Emma Sorensen

CTE After School Program Director

Showcase Musical Director

Emma is excited to expand her role with Creative Theatre Experience, leading our after-school program.

Emma's Story

Emma Sorensen is a theater educator, musical director, and digital media professional dedicated to creating inclusive, engaging, and artistically rigorous learning environments for young people. With a background that spans music direction, classroom instruction, and award-winning media production, Emma brings a multidisciplinary approach to arts education that centers creativity, collaboration, and accessibility.

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Since 2020, Emma has served as a musical director and theater educator, working with students ages 5–18 across more than 20 theater productions. She guides young performers in vocal technique, ensemble collaboration, and performance confidence, while fostering supportive rehearsal spaces where students of varying experience levels and learning styles can thrive. Her teaching emphasizes both artistic growth and personal development, encouraging students to take creative risks, support one another, and find their voices on and off the stage.

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In addition to her work in theater, Emma is a substitute teacher and paraeducator with the Peninsula School District, supporting students across grades K–12, including special education and STEM classrooms. Her experience includes working closely with students who have diverse learning needs, accommodations, and behavior plans. She is skilled at maintaining continuity of instruction, adapting lesson plans in real time, and building positive classroom environments grounded in respect, consistency, and student success.

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Emma’s commitment to inclusive arts education extends into digital storytelling and media. She is an accomplished freelance video editor whose work spans commercial, documentary, and social platforms. She served as editor on Including Us, a documentary following four teens with disabilities participating in the Oregon Shakespeare Festival. The film was showcased at the Ashland Independent Film Festival in 2024, aired on PBS, and continues to be available via streaming platforms. This work reflects Emma’s dedication to amplifying authentic youth voices and increasing representation and access within the arts.

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Emma holds a Bachelor of Science in Digital Media from Southern Oregon University, where she graduated summa cum laude with a 4.0 GPA. While at SOU, she participated in a writing mentorship with screenwriter David Griffiths and received multiple honors at the SOU Film Festival, including Best Narrative Film (2019) and Best Screenplay (2020).

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Across all of her work, Emma is guided by the belief that the performing arts should be accessible, affirming, and empowering for every student. Whether teaching in the classroom, leading a rehearsal, or shaping a story through media, she brings thoughtfulness, adaptability, and a deep respect for young people and their creative potential.