Terry Hale - Executive Artistic Director
Terry has directed and produced theatrical productions for over 25 years. In the past 16 years, he has produced over 65 major productions for the Opera House. Throughout his career, he has introduced hundreds of adults, teens, and children to theatre through his theatre arts program at the Opera House and other community programs.
Terry is credited for reviving the once-closed and forgotten Elgin Opera House to what is now a thriving regional community attraction. His background in both the arts and business marketing has uniquely qualified him to manage the several diverse tasks required to create, sustain and grow a successful rural arts program.
Terry enjoys teaching and is currently the theatre arts instructor at Blue Mountain Community College and has directed theatricals for the BMCC Music and Theater Department and for Pendleton's College Community Theater, which serves BMCC.
Terry is the director of the award-winning, nationally recognized youth theatre group, Opera House Youth Actors (OHYA). Terry was awarded the Freddie G Fellowship, a prestigious award recognizing outstanding theater educators.
Terry has worked as a full-time marketing director, marketing consultant, and business owner. Terry earned degrees in Marketing Communications, English, and Interpersonal Communications. He also studied music, dance, theater movement, and acting techniques.
Terry has acted in several musical theater productions over the past 25 years. Some of his favorite roles include Bill in Mamma Mia, Smudge in Forever Plaid, Colonel Pickering in My Fair Lady, Buffalo Bill in Annie Get Your Gun, The Cowardly Lion in The Wizard of Oz, Reverend Moore in Footloose, Rooster in Annie and a Brother in Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dream Coat.
Grant Turner - Associate Artistic Director
Grant Turner has been acting, directing, and producing classical theatre in the Pacific Northwest for over 25 years. He has worked with; Artists Repertory Theatre (Portland OR), Profile Theatre (Portland OR), The Northwest Children’s Theater (Portland OR), Bend Shakespeare in the Park (Bend OR) among others, and founded the award-winning Northwest Classical Theatre Company (Portland OR) where he served as Artistic Director for 16 years.
In his 25 years on stage he has worked and trained with several theatrical legends including; Bill Alexander and Barry Kyle (both associate directors of the a Royal Shakespeare Company), and actors Joseph Marcell, Michael Pennington, and Dame Janet Suzman (among others).
Grant has been in or directed (sometimes both at the same time) over 60 Shakespeare productions, and has presented 34 of the 37 plays in Shakespeare’s canon.
Favorite productions include; Richard III, Othello, Cymbeline (with the NWCTC), Titus Andronicus (Bend Shakespeare in the Park), and Much Ado About Nothing and A Midsummer Night’s Dream at the Elgin Opera House.
Grant was honored with the 2014 Special Achievement Drammy Award for his contribution to Portland, OR Theatre.
Kathy Bonney - Executive Assistant
Kathy joins the Opera House staff with vast management experience including almost 44 years in banking. Before accepting the position at the Opera House, Kathy worked for 11 years as the branch manager of the Elgin Branch of Community Bank.
She currently serves on the Elgin Food Bank Board, President of the Elgin Chamber of Commerce, and the Treasurer of the Elgin FFA Alumni and Supporters Organization. She is a past Treasurer for the Elgin Stampede Rodeo Association and a graduate of the Ford Family Foundation Leadership Development Program.
Kathy believes our community has been blessed by the city government and their grand design to have an Opera House in the community of Elgin, Oregon. Built in1912, the Elgin Opera House is the grand dame of the region.
Terry Hale, the Managing Artistic Director, inspired her participation in the arts. She currently serves as the Executive Assistant and Treasurer of the Friends of the Opera House. Kathy has served as President twice over the past 15 years. She feels it is an honor to serve with this organization because of the positive impact Opera House programs have on the actors, stage crew, technicians, and audience. The Friends of the Opera House provides an opportunity for exploration, development, and refinement of one’s pursuit in the performing arts.
Laura Califf - Box Office Manager
Laura Califf was born and raised in La Grande, OR. She graduated from Eastern Oregon University with a Bachelor’s Degree in Sociology/Anthropology. Laura is married to Ron and has 3 teenage children and 2 bonus daughters. She has lived in the Portland area twice but has been back “home” for almost 8 years.
About 12 years ago, Laura and her family were “introduced” to the Elgin Opera House with Terry Hale’s first production of Annie and they all were very impressed by the show. Shortly after, they moved to Cornelius OR for 3 ½ years; but as soon as they moved back to town, they saw Shrek The Musical and Oliver and were blown away.
Laura’s youngest 3 children decided they would like to audition for Chitty Chitty Bang Bang and were cast in the children’s ensemble; they were bitten by the “acting bug”. They talked Laura into being in Johnny Cash’s Musical Show, Ring of Fire. Her family has been in various productions at the Elgin Opera House since then including Annie (2015); The Little Mermaid; A Christmas Story; The Wizard of Oz; The Addams Family; Mary Poppins; and Newsies. Laura enjoys being in shows and being a theatre mom very much.
Laura is excited and honored to be the Box Office Managers for the Elgin Opera House and brings many years of professional experience with her. She can not wait to meet the many amazing Opera House supporters, patrons, and actors that she will be working with.
Maureen O’Brien - Costume Designer - President BOD
Maureen has served in various capacities for Friends of Opera House since 2008. She currently serves as President of the Board of Directors. She comes to this position with vast experience in performing arts leadership. She served as President of the Union County Children’s Choir for several years and served as the Youth Orchestra Coordinator and grant writer for the Grande Ronde Symphony & Orchestra.
Maureen has worked as an educator for most of her career. She has Bachelor of Liberal Arts with Theatre Minor form Eastern Oregon University. She is currently a lead educator for the Head Start program in Elgin OR. She worked as a child treatment specialist for Grande Ronde Child Center and Director of Religious Education at Our Lady of the Valley.
Maureen’s favorite job continues to be her work as lead costumer for the Friends of the Opera House. She has costumed over 25 mainstage productions at the Opera House. She has also costumed shows for La Grande High School, Blue Mountain Community College and the Community School of the Arts in La Grande OR.
As a former professional dancer and competitive ballroom dancer, Maureen loves to share her dancing and choreography talents on the stage. She has danced as an actor in several of the Opera House productions and was the original Friends of the Opera House Choreographer.
Steve G. Oliver - BOD Vice President
Serving his community has always been an important part of Steve Oliver's life. Steve graduated from Lewis-Clark State College in 1971 and began teaching school in Lytle, Texas. He moved to Wallowa, Oregon and became a police officer in 1977. Steve's journey in law enforcement led him to work at the Union County Sheriff's office in 1987 and he was the Union County Sheriff for 12 years. After he retired as sheriff, he continued to teach in Union, Baker, Wallowa, and Umatilla counties for the next 13 years. Steve continued his own education by graduating from the FBI Academy in 2001. He has served in numerous leadership positions, including the Wallowa School Board and the ESD board for eight years. Family is extremely important to Steve; he has been married to his wife Kathy for 35 years and is the father of four daughters, a stepson and stepdaughter. He has ten grandchildren and six great grandchildren. Fast cars are an important part of Steve's life-he loves classic cars and keeping his 1965 Ford Thunderbird fine-tuned. Another hobby is vacationing in the Carribean and participating in plays at the Elgin Opera House, Annie (2009) and Guys and Dolls (2013). Steve continues to serve his community through the Lions Club as the District Governor for the 36G Lions Club and he is also the Council Chair for Lions of Oregon. Steve has been on the Elgin Opera House Board of Directors for 12 years and is honored to contribute to the city of Elgin.
Misty Hines - BOD Secretary
An Eastern Oregon native, Misty finished her Bachelor’s Degree in Music in 1991 and her Masters in Education in 1992, both at EOU. Misty has been teaching in La Grande School District for 29 years and still loves her career. Through the years she has served on many district advising committees, including curriculum advising committees and the La Grande Education Association bargaining team. She is currently on the La Grande School District Design Team, the Central Vision Team for her school, and serves as a Professional Learning Community leader. Misty has been involved with Elgin Opera House productions since 2008, both as a parent, actor, and assistant director. You may have seen her in several Elgin Opera House productions, where her roles have included Miss Hannigan in Annie, Miss Shields in A Christmas Story, Granny in Addam's Family, and Rosie in Mamma Mia! Misty is currently serving as secretary for the Friends of the Opera House Board of Directors. Misty’s hobbies include performing and assisting with community theater, reading, traveling, Zumba, and striving to improve as a teacher so she can change her corner of the world.
Cynthia Peralta - Choreographer & Coach
Cynthia Peralta aka Za’eer is a graduate of California State University Long Beach. Though she has been dancing all her life she became a part of one of the local dance studios in Porterville, CA in 2000. Starting as Dance Mom to Dance Student to the Dance Studio’s technique coach aka Drill sergeant to Teacher Assistant and eventually as a Studio Choreographer. Always interested in learning about and performing different dance styles (Ballet, Hip Hop, Jazz, West African, and Latin), it was her introduction to the art of Belly Dance that was love at first shimmy. Belly Dance allows women of all ages the opportunity to express their innate femininity and develop a positive self-image and appreciation for just being a woman which had an immediate appeal to Cynthia.
In 2007, she became a part of the Eastern Sun Dance Company, a professional Belly Dance Troupe, under the direction of Andalee Owens. As an Eastern Sun Dance Company troupe member and soloist, Cynthia has had the opportunity to perform throughout California as well as Las Vegas at Belly Dance Festivals, Cultural Events, Dance Showcases, private events & special charity events. In 2014, She started teaching beginner to intermediate belly dance classes and competing in her first competition at the 2015 Belly Dancer of the Universe Competition making it to the semifinal round.
In 2016, she added Baton Coach and Adjudicator to her arsenal as she worked with her youngest daughter and additional coaches on her competitive baton twirling goals resulting in her daughter qualifying to compete in France for individual, pairs, and team events. Due to the competitive nature of baton twirling, she realized it was in the best interest of her daughter and her own mental health to have a clear understanding of what was expected of her daughter on the competitive level and how her daughter would be judged. Cynthia became a certified USTA Baton Coach and took Level 1 Judge courses.
In 2018, Cynthia was introduced to the world of Musical Theater, when she was asked to choreograph special hip-hop-oriented pieces for the local community junior theater group. Eventually, she was brought on as the choreographer for the group’s program for JTF West in 2019. It was at JTF West Cynthia saw the breathtaking program put on by Elgin Opera House’s OHYA group. Being new to musical theater, she decided to take a chance to connect with Terry Hale to pick his brain for tips and mentorship. He graciously obliged her request and his brain she did pick.
Cynthia’s oldest daughter Isis (who is currently a professional cheerleader for an NFL team in California) and the youngest Aziza (whose baton career Cynthia contributes to her development of adjudication skills) are her pride and joys. Cynthia’s goals as a dance teacher and adjudicator are to provide her students with an educational as well as enjoyable environment to learn about skills of hip hop, belly dance, and musical theater while understanding the importance of technique and execution. It is truly her pleasure to work with dancers young and old as they develop new skills, discover there is no limit to what you can do, and improve their confidence through whichever dance genre they choose. Cynthia believes dance offers everyone the opportunity to express to the outside world what you’re made of on the inside. Her motto “We all have a story to tell why not tell it through dance.”
Abigail Grigg - Choreographer & Director
Abigail Grigg comes to the Elgin Opera House with a lifelong dedication to the performing arts. She has been an active participant in theatrical performances at the Elgin Opera House since the age of 5 with over 30 musicals under her belt.
Abigail's involvement in the Opera House Youth Actors (OHYA), a touring competitive theater troupe, has been instrumental in shaping her artistic journey.
During her time in OHYA, Abigail discovered her passion for choreography, showcasing her talent at prestigious events like the Junior Theater Festival (JTF), where she competed against groups from around the world and garnered national recognition for her outstanding work as a choreographer and actress. Abigail continues to stay involved with the group as a choreographer.
Abigail has also taken on the role of choreographer for mainstage productions at the Opera House, leaving her mark on beloved shows such as Mama Mia, Newsies, Matilda, Tuck Everlasting, and Beauty and the Beast.
She has served as an Opera House theater camp counselor, choreographer, production director and camp director.
Abigail's versatility as an actor is demonstrated by her wide range of skills. In her portrayal of Babette in Beauty and the Beast, she took on the challenge of hammock silk dancing, mastering a new form of expression and captivating audiences with her graceful performances.
Beyond the Opera House, Abigail has choreographed performances for Hermiston High School and College Community Theater, while also collaborating with artistic director Terry Hale in teaching engagements at BMCC and Pendleton High School.
Abigail furthered her dance education at BYUI, where she studied Tap, Clogging, Modern, Jazz, World Dance, Social Dance, and Ballet. During her college experience, she also lent her choreographic talents to BYUI's acclaimed Acapella men's, women's, and combined groups.