Our Mission |
In 2016, our founder, Kelly Walsh ventured to create The New England School of Performing Arts, home to her mission of inclusion and confidence building. Although not always an easy endeavour, over the last ten years, NESPA has grown to mean so many things to different students but the core mission has always remained. We as a team believe that the arts can be a transformative foundation for every child; when a student joins NESPA they are joining a community of artists, change-makers, storytellers, and free thinkers. We believe in teaching the adults that children have yet to become. Meaning, our performing arts education is focused on developing your child’s creativity, communication skills, and character to benefit them in all of their future endeavours.
We are proud to have produced talented, skilled professional artists, however, we are moreover proud to have produced thoughtful, confident, inclusive, kind leaders in a multitude of fields. The mission of NESPA is simple, yet poignant: foster the creative spark to ignite the visionary in us all. |
Our Philosophy
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☆ Provide intense, quality learning and performing opportunities in the performing arts.
☆ Provides an atmosphere where young people are encouraged to set goals, take risks and view mistakes as an avenue for learning. ☆ Surround students with a staff of professional artists who serve as mentors and teachers, encouraging our students to commit to a high level of self-expectation. ☆ Creates an awareness that the arts are a constructive vehicle of personal expression. ☆ Demonstrates to the public the high level of performing and production arts skills that the students are capable of achieving when given proper training. |
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Kelly WalshFounder and Artistic Director
Kelly began her love of performing arts as a young child when she played Rebecca in a local production of “Our Town”. She then went on to receive a BFA in directing from Salem State College and The University of West London. After graduation, Kelly moved to New York and took a job at the critically acclaimed Vineyard Theatre. There she learned the ins and outs of a professional theatre while working alongside master actors and directors. During this time, Kelly was selected to take part in the "Up and Coming Women Directors" program at The Looking Glass Theatre. She worked with NY based playwrights developing new works for the stage that had strong female characters and storylines. She also co-ran their Directing and Playwriting Forum, a highly successful launching pad for artists developing new plays.
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Locally, Kelly has worked at The North Shore Music Theatre, The Greater Boston Stage Company, the Concord Youth Theatre, and the Andover School of Montessori. She co-founded The Fairy Tale Players; a non-profit organization dedicated to creating educational theatre for young audiences. For five years she served as the Education Director at Creative Arts, where she directed over thirty children's productions and was featured twice in Boston Parent’s “Best of the Best” issue for her theatre classes. Her programs at NESPA have won the Hulafrog's "Most Loved" award in 2019, 2021 and 2022 and the BONS (Best of Northshore) in 2024. Kelly is the Drama Director at North Andover High School, where she also serves as their co-advisor and President of the North Andover Theatre Supporters. Outside of the arts, Kelly devotes her time to her online support group Heart Matters, which serves to support families with children born with Congenital Heart Defects. Kelly has also spent many years as a Wish Granter for the Make-A-Wish Foundation, an organization that is near and dear to her heart.
Contact- [email protected]
FacultyLauren Bennett
Scenic Artist Eric Kelley
Scenic Construction Resident Choreographers
Taylor Willis John Robert Sasso Abi Martin Resident Music Directors
Julie Jirousek Katie Ames Teaching Artists
Cristina Cammarata Chloe Hanrahan Renee Heather Haley Summer Staff
Thea Cunha Emma Mahoney Avery Black |
non-musical productions, with an emphasis on character work and learning about the behind the scenes aspects that go into making a successful production.
He has a BA in technical theatre from Roger Williams University, and has worked at theaters such as The Theatre Barn (as set designer), Millbrook Playhouse (as the assistant stage manager of musical productions), and the Orpheum Theatre in Boston. Contact- [email protected]
Born and raised in the Greater Boston area, Jess has had ample opportunities to learn and perform a diverse array of both traditional and classical genres and styles—ranging from classical soprano pieces to soulful R&B, pop, rock, and musical theater songs. She's determined to "practice what you preach" by further pursuing her performance career in tandem with her teaching.
As a self-taught pianist and multi-instrumentalist, Jess greatly encourages versatility in musicianship—any type of music her students could possibly wish to learn, she always enthusiastically gives them the technical and emotional guidance to make it happen. She has always looked up to her various music educators—They all played a huge part in shaping her overall development as a human being; and the things they taught her—both music and life-related—gave her purpose and inspiration to work towards doing the same for generations after her. Learn more at her website: jesschann.weebly.com Contact- [email protected]
A proud member of Actors' Equity, she has appeared in a variety of musical theater and cabaret productions throughout the Boston area with such companies as SpeakEasy Stage Company, New Repertory Theatre, Reagle Music Theatre, and Fiddlehead Theatre Company among many others. Some favorite shows include Parade, A Christmas Carol, Carousel starring the legendary Shirley Jones, Fiddler on the Roof, A Grand Night for Singing, Barefoot in the Park, My Fair Lady, Crazy for You, Into the Woods, Oliver!, Merrily We Roll Along.
Katie is a former member of Boston Coro di Camera, and has appeared as a featured soloist with the Boston Pops at Symphony Hall, as well as in concert with Longwood Opera and New England Light Opera. She previously worked with the PALS Children's Chorus (now VOICES Boston) as a conductor, director, acting teacher, and assistant director/coach, as well as the Executive Director for a year. As one of the go to children’s choirs for professional music organizations in Boston, she worked with kids on operas with the Tanglewood Opera Center and the Boston Early Music Festival. After leaving PALS she returned to The Boston Conservatory where she served as the Assistant Director of the Theater Division for many years before taking a break to raise her twin boys. In addition to her administrative duties at BoCo she travelled the country auditioning students for the program, as well as taught monologue and song interpretation classes for the summer dance intensive. As someone who has sat on both sides of the table as a performer and college audition judge, Katie loves working with students of all levels to find those special moments that make a performance stand out, as well as advising those who are interested in making that transition from the arts being a hobby to being a profession. |
