Faculty
Alegra Batara
they/them
Alegra is a Filipino actor, director, and playwright born and raised in the PNW. They earned their Bachelor of Fine Arts in Musical Theatre from the Conservatory of Theatre Arts at Webster University in 2021.…
Emily Beckley
she/her
Emily is thrilled to be part of the teaching team at Studio East. She has worked in Early Childhood Education since 2005 and was a dance teacher for several years before that.…
Melissa Bryant
she/her
Melissa is always glad to return to Studio East each summer to work with young actors. She has been teaching second grade for 10 years and is a former HS Speech and Drama coach.…
Adrian Cerrato
he/him
Adrian Cerrato is an actor, director and educator in the greater Seattle area. Some of his favorite roles include all four lovers (Lysander, Demetrius, Helena, and Hermia) in Off Road Shakespeare’s production of A Midsummer Night’s Dream, the Beast from SecondStory Repertory’s production of Charles Way’s Beauty and the Beast, Lord De Winter and Jussac in Book-It Repertory Theatre’s production of The Three Musketeers.…
Marina Clever
any pronouns
Marina is a choreographer and arts educator from the Pacific Northwest. She studied Theatre and Dance Education at Western Washington University and has worked with students of just about every age in schools and theatrical programs in the Bellingham and Seattle area.…
Megan D Connell
she/her
Megan is a proud Studio Alum who you will rarely find without a coffee in her hands and junior mints somewhere.…
Kim Douthit
she/her
Kim was born and raised in Redmond, Washington. She relocated to New York for school, attending Hofstra University and receiving her BFA in Theatre Arts with a specialization in performance.…
David Dryfoos
he/him
David Dryfoos is a multi-faceted professional musician. He graduated from University of the Pacific with a Bachelor of Music in Music Composition.…
Jillian Faulk
she/her
Jillian is Seattle based actor and teaching artist originally from Richland Washington. Jillian is Studio East and StoryBook Theater’s Ticketing Manager!…
Cassie Fitzgerald
she/her
Cassie is the Production Stage Manager at Studio East and loves working with students of all ages in the Mainstage and Education programs.…
Donny Gersonde
he/him
Donny Gersonde is a local teaching artist originally from San Diego! After attending Coronado School of the Arts he went to The Hartt School where he worked towards his BFA in Musical Theatre.…
Julia Gorordo
she/her
A passionate Studio East kid of over a decade, Julia is thrilled to be working as a Teaching Artist! She was raised in Snohomish, WA, and now teaches Choir at Monroe High School and Park Place Middle School.…
Rebecca Herivel
she/her
Rebecca Herivel is a musician, actor, and teaching artist. As a performer, she specializes in cross-genre work, particularly in using music to enhance storytelling in non-musical theater works.…
Aimee Hong
she/her
Aimee is a Music Director, Accompanist, Conductor, and Voice and Piano Teacher. Some of her favorite musicals she’s Music Directed are “Into the Woods”, “Heathers the Musical”, “Godspell”, “Sweeney Todd”, and “Big Fish.” She has MD’d/worked at Bellevue College (where she is also an Adjunct Music Professor), Seattle Pacific University, Village Theatre, The Seattle Rep, Seattle Children’s Theater, Studio East, Reboot Theatre Company, Renton Civic Theater, Bainbridge Performing Arts, Lesser Known Players, Burien Actor’s Theatre, Second Story Repertory, and St.…
Gilly Kelleher
she/her
Gilly Kelleher is a teaching artist, actor, director, designer, dialect coach, and writer: a thespian-of-many-hats. She graduated from the Foothill Theatre Conservatory before completing her BA degrees in Drama and English (with a Creative Writing Emphasis) at the University of California, Irvine.…
Ashley Rose Klimper
she/her
As a Studio East Alum, Ashley is excited to be back at the Studio, this time as a teaching artist. Ashley graduated from Circle in the Square Theater School in New York City with a certificate in musical theater.…
Gavin Sakae McLean
Gavin Sakae McLean, a dedicated teaching artist with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Performing Arts from Cornish College of the Arts and a Master’s in Computer Science, seamlessly blends his passions for performance and technology.…
Richard Nava
they/them
Richard is a graduate of AMDA College and Conservatory of the Arts in Los Angeles, where they studied Music Theatre with an additional focus in Commercial/Pop Music.…
Hana Oh
she/her
Hana is an educator and theater enthusiast who is thrilled to be part of the Studio East team. She graduated from SUNY Brockport in Upstate New York with a bachelor’s degree in Interdisciplinary Arts for Children and has been a playwright, actor, and assistant stage manager.…
Vincent J, Orduña
he/him
VJ did his post-graduate in Directing at The National Shakespeare Conservatory in New York City and is currently the Theatre Manager at the Mountlake Terrace High School Performing Arts Center.…
Danielle Osterman
she/her
Danielle Osterman is a theater kid who grew up (a little)! She studied theater and dance at Oberlin College, majored in math and music at The Ohio State University, and studied musicology at the graduate level at the Eastman School of Music.…
Kaysy Ostrom
she/her
Kaysy is an actor, playwright, director, and teaching artist from Seattle, Washington and she is the Education Director at Studio East!…
Helen Roundhill
they/them
Helen is a multidisciplinary theater artist based in Seattle. As an actor, designer, playwright, and dancer, they have worked at theaters throughout the Pacific NW including Intiman, Seattle Public Theater, and The Seattle Rep.…
Seamus C. Smith
Seamus C. Smith is an actor, director, stage manager, and teaching artist from Bothell, WA. He holds a BFA in Theatre Performance from Central Washington University and has been a part of over 40 productions in his career.…
Joey Sponseller
he/him
Joey Sponseller is an actor and teaching artist from Ventura, California. He graduated with an MFA in Acting from Rutgers University, and is a member of the Actor’s Equity Association.…
Abby Tincher
she/her
Abby is a Studio East alumna and two-time YAPI graduate, who started in camps and Mainstage productions several years ago and hasn’t left since.…
Raya Tuffaha
she/her
Raya is a Palestinian actor, fighter and writer from Seattle. She recently graduated from Swarthmore College with a B.A. in Conflict Studies (Major: Theater, emphasis fight direction & solo performance, minor: Peace & Conflict Studies).…
Brad Walker
he/him
Seattle born and raised, Brad is a proud AAPI Actor, Director, Drama Teacher, and an alumnus of the University of Washington.…
Hannah White
she/her
Hannah is a performing and teaching artist who holds a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Musical Theatre from Cornish College of the Arts.…
Chloe Williams
she/her
Chloe is a theater practitioner from Wilmington, Ohio. Her goal is to make theater accessible and enjoyable for thespians of all ages through the creation of inclusive environments.…
