Head of Musical Theatre & Associate Professor This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Office Location: ASC 260
(205) 996-8847

Office Hours: By appointment

Education:

• B.A., Otterbein University, Musical Theatre Pedagogy
• MFA, Virginia Commonwealth University, Theatre Pedagogy

Valerie is our Head of Musical Theatre, teaching classes in Musical Theatre Performance. She is a member of Actor’s Equity Association, an Associate Member of Stage Directors and Choreographers, and an Estill Master Trainer in Estill Voice Training. As an Equity actress, Valerie played Margy Frake in the First National Tour of Rodgers and Hammerstein’s State Fair, starring John Davidson. She has performed in numerous other musicals including the title role in Cinderella, Maria in The Sound of Music, and Lady Larkin in Once Upon a Mattress, and she performs regularly in concerts and cabarets.

She first began her studies in musical theatre at the University of Miami and received a BA in Musical Theatre Pedagogy from Otterbein University and an MFA in Theatre Pedagogy from Virginia Commonwealth University. She was the Head of Drama at Campion School, a British international school in Athens, Greece, directing seven productions including Godspell, which toured to the Edinburgh Fringe Festival in the summer of 2010. Her other directing or assistant directing/choreography credits include Gypsy, You’re a Good Man Charlie Brown, Avenue Q, The Producers at Virginia Repertory Theatre, Annie at the Pioneer Theatre, and Cinderella at Red Mountain Theatre. For many summers, Valerie directed shows at Weathervane Playhouse in Ohio including Oklahoma, South Pacific, Pippin and Matilda.

In addition to her directing and teaching work, Valerie stays active in other areas of the theatre business. In 2013, she worked as a rehearsal accompanist at Arena Stage in Washington DC on Brecht’s Mother Courage and Her Children starring Kathleen Turner. She has had two articles published in the international journal, Studies in Musical Theatre, and an article for the Voice and Speech Review. She was a contributing author of The Voice Teacher’s Cookbook and regularly presents at national conferences including the Association for Theatre in Higher Education, Estill International Symposium, Southeastern Theatre Conference and Musical Theatre Educator’s Alliance.

Recent Courses:

• Musical Theatre Performance
• Musical Theatre Showcase
• Musical Theatre History