Conceived as an intimate, immersive gathering, ShepardFest was built around the belief that Shepard’s work is best experienced through a blend of performance, conversation, scholarship, and community.
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ShepardFest was founded in 2019 by theatre artists Raines Carr and Andrea McCook as a celebration of the life and work of Sam Shepard and the artists drawn to his uncompromising voice. Conceived as an intimate, immersive gathering, the festival was built around the belief that Shepard’s work is best experienced through a blend of performance, conversation, scholarship, and community. St. Augustine—rich with history, myth, and storytelling became the festival’s natural home. With the generous sponsorship and support of Flagler College and the Tourist Development Council of the City of St. Augustine, ShepardFest launched as a multi-day event featuring a full theatrical production, staged readings, film screenings, panel discussions with noted academics and Shepard scholars, and live music. From its beginning, ShepardFest has been rooted in collaboration: between artists and audiences, scholars and students, past and present. What started as a shared artistic vision continues as an invitation to gather, to question, and to experience Shepard’s work in a place where stories linger.
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Sam Shepard’s work sits at the crossroads of poetry, myth, and the American landscape. His plays and writings explore family, identity, love, violence, and longing with a voice that is at once raw, lyrical, and deeply human. Shepard doesn’t offer easy answers—he invites us to sit with contradictions, to listen closely, and to reckon with who we are and where we come from. As a playwright, actor, poet, musician, and filmmaker, Shepard moved fluidly across artistic forms, reshaping American theatre in the process. His work continues to challenge artists and audiences alike, demanding bold performances and honest engagement. ShepardFest exists because his voice still resonates, provoking conversation, inspiring creativity, and reminding us that theatre can be both intimate and epic at the same time.
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St. Augustine is a city shaped by history, storytelling, and layers of lived experience—making it a natural home for ShepardFest. As the nation’s oldest city, St. Augustine carries a sense of memory and myth that echoes the themes found throughout Shepard’s work: the weight of the past, the pull of place, and the tension between what is remembered and what is imagined. With its walkable downtown, historic venues, and vibrant arts community, St. Augustine offers an intimate setting where performances, conversations, and community can intersect. ShepardFest embraces the city not just as a backdrop, but as a collaborator, inviting audiences to engage with theatre in a place where stories linger and history feels close at hand.
ShepardFest Company
Artistic Director, Raines Carr
Provides the artistic vision for ShepardFest, overseeing programming, curatorial direction, and the overall creative mission of the festival.
Raines Carr is a multidisciplinary theatre artist, director, educator, and producer with more than 30 years of experience in theatre, film, and television. He earned a B.A. in Theatre from Florida State University and an M.F.A. in Theatre Directing from The University of Alabama. After spending more than a decade in Los Angeles, he worked with Walt Disney Feature Animation and Ocean Park Casting, contributing to major animated films and the casting of more than 450 commercials. A passionate advocate for new work and community-engaged theatre, Carr co-created Shepardfest: The Sam Shepard Festival, an annual celebration that brings together artists, scholars, students, and audiences. As Theatre Director at Chipola College, his productions earned statewide recognition, including the 2022 Innovation Award and 2023 Community Service Award. He currently serves as Artistic Director of ABET (All Beaches Experimental Theatre) in Atlantic Beach, Florida, teaches theatre at Florida State College at Jacksonville, and hosts the internationally acclaimed Each Sold Separately: An Action Figure Podcast.
Casting & Development Director, Mary Claire Branton
Leads casting initiatives and supports artist development, ensuring alignment with the festival’s artistic values and collaborative spirit.
Mary Claire Branton is a director, educator, writer, and arts advocate whose work spans professional theatre, arts education, and literary publishing. She holds a B.A. in Theatre from the University of Georgia and an M.F.A. in Acting from Brooklyn College, with additional training through the Moscow Art Theatre and Columbia University. Her acclaimed directing credits include Waiting For My Growth Spurt, one of the first professional one-child productions in the United States, the award-winning A Very Merry Unauthorized Children's Scientology Pageant, and Rhinoceros, which earned six 2025 BroadwayWorld awards, including Best Director. Branton has taught and directed throughout the United States and China, championing new works and innovative approaches to classical theatre. She is co-developing Shepard Fest, an annual celebration of Sam Shepard's work, and is the founder of Light Works, an organization dedicated to developing new voices. She also writes grants, ghostwrites professionally, and mentors emerging artists and authors.
Festival Director, Bryce Esposito
Oversees festival operations, partnerships, scheduling, and organizational coordination, supporting the successful execution of ShepardFest across all programming and events.
Bryce Esposito is a theatre artist, producer, director, designer, and performer whose work spans acting, production, and arts leadership. A graduate of Flagler College, he earned dual bachelor's degrees in Business Administration and Theatre Arts, with minors in Law and Arts Administration. As a performer, he appeared in numerous productions, including The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, Proof, Noises Off, The Game's Afoot, The Laramie Project, Godspell, Little Miss Sunshine, and The Battle of Shallowford. He also performed with Flagler's Cabaret ensemble at New York City's renowned 54 Below. Beyond the stage, Bryce has built a diverse portfolio as a producer, director, scenic designer, and technical leader. His recent work includes producing, directing, and designing Ordinary Days with Esposito Producing Group, producing and designing a production of Proof by David Auburn as his Honors Program Capstone, and designing the sets for God of Carnage and Annie at Limelight Theatre.
Technical Production Associate, Tyler Hammond
Manages technical coordination and production logistics, supporting performances, readings, and special events throughout the festival.
Tyler Hammond is an actor, designer and director in North Florida. He is the technical director at Limelight Theatre and a card holding member of The International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees, local 115. Recent production credits in North Florida include: The Battle of Shallowford (technical director), Once Once On This Island (technical director), Godspell (technical director), God of Carnage (technical director), The Fever (technical director), Our Town (lighting designer), A Moon for the Misbegotten (director, lighting and scenic designer), American Buffalo (director, technical director), Shakespeare Sampler (technical director), Good People (scenic designer), Bakersfield Mist (scenic Designer), 9-5 (lighting designer), Wait Until Dark (director, technical director, lighting designer, sound designer), No Exit (master carpenter), and many more.
Branding Associate, Josh Andrews
Oversees brand presence and visual identity, supporting marketing efforts and audience engagement across platforms.
Josh Andrews is an ardent proponent of professional arts in this region and is grateful to return to ShepardFest after five years for this revival production of Buried Child. This show marks the third time Josh will have portrayed the brother of the character played by Tyler Hammond in a Sam Shepard family drama, which feels less and less like coincidence each time it happens. Josh is a cofounder of Lumen Repertory Theatre in Jacksonville, where together the company has employed more than 110 professional artists since 2022. Josh extends his heartfelt gratitude to the many artists, collaborators, patrons, and donors who continue to champion live professional theatre in Northeast Florida. Finally, he thanks his close friends, his family, his wife Lydia, and son Britton for their unwavering love and support.
Festival Advisor, Britt Corry
ShepardFest is guided by a group of trusted advisors who provide artistic, academic, and community insight.
Britt Corry began his professional theatre career in 1986 and has worn different many hats in the industry. Although trained as a performer and formerly a member of Actors Equity Association, he has worked professionally not only as an Actor/Singer, but as a Director, Fight Choreographer, Lighting/Set Designer, Production Manager and Technician. Britt began his teaching career at Flagler College in 1994, after moving to FL from New York City and has served as the department’s Technical Director since that time. Over the past thirty years, he has taught a variety of courses, directed and acted in numerous main stage productions with the college and the Limelight Theatre. Most recently he served as the Artistic Director for the Southern Appalachian Historical Association’s Revolutionary War outdoor drama “Horn in the West”, in Boone, NC during the 2018/19 seasons. Britt was also involved in the original cast of ShepardFest’s inaugural festival production, The Late Henry Moss.
Festival Advisor, Andrea McCook
ShepardFest is guided by a group of trusted advisors who provide artistic, academic, and community insight.
Andrea McCook is excited to appear in Buried Child as Halie. She has been enthralled with Sam Shepard since her introduction to his work decades ago as an undergraduate Theatre Arts major at the University of Santa Clara. As one of the founders of Shepardfest in 2021, she is thrilled that the festival is being resurrected under the leadership of Raines Carr and Mary Claire Branton. Andrea is a Professor of Theatre Arts at Flagler College, teaching acting and directing. She directs regularly on the Flagler main stage, where she directed Trojan Women in spring 2025 and is preparing for a production of Vanya, Sonia, Masha and Spike in the fall of 2026. Most recently, she directed God of Carnage at the Limelight Theatre in spring 2026, where she also directed All My Sons and Storefront Church in 2023 and appeared as Violet Weston in August Osage County in 2022. She received her Master of Fine Arts in Graduate Acting from New York University Tisch School of the Arts and is a proud member of the National Alliance of Acting Teachers.
“Shepard believed the stage was a place where truth could be messy, contradictory, and deeply human. ShepardFest is an invitation to lean into that experience and to traverse the work together and keep the conversation going about this great American experiment.”
— Raines Carr, Co-Founder