Company Spotlight: Andy Baldeschwiler and Matthew Henry

Andy Baldeschwiler, Actor

Have you ever worked at the Festival before?
No, this is my first year!

Where’s your home base?
I currently reside in NYC, but I also claim Chicago, since I performed there for 11 years.

What’s your education/training background?
I studied music and theater at DePaul University. Over the years, I’ve taken classes and workshops at many places, such as Victory Gardens, Black Box Acting, and the Pearl Conservatory.

What brought you to your field and what keeps you doing your craft?
I joined a youth theater in the fifth grade after seeing a friend’s performance of ‘Charlotte’s Web’; I have been acting ever since. What keeps me involved are the constant challenges and joys - not just with scripts and characters, but also with actual people and places.

How will you spend your time off while here?
Hopefully a lot of time will be spent hiking and sightseeing. If I don’t make multiple visits to the nearby National Parks and Monuments, something has gone wrong! I’m also hoping to catch up on some reading and writing.

What does the Festival Experience mean to you?
I’m simply happy for the opportunity to work at such a well-regarded Festival alongside such talented folks.

If you could be a superhero, what would you want your superpowers to be?
Since omniscience and omnipotence are a bit much to ask, I’d settle for the ability to fly.

If you had a time machine, where would you like to visit?
I’d like to go back as a fly on the wall to see my forebears and know what their lives were like.

Matthew Henry, Cosmetologist-Wig and Makeup Run Crew

Have you ever worked at the Festival before?
This will be the first time I have had the opportunity working at the Festival.

Where’s your home base?
I was born and raised in Richfield, Utah.

What’s your education/training background?
High school diploma: Richfield High School, 2010
Associate of Science: Snow College, 2011
Cosmetology/Barbering Cert. of Proficiency: 2015

What brought you to your field and what keeps you doing your craft?
I have always had an interest in working with personal appearances, which inspired me to attend cosmetology school. The arts have always appealed to me, which led me to apply for a position on the wig & makeup crew here at the Festival. I have also developed some skills in costume-making, and love the creative opportunities in the field of theatre. I thrive under pressure, and enjoy the successes of demanding atmospheres. It brings out my best work, the best of my creativity. I look forward to the challenges the Festival has to offer.

How will you spend your time off while here?
In my off time while I am here, I am sure I will find a piano where I can spend some time playing, singing, and immersing myself in music. I may have an opportunity of visiting Angola(Africa) in September playing music for children, and encouraging them to develop talents through opportunities that are being presented them to develop their talents.

Also, I am sure I will be doing some hair on the side.

When it’s raining, I’m going to read poetry with friends while we listen to the rain.

What does the Festival Experience mean to you?
This experience is an opportunity to start my cosmetology career in a place where I get to work with other creative, extremely talented professionals. This experience is a chance to continue to learn a great deal.

If you could be a superhero, what would you want your superpowers to be?
Definitely, to be able to move things with my mind.

If you had a time machine, where would you like to visit?
I would visit Europe during the musical Romantic period of budding young artists such as Chopin and Liszt, and hear their amazing performances in the concert halls of Paris, the center of the finest training for promising musicians of the Romantic era.