the company
The Imagination Machine was founded in 1981 in the city of Orange, California by Deborah Wren. As a classroom teacher and working actress she saw a way to use her own creative abilities to encourage students to explore their imaginations through creative writing. She developed her concept for The Imagination Machine in order to foster children's ideas before they started censoring themselves about what was "good" or "bad." Through our program, students see their own stories come to life on stage! What started with only 14 schools over 30 years ago has blossomed into over 400 schools per year. Now The Imagination Machine can be found throughout the entire state of California and will soon be expanding its touring company into Arizona, Nevada, Oregon, and Washington.
the journey of
a teacher
meet
our cast
Filled with professional actors and musicians, we absolutely adore our cast of performers. Learn more about them; we know you will too!
godoy
amanda
actor - she/her
Amanda Godoy is a Southern California based actress and teaching artist. She trained in improv at The Upright Citizens Brigade and holds a BFA in Acting for the Stage and Screen from Azusa Pacific University. She has directed several productions and taught courses in Shakespeare, improv, acting, and musical theatre at various youth organizations across Los Angeles and Orange County. She also co-founded an all-female production company, Women Aren't Funny Productions, centering on creating comedic sketch comedy, short film, and web series projects written and directed by women. You can catch her giving backlot tours at Universal Studios Hollywood.
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loves - Shrek, Iced Coffee, Laughing with my Friends, Chips and Guac, Watching Reality TV
johnson
anya
actor - she/her
Anya is a California native, and hails from the small city of Pinole in the San Francisco Bay Area. At the ripe young age of four, she started performing in musicals at her local community theater. She developed a love for performing and storytelling and eventually received her B.A. in Drama with Honors from UC Irvine. Along with performing, she also has many years of experience in childcare and loves working with children. She hopes every young person can experience the magic of storytelling like she did as a kid!
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loves - Board/Card Games, Ice Cream in a Cone, Dancing (especially at weddings), Doing Impersonations, Yosemite
kamp
emily-mae
actor - she/her
Emily-Mae is so excited to be a part of The Imagination Machine! A graduate of USC with degrees in Acting and Dance, she has also trained at UCB, The Second City, and is currently in the Lab Track at The Groundlings. When she is not choreographing, or working with her own students, she enjoys reading Shakespeare and memorizing as many monologues as she can. Emily-Mae began performing stand-up comedy at the age of 14 in Los Angeles - with her mom signing her into open mics. She is so excited to bring students' stories to life and bring smiles to faces.
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loves - Dungeons and Dragons, Making Popcorn, SNL Trivia, Remi from Ratatouille, My Own Birthday
modyman
eric
actor - he/him
A big kid at heart, Eric is excited to be bringing children's stories to life. With over 20 years of experience as an actor and director, Eric has close to 150 projects to his resume. His credits include working as a repertoire actor with the All American Melodrama, puppeteering at Disneyland, atmosphere and stage performances at Knott's Berry Farm, and giving tours at WB Studios. Eric is a proud member of SAG-AFTRA, with small appearances in "Colin in Black and White," "Hacks," and "80 For Brady." He's been a guest speaker at Chapman University, lead directing workshops for California Educational Theatre Association, is a voter for the OC Theatre Guild, been interviewed by KTLA for his work in the community, and recently started mentoring young directors.
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loves - Traveling, Vinyl Records (classic rock all day!), Disneyland, Good Food, Comic Books
bricker
joseph
actor - he/him
Joseph is a corn-fed midwesterner now living in Los Angeles. Coming from a big family (he's the fifth of six kids!), he learned to be loud and proud. After studying classical theatre and receiving his BFA in acting from the University of Minnesota/Guthrie Theatre training program, he made his way to California. When he's not acting, you can find him producing, writing, teaching theatre, or performing poetry.
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loves - Dungeons & Dragons, Poetry, Reading, Ramen, Podcasts
manzani
andrew
actor - he/him
As a jack of all trades, master of none, Andrew started out in musical theatre, while also performing at open mic nights as a singer/songwriter, and eventually travelled the globe performing for Disney both in Japan and on their Cruise Liners. Having hung up his ears, he now plays in a band as the lead singer/guitarist, performs for party companies all over the OC, and spends far too much time playing video games while his cat watches.
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loves - Emo/Punk Rock, Buffalo Wild Wings, Trying to Remember Things He Loves, Cats, Cats Again
renze
molly
actor - she/her
Molly Renze is an LA-based actress, comedian, and clown! She recently graduated from clown school at Phiippe Gaulier in France and received her Acting BFA at Cal State University, Fullerton. Her improv training includes The Groundlings, Upright Citizens Brigade, and ComedySportz. Molly also teaches improv at Calabasas High School and loves teaching all levels of improv. Molly performs all over Los Angeles and has been on lineups with such comedians as: Reggie Watts, Chelsea Peretti, Atsuko Okatsuka, and many more. Her favorite place to perform is the Bob Baker Marionette Theatre!
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loves - Muppets, Thrifting, Skate 3, Fleetwood Mac, Any Noodle Dish
moore
clayton
actor - he/him
Clayton Moore is an Orange County based writer and performer who has been bringing children's stories to life as a fun uncle for years. He's thrilled to have the chance to bring his uncl-ly talents to The Imagination Machine and can't wait to inspire the next generation of writers and performers.
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loves - Improv Comedy, The New York Knicks, The Simpsons, The James Webb Deep Space Telescope, Paleontology
ek
maggie
actor - she/her
Maggie is beyond excited to be a part of The Imagination Machine! Maggie has been teaching performance to children since she was fourteen and has performed all along the state of California at theaters including: La Mirada and Musical Theatre West. Additionally, you can catch her as Princess Anita and the evil Pirate Queen, Treasure, over at the Pirate Dinner Adventure Buena Park.
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loves - Harry Potter, Playing Guitar, Catan, Silly Goose Videos
abeles
emily
actor - she/her
Emily is thrilled to be with The Imagination Machine! She is an actress and writer, graduating from UC Irvine with a degree in musical theater, as well as memories of the school's newsroom (the New U). She continues to pursue theater and film in LA and New York, and is excited to see where her journey will take her next, and also the people she'll meet along the way. Much love to her parents and family - thank you for (literally) everything.
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loves - Her Dog Hashbrown (and literally any dog she sees), Bakeries/Cinnamon Rolls, The Ocean, Tap Dancing, Every Movie Starring Meg Ryan and Tom Hanks
kirkpatrick
autumn
actor - she/her
Autumn is thrilled to be a part of The Imagination Machine team! As an actor with a BFA in Musical Theater from the University of the Arts, you can find her performing all around Southern California. When she is not performing, Autumn is busy running her home baking business, Kirky Cakes, and working to help students get accepted to their dream university with College Audition Pros.
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loves - Celebrations of Any Kind, Dessert, The Color Yellow, Long Car Rides, Spontaneous Dance Parties
wolter
sarah
actor - she/her
Sarah has been a performer and educator for 20+ years. She served as an award winning Artist in Residence at the Phoenix Theatre Company in her home state of Arizona, before relocating to Los Angeles. Sarah has appeared on various stages around the LA area including The Groundlings, Second City, Rockwell Table & Stage and La Mirada Theatre to name just a few.
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loves - Dancing at Weddings, Reading Twisty Turny Thrillers & Spooky Ghosty Stories, Going to Bed Early and Sleeping Late, Long Walks in the Hills With a Good Podcast, Apple Fritters
ward
phil
accompanist/actor - he/him
Phil is an actor/musician and the Los Angeles Director for the National Theatre for Children. He performs a lot at Knott's Berry Farm and has been an ensemble member at Theatre of NOTE in Hollywood for almost 40 years. He and his guitar appear around Southern California doing original humorous folk songs, and when he makes recordings of them he releases them on the Trough Records Label.
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loves - Vegetarian Food, Progressive Rock, Monster Movies, Calico Cats
pearson
kyle
actor - he/him
In his freshmen year of High School, Kyle got his first ever opportunity to be a performer in his school's theatre program. Little did he know that this class would kickstart his passion for improv, musicals, and all matter of comedy! Now, Kyle has goofing around onstage for over 10+ years; having performed, hosted, and directed shows all across OC/LA. He loves that he gets to spend his days joking with his friends and laughing the nights away. Kyle hopes to keep learning more and more about how to make people laugh harder and harder each and every day.
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loves - Improv, Video Games, Trivia, Movies, His Friends <3
forbes
sam
field manager/actor - he/him
As a big proponent of celebrating the ideas of young people and a big fan of performing as wackier things like Dragons, Trolls, and babies - Sam knew that joining The Imagination Machine machine was going to be a life-altering event. He started his theatre journey in High School, majored in Theatre Arts at Cal State University, Fullerton, and joined The Imagination Machine in 2014. Sam has three younger siblings that are all over ten years his junior, and is very grateful to have their influence reflected in his work. Outside of The Imagination Machine, you can find him performing in and advocating for the greated Orange County improv community.
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loves - Improv, Shrimp, Beatboxing, This Job, League of Legends eSports
blaylock
danny
brooks
lindsay
&
owners & operators - she/her & he/him
Lindsay and Danny both began their journeys as performers with The Imagination Machine. Their love for the work and passion for the values of the company has kept them engaged in the pursuit of celebrating the imaginations of these young authors. They acquired the company from its founder, Deborah Wren, in 2024 - and have never been more dedicated to this labor of love.