Franco Zacha
Franco Zacha is an Argentinian illustrator doing work for newspapers, magazines, books, and more. He graduated from the Rhode Island School of Design and is currently based in Brooklyn, NY. You might find him drinking mate at dawn while admiring swans by the waters of Prospect Park Lake.
For more information visit Franco's website here.
Franco will be teaching Landscape Painting and Pen & Ink at High School Camp.
For more information visit Franco's website here.
Franco will be teaching Landscape Painting and Pen & Ink at High School Camp.
Quilan “Cue” Arnold
Quilan “Cue” Arnold (MFA) is a movement artist based out of Union City, NJ, who uses his God-given gifts to create systems that advocate for the liberation of all people. As a performer Quilan has been a member of companies such as onCUE Chronicles (NJ), Camille A. Brown and Dancers (NY), Rennie Harris Puremovement (PA), Netta Yerushalmy Dance Company (NY), Abby Z and the New Utility (NY), and Enzo Celli Vivo Ballet (NY). Quilan’s most recent choreographic works, Grandbuelo’s Quarter and The Third Rail, were presented at DancePlace (DC) and New Jersey City University (NJ) respectively in 2023. He was a 2022 New Directions Choreography Lab Artist-in-Residence at Alvin Ailey, and featured in the ALL ARTS documentary, Alvin Ailey New Directions. Other recent choreographic residencies include Brigham-Young University (UT), Green Space Theater (NY) and University of Texas- Austin. Quilan is the founder and CEO of the dance liberation business, The "onCUE Company," which equips dance artists with necessary resources to redefine their Usonian/American dream. Within onCUE he is artistic director of the kinetic storytelling company, "onCUE Chronicles"; host of the Street/Club Dance podcast, "The Good Foot Podcast"; head of the dance education business, "onCUE Center of Learning"; director of the Street/Club Dance documentary, "Build’N Shop"; and creator of the "Searching for a True Move" kinetic vulnerability method. As an educator Quilan has served numerous dance institutions by foregrounding the value of Street/Club Dance philosophy towards dance technique, U.S. history, antiracism, humanitarianism, and more. A few of Quilan’s educational collaborations include Brigham-Young University (UT), Peridance (NY), Hoboken Charter School (NJ), Alvin Ailey (NY), University of Texas- Austin, Queensborough College (NY), and Hunter College (NY). Additionally, Quilan hosts an online Hip-Hop course, Get Groovy. View Quilan’s work at www.cue4christ.com and onCUE Company’s work at www.oncuechronicles.com.
Quilan will be teaching Hip Hop, Dance Team, and Contemporary Dance at Middle and High School Camp.
Quilan will be teaching Hip Hop, Dance Team, and Contemporary Dance at Middle and High School Camp.
Eliana Athayde
Eliana Athayde currently tours nationally and internationally with Innovative Leisure recording artist Nick Waterhouse. After studying at USC, Ellie became an in-demand bassist in Southern California– performing and recording with The Hi-Fi Honeydrops, Jacaranda, Jon Batiste, and Louise Goffin.
Eliana will be teaching at Elementary Camp and Rock Band and Songwriting at Middle School Camp.
Eliana will be teaching at Elementary Camp and Rock Band and Songwriting at Middle School Camp.
Kyle Athayde
Kyle Athayde is a San Francisco Bay Area-based composer, arranger, performer, teacher, and bandleader. A native of Orinda, California, Kyle primarily plays vibraphone, piano, trumpet, and drums, as well as bongo, congas, timbales, string bass, bass clarinet, sousaphone, and vocal percussion. He is the leader, conductor, and principal writer for the San Francisco/New York-based big band, Kyle Athayde Dance Party, a group acclaimed for its versatility in the wide scope of styles it performs. He is also a keyboard, trumpet, and percussion player for the Bay Area collective Jazz Mafia, and is the pianist for The New York Trumpet Ensemble. Influenced by the music of J. S. Bach, Duke Ellington, Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky, Eric Dolphy, Dmitri Shostakovich, Louis Armstrong, Igor Stravinsky, Charlie Parker, Olivier Messiaen, Art Tatum, and many others, Athayde composes and arranges music in a variety of genres, with an emphasis on jazz, classical, salsa, and electronic. While an undergraduate student at Juilliard, Kyle was heavily immersed in an interdisciplinary arts environment which included dance, drama, and music, which provided him the opportunity to further develop and refine his programmatic approach to composition. Athayde’s recent commissioned compositions and premieres include a double concerto for the New York Sinfonietta, a tone poem for Bobby Sanabria and The Manhattan School of Music Afro-Cuban Jazz Orchestra (the title track of their most recent album, ¡QUE VIVA HARLEM!), two pieces for choir and band for The University of Scranton’s performing ensembles, and music for the ending credits of the film Diller, Scofidio + Renfro: Reimagining Lincoln Center and the High Line. He also arranged the music for the halftime show for the University of California at Berkeley Marching Band in their final performance of the 2013 season. Kyle is currently working on commissions for the Canadian Brass, The New York Trumpet Ensemble, Manhattan School of Music Trumpet Ensemble, and the San Francisco Conservatory Brass Choir. Committed to interdisciplinary educational outreach in the arts, Kyle has offered classes, clinics, lessons and masterclasses at schools, workshops, and camps in California, New York, Pennsylvania, Texas, and Alaska. A regular visiting faculty member of the Sitka Fine Arts Camp, he recently developed and taught a class on video game music history and composition there, and directed the jazz band and a vocal hip hop class. He is the Director of Curriculum at the Lafayette Summer Music Workshop, and regularly offers clinics and masterclasses to middle school and high school bands throughout Northern California. Kyle has a wide range of interests, and loves to teach and learn about a variety of subjects, which brings a wide stylistic variety to his music, as his diverse interests inspire his work. A passionate fan of American football, the ruthless power and strategy of the sport influence his exciting writing style. An avid gamer, the music of these video games has inspired some of his most unusual and engaging compositions.
For more information visit Kyle's website here.
Kyle will be teaching Brass Technique, Jazz Band, and Jazz Combos at Middle School Camp.
For more information visit Kyle's website here.
Kyle will be teaching Brass Technique, Jazz Band, and Jazz Combos at Middle School Camp.
Jamie Bates
Jamie Bates is currently an Assistant Professor of Ceramics at the University of Oklahoma. She received her MFA from the University of Kansas and her BFA from the University of Central Missouri. In their studio practice, Jamie uses self-reflection to explore themes including mental health, sexuality, and gender.
Jamie will be teaching Wheel Thrown Pottery, Handbuilding, and Figure Sculpture at Middle and High School Camp.
Jamie will be teaching Wheel Thrown Pottery, Handbuilding, and Figure Sculpture at Middle and High School Camp.
Zeke Blackwell
Zeke Blackwell has been involved in over 100 productions as a director, performer, writer, designer, and technician, and has had the joy of making theater in Sitka, Fort Worth, New Haven, New York, and Costa Rica, where he directed the world premiere of the Spanish-language version of Once On This Island! With almost two decades of improv comedy experience, he’s performed/taught improv around the country, and most recently at the Boston Comedy Arts Festival and the Wasatch Improv Festival in Salt Lake City. His original play, Still Life, was produced in the 2013 New York International Fringe Festival. He graduated from Yale University with a B.A. in Cognitive Science. He served two years on the board of directors for Far Corners Community Musical theater, a non-profit dedicated to providing arts opportunities for underserved youth in isolated regions of the world. Once, he beat-boxed for Lin-Manuel Miranda. This is his 10th season year-round at SFAC as the Young Performers Theater Director.
Zeke will be teaching at Elementary Camp and Intro to Theater, Shakespeare, and Acting: In the Spotlight at Middle School Camp and Acting: Mainstage, Shakespeare, and Directing for the Stage at High School Camp.
Zeke will be teaching at Elementary Camp and Intro to Theater, Shakespeare, and Acting: In the Spotlight at Middle School Camp and Acting: Mainstage, Shakespeare, and Directing for the Stage at High School Camp.
Sarah Branton
Sarah Branton is in her 23rd year of teaching secondary music and has served the last 18 years at Cherry Creek High School in Denver, Colorado. At CCHS, she directs several of the school’s choirs, vocal directs the annual musical production, teaches AP Music Theory and has been assistant orchestra director. Under her direction, ensembles have performed at numerous state and regional ACDA and NAfME conventions, Carnegie Hall, and have toured around the world. Prior to Cherry Creek, Ms. Branton taught choir and orchestra in Longmont, CO and Blaine, MN. Ms. Branton is the Assistant Director of Kantorei, a Denver-based adult choir, and she is the alto Section Leader and sings with the choir. Furthermore, she is on faculty at the summer Sitka Fine Arts Camp in Sitka, Alaska, sings with various ad hoc ensembles throughout the community, is an orchestral and jazz string bassist, and served as principal bassist of the St. Olaf Orchestra and St. Olaf Jazz Band I. She is currently Chair-Elect on the Colorado All-State Choir board and was previously on the Colorado American Choral Directors Association board. Ms. Branton holds music degrees from St. Olaf College and Colorado State University and is studying continuing education through Berklee College of Music.
Sarah will be teaching Vocal Technique, Choir, and Musical Theater at High School Camp.
Sarah will be teaching Vocal Technique, Choir, and Musical Theater at High School Camp.
Joe Burck
Joe Burck studies History Education for grades 5-12 with a minor in Theater Arts at Augustana College. Originally from Aurora, Illinois, Joe started learning about technical theater as a middle school camper at the Sitka Fine Arts Camp and is eager to return to Odess Theater and the Sitka Performing Arts Center. In his time at Augustana, Joe has worked on productions such as Macbeth (Assistant Sound Designer), Threepenny Opera (Sound Board Operator), Cabaret (Sound Designer), most recently Nine (Sound Designer), and currently works as a Scene Shop Supervisor in charge of managing set production. In the summers of 2022 and 2023, Joe worked at the Sitka Fine Arts Camp as the Technical Theater Intern, the Assistant Technical Manager, and the Technical Director. Joe collaborated on the 2022 SFAC production of Mamma Mia as the Pit Sound Board Operator and on the 2023 SFAC production of Cinderella as the Technical Director.
Joe will be teaching Live Event Production at Middle and High School Camp.
Joe will be teaching Live Event Production at Middle and High School Camp.
Amy Butcher
Amy Butcher is an award-winning writer and the recent recipient of a 2024 Individual Excellence Award from the Ohio Arts Council for work on her new book, a work-in-progress that explores and examines concepts of autonomy, legitimacy, believability, and value as they relate to and shape the lives of female-presenting Americans. Her most recent book, Mothertrucker, interrogates the realities of female fear, abusive relationships, and America’s quiet epidemic of intimate partner violence set against the geography of remote, northern Alaska. The book earned praise from Publisher’s Weekly, Good Morning America, Booklist, The Chicago Review of Books, Oxford Reviews, Kirkus Reviews, and others, with Kirkus Reviews calling the book “...a sobering reflection on verbal and psychological abuse [that] honors the healing power of female friendship and questions the nature of divinity beyond its constricting patriarchal manifestations,” and Publisher’s Weekly writing, “[Mothertrucker] explores myriad issues with nuance and grace, including Indigenous rights, violence against women, religious hypocrisy, and environmental concerns.” Excerpts of Mothertrucker also won a 2020 Individual Excellence Award from the Ohio Arts Council, with judges calling the book “well researched,” “very well-written,” and “a positive antidote to the trauma of violence against women.” Her first book, Visiting Hours (Blue Rider Press/Penguin-Random House, 2015), earned starred reviews and praise from The New York Times Sunday Review of Books, NPR, The Star Tribune, Kirkus Reviews, Glamour, Cosmopolitan, and others, and additional work has appeared in Granta, Harper's, The New York Times’ “Modern Love,” The New York Times Sunday Review, The Washington Post, The Denver Post, The Iowa Review, Lit Hub, Guernica, Gulf Coast, Fourth Genre, and Brevity, among others. Her work has been featured on National Public Radio and the BBC, anthologized in Best Travel Writing, thrice nominated for a Pushcart Prize, and awarded notable distinctions in the 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2020 and 2021 editions of the Best American Essays series. She earned her MFA from the University of Iowa's Nonfiction Writing Program and is the recipient of grants and awards from the Vermont Studio Center, the Virginia Center for Creative Arts, the Kimmel Harding Nelson Center for the Arts, the Academy of American Poets, the Ohio Arts Council, Colgate University, Word Riot Inc., and the Stanley Foundation for International Research. She serves as the Director of Creative Writing and an Associate Professor of English at Ohio Wesleyan University.
For more information visit Amy's website here.
Amy will be teaching Creative Nonfiction, Short Fiction Writing, and The Art of Poetry at Middle and High School Camp.
For more information visit Amy's website here.
Amy will be teaching Creative Nonfiction, Short Fiction Writing, and The Art of Poetry at Middle and High School Camp.
Emma T Capps
A cartoonist and art teacher since the age of 14, Emma T Capps graduated from Brown University and the Rhode Island School of Design in 2023, with a BA in literary arts and an honors BFA in illustration. In 2024, she completed her studies at the University of Cambridge's graduate school of Education. Her comics have been featured in Dark Horse Comics, USA Today, Wired, and more. Besides comics, she's an apparel and costume designer, finding joy in the multidisciplinary nature of apparel design and the empathy-cultivating power of sequential art. Originally from California, she now resides in a medieval village in the English countryside, enthusiastically petting every dog she encounters.
Emma will be teaching Mini Comics, Longform Comics, and Sewing & Apparel Design at High School Camp.
Emma will be teaching Mini Comics, Longform Comics, and Sewing & Apparel Design at High School Camp.
Marissa Childers
Marissa Childers is a ceramic artist living in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. She was born in Florence, Alabama where she earned her BFA from the University of North Alabama. Upon graduating, she worked as a ceramic intern at Anderson Ranch Arts Center and soon after received her MFA from the University of Oklahoma. Marissa’s work explores moments of connection and intimacy while celebrating femininity and craft found within domestic spaces. She is often inspired by things that society deems as a ‘craft’ or ‘feminine’ such as quilting, sewing, and decoration. Marissa has exhibited her work at numerous galleries and has received various grants and awards to support her research, including support from the Oklahoma Visual Arts Coalition and the National Council for Education in the Ceramic Arts. She was chosen as one of Ceramics Monthly’s Emerging Artists of 2022 and was an Emerging Artist for NCECA in 2023.
For more information visit Marissa's website here.
Marissa will be teaching at Elementary Camp and Wheel Thrown Pottery and Handbuilding at Middle and High School Camp.
For more information visit Marissa's website here.
Marissa will be teaching at Elementary Camp and Wheel Thrown Pottery and Handbuilding at Middle and High School Camp.
Marco d'Ambrosio
Marco d'Ambrosio loves shaping music and sound, especially the kind that enhances the visual arts. Making music that is evocative, enlightening, and entertaining is a natural result of Marco's creative expression. Marco's musical baptism began shortly after moving from Italy to Boston, when at the age of nine he began playing trumpet. "It really all began in Italy," he reminisces, "when my father would take me to festivals in Florence. He would put me on his shoulders so I could watch the bands march by. I remember falling in love with the trumpet, mostly because it was so shiny! It wasn't until we emigrated to the United States that I had a chance to start playing in elementary school." With an insatiable appetite for all genres ("My first two albums purchased simultaneously were Maurice Andre Plays Baroque Trumpet Concertos and Aerosmith's Toys in the Attic") his musical awareness was soon captivated by film music, particularly the classic collaborations of Fellini and Nino Rota and the scores of Ennio Morricone, Bernard Herrman and Jerry Goldsmith. This quickly led him to composition, with a special interest in fusing acoustic and electronic textures, which he pursued as a double major of music and engineering at the Hartt School of Music and University of Hartford. Marco has never been unduly influenced by cultural and stylistic constrictions. He is equally adept at playing and creating pieces that reflect classical, jazz, modern, and ethnic influences, and he thrives on blurring the lines between them. In many of his scores, you can hear various instruments like didgeridoo, dumbek and bodhran drums, melodica, Indian flutes, waterphones, and theremin along with handcrafted beats and stylized synthetic textures. Many of his compositions also reflect a romantic orchestral lyricism that can no doubt be traced to his summers performing and studying at the University of Siena and touring with the Puccini and International Festival Opera Orchestras. An East Coast transplant and Lucasfilm alum, Marco has made a niche for himself in a studio in the San Francisco Bay Area. As a composer, sound designer and multi-instrumentalist, he has scored numerous award winning films, documentaries and theater projects including the anime hits Vampire Hunter D: Bloodlust, Jojo’s Bizarre Adventures, and Fist of the Blue Sky as well as Haiku Tunnel (Sundance 2001), the Emmy-winning BLINK, Double Dare, and Red Diaper Baby for the Sundance Channel. Other scores of Marco's have been on projects produced by 20th Century Fox, Sony Pictures, Lucasfilm Ltd., Dreamworks, Pixar, Columbia and HBO. In 2005, he was awarded a film scoring fellowship from the Sundance Institute, and in 2009 he was selected to participate in the BMI Conducting Workshop in Hollywood. You can also hear some of his noted scores in The Rape of Europa, winner of the Insight Award for Excellence (co-scored with Ben Decter) and 2009 Sundance Film Festival Grand Jury Prize, and Atomic Mom winner of the Gold Medal at the Park City Film Festival. Marco has also been responsible for designing much of the dynamic sound and music heard in the iconic THX logo trailer. Most recently, Marco has composed for H.P. Mendoza, Brian Benson, and long-time collaborators Josh and Jacob Kornbluth. Marco has also enjoyed a stint co-arranging and performing with Bob Weir (The Grateful Dead) and co-writing/producing songs with Michael Caranello (Santana) and Neal Schon (Journey). He has also served as a studio conductor for Disney, on the TV series Off the Map and Intelligence, working on great LA stages, like Capitol and Warner Bros., and is currently a regular conductor at Skywalker, working on larger scores for video games along with baton duty for other composers on their films. When he's not locked up in his mad sonic laboratory, Marco recharges his creative flow working the land at Valle Verde, the Sonoma County ranch he shares with his wife Terri and son Armando, and their dog Diva.
For more information visit Marco's website here.
Marco will be teaching Electronic Music, Music & Sound for Everyone, and Film & Media Composition at High School Camp.
For more information visit Marco's website here.
Marco will be teaching Electronic Music, Music & Sound for Everyone, and Film & Media Composition at High School Camp.
Sydney Schwindt
Sydney Schwindt is an actor originally from Boulder, Colorado. She has her BFA in Acting from The Hartt School and has trained at the Accademia dell'Arte in Arezzo, Italy and The SF Clown Conservatory. She has performed all over the country and internationally with such companies as Hartford Stage, Mirage Entertainment, San Francisco Shakespeare Festival, Davis Shakespeare Ensemble, and many more. Specializing in stage combat and physical comedy, she loves to learn to new things! Aside from acting you may find her working as fight director, teaching artist, or even on stilts making balloon animals! Take a look around to learn more about Sydney!
For more information visit Sydney's website here.
Sydney will be teaching Stage Combat: Unarmed, Stage Combat: Swords, and Musical Theater at High School Camp.
For more information visit Sydney's website here.
Sydney will be teaching Stage Combat: Unarmed, Stage Combat: Swords, and Musical Theater at High School Camp.
Gaz Ehrreich
Gaz Ehrreich is a multidisciplinary artist and illustrator from California, currently residing in New England. Gaz graduated from Rhode Island School of Design where he carved out a path to study miniature modeling within the Illustration Department, alongside traditional drawing and painting. Professionally, Gaz is an accomplished architectural renderer, illustrator, muralist, and craftsman with a love for teaching and a lot of knowledge to give. He specializes in handmade art, fine craftsmanship, drafting, perspective, and lighting. He is also passionate about the connections between art and music, creative writing, humanity, AI, and apocalyptic fiction. He is currently working on a graphic novel and a series of scientific posters with the goal of better understanding the natural world. This summer he will be teaching courses in drawing perspective, stop motion animation, and miniature modeling.
For more information visit Gaz's website here.
Gaz will be teaching Drawing Perspective, Stop Motion Animation, and Making Miniatures at High School Camp.
For more information visit Gaz's website here.
Gaz will be teaching Drawing Perspective, Stop Motion Animation, and Making Miniatures at High School Camp.
Ariel Estrada
Ariel Estrada (he/him/his/siya) is a Webby Award-winning producer, actor, writer, and advocate for Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander (AANHPI) performing artists and all performing artists of marginalized identity. As an actor, he has performed on television, film, commercials, digital media, and Off- and Off-Off-Broadway, regionally including at Lincoln Center and the Kennedy Center, and on tv/film on Girls5Eva, Tell Me A Story, Bull, Blue Bloods, and The Americans. As a producer, Ariel is the Founder and Executive Artistic Director for Leviathan Lab, a nonprofit creative studio for AANHPI performing artists. As a member of the AANHPI producers collective CollaborAzian, he was part of the leadership team of the 2022 Webby Award-winning online concert of A Gentleman’s Guide to Love and Murder which raised over $25K in support of the nonprofit community advocacy organization Stop AAPI Hate. As an arts administrator and educator, he is the Associate Director of the Theatre Program at Fordham University; the Grants Manager for National Asian Artists Project; and serves on the boards Latine Musical Theatre Lab, Musical Theatre Factory, and Episcopal Actors Guild, as well as the advisory board for Houghton Hall Arts Community. His leadership has been recognized by artEquity, New York Foundation for the Arts, and Theatre Communications Group. He has also been designated as an Educator Advocate by Theatrical Intimacy Education. www.arielestrada.com | leviathanlab.com
Ariel will be teaching Acting, Acting for Film & Television, and The Art of Auditioning at High School Camp.
Ariel will be teaching Acting, Acting for Film & Television, and The Art of Auditioning at High School Camp.
Franz Felkl
Franz Felkl was born and raised in Juneau, Alaska. He started his violin studies with Guo Hua Xia at age four and continued his studies in high school with Mrs. Linda Rosenthal. Upon his acceptance into the University Alaska of Fairbanks he continued his studies with Dr. Kathleen Butler-Hopkins. Mr. Felkl received a Bachelors in Violin Performance and a Bachelors of Music Education K-12 from the University of Alaska Fairbanks. Mr. Felkl collaborated extensively with faculty members of the University of Alaska Fairbanks in both chamber music and recitals. He played with the Fairbanks Symphony Orchestra, retained a position as Principal Second Violinist and guest Concertmaster of the Juneau Symphony Orchestra during his undergraduate studies, Principal Second Violin for the Opera Fairbanks Orchestra, and many other ensembles in Alaska. In 2012, he won the Fairbanks Symphony Orchestra’s Concerto Competition and had the opportunity to play the Tchaikovsky Violin Concerto with the orchestra. As an educator he has worked as a coach in a chamber music setting for young artists, taught at music camps for young musicians, and worked with the Fairbanks Youth Symphony Orchestras. In the fall of 2013, Mr. Felkl worked as a student teaching intern with the Fairbanks Northstar School District as part of his music education studies. He worked with cooperating teachers in the elementary and middle school programs. The following spring, he continued to teach within the district as a substitute teacher, primarily focusing on the music classrooms. In the spring of 2016, Mr. Felkl received his Masters of Music in Violin Performance from Lynn University Conservatory of Music where he studied with Mr. Elmar Oliveira. During his time at Lynn, he acted as Concertmaster of the Lynn Philharmonia and participated in many different chamber music groups. Recently, he has held positions in Florida Grand Opera, Miami City Ballet, and the Palm Beach Symphony, as well as played in numerous other groups in the South Florida area. From 2016-2019, Mr. Felkl was the Second Violinist in the Amernet String Quartet, Ensemble-in-Residence at Florida International University. During his tenure with the quartet, he traveled throughout the United States, Mexico, and Middle East. While in the quartet, he collaborated with musicians such as Joseph Kalichstein, Cynthia Phelps, Roberto Diaz, and Guillermo Figueroa. At FIU, he taught courses as an adjunct faculty and most recently as visiting professor. In addition to his concertizing, Mr. Felkl maintained a full studio at the Palm Beach Suzuki School of Music. Mr. Felkl now lives in Juneau, where he is the Concertmaster of the Juneau Symphony, has a studio of private students, is the director of the Juneau Symphony Prelude Orchestra, and is a lead teacher and site coordinator for Juneau Alaska Music Matters (JAMM). JAMM is an El Sistema inspired after-school program that uses the power and social experience of music for youth to reach their fullest potential and create active and engaged community members. In his spare time, he enjoys being outdoors, fishing, and is an avid runner.
Franz will be teaching String Technique, Orchestra, and Small Ensembles at Middle School Camp.
Franz will be teaching String Technique, Orchestra, and Small Ensembles at Middle School Camp.
Shai Golan
Shai Golan is a saxophonist, composer, multi-instrumentalist, and educator. Shai has performed with numerous distinguished artists including David Binney, Billy Childs, Walter Smith III, Chris Potter, Nate Wood, Louis Cole, John Daversa, Ali Shaheed Muhammad, Adrian Younge, Estelle, and Black Thought. As a touring musician, Shai has performed internationally at music festivals around the world, including Brazil, Ecuador, Canada, China, Thailand, Russia, and numerous countries in Europe. He graduated with a Master’s Degree in Jazz Arts from the Manhattan School of Music in 2017 and with a Bachelor’s Degree from California State University Northridge in 2015. Shai is currently an adjunct professor at CSU Northridge’s jazz department.
Shai will be teaching Saxophone Technique, Jazz Band, and Jazz Combos at High School Camp.
Shai will be teaching Saxophone Technique, Jazz Band, and Jazz Combos at High School Camp.
Teaghan Gokey
Ever since perusing a copy of D’Aulaires’ Book of Greek Myths, Teaghan Gokey has been profoundly inspired by the countless ancient tales of sword and sorcery throughout humanity’s shared history, and has since strived to craft weird and wild myths from his own collection of worldly interests. An avid researcher and insatiable bookworm, Teaghan has been eternally mesmerized by the wonders of nature, and usually finds himself drawing from the fields of paleontology, geology, and marine biology as a limitless well of inspiration billions of years in the making. Through modern methods of digital painting, Teaghan seeks to revive the mysterious and grand visions of the Old World with a distinct twist of eerie surrealism. Since graduating with honors from the Rhode Island School of Design in 2022, Teaghan’s work has been featured in the Soul Arts collection by Michael Samuels aka VaatiVidya, and he has recently picked up freelance work designing all manner of creatures and critters for tabletop RPG games.
For more information visit Teaghan's website here.
Teaghan will be teaching Creature Art, Digital Painting: Character Design, and Intro to Procreate: Illustrating Magical Worlds at Middle School Camp.
For more information visit Teaghan's website here.
Teaghan will be teaching Creature Art, Digital Painting: Character Design, and Intro to Procreate: Illustrating Magical Worlds at Middle School Camp.
Rhiannon Guevin
Rhiannon Guevin is the Operations Director for the nationally recognized Sitka Fine Arts Camp (SFAC). In addition to her administrative duties with the camp, which include financial management, program logistics, and grant writing and management, Rhiannon teaches voice at SFAC's High School Camp and provides vocal coaching for SFAC's Musical Theater Camp. Rhiannon helped to start SFAC's Young Performers Theater program in 2013 and served as the program's Music Director until 2021. She still serves as vocal coach for the program. She also teaches private voice lessons to a small studio. Rhiannon has served as an adjudicator for the classical voice and musical theater sections at Alaska's State Solo and Ensemble Music Festival. Rhiannon graduated summa cum laude from University of Puget Sound’s School of Music, where she received a BM in Vocal Performance with Honors in Music. Operatic roles include: Miss Titmouse in Too Many Sopranos!, Mabel in The Pirates of Penzance, Queen of the Night in Mozart’s Die Zauberflöte with the China Yunnan Opera Festival, and Zerlina in Juneau Lyric Opera’s production of Don Giovanni. Musical theater roles include: Olive Ostrovsky in The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, Cathy Hyatt in The Last Five Years, Woman 1 in Songs for a New World, Judy Bernly in 9 to 5, Audrey in Little Shop of Horrors, and Amélie Poulain in Amélie. Rhiannon has studied voice with Dr. Dawn Padula and Joseph Evans.
For more information visit Rhiannon's website here.
Rhiannon will be teaching Broadway Song Workshop at High School Camp.
For more information visit Rhiannon's website here.
Rhiannon will be teaching Broadway Song Workshop at High School Camp.
Allyss Haecker
Dr. Allyss Haecker is currently in her third year as the Director of Choirs at Seneca High School (SC) where she directs five choirs and teaches courses in Advanced Placement Music Theory and Music of the World’s Peoples. In addition to her classroom teaching, she is in her second season as the Artistic Director of the Foothills Chorale of Clemson, SC. Most recently, she served as the Artistic Director of the Riverside Singers at Augsburg University, the See Change Treble Choir in St. Paul, MN, and the Colonial Chorale at Colonial Church in Edina, MN. Dr. Haecker was also a member of the music faculty at the Shattuck-St. Mary’s School as a voice teacher within their Vocal Performance Program. She was also the Artistic Director of the Northfield Youth Choir program and conductor of the Concert Choir. Formerly, she was on the voice faculty at St. Olaf College (MN) and was the conductor of one of the college’s choirs, Cantorei. Dr. Haecker served as an Associate Professor of Music and the Director of Choral and Vocal Studies at Emory & Henry College (VA) where she taught voice, conducting, choral methods, vocal pedagogy, diction, and directed the Concert and Chamber Choirs. In addition, Dr. Haecker was an Assistant Professor of Music at Newberry College (SC) and the National Music Conservatory in Amman, Jordan. For sixteen years, she served on the vocal and conducting faculty of the Performing Arts Institute, a summer festival for students of music, dance, and theater. Previously, she taught choral music in the Fenton Area Public Schools (MI) and was the Artistic Director of the Saginaw Youth Chorale (MI). Dr. Haecker received her doctorate of musical arts in choral conducting and literature from the University of Iowa, her master of music degree in choral conducting from the University of Illinois, and her bachelor of music education degree from Converse College (SC). Dr. Haecker is a frequent clinician and guest conductor for district, state, and regional choral festivals, having conducted throughout Virginia, South Carolina, Pennsylvania, Kansas, Connecticut, Minnesota, and Alaska. She enjoyed her conducting debut at Carnegie Hall in April 2023 with the Seneca High School Chorale. Dr. Haecker’s commercial recording with Emory & Henry College Concert and Chamber Choirs entitled Making Love Known can be found on Spotify, iTunes, CDbaby, and Apple Music. Dr. Haecker’s ongoing research includes contemporary South African choral music and its impact on social and political change. She was a recipient of the T. Anne Cleary International Research Fellowship which allowed her to study and perform throughout South Africa. Her time in the Middle East has also led to research and performances of unpublished Arab choral music. She has twice presented at the Virginia Music Educators Association Annual Conference on topics of vocal pedagogy and courageous music-making. To watch her recent Ted Talk and hear recent performances by Dr. Allyss Haecker, please visit www.allysshaecker.com. Dr. Haecker currently lives in Pickens, SC with her husband, Arthur, and their hilarious son, Kai.
Allyss will be teaching at Elementary Camp and Vocal Technique, Choir, and Musical Theater at Middle School Camp.
Allyss will be teaching at Elementary Camp and Vocal Technique, Choir, and Musical Theater at Middle School Camp.
Alexis Joy Hagestad
Alexis Joy Hagestad (she/they) was born and raised in Missoula, Montana (traditional lands of the Salish, Kootenai, and Kalispel) where, as a child, she thought she lived on half of the earth because the sky was so large. Her heart truly lies in the untouched prairie lands and the snowy peaks of mountains. She frequently finds herself dreaming of the western landscape, a landscape she has spent many years traveling through, and photographing its beauty. She holds a B.F.A in Photography from the Savannah College of Art and Design, where she graduated with honors in 2016. She is currently pursuing her MFA in Photography, Video, and Imaging (PVI) at the University of Arizona in Tucson, Arizona (traditional lands of the O’odham and the Yaqui).
For more information visit Alexis's website here.
Alexis will be teaching at Elementary Camp and Darkroom Photography at Middle and High School Camp.
For more information visit Alexis's website here.
Alexis will be teaching at Elementary Camp and Darkroom Photography at Middle and High School Camp.
Will Healy
Will Healy is a composer and pianist based in New York. Noted for his "lushly bluesy" sound and "adroitly blended... textures" (New York Times), he is the artistic director of ShoutHouse, a collective of hip-hop, jazz, and classical musicians. After playing trumpet in an Afrobeat band for a few years, he grew interested in collaborating with performers from many corners of the New York music scene. In addition, he is an accomplished pianist specializing in Bach, with a repertoire that includes the complete Goldberg Variations and Well-Tempered Clavier. Healy was the recipient of the Richard Rodgers Scholarship at The Juilliard School, where he studied with John Corigliano, Steven Stucky, and Samuel Adler. He has also studied with Kevin Puts, Harold Meltzer, and Richard Wilson. Recent awards include a Charles Ives Scholarship from the American Academy of Arts and Letters, two ASCAP Morton Gould Awards, the W.K. Rose Fellowship, a JFund commission from the American Composers Forum, and prizes in the Juilliard and Kaleidoscope Orchestra Composition Competitions. He was the recipient of the Aaron Copland Prize from the Bogliasco Foundation in 2018, and has been a fellow at the Aspen Music Festival, Minnesota Orchestra Composers Institute, and the L.A. Phil’s National Composers Intensive. Healy’s work has appeared at The Kennedy Center, Lincoln Center, The Apollo, on the NY Philharmonic’s Biennial series, on New Sounds with John Schaefer (WNYC) and Making Music (WBAI), and more. He studied piano for many years with Dennis Malone at the Crestwood Music School.
For more information visit Will's website here.
Will will be teaching Piano and Music Composition at Middle School Camp and Piano and Advanced Piano at High School Camp.
For more information visit Will's website here.
Will will be teaching Piano and Music Composition at Middle School Camp and Piano and Advanced Piano at High School Camp.
Brian Michael Hoffman
Brian Michael Hoffman loves working with Young Artists and can't think of a better way to check his 50th state off of his list than with a summer in Sitka! This Baltimore School for the Arts and Syracuse University grad lives in NYC where he is most well-known for having starred as “Horton” in the Off-Broadway Revival of Seussical, and continues his journey with the new Broadway-bound musical Because of Winn Dixie (by Duncan Sheik and Nell Benjamin, directed by John Rando) after “out of town tryouts” at the Goodspeed Opera House, Delaware Theatre Company, and Alabama Shakespeare Festival. Favorite regional credits include “Seymour” (Little Shop of Horrors), “Patsy” (Spamalot), “Sancho” (Man of La Mancha), “Billis” (South Pacific), “Barfee” (25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee), “Uncle Fester” (The Addams Family), “The Cowardly Lion” (The Wizard of Oz), “Czolgosz” (Assassins), “Charlie Brown” (You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown), “Filch” (The Threepenny Opera) and “Mr. Grimes” (On Borrowed Time, directed by Joel Grey). Brian’s performed at theatres across the country including Madison Square Garden, 54 Below, Baltimore Center Stage, Sacramento Music Circus, MUNY, Maine State, Syracuse Stage, Marriott Lincolnshire, Pioneer Theatre Company, Ivoryton Playhouse, Two River, Lyric Oklahoma, and Pittsburgh CLO. He led a barbershop quartet at Tokyo Disney Sea in Japan for 3 years, has performed in over 3,000 performances of Annie (some with Broadway’s original red-head, Andrea McArdle, and in the 2014 movie!) and can be heard on the Seussical, Annie: 30th Anniversary, Annie 2 and The Dragonslayers cast recordings. Broadway/William Berloni Theatrical Animals: Legally Blonde, The Royal Family, Bullets Over Broadway, The Audience(starring Dame Helen Mirren), Lady Day at Emerson’s Bar & Grill(starring Audra McDonald), NBC’s Annie Live, Peter Pan Live& The Wiz Live, SNL, Sesame Street and HBO’s High Maintenance. He has a one-man show, From Baltimore to Broadway, and, up next, Brian graduates from summer camp to high school as he will be starring as "Barry" in Tent Theater Company's production of The Prom.
Brian will be teaching at Elementary Camp and Acting, Broadway Song Workshop, and Musical Theater at Middle School Camp.
Brian will be teaching at Elementary Camp and Acting, Broadway Song Workshop, and Musical Theater at Middle School Camp.
Brendan Jones
Raised in Philadelphia, Brendan Jones attended Columbia and Oxford Universities, and teaches creative writing at University of Alaska, Irkutsk Technical University in Russia, and Stanford University, where he was a 2013-15 Wallace Stegner Fellow. He has published work in The New York Times, The Guardian, Washington Post, GQ, Smithsonian, Patagonia, Ploughshares, Fine Woodworking, National Fisherman, Adventure Journal, Narratively, The Seattle Times, The Philadelphia Inquirer, Narrative Magazine, and recorded commentaries for NPR. His novel, The Alaskan Laundry, published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, won the 2017 Alaskana prize, was recognized by Oprah, and was nominated for the Center of Fiction debut prize. He recently returned from Siberia, where he spent a year with his family as a Fulbright Scholar. His novel, Whispering Alaska, published with Penguin/Random House in October 2021, received a starred review from Booklist, and won the 2022 Green Earth Book Award for Young Adult Eco-lit. He lives in Sitka, with his wife and three daughters, one dog, and six chickens.
Brendan will be teaching at Elementary Camp and Storytelling and Science Fiction & Fantasy at Middle and High School Camp.
Brendan will be teaching at Elementary Camp and Storytelling and Science Fiction & Fantasy at Middle and High School Camp.
Ilse Kaptyen
Ilse Kaptyen has been a professional dancer for over ten years and loves it more and more each year. She grew up in Deerfield, Massachusetts and started taking dance classes as a toddler, training more seriously as the years progressed. For her senior year of high school, Ilse traveled to Moscow to study at the Bolshoi Ballet Academy and then joined the New Jersey Ballet Company the following year. She has performed many featured and principal roles in the classical repertoire, including Sleeping Beauty, The Nutcracker, Don Quixote, and Giselle. She has also performed works by George Balanchine, Christopher Wheeldon, Harrison Ball, Lauren Lovette, and Gustavo Ramirez Sansano. She is a certified instructor of BodyCode System, an innovative training method that helps improve body awareness and function, and has traveled to Italy to train with the founder. As she continues her own journey as a dancer and artist, Ilse finds it incredibly rewarding to share what she has learned so far with people of all ages.
Ilse will be teaching at Elementary Camp and Ballet, Modern Dance, and Body Conditioning at Middle School Camp.
Ilse will be teaching at Elementary Camp and Ballet, Modern Dance, and Body Conditioning at Middle School Camp.
Julia Klein
Julia Klein is a clarinetist based in Great Falls, Montana, where she is the principal clarinetist of the Great Falls Symphony, second clarinetist with the Missoula Symphony, and a member of the Chinook Winds quintet. She has performed with orchestras across the country, including the Dallas Symphony and New World Symphony. Julia loves teaching and maintains an active clarinet studio in Great Falls and online. She earned a master’s degree in clarinet performance from the University of North Texas and a bachelor’s degree in clarinet performance and Latin American Studies from Oberlin College and Conservatory. She is thrilled to be back for her second summer at SFAC!
Julia will be teaching at Elementary Camp and Clarinet Technique at Middle and High School Camp.
Julia will be teaching at Elementary Camp and Clarinet Technique at Middle and High School Camp.
Sammy Lamb
Sammy Lamb is a Los Angeles-based, independent, non-fiction filmmaker working in the mediums of animation & live action. Lamb’s films highlight underrepresented lives on the edge of being forgotten.
For more information visit Sammy's website here.
Sammy will be teaching Filmmaking and Animation at Middle School Camp and Filmmaking and Experimental Animation & Filmmaking at High School Camp.
For more information visit Sammy's website here.
Sammy will be teaching Filmmaking and Animation at Middle School Camp and Filmmaking and Experimental Animation & Filmmaking at High School Camp.
Ed Littlefield
Ed Littlefield is a freelance percussionist, educator and composer based out of Seattle, WA. He is Lingít originally from Sitka, Alaska and has released three albums featuring traditional native melodies with the Native Jazz Quartet called Walking Between Worlds, NJQ: Stories and most recently NJQ: Southeast: Northwest. Ed is also involved in composition and sound design for national theaters such as La Jolla Playhouse, Oregon Shakespeare Festival, and Arena Stage.
For more information visit Ed's website here.
Ed will be teaching Jazz Band, Jazz Combos, and Sonic Boom at Middle and High School Camp.
For more information visit Ed's website here.
Ed will be teaching Jazz Band, Jazz Combos, and Sonic Boom at Middle and High School Camp.
Liz Love
Hailing from Lincoln, Nebraska, Liz Love is an active classical and jazz saxophonist and music educator in the Austin, Texas area. She is currently in her second year as the Director of Bands at Leander Middle School. Previous to her time at LMS, she was the Director of Bands at Grisham Middle School, and the Assistant Band Director at Running Brushy Middle School in Leander ISD. Her ensembles consistently receive UIL Sweepstakes ratings, and her students have earned Outstanding Soloist honors at Austin area jazz festivals. In 2019, the Grisham Middle School Honors Band was selected to perform at The Midwest Band and Orchestra Clinic! Ms. Love is a founding member of the Austin Saxophone Ensemble, which is in its eighth season and released its debut album in Spring of 2017. She also founded ASEYouth, a city-wide youth saxophone ensemble comprised of the most talented middle and high school saxophonists from all over the Austin area. An active clinician and adjudicator around the state, Ms. Love is a member of the Texas Music Educators Association and the Texas Bandmasters Association. She also served as the TMEA Region 26 Middle School Band Chair for four years, as well as the Region 26 TBA representative. Liz has given clinics at TMEA and TBA about mental health and the UIL Sight-Reading process, the latter with a demonstration band of students from Leander Middle School. Ms. Love received her Bachelor’s Degree in Music Education from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln and her Master’s Degree in Saxophone Performance from the University of Texas at Austin. She has performed and recorded extensively on flute, clarinet, and saxophone at both schools and counts Susan Scarborough, Jerry Junkin, Jeff Hellmer, Harvey Pittel, and Carolyn Barber as her principal mentors. Liz attributes her passion for music and education to her incredible music-teacher parents, Ed and Loretta. She lives in Cedar Park, Texas with her ridiculously supportive and adorable husband, Walter.
Liz will be teaching Saxophone Masterclass, Symphonic Band, and Small Ensembles at Middle School Camp.
Liz will be teaching Saxophone Masterclass, Symphonic Band, and Small Ensembles at Middle School Camp.
Stephen Meyer
Dr. Stephen Meyer is currently the director of bands and assistant professor of music at Northern Arizona University. He previously served on the faculties of the Crane School of Music at SUNY Potsdam and the University of South Carolina. As director of bands at Clear Creek High School, the Clear Creek Wind Ensemble was a featured performer at the 2013 Midwest Clinic, was a three-time National Winner in the National Wind Band Honors project, a two-time national finalist for The American Prize in Wind Ensemble Performance. Dr. Meyer graduated magna cum laude from the Indiana University Jacobs School of Music with a Bachelor of Music Education degree and earned both a master's and a doctorate from the University of Michigan. He is the author of Rehearsing the High School Band, Rehearsing the Middle School Band, and Rehearsing the Marching Band published by Meredith Music/GIA Publications.
Stephen will be teaching Symphonic Band, The Wizarding World of Conducting, and Chamber Music at High School Camp.
Stephen will be teaching Symphonic Band, The Wizarding World of Conducting, and Chamber Music at High School Camp.
Joe Montagna
Joe Montagna has been playing guitar since 1984 and professionally for over 20 years in various bands. He toured the U.S. in the late ‘90s in an authentic KISS tribute band, Dressed To Kill, playing the part of KISS frontman Paul Stanley, even taking them to Sitka in 2009. By day he is “Mr. Joe” to his Kindergarten P.E. students at Baranof Elementary School here in Sitka; on weekends he is an active founding member of local rock/funk band SlackTide, performing everything from The Beatles to Zappa. He loves to improvise on his instrument and jam with new musicians, especially in his newest collaborations in Sitka with the Holland Tunnel Orchestra. He is a die-hard Mets, Jets, and Knicks fan, born and raised in Queens, NYC. He loves Van Halen and Phish.
Joe will be teaching Rock Band and Recording Session at High School Camp.
Joe will be teaching Rock Band and Recording Session at High School Camp.
Brian Neal
As a member of the internationally-celebrated Dallas Brass, Brian Neal has been displaying his talent on the trumpet for decades. His career has taken him to Russia, Europe and across the US, where he has performed at diverse venues—from the grand concert halls of LA and New York to school gymnasiums in small towns across the nation. Known for a singing quality on the trumpet, Neal has shared the stage with members of such prestigious groups as the Chicago Symphony, Minnesota Orchestra, and San Francisco Symphony and has served as principal trumpet for the Miami City Ballet. Mr. Neal received his training at the Manhattan School of Music in New York City and the University of Miami. During summers, he was a fellow at many of the major music festivals, such as Tanglewood, Waterloo, Fountainbleau Conservatory in France, and Norfolk Chamber Music Festival performing with the Meridian Arts Ensemble. He has performed with Charles Dutoit, Yoel Levi, John Nelson, Seiji Ozawa, Simon Rattle, Stanislav Skorbachevsky, Michael Tilson Thomas, and Leon Fleischer. Brian Neal has performed as a soloist with orchestras around the country, from the Monterey Ensemble and the California Symphony to the Florida Philharmonic, Orchestra Miami, Miami Wind Symphony, and the Miami Symphony. Recently, Mr. Neal was invited to perform his composition, “Concertante #1” in Carnegie Hall and with the Escuela-Conservatorio Orquesta Manuel Rodriquez Sales de Leganés, Spain. Mr. Neal and organist, Mr. Thomas Schuster, released Reflections, a solo trumpet and organ CD. The collaboration continues with the newly formed ensemble, Ethos, with the addition of voice, cello, and percussion performing his original works and arrangements of ancient and world music. He is an active international clinician and serves as Director of Instrumental Studies and Professor of Trumpet at the Kendall campus of Miami Dade College.
Brian will be teaching Blast Masterclass at High School Camp.
Brian will be teaching Blast Masterclass at High School Camp.
Karen Neal
A familiar South Florida presence from performances with Seraphic Fire and the Miami Bach Society, mezzo-soprano Karen Neal enjoys performing consistently with several ensembles throughout South Florida, the San Francisco Bay Area, and Alaska. She has performed as guest soloist with the New World Symphony at the 25th Anniversary Gala, the Tropical Baroque Festival, and the Dallas Brass in the United States,including a special performance at the U.S. Embassy in Moscow, Russia. Most recently, she was a guest soloist with the Conservatory Symphony of Leganés, Spain. Recordings include the songs of Eric Ewazen for Albany Records and songs of modern Latin American composers with NODUS on the Innova label. She has collaborated with members of the Cleveland Orchestra, San Francisco Symphony, Art Basel Miami, and the Concert des Solistes de l’Acadèmie International d’Etè de Nice, France. Karen holds a Vocal Performance degree from the University of Southern California and awarded fellowships from Tanglewood, Nice, Paris, and the Abbè Royaumont in Asniéres-sur-Oise, France.
Karen will be teaching Start the Day Singing at High School Camp.
Karen will be teaching Start the Day Singing at High School Camp.
Charlie Nick
Charlie Nick (he/they) is a passionate visual storyteller from southeast Michigan. Currently completing his master's degree in photojournalism at Ohio University, Charlie is a queer explorer who is always ready to venture to the planet's extremes. His unwavering mission is to stay endlessly curious, a drive perfectly complemented by his artistic flair. When he was little, one of Charlie’s favorite toys was a classroom-sized globe. He would spend hours studying the continents and grazing his fingers along the contours of the mountains. Today, that enduring fascination remains, as he is now fueled with a greater curiosity behind the camera.
Charlie will be teaching Digital Photography at Middle and High School Camp.
Charlie will be teaching Digital Photography at Middle and High School Camp.
Eric Parchen
Eric Parchen is a freelance percussionist who lives in Seattle, WA. He has played in various jazz bands, musical theaters, rock bands, and symphony orchestras. Additionally, he has a private lessons studio and works with many middle and high schools in the Seattle area coaching student percussionists. Eric has worked extensively with drumlines, including teaching multiple ensembles, giving clinics, teaching at camps, and writing music for marching percussion groups.
Eric will be teaching Percussion Technique at Middle School Camp.
Eric will be teaching Percussion Technique at Middle School Camp.
Rebecca Poulson
Rebecca Poulson is a writer and artist who grew up reading and drawing in Sitka, Alaska. She commercially fished and repaired wooden boats before turning to art full time, earning an MFA from the Tyler School of Art. She is a printmaker and illustrator, and publishes The Outer Coast, a wall calendar of art and poetry. Her work is in the Alaska State Museum and other collections, and in 2023 she designed the poster art for the Alaska Folk Festival. Rebecca also does set design for the Sitka Fine Arts Camp Musical Theater Camp, the Young Performers Theater program, and Sitka Community Theater. Over the past decade, Rebecca has been exploring the history of the Sheldon Jackson School and College in the context of Lingít Aaní, through oral history interviews with former students and staff and extensive archival research, working toward a book about the real origins of the Presbyterian mission. In 2023 the Sitka Maritime Heritage Society published Sitka Alaska, a Short History, by Rebecca and her daughter Cora Dow. Her writing is at sitkaartblog.wordpress.com. For the Voices of Sheldon Jackson project’soutdoor interpretive panels and website, she worked with graduates and former staff to share the perspective of those associated with the school (sjvoices.org). She is the recipient of a Rasmuson Foundation Individual Artist Award, and of the Alaska State Records Advisory Board Archival Excellence Award for a place-based history curriculum. She is a member of the Alaska Historical Commission and the Sitka Maritime Heritage Society board, and manages historic preservation projects on the Sheldon Jackson School National Historic Landmark and at the Japonski Island Boathouse. She is a Lingít language learner.
For more information visit Rebecca's website here.
Rebecca will be teaching Graphic Novel, Watercolor & Drawing, and Printmaking at Middle School Camp.
For more information visit Rebecca's website here.
Rebecca will be teaching Graphic Novel, Watercolor & Drawing, and Printmaking at Middle School Camp.
Sean Lark Reece
Sean Lark Reece Hi, I'm Sean! I'm a freelance artist living in Minneapolis with my wife, January, and my two cats, Chamomile and English Breakfast. I love creating animated shorts, experimenting with traditional materials and sound design. Right now, my favorite artistic medium is cut paper stop motion. If I ran out of paper, my favorite medium would probably have to be pencil and paint on wood panels. If I ran out of wood panels, I would paint on the walls. And if I ran out of walls, I would be concerned about the cats getting out. Thank you for reading about me, and feel free to come say hello!
For more information visit Sean's website here.
Sean will be teaching at Elementary Camp and Digital Animation, Stop Motion Animation, and Illustration for Storytelling at Middle School Camp and Painting, Digital Animation, and Illustration for Storytelling at High School Camp.
For more information visit Sean's website here.
Sean will be teaching at Elementary Camp and Digital Animation, Stop Motion Animation, and Illustration for Storytelling at Middle School Camp and Painting, Digital Animation, and Illustration for Storytelling at High School Camp.
Jen Reid
Jen Reid is a professional vocalist who lives in Sitka. She has been singing since childhood with her earliest recordings beginning at age two. She got her start singing publicly as a teen, when she was 1st chair in SE Alaska Honor Choirs, Alaska All State Choirs, and was invited to sing in a choir touring Europe in the late 1990’s. As an adult she has worked for the past 12 years as a professional rock-and-roll vocalist. She is also a sound engineer who believes that understanding how voice, mic technique, and stage presence come together creates a performing vocalist who is ready for the music world. Jen also works as a 5th grade classroom teacher and loves sharing her love of music with students of all ages.
Jen will be teaching Rock Band at High School Camp.
Jen will be teaching Rock Band at High School Camp.
Amelia Rozear
Born and raised in coastal New England, Amelia Rozear is a multifaceted artist with a love of traditional media. Her work revolves around themes of girlhood, nostalgia, and the wonders of the natural world. She graduated from the Rhode Island School of Design’s illustration department with a BFA and honors, and still roams the eerie streets and libraries of Providence for scenic inspiration. She is passionate about sharing her work with other artists online, and between her multiple social media accounts, she has amassed an audience of over 100k art lovers to join in her love of artmaking. She delights in her self-directed studio practice, and jumps between multiple projects at a time to stay busy– her favorite works come alive through watercolor, oil paint, and sometimes even rug tufting.
For more information visit Amelia's website here.
Amelia will be teaching Character Design, Intro to Procreate: Illustrating Magical Worlds, and Portrait Painting at High School Camp.
For more information visit Amelia's website here.
Amelia will be teaching Character Design, Intro to Procreate: Illustrating Magical Worlds, and Portrait Painting at High School Camp.
Cassidy Russell
Cassidy Russell (she/her) has been improvising since middle school (cool!). Cassidy is a member of the Second City National Touring Company, traveling the country performing and writing sketch and improv comedy (It’s very fun). When not traveling, she performs, teaches, and directs all over Chicago—at Second City, the Annoyance Theatre, the Revival Theater, Northwestern University, and the University of Chicago. She has acted in plays, movies, TV shows, and commercials, has been featured at theater festivals internationally, and has been interviewed about comedy in print publications and on NPR. Additionally, she has an MS in Library Sciences and an MFA in Printmaking from Savannah College of Art & Design and works as a children’s book reviewer while maintaining an active studio art practice. Her teaching philosophy focuses on bringing emotion and vulnerability to the stage, whether you’re doing drama or comedy. Cassidy won a lot of high school theater awards, so she knows what she’s talking about. For more information visit Cassidy's website. (www.cassidyrussell.com)
Cassidy will be teaching at Elementary Camp and Improv at Middle School Camp and Improv, Advanced Improv, and Solo Sketch Comedy at High School Camp.
Cassidy will be teaching at Elementary Camp and Improv at Middle School Camp and Improv, Advanced Improv, and Solo Sketch Comedy at High School Camp.
Abel Ryan
Abel Ryan was born in Ketchikan, Alaska in 1978. He was raised in Metlakatla on the Annette Island Reserve in Southeast Alaska. Abel is half Tsimshian, a member of the Metlakatla Indian Community, and a member of the Laxgiboo Clan. In May of 2006, Abel graduated from Sheldon Jackson College with a B.A. in Liberal Arts and a minor in Art. In May of 2009, he graduated from University of Alaska Fairbanks with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Native Arts Studio and Printmaking. Abel studied traditional Tsimshian art under master carver Jack Hudson of Metlakatla. He has carved in Metlakatla, Sitka, Juneau, and Fairbanks for over 30 years. Working in the medium of wood and metals, Abel produces masks, bowls, spoons, pipes, ladles, plaques, combs, bracelets, rings, pendants, drums, and other hand-carved items. He is also proficient in two-dimensional graphic design using Northwest Coast formline art. In June 2013, Abel was invited to an international carving competition in Beijing, China. Abel has taught classes at Sheldon Jackson College and the University of Alaska in Sitka, Juneau, and Fairbanks, Sitka Fine Arts Camp, and the Alaska Native Heritage Foundation in Anchorage, as well as done artist demonstrations at the Sheldon Jackson Museum in Sitka, Museum of the North in Fairbanks, Washington DC, and the Alaska State Museum in Juneau, AK. Abel’s work is sold in galleries in Juneau, Fairbanks, Ketchikan, and Sitka. He also has work in private collections.
Abel will be teaching at Elementary Camp and Northwest Coast Carving at Middle and High School Camp.
Abel will be teaching at Elementary Camp and Northwest Coast Carving at Middle and High School Camp.
Richie Schiraldi
Richie Schiraldi is a Chicago-based physical theater performer, specializing in movement, physical comedy/clown, partner acrobatics, stage combat, and cyr wheel. He has toured internationally with Aura CuriAtlas, as well as his own company Whisper Theatre and with other independent projects. Richie has spent the last decade teaching physical theater, circus, and movement in Chicago to all ages, and has been focused on integrating circus into storytelling theatrical performances, mostly with his wife. Richie holds a BFA in Physical Theatre from Coastal Carolina University, in conjunction with Accademia del’Arte in Arezzo, Italy, as well as an MFA in Devised Performance Practices from Columbia College Chicago, in conjunction with Arthaus Berlin (formerly LISPA). He is SAFD certified in Unarmed, Rapier and Dagger, Knife, Broadsword, and Single Sword, and is working on collecting the other three. His latest artistic obsessions are dreams, the mothman, and being authentically odd. In his spare time, he is also a woodworker, cat dad, board game nerd, and outdoors enthusiast.
Richie will be teaching at Elementary Camp and Partner Acrobatics, Stage Combat, and Clown Theater at Middle School Camp and Partner Acrobatics, Circus, and Stage Combat: Swords at High School Camp.
Richie will be teaching at Elementary Camp and Partner Acrobatics, Stage Combat, and Clown Theater at Middle School Camp and Partner Acrobatics, Circus, and Stage Combat: Swords at High School Camp.
Leslie Shows
Leslie Shows is a Los Angeles-based artist whose mixed media paintings explore materiality, abstraction, and representations of nature. She works with acrylic and oil paints, glass, metal, collage and assemblage, casting and relief. Leslie grew up in Juneau, Alaska and has taught in the visual arts for 14 years at the pre-college, undergraduate, and graduate levels. Her work has been exhibited at institutions like the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, the Scottsdale Museum of Contemporary Art, the Berkeley Art Museum, and the Anchorage Museum. Her recent public commissions include a 35-ft glass artwork for the San Francisco Central Subway, and she is currently working on her 12th solo exhibition.
For more information visit Leslie's website here.
Leslie will be teaching Painting, Abstract Painting, and Mixed Media Collage at Middle School Camp.
For more information visit Leslie's website here.
Leslie will be teaching Painting, Abstract Painting, and Mixed Media Collage at Middle School Camp.
Evelyn Tan
Evelyn Tan is a Vancouverite artist currently based in Los Angeles. Her narratives stem from dreams, memory, and fable, chasing nostalgia whilst exploring a coming of age. This is often realized through hybrid mark–making methods including graphite, ink, digital rendering, and paint. The resulting worlds are ones rendered in maximalist intricacy, bright gamuts, and a dreamy haze. Evelyn holds a BFA in illustration from the Rhode Island School of Design, and has gained recognition in several publications such as It’s Nice That, Office Magazine, Metal Magazine, MAPS Korea, and Hypebeast, in addition to her Instagram platform @_o3oeve_. Her work has been exhibited across the US and Canada, as well as internationally in Paris and Australia.
For more information visit Evelyn's website here.
Evelyn will be teaching at Elementary Camp and Pen & Ink, Portrait Painting, and Drawing & Painting Our Inner World at Middle School Camp.
For more information visit Evelyn's website here.
Evelyn will be teaching at Elementary Camp and Pen & Ink, Portrait Painting, and Drawing & Painting Our Inner World at Middle School Camp.
Erin Vonder Haar
Erin Vonder Haar is a native of Seattle, Washington. She received a BFA in dance from Southern Methodist University. She has performed in works by Shannon Beach, Bruce Wood, Jen Hamilton, Joshua Peugh, & Desmond Richardson. Erin has danced for two professional contemporary companies, founded her own dance company, and freelanced dance in LA for 2 years where she was performing live, dancing in film, and teaching dance. Erin is currently signed with one of the top dance agencies in Los Angeles, Bloc LA. Erin is on season 3 of Physical on Apple TV as a ballet dancer, and is a ballet dancer for an Amazon Prime series, Dream Big. She was also a featured dancer in a Halloween performance at the historic Los Angeles Theater with Angel of Light LA. Erin was featured in the film, Backcountry Basin by Joshua Peugh, commissioned by Dance Now NYC, which was featured in Forbes magazine. Erin recently choreographed and danced in a contemporary film for sculpture artist, Daniel Winn, danced in Juliera Simon’s music video, and performed in 100 live shows in San Francisco with The Empire Strips Back. She has choreographed and taught dancers of all levels and ages ranging from pre-professional to professional.
Erin will be teaching Ballet, Modern Dance, and Body Conditioning at High School Camp.
Erin will be teaching Ballet, Modern Dance, and Body Conditioning at High School Camp.
Susan Wingrove-Reed
Pianist Susan Wingrove-Reed enthusiastically embraces any and all opportunities to collaborate with singers and instrumentalists. She plays keyboard with the Anchorage Symphony, is the collaborative pianist with the Alaska Chamber Singers & the annual Alaska All State Choir, performs at the Sitka Summer Music Festival, and regularly works with the West, Dimond and Bartlett HS choirs plus countless solo and ensemble festivals/competitions. Susan has been part of the SFAC team since 2011. She has been the resident music educator (pre-concert lectures and program notes) for the Sitka Summer Music Festival and the Anchorage Symphony for over thirty-five years, sharing stories about composers, music and history. A graduate of Indiana University with Piano Performance and MAT degrees, she returned home to Alaska to work with Anchorage Opera and the Alaska Repertory theater. She is a retired choir/drama teacher (Bartlett) and received an Alaska Governor’s Award for her contributions in arts education. When Covid began, she joined the Alaska Black Caucus to further her commitment to anti-racism and concert programming that is inclusive of historically neglected voices and serves on the Justice Committee.
Susan will be a pianist at Middle and High School Camp.
Susan will be a pianist at Middle and High School Camp.
Anna Wittstruck
Anna Wittstruck joined the Department of Music at Boston College in Fall 2023 as Associate Professor of the Practice and Director of the Boston College Symphony Orchestra. At Boston College, she conducts the BCSO, teaches music history, directs instrumental chamber music, and oversees applied instrumental studies within the Department of Music. Prior to her appointment at Boston College, she spent six years teaching at University of Puget Sound’s School of Music, serving as Assistant Professor and Director of Orchestra, and two years as Acting Assistant Professor at Stanford University, serving as Interim Music Director and Conductor of the Stanford Symphony Orchestra and Stanford Philharmonia. She has also directed the Federal Way Youth Symphonies, served on the faculty of the Sitka Fine Arts Camp in Sitka, Alaska, and from 2019 until 2023 conducted the West Seattle Symphony Orchestra. Wittstruck has conducted concerts across the United States, in Latin America, Europe and Asia. She conducted concerts at Palacio de Bellas Artes in Mexico City and Teatro Nacional de Cuba in Havana, where she performed with Lizt Alfonso Dance Cuba and the Chamber Orchestra of Havana. She has conducted concerts at the Rudolfinum in Prague and the Musikzentrum Augarten (home of the Vienna Boys’ Choir) in Vienna, as well as concerts in Berlin, Bad Elster, and Teplice. She has served as a guest conductor with the Harbin Symphony in China, the Northwest Sinfonietta, the Federal Way Symphony, and the Eastern Sierra Symphony, as well as the orchestra programs at Pacific Lutheran University and Whitman College. In 2023 she was named the national winner of the American Prize in Orchestral Conducting, and national finalist for the Ernst Bacon Memorial Award for the Performance of American Music (university/college orchestra divisions). Wittstruck is also an active orchestral musician whose performances as a cellist span from the Beijing Modern Music Festival to the 2011 YouTube Symphony Orchestra under the direction of Michael Tilson Thomas. Her string quartet gave a concert tour of Thailand sponsored by the Yonok and American-Thai Foundations, in honor of HRH Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn’s sixtieth birthday celebrations. She won a blind audition at the age of fourteen to become the youngest contracted member of the Asheville Symphony Orchestra, and has participated in orchestra festivals at Tanglewood, Round Top, and the National Symphony/Kennedy Center Institute. She has appeared as a soloist with the Charlotte and Hendersonville Symphonies, the Stanford Symphony Orchestra, and on the Public Radio International show, From the Top. She received her Bachelor of Arts in Music from Princeton University with certificates in orchestral conducting and creative writing, and her PhD in musicology from Stanford University. While a graduate student, she conducted the Summer Stanford Symphony Orchestra and directed the Stanford Wind Symphony, the Stanford New Ensemble, and the Stanford Chinese Ensemble. She also helped create the Stanford Youth Orchestra, an international program for advanced high school students, and taught courses through Stanford Pre-Collegiate Studies. At Princeton, she spent two years as Assistant Conductor of the Princeton University Orchestra and as Associate Conductor of the Princeton Sinfonia. Wittstruck has attended the Pierre Monteux School of Conducting in Hancock, Maine, where she studied with Michael Jinbo, and the Conductor’s Retreat at Medomak, where she studied with Kenneth Kiesler. Other conducting teachers include Michael Pratt, Ruth Ochs, Stephen Sano, Jindong Cai, and Edwin Outwater.
Anna will be teaching String Technique, Orchestra, and Chamber Music at High School Camp.
Anna will be teaching String Technique, Orchestra, and Chamber Music at High School Camp.
Elizabeth Jean Younce
Elizabeth Jean Younce (b. 1993 Newport, RI) is a visual artist working primarily in Printmaking and Illustration. Specifically, through the mediums of lithography and graphite, her work functions as a psychological investigation of the flora and fauna inhabiting our world. While primarily (and proudly) a printmaker, Elizabeth has produced her prints in conjunction with installation, sculpture, bookbinding, found object, drawing, and painting. In addition to her Fine Art studio practice, Elizabeth is also the owner of Mustard Beetle where she sells mainly screenprints, relief prints, and giclée prints, on paper and on fabric. Because of Mustard Beetle, Elizabeth is able to simultaneously function as a fine artist and a commercial illustrator. Elizabeth received her MFA in Printmaking from the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 2018 and her BFA in Illustration and Printmaking from the Savannah College of Art & Design (SCAD) in 2015. Elizabeth has master-printing experience from Gemini G.E.L. and Tandem Press. Elizabeth currently resides in Los Angeles, CA, where she is pursuing her fine art as well as her small business.
For more information visit Elizabeth's website here.
Elizabeth will be teaching at Elementary Camp and Drawing the Natural World, Digital Design for Screenprinting, and From Paper to Screen: Digital & Traditional Design at Middle School and Drawing the Natural World, Digital Design for Screenprinting, and Printmaking at High School Camp.
For more information visit Elizabeth's website here.
Elizabeth will be teaching at Elementary Camp and Drawing the Natural World, Digital Design for Screenprinting, and From Paper to Screen: Digital & Traditional Design at Middle School and Drawing the Natural World, Digital Design for Screenprinting, and Printmaking at High School Camp.
Emily Nixon
Emily Nixon is a flutist currently based in Cleveland, Ohio. A recent graduate of Oberlin
Conservatory, Emily obtained a BM in Flute Performance under the direction of Alexa Still and
completed a concentration in Pedagogy, Advocacy and Community Engagement. At Oberlin,
Emily has performed with ensembles including the Oberlin Orchestra, Contemporary Music
Ensemble and Oberlin Opera and appeared on Alexa Still’s most recent album, WISH.
Passionate about teaching, Emily serves as a woodwind coach for the Northern Ohio Youth
Orchestra and teaches private lessons. In addition to teaching and performing, Emily is the
current Library Intern for The Cleveland Orchestra.
Emily will be teaching at Elementary Camp and Flute Technique at Middle and High School Camp.
Conservatory, Emily obtained a BM in Flute Performance under the direction of Alexa Still and
completed a concentration in Pedagogy, Advocacy and Community Engagement. At Oberlin,
Emily has performed with ensembles including the Oberlin Orchestra, Contemporary Music
Ensemble and Oberlin Opera and appeared on Alexa Still’s most recent album, WISH.
Passionate about teaching, Emily serves as a woodwind coach for the Northern Ohio Youth
Orchestra and teaches private lessons. In addition to teaching and performing, Emily is the
current Library Intern for The Cleveland Orchestra.
Emily will be teaching at Elementary Camp and Flute Technique at Middle and High School Camp.