Sierra Wentzell

Teacher

Module one certified acrobatic arts. Sierra has danced competitively for 12 years- most of those years with PADC. She is a certified Acrobatic Arts teacher and is excited about bringing acro to Liverpool.

Sierra started dancing when she was 3 years old at Nova Dance Studio, and has danced competitively for 12 years- most of those years with PADC. It was in her teen years that she started to add on more classes and different styles such as ballet, tap, jazz, hip hop, tumbling, and contemporary, until she was taking every single class offered for her age at the studio. Aside from training with Miss Mallory, Sierra has been assisting classes for years and is a well known substitute teacher amongst our students. Outside of the studio, Sierra is a graduate of the Veterinary Technology program at Dalhousie Agricultural College and is currently working at Nova Vet Clinic. Sierra is a certified Acrobatic Arts teacher and is excited about bringing acro to Liverpool. Sierra has been running our Liverpool programming for numerous seasons now and continues to grow and improve.

Kim Turnbull

Teacher

B.A. Neuropsychology Dalhousie University Life Member C.D.T.A. 1985-present with credentials in Ballet, Tap, Jazz and Modern. Associate Member of the Society of Classical Ballet - Vaganova Method (since 1998).

Previous owner of our studio, then called Nova Dance Studio, Miss Kim is coming back and we couldn’t be more excited! You may know her as the Master of Ceremonies at Limelight. She has M.C.’d for dance events throughout the region and has acted as an adjudicator for several Atlantic dance competitions.

he has studied and/or taught Ballet, Pointe, Tap, Jazz, Modern, Contemporary, Hip-Hop, Step Dance, Flamenco, Belly Dance, Character National, African, Social Dance and Country and Western dance forms with some of the most acclaimed teachers of her time.

Her training began when she was three years old with other Mary Turnbull, leading to her professional qualification through the Canadian Dance Teachers Association (C.D.T.A.) in 1985 with further qualification reached in 1991, 1995 and 2012.

Throughout the decades, she has also completed numerous student and teaching level exams in the Russian and N.A.T.D. syllabi. She has held the position of Artistic Director of several multidisciplinary schools throughout her career, has been on the faculty of and has guest taught at dozens of competitive schools coast to coast. ‘Miss Kim’ opened her first studio in Head of St.

Margaret’s Bay in September 2001 then went on to open two more studios on the South Shore, in Chester and Bridgewater as well as one in Fall River. To this day these studios ECDA and PADC continue to thrive as vital dance centres under the direction of ou next generation of teachers that Miss Kim once taught.

Drawing from her performance background in live theatre, television and film, Miss Kim has choreographed and guest performed locally with several Maritime theatre companies including Chester Playhouse and Neptune Theatre. Other credits to her name include having been acknowledged for her contribution to “The Tap Dance Dictionary”, published by MacFarland & Company, acting as Competition Coordinator for the first two C.D.T.A. Atlantic Ballet Festivals, having been a director on the Board of Dance Nova Scotia from 1996-2003 and the Atlantic Vice President of the C.D.T.A., but her most proud accomplishment she says, are her beautiful dancing daughters.

Emily Rivard

Teacher

NCCP Gymnastics Foundation Artistics & Trampoline Coach and acrobaric Arts Module 1 & Aerial and Back Handspring Certified.

Emily has been teaching since 2018 and is dedicated to developing her students’ understandings of dance technique and artistry. Being raised in Sudbury, Ontario had given Emily the opportunity to train with teachers like Mitchell Jackson (On The Floor), Emily Caruso-Parnell (Dance Evolution), Derek Piquette, Jeff Wong (Dance Inc), Kevin Howe, Tara-Jean Popowich, and Jennie Pappas. She had the opportunity to train in the summer intensives of the Quinte Ballet School of Canada and the School of Cadence Ballet. As a dancer, Emily was part of the On The Floor Sick Kids Gala , learning intensively multiple styles to showcase a professional show as a fundraiser for Sick Kids Hospital (Toronto, ON).

Emily has coached gymnastics for 2 years and has received certification in coaching by Gymnastics Ontario (NCCP). She completed her intermediate foundation and intermediate ballet exams from the Royal Academy of Dance under the direction of Emily Caruso-Parnell. She will have completed her module 1 certification from Acrobatic Arts in June 2024.

Emily moved to Nova Scotia to continue her education in marine biology by studying at Dalhousie University and is to receive her Bachelor of Science in Spring 2025. Emily’s style of teaching is detail oriented focused on the varying mechanics and goals of the dancer. She continues to teach presently at Dartmouth Dance Academy and now at Plan A!

Sophie MacMillan

Teacher

Graduate of the Maritime Conservatory of Performing Arts dance teacher training program. A certified ballet and jazz teacher through the CDTA.

Sophie began her dance training with Precision Dance Company, located in the Annapolis Valley. There, she primarily trained in Contemporary, Jazz, Ballet, Modern, and Lyrical, as well as in Hip Hop and Musical Theatre. She competed around the Maritimes for over 10 years, receiving numerous title awards & scholarships. Outside of her home studio, Sophie continued developing her own style of movement through her dance training with professionals in the industry at many workshops, intensives, & classes across the province. 

Now based in Halifax NS, Sophie is a dance instructor and choreographer within multiple competitive studios in & around the city. She also teaches Contemporary and continues her own training at House of Eights Dance Studio, under the direction of Abady Alzahrani. Sophie has recently graduated from the Teacher Training Program at the Maritime Conservatory of Performing Arts where she received her diploma in Dance History, Pedagogy, and Anatomy, under the direction of Janet Bradbury. Sophie has also recently become a certified Associate Ballet & Jazz teacher through the Canadian Dance Teachers Association. 

Jocelyn Chin

Teacher

Meet Jocelyn

Jocelyn began dancing at the age of 4 and quickly fell in love with the art. She started competing by age 8 with Jacqueline’s School of Dance in Pickering, Ontario, where she trained in a wide range of styles including Acro, Jazz, Contemporary, Ballet, Hip Hop, Tap, Lyrical, Pointe, Musical Theatre, and Modern. She is certified in both the Acrobatic Arts (Aerial Arts and L1) and BATD syllabi.

A graduate of the Claude Watson Arts Program at Earl Haig Secondary School, Jocelyn earned a specialized arts diploma in Dance. Her training included daily Ballet (RAD and Cecchetti) and Modern (Graham and Limón techniques), as well as work with a variety of professional choreographers and artists.

Jocelyn has performed in shows at Canada’s Wonderland for over four seasons, and appeared at the CNE’s Rising Star Talent Competition and Young Creator’s Challenge. She also proudly represented Canada at the Dance World Cup in Europe, earning multiple medals in Acro, Jazz, Contemporary, and Hip Hop.

Since moving to Nova Scotia, she’s brought her passion for dance education to Kinship Performing Arts Centre (as an instructor and Afterschool Program lead), Boxwood Music Festival (Children’s Program instructor), Motion Dance Centre and Plan A Dance Inc. She is also certified with Aerial Arts Silks.

Jocelyn is passionate about inspiring the next generation of dancers and helping them build both skill and confidence through movement.

Mallory Zwicker

Artistic Director,  Teacher

Owner of plan A dance, MCPA dance teacher training graduate, CDTA jazz, ballet, acro and modern certified teacher, ADAPT jazz and tap certified teacher, PBT certified ballet teacher, Acrobatic Arts certified teacher, Body harmonics certified Pilates movement educator, and TDLI level 2 certified dance adjudicator.

Mallory is a dance educator from the South Shore who has a huge passion for the arts. At age 14 she began her formal dance training at a number of dance studios and companies in Nova Scotia, and by age 15 was dancing 7 days a week in a plethora of genres. Mallory has taken master classes in New York City, Toronto and Calgary and has trained at multiple local studios over the years.

Mallory has been teaching since she was 16 years old and quickly realized it was what she was meant to do. Mallory has taught at a number of dance schools including the Maritime Conservatory of Performing Arts and was the Artistic Director of Nova Dance Studio for the 2016-17 season.  In May of 2017, Mallory opened Plan A Dance Inc. in Bridgewater NS, and by 2018 opened a second studio in Liverpool. Mallory’s love for technical teaching and choreography is continuously growing and her pieces have been performed and recognized across North America. Mallory has produced numerous title winning dancers and has had dancers graduate and go off to performing arts institutions to begin their careers in the fine arts.

Mallory is a graduate of the Maritime Conservatory of Performing Arts’ Teacher Training Program where she trained for 3 years with an amazing faculty of highly acclaimed dance professionals under the direction of Barbara Dearborn. Zwicker is now a certified Jazz, Ballet, Modern and Acrobatics teacher through the Canadian Dance Teachers Association and has her Progressive Ballet Technique teaching certification. Mallory believes that knowledge is power and is also a graduate of the Business Program at NSCC and has received her certificate from the Acadia Entrepreneurship Centre. Mallory is a recent graduate of the ADAPT Teacher Training School for Jazz and Tap. She is also a certified Body Harmonics Pilates instructor and a TDLI level two certified dance competition adjudicator. Travelling Canada to judge young talent is one of her new favourite things to do. Mallory plans to keep growing and learning so that she can continue to educate and engage all of her students near and far.