Kendra Avans is absolutely thrilled to be making her theatrical debut playing the dual role of Barbara Gordon and Batgirl. The fifteen year old Bronx native came to the production in a nontraditional way. She was discovered on Facebook by Playright / Director, Roberto Williams when he encountered a posted photo of her on his newsfeed. An old acquaintance, Mrs. Alex Avans, had posted the candid snapshots of her two daughters which caught his eye, because one of her girls resembled his vision for the character. When Roberto reached out to Alex to tell her about his upcoming production with the purpose of inviting Kendra to audition, his heart sank when she informed him that she did not have any prior acting experience and suffered from terrible stage fright. Although it was unlikely she would want to get involved with the production, she promised to discuss it with her. A few hours later, Roberto received an urgent message that she was indeed interested in the role, so an audition date was scheduled a few days later.
During the audition Roberto met a nervous, shy young lady intimidated to perform in front of her parents. Despite this first impression of her, Roberto was impressed with her ability to take direction both in acting and in fight choreography. Sensing a deeper potential in her abilities, he granted her the coveted part. Since those early days, Kendra has truly blossomed as a talented young actress. Her confidence has boomed, making it impossible for new cast members to believe that she was ever anything but the confident extrovert that she now embodies.
When she is not dressing up in costumes and fighting crime, Kendra attends The Urban Assembly for Media Studies High School where she was elected “Funniest Female” in her grade. She enjoys singing, dancing and eating lots of candy!
