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Susan Cade, Co-Director:
BA Music/Dance, Ithaca College; MEd Early Childhood Education,
University of Illinois. While working in Washington D.C., performed
various soloist roles in The Nutcracker, La Sylphide, Pas De Quatre,
Paquita, Concerto Barocco, and contemporary choreography with
The Arlington Ballet, Fairfax Ballet, McLean Ballet, and Arlington
Dance Theater. In addition, performed Stravinsky's "The Soldier's Tale"
and was an extra with ABT in Sleeping Beauty and Romeo and Juliet at
the Kennedy Center. Presently, Susan can be found teaching Ballet to Seniors, loving the new world of community theater as she made her
debut with King of Prussia Players in Joseph, and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat and dancing Argentine Tango.
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Michele MacDonald, Co-Director:
BA Spanish with a minor in Dance, Principia College. Prior to college, she performed with the Alexandra Ballet Company and
the Adair School of Ballet in St. Louis. Upon moving to Pennsylvania, Michele performed as
a member of the Pennsylvania Academy of Ballet Society in The Nutcracker, Paquita, and
various roles in contemporary choreography. She has also completed Vaganova teaching seminars.
Presently Michele is adjunct Professor of Dance at Temple University as well as working towards
her masters degree. In addition she guest teaches and choreographs at her alma mater
and Pennsylvania Academy of Ballet. Michele is Co-Director of Pages to Pirouettes.
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Thomas Blair, dancer / web developer:
BA Physics/Philosophy, University of Pennsylvania. A former
principal dancer with the Los Angeles Ballet. Tom is an actor, dancer, and choreographer. He
recently choregraphed Kiss Me Kate and Bye Bye Birdie for King Of Prussia Players. His recent acting
roles include Dancing At Lughnasa at Stagecrafters, Blithe Spirit at King Of Prussia Players, Quad
for the Philadelphia Fringe Festival, Once Upon A Mattress and
Twelfth Night at the Forge Theater, and Dr. Stahlbaum in the
Pennsylvania Academy of Ballet's Nutcracker. Tom studies at the
Pennsylvania Academy of Ballet and performs with Pages to Pirouettes as Dr. Coppelius
in Coppelia, Herr Drosselmeyer in The Nutcracker, and Don Quixote in Don
Quixote.
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Alex DiMatia:
Alex is a former student at The Pennsylvania Academy of Ballet. He performed as the Nutcracker Prince in
The Pennsylvania Academy's production of The Nutcracker. Alex made his debut with Pages to Pirouettes
as the Prince in Cinderella. He has also performed the roles of
Nutcracker Prince, Franz in Coppelia, Basil in Don Quixote, and Siegfried in Swan Lake. Alex is
currently studying with the Houston Ballet School.
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Heather Lyn Holajter was born and raised in the Philadelphia
area where she studied at the Pennsylvania Academy of Ballet
under John White and Margarita deSaa. During that time
Heather was a member of the Pennsylvania Academy of Ballet
Society and performed roles including The Nutcracker, Coppelia
and Fille Mal Gardee. She then joined Colorado Ballet,
performing soloist roles in The Nutcracker and Swan Lake as well
as a soloist in Serenade. She has also performed the role of
Cupid in Don Quixote with the International Stars of Ballet.
Currently Heather is teaching and performing with the First
State Ballet Theatre and is happy to be a
part of Pages to Pirouettes.
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Marina Kec:
Marina has indulged her passion for ballet as a student of the Pennsylvania Academy of Ballet since the
ge of nine. Her training has given her the opportunity to dance her way through many roles in their
annual production of The Nutcracker as well as performing in their Spring Tea. She also participates
in educational outreach demonstrations offered by PAB to elementary school children. In the
spring of 2005, she was part of an ensemble who danced in the Bryn Mawr College Faculty
Dance Concert under the direction of Laura Katz Rizzo. A senior at Upper Darby High School,
Marina is excited and honored to be a part of Pages To Pirouettes and hopes to continue to
improve her skills and express her love of the art of ballet.
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Maria Martyak:
A graduate of Central Bucks West High School, Maria began her dance
training at the age of twelve at Budzynski Studios of Ballet. At
age 13 she joined the pre-professional company attached to the school,
Dance Theater of Pennsylvania, where she performed in numerous ballets,
including The Nutcracker, Sleeping Beauty, and Cinderella. At the age
of sixteen, she became a student of the Pennsylvania Academy of Ballet,
performing in the annual Nutcracker as well as the spring teas. She
has had the privilege to study at the Cecchetti Council of America,
the Kirov Academy of Ballet, and the Nutmeg Conservatory. She joined
Pages to Pirouettes, in September of 2003 and dreams of becoming
a professional dancer.
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Laura McGinty:
Laura McGinty received her primary training from the Nutmeg Ballet Company
in Connecticut. She served as a model for Sharon Dante's extensive and
comprehensive Vaganova teachers seminars over the course of her 10 years
there. Under the coaching of Sharon Dante, Eleanor D'Antuono, and Joan
Kunsch, she was one of three members of the American team at the Prix de
Lausanne, and an awardee at the Arts Recognition and Talent Search. She
then attended North Carolina School of the Arts and studied exclusively with
Melissa Hayden. Laura was personally chosen by Hayden to teach her
classes during her absence.
Laura continued her training under the White's
as a performing member of The Pennsylvania Academy of Ballet Society. Laura
has had the opportunity to work with Broadway choreographer Danny Hermann on
a full season of Mark Twain, The Musical. This segued her career towards
acting and led to her joining American Family Theater for two seasons on
tour as the Wicked Witch of the West in The Wizard of Oz. After taking a
ten year hiatus to pursue a career in biotech and her most challenging and
rewarding role as "Mommy" to Margaux, John, and Mary, Laura is thrilled to
be back performing on stage. Currently she teaches privately, is a member
of Opus 1 Contemporary Dance Company, and enjoys entertaining and educating
young audiences with Pages to Pirouettes!
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Michael Novak:
Michael J. Novak recently graduated magna cum laude from Columbia University
with a B.A in Dance. He was born and raised in the suburbs of Chicago where
he received his early dance training in competition jazz and tap. He has
performed for numerous choreographers, including Robert Hill, Jessica Lang,
Terry Lindholm, Jr., Molly Misgalla, and Mandy Moore, and is a former
apprentice of the Pennsylvania Academy of Ballet Society. He currently lives
in New York where he is a member of the Daniel Gwirtzman Dance Company. He
has been a member of Pages to Pirouettes since 2002, and gladly makes the
commute to be with such an amazing group of artists.
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Kim Richards has studied dance since the age of 6 on Long Island. She graduated with a B.A. in Dance and Psychology from Muhlenberg College in 2003 and a Doctor of Physical Therapy degree from Columbia University in 2006. She moved to the area in 2008 from New York and works as a Physical Therapist at Performance Physical Therapy & Fitness, Inc. in Radnor. Kim is thrilled to be performing with the amazing cast of Pages to Pirouettes!.
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Reuben Ybarra hails from Yuma, Arizona where he trained at the
Yuma Ballet Theatre under the Directorship of Jon Cristofori. He also trained with the Academy of Ballet in
San Francisco and the Contra Costa Ballet in Walnut Creek California. During the summer months, Reuben was
offered scholarships to Pacific Northwest Ballet and School of American Ballet, Universal Ballet and Pennsylvania Ballet.
He has performed with the Pennsylvania Ballet, Sacramento Ballet, Lexington Ballet, and the Lake Erie Ballet. Reuben
has been an extra with the Royal Ballet and the South Jersey Ballet.
Currently, Reuben studies and performs with the Pennsylvania Academy of Ballet. Reuben is featured in the Spanish and
Arabian Variations from The Nutcracker. He is an integral member of Pages to Pirouettes where he has
performed principal roles as Franz in Coppelia, Prince Florimund in Sleeping Beauty, Basil in Don Quixote,
Prince Seigfried in Swan Lake, Prince Charming in Cinderella, and the Prince in The Nutcracker.
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Jennifer Zellers:
Jennifer began studying ballet intensely at the age of thirteen under the tutelage of Viktor Yeliohin and
has continued her training at the Pennsylvania Academy of Ballet in their pre-professional division. She
has been featured in the Pennsylvania Academy of Ballet’s performances of the Nutcracker and
annual spring tea since 2003. She has also performed principal roles in excerpts from Paquita,
Le Corsaire, and Don Quixote with local ballet studios. She was a finalist in the Youth America
Grand Prix’s Senior Classical Division in 2002, is currently studying physical therapy at Columbia University,
and is grateful for the opportunity to perform with Pages to Pirouettes.
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