Carolyn Wright
Executive Director

A long-time teaching artist, Carolyn has worked as a nonprofit arts educator and administrator since 1986. Starting out as a drama teacher for MAPA in 1998, she has worn multiple hats for the organization including Director of Programs, Marketing Director, Development Director, Chief Operating Officer, and Executive Director. Carolyn is Vice President of the Wailuku Community Association (WCA) and has served on multiple community advisory committees including Maui Economic Development Board’s Comprehensive Economic Development Strategy (CEDS) Strategy Committee, Wailuku Performing Arts Alliance (WPAA), the Technical Advisory Committee (TAC) for the Ka‘ahumanu Avenue Community Corridor, and the Wailuku Arts District Management Plan Committee.

Before working for MAPA, Carolyn was a founding member of Kaiser Permanente’s Educational Theatre Program in the San Francisco Bay Area, performing in and directing educational theatre shows for grades K-12. She earned her undergraduate degree in Political Science from Duke University and her master’s degree in Elementary Education from the University of Phoenix. A passionate advocate for the arts, Carolyn believes deeply in the power of the performing arts to transform individuals and communities.

James Devereux Tait
Scenic & Properties Designer
Jamie is a scenic and properties designer from New Orleans and currently on staff at the Maui Academy of Performing Arts. He graduated from the Kansas City Art Institute in 2003 where his focus was printmaking. He has designed and built sets/props for MAPA including JEKYLL & HYDE, HUNCHBACK OF NOTRE DAME, INTO THE WOODS, MAN OF LA MANCHA, CABARET, THE REVOLUTIONISTS and FROZEN. Having been raised by a cabinetmaker and a textile artist, James' aesthetic sensibilities have always been rooted in the material, the tangible. He has spent the past two decades focusing on development as a craftsman and found that his personal artistry and reverence for traditional techniques were best married through scenic, properties, object and textile design. The products of James' work are that of his hand. This consideration and diligence lend to the inherent beauty and quality they possess.

John Rowehl
Operations Director

John Rowehl holds a B.A. in Philosophy from Stanford University and an MFA in Music from Cornell University. In 2012-13, he served as Interim Director of Choral Activities at Cornell. Prior to that, he was affiliated with the Cornell Glee Club and Chorus for over a decade, as Assistant Conductor. He also held an appointment as Associate Director of Choral Music 2010-15. He conducted Cornell choral groups at such venues as Alice Tully Hall in Lincoln Center and the Kennedy Center, as well as on international tours to Brazil, China, and the U.K.

After enduring 29 winters in the Northeast, John came to his senses and moved home to Hawaiʻi, where he holds posts as Music Minister at St. John’s Episcopal Church and Artistic Director and Conductor of Maui Choral Arts Association, and occasionally teaches at UH Maui College. Before joining MAPA, John was Executive Director of the Maui Chamber Orchestra.

Angel Emerson
Production & Stage Manager
Angel is a proud member of the Stage Managers’ Association (SMA). Previous roles include: Technical Director, Maui Arts & Cultural Center (MACC); Senior Tech Director, Adrienne Arsht Center; Production Manager, Maui Theatre/'Ulalena; Resident & Touring Stage Manager, Omaha Theatre Company; Stage Manager, NYMF; among others. She carries an OSHA10 certification and has over 20 years of experience working with IATSE. Besides her background in national touring, she holds a BFA in Technical Theatre/Stage Management and is certified in stage combat (MACE certified). She also owns Angel’s Cookie Co, which donates to Behind the Scenes, a charity offering mental health resources to entertainment technology professionals.