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Our Mission
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Our Mission

Upside Arts is a theatrical production company for Seacoast area youth and teens that aims to build confidence, sense of self, and empathy through thoughtful, original, and creative storytelling.​

Founded in October 2018 by Miles Burns, Seraphina Caligiure, and Alden Caple, and with help from Joshua Goldberg and many parents and friends, we are thrilled to be working with the incredibly talented kids on the Seacoast.

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“My favorite thing is to write for young performers, and for their family to see it; to be creative, to create. So, it’s exciting for me to get the focus on that, and be creating again... to sit down and create with everybody.”
~ Miles Burns

“Our mission is about nurturing the kids, doing stuff so they can learn and think and be better people. It’s not just learning a dance move, but growing them as human beings.”
~ Seraphina Caligiure

"Theatre Education is about much more than stagecraft and performing; it is a way to learn to be more human, more imaginative, more vulnerable, empathetic, and confident."
~ Alden Caple

Meet the Team
Miles Burns

Miles Burns

Miles Burns, a seacoast area playwright, composer, musician, musical director and artistic director has spent the last 15 years doing his part to cultivate and enrich the arts and arts education throughout the Seacoast. Miles has collaborated on over 30 new musicals for kids to which he is credited for book, music and lyrics. His work has been performed on stage in a number of elementary, middle and high schools. In addition, his work has been produced at The Seacoast Repertory Theatre, Emerson College, The Players Ring, Patrick Dorow Productions and Weathervane Theatre. As a musician and musical director, Miles has had the pleasure of working at various schools and venues throughout the region including Interlakes Theater, The Rochester Opera House, Portsmouth High School and Prescott Park Arts Festival to name a few. He served the community for over ten years while employed with The Seacoast Repertory Theatre in various roles including Youth Music Director, Director of Youth Programming, Associate Artistic Director and Artistic Director. As Artistic Director, Miles cultivated award winning directors, actors and programming for four years. Miles lives in Portsmouth with his two daughters, Violet and Harper, and his wife, Taryn. He is thankful every day for his beautiful family. 

Seraphina Caligiure

Seraphina CAligiure

Seraphina is a native of the Seacoast. She graduated in 2009 from the University of New Hampshire with a BA in Musical Theatre.  After a short stint in New York City, she decided to come back to NH and started teaching youth theatre classes at the KCC. Over the past eight years she has worked as the Education Director at PDP as well as the Director of Education and Youth Programming at the Seacoast Repertory Theatre.

 

Seraphina works with students of all ages, including adults! She has taught classes in acting, dance, musical theatre, and more. She has also directed and choreographed countless youth and teen productions. Favorites include All Shook Up (Seacoast Rep) and Heathers (Seacoast Rep). Seraphina has also directed many mainstage shows for professional casts including: Monty Python’s Spamalot (Seacoast Rep), The Toxic Avenger (Rochester Opera House), Seussical (ROH), Songs for a New World (PDP), and Little Shop of Horrors (PDP).

 

While she loves directing, Seraphina is definitely a performer at heart. She loves any opportunity to perform onstage. Favorite roles include Morticia (Addams Family), Velma (Chicago), and The Witch (Into the Woods). She has studied with Gay Nardone, Drika Overton, Carol Lucha Burns, and many more.

 

Seraphina is also a Makeup Artist for film, television, and weddings.  When she isn’t working, she enjoys baking and spending time with her two kitties, Henry and Mason, and her husband, Mike.

Alden Caple

Alden Caple

A graduate of The Walnut Hill School '06, and The Hartt School '10, Alden has worked as a Seacoast based Director, Choreographer, Performer, Technician, and Teacher for the last decade.  He has worked with the Boston Ballet City Dance Program integrating arts education into third grade classrooms throughout the North Shore of Boston as well as teaching classes at Fusion Dance Academy and Great Bay Academy of Dance in Musical Theatre, Jazz, and Modern styles.

Over the past decade Alden has worked extensively in schools throughout the Seacoast including Oyster River High School (Resident Choreographer), Marshwood Middle School (Drama Director), North Hampton School (Choreographer), and Little Harbor School (Artist in Residence). Alden was most recently Theatre Director for Portsmouth High School & Middle School where he taught theatre to grades 6-12 as well as musical theatre and movement at the high school level.

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Joshua Goldberg

Managing Director • josh@theupsideartscompany.org

Joshua Goldberg is a theatre artist based in Portsmouth, New Hampshire. He is a 2021 graduate of Bennington College where he received a BA with concentrations in Drama, Music, and Playwriting. Since he started acting at age 7, Josh has worked in the theatre as a playwright/composer, director, choreographer, stage manager, designer, educator, administrator, and more. A number of his family musicals for young performers have been produced throughout seacoast New Hampshire, including An Oz Story, Get A Life!, and Belle of the Barn Dance. Other recent directing credits include Into The Woods, Children of Eden and 9 to 5 at Upside Arts, as well as productions at Rye and Portsmouth schools. In addition to his work with Upside Arts, Josh is a Company Artist at New Hampshire Theatre Project and the Webmaster for The Players' Ring Theatre and MusicalArts. www.joshuadgoldberg.com

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LIllY HIRSCH

Social Media Manager

Lilly Hirsch has been involved with Upside since it began, when she was still a camper. She continued to dance and perform throughout the Seacoast and has appeared on and off stage. Lilly has taught at neighboring dance studios and choreographed numerous productions at Portsmouth schools, Upside Arts, and more. Lilly is studying in New York City at Marymount Manhattan College for Psychology and Dance, taught by dance professionals that have been seen on Broadway and worked in dance companies such as Alvin Ailey and Joffrey. Lilly loves Upside Arts dearly and is ecstatic about this new position.

Follow on Insta: @lillyhirsch_

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Christian Arnold

Technical Director

Christian Arnold has been active in the Seacoast theater circuit for the past decade as an actor and a technician. Christian is currently the Technical Director at The Seacoast Repertory Theatre. Previous Lighting Design credits include; The Great American Trailer Park Musical (ROH); Prescott Park Summer Concert Series; Moonglow (The Players Ring); Places You Go (Hatbox); Seacoast Rep Drag Series; Holy and Unruly (Hatbox); Shrek The Musical (PHS). Christian is also a Senior Producer and Technical Director for Atlantic Pro. Wrestling.

Meet the Team

Production History

Production History

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