Doug Jones - President

Doug Jones has been a leader in the entertainment industry for more than 25 years. He played a pivotal role in developing entertainment shows and programs for many cruise lines including Royal Viking Line, Celebrity and Renaissance among many others. He has been the executive producer of hundreds of theatrical and corporate productions from concept to the final bow. In early 2002 Doug founded Sixth Star as a "one-stop-shop" for entertainment programs. Under his leadership the company has grown to be a global company specializing in incomparable entertainment and event production. Services include all aspects of entertainment: celebrity and headline entertainers, musicians and bands, complete event management, customized production shows, scenic décor, props, music, costumes, in-house multimedia production, staffing, event marketing and speakers for corporate, social, resort, cruise ship, casino, and theme park clients. In addition Sixth Star has become the largest supplier of speaker 'edutainment' programs to the cruise industry. A graduate of California State University -East Bay, Doug also serves as an executive board member of the Seminole Hard Rock Winterfest Boat Parade and long time board member of Big Brothers Big Sisters of Broward.
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Meredith Lasher - Producer

Meredith has conceived, created and executed numerous entertainment experiences and mega-events for our clientele. She brings a strong background in business development, theatrical producing, performance and costume design to her event development approach. Her flair for eliciting the greatest potential from talent and harmonizing performance with scenic elements translates into maximum return on investment for our clients. Meredith earned a Bachelor’s Degree in Liberal Studies from Florida International University. She is an award-winning costume designer and was honored by the Carbonell Awards with the Bill Hindman career achievement award for innovating and pioneering contributions to the Artistic Development of South Florida.
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Paul DiFilippi - Director of Enrichment Programs

Paul brings 22 years of cruise industry HR experience to the Sixth Star team. More than 13 of these years were spent with Royal Caribbean, during which time he managed HR functions in the headquarters and worked one contract aboard Song of Norway. Prior to joining Sixth Star, Paul managed HR for AMCV, where he directed a nationwide recruiting campaign in the company’s effort to revitalize the American cruise industry.
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Alicia Ether - Manager of Accounting

Specializing in Small Business Management, Alicia brings more than eighteen years of Accounting experience combined with another ten years of Office Management, Human Resources and Customer Service experience to the team. Born in Florida but having lived all over the United States, Alicia has always considered South Florida her home. She now enjoys fun in the sun with her two daughters and grand daughter.
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Dorine Nielsen - Sixth Star Enrichment Programs

Dorine started her dance career at age 17. She traveled Europe and the Middle East as part of the international tour of Takeuchi Keigo and his Imperial Japanese Dancers. For three years, Dorine was a singer and dancer with Princess Cruises. Dorine’s dream came true when she won the role of “Connie Wong” in A Chorus Line. In addition to dancing, Dorine was a social hostess for Princess Cruises and Royal Viking Line. Before moving to Florida, Dorine was HR Manager for KCET Public Broadcasting in Los Angeles.
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Jerre Feeney - Taylor

With over 10 years of experience as a lead production show singer for different cruise lines traveling all around the world, Jerre was and still is passionate about performing and traveling. After the birth of her daughter, Jerre worked for nearly 5 years under the Royal Caribbean International umbrella, managing the second largest cruise line in the world, RCCL, as a casting specialist where she was solely in charge of casting, hiring and contracting all production show singers for the entire fleet of 21 ships. She now casts and manages all production singers and dancers for Sixth Star’s cruise ship contracts and corporate events. Her vast experience and eye for talent brings amazing shows on land and sea for your enjoyment.

Shawna Nathman - IT Systems Manager

Shawna brings experience from the worlds of graphic design, video production and broadcasting to her role as IT Systems Manager at Sixth Star. She graduated from The Art Institute of Ft. Lauderdale in 2000, where she studied Video Production and Broadcasting. She was awarded an internship at Clear Channel Communications, where she produced commercials and voice-overs for WZTA during the popular morning drive-time radio show. Shawna also holds a degree in Multimedia Graphic Web Design and is responsible for overseeing the new technologies being used every day at Sixth Star.
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Maria Maxwell - Manager of Entertainment Programs

As a native of Sweden Maria moved to South Florida in 1996 and she spent the next 5 years in the party planning business. Maria’s introduction to the cruise industry came when she joined Marine Health Guard (MHG) and one year later in 2004 Maria joined the Sixth Star team as an Entertainment Coordinator. She quickly became familiar with the cruise industry and in 2007 Maria became the Manager for the Activities Department. She is also in charge of the Computers@Sea Program, a program that is available onboard Princess Cruises. In her spare time Maria sings barbershop and spends as much time with her son as he allows her to since he is a teenager.
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Terri Gritter - Entertainment Coordinator

Featuring a high-energy personality and a great sense of humor, Terri Gritter has been with Sixth Star for many years and has been instrumental in the growth of the Distinguished Gents and Enrichment departments. One of Terri's strengths is her ability to foster strong relationships, both with our cruise line clients, as well as the wonderful speakers and directors who are part of our program. Terri was born in South Florida and she holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Business Administration and an Associate of Science Degree in Computer Applications. Prior to joining Sixth Star, she led a career in accounting and administration.
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Carol Sussman - Entertainment Coordinator

Carol’s extensive customer service background is evident as she keeps the most beautiful ships in the world supplied with our talented Distinguished Gents Ballroom Dancers. In addition to her Distinguished Gents duties, Carol is busy in the Outreach Department making sure that our Destination and Special Interest speakers and instructors are just what the cruise lines ordered. Carol is a graduate of the State University of New York system where she earned her teaching degree. She is also an accomplished actress and is a founding member of The Women’s Theatre Project.
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Megan Corrigan - Administrative Coordinator

Megan has been with Sixth Star for over two years. She attended Florida State University and has been around the cruise industry and sailed on many voyages around the world her entire life. She started as an intern and worked her way up to an Administrative Coordinator for Maria and Anne. She is always willing to offer a helping hand.
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Miranda Cook - Administrative Coordinator

Holding degrees in Fashion Marketing and Travel & Hospitality, in the last decade, Miranda has divided her time between her loves of fashion and cruising. Her previous experiences at Imperial Majesty, Orient Lines/NCL, Silversea, Macy’s and Saks Fifth Avenue, give her a well-rounded outlook on the entertainment side of cruising. She is also able to bring a creative eye to the Sixth Star team and utilize her skills in multiple areas of the company. Contact Miranda for enrichment opportunities with Celebrity, Azamara, Regent Seven Seas, ResidenSea and The Yachts of Seabourn.
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Vanessa Lopez - Entertainment Coordinator

Born in the Dominican Republic, Vanessa joined Sixth Star as an Administrative Coordinator, working with Maria and Anne as their support. She now works closely to Meredith Lasher providing event management on shore side productions and events, as well as coordinating bookings for talent and scenic props from our 40,000 sq ft warehouse. Vanessa has experience in Event Management since 2005 from working with various properties of Marriott International. She attended the University of Massachusetts and has a degree in Psychology.
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