Justin Broom
Co-Artistic Director

Justin Broom had been a long-time Illinois resident before falling in love with the city of Chicago. Before moving north, Justin graduated from Southern Illinois University with degrees in theater as well as radio, television and digital media. He has appeared in the Ghostlight production of The Thirteenth Chair, as well as staged readings of Reality Bites and Must Eat TV. Other favorite productions include: Julius Caesar, Stone Soup Shakespeare (Ensemble); Lively Stones, Running With Scissors Theatre Co. (Gov. John Winthrop); Torak the Inadequate, Southern Illinois University (Torak).

When he is not busy making theater, Justin can be found re-watching old seasons of Survivor, rolling dice in a game of Dungeons & Dragons, grabbing a drink with friends and spending time with his partners and his dog, Percy.

Nick Conrad

Nick Conrad is originally from San Antonio, Texas, and moved to Chicago to study improv at The IO Theater, The Annoyance and The Second City. Nick has also performed, stand-up and sketch comedy at various Chicago locations. In addition to comedy, Nick has been in numerous live readings with Ghostlight Ensemble including: Don’t Move or the Bunny Gets it, Don’t Call Me Junior, You Me and Five Bucks and Must Eat TV, as well as the Make/Believe theatre festival for young audiences. Nick would like to thank his family for their never ending support and inspiration. Believe in yourself and anything is possible.

Reid Henry

Reid Henry, long time listener — first time caller, is a Chicago-based actor completely thrilled to be joining the Ghostlight Ensemble! Born and corn-fed in Indiana, Reid made his way to the Paris of the Prairie in the fall of 2019 after graduating from Indiana University. After a brief hiatus from the stage, he’s back and ready to truly make the Windy City stage his home.

Recent credits include: Ghostlight Ensemble’s Make/Believe, as well as: The Complete Works of William Shakespeare Abridged (Revised!), L’Eliser D’Amore, Titus Andronicus and Leipzig.

A man of vintage style but not vintage values, when not on stage, he can be found baking breads, fermenting various things and scouring Facebook marketplace for his next “project”. Much love, and many thanks to his family, and his many friends who’ve buoyed him these past few years.

Kirk Jackson

Kirk is excited to be an a member of Ghostlight Ensemble. He had great fun appearing in their holiday show Nutcracker Nightmare, as well as numerous movie readings including Something Has Survived: A Jurassic Park Live Reading and Girl Power!: A Spice World Live Reading and their Pirandello one act festival, Six Authors in Search of a Character, in The Mountain Giants. Among the companies he has worked with in the recent past are Interrobang Theater Project, Refuge Theatre Project, Underscore Theatre, Hell in a Handbag, Cowardly Scarecrow, Strangeloop Theatre and New American Folk Theatre (of which he is a company member.) He was last seen as Bruce Springsteen and The Most Pathetic Man in the World in the Jeff Award winning High Fidelity: the Musical. He is a graduate of Illinois State University's acting program.

Christine Marie

Christine Marie has been a co-producer of Yippiefest since 2019, and festivals are her wheelhouse. From 2012-2016, she won Best Performed Monologue, Best Supporting Actress, Best Actress and Best Director for the Black and White Festival at Pittsburgh Playwrights' Theater. She has written, directed and performed in Bad Theater Fest and Bad Film Fest taking home Best Adaptation in the latter. Regarding adaptations, she has adapted The Scottish Play (No, I won't even write it in the Bio, how dare you.) for the competition show Bard Wars and 12th Midsummers Night Tempest highlighting the loyalty and dedication between two of Shakespeare's common but overlooked characters, Antonio and Sebastian, as a fundraiser for Pulse and the community therein. She has toured Brimstone and Grind, a series taking things in the public domain and telling them in the medium of Vaudeville/Burlesque. Since moving to Chicago, she wrote, directed and starred in 2 Idiots in a Haunted House for the Rhino Fest, ran plenty of box office, stage managed and designed sets. In the summer of 2023, she was lucky enough to be cast in Ghostlight Ensemble's Make/Believe Festival, and feels empowered to be considered a peer by any one of the names above and below, and hopes to contribute to the incredible work this talented team is doing. 

Courtney Marie

Courtney Marie is an artist, dreamer and educator from right here in Chicago. Courtney spends her days working at the University of Illinois at Chicago in the Political Science department and her evenings on or behind someone's stage. Recent Chicago credits include Ghostlight's Make/Believe 2022 and directing for Impostor Theatre Company's Footholds Vol. 3-5. Love always to Courtney's incredible husband Jonas and amazing friends for the support.

Song Marshall

Song Marshall (she/her), now a recent graduate from East15 Acting school’s MFA international program, has enjoyed such roles as; Othello in Othello, The Fish Footman, and Mister Dodgson in Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, King Lear in King Lear and the High priestess in Iphigenia and Other Daughters.  U.S. credits include both Peasblossom and Titania in A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Time in A Winter’s Tale, Lady Basildon in An Ideal Husband and Engineer in I Build Giants. When not acting, Song enjoys cosplaying at various conventions, knitting/ crocheting and reading a good book with the perfect cup of tea.

Christopher Paul Mueller

Christopher is honored to be a part of Ghostlight Ensemble! Chris has been in such Ghostlight productions as KRAMPUS! and EVERY SINGLE STAGED READING EXCEPT FOR 9 TO 5. In addition to being an ensemble member for Red Theater, Christopher can be seen around town and has performed with Red Tape, Collaboraction, The Scooty and JoJo Show, First Floor Theater, etc. Christopher also is one half of the probably successful podcast, THE REVIEWNIVERSE WITH CHRIS AND STEVE. Check it out wherever you get podcasts! Much love to his friends and family and bun.

Sydney Ray

Sydney is an actor and educator based in Chicago. She’s thrilled and grateful to be part of Ghostlight Ensemble, where she appeared as the Queen in The Princess Without Pots as well as taking part in Must Eat TV 2: A Live Reading of Your Favorite Thanksgiving Episodes and the Holiday Cabernet. Other theatre credits include: The Wild Party, Music for Theatre Chicago (Kate); Joy to the Otherworld, Otherworld Theatre Company Paragon Play Festival (Mom); Spoon River Anthology, E.D.G.E. Theatre (Mrs. Williams, Soloist). She has worked with The Unrehearsed Shakespeare Company of Chicago, Broken Nose Theatre Company, Compass Creative Dramatics, Shakes, Not Stirred and is an Artistic Associate with 20% Theatre Company of Chicago. You can find her on YouTube in POST, a Whiskey Delta Films webseries, as the alpha-female-cannibal, Cora. A HUGE Thank You to her friends and family for their constant love and support.

Holly Robison
Co-Artistic Director
Producing Director

Holly has been living and working in Chicago for several years, both as a performer and director. Favorite roles include Ellen (In the Wake), Jo (Independence), Elizabeth Bennet (Pride and Prejudice) and Martha (The Children’s Hour). She has directed A Midsummer Night’s Dream, as well as several smaller productions. You can also see her exercising her comedy chops as a member of Improvised Jane Austen.

She has studied with Chicago organizations including Remy Bumppo, TUTA Theatre, Victory Gardens, Second City and First Folio Technique with Susan Hart and Jeffrey Carlson. Additionally, she recently completed the program A Practical Approach to Directing at Yale School of Drama. When not acting or directing, she can probably be found reading, watching British costume dramas, eating too much Indian food and/or talking to her cat (don't judge, OK?).

Email Holly at holly(at)ghostlightensemble.com.

Kayla V. White

Kayla V. White was born in Detroit, grew up in Phoenix, but finally feels at home here in Chicago. They earned their BFA in Music Theatre from Illinois Wesleyan University, and have since been performing, directing, choreographing and teaching dance/theatre/yoga in the Chicago area.

One of their favorite projects born out of quarantine and the racial unrest in America is directing a play festival centering Black writers and actors. When they aren’t creating theatre, they can be found teaching accessible yoga (200hr RYT), reading everything from bad romance novels to psychology textbooks and cooking/baking/eating vegan foods.

Previous credits include: Samira (u/s Thirst; Strawdog Theatre) Cat ((Un)Seen: A Phantasmagorical Story of Tangled Minds; Clock Productions), Nedda (Last Laugh; Clock Productions), Advisors (The Princess Without Pots; Ghostlight Ensemble), Ophelia (here comes the tide, there goes the girl; Hairpin Arts) and Chief (Princess and the Pea; Missoula Children’s Theatre).

Chad Wise
Managing Director

Chad has wanted to make exciting theatre with these fine folks for several years now, but only if their talents, abilities and energies were managed well. When the opportunity came along to have a direct hand in that, he jumped at the chance. Chad is no stranger to managing a theatre company. He founded New Millennium Theatre Company in 1998 and served as its artistic director for many years, bringing experiences like The Texas Chainsaw Musical, Miyagi! A Karate Kid Musical and Silent Night of the Living Dead to Chicago stages. Along the way he’s worked with the likes of The Public House Theatre and Terra Mysterium as well.

He is excited to contribute his organizational wizardry, his pop culture affinity and his desire to create shows his 10-year-old son wants to see to Ghostlight Ensemble.

Email Chad at chad(at)ghostlightensemble.com.