Stephen is a native of Bowling Green, KY, where he also attended Western Kentucky University. Graduating Summa Cum Laude, he holds a double BFA in Performing Arts: Music Theatre and Directing, and a minor in Dance. He is incredibly passionate about musical theatre and the way it can affect both performer and audience. He has a deep love for new musical works, sparked by his involvement in the Before Broadway Series at WKU, which exposed him to a variety of musicals in development.

After working professionally around the country and in New York City as an actor for several years, Stephen received his MFA in Theater (Directing) from Southern Illinois University, Carbondale, along with a graduate certificate in Women, Gender, & Sexuality Studies. His research interests focus on masculinity in musical theatre, on which he has presented at numerous conferences, including the Southeastern Theatre Conference and the Association for Theatre in Higher Education.

Stephen is currently Teaching Faculty for Acting at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and an Adjunct Instructor for Theatre Arts at Edgewood College. When not immersed in his theatre work, he enjoys making music (guitar, piano, ukulele), passive-aggressive knitting, Pokèmon connoisseurship, and trying to keep his plants alive.