JOHN BERGERON (Media Arts- Sound Design) has compositions in films, videos and commercials. He has a BS Degree in Electrical Engineering from the University of Colorado and has maintained his own recording studio and recording school for the past fifteen years. He has been the producer on over 40 released CDs for many artists, and currently teaches Audio Production and Electronic Music at Middlesex Community College. He maintains his own studio, DreamCatcher Recording Studio, in north central Connecticut. John currently offers courses in Pro-Tools and Private Recording Sessions.

CHRIS CRETELLA (Musical Arts- Guitar) began studying the guitar under Ron Bridgsche at the age of thirteen. He began composing his shortly thereafter. Chris has studied with Mark Kuss in composition and with David Chevan in improvisation at Southern Connecticut State University. With Dave Parmelee, Chris founded a chamber/jazz ensemble called Goose Lane. The group regularly performs Chris' compositions and arrangements. Goose Lane has recorded and released two CD's on Chris and Dave's own Rehab Music Foundation imprint and is currently working on a third. Chris can also be found playing in many other local ensembles from rock bands to jazz bands and from free improvisation groups to solo classical guitar at weddings. Chris has completed a set of six studies for guitar and a major new work for woodwind quintet and is currently working on a piece for guitar and drum set. Chris currently teaches private lessons and three levels of guitar instruction.

DAVID DAVIS (Musical Arts- Saxophone) was born and raised in Connecticut, is a Hartt School of Music graduate with a degree in Jazz studies and Music Management. Davis has performed at venues along with Mary J. Blige, Deborah Cox, LL Cool J, Brian Mcknight, Keith Washington, Sean Puffy Combs, Kid Capri, Biz Markie, John P. Kee, Karen Clarke, Marion Meadows, Roy Ayers, Donald Harrison, Dave Valentine, Onaje Allen Gumbs, Sherry Winston, Chuck Loeb, Cherryl Hayes and Gloria Lynn to name a few. You can learn more about David at his website, http://davidavis.com/. David currently teaches in the AfterSchool Program and offers private lessons.  

Liane Fisher (Movement Arts- Ballet) began studying ballet at the age of 7 in her native England.  After moving to the United States, she studied with David Howard, Jose Mateo, and Raymond Lukens and went on to study dance at UMass.  She attended seminars for three years in New York City with Dance Educators of America and received advanced certification in dance teaching.  She also received an M.A. in Ballet History and Repertory from Skidmore College.  She has taught as a professor of Ballet and of Dance History at Dean College and also taught in the City Dance program for Boston Ballet for many years.  She has taught at and choreographed for various local studios in Connecticut and Massachusetts since 1998 and has performed with various Ballet Companies including Boston Ballet and the Royal Ballet.  Liane is currently teaching Adult Beginner Ballet as well as Fundamentals of Dance for middle schoolers.  She is also teaching Beginning Ballet for ages 7-11.  She is available for Private Lessons, Coaching, and Choreography.

JOSEPH GETTER (Musical Arts- Clarinet, Saxophone, Carnatic Flute) graduated from Oberlin College, where he studied clarinet and world music, and is a doctoral candidate in music at Wesleyan University. Joseph has a wide range of musical experiences, from performing wind ensemble, jazz, rock, Bollywood, klezmer, experimental and orchestra music, to composing for dance and theater. He also studies and performs several world traditions including music of India and Indonesia. Joseph has been music director at Art Farm and Oddfellows Playhouse, and teaches children at the Independent Day School Summer Camp and as Director of the Youth Gamelan at Wesleyan. He teaches woodwinds, world music, and Western music at Southern Connecticut State University and the University of New Haven. Joseph currently offers private lesson.

BRYAN GILES (Movement Arts- Break Dancing) is known regionally in the Break Dancing circuit and teaches at Vinnie's Jump and Jive as well as in Green Street's Afterschool Program. Bryan is a member of the break dancing squads Of Shadow and Earth as well as, Losst Unnown, and he is a founder of Battle Royale, a yearly tournament held in Middletown CT. Bryan currently teaches in the AfterSchool Program.

SHAWN HILL (Media Arts- Web Design) has sixteen years of teaching experience in seven different countries, the most recent being at the Mosholu Montefiore Community Center (Bronx, NY) where he taught children and adults classes in Photography, Video Production and Computers. Shawn has had a number of one person shows (photography and drawing) and has recently participated in group shows at Green Street and the Buttonwood Tree Cafe. He designs and builds furniture and gardens organically, here in Middletown. Currently, Shawn works as a Desktop Support Specialist for Wesleyan University. You can view Shawn's work at his website https://wesfiles.wesleyan.edu/home/shill/web/. Shawn currently teaches in the AfterSchool Program and is offering a Blogging & Web Design course and a Digital Animation course.

GIA KHALSA (pronounced JEE-uh CALL-suh) (Movement Arts- Yoga) has been studying and living a natural lifestyle since 1970. Gia has has a degree in Art Education and has helped to operate several yoga centers. She has worked with young children in Connecticut at the Old Lyme Summer Program and psychiatric patients at Mid-State Behavioral Health. Studying ballroom and country dancing has enhanced her study and development of her own style of Middle Eastern belly dance. Gia has studied Feng Shui, the Chinese art of placement since 1990. Beginning in 1996, she began been giving Feng Shui lectures and consultations for private and commercial clients. Gia is a renaissance woman of the new century, embracing all these aspects of holistic living into her own life and extending her knowledge into her teaching workshops, classes and lectures in the areas of Belly Dance, Feng Shui and yoga. Gia currently teaches yoga.

KERRY KINCY (Movement Arts-  Movement & Dance) is a visionary. She's challenge-driven, professional and a successful leader in both academic and community arenas. As an independent teaching artist, Kerry teaches her class Telling Voices: A Story in Movement to children and adults in the community and in residential treatment facilities with Wesleyan's Green Street Arts Center. Kerry also collaborates with the Center for Children's Advocacy's Speak Up! Project and with the Judy Dworin Performance Project, Inc., Moving Matters! in residencies throughout the greater Hartford area. Her work with Moving Matters! afforded her the opportunity to assist in Dreamings What I Want to Say, and What I Want to Tell You the Mom's and Kid's Project, all residencies at York Women's Prison that focused on issues pertaining to the women behind the razor wire. She performed in the professional version of Dreamings that was presented to the public at the Charter Oak Cultural Center in April 2009. She collaborates with Yale's Child Life Arts & Enrichment Program and with the Shared Abilities Dance Ensemble, where dancers and children with and without physical disabilities work in partnership to make and share movement. In her work, she combines her focused study in Learning, Movement and Social Development from Trinity College, with her genuine passion for children, the community and dance. She sees movement as a means to build self-esteem and close the educational/ developmental fissure between our cities and suburbs. 

CAROLYN KIRSCH (Movement Arts- Drama) has performed in fifteen Broadway musicals, including How to Succeed in Business, Sweet Charity, and Chicago. She was in the original company of A Chorus Line, for which she won a Theatre World Award. Carolyn has worked extensively with the choreographers and directors Michael Bennett and Bob Fosse, and is schooled in their distinctive styles. She has studied acting with Uta Hagen and continues to study with Austin Pendleton, both of HB Studio, New York City. Presently, Carolyn is the Musical Theatre Department Chair at the Center for Creative Youth, held at Wesleyan University and teaches at Hartford Conservatory.

ERIC LOPKIN (Literary Arts- Fiction Writing) As a writer and editor with experience in journalism and corporate communications, Eric's work has appeared in numerous newspapers, magazines, and online publications covering finance, entertainment, business, and local and national news, in addition to writing numerous short stories. He has utilized his communication skills and business experience as a consultant for companies in the media, financial, and healthcare industries, as well as non-profit organizations. Currently, Eric guides comic book writers and artists to hone their skills as vice president of the Comicbook Artist' Guild.

BENJAMIN KLEIN (Musical Arts- Creative Sound Workshops) is a tuba player, improviser and composer. Benjamin received a combined bachelor of music degree from Lawrence University in music theory/composition and tuba performance. He is a current Master of Arts candidate at Wesleyan University focusing on experimental music and composition. Benjamin explores new ways to use the tuba, including its implementation with electronics and theater. His composition repertoire includes pieces for choir, string quartet, brass ensemble, electro-acoustic chamber music, and theater music. Benjamin is a recipient of the Thomas J. Watson Fellowship, a one year grant for independent study that allowed him to collaborate with musicians in Amsterdam, London, Sydney, Wellington, and Tokyo. Benjamin is currently involved in the Anthony Braxton Ensemble, Wesleyan Javanese Gamelan and the Wesleyan Composers' Workshop.

LEAH MAILLE (Movement Arts- Hip Hop) is a recent graduate of Middletown High School and attends the University of Hartford where she is studying Sociology and Political Science. She is involved in many activities both in and out of school. She has experience in many different styles of dance including hip-hop, jazz, modern, African and ballet. Leah recently started dancing at Rhythm-N-Sync in Meriden. She has been an active member of Stage Left Dance Extreme Company for six years and is also a teacher and assistant teacher at Stage Left Dance Studio. Leah has performed in a variety of venues such as Rock Cats Stadium, Disney World's Magic Kingdom, and she has also performed in many local talent competitions and shows. Leah currently teaches in the AfterSchool Program.

DAN NOCERA (Media Arts- Videography) has worked and taught in all areas of media production for the past sixteen years. He has a BA in Television Production from Ithaca College and a MALS with a concentration in Film from Wesleyan's Graduate Liberal Studies Program. Currently Nocera is the coordinator of the Corporate Media Center at Middlesex Community College where he produces, directs and edits award-winning films (corporate, documentary, fiction). A recent television ad he produced won three national awards including a Telly, a Communicator and a Gold Medallion.

JOCELYN PLEASANT (Musical Arts- Percussion) was born in Hartford, CT, and began playing concert percussion at the age of 9 in the Bloomfield middle school band program. She has studied at The Hartt School Community Division, The Artists Collective Inc., and other programs throughout Connecticut. She graduated from George Washington University in Washington, DC in 2004. Jocelyn has performed with such artists as Warren Byrd, Nat Reeves, Kalim Zarif, and Jay Hoggard. Through the Hartford Monday Night Jazz Series, she has been able to sit in with trumpet legends Frank Lacy and Dr. Eddie Henderson. Jocelyn currently teaches at Green Street Arts Center, the Artists Collective, the Greater Hartford Academy of the Arts, and is an artist-in-residence at Children's Home of Cromwell.

SARI ROSENBLATT (Literary Arts- Creative Writing) writes fiction and non-fiction. Her publications include short fiction in Glimmer Train, Nimrod International Journal of Poetry & Prose (2002, 2004), and The Iowa Review (1998, 1986). Her writing awards include the Glimmer Train Award in Short Fiction, 2007; PEN New England New Discovery Award in Fiction, 2003; Katherine Anne Porter Prize in Fiction, 2002; and New Millennium Writings Fiction Prize, 2002. She is a graduate of the Iowa Writers' Workshop.

DUSTIN WIEBE (Musical Arts- Guitar) is a classical guitarist and ethnomusicologist whose diverse musical and scholarly interests include everything from Cuban classical guitar literatures, to syncretistic theory, and traditional Balinese music. He has studied guitar performance with some of North America's finest pedagogues, including Dr. Nicholas Goluses, Dr. Alvin Tung, and Willie Wiebe. His formal guitar studies include a BMus. from Canadian Mennonite University and an MM from the Eastman School of Music (University of Rochester). He has also he studied baroque performance practice with early music and has appeared in the masterclasses of many of today's most prominent classical guitarists including Bruce Holzman, Denis Azabagic, Fabio Zanon, Roland Dyens, and Carlos Barbosa-Lima. Dustin has studied guitar pedagogy at the Royal Conservatory of Music (Toronto, ON). He has also taught in a variety of capacities including appointments at Canadian Mennonite University, the University of Toronto, and the International Music Camp. He regularly performs in both Western and Eastern musical idioms and has been featured in many concerts. His recordings have been heard on local and national broadcasts, including CBC radio. In addition to his activities as a solo and chamber musician, Dustin is also a scholar of Indonesian and church music traditions. Visit www.dustinwiebe.com for more information.

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