Meet the team
LAUREN BERST
Actor, producer and director.
Lauren Berst
co-Artistic Director
Berst lived in New York for over 15 years where she worked primarily on new plays Off-Broadway and Off-Off Broadway. With Nashville Story Garden, she’s appeared in The Welkin, Love Song, Dance Nation and If You Forget Me as well as producing and directing in the pop up new play festivals. Around town she has been in shows with The Theater Bug, Nashville Rep, Studio Tenn, and Nashville Shakespeare Festival.
Berst is a long time voiceover actor and can be heard on numerous TV commercials, promos, narrations and audiobooks, as well as the Mr. Mysterio Podcast. On-camera, she can be seen on the Ultimate Wing-Woman Challenge (which she co-wrote, co-directed and co-produced) and is the co-star of the webseries Settling Up.
B.F.A. from the University of Evansville, an M.F.A. from the National Theater Conservatory.
TAMARA TODRES
Tamara Todres
co-Artistic Director
Actor, producer and pie baker from Chicago, IL.
While in Chicago, she worked with many companies including Curious Theatre Branch, the side project, and Red Tape Theatre. Since moving to Nashville, she produced and appeared in Ironbound, Dance Nation, and If You Forget Me with Nashville Story Garden and The Strange and Rosemary and Ginger with Chicago Talking Machine Co. Other recent acting credits include If You Forget Me (world premiere - Lean Ensemble Theatre), Big Love (The Party), Primary User (Ingram New Works Festival), Slasher (Verge), and The Mr. Mysterio podcast. She received her BA in Acting from Illinois State University and studies with Corey Parker. She is also the lady behind Pie Now, a small pie baking business in Nashville.
AARON MUÑOZ
Actor, writer, producer, teacher, cigar smoker, facial hair enthusiast & dad.
Aaron Muñoz
Founding Artistic Director
He is the co-writer (with Andy Bayiates) of Lost Laughs: The Slapstick Tragedy of Fatty Arbuckle, which had its World Premiere at Merrimack Repertory Theatre in 2018. Lost Laughs garnered 5 IRNE nominations, including Best New Play, Best Actor, and Best Play (Large Scale Theatre). Muñoz is also the co-creator (adapting/directing/fight choreography/acting) of 2 Households, 2 Assholes: Shakespeare’s R & J which premiered at the New York International Fringe Festival, receiving a Critic’s Pick from Backstage and praise from The New York Times, NY Theatre.com & Curtain Up.
As an actor, Muñoz can be seen in Stranger Things, Chicago Fire, The Walking Dead, Cadillac REcords, Yinz, CBGB, Searching for Fortune, Still/Here (Nashville Film Festival) & Cecil (Winter 2016). Theatre credits include SoHo Playhouse (Off-Broadway), Actors Theatre of Louisville, Geva Theatre, Nashville Shakespeare Festival, The Studio Theatre, Georgia Shakespeare Festival, About Face Theatre, Theatrical Outfit, & Improv Olympic.
He is a proud member of SAG AFTRA, Actors’ Equity, and 2015/16 recipient of an Individual Artist Fellowship from the Tennessee Arts Commission. Aaron has been nominated for a Suzi Bass Award (Outstanding Lead Actor in A Play, 2014), nominated for Best Supporting Performance (Orlando Film Festival) and is an Associate Artist at Merrimack Repertory Theatre.
Muñoz is an assistant professor of acting at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, currently residing in Illinois with his wife Liz, daughters Mabel and Frances. | www.aaronmunoz.com
Associate Artists
Chris Bosen, Brooks Egerton, Matt Garner, Rachel Hamilton, Chelsea Flowers, Mary Donnet Johnson, Andy Kanies, Clayton Landiss, Mark Lemley, Tasha F A Lemley, David Ian Lee, Josh Link, Drew Maynard, Kristin McCalley, Colin McCann, Evelyn O’Neal, Matt Rhoden, Karen Sternberg, Ted Welch