We're finalizing the Enrichment Sessions for the Passport to Central America Enrichment Voyage. The following speakers and entertainers are confirmed for the voyage, and more will be announced soon..

Allan Schoenherr - Biological & Environmental Science -- Professor of Ecology at Fullerton College in California. His research interests are in the distribution and biology of endangered species. Dr. Schoenherr will lecture on whales and other marine mammals, tropical forests, island life and coral reefs. Allan has sailed on several past Voyages and has received excellent reviews from participants. He holds a Ph.D. from Arizona State University.




Ciel Duke - Artist in Residence -- Ciel will provide art workshops such as sketching, water colors, and copper tooling. Ms. Duke will also provide lectures on the artists, Frida Kahlo and Earl Bailly. Recently retired from 25 years of teaching high school Art and Math, Ms. Duke has launched an active painting career, with recent one-woman shows in Nova Scotia, where she spends several months each year, and gallery showings in Alaska and Arizona. Ciel Duke has shared her art with many audiences, and she has often remarked, “Anyone can learn to draw.” After participating in Ciel’s workshops, many participants have come away with a big boost in their artistic confidence and with the feeling that Ciel’s statement just might be true!.

Max Brandt - Music -- Dr. Brandt has been a Senior Academic Officer for the Institute for Shipboard Education since 1979. Ph.D. in Ethnomusicology from The Queen's University of Belfast in Northern Ireland. M.A. at UCLA. Max has taught Music in Latin America and Introduction to World Music for twenty-five years. His areas of fieldwork in Ethnomusicology, Anthropology and Folklore include: Mexico: Traditional music of Mesitizos and the Cora and Huichol Indians. Panama: Guaymi and Bokota Indians of Bocas del Toro. Venezuela: Afro-Venezuelan music and culture with emphasis on the drumming traditions of Barlovnto. Ireland: Instrumental music and song styles.



Toby Zinman - Literature and Film -- Toby serves as Professor of English at The University of the Arts in Philadelphia. Recipient of several teaching awards, and author of numerous books and articles in scholarly journals, Dr. Zinman lectures internationally on contemporary drama. In addition to her "day job," she is also a nationally-known arts journalist and the chief theatre critic for The Philadelphia Inquirer, the city's major daily newspaper. Her lectures will focus on books and films made in and/or about the Caribbean. She will also hold book club discussions for interested participants.





Perry Dickison - Pianist and Vocalist -- Perry has been an active Vancouver musician since the early 1980’s. He was a high school music teacher for 9 years before pursuing a solo career in 1990. Perry has been the featured soloist with three Symphony Orchestras in Canada and performed on Crystal Cruises from 1990-1998, an experience that took him around the world. He has recorded three solo albums and currently performs at various venues in Vancouver while maintaining a busy schedule as a free-lance musician, accompanist, and Music Director for The Centre for Positive Living.





Disella Làrusdóttir and Teddy Kernizan - Classical Singer & Accompianist - Soprano Dísella Làrusdóttir is a winner of Astral Artistic Services' 2006 National Auditions and became a member of its artist roster that year. Ms. Làrusdóttir received a Master of Music degree in Voice Performance and Pedagogy from Westminster Choir College of Rider University. She also studied at the British Royal School of Music’s Singing School of Reykjavík. Ms. Làrusdóttir's husband, Teddy Roger Kernizan, graduated from the Westminster Choir College of Rider University in 2005 with a Bachelor’s Degree in Piano Performance and Pedagogy and will accompany her on the piano.