Charissa Chiaravalloti is the Director of Performing Arts at Colorado Northwestern Community College.  She holds a Masters degree in Music from the University of Wyoming, and a Bachelor’s degree in music from the Pennsylvania State University.  Charissa has returned to Rangely after a two year hiatus in Bellingham, Washington, where she was the head of the music program at Whatcom Community College.    Charissa was previously employed as the Director of Performing Arts at Colorado Northwestern Community College for three years, beginning in January, 2002.  She currently teaches courses in music history, theory, and choir.  She also teaches private voice lessons, and courses in theatre. 

Charissa is a lyric soprano with experience as a soloist in a variety of large-scale choral works, and has played roles such as “Public Opinion” in Offenbach’s Orpheus in the Underworld, “Golde” in Fiddler on the Roof, and “Bastien” in Mozart’s Bastien and Bastienne, among others.

Charissa’s focus, however, has centered around choral conducting.  In spring of 2006, Ms. Chiaravalloti was invited to guest-conduct the San Juan Music Educator’s Association Honor Choir in northwestern Washington.  She spent the spring of both 2005 and 2006 as musical director for the Nooksack Valley High School’s productions of The Music man and Guys and Dolls.  In the summer of 2000, she conducted the Wyoming State Choir on a tour of Italy, has served as assistant director of the University of Wyoming Collegiate Chorale, founder of the University of Wyoming Chamber Chorale, and musical director at St. Matthew’s Cathedral in Laramie, Wyoming.  Charissa is continuing to build an outstanding choral program here at Colorado Northwestern Community College.