THEATER    |    ART    |    BLACK LIGHT    |    MUSIC    |    FUNK & MIME    |    CREATIVE WRITING   


FACULTY

The Multi-Arts faculty includes professional artists and teachers from the Pioneer Valley, New York and abroad. Leaders in visual arts, theater, dance, fashion, music, and film, these internationally renowned artists provide a unique multi-cultural experience. They also inspire children with their passion, enthusiasm, and humor.

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CATALINA ARRUBLA - EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR 
Catalina is the founder and Executive Director of Multi-Arts. She was formerly the director of the publications department of the Ministry of Culture in Colombia, her native country.  Catalina is also a professional oboist and oboe teacher, and directs chamber music ensembles. 

ALEJANDRA ROJAS – HEAD COUNSELOR – TEACHER
Alejandra has been teaching art at Multi-Arts since 2019. Her extraordinary artistic skills have led her to explore by her own her unique path in painting and drawing. She has taken art workshops since she was a little girl, following her natural love for all kinds of arts during her studies at the Hartsbrook School and later on at the Art Institute of Chicago and at Amherst College. Since the summer of 2022, Alejandra took on the role of DIRECTOR of all the Multi-Arts camps, programs, and workshops.
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JULIO NEIJENS – ART
Julio is an artist based in Deerfield, MA. He graduated from The School of the Art Institute of Chicago, where he majored in painting and drawing. His paintings have been shown in exhibitions in Chicago and New England. Julio is a landscape and portrait painter. Julio has worked as head carpenter and painter in theater productions in Chicago, as well as a set designer in opera productions in Massachusetts. His outdoor art workshops, "Approaches in Drawing," explore ways of approaching Nature through drawing.  He is the art teacher at Multi-Arts. 

​MAIA KINNEY-PETRUCHA – THEATER 
Maia is a children’s playwright and theater educator based in New York City and Amherst, Massachusetts. Her background in cognitive science drives her love for theatrical research, and for the power theater have to heal and foster empathy through storytelling. She believes that collaboration between young and adult artists is vital for inspiring new ideas. She is passionate about exploring how theater and in all art expressions can spark change. 
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MAKI MATSUI – HEAD TEACHER
Maki is a writer, singer, choral director, and music educator. Born in Tokyo, Japan, she moved to Massachusetts at the age of thirteen and has stayed ever since. She holds a BA in English from Williams College and an MM in vocal performance from UMass, Amherst, where she studied with William Hite. Besides working as a head teacher at Multi-Arts, Maki stages theater shows based on  group creative work, drawing from story telling, visual elements, movement, and music.
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BONNIE MAST – HEAD TEACHER & MUSIC
Bonnie is a professional flutist and music educator. Among others, Bonnie has worked for the Wisconsin Conservatory of Music as an Early Childhood Music Specialist. She has held substantial studio instruction in Massachusetts, as well as some in Oregon and Wisconsin. In Wisconsin, Bonnie performed with Milwaukee’s premier adult Wind Ensemble: the Knightwind Ensemble.  Currently she is performing with the Valley Winds, and as the principal flutist with the Pioneer Valley Symphony. 
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​DARLA STABLER – FASHION & WRITING
Darla has been teaching with Multi-Arts since 2017. Her classes often focus on fashion and improv, and she also enjoys drawing, sculpture, and writing. Darla also works with children at Clinical & Support Options' Bridge Family Resource Center in Amherst, nannies toddlers, volunteers at a sleep-away camp for foster kids, and organizes with the Pioneer Valley Childcare Collective.

XINEF AFRIAM – HEAD TEACHER
Xinef Afriam is a lifelong theater maker. His first play WAS produced by Multi-Arts when he was 15 years old. Xinef has worked with Multi-Arts as a playwright/theater director, creative writing teacher, assistant musical director for plays, and head counselor, from 2013-2018. In the present, Xinef works as Education Coordinator with award winning regional theater Barrington Stage Company in Pittsfield, MA.

MÓNICA HERNÁNDEZ-LORDUI – ART ASSISTANT
Mónica just moved from Colombia to pursue a master's in  machine learning. She is a data scientist and software developer experienced with building and developing code of  mathematical models. She has co-writing papers published by world renown scientific journals. Mónica has extensive teaching experience at school and university level. Besides her expertise as a data scientist, Mónica loves to paint, read, and dance, which she does as much as she can during her free time. 

GABRIEL CIFUENTES –HEAD TEACHER
Gabriel CiFuentes is a Colombian theatre artist and educator in the Pioneer Valley. His artistic focus is on acting, directing, and sound designing. During the school year, he teaches English as a second language to students in the Easthampton school district. He believes that theatre and other artistic pursuits should be a vital component of children's education. He applies his artistic experience to help others develop a healthy sense of self-esteem, perseverance, and critical thinking.

CULLEN BURLING – THEATER 
Cullen is ecstatic to join Multi-Arts for his first summer! An advocate for creative and collaborative storytelling, Cullen has been teaching theater for seven years. He holds an MA in Theatre Education from Emerson College and a BA in Theater Studies from Duke University. He has also studied physical theater and devising at the Pig Iron School. During the school year, Cullen is a theater teacher at PVPA.


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​WHAT PARENTS SAY

"The talent, dedication, and enthusiasm of the Multi-Arts executive director and her staff are extraordinary. The group is constantly striving to provide children in the community with new and varied creative workshops and the staff is willing to work with very tightly controlled budgets to try to grow their programs."