VOX Concert: Biographies

March 16, 2026

Amanda Kind, Director

Amanda Kind is a voice teacher, singer, songwriter, and performer. She teaches at Wilfrid Laurier University, and has been a guest lecturer for many other music education programs. She is the Artistic Director of Pop Nation Canada and the Chief Vocal Officer of Vocal Versatility, Inc. As an artist, Amanda has recorded a wide variety of music including country singles “The Good Fight,” and “Slow Dance” (which peaked at #1 on SiriusXM Top of the Country), and a number of songs as part of country duo Amanda & James with James Downham – “Comeback” and “Another Round.” She is a member of the Songwriters Association of Canada, SOCAN, the Canadian Country Music Association, and the National Association of Teachers of Singing (NATS). Awards: Waterloo Region Arts Award, Rogers Television Woman of the Year Award, and recognition as one of the region’s Top 40 Under 40. She is endlessly proud of these brave performers. Huge thanks to the incredible VOX team.

Holt Stuart-Hitchcox, Band Mentor

An accomplished electric bassist, Holt Stuart-Hitchcox plays across Canada in the country, jazz, R&B, funk, and rock genres. Holt has had the honour of performing with many prolific artists, including Grammy Award-winner Joe Lovano, Grammy award-nominee Mike Stern, Juno Award-winner Kirk MacDonald, and CCMA award winners Jade Eagleson and Meghan Patrick. Currently, Holt tours with several national acts, including High Valley and Jason Blaine. He has been nominated for three consecutive Bass Player of the Year awards (2022-2024) at the Canadian Country Music Awards.
Holt has a Bachelor of Music from Humber College, a Master’s in Music Education from the University of Toronto, and is currently working on a doctorate in education at York University. He has been awarded both a Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council Doctoral Scholarship and an Ontario Graduate Scholarship. He works for the Public Education Exchange (PEX), a SSHRC-funded research project studying underfunding and privatization in Ontario public education. Beyond his work with PEX, Holt’s independent scholarship examines neoliberalism’s increasing marginalization of music study in education, and considers how music and arts study might serve to resist neoliberalism in society at large.

Eric Da Costa, Vocal Coach

Eric Da Costa is a singer/actor/musician from Cambridge, Ontario, and a graduate of the American Musical and Dramatic Academy, where he studied Musical Theatre in New York City and Los Angeles. He has also been a voice teacher and coach for many years, is a faculty member at Pop Nation Canada, the Drayton Entertainment Youth Academy, and Premier School of the Arts. Selected stage credits include: Step by Step, Hollywood Hits (Stage West Calgary), Old Stock: A Refugee Love Story (2b theatre International Tour), The Full Monty, Jersey Boys, Annie, Snow White: the Panto, and Peter Pan: The Panto (Drayton Entertainment), and more.

Christine Watson, Choreographer

Christine Watson is a dynamic professional dancer, choreographer, and stage performer with a diverse career spanning theatre, film, and live entertainment. As dance captain for the American National Dance Team, she traveled to Italy and Spain, winning back-to-back world titles. She also toured Europe and the Caribbean as a dancer and aerial artist with Royal Caribbean Cruise Lines. Christine’s on-screen work includes portraying the Demon Hipster Chicks in Scott Pilgrim vs. The World (Universal Studios) and appearances in multiple music videos. A proud member of the Canadian Actors’ Equity Association, she has worked with many professional theatre companies. Selected performance credits include Mamma Mia!, Grease, The Little Mermaid, Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, All Shook Up, Anne of Green Gables, Footloose, The Wizard of Oz, and 9 to 5: The Musical (Drayton Entertainment), Rock of Ages (Fallsview), Monty Python’s Spamalot (Theatre Aquarius), Dance Legends (Grand Theatre), and A Chorus Line (Rose Theatre). As a choreographer, Christine has worked on Jersey Boys and Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat (Drayton Entertainment). She has also served as Assistant Choreographer for Kinky Boots and Priscilla, Queen of the Desert (Drayton Entertainment).

Travis Brooks, Choreographer

Travis is a singer, dancer, guitar player, songwriter, and performer. He developed his love for dance at Dance Adventure under Brooke Myers, and pursued triple threat training at the Randolph College for the Performing Arts. Travis works as both a performer and an educator. Theatre credits include The Prom, Legally Blonde (Drayton Entertainment), Footloose (Stage West Calgary), and more. Travis is on the teaching staff at the Drayton Entertainment Youth Academy and at Pop Nation Canada. Check out more at www.travisbrooks.ca.

Mason Micevski, Choreographer

Mason Micevski is an accomplished stage, performer, choreographer and arts maker from Hamilton, Ontario. He has taught voice, dance and acting both commercially and privately, while performing with such companies as the National Ballet of Canada, Warner Bros. Studios, and OH CANADA EH?! Mason holds a Masters in Community Music from Wilfrid Laurier University, is the Artistic Director and lead playwright at Emerson Arts, and works to be a constant support and community builder of the arts in Hamilton, Ontario. Through education and lived experience, Mason is excited to share all he knows with the next generation of artists, performers and musicians!