He was a “Sesame Street” star. He danced onstage with Madonna. He isn’t a Hollywood celebrity. He’s our very own Christopher Gerken.

Gerken has directed theater productions at Whitman since 2006. He’s taken charge of the comical and the tragic, directing plays ranging from “Funny Girl” to “Amadeus.” He’s watched students participate in plays and musicals and come out more confident and talented than he could’ve ever imagined. And he has no intention of stopping anytime soon.

Gerken said he credits his parents for first getting him involved in drama. His first paying job was on “Sesame Street” when he was 6-years-old. He sang with The Count and Big Bird, but he ran into some trouble with temper tantrums.

“The puppeteer for the Snuffleupagus was teasing me and trying to wrap his snout around me, so I bit him and drew blood,” Gerken said. “They promptly fired me.”

But Gerken said he wasn’t deterred. He said he fell in love with drama because of its vibrancy and creativity, but he worked for a prominent 500 company right after college, because he majored in business.

The avid theatre fan wasn’t content. He didn’t enjoy the competitive business atmosphere and feeling that everything he was doing was for profit.

“I realized at some point that I don’t want to spend my life making money for other people,” Gerken said. “I want to spend my life making a difference for other people. And I quit the next day.”

Gerken jumped back into the entertainment business with enthusiasm, booking shows and moving quickly through the ranks of performers. His breakthrough moment came in the ‘80s, when he danced backup for Madonna on her Blonde Ambition tour.

After Madonna, Gerken performed in various off-Broadway and Broadway plays, most notably “The Last Five Years,” which chronicles the relationship between a struggling actress and a rising novelist in reverse chronological order. Gerken played the lead Jamie and performed alongside his best friend.

Gerken also starred in a production of “Damn Yankees,” in which he played the protagonist, Joe Hardy. In 2009, Gerken directed a production of the same musical at Whitman.

“In the scene where Lola seduces Joe, I was wearing only boxer shorts and immediately following a quick turn during the dance, I had a wardrobe malfunction,” Gerken said. “It was the craziest and most embarrassing moment on stage.”

In 2004, he had just finished a run as Lumiere in “Beauty and the Beast” at Toby’s Dinner Theater in Columbia when he heard about a potential drama department position at Whitman. After just one interview, he was hired.

Terry Alvey, who heads the orchestra and band department, said that it’s Gerken’s unique drive and persistence that make him such a special director. She and Jeff Davidson, the director of the choral program, work closely with Gerken from August to November to put on the musical.

“I think he’s one of the most creative thinkers I’ve ever met, and he likes to go outside the box,” Alvey said. “He never ceases to amaze me.”

Gerken also has high praise for his co-workers.

“Never in my 30 years of being in the business have I found two colleagues who I gel with, respect and get along with more than Jeff Davidson and Terry Alvey,” Gerken said. “We are the dream team.”

This year, Gerken decided to put on, “Sideshow,” a musical about Siamese twins who work in a circus and attain an act of their own.

“‘Sideshow’ was touching and special and I think very timely, what with all the suicides and the bullying going on in the world right now,” Gerken said. “I think we took all those issues that make people feel different and excluded and spun it in a way that’s positive and inspires people.”

Junior Jane Bernhard, who played one of the leads, Daisy, in the musical, said Gerken’s professionalism really helps her catapult her performances to the next level.

“These productions could so easily just be high school musicals,” Bernhard said. “But Chris knows so much about the business. He knows exactly what he’s doing, and it shows.”

Sophomore Michelle Huey said she likes how Gerken treats the students like professionals. Although “Sideshow” was only her third show at Whitman, Huey said she already feels like she has worked in theatre for years.

“In Chris’ eyes we’re performers,” Huey said. “He doesn’t treat us like teenagers. We are professionals to him, and I love that. That’s how we grow.”

Gerken said he fell in love with drama because of how much art can teach people.

“It’s very fulfilling to see what I have inside me spark in a student,” he said. “To ping my love for theater in another person is a beautiful thing.”

He said it’s rewarding to inspire students, and said he continues to communicate with many of his former students.

Sarah Blush (‘10), who directed last year’s “Inferno” Talent Show and starred in the Cappies award-winning production of “Amadeus,” said she agrees that it’s wonderful to keep in contact with Gerken.

“He inspired me immensely,” she said. “He truly cares about the kids that come through the drama program, and he is so passionate about his job. He’s a huge part of the reason I want to make a career out of theatre.”