Karen Porter
Program Director, Music Instructor
Karen has a master’s degree in Choral Conducting from Portland State University, where she studied with Dr. Ethan Sperry and Carlos Kalmar (conductor of the Oregon Symphony). While at PSU, she sang with the PSU Chamber Singers, including performances at the National ACDA Conference, the NW ACDA Conference, the International Choral Festival of Preveza (Greece), and performances of Mahler 2 and Handel’s Messiah with the Oregon Symphony. She also holds bachelor’s and master’s degrees in Piano Performance from Brigham Young University, where she was actively involved in choral music, accompanied BYU Women’s Chorus, and studied choral conducting at the graduate level with Dr. Ronald Staheli. She helped to found Cántico Singers in 2008 and has served as its Artistic Director since 2010. She is also actively involved in musical theatre, and enjoys performing in community productions. Originally from the San Francisco Bay Area, Sherwood has been her home since 2006.
Tara Porter
Dance Instructor & Choreographer
Tara has been hooked on dance since a group of dancers at a parade grabbed her attention. She began study at the age of five, performing in ballet, jazz, tumbling, and tap with the Arizona Stars. She also trained on pointe with the Arizona Ballet Company and continued dancing through college. Beginning in 2015, she has worked with the VPA as a dance teacher and choreographer, as well as choreographer for Sherwood High School musical theatre productions.