2010 Graduate Dies on Cruise Ship in Australia

Jackie Kastrinelis, 24, a 2010 University of Hartford graduate who majored in music theatre at The Hartt School, has died in Australia while working as a singer aboard a cruise ship.

According to news reports, Kastrinelis was found dead Sunday (Feb. 3) in her cabin aboard the cruise ship on which she was performing, the Seven Seas Voyager. The ship was moored in the harbor in Darwin, on Australia's northern coast.

Kastrinelis, a native of Groveland, Mass., had been employed by Regent Seven Seas Cruises since 2011.

As news of her passing spread on Monday, Kastrinelis was remembered as a talented, energetic, and bubbly presence on campus. In addition to performing in many Hartt School productions, she also worked as an RA and was an on-air personality with STN2, the University's Student Television Network.

Ben Wilcox '13, general manager of STN2, said Kastrinelis had a "larger than life personality," and was extremely friendly and outgoing. If there were technical glitches while Kastrinelis was delivering her live, weekly weather forecast on STN, she remained calm and unflappable, Wilcox said. "She was such a professional," he said.