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Susan Dellinger, owner and administrator
Simone Peterson, Dance Director, Gig Harbor: Simone Peterson has been teaching and choreographing in the Tacoma/Seattle area for the last 11 years. In college, she worked with the Repertory Dance Group at the University of Puget Sound, where she graduated with a B.A in Psychology. She then began teaching at Harbor Conservatory in Gig Harbor from 2002-2005, where she helped run the Performing Company. Simone subsequently taught and choreographed for the Lakewood Family YMCA , and became the Dance Director for the program in 2005. As director at the Y, Simone supervised 18 instructors, ran the FLY Dance Company, planned and ran all productions, and spearheaded integral values and arts based curriculum. Simone continues to take classes at Westlake Dance Center, is a performer and choreographer for En L’air Dance Benefit Concerts, choreographs for local musicals, and is the founder and director of “La Vie Nouvelle,” a dance convention beginning in 2009.
Dawn Del Castillo, Dance Director, Tacoma : Dawn Del Castillo, Dance Director, Tacoma: Dawn has been dancing for 14 years and teaching for eight. She focuses on creating a supportive and encouraging training ground for aspiring dancers. Dawn has enjoyed competing and performing since the age of 15, she has won several awards including First Place in Sonics. After high school she began volunteering her time to teach dance for under-privileged teens. There she founded the Hip Hop group Next Generation which provided the kids opportunities to perform at schools in hopes to get kids off the streets and into dance. Since then she has taught at several dance studios and choreographed and directed the award winning FLY Dance Hip Hop Company. She is also the co-founder of the hip hop groups Identity and ID both of which have performed with other talented Hip Hop Crews in Seattle including Daniel Cruz's Battle of Seattle. Identity and ID also recently took first and second place for the Best Dance Crew in Tacoma. Dawn lives by the knowledge that God has given us our talents, and so let us not think we can do things apart from Him.
Kristine Hall, Artistic Director Emeritus: Kristine has a B.A. in English from the University of Washington and a Masters in teaching from Simmons College. Kristine has been dancing her whole life and received her first and most important training in ballet from Jan Collum in Tacoma. She performed early in her career with the Concert Ballet Group (now Tacoma City Ballet) and then went on to study and perform with many impressive luminaries of the dance world, including Ruthana Boris, bill Evans, Takako Asakawa, and Consuelo Atlas. She has performed with the University Performing Dance Company, Seattle Opera, San Francisco Opera, Rael Lamb’s Dance for the New World, Phoenix Metropolitan Dance Theatre, and Arizona Ballet Theatre. While in Los Angeles, Kristine not only taught ballet at UCLA but also performed and choreographed professionally for musicals, film, and TV. She taught all levels at Tacoma City Ballet for 8 years and is well known for her amazing teaching ability and bringing the love of dance into children’s lives.
Jomarie Carlson,Ballet Artistic Director : Jomarie Carlson’s love for ballet and performance started in Tacoma, WA with Jan Collum. She continued studying under Robert Joffrey and other master teachers and ended up receiving a Ford Foundation Scholarship and a degree from the University of Utah home of Ballet West. Jomarie has danced professionally with Ballet West, the Joffrey Ballet, and numerous guest appearances with regional ballet companies. Currently she teaches at the University of Puget Sound and Tacoma School District. She also choreographs for professionals and amateurs in both musicals and operas.
Paula Johnson, Tap, Team Director: Paula trained and performed extensively in Seattle and Redmond. Her training includes ballet, tap, and jazz. In addition to studying dance at University of Washington she received her B.A. degree in Psychology. Paula continues to perfect her art at PNB School and attends master classes in all styles. Paula has been teaching for over fifteen years locally and is presently Assistant Director of Dance at Morgan Family Branch YMCA.
Christy McNeil, Jazz/Lyrical and Team Director: Christy McNeil has been teaching and choreographing in the Seattle area for 12 years. She is currently on faculty at Cornish, Westlake Dance Center, Allegro, and Gotta Dance. Her choreography credits include Cornish Dance theatre, ARC, Interweave Dance Theatre, Riverside and Bellevue Community colleges, and several Seattle theatre houses. Christy received her BFA in Dance from Cornish where she studied on a full scholarship given by the Kreielesheimer Foundation. We are fortunate to have the energy and artistry of this wonderful teacher.
Pam Lenker, Master Guest instructor: Pam is both a performer and teacher in tap, jazz, contemporary, and ballet. Recent performing credits include "Black Nativity" at Seattle's Intiman Theater, "Back From the Brink" at Seattle's ACT Theater, and "Dance this...!" at the Paramount Theater, where she performed choreography by Sonia Dawkins and Savion Glover. Currently, Pam acts as Artistic Director at Marysville Performing Arts Centre. She also teaches weekly at Spectrum Dance Theater in Madrona and Gotta' Dance in Redmond. She frequently guest teaches and choreographs in schools and recreational centers all over the northwest. Recent choreography credits include a music video for Nordstrom showcasing their spring line.
Nicole Brun Cisler: Nicole began her training in Los Angeles with Stanley Holden, Cynthia Young and Philip & Charles Fuller. She then attended North Carolina School of the Arts to study with Melissa Hayden for two years. She also studied at Pacific Northwest Ballet School, Hartford National Ballet School during their summer programs. Nicole’s professional experience includes dancing with Ballet Omaha, Cincinnati Ballet and the Milwaukee Ballet where she danced in ballets choreographed by Petipa Balanchine, Paul Taylor and David Parsons among others. After her professional career, Nicole went on to get a B.A. degree in Psychology from the University of Wisconsin, Madison. While in Madison, she taught for five years in the area and choreographed for Dance Wisconsin an honor company in the Midwest Region of the National Regional Dance Alliance, where two of her and her husband’s pieces were performed on the gala night performances.
Erika Klein, Ballet: Erika Klein trained and performed in Tacoma for Jan Collum, and six years at Damaris Hayden’s School of Classical Ballet. She has also studied with Wade Walthall (Evergreen City Ballet), Suzanne Farrel at Cedar Island, at the Pacific Northwest Ballet School, and summer intensives at the School of American Ballet, American Ballet Theatre, Joffrey, and Houston Ballet. She spent 3 years in the Professional Division at PNB and as a guest apprentice performing in their Nutcracker, Midsummer Night’s Dream, Firebird, Sleeping Beauty, La Valse, Symphony in C, Symphony in Three Movements, Jewels, and Swan Lake. This past year she has been an apprentice with Oregon Ballet Theatre and performed in the Nutcracker, the Concert, Four Temperaments, and Sleeping Beauty. Erika has taught creative movement and assisted in many dance classes throughout the area. She also has studied modern, jazz, hip-hop, character, Spanish and swing. Watch for Erika sharing her love of dance on the stage and in the classroom.
Joel Myers, Ballet: Joel Myers received the majority of his training at Evergreen City Ballet under artistic director Wade Walthall. While at ECB, Joel has performed principal roles in many of the major classical ballets including Swan Lake, Giselle, the Sleeping Beauty, and the Nutcracker, as well as many of Mr. Walthall’s original works. Mr. Myers is currently a member of Spectrum Dance Theater, performing artistic director Donald Byrd’s work locally as well as touring both nationally and internationally. As a choreographer, he has set work on the dancers of ECB as well as on the students of the Tacoma School of the Arts and Seattle’s The Northwest School. He is also the in-house choreographer for the Loyalty Conglomerate of Tacoma. We are very pleased to have him as a teacher and choreographer at Harbor Dance and Performance Center.
Kate Monthy, Ballet: Kate received her formal training at Tacoma City Ballet under Jan Collum and Erin Ceragioli. While studying there, she danced in the professional division of the company, and at an early age began assisting and teaching classes. After graduating from Annie Wright school, she studied at Boston Ballet for a summer intensive program. During college at PLU, where she received a B.A. in Political Science, she studied abroad in Cannes, France. Here she spent six months at the Ecole Superieure de Dance Cannes Rosella Hightower. She is the founder and principal teacher at MLK Ballet, a tuition-free ballet school in the Hilltop district of Tacoma. Kate also dances professionally for the Zoe Scofield Dance Company in Seattle and is a wonderful addition to our staff.
Anessa McClendon, Ballroom: Anessa has been dancing for fun and profession most of her life. Her favorite thing about teaching is helping people learn how to interpret music and melody. Her love for dance was kindled at a young age with her first tap and jazz classes and continues in her adult life through continuing education in dance and group exercise instruction. Anessa danced professionally for 5th Avenue Dance Studios in Tacoma and Seattle as well as trained amateur dancers for competition, showcases and weddings. Throughout her dance career Anessa has participated in numerous private and group, choreography and technique lessons from National and International ballroom dance champions. Anessa currently continues her teaching at the Lakewood Family YMCA.
Nikki Bulman, Hip-Hop: Nikki Bulman has been dancing for 15 years and teaching dance for the last 8. She is 24 years old and has studied Jazz, Tap, Ballet, Pointe, Modern, Contemporary and Hip-Hop at 5678 Dance Studio in Modesto CA. She has won several scholarships at Tremaine, Co Dance and Hollywood Connection. Her scholarships have allowed her to study at the Broadway Dance Center in New York and the Millennium Dance Studio in LA. Her recent solo performance not only received the award for the highest score in the senior division, but also the honor of highest score of the entire competition. At Hollywood Connection National Finals, her choreography collaboration with two other instructors received the honor of "Highest Overall Score in the Senior Division"and "Best Breakthrough Performance". Nikki was recently awarded the honor of being an assistant instructor for the Hollywood Dance Convention last season and this next season 2009-2010. She has been selected for professional dance representation at "DDO Artist Agency". This will guide her with the tools and information to audition for dance work in Film, Television, Music Videos, Commercials, Live Stage and others. She specializes in teaching Hip Hop and Contemporary and she inspires her students with her impeccable technique and energy.
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