The Ruth Academy

Jon received his MFA in Performance from the University of Tennessee, his BFA in Acting from BYU, and his AS in Theatre from UVU. With an educational and professional background in acting, Shakespeare, improv, stage combat, and the Alexander Technique, Jon has worked, studied and performed in regional theaters across the United States, and in Europe. Having taught both High School and Collegiate classes, Jon has a passion for helping actors become true artists and to discover the stories that only they can tell. Jon’s previous directing credits include Spongebob Jr, Shrek Jr, Little Shop of Horrors, As You Like It, The Addams Family, A Midsummer Night's Dream, Guys & Dolls, Twelfth Night, Little Women, High School Musical, and Romeo & Juliet. Some of Jon’s favorite roles  include: Mortimer in Arsenic and Old Lace, Wadsworth in Clue, Mr. Darcy in Pride and Prejudice, Flince in The Jawbone’s Daughter, and Colonel Brandon in Sense & Sensibility. Awards and Recognition include Faculty Senate award for Best Adjunct of the Year in Performing arts at UVU; Director of the Year, 2017 at PHHS; Teacher of the Year, 2018 & 2021 at PHHS.

Amelia graduated with a bachelor’s degree in Musical Theater from Weber State University and has been training in voice and vocal pedagogy for over a decade, specializing musical theater and pop/belt. She loves teaching students of all ages and helping them find their voice and working together to discover which exercises and techniques works best for them. When she’s not teaching, she performs in musicals and concerts throughout the Utah Valley. Some of her favorite roles include Morticia in The Addams Family, Narrator in Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, Dorcas in Seven Brides for Seven Brothers, Belle in Beauty and the Beast, and Adult Sarah in Blink!

Carolyn just returned to Utah after 5 years living and working as an actress in London, England. She is a two-time graduate of London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art (LAMDA) – first with an MA in Classical Acting for the Professional Theatre in 2021 and then with an MFA in Classical Acting: Performance and Pedagogy (Top-up) in 2025. In 2022 she founded Hart Productions to write, produce, and perform her one-woman family history play, My Dead, which has been performed in the UK, the US, and Norway. She was a founding-member of Other Mysteries Theatre Company – an international theatre collective creating and recording murder mystery radio farces and then adapting their plays for stage. Before moving to London, Carolyn received a Bachelor’s degree in Music Dance Theater from BYU and then split her time between Utah and NYC playing roles such as Rosalind in As You Like It (NYC), The Wicked Witch of the West in the Wizard of Oz (HCT), Alice Beineke in The Addams Family (HCTO & HCT), Miss Skillon in See How They Run (HCTO), Jennyanydots in Cats (Tuacahn), the wonderfully wicked stepsister Joy in Cinderella (Tuacahn) with many, many more credits spanning the gamut of large regional theatres to very small off-off Broadway theatres to independent films to commercials.

Carolyn is a gifted teacher with more than 20 years of experience helping students and professionals find clarity, ease, spontaneity, and joy in their work. She is a specialist in teaching many forms of the performing arts including acting, public speaking, musical theatre, ballet, tap, and much more. She has taught in the West End, Stratford upon Avon, and in UK schools as well as at LAMDA, BYU, Snow College, Springville Academy of Ballet, and in her private online studio where she specializes in teaching LAMDA Exams.

If you want to learn more about Carolyn’s work visit her website (where you can find a full resume, production photos, and reels) or better yet…sign up for a class and experience the joy of working with Carolyn at The Ruth Academy!

www.carolynhartvigsen.com

Dylan Wright recently obtained, with Distinction, his MA in Classical Acting for the Professional Theatre from the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art.  He is Co-Founder of Whispering Room Theatre, and teaches in the Department of Theatrical Performance for the Stage and Screen at Utah Valley University, where he teaches Acting, Stage Combat, and Voice and Speech

Courses: Group Acting

Emily Hawkes is an experienced teacher and music director with a Bachelor of Music degree in Music Education from BYU. She has worked for years as a choir teacher, private piano instructor, private voice teacher, and MDT teacher at performing arts academies. Some favorite music direction credits include Hadestown, Anastasia, and Seussical (American Fork High School), Bright Star and Into the Woods (Lehi Arts), Les Miserables (BYU’s Broadway Bootcamp), and Newsies Jr. (HCTO). She also performs frequently and was recently seen in Fiddler on the Roof and Flowers for Mrs. Harris (The Ruth), My Fair Lady and The Music Man (HCTO), A Christmas Carol and School of Rock (HCT), and A Christmas Story, Mary Poppins, and Willy Wonka (SCERA). 

Emma Hurley is a dynamic singer and actor with a deep passion for mentorship. She holds a BFA in Music Dance Theatre from Brigham Young University and has performed leading roles at Sundance Summer Theatre, The Ruth/HCTO, BYU Mainstage, and Hale Center Theater. A former Co-President of the BYU Young Ambassadors, Emma is also a dedicated educator, having taught at Utah COPA, Kids Are Music and Dance, BYU Summerfest, and BYU YASE Camp.

Emma’s approach to singing emphasizes mental and physical well-being, alongside fostering a growth mindset. She is committed to inspiring the next generation of performers through both her artistry and teaching, helping students develop confidence, resilience, and a lifelong love for their craft.

Morgan Gunter is a Utah-based actor, director, and teacher. He received his Master of Fine Arts degree in Acting from the American Conservatory in San Francisco, CA, and his Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in Acting from Brigham Young University. He currently teaches as an Adjunct Instructor for the Theatre and Media Arts Department of Brigham Young University, the Department of Theatrical Arts for Stage and Screen of Utah Valley University, and the Department of Visual and Performing Arts of Michigan Technological University. He has taught various courses over the years including beginning and intermediate Acting, Voice and Diction, Classical Voice, Shakespeare, Dialects, and Auditions. Some of Morgan's favorite stage credits include Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart in Amadeus, Father Flynn in Doubt, Mr. Bingley in Pride and Prejudice, Jacob Marley in A Christmas Carol, Jack in Jack and Jill, and Earnest in Earnest and the Pale Moon. Some film credits include the Biochemist in "CRYO", Lyman Wight in "Out of Liberty", Mika'el in "The Good Samaritan - The Parable of Jesus", Simon in "The Relic", and Elder Greene in "Saturday's Warrior." He has directed for The Covey Center for the Arts, Brigham Young University, and An Other Theater Company. Morgan believes acting to be the greatest art form to foster connection as human beings, providing a deeper understanding of one’s self and others. Morgan is so pleased to be teaching here at The Ruth!      

Amanda is a professional actor, dancer, singer, and vocal instructor.  She is proficient in all styles of singing and teaching mix/belt, classical/legit, pop/rock, jazz, country. Amanda earned a BFA in Music Dance Theater from BYU. Amanda has over 25 years of performing experience. She toured nationally and internationally with BYU Young Ambassadors from 2012-2014. She worked as a professional dancer at Disneyland and Legoland Resort. Amanda has worked at theaters across Utah including Sundance, Hale Orem, Hale Sandy, Hale West Valley, and West Valley Performing Arts. She was the Associate Artistic Director for two years at One Voice Children’s Choir. Amanda is continuing her education for vocal instructors while currently being certified in Maddie Tarbox’s (MFA) Voice Function 101 course that focuses on evidence-based training. She strives to create an environment in which students can feel safe to be brave and to push themselves to grow as artists and people. She feels passionate about helping hone the talents of the emerging artists of the next generation and discover confidence in themselves. 

Amanda joined HCTO's voice faculty in 2005, shortly after having a full time professional performing career. Before that she graduated from The Boston Conservatory with her M.M. in Musical Theater. Amanda has taught at Brigham Young University, Peking University and is currently teaching at Utah Valley University in their Theater Department working with the Musical Theater students. In her spare time, you can find Amanda singing on stage at HCTO in a variety of roles, singing with the Mormon Tabernacle Choir or, her favorite, singing with her beautiful nieces.

Carolyn just returned to Utah after 5 years living and working as an actress in London, England. She is a two-time graduate of London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art (LAMDA) – first with an MA in Classical Acting for the Professional Theatre in 2021 and then with an MFA in Classical Acting: Performance and Pedagogy (Top-up) in 2025. In 2022 she founded Hart Productions to write, produce, and perform her one-woman family history play, My Dead, which has been performed in the UK, the US, and Norway. She was a founding-member of Other Mysteries Theatre Company – an international theatre collective creating and recording murder mystery radio farces and then adapting their plays for stage. Before moving to London, Carolyn received a Bachelor’s degree in Music Dance Theater from BYU and then split her time between Utah and NYC playing roles such as Rosalind in As You Like It (NYC), The Wicked Witch of the West in the Wizard of Oz (HCT), Alice Beineke in The Addams Family (HCTO & HCT), Miss Skillon in See How They Run (HCTO), Jennyanydots in Cats (Tuacahn), the wonderfully wicked stepsister Joy in Cinderella (Tuacahn) with many, many more credits spanning the gamut of large regional theatres to very small off-off Broadway theatres to independent films to commercials.

Carolyn is a gifted teacher with more than 20 years of experience helping students and professionals find clarity, ease, spontaneity, and joy in their work. She is a specialist in teaching many forms of the performing arts including acting, public speaking, musical theatre, ballet, tap, and much more. She has taught in the West End, Stratford upon Avon, and in UK schools as well as at LAMDA, BYU, Snow College, Springville Academy of Ballet, and in her private online studio where she specializes in teaching LAMDA Exams.

If you want to learn more about Carolyn’s work visit her website (where you can find a full resume, production photos, and reels) or better yet…sign up for a class and experience the joy of working with Carolyn at The Ruth Academy!

www.carolynhartvigsen.com

Tenor Brad Summers is a versatile singer and stage actor, having performed with companies such as Arizona Opera, Prague Summer Nights, Utah Opera, Knoxville Opera, Marble City Opera, Utah Festival Opera and Musical Theatre, and the Savannah VOICE Festival. Recognized by Arts Knoxville for his physicality and comedic presence, he has performed leading roles in Don Giovanni, Le nozze di Figaro, La finta giardiniera, Die Zauberflöte, and Trial by Jury, among others. During the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, Brad created and premiered the role of Mr. Huxley in the original chamber opera A Storm we call Progress, which he recorded and performed virtually at his Phoenix apartment. Most recently, he served as a chorister and Ambassador Artist for Arizona Opera, where he participated in outreach performances. Brad is a graduate of the vocal programs of Utah State University and the University of Tennessee- Knoxville, where he was inducted into the Pi Kappa Lambda honor society.

As an exciting addition to his artistic work, Brad is also a commercial pilot and flight instructor. He instructed privately and at AeroGuard Flight Training Center, and currently manages training in the Private Pilot and Instrument Pilot courses at Utah Valley University.

Brandalee received a Bachelor degree in Sociology with a minor in dance from Brigham Young University. Besides being a voice teacher at Hale Studios in Orem, she is also Company Director at Utah COPA. Previous musical direction includes The Little Mermaid, Thoroughly Modern Millie, and Beauty and the Beast at Center Stage Performing Arts. She has performed at the NY Lamb Theater, Hale Center Theater Orem, Summerlin Theater Las Vegas, Hale Centre Theatre West Valley, and two years with Brigham Young University Young Ambassadors.

Chelsea has been singing since she could talk. Singing is her joy. She received her Bachelor of Music from the U of U in 2012, and her Master of Music from BYU in 2015, both in Vocal Performance. She competed in the Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions and was named the Utah District Winner and Audience Favorite, going on to compete in the Western Regional Auditions in Denver. She’s been a featured soloist at the Tabernacle on Temple Square, A Night of Broadway with Dallin Bayles, the BYU Devotional Broadcast, a Bach Masterwork, and an original Mayan work performed at Chichen Itza. Her true love is performing musical theater. Her favorite roles include Meg March (Little Women), Cinderella (Into the Woods), Tracy Turnblad (Hairspray), Sister Amnesia (Nunsense), and most recently Mrs. Potts (Beauty and the Beast) at the Sandy Hale Theater. In addition to teaching at the academy, she also works as an adjunct voice professor in Commercial Music at Utah Valley University. She loves helping her students build healthy, versatile vocal technique so they have the freedom to freely express their truth and find joy in performing. 

Christian has been music directing and teaching since 2010. When not playing piano or performing, Christian spends his time teaching students at Lone Peak High School. He has a love of education and music, and he wants to help you achieve your piano goals, whatever they may be!

Christian has taught music students in the SCERA Youth Theater program for over 10 years. He recently music directed Fiddler on the Roof at the Scera Shell. He has traveled the world playing piano with the BYU Young Ambassadors and was employed by Brigham Young University as an accompanist for their Music, Dance, Theater (MDT) program for many years. 

Christian accepts all students, wherever they are at. If you are brand new to the instrument, have played for a few years, or consider yourself more advanced but want to improve your technique in jazz, musical theater accompaniment, or performance, Christian invites you to give his classes a try! Kids 5+, adults welcome!

Dylan Wright recently obtained, with Distinction, his MA in Classical Acting for the Professional Theatre from the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art.  He is Co-Founder of Whispering Room Theatre, and teaches in the Department of Theatrical Performance for the Stage and Screen at Utah Valley University, where he teaches Acting, Stage Combat, and Voice and Speech.

Kelly Coombs started her acting career at the age of 15 playing a quirky, cheerleader in a Disney Channel Original Movie. By the end of high school, she had nearly 20 productions on her resume including leading roles in The Wizard of Oz, Seussical the Musical, and Beauty and the Beast. Kelly attended Utah Valley University and graduated in Acting Performance in 2012. Since graduation, Kelly has added countless stage productions, tv commercials, and many appearances to her resume. She has found her second passion (acting is her first love) in teaching and loves coaching her students to be the best they can be on and off the stage.

Marcie Jacobsen has a BFA in Music Dance Theatre from BYU where she was part-time music faculty for over ten years. While a student at BYU Marcie toured with the Young Ambassadors and performed in numerous musicals including West Side Story, Evita and Chess. Most recently Marcie played Golde in Fiddler on the Roof (Sundance Summer Theatre), Kala in Tarzan (HCTO) & Dolly Levi in Hello, Dolly! (HCTO) Other favorite roles include Mrs. Lovett in Sweeney Todd, The Narrator in Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, Audrey II (The Voice of the Plant) in Little Shop of Horrors & the title role in The Drowsy Chaperone. In addition to performing Marcie has directed and/or music directed for HCTO, SCERA, Provo Theatre Company, Actor's Repertory Theatre Company, Centerpoint Legacy Theatre & COPA.

Marcie loves teaching and making music. She holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in music from BYU, and is a credentialed Suzuki voice instructor. What began as an interest and mastery of woodwind instruments, which she has both played professionally and taught, turned to a fascination in ballroom dance in which she earned many bronze, silver, and gold medals. While in college, she learned that she could better express herself through vocal music. She has taught youth and children proper singing technique and expression through Classical and Broadway styles, and the Suzuki method, for over 12 years. Marcie has also arranged and conducted music for soloists, small mixed groups, and choirs. In addition to the private voice lessons she teaches, she also heads the Music department for the Ranches Academy in Eagle Mountain, Utah.

Morgan Gunter is a Utah-based actor, director, and teacher. He received his Master of Fine Arts degree in Acting from the American Conservatory in San Francisco, CA, and his Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in Acting from Brigham Young University. He currently teaches as an Adjunct Instructor for the Theatre and Media Arts Department of Brigham Young University, the Department of Theatrical Arts for Stage and Screen of Utah Valley University, and the Department of Visual and Performing Arts of Michigan Technological University. He has taught various courses over the years including beginning and intermediate Acting, Voice and Diction, Classical Voice, Shakespeare, Dialects, and Auditions. Some of Morgan's favorite stage credits include Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart in Amadeus, Father Flynn in Doubt, Mr. Bingley in Pride and Prejudice, Jacob Marley in A Christmas Carol, Jack in Jack and Jill, and Earnest in Earnest and the Pale Moon. Some film credits include the Biochemist in "CRYO", Lyman Wight in "Out of Liberty", Mika'el in "The Good Samaritan - The Parable of Jesus", Simon in "The Relic", and Elder Greene in "Saturday's Warrior." He has directed for The Covey Center for the Arts, Brigham Young University, and An Other Theater Company. Morgan believes acting to be the greatest art form to foster connection as human beings, providing a deeper understanding of one’s self and others. Morgan is so pleased to be teaching here at The Ruth! 

Rex has been performing on the HCTO stage since he was a teenager, and is thrilled to help students develop their talents at Hale Academy. Favorite roles include Javert in Les Miserables (HCTO), Reverend Shaw Moore in Footloose (Harmon Theater), Georg von Trapp in The Sound of Music (HCTO), and Joseph in Savior of the World at the Conference Center Theater. Rex has been a featured soloist with many premiere music organizations including the Mormon Tabernacle Choir, Salt Lake Choral Artists, Utah Baroque Ensemble, and Salt Lake Symphonic Choir. He performed in Europe, West Africa, Australia, New Zealand, and the Middle East with the BYU Singers, including concerts at the Sydney Opera House and Carnegie Hall. He is a founding member of the nationally-renowned quartet Reprise, which won the Gold Medal at the international barbershop competition and has shared the stage with the King’s Singers. Rex’s voice can be heard on numerous television/film/recording projects, including the award-winning Celebrating Wendell Berry in Music, which pairs original recordings of Mr. Berry reading his poetry with choral music and art songs by composer Andrew Maxfield. Rex is passionate about building a thriving music culture in his home state of Utah, co-founding The Consortium Ensemble, a men’s a capella group, and founding and acting as Artistic Director of the Deseret Chamber Singers, a chamber choir based in Salt Lake City.