Staff and Faculty Season 2012 - 2013

The Artists of The School of Dance

Merrilee Hodgins A.R.A.D. Artistic Director

Miss Hodgins studied in Canada, England, Denmark and the United States. In 1971, she was awarded the prestigious Solo Seal of the Royal Academy of Dancing. In 1973 she became principal dancer with the Alberta Ballet Company, later working in Denmark, Germany and the U.S. as a freelance artist. Miss Hodgins, a recipient of the YM-YWCA’s 1997 Women of Distinction Award, was the 1997 Chair of the City of Ottawa’s Cultural Leadership Committee, was a member of the board of directors for Dance Ontario, and has been awarded Canada Council grants to research and develop projects to introduce children to dance. Recent projects include choreographic commissions from the National Arts Centre Orchestra in Ottawa, a collaboration with Canadian poet Susan McMaster, and a commission to produce a concert version of Stravinsky’s Firebird for the Brott Music Festival in Hamilton, Ontario. In 2012 Merrilee Hodgins was presented with the Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee medal in recognition of her dedicated service to her peers, her community, and to the world of dance.

Mary Ross Fellow and Examiner, CSC-CICB, Director of Ballet Studies

Mary Ross began her ballet training in Peterborough, Ontario with Marquita Whitham and Charles Lester. Miss Ross also studied in London, England and received her formal training at Canada’s National Ballet School where she later graduated with distinction from the Teacher Training Program. Miss Ross taught for many years at Canada’s National Ballet School under the mentorship of Betty Oliphant and Mavis Staines, and also worked as répétiteur and rehearsal assistant in several National Ballet School productions assisting James Kudelka, Robert Desrosiers and Peggy Baker, and with The National Ballet of Canada in performances of The Nutcracker at the National Arts Centre in Ottawa, Ontario. Miss Ross holds her Fellow and is an Examiner with the Cecchetti Society of Canada and is the Director of The School’s Professional Ballet Studies Programme.

Sylvie Desrosiers BAV, Director of Contemporary Dance Studies

Independent choreographer Sylvie Desrosiers has presented her work in Ottawa, Montreal, Toronto and Vancouver. She has received grants from The Canada Council for the Arts, le Conseil des arts et des lettres du Québec and the City of Ottawa to create a number of dance works including “à tire d’aile”, a trio that was last presented at the National Arts Centre in June 2003. Under the direction of Peter Boneham at Le Groupe Dance Lab, Sylvie began her career as a choreographer and teacher. She directed Le Groupe’s dance school from 1991 to 1993 and in 1994 she joined The School of Dance. Ms. Desrosiers teaches modern dance technique, composition and choreography.

Kirsten Andersen

Kirsten Andersen completed her dance training at both Arts Umbrella in Vancouver, and at the School of the Toronto Dance Theatre. She then joined the company in 1995 under the direction of Christopher House. She performed and originated roles in works of Christopher House, David Earle, Mitch Kirch, Tedd Robinson and James Kudelka. She also enjoyed the vibrant independent dance community in Toronto working with Sasha Ivanochko, Bill Coleman and Laurence Lemieux. She had the privilege of training with Peggy Baker, Christopher House, David Earle, Pat Minor and Michael Trent. In 1999 she was awarded a Canada Council Award to study dance in Montréal. She then moved to Montreal to work with Company Marie Chouinard, created featured roles in three original productions. Kirsten toured and performed the company's large repertoire in over 15 countries. She enjoyed teaching roles and Marie Chouinard's unique movement style to new Company dancers over the nine years she was affiliated with the company.

Peter Boneham CM

Peter Boneham is one of the most important figures in Canadian contemporary dance. In a career spanning over five decades, Boneham is the founder and creator of Le Groupe Dance Lab, the first research and development centre of its kind for professional dance artists. An acclaimed international teacher, Boneham's signature technique focuses on cultivating the complete dance artist - one with creative efficiency, diversity, and longevity. Boneham's artistic roots can be traced back to the early years of Canadian contemporary dance when he worked closely with modern dance legend, Jeanne Renaud. Together, they developed Canada's first modern experimental dance company, Le Groupe de la Place Royale. During this period, Boneham created over 40 choreographies, and collaborated with one of Canada's most respected dance icons, the late Jean-Pierre Perrault. To date, Boneham has received The Order of Canada (2008), France's Chevalier des Arts et des Lettres (2008), The Governor General's Award for Lifetime Achievement in the Performing Arts (2005), the Victor Tolgesy Award (1996), the Dance Ontario Award (1992), and the inaugural Jean A. Chalmers Award for creativity in dance in Canada (1991). Boneham is the longest-serving Artistic Director in Canadian contemporary dance.

Esther Caron

Esther Caron graduated from l’École Supérieure de Danse du Québec with high honours. She danced as an apprentice and corps de ballet member with Les Grands Ballets Canadiens de Montréal. She was also a soloist with Les Ballets Contemporains de Montréal and Ballet West of Montreal and a member of a Spanish dance company, Alegria d’España. She is the licensed owner for Salsa Babiestm in Ottawa and Gatineau. She has two young children.

Louise Clatney Associate Diploma, CSC-CICB

Born and raised in England, Louise Clatney trained at White Lodge, The Royal Ballet School and the world renowned Bush Davies School in East Grinstead. During her training, she received Honours in ISTD Ballet, Modern and Tap and Advanced RAD Ballet. Although ballet was her primary course of study, Ms. Clatney spent her professional career in musical theatre, appearing in many British TV and theatrical productions. Ms. Clatney became an Associate Cecchetti teacher under the guidance of the teachers of The School of Dance and now teaches classical ballet and musical theatre.

Yvonne Coutts

Yvonne Coutts is a dancer, choreographer and teacher. She graduated from the Dance Program at Grant MacEwan College in 1986. She went on to perform and choreograph with Le Groupe Dance Lab from 1988-1997. She is the recipient of the Bonnie Bird Choreographic Award from the Laban Centre in London, England. Yvonne has been a guest teacher at modern dance schools across Canada including the University of Calgary and The School of Winnipeg's Contemporary Dancers.

Jennalee Desjardins

A dancer since the early age of 3, Jennalee’s passion developed as the popularity of Hip Hop and contemporary dance grew on television. After completing a degree in English and International Development Studies at King’s College in Halifax, Jennalee moved to Ottawa. She is a troupe member of Culture Shock Ottawa, a non-profit organization offering youth outreach dance programs in select cities around the world. Jennalee shares her passion and talent as an instructor for Momentum Moves Canada, teaching dance in schools within Ottawa and surrounding region. She is known for her high energy and great sense of humour.

Christine Dubois

Christine Dubois recently graduated from the Professional Contemporary Dance Programme of The School of Dance. In the past three years, Christine has had the opportunity to work with many great choreographers and teachers such as Sylvie Desrosiers, Yvonne Coutts, Peter Boneham, Susie Burpie, Sasha Ivanochko, Emmanuel Jouthe and many more. She has been teaching dance for the past 8 years and hopes to continue for a very long time. As a newly certified professional dancer, Christine is looking forward to a career as a respected and talented artist.

Cathy Kyle Fenton

Cathy has performed extensively with Le Groupe de la Place Royale (Ottawa) and Dancemakers (Toronto) touring internationally. She has danced in works by Jean-Pierre Perreault, Christopher House, James Kudelka, Carol Anderson, and Doug Varone, among others. Cathy studied at the Mudra school in Belgium and also studied with such luminaries as Peter Boneham, Peggy Baker, Maggie Black, Irene Dowd and Lar Lubovitch. Cathy has received numerous grants and awards including Canada Council grants, The Floyd Chalmers Performing Arts Award and the Erik Bruhn Memorial Award. She also received grants for residencies in schools throughout the Outaouais region, conducting classes in Modern Dance and Creative Movement.

Loïc Gouadec

Loïc Gouadec started his training in the ancient art of Tai Ji Quan more than 13 years ago. Under the tutelage of Mrs. Shirley Choi, he learned the various series of the Yang style Tai Ji (Long Form, Simplified Form, Combination, Sword and Sabre series) and the various other techniques such as Tsui-shu (Push hands) and Dalu. Loïc joined The School’s staff in 2000.

Lisa Hebert

Lisa Hebert started her path in yoga when searching for a deeper healing following a debilitating car accident. Her recovery was so profound that she was inspired to share this transformative power of yoga and is grateful to her students who are sharing this journey with her. Lisa is a graduate of the Contemporary Dance Programme at The School of Dance. Her experience of over 25 years in dance training and performance give her a unique understanding of the body and brings a sense of movement and athleticism to her classes.

Nicola Henry

As a graduate of the Contemporary Dance Programme at The School of Dance, Nicola is currently pursuing a career as a professional dancer and instructor. Nicola has successfully completed ADAPT Jazz and Tap exams and RAD Ballet exams. She resides in Ottawa where she continues training and where she works as Assistant to Merrilee Hodgins, the Artistic Director of The School of Dance. Over the past two years, Nicola performed new choreography by Cathy Kyle Fenton, a self-choreographed solo and new works by Caroline Barrière at the grand opening of the Shenkman Arts Centre. For the three summers, she spent her time Dancing in the Street, a community outreach programme of The School of Dance. In 2010, Nicola was one of six dancers to be accepted into Tedd Robinson’s Exclusive Summer Intensive. Recently, she had the pleasure of dancing in Firebird at the Brott Music Festival and performing with the NAC Orchestra. In 2011, Nicola co-founded the Dusk Dances Ottawa Collective which initiated the return of this magical dance festival to Ottawa after a ten year hiatus.

Mary Catherine Jack

After receiving a visual arts degree from the University of Waterloo, Mary Catherine Jack decided to expand her artistic experience through dance. In 2004, she graduated from the Professional Dance Programme at The School of Dance. Mary Catherine has performed with Opera Lyra, has been involved in various independent, theatrical projects around Ottawa and has performed her own work at the Guelph Contemporary Dance Festival. Most recently, Mary Catherine produced an intimate dance show featuring her own work as well as that of various Ottawa dancers/choreographers. Mary Catherine teaches dance in schools in Ontario as an independent artist and as a collaborating artist with Learning Through The Art.

Kateri Jacobs C.A., Associate, CSC-CICB

A native of the Ottawa region, Kateri started her dance training at a young age studying ballet, modern, jazz and hip hop. She completed her training at The School of Dance before going to university in Nova Scotia where she continued to dance and teach. Now a chartered accountant and arts administrator, Kateri returns to her roots as a teacher.

Caitlin Kenney

Originally from Kingston, Ontario, Caitlin moved to Ottawa in 2009 to begin her training in the Contemporary Dance Programme at The School of Dance. She was introduced to dance through ballet at a young age and since then has received her Intermediate Cecchetti Certificate. Along with ballet, Caitlin has studied a variety of movement techniques such as contemporary, jazz, hip hop, cheerleading and musical theatre. Now a graduate of The School’s Contemporary Dance Programme, Caitlin spent summer 2012 as The School’s CHRC Performance Intern, where she led the Dancing in the Street team. In 2011, Caitlin had the pleasure of dancing in Dusk Dances as part of a youth commission and she is currently working with Ottawa choreographer Caroline Barrière on a new piece to be presented in the early fall of 2012.

Kim Laporte

Upon graduating from The School's Professional Programme, Kim moved to Vancouver to continue her training with the Arts Umbrella Graduate Dance Program and the Ballet B.C. Mentor Program. She then pursued a professional dance career that took her across Canada. Kim also lived in the UK and travelled though Europe before returning to Ottawa in 2011 to work with Mary Ross in developing her skills as a teacher. Miss Kim has been working in the classroom both teaching and coaching the ballet students.

Chantale Lussier-Ley

PhD (c), M.A. (Kin), B.A.(Hons Psych) Associate, CSC-CICB

Chantale Lussier-Ley, PhD (c) is a registered member of the Canadian Sport Psychology Association. She has over seven years of experience as a Mental Skills Consultant with athletes and artists. She has also worked extensively with dancers, consulting for the Royal Winnipeg Ballet School’s Professional Division (2002-2004) and now The School of Dance (2005-present). A graduate of the Royal Winnipeg Ballet’s Professional Division Teachers’ Course, Chantale is a professional member of the Cecchetti Society of Canada with Associate Diploma teaching certification and Advanced Cecchetti (ballet) with 12 years teaching and performing experience. Since 2009, Chantale has taken a seat on the National Committee of Physical and Health Education Canada’s Dance Professional Advisory Committee.

Kiyoko Makimura

Licentiate CSC-CICB, Associate I.S.T.D. (National Dance)

Kiyoko started her ballet training in Osaka, Japan, and continued in Canada. She has studied Russian, RAD, and Cecchetti methods of ballet. She is a graduate of the full-time three years Teacher Training Program in Professional Division at Canada's Royal Winnipeg Ballet School, and also studied in the part-time program of Teacher Training Program at Canada’s National Ballet School. Kiyoko has completed the examinations for R.A.D. Advanced 1, Cecchetti Advanced 2, and National Dance Advanced 2. She holds her Licentiate teaching qualification with the Cecchetti Society of Canada, and also associate teaching qualifications for National Dance with the Imperial Society of Teachers of Dancing.

Lana Morton

Originally from the Abitibi region in northern Quebec, Lana has a BA in contemporary dance from l’Université du Quebec à Montréal. Both a dancer and a choreographer, she has also been teaching contemporary dance and creating choreographies in various schools and recreational organizations including at The School of Dance in Ottawa for the past fourteen years. As a dancer, Lana has participated in several creative processes with Le Groupe Dance Lab and collaborated with local independent choreographers Anik Bouvrette, Yvonne Coutts and Sylvie Desrosiers, performing their works across Canada and in Portugal. Her first self-choreographed solo, Cernée de Silence, was presented at the National Gallery of Canada in 2001, at the Canada Dance Festival in 2002 and, in 2004, at the Festival Beaumont du Québec in the Limousin region of France. Ma-manifeste was presented at La Nouvelle-Scène in April of 2007 for the evening Chorégraphe d’ici, also the following August, at the Dance/se Kapital festival in Ottawa and in November of 2007 in the first edition of the Danse Angle Mort festival in Val d’Or, Québec. En Vin, her first full evening show, was presented in the spring of 2009 and was co-produced by The School of Dance and the City of Gatineau. Lately, she has been invited as reheasal director, movement coach and choreographer for a various francophone dance and theater companies in Ottawa such as Tara Luz Danse, Le Théâtre la Catapulte, la Compagnie Vox Théâtre and Théâtre du Trillium. Lana is now the Productions Manager and Associate Director of Ottawa Dance Directive.

Caroline Parent

Caroline is a dynamic dance instructor, an innovative choreographer, certified cheerleading coach and accredited tap teacher with the Beat Dance Alliance of Teachers. Through her seven years as a dance instructor, she has had the opportunity to work with children and adults in all realms of the dance world. Her high energy and positive attitude makes each class a fun and challenging atmosphere for students of all ages and levels. Her objective is to educate young dancers to achieve their highest potential and share her passion for dance in the process.

Alain Pauzé

Alain Pauzé graduated from Canada’s National Ballet School. He danced professionally with both the National Ballet of Canada and Les Grands Ballets Canadiens. He has been teaching dance in Canada for over 25 years. Prior to joining The School of Dance faculty in 2001, he was Director of the Alberta Ballet School of Dance for 8 years and was previously Program Head/Member Artistic Committee at l’École Supérieure de Danse du Québec. Mr. Pauzé is the Manager of our DanceONTour programme. He directs his private consulting firm providing management services to non-profit organizations.

Pamela Place PT, FCAMT, CAFCI

Graduating from Canada's National Ballet School, Pam Place danced with the National Ballet of Canada, rising to the rank of soloist. She received the Erik Bruhn Memorial Award (1997), the Karen Kain Award (1996, 1998) from the Dancer Transition Centre and the Mensa Canada Scholarship (1998). Now a physiotherapist in the field of orthopedics, Pam is a fellow with the Canadian Academy of manipulative Therapy and has a special interest in treating dance injuries.

Suzanne Plante Fellow and Examiner, CSC-CICB

Suzanne Plante studied ballet with the late Diana Jablokova Vorps. She completed her teachers training at the Canadian College of Dance, at Ryerson University, under the direction of Sonia Chamberlain and Maisie MacPhee. In her second year at the College, she performed and trained with Ballet YS and was invited to continue as an apprentice in the company. She chose instead to finish her training at Ryerson University, which led to her 30 year teaching career. As a teacher, Ms. Plante has worked for Elaine Werner and Jacqueline Lemieux in Chicoutimi, Quebec, including a guest teaching position with Québec Été Danse. While in Chicoutimi, she was invited to teach at Laine Theatre Arts and then at the distinguished Bush Davies School in England. Her 14 year sojourn in England gave her a chance to teach, lecture, choreograph, train and perform under the guidance of many internationally renowned teachers. It also led to a more than decade long mentorship with Richard Glasstone, whose knowledge in the field of Cecchetti training is legendary. Ms. Plante also holds the coveted Enrico Cecchetti Diploma.

Julie Anne Ryan

A graduate of the Contemporary Dance Programme of The School of Dance, Julie Anne is an independent dance artist living in the Outaouais region. She has danced for choreographers Sylvie Desrosiers, Caroline Barrière, Anik Bouvrette and Sameena Mitta, performing their works in Ottawa, Guelph, Toronto, Montreal and Vancouver. In 2009, she was one of 21 international participants in choreographer Deborah Hay’s Solo Performance Commissioning Project in Findhorn, Scotland. In August 2010, she performed At Once, the solo she learned during this residency, for SERIES DANCE 10, in Ottawa. Most recently, she co-created the work PORTES with Lana Morton, presenting it as part of the Tout danse showcase in Gatineau. Julie Anne teaches contemporary dance at The School of Dance and other local dance schools and is regularly invited to lead workshops and dance events for various organisations. She is a contributor to The Dance Current magazine and a board member of the Dance Umbrella of Ontario and Ottawa Dance Directive/Centre de danse contemporaine (ODD). In 2008, she received her bachelor’s degree in translation.

Peter Ryan

Peter is one of Canada's most accomplished proponents of contact improvisation. A former member of Canada's national rowing team, he first studied dance during the 1970s with Linda Rubin in Vancouver. He also studied closely with American contact improvisation pioneers Steve Paxton and Nancy Stark Smith. Ryan danced for several Vancouver choreographers, including Karen Jamieson, before joining forces with fellow Vancouver artists – Peter Bingham, Barbara Bourget, Jay Hirabayashi, Lola MacLaughlin, Jennifer Mascall and musician Ahmed Hassan – to establish EDAM (Experimental Dance and Music), a creative collective and multi-media performance company. After a sojourn in France, Ryan moved to Ottawa in 1993. There, he directed Four on the Floor Dance, a multi-disciplinary, improvisational performance group. He also became the chair of the board of Directors for Dance Ontario and a member of the board of the Council for the Arts in Ottawa . Not only a performer, he also has extensive teaching experience. For numerous years, he has taught movement to both dancers and actors at several Canadian institutions, including Simon Fraser University, Studio'58 and the Vancouver Playhouse in British Columbia; and the University of Ottawa and the Dance Network Studios in Ontario. For several years Ryan annually travelled to Greece to teach members of the Sxedia Dance Company in Athens. As a writer and cultural commentator, Ryan has worked for CBC radio. He has also written articles about the development of contact improvisation in Canada.

Tanis Waller Associate, CSC-CICB

Tanis Waller studied ballet, jazz, tap and musical theatre in Edmonton, where she also started her teaching and performing careers. She went on to study at EDGE Performing Arts in Los Angeles, where she received extensive training in jazz and lyrical. Her performing career has given her the opportunity to dance in Canada, the United Kingdom and Europe. She resumed teaching and working as a choreographer whilst living in Europe and most recently in South Africa, where she became a Cecchetti Associate. Miss Waller has now returned to Canada to live and looks forward to sharing her knowledge and her passion for dance.

Carla Weber

Carla Weber received her training at the National Ballet School in Toronto and with l’École Supérieure des Grands Ballet Canadiens in Montreal. Miss Weber’s performing experience includes work with the Nederlands Dans Theatre and Les Grands Ballets Canadiens. Prior to joining The School of Dance faculty in 1998, Miss Weber was a member of the professional dance program at l’École secondaire Pierre Laporte and at l’École Supérieure de Danse du Québec.