BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Executive Committee
Mike Lazaro, Board President
With over 30 years of experience in live event production, Michael Lazaro has become a driving force in the music and entertainment industry on the Central Coast. As the founder and owner of Carp Events, he has produced large-scale concerts, street festivals, corporate conventions, and even televised sporting events—from initial concept to final encore. His portfolio includes major gatherings such as the California Avocado Festival, Earth Day Santa Barbara, and the Super Bowl, ensuring every production runs seamlessly. Over the years, Mike’s passion for music has led him to work with a wide range of acts, including Founding Members of The Grateful Dead, Alan Parsons, Michael McDonald, Counting Crows, Bruno Mars, Collective Soul, and many more!
A 1996 recipient of the prestigious Carpinterian of the Year award, Mike is also the co-founder and Board President of the Alcazar Theatre in Carpinteria. In this role, he oversees all aspects of the theater’s live shows—from artist bookings to technical production, sound, and lighting. His leadership has transformed the Alcazar into a vibrant cultural hub, hosting everything from grassroots fundraisers to high-profile performances and community events. Committed to giving back, Mike serves on various non-profit boards and integrates philanthropic initiatives into many of his productions, benefiting local organizations and youth programs. Whether he’s orchestrating an intimate acoustic set or a citywide festival, Mike’s dedication, expertise, and community spirit continue to elevate every event he touches.
Åsa Olsson, Board Vice President
Åsa Olsson, co-founder of The Alcazar, is a dedicated performing arts advocate. A trained actress, writer, and director, she specializes in set and light design and actively produces live theatre at The Alcazar. Åsa also teaches drama classes to youth and seniors. Her career began in Sweden, where she worked as a professional actress, director and writer in stage, film, and radio theatre from 1964 to 1980. Since 1980, Åsa has been a board member of Carpinteria Community Theatre Inc. Since co-founding The Alcazar Theatre Inc. in 2010, Åsa has served on the Theatre Committee, directed productions, and designed sets, lights, and sound. For 19 years, Åsa directed teens at G.I. Carpinteria, where created seven drama programs for children ages 5-17 and earned national awards for her contributions
Mark Hunt, Secretay
After dedicating several months as a volunteer at the Alcazar Theater, Mark has been appointed to the theater’s Board of Directors. His commitment to the Carpinteria community, where he has resided since 1997, is evident in his multifaceted volunteer activities. In addition to his contributions at the Alcazar Theater, he actively participates in Carpinteria Beautiful and the Linda Fairly Carpinteria Art Center, where he was recently recognized as Volunteer of the Month.
Mark’s journey to Santa Barbara began in the early 1980s, during which he attended Santa Barbara High School. His athletic prowess was particularly evident in swimming and water polo. After graduating from high school, he embarked on a three-year enlistment in the United States Army, during which he served in both West Germany and Fort Benning, Georgia.
While in the military, Mark excelled as a member of the Armed Forces swim team, competing against international athletes. Upon his discharge, he returned to Santa Barbara and pursued higher education at Santa Barbara City College and the University of California, Santa Barbara (UCSB). While still enrolled, he was hired by the Santa Barbara Police Department as a Reserve Police Officer, a position that eventually evolved into a 21-year career on the force.
Throughout his tenure, Mark rotated through various roles, including DARE Officer, Traffic Motorcycle Officer, Traffic Investigator, Background Investigator, and SWAT Officer. His dedication and expertise earned him numerous accolades and accommodations. In 2016, Mark retired from the Santa Barbara Police Department and transitioned into freelance work as a traffic collision investigator with a local company.
In his spare time, Mark engages in various pursuits, including travel and maintaining a healthy lifestyle. Notably, he has participated in the Disneyland half marathon annually since 2006.
Kymberlee Weil, Treasurer
Kymberlee Weil is a speaking strategist and speaker who has trained over 500 thought leaders worldwide since 2010. In addition to her extensive involvement in the TED community and her TEDx event production experience, Kymberlee has become renowned for her expertise in high-stakes short-form communication. At The Alcazar, Kymberlee runs Carpinteria Improv, teaches weekly classes, and hosts specialty comedy performances to bring much-needed levity and fun to our community. Kymberlee holds an MBA from Pepperdine University, is a 2x published author and is the founder of StorytellingSchool.com, a platform dedicated to building a movement of master storytellers to affect change in our world.
At Large
Phillip Moreno
Phillip Moreno brings his deep passion for theatre arts to The Alcazar. A native of Santa Barbara, he grew up in a family of nine children and can trace his ancestry back to one of the city’s founders. Phillip’s background of over thirty years in community theatre is extensive. You can find Phillip acting, directing, set building, backstage, and in technical production all in the same week! Phillip thrives in collaborative environments, working seamlessly with teams to achieve collective positive goals.
Berlyn Cota
Berlyn Cota’s passion for community involvement and volunteer work grows naturally from her thirty-five years as a Registered Nurse. That experience taught her the value of hard work, compassion, caring, and organization, as well as the essential necessity of good listening skills.
Berlyn moved to Carpinteria from Lompoc in 2015. As a passionate believer in the strength of community, she soon joined like-minded people in service to organizations such as the Carpinteria Art Center, the California Avocado Festival, the Carpinteria Seal Watch, the Santa Barbara Sea Center, the Rotary Club’s Ojai Wine Festival, and the Alcazar Theatre. Berlyn is particularly excited about the vital contribution the Alcazar Theatre makes to the vibrant arts scene and the sense of community in Carpinteria. She is very pleased to be part of its history, its mission, and its future.
Leslie Vitanza AnneRenee
Leslie has been an advocate for the theatrical arts for the better part of two decades. She is a graduate of the Teaching Artist Program, sponsored by Sony Pictures. She served as board Vice President at both Women’s Theater Company Los Angeles and the Elite Theatre in Oxnard, before joining the board here at the Alcazar. She is also a member of SAG/AFTRA and Actors Equity Association. Leslie is a director, writer and acting teacher here and at many theaters in Ventura and Los Angeles.
Advisory Board
Marybeth Carty
Marybeth Carty is the Executive Director of the Natalie Orfalea Foundation since 2018. She served as the Community Partnership Manager for Venoco, Inc. for 15 years, directing the company’s charitable giving and philanthropic outreach and interfacing with hundreds of different nonprofit organizations per year. Prior to that she spent 9 years directing grant funded educational programs for the Carpinteria Unified School District.
Marybeth has proudly served on the Santa Barbara County School Board since 2013, is Past President and board member for Santa Barbara Partners in Education, and a member of the Council on Alcoholism and Drug Abuse’s Fighting Back Mentor Program Task Force. Additionally, she is a member of the Santa Barbara Foundation Roundtable and serves on the Executive Committee. Marybeth is active in her local community, and started the first Carpinteria Women’s Fund group, known as “Hearts of Carp”. She is a board member of the Carpinteria Children’s Project, chairs both the Carpinteria Woman’s Club and the Carpinteria Woman’s Club Building Foundation and serves on the Advisory Board for the Lynda Fairly Carpinteria Arts Center and the Starfish Connection. Marybeth also chairs the steering committee for Hospice of Santa Barbara’s Compassionate Care of Carpinteria Initiative.
Past awards include Pacific Coast Business Times’s Top 50 Woman in Business, 2018 Hero of Hospice award, 2011 Fighting Back Mentor of the Year, 2010 Community Hero Recognition from then-Supt. Bill Cirone, SBCEO; 2006 Girls Inc. of Carpinteria’s Woman of Inspiration and 2001 Carpinterian of the Year.
She is an Honorary Lifetime Member of the Carpinteria Education Foundation.
Marybeth attended UC Santa Barbara and Antioch University and earned her BA in Psychology. She resides in Carpinteria with her husband, Martin, and has 2 adult children, Dayna and Joel, 2 grandchildren, Siena and Jameson and a Golden Retriever named Nico.
John Palminteri
John Palminteri is an award winning TV, radio and print reporter with a flare as a Master of Ceremonies. He regularly brings his bright smile and positive energy to the stage at the Alcazar or on the microphone at other Carpinteria events including the annual parades for Christmas and Independence Day. By day he is on the front line of events throughout the area, including all the breaking news. John's social media posts and pages are among the most followed on the Central Coast for news and events. In his free time John enthusiastically joins the Alcazar staff and audiences in celebrating this community treasure. John holds two degrees from Cal State Long Beach in Journalism and Radio-TV-Film. He has been honored with several Golden Mike awards for news coverage, along with honors from the Associated Press.
Laina Cohn
Laina Cohn's journey in the entertainment industry began at the age of two when her mother enrolled her in dance classes to channel her boundless energy. This early introduction sparked a lifelong passion for the arts.
While in college, Laina was invited to New York City to work as a choreographer and stage manager for both Broadway and off-Broadway productions. Needing an internship to earn school credits, she started working at Liz Lewis Casting Partners. It was there that she became fascinated by the casting process. When a television casting company in Los Angeles reached out, Laina seized the opportunity and made the move to LA.
In Los Angeles, she worked with Terry Berland Casting and Liberman/Hirschfeld Casting, gaining experience on numerous national commercial and voiceover campaigns. She also contributed to popular TV shows such as The Larry Sanders Show, Seinfeld, and Grace Under Fire.
After several years, Laina transitioned into talent management when Intrepid Artist Management offered her a role. Representing some of the most notable artist in the film and television business.
In 1998, she founded her own company, Arthouse Entertainment, employing a team of eight. In 2001, she merged with literary manager Michael Sugar to form Acronym Entertainment, which was later acquired by Relativity Media in 2003. Laina became a partner at the studio and together with her partners grew Relativity Media in to one of the top studios in Hollywood.
Eventually, Laina joined Evolution Entertainment to expand her management business, representing not only actors but also writers, directors, musicians, athletes, and hosts. Her diverse client roster allowed her to dive into producing, a natural next step for her career.
At Evolution Entertainment, Laina began producing feature films, reality television, documentaries, live theater and TV shows. Reflecting on her time there, she noted, "The opportunities to learn on both the management and producing sides were invaluable." These experiences led her to establish AmDewing, Inc., a production and management firm she has led as CEO for the past16 years. Under her leadership, AmDewing has expanded its focus to include concerts, music festivals, and virtual events.
Recently, Laina created and is the Promoter of the annual Golden Road Festival, a highly curated three-day music event, along with other notable projects like Maybe It Was The Roses, a day-long music festival and street fair, and Produced the Dead Heads for Kamala fundraiser in collaboration with Peter Shapiro and David Gans.
Looking ahead, Laina is gearing up for the 2025 Golden Road Festival, set to take place in Buford, GA., October 17-20, 2025 as well a shepherding various film and television projects, live theater and concert experiences and enjoying making wine with her father at Stevenson Oaks Vineyards in Ojai, CA.
Robert Redfield
Robert Redfield is a filmmaker based in Santa Barbara, California. His current project is the short film Committee Animal which he wrote and directed.
Prior films (writer/director) are the feature length documentary film More Than Just A Party Band and several short documentaries focused on the arts and personal journeys.
Robert lives in Santa Barbara, CA with his talented wife and favorite neighborhood squirrel Rocky
Staff
Ben Fries
Lead Audio Engineer
Connie Geston
Front of House Coordinator
Lee Mandell
Lighting Expert, IT Specialist & Mad Scientist
Makaela Vogel
Marketing & Community Engagement Coordinator
