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Chrisse Roccaro’s career as a character actress, singer and teacher, performing for stage, radio, television, and film, has spanned more than 25 years in Portland and New York.

Recent appearances have includedGen. Cartwright in Guys & Dolls; Fr. Schneider in Cabaret; Grandmother in Women & Wallace; Saulina/Sally in Old Money at Profile Theatre; Monica Murray in By the Bog of Cats; Mother in Da; Judy/Ginger in Ruthless; and Madame Arcati in Blithe Spirit, for which she won a 2003 Drammy Award for Outstanding Achievement by an Actress in a Supporting Role and a 2003 OTAS Award for Best Actress in a Play.  She created the role of Aunt Concetta in La Famiglia:Who Stole My Dead Husband?

Recent directorial credits include Three Viewings, Same Time Next Year, No Way To Treat A Lady, Quilters, Cabaret and Donizetti's one-act opera, Rita. She musical directed the premier of Can't Say I Do for Key Productions (January 07) and was vocal director for Urinetown:The Musical at Portland Community College (March 06).

Download Chrisse's Resumé/Bio in PDF format.

Curriculum Vitae
Chrisse Roccaro

EDUCATION
Bachelor of Music in Vocal Performance, Marylhurst University, 1973
Vocal Study in Salzburg, Austria with Elizabeth Peter-Schoenauer, 1971-72
Other teachers include Sr. Claudia Foltz (OR), Mary Saunders (NY), Bill Shuman (NY), Susan McBerry (OR)
Master Classes - Gibner King; Wesley Balk; Martha Schlamme
Piano Study - More than 10 years, most recently 1969-73 with Sr. Lucie Hutchinson (Marylhurst College)
Acting Study - HB Studios (NY), Martha Schlamme (NY), Lyn Tyrrell (OR)
Dance Study - (Ballet; Jazz; Tap; Middle Eastern with various instructors), 1968 - Present
Tae Kwon Do - Janet Galen (NY), 1981-84
Improvisation, Puppeteer - Kay Lee’s Playbox Players, 1969-1979


TEACHING/ARTS EMPLOYMENT

Choir Director, Vox Angelis (women’s chorus), Lewis and Clark College — 2002
Music Teacher (sub), St. Mary’s Academy — 2001
Teacher of Singing (private studio) — 1994–Present
Adjunct Voice Teacher, Portland Community College — 1994
Teacher — Children’s Theatre, The Walden School, NY — 1985
Teacher/Co-Director, Children’s Summer Program, Trinity E. L. C., NY — 1979
Teacher (Pre-school; Children’s Theatre), Actor, Puppeteer, Administrator -
Kay Lee’s Playbox Players, 1969–1979
Classical/Contemporary Singer — 1973–Present
Member of Veriditas, Women’s chorus conducted by Joan Szymko — 2001
Choir Director, Organist, Trinity Ev. Luth. Church, NY, total two years in 1980’s
Choir Director, Oak Grove United Methodist Church, 1973–74
Musical Director, St. Mary’s Academy Theatre Department — 1995–2001
Musical Director, Central Catholic High School Theatre Department — 1996/7
Musical Director, North Clackamas Community Theatre – 1997
Musical Director, Clackamas Community College Theatre Department — 1993
Musical Director/Co-owner/Producer – Slabtown Theatre Co. — 1975-78
Consultant to the Theatre Department, Overlake School, Redmond, WA — 1998
Choreographer, Fiddler On the Roof; South Pacific – Portland Area High Schools
Director, Dames At Sea — The Production Co., Portland — 1979
Freelance Voice Actor, Stage, TV, Screen Actor, 1973 — Present
Bookkeeping/administrative posts in business and the arts


MUSICAL/VOCAL DIRECTOR
Assemble, prepare, conduct orchestra; prepare soloists and chorus; provide additional chorus arrangements as needed.
NW Children’s Theatre — “The Little Mermaid” (Prescott Elementary School Play Lab)

Key Productions — “Can’t Say I Do” — 2007

Portland Community College — Urinetown:The Musical- 2006

Classical Greek Theatre at Reed College (Medea, Prometheus Bound) — 2003, 2004
St. Mary’s Academy — The Mystery of Edwin Drood; West Side Story; Theatre Tonight!; Anything Goes;
     My Fair Lady; The Sound of Music; Annie!; Into the Woods

Central Catholic High School — Into the Woods, The Lorax
North Clackamas Community Theatre — Bye Bye Birdie
Clackamas Community College — Into the Woods
The Production Company — Dames At Sea (also director)
Slabtown Theatre — Slabtown Follies; John Brown’s Body (arranger; composer)
University of Salzburg English Club — Gallows Humor (director)


DIRECTOR

Three Viewings - Portland Civic Theatre Guild

Same Time Next Year Portland Civic Theatre Guild

Rita; Scenes From Mozart Lewis & Clark College Opera Theatre 2006–07

Where In The World Is Santa? Vivace Voices/Fireside Carolers

Cabaret River Theatre

Quilters Coaster Theatre

No Way To Treat A Lady Coaster Theatre

PROFESSIONAL PRESENTATIONS
St. Mary’s Academy — Audition Workshop; 1996 Career Day
Lewis & Clark College — Guest Lecturer, Musical Theatre Workshop


PROFESSIONAL PERFORMANCES
Musical – Lyric Soprano Legit/Belt

Guys & Dolls - Gen. Cartwright - Portland Center Stage

Cabaret — Fr. Schneider — Geva Theatre Center; Rochester, NY

Cabaret — Standby for Fr. Schneider — Portland Center Stage

Vivaldi’s Gloria — Alto Soloist — Cannon Beach Chorus

Haydn’s Paukenmesse — Alto Soloist — Cannon Beach Chorus

La Famiglia: Who Stole My Dead Husband? — Concetta

Fireside Carolers — Co. Member since 2002

The Promise - Mother — (created role in new chamber opera by Theresa Koon)

Ruthless — Judy/Ginger — River Theatre

Spitfire Grill — Hannah — Lakewood Theatre Co.
Music Man — Mrs. Paroo — Oregon Symphony Pops
Carousel — Nettie Fowler — Lakewood Theatre Co
Guys and Dolls — General Cartwright — Oregon Symphony Pops
Cabaret By Chrisse — The Old Church, Portland – 1995–96
What Isn’t There — Marta — New Music Visions NW (World Premier)
My Fair Lady — Mrs. Pearce — Oregon Symphony Pops
Sticky Trouble — Tanya the Spider — The Haven Project, Portland
We’re Throwing A Ball Tonight! — Don’t Tell Mama Cabaret Club, NYC
Daniel Boone! — Rebecca Boone — Theaterworks USA, NYC
Suffragette! — Flora Drummond — Trinity Theatre, NYC
Mr. Scrooge! — Mrs. Dilber — Trinity Theatre, NYC
When the Stars Begin To Fall – Miss Polly Mizell — Emmanuel Theatre, NYC
Robin and Marion — Marion — ASCAP Songwriters’ Workshop, NYC
Song Recital — New York City Public Library
No Way To Treat A Lady — 5 roles — Portland Repertory Theatre
A…My Name Is Alice — 5th Actress — Oregon Stage Company
I’m A Stranger Here Myself — Company — Oregon Stage Company
Blue Plate Special — Della — Triangle Productions
Same Boat Brother! — Company, Assistant Director –— Artists Repertory Theatre
Dames At Sea — Joan — SRO Portland
Company — Marta — SRO Portland
110° In the Shade — Lizzie — Portland Civic Theatre
Jacques Brel — Company — Portland Civic Theatre
How To Succeed — Smitty — Portland Civic Theatre
A Little Night Music — Desiree, Madam Armfeldt, Charlotte, Liebeslieder — PCT Guild; Lakewood Theatre
Feiffer’s People — Company — Lakewood Theatre
Guys and Dolls — Miss Adelaide — Portland
Oliver! — Nancy — Portland
Kay Lee’s Playbox Players — Actress, Puppeteer, Teacher — Portland


Non-Musical

Women & Wallace — Grandmother — Readers Theatre Rep

Actor — What I Heard About Iraq

Old Money — Saulina/Sally — Profile Theatre Company

By the Bog of Cats — Monica Murray — CoHo Productions

Da — Mother — Lakewood Theatre Co.

Blithe Spirit — Madam Arcati — Lakewood Theatre Co.
Holiday Kids Concerts — Mrs. Santa (1997–00) — Oregon Symphony
Beau Jest — Miriam — Portland Repertory Theatre
Young Playwrights Festival — various — Portland Repertory Theatre
Everyman — Strength — Emmanuel Theatre, NYC
The Diviners — Norma — Trinity Theatre, NYC
The Knack — Nancy — Slabtown Theatre, Portland
The Importance of Being Ernest — Miss Prism — Slabtown Theatre, Portland
John Brown’s Body — Marylou Wingate — Slabtown Theatre
Falling Apart — Marilyn — Slabtown Theatre
Three Sisters — Anfisa — SRO Portland
The Skin of Our Teeth — Sabina— Portland
The Crucible — Mary Warren — Portland
Trojan Women — Andromache — Portland


TELEVISION
Love Is Strange (with Kate Nelligan) Lifetime/Hearst Entertainment
Nowhere Man (with Bruce Greenwood) UPN
Medicine Ball FOX
Movin’ On NBC
Commercial, Industrial, Voice-over, Interactive — list available upon request


PROFESSIONAL AFFILIATIONS
American Federation of Television and Radio Artists, National Board Member for Portland; former Pres. of Local (10+ years)
Screen Actors Guild, Portland Branch Council Member
Actors Equity Association
Mu Phi Epsilon (Music Sorority — voluntary withdrawal)

ACADEMIC/PROFESSIONAL HONORS
2003 — Drammy Award/Supporting Actress — Madame Arcati in Blithe Spirit
2003 — OTAS Award/Best Actress — Madame Arcati in Blithe Spirit
1973 — Marylhurst College, Cum Laude
1972 — Mu Phi Epsilon Solo Contest
1972 — NATS Solo Contest
1969 — State Solo Contest
1968 — All Northwest Choir

COMMUNITY SERVICE
The Dougy Center For Grieving Children — Volunteer Facilitator since 1997
Bump In the Road Theatre Co. — Grief Project 2002 — Actor
President, Portland Civic Theatre Guild 2006–2007

Chair, Advisory Board — Sabin-Schellenberg Center Media Communications Program



 

   
Chrisse illustration Chrisse "credentials"