Ben is thrilled to embark on his second theatrical production at his parents’ alma mater, Barter Theatre. He abandoned his strict “I don’t perform for other people’s parents” policy (last Christmas for Miracle on 34th Street) in exchange for a weekly paycheck, and now he’s a ride-or-die theatre guy. As he wraps up his first year of middle school at E.B Stanley, Ben is rocking out on trombone and electric guitar, and creates original comics. He would like to thank his parents, Jim and Seana, for prioritizing the arts and literature, resulting in him wanting to be on stage at The State Theatre of Virginia with so many actors he considers to be his family. Ben would also like to give a shout out to Kaci Deakins for keeping him in line during his first show at Barter, or, as he puts it, “Being the best kid-wrangler of 2023!” Fun fact: Benen is an old Irish name that means “kind".