Patrick Parson | Helen Jones | Alejandra Valiente
Sharon Harvey | Milton Myers | Consuelo Herrera
Gabby Kamino | Kevin A. Ormsby | Debbie Wilson | Gary De Matas

Patrick Parson

Mr. Parson, a native Trinidad and Tobago, and a dancer and musician from the age of 10, Patrick Parson draws much of his inspiration from the vibrant multicultural community that makes up the Caribbean.
Patrick spent his early years singing in choirs, composing and singing calypsos, playing with steel orchestras, dancing and drumming with community folk groups, and studying ballet and modern dance at the Caribbean School of Dance and the Dance Academy of Trinidad and Tobago. He was trained in the dance and drumming styles of Guinea and Senegal by Mor Thiam, the Artist Director of Les Ballets Africans, and in Canada graduated from the school of the Toronto Dance Theatre.
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Helen Jones

Helen Jones began ballet classes in Swansea, Wales, and at age 10 was accepted at the Royal Ballet School in London. Upon graduating, and attracted to a more contemporary esthetic, she began dancing at the newly formed London Contemporary Dance Theatre, with emerging choreographers including Richard Alston, and worked in London’s experimental theatre scene. In 1970 she was invited to join the Toronto Dance Theatre (artistic directors and founders Patricia Beatty, David Earle, and Peter Randazzo.) Helen was a featured artist with TDT in the 70s and again in the 80s. She also danced 2 seasons in Toronto with the company of Robert Desrosiers.

Helen was a member of the Martha Graham Dance Company in New York, under the direction of Martha Graham, and danced with the company on Broadway, at the Metropolitan Opera House, and extensively across America. As an independent artist she worked with choreographers in Toronto, Brussels, Rome, and New York City.

Helen taught at the Martha Graham Center for Contemporary Dance, and has taught Graham based technique in America, Canada, and Europe.

Currently Helen is on the faculty at the School of Toronto Dance Theatre, York University Department of Dance, Ballet Creole, and Dancetheatre David Earle. She is the director of Artemesia Dance, a dance and arts programme for children in rural Grey Highlands.

Helen has a B.Sc. in Psychology (UT), a Diploma in Training and Development (OISE), and professional development studies include courses in pedagogy at the National Ballet School of Canada.

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Alejandra Valiente

Alejandra graduated from "Sistema Nacional para la Ensenanza Professional de la Danza" in Mexico, as Classical Ballet Teacher (1985-1997). Complementary studies from " Imperial Society of Teachers of Dancing", Acquiring "Associate level"; other studies like summer courses given by RAD, and "Harlem Ballet"; courses from Vaganova and Bouirnonville School. In 2001 started her own company, "Arte en Movimiento", designing for special events. This year became the school principal of "Danza Studio"(Mexico).

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Sharon Harvey

Sharon is proud to be a part of the rich and diverse cultures this country has to offer. As a Dance Artist, Sharon has been exposed to many styles of dance. These styles range from Classical Ballet, Jazz, South Indian, and Chinese to traditional African dance and ground breaking Hip Hop. She is a Pilates instructor and is also a licensed instructor of a new and excitiing core conditioning program called BalleCore. Sharon's passion for dance has further embarhed her on a new venture in traning and development of a body conditioning system which promotes strength, suppleness, and longevity of a dancer's instrument. Canadian dance today needs strong versatile dancers to represent what this diverse culture has to offer internationally. Sharon's desire is to provide Canadian dancers the tools to condition their bodies to perform on the world stage.
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Milton Myers

Milton was a founding member, performer, Assistant to the Director and Artistic Director with Joyce Trisier Danscompany and performed with the Alvin Ailey Dance Theater. He has taught for Ballet Hispanico, New Danish Dance Theater, Les Ballet Jazz de Montriel, Bat Dor, Batsheva, Matthew Bourne's Male Swan Lake Company on Broadway and Ballet Stagium in Sao-Paulo, Brazil. He is a professional instructor for Alvin Ailey Dance Theater and has been an instructor and resident choreographer for the Philadelphia Dance Company(Philadanco) since 1989. Milton has been an Artist-in-Residence at the julliard School, North Carolina School of the Arts, Brown Univercity, Howard Univercity in Washington, D.C. and the School of Toronto Dance Theatre in Canada. He is preparing to return to Jacob's Pillow Dance Festival where he has been director of the modern and contemporary projects for 19 years. Milton teaches extensively throughout Europe, Israel, South America, Canada and the United States. He has taught at several prominent festivals in Vienna, Moscow, Paris, Germany, Italy, Greece, The Netherlands and South Africa. His choreography has earned him recognition and funding from the National Endowment for the Arts, the New York State Council, CAPS Choreography Award, Phillip Morris New Works Fund, Dance USA/Philadelphia Dance Alliance and Jacob's Pillow.
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Consuelo Herrera

Consuelo was born in Havana, Cuba begining her dance career at 14 with folklore and cabaret groups. She has been dancing with Grupo Raicis Profundas(Deep Roots) for more than 10 years as a soloist lead dancer and singer touring Cuba, Central America and Europe. Having appeared in several films and documentaries about dance in Cuba, she has also performed with the Havana Opera in the Grand Teatro Habana and in Mexico. After touring Japan with Cuban National Cultural Spectacular, Consuelo was brought to Canada by Jane Burnett and her "Spirits of Havana" project to the Planet Africa Party of 1996 Toronto Film Festival and a tour of Canada and the U.S. Since then, she has been teaching at Ballet Creole's Professional Traning Program and has been performing with Ballet Creole since August 2003.
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Gabby Kamino

Gabby is an independent dancer and choreographer. Her works have been performed throughout Canada, the United States, and Europe. She has presented two major works at Ffida to critical acclaim, and her show The Story, in collaboration with PBJ, was named one of the top ten dance events by NOW Magazine in 1998. She has worked with Judy Jarvis, Til Thiele, Lawrence Gradus and Milton Myers. In 1975, Gabby joined the faculty of the University of Waterloo as Lecturer and Artistic Director of the Repertory Dance Company and also co-founded her own company Dance Plus Four. During this time, she was a World Team Choreographer for the Canadian National Figure Skating Association and Olympic Competitors. Gabby is a recipient of several awards, most recently from the City of Kitchener / Waterloo, and is creating works for Ballet Creole and PBJ Dance Projects.
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Kevin A. Ormsby

Kevin A. Ormsby has been dancing in Jamaica, Canada, and the United States for over twenty years. He is a recipient of scholarships to The Edna Manley School of the Performing Arts Scholarships in Dance and Drama, American Dance Festival, Bates Dance Festival and holds a degree in Mass Communications and Political Science from York University. Has worked with Canboulay Dance Theatre, Caribbean Folk Performers, Caribbean Dance Theatre among others. His artistry have garnered three awards from The Jamaica Cultural Commission “National Festival of the Arts” (1992), Scarborough Board of Education “Excellence In Education" (1994) and Artistic Grant from the Canada Arts Council (2000). For six years, Kevin was a dancer with the internationally renowned, Garth Fagan Dance, NY, Garth Fagan is the choreographer for the Broadway Musical, “The Lion King”. Kevin appeared in more than 17 of the company’s choreographed works many of which toured extensively throughout the United States, Canada and Europe. Among its numerous success stories, Kevin returned to Toronto and Ballet Creole in summer 2006 in the position of not only dancer but also teaches in the Professional Training Program and is the company’s Marketing / Outreach Coordinator.

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Debbie Wilson

Debbie Wilson - Ms. Wilson's rich background as dancer, teacher and rehearsal director reflects a lifetime of work with some to the greatest artists of our time, a lifetime reflected in her resonant choreographic voice. Debbie Wilson is the Artistic Director and Founder of OMO Dance Company for which she has created a repertoire of critically acclaimed productions, including Aphrodite Unveiled, Raphael is whispering and Homo Office Sapiensis that in 2002 received a Dora Mavor Moore nomination for "Outstanding New Choreography". Wilson began her professional career with the Cincinnati Ballet Company at the age of 12 where she was promoted to soloist and rehearsal assistant. She has worked as dancer/rehearsal mistress for The American Dance Machine, Les Ballets Jazz de Montreal, Howard Richard & Dancers and Ballet Jorgen. She has also worked for the Judith Marcuse Repertory Dance Company, the Randy Glynn Dance Project as well as many independent choreographers across Canada and the US.

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Gary De Matas

Gary De Matas - Mr. Gary De Matas has been involved in dance scene for over past twenty-five years as a performer, teacher and choreographer. Gary’s formal dance training began at The Maracas Valley Combined Cultural Performers. He later studied with The Malick Folk Performers, The Caribbean School of Dancing and The Astor Johnson Repertory Dance Theatre Workshop in Trinidad and Tobago.He holds a M.A in Dance form York University. He had undertaken a major research paper into the Astor Johnson dance aesthetic and the Trinidad and Tobago male dancer, and was invited to present his research findings in June 2007 at the International Symposium of the Society of Dance History Scholars in Paris, France. Mr. De Matas has conducted a series of Master Classes on Afro-Caribbean Dance at the invitation of the South Dallas Dance Festival – Home at Last, Dallas, Texas, USA.

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