Courses
In The Studio
Modality
Instructor(s)
- Winnie Westergard
- Brad Taylor
- Daniel Goody
- J. Gordon
- Meg McLynn
- Nikki Rice
- Paul Lebel
- Alia Swersky
- BC Campbell
- Dan Shafer
- Ellen Forney
- Geof Alm
- Lauren Boilini
- Leanna Keith
- Nicole Beerman
- Sarah Lavin
- Zoe Crago
- Ashley Menestrina
- Barry Sebastian
- Brian Miller
- Chelsea Cook
- Claire Marx
- David Taft
- David Taylor Gomes
- Diana Trotter
- Emma Lawes
- Jeff Brice
- Jimmy Shields
- Kiné Camara
- Lily Hotchkiss
- Maja Sereda
- Majinn
- Nikki Flores
- Rico Lastrapes
- Robynne Raye
- Ruthie Dornfeld
- Samar Abulhassan
- Sarah Bixler
- Sophia Franzella
- Tory Franklin
- Travis Palmer
Intro To Beat Making
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Barry Sebastian
Barry is a sound engineer with a demonstrated history of working in the music industry with expertise in mixing, podcasting and concert hall acoustic engineering.. He is also an arranger, podcaster and composer. Barry has a Bachelor's degree focused in Music Theory and Composition from Cornish College of the Arts.
Live Sound Engineering
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Daniel Goody
Daniel Goody has been working in the performing arts field since 2001 starting in the UK as a sound engineer. Presently working as the Head of Audio at the Playhouse in Seattle for Cornish College of the Arts, his work has spanned many disciplines over the years including audio, light and video design. His primary collaboration since 2015 has been with the Danish immersive theatre group Sisters Hope.
Following a decade in Sweden as the Technical Director at the culture house Inkonst Malmö, Daniel formed artistic partnerships with a number of performance, dance and theatre groups based throughout the Nordic and European regions. These collaborations, with groups such as; Institutet, White On White, Jon & Juli and Lucie Tuma explored the family, critical whiteness and the relationship to the body on a wholly radical level.
Illustration to Animation
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Zoe Crago
Zoe Crago is the co-founder of Duo Design + Media. A partnership of two creatives specializing in graphic design, social media, and video production for individuals and businesses/organizations looking to expand their visual presence. As the lead graphic designer and illustrator, Zoe's project list includes (but is not limited to) the 2023 Festival Design for NFFTY (National Film Festival for Talented Youth), illustrator for The Rise Book Project, event campaigns for TEDxSpokane, and social media marketing for Washington Filmworks and Seattle Creates! Her love for illustration and hand-lettering often finds its way into her regular projects creating a beautiful hybrid of traditional and digital art.
After 6 years in the design world, Zoe hopes that her work, collaborations, and community involvement will ultimately impact those who want to grow and succeed in the creative industry!
Dance Intensive + Audition Prep & Performance
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Emma Lawes
Emma Lawes (she/her) is a dancer, educator and producer based between Los Angeles and Seattle. Currently, she is in creation processes with Keyes Wiley (SEA) and Sean Ardor (CA) to premiere in 2025. She is on faculty at Orange County School of the Arts and California School of the Arts SGV, and producing work with CO-, G.U.M. Collective and zoe | juniper. She has presented her own work at Base: Experimental Arts + Space, 10 Degrees Arts + Events, Mutuus Studio and Atwater Village Theater. She is a graduate of the University of the Arts with a BFA in Dance Performance under the direction of Donna Faye Burchfield.
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Nikki Flores
Nicole Flores (they/she) -- Nicole (Nikki) is a movement artist, dance educator, and personal trainer based in Seattle, Washington. Originally from Chicago, Illinois, Nikki received her BFA in Dance from Columbia College Chicago before relocating to Los Angeles in 2018 where she received secondary training from The American Music and Dramatics Academy (AMDA) and performed with Los Angeles Contemporary Dance Company, Psychopomp Dance Theater, and Heidi Duckler Dance. Nikki is a close collaborator with the Artistic Director of Psychopomp, Shenandoah Harris, with whom she co-facilitated three consecutive Psychopomp summer workshops (2020-2023). As a facilitator, Nikki strives to center community-building and somatic awareness in conjunction with strong technical foundations for the dancers they work with.
Since moving to Seattle in 2021, Nikki has performed works by Coriolis Dance Collective, Dance Undercurrent, and Earthworks Dance. Nikki’s passion for live performance and deep curiosity for humanity in movement ultimately led her to badmarmarDANCE (Marlo Martin, Artistic Director), with whom she currently performs. Nikki is also a dance educator at eXit SPACE and Dance Fremont as well as a NASM certified personal trainer for their business Powerchord Movement. Her belief is that movement, and dance especially, is for everyone, so Nikki does her best to meet each student where they’re at while encouraging a balance between rigor and joy. As a trainer, Nikki focuses primarily on the functionality of the body and how each individual can fine tune their working parts for optimal freedom in everyday life. At home here in Seattle, Nikki is eager to see how dance and life will continue to unfold.
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Kiné Camara
Kiné Camara is a dance artist and educator based in Seattle, WA, but you can often find her in Paris and Johannesburg as well.
She began dancing traditional Senegalese styles professionally at 8 years old, and teaching in 2005, under the direction of her father, Master Drummer and Dancer, Ibrahima Camara, of the National Ballet of Senegal. In 2019, she shifted gears to the world of Afro, training in a mix of styles including Afrobeats, Azonto, Ndombolo, Amapiano, and Afrohouse.
She loves bringing her passion for dance to the stage, and has performed with artists including Uncle Waffles, Asake, Tiwa Savage, Sauti Sol, and Archie. She has also dance and hosted with nightlife events such as the “Tune4Tune” series at Neumos, and “Private Piano” both in collaboration with KEXP DJ, Lace Cadence.
She is currently teaching Amapiano classes, and has taught with organizations like The University of Washington, the University of Florida, Vashon Island Center for the Arts, The Overlake School, The Union Cultural Center, Whatcom Community College and Bellingham Repertory Dance.
Street Dance Forms
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Majinn
Majinn is a queer, disabled, mixed Black dance artist and educator who utilizes their training in multiple dance forms to find and express their whole self. They believe that to be the best dancer and person they can be they need to continuously push their own comfort zone. Majinn works to help guide people in becoming more confident and connected in their bodies, find joy in their movement and be able to speak their voices primarily through Black social dance forms. One of Majinn’s biggest goals in dance is to spread the histories of Black social dance forms in and out of academia so that the cultures are learned and more respected. They also aim to give back to the communities that these art forms were created from through any way they can. Majinn’s art is for them and the communities they come from, always striving to be authentically themselves in their movement and work You can find Majinn under Majinn_Mike on Instagram
Courses Taught
Leadership through Directing and Performance
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Sophia Franzella
Sophia Franzella is a teaching artist and professional actor working in the Seattle area. After 11 years of classical ballet training, she decided to transition into the world of Theatre at the age of 14. After falling in love with Theatre in high school, Sophia earned her BFA in Theatre Arts from St. Edward’s University in Austin, Texas in 2013. She is also a 2014 graduate of A Working Group (a Meisner-technique acting program). Sophia has taught acting and dance throughout Seattle over the past 10 years (Lakeside Middle School, Village Theatre KIDSTAGE, Sing Out Seattle, STG, Mode Music, Coyote, 5th Avenue Theatre, Seattle Rep, Taproot Theatre). Sophia also offers private lessons for audition preparation! When she is not teaching, Sophia works as a professional actor in Seattle. She is a co-founder and company member of the theatre lab Filament: A Collab Lab for which she often choreographs and directs. She is also a Pony World Theatre company member. Sophia also enjoys hiking with friends, reading, watching spooky movies, and learning new subjects!
Choreography & Performance
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Ashley Menestrina
Ashley Menestrina is a movement artist, performer, teacher, and choreographer. Her repertoire of solo works: Always a Creature , The Human Condition: Absent Presence, and Combative Echoes have been performed in eight countries and received numerous awards from festival juries. Since moving to Seattle in 2021, Ashley has created a new work titled, Taking Space, thanks to Velocity Dance Center’s Bridge Project program. This creation was performed at SIDF and Gonzaga University where she also commissioned a new work for their repertory company. Additionally, Ashley has worked with Anna Mlasowsky for the Amazon A.I.R program, Emily Schoen Branch, and Maia Melene Durfee in collaborative processes. @ashleymenestrina
Cornish+ Voices (Sunday)
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Claire Marx
Claire Marx currently teaches ensemble singing, cabaret, and private voice at Cornish. She has also music directed Cornish productions of Chicago, Secret in the Wings, Xanadu, and James and the Giant Peach. She has also worked as assistant choreographer/director for Sister Act and Singing in the Rain. She and Rich will be teaming up to work on The Theory of Relativity this fall. She has also taught at Village Theatre, The Evergreen School, Redmond Academy, The Meridian School, and many locations with Seattle Public Schools. Recent local stage credits include: Hairspray at Village Theatre, The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe at Seattle Children's Theatre, The Bishop's Wife at Taproot Theatre Co., The Odyssey educational tour with Book-It, Romeo and Juliet with Seattle Shakespeare, and a handful of new musical workshops at the Seattle Rep.
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Rico Lastrapes
Rico is a Florida native who recently relocated to Seattle where he was featured in Newsies as Racetrack at Village Theatre and has also been seen in The Pajama Game (Centerstage), Jesus Christ Superstar (Tacoma Little Theatre), Tarzan (Kitsap Forest Theater), Big Fish (Bainbridge Performing Arts), and The Toxic Avenger (Burien Actors Theatre). Before the move, Rico co-hosted SeaWorld Kid’s Generation Nature LIVE with Bindi Irwin, understudied productions at Orlando Shakes including Peter and the Starcatcher, and was a stilt-walker at Walt Disney World. He is a tap instructor, choreographer, teaching artist, and musician. BFA – University of Central Florida.
Introduction to Patterns & Printmaking
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Brad Taylor
Bradley Taylor is a Seattle based artist, and printmaker. He is currently working at Cornish College of the Arts as the Printmaking Studio Technician. Proficient in all forms of printmaking Bradley specializes in woodblock prints. His work has been shown in numerous galleries in the Seattle area. He has also work collaboratively with many notable Seattle Artists.
Theatrical Swordplay
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Geof Alm
Geoffrey Alm has been teaching Stage Fighting at Cornish since 2008. A Certified Teacher with The Society of American Fight Directors since 1987, he is also a Certified Fight Director and Fight Master. Professionally he has been choreographing fights since 1988, locally and Nationally. He’s a proud member of Stage Directors and Choreographers, Actors Equity, and SAG-AFTRA.
Letterpress Print Party
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Dan Shafer
Dan D. Shafer is a graphic designer, artist, and educator living and working in Seattle. He owns Dandy Co., a graphic design studio specializing in book design, installation, and environmental design (as well as event promotion and branding). The studio's clients include Kronos Quartet, American Cancer Society, Salish Lodge, Herman Miller, and Pratt Fine Arts Center.
Shafer is also the creative director at Chin Music Press. His self-initiated social practice installations explore the nebulous territory that exists between traditional definitions of "art" and "design," and investigate how people interact with objects in their everyday lives.
Analog and Alternative Process Photography
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Winnie Westergard
Winifred Westergard is a Seattle based fine art and commercial photographer with degrees from the University of Washington and Cornish College of the Arts in Creative Writing, Journalism and Art. Her art making foundation is rooted in the early processes of photography, fully embracing the slow processes of 19th century photography. She is a visual creator with a strong base on human emotion and storytelling. She has managed the photography studio at Cornish College of the Arts since 1999 and has taught Photography and Portfolio Development through Summer@Cornish since 2003.
Leadership Speaking Through Acting
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Meg McLynn
Meg McLynn is an actor, vocalist, and teaching artist who has been seen on stages and screens throughout North America. Meg loves to share her passion for performance with students of all ages, and it is her belief that the work we do in “the studio” is applicable to all aspects of our everyday lives.
Having studied for 7 years under renowned voice teacher, Kristin Linklater, Meg now works with students to help them take ownership of their wonderfully unique voices. She teaches Voice and Speech at Cornish College of the Arts, and she serves as a vocal coach with Jack Straw Studios. She has assisted with voice training at Columbia Business School and World Leaders Forum in New York City. Meg also teaches Voice and Acting classes at Freehold Theatre Lab and Mighty Tripod Studios in Seattle.
Meg is a member of the Seattle-based vocal trio, Blue Plate Special, and has been an Anthem Singer for the Seattle Seahawks. As a concert soloist, she performed the songbooks of Patsy Cline, Judy Garland, and Carly Simon with Purple Phoenix Productions. Local acting credits include roles with Seattle Shakespeare Company, Book-It Rep, Seattle Symphony, ArtsWest, Seattle Opera, Seattle Public Theatre, Washington Ensemble Theatre, Theatre22, Harlequin Productions, and 14/48: TWQTF, as well as the feature films “Different Drummers”, “7 Minutes”, and “Colton”. You can see her in the series, “The Girl in the Woods” streaming on NBC/Peacock.
Build-A-Bass
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Brian Miller
Brian is a musician who has worked with Jonny Copeland, Bobby Radcliffe, Bunny Domino and others. He was a founding member of BBQ Bob and the Spare Ribs and produced their first recording. He came to woodworking by experimenting with a more ergonomic design for basses to alleviate periodic bouts of tendonitis.
He learned the basics of woodworking from master carpenter Joe Guida (Guida Woodworks, Flagstaff, AZ,) during the course of building his first prototype. Since then, he improved his skill by trial and error and getting advice from the master wood workers at IsGood WoodWorks and Ballard Woodworking. In 2020, he started Miller Basses and produces about three uniquely designed basses each year.
Practical Piano for Musicians
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Travis Palmer
Travis Palmer is a songwriter, arranger, jazz pianist, and music educator whose passion lies in helping his students learn and apply new musical vocabulary, with an emphasis of learning how to shape the concepts to come across in the student’s own voice. Travis has a wide range of interests and experience in various musical styles such as singer/songwriter, salsa, jazz, free music, traditional jazz, and classical music. Travis’ current musical projects include; serving as the board president for the 501(c)(3) non-profit Songwriters in Seattle, playing tenor banjo in and directing the 1920’s-1950’s style jazz band The Emerald Street Ragtime Band, and leading, composing and arranging for the all-originals band The Palmer Group.
Clown Study Intensive
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David Taft
David Taft was a Theater Professor at Cornish College of the Arts for 24 years and developed clown study coursework taken from his own training and performance experience. He curated the annual Clown Show at the Cornish Playhouse and currently is a movement consultant for stage and screen. His website and resume can be found at: david-taft.com
Portfolio Development for College Applications
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Winnie Westergard
Winifred Westergard is a Seattle based fine art and commercial photographer with degrees from the University of Washington and Cornish College of the Arts in Creative Writing, Journalism and Art. Her art making foundation is rooted in the early processes of photography, fully embracing the slow processes of 19th century photography. She is a visual creator with a strong base on human emotion and storytelling. She has managed the photography studio at Cornish College of the Arts since 1999 and has taught Photography and Portfolio Development through Summer@Cornish since 2003.
Adobe Illustrator for cut technologies
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Tory Franklin
Tory Franklin is a visual artist working with diverse media unified by pattern, print, and narrative. Since 2010, Franklin has focused on public installations inspired by folktales that are accompanied by screen-printed books, posters, and other ephemera. Her work has been exhibited at MAD Art, Bellevue City Hall, Storefronts Seattle, Storefronts Auburn, Spaceworks Tacoma, the Renton Arts Commission, Arts-A-Glow festival, Portland Winter Light Festival, the VERA Project, and 826 Seattle. She has received a Seattle Office of Arts & Culture City Artists project grant, a 4Culture project grant, and an Artist Trust GAP grant for these projects. In 2015, Franklin created her first permanent window piece with her sister, Eroyn Franklin, for Harborview Medical Center, and is currently working on SoundTransit’s Star Lake light rail station in Kent slated to open in 2024.
Audition Prep Ages 12-14
Auditioning for Musical Theatre Dance: Adult
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Nicole Beerman
Nicole is an actor, singer, dancer, choreographer, teacher, visual artist, wife to Josh and mother to Max and Huxley. Nicole has lived and worked on both coasts, loves to create, garden, and do construction! On screen, Nicole has been seen in Nike, LG, and T-Mobile commercials. On stage in Adrift (Sam French Festival), Big Effing Deal! (Duet with Reggie Watts), Cabaret (Gregory Award Nominee), Mary Poppins, Annie, Bye Bye Birdie, How to Succeed, Once Upon A Time in New Jersey and many Village Originals (Village Theatre), The Constant Wife (Seattle Rep), Cabaret (5th Ave, AMTSJ, Ordway Center), Wonderful Town (5th Ave), Ming the Rude (Empty Space), Elephant and Piggie, Fire Station 7, Sleeping Beauty (SCT), Tapestry (Oregon Cabaret Theatre), and many more. As a choreographer and dancer Nicole had the honor of working with Sonya Tayeh and the Oregon Shakespeare Festival with running the dance call for the original production of Head Over Heals. In New York, Nicole’s work has been seen at the HERE Center, Ensemble Studio Theatre, Clubbed Thumb, Astoria Performing Arts, The Management and Acting Manitou. In Seattle, at KIDSTAGE, Cornish, Oregon Cabaret Theatre, The Triple Door, Café Nordo, Seattle Children’s Theatre, Fantastic Z, and Art Institute of Seattle. Nicole is currently teaching at Cornish College of the Arts, Seattle Film institute, and Westlake Dance Center. She has also taught at UW, Art Institute of Seattle, Hunter College High School, VAM Studios, 5th Avenue, Century Ballroom, McCarter Theatre Company, Jersey City Dance Academy, and The Studios. Nicole holds a BFA from Cornish College of the Arts, is a certified Simonson Technique teacher and a member of Actors’ Equity.