Steven Taliaferro
| Steven Taliaferro | |
|---|---|
 Taliaferro in 2025 (photo: Landmark Community Theatre)
| |
| Actor · Singer · Scare actor · Theatre writer | |
| Personal information | |
| Birth name | Steven Gregory Taliaferro |
| Also known as | Stephen Gregory; Steven Gregory |
| Based in | Bethel, Connecticut (in Boca Raton, Florida, c. 2018–2020) |
| Career | |
| Education | Norwalk Community College (Media Communications, 2008) Southern Connecticut State University (Communication, 2011) |
| Years active | c. 2012–present |
| Performance | |
| Notable roles | Shrek (Shrek the Musical, Landmark Community Theatre, 2025) Miss Trunchbull (Matilda, Showtime, 2019) Big Bud Dean and Kurt's Dad (Heathers, Showtime, 2019) Tito Merelli (Lend Me a Tenor, Lake Worth Playhouse) Franz Liebkind (The Producers, Brookfield Theatre) |
| Companies | Showtime Performing Arts Theatre; Lake Worth Playhouse; Landmark Community Theatre; Musicals at Richter; Brookfield Theatre; Town Players of Newtown; The Brewster Theater; City Youth Theater / City Stage Company |
| Recognition & links | |
| Website | Facebook · IMDb |
Steven Gregory Taliaferro is an American actor and singer, known for comic and character roles in community and regional theatre in South Florida and Connecticut. He was a regular performer at Showtime Performing Arts Theatre in Boca Raton, where his roles included Miss Trunchbull in Matilda and the fathers in Heathers. He has since appeared with theatre companies in Connecticut, including as Shrek in Landmark Community Theatre's Shrek the Musical (2025). He has also been credited as Stephen Gregory.[1]
Early life and education
Taliaferro is from Bethel, Connecticut. He studied media communications at Norwalk Community College (class of 2008) and communication at Southern Connecticut State University (class of 2011).[2]
Career
Early work in Connecticut
In the summers of 2012 and 2013 he was drama specialist for the Regional YMCA of Western Connecticut in Brookfield, teaching acting to children from pre-kindergarten to grade 8. He described his approach as teaching them "how acting is not just an art form, it's a way of life." From 2013 to 2015 he was a volunteer staff member at The Palace Danbury.[3]
South Florida
Taliaferro lists himself as an actor at Showtime from December 2018 to March 2020, when the pandemic closed it.[3] He was a regular in the teen and adult productions at Showtime Performing Arts Theatre, the musical theatre school and theatre at Royal Palm Place in downtown Boca Raton run by Marilyn Perry.[4] In February 2019 he played the tyrannical headmistress Miss Trunchbull in Showtime's Matilda, which he later named among his favourite roles.[1][5]
In Rent (March 30 – April 14, 2019), directed by Emily Mittleman, he played the landlord Benjamin Coffin III, credited as Stephen Gregory. A reviewer wrote that he "was the perfect villain and 'person who cared' while sternly showing his affection for this difficult band of characters all the while belting and acting his way out of and into the audience's hearts."[6]
In Heathers (December 7–22, 2019), directed by Emily Freeman, he played two fathers: Big Bud Dean, the "very twisted dad" of the lead character Jason Dean, and Kurt's Dad. The reviewer praised his "two dads-gone-wrong", and said his "hippy-like, totally demented character revealed his versatile acting skills". In the second-act opener, "I Love My Dead Gay Son", he and Zaylin Yates, as Ram's Dad, "go through an entire transformation – several times over – during one rip-roaring song which had the audience rolling on the floor with laughter". The reviewer called it "the most lively and hilarious number of the entire musical".[4]
During the last weekend of Heathers he also appeared in the short play A Moment of Clarity by Philip Middleton Williams, directed by his Heathers castmate Zaylin Yates, at the TAP Shorts Festival at The Standing Ovation Theater on December 28, 2019.[7]
In Lake Worth Beach he played the opera star Tito Merelli in the farce Lend Me a Tenor at the Lake Worth Playhouse.[1] He also appeared in the 2020 films Lock-In and Seasons Screenings.[8]
Connecticut
Taliaferro returned to Connecticut, where he has worked with several community theatre companies. His roles there include:[1]
- Franz Liebkind, the Nazi playwright, in The Producers (Brookfield Theatre)
- Marcellus Washburn in The Music Man (Musicals at Richter, Danbury)
- the Fifth Juror in 12 Angry Men (Town Players of Newtown)
He has also appeared with The Brewster Theater in New York.[1] In summer 2025 he played the title role in Landmark Community Theatre's Shrek the Musical at the Thomaston Opera House. His program biography said that Shrek was "'ogre' the moon to be spending the summer with Landmark Community Theater… playing one of his favorite characters".[1][9]
Outside the stage, he has worked since 2021 as a scare actor at "Legends of Fear", the Halloween attraction at Fairview Tree Farm in Shelton, Connecticut.[1][3] Since September 2020 he has also written guest editorials and human-interest stories for the theatre website OnStage Blog.[3] He has also worked with City Youth Theater / City Stage Company, a nonprofit youth and community theatre in Waterbury, Connecticut.[10]
Selected credits
| Year | Production | Role | Venue / company |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2019 | Matilda the Musical | Miss Trunchbull | Showtime Performing Arts Theatre, Boca Raton |
| 2019 | Rent (school edition) | Benjamin Coffin III | Showtime Performing Arts Theatre, Boca Raton |
| 2019 | Heathers | Big Bud Dean; Kurt's Dad | Showtime Performing Arts Theatre, Boca Raton |
| 2019 | A Moment of Clarity (short play) | TAP Shorts Festival, The Standing Ovation Theater | |
| Lend Me a Tenor | Tito Merelli | Lake Worth Playhouse, Lake Worth Beach, Florida | |
| 2020 | Lock-In (film) | ||
| 2020 | Seasons Screenings (film) | ||
| The Producers | Franz Liebkind | Brookfield Theatre, Connecticut | |
| The Music Man | Marcellus Washburn | Musicals at Richter, Danbury, Connecticut | |
| 12 Angry Men | Fifth Juror | Town Players of Newtown, Connecticut | |
| 2025 | Shrek the Musical | Shrek | Landmark Community Theatre, Thomaston Opera House, Connecticut |
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6 "Steven Taliaferro – Shrek the Musical". Landmark Community Theatre (AudienceAccess)(2025).
- ↑ "Steven Gregory: Education". Facebook.Retrieved 2026-11-07.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 "Steven Gregory: Work". Facebook.Retrieved 2026-11-07.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 David de Hilster.""Heathers": Off-Broadway at Its Very Best in Downtown Boca". luanda.dehilster.com(2019-12-24).
- ↑ "Matilda The Musical "Revolting Children" - February 2019 - Showtime Performing Arts Theatre". YouTube (Showtime Performing Arts Theatre)(2019-10-18).
- ↑ David de Hilster."Luanda Thrives in First All Adult Cast". luanda.dehilster.com(2018-10-22).
- ↑ ""A Moment of Clarity" at the TAP Shorts Festival". Facebook(2019-12-27).
- ↑ "Steven Taliaferro". IMDb.
- ↑ "Shrek the Musical". Town of Thomaston, Connecticut(2025-07).
- ↑ "Steven Taliaferro". LinkedIn.
External links
- Steven Taliaferro on Facebook
- Steven Taliaferro on IMDb