Welcome Matt and Kelsi!

Vinnie and I are thrilled to announce our incoming class of MFA Sound Design students for the class of 2016.  They will both be joining our ranks this fall.  You can read a bit about them below:

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Matt Eckstein

Matthew Eckstein joins the UC Irvine MFA Sound Design program by way of Case Western Reserve University, where he will graduate with a Bachelor of Arts and honors in Technical Theater and Design this spring.  While attending CWRU, Matthew served as the Department of Theater's sound supervisor for three years, and designed several shows on the Eldred stage, including The Most Fabulous Story Ever Told, The Rocky Horror Show, and Our Town.  Matthew has also worked in various other venues in the midwest, including Cain Park, Dobama Theatre, The Beck Center for the Arts, The Cleveland Play House, and Hope Summer Repertory Theatre.  His work can be found online at www.mecksteindesign.com.  He is very excited to be joining the UCI Sound family in the fall!

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Kelsi Halverson

Kelsi is a sound designer, based in Los Angeles, extremely excited to attend UCI in the fall! She will be graduating from the University of Southern California with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Sound Design in May. A native Las Vegan, Kelsi has always been involved in the theatre, having attended performing arts schools for both middle and high school. She has dedicated the last four years to sound design, having designed over 20 productions at USC. She's been a part of two summer stocks, Alpine Theatre Project and Williamstown Theatre Festival, both on the sound team. In her spare time, Kelsi likes to go to concerts, movies, bake treats and travel around the world. She loves small furry creatures and Harry Potter.