Faculty

DIRECTORS 

Lynn Parkerson, Artistic Director, began her career as a choreographer while living in Germany. German critic Joachim Ernst-Berendt wrote of Lynn Parkerson, She makes music with her body like a musician on his instrument, and when she moves we feel it, that’s the way free music should be danced. Jack Anderson of The New York Times wrote, Ms. Parkerson successfully made her dancers seem witness to a miracle...one knew she was talking to God and the world, and Jennifer Dunning of The New York Times has called her solo dance, an innately spiritual embodiment of grace.

In recognition of her exceptional leadership contributions to Brooklyn’s cultural community, Ms. Parkerson received the Betty Smith Arts Award as part of the Women's “Herstory” Induction Ceremony and Reception on March 22, 2007. Each year, the awards, named after some of the most outstanding women in Brooklyn "herstory," are given to six outstanding Brooklyn women. In November '06 she received the Paul Robeson Award for Artistic Excellence and Community Service.

Lynn Parkerson’s choreography has been presented at many prominent international events and venues, including the Munich Theater Festival, Frankfurt’s Theatre am Turm, the Florence International Festival of Dance, Moers New Jazz Festival, Jazz Festival Baden-Baden and An Appalachian Summer Arts Festival in Boone, NC, among others. In New York City, she presented annual dance programs—notably the popular ballet series To the Pointe—as Director of Dance at Holy Trinity from 1991-2001.  Her work has been supported by grants from the Harkness foundation for Dance, Joyce Mertz-Gilmore Foundation and Con Edison. She also served as the Assistant Director of the 92nd Street Y Harkness Dance Center from 1996-1999. Ms. Parkerson has taught dance to children and adults in New York and abroad.

Patty Foster, Brooklyn Ballet School Director, began her performing and teaching career in 1997 at The Georgia Ballet.  Patty was also a member of Parsons Dance Company and traveled the world performing and teaching David Parson’s modern style.  Patty has worked with choreographers Joel Hall, Ronen Koresh and Milton Myers and has performed works choreographed by George Balanchine and Septime Webre.  Other performance credits include Eisenhower Dance Ensemble and Brian Sander’s JUNK.  She has taught and choreographed for Mesa State College, The University of Pennsylvania, Oakland University, Pebblebrook Performing Arts High School and Interlochen Center for the Arts.  Patty received the “Best Dancer” award and graduated honors with a BFA in Modern Dance from The University of the Arts.  Currently, Patty is the School Director at Brooklyn Ballet where she teaches ballet, modern and jazz techniques to students of all ages. 

Catherine Green, Elevate Director, began professional training at North Carolina School of the Arts. She received her BFA in dance from Purchase College and her MA in dance education from New York University.  Performance credits include Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre, Ballet Met, Nai-Ni Chen Dance Company, Ernesta Corvino's Dance Circle Company, Ballet Mink Colbert, Historic Dance Theater and Brooklyn Ballet.  Ms. Green is delighted to be a part of Brooklyn Ballet School's faculty; she also teaches ballet in the Hunter College Dance Program and coordinates Elevate, Brooklyn Ballet's in-school dance education program. 

FACULTY

Milan Agnew earned her BFA in Dance from Marymount Manhattan College. She is a freelance performer, and has danced with various companies in New York and Philadelphia. Ms. Agnew is an ABT® National Training Curriculum Certified Teacher in levels Primary through Three. She has taught at various ballet schools, including Ballet Academy East and the JKO School at American Ballet Theatre.  During the 2010/2011 school year, Milan signed on as a teacher for Brooklyn Ballet's outreach program Elevate. Milan is very excited to be on faculty this school year, and looks forward to contributing to the ongoing success of Brooklyn Ballet.

Meghan Brunke holds degrees in dance with a concentration is kineseology from Wayne State University and London Contemporary Dance School at The Place.  She travels as a guest teacher for various companies and schools and held an adjunct faculty position at Wayne State U.  Meghan comes to Brooklyn Ballet from Las Vegas and working with the Nevada Ballet Theatre.  Primarily a solo artist since 2003, Meghan cultivates a varied repertoire focused on audience connection and drawing from a multitude of techniques.  Meghan is currently partnered with Michael Garcia and working in the Addie-Tude Dance Company, as well as coordinating outreach for Brooklyn Ballet and teaching ballet.  She looks forward to seeing you in class!

Michael Fields AKA Mike Supreme was born and raised in Brooklyn, New York. He has been named one of the best up-and-coming "poppers" in New York City. He has been teaching kids and adults since 2004, and has taught at Broadway Dance Center and Peridance, among others. He has performed professionally at the Brooklyn Academy of Music, New York Theatre Workshop, Kumble Theatre for the Performing Arts, Dance Theater Workshop, Zipper Theater, Bowery Poetry Club, Galapagos Arts Space, Webster Hall, and many other venues.

Jenny Gilmore was trained at the Sacramento Ballet School  and attended summer programs on full merit scholarship at the San Francisco Ballet, the Bolshoi Ballet Academy at Vail, and the Pacific Northwest Ballet Schools where she was chosen for the London tour of Midsummer Night’s Dream. She has also danced with Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre, Sacramento Ballet and E:motion Dance Ensemble. She attended, on scholarship, St Mary’s LEAP Program, earning her Bachelor of Performing Arts.  Jenny has instructed and choreographed for schools in Sacramento, San Francisco, San Diego and New York, with works that have won awards at Dance Masters of America and toured to Edinburgh Scotland. In 2005 Jenny was able to participate as a master teacher and judge for DMA and is featured in the documentary “Why Dance?” by James Manning.

Nikki Hefko toured nationally and internationally as a member of The Dance Theatre of Harlem.   As a freelance artist, she has worked with companies such as Les Grands Ballet Canadiens, Metropolitan Opera and Brooklyn Ballet.   She has a BA in English Literature and an MS in Education from Loyola University New Orleans.   Nikki is a faculty member at Dance Theatre of Harlem School and Brooklyn Ballet.

Justine Pojanowski danced with Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre under the directorship of Terrence Orr and Marianna Tcherkassky. She has worked directly with choreographers such as Ben Stevenson, Dwight Rhoden, Lynn Taylor-Corbett, Matjash Mrozewski, and Derek Deane, as well as having danced the ballets of established choreographers George Balanchine, Glen Tetley, Choo-San Goh, Jiri Kylian, and Paul Taylor, as well as classic full-length ballets. Ms. Pojanowski was trained at the School of American Ballet, San Francisco Ballet School, American Ballet Theatre School (now Jacqueline Onassis School of Ballet) and the Royal Danish Ballet School, studying with renowned teachers and dancers including Stanley Williams, Kay Mazzo, Antonia Tumkovsky, Adam Lüders, Cynthia Harvey, Kevin McKenzie, Martine van Hamel, Susan Jaffe, and Robert La Fosse. Ms. Pojanowski was awarded a Coca-Cola Scholarship by American Ballet Theatre in 1995. She holds a BA Magna Cum Laude from New York University.  

Christine F. Scheibl came to New York from Vienna, Austria in 1993 to study Ballet with Dance Theater of Harlem. After completing the Professional Training Program, she worked as a Professional dancer performing throughout the USA and participating in Outreach Programs to bring dance to the community.  After the birth of her daughter in 2000, she enrolled in the Swedish Institute for Massage Therapy and received her Associate in Occupational Studies in 2002. She has since then worked as massage therapist and has been a dedicated and experienced dance teacher, bringing her joy for this art form into the dance studio.

Nancy S. Smith, MA, has been teaching dance and movement for nearly 15 years. Originally from coastal North Carolina, Nancy currently resides in New York City where she instructs classes in ballet, modern dance, jazz, tap, choreography and creative movement/young movers.  She holds both a BA and an MA in dance education and proudly graduated magna cum laude from New York University in 2005, with an emphasis on dance in higher education.  She is a recent graduate of Harkness Dance Center’s DEL (Dance Education Laboratory) program and certified instructor. Nancy is also an active member of NDEO, the National Dance Education Organization. She serves as a faculty member for the 92nd Street Y, Peridance Capezio Center, Brooklyn Ballet and Dancewave, engaging in outreach endeavors through dance. Nancy is a member of Kathryn Wilkening and Dancers and has recently performed works at Ailey Citigroup Theater, Manhattan Movement and Arts Center and Spoke the Hub. A lifelong yoga student and devotee, Nancy recently completed a 225-hour Hatha teacher-training program, where she will soon be registered with the National Yoga Alliance.

Inna Yureneva, originally from Moscow, Russia, graduated from the Bolshoi Theater Academy in 2002.  As a student of the Academy, Inna performed in a number of Bolshoi Theater ballet productions.  In June 2002, she moved to the United States with her family. Since then she has performed with numerous companies, including Metropolitan Opera, Connecticut Ballet, Saba Dance Theater, Ballet New York, New Dance Group company, Lynn Barr Dance Theater and Lumiere Ballet.  Inna has an extensive experience in teaching Ballet for different levels and ages in New York.  She taught in schools such as New Dance Group, PMT dance, Dance Emporium.  Inna maintains her relationship with the Bolshoi Academy and teaches a course during Summer Intensive Program in US.  Inna is excited to join the Brooklyn Ballet faculty.  

ADVISORS

Oona Haaranen, Elevate Education Advisor, received her BFA in Dance at Juilliard in 1987 and earned her MA in Dance Research and Choreography at CCNY in 1991. She became a “Language of Dance” specialist in 2003 after five years of study with Anne Hutchinson Guest at the Language of the Dance Center. Before coming to this country she was trained by and was a member of the Finnish National Ballet. In addition she has an extensive musical background having studied piano, music theory and music history for 13 years at The Helsinki Conservatory of Music.

Caridad Martinez, Brooklyn Ballet Conservatory Advisor, is a graduate of the Escuela Nacional de Arte in Havana, Cuba, where she studied with Alicia & Fernando Alonso. As a principal dancer of the National Ballet of Cuba she performed in the most important theaters in North and South America, Europe and Asia. Caridad was Artistic Director of the Cuban-Mexico Ballet School for 13 years, and Artistic Director and choreographer of The Havana Ballet Theater. The Havana Ballet Theater was the creative concept that transformed the performing arts in Cuba during the decade of the 80's. Caridad Martinez is considered one of the leading figures of the Performing Arts in that country. She has obtained innumerable awards for her choreographic work for dance and theater. She has choreographed for the Hispanic Heritage Awards, and for the acclaimed Julian Schnabel film Before Night Falls.