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BOARD
KATE KENNON, CHAIR
Dr. Kate Shea Kennon (she/her) is proud to serve as Board Chair of Origin Theatre Company. She also serves on the boards of the Jesuit Business Network, the Jesuit School Student Success Network, and the Westchester County Swim Conference, as well as on the steering committee of the National Academic Advising Association’s (NACADA) Student-Athlete Advising Community. Dr. Kennon is a communications professor and Assistant Dean at Fordham University, where she earned an Ed.D. in Educational Leadership and Administration. She holds an M.A. in English and Irish Literature from Western Connecticut State University and a B.A. from St. Bonaventure University, where she remains an active alumna.A dual citizen of the United States and Ireland, Dr. Kennon is deeply involved in Irish and Irish American cultural organizations in New York City and her hometown of Buffalo, NY. She is a proud member of the Irish Business Organization and Irish American Writers & Artists and was honored as a recipient of the Irish Echo’s 2025 Arts Ambassador Award.
ANTHONY ROBERT ELIA, TREASURER
Anthony Robert Elia (he/him) is a consultant and developer with more than 30 years of experience managing large-scale projects, including multi-million-dollar real estate developments throughout New York State. He currently serves as Chief Operating Officer of Oleum Group, where he has overseen global operations and administration for more than a decade, with responsibilities spanning finance, human resources, manufacturing, and organizational management. Previously, Elia served as President and CEO of Reliable Analytics, a data-driven consulting firm, and Gateway Development Inc., a Buffalo, NY based real estate development company specializing in new construction and reclamation projects valued between $1 million and $10 million. He holds a B.A. in Political Science and Psychology from Syracuse University. Outside of his professional career, Elia is also the author of two novels, Telegraph (2004) and Opening Round (2007).
CARLETTA DOWNS
Carletta Downs (she/her) is a retired finance executive with more than three decades of experience in global banking and financial services. She most recently served as Vice President of Global Securities Operations Transaction Processing at JPMorgan Chase. Previously, she spent 22 years at Goldman Sachs, where she rose to Vice President of Global Derivatives Project Management, before serving as Senior Vice President of Global Change Management at HSBC. In addition to her corporate career, Carletta has served on the Boards of Directors of Self Help Africa USA, the Pearson College Alumni Association, and Origin Theatre Company, where she was Board Chair from 2017 to 2026. She is a graduate of Lester B. Pearson United World College of the Pacific in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. Carletta is married to Dublin-born New York City restaurateur Ronan Downs.
MAUREEN FARRELL
Maureen Farrell (she/her) is an interior designer and construction project manager. Since 2007, she has been Senior Principal of Maureen Farrell Design Associates, an interior design firm providing full-service design and construction solutions for residential and retail clients. Previously, she served as Director of Store Planning and Design at Huffman Koos and as Construction Project Manager at Lord & Taylor. Additionally, she worked as a Senior Design Associate at FLOR, Inc., where she designed rugs for a national client base. A member of the Retail Design Institute since 1995 and a former board member, Maureen was named Professional Member of the Year in 2018. She has also served as a board member and president of the Designers Lighting Forum and is currently a member of the Irish Business Organization in New York. A champion of environmental sustainability, she holds a Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design Accredited Professional (LEED AP) certification from Green Business Certification Inc. (GBCI). Maureen earned a BFA from Marygrove College, an AAS in Interior Design from Parsons School of Design, and an MA in Irish and Irish American Studies from New York University.
MATTHEW FULTON
Matt Fulton (he/him) is General Counsel and Director of Business Affairs at Writers House, an independently owned full-service literary agency. A passionate advocate for creators’ rights, he also serves on the faculty of his alma mater, Troy University, where he teaches law courses in the Master of Business Administration in Music Industry program. Matt is a member of the Copyright & Literary Property Committee of the New York City Bar Association. He earned his J.D. from Brooklyn Law School, where he received a Certificate in Intellectual Property, Media, and Information Law with distinction. While at Brooklyn Law School, he served as a staff editor of the Brooklyn Journal of Corporate, Financial & Commercial Law and was a fellow with the Center for Urban Business and Entrepreneurship.
JANICE NAKANO GORMLEY
Janice Nakano Gormley (she/her) is a business development and client relations professional with more than two decades of experience in legal services, operations, and relationship management. Since 2010, she has served as Director of Client Relations & Business Development at Aldridge | Pite LLP, a multi-state law firm specializing in creditor rights and commercial litigation. She holds a B.A. in Communications and Humanities from the University of Washington. Before transitioning into the legal sector, she spent 18 years as a pastry chef in France, Ireland, and the United States. Her husband is Irish actor Sean Gormley.
BRETT PERALA
Brett Perala (he/him) is an attorney and partner of Rosenberg, Giger & Perala, P.C., where he has practiced since 2009. He represents clients in a broad range of business and commercial disputes, with particular expertise in entertainment, media, fand intellectual property-related litigation. He previously served as Assistant Corporation Counsel in the Commercial and Real Estate Litigation Division of the New York City Law Department, where he was named Legal Rookie of the Year. Brett holds an A.B. from Dartmouth College and a J.D. from Northwestern University School of Law.
EMILY TULLY
Emily Tully (she/her) is a project manager specializing in creative operations and content production. In her current role at We. Communications, she brings together creative, strategy, legal, and client services teams for brands such as Amgen, F5, and Medtronic. Previously, Emily served as a Senior Integrated Producer at The Brooklyn Brothers, working on social and digital content for the LEGO Group, Mastercard, Grubhub, and more. Emily graduated with a BA in Media Production from Emerson College, where some of her favorite memories were working in the ArtsEmerson box office and supporting their programming. She was raised on the South Shore of Massachusetts and has roots in Co.'s Mayo and Galway through her parents.
HANNAH BYRON
Hannah Byron (she/her) is an incoming Senior Associate at JPMorganChase, where she will participate in the firm’s leadership development program. Previously, she served as an Account Executive at Jack Morton Worldwide, the world’s leading experiential marketing agency, and on the events team for Cornell University’s Center for Regional Economic Advancement. She is currently pursuing her MBA at Fordham University’s Gabelli School of Business, where she serves as Class President. Originally from the suburbs of Boston, Hannah earned her BS in Communication Management and Design with a minor in Theatre from Ithaca College. A longtime champion of the performing arts and a proud Irish-American, Hannah is thrilled to bring her creative energy to Origin Theatre Company.
LABHAOISE MAGEE, PRODUCING ARTISTIC DIRECTOR
Labhaoise Magee (she/her) is a multi-hyphenate theatre artist from Derry, Ireland. She currently serves as Artistic Director of Origin Theatre Company. Her directing credits with Origin include Enda Walsh’s Misterman, Sinéad O’Brien’s No One Is Coming, and Sean Gormley’s The Double Bass. Her recent freelance producing and general management credits include Emmy and Grammy winner David Javerbaum’s The Dog Show: Come. Sit. Stay. (Triad Theater), Bill Schaumberg’s Three Chickens Confront Existence (Wolk Transfer Group), and Anne Nelson’s Third Reich of Dreams (The Tank). She is co-founder of Fair Play Productions, a transatlantic theatrical production and management company supporting artists and producers working between the United States and Europe.
Labhaoise’s various production credits include projects with The Shed (The Black Mirror Experience, The Other Place, Viola’s Room, Sonic Sphere); The Kennedy Center (A Harlem Dream); Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts (The Bacchae); Cherry Lane Theatre/A24; Vineyard Theatre (The Wind and the Rain); Playwrights Horizons; New York Theatre Workshop (Tartuffe); Daryl Roth Theatre (Titanique, The Very Hungry Caterpillar, Is There Still Sex in the City?, Hyprov, Blindness); and the National Theatre, London, among others. As an actor, Labhaoise has appeared in Jay Craven’s feature film Wetware, the BBC Northern Ireland series 6Degrees, and acclaimed stage productions of Abbie Spallen’s Pumpgirl and Jaki McCarrick’s Belfast Girls with Irish Repertory Theatre. She studied Literature at both Sarah Lawrence College and the University of Cambridge.
