Staff
Rachael Biehler
Owner & Teacher
Proud wife and mother of two beautiful daughters, Rachael Biehler has been a Cast Member with the Walt Disney World Company for over 20 years. Her career with Disney has been filled with numerous live show performances and parades in a variety of roles ranging from Character performer to stilt walking, and even Puppeteering! Rachael currently teaches shows at the Walt Disney World Resort that include Finding Nemo the Musical, Festival of the Lion King, The Muppet Show, and many many more. She is extremely excited to share her knowledge and invest her acting and teaching skills to help mold and shape the future stars of Drama Kids of West Metro Orlando!.
Diana Negron
Drama & Acting Teacher
Diana Negron is a bilingual actress who was raised in Orlando, Florida. Her passion for the arts started at a young age and she believes it is important to enrich young minds who have an appreciation for the arts. She recently graduated from the University of South Florida, where she received her B.A. in Theatre with a concentration in Performance. Her training has given her the proper tools to educate students through all aspects of theatre, including acting, vocal performance, stage combat, and dance. Her latest stage credit was Cofaltechqui in the outdoor drama “Unto These Hills” in Cherokee, North Carolina. Some of her other credits include Gabriella in “Boeing Beoing”, Elder One in “Antigone”, Rosa in “Tiempo Muerto”, and Malinxe in “Mathematics of Love”. She hopes, through educational theatre, students will find confidence in themselves and develop a strong passion for the arts.
Katie Silson
Drama & Acting Teacher
Katie has been performing for over 25 years. She toured the US with her family as a singer from the young age of four. She has worked as an actor, singer and dancer with Walt Disney World, Universal Orlando, Sea World, and toured with “Disney Live”. Katie has three words she lives by and they are teach, lead, and inspire. She has a great love of children and wants to teach the next generation, lead them down a path for success and inspire them to be the best version of themselves both on and off the stage!
Ray Palen
Drama & Acting Teacher
Ray is thrilled to be working with Drama Kids International as he has decades of experience teaching Drama to young children through adults in New York. Ray left behind a Regional Theatre Group and Drama School he founded and ran on Long Island for over 15 years. He has acted in the Central Florida Region with STAGE (The Walt Disney World Theatre Troupe). Most recently he performed with the Moonlight Players of Clermont where he was seen in “And Then There Were None” as Judge Wargreave and “Dial ‘M’ For Murder” as Tony Wendice. Ray was nominated for Best Lead Actor (Drama) by Broadway World Orlando for his performance in “Dial ‘M’ For Murder”. He is a lifelong actor and published playwright who studied at the American Academy Of Dramatic Arts training with teachers like Oscar winner Jennifer Jones.
Desiree Montes
Drama & Acting Teacher
Desiree has 18+ years of performing experience. She works as a Principle Singer/Actress/Dancer for a few major them parks & resorts here in Florida. She has 9+ years of experience as an adjudicator for theatrical competitions as well as experience directing and holding private audition preparatory sessions. Desiree can be seen booking both seasonal & year-round projects for a few local entertainment companies, talent agencies & many theatre companies within and beyond Central Florida. She recently made her off-Broadway debut at the 2019 New York Musical Festival. She is a proud member of the Actor’s Equity Association.
Elizabeth Taylor
Drama & Acting Teacher
Elizabeth is a retired Elementary Teacher with vast experience in directing and writing dramas, acting, singing, dancing, and choreography. She has shared her passion by teaching within those genres for many years as well. She grew up dancing and performing and continues to find ways to incorporate them into her life. One highlight was working for Walt Disney and performing as a VIP character performer in the Indianapolis 500 parade and the Mayor’s Breakfast. She’s played various roles on stage, played in the orchestra, as well as costume design/sewing and alterations. “I believe being able to stand on a stage brings confidence in all aspects of one’s life and whether one becomes an actor, scientist, engineer, teacher, or other. Being able to speak in front of an audience will be a life-long asset. I see drama as a way of unlocking hidden potential and opening the creative treasure chest in all of us. You are never too old or too young to explore the stage and find your love of the arts.”
Tricia Swann
Drama & Acting Teacher
Tricia is excited to be joining Drama Kids this year! She is currently a UCF student who is studying elementary education and theatre. She loves all things theatre and music. She also is a current cast member at Walt Disney World in Magic Kingdom and has performed there as part of the Candlelight Processional at Epcot. She has taught musical theatre in her hometown of Jasper, AL until moving to Orlando and is excited to help students find their own passion for theatre.
Fayte Civil
Drama & Acting Teacher
Fayte always had a desire to perform. Since she was a child, her personality was very animated. Although she did not have the opportunity to be involved in Theatre growing up, Fayte realized her passion for acting while in college studying Psychology at St Petersburg College. This realization led Fayte to change her major to Theatre. She relocated from Clearwater to Orlando in late 2017, and decided it was time for her to complete her degree. Fayte graduated from Seminole State College with an Associate in Arts degree in the Fall of 2020. Learning as much as she could, Fayte made the decision to finally pursue a career in Theatre in the Spring of 2022. Although Fayte has only recently landed a role for the first time, she is excited for what the
Cody Hanford
Drama & Acting Teacher
I grew up in the business as a child actor. I have been performing in community theatre since I was three years old and started my professional career at ten, co-starring in the feature film Hounddog with Dakota Fanning. I then went on to originate the role of Flounder in Disney’s The Little Mermaid on Broadway and tour the US with the Radio City Rockettes. I have produced, directed, choreographed, and performed in multiple community/professional theatre and theme park productions. I met my wife in a community theatre production of A Chorus Line in our hometown Memphis, TN. We now have two kids who attend Sunset Park Elementary, Remmy (age 8) and Maxx (age 7). I am super excited to be joining the Drama Kids family!
Alyssa Hartley
Drama & Acting Teacher
Alyssa Hartey is a passionate, young teacher from South Florida! Alyssa has been performing for as long as she can remember and now has found passion is teaching the thing, she loves the most – THEATRE! Alyssa has been teaching theatre and dance for 8 years now and is so excited to be a part of the Drama Kids family!!!
Michael Gleason
Drama & Acting Teacher
Michael Gleason is a performer in Orlando, Florida. Michael can be seen portraying iconic characters at Universal Orlando Resort as a show performer and puppeteer. Michael has a degree in Theatre Studies and has been acting for over a decade. When not performing, Michael is usually out roller skating, bowling, or playing board games with friends. Michael is very passionate about education and our youth, making sure they have a strong foundation from the very beginning. Michael is very excited to be working with Drama Kids!
Evonne Hurst
Drama & Acting Teacher
Ever since she was a little girl, Evonne has been in love with the arts. Evonne is a singer, songwriter, actor, playwright, director, and costume designer. She has performed in multiple plays and shows throughout Central Florida including a lead role in a musical at the Dr Phillips Center for Performing Arts in Orlando and even wrote and directed a play called “The hardest Gift to Give”. Evonne currently plays the role of the singing sorceress, Celestina Warbeck, in Diagon Alley at Universal Orlando. She is excited to share her experience and love for theater with the children at Drama Kids!
Amanda Kitta
Drama & Acting Teacher
A Pittsburg native and collegiate native, Amanda moved to Orlando over 25 years ago to pursue a lifelong dream of working for the Disney Parks. She enjoyed every moment of the 20 years she spent working with children. As a gymnast, she facilitated classes for children with autism and other language, communication, and social difficulties. Amanda is a proud mother of a beautiful 7-year-old daughter and is excited to further her love of the arts by being a part of the Drama Kids team “I cannot wait to watch the children shine on stage while I hold the spotlight!”.
Taylor Aldrich
Drama & Acting Teacher
Taylor Aldrich is a professional actor who has been performing in Orlando, NYC, LA, and regionally for nearly 18 years. She received her BFA from the University of North Carolina School of the Arts in Drama ‘13. She is currently an Equity Performer for the Walt Disney Company. As well as performing Taylor has been a teacher, director and choreographer with several notable youth theatre programs since 2015. Her favorite role she has played so far is definitely Mommy to her incredible son!
Elan Dullas
Drama & Acting Teacher
Elan Dullas is starting her journey in the theatrical world. Since she was just a toddler, her passion for singing and being a bubbly character altogether has let her grow to be the teacher (and student) she is today! Elan is excited to teach the concept of theatre to the next generation of students!
Rodrick Blackman
Drama & Acting Teacher
Rodrick graduated from The University of Southern Mississippi with a Bachelor Arts in Theatre. As a professional actor and puppeteer, He has worked for several notable companies throughout the Central Florida area such as Walt Disney World, Universal Studios Orlando and SeaWorld Orlando. He also loves to create a fun environment for kids to come and learn but also have fun.
Emily Eakle
Drama & Acting Teacher
From an early age, Emily’s passion for the performing arts has been clear. When she was little, she enjoyed creating and directing plays with her friends. As a former Drama Kid, having attended summer camp, her love of directing has persisted. Emily is thrilled to be working with Drama Kids this year, fulfilling a long-standing dream.
Emily Burke
Drama & Acting Teacher
Emily Burke’s love for theater began at a young age in her hometown outside of Chicago. Drama helped her to make friends, gain self-confidence, and learn helpful life skills. She is very excited and grateful to be able to give kids today the same wonderful opportunities! She has been working with children for nearly a decade- in the classroom and as a nanny. Her two favorite careers, childcare, and theater, have collided into one amazing program!
Ishani Kamalani
Drama & Acting Teacher
Ishani is a performer who has a love and passion for teaching theatre! Originally from South Florida she is so excited to be teaching in Orlando! With a passion for performing, she has performed in theatre, chorus and in a rock band! Ishani has been teaching musical theatre for three years and is very excited to be with Drama Kids!
Join our team! Drama Kids is seeking dynamic and fun part time teachers to meet our growing class schedule. Please visit our Contact Us Page and submit your interest.