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"As a result of an initiative to increase the board of trustees, we continue to add talented individuals with diverse skills who will guide the future of this historic theatre as a year-round operation, said Elisabeth Morten, board president. Newly elected Westport Country Playhouse board members are: Sandra Walters Defeo was born in Branford , Connecticut and is a graduate of Syracuse University Newhouse School of Communications. Ms. DeFeo began her marketing career as a copywriter and later, television producer for advertising agencies in Texas and New York . She joined Procter and Gamble in Cincinnati in 1977, and over the next 15 years held positions of increasing responsibility in brand management, new product development, and international strategic planning. She started her own company, Business Growth Strategies, in 1993 when her family relocated to San Francisco , and has worked primarily with non-profit organizations since then as a marketing and strategic planning consultant. In a more hands-on, creative role, she is also the author/editor of A Garden Party a cookbook developed for The Greens Farms Garden Club, and the writer/producer of Magic Moments and Razzle Dazzle for the Downtown Cabaret Theater. Ms. DeFeo, her husband Neil DeFeo and their three daughters have been Westport residents since 1996. David Fiore directs Davis Marcus Partners 1.5 million square-foot Connecticut and New York portfolio from its Norwalk , CT offices. His responsibilities include all facets of DMPs business including primary responsibility for new acquisitions and developments and oversight of the management and leasing of DMPs portfolio of properties. Fiore was raised in the construction business and is formally trained in Architecture (Penn State- BS Arch 79). His 18 years of architectural practice includes 7 years as co-founder and managing principal of Alan Ritchie/David Fiore Architects in NYC. In 1994, the firm merged with Philip Johnson, the renowned architect from New Canaan , to form Philip Johnson, Ritchie & Fiore Architects. Mr. Fiore continued his role as managing partner of the firm that, at the time of his departure in 1997, was performing work on four continents. Projects of interest included numerous renovations of the New York State Theater and the restoration of a 1920s vaudeville theater in central Pennsylvania . As a resident of Westport since moving to Connecticut in 1997, Mr. Fiores family has been active members of the YMCA. He is a member of Christ & Holy Trinitys vestry and one of the key people tapped to lead the implementation of C&HTs $5 million strategic plan for growth including serving on the Major Gifts Committee, Property Implementation Committee, and Capital Campaign Committee. David and his wife, Bettina, are also Stage Door Society contributors for the Westport Country Playhouse Campaign for a New Era and have four very active sons: Francis, Max, Alan, and Julian. Kim Harizman was born in Johannesburg , South Africa in 1968 and immigrated to La Jolla , California with her family in 1980. Kim earned her BA in Political Science and Economics from UC Berkeley. She moved to New York City in 1990, where she worked on the trading floor for Furman Selz and then Bear Stearns. In 1993 she joined Lyster Watson & Company, an Investment Advisory firm raising money for Hedge Funds, as COO/CFO and Partner. Ms. Harizman moved to Westport with her husband Niv and three young boys in 2004 after having spent three years weekending here. She is actively involved in the community and sits on the local Boards of AIPAC, the FIDF and Hadassah. Joanna Heimbold, a performing artist and designer, is the founder of 3rd Eye Design, a Greenwich , CT firm providing interior and product design services, as well as creative content for the performing arts and childhood education. Ms. Heimbold's business provides design services for homes and offices. Ms. Heimbold launched an accessories department where she designed children's products manufactured in Finland , China , Sweden and England for the "NettoCollection," a popular high-end brand. Ms. Heimbold was also the interior stylist for a children's book entitled Baby's Room published by Chronicle Books. In the performing arts, Ms. Heimbold is best known for her acting and creative role with the dance/theater group Instant Girl which has performed regularly in venues such as The Public Theater, Dance Theater Workshop, Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts, Barishnykov Arts Center and Naked Angels. In her television and motion picture roles she has appeared on The Jon Stewart Show, MTV, PBS City Arts, The Tracey Ullman Show" and "The Nanny Diaries. Among other current projects, Ms. Heimbold is creating a multi-faceted program called "Stand Tall" which was conceived as a way to teach children to speak easily and naturally in front of audiences. She has taught this program for the past two years at the Waterside School in Stamford . She received her Masters Degree in Early Childhood Education from Sarah Lawrence College and lives in Connecticut with her two sons. Joyce Hergenhan retired in 2004 from General Electric where she served as a corporate officer for 22 years both as GEs vice president for communications and as president of the GE Foundation. Previously, she had been senior vice president for public affairs at the Consolidated Edison Company, a journalist with the Gannett Newspapers and a press secretary/speechwriter for a U.S. congressman. As head of worldwide communications for GE, Ms. Hergenhan worked closely with then-CEO Jack Welch as he transformed GE from a traditional manufacturing company into the worlds largest technology and services company. During that period, GE was recognized by both Fortune Magazine and the Financial Times as the best managed and most admired company in the world. In recognition of her work at GE, Ms. Hergenhan was awarded the three most prestigious recognitions in her profession: She was honored with lifetime achievement awards from both Women in Communications and PR News, and she was elected chairman of the Communications Seminar, the most prestigious organization of senior communications executives from around the world. Ms. Hergenhan is a member of the board of directors of the Cintas Corporation. She also serves on the boards of Syracuse University , the S.I. Newhouse School of Communications, the Inner City Foundation, the Jackie Robinson Foundation, the Connecticut Audubon Society, and the Fairfield Museum and History Center . A graduate of Syracuse University and the Columbia University Graduate School of Business, she has been honored by both her alma maters. At Syracuse she has received the Arents Award, the schools highest alumni honor, and Columbia University has honored her as Columbia s Connecticut Alumnus of the Year. Michael Klingher is senior managing director of Westbridge Capital, a real estate/hospitality investment fund, which he co-founded in 2006. Prior to Westbridge, Klingher spent 20 years at Goldman Sachs, most recently as a managing director in New York and London , where he focused on opportunistic real estate investments on behalf of the Whitehall Funds, a series of real estate funds managed by Goldman. Prior to entering the business world, Klingher was a professional actor in New York and Los Angeles . He appeared in numerous commercials, as a guest star on several television shows, including Taxi, Sanford, and Ryans Hope, and as a lead in the Broadway comedy, Gemini. Klingher has a BA from Wesleyan University , where he currently serves as a Trustee, as well as a JD/MBA from Harvard University . Marjorie J. Peterson has devoted the bulk of her career to working as an advocate for equality and social welfare for children. This passion took root during the 25 years she spent as reporter and editor with the Connecticut Post. After years of writing about the stark disparity of opportunities available to children in Fairfield County , Ms. Peterson left journalism to earn a Masters Degree in Social Work from Columbia University . She is now a licensed clinical social worker with Family & Childrens Agency in Norwalk , where she works directly with abused children in the Connecticut s foster care system. In addition to this direct work, Marjorie advocates for childrens rights and educational opportunities by arranging neighborhood forums for local, state and federal leaders to meet with parents in public housing complexes in Bridgeport and Norwalk. Over the years, Ms. Peterson has volunteered with a number of community programs, including the Horizons Program at Greens Farms Academy , the Domus Foundation, Kayak for a Cause, LEAP (an Americorps program for at-risk children), Save the Children, the Norwalk Housing Authority, the Bridgeport Housing Authority and Childrens Connection in Norwalk . Ms. Peterson earned her undergraduate degree from Southern Connecticut State University and a Masters Degree in Communications from Fairfield University . She is married to Robert Cenci, a graduate of West Point Military Academy and a retired partner of Goldman Sachs. They reside in Old Greenwich. Carol West Seldin resides in New Canaan with her husband Peter and sons, Matthew and Douglas. She is a native of the Boston area and a graduate of Wellesly High School . She graduated with honors from Skidmore College in 1971 with a BA in English Education, followed by an MA in English from SUNY at Albany . In addition, she has pursued graduate study in Theatre in Education through New York University s London Center . Carols work experience includes teaching middle and high school English for 10 years, as well as directing high school plays and musicals and coaching award winning speech and debate teams. She taught at Lakeland High School in Westchester , New York , The Laboratory Schools in Chicago , Illinois and Beaver Country Day School in Wellesley , Massachusetts . She has served on the executive boards of many school parent organizations and chaired 2 book fairs while her sons were growing up. Pruning clippers in hand, Carol is a certified Master Gardener and member of the New Canaan Garden Center . Richard Slavin is a principal and chair of Cohen and Wolf, P.C.'s Securities Group. He is also a member of the firm's Litigation and Business & Corporate Groups. Resident in the firm's Westport office, Mr. Slavin practices in the areas of securities regulation, securities and federal court litigation, and banking regulation. Prior to joining Cohen and Wolf, Mr. Slavin served as the director of the Connecticut Banking Department's Securities and Business Investments Division from 1981 to 1983. Before then, he served as a financial analyst examiner, staff attorney, and attorney inspector at the Ohio Division of Securities from 1972 through 1981. Mr. Slavin is admitted to practice in Connecticut and Ohio. He is a member of the Connecticut Banking Commissioner's Securities Act Advisory Counsel, has served as chairman of the Business Law Committee of the Greater Bridgeport Bar Association from 1996 to 1998, and has been a member of the Executive Committee of the Connecticut Bar Association's Business Law Section since 1985. He is also a member of the Connecticut Bar Association's Federal Practice Committee and serves on the State Regulation of Securities Committee of the Business Law Section of the American Bar Association and is vice-chair of its Enforcement Committee. Mr. Slavin is a member of the Securities Litigation Committee and the Arbitration and Enforcement Subcommittees of the Litigation Section of the American Bar Association. He is also a member of the Board of Directors of Connecticut Legal Services, Inc. and currently serves as fundraising chair. He was a founder of the Legal Center for Connecticut Non-Profit Organizations, Inc., has served as chair of the Jewish Center for Community Services of Eastern Fairfield County from 1999 through 2001, and also served on its and its predecessor organization's Board of Directors for 17 years. He currently serves as president of Congregation Beth El in Fairfield . In 2004, he received the United Way 's Community Builder Award. Mr. Slavin received his B.A. in 1969 and his M.B.A. in 1972 from Case Western Reserve University . He received his J.D. in 1977 from the University of Akron . Johnna G. Torsone graduated from Albany Law School and Vassar College with honors. She has acted as Senior Vice President, Chief Human Resources Officer, and Member of the Executive Leadership Committee of Pitney Bowes, Inc. since 1990. Her focus is on key HR issues driving growth and profitability such as talent acquisition, retention and development, employee engagement, organizational effectiveness and total rewards. Before joining Pitney Bowes, Ms. Torsone was a partner with the New York law firm Parker, Chapin, Flattau & Klimpl, where she practiced employment and labor law for 14 years and prior to that she clerked for the Chief Administrative Judge of the State of New York . A chair of several professional and bar association committees, she was a nationally recognized leader in her field and an active participant in community and civic activities. She currently serves as Co-Chair of the Health Policy Committee of the Fairfield Business Council, and is a member of the Health Care Policy Council. She actively participated for over a decade, with INROADS Inc., a group dedicated to the enhancement of minority youth, where she served on the National Board and most recently served as Chair of the local Fairfield/Westchester chapter. She is a member of the Stamford Hospital Board, where she serves as Chair of the Quality Committee, a member of the Board of the Center for Family Literacy, a member of the Human Resources Policy Association and a member of the advisory board to the graduate programs at Manhattanville College . She has also been an active participant of the Human Resource Institute. Playhouse Information Following a multi-million dollar renovation completed in 2005, the Playhouse is now open year-round, welcoming 85,000 audience members annually. On its legendary stage are theatrical productions, educational programming and special events, including film, readings of short fiction and new plays, and a Family Festivities series. The rich history of the Westport Country Playhouse dates back to 1931, when New York theatre producers Lawrence Langner and his wife Armina Marshall created a Broadway-quality stage within an 1830s cow barn. Now celebrating its 78th season, the Playhouse has produced more than 700 plays, 35 of which later transferred to Broadway. Its roster of actors reads like a Whos Who of the American theatre. Westport Country Playhouse serves as a treasured home for the performing arts for audiences and artists alike, and as a true cultural landmark for Connecticut . For more information, call the box office at (203) 227-4177, or toll-free at 1-888-927-7529, or visit the box office at 25 Powers Court , off Route 1, Westport . Information about the Playhouse is also available at www.westportplayhouse.org. © Copyright by NorwalkPlus.com. Some articles and pictures posted on our website, as indicated by their bylines, were submitted as press releases and do not necessarily reflect the position and opinion of NorwalkPlus.com, Norwalk Plus magazine, Canaiden LLC or any of its associated entities. Articles may have been edited for brevity and grammar. 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