In addition to the techniical benefits of an intensive dance program, the Governor's School experience is intended to:

1. Engage the inagination
2. Encourage intellectual curiosity and creative thinking
3. Improve self-discipline
4. Enhance decision making particularly with regard to career choices

Governor's School students learn that dance is inherent to our heritage and world and that of others around us. Students are encouraged to perceive, evaluate, and understand dance as a conveyor of culture. The program strives to integrate and enrich the balanced development of the whole person.

Laurie Merriman, Professor of Dance and Assistant Dean of the College of Fine Arts at Illinois State University, earned her B.F.A. (double major) in Ballet & Modern Dance from Texas Christian University and her M.F.A. in Dance from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. She began her professional training at The National Academy of Dance in Champaign as a young ballet dancer and eventually became a scholarship student with the Joffery Ballet School and the Martha Graham School of Contemporary Dance. Laurie’s dual respect and love for both ballet and contemporary dance has afforded her the opportunity to perform and learn the works of many great artists in the field such as Martha Graham, Paul Taylor, Bebe Miller, Dwight Rhoden, Stephen Koester, Jose Limon, Doris Humphrey, Vaslav Nijinsky, Michel Fokine, Marius Petipa, Robert North, and Frederick Ashton (among many others). Laurie has been the recipient of various grants and fellowships for her work in choreography, teaching, and research. Her choreographic work has been performed by the Columbus Dance Theatre, Interlochen Center for the Arts, the Shelter Repertory Dance Theatre, the University of Minnesota at Duluth, and presented at the Southwest Regional Ballet Festival, the Harold Washington Library Theatre in Chicago, Illinois State University, the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Winona State University, the University of Wisconsin at LaCrosse, several American College Dance Festivals, and beyond. Since 1988, Laurie"s teaching focus at Illinois State University has been in the areas of ballet and modern dance technique, Improvisation, dance composition, and dance pedagogy. Laurie has also served as Artistic Director for Illinois State Dance Theatre for the past 20 years and remains teaching at the high school level for University High School in the area of dance. She has served on the National Board of the American College Dance Festival, Illinois State Board of Education Dance Content Advisory Committee, adjudicator for the Springfield Area Arts Council, panelist for a variety of learning symposiums in the arts and in general education, ballet mistress for Twin Cities Ballet, Executive Director of Illinois Summer School for the Arts, Chair of the Illinois Dance Association, adjudicator for Beloit College, panelist for the Illinois Arts Council Artist-In-Residency program, and the Dance Chair for Tennessee Governor's School for the Arts.

Erin Rehberg, M.F.A. is Founder and Artistic Director of Core Project Chicago, a movement-based, interdisciplinary performing arts collective. The company, now in its 5th season, pushes the boundaries of storytelling through artistic collaboration with dramatic, sound, media and text artists. Ms. Rehberg attended Western Illinois University, during which time she performed in the 1998 and 2000 ACDFA National College Dance Festivals. In 2001, she became a founding member of and rehearsal mistress for Kim Nofsinger's Shelter Dance Repertoire and is now the Associate Director. In 1998, she studied technique and choreography at the American Dance Festival in Durham, NC, where she was later hired the Director of Press and Marketing for the 2002 and 2003 seasons. Ms. Rehberg teaches and fuses Jazz, Ballet, Modern and Hip Hop dance styles and has set work on dancers attending WIU, University of Minnesota-Duluth, Southern Illinois Dance Center and Prep Dance School and in schools all over the Chicago area including the Beverly Arts Center, where she directed the Summer Arts Experience-interdisciplinary arts camp. She helped found Suite 132 Dance Company as the company manager and choreographed three premiere works on its dancers. Recently she has performed the choreography of Stefanie Batten Bland and E.E. Balcos, and has danced with Jay-Son/Tisa Dance Company, Nicole Gifford Dance, Jennifer Sandoval and others. Her choreography has been seen in Beyond Boundaries (Grand Junction, CO), Dance Chicago, Breaking Bounds Dance Festival (Phoenix, AZ), Art Exposium (Chicago, IL), The American College Dance Festival Featured Concert (Murfreesboro, TN), Manifest Urban Arts Festival (Chicago, IL), Boulder International Fringe Festival (CO) among others, and she has produced site-specific work throughout the Chicago area. Through Core Project she has curated a variety of inter-arts happenings, working closely with artists across the country regarding common themes. She recently finished a tour with both Shelter and Core Project that took her to California, Colorado, Minnesota, Tennessee, Arizona and Illinois. Ms. Rehberg earned her M.F.A. in Interdisciplinary Arts and Media at Columbia College Chicago in 2009 where she expanded her creative horizons by pursuing dance for the camera surrounding creative process and live performance. She has been on faculty at Interlochen Center for the Arts, Minneapolis Public Schools Outreach Programs and is currently adjunct faculty at Middle Tennessee State University. Ms. Rehberg was a 2010 recipient of a Chicago Cultural Center DanceBridge Residency.

Sandra Parks received her M.F.A in choreography from Smith College with a fellowship, and her B.F.A in dance performance from Tisch School of the Arts at New York University. Sandra is originally from Taiwan, where she received her training in ballet, modern and Chinese classical dance. She danced as a soloist with Four Seasons Ballet and Wu-I Dance Company in Taipei, Taiwan. After graduating from NYU, Sandra Parks toured nationally and internationally with the Broadway production of The King And I. Since 1996, Sandra Parks has appeared as a performer and choreographer in more than 75 dance productions in Atlantic City, Boston, Las Vegas and New York City. She served as the artistic director of her own dance company in New York City for more than six years. After moving to Boston, she danced with Bosoma Dance Company, Dance Collective, and Impulse Dance Company. Sandra taught at Boston University, Bridgewater State College, Colleges of Fenway, Regis College and Smith College, and she was invited to teach master classes in Taipei, Taiwan in the summer of 2004 and 2006. Sandra started her full time position as assistant professor at Kennesaw State University in August 2010, and she is thrilled to be part of this amazing dance program.

Matthew Frazier-Smith obtained a degree in Theatre and Dance from Middle Tennessee State University. Matthew performed in several productions with MTSU’s Theatre and Dance department including Seussical the Musical, Romeo and Juliet, and This is Family Money, as well as receiving Irene Ryan Award Nominations for his work in Underwear: the Musical and Kid Icarus. Matthew was an active member of MTSU Dance Theatre from 2007-2010 and performed in eight of the company’s concerts including Freed Voices, Holding Patterns, and several fall and spring productions. In 2010, Matthew was honored as MTSU’s Dancer of the Year. His professional work includes Lend Me a Tenor at Chaffin’s Barn Dinner Theatre, I’ll Be Seeing You at Millworks Theatre, It‘s a Wonderful Life: A Live Radio Play with the Tennessee Repertory Theatre, and The Two Gentlemen of Verona with the Tennessee Shakespeare Festival. In the summers of 2008 and 2009, Matthew worked in Germany, where he performed in a musical revue entitled Die Amerikana Musikshow. He also traveled to Honduras where he toured a collaboratively written, original work entitled A Better Way, which focused primarily on the use of rhythm and physicality as tools for breaking down language barriers. He recently returned from upstate New York where he performed in three productions with the Merry-Go-Round Playhouse. Currently, Matthew is a member of Shelter Repertory Dance Theatre and Core Dance Project with whom he will be traveling to the Kansas City, Minnesota, and Boulder Fringe Festivals in the summer of 2011.

Stacey Calvert was born and raised in Columbia, South Carolina and began her ballet training at the Calvert-Brodie School of Dance, studying with her Mother and Godmother. In 1980, Ms. Calvert entered the School of American Ballet, the official school of the New York City Ballet—and remained there for three years. She joined New York City Ballet’s corp de ballet in 1983. In 1992, Ms. Calvert joined William Forsythe’s Frankfurt Ballet. She returned to New York City Ballet in the winter of 1993. Ms. Calvert was promoted to the rank of Soloist in 1994. Since joining the Company, she has danced numerous featured roles including George Balanchine’s Apollo, Ballo della Regina, The Four Temperaments, The Nutcracker (Hot Chocolate), Stars and Stripes, Symphony in C, Tschaikovsky Piano Concerto No. 2, Western Symphony, and Who Cares?, as well as Jerome Robbins’ The Four Seasons (Winter) and Interplay. In addition, she has been featured in Peter Martins’ Ash and Barber Violin Concerto as well as William Forsythe’s Herman Schmerman. During the inaugural season of NYCB’s Diamond Project in 1992, Ms. Calvert originated a principal role in John Alleyne’s Bet Ann’s Dance. During the Company’s 1994 Diamond Project, she originated principal roles in Lynne Taylor-Corbett’s Chiaroscuro, John Alleyne’s The New Blondes, Trey McIntyre’s Steel and Rain, and Kevin O’Day’s Viola Alone...(with One Exception). For The Diamond Project in 1997, Ms. Calvert originated principal roles in O’Day’s Open Strings and Angelin Preljocaj’s La Stravaganza. In addition, she originated principal roles in Mr. O’Day’s Huoah, Dvorak Bagatelles and Badchonim. Ms. Calvert has danced in Europe with a touring group, and has travelled extensively in the United States and abroad with the New York City Ballet. In the spring of 2006, 2007 and 2008, she presented, for USC, Ballet Stars of New York, with principal dancers from the NYC Ballet Company including Wendy Whelan, Albert Evans, Nilas Martins, Tom Gold, Nikolaj Hubbe, and Yvonne Borree and the USC Dance Company. The 2006 star-studded evening included Apollo, Agon, and Tarantella, all works by the legendary choreographer George Balanchine. This gala evening has become an annual event for the USC Board of Dance.

Lindsay McNeal Ison, PT, MS, OSC, is a physical therapist at Susan Underwood Physical Therapy in Nashville, TN, the official physical therapy provider to Nashville Ballet. She is a Board Certified Clinical Specialist in Orthopaedics. Ms. Ison is an adjunct faculty member at Belmont University School of Physical Therapy. She also collaborates with numerous dance schools and programs in Middle Tennessee to provide injury prevention seminars and health education.

Alla S. Avanesova, accompanist, was born in Baku, Azerbaijan. She had begun to study music at the age of eight. She graduated with heist honor in piano performance Music College in Baku, where she often performs in various concerts. In 1971 she performed she performed Tchaikovsky’s First Piano Concert in Tbilisi Music College, Georgia. As the best student she was given opportunity to perform First Piano Concerto by List with Baku Philharmonic Orchestra. In 1972 All Avanesova were admitted in Baku Conservatory. In 1977 she graduated Conservatory with heist honor and received Master Degree as a Teacher, Accompanist, and Solis of a Chamber Ensemble. After graduating she started her career. She worked as a teacher and accompanist in various Music Schools and Colleges. Her students preformed at the national festivals and concerts. In 1993 she moved in Moscow, Russia, where she continued her teaching career and worked as accompanist for the children choir “Rodnechok”. As an accompanist of the choir she performed at the major staged in numerous concerts, festivals and became a Winner of the different competitions. In 2002 she moved in Nashville, Tennessee, where she continues her teaching career as well as performs in numerous concerts. Her resent appearances include Middle Tennessee University, Armenian Church of Nashville, Murfreesboro Art Center and Park Manor Senior Lifestyle Community.

Megan Hall, counselor, has studied dance education in Seattle, Washington with renowned dance educator Anne Green Gilbert and studied technique and performance as a Vanderbilt University Dance Studies candidate in Nashville, TN. In Nashville, Megan also performed with Vanderbilt Dance Theatre and Epiphany Contemporary Dance Company. She has worked as a dance instructor in public school systems and inner city community centers in Tennessee and Virginia and held Tennessee Association of Dance membership from 2004 – 2009. Currently she is working towards her B. S. in Speech and Theatre with a Dance Cognate at Middle Tennessee State University in Murfreesboro, TN. Megan has been a company member of MTSU Dance Theatre performing student and faculty works since 2009 as well as working with guest artists Wendy Allen, Teena Marie Custer and Alberto Del Saz. As an MTSU Dance Theatre member she has performed works at Breaking Grounds Choreographic Showcase in Tempe, AZ in 2009 and performed both student and faculty works at the American College Dance Festival in 2010. Megan was also awarded the Anne Holland Dance Scholarship for the 2010-2011 year. During the summer of 2010, she enjoyed assisting Core Project in Boulder, CO as the company performed their touring work “Hint of It” at the Boulder Fringe Festival. A part of MTSU Dance Theatre, Megan is honored to perform “Pond” by Alwin Nikolais, as part of the centennial celebration of his life, performing in the fall and spring MTSU dance concerts, Chicago and New York for the 2010-2011 year. Megan dances with Core Project Chicago, a movement based interdisciplinary arts collective. She has also had the privilege of performing with Heritage Dance Project based in Murfreesboro, TN. In addition to her passion to grow, love and communicate through movement, she is a certified Pilates mat instructor.

Applicants will participate in a two-hour dance class -- including ballet and modern dance -- as their audition. Girls should bring pink tights, pink ballet shoes, and point shoes. The modern section of the class will be in bare feet, so wear tights that can be adjusted for this part of the audition. Hair should be properly secured off the neck, preferably in a bun. No leg warmers, sweatshirts, or baggy plastic pants. Boys should bring white t-shirts, black tights, and appropriate dance shoes. Students must perform at an intermediate or advanced level, and must demonstrate a high level of sustained interest and involvement in dance.

Please refer to the application for more specific criteria.

Kim Neal Nofsinger is the Artistic Director of Shelter Repertory Dance Theatre, which he founded in 2001. His choreography has been produced throughout the United States and abroad in Spain, France, Belgium, Germany, and Austria. In 2003, his evening's length work, "A Pure White Room," was selected as the Critics' Choice for Best Dance Production from a field of over 120 works at the Minnesota Fringe Festival and in 1999, his duet "Permission" was selected by the American Dance Guild as one of the outstanding works produced in the United States that year. Prior teaching appointments include Ohio University, University of Minnesota-Duluth, State University of New York-Geneseo, Illinois State University, Winona State University, and Connecticut College. Nofsinger is the artistic director of the MTSU Dance Theatre. He is also a dance instructor at the prestigious Interlochen Arts Camp at Interlochen Center for the Arts, MI. Nofsinger has a MFA in Performance and Choreography from Arizona State University where he holds the distinction of being the first graduate student to receive a grant from the Institute for Arts and Technology.

Gregory T. Merriman is a 1983 graduate of Texas Christian University with a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in Classical Ballet performance.Of the many he has studied with, Fernando Shaffenburg, Claire Duncan, Clara Cravey, Bill Martin-Viscount and Maria Grandy have been the most influential. Gregory began his early dancing career in 1977 with the Houston Allegro Ballet under the direction of Emma Mae Horn and Glenda Brown. He was a scholarship student under the direction of Ben Stevenson at the Houston Ballet Academy and later became an apprentice to the Houston Ballet
Company.Offered the Brown and Nordan Scholarships at TCU, Gregory joined the Fort Worth Ballet, dancing many of the classics as a frequent partner to Karen Schaffenburg. He was also a principle dancer with the Fort Worth Opera Ballet, under the direction of Marina Svetlova and a regular guest artist with regional companies throughout the Southwest.

Christopher Mohnani, Artistic Director /Founder of Dance Theatre of Tennessee, is originally from Makati City in the Philippines. He was a soloist and principal dancer with Ballet Manila, Krasnoyarsk State Opera and Ballet Theater of Russia and for almost 10 seasons, as the top male Principal Danseur at Nashville Ballet.During the course of his dance career, he has had the privilege of dancing a wide range of soloist and principal roles, most notable of which are Romeo in the world premiere of Nashville Ballet’s Romeo and Juliet, Snow King in the World Premiere of Tennessee’s brand new full-length Nutcracker, Conrad in the Asian premiere of Le Corsaire, Dracula in the Asian premiere of Dracula, Prince Desire in the Tennessee premiere of a full-length The Sleeping Beauty, Albrecht in the full-length Giselle and Young Warrior and Faun in the Nashville premieres of The Rite of Spring and Afternoon of a Faun. He also was the Waltz Boy in Serenade,