OUR TEAM

Nate Plummer is originally from Chippewa Falls, WI. He started performing at the age of 7 with the various theatre groups in his local community. He attended the University of Wisconsin Eau Claire and graduated with a Comprehensive Theatre Arts Degree with emphases in Theatre for Youth / Education and Performance. He studied Theatre for Youth / Education with Dr. Jennifer Chapman of The American Alliance for Theatre & Education (AATE) and worked with her in numerous capacities in her Touring Theatre & Theatre Outreach Programming.

Nate completed his Theatre Education Internship at Birder Studio (formerly Performer’s Workshop) of De Pere, WI under the direction of Artistic Director Alicia Birder. During his time there, he taught courses such as Beginning Acting, Audition Techniques, Character Analysis, Private Voice, as well as serving as Music Director / Co-Director for numerous musical revues and productions.

Upon graduating he joined the Missoula Children’s Theatre International Tour Project as a Tour Actor & Director (Teaching Artist) where he taught hour-long musical productions to children ages 6 – 18 all over the country. In 2014 Nate joined the acting company of the Arkansas Art Center Children’s Theatre in Little Rock, AR where also served as a lead teaching artist / educational programming advisor. He helped design and establish the new educational programming for their 2015 – 2016 season, as well as coordinating the programing with the National Theatre Education Standards established by AATE.

Nate has studied with Andrew Cooke – musical director of Chanhassen Dinner Theaters, Guthrie Theatre, Children’s Theatre Company, and numerous Broadway and regional theatre productions, and Brett Schrier – Composer, Musical Director / Conductor for Royal Caribbean Cruise Line, numerous Broadway National Tours and regional theatre productions, and Director of Broadway Playground. In the fall of 2016, Nate received his Advanced Vocal Coaching / Teaching Certification from the Internationally known New York Vocal Coaching under the instruction of Justin Stoney in New York City.

Nate founded Stage Door Unlocked in 2015. Since it’s opening, the studio has worked with clients in over 35 states, every US time zone, and 12 countries.. His E Books and Musical Theatre Repertoire Guides have sold hundreds of copies all over the world. Stage Door Unlocked’s workshops have served over 5000 participants to date all over North America.

He has been a featured guest on NATS Chat with Dr. Kari Ragan, The Full Voice Podcast with Nikki Loney, and is a contributor to Full Voice Music’s Teacher Guide (available on Amazon here.) In 2020, Nate joined the team at Grosh Backdrops & Drapery as a production consultant and blogger. His posts can be found here.

Nate is a proud member of NATS (National Association of Teachers of Singing), MTEA (Musical Theatre Educators Alliance), The Voice Foundation, and is considered a resident expert in musical theatre, auditioning, and pedagogy techniques with several teaching forums and organizations. He is also a member of Actors’ Equity Association and the Society of Stage Directors & Choreographers, directs productions for various organizations around the midwest, and is a frequent presenter and clinician / adjudicator for various organizations around the country.

Nate Plummer’s selected performance credits include:

Raoul in Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Phantom of the Opera, Demetrius in A Midsummer Night’s Dream, George Gibbs in Our Town, Green Dog in Go, Dog. GO!, Rumpelstiltskin in Rumpelstiltskin (The Musical), The Prince / Others in The Little Mermaid (The Musical), The Cat in the Hat in Seussical, and Snail in A Year with Frog and Toad.

Julianna Belles - Coach

Julianna Belles is originally from Morris Plains, NJ. She began performing at the age of seven and has been involved in numerous productions and performing arts companies over her career. She spent majority of her young adulthood traveling with the Mayo Performing Arts Company from Morristown, NJ as they performed for nursing homes, hospitals, non-profit events and fundraisers, and overall embraced the mindset that performance is all about giving back to those around you and making others smile. She also performed with many Broadway names such as Patti LuPone, Kristin Chenoweth, Sutton Foster and more.

Julianna attended Marymount Manhattan College from 2018 through 2022, and graduated with a BFA in Musical Theatre and a minor in Creative Writing. There, Julianna trained in performance and focused heavily on dance, vocal, and acting technique.

Julianna is also an assistant teacher at the Mayo Performing Arts Center and has been since she was in high school. She has experience working with children ages 5-16, and has been doing so since she herself was 17 years old. She enjoys working in both larger classes and one on one environments and it is important to her that her students leave feeling a boost in confidence, as well as with the knowledge they need to grow into skilled performers in a healthy manner that ensures longevity of performance.

Julianna has been a member of the Stage Door Unlocked family since she was 15 years old, being the very first student Nate brought into the studio! She’s seen it all, from studio cabarets to the Green Room chats, she’s been an active member within the studio and is so excited to be working with Stage Door Unlocked and Nate to bring her knowledge and skills to you!

Macchiato (Ato) - Customer Service / Online Therapy Dog

Macchiato - or Ato for short - is our studio dog. A 2 year old golden doodle mini, Ato joined our team when he came to live with Nate in 2018. He is always ready to help our clients cheer up on rough days and loves to stop in and say hi - even during online sessions. He is lovingly called our “online therapy dog.” While he does not have his therapy dog certification yet, he is actively working on his training and looks forward to the day he can have that credit on his resume.

Ato’s dream role is to play Sandy in either Annie or Annie Warbucks. We are sure he will get this chance - that’s the benefit of having a musical theatre director for a dad.

Ato is a huge part of our Stage Door Unlocked family and we are always excited when he stops in for a visit during a session.