Meet our teachers…

Executive Director of Spotlight Performance Academy, Director of Bel Canto Choir Program

Bel Canto Youth Choir
Bel Canto Concert Choir
Bel Canto Community Choir
Throw Down 101 Dance Fitness

Carrie Bonanotte serves as the Executive Director of the Spotlight Performance Academy, where she executes the mission of the organization by curating programming and teaching high quality performing arts classes. Carrie holds a Bachelor's degree from Eastern Illinois University and Master's Degree from VanderCook College of Music, both in Music Education with vocal emphasis. Carrie has been directing award winning Children’s Choirs, Show Choirs, and Musicals since 2002. She has been a sought after adjudicator and clinician for the Illinois Grade School Music Association since 2008. Carrie is the founder of the Bel Canto Children’s Choir which has grown to be the largest community children’s choir in the south suburbs of Chicago. In 2025, she received a Distinguished Alumni Award from Eastern Illinois University for the work she does in her community. Carrie takes pride in connecting with her students while creating an atmosphere of compassion and excitement for every class.

Bel Canto Accompanist

3 Minutes in the Spotlight

Jeff Hamrick has worked as an accompanist, singer, and diction coach in the Chicago area since 1990. He is a former member of the Chicago Symphony Chorus; His Majestie’s Clerkes (now Bella Voce); the Scholars of Cambrai; the Schola Cantorum of St. Peter’s in the Loop; Music of the Baroque, under Thomas Wikman; and Cantate, for which he also accompanied and occasionally assisted director Benjamin Rivera with rehearsals. He was a professional chorister and soloist at Rockefeller Memorial Chapel, St. James Cathedral, Holy Name Cathedral, St. Wenceslaus Church, St. Chrysostom Church, and St. John Cantius Church. He served as pianist at Countryside Church Unitarian Universalist in Palatine from 2003 to 2014 and also as music director beginning in 2005. He joined the staff at First Unitarian Church of Chicago as collaborative keyboardist in 2014 and served as music director and keyboardist from 2015 to 2021. He was pianist and organist at Flossmoor Community Church from 2021 to 2024. Jeff also serves as the accompanist for the Bel Canto choirs.

Jeff was invited by founding director Margaret Hillis to coach the Chicago Symphony Chorus in Russian (and later other Slavic languages) beginning in 1993 and served in the same role for the Grant Park Chorus beginning in 1995 and the Lyric Opera Chorus beginning in 2014.

As a student at Emory University, Jeff sang in the Glee Club, Chamber Choir, and Men’s Quartet beginning as a freshman. He also accompanied numerous students in the studio of his voice teacher, Mac Morgan, and accompanied school musicals as well. He music directed Baby (Emory, 1989) and Cabaret (University of Chicago, 1991). He studied conducting under Dr. Ann Howard Jones and was privileged to sing in the first season of the Robert Shaw Festival Singers in Souillac, France, in 1988.

During the week, Jeff is typically fixing commas and reworking unclear sentences in his job as a manuscript editor at the University of Chicago Press. In his spare time, he can be found making similar refinements to the extensive gardens he lovingly tends with his partner Chris Ball at their Flossmoor home.

Through his thoughtful and supportive musical collaboration, Jeff has always aspired to help his fellow musicians, whether amateur or professional, rise to any challenge and perform with grace, ease, and confidence.

Theater 360

After a semester traveling and creating ensemble based devised theatre at the National Theater Institute in Waterford, Connecticut, Nellsyn graduated from Baylor University with a BFA in Theatre Performance and a minor in Film and Digital Media. She moved to Chicago and continued her improv studies at iO and Second City. She spent a season as a costume assistant in Wheeling, West Virginia. In 2024 she costumed HF’s Urinetown! which won the Illinois High School Musical Theatre Award for Best Production.

Magnetic qualities of performance and production for her center around collaboration and meaningmaking. She derives satisfaction from cross-discipline world building grounded in the fundamental work of dramaturgy. Her experience working in every element of the theatre has taught her to approach challenges with curiosity, flexibility, patience, and persistence. She believes storytelling across artforms holds a key to experiencing awe, to remembering our humanity and restoring connection to our more-than-human kin.

She remembers with deep gratitude the generosity and support of instructors Skip Mercier and Sally Lynn Askins, who made her, as someone who’d previously only identified as an actor, feel comfortable and confident in the role of designer.

Nellsyn sews, knits, crochets, consumes books, podcasts, films, studies various languages, gardens, bakes, meditates, writes, and assists with research projects through the University of Chicago’s TMW Center for Early Learning + Public Health and the National Bureau of Economic Research. She and her four children are proud members of Bel Canto choirs.

Outspoken

Annie Lawrence is a published poet and spoken word regular. She earned a degree in creative writing from Knox College and has been published in multiple magazines and anthologies including The Poet Anthology Series, Young Ravens Literary Review, Caustic Frolic, and Tigershark Magazine. She has taught classes to all ages on the art of the spoken word.

Young Poets Society

Jordan Miller is a professional writer, tutor, and content creator from Flossmoor, Illinois. As a descendant of well-versed storytellers, she cultivated a love of poetry early. Growing up, she listened to her mother's and grandmother's stories with awe and reverence. They instilled in her the beliefs that words are power and your unique voice is the one thing that can never be taken from you. Thus, she began writing her own stories in middle school, creating universes and characters to process the world around her. In high school, poetry became her most sacred outlet for personal expression. All of these experiences led her to pursue higher education in the arts. 

Jordan attended Coe College in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, on a full-ride Diversity Leadership Scholarship. She graduated cum laude in 2014 with a double major in Creative Writing and Theatre Arts. In this time, she was classically trained in creative writing/performance and developed a poetry manuscript in her senior year. Over the past ten years, she has utilized her degree in numerous writing positions (from novel editing to marketing) and countless personal projects. She is most proud of her work editing fiction and non-fiction novels, catching typos and grammatical errors while providing advice on character development, story structure, and other narrative elements. 

Currently, Jordan tutors elementary-to-high school students in English, Reading, and Writing, involving creative writing projects alongside formal essay assignments. She believes that everyone is capable of excelling as a writer when given the proper tools and encouragement. She loves helping students find their own voices and master when/how to infuse their personalities into their writing.

When not writing professionally, Jordan can be found working on her own series of YA fantasy novels. She spends her downtime creating art and music, playing video games, and hanging out with her family. She also has two cats (named Ashton and Marina) who love to keep her on her toes.

Musical Theater Dance
Pop Culture Dance

Jennifer realized at an early age that she loves to move, and has been dancing and performing since age 5!  Her first job at 13 was an assistant dance teacher and her second job at 15 was a gymnastics/tumbling teacher!  She participated in theatre, dance, gymnastics and choir throughout her childhood and as a young adult.  In addition to dance and gymnastics, she's taught swimming, self-defense (as a for-credit class at DePaul University), group fitness classes, lifeguard training, CPR, First Aid, teambuilding, Pilates and GYROTONIC exercise.  She has taught Pilates since 2006 and the GYROTONIC® Method since 2016 (mostly at the East Bank Club in Chicago, where she was a Senior Instructor) and opened her home studio (Pulley and Spring) in 2022, where she sees weekly private clients.   She has a bachelor's degree in Leisure Studies/Program Management and a master's degree in Higher Education Administration, both from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.  She took performing arts classes all throughout her college career, including ballet, modern dance, jazz, theatre dance, choir, acting, directing and improv. 

All of her three children have participated in musical theatre.  While helping her kids learn material and prepare for auditions, she realized how much she missed the performing arts and started performing and teaching dance again in 2022.  She has choreographed three musicals for Joliet Central High School (. . . Spelling Bee, Little Shop of Horrors, and Six) and contributed to Spotlight Performance Academy's Haunting in Homewood (2024), and The Drama Group's 2024 production of Hair.  She has recently performed in shows with Spotlight Performance Academy, The Drama Group and Spotlight Arts Collective.  She also directed and choreographed the 2023 "mini musical" version of Matilda for Infant Jesus of Prague school.  

Most recently, she offered pop-up musical theatre dance classes for the Spotlight Performance Academy, and is thrilled to turn this class into a weekly course where we can develop skills and learn more complicated choreography while still getting a great workout!  

Miss Angie’s Music Makers‍
Children’s Choir

Angie Pope has been teaching early childhood family music classes since 2010, when she became a certified Musikgarten educator. In 2012 she founded "Miss Angie's Music" and currently teaches toddler and preschool level classes at various locations in the south suburbs. In addition to directing the Bel Canto Children's Choir, she also directs the Cherub Choir at Good Shepherd Lutheran Church in Palos Heights. She has run successful music programs at several Montessori schools in the area, and continues to entertain children and their families at countless farmers markets, libraries, school functions, Girl Scout gatherings, and mom group meetings. Since 2020 she has volunteered at Gigi's Playhouse in Tinley Park, where she teaches the monthly "Music in Motion" program. Angie is also a professional vocalist with Beatmix Music, leading and performing with the band “BPM” most weekends at private events. She was a member of TheatreBAM! Chicago for 16 years, with whom she performed several educational musicals including "Schoolhouse Rock Live!" at theaters and elementary schools throughout the country. Angie is extremely passionate about music and feels blessed to be able to share her love of music with people of all ages!

Click HERE to learn more about Miss Angie’s Music!

Find her on FaceBook and Instagram under “Miss Angie’s Music LLC”.

Theater 360

Doug Raffety is a seasoned musician, songwriter, artist, post audio mixer/sound designer, and an uncertified humorist. For the last six years, he has supervised and guided the junior high musical scenery crew at James Hart for shows including The Lion King, Frozen, and Moana.

Doug resides in Homewood, where he sings in the Bel Canto Community Choir and has performed in such shows as 3 Minutes In The Spotlight, Spoon River, and The Haunting of Homewood. Most recently, he acted as musical director for the Songs of Resistance concert, which included 25 performers singing 28 songs.

During the school year, you’ll find him singing his morning songs with all the classes at Willow Elementary School and assisting in Special Ed. This is Doug’s second summer session of Theater 360 and he is very excited to see what creativity this summer has in store.

Spotlight Theater Workshops for Children
Spotlight Theater: Adults Acting Out

Chris Rechsteiner has spent more than 20 years working with children and youth of all ages. She holds a double major in Psychology and Theater/Television Arts. Although she has fond memories of some of her favorite acting roles—including Lucy in You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown, Jack’s Mom in Into the Woods, and Joan of Arc in The Lark—she has discovered that her greatest passion lies in directing and helping others shine on stage.

Chris has taught theater to kids, teens, and adults in schools, park districts, shelters, and a variety of other nontraditional settings. She loves creating spaces where people can express themselves creatively and build confidence through the performing arts.

During the day, Chris spends her time supporting and advocating for people with disabilities, helping them live out their faith and achieve their goals and dreams.

Theater 360

For the past 30 years, Marc Ryser has taught art in public schools while remaining deeply involved in all aspects of the performing arts. He has designed and built more than 70 theatrical sets and has worked extensively as an actor, improviser, pit musician, and fight choreographer.  He has done ALMOST everything that somebody can do in a theatre... costuming, make-up, and hair being the major exceptions. He has used these skills in more than 100 shows and performances in Northwest Indiana over the last thirty years.

A lifelong creative collaborator, Marc brings a passion for storytelling, visual design, performance, and ensemble work to every production. His experience spans the stage, the workshop, and the classroom, giving students a uniquely well-rounded theatrical perspective.

Live Lines and Movements

Ben Salus is a visual artist, educator, and musician working throughout the Chicago Metropolitan area and the Southern Suburbs. He earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts from the American Academy of Art and a Master of Arts in Teaching from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. For over two decades, he has maintained an active studio practice while exhibiting his work in galleries, museums, and community spaces throughout the region and beyond.

Working in drawing, painting, collage, mixed media, and printmaking, Ben's artwork explores narrative, memory, symbolism, and human connection. His work has been featured in more than 100 exhibitions and has received support through grants, museum commissions, artist residencies, and community arts initiatives.

As a licensed K–12 visual arts educator, Ben has spent over a decade helping students of all ages, including adults develop technical skills, creative confidence, and personal expression through art. His classes encourage observation, experimentation, and storytelling while helping artists discover their own unique visual style. Through both his teaching and artistic practice, he seeks to create meaningful experiences that inspire curiosity, reflection, and connection.

Theater 360

Shelley is happy to be a part of this year's theater camp and is excited to introduce technical theater and lighting design to young people. Shelley received her MFA from Northwestern University and has been working in Chicago theater for the past thirty-five years. Ms. Strasser is the Cultural Arts Specialist at Freedom Hall and the Technical Director for the Nathan Manilow Theater.

Storytelling

Giggy Wagner is a storyteller and educator who has spent nearly 30 years helping students find their voice through language and communication. Her first professional story, about a lost scarf and the adventure of tracking it down, remains one of her favorites. Giggy’s stories take the mundane and make it miraculous. She made her debut at Homewood Stories in 2018, then held at Ravisloe Country Club in Homewood, Illinois, and has been a regular storyteller there ever since. Her stories have also taken her to numerous stages throughout Chicagoland. Giggy has performed at Stories 'R Us in Lockport, Let Me Tell You in Berwyn, Story Lab Chicago, and As I Was Saying in Wheaton. She also weaves stories about her own family into her sets, finding joy, humor and meaning in everyday moments.  

Giggy holds a bachelor's degree in education from Murray State University and a master's degree in creative non-fiction writing from Central Michigan University. This training shapes how she helps students uncover stories worth telling and shape them into something an audience will feel. For years, she has used storytelling in her own classroom to motivate and connect with students, long before she took the stage herself. 

In 2024, Giggy joined the team carrying Homewood Stories' legacy forward, helping keep the light and joy of live storytelling thriving across South Suburban Chicago. 

Giggy believes everyone has a story worth telling, and she's passionate about giving students the tools, confidence, and craft to tell theirs.

Theater 360
Kidprov
Teenprov

Kate Wiersema is thrilled to be back teaching improv at Spotlight! She is currently an ensemble member of ComedySportz Chicago and the artistic director of South of Chi Productions. She has been performing and teaching improv in the Chicagoland area for almost 15 years. Recently, she has released a book called Playing to Learn: Using Improv in the K-8 Classroom. Check her out at southofchiproductions.com or www.facebook.com/katewiersemaimprov.