Meet Your Academy Staff
All of our teaching artists are adult professional theatre artists who hold current finger print clearance cards. All of our Academy Staff receive in depth trainings in Saftey, EDI (Equity, Diversity, & Inclusion), and Classroom Management. Click below to learn more about each of our Teaching Artists.
Academy Mission: Harnessing the transformative power of theatre, Childsplay Theatre Academy creates education programs that center young people in the process of artistic discovery and courageous empathy.
Interested in joining our team? Click here to apply
Brianna Fallon (also known as Ms. Bri) is an actor, director, playwright, teaching artist, singer, and musician. She received...
Thomas J. Underdal is an interdisciplinary theatre maker and educator who has worked with Childsplay as a teaching artist since...
Zoe Tyler (she/her) is a theatre maker and educator from St. Louis, Missouri. Her many roles as a theatre maker include...
Alex Frost is joining the Childsplay team this summer for her first year with the academy. An actor, singer, and...
Alexis has been part of the Childsplay ensemble since 2021. She is a Theatre Education student at Grand Canyon...
Amanda Slade joined the Childsplay ensemble in 2022 as Teaching Artist and Music Director and is thrilled to teach...
Angelica Saario is currently a student at ASU for her BA in theatre acting. She has grown up with Childsplay since she...
Audrey Wood is excited to be part of the Childsplay Academy ensemble for her second summer as an Assistant Teacher. She...
Briyannah E. Simmons is a passionate theater maker. While acting is her primary focus, she also has dabbled in writing...
Bertha Alicia Cortes was a teaching artist at Childsplay in 2020 and is excited to be back for this summer session...
Brenda Batres is thrilled to return to Childsplay as a teaching artist this summer! She holds a BA in...
Cam Blackwell joined Childsplay last year as a teaching artist and is thrilled to be returning! Cam is a Detroit native...
Cam Oakes has been a part of the Childsplay teaching artist community since 2016 and is always excited to continue ...
Clara Kundin is a theater-maker and educator. She received her B.A. in theater from St. Olaf College and continued...
Dylan Prentis is excited to be joining the Childsplay Ensemble this summer. He is a graduate of ASU’s Herberger Institute...
Dorian Peterson is a new member of the Childsplay Community and he is ELATED to start as one of the teaching artist...
Elena Conti (she/her/hers) joins Childsplay's Academy as part of the summer 2023 teaching staff. She is a recent...
Ericca Rose has been with Childsplay since 2019. She has a deep passion for working with kids and sharing her knowledge...
Jackson Bernreuter is thrilled to be joining Childsplay for his third summer as an assistant teaching artist...
Jason White is an Arizona based director and teacher. Jason is originally from Freeport NY and moved to Arizona with his family when he...
Ms. Richardson, a professional Regional Theatre Actress Joined, Childsplay’s ensemble in 1988...
Kat has been performing, choreographing, and teaching in the Valley for over 10 years. She joined the Childsplay...
Katie McFadzen is an Associate Artist at Childsplay and has been with the company since 1993. Favorite Childsplay...
Kelianne Devlin is so excited to be assistant teaching at Childsplay! She has been taking classes and working with...
Mary Ellen Loose joined Childsplay in 1998 as a pianist for the summer workshops. This led to her becoming a Teaching...
Natalie Earley graduated from the Childsplay Conservatory program and moved on to Student Interning with Childsplay...
Olivia Dostal has been a part of the Childsplay family since her first summer camp as a student in 2015...
Nickela Rooney is excited to be making her AZ teaching artist debut with Childsplay. Previous teaching experience includes...
Rachel joined the Childsplay team in January 2023 and has loved every minute. They worked on the Future Filmmakers...
Rachel McCabe joined Childsplay in the summer of 2017 as a Teaching Artist. She has been a professional Singer/Actress for...
Stephanie is a long time Childsplay fan, as she has been a teaching artist since Fall 2022 and was a student for...
Sam Updegraff joined Childsplay last summer as an Assistant Teacher and Teaching Artist. Some technical theatre...
Theodore Crowell is returning for his second year as an Assistant Teaching Artist at Childsplay. Theodore first...