Director of Choral Activities
Co-Director of Vocal Conservatory
Michael Ushino received his Masters in Music for Choral Conducting from the Bob Cole Conservatory at California State University, Long Beach in 2013. He also received his Bachelor of Arts degree in Business Economics from the University of California, Irvine in 2010. He performed as a singer and choralist in throughout Europe, Asia, Africa, and the United States. He has also performed and conducted on stage with internationally acclaimed performers such as Kronos Quartet and the Rolling Stones. His conducting mentors have included Professor Emeritus Joseph Huszti, Dr. Jonathan Talberg, and Keith Hancock.
Michael serves as the director of the Choral/Vocal Arts Department at San Juan Hills High School and heads the program's Vocal Music Conservatory. He has also taken the San Juan Hills High School Choirs on concert tours to San Francisco, New York, France, Luxembourg, Greece, and Germany with performances in notable venues including Carnegie Hall in New York City, Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris, France, and the Sagrada Familia in Barcelona, Spain. He also has conducted the San Juan Hills High School Chamber Singers at the California All-State Music Educators Conference (CASMEC) in February 2023 and at the American Choral Directors Association Western Region Conference (ACDA) in March 2024.
As the vocal director for the musical theatre productions at San Juan Hills, he has helped produce shows including: Urinetown (Winter 2014), Oklahoma (Spring 2015), 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee (Winter 2015), Cinderella (Spring 2016 & Winter 2023), Into the Woods (Winter 2016), Fiddler on the Roof (Spring 2017), the Drowsy Chaperone (Winter 2017), Les Misérables (Spring 2018), Little Women (Winter 2018), Kiss Me Kate (Spring 2019), Newsies (Winter 2019), Gentleman’s Guide to Love and Murder (Winter 2021), Disney’s Hunchback of Notre Dame (Spring 2021), Legally Blonde (Winter 2021), Beauty and the Beast (Spring 2022), Chicago (Spring 2023), and Crazy for You (Spring 2024).
Michael currently serves as a Co-Artistic Director for the male voice choir known as the Men in Blaque based in Irvine, CA. He has sung with the Men in Blaque since 2007 and competed with the ensemble in numerous prize-winning tours including the 2010 World Choir Games in Shaoxing, China and the 2017 International Musical Eistedfodd in Langollen, Wales. During his undergraduate experience, Michael helped found and performed with the male acappella group "Circle of Fifths" at UCI.
Michael currently serves on the 2024-2026 Executive Board of the Southern California Vocal Association as President and has previously served as the Vice President of High School Honor Choirs and President-Elect. Michael has presented for workshops and reading sessions for the Southern California Vocal Association, local universities, and for local school district music programs. He also adjudicates choral festivals and clinics with choirs in the local area. He also previously served as the Visual and Performing Arts Department Chair for San Juan Hills High School.
If there is ever a spare moment, you can find Michael and his wife Stephanie somewhere in Disneyland likely with a churro in hand.
Co-Director of Vocal Conservatory
Vocal Coach & Conservatory Voice Teacher
American Mezzo-soprano Erin Theodorakis enjoys an active career on the stage and in the concert hall. A compelling storyteller, she engages audiences with her dynamic presence and expressive voice.
On stage, Ms. Theodorakis most recently joined the Parnassus Society at the Soka Performing Arts Center, performing the role of La Marquise in Donizetti’s La Fille Du Régiment. She has also joined Pacific Opera Project for several of their recent productions. On the concert stage, Ms. Theodorakis' engagements have included featured solos in Bach’s Magnificat, the Vivaldi Gloria, Handel’s Messiah, and Mendelssohn's Elijah, to name a few. For four years in a row between 2014 and 2017, Ms. Theodorakis was awarded first place in the National Association of Teachers of Singing Los Angeles Competition in her division. In 2021, Ms. Theodorakis was recognized as a district winner in the Metropolitan Opera Laffont Competition for the San Diego District. She went on to win an encouragement award at the Regional Competition in Los Angeles.
She is honored to serve as the director of the Chapman University Women’s choir this coming Fall.
Ms. Theodorakis holds a Master’s degree in Operatic Voice Performance from the Shepherd School of Music at Rice University, where she was a recipient of the Shepherd School’s Provost Award. Originally from Southern California, Ms. Theodorakis graduated from Chapman University with a Bachelor of Music degree in both Vocal Performance and Music Education.
Vocal Coach & Conservatory Voice Teacher
Jeremiah Lussier enjoys an active career throughout the Los Angeles and Orange County areas as an actor, musician, and performer. Mr. Lussier received his B.M. Vocal Performance from Chapman University’s Hall-Musco Conservatory of Music studying with renowned soprano Carol Neblett. Upon graduation, he attended Tony Award-winning South Coast Repertory and participated as a member of their Acting Intensive Program, subsequently making his professional theatrical debut in SCR’s 37th Annual Production of Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol. His most recent regional credits include Jesus in Godspell (Laguna Playhouse), J. Pierrepont Finch in How to Succeed in Business without Really Trying (Westminster), The Baker in Into the Woods (McKinney Theatre), and featured performer in Shinbone Theatre’s Crazy-Ex Girlfriend Cabaret (Rockwell LA). He made his own cabaret debut with It’s Complicated at The Complex Hollywood in Los Angeles.
In addition to his active performance career, Mr. Lussier has worked extensively within Liturgical Music throughout the Catholic Diocese of Orange, where he served as Director of Music at St. Kilian Catholic Church for the last four years, building and overseeing a vibrant program including five different ensembles, a robust team of professional musicians, and a dedicated team of volunteer singers and instrumentalists that continues to grow. Prior to his position at St. Kilian, he worked as a professional staff singer and accompanist at various parishes including Christ Cathedral, Santiago de Compostela.
He is honored and excited to join the SJHHS Vocal Conservatory as a full-time vocal coach, with the goal of building and growing this phenomenal program.
