Bridgetown Conservatory of Musical Theater leader Rick Lewis

OREGON ARTS WATCH

By Linda Ferguson

July 9, 2026

Arts Education, Theater

Rick Lewis (left) will retire on Dec. 31 as artistic director of Bridgetown Conservatory of Musical Theatre, which he founded in 2016. Diego Solan Kjelland (right) will take over as artistic director in January 2027. Photos courtesy of Bridgetown Conservatory of Musical Theatre.

Bridgetown Conservatory of Musical Theatre announced on Wednesday that its founder, Rick Lewis, will retire as artistic director at the end of 2026. A press release stated that after leading the organization for 10 years, Lewis plans to pursue other artistic projects as he makes way for a younger generation to continue Bridgetown’s work.

Lewis’s retirement will be effective December 31, 2026, after which Diego Solan Kjelland, the company’s current associate artistic director will take over.

The idea for the conservatory first came to Lewis in 2011 when graduating high school students sought his help in gaining entrance into various college musical theater programs. According to Lewis, it was an eye-opening experience. The students had no book (a musical repertoire used for auditions), no monologues that suited their skills, and no idea how to make themselves viable candidates for such college programs.

While Lewis was recovering from a stroke in 2016, he decided it was time to follow through on his idea for the conservatory.

“The universe goes, ‘So now what are you going to do?’ Lewis told ArtsWatch. “With the stroke I thought, ‘OK, I’ll make a deal with the universe: I’ll do this. Selfishly, it made me feel vital and still a contributing arts person. And the kids will put you to shame because they’re so creative and they have no boundaries, and actually I learned so much over the past 10 years working with them.”

Developing his idea for Bridgetown, Lewis created a school for students aged 12 to 19, focusing on the elements of “triple-threat” performance: acting, dance and vocal performance. Lewis says it was the first professional program of its kind for young performers in the Portland area, and it has drawn instructors with Broadway and national tour credits. The program features classes, summer camps, and opportunities to perform in musicals such as The Big One-Oh, which will be onstage Aug. 1 & 2.

“We’ve helped so many kids get into colleges around the world and discover who they are as people,” he said. “That’s one thing that I think is so vital in the world, not just in the arts: For young people to understand who they are. I think they make better people, and then the byproduct of that is that they make amazing performers because if they know who they are, they can be anyone else they need to be.”

In the press release, Lewis said: “Starting Bridgetown Conservatory of Musical Theatre is the best and most challenging project I’ve ever worked on. What we’ve accomplished with our students over the past ten years is something to be very proud of. We’ve mentored over 90 graduating high school students to achieve entry into top-tier college musical theatre programs around the world.”

Lewis brought his own wide theatrical experience to Bridgetown. A former resident conductor/music director for Portland Center Stage, he moved to Portland in 1993 after 15 years of working professionally in New York City as a music director, pianist and arranger. 

Among his credits are numerous Off-Broadway and cabaret performances, including serving as music director and pianist for a pre-Broadway workshop with Stephen Sondheim and James Lapine for Sunday in the Park with George. Lewis also wrote and arranged the hit Off-Broadway musical The Taffetas and its all-male sequel The Cardigans.

In Portland, helping people understand the difference between Bridgetown and other theater programs has always been a challenge. “I’ve always felt that we lived in the shadows because we’re not a children’s theater company,” Lewis said. “Bridgetown always got the kids after they were through with other programs, when they were serious about wanting to go into the real world of performing arts.” 

Funding, of course, has also been a struggle. “It should come as no surprise that creating a successful nonprofit organization is not an easy pursuit,” the press release said. “And in a city like Portland, where the benefactor and grant dollars are difficult to acquire, it’s sometimes discouraging to watch multi-million dollar organizations take the lion’s share of funding, while we get overlooked.”

The statement added, “It’s time for someone with a lot more energy and patience to hold the reins of a small nonprofit theatre arts organization.”

Lewis met his successor through Nick Serrone, a former Bridgetown board president who performed in Jersey Boys with Kjelland at Lakewood Theatre.

“‘You have to come meet this kid,’” Lewis remembers Serrone saying. “I’ve been looking for a while for somebody who was like a younger version of me, and he is somewhat like that. He is an old soul; he’s a brilliant performer. And the back end of the process – he gets it. I have not felt comfortable with the idea of leaving until Diego came in. 

“It’s the universe. I’m a strong believer that pieces fall where they should.”

For his part, Kjelland told ArtsWatch that he’s honored to continue Lewis’s work.

While he’s just under 27, Kjelland has already worked one-on-one with Lewis for two years, starting out as the conservatory’s coordinator and then taking on the newly created role of associate artistic director in 2025. He’s also quickly gained a reputation as a premier performer, starring in shows such as Stumptown Stages’ It’s a Wonderful Life.”

“I didn’t have a program like Bridgetown Conservatory of Musical Theatre,” he said. “That’s one of the reasons Rick and I connected so well; we care so much. I’ve learned a lot from working and failing and succeeding. I never had a program that sat me down and told me exactly what auditioners are looking for but also told me that I can do it.

“If anyone knows Rick Lewis, he really lets you know that it’s a possibility, that it’s OK to make mistakes, and that we’re here to learn together.”

Kjelland said he appreciates the support he’s received as he prepares for his new role. “Right now, to be honest, Bridgetown Conservatory of Musical Theatre is the only thing I’m interested in pursuing. I of course want to continue being onstage and cultivate my acting specifically so I can lead by example for these kids. But I’m dedicated to keeping this organization thriving. It’s such an important thing, and I love working with the kids.”

“Diego has a really good sense of what Bridgetown was, is and can become,” Lewis said in the press release. “We trust him completely. He’s already making a tremendous reach into the theatre community, and he will continue to build on Bridgetown’s equity.”

As the two men coordinate the transition, Lewis is also making plans to pursue other creative projects. He and his husband, Marvin Holmes, who has served as treasurer on Bridgetown’s board, recently bought a duplex in a 1606 palazzo in Todi, a small town in Italy. 

“It’s filled with music and art, food and history. We were just there for their annual music festival, so we’re talking with people about establishing a musical theater workshop/festival there in a couple of years. “

“I don’t really see retiring as a concrete idea.”