TEACHING ARTIST
My passion for producing, acting, directing, design and visual arts have defined who I am: a multidisciplinary artist. Learning all these disciplines has been beneficial for the years of experience working in theater and as a teaching artist and acting coach. As an educator for the past 15 years I’ve worked with wide ranging demographics from elementary school to working with St. Peter’s University NJ and The New School at the college level, and working with young latiné artists at Rybin Studio of Drama as Theatre, TV and Film teacher.
Associate Director/Professor
The New School of Performing Arts, New York -2022
No Place, a devised site-specific performance that deals with humanity’s pursuit of utopian visions in response to societal problems.
Created by CoPA’s MFA students and lead by the New School faculty Irina Kruzhilina over the course of the 2022 Spring semester, the performance takes the form of a promenade, where audiences are taken on a dream journey through a series of worlds that trace our ultimately doomed desire to trade our flawed everyday life for an unattainable ideal. Along the way the audience encounters mysterious travel agents, participants in an otherworldly perfection pageant and characters from the ultimate utopian play, Shakespeare’s The Tempest.
Theatre, TV and Film
Rybin Studio of Drama, New York (2019-2023)
Rybin Studio of Drama was founded in 1983 and remains the only spanish-bilingual training unit that offers classes in acting, modeling, auditioning, commercial techniques, and theater. Students are selected through an interview / audition process which helps determine the students goals, aspirations, and degree of natural talent. They are also screened for possible future representation by Rybin Talent Mgmt., LLC. Rybin Studio’s mission is to expose the bilingual-Latino community to the dramatic arts. Enrollment is predominantly Latino consisting of students ages 7 to young adults. Although there are no guarantees, nine out of ten students are eligible and may receive awards. Rybin Studio, andRybin Talent have received recognition from Promesa, the Mayor of NYC for Hispanic Heritage Week, NY Housing, and The Arts Council. Rybin Studio & Rybin Talent have received recongnition and the 2011 A.C.E. Special Award to commemorate 30 years in business.
STUDENT’S WORK SAMPLES
Theatre
ZARA AINA and BAMA Kids Program, Alabama ( 2023-Present)
Bama Kids Inc. This organization exists to improve the well-being-both physically and spiritually of our youth in Wilcox County by combining organized recreational and educational activities, developing and promoting leadership involvement for youth and their parents, and by promoting life skills to prevent substance abuse and other harmful activities. https://bamakids.webs.com/
ZARA AINA
Zara Aina means “share life” in Malagasy, the language of Madagascar. Broadway actors Lucas Caleb Rooney and Bryce Pinkham founded Zara Aina in 2012 to help at-risk children in Madagascar harness the transformative power of theatrical storytelling and performance to expand their capacity for achievement, invest in their sense of possibility, and recognize their potential.. http://zaraaina.org/
Theatre Teacher / Director
El Barrio Raices Summer Program, New York. (2022 - Present)
El Barrio Raíces Summer Program is a three-week summer program that offers theatre training to children between the ages of 9 and 12. The program is free of charge and open to all residents of NYC. This year’s program will focus on community empowerment and strengthening family traditions, encouraging students to explore their heritage through the performing arts. Participants have the opportunity to learn about all disciplines of theatre, including acting, dance, make-up, ensemble work, costumes, and sets. Our bilingual team of teaching artists facilitates all classes.
IMPROV
Lux Performing Arts, New Jersey - 2021
LUX Performing Arts is a training and performance program in Jersey City, NJ specializing in singing lessons, musical theatre, acting, film, and songwriting. We provide endless opportunities to collaborate with professionals and to showcase young talent.
TV and Film
Youth Summer Programs William Paterson University, NJ - Present
William Paterson University's Pre-College Youth Programs offers early preparation, high school skills, awareness, and readiness for College and Careers. Grades 4-12 are critical developmental years in a student's preparation for college and eventual career. The Pre-College Youth Programs is designed to foster a positive academic transition.
Producción Creativa
Online Workshops in Spanish
Estos talleres brindaran herramientas útiles para aquellos artistas que tienen ideas/conceptos con mucho potencial y buscan la inspiración para que estas se conviertan en realidad. Cada participante tendrá la oportunidad de exponer su idea en total confidencialidad e ir desarrollándola por el espacio de los cuatro talleres. Taller para actores, productores, mimos, bailarines, maestros y todo aquel que tenga una idea guardada en su mente y reconoce que es tiempo de desengavetarla.
Improv Workshop
Teatro Julia de Burgos – Manhattan, N.Y.
Ciclo de Talleres de Corezon e Hipsanic Federation
Un impulso es lo más sagrado para un actor: ser capaz de seguirlo es fundamental para el trabajo dentro y fuera de un escenario. Este taller brindará valiosos recursos para mejorar la confianza y espontaneidad de los participantes y el desarrollo de las habilidades necesarias para resolver problemas e imprevistos. Se utilizarán divertidas dinámicas de grupo donde se cultivará la creatividad, la creación de historias y personajes; así como también técnicas de actuación, expresión corporal, y, sobre todo, la imaginación.
Musical Improv Workshop
Manhattan School of Music, New York.
Estudiantes de Sagrado Corazón de Puerto Rico
Taller de Improvisación teatral enfocado para estudiantes de Teatro Musical. Este taller fomenta la importancia del espontaneidad, el ritmo, “storytelling”, la voz y la música. Los estudiantes son sumergidos al mundo de la improvisación utilizando su propia disciplina para contar historias.
Theater Workshop
Guaynabo, Puerto Rico
The main purpose of these workshop was to encourage young artists to develop and produce original works. Through out this intense and productive weekend, the participants ended up writing around 100 new stories. After writing the stories they were taught basic skills about directing, acting and producing. Our goal was to give them tools to work with their own companies and their personal performances.