magic city performing arts

+ Stephanie Frances | Artistic Director

Stephanie Frances began her training in Jacksonville, Florida under Mark Spivak. She then continued her tutelage with Beth Marks where she studied ballet, jazz, and modern. She joined Jacksonville Ballet Theatre at the age of 15 where she studied under Dulce Anaya. Shortly after moving to Birmingham, Alabama to attend Samford University, she began her professional career by joining Birmingham Ballet Repertory Company, under direction of Cindy Free and Alfonso Figueroa. While with the company she performed notable roles including Princess Florine in The Sleeping Beauty, Arabian Coffee in The Nutcracker, and the lead in Alfonso Figueroa’s Hues. The Birmingham News referred to the performance in Hues by Rangel and her partner, Cole Companion, as the “highlight” of the ballet. She joined Arova Contemporary Ballet in 2012, under the direction of Alison Page and ballet mistress Therese Laeger. She performed the role of Sorceress in the original ballet, The Snow Queen. Rangel has been teaching ballet, jazz, and contemporary to students of all ages since 2007. After she was married in 2016, she moved to the country of Panamá with her husband David, and taught ballet for Crossroads Bible Church and the Metropolitan School of Panama. She also choreographed and assisted with an annual Christmastime production called “Cantada” that involved over 150 singers, dancers, and actors. After returning to the states, she continued to teach at local dance studios in Florida. She has the honor of serving on the board of directors for the Community Nutcracker of Jacksonville. She is currently the Artistic Director and a founder of the Magic City Nutcracker and serves as the President for Magic City Performing Arts. She has a passion for creating opportunities for student and pre-professional dancers while enriching the local dance community. She is committed to creating a safe, loving, and kind environment for anyone who wants to dance and believes everyone is made in the image of God, and that creates the foundation for her teaching method.

+ Ashleigh Timmerman, President

Ashleigh Timmerman is an Alabama native, who loves Birmingham! She's thrilled to be involved with Magic City Performing Arts, and the lessons it teaches our future generations. She is especially proud to be the Aunt of two children performers. Ashleigh is active in the Real Estate community as a Realtor and investor. Ashleigh loves the outdoors, travel, and spending time with her dogs.

+ Allison West, boutique chair

Allison has volunteered with MCN since 2017 and has enjoyed watching the evolution of the program over the years. Serving as boutique chair, Allison is a top-producing Realtor in the Birmingham Area. As a Vestavia Hills resident since 2012, Allison and her husband Joseph have two children in Vestavia Schools and are active members of the Vestavia Hills United Methodist Church. She regularly volunteers at Vestavia Hills Elementary Dolly Ridge, her church and supports local businesses whenever she can.

+ Krystal Millender

Krystal Millender was born and raised in Talladega, Alabama. She was raised on farm land where she learned the art of simplicity and gained respect for nature. It was also in Talladega that she found the love of writing as a way of expression and exploration. She later attended the liberal arts college, University of Montevallo where she obtained a BA in Sociology. She is currently a business owner and full time mother of one daughter who inspires her to write. Krystal considers her faith and family to be most important to her. When Krystal is not writing or running her business's, she can be found traveling to tropical places, cooking new dishes, and creating adventures for her daughter. Little Flower Child is her first book.

+ Bena LEE

Bena Lee is an experienced administrative professional with a focus on executive support, event planning, and coordination. Currently, she serves as the Executive Assistant at Legacy Community Federal Credit Union, providing key support to the CEO, executive team, and Board of Directors.

After moving to Birmingham in 2005 to attend the University of Alabama at Birmingham, Bena graduated with a Bachelor’s in English. She began her career as a marketing and event coordination specialist for a large multinational medical device and technology company. Bena is excited and honored to serve on the Magic City Performing Arts Board of Directors.

Outside of work, Bena enjoys spending time with her husband Sam, their children Karis and Ethan, and their dog Rambo. The Lee family loves staying active outdoors and can often be found mountain biking, hiking, relaxing at the beach, or cooking and enjoying great meals together.

+ Anna Shinbaum

Anna has supported the Magic City Nutcracker in various roles since its inception in 2012. Anna enjoys volunteering for non-profits, particularly as a fundraiser and a fundraising event chairman/coordinator in her spare time. She serves as a member of the Alabama Wildlife Center Board of Directors, a fundraising committee member for Always a Judson, and a committee member for her Homeowner’s Association.

Anna is an Alabama native and is a graduate of Judson College. She resides in Birmingham with her husband and two dogs. Anna enjoys traveling, fine arts, crafts, and home renovations with her husband.

+ Andrew Taheri

Andrew is an Alabama attorney living in Birmingham with his wife, Megan. We love traveling, concerts and performing arts and binging Jeopardy at home. Andrew has performed in roughly 25 musical theater productions and these experiences have been rewarding in a vast variety of ways throughout his life. Andrew is thrilled to be involved with Magic City Performing Arts to help insure the next generation gets that magical experience of singing and dancing in unison to create a work of art.

+ Allison Lowery

Allison has been a part of the Magic City Nutcracker as a proud parent to a dancer since its first year of production. Last year, Allison became the Parent and Communication Coordinator and Producer for the Magic City Nutcracker film to help keep the show alive during the trying times of 2020. She is proud to continue these roles and build the momentum of this special community organization as we build Magic City Performing Arts’ reach and scope.

Allison is mom to 2 daughters, Gradie and Beatrice, and wife to Wade Lowery, a dedicated dance and theatre dad. She has worked in food media her entire career and is currently the Director of the Meredith Food Studios, the food content hub for Meredith Corp. Allison works with an amazing team of test kitchen chefs, photographers, and stylists who create over 6,000 recipes and photographs annually. Allison has the honor of creating content for the country’s finest lifestyle brands, including Southern Living, Real Simple, Food & Wine, People, Parents, Eating Well, and more. She thrives in creative environments in both her personal and professional life.

+ Kristina Theall

Kristina has been a parent volunteer since her daughter Sydney started dancing with MCPA in 2019. Her experience as a graphic designer has been invaluable in helping create marketing materials and our program for performances. Kristina is honored to be a member of the board and assist in the growth of our productions.

+ Eden Hall, Secretary

Eden is a Birmingham native that is honored to serve as Secretary for Magic City Performing Arts. As the owner of a small business in the real estate industry, she is excited to help contribute to the growth of our amazing local arts community. Through a decade of dance instruction in her childhood, she understands the vast benefits that come from dance being accessible for all to enjoy or participate in. Eden loves music (particularly Christmas classics and The Beatles), sushi, and playing with her rambunctious Shih Tzu. She is also a proud UAB alumna with a passion and background in environmental public health.