KML’s Staff

  • Just a small town girl, growing up in the Danish tourist town of Solvang, California, Emma McCool (she/her) is a self-proclaimed pastry snob with a deep love of comedy. Upon graduating from the University of San Francisco with a BA in Performing Arts and Social Justice, she immediately began freelancing in stage management (enter Killing My Lobster). While continuing to stage manage throughout the Bay Area, Emma pursued her interest in arts management at the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art and found herself on the Rental Events Team. Having been ripped away from live events and performances by the pandemic, she is excited to be fully immersed in what she loves: surrounded by amazing artists and ready to laugh.

  • Originally from the sleepy lil' East Bay town of Benicia, Nicole Odell (she/her) earned her B.A. in Drama from San Francisco State in 2010. Upon graduation, she went to Los Angeles and completed the Conservatory program through Second City Hollywood, performing sketch and improv all along the way. In 2014, she returned to the Bay Area, and began working in the comedy community. She taught and coached improv with Leela Improv Theatre, participated in various comedy festivals including The Denver Improv Festival, SFIF, Femprovisor Fest, and SF Sketchfest. She has appeared in productions around the Bay Area, including with Faultline Theatre Co, EXIT Theatre, and Livermore Shakespeare Festival. Nicole first began working with Killing My Lobster back in 2015 on the show Excellent Adventure. Since then, she's served as an actor, writer, head writer, and instructor, and began in her role as Artistic Director in November 2021

  • Teacher Advocate & Curriculum Officer

    Kate Elston (she/her) has worked with Killing My Lobster since 2014 as a writer, head writer, director and instructor. She's had a hand in around 20 KML shows, some of her favorites being "Lobster, Actually" and "Vicious Cycle The Musical." By day, Kate's a Peabody Award-winning producer with an international news outlet. She and her husband (fellow KML writer/instructor Karl Keily) live in San Francisco and are having fun prepping their almost-3-year-old daughter to learn recorder so they can start a silly band together.

  • JB Tang (they/them) is a funnymaker hailing from the Bay Area. Having spent most of their career at the intersection of theater and education, they love supporting learners in their creative journeys and helping make comedy writing a more queer and colorful space. They’ve developed musical work for Berkeley Playhouse and co-wrote the QPOC musical Howdyland! with former lobster Dominique Gelin, which was selected for the 2022 Live and In Color workshop (NYC). JB has also written for the Baby Einstein YouTube series Ocean Explorers. JB has written for several KML shows since joining in the spring of 2020 (talk about comedic timing!) and feels grateful to have found such a hilarious creative home.

Our advisory board

  • JESSICA BALDWIN has 12 years experience in arts management, with a demonstrated history in the non-profit and cultural sector. Having received her BA from the University of San Francisco with a double major in Performing Arts and Art History and her MSc in Arts & Cultural Management from the Paris School of Business, she is currently an Assistant Director with the Enterprise Events team at SFMOMA. Jessica previously held positions with the Phyllis C. Wattis Foundation and was the Director of Operations at the 500 Capp Street Foundation, overseeing the restoration and launch of the David Ireland House, San Francisco's first historic artist's home. Jessica is thrilled to be on Killing My Lobster's Board of Directors after having had the privilege of working with the company as a stage manager since 2011.

  • Carla is thrilled to join the KML Board and lend her combination of corporate, production, and performance experience to the team. Carla has performed and written with KML since 2016, and is the Creator/EP of her own WOC/QPOC-led sketch comedy project "Nice Tan.” In her past life, she managed corporate retail training and development programs at Apple, and managed client briefings at the Executive Briefing Center. She is excited to help KML continue to expand its mission of bringing fresh, smart, and inclusive comedy to the Bay Area and beyond!

  • Originally from New York, Kevin earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from State University of New York College at Buffalo and a Masters degree in Theatre Arts from the University of Illinois in Chicago. He has more than 25 years of experience working in the nonprofit sector and is a Certified Fund Raising Executive (CFRE). He has held senior leadership and resource development positions with the Chicago Youth Symphony, American Lung Association in California (Greater Bay Area and Sacramento), Pets Are Wonderful Support (PAWS), YMCA of the Central Bay Area, Peralta Colleges Foundation, and Sierra Club. He is currently the Executive Director for the Book Club of California. Kevin joined the KML Board of Directors in June 2018.