Robyn Starks Holcomb, Head Vocal Director
Robyn Starks Holcomb has over 20 years of experience throughout the Midwest as a motivating teacher, musician, actor, choreographer and clinician. The head vocal director at Roosevelt High School in Sioux Falls, SD, Starks Holcomb has been conducting choirs in the high school, middle school and elementary school levels, spanning public and private schools as well as community chorus and church settings for 20 years. At Roosevelt since 2011, Starks Holcomb has watched the program grow to nearly 600 singers every day, conducting Concert Choir, Executive Chamber, Executive Suite and First Ladies. Together with John Parezo, she co-conducts Mixed and Freshman Choruses. Under her direction, the Concert Choir appeared in performance at the 2016 NC-ACDA Regional Conference. The choir has also performed by invitation at state conferences and in-services, twice at the State Capitol, as a guest choir with college choirs and celebrity talents, in Carnegie Hall, the Aaron Copland School of Music in New York City, the Kennedy Center and in Los Angeles on a project with composer, Dan Forrest.
Starks Holcomb spends time outside of Roosevelt High School in demand as a guest conductor, musical director, choreographer and judge/critique for choral festivals, vocal contests and competitions. Most recently, she spent three weeks conducting, studying and singing in Aix-en-Provence, France, as a selected conducting scholar with the University of Delaware's 2017 Choral Symposium. In 2016, she served as the NC-ACDA Senior High Honor Choir Chair, conducted a Collegiate Honor Choir session for the 2016 NC-ACDA Conference, and is currently the NC-ACDA Senior High R&R Chairperson. She also serves the SD ACDA as the Southeast Representative. She has recently served on judging panels for regional ACDA performance choirs and honor choirs, and will be leading a reading session at the combined Central/North Central ACDA conference in Chicago, 2018. Recognitions for her choral work have included: 2016 SD ACDA Encore Award, 2015 Sioux Falls Teacher of the Year Nominee, 2014 Roosevelt High School Director of the Year and 2013 Positive Impact Awards, and most recently, the selection as a 2017 Claes Nobel Educator of Distinction.
A well rounded artist, Starks Holcomb held a faculty position at the Dance Gallery of SD, a prominent school of dance, for 13 years. In that time, she taught multiple forms of dance including ballet, tap, jazz, and two art forms she pioneered in the state of South Dakota, Broadway and Adaptive Movement for students with Down Syndrome. She also spent four years touring and teaching literally thousands of students annually as a professional Artist in Residence through the South Dakota Arts Council’s Artists in Schools and Communities program; as well as serving as a guest clinician for in- services, workshops and college lecture/demonstrations. A musical theatre expert, Starks Holcomb has directed, performed and choreographed nearly 50 theatrical productions. She has toured throughout the Midwest playing roles with both professional and amateur companies. In January, 2015, BroadwayWorld.com Regional Theater Awards announced Starks Holcomb as Best Music Director for her work with Sioux Empire Community Theater on Little Shop of Horrors. Starks Holcomb spent ten years running a summer musical theatre camp in Sioux Falls for high school students which has produced talent seen on stages of multiple high school, college and national stages to date. Former students of Holcomb have now appeared in national touring companies of The Wizard of Oz and Spamalot!
Robyn Starks Holcomb completed a portion of her undergraduate study at Augsburg University, Minneapolis, received her B.M. in vocal music education from the University of MN, Minneapolis and earned an M.A. Ed. from Augustana University, Sioux Falls.
Robyn Starks Holcomb has over 20 years of experience throughout the Midwest as a motivating teacher, musician, actor, choreographer and clinician. The head vocal director at Roosevelt High School in Sioux Falls, SD, Starks Holcomb has been conducting choirs in the high school, middle school and elementary school levels, spanning public and private schools as well as community chorus and church settings for 20 years. At Roosevelt since 2011, Starks Holcomb has watched the program grow to nearly 600 singers every day, conducting Concert Choir, Executive Chamber, Executive Suite and First Ladies. Together with John Parezo, she co-conducts Mixed and Freshman Choruses. Under her direction, the Concert Choir appeared in performance at the 2016 NC-ACDA Regional Conference. The choir has also performed by invitation at state conferences and in-services, twice at the State Capitol, as a guest choir with college choirs and celebrity talents, in Carnegie Hall, the Aaron Copland School of Music in New York City, the Kennedy Center and in Los Angeles on a project with composer, Dan Forrest.
Starks Holcomb spends time outside of Roosevelt High School in demand as a guest conductor, musical director, choreographer and judge/critique for choral festivals, vocal contests and competitions. Most recently, she spent three weeks conducting, studying and singing in Aix-en-Provence, France, as a selected conducting scholar with the University of Delaware's 2017 Choral Symposium. In 2016, she served as the NC-ACDA Senior High Honor Choir Chair, conducted a Collegiate Honor Choir session for the 2016 NC-ACDA Conference, and is currently the NC-ACDA Senior High R&R Chairperson. She also serves the SD ACDA as the Southeast Representative. She has recently served on judging panels for regional ACDA performance choirs and honor choirs, and will be leading a reading session at the combined Central/North Central ACDA conference in Chicago, 2018. Recognitions for her choral work have included: 2016 SD ACDA Encore Award, 2015 Sioux Falls Teacher of the Year Nominee, 2014 Roosevelt High School Director of the Year and 2013 Positive Impact Awards, and most recently, the selection as a 2017 Claes Nobel Educator of Distinction.
A well rounded artist, Starks Holcomb held a faculty position at the Dance Gallery of SD, a prominent school of dance, for 13 years. In that time, she taught multiple forms of dance including ballet, tap, jazz, and two art forms she pioneered in the state of South Dakota, Broadway and Adaptive Movement for students with Down Syndrome. She also spent four years touring and teaching literally thousands of students annually as a professional Artist in Residence through the South Dakota Arts Council’s Artists in Schools and Communities program; as well as serving as a guest clinician for in- services, workshops and college lecture/demonstrations. A musical theatre expert, Starks Holcomb has directed, performed and choreographed nearly 50 theatrical productions. She has toured throughout the Midwest playing roles with both professional and amateur companies. In January, 2015, BroadwayWorld.com Regional Theater Awards announced Starks Holcomb as Best Music Director for her work with Sioux Empire Community Theater on Little Shop of Horrors. Starks Holcomb spent ten years running a summer musical theatre camp in Sioux Falls for high school students which has produced talent seen on stages of multiple high school, college and national stages to date. Former students of Holcomb have now appeared in national touring companies of The Wizard of Oz and Spamalot!
Robyn Starks Holcomb completed a portion of her undergraduate study at Augsburg University, Minneapolis, received her B.M. in vocal music education from the University of MN, Minneapolis and earned an M.A. Ed. from Augustana University, Sioux Falls.
John Parezo, Assistant Vocal Director
John Parezo is in his third year as the assistant director at Roosevelt High School. He is the director of the President’s Men and Capitol Harmony women's show choir. Along with head vocal director, Robyn Starks Holcomb, he co-directs the over 200 voices in Mixed Chorus and 100 voices in Freshman Chorus. Under his direction, the Roosevelt President's Men have been invited to participate in and serve as a featured performance choir for both the 2017 Augustana University first annual "Vikesing" Men's Festival and the 2018 SDSU Choral Inservice.
Prior to his appointment at Roosevelt, Parezo has worked with elementary, middle and high school level general music, choirs and show choirs in South Dakota and Iowa. He has also served as the musical director for several theater productions including Legally Blonde the Musical and Guys and Dolls.
Currently, Parezo serves as the Technology Chair for the South Dakota chapter of the American Choral Directors Association and the State Show Choir Chair for the South Dakota High School Activities Association. He was the 2017 SD-ACDA Overture Award recipient - an award given to outstanding choral directors in their first five years of teaching. Outside of music, Parezo enjoys flying and giving passenger rides in his hot air balloon, cooking and painting. Parezo holds a Bachelor of Music Education degree from South Dakota State University and is currently pursuing a Masters in Education from Morningside College in Sioux City, IA.
