Alumni

Alumni Highlights

ASPVA graduates enrolled in our previous full-time academic program since 2012 were awarded scholarships totaling $645,000 and were accepted to the following colleges:

  • University of Padua – Italy
  • The Juilliard School
  • The University of Texas- Austin
  • New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts
  • Southwestern University
  • Boston Conservatory
  • Westminster Choir College at Princeton
  • The Chicago College for the Performing Arts
  • Texas State University School of Music
  • Rider University
  • University of Mississippi
  • Concordia University
  • Berklee College of Music
  • Belmont University
  • University of North Texas
  • American University Arts Program
  • Lewis and Clark College
  • Colorado State University
  • University of Texas-San Antonio
  • Morgan State University
  • College of Charleston
  • University of Southern California
  • Cornish College of the Arts
  • St. Louis University 
  • Savannah College of Art and Design 

Grace Eitrheim is a multimedia artist who graduated from ASPVA as a Cinematic Arts major and attends New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts. Since she started attending ASPVA in eighth grade, she has won awards in art, music, and film. In 2020, she was published in Artist Portfolio magazine for her charcoal art, and in 2021 she released her first music EP, Leaving the Theater. As a filmmaker, Grace has been selected into festivals such as South by Southwest and Indie Short Fest, and while in ASPVA’s screenwriting class, she completed her first feature screenplay. She will began her film studies at NYU in the fall of 2022 and is in the process of completing her second EP through Orb Recording Studios.

Sahana Pulleti is a vocalist from Mumbai, India. Learning Indian classical music from a young age, she was gradually influenced by different styles of music growing up. After moving to the US, she built an extensive repertoire in Western classical music, learning Italian, French and German literature. Sahana has never been hesitant to learn and experience music in all forms presented to her, and in fact, she has turned every opportunity into a learning experience. At ASPVA, she felt thoroughly immersed in the art forms of classical guitar and songwriting — both having impacted her musicianship massively. Her teachers helped Sahana build her artistic identity while improving her compositional skills and training her ear. Studying music she had never been exposed to dramatically changed her perspective time and again. Having swiftly developed her voice and artistry at ASPVA, Sahana now continues her education at Berklee College of Music, pursuing a double major in Jazz Composition and Vocal Performance.

Christina Cavazos was just 16 when she released her first EP, About You. She followed it up a year later with Cold, an alluring collection of elegant dream-pop that drew high praise from Austin American-Statesman critic Peter Blackstock, who called Cavazos “not just a future name to watch, but a captivating singer-songwriter who has already arrived.” With her third EP, Mile Marker, she carves out confident territory as a young adult about to embrace her future. Simultaneously releasing her six-song EP produced by Charlie Magnone and graduating from Austin’s School for Performing and Visual Arts, Cavazos began studying at New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts’ Clive Davis Institute for Recorded Music in fall 2018.

Kele Roberson attended ASPVA on a $14,500 scholarship per year and graduated with honors.  He currently trains with the Royal Ballet School in London and deferred enrollment to The Juilliard School in New York City where he earned a $55,000 scholarship per year.  Kele also trained on scholarship at Dance Institute as well as at summer programs such as: the Royal Ballet School’s summer program, Netherlands Dans Theatre’s summer intensive, Complexions Contemporary Ballet’s summer intensive and at the Houston Ballet School for a short-term stay. He was named the YAGP Semi-Finals Grand Prix Winner, NYCDA’s 2016 National Teen Male Outstanding Dancer, a 2017 YoungArts Winner in dance, and Presidential Scholar Semi-finalist.  In 2017, he was presented with the Royal Ballet’s Lynn Seymour Competition for Expressive Dance Award. Kele also enjoys choreographing and has created dance solos and ensembles for Dance Institute, ASPVA and his at the Royal Ballet School.

colin_guitar1-750x500Colin Huntley is a Singer/Songwriter/Guitarist based in Austin, TX. He is pursuing a music career and will attend Berklee College of Music on a $67,000 scholarship award. Colin’s journey began in 2011 at an AMTC showcase in Orlando, FL.  That led to his signing for acting by Abrams Artists Agency in LA and manager Cinda Snow of Snow Entertainment. He spent a year in Los Angeles taking acting classes and going on many auditions, booking several small roles along the way, the highlight of which was a featured non-speaking role on ABC’s Modern Family as Magritte’s living ” Man and the Apple”.  While in LA, at 14 years old he recorded three original songs, “Wings”, “I Bet” and “Linger” with Producer, Anthony Mazza. Colin returned to Texas in 2012 and worked with Grammy winning Producer Randy Miller to complete his first EP “ECLECTIC”. That was followed in 2013 by a collaboration with Co-Writer/Producer Keith Follese in Nashville, on four original songs for a second EP “Best I Never Had“. Accompanying the second EP was a music video produced by Nayip Ramos for the track “Best I Never Had“. In 2014 Colin was one of 30 nationally screened performers to perform live on primetime television on the season premier of ABC’s Rising Star. That same year he was noted by tastemaker site “Kings of A&R” as one of the “top 8 emerging artists to watch in 2014.” Colin recently recorded 6 new original songs for a 3rd EP with Producer Matt Noveskey at Orb Studios in Austin, TX. 

Alyssa LumpeeAlyssa Lumpee is an actress who graduated from ASPVA majoring in Theatre Arts and attends the University of Texas in Austin. While at ASPVA, Alyssa was the secretary of the National Honor Society and worked hard to earn exceptional grades academically. After graduating, she relocated to Los Angeles to pursue her acting career with the help of her agent and manager. In Hollywood, Alyssa enjoyed taking ongoing acting classes with industry professionals, and worked on film and television projects. She  was featured in two web series shows MATCH and AMERICAN INDIANS.  She also qualified for the Screen Actors Guild, SAG, for her roles in two independent films RED TIDE and A LEAF. She has since had the opportunity to work with many well-known industry professionals and teachers.

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Kelsey Richards graduated as president of the National Honor Society and was awarded a total of $44,000 in academic scholarships. She decided to attend Colorado State University with a dual concentration in Cultural and Biological Anthropology as her major and a Spanish minor, and was awarded a place on the Dean’s List. She plans to join the Peace Corps after obtaining her Bachelor’s degree and then on to Graduate School for a Masters in Forensic Anthropology. Although her academic studies are focused on Anthropology, she still practices her passions of voice and theater through a number of groups. She is a part of an all-girls a Capella group, as the Soprano. She is a part of an improvisation group that performs for the whole community. She also takes at least one theater performance class each semester. 

Joshua Banbury, Class of 2013Joshua Banbury was honored with his selection by the Young Arts Society out of 10,000 applicants to participate in Young Arts Week in Miami, Florida and to compete for the Presidential Scholar Award, the highest honor in arts for high school seniors in the United States. He had the great pleasure of attending master classes such as voice lessons with Placido Domingo along with the nation’s top performing art students. Joshua attended Westminster Choir College on scholarship, a vocal music conservatory specializing in choir, opera and ancient/sacred music.  He will be majoring in Vocal Performance (opera) and minoring in Musical Theatre. He will simultaneously work on an Advertising degree at Rider University.  He was the highest ranked audition of the freshman class, and was in demand among the 40 voice studios available at Westminster.  The studio he was placed in has received several Grammy awards for their choral recordings and they tour the world each year with the New York Philharmonic Symphony.

Fabrizio HeadshotGabriella de Cardenas graduated Salutatorian and was awarded $48,000 in scholarships.  She accepted the offer from The University of Texas in Austin, but has deferred enrollment as she immediately signed a professional modeling contract with one of the top agencies in Paris followed by additional contracts in New York, Milan, Miami and Brazil.  While at ASPVA,  Gabriella served as the National Honor Society Vice-President and completed 153 hours in community service.  She was also recognized for her academic excellence by The National Society of High School Scholars founded by Claes Nobel whose family established the world-renowned Nobel Prizes.  She praises her teachers at ASPVA for helping to develop her grace and stage presence through numerous dance, theatre, singer-songwriter and guitar performances, all of which helps her on the runway and behind the camera.  Gabriella enjoys working for clients such as L’Oreal Paris, Chloe, Oscar de la Renta and Carolina Herrera, she has been featured on DISNEY, ABC FAMILY, three national commercials, three feature films, and most recently in Seth Rogan and Evan Goldberg’s hit movie THIS IS THE END and Kenny Chesney’s music video NO SHOES NATION.