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 The Team 

Co-Creator, Executive Producer, Writer & Host

Anthony Nunziata is an accomplished singer, songwriter, entertainer, actor, recording artist, and the creator, executive producer, writer and host of Mr. Anthony & Friends. He also serves as record producer and sole songwriter or co-songwriter on all the original songs from the series.

 

For nearly two decades, Anthony has brought music, storytelling, humor, and heart to audiences around the world - from Carnegie Hall and Café Carlyle to concert halls, symphony stages, television audiences and recording studios.

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The inspiration for Mr. Anthony & Friends came from somewhere much closer to home: his nephews. Watching the way children learn, laugh, ask questions, sing along, and see the world with wonder inspired Anthony to create a show that feels kind, joyful, musical, and meaningful. Nunziata wrote or co-wrote all the original songs for the series.

 

Through the power of music, research-based writing, real conversations, imagination, and friendship, Anthony created Mr. Anthony & Friends as a place where children can feel seen, celebrated, and encouraged to be exactly who they are — a joyful place for children to sing, imagine, explore, and grow. 

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Anthony Nunziata

Elizabeth Stuart

Co-Creator, Executive Producer
& Writer 

Elizabeth Stuart is an award-winning journalist and strategic leader with a 20-year career spanning news, scripted TV-movies, corporate events and online media.

 

She spent years at CNN and ABC News covering complex projects including Election Nights, presidential inaugurations, debates, town halls, and large-scale interviews with notable guests including Vice President Kamala Harris, First Lady Jill Biden, Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, Amanda Knox, Dennis Rodman and Barry Manilow. She’s won four Edward R. Murrow Awards, a Peabody Award, and received three Emmy nominations for her work.

 

An accomplished writer, she’s written six screenplays that have aired as made-for-TV movies for Lifetime Networks and Netflix, with more projects underway. Her writing was also featured as part of HBO’s Inspiration Room project in New York City.

 

Elizabeth is delighted to work on Mr. Anthony & Friends with her dear friend of many years and hopes the show will bring joy to the children and families who watch it. She's a graduate of New York University with a degree in Journalism and Dramatic Literature.

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Shalom Fisch, Ph.D.

Educational Consultant, Writer, Developmental Psychologist & Children’s Media Expert

Shalom “Sholly” Fisch, Ph.D., is the President and Founder of MediaKidz Research & Consulting, a firm specializing in educational content development, hands-on testing, research, and writing for children’s media. His clients have included Thirteen/WNET, DC Comics, Random House, Procter & Gamble, the National Academy of Sciences, and many others.

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Prior to founding MediaKidz in 2001, Dr. Fisch served as Vice President for Program Research at Sesame Workshop, creators of Sesame Street®, where he spent 15 years leading curriculum development, formative research, and summative research for television series, digital games, magazines, and hands-on activities for preschool and school-age children.

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His recent projects include Isla Maganda, a television series designed to promote social and emotional learning among children in the Philippines, and summative research assessing children’s learning from WGBH’s Team Hamster! digital engineering games.

 

Dr. Fisch has also served as an advisor and reviewer for organizations including the U.S. Department of Education, the National Research Council, UNICEF, and the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development. He has authored and edited numerous influential publications on children’s learning from educational media, including Children’s Learning from Educational Television: Sesame Street and Beyond and “G” Is for Growing: Thirty Years of Research on Children and Sesame Street.

 

Through his work, Dr. Fisch has helped shape meaningful, research-based media experiences that support children’s learning, development, curiosity, and growth.

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Kelley Moore

​Creative Director &
Producer

Kelley Moore is a creative director and producer with 15+ years across television, digital media, and experiential storytelling. She gained recognition as a lifestyle expert, on national shows including The View, the Today Show, the Ellen DeGeneres Show , the Steve Harvey Show, HGTV, and hosting her own NBC series in Seattle.

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She has led brand partnerships with companies like 3M, Anheuser-Busch, and Montblanc, and more blending storytelling, design, and marketing to create authentic audience connections. Behind the camera, she’s produced high-impact content for Amazon and Microsoft, where she led YouTube growth and engagement.

 

Kelley is the author of Cube Chic and was the Founder/Creative Director of Red-Letter Day, a global event design firm known for immersive, story-driven experiences for celebrities and Fortune 500 companies.​​

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Yaz Fukuoka

Music Director, Arranger &
Music Producer

Yasuhiko “Yaz” Fukuoka is a Drama Desk Award nominee, gifted pianist, composer, arranger, music director, and graduate of Berklee College of Music whose emotional, story-driven music has captivated audiences around the world.

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Yaz has written and performed across genres including classical, contemporary, electronic, film, theater, and world music. His work has been featured in television, film, theater, concert halls, and festivals, with credits spanning North America, Central America, Europe, and Asia.

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He has performed at celebrated venues including Lincoln Center, Carnegie Hall, Café Carlyle, Birdland, Steinway Hall, and the Berklee Performance Center. His original music for the film Cloud-Kumo was part of the project that won the 2016 Student Academy Award, and his orchestral work Journey of a Thousand Miles premiered at Lincoln Center’s Alice Tully Hall.

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Known for his warmth, versatility, and deep musicality, Yaz is highly sought after in New York’s cabaret and concert scene. He also travels the world as music director for singer and songwriter Anthony Nunziata.

Original Score, Music Producer

Ming Aldrich-Gan

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Ming Aldrich-Gan is a pianist, music director, and arranger based in New York and Nashville. He has played on 14 Broadway shows and several national tours, including Hamilton, Aladdin, and Wicked. He has conducted Dear Evan Hansen on Broadway and on tour. An alumnus of the BMI Lehman Engel Musical Theatre Workshop, where he studied musical theater composition, Ming has arranged and orchestrated music for theatrical, concert, and recording projects.

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Rebecca Linthwaite

Editor / Animator

Rebecca Linthwaite is an Editor with over fourteen years of experience in video editing and animation. She currently edits episodes for Emmy-nominated children’s educator and entertainer Ms. Rachel, which stream on Netflix and YouTube. Rebecca contributed to editing segments in the 2026 episode Learn With Ms. Rachel – Friendship & Social Skills. This episode highlights themes of kindness and friendship and includes greetings in multiple languages, including Spanish, Arabic, French, Hebrew, Tagalog, and ASL. The episode also features special guest star Rahaf, a 3-year-old double amputee from Gaza who was medically evacuated to the United States. 

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Currently, Rebecca is an Editor on the animated children’s short film, Táng, directed by Eunice Chen. The film is about a magical candy maker who explores the art of Chinese Sugar Painting. Rebecca is also the Lead Editor on Double Smooth, an animated short film. The film explores the carceral system and draws inspiration from Director Andre Rodriguez’s personal experiences. Additionally, Rebecca is the Lead Editor of the documentary Condemned: The Toxic Prisons Problem. This film focuses on human rights and environmental justice within the carceral system.

 

Rebecca is committed to projects that foster dialogue, emotion, and empathy. Her passion lies in using video editing as a powerful tool to promote education and happiness. 

Ted Severson

Editor

Ted Severson is a seven-time Emmy® Award nominated editor with more than two decades of experience cutting for TV and digital platforms. He is the lead editor of headline musical performances for CNN's "Fourth In America" and "New Year's Eve Live with Anderson Cooper and Andy Cohen," as well as numerous segments for "The Whole Story with Anderson Cooper," "The Lead with Jake Tapper," "Outfront with Erin Burnett," and "The Situation Room with Wolf Blitzer" among others. Prior to his work in global broadcast news, Ted produced and edited dozens of ads for high-profile political campaigns and non-profit advocacy groups, wrote software that usually worked for progressive start-up organizations, and got his start in small town local TV news running tapes from the newsroom to the control room with seconds to spare. Ted is the proud parent of two amazing children with the biggest imaginations, and when not cheering on his wife at her figure skating competitions, he's probably swimming laps at the neighborhood pool or learning how to play a new song by ear on the piano. 

Richard Walsh

Lead Graphic Designer & Illustrator

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Richard H. Walsh is a senior graphic designer, illustrator, and visual storyteller with more than 25 years of experience creating expressive, personality‑packed characters for children’s media, toys, games, greeting cards, educational publishing, and consumer products. He’s spent his career making characters who feel like they’re ready to wink, wave, or crack a joke the moment you look at them.

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Early in his career, Richard became one of the main designers behind the Math Blaster and Reading Blaster characters, helping define the look and personality of two of the most iconic educational game franchises of the CD‑ROM era. His character designs and world‑building helped shape learning software used by millions of kids — and those Blaster heroes still feel like old friends he helped raise.

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Richard also played a major role in the Math MileMarkers series, creating Jayla, the flagship character, along with many of the supporting cast who guide young learners through math concepts. His illustrations helped turn abstract ideas into friendly, approachable moments of discovery, making math feel like an adventure instead of an obstacle.

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Beyond educational media, Richard has created playful toy concepts for Hasbro, illustrated children’s books, designed greeting cards for Paradise Greetings, built packaging lines for 2 Monkey Trading and Z Company, and developed whimsical branding for Sugar Plum Chocolates/DM Snacks. One of his seasonal product designs even landed on Martha Stewart’s Top Ten Easter Products, a career moment he describes as “delightfully surreal.”

Tommy Krakowiak - Director of Photography
Bill Hickey - Sound Supervisor

Whitney Simon - Lighting Director / Key Grip
George Boulukos - Lighting / Grip 
 Brian Leary - Additional Camera 
Mike Lamarra - Additional Camera 
Larry Kaltenbach - Prompter Operator
Natalie Yarbor - Assistant Editor

Collin Blackard - Script Supervisor
Betsy Wagner - Script Supervisor
Maggie Solimine - Production Assistant
Chenyi Zhu - Lead Animator
Annie Dewey - Education Consultant
Jon Cospito - Lead Production Photographer
Biagio Dell'Aiera - Associate Production Photographer
Dominique Noëlle - Make-Up Artist​ 
Aoife Piggott - Wardrobe Stylist
Ana Galan - Spanish Translator

The Songwriters: 
Sadie Anderson, Jane Bach, Maria Christensen, Jeff Franzel, Elena Jones, Tom Kimmel, Anthony Nunziata 

Special Thanks to:

Sue McCann Brown
Artists with Agency / Agent: Danielle Galligan

Major funding for Mr. Anthony & Friends is provided by
The Rolly Michaux Foundation


Special thanks to The Rex Reed Foundation and William Kapfer & Eric Baker, whose generous support helped make the first season possible.

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All Media Inquiries:
Kelley Moore

Creative Director, Mr. Anthony & Friends
kelley@kelleylmoore.com

© 2026 Nunziata Foundation for the Arts, a Tennessee 501(c)(3) nonprofit.

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