Kirsten is thrilled to be back at SDMT, where she has served at the helm as director of Crazy for You, 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee and South Pacific, as well as the first incarnation of A Christmas Story. Recent directorial credits include 5 Star Theatricals’ critically-acclaimed Addams Family and Shrek, PVPA’s The Who’s Tommy, Panic Productions’ Inspecting Carol (Broadway World nomination), Cabrillo Music Theatre’s Damn Yankees and You’re a Good Man Charlie Brown (choreographer), Farley Cadena’s award-winning one-woman show Stroke of Luck, Eileen Barnett’s exquisite You Must Believe in Spring, Musical Theatre Guild’s The Light in the Piazza (Broadway World nomination) Grey Gardens (Broadway World Nomination), Sugar, Triumph of Love, Chess and Little Women, CSUN’s Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson, and AMDA’s Urinetown, [title of show], Ghost, Spelling Bee, and Spring Awakening. Kirsten is a proud principal faculty member at AMDA Los Angeles, an even prouder wife to Stan, and proudest mom to two amazing young men, Addie and Tucker.

Jill Gorrie is a Lecturer in the BA and MFA Musical Theatre Programs at SDSU. She has served on the faculty at AMDA-NYC and NYU’s CAP-21. Other engagements have included Hochschule fur Musik und Theatre Munich, The South African Society for the Advancement of Dancing, University of the Arts Berlin, and The Association for Theatre in Higher Education. Locally: SDMT, Laguna Playhouse, CCAE, Moonlight, North Coast Rep, Cygnet, SD-SCPA, SDSU, Mesa, City, and Grossmont Colleges. Prior to moving to San Diego, Jill served as Resident Director/Choreographer of the International Tour of the musical Grease. She was responsible for casting, restaging and mounting productions in cities around the world including Berlin, Munich, Vienna, Zurich, Istanbul, and Byblos, Lebanon. NYC choreography credits include Abington Theatre, NYMF, BB King’s, and Westchester Broadway Theatre. Jill is the recipient of the Craig Noel Award for her outstanding choreography in Hairspray (SDMT), a recipient of the Sono Osato Scholarship for Graduate Studies through Career Transition for Dancers (CTFD), member of AEA, SDC, and holds an MFA (SDSU) and a BFA (NYU-Tisch), and a proud mom of twins!

Valerie McElroy is a music director, multi-instrumentalist and educator who has traversed the world of music in her teaching and performance. She is a graduate of the DePaul University School of Music in Chicago, and as a sought-after soloist, vocal coach and clinician, she is active in the San Diego music scene at various organizations, including Coronado Playhouse, Villa Musica, San Diego Youth Symphony and Connessa Collective. Musical theatre credits include Amelie, Cinderella, High School Musical, Secret Garden, Sweeney Todd and Mean Girls, and she is excited to be back with the SDMT family for A Christmas Story.