Ann-Carol Pence

Biography

ANN-CAROL PENCE (Co-Founder/Producing Artistic Director/Resident Music Director) resides in the Atlanta region and arranged the music for Aurora’s first Christmas Canteen in 1996 and was hired full-time in September of 1998 as Resident Musical Director. An education major at James Madison University, she used her background to develop Learning Library (or L2). As a musician, she created Aurora’s Musicals by Moonlight, and Aurora’s New Musical Initiative. She has performed as pianist and/or music director both nationally (Goodspeed Opera House, Pasadena Playhouse, The Cleveland Playhouse, The Kennedy Center) and locally (The Alliance, Theatrical Outfit, The Horizon, Actor's Express).

As a proud citizen of Gwinnett, Ann-Carol is most proud of Aurora Theatre winning the first ever Pinnacle Award for Large Non-Profit, the very first MOXIE award for women-led businesses. This goes well with her 5 Suzi Awards (Atlanta's version of the Tony's) for Outstanding Music Direction for The Bridges Over Madison County, Les Misérables, Mary Poppins, Aurora’s world premiere of Clyde ’n Bonnie: A Folktale, and A Catered Affair.

In 2021, Ann-Carol, along with Co-Founder and spouse Anthony Rodriguez, opened a $35 million campus expansion. Aurora Theatre is the management agent of the Lawrenceville Arts Center, which houses 4 theatres, a rehearsal hall, classrooms, and an outdoor gathering space in historic downtown Lawrenceville.

A-C is a member of the National Alliance for Musical Theatre Selection Committee, and was a proud participant in the 2016 Atlanta Regional Leadership Institute and member of the “Best Class Ever!”.