Faculty & Staff
Faculty
Sandra Zellinger, Director
Sandra Zelllinger, a native of Miami, Florida, began her training with Thomas Armour at the Miami Conservatory where she performed with the Miami Ballet. After graduating from Duke University she began her Cecchetti teachers’ training with Sylvia Hamer and Marjorie Randazzo in Ann Arbor, Michigan. Ms. Zellinger has over 30 years experience in teaching classical ballet. Upon moving to Raleigh, Sandra taught for John Lehman and performed with the Ballet Theatre Company of Raleigh, opening her own school, City Ballet, in 1991. In addition, she was a member of the Fine Arts Department at Ravenscroft School for 15 years. Sandra Zellinger is a certified member of the Ceccehtti Council of America presenting students and teachers for examinations.
Cherilyn Joy Lee Kirkman, Co-Director
A New York City native, Cherilyn’s path has included being a scholarship student at the School of American Ballet and the Rock School of the Pennsylvania Ballet, a dancer with the Hartford Ballet in Connecticut, and a move to North Carolina to be one of the founding members of the Carolina Ballet. Throughout her career she performed diverse roles ranging from Juliet to Desdemona (The Moor’s Pavane) to the Jumping Girl (Who Cares) along with those in other ballets by George Balanchine, Robert Weiss, Lynne Taylor-Corbett, Kirk Peterson, and Tyler Walters. After a fulfilling career as a ballet dancer, Cherilyn continued her creative endeavors working in architecture, and since then has graduated Summa Cum Laude with a degree in Spanish Language & Literature and Business from NC State University.
Andrew Lamar, Co-Director
Mr. Lamar received his classical training from the North Carolina School of the Arts and Houston Ballet Academy. He then earned a BFA from the Ailey School/Fordham University program in New York in 2002. He joined the Kansas City Ballet after college and was a company member for three years. In 2005, Andrew became a founding member of the Quixotic Performance Fusion, serving as an Artistic Associate for three years. Andrew focused much of his time on teaching ballet, modern, and creative movement for many schools, including Danceworks Conservatory Ailey Camp Kansas City, and the Community School of the Arts. He has created choreography for the Houston Ballet Summer Intensive, The Ailey School, Danceworks Conservatory, Kansas City Ballet’s annual In the Wings series, and a number of works for Quixotic Performance Fusion.
Janette Boyd
Ms. Boyd received her early training with John Lehman in Raleigh. She received both a BFA in ballet and an MFA in performing arts administration from the prestigious ballet program at the University of Utah. Ms Boyd has taught for the University of Utah, Salt Lake Community College, Ballet West Conservatory, Youth Ballet Colorado, and the Vermont Conservatory of Ballet, among others.
Rosina DeVries
Ms. DeVries was born & raised in England where she received her early training at the Weston School of Dance studying Cecchetti Ballet with Elisabeth Swan. Ms. DeVries went on to study at the London College of Dance with Victoria Chappell where she received her ISTD teaching Diploma with Distinction and was awarded the Enrico Cecchetti Diploma. She also received the Diana Barker Award for Cecchetti two years in a row. After a year teaching in Greece Ms. DeVries moved to New York to teach at the Coupe Dance Studio for 12 years where she also had the pleasure of studying with Nanette Charise. Having taken some time off to raise her 4 year old twins Rosina is now very excited to get back to teaching and is very happy to be joining the City Ballet faculty.
Suzi Landis
Ms. Landis is a North Carolina native with a degree in Communications and a minor in Dance from Appalachian State University. She was a dancer and choreographer with the Appalachian Dance Ensemble performing original ballet and modern dance pieces. She has ten plus years experience teaching dance from ages 3 to adult in tap, ballet, and jazz. Suzi is a certified Grade II Cecchetti teacher and has been a contributing writer to Dance Teacher Magazine and Dance Spirit Magazine.
Erica Locke
Ms. Locke has been studying dance from an early age in the areas of ballet, tap, jazz, contemporary, modern, creative movement, and gymnastics as well as cross-cultural dance forms. She began her studies at the Thomas Studio of Performing Arts in Pittsburgh, PA, where she was later a member of the Thomas Dance Company. She has graduated with honors, earning a degree in Dance Studies and Anthropology at the University of North Carolina Greensboro. She is currently working toward her Masters in Dance Education at UNCG. In addition to being a part of the staff at City Ballet, she is a full-time middle and high school dance educator at Kestrel Heights School in Durham. She is also a member of Blank Slate Dance Company out of Durham.
Anne W. McCarl
Ms. McCarl is a graduate, cum laude, of Grove City College with a B.A. degree in Communication Arts. She is a native of Pennsylvania where she was the Owner of Dancer’s Studio and Artistic Director of the Dance Extension. She has earned a Grade IV Teachers level diploma from the Cecchetti Council of America. She is a graduate of Dance Masters of America’s Teacher Training Program at Kent State University and has studied with the Bill Evans Summer Institute of Dance, Dance Educators of America at Western Kentucky University, and Point Park College. Ms. McCarl has performed in and choreographed for City Ballet’s The Nutcracker. She is a past member of Central Dance Council of Western PA, Dance Masters of America, and the Cecchetti Council of America. She was an Adjudicator for the Raleigh Civic Ballet Company and Carolina Dance Masters.
Pablo Javier Perez
Mr. Perez is a Principal Dancer with the Carolina Ballet. He was born in Uruguay, graduated with the highest honors from the National School of Dance. In 1994 he won a silver medal at an international dance competition in Brazil. Mr. Perez has also danced with the Teatro de Colon de Buenos Aires. Me. Perez joined Carolina Ballet in its first season and has performed in All-Balanchine, Messiah, Innovations, Square Dance, Romeo & Juliet, and several premiere ballets with Ciompi Quartet.
Sue Smith
Ms. Smith grew up taking classes through Pennsylvania Ballet and then expanded to jazz, tap, and modern dance. She danced with many companies in the Philadelphia area and earned a BA in Speech, Theater & Dance. Ms. Smith was a founding dancer with the Ballet South Company in New Jersey before marrying and moving to Connecticut. While establishing dance/movement/music programs in schools and recreation programs, Sue worked on her certification in Early Childhood Education. Upon receiving her education degree, she opened Miss Sue’s Hot Tots in 1995, a performing arts preschool! The Smith family then relocated to Raleigh, N.C. the summer of 1999.
Paige Worsham
Ms. Worsham trained with the High Point Ballet before attending North Carolina School of the Arts for high school. At NCSA, she majored in ballet and performed in works including Swan Lake, Don Quixote, Who Cares?, Tenderness of Patient Minds, Donizetti Variations and Western Symphony. She performed with Atlanta Ballet after graduation. In New York City, Paige was a member and choreographer for the Peyari Dance Project, a modern company, and performed off‐Broadway in association with Spotlight On Productions. After returning to NC for college, she taught ballet, pointe, jazz, modern, and tap at the High Point Ballet for four years. She completed undergraduate studies and law school at UNC‐Chapel Hill, and also works at the state legislature.
To intensify our student’s training, City Ballet invites selected guest teachers to work with the intermediate and advanced students. Our guests have included Sarah Hollister, Margot Martin, and Edgar Vardanian formerly of Carolina Ballet, Debra Sayles-Senchak formerly of the New Jersey Ballet, Warren Conover from N.C. School of the Arts, and Tom Vacanti director of Pine Valley Ballet Company.
Staff
Candy Fuller, Production Manager
Laura Tompkins, Registrar/Office Manager
Elisabeth McMahon, Publicist
Cherilyn Lee Kirkman, Production Assistant & Webmaster
Karen Wirth, Box Office Manager
Mary Jayne Hanson, Receptionist
Margarita Jackson, Accompanist
Rosali Stafford, Accompanist
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