Children's Center Faculty

David Bauman (SAG, AFTRA, EQUIYTY) is an actor, teacher and children’s book author living in Los Angeles. As an actor, he has worked with the Will Geer Theatricum Botanicum, The Evidence Room Theater, Sacred Fools Theater, and The Blank Theater, in classic and contemporary productions. He received his Master of Fine Arts at UCLA, where he taught undergraduate acting. Recently, he taught for StageCoach Schools, a childrens performance program at Cross Roads school in Santa Monica. Bauman has free lanced several interactive childrens books for Golden Books in Wisconsin, and Meredith Publishing in Iowa.

Laurel Butler BA in Performing Arts Education from Hampshire College in 2006. Currently, Laurel works as an artist-educator with Enchanted Circle Theater in Holyoke, Massachusetts, where she uses theatre arts to enrich the learning environments in pre-schools, elementary schools, middle schools, correctional facilities and community centers throughout Western Massachusetts. She is also an actress with the company, and performs throughout the East Coast. Additionally, Laurel is the drama advisor for the Hadley Public School District, and directs the theater program at Hopkins Academy. She is trained in gymnastics, hip-hop, samba, flamenco, modern, African and Afro-Brazilian dance forms, and is a visiting instructor at Bantaba World Dance and Music in Boulder, Colorado. In 2005, Laurel traveled to Salvador, Brazil with her four-woman street theatre troupe; there, she trained in clowning and acrobatics with the Circo Picolino and helped found the Projeto SolArte after-school arts program for children. She is fluent in Spanish and Portuguese. At Idyllwild, Laurel has worked as a resident assistant, creative drama instructor and co-director of both Children’s Center and Junior Artist theater programs.

Linda Fuller: Otis Arts Institute; BA, Art, Antioch University, Los Angeles; Early Childhood Degree, Center for Early Education, Los Angeles. Linda was a visual arts teacher for many summers at Idyllwild Arts, then known as ISOMATA, and then, for a few years, became the Co-Director of the Children’s Center. Linda has taught for several schools in the Los Angeles area, including the Midtown, Westland, and Los Encino schools, The Center for Early Education, and Crossroads Elementary School. As the Arts Specialist for Crossroads for fifteen years, Linda integrated art into the social studies curriculum and worked with both the theater and music programs, creating scene designs, masks, and murals. Linda also served as Arts Specialist and Consultant for the Melrose Avenue School and as Curriculum and Art Consultant for The Community School. Other teaching includes working as the Arts Specialist for the I. E. (Innovative Education) Program, associated with Hollywood High School, where she led field trips to Watts Towers and the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, and then guided the students to create sculptures and drawings based upon their experience. She also gives workshops for CAIS (California Association for Independent Schools) and CAEA (California Art Education Association). Currently, Linda is working with museums in New York to enhance and develop their children’s art programs. Linda continues to exhibit her artwork in Los Angeles and New York.

Stanley Goldstein: BA from UC Santa Barbara, College of Creative Studies; Fellowship Yale Summer School of Music and Art. Stanley has taught painting classes at the San Francisco Art Institute, UC Santa Barbara, San Francisco City College, the California Academy of Sciences in San Francisco, and the Central California Arts League in Modesto. Represented by George Billis Gallery in New York City and Los Angeles. He has had solo exhibitions in Los Angeles, New York and San Francisco. He had a solo exhibition at George Billis Gallery, LA, in September 2007.

Valerie Ann Gordon: MA, Art Education, Cal State, Northridge. She currently teaches as an Art Specialist, K-6th grade, at Los Encinos Elementary School in Encino, CA, where she works closely with classroom teachers integrating social studies and class themes into art projects. In the summer of 2004, she was the summer art and music camp director for the Los Encinos Elementary School. In 2001 she was nominated for the BRAVO award for excellence in art education. She is also a past presenter for the California Association of Independent Schools, Los Angeles.

Donna Johnson (EQUITY, AFTRA, APO) is an actor and dancer from Los Angeles, now living in Newport Beach, CA. She has been theatrically trained at California Institute for the Arts (CalArts), the New York Film Academy, and Vanguard University of Southern California. Dance training includes the Debbie Allen Studio, the E.D.G.E. Performing Arts Center, and work with the nationally acclaimed break dancing group: The Groovaloos. Commercial dance experience includes recent Gap commercials, as well as background dancing for recording artist, Deitrick Haddon. In 2006, she signed on to be the model for 24 Hour Fitness’ “Group X” campaign. Currently, she is performing the role of Andie in Reese Scully’s newest work, SCRAT

Tim Labor: Ph.D. in music composition, UCSD. Currently a faculty member in the UC Riverside Dept. of Music, and a member of the Circle X Theatre Company. He is a composer and sound designer whose recent projects include Laura Comstock’s Bag Punching Dog for Circle X Theatre Company, and The Laramie Project for Mira Costa High School. In 2002, Tim received an LA Weekly award nomination for best original score for Paul Mullin’s world premier play American Book of the Dead, The Game Show.

Johanna McKay (AEA, SAG, AFTRA) has directed and written adaptations of Shakespearean plays for young teens and has taught acting to children for over ten years. She teaches drama during the year for P.S. Arts in Los Angeles. Johanna has earned her BFA in acting from The Theatre School, DePaul University (Sarah Siddons Award), and her MFA from UCLA (Jack Nicholson Award). Johanna’s acting credits include work at the Steppenwolf, The Goodman, Dallas Theatre Center, San Jose Repertory Theatre and the Hollywood Bowl. She recently won the Santa Barbara Independent Theatre Award for her performance as Gwendolyn in The Importance of Being Earnest (Rubicon Theatre) and a Dramaloque Award for Mary Barnes (The Odyssey). Film/TV credits include Grey’s Anatomy, Malcolm in the Middle, Mr. 3000, The Babe, and The Bernie Mac Show.

Bruce McMenamin:Director of Children’s Center. BA in Art: Sculpture, SDSU. Sculptor, Graphic Designer, Arts Administrator. He has held numerous positions during his 38 years at Idyllwild Arts, including student services, arts faculty and administration.

Ray Ben Moszkowicz: MA, Fine Art, Cal State, Northridge; Pilchuck Glass School, Seattle, WA, and Scholarship, Art Center School of Design, Pasadena, CA. Senior Designer for UltraGlas Studios, freelance artist, and Glass working instructor at the college level, Ray currently teaches both beginning and advanced level art classes at Palms Middle School, grades 7th and 8th, Los Angeles, CA. In the summers of 2004-07 he was the Ceramics instructor at Cal State, Northridge SAPEES program for elementary school aged students.

Paul Nickels: BA in Piano Performance from California State University, Hayward. Spent 20 years teaching piano full time in Las Vegas, independently and with Nevada School of the Arts. Now he lives in Santa Clara, Utah. He still teaches in Las Vegas while developing Suzuki Music Education in southern Utah. Currently, he is active in music production with St. George Musical Theater.

Holly O'Farrell has been a director, dance/arts educator for 17 years. Currently working as a choreographer for MSJC’s Theater Department, creating shows such as Kiss of the Spider Woman, Cabaret, Blockbusters & Small Wonders , A Class Act, Wonderful Town and Chicago. Independent contractor for HUSD, working after-school programs, and choreographing musical productions of Once Upon a Mattress, Oliver, Wizard of Oz, Damn Yankees, and Cinderella. Holly has won numerous awards for her choreography and directing. Formerly part-time faculty in IAA’s Theater Department, teaching movement and dance, and choreographing Three Penny Opera and The Boyfriend. Currently owns studio dance programs in modern, jazz, tap, hip-hop, cheerleading, clogging and ballet. A lead-dancer and choreographer for Rocky Mountain Dancers, an American Folk Dance Company representing the US at international folk art festivals worldwide. An artist-in-residence for Riverside Arts Council, she is pursuing a credential through SUNY, Brockport in Dance and Movement Therapy. Currently working for the McCallum Theater as a teaching artist with their institute’s aesthetic education program developed in partnership with New York’s Lincoln Center Institute.

Laurel Ollstein: MFA, UCLA; has been involved in new play development as an actress and playwright for the past fifteen years. She has worked with the Eureka Theatre, One Act Theatre, Berkeley Shakespeare Festival, Marin Playwrights Festival and Theatre Rhinosorous. In Minneapolis, she has worked at the Minneapolis Playwrights Center and the Guthrie Theatre among others. Her one-woman show, Laughter, Hope and a Sock in the Eye, based on the life of Dorothy Parker, has been produced around the country and at the Burbage Theatre in Los Angeles. She has also worked with the critically acclaimed theatre company The Actor’s Gang for the past ten years. Her other plays that have been produced around the country are: Prenupt, Pot Roast, Storage Room, Insomniac and Cheese. Laurel currently teaches Playwriting in Los Angeles at Loyola Marymount University and UCLA Extension.

Cat Orlando earned an Arts degree with an emphasis in three dimensional design, with Highest Honors. She has been part of the family at Idyllwild Arts since 2000 teaching Bearmaking during Family Camp. She has taught children various forms of art over the last twenty years including art classes for the Palm Springs Unified School District G.A.T.E. program. She has been teaching all forms of dance since 1998 for students age two years old to adult. Her dancers have won numerous awards and the Desert Theater League awarded her Best Costume and Make-Up Design. She also runs an arts camp for children called F.A.M.E., Fine Arts & Music Education which opened in July 2002

Matthew Pedregon: Bachelor of Music Education and Bachelor of Music in Piano Pedagogy from New Mexico State University, Orff Level 2 certified. He is currently the elementary music specialist at Columbia Elementary School in Las Cruces, New Mexico where he has taught for the past three years. Matthew has also kept an active piano studio of children and adults for the last five years. He has been heavily involved in the arts community of Southern New Mexico for the past 8 years singing in professional choirs of various sizes and styles. He has received training in multicultural music education, Dalcroze, dance, and movement.

Laura Spitzer: Associate Professor of Piano, New Mexico State University. Completed her undergraduate studies at the Mozarteum in Salzburg, Austria where she was awarded the Bösendorfer Stipend and graduated with distinction. She earned her Master’s Degree with Leon Fleisher at the Peabody Institute. The recipient of four touring grants from the Nevada State Council of the Arts and the Nevada Humanities Committe. She was honored with the 1986 Nevada Governor’s Arts Award. She has been featured on ABC and NBC News nationwide, and in People, Time, Reader’s Digest and Clavier magazines. Her students have won competitions such as the state level MTNA (collegiate division), and the El Paso Symphony Guild Concerto Competition (high school division).