The People of SFOA

Chase has been a part of SFOA for 11 years now and enjoys it every single year, and loves gaming, art, nature, and cooking.

Cecelia Blackett is a recent graduate of Mount Desert Island high school. This is her 12th year at SFOA overall and her 4th year working here! She loves the arts having grown up in theater and performed with MDI Drama for the entirety of her high school career. While she will be studying creative writing, theater will always have her heart. 

Lucy is a junior in high school. She loves theater, music, and crafts. She’s helped at SFOA summer and winter camps the past few years and is looking forward to this summer! 

Thomas is a rising junior at Maret School in Washington DC. Thomas is interested in nature and history, and loves to draw, read, hike, and play the piano. Thomas has been coming up to MDI every summer starting from childhood. During the school year, Thomas works as a math instructor tutoring lower and middle schoolers at Mathnasium, and is excited to bring energy to the camp this summer!

This will be Isaiah’s third year at the Summer Festival of the Arts. A lifelong artist—ever since it was possible to hold a marker—Isaiah enjoys creating models and dioramas, and playing music. Isaiah also brings three years of experience as an apprentice jeweler, combining creativity with attention to detail in both visual and tactile forms.

Leif (they/them) is a recent graduate of Ellsworth High School, with a diploma distinction in Theatre, and will begin studying Technical Theatre at Plymouth State University in the fall. This will be their third year working at SFOA. They are a creative who has a broad range of experience in and a passion for the arts, including various facets of technical theatre, sewing, and painting.

Kristin is a clinical social worker who works as a counselor in private practice and with local schools. She has a degree and background in theatrical arts and a love for artistic expression. She is a board member of SFOA and in 2016 she and Haley Merchant developed the Body Art class, and she has been teaching it ever since. She is a master grilled cheese artist and curious about everything. 

Candace is a stay-at-home mom and caregiver who has lived in Southwest Harbor for 13 years and has a Bachelor of Science in Biology.  She comes from a long line of needleworkers including her mother, grandmother, and great grandmother!  Cross stitch and plastic canvas were the first techniques she learned at age 9, and she began learning embroidery 5 years ago.  When she is not playing family cab service she enjoys needlework, reading, and hunting for sea glass.

Hanako is a theatermaker, choreographer and musician based on MDI. He is a recent graduate of College of the Atlantic with a concentration in performing arts, literature and philosophy. They have acted and music-directed a COA musical production, performed as a solo singer-songwriter and as a vocalist in jazz bands. He most recently choreographed and directed their senior dance thesis. He's thrilled to be at SFOA this summer, to combine their multidisciplinary art practice with a passion for working with youth! 

Alex is thrilled to be returning to teaching at SFOA! She holds a BA in Theater Studies from Emory University, and has worked with children's theater programs in Los Angeles, Georgia, Florida, and here in Maine. A former SFOA student herself, she taught for many years before stepping into the role of Executive Director from 2015 - 2022. Most importantly, as of this year she is also adding "SFOA mom" to her resume, as her daughter begins her SFOA journey as a Sprite! Alex lives in Southwest Harbor, and her favorite thing about summer is paddle boarding on Echo Lake.

Cameron grew up in Bar Harbor and brings a deep love for his hometown to everything he does. Passionate about volunteering and inspiring the next generation, Cameron is a gifted storyteller who knows how to connect with young minds through creativity and enthusiasm. When he’s not giving back to his community, you can find him at the local movie theater, listening to his favorite music, or getting in a workout around town. He’s thrilled to be part of the Summer Festival of the Arts and to help make this summer educational, fun, and unforgettable.

Poonam is a Human Ecology student at the College of the Atlantic with a strong passion for environmental education, community engagement, and youth empowerment. This summer, Poonam is excited to serve as a Teacher Assistant, supporting students in both their academic learning and personal growth. With experience leading workshops on literacy, health, and sustainability in India—and having co-founded the Mula Mutha Revival Project—Poonam brings a hands-on, inclusive approach to learning. Poonam looks forward to creating a supportive, curious, and engaging classroom environment where every student feels seen and inspired.

Jacob is an artist and creative with a versatile background in theater and music, bringing a broad range of experience in both performance and technical production. A graduate of Ithaca College with a BFA in Theatrical Production and Design (Class of 2021), Jacob has worked extensively in professional theater environments. He served as an A2 during the 2021 summer season at The Rev Theatre, and returned as an A1 for their 2022 and 2023 summer seasons. In the winter of 2022, he worked at A.C.T. of Connecticut as an A2, Sub Mixer, and Resident Technician. In addition to these roles, Jacob has held various other titles across multiple theater companies, contributing his skills and creativity wherever needed.

Cate Pope is a dancer, choreographer and performer from Mount Desert Island, Maine. She earned a B.A in Dance Choreography from Bates College in 2025, with a concentration in Music and Culture. Cate is also a musician, and her dance works often incorporate sound scores recorded on her cello. She has trained and performed extensively in ballet, contemporary and modern with the Robinson Ballet (2012 - 2021), as well as with Bossov Ballet, Broadway Dance Center, Joffrey Ballet, Nimbus Dance, The Dance Center and more. During college, Cate studied away for two semesters— first with Trinity La MaMa in NYC, and then with Accademia dell’Arte in Italy. She teaches dance and continues her creative research in movement, music and community. 

Evangeline (she/they) will be studying Theatre this fall at Millikin University in Illinois. A recent graduate of Mount Desert Island High School (MDIHS). She loves singing, acting, and making visual arts. Evangeline was the President of Tri-M (Music Honors Society).  She has participated in the All-State vocal choir. She received outstanding musicianship awards as a vocalist soloist at Maine State Show Choir Competitions. Evangeline loved her last year of theatre at MDIHS in the musical Chicago, vocals and tech support in Eurydice, and comedic roles in Cyrano. She taught a senior jewelry making class last summer. This is her 9th year at SFOA and she is excited to be back teaching full time this summer! When not supporting young artists you can find her selling tickets and concessions at the Criterion Theatre. Come watch a show!

Tennille Moore, MEd, is a mathematics teacher at Mt. Desert Island High School.  She has studied many forms of dance, beginning at an early age with classical ballet and then studying tap, modern, African, Jazz, highland, and Cape Breton Step.  In addition to a mathematics degree, Tennille also has a music degree, playing 18 instruments, including oboe and bagpipes.  From an early age, working with her grandmother, she found a love for fiber arts through embroidery and cross-stitch, through 4-H she was introduced to plastic canvas, and finally, as a young adult she learned to crochet, again with her grandmother.  Her free time is spent enjoying time with her eleven-year-old son.

Rosalie began exploring fabric “color in motion” in 1974 by creating kites for her kite shop on the coast of North Carolina. Her path has led from kites to fabric sculpture and street theater complete with pyrotechnics. 1981, she formed Wind Gypsy Designs as a production company for bringing color into public spaces.

Rosalie’s development as an artist was a natural progression of interest. Natural forces, seen and unseen, have always intrigued her. A sailor from childhood, she loves the play of the wind and the water on the solid force of the hull and malleable sail... thus kites to banners to large scale environmental sculptures flowed from one to the other. In recent years her commitment to ecology and sustainable living systems has inspired her to create a series of fiber sculptures she calls Home Planets.

Dorothy is a student at the University of Maine at Farmington, where she is pursuing a degree in Elementary Education with minors in Theatre and Music. In her free time, she enjoys working live shows and movies at The Criterion Theatre and attending concerts.

Dorothy has a strong background in the performing arts. She participated in the mixed ensemble at two Classical All-State festivals and was an active member of her high school Show Choir for all four years. She also performed in multiple high school musicals and stage-managed a middle school production of a Shakespeare play.

In her first year of college, Dorothy directed and acted in a shadowcast production of The Rocky Horror Picture Show. This is her first year at SFOA, and she is thrilled to support and inspire young artists!

Abbie is thrilled to be joining SFOA for her first summer, working with the imaginative and energetic Sprite group! With over 15 years in education, a BS in Child Development from the University of Maine, and a Montessori teaching certificate, Abbie brings the kind of experience that says “trust me, I’ve seen everything.” During the school year, she works as an Elementary Literacy Specialist at MDES, where the youngest students know her as “the teacher who reads to us at lunch” (a pretty great title, if you ask her).

Though her own art career peaked somewhere around “ambitious stick figures,” Abbie is passionate about helping kids dive deep into the creative process—brainstorming, designing, revising, and most importantly, celebrating! She lives in Bar Harbor with her husband, their two inventive daughters (fellow SFOA campers Vivien and Sylvie), and their very wiggly Aussie Milo. She’s all in for a season of color, curiosity, and the occasional glitter emergency!

Since October 2017, Susan has worked as a Special Education Technician III at Pemetic Elementary School in Southwest Harbor, ME, supporting students from 1st through 7th grade in both pull-out and inclusive classroom settings. She has implemented curriculum and activities tailored for students facing multiple challenges and have provided both one-on-one and small group instruction. She is trained and experienced in using SPIRE and Corrective Reading programs, and have prior experience with guided reading and running records. Her background also includes teaching at the Summer Festival of the Arts in Bar Harbor, ME during July of 1999, 2000, 2015–2019, and 2024, where she taught and choreographed a range of dance styles from Ballroom to Broadway, introduced middle-grade students to shadow puppetry—including puppet creation and performance—and led Sprites multimedia art classes based on read-aloud books. From September 2015 to June 2016, Susan served as a Special Education Teacher at Tremont Consolidated School in Bass Harbor, ME, managing a caseload of K-4 students with diverse learning needs in both resource and general education classrooms. Her responsibilities included collaborating with teachers, parents, and staff to implement IEP accommodations, providing explicit and motivating instruction, organizing and leading IEP meetings, and supervising three Educational Technicians. In addition to her teaching experience, she has a strong foundation in dance, having studied jazz and ballet for fourteen years, including attending Alvin Ailey Dance Company workshops in 1987 and 1988. After earning her Bachelor's Degree in Education, Susan completed training and worked as an Arthur Murray Dance Instructor in Philadelphia for five months, where She taught a variety of dance styles including Fox Trot, Waltz, Swing, Tango, Mambo, Cha Cha, Merengue, Rumba, and Night Club Dancing before beginning her career in special education.