Our Team.
We’re here to help you develop your presence, connect to your authentic voice, and rise to your true power and potential.
Camilla Burgess / CEO
“I believe our voice, happiness and success are inseparable.”
Since founding Viva Voce Speech Arts Studio in 2012, Camilla has helped hundreds of people locally and internationally become the leaders and speakers they wish to be. She offers a powerful combination of executive coaching and voice & speech consulting, to help leaders develop self-awareness, executive presence, communication skills and impact.
Camilla is trained and certified as a Co-Active coach (CPCC and ACC), earned distinctions in her teaching certificates for Speech & Drama (ARCT, ATCL) and studied at Canada’s National Voice Intensive under Canada’s foremost voice, movement and Shakespeare teachers. She also holds a Bachelor of Arts Honours from Queen’s University.
Camilla combines careful listening, acceptance, enthusiasm and challenge to help all her students reach their maximum potential.
Luisa Jojic / Teacher
Performer, Teaching Artist, and Coach, Luisa is a proud member of the Viva Voce team. She brings with her over 15 years of professional performance and teaching experience and a love for inspiring people of all ages to connect with their creativity through voice and movement.
A multiple Jessie Richardson Theatre Award nominee, Luisa has worked as an actor with many celebrated theatre companies, including The Arts Club, Touchstone Theatre, Pi Theatre, The Gateway Theatre, Patrick Street Productions, and eight seasons with the Bard on the Beach Shakespeare Festival. She is a YWCA Women of Distinction Award Nominee, and a recipient of a Pacific Community Resources Award for Outstanding Practice in teaching. Luisa strongly believes in developing the unique voice within, and empowering each individual with the tools to do so. Luisa holds a BFA in Acting from The University of British Columbia.
Michael Bernard / Teacher
Michael Robert Bernard is a voice coach as well as a professional television, film and theatre actor. He received his diploma in Performing Arts from Douglas College in New Westminster, where he was honoured with a performance based scholarship.
Michael began working professionally in theatre, film and television industry straight out of college. He knows that learning never ends, he is always gaining knowledge from the experience of his fellow actors and directors. He adds their wisdom to his repertoire and continues to grow as a teacher and actor.
Michael enjoys mentoring others. In recent years he has facilitated workshops in both middle schools and high schools in the Vancouver area and in his hometown of Campbell River. He is always keen to help his students of all ages discover how to create characters and strengthen their confidence through acting, voice and movement.
Lindsey Angell / Teacher
In her fifteen years as a professional theatre actor, Lindsey has travelled across Western Canada collaborating with celebrated companies such as The Arts Club, Touchstone, Neworld, The Citadel, Theatre Calgary and the Manitoba Theatre Centre as well as four seasons with Bard on the Beach.
Lindsey has garnered a Jessie Richardson Award and the Hnatyshyn Foundation Award for English Theatre. Her practice as a facilitator and teacher has included the exploration and study of classical, contemporary and musical theatre. She has a particular love of dialect studies.
Mom to two young boys, Lindsey is a graduate of both the Mount Royal College Conservatory program and Studio 58 and acknowledges her practice takes place on the unceded territories of the Tsleil-waututh, Squamish and Musqueam territories.
Jennie Grenelle / Teacher
Jennie Grenelle is a lifelong actor and certified executive coach (ACC) who is passionate about helping clients find greater power, authenticity, and joy in communication.
She has worked as a professional actor for over 20 years, both in New York City and across the US and Canada. Jennie is passionate about bringing the skills of awareness and embodiment that she’s cultivated as a performer to people in all fields.
Jennie holds an MFA in Classical Acting from George Washington University/The Shakespeare Theatre, and a BFA in Acting from NYU-Tisch. She is certified in the Compton PESL Method of Accent Modification and in teaching mindfulness meditation through the Engaged Mindfulness Institute. Jennie is also trained and certified as an executive coach through Presence Based Coaching.
Quinn Cartwright / Teacher
Quinn is an actor, vocalist and voice coach based in Vancouver, BC. She has worked as a performer both internationally and in Canada, most recently at Shanghai Disney Resort in Shanghai, China and Warner Bros World in Abu Dhabi, UAE.
As a voice coach she has worked for Gateway Academy, UArts, Acting Up! Musical Theatre, Vancouver Performing Stars and more. She is passionate about helping each individual student find their voice and tailor her lessons to each client to make learning as engaging and fun as possible.
Also a professional yoga instructor, she believes in a full-bodied approach to voice work and uses a combination of practical vocal technique and creative exploration to build confidence and strength in her students’ voices! Quinn is a graduate of Studio 58.
Vanessa Schaefer / Teacher
Vanessa Schaefer is an Irish-German actor, writer, director, and speech arts instructor with a passion for storytelling and performance. After studying acting and theatre at the Lir Academy, Vanessa gained experience in various films, including leading roles in Dive (Amazon Prime) and Blurred Lines, featured at the Luxembourg Film Festival. Her work also spans podcast plays, short films, and creative writing.
Vanessa holds both ALCM (with distinction) and LLCM Diplomas in Drama Teaching and Communication. She taught at the Betty Ann Norton Theatre School, where she developed her skills as an engaging instructor. Vanessa also holds an MA in Screenwriting, has directed original short films, and published works, including a children’s book, The Magic of Mna.
Now based in Vancouver, Vanessa is eager to inspire students through speech arts, fostering confidence, creativity, and effective communication skills in performers of all levels.
Valeria Ascolese / Teacher
Valeria Ascolese is a Peruvian-Italian multidisciplinary artist and educator born in Lima, Peru. A graduate of Capilano University, she has collaborated with theatre companies like Western Canada Theatre, Electric Company Theatre, Bard on the Beach, Carousel Theatre for Young People, rice&beans theatre, Aluna Theatre, Ay! Caramba Theatre and Rumble Theatre, while simultaneously working in film and TV.
Valeria is also an arts administrator and works for numerous schools and theatre companies creating drama curricula for education and after-school programs. Valeria holds a TEFL-PP certificate and frequently teaches English and Drama in public and private schools in Italy.
Julia Siedlanowska / Counsellor
Sometimes, voice and speech issues are related to more complex emotional issues. As renowned voice coach Kristin Linklater once said “blocked emotions are the fundamental obstacle to a free voice.” If this resonates with you, consider a conversation with Julia.
Julia believes in the healing power of the therapeutic relationship. She aims to facilitate the search for personal meaning and life goals through various therapeutic techniques including narrative therapy, psychodrama, and mindfulness. Julia uses a person-centred approach, which means that she works collaboratively with her clients, at their own pace. She aims to be a non-judgmental listener, walking alongside as they face their fears, shame, self-loathing, and other challenges to find greater self-acceptance and ease.
Julia has worked for over a decade as a voice coach with artists and students aged six to sixty-five, helping them discover confidence in themselves through voice work, drama, and public speaking to create life-affirming transformation through voice. She brings this same compassion and curiosity to her work as an intern counsellor.
Julia holds a BA in Acting and a Masters Degree in Counselling Psychology.
Clare Chan / Administration & Marketing
Clare has over 15 years of experience in marketing, public relations and administration. With an international background, Clare’s experience spans education, arts & culture and consumer brands. Clare is a seasoned Toastmaster and is passionate about helping people succeed and tell their stories. Clare is fluent in English, Mandarin and Cantonese.
Amber Lewis / Teacher
Amber is an Actor and Teaching Artist with over 15 years of experience teaching drama to young people. Amber has performed professionally on stages across Canada including The Citadel, Arts Club, Theatre Network, Edmonton Actors Theatre, Chemainus Theatre, Pi Theatre, Punctuate! Theatre, The Mayfield, Skirts-a-Fire, and six seasons at Bard on the Beach.
As a Teaching Artist, Amber worked with The Young Actor’s Project and in Bard on the Beach’s education program. Amber also extended her teachings to her home island of Barbados, leading drama workshops in schools across the country. Passionate about supporting others in unlocking their fullest power and creative potential, Amber is thrilled to be a part of the Viva Voce team.
Emily Jane King / Teacher
Emily Jane King is an actor and voice practitioner from Winnipeg, MB, currently based in Vancouver. She is a graduate of the Studio 58 Acting program, where she remained for an additional intensive semester to apprentice in Voice Pedagogy under Brad Gibson, Head of Voice.
Emily is currently deepening her knowledge and practice through an apprenticeship with Bard on the Beach under Alison Matthews, Head of Coaching. In addition to her coaching with Viva Voce, she also teaches Voice at the Vancouver Film School.
