About the Instructors
Douglas Sorenson (Actor/Educator) was most recently seen on stage in Los Angeles as Estragon in Waiting for Godot(BroadwayWorld LA Award nomination, Best Leading Actor), and as Weena in the world premiere of Baby, Oh Baby! (BroadwayWorld LA and Valley Theatre League Award nominations, Best Supporting Actor). Though he enjoys working on the classics, it is new play development that lights his fire. Douglas appeared as Caleb in the world premiere of Matthew Lopez’s The Whipping Man (Luna Stage Company), as Edmund in Jack Canfora’s Poetic License (New Jersey Repertory Theatre), and has been blessed to work at theatres across the country (Actor’s Theatre of Louisville, The Fountain Theatre, Rubicon, Center Theatre Group…) On camera; he has proudly worked in projects by directors Todd Haynes (Carol), Gerald McMorrow (Hell Hath Enlarged Herself), and Jonathan Judge (Nickelodeon’s Naked Brothers Band). He has also appeared in dozens of television commercials selling you everything from AMEX to Wal-Mart. Douglas trained at The American Musical and Dramatic Academy and The HB Studios, taking master classes with the incomparable Uta Hagen.
As a Teaching Artist, Douglas has appeared, lectured, and led workshops with TheatreWorks USA, The National Children’s Theatre, The National Theatre of the Performing Arts, and Manhattan Children’s Theatre. Douglas also spent several seasons with Stage One Louisville, where he played Dog in Suzan Zeder & Harry Pickens’ world premiere musical Wiley and the Hairy Man. Additionally, Douglas helped develop a curriculum for post-performance workshops at George Street Playhouse for the commissioned plays In Between (gun violence) and The Last Bridge(Holocaust), bringing live educational theatre to more than 30,000 New Jersey students. In his free time, Douglas enjoys running, hiking, and is an avid traveler – over 25 countries! He is thrilled and honored to join the fantastic team at CV Rep!
Alix Korey returned to her home in Rancho Mirage after co-starring in the 2016 acclaimed Broadway revival of FIDDLER ON THE ROOF. Her previous Broadway appearances include ALL SHOOK UP, CHICAGO, Neil Simon’s 45 SECONDS FROM BROADWAY, TRIUMPH OF LOVE, AIN’T BROADWAY GRAND, IS THERE LIFE AFTER HIGH SCHOOL, and PIRATES OF PENZANCE. Off-Broadway, she originated roles in THE WILD PARTY (Drama Desk nomination), NO WAY TO TREAT A LADY (Outer Critics Circle nomination), and SUBURB (Dramaleague award), among many others. She has appeared in numerous films, including six Disney animated features, and on several prime-time TV series, and has released two award-winning solo CDs. For 15 years, she taught at NYU in the Tisch School’s Cap21 program, and after relocating to California, she continues to teach at Musical Theatre University, a high school arts program for the Palm Springs Unified Schools.
Leslie Tinnaro was born and raised in Long Beach, California. Leslie moved to the Coachella valley five years ago. Leslie performed in the original cast of Evita at the Shubert Theater in Los Angeles before moving to New York, where she appeared in the Broadway company of Aveda. Fortunate to have had the opportunity to play many roles, her favorite being Eliza Doolittle in My Fair Lady in several productions all over the US. Other favorite roles include Julie in Showboat, Sally in Cabaret, and Lily in Carnival.
When not performing in musicals, Leslie’s love of intimacy of cabaret has LED her to develop several different cabaret shows incorporating a unique perspective and passion for musical theater. Leslie is on the faculty of Musical Theatre University at Rancho Mirage High School, where she teaches vocal techniques. She also teaches private voice lessons at her home studio. The biggest highlights in her life it’s husband Byron, children Kelly and Zach, and stepdaughter Tori.
Kudra Wagner (they/she) is a Coachella Valley-based theater director, playwright, and producer. After completing a BA in Theater Arts and Legal Studies from the University of California, Santa Cruz, Kudra received their MA in Theater Arts with an emphasis on Directing from UC Santa Cruz. Their research is primarily concerned with the modern rehearsal space and the creative liberation of the actor. They specialize in devised theater and a Grotowski-fied version of the Meisner technique.
Their recent directing work includes a staged reading of Love and Money with Desert Ensemble Theater, two original pieces (The Right People and Frame of Mind) devised, directed, and produced as Artistic Director of Barnstorm Theater Company at UC Santa Cruz, and an original adaptation of popular YouTube web series The Most Popular Girls in School. Their work as an assistant director includes Desert Ensemble Theater’s Desert Star-nominated The Beebo Brinker Chronicles, Cabrillo Stage’s production of Circus: Knives, Blood and Water, UC Santa Cruz’s The Artificial Woman, and Kirsten Brandt’s The Frankenstein Project (UCSC) and Coded (City Lights Theater Company). Their upcoming projects include a production of the west-coast original, Kill The Editor, with Desert Ensemble Theater scheduled to open in January of 2023.
Kudra was most recently seen acting with Desert Ensemble Theater as Jen in All This Intimacy, which was nominated for a Desert Star Award, and in UC Santa Cruz’s workshop of the new musical, The Artificial Woman as The Artificial Woman.
Craig Wells – During his 20 years as a professional actor in NYC, Craig joined the Actors Equity Association in 1983, and in 1988 made his Broadway debut in the musical Chess (original cast recording) and a few years later joined the Broadway cast of Les Misérables. Before his first Broadway production, he was a regular performer in the off-Broadway hit revue, Forbidden Broadway, and can be heard on the original cast recording Forbidden Broadway Vol. 3. He also appeared off-Broadway in Closer Than Ever, Colette Collage, and Balancing Act (original cast recording). As an actor and singer, he performed at numerous regional theatres (Arena Stage, Indiana Repertory Theatre, Syracuse Stage, St. Louis MUNY) and he has been fortunate to travel around the world (China, Japan, France, Spain, Italy, Sicily, Bermuda, the Caribbean, and Hawaii), as well as spending over a year touring the United States in Les Misérables. Television credits include Reading Rainbow, All My Children, and Another World. After moving to Vermont in 2006, Craig performed lead roles at Saint Michael’s Playhouse in The Drowsy Chaperone, Unnecessary Farce, and Rumors, and recently played “Pontius Pilate” in the UVM concert production of Jesus Christ Superstar at Royall Tyler Theatre, which he co-directed. He directed the UVM Department of Theatre and Dance’s production of A Grand Night for Singing, Stupid F#@king Bird, Hand to God, and Shakespeare in Love. At UVM, Craig taught the following classes: Introduction to Acting, Improvisation Workshop, Musical Theatre Performance, Acting III: Voice and Speech, and The Business of Show Business.