Dr. Geoffrey Stephenson specializes in musical theatre history, literature, and vocal performance; serves as the academic advisor for the Department of Theatre and Film's musical theatre specialization program; holds a BFA in musical theatre performance from Kent State University, a master’s in music education from BGSU and a doctorate in theatre from BGSU; has taught voice for the National Broadway tour of Billy Elliot: The Musical; has acted in and directed Huron Playhouse productions from 1992-2012; has directed CMA opera productions of Dialogues of the Carmelites, Hänsel and Gretel, an Evening of One Acts by Thomas Pasatieri and the CMA opera fall opera productions for the last 7 seasons; has taught vocal music in the Huron City Schools and Ottawa Hills Local Schools, and directed musicals at Otsego High School and Kettering Fairmont High School; awarded the Mark Twain Comedy Award by the Kennedy Center/American College Theatre Festival; has worked in virtually every aspect of the theatre and has performed many roles with companies in New York City; Chicago; Omaha and Lincoln, Nebraska; Bemidji, Minnesota and Ohio.

Steven Naylor (b. 1999) graduated from Bowling Green State University in 2022, earning Bachelor’s degrees in performance and composition. A Michigan-native, he graduated from Interlochen Arts Academy in 2017. His mentors have included pianists Laura Melton, Thomas Rosenkranz, and Michael Coonrod, and composers Elainie Lillios, Mikel Kuehn, Marilyn Shrude, Christopher Dietz, and Catherine McMichael, a piano and composition mentor. Steven performs frequently as a soloist and collaborator in northwest Ohio, and has presented several solo piano and composition recitals. He has been a Resident Artist with Toledo Opera since fall 2022. A fierce advocate for contemporary music, Steven performed solo works at the 8th International Conference on Music and Minimalism in 2022 and the virtual 2020 BG New Music Festival. Steven served as music director for Evil Dead: The Musical at BGSU in April 2023. His 2022 recording project New Piano Music from Bowling Green, Vol. 1, exemplifies his frequent collaboration with living composers. His debut album as pianist and composer, idyll, released in 2021. Steven’s micro-opera Visionary won BGSU’s 2021 Music Composition Competition, and was performed at the 2022 BG New Music Festival. The short film Play Date directed by Kate Schnepf, which Steven scored, was screened at several international film festivals. His recent compositions focus on ecological and astronomical themes, and have included works written for the Newphonia Ensemble, Keynamics piano duo, and BGSU Student Organization for Music Research. Steven is music director at First Presbyterian Church of Perrysburg, OH, and an engraver for St. James Music Press.