Our Bios

Rachal Solomon-Bautista

Owner/Voice/College Prep/Piano

Rachal began studying voice and piano early on in her childhood and at age sixteen she began to study with Professor Lorraine Buffington at University of Miami. Rachal studied with such musicians as Randall Reid Smith, Martin Katz, Ed Sarath, and Luretta Bybee. She had performed internationally over the past 15 years and has sung with both the Lyric Orchestra and Phoenix Opera under the direction/coaching of Gail Dubinbaum Massaro. Rachal is a graduate of University of Michigan with a BM in Vocal Performance. She first opened RLS Studios in 2004 in Florida and then had the unique opportunity to go bi-coastal opening another studio in Phoenix Arizona. RLS Studios currently houses over one-hundred students, a stellar faculty, and many young artists who are now entering many prestigious colleges and performing on and off-Broadway. Rachal is currently the Resident Vocal Director at the Florida Children’s Theatre where her studio is housed. Along with vocal coaching, Rachal has directed numerous musicals including Pirates of Penzance, Songs for A New World, Wizard of Oz and 35 MM. Most recently, Rachal has continued to push her own creative boundaries scoring music for numerous films including “Once Upon a Christmas” and a new musical movie pilot due out in 2025 “Teenage Musical”. Rachal is also an avid songwriter and music producer for young artists throughout South Florida. She will begin working on her next creative work “Emily”, a musical theatre song cycle based on the life of Emily Dickinson, which will premiere in the Fall of 2025. She is also slated to perform a one-woman show in the Winter at the Maltz Theatre Black box under the tutelage of renowned Broadway producer Mark Keller and recently finished a run of Bridges of Madison County as Marian. Along with her other accomplishments, Rachal is the current vocal coach for The BFA and BM-MT students at Florida International University working closely with both the music and theatre departments to produce wonderful, competent singers. Rachal served on the University of Michigan Phoenix Board for three years, one as Treasurer and is the current Auditions Coordinator for NATS Gold Coast Region. She believes in the mentoring of the whole person, not just the skill, and knows that this idea creates strong, determined practice that evolves into self-determination and success in many area of their lives. Her goal for each student is to have their own unique identity and sound as a performer and feel confident to enter the world of Musical Theatre as a young, confident professional.

Melissa Hahl

Voice/Piano/Audition Prep

Melissa Hahl has been teaching voice and piano for over eight years at RLS Studios. Her vocal students have gone on to obtain High School Scholarship acceptances, Broadway tours, and major motion picture roles. Melissa loves calling Florida Children’s Theatre home as the Education Director. She has a BS in Music Education from Hofstra University and a MA in Theatre Education from Emerson College. Melissa has worked in Wardrobe at the Maltz Jupiter theatre and puppetry at Universal Studios Florida. She also taught Elementary Music, High School Theatre/Music and Middle School Show Choir in Massachusetts for three years. During the school year Melissa is busy teaching classes at FLCT as well as directing FLCT’s Circus Troupe which had the honor of performing for Disney Performing Arts two years in a row before heading to Las Vegas in 2020 for a circus festival and competition. Melissa has directed Charlie Brown, Freckleface Strawberry, Finding Nemo Jr, Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer Jr, Footloose, and Newsies Jr on the FLCT stage as well as many Performance Project shows: Once Upon A Mattress, How to Eat Like a Child, Year with Frog and Toad, Dear Edwina, Jr., Annie, Kids, Matilda, Jr., Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, Jr., Seussical, Kids, and Mary Poppins, Jr. She was also seen on the FLCT stage as Tiger Lily in Peter Pan. Melissa has performed throughout Massachusetts, New York and Connecticut. Some of her favorite performances include Gertrude Mcfuzz in Seussical, Marcy Park in 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, and Luisa in The Fantasticks.

Gabriella Villalobos

Voice/Piano/Audition Prep

Gabriella Villalobos is a passionate and accomplished vocalist, educator, and performer with over a decade of experience in vocal studies. Classically trained, she has built a versatile career spanning opera, musical theatre, jazz, and pop. Her dynamic teaching approach allows students to develop strong technical foundations while exploring a wide range of musical styles. As a performer, Gabriella has graced both local and international stages in places such as the Broward Center, Adrienne Arsht, Volksoper Wien, and will soon perform at Carnegie Hall. She has collaborated with renowned artists such as Gloria Estefan, Arturo Chacón, and Olga Tañon. She has been featured as a lead actress and soloist in oratorio performances. She has worked with esteemed organizations, including Florida Grand Opera, Miami Lyric Opera, South Florida Symphony, Miami Oratorio Society, and Miami City Ballet. She performed in Austria for the Vienna Summer Music Festival, placed as a semi-finalist in the Classical Singer Competition, and won first place in her category four years in a row for the National Association of Teachers of Singing. For the past five years, Gabriella has been an integral part of RLS Studios, where she has trained students in various genres and helps them prepare for musical theatre roles and university auditions. She is dedicated to nurturing each student’s unique voice, helping them build confidence, artistry, and a lifelong love for music.

Andrea Garcia

Voice/Piano

Andrea Garcia p/k/a Dreya Starr is a Miami-based soprano and music educator. She holds a Bachelor of Music in Vocal Performance from the University of Florida (2020). Andrea’s teaching philosophy emphasizes the mind-body connection and the healing power of the arts. Her performance experience includes full opera roles, professional studio recordings, and distinguished choral solos. She has performed in various international classical music festivals such as MOSF in Sicily 2022 and FIMC in Medellin, Colombia in 2019. She specializes in classical pop fusion and has released several projects available on all streaming platforms. Currently, she is preparing the role of Lucia to perform this spring in New Jersey. Andrea has been part of RLS Studios for several years, teaching voice, piano, and songwriting. Her warm and encouraging style inspires the young musicians she mentors.

Caterina Pette

Voice/Piano/Pre-College Preparation

Caterina Pette is Italian-born, of Italian and Taiwanese descent, and raised in Miami, Florida most of her life. She has a diverse background in Biomedical Engineering (BS), Integrative Medicine (MS) and Vocal Performance (BM). She is passionate about singing, performing, teaching (math, science and voice), parenting (namely her three kids) and playing volleyball and badminton on her time off. She sang the principle roles of Dido in Dido and Aeneas and Mother in Hansel and Gretel during her time at New World School of the Arts where she earned her Bachelor's of Music in Vocal Performance. She also performed in Teatro Petrarca in Arezzo, Tuscany, Italy during her Young Artist Program. Her love for the performing arts is matched by her enthusiasm for helping others do the same through music education. She is so excited to be a part of RLS Studios!

Justin Packard

Guitar/Voice/Songwriting

Justin Packard is on the Theatre faculty at Florida International University, holds a BFA from Ithaca College as well as his Masters from the American Repertory Theatre/Moscow Art Theatre School Institute for Advanced Theater Training at Harvard University. Justin has starred in the original casts of the National tour of Matilda, the off-Broadway production of Meet Me in St. Louis, Take Me Along, A Child’s Christmas in Wales, and Three Sisters. He recently served as the Artistic Programs Directors for the 2022 Tony Award-winning National arts organization “Broadway for All”, to equip young artists and professionals with the programming, community, and vision to build a more inclusive and powerful arts community. Justin teaches private monologue coaching, audition monologue preparation, and specializes in pre-college preparation for rising Juniors and Seniors. Professor Packard is available for coachings for students entering grades 9-12, rising eighth graders applying for high school scholarship auditions, and young adult performers career oriented in theatre, film, and television.