The Starline Staff

 Starline has assembled the best staff of teachers available to the Stoughton area.  At Starline, we are focused on finding the best teachers to teach your child and assist them in their growth.  

Rayna Flaherty
Academy Director

         Rayna has been with Starline since 2007 and is a graduate of The University of the Arts in Philadelphia with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Dance Education.  Rayna has developed many programs at Starline over the past 20 years, most recently specializing in the Creative/Children's dance program.
          She initiated the Starline Dance Team which is a wonderful outlet for students to push and challenge themselves and has been recognized for countless special and overall awards at various competitions..
     Rayna has also studied and taught at numerous places along the New England area and through Philadelphia including Broadway Dance Center in NYC as well as teaching at the Creative and Performing Arts High school of Philadelphia.  
     Rayna also taught through a grant program at the Jones Preschool here in Stoughton for 10 years where she taught creative movement to preschool age children. She also taught an outreach program at the Gibbons school in Stoughton Ma and at the Sharon Pre-School.
       Rayna is also a graduate of the  Boston Teachers Club of Boston where she received the "American Academy of Dance Award" and is a member of the Greater Brockton Dance Teacher's Association where she served as chairperson for the club's annual dance competition and curently serves as Vice President.
        Overall Rayna has extensive knowledge in Dance as she has been studying it her whole life! She is passionate advocate and educator for children in the performing arts. 
       When Rayna is not at Starline she spends her time with her family  raising her two young children. She absolutely loves children and enjoys watching their growth both through her own and her students at Starline.

Shayla Shedin
Theatre Director/ Dance Instructor

         Shayla is a former Starline student of many years. While a student at Starline, she received training in voice, musical theatre, ballet, tap and jazz dance. She studied it all! She also performed regularly with the Paris Cabaret Theatre and later sang with multiple competitive choirs, performing all across Massachusetts including at the Hatch Memorial Shell in Boston. She aided in the founding of Stoughton High School's first a capella group and was the recipient of several vocal scholarships.            Upon graduating high school, she started working at Starline and found a passion for teaching. Shayla has received her associates in Theatre Arts Education and is over joyed to be a part of the Starline family after all these years. She hopes to pass on the knowledge and love for performing arts to future students that her teachers and mentors instilled in her. 

Patricia Biagini
​Dance Director

​                Patricia Biagini is a dancer, choreographer and teacher with over 30 years experience. She is trained in classical Jazz dance,theater dance, tap, ballet and Horton technique. She has studied in New York and Boston with many masters of dance such as Gus Giordano, Luigi, Frank Hatchett, Ann Reinking, Jose Mateo, Rhee and Rennie Gold, Adrienne Hawkins and Jeanette Neil to name a few. Patricia has performed on stage with Stevie Wonder, been in the  rock band  video "KISS" and in a Caribean dance show in Aruba. She has also danced with independent choreographers in Boston and New York including her own dance ensemble, "Biagini Dance Company". Patricia has been on the faculty at Plymouth State University, Concord Academy and Boston Arts Academy. She has also taught for Ailey Camp Boston, Boston/Belmont Metco program, and Summer Arts at the Cambridge School of Weston. Her musical theater choreography includes many shows, such as "Once on this Island", "Carousal", &  "Jerry's Girls",  to name of a few.  She is also on the faculty for  Summer Arts at the Cambridge School of Weston.  In 2012 Patricia was honored as Dance Teacher and Choreographer of the year from Origination Cultural Center in Boston.
        Patricia is also a certified pilates instructor as well as a licensed Zumba instructor. Patricia has been on faculty of Starline since 2013.

Paris Kampanelas
 Voice Instructor

      Ms. Kampanelas holds a Bachelor’s of Music in Vocal Performance and Music Education from The New England Conservatory of Music.
    Ms. K was also the K-5 Music Specialist for the Gibbons School in Stoughton for twenty years. As well as traveling to other local elementary schools in the district and directing an award winning Show Choir for Stoughton High School. Ms. Kampanelas maintained a private voice studio and taught many students who are now studying music, voice and theater in colleges across the country today. 
      In 2012 Paris was named Stoughton's 2011-2012 Elementary Teacher of the Year by The Veteran's of Foreign War/ Michael Romanuk Post 1645 and by the Commonwealth of Massachusetts in recognition for promoting Citizenship Education in her classroom and school.
      Ms. Kampanelas is a member of NATS (The National Association of Teachers of Singing), NE/OSA (New England Orff- Schulwerk Association) and the Massachusetts and National Chapters of MENC (Music Educators National Conference). 

Beth Weiner
 ​Acrobatic Instructor

Dancing since the age of 2, Beth has studied gymnastics, acrobatics, jazz, tap, ballet and lyrical. Beth earned her bachelor’s degree at Springfield College with a minor in Dance.  She has her Master’s in Special Education from UMass-Boston and was  a member of the Dance Team at UMass and choreographed theatre productions for the group.   
Beth has been a dance teacher since 2002, as well as a special education teacher in the preschool and elementary settings.  Beth’s specialty is acrobatics, where she competed nationally around the United States in groups and solos. She was also a competitive gymnast in her high school years. 

Tatum Ellis
Broadway Stars and Voice Instructor

Tatum is a musical theatre graduate of UNH. Over the past 30 years Tatum has performed in local theatres; dinner theatres (one being the Starline Room Dinner Theatre); regional theatres, on cruise ships for Royal Caribbean and Norwegian; as a member of the General Jackson Showboat in Nashville; and as Tammy Wynette on the national tour of Stand By Your Man, the Tammy Wynette Story. Tatum has filmed commercials in NYC for HGTV Dream Home, Home Depot, Glidden, and Healthy Choice. 

After many years of traveling and performing, Tatum returned to Massachusetts to pursue her passion closer to home and to set down roots. She was cast as Genevieve in the independent film “Day Job”. The movie was the Audience Award Winner for the 2019 Great Lakes International Film Festival. DCU also hired Tatum for a radio and tv advertising campaign which was renewed for 4 years. This past summer Tatum had the pleasure of music directing Little Mermaid Jr for the Starline Academy and is thrilled to now be teaching classes.

Jeffery Velez
Voice, Piano, Guitar, Ukule, Bass Guitar Instructor

Multi-instrumentalist and composer, Jeffrey brings to the school a lifetime of playing experience and over ten years of dedicated study to the craft of music. Jeffrey studied Music Theory, History, and Composition at Brown University, as well as guitar performance. He began graduate studies after at Manhattan School of Music, pursuing Vocal Jazz Performance under the tutelage of Grace Parlato and Theo Bleckmann.

Jeffrey joined the Starline Academy staff in 2024. He plays and teaches regularly on six instruments, and is excited to be offering Guitar, Voice and Piano lessons at Starline. He performs internationally as both bandleader and sideman, accompanying singers, rappers, and poets in a wide variety of genres. Additionally, Jeffrey works with two choirs of young singers in Dedham as Choral Director, guiding them to reach their fullest creative potential.

Throughout his teaching career, he has worked with students of all ages, genres, and abilities, striving to help them uncover the joy in making music together and in honing their craft. Music is his life's work, and he looks forward to getting to know the community of creative students who come to Starline Academy!

Kendra Frank
Dance Instructor

Kendra Frank, originally from Cape Cod, Massachusetts, began her pre-professional training under the guidance of Beth Vages and Tanya Vincent. She continued her training at South Shore Ballet Theatre with Martha Van Mckeon, George Birkadze, Stephanie Moy, Leslie Woodies, Dona Silva, and Nan Keating.

In 2016, Ms. Kendra was offered a traineeship with Bay Pointe Ballet in San Francisco. The following year, she trained with Festival Ballet Providence as a post-graduate. From 2018 to 2020, she was a company member with City Ballet Boston. Ms. Kendra then joined Florida Ballet in Jacksonville, Florida, where she danced from 2020 to 2023. As of 2023, she has returned to her home state to dance with City Ballet of Boston. Throughout her career, Ms. Kendra has performed principal roles, including Princess Aurora in "Sleeping Beauty," the Snow Queen, and the Sugar Plum Fairy in the "Urban Nutcracker."

​Ms. Kendra began teaching pre-ballet at the YMCA at the age of 14. Since then, she has discovered a passion for teaching children as well as for choreographing. She has taught dance in Massachusetts, Rhode Island, California, and Florida. Kendra first came to Starline in 2019 and returned again in 2023. Kendra Frank is an ABT® Certified Teacher who has successfully completed the ABT® Teacher Training Intensive for Pre-Primary through Level 3 of the ABT® National Training Curriculum.

Luis Angel Salazar Tamayo
Piano and Voice Instructor

Luis Angel Salazar Tamayo is a pianist, composer, and vocalist from Guadalajara, Mexico. His musical journey began at an early age, studying and performing on a variety of instruments, including violin, cello, harp, and recorder. He later pursued formal studies in voice and piano at CEDART José Clemente Orozco (Centro de Artes) in Guadalajara, where he trained for four years before relocating to Boston in 2022.
In Boston, Luis Angel focused on composition and film scoring at the Boston Conservatory at Berklee, developing a distinctive artistic voice through both concert and media music. Throughout his education, he received mentorship from renowned musicians and educators, including Antonio Salazar Gómez and Carlos Vargas, as well as composers Dan VanHassel, Tim McCormack, Marti Epstein, and Michael Gilbertson.
Beyond his artistic work, Luis Angel has been actively involved in the Berklee community. He is a recipient of the Best of Berklee Future Alumni Leader Award and has served as a Latinx Ambassador, Audiovisual Operator, and Alumni Affairs Assistant. Through his creative projects and leadership roles, he continues to foster meaningful connections between music, storytelling, and community engagement

Lauren Saracino
Vocal Instructor

Lauren is excited to be back on staff at Starline Academy! A graduate of Hofstra University (B.S. in Ed. - Music Education), and Bridgewater State University (M.Ed. - Educational Leadership), Lauren brings decades of experience as a music educator and arts education leader/supervisor. She has studied voice and piano at a professional level, and has a wealth of experience teaching general music, piano, choir, band, and musical theatre to children of all ages.

Lauren currently serves as the Curriculum Director of Fine and Performing Arts for the Weymouth Public School District, where she oversees all music, theatre, visual and media arts programming from PreK through post-grad. In addition, she teaches middle school piano class, is the assistant director of the Weymouth High Marching Band, and serves as the co-chair to the Arts Education Advisory Council to the MA Dept. of Elementary and Secondary Education.

​Miss Lauren also enjoys performing in musical theatre productions in the area, and playing the ukulele. Lastly, she is also a proud Starline parent of two boys in the musical theatre program here at Starline.