Meet Cheri... "I love sharing my gift with others. I've learned that to truly sing I have to get out of my own way... When I let go of fear and just revel in that love and joy of performing, it's contagious-- the audience feels it, too."

The heartfelt and playful performance style of Cheri Stark has mesmerized audiences all over Southern California. Cheri easily switches between the styles of opera, musical theater, folk, and jazz. She is a joy to watch and the beauty of her voice and technique shine through no matter what she is singing.

"People pay Cheri to make them cry. Cheri's voice moves people. You can tell by her presence that she is singing from the heart--without fear-- and that is very powerful."

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“When I was a child, I sang all the time and loved to be in front of people or the video camera performing. I was a real ham. I saw Andrew Lloyd Webber‘s ‘Phantom of the Opera’ when I was eight and that is what made me decide I wanted to be a singer.”

Cheri started singing in choirs and taking private voice lessons when she was five-years-old and cultivated her love of singing throughout her youth. She became involved with a children’s musical theater group, learning about stage performing and eventually became a leader among the performers as a student director and youth member of the board. She started studying classical voice seriously at age 13 and won first place in the Fresno Opera League Competition at age 16. Cheri began her opera career at age 17 with the California Opera Association, singing roles in Menotti chamber opera’s such as “The Telephone” and “The Medium.” She chose to pursue her vocal studies at USC’s Thornton School of Music.

“I love the intellectual stimulation of classical music and learning a difficult piece. I am drawn to the story-telling aspect of opera arias and the way the music feels in my voice and body.”

Cheri participated throughout her years at USC in the main stage opera productions, performed with local opera companies such as the Intimate Opera Company (Amahl, Die Fledermaus, Hansel and Gretel) and Repertory Opera Company (La Traviata). Cheri also became very involved with the Chamber Opera of USC, a student organization dedicated to giving undergraduate singers the opportunity to perform. She sang in the world premiere of Daren Hagen’s one-act, two person chamber opera, “Broken Pieces,” in March 2005. Cheri became president of this organization and helped commission and produce a new chamber opera written by a USC student composer called, “The Stone House.” 

Cheri sang in summer programs, such as the International Vocal Institute, traveling and performing throughout Croatia. She participated in the progressive summer opera program called “Operaworks,” that trains young professional singers to incorporate creativity-enhancing methods into their performance preparation: dance, conducting, visualization, The Alexander Technique and improvisation.

But on her free time and often late into the night, Cheri would sing jazzy torch songs and put together cabaret performances to continue singing her musical theater songs.

“I wanted to keep performing, so if I didn’t get the opportunity through the school, I created my own.”

As the daughter of a psychotherapist (mother) and violinist (father), Cheri was aware of the inner work as well as the outer work that it takes to be a successful performer.

“I constantly introspect on my craft and try to improve myself as a person. Almost every performer I meet suffers in some way or another from unspoken issues of fear of failure and judgment, stage fright, and the inner critic.
         Some people choose to completely give up their creative pursuits because they feel so much fear or pressure or negativity associated with it. In a way it deprives the world and the artist from experiencing their creative potential. I know there are remedies and tools to help performers get past their own mind blocks if they're willing."

After graduating USC in 2006, Cheri decided to pursue her Master’s degree in Spiritual Psychology at the University of Santa Monica. There she broke through the blocks that she felt was holding her back in her creative expression. She encorporate all that she learned through her spiritual psychology studies into her music and performance and in less than 2 years, she completely transformed herself and her career as a singer.

Cheri is currently offering life coaching for performing artists to develop "The Thriving Artist Experience," -- a process to share the tools that she has learned to accelerate success by removing mental and emotional blocks.

Cheri is a singer with a mission:
to sing authentically from the heart and to help other performers do the same.