West End Players Guild (WEPG) is a professional non-Equity theatre company with deep roots in St. Louis’s Central West End. WEPG performs in the lower level of Union Avenue Christian Church at Union and Enright, and uses flexible staging to present intimate, thought-provoking evenings of theatre.
Many of the works chosen are seldom performed by other companies (Under Milk Wood, Don Juan in Hell, Resident Alien), while others provide an evening of classic theatre (Betrayal, Moon for The Misbegotten, Blithe Spirit).
We are proud to have evolved from a company that held its first performance in the West End in 1911, and we celebrate a connection to the wonderful area of St. Louis known as Gaslight Square.
We have a diverse audience that unites residents of the city, county, and surrounding metro area in a shared love of theatre. West End Players Guild looks forward to its next century of challenging, stimulating theatre.
Meet Our Board of Directors
- Renee Sevier-Monsey, President
- Renee has worked in all aspects of theatre, onstage and off. She is a graduate of Lindenwood University (MFA, Directing) and is a lighting designer, stage manager, director and actor, with several set and costume designs to her credit. Renee currently works for Bayer as senior billing administrator for the North America domestic world area.
- Chuck Lavazzi, Vice President
- A graduate of Rice University (BA, Psychology) and Indiana State University (MA, Experimental Psychology), Chuck retired after 33 years as an IT manager at AT&T. Chuck has been active in theater in St. Louis, Houston and Terre Haute for more than four decades. He’s mostly been an actor and sound designer, with the occasional foray into directing. Chuck has been writing classical music, cabaret and theater criticism for nearly as long, and is currently the senior performing arts critic at 88.1 KDHX, as well as the producer of the KDHX Arts Calendar and the author of the Stage Left theatre and music blog. He is a member of the Music Critics Association of North America and the St. Louis Theater Circle, and is an Associate Member of Double Helix Corporation.
- Mark Abels, Treasurer
- Mark was an executive and corporate officer with two major airlines before retiring to devote his time to not-for-profit and charitable volunteer work. He is a past Chair of the St. Louis Regional Advisory Board of The Salvation Army and served nine years on the Army’s National Advisory Board. He also has served as a board member or active volunteer for Variety-The Children’s Charity; Gateway Chapter of the National Multiple Sclerosis Society; and the Delta Gamma Center for visually-impaired children. He has acted with more than a dozen local theatre companies. He is a graduate of the University of Missouri School of Journalism (BJ), and spent most of his professional career in media management and corporate communications.
- Nathan Schroeder, Director
- Nathan came to theater late in life, after his three (then) teenagers showed him how much fun it could be. Retired from Monsanto’s IT staff, he has found a new career in theater lighting, having won a St. Louis Theater Circle award for Best Lighting Design for his design for Talley’s Folly at New Jewish Theatre. When lighting jobs permit he also acts every now and then. He serves as a Director of Clayton Community Theatre and of West End Players Guild, and also serves communication and building roles for Bethel Lutheran and Second Presbyterian Churches.