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Addie
Black-Cannistra is the owner and director
of ”Dance from the Heart.” She has been taking
all forms of dance for 33 years, and has been teaching them
for 20. She has competed all across the northeast since
the age of ten and has won many awards and titles, including:
Dance Elite Senior Grand Champion 1994, and Miss Adult Dance
Masters of America 1995. She has also earned her Early Childhood
Education Degree from SUNY Cobleskill, and has worked in numerous
nursery schools and preschools across the area.
Ashleigh Canfield started
off her journey into dance at the age of two and a half. Even
being so young she knew that dance was something that she
loved to do. At the age of 9 she was offered the opportunity
to join the competition team at The United Academy of the
Performing Arts. In 2000, Ashleigh made the decision to continue
her dance training with Addie Black at the newly opened Dance
from the Heart. That year she also started her transition
from performer to instructor by assisting with a few classes.
By the time she graduated high school in 2003, assisting with
a few classes had turned into teaching many classes, including
non-competition classes, competition classes and private lessons.
Throughout her almost 20 years of dance Ashleigh has participated
in many different competitions and workshops throughout New
York Stats. Now instead of being on stage, she enjoys watching
her choreography performed by the children that she teaches.
In 2004 and 2005 she participated in the Dance Masters of
America Teachers Training School to further her dance education.
Currently she has completed levels 1 and 2 and plans to return
in the future to obtain DMA certification in dance teaching.
While at TTS in 2004, Ashleigh also completed a gymnastic/acrobatic
safety course. She has taken college courses locally through
Mohawk Valley Community College and Herkimer County Community
College and plans to one day receive a degree in Human Services.
Currently Ashleigh is teaching at Dance from the Heart and
also working as a receptionist at High Field Open MRI of Utica.Each
year as she meets new additions to our dance family she feels
more and more fortunate to be a part of Dance from the Heart.
In 1987 Katie Grinnell
began her dance training in the small city of Oneida, New
York at The United Academy of the Performing Arts (formally
Sandie's Dance Academy). While Katie was training at The United
Academy she was also training in ballet at Ballet Arts by
Delia. Along with all of her dance education, in 1990 Katie
began competing all over the United States in various dance
and talent competitions. Throughout these competitions Katie
has won hundreds of local and regional awards such as the
2003 Dance Masters of America highest scoring 13 & Over
Soloist, along with over 10 national titles such as the "United
Kids of America" which performed at Ground Zero and the
Pentagon. Katie also performed in the 2003 Pro Bowl in Hawaii,
where she also won a college scholarship.
After 16 years of extensive dance training in Tap, Ballet,
Acrobatics, Jazz, Musical Theater, Lyrical, and Pointe, Katie
went on to pursue her dream of becoming a dance teacher into
the competitive workd of dance, in college. Training with
some of the best dance instructors in the United States Katie
received some of the finest dance training from such teachers
as Jill Silverman (a ballet instructor for the famous Boston
Ballet), Nailah Bellinger (a modern instructor and choreographer
who is closely affiliated with the Rhee Gold Dancing Studio
and Competition) and Bob Thomas (a tap instructor who has
danced with the Boston Orchestra and in several shows in Germany).
Graduating in 2005 from Dean College as a High Honor Graduate
with a degree in Dance Performance and Dance Education, Katie
has had some of the best training that has given her the knowledge
to share the art of dance with the children of the future.
Heather Horton
began dancing at the age of 5 at the Dance Connection. After
two years, she started dancing at The United Academy of the
Performing Arts. At the age of 9, Heather was offered a spot
on the competition team. She competed in various competitions
across New York State in Tap, Jazz, and Lyrical. She also
attended numerous workshops to improve her technique.
For her senior year of high school, Heather decided to come
over to Addie's new studio, Dance from the Heart. This is
when she was given the opportunity to assist with a few classes,
and gradually become a teacher throughout the past 6 years.
Through teaching, Heather found that as much as she loved
dancing, it was a completely different feeling to be able
to actually choreograph routines.
Heather has received and Associate's degree from SUNY Morrisville
in 2004, and a Bachelor's degree in business from SUNY IT
in 2006. Currently, she is working at ACS in Utica as a Customer
Service Representative. As much as she misses beign on stage,
Heather loves seeing her students performing on stage and
enjoying themselves, and she hopes to continue teaching at
Dance from the Heart for many years to come.
Shari
McIntosh Felici
began dancing at the age of 4 and studied ballet, pointe,
tap, lyrical, musical theater, and jazz.At age 19, she was
accepted through audition to study at the London Contemporary
School of Dance in England. She intensively studied ballet
and modern at this school for one year before she was accepted
into a professional dance company.
At
age 20, she began her professional dance career with Vivas
International in Tokyo, Japan. She then danced with the
Scala Ballet in Spain, and Costa Crociere in Italy.
In
1991, she moved to Italy and continued her studies in ballet,
modern, and jazz at Le Jazz Centre in Nice, France while
she taught jazz, modern, and tap at L’Academia di
Danza di Ventimiglia in Italy.
In
1994, she returned with her husband to the United States
where she taught dance full time while attending Herkimer
Count Community College to study Physical Therapy.
She
is currently a Physical Therapist Assistant and a certified
Pilates instructor at Physical Therapy plus in Canastota
where she specializes in treating injured dancers. She is
thrilled to be returning to Dance From the Heart as an instructor
and a dance mom.
Katharine Shove
is a graduate of the 2010 New Hartford Senior High School class and is currently
a full time student at Utica College. She is nineteen years old and has been dancing for fifteen years.
Katharine has studied under the instruction of Delia Foley, Melissa Larish, and William Starrett, artistic
director of Columbia City Ballet. She performed in numerous productions with Mohawk Valley Ballet
and guest dancers of the Columbia City Ballet, including Pocahontas, Swan Lake, The Lion King of Mali,
A Midsummer Night's Dream, Cinderella, Don Quixote, The Little Mermaid, and the annual production of the Nutcracker.
Her favorite roll was that of the Spring Fairy in the production of Cinderella.
Katharine has experience dancing as a soloist, member of the corps, partnering, and teaching technique classes.
She will continue her college education studing criminology and hopes to pursue a career in the field of
Criminal Psychology. She is excited for the opportunity to be a part of the accomplished staff at Dance From the Heart,
and hopes the students will be able to learn from the many years of experience Katharine has to offer. She hopes to
instill the passion she feels for dance in all her students and make each and everyone one of them love it as much as
she does.
Elizabeth Bush
has been studying dance for twelve years. She began her career in dance when she was four years old at the
United Academy of the Performing Arts. When Elizabeth was six years old she became part of their competition team.
Since then, Elizabeth has won many awards including junior miss dance explosion 2005, Overall Grand Champion of
Dance Kicks competition, and has been chosen for nationals for four consistant years at Starpower.
When Elizabeth was fourteen she traveled with the United Kids of America to Washington D.C. to perform in front of several
ambassadors to raise funds for childrens orphanages around the world. She was chosen as part of a 40 member cast to
perform at Hanna Park with the United Kids of America as well Elizabeth participated with the VVS drama club for three
years as part of the dance core. She was in the productions Thoroughly Modern Millie, and 42nd Street.
Elizabeth is currently in college studying accounting to futher her experience in business. She plans to
continue to dance as long as possible to be able to strengthen her knowledge of teaching the art of dance
at Dance from the Heart.
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Some New Announcements!!!
Open Registration continues every Tue and Wed from 5pm-7pm at the studio.
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