Meet TA-DA!

Our mission at TA-DA! is simple – to make language learning joyful, easy, and an experience your child will never forget.

Hi there! I’m Michelle Glorieux, the founder of TA-DA! Language Productions. Born and raised in Nashville in a monolingual home, I never imagined my life would take me across four continents, teaching children from all walks of life, and eventually raising my own family in a home bursting with four languages.

My love for languages began in high school, grew stronger at university, and carried me around the globe, where I discovered just how powerful language can be in connecting minds and hearts. As much as I enjoyed teaching, it was the countless families I worked with who inspired me. They longed for something more for their kids—a way to make language learning joyful, playful, and screen-free. And after becoming a mom myself, it hit me even harder: our little ones deserve an easy, fun, and stress-free way to discover new languages.

TA-DA! started right from my heart and my home—a solo venture by a mama entrepreneur who wanted to create a delightful language adventure that every family could enjoy together. What began as a one-woman project has now blossomed into something far bigger than I ever dreamed. Along this journey, I’ve had the incredible honor of collaborating with brilliant minds, including our amazing Music Director, 19-time Grammy winner Rafa Sardina, and wonderful advisors like Joe Shochet of codeSpark/Homer Learning and Melissa Bernstein of Melissa & Doug toys.

Our mission is simple but powerful: to make language learning fun, easy, and accessible for every child, helping them grow up wiser, kinder, and more connected. Through our award-winning talking books and hands-on experiences, TA-DA! transforms language learning into a playful, tactile adventure. With every touch, your child hears real voices, native sounds, and tunes crafted by Grammy-winning producers, blending the magic of paper with the excitement of exploration.

We believe in starting this journey when children’s brains are wired for it—making it simple, musical, and downright fun. There’s no need for screens, downloads, or complicated steps—just the pure joy of learning through play. It’s a 21st-century approach that respects the traditional value of books while adding that extra spark that makes language come alive.

At the core of it all, TA-DA! remains my labor of love as a solo mama entrepreneur, working hard because I genuinely care about helping families connect, learn, and thrive. I believe there’s a better way to bring languages into our children’s lives, and I’m honored to share this journey with you. Thank you for being part of our story—I hope our products bring as much joy to your family as they have to mine.

Warmly, with all my gratitude -and language passion,

Michelle Glorieux
CEO, Founder TA-DA!

Team

Michelle Glorieux, CEO/Founder

ESL & French Teacher on 4 Continents, Former Monolingual from Nashville turned Multilingual Mom; Dedicated Educator & Lifelong Learner Passionate about Language & Culture

Rafa Sardina, Music Direction & Innovation

19x Grammy-winning Music Producer; Governor, Recording Academy and Latin Recording Academy; Papa to a Bilingual; Champion of Education & intercultural connection; Worked with too many incredible artists to name, but a few - Michael Jackson, Lady Gaga, Shakira, Celine Dion, Beyonce, John Legend, Tim McGraw, Linda Rondstadt, Flor de Toloache, Alejandro Sanz, Luis Miguel, symphonies all over the world…

Click & meet Rafa in his legendary studio where magic is made!

Click & hear from Michelle

Advisory Board

Founder of Melissa & Doug Toy Empire; Founder, Lifelines; Mother of 6, my dream mentor turned real, and the best thing since sliced bread! With a heart so big and wisdom so deep, Melissa’s raw, real inspiration has kept me going and lifted me higher than words can say. She’s my forever cheerleader and the reason I’ve never given up.

Melissa Bernstein, Advisor & Mentor

Joe Shochet, Advisor

Founder of codeSpark, now Homer; Former Disney Director (Led Creation of Disney’s ToonTown); Acclaimed children’s app & gaming developer (30M users!!), incredible father and grandfather, and all-around terrific human, Joe helps us make our paper products respond intuitively like his incredible apps.

Music Makers

(And doting dads) Pardon if I get their number of Grammys wrong - they keep winning them and I can’t keep track!

Rafa Sardina
19x Grammy Winner

Jesse Lewis
4x Grammy Winner

Kip Jones
Musician/Composer

Béla Fleck
15x Grammy Winner

Andres Landínez
3x Latin Grammy Winner

Marco Moreno
Latin Grammy Winner

Artists

When not sipping tea, Michelle can be found wielding her tools of choice pretty much around the clock. (That would be watercolors, ink and Photoshop.) She happened to use all three to create our very first Children’s Talking Picture Dictionary.

Currently a storyboard artist at Nickelodeon Animation, Michelle has illustrated for the animated shows of the some most beloved characters in America, including Curious George and Pete the Cat, while working for Universal Animation Studios/Dreamworks and Surfer Jack Productions.

TA-DA! trivia alert – Michelle was the very first team member our CEO Michelle brought on. That’s right, there were two Michelles. (Good things come in twos.) In fact, Michelle H. also has a twin sister. The fabulous duo grew up a Japanese-American household in Los Angeles, California. The protagonist (detective) in her talking book is inspired by them both.

Michelle Hiraishi, Japanese American
The American English Talking Picture Dictionary

You may think we’re making this up as we go along, but Kelsey just happens to be the second twin on our team. (See what we mean about good things coming in twos?)

Kelsey’s stunning work has been featured in the Academy Award-winning animated short film Hair Love and Disney Junior’s Ariel. Not long before that, she graduated from CSUF with a BFA in Los Angeles, and thanks to an introduction by Michelle H., she quickly became part of the TA-DA! family.

As the incredible talent behind our Language Adventures series, Kelsey’s art brings magic to every page. The little brown-haired girl in the series is inspired by Kelsey’s own childhood, growing up with her twin sister in a Filipino-Mexican family in Los Angeles.

Kelsey dreamed of becoming a children’s book illustrator as a little girl, and we’re honored that her very first one was with TA-DA!.

Kelsey Suan, Mexican-Filipina-American
The Language Adventure Series

Alex Herrerías, Mexico
I Hust Heard Mexico

Alex Herrerías is an award-winning illustrator from Mexico City and a professor of art at his alma mater, the prestigious National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM).

When he’s not guiding the next generation of artists, Alex uses his talents to create beautifully detailed illustrations using graphite, ink, and digital techniques. He says the stage he enjoys the most during his projects’ creative process is planning, because it allows him to experiment and generate new graphic solutions.

We love his unique approach - and his infectious positive spirit as we plan the new characters in our new, upcoming series, “I Just Heard”.

You can bet your bottom dollar that his adorable 4-year-old Max (the inspiration behind the series) is sure to make his grand debut!

Alex’s work has been published in Mexico, Spain, China, the United States, Canada, Ireland, Sweden, Lebanon, Peru, Brazil, and the United Arab Emirates.

Maxine Hammen, Germany
The German Talking Picture Dictionary

We searched high - and low - for the perfect artist for our German Talking Dictionary series, and suffice it to say, were simply ecstatic when we unearthed the talented Maxine Hammen from Germany.

Maxine obtained her Bachelor’s degree in Intermedia Design from the University of Trier with the hopes of working in the game industry, but soon realized that her passion lied more with picture books, graphic novels and illustration.

Maxine takes inspiration from her favorite movies, TV shows, games, books, and artists, among them The Last Unicorn, The Little Prince, Harry Potter, the Grimm brothers and Hans Christian Andersen.

We are just in love with her ‘traditional’ style, perfectly infused with a unique, modern flare - not to mention her huge heart, devoted to representing in her work, the different ways we humans live: “Children books are unforgettable treasures from our childhood that help shape the person we’re becoming when we’re growing up, so I believe it’s important for children’s book illustrators to take into account diversity and representation when they work on a piece. Nowadays there are more and more children’s books defying gender roles and showcasing diverse kids living adventures and dreaming alike, “ Maxine shared.

Her dream is it to illustrate a book that someone will fondly remember as a part of their childhood.

Maxine, here’s to dreams coming true! We’re elated that your first children’s book gets to be with us.

Gemma Román, Mexico
The Spanish Talking Picture Dictionary

Let’s talk about the delightful Gemma Román, the shining star of our Spanish Talking Dictionary.

A gifted illustrator and character designer who works from her hometown in Culiacán, Mexico, Gemma’s work is largely inspired by her colorful country and the flora and fauna found all over the world (and on that cute jumper).

Gifted in children’s book illustration, editorial illustration, character design, hand lettering, and even (as of recently) voice-overs, it all comes together beautifully in the Spanish Talking Dictionary. We cannot wait for you to discover her beautiful, gentle voice with which children the world over are sure to fall in love. (Another insider tip: we’ve based the protagonist of the Spanish Talking Picture Dictionary on her!)

Bye for now.

Interns

We are proud to have hosted interns from all over the world. They help us bring new ways of understanding & appreciating our world directly to your children.