Cody holds his Bachelor’s of Fine Arts in Musical Theatre from Ouachita Baptist University.

Currently, Cody teaches for the Community School of the Arts located in Fort Smith, Arkansas. Through CSA, Cody teaches a variety of acting classes, musical theatre performance, private voice/acting lessons for students PreK through high school, music classes for grades K-5 at Harvest Time Academy, and serves as the director of the Teen Show Choir. In addition, Cody serves as the Musical Director for the Kids Theatre Company (Grades K-2), and the Youth Theatre Company (Grades 7-12). 

Prior to teaching at CSA, Cody was a professional working actor and traveled all around the country with the Bright Star Touring Theatre, working with kids from all different backgrounds. Cody has also been seen as Nicely Nicely in Guys and Dolls (Arkansas Shakespeare Theatre), Bardolph/Prince Jon in Henry IV Part 1 (Arkansas Shakespeare Theatre), Park Keeper/Dance Captain in Mary Poppins (Murry’s Dinner Playhouse), and had the incredible privilege of playing Don Jon in the touring production of Much Ado About Nothing (Arkansas Shakespeare Theatre) that performed on the RiverWalk in San Antonio as a part of the MagikTheatre Festival. In addition, he spent a year with the Bearden Production Center for the Arts located in North Little Rock, Arkansas, where he taught acting classes and directed productions. 

Cody believes in the power of theatre, and is very passionate about sharing his love for the art with young people. Cody believes theatre should be used to enrich the spirit, challenge mindsets, and help people become better versions of themselves. 

AIE PROGRAM

As a teaching artist, Cody is very passionate about using the arts to help young people improve compatibility, communication, self-confidence, analysis, and problem solving skills. Cody utilizes Creative Storytelling, Physical Theatre, Theatre games, different genres of literature, improv, videos, and acting techniques such as Stanislavski and Miesner, to expand student knowledge of theatre and to challenge them in new ways. He also believes in the power of unity in drama. An ensemble isn’t just the actors in the chorus, but an entire group of artists coming together and working towards a common goal. 

In order for students to be successful, they must have support from a teacher who pushes them and treats each student equally. Cody is an educator who treats all students as co-workers who are all on the same team, rather than using hierarchy to establish dominance and classroom management. Clear and respectful communication has helped Cody develop bonds with students, and inspire students and other educators to achieve excellence.