Who We Are
Mission Statement: The Story Collective of Cincinnati creates and produces a variety of events, including but not limited to, fully staged productions, staged readings, creative events, classes, and workshops that connect artists and communities of all ages through artistic excellence and encouraging environments.
Vision Statement: Our goal is to be the premier Fine Arts center for the Northern Cincinnati area,with a state-of-the-art facility designed to educate, entertain, and create for people of all ages. We want to be an innovative and valuable resource for local artists,businesses, and communities.
Values: We believe in being creative and collaborative, working with artistic excellence and authenticity. We feel that we have a responsibility to use our gifts, talents, and resources to teach and encourage others. And in all that we do, we want to honor the past, celebrate the present and imagine the future through unique, affordable experiences.
Our Team
Susan Jung / Co-Founder & Artistic Director
Susan is the Director and Choreographer for the award winning Cincinnati Hills Christian Academy Theatre Department and the director of the CHCA improv team, Off the Cuff. With over 20 years in the business, she has directed over 60 full length productions, taught musical theater dance and acting for CCM prep, led/taught over 30 musical theater camps, and taught acting, musical theatre, and dance at the Tony award winning Playhouse in the Park. Susan was one of the stage directors for the Christmas show “Awaited.” She is also a mentor for the Jumpstart Theatre Program (pioneered in Cincinnati) through EDTA where she works with underserved middle school educators to help them start and maintain a theatre program. She has won a Theatre Educator Acclaim Award and was an Overture Finalist for Theatre Education as well as several local acting and choreography awards. As a playwright, several of her original plays have been produced in Cincinnati, Arizona, and Utah. Susan maintains her professional acting career with regional and national commercials, print ads, and voice-overs while performing nationally and internationally with Friends of the Groom and regionally with Murder and Merriment. Susan has also performed professionally with local theatres, TCTC and WFIT, and holds a B.A. in theatre from Northern Kentucky University.
Gabe Hoyer / Co-Founder & Managing Director
Gabe is thrilled to be serving as Managing Director for The Story Collective. He has been heavily involved in the performing arts his entire life, and finds great inspiration in building a theatre company here in his home town of Cincinnati. Gabe is a 2019 graduate from Belmont University in Nashville, Tennessee, with a Bachelor's of Fine Arts in Musical Theatre. Professionally, he has had opportunities to perform for companies such as Studio Tenn (Nashville, TN), The Lost Colony (Manteo, NC) and Cedar Point (Sandusky, OH). He is currently working with the Cincinnati local performance company Murder and Merriment. Gabe could not be more excited to bring this community high-quality theatre and looks forward to making The Story Collective one of the premiere arts houses in the Greater Cincinnati area!
Jim Jung / Operations Director
Jim is a graduate of Northern Kentucky University with a BFA in Musical Theatre Performance. He occasionally performs with Friends of the Groom Theatre Company and has performed for churches and conferences in 16 different states. Jim currently serves as the Operations Director and Technical Director for The Story Collective. He also holds the position of Technical Director for Cincinnati Hills Christian Academy, where he’s served full-time since May of 2016. Prior to his current roles, Jim also worked for a regional AV company, served as the Environment’s Director for 0-18 at Crossroads Church in Oakley, installed systems for At Home Integrations, and worked in IT for Milford Schools. Jim has done set design, lighting, or sound (and often times a combination of all three) for 85 productions over a period of 25 years.
Justin Hanks / Community Engagement Director
Justin has been involved with local theatre for 20+ years. Some of his favorite roles include Seussical (Horton), Beauty and the Beast (Beast), Wizard of Oz (Lion), Children of Eden (Father), Joseph (Pharaoh), The Play That Goes Wrong (Chris), Escanaba in da Moonlight (Remnar), and The Great American Trailer Park Musical (Norbert). When not on stage, Justin contributes as a playwright and director. He recently spent three years performing and writing for Queen City Vaudevillians – a local comedy and variety troupe. Before that, he spent seven years entertaining at the Cincinnati Zoo. Alongside his role with The Story Collective, he currently holds staff positions at Loveland Stage Company, Loveland Shorts Film Festival, and ACT Cincinnati. Outside of theatre, Justin spends his days as a software director. He holds degrees in Computer Science and Mathematics.
Jenna Schroeder / Communications Director
Jenna is an accomplished performer who has won multiple awards both for acting and choreography at the Loveland Stage Company. She currently serves on their board as the Development Chair and co-directed the fundraiser Crushin’ It! Professionally, Jenna spent last year performing with the comedic troupe, The Queen City Vaudevillians as well as making cameo appearances and voiceovers in commercials for Dolphin Hat Games. Jenna holds a BAC from Bowling Green State University, after which she spent time serving in Haiti as well as in Baltimore, MD through Americorps. Working to bridge the gap between underserved communities and the fine arts, Jenna has started various dance programs; first a dance camp in Maryland and later, she partnered with Back2Back Ministries to provide a dance camp for orphans in Mexico. Using her skills to raise awareness for causes such as disaster relief, Chron’s disease, and advocating for vulnerable children in Haiti have been important to her path. Jenna has also competed in Nests Dancing with the Stars who help under-served children in Loveland. Inspired to create community through dance, she started a women’s dance team that performed locally for over 8 years and recently created a class called Dancemix for adults. She is a writer at heart who loves to bring hope-filled words to the world through her inspirational blog and children’s book that will be published this year. Jenna is over the moon excited to join TSC and bring beautiful stories to life with this incredible team.