Rob is a consummate and dedicated nonprofit arts leader, as well as an occasional performer and playwright, currently serving as Executive Director of Lakeshore Players Theatre in suburban Saint Paul, MN. Rob has been contracted for various administrative and management roles for a variety of theaters including Florida Studio Theatre (Sarasota, FL), Torch Theater Company (Minneapolis, MN), the Great River Shakespeare Festival (Winona, MN) and as Managing Director at 16th Street Theatre in Chicago, IL. Rob is of Dakota ancestry and his research of the lives of the Dakota people before, during and after the Dakota/U.S. War of 1862 culminated in a commissioned play for the History Theatre’s Raw Stages Series entitled 38: The Dakota-U.S. War of 1862. Mr. Thomas has served on and presided over several nonprofit boards, including community soup kitchens, philanthropic organizations, arts organizations, and service clubs.