Dave Payton Announced As Director for 28th Summer Show - Fiddler on the Roof

Lakeshore Productions, Inc. is thrilled to announce Dave Payton as the director for our 28th summer show, Fiddler on the Roof!

This is Dave’s directing debut with LPI, but nowhere near his first gig in that role. His directing and assistant directing credits include: Music Man (twice), Annie (twice), The Sound Of Music, Willy Wonka, The Little Mermaid, as well as various plays/skits over the course of nearly thirty years in New York, Wisconsin and South Carolina. First and foremost an actor, he began his professional acting career in 1999 as “Airplane Passenger #402” in the Harrison Ford movie Random Hearts. After graduating college with a BA in English, Dave spent two years on tour with the Christian acting company Covenant Players, where he got to perform in 14 states and once in Canada. A veteran of 265 productions over 34 years, his favorites include: Noises Off (Garry/Roger), Beauty and the Beast (Lumiere), The Music Man (Harold Hill) and Misery (Paul Sheldon). In 2005, he was honored in California with his first professional acting award for his portrayal of a young bartender longing to be sheriff in the comedy I’d Like A Star, Too. Returning to New York, he was cast as Pee Wee the Seagull, the mascot of the Brooklyn Cyclones (a minor league affiliate of the New York Mets).

Dave is most known in the independent film world as the psychologically challenged neighbor in Thy Neighbor for which he garnered 7 film festival awards in 11 nominations across the world, including 3 Best Actor awards (in New York, Indiana, Michigan), 2 Best Supporting Actor (Indiana, Vermont), Best Villain (Kentucky) and Best Ensemble (Michigan). His proudest moment as an actor happened in September 2020 when Dave was nominated in France at the Paris Arts and Movie Awards. Out of 1,271 movies submitted worldwide, Dave was one of six men nominated for Best Actor, ultimately losing to Hollywood actor William Baldwin. Also a novelist, his debut novel Through Eyes of Grace was published on Amazon in November 2020. He plays Pastor Seth Adams in the film version of the novel, which is currently in editing. Other film credits include The Perfect Day, Big Foot Kills!, Cohabitation, Timbertown, The Man in the Empty Chair, he was an extra in The Good Shepherd (directed by Robert DeNiro), and he just wrapped shooting for Stalked By Shadows. 

Dave is excited to join us this summer and work with our cast and looks forward to getting to know the Random Lake community talent. Welcome to Anatevka!