Professional Experience
Chantrell M. Lewis
Contact@Chantrelllewis.com
Highly experienced performing arts educator and social-behavioral researcher. Experienced with teaching a variety of demographics and dedicated to educating Black and Brown students who may have experienced trauma or housing and food insecurity.
Cleveland Public Theatre Education Brick City Theatre - Lead Teaching Artist
“Brick City Theatre engages youth ages 5-14 and family members who reside in public housing in a year-round afterschool and intensive summer arts program that improves academic skills, instills empathy and responsibility, builds character, and enhances creative thinking. Under the dedicated guidance of CPT Teaching Artists, children learn how to create and perform their own plays, choreography, poetry, music compositions, and visual art. These works are then crafted into original performances that are presented annually at CMHA community centers and arts festivals throughout Cleveland.” Cleveland Public Theatre Education- Cleveland Act Now Academy! - Lead Teaching Artist
Cleveland Public Theatre Education- Cleveland Act Now Academy! - Lead Teaching Artist
CAN Academy is a free performing arts program at Cleveland Public Theatre for young teens and youth from Cleveland and surrounding neighborhoods. Young artists engage in rigorous (and fun!) theatre training, learning acting fundamentals, script analysis, storytelling techniques, and play creation. CAN multidisciplinary performing arts activities improve academic skills, instill empathy and responsibility, build character, and enhance creative thinking.
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Implementing performing arts programming: teaching and creating curriculum, organizing field trips, producing community celebrations, and various administrative tasks.
University of California, Irvine - Course Instructor
As a UCI Instructor, Lewis is tasked with coaching and teaching undergraduate students in the University of California - Irvine's Drama department. Leading a classroom at the collegiate level requires patience, knowledge, and a great deal of research and planning.
Instructors teach the 30 series; the introduction to acting courses.
Courses taught: Intro to Acting, Intermediate Acting, Scenes, Monologue Workshop Course
Galileo Innovation - Lead Instructor
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Create a safe, engaging and fearless learning environment for all campers.
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Mentor aspiring educators, and work with other lead instructors to strengthen group management and teaching techniques.
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Commit to building a safe, child-focused community
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Take initiative to analyze and solve problems
Dance Arts Academy - Executive Assistant
An executive assistant helps the executive for whom they work with tasks such as scheduling; reviewing, prioritizing and responding to emails; answering and returning phone calls; organizing documents; maintaining records; taking notes at meetings and any other administrative tasks that help the executive perform their job
Segerstrom Center for the Arts & Disney Musicals in Schools Residency - Teaching Artist
This position partners with a select public school in Orange County, CA to help establish and foster a musical theatre program, with the primary goal being inclusivity and sustainability. This position holds residency in this school for the entirety of the Program Year. The Teaching Artist role requires you and your TA partner to visit your assigned school once a week for 17 weeks, partnering with the school to develop the wide spectrum of skills needed when producing a piece of musical theater, including: critical thinking, problem solving, ensemble building, communication, self-confidence and interpersonal skills.
The Jar of Sunshine Inc. - Executive Director
The Jar of Sunshine Inc. Director serves as leadership for the organization. The director leads executive board members by initiating programming, organizing meetings and leading the efforts of the organization creatively and executively.
Integrated Arts: Voice & Drama Studio - Voice and Acting Coach
Voice and drama coach of virtual studio. Voice and drama training includes lesson planning, student evaluations, vocal and physical warm ups, audition preparation. Voice: Classical, jazz and contemporary.
Drama: Comedic and dramatic.
Segerstrom Center for the Arts Arts Teach - Residency Teaching Artist
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Develop and present standards-based educational arts residencies to elementary-level students that synthesize and stimulate creative practices.
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Present arts and cultural programs in an authentic manner and have a thorough knowledge of their history, background, and context.
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Address the learning needs of diverse student populations.
"Working with Chantrell has helped me grow as a singer and performer! Being a drama student I have found these lessons helpful in utilizing my voice in performing and singing. I’ve been able to gain a greater understanding of my voice and how unique each of our voices are. I am relatively new to voice work and have been able to advance quickly thanks to these lessons; through understanding the importance of presence, structure, and moving beyond following notes and patterns to develop character and presence behind each note.
I’ve appreciated working with Chantrell because of her patience, adaptability, and her ability to help me grow in each lesson!"
- Cindy El Jamrah
Integrated Arts Voice & Drama Student
"We knew we made the right decision as parents to pursue finding Ms. Channy on the world wide web, when she showcased her breathtaking talents at a student event.
I remember telling myself that Leah has been looking for Ms. Channy for a while now and that this would be a perfect fit. As luck has it, it was a perfect fit on all levels.
Ms. Channy has been a blessing to our daughter's life in so many ways. She has given her the wings to fly and continue to reach her full potential. During vocal classes, I typically step away but, on occasion i listen in to what they are working on. Quite often I hear Ms. Channy giving positive feedback and really helping Leah understand music and all the feelings within it. I feel that Ms. Channy is such a professional in what she does and does it all with love. The results are shown in how much Leah has grown vocally and the spike in her confidence, this is all attributed to her being an amazing teacher, guide, and friend."
Leah Presley Martinez
Integrated Arts Voice & Drama Student
- Martinez Family
Statement on Social Emotional Learning ...
My philosophy of teaching is that the best curriculum is always fully supported by the competencies of Social and Emotional Learning. As an SEL certified educator I believe the essentials to well - rounded learning are centered by practices of self - regulation, social awareness, relationship skills, and good decision making. These align themselves with each and every discipline within the performing arts and so, I approach each of my classrooms with the intention of healthy student-teacher relationships and SEL based curriculum...I believe my job as an educator is to serve as a conduit for exploration and discovery with safety and boundless freedom.
Demonstrated Excellence in Performing Arts Education
Volunteer Work
Dedication to community
DML/Euclid School of Music
Provide Summer camp opportunities for low income students within Cuyahoga county
● Watch over camp goers; assist in daily activities
● Organize programs that will utilize drama , music and dance as community outreach
291 E 222nd St, Euclid, OH 44123 216-406-1699 Duration: 2 years
St. Augustine Church and Hunger Center
● Meal delivery to homes in Cleveland, Ohio during Christmas and Thanksgiving
1400 Howard Ave, Cleveland, OH 44113
Pretend City Children's Museum
● Read to youth during literacy time during literacy month.
29 Hubble, Irvine, CA 92618
King Kennedy Community Center
Provide opportunities for students to engage in self - expression , social change and self empowerment activities through theatre and dance. Students engage in programming which allows them to express themselves, attend local community and regional theatre performances.
6660 Garfield Rd, Ravenna, OH 44266
Phone: (330) 296-9957 Duration: 1 year
Youth Christian Outreach Program
Volunteer based organization that provided outreach to women offering etiquette classes, acting classes and fashion; this program emphasizes women empowerment within the African American community .
Howard County Public School System
Visiting Author Series - African American Literature Class Teacher: Rhoyal Davis May 2021
Leadership - Accomplishments
Affiliations & Awards
Alpha Psi Omega - National Theatre Honor Society Service based theatre fraternity inducting students demonstrating a high standard of accomplishment in theatre and participation in a variety of production tasks and extensive community service .
2016-2019 Black Theatre Association President The Black Theatre Association (BTA) serves academic scholars committed to advancing the black theatre aesthetic. Our unified interest in the critical study of Black theatre from a global perspective informs our collective desire to inform and promote the experiences of Black people as expressed in various forms of drama and performance.
Equity Membership Candidate - Actor’s Equity Association The U.S. labor union that represents more than 50,000 Actors and Stage Managers.
2018- Golden Flash Award Recipient The Alumni Association's Alumni Awards are the university's most prestigious honors given to several alumni and one student each year. Alumni and one student will be honored for their exceptional contributions in their chosen field, in their communities and at Kent State University.
2019 - BroadwayWorld Award Recipient - Best Actress in a Comedy or Drama - Esther in Intimate Apparel by Lynn Nottage “ reminiscent of Viola Davis and Octavia Spencer in “The Help.” Lewis truly gives a performance with incredible nuance that actually moved many audience members to laughter, anger and tears, myself included” Ashlynn , The Burr Magazine
Kent State University’s Spoken Word Poetry team member; placed 8th in nation 2017 College Unions Poetry Slam
2021 - The University of California, Irvine Elftmann Scholarship. Award given to a student in the arts with exceptional dedication to scholarship and the arts.
Chantrell Lewis is the founder of a California 501 (c)(3) Non-Profit Corporation: The Jar of Sunshine Inc. This corporation was created in an effort to bring awareness to issues directly affecting women and children of the African diaspora. In our corporation we work year round to raise money in order to offer donations of clothing, hygienic products, children’s books, literature, face coverings/masks and engage in enlightening panel discussions for women and youth in Northeast Ohio and areas of Southern California.
Dance Arts Academy - Orange County, CA
Publications and Features
UHURU Magazine 2019
Voyage Ohio Magazine 2021
Burr Magazine 2019
Voyage LA 2022
CANVAS REBEL Magazine 2022
Lewis enjoys creating art and has begun creating mini-documentaries. Her first six minute documentary shows portions of three generations before her. Grandmothers, Daisy Lewis - Simmons, Mary Reese and her mother Sheri Coleman.
“Addressing Bisexuality, Gender Non-Conformity and Performativity through The Color Purple by Alice Walker (adapted for stage by Marsha Norman)” Excellence in the Performing Arts Research Journal . (Published 2019)
"Unbound: The Performing Arts and the Social - Emotional Development of Black Youth" (Published 2022)
https://escholarship.org/uc/item/7rg658fh
“House of Sage and Sun: The Short Book of Short Poems” By Chantrell Lewis (Published 2020)
"There Was a Movement Yesterday" by Chantrell M. Lewis Illustrated by Tyron Hoisten (Published 2021)
"Black Girl's Guide to Ladyhood" by Chantrell M. Lewis (Published 2021)
"Dessert Dreams" by Chantrell M. Lewis Illustrated by Nick Exum (Published 2022)
"Love Yourself Black Child" by Chantrell M. Lewis (Published in Silent Spark Press - Great Poetry October 2022)
Courage driven leadership
Workshops, masterclasses, performing arts programming .
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