Priscilla Hummel
Youth Program Director

Priscilla holds an MFA in Acting with a Directing Concentration from Regent University and a BA in Theatre Arts with a Dance Minor from Brenau University. Her acting credits for the stage include THE DIARY OF ANNE FRANK (Anne), THE IMAGINARY INVALID (Angelique), THE CRUCIBLE (Mary Warren), and THE SERVANT OF TWO MASTERS (Clarice). Screen acting credits include the television series FBI Files, A Haunting, and Psychic Witness, as well as local commercial, industrial, documentary, and student film projects. Prior to moving to Chicago, Priscilla worked for CYT Atlanta as a teacher, choreographer, and summer camp director. She also worked at Camp All-American in Atlanta as the assembly director and drama program advisor. Since moving to Chicago in 2007, she has been working for CYT Chicago as a teacher, director, and choreographer. Past productions include HONK!, ANNIE JR, THE JUNGLE BOOK, and SEUSSICAL JR. Other Chicago credits include 2009-2010 season choreographer for Northbrook Theatre For Young Audiences and COTTON PATCH GOSPEL (Choreographer/Assistant Director—Provision Theater). Priscilla has been involved with Provision since the summer of 2009 and is passionate about working with youth; she aims to inspire, enrich, and nurture them as they grow to love and master their craft.

Active in the opera and music theater scenes in Chicago, Valerie Maze is currently on staff as Ballet Pianist for the Lyric Opera of Chicago and as a collaborative pianist in the Music Theater department at Northwestern University. She recently won an After Dark Award for Outstanding Musical Direction for this past summer's production of Cats at Theater at the Center. In addition to her role with Provision, she has also served as Music Director at Peninsula Players, Wagon Wheel Theatre, Chicago Light Opera Works, Bowen Park Opera, and as a keyboardist with Chicago Shakespeare Theater and Marriott Theatre. She has served as a pianist with the Lyric Opera of Chicago Ryan Opera Center and has been involved in productions as Assistant Conductor and pianist at the Portland Opera, Indianapolis Opera, Utah Festival Opera, Chicago Light Opera Works, Harrisburg Opera, DuPage Opera, da Corneto Opera, and O.P.E.R.A.

Valerie has an MM in Vocal Accompanying from the College Conservatory of Music at the University of Cincinnati, and has also studied at DePaul University in Chicago, Anderson University in Indiana as well as Lucca, Italy and Graz, Austria. She has performed internationally including Germany, Finland, Sweden, Denmark, Estonia, Italy, Austria, Sri Lanka, and Mexico. Some of the more recent productions she has been involved in are Verdi's La Traviata , Handel's Julius Caesar , Strauss's Salome, Bizet's Carmen , J. Strauss's Die Fledermaus , Cats, Kiss Me Kate , South Pacific , Spitfire Grill, Cabaret and A Little Night Music.