Tri-City Dance Centre

Shannon spent her early years of training in the Vancouver area, studying Royal Academy of Dance Ballet (Primary through Advanced) Jazz, Musical Theatre and Voice. She went on to study with the Royal Winnipeg Ballet School, York University Dance Department in Toronto, and the American Musical and Dramatic Academy in New York.

Shannon also has experience in the Vagonava and Cecchetti styles of Ballet, Martha Graham Modern, Benesh Notation, and Educational Psychology. Shannon holds the Royal Academy of Dance Teaching Certificate, in which she received a mark of Distinction, and the Royal Academy of Dance Teaching Diploma specializing in Anatomy and Dance History. Shannon continues her studies alongside some of the best Ballet Teachers in the World each summer in New York City, including Finis Jhung, David Howard and Jo Rowan.Shannon is also a Ballet member of the B.C. Branch of the Canadian Dance Teachers Association.

She has been teaching locally for the past 26 years and currently mentors and supervises in the RAD's Certificate of Ballet Teaching Studies. As a teacher, her students have been accepted to and studied at some of the best schools in the world, including:  Alberta Ballet * American Ballet Theatre (ABT) *Ballet Austin *Ballet B.C. * Ballet Magnificat *Boston Ballet * Broadway Theatre Project * The Banff Centre for the Arts * Les Grands Ballets Canadians * Hartford Ballet * Illinois Ballet * Joffrey Ballet * Louisville Ballet * Miami City Ballet * The National Ballet of Canada * North Carolina Dance Theatre * Oregon Ballet Theatre * Orlando Ballet Theatre * Pacific Northwest Ballet School * Princess Cruise Lines * Royal City Musical Theatre * Royal Caribbean Cruise Lines * The Royal Winnipeg Ballet * Tokyo Disney * Washington Ballet * Theatre Under the Stars * Toronto Dance Theatre * Okanagan Summer Dance Intensive

Ryan trained locally in Jazz, Tap, Lyrical Jazz, Musical Theatre and Ballet. She was a member of the Grizzlies Dance Team since it's inception, and was also a principal dancer with "Fusion Dance Company".

She has trained up to the R.A.D. intermediate level in ballet and achieved the Gold Star in C.D.T.A. Tap. Ryan has performed all over the world-from Las Vegas to Japan, including many public venues throughout B.C.

She trained under master teacher Belinda Sobie, as well as Jocelyn Peden, Shannon Stewardson and Margaret Derksen. Ryan is the Assistant Director of Tri-City Dance Centre and co-director of the Intermediate Professional Program.

She has been teaching at Tri-City Dance Centre for the past twenty years, and is a registered A.I.D.T. Tap teacher. 

Sarah Brewer Clowes is a master teacher with a career spanning the continent as well as a time period of over 38 years. She is also a dancer, choreographer, adjudicator and personal movement expert. Sarah is a proud mother, a podcaster and workshop creator/leader on the importance of Injury Prevention through Health Maintenance and Anatomical Basics. 
Sarah’s performing career began at the Munich Ballet in Germany over 30 years ago and included dancing with the Northwest Florida Ballet, Banff Festival Ballet and the Vancouver Opera.

Her independent performing career encompasses most of her professional life and allowed her the privilege of working with such luminaries as Crystal Pite, David Earle, Wen Wei Wang, Cori Caulfield, Amber Funk Barton, Sylvain Senez and Gioconda Barbuto to name a few. She choreographs for both amateur and professional dancers and loves the explorative process of creating with artists. Sarah has also had the pleasure of adjudicating dance festivals all over Western Canada, including 3 Provincial festivals in B.C.

As a teacher, Sarah’s passion lies in creating space and potential for each and every dancer to discover their own path to movement clarity, both in physical health and in technical individuality. Her methods involve an emphasis on anatomical knowledge, personal expression and love of self-discovery. 

Sarah is highly respected for her extensive anatomical knowledge and creation of workshops that assist in maintaining dancer’s physical and mental health. She is also the creator of “Sarah’s Space”, a podcast that addresses a plethora of subjects from the arts world to social unrest and everything in between. Sarah’s deepest motivation is to help everyone that she works with find the best way they can dance forward in life. 
 

Originally from Edmonton, Liz was a competitive dancer at Shelley’s Dance Company.
 

Her professional career has allowed her to travel all over the world. She began with Princess Cruises as a featured dancer, she then travelled to Tokyo, Japan where she was part of the featured pas de deux couple in “Encore!” at Tokyo Disney Sea. She also went to Egypt and Israel under Big Fish Management for an inspiring show tour for the Canadian military.

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Liz was able to exercise all of her skills in dancing, acting and singing when the love of the stage drew her to the world of musical theatre. Throughout her career she got to play a wide variety of characters, in Theatre Calgary’s production of “Anne of Green Gables” she played Gertie Pye, a flashy chorus girl in The Arts Club production of “Spamalot” and a dream come true performing in the North American Premiere/Toronto Mirvish production of “Dirty Dancing”. She performed as Ensemble and 1st “Baby” understudy. After an 18 month run Liz went on to play the role of “Baby” 52 times!

Her television credits include assisting Canadian Choreographer Stacey Tookey on So You Think You Can Dance Canada. She was part of the creative team for ‘Reefer Madness” where she helped create dance sequences for the film.   Liz can be seen on various episodes of ABC’s Once Upon a Time”, the CW Network’s “Hellcats” as a featured dancer, and as Ashley Tisdale’s dance double. She was also Maggie Lawon’s dance double in the musical episode of “Psych”, a featured dancer in Syfy’s Network “Magicians”, Nickelodeon’s “Jinxed” and “The Layover”

Transitioning to the world of choreography Liz’s work can most recently be seen on Super Channel’s “When Calls the Heart”. Other credits include Assistant Choreographer on ABC’s “Once Upon a Time”, choreographing and directing the Czech Republic fashion show for the 2010 winter Olympics, and choreographing the opening number for the Times of India Film Awards at BC Place. Liz loves to share her passion for what she does with pre-professional and professional dancers across Canada via master classes, adjudicating or setting choreography.

She is currently on faculty at Harbour Dance Centre (www.harbourdance.com)

Based in Vancouver, BC; Nicol has over 20 years of dance education and theatre performance training and over 15 years of teaching experience both in Canada and Japan.

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Nicol is excited to be heading into her fifth year with TCDC to share her love and passion for theatre and dance with her students.

Nicol has had the opportunity to perform in many productions in Canada, the United States and the Bahamas. An avid performer, she has appeared in Cat in the Hat (Carousel Theatre for Young People),  Hairspray, Annie Get Your Gun, Annie (TUTS), Joseph, A Chorus Line, West Side Story, 42nd Street, Peter Pan (RCMT) Joseph, Cabaret, Jesus Christ Superstar (URP), Night of the Living Dead (DRSP), Disney Dreams, Mickey’s Pirates and The Golden Mickeys (Disney Cruise Line), and the Opening Ceremonies of the Vancouver 2010 Olympic Games. On screen, Nicol has worked with Disney Entertainment, CBS, NBC, 20th Century Fox and Alliance Atlantis. Nicol is also a choreographer and has won multiple awards for her work seen around Vancouver. Choreography credits include: Rodgers and Hammerstein's Cinderella and  Mary Poppins  (Theatre Under The Stars),  Enron (United Players) Legally Blonde, Annie and Shrek (Align Entertainment), 13: The Musical (Bring on Tomorrow Co.) and Sweeney Todd (The Snapshots Collective) of which the show was nominated for 8 Jessie Richardson Awards including Critics Choice for Innovation in Theatre,  9 to 5 (Capilano University), Mamma Mia (Chemainus Theatre Festival) Rock of Ages (Renegade Arts Co.), Company (Raincity Theatre), Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat (Gateway Theatre) . Nicol has won two Ovation awards for Outstanding Choreography for work in Mary Poppins and Cinderella at Theatre Under the Stars. Nicol is also the co-artist director at Raincity Theatre here in Vancouver. 

Kylah Powell is a Vancouver born resident who attended on scholarship and graduated with a BFA in dance (with a focus on Modern) from the University of Missouri-Kansas City. She studied dance under Leni Wylliams, Mary Pat Henry and Paula Webber, and also spent a summer in New York as a student at the Alvin Ailey Dance Centre. 

Kylah has been teaching for over 20 years, with her choreography winning numerous awards throughout the Lower Mainland, including “Choreography of entire Dance Power Festival” for 5 years. She has performed in various festivals over the years, and her choreography has been showcased in the B.C. Festival of Arts, among many other events. In 2009, she choreographed and performed in a short film titled ‘Swell Season’, which screened at the Chicago International Film & Music Festival. During that time she was also part of Project CPR, a project focusing on the choreographic process, directed by Claire French. Choreographers included Sara Coffin, Heather Laura Gray and Caroline Liffman. Kylah’s most memorable moment came in 2010, when she danced in the Vancouver Olympic Opening Ceremonies! Since then, she has been focussing on her company (see below), and in 2015 performed a piece in a segment entitled ‘This Is A Full Length’, as part of the Dance In Vancouver Festival. In May of 2018, Kylah’s work was selected to be showcased in a special Gala celebrating BC’s 160th, held at the Vancouver Playhouse.

Kylah was a national level competitive gymnast for many years, competing both locally and out of province and country. This experience proved to be invaluable, as the teaching and choreographing of circus arts at Cirkids became another creative aspect to her life.

In 2005, Kylah formed CollabArt Creations, a contemporary dance company whose goal is to showcase the artistic collaboration of dancers, performers, and artists of various mediums in the public domain. She has produced and choreographed several full-length shows throughout the Lower Mainland, all of which were well received by enthusiastic audiences! CollabArt Creations has collaborated with artists including choreographers, dancers, photographers, painters, film directors/producers.

Most recently, Kylah has focused on the realm of film, due to Co-Vid. She has produced/ choreographed several short dance films and has just received a grant from The Dance Centre towards her next film project ‘Just a Swipe’.  Stay tuned…

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Erin started dance at age 5 and found her true passion in contortion and acrobatics at the age of 8. She has studied under the direction of Anne Lawton from Westcoast Contortion and Acrobatics and have trained with Otgo Waller, a world-renowned contortionist from Cirque du Soleil. Erin has also trained on aerial silks with Kristi Toguchi, a Las Vegas performer, as well as former Cirque Du Soleil performers; Ninon Parent and Peter Boulanger.

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When not busy self-training and or teaching, she spends the rest of her time performing!
Erin has completed all  South African Acrobatics exams with honours with distinction, CTDA exams with honours, and  Acrobatic Arts teacher certification.

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Erin is very versatile in all styles of dance, as she has been trained in jazz, contemporary, theatre, tap, ballet, lyrical, and hip-hop. She isam also a certified yoga and zumba instructor as well as a silks, trapeze, hoop, chains, and contortion coach! 

Born in Vancouver, Peyton began dancing at the age of 4 when she started training locally at Tri-City Dance Centre, where she remained until her graduation. Her dedication led her to excel in various dance styles, including RAD Ballet up to Advanced 1, AIDT Tap to Gold Higher, as well as Jazz, Musical Theatre, Acro, Contemporary, and Lyrical dance forms. Throughout her dance career, she garnered a multitude of scholarships and awards from both local and international dance competitions and conventions.

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Under the direction of esteemed instructors such as Shannon Stewardson, Sarah Brewer Clowes, Suzanne Oulette, Liz Tookey, Nicol Spinola, and Ryan Berketa, Peyton honed her skills. Additionally, she had the privilege of collaborating with choreographers such as Stacey Tookey, Kate Harpootlian, Alex Blitstein, and Chantel Aguirre.

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Peyton currently attends Simon Fraser University where she studies in Education, Child Psychology, and Dance, as she continues to nurture her passion and expertise.

Ramona has been teaching Ballet in the lower mainland for 15+ years. She has worked with dancers of all ages and levels ranging from beginner to adult in the general and professional divisions. Ramona is a registered Ballet teacher and an Associate with the Royal Academy of Dance and has successfully coached and prepared students for their RAD examinations. Ramona started dancing in Richmond where she trained and danced competitively in a wide range of dance forms. She then went on to train professionally as a youth with the Royal Winnipeg Ballet school where she graduated with Distinction. Her teachers include Galina Yordanova, Jacqueline Weber, Arlene Minkhorst, Evelyn Hart, Jorden Morris, David Moroni and Carol Roderick. Ramona worked with the Royal Winnipeg Ballet company in such works as the Nutcracker, Sleeping Beauty, Swan Lake, Romeo and Juliet and other various contemporary pieces and choreographers such as Balanchine. Ramona has also trained in the methods of Russian Vaganova and ISTD. She is very excited to be sharing her love and passion for dance with Tricity Dance.

Currently based in Vancouver, Jennie is a Jessie Award winning performer and voice teacher, having appeared in theatres across the world. 

Jennie has a Masters Degree in Performance from The Royal Academy of Music in London, as well as her Licentiate of the Royal Academy of Music and Diploma in Musical Theatre from Capilano University.

Some of her favourite performance credits include; Molly Jensen in Ghost the Musical(Chemainus Theatre), The Fox in The Little Prince(Abu Dhabi Arts Festival/Theatre Calgary), Amy in Company(Raincity) Natalie in Next to Normal, Tracy Turnblad in Hairspray, Eponine in Les Miserables(Arts Club), Songs for a New World and The World Goes ‘Round (Another Musical). 

Jennie is thrilled to be back teaching Voice at Tricity Dance after joining the team in January.

Joshua Fernandez, began dancing at age 16. Joshua has trained in many styles including: Ballet, Contemporary, Hiphop foundations, Popping, Waacking, Afro Fusion/Choreography, Dance Hall, Choreography and Freestyle. Joshua trained under Pacific Dance Arts, A3 District, Harbour Dance Centre, TwoFourSeven Dance Company and The Room and Board based in Los Angeles. He’s currently a part of the crew Infamous,which mainly focuses on individual training, choreography and competing.

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As a dancer, Joshua was able to do an apprenticeship with Coastal City Ballet, performing Irene Schneider’s Midsummer Night Dreams, Coppelia and toured Hansel and Gretel with the company nationally. After his years with ballet, he transitioned over to doing more street fundamental styles. He went on to train and compete with his crew of 7 years nationally and internationally, winning awards at events including; Monsters A- List Event Washington, Hit the Floor Toronto & Gatineau, World of Dance Orlando & Los Angeles Finals and Artist Emerge. They also took the 1st place win at Represent Dance Competition in Edmonton for two consecutive years, one of which featured a section of his own award winning choreography. 

Joshua has attended several dance and teaching conventions which has allowed for him to explore different styles of dance and teaching methods.

As a teacher, Joshua believes in providing a safe space for his students to feel confident, motivated and inspired. He loves to see his students reach breakthroughs and push themselves past their limits. Joshua wants to see his students succeed and be proud of their achievements along with the hard work and dedication they’ve put in their craft

Nicholas Gede-Lange is a performing artist, choreographer, director, and instructor based in beautiful Vancouver, BC. Originally from Ontario, Nicholas is a graduate of Canada's National Ballet School. By 13, he had already performed professionally in the Toronto dance scene.  Throughout his performance career, Nicholas has graced the screen, and stage in more than 10 world premiere productions working closely with a wide variety of artists to create new works and unique characters.  With over 25 years in the industry, some credits include: Mirvish Productions - The Lord of the Rings; Ballet British Columbia - As Above So Below, The Faerie Queen, Orpheus, There Below, Sheherazade; The Canadian Opera Company - The Golden Ass; Folies Bergère - Schéhérazade Les Mille et Une Nuits; Disney - Encore!  Some choreographers he has worked closely with include: Rudi Van Dantzig, John Alleyne, James Kudleka, Peter Darling, Debra Brown, Paul Becker, Lisa Stevens, Brian MacDonald, and Robert Desrosiers.  Nicholas has been teaching now for over a decade, and has won several awards for his choreography at various dance competition across the province and is praised by his students and their parents for his kind and generous nature.  He loves to teach various forms of dance including ballet, jazz, lyrical, contemporary, acro, and partnering.  Most recently, he choreographed the musical “We are Monsters” for CTORA (formerly Children's Theatre of Richmond) and is currently both directing and choreographing “The Little Mermaid Jr” for the same company.

Abby began her dance journey at the age of 6. She grew up dancing competitively at Dance Xpressions in Cloverdale where she trained in Jazz, Hiphop, Lyrical, Tap, Musical Theatre, Acro, Contemporary and completed her RAD ballet up to Advanced 1. Over the years, she received many awards and scholarships recognizing her passion and dedication to dance.

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Abby took on leadership roles in her high school dance company where she received outstanding choreography and dancer awards. Abby has had the opportunity to train in Los Angeles at studios such as Millenium Dance Complex and The Edge. She has danced with Harbour Dance Centres Intensive Training Program (ITP) directed by Moe Brody. Here she trained for 10 months under a variety of professionals in the dance industry. She is currently part of Platform on Camera’s “The Collective” with Christian Lagasse and Breanna English looking to work in the T.V. and film industry here in the Vancouver area.

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Additionally Abby has been a part of several Dance video projects and live performances. She will continue to dance professionally while inspiring and instructing other dancers. She is looking forward to the upcoming season here at Tri-City!

Julia Bose is a passionate dancer and teacher, born and raised in Victoria, BC. She began her life of dance at the age of 3, and instantly fell in love. Throughout her childhood she explored many different genres such as Ballet, Jazz, Modern, and Tap. However, Hip Hop quickly stole the show, and has since taken her to new heights both locally and internationally. In 2015, Julia was invited onto Team Canada for Hip Hop, and later travelled to Rimini, Italy to compete in the IDO World Championships. She performed as a solo dancer, in a smaller select group, and took home and impressive 4th Place with the full adult team. This was her first brush with international competitions, and it was only the beginning. In 2016, while training under Roberta Bierman, Julia and her crew, GTX, flew to Las Vegas to compete in the Semi-Finals for the world renowned competition, Hip Hop International. She has since performed and competed at many well known events such as Urban Alchemy, Artists Emerge, Vibe, and eventually BodyRock 2017 where she won 1st Place with TwoFourSeven Co., under the direction of Carlo Atienza, Roberta Bierman, and Jon Bongato. Most recently, Julia travelled to Los Angeles with TwoFourSeven Co. as the only invited international team, at the prestigious VIBE Dance Competition 2018 where they won 3rd Place.

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Julia also has an intense love for teaching. She began her career choreographing for her middle and high school dance programs, local studios, and solo projects. This is where she developed her high energy, positive, and nurturing teaching style. She has since directed several competitive crews, whom have had the pleasure of competing in competitions such as Artist Emerge in Edmonton, Alberta. Today Julia teaches a variety of street styles, in a range of skill levels and age groups.

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Julia continues to expand her Hip Hop repertoire by training under many highly respected choreographers, with TwoFourSeven Co., as well as with an up and coming, all female Hip Hop crew, Ruffnecks, directed by Roberta Bierman.

Tamara Kiyama is a Vancouver born dancer and actress. She started training in when she was 4 years old and has trained extensively since then in the styles of ballet, jazz, tap, musical theatre, modern, contemporary, pointe, and hip hop. 

Tamara has also appeared in numerous tv shows and movies such as “Baby-Sitters Club”,  “Shōgun”, and “Million Little Things”. She recently completed the Intensive Training Program under the directions of Moe Brody, Chanel Lacasse, and Greer Whillans, where she had opportunities to learn from teachers Megan Lawson, Justine Gera, Heather Dotto, and Jocelyn Peden to name a few. Tamara hopes to inspire the next generation of dancers and share her passion for dance! 

SarahPo Ting Yeung - RAD Ballet

Ashley - Office Manager

Bec - Office Assistant 

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