After moving coast-to-coast with his family in pursuing a growing acting/modeling career as a preteen, in 2002 his family decided to finally settle back down in Northwest Arkansas where his parents had previously lived together in their earlier years. Evan has been sharpening his creative skills in Northwest Arkansas since then, and now happily juggles his different passions. Between managing & playing in his reggae band The Irie Lions, owning and running his video/media business AENIMATE MEDIA PRODUCTIONS, and now a team member of CACHE–Evan hopes to be a lifelong student of the arts/music/film, and to contribute to the creative consciousness of his community.
A New England transplant, Meghan made her way to Arkansas by way of Louisiana, where she spent 3 years managing production office teams and on-site locations for independent and studio productions. Most recently, she worked in community engagement for Walton Arts Center’s Learning team, coordinating the residency schedules of incoming performing artists. Meghan’s work also focused on creating opportunities for local students, teachers, and life-long learners to engage deeper with the arts. She was the on-site coordinator of Walton Arts Center’s VoiceJam A Cappella Festival, managing logistics, communication, and scheduling of national competitors, judges and educators, as well as international partners.
In 2018, Meghan was named to the International Association of Venue Managers (IAVM) class of 30 Under 30.
Previously, Jesse was a full-time touring rock musician, songwriter and band leader, releasing six albums and performing live 1,200 times over a decade, from SXSW to Lollapalooza with his bands These United States and Ark Life.
Before music recaptured his heart, Jesse wrote books and speeches with economist Richard Florida, co-founded a community nonprofit at the University of Iowa, and helped film a documentary on water rights in southern Mexico and Guatemala. With his company Range Music Ecosystems, Jesse and his co-founder Dr. Bryce Merrill researched and wrote the music strategies for the city of Denver, and brought together international thinkers for the City of Austin, the Biennial of the Americas, and more.
Prior to Boston, Allyson served as Director of Cultural Grants for the City of Chicago’s Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events, managing a portfolio of more than 300 grantees and leading the first restructure of the Cultural Grants program in more than 20 years.
Allyson is a life-long dancer/choreographer who founded and led Chicago-based contemporary dance company Space Movement Project from 2004-2015, co-creating more than 10 original evening length works and touring nationally and internationally.
Lisa Marie Evans is a filmmaker, animator and curator. Evans has participated in artist residencies and screened her work internationally, including venues in Hungary, France, the Philippines and Canada. She has developed curricula and taught filmmaking to all ages, curated film festivals and events, and served on the board for multiple arts organizations.
In 2016 Evans co-produced “Beyond Belief,” a digital storytelling project through the Association of Independents in Radio and Kansas City PBS. She is currently in the distribution phase with the feature documentary, “In Her Words: 20th Century Lesbian Fiction,” the first film to win the Publishing Triangle’s Leadership Award. Evans is a 2021 recipient for the Arkansas Arts Council’s Fellowship in Cinematic Arts.
Evans has worked in various capacities with Artist INC, Mid-America Arts Alliance’s entrepreneurial program for artists, and has mentored hundreds of multidisciplinary artists. She was the Project Manager, Editor & Animator for OZCast, an online creative variety show featuring local, regional and national artists. She is Currently the Project Manager for Creative Development with the Creative Arkansas Community Hub and Exchange (CACHE). In 2021 Evans completed a Diversity and Inclusion Certificate through Cornell University, and has 20 years of experience as a generative artist and arts administrator committed to diversity and representation.
In 2019, Thalia continued to cultivate a relevant landscape for dance in Northwest Arkansas, working with acclaimed directors, artists, and choreographers as Project Manager on a successful 6 month pilot program called Dance Anywhere/Everywhere. Later, as Executive Director of NWA Ballet Theatre, she managed 22 professional dancers and administratively supported art that began receiving national attention. Thalia orchestrated day-to-day operations of NWABT, and quickly became the hub of information flowing in and out of the organization. She not only solidified the continuation of the company, but found her niche in the curation of relationships among artists, venue operators, arts organizations, and community leaders.
With an analytical mind to keep artistic ecosystems flourishing, Thalia now employs her talents on the CACHE team as the 214 Operations Coordinator, cultivating connections between nonprofits, municipalities, cultural institutions, and funders to build a more equitable and inclusive region for artists and creatives.
Perrodin is currently the Artist Fellow with “Looking for America” and as a result has curated the Ozark Story Project, a creative storytelling project exploring and cataloging the intersection of immigrant and traditional folklore in the Ozarks. Since 2018, Perrodin has served as a local team member with “Live in America”, a collaborative research project presented by The Momentary, that seeks to amplify the full and rich terrain of performance art in America.
A mixed-media artist based in Springdale, Arkansas, Perrodin is energized by the sense of place and community. Previously serving as the Program Director with the Downtown Springdale Alliance, Perrodin organized over 100 events in just two years.
Amber is the creator of The Little Craft Show and Team Springdale. She also co-founded and organizes The Creative Social Retreat and, along with her husband, they’ve nurtured an artist-led space in their downtown Springdale art studio that’s services the neighborhood and surrounding community through public and private events.
It’s clear for Perrodin, that art, nature, and community go hand in hand. Often found foraging for wild mushrooms, swimming in creeks, and searching for tumbled creek glass, Perrodin brings the essence of these quiet moments into her artwork and community-focused projects, living by the motto: “What you focus on becomes what is.”.
Since 2012, she has always had a camera in her hand. In 2016, she funded her own art space, Transcendence Crystal & Art Collective, a hybridized gallery showcasing nature’s finest hand-picked minerals alongside talented local artists sourced throughout Oklahoma and beyond. Cynthia gained newfound appreciation for the diversity of culture, community, and collaboration through her business and moved on in 2018 to serve bigger organizations such as RAW Artists and Art Con with photography and visual production.
In 2019, she founded Women & Wildlife, an innovative retreat and art project, promoting overall mind, body, and spiritual wellness, while connecting to nature through exploration, art cultivation, and radical vulnerability. Combining her artistic vision alongside therapeutic practices such as yoga, meditation, sensual movement, hiking, and art therapy, this experience has expanded across the midwest in various locations with the support of the community she has developed through her career and by following her purpose. The offering is a unique way to connect within and with others. She is dedicated to uplifting those around her and finds herself to be the connector of people from all walks of life.
Mario holds a Bachelor’s degree in Radio-TV-Film and US Latino Media Studies from the University of Texas at Austin, where he was also honored with a Communications Scholar Award in 2011. In 2015 he was the recipient of the prestigious ESB-MACC Award of Excellence for Emerging Artist. This award recognizes remarkablE Latino artists who have demonstrated distinguished service, leadership, and dedication and have made a lasting contribution to the cultural arts through artistic excellence.
CACHE is grateful for consulting support from artists in our community:
Maximiliano’s role prior to CACHE was as the director of arts and cultural programming for the Teen Action & Support Center, where he managed a creative space, called The Station. The Station provided mentorship thorough mixed media art curriculum, music and cultural classes.