Ashley van Kirk

Ashley is from a small town in central California called Valley Springs. The county is famous for the Jumping Frog Jubilee started by Mark Twain in which Ashley has participated in since she was in second grade. She first got a taste of performing when she did ballet and tap as a two year old- she continued dancing throughout her elementary years and gained an interest in all of her art related classes and activities at school. She loved her music and singing classes, played the flute, joined choir and drama in middle school and there was no turning back from there. Her passion truly took off when she discovered musical theatre and had her first lead role as Hodel in Fiddler on the Roof. When she discovered AMDA (The American Musical and Dramatic Academy) and got a taste of the curriculum that was offered she was set on going and dedicated many months towards her audition, getting in was a big step and she now has her BFA in Musical theatre. AMDA gave her the training she always wanted, the knowledge of the business she needed, and a confidence in her artistry. She has since been creating great opportunities for herself, starting with creating a business as a musical theatre repertoire consultant (Matchmaker: Find Me a Song), working at Walt Disney World in Orlando, Florida where she currently resides and is also part of the cast choir. She recently went part time in her Disney job so she could take on other projects and be more available to performing projects. She now also works for Tututales Party Productions as a singing party performer, the Dr Phillips Center as an adjudicator for the Applause awards, and serves as the social media manager for two of her favorite theatre groups in Orlando (Actors Reaching Out and Rainbow Sun Productions). Her work life becoming freelance has allowed her to partake in many theatre productions including Bye Bye Birdie at CFCarts and An Avengers Lines with Rainbow Sun Productions, concerts including "Rotten to the Core" at the Spirit of Halloweentown festival in Saint Helens, Oregon, and even a feature length film! She is also continuing her training with Elaine Pechacek for voice, Bob Caso for Acting, and dance classes all over Orlando.