meet our teachers

Amanda Sullick,  vocal teacher/coach has been teaching private voice for over 20 years. She attended the University of the Arts in Philadelphia as a double major student:  jazz vocal performance and music education.  After college, she took the position of head vocal teacher, recital coordinator and preschool music teacher at The Napoli School of Music and Dance; the  top rated music school on the Philadelphia Main Line.  About ten years later when her family was relocated to the Wilkes-Barre area, she took some time off to raise her 2 beautiful daughters. Once they were off to preschool and kindergarten, she went back to teaching and has been teaching k-8 general music, private voice and piano, and directing the plays and Glee Club at Wilkes-Barre Academy for the past 15 years.  June 1, 2015 she was able to realize her dream of opening her very own studio - to offer lessons and classes in a comfortable environment where students thrive.   Amanda enjoys teaching all genres of music but specializes in Pop and Broadway styles. She works on breathing, interpretation, diction, range, dynamics, auditioning, and overall performance.

Kyle has been in the Performing Arts for over 20 years, starting with his first theater performance at the age of 8.  He loves performing live for audiences and has performed in numerous theater productions, bands, comedy acts, and variety shows.      
In the third grade, Kyle’s love for music and performing was born.  This was the time that he began to learn to read sheet music, as well as how to play the piano.  His love for music grew, learning new instruments along the way such as trumpet, percussion, and even a little saxophone.  As he got older, his favorite activity was to play guitar with his brother and father, although he could never keep up with them.  With lots of practice, reading, and some self-taught music lessons Kyle was able to finally keep up with his brother and father.  The Morris family band was born! 
Kyle has performed in different groups, mainly performing with guitar, bass, and drums.  He has played in 70’s and 80’s cover bands playing all over the northeast, and even has performed as a Gene Simmons impersonator for a KISS cover band.  After playing cover music, Kyle reunited with his friends to create the band “EDEN” who specialized in writing original Christian Rock music.  They recorded their first full length album produced by JL Studios in Olyphant in 2014.
Today, Kyle is married to his wife, Ashley, and have a daughter, Jayde, all whom are passionate with performing.  Kyle, now with 16 years of guitar, bass, and percussion experience, enjoys playing music with his wife and friends.  They perform often doing special music for their church, and even perform at small venues with accompaniment.  His love for performance has grown to a love of teaching.  There is no greater feeling than the reward of learning a new song on a new instrument.  With hard work, dedication, and practice, practice, practice, you can have that satisfaction too.  .

Jamie Orfanella has been a professional musician and educator for 30 years and has performed, taught and run clinics across the United States, Germany and Taiwan. He has a degree in music education from the University of North Texas where he was a member of the North Texas Jazz Singers and several lab bands and jazz combos. He teaches instrumental music in the Valley View school district in Archbald, PA and is the director of jazz at Wyoming Seminary Upper School. He was the jazz director at Performing Arts Institute at Wyoming Seminary from 1998-2017 and is currently the trumpet faculty at The Wyoming Seminary Summer Music Festival . As an active freelance trumpet player, he performs in a wide variety of styles from jazz to rock to classical. He was the leader of the a cappella group Cincopella from 1993-1997 and the 7 piece swing band Molten Swing from 1999-2001. He is currently a member of the 11-piece R&B/funk party band Daddy O and the Sax Maniax and the leader of The Bottleshop Jazz Quartet.

Through his training in traditional Okinawan martial arts, Jamie found himself drawn to the sound of the Japanese Shakuhachi flute. He is now a licensed teacher of the instrument holding the rank of Jun Shihan and was given the professional name of Hogetsu by his teacher, grand master Ronnie Nyogetsu Reishin Seldin- head of the Ki Sui An shakuhachi dojo. The shakuhachi led Jamie to connections with other areas of world music in which he began to immerse himself. As a didgeridoo player and crafter, Jamie has been influenced by many of the finest players including Stephen Kent, and Jeremy Donovan. His ever-expanding array of instruments also includes the quena, dizi, xiao, hulusi, duduk, kalyuka, Fulani koncova, kaval, bansuri and Native American flutes, pennywhistles, jaw harps, ukulele, ocarinas, various percussion, and the EWI midi wind controller. He performs in many solo and small combo world music fusion settings including being half of the duo Tribal Waves

Isabella Snyder is a seasoned theatre professional with a diverse skill set encompassing acting, directing, singing, dancing, choreography, teaching artistry, writing, and design. Her journey in the performing arts was formalized with the completion of a Bachelor of Arts degree in Theatre from Marywood University.

Notable collaborations include her past involvement with the NEIU at their Arts Alive and Lyceum programs, Act Out Theatre, Scranton Preparatory School, and Midvalley High School where she made significant impact on education and the development of young talents. Additionally, Isabella has been involved with The Scranton Shakespeare Festival, contributing to the provision of free professional theatre to the community. She has also performed at Ovation Playhouse of NEPA, Music Box Dinner Playhouse, Little Theatre of Wilkes-Barre, and Carnegie Hall. Isabella runs her own business called Princess Parties by Isabella. Known for her versatility and passion for the performing arts, Isabella continues to leave an indelible mark on the stage, both as a performer and a mentor to aspiring talents.

Dayanara is primarily a violinist, however she plays piano as well. She is currently a double major in both Music Education and Music Performance at Marywood University. She has helped work the many music celebrations at Marywood as well as the Marywood String Project. Dayanara was a previous student involved in the NEPA Philharmonic Mentoring Program, and has performed alongside many professional musicians. She is fluent in both English and Spanish and is open to take students in either language. She is very excited to teach and share the passion for music with the students of Rising Stars!

Hannah has been at Rising Stars Performing Arts Academy since it opened. She has been with Amanda Sullick since Kindergarten. She will be attending Misericordia University in the Fall of 2023 as a Pre-Doctor of Physical Therapy student. Her undergraduate major is Biochemistry.  

Throughout the years of Hannah being involved in music, she has had multiple accomplishments. She is a multiple time award winning vocalist. She was the captain of Wilkes-Barre Academy’s Glee Club. She won the accompanist award for Music in the Parks. She was the president of her high school drama club, The Wolfpack Players. Being involved in theater since Kindergarten, Hannah has had many lead roles in musicals. Her favorites are Ado Annie in “Oklahoma”, Snoopy in both “Charlie Brown: The Musical” and “Snoopy: The Musical”, and Miss Hannigan in “Annie”.

Hannah has been involved in pageantry since seventh grade. She has won three local titles in the Miss America Organization, Miss MidState’s Outstanding Teen, Miss Keystone’s Outstanding Teen, and Miss Wilkes-Barre/Scranton’s Outstanding Teen. She currently is Miss Pennsylvania Teen Volunteer. She recently competed in the Miss Teen Volunteer America Pageant and placed in the Top 15. Being involved in pageantry, Hannah’s S.E.R.V.E. Initiative is Music Makes Miracles. She brings music into her every day life, and she can’t wait to do that for all of her students!

Mikayla has always been involved in theatre since she was child and had the opportunity of growing up at the studio helping with the classes when her mom would teach.  She now has the fun job of teaching the classes with her co-teacher, Emmie.  She truly enjoys teaching the kiddos of all ages and loves nothing more than getting to see them grow in both confidence and experience and shine in performance!