OUR DANCE TEACHERS
Karen (Kerry) Doidge
ADCC-CICB, A.I.S.T.D. (Cecchetti), RAD (Mutually Recognized Teacher)
Karen has been a ballet professional working in Edmonton and the surrounding area for nearly three decades. Since she received her Associate certification with the Imperial Society of Teachers of Dancing and the Cecchetti Society of Canada, she has been an integral member of Alberta's classical ballet community.
Ms. Doidge operated her own studio in Vegreville for six years. Upon moving to Athabasca she was asked to direct the recently established Athabasca Dance Society. In a community that had never previously had the benefit of a professionally run dance school, she instituted the use of a ballet curriculum and raised standards through Cecchetti examinations. Her students take yearly examinations with consistent results, and have been accepted to such prestigious schools as: The School of Alberta Ballet, The School of Toronto Dance Theatre, as well as the dance programmes at Simon Fraser University, York University, the University of Calgary, and Grant MacEwan University.
In addition to teaching in Athabasca, Ms. Doidge instructs ballet in Edmonton. With a strong appetite for learning, she never misses an opportunity to take workshops, classes, and teaching courses, consistently expanding on her knowledge of ballet, pedagogy and anatomy.
Toni Tarrant
Dancing since the age of 3, Toni never doubted for a moment she would be doing anything else for a career other than dance. Dance is her voice, her passion for movement and music is captivating and she wouldn’t have it any other way.
Toni Started dancing in the small town of Stony Plain, Alberta. As she got older and became more serious about her future in dance she moved into the city of Edmonton where she continued her technical training at Shelley’s Dance Company, under the watchful eye of Shelley Tookey. As well, Toni continued to grow and excel with Hip Hop and Street Styles at The Kore Dance Studio. In 2011 she began teaching at The Kore Dance Studio and was a creative director of NXG Company for 8 years. NXG has traveled all over Canada and the US competing at several pristine dance competitions with great success. While teaching and working with NXG Company, Toni also took the time to continue her personal growth as a dancer traveling down to LA to work with some of the world’s best teachers and choreographers.
In 2016 Toni moved to Vancouver where she began teaching at Harbour Dance Centre and worked with ITP, Source Dance Company, and many studios in the Vancouver area. She also danced with TwoFourSeven Company, which gave her the amazing opportunity to perform and compete on America’s Got Talent and Jeniffer Lopez’s dance competition show World Of Dance.
Toni’s passion for dance has turned into a great passion of working with her students to become the best dancers they can be. Her hope as a teacher is to have her students excited to come to class, work hard, and achieve their goals. Toni is very proud of all she has accomplished in 27 years of dance and is always gearing up to spread the love of dance to anyone she crosses paths with.
Shawna Murray
Shawna has instructed and adjudicated dance in Edmonton and the surrounding areas for over 25 years.
She attended the Dance Teacher Training program at Grant MacEwan University then became a certified instructor with the Royal Academy of Dance.
Ms Murray co-owned/operated a studio in St Albert for several years. While she enjoys teaching all styles of dance, ballet and creative movement are an area of interest.
Shawna is thrilled to be joining ADS to share her love of movement and play a part in developing young dancers.
Lucy Bourret-Juda
I grew up dancing with the Athabasca Dance Society from a young age. I gained experience in ballet, jazz, contemporary and later on, hip hop. As a young adult, I taught young dancers in both creative movement and hip hop.
Currently, I’m an elementary teacher but I’m taking a break from full time teaching to raise my three children. With my love of dance and knowledge of teaching children, I look forward to being a teacher at ADS.
Melanie Hidalgo Cruz
Originally from Edmonton AB, Melanie Hidalgo has gone to make an exceptional name for herself as a performer and a professional choreographer throughout the dance community and industry. At the age of 16, her passion for dance grew stronger as did her opportunities.
In 2009, Melanie had already received many scholarships such as ‘Be Discovered Broadway New York’, ‘Be Discovered Disneyland Los Angeles’, and unlimited dance classes at Debbie Reynolds and Millennium Dance Complex. Competing and performing under NXG Company, directed by Alexander Chung across western and eastern Canada and United States, presented her with a continuous outlet to network and dance. World Of Dance Vancouver, Toronto, Edmonton, Hawaii, Los Angeles, Hip Hop International Montreal and Vegas, Choreographer's Cup, and Artists Emerge are just a few competitions she has competed at. In 2011, Melanie made her first television appearance on Canada’s Got Talent and in September of 2015, Melanie was presented with the opportunity of a lifetime. She auditioned to backup dance behind one of the biggest music icons in history, Janet Jackson herself, and made it. Performing in her hometown Edmonton AB, in front of thousands of spectators ignited her fire to pursue dance as a career. Making many trips down to Los Angeles to continue training, she found herself performing at her very first Jete at Rage Nightclub under one of the most respected choreographers in Los Angeles and the industry, Brandon Dumlao. Also, performing her first time at Anniversary Carnival under choreographer Alexander Chung. She then attended ‘The Buildabeast Experience 2015’ which brought her another huge opportunity. She made it onto the IMMABeast roster as one of the top 5 dancers out of 800 attendees and auditionees. Alongside making it on the IMMABeast family, she has now worked with Willdabeast Adams and Janelle Ginestra many times on a personal level, performing at well known shows such as ‘Anniversary Carnival’ held in Los Angeles, and ‘The IMMABeast Show’.
Some of her credits are Christmas Chronicles II, Zoeys Extraordinary Playlist, Descendants, Final Destination and Air Bud. She has also worked closely with artists like Kiesza and has been on tour working on Shopkins and Paw Patrol.
Melanie is well known for being energetic, charismatic and her work ethic! Her style is not specific, for she loves to be open to trying new things. She constantly travels abroad to expand her knowledge on dance so she is able to bring something new to the table to challenge her students, and herself. “I aspire to inspire. The one thing I stand for is hard work and that is what I want my students to live by as they continue to grow as dancers and people. Dedication, motivation, work ethic, faith and a positive attitude, these are the few things that inspire me and will continue to.”
Danielle Balay
Danielle is an alumna of the Athabasca Dance Society and began dancing when she
was three. Ballet has always been her greatest passion, and obtained her Cecchetti
Advanced 1 certificate, while also enjoying other genres of dance including modern and jazz.
After graduating high school, Danielle continued ballet and modern training, in
Edmonton, Alberta, throughout her undergraduate degree. Although university and
graduate studies demanded much of her time, her love of dance never faded. She
eventually joined Orchesis giving her the opportunity to return to the stage and perform again.
Danielle’s formal dance education includes Edmonton School of Ballet’s Junior Grades
Teaching Course and Classical Ballet Progressions of Canada. She has always had a
strong aptitude for learning and is passionate about continuing her dance education.
She strives to learn new teaching methods and training techniques to help her students advance their skills, confidence and performance abilities in the studio and on stage.
She has taught ballet at Darlene’s Dance Academy in Edmonton, Alberta, and
previously as a student teacher with the Athabasca Dance Society. She is honored to
return to the place where she first fell in love with dance, and to share her passion for
movement and music with a new generation of dancers. She looks forward to helping
her students become strong, technical, and empowered dancers.
Annie Bizuk
Annie Bizuk is a professional dancer, choreographer, vocalist, and dance educator with performance experience across Canada and internationally.
Annie began dancing at the age of two and spent her entire competitive dance career training at Shelley's Dance Company in Edmonton, Alberta under the guidance of Shelley Tookey and the studio's distinguished faculty. During her 16 years at the studio, she developed a strong technical foundation through competitive training and examination-based study, completing 13 Royal Academy of Dance (RAD) Ballet examinations from Pre-Primary through Advanced 1, as well as 4 Al Gilbert Tap examinations. In 2017, Annie proudly represented Canada as a Team Canada dancer at the IDO World Dance Championships in Poland, where her ballet ensemble earned a Silver Medal.
She also trained extensively through conventions, workshops, and intensives, including The Protégé Movement Intensive and NUVO Dance Convention.
Following her competitive career, Annie pursued professional opportunities overseas, completing two six-month international dance contracts in Kos Island, Greece and Sharm El Sheikh, Egypt. Working as a full-time professional dancer, she performed in large-scale production shows for international audiences while collaborating with performers from around the world.
In between her professional contracts, Annie discovered a passion for teaching and continued to invest in her growth as both an artist and educator.
She pursued additional training opportunities in New York City, Paris, Amsterdam, and other dance hubs, studying with industry professionals from around the world.
In addition to her professional dance career, Annie has extensive musical theatre experience, performing in productions including Fiddler on the Roof, Anne of Green Gables, Oklahoma!, Oliver!, and many others.
As an instructor, Annie is passionate about creating a positive and encouraging environment where dancers of all abilities and experiences can build confidence, develop strong technique and artistry, and foster a lifelong love of dance.
Jennifer Wolfe
Jennifer started her dance career at the age of 10 in Edmonton Alberta. In just a few short years her love for dance blossomed and her assisting in classes became the segway to teach herself. She continued her training in Edmonton studios and workshops and completed 3 years of Cecchetti teacher training at the Edmonton School of Ballet and achieving her Advanced 1 exam, as well as the Junior Teachers Certificate. Jennifer started teaching in rural AB in 2003 in Lac la Biche. She continued to travel and teach in Athabasca, AB while still teaching in the city, including at Edmonton School Ballet. In 2013 Jennifer travelled to instruct in Cairo Egypt for a season, but was forced to return home due to unfortunate political turmoil in the country. Upon her return to Alberta, she was able to work in Vegreville AB, and then continued her training, going to workshops in Vancouver, Las Vegas, completing Level one Certification for Dance Teacher Web, Progressing Ballet Technique, as well as Acrobatic Arts Certificate level one. She has had the privilege of taking classes with Tyce Dioro, Mia Michaels, Stephen "Twitch" Boss, Napoleon and Tabitha, Bradley Rapier among many others. Jennifer has had many students over the years also go on to be dance educators.
