Faculty

Ballet & Pointe

Nancy Ropelewski King is a graduate of the Cantarella School. Mrs. King was a principal dancer and ballet mistress with the Albany Berkshire Ballet for many years. At Jacob’s Pillow she taught classes and also performed in Coppelia with the ABB. Her choreography “Peter and the Wolf” has been performed extensively throughout the Northeast. Mrs. King along with Artistic Director Madeline Cantarella Culpo choreographed the popular “Cinderella” and “Mother Goose” ballets.

Ballet, Pointe & Variations

Deirdre Duffin-Swindlehurst started dancing at age five under Madeline Cantarella Culpo and went on to be a principal dancer with Albany Berkshire Ballet. She joined the Pennsylvania Ballet in 1980, and rose to soloist in The Nutcracker, Coppelia, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Les Sylphides, and The Four Temperaments. Deirdre has appeared as a guest artist at Jacob’s Pillow and has toured the United States with Leonid and Valentina Kaslov and with Cynthia Gregory and her Celebration Tour. Miss Dede teaches advanced levels of ballet and is Ballet Mistress to the Junior Company in Albany.

Ruslan Sprague has been dancing with the Albany Berkshire Ballet since he was three, cast as the changeling in their production of A Midsummer Nights Dream in ’93 all the way up to the Snow Prince in their annual production of The Nutcracker. Ruslan also studied with Darrell Puciarello from the Metroploitan Opera Ballet and attended several dance programs with Boston Ballet, as well as their choreographic workshop under the teachings of Helen Pickett and Jorma Elo. After dancing with Ballet West in Salt Lake City Utah, Ruslan has returned to the Berkshires.

Kaitlyn has been trained in various dance styles, mainly hip-hop and modern but with a background in jazz and classical ballet. After dancing for 13 years, she worked as a dance teacher's assistant after graduating high school and began teaching her own classes the following year. She furthered her dance education by continuing to take dance classes in college and getting involved with community programs at Jacob’s Pillow, as well as taking classes at other local studios.

She received an associate's degree in Early Childhood Education from Berkshire Community College and a bachelor's degree at MCLA in Interdisciplinary Studies with a concentration in education, psychology and sociology. She is also a yoga instructor and teaches aerial silk and other movement classes throughout Berkshire county.

Hannah is a dance educator and performing artist born and raised in the Berkshires. For fourteen years, Hannah trained at local dance studios in ballet, pointe, lyrical, contemporary, modern, jazz, hip hop, tap, and musical theatre dance. During her high school years, Hannah danced competitively and also began working as an assistant dance teacher. In college, Hannah was a choreographer for, a member of, and eventually the co-president of her school’s dance company. During this time, she began teaching dance at local dance studios and coaching competitive dance teams.

Dedicated to furthering her knowledge as a dance educator, Hannah has participated in the Dance Education Laboratory at Jacob’s Pillow Dance Festival. Currently, in addition to teaching, Hannah is actively pursuing musical theatre training with Broadway’s Allie Trimm and auditioning for musicals in New York City.

Hannah loves dance, and truly believes that dance has the power to unite communities. Hannah has received her Bachelor’s degree in Arts Management from the Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts, and is currently finishing her second Bachelor’s degree in Psychology with a concentration in Mental Health online through Southern New Hampshire University. Hannah’s ultimate goal is to obtain her Master’s degree in Dance Movement Therapy with a dual license in Mental Health Counseling.

Stefanie is an action-based dance artist who specializes in the American vernacular art form of Tap Dance. She is a "graduate" of the Jazz Tap Residency led by Tap Dance legends Jimmy Slyde and Dianne Walker, and she has vastly pursued her interests in dance and movement throughout the US and abroad. Stefanie has also taken deep dives into the far-reaching world of the somatic movement arts and clairvoyant consciousness arts. She is also a certified Gyrotonic trainer

Stefanie directs They Dance For Rain in Nairobi, Kenya and Tourmaline Z movement and performance art studio in Pittsfield, MA. She presently performs with Nutshell Playhouse and is a teaching artist for Community Access to the Arts.

Hip-Hop

Serina, originally from The Bronx, New York now resides in Pittsfield, MA. She began dancing as a teenager in a local Berkshire performance group started by her elder sister. This is where she found her love of dance and performance. She has also performed with Pittsfield’s Youth Alive Step, Dance & Drum Team prior to leaving for college. During her years of higher education, she helped foster her university’s dance team into something the school can be proud of, rising to Vice President of Operations. That legacy lives on today.

After graduating with a BS degree in Psychology, she returned as a dance coach for Youth Alive. She has continued to grow her passion through teaching various classes of all levels of hip-hop in Pittsfield over the years. Through residencies and opportunities provided by Jacob’s Pillow, and connecting with the local arts communities such as Wandering Dance and Berkshire Theater Group, she has made it a goal to introduce New York’s style of hip-hop to Berkshire County. She is currently coaching Youth Alive.

Technique, Rhythm & Style

David has built a profession out of his natural ability to dance and to teach others. He has had the pleasure to study with Frank Hatchett and Anthony DeVecchi of the Northeast American Ballet, among others. David continues to take classes at Broadway Dance Center in New York City to broaden his passion and knowledge of dance with the purpose of sharing it with his many students and colleagues.

Above all else, David prides himself as a choreographer and dance instructor. He teaches for several dance studios and master classes in the Western Massachusetts area. His love for the art of dance is present in everything he puts forth.