Faculty

	Allegra Lillard, Dance Barns Program Director Allegra began dancing in her home state of Texas and received further training in Boston, New York City and Canada. Dance has taken her throughout the U.S., Canada and Asia. In her professional career, she was featured in solo and principal roles in the Atlanta Ballet, Ballet British Columbia, Ballet Hawaii, Hawaii Ballet Theatre and the Oregon Ballet Theatre. Since Allegra’s arrival in Santa Fe in 1996 she has not only continued to perform but has taught and /or choreographed for the College of Santa Fe, Charisma Dance Company, The School of Aspen Santa Fe Ballet, Moving People Dance School, New Mexico School for the Arts and Sciences, Eldorado Children’s Theatre, Santa Fe New Music, and other dance schools in and out of state. Allegra was the Founding Director of Dance for Joy, a local dance school from 2004-2011. She also worked with NDI-NM as Master Teacher and Associate Artistic Director for a number of years and is thrilled to be returning to the NDI-NM family!
	Danny Silver, Producer Danny Silver studied ballet at the Cincinnati Conservatory of Music at the age of 7, and continued training in ballet, jazz, modern, South Indian classical dance and hip hop for the next 20 years. As an undergraduate in the Department of Dramatic Arts at UC Berkeley, she studied with David Wood of the Martha Graham Company, and later with Utah’s Repertory Dance Theatre in Salt Lake City. Danny has been an instructor with NDI New Mexico’s outreach and SPA programs since 2002. She is also a certified fitness instructor, and has taught dance and fitness in California and New Mexico since 1985. Danny is currently the Dance Barns Program Producer for NDI New Mexico.
	Erika Archer, Intro to Hip Hop Erika Archer is originally from Fort Washington, Maryland, recently moved to Santa Fe NM mainly to perform with an Indigenous contemporary dance company called Dancing Earth. She has been dancing since the age of three doing a variety of styles such as modern, tap, jazz, ballet, contemporary, and hip-hop. Most recently she has taken part in styles such as Latin, African, and powwow style Women’s Fancy Shawl and Jingle. Erika is very passionate about the arts of all forms, she is a recording artist as well as a former hip hop dance crew member to GnC Crew of Washington DC.
	Tamara Bates, Teen Ballet Tamara trained in ballet for 10 years and has trained in at Cleo Parker Robinson, the Martha Graham School and at Alvin Ailey School of Contemporary Dance. In the past fifteen years, she has studied Afro-Cuban, Afro-Brazilian, Flamenco, Salsa, Tango and West African dance with master teachers from all over the world. Tamara has held positions with or choreographed for Snappy Dance Theatre in Boston, Moving People Dance Santa Fe, the National Dance Institute in Santa Fe, Montana Ballet Company and Boston Ballet.
	Ryan Bridwell, Pianist An Albuquerque, NM native, Ryan Bridwell beginning pursuing music at 18 while attending NMSU. He soon moved to Northern California with a goal of making people dance. After playing in bands for several years, Ryan stumbled across the fascinating world of ballet accompaniment, playing and composing for a small dance theatre troupe from 2004-10. He then returned to Albuquerque, and soon discovered NDI. Now, while playing piano for NDIʼs high energy classes, for ballet classes at UNM, and with a few Abq bands, Ryan is able to enjoy making people dance all the time.
	Melissa Briggs- Modern, Creative Movement Melissa is a graduate of New York University/Tisch School of the Arts, Smith College. A former NYC resident, past venues for her work include Symphony Space, PS 122, Joyce SoHo, the Flea Theater, and Dixon Place. Listed as one of “Gotham’s finest dancemakers” by Voice Choices (Fall 2000), Melissa has enjoyed artist residencies from organizations such as the Joyce Theater Foundation (NYC), the Yard (Martha’s Vineyard, MA) and BAX/Brooklyn Arts Exchange (NYC). She has been teaching for over 13 years and currently works with children ages 3 to university age all around the Santa Fe area. She is presently on the faculty of the New Mexico School for the Arts.
	Lori Brody, Ballet Lori Brody received her training from some of the leading teachers and renowned artists of the time. She dance professionally with the San Francisco Ballet and was a guest artist with Pacific Ballet Theatre. She appeared in the film The Turning Point. Ms. Brody has taught extensively since retiring from the stage including at some of the most respected ballet schools in Los Angeles. She was a faculty member of the Loyola Marymount University dance department. She has taught classes to many dance luminaries including Twyla Tharp, Mikhail Baryshnikov, Alessandra Ferri and members of the American Ballet Theatre.
	Wendy Chapin, Theatre Wendy is a highly regarded theatre instructor in New Mexico. She has been teaching acting to all ages for over 25 years, including teaching acting at NDI for over 10 years. She is also an artist working with the Santa Fe Arts Commission’s school program, Artworks. Wendy has an MA in Art Therapy.
	Tara Debevic – Jazz, Creative Movement Tara has performed and instructed professionally in the United States, Europe, and New Zealand. She is the creator of the Now We’re Dancin’ dance program and instructional DVD series; founder of the award winning Dance Company, Jazz Machine and Tara’s Dance Academy. Her credits include dancing for the Royal Family at the Festival of London, for Bally's Jubilee! in Las Vegas, Nevada, and most recently touring the United States with Celebrity Enterprise, where she was also a choreographer.
	John Kloss - Tap John Kloss is the founder and director of STEPOLOGY and the San Francisco Bay Area Tap Festival. He first trained in Chicago with many of tap’s great masters, and has performed with the Jazz Tap Ensemble, Especially Tap Chicago, and the Swift Brothers, as well as in many festival productions. John has received several awards from the National Endowment for the Arts and has appeared in the film Tap Heat. Since moving to Santa Fe in 2009, John founded the Santa Fe Tap Festival with the support of the NEA and the Santa Fe Arts Commission. In addition to his work as a performing artist, John holds a law degree from IIT Chicago-Kent College of Law.
	Lisa Lincoln, Voice Lisa received her B.A. in Communications and Drama with a minor in voice from University of California, San Diego. She received the Estill voice training program certification; a college level voice method, and studied voice in the Los Angeles area for more than 25 years with such opera and musical theater luminaries as Linda Ottsen and Metropolitan Opera soloist Geraldine Paige. She has performed in at least 40 musicals and directed too many musicals to count. Lisa is the founder and director of Eldorado Children’s Theatre and Teen Players, which started in 1999. She has produced, directed, vocal coached and put on numerous musicals for children and teens in the Santa Fe area with her group. She is currently on the Faculty of the Performing Arts Department at Santa Fe Preparatory School as vocal director and musical theater teacher for all musical theater classes, productions, and performances; In 2008, she started Prep’s award winning speech and debate team and still continues as coach; She is the vocal teacher for all in-school and after-school vocal programs at National Dance Institute; including teaching at National Dance Institute’s Summer Intensives since 2009. She also directed “A Chorus Line” for NDI’s advanced programs last year. She initiated, designed and implemented the 6th grade Shakespeare study & performance program at Eldorado Community School and has been a private voice teacher since 2002.
	Aaron Lopez
	Kathryn Mark, Ballet Kathryn Mark formally trained in classical ballet and has since explored various performing and healing arts disciplines, including circus arts, African dance, Feldenkrais and Continuum. She is the Director of Movement Arts for Every Body, a program that allows her to share the joy of movement with many children in Santa Fe. She has been a Teaching Artist with ArtWorks, Santa Fe Public Schools, Santa Fe Performing Arts, The Santa Fe Opera, Moving Arts Espanola, and the Children’s Dance Program. Since 1999, Kathryn has provided opportunities for thousands of young people to explore their creativity, self-expression, and relationship to the arts.
	Charlotte Martinez, Intro to Hip Hop Charlotte began dancing with NDI New Mexico in elementary school and followed the program through their Super Wonderful Advanced Team, Celebration Team and in NDI New Mexico's School For the Performing Arts X-Cel Team. She has trained and performed in many forms of dance and theater around Santa Fe and is currently attending the Santa Fe University of Art and Design as a Film/English Major. Along with teaching Celebration tap, she participates in the New Mexico Tap Ensemble in Albuquerque and is undergoing an apprenticeship through NDI New Mexico's Dance Barns.
	Jocelyn Montoya, Jazz I Jocelyn Montoya graduated magna cum laude from the University of New Mexico with her B.A. in Theatre and Dance. Her passion for dance was cultivated by NDI-NM SPA program. She has had the good fortune of studying theatre and dance at Alambrado Danza (Florence, Italy), Interlochen Arts Camp (Interlochen, Michigan), State Street Ballet (Santa Barbara, California), and Broadway Theatre Dance Workshop (Santa Fe, New Mexico). Under the direction of Peggy Lyman Hayes and Denise Vale, Jocelyn performed in the student piece “Panorama” with The Martha Graham Dance Company. Other works include the Disney Channel original movie “Lemonade Mouth” (Ballerina), and a featured dancer in The Buffalo Thunder Resort commercial (2011).
	Mark Morgan - Boys Ballet Mark Morgan grew up in Scottsdale, Arizona. He danced with various companies throughout the US including the Milwaukee Ballet, Nevada Ballet Theatre, North Carolina Dance Theatre, Dallas Ballet and the Atlanta Ballet. After retiring from dance he returned to school where he first studied massage therapy and then chiropractic medicine. He moved to Santa Fe with his wife, Allegra Lillard, where he opened his own chiropractic office, Morgan Chiropractic. Mark has continued to dance as a guest artist and teacher here in Santa Fe.
	Diana Orozco-Garrett – Tap, Creative Movement Diana has been an NDI New Mexico dance instructor since 2001 and has taught in the School for the Performing Arts, Outreach and Summer Institute programs. Diana is from Dallas, Texas where she studied tap, jazz and ballet at the Philen Dance Studio and at Madame Nathalie Krassovska’s Ballet Jeunesse. She has a B.A. in Government from St. Mary's College, Notre Dame, Indiana and a J.D. from Southern Methodist University, Dallas, TX. Diana is a licensed attorney in New Mexico and Texas and a former Dallas County Justice of the Peace.
	Lynn Osborne
	Sheila Rozann - Ballet Sheila founded, directed and taught at the Rozann Zimmerman Ballet Center of Los Angeles for 35 years, and during her tenure many of her students were accepted into major ballet companies across the country. She has been closely connected to the School of American Ballet and part of their Ford Foundation Program. Currently, Ms. Rozann is on the faculty of the New Mexico School for the Arts and is a master guest teacher for the School of Ballet Chicago's Summer Course and Advanced Intensive Program. She continues to guest teach in Los Angeles and Los Alamos. Ms. Rozann was on the faculty of the Aspen Santa Fe Ballet for the past 13 years.
	Donna Scheer - Jazz Ms. Scheer has performed, directed and choreographed throughout the country. Her principal roles include Anita (West Side Story); Velma (Chicago); Patsy (Always, Patsy Cline) and Katherine (The Taming of the Shrew) as well as many others. In New York she appeared in the premiere of Dear Esther (Esther) and in the regional premiere of Angels in America: Perestroika (Harper). Her choreography in everything from dinner theatre musical revues to modern dance pieces to musical theatre has been seen in regional and stock theatres across the US. She has directed or choreographed, among some 35 others, Damn Yankees, And the World Goes ‘Round, Carousel, and A Little Night Music. She has served as an adjudicator for the Tilles Dance Conference for high school students in New York and has been a guest teacher for the American College Dance Festival. She holds Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in Theatre and Dance, has been on the theatre faculty at several universities and has served as the Director of the School for Performing Arts at National Dance Institute, New Mexico.
	Curtis Uhlemann, Modern An educator for sixteen years, Curtis employs a dynamic teaching method developed to cultivate and invigorate dance students through a blend of advanced technical skills and experimental choreography. Mr. Uhlemann has had the distinct privilege of working with over 1000 students nationally and internationally, many of who have continued their education at such highly recognized arts institutions as, NYU Tisch, Cal Arts, University of Arizona, Boston Conservatory, Utah State, Florida State University, New World, North Carolina School for the Arts, Cornish College, and many others.
	Kevin Ward, Ballet Pianist