Tracy Hawkes RTS ARAD SDS IdB(1) is the school principal director. She founded DANCE FOR ALL in 1985 after performing and teaching extensively in schools and companies here and abroad, including Basic Space Dance Theatre, Napac Ballet and Durban City Ballet. Tracy is a registered teacher and an Associate of the Royal Academy of Dance (ARAD) and is the only Spanish Dance Society qualified teacher in Scotland. Tracy promotes excellence and enjoyment in all forms of dance training within the intimate, supportive and welcoming atmosphere of her DANCE FOR ALL Theatre School. More about Dance For All.

Jenny Lewis is the school administrator. Skilfully running the school office, she is the main contact for information as well as a helpful source of support for all students involved in the full time courses and those attending the adult or child/teen classes.

RAD BALLET

Tracy Hawkes RTS ARAD SDS IdB(1) is the school principal director. She founded DANCE FOR ALL in 1985 after performing and teaching extensively in schools and companies here and abroad, including Basic Space Dance Theatre, Napac Ballet and Durban City Ballet. Tracy is a registered teacher and an Associate of the Royal Academy of Dance (ARAD) and is the only Spanish Dance Society qualified teacher in Scotland. Tracy promotes excellence and enjoyment in all forms of dance training within the intimate, supportive and welcoming atmosphere of her DANCE FOR ALL Theatre School. More about Dance For All.

NATIONAL DANCE

Claire Quninn Biography coming soon...

HIP HOP, COMMERCIAL & BREAKDANCE

After graduating from Liverpool Institute of Performing Arts, Christina Gusthart lived in london and starred as the lead in a new Hip Hop Theatre show 'In Time'. She then travelled to India where she worked in Bollywood movies and has since danced for David Guetta, Kelly Rowland and Kylie Minogue. She has spent three months in America training under some of the most renowned names in the industry including Marty Kudelka, Tony Basil and Anthony Thomas. Christina’s company, Xena Productions continues to produce high quality hip hop theatre pieces that have been premiered at the Breakin Convention Tour and Breakin Rules at the Dundee Rep. Christina teaches hip hop and breakdancing in and around Scotland and also trains a team of hip hop dancers who represent Scotland at international competitions.

BALLET AND BENESH

Jonathan Burnett trained at the Royal Ballet School, the Hammond School and then Heriot Watt University. He has won numerous awards, including the LAMDA Gold Medal Drama, RAD Solo Seal Award. Performing internationally for a variety of dance companies, Jonathan has built up an extensive career, holding many soloist roles including in ballets by Domy Reiter Soffer, Auguste Bournonville, Royston Maldoom, Nils Christe & Charles Czarny. His diverse experience also ranges to choreography and directing creative workshops, while his work with Vestris New-Mime & Dance Theatre won Best New Work and he was nominated for Best Actor at the 1992/3 Springfield Theatre Club Awards in London. Holding over 50 diverse roles for the Irish National Ballet, Jonathan has also worked with the Royal Carre Theatre, Citizens Theatre and Lindsay Kemp Company.

MODERN & TAP DANCE

Lesley Wood is a Fellow and Examiner of the Imperial Society of Teachers of Dancing (ISTD) and as such she is one of the most experienced and respected teachers in the country. She is also an External Verifier with the Scottish Qualifications Authority (SQA) and a faculty member of the Performing Arts Department at Motherwell College. She is Principal of the Dance Factory and is a renowned choreographer, working with the BBC, Scottish Television and Scottish Opera. In addition she choreographed productions, including: 'Footloose', 'We Will Rock You', 'Rent', 'Our House', 'Witches of Eastwick', 'Songs for a New World, 'Jekyll and Hyde' and 'Children of Eden'. .

JAZZ & MUSICAL THEATRE

Trained at the Northern Ballet School, Nicky Pyrah has worked five crusie contracts including the Royal Carribean and was also on the Kylie Mania UK tour.

Photo - Michael Tutthil

COMMERCIAL DANCE

After competing at an international level in dance during his youth, Paul McLavin went on to train full time at The Lillian McNeill School of Dance. Paul has worked extensively in the UK and abroad, working with international performers such as The Spice Girls, Robbie Williams, Boyzone, Cher and Whitney Houston. His TV credits include The Royal Gala, Brit Awards for ITV and Eurotrash for Channel Four, The High Life, and The Generation Game for BBC1. He has also played roles in Westside Story, La Cage Aux Folles, and Cabaret; Kiss me Kate, and Calamity Jane. Paul has been teaching fitness and health in schools throughout Scotland for the Scottish Executive and he still finds time to perform and direct shows for many production companies all over the UK. Paul is also Resident Choreographer and Artistic Director for MEP Production where he has just finished choreographing and dancing in the UK tour of Europe’s smash hit show “Kyliemania” which has been playing to sell out audiences. His most recent stage performance was “The Best of British Musicals” for the Rotary Club at the NEC in Birmingham in front of an audience of 30,000 people.

JAZZ, STREET JAZZ & FITNESS

Peter Twyman Biography Coming Soon...

RAD BALLET, JAZZ & URBAN DANCE
STAGE MAKE-UP, ANATOMY & PHYSIOLOGY

Samm Baigrie RAD RTS BA (Hons) has taught classes at DFA since 1998 and choreographed pieces in the regular school productions. Samm has a BA Hons Dance Education and holds 'Registered Teacher Status' with the Royal Academy of Dance. She has worked in Mauritius, danced in Europe and had her stint in Panto. Samm is also a regular judge for Live and Unsigned

CONTEMPORARY DANCE

Steinvor Palsson has taught contemporary dance at DFA Theatre School since 2002. Of Icelandic parentage, she was born in Edinburgh. Over the years she has worked extensively as a performer, teacher and choreographer. She has danced with Spiral Dance Company, The Royal Opera Company, Scottish Opera and Matthew Hawkins, returning to Edinburgh in 1992. Choreography credits include Scottish Opera, The Ensemble Group, Scottish Ballet's Education Unit, Dance Base's Off Kilter and the Scottish International Storytelling Festival. Steinvor has taught at Dance Base since 1993 and currently teaches contemporary dance on the BA Modern Ballet and Musical Theatre degree courses at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland. Steinvor also holds a PhD in Norwegian Literature from the University of Edinburgh.

SINGING, MUSICAL THEATRE

Steven Wren ALCM, LTCL, BA(hons) has been teaching at Dance for All since 2002. As an actor, singer and musical director for 25 years, he brings with him a wealth of experience from such companies as 7:84, The Royal Lyceum Theatre Edinburgh, Dundee Rep, Perth Theatre, Pitlochry Festival Theatre and the Byre Theatre St Andrews. He has taught singing at Queen Margaret University, Edinburgh’s Telford College and on the Master’s in Musical Theatre degree course at the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama. His repertoire is primarily theatrical and he is certified in the Estill method of voice production.

TUTOR FOR ISTD - DIPLOMA OF DANCE INSTRUCTION (DDI) AND DIPLOMA OF DANCE EDUCATION (DDE)

Trained at the Royal Academy of Dancing in Knightsbridge and gaining her licentiate in ballet, Susan Harvey went on to achieve her LISTD and a BA (Hons). She has a vast range of styles in her repertoire and currently teaches the academic modules of DDI and DDE for the Professional Stage Dance Course as well as Strictly American Smooth Ballroom on a Thursday evening. Susan has nearly 40 years of teaching and choreographic experience including her own sell out show “Silver” at Her Majesty’s Theatre in the West End of London. Currently Susan is studying for a Masters degree in Dance Science and Education at Edinburgh University.

Children's Classes

RAD BALLET, SPANISH DANCE

Tracy Hawkes RTS ARAD SDS IdB(1) is the school principal director. She founded DANCE FOR ALL in 1985 after performing and teaching extensively in schools and companies here and abroad, including Basic Space Dance Theatre, Napac Ballet and Durban City Ballet. Tracy is a registered teacher and an Associate of the Royal Academy of Dance (ARAD) and is the only Spanish Dance Society qualified teacher in Scotland. Tracy promotes excellence and enjoyment in all forms of dance training within the intimate, supportive and welcoming atmosphere of her DANCE FOR ALL Theatre School. More about Dance For All.

RAD BALLET (NEWINGTON BRANCH)

Amalia Marrocco is a fully trained and RAD registered Classical Ballet teacher with DFA. Her aim is to tutor young students through the RAD
examination system to reach their maximum potential. Enjoyment remains the foundation of her classes and she is keen to expand the students
repertoire of dance through non-syllabus work in parallel to their core class studies.

RAD BALLET, JAZZ

Charlotte Nicol trained on Dance For All’s Professional Stage Dance Course. Following teaching at a local Edinburgh dance school, she now teaches RAD Ballet and Jazz Dance to children here at Dance For All and in Livingston at a local dance school run by her friend and fellow DFA graduate Leanne Mallace.

HIP HOP, COMMERCIAL & BREAKDANCE

After graduating from Liverpool Institute of Performing Arts, Christina Gusthart lived in london and starred as the lead in a new Hip Hop Theatre show 'In Time'. She then travelled to India where she worked in Bollywood movies and has since danced for David Guetta, Kelly Rowland and Kylie Minogue. She has spent three months in America training under some of the most renowned names in the industry including Marty Kudelka, Tony Basil and Anthony Thomas. Christina’s company, Xena Productions continues to produce high quality hip hop theatre pieces that have been premiered at the Breakin Convention Tour and Breakin Rules at the Dundee Rep. Christina teaches hip hop and breakdancing in and around Scotland and also trains a team of hip hop dancers who represent Scotland at international competitions.

RAD BALLET,  ISTD TAP, STREET JAZZ

Irene Allison AISTD, RAD Registered, BTDA, Biography coming soon..

ISTD TAP

Michelle Hay Biography coming soon...

RAD BALLET, ISTD TAP, STREET JAZZ, FITNESS

Peter Twyman Biography Coming Soon...

.

RAD BALLET, JAZZ & URBAN, CONTEMPORARY

Samm Baigrie RAD RTS BA (Hons) has taught classes at DFA since 1998 and choreographed pieces in the regular school productions. Samm has a BA Hons Dance Education and holds 'Registered Teacher Status' with the Royal Academy of Dance. She has worked in Mauritius, danced in Europe and had her stint in Panto. Samm is also a regular judge for Live and Unsigned.

Evening Adult Classes

BALLET, SPANISH DANCE

Tracy Hawkes RTS ARAD SDS IdB(1) is the school principal director. She founded DANCE FOR ALL in 1985 after performing and teaching extensively in schools and companies here and abroad, including Basic Space Dance Theatre, Napac Ballet and Durban City Ballet. Tracy is a registered teacher and an Associate of the Royal Academy of Dance (ARAD) and is the only Spanish Dance Society qualified teacher in Scotland. Tracy promotes excellence and enjoyment in all forms of dance training within the intimate, supportive and welcoming atmosphere of her DANCE FOR ALL Theatre School. More about Dance For All.

TAP & PILATES

Lis Mackie MA Hons, RAD Teaching Diploma has a wealth of experience teaching RAD ballet, tap, jazz, pilates and contemporary dance and she has taught Adult Tap classes at DFA Theatre School since 2002 and she has recently completed the BodyControl Pilates Matwork Teacher Training course. For many years she combined stage and screen work with dance/movement teaching and freelance choreography, principally for actors and youth theatre participants, and she was delighted to be awarded the General Teaching Council for Scotland’s Professional Recognition in Dance and Drama.  

YOGA

Lynne Scott has been practising yoga for 30 years. In 1979 she completed her yoga teacher training with Yoga Scotland. In 2003 she completed the 4 year Yoga and Yoga Therapy training with Viniyoga Britain (now the Association for Yoga Studies).
Lynne is an accredited teacher for the Krishnamacharya Healing and Yoga Foundation. Lynne has also taught for 6 years as a tutor on the Yoga Scotland teacher training course. She teaches In-Service training days for yoga teachers for Yoga Scotland, the Association for Yoga Studies, and the British Wheel of Yoga. Lynne's website

SPANISH FLAMENCO

Maria Bustos Calderón trained at the Dance Conservatory within the renowned Institut del Teatre in Barcelona, Spain, and has held soloist bailaora positions, touring internationally with Spanish dance companies and choreographers including; Nuevo Ballet Español, Delo Flamenco, José Greco, Carmen Cortes, maestro Cristóbal Reyes and award-wining Rubén Olmo. Maria’s performances include; Carmen, Don Juan, Al-Andalus, Belmonte, Pinocchio and Ciensenderos. Maria is experienced in Sevillanas, stylised Spanish dance with castanets and choreography she also trained in classical ballet alongside the Spanish techniques: escuela bolera, clásico español and Flamenco.

BALLET, JAZZ, STREET JAZZ & FITNESS

Peter Twyman Biography Coming Soon...

PILATES & TAP

Lis Mackie MA Hons, RAD Teaching Diploma has a wealth of experience teaching RAD ballet, tap, jazz, pilates and contemporary dance and she has taught Adult Tap classes at DFA Theatre School since 2002 and she has recently completed the BodyControl Pilates Matwork Teacher Training course. For many years she combined stage and screen work with dance/movement teaching and freelance choreography, principally for actors and youth theatre participants, and she was delighted to be awarded the General Teaching Council for Scotland’s Professional Recognition in Dance and Drama.  

Jewel & Esk College Contact

Jane Handley is the responsible Resources and Engagement Manager for liaison between
Jewel & Esk College and Dance for All at the Theatre School. Jane manages the NQ and HND
in Professional Dance and advises on Jewel & Esk College’s facilities and policies. Jane can be
contacted on 0131 344 7216 or jhandley@jec.ac.uk

The college website is www.jec.ac.uk.

Dance For All have a number of professional freelance staff who provide a range of services, from photography, lighting & film to workshops and masterclasses by specially invited choreographers, performers and directors currently working in the industry. This website and our facebook page are maintained by Jeda Lewis who also produces our printed publications and press releases.