Michigan Muse Winter 2023 > New Faculty
New Faculty
An unprecedented number of new faculty – 20 in all – were hired for the fall 2022 semester. Below are brief introductions; for more information, check out their hiring announcements on the SMTD website, linked below.
Kathleen Smith Belcher / Assistant Professor / Department of Voice
Belcher brings considerable expertise to SMTD, with 20 years at the Metropolitan Opera and extensive work with the San Francisco Opera, Lyric Opera of Chicago, Houston Grand Opera, Los Angeles Opera, and the San Diego Opera, among others.
Amy I-Lin Cheng / Assistant Professor / Department of Piano
Cheng has served for several years as a lecturer at SMTD, teaching studio piano and coaching chamber music, and she has appeared on concert stages throughout the United States and internationally.
Antonio C. Cuyler / Professor / Department of Entrepreneurship & Leadership
Cuyler served a two-year appointment as visiting professor at SMTD; previously, he was director of the MA program and associate professor of arts administration in the Department of Art Education at Florida State University.
Antonio Disla / Assistant Professor / Department of Theatre & Drama
Disla came to SMTD as a guest artist in fall 2020. He has extensive experience as a solo artist, writing and devising site-specific and staged works, and as a performing company member of the Shakespeare Forum. Disla has taught at State University of New York (SUNY) at New Paltz since 2012.
Roshanne Etezady / Assistant Professor / Department of Composition
Etezady’s works have been commissioned by numerous organizations, and she has released multiple recordings on labels such as Naxos, Innova, Summit, and Cedille. She previously served as an SMTD lecturer.
Jess Fialko / Assistant Professor / Department of Theatre & Drama
After teaching SMTD courses during the 2021–22 academic year, Fialko became a member of the design & production faculty; they have versatile experience as a lighting, costume, and scenic designer.
Leah Frederick / Assistant Professor / Department of Music Theory
Frederick is a music theorist specializing in mathematical techniques for the study of musical structure; her recent research examines the relationship between diatonic and chromatic conceptions of musical space, specifically with regards to voice leading.
Jungah Han / Assistant Professor / Department of Theatre & Drama
Han has worked as a set designer across many styles of theatre production as well as in film and television. In addition, she has broad experience as an educator, having taught courses in set design at a number of universities.
Kevin Judge / Associate Professor / Department of Theatre & Drama
Judge, BFA ’99 (design & production), is a scenic designer with extensive experience in theatre and television. Prior to teaching at SMTD as a visiting professor, he served as an associate professor at the City University of New York, College of Staten Island.
Nicole Keller / Assistant Professor / Department of Organ
Keller brings deep expertise – as a concert artist, adjudicator, and clinician – that will enrich the department and enhance the experience of its students. As an educator, Keller fosters a commitment to excellence in performance, scholarship, and self-growth.
Caitlin Lynch / Assistant Professor / Department of Voice
An acclaimed performer with several appearances at the Metropolitan Opera, Lynch, BM ’02 (voice), is also a passionate teacher, mentor, and producer. Lynch and her husband, baritone Jonathan Lasch, cofounded Detroit Song Collective.
Amanda Majeski / Assistant Professor / Department of Voice
Majeski is an international performer and a celebrated interpreter of Strauss, Wagner, Handel, and Mozart. She was a member of San Francisco Opera’s Merola Program, the Gerdine Young Artist Program at Opera Theatre of St. Louis, and the Steans Institute at Ravinia.
Nancy Murphy / Assistant Professor / Department of Music Theory
Murphy is a music theorist who studies singer-songwriter music, metric flexibility, self-expression, vocal production, music-text relations, and transcription, bringing a diverse scope of inquiry to the department.
Jayce Ogren / Assistant Professor / Department of Conducting
Ogren, who also serves as associate director of orchestras, has established himself as an innovative and versatile conductor, seeking to break down barriers between audiences and great music.
Diane Oliva / Assistant Professor / Department of Musicology
Adding to the department’s interests and specializations, Oliva’s scholarship engages with the history of science, sound studies, and Atlantic history to write transatlantic histories of music and listening in the eighteenth century.
Jeremy Sortore / Assistant Professor / Department of Theatre and Drama
Sortore is an actor trainer and embodied performance educator who brings a wealth of expertise in professional and academic instruction to his new role at SMTD. He has previously taught at institutions including Utah Valley University, Harvard University, and the American Repertory Theater Institute MFA Program.
Robert Sullivan / Professor / Department of Winds and Percussion
An active recitalist and clinician, Sullivan has most recently served as principal trumpet of the Cincinnati Symphony and Pops Orchestras. An SMTD alumnus, he has also been a lecturer at SMTD and on the faculty of the Brevard Music Festival.
Tiffany Trent / Chair & Associate Professor / Department of Theatre & Drama
Trent is a theatre director and scholar of applied theatre, theatre for youth, and practical theology. Her previous leadership roles include chair and associate professor with the Department of Theatre and Dance at Middle Tennessee State University and interim director of performance programs at the University of Chicago.
Nicholas Walker / Professor / Department of Strings
Walker is an accomplished performer who brings a broad range of training and experience to the double bass. He previously served as a visiting professor at SMTD, and prior to that, he taught at Ithaca College for 17 years.
Mo Zhou / Assistant Professor / Department of Voice
Originally from China, Zhou is a stage director and educator whose international career spans all artistic disciplines, including opera, theatre, musical theatre, dance, and film. Zhou’s productions have been seen at National Centre for the Performing Arts in China, Santa Fe Opera, and the Juilliard School, among others.