precious daughter, Selah, with her lighting designer husband James, and their two pittie rescues, Pepper and Cash.
