Kelli Morgan McHugh

Kelli Morgan McHugh is an Associate Professor of Instruction in the Department of Theatre at Northwestern University’s School of Communication. She specializes in gender-affirming voice education and music theatre pedagogy.

• MM, Voice and Opera Performance, Northwestern University
• BA, Music Education and Theatre, Berry College

Her research focuses on cultivating authentic vocal identities for artists, particularly in gender-affirming voice training. She teaches courses such as Intermediate Voice (Theatre 350), Advanced Voice (Theatre 351), and Class Voice for Music Theatre (Theatre 151). She also offers specialized topics in music theatre, including Queer Singing and TTNB Vocal Pedagogy.

McHugh’s performance career includes roles like Elizabeth Elliot in Persuasion, Elsa in The Sound of Music, Dolores in Sugar, and Angelique in La Cage aux Folles across prestigious venues. She performed with the USO touring group OnStage, entertaining troops in Egypt, Turkey, Italy, France, and Spain.