MEET THE TUTORS | carolyns

Dee

Hi, my name is Dee and I am a married mother of 4 children.

I started dancing with Carolyn over 20 years ago at the age of 14, and have never looked back.

I started just as a member of her classes, but soon progressed to competition work, and then later on to teaching.

My biggest achievement while competing was winning the solo and pairs section of the I.D.T.A Nationwide Championships which is held in Blackpool each year. I am also proud to say that two of my daughters have followed in my foot steps and have both also won at this event. When I decided that I wanted to take on a role as teacher, Carolyn trained me fully and I gained my A.I.S.T.D.

I am now extremely happy and lucky to be part of Carolyn’s, where I started dancing all those years ago!

Carolyn

Carolyn is the principle and founder of Carolyn's School of Dance. She danced from a young age as a hobby, originally training in Ballet, Ballroom and Latin, leading to the launching of Carolyn's School of Dance over 30 years ago.

Qualified as a licentiate member of the ISTD and IDTA, Carolyn has experience with teaching all ages and abilities in the art of Freestyle Dance from beginners to Champions, with many of her pupils going on to become Professional Dancers themselves.

Carolyn has pride in her dance school, not only because of its high standards, but also because of its friendly welcoming approach to dance, encouraging every pupil to enjoy themselves whilst keeping active. Carolyn is idolised for her young nature and connection to children with her vibrant approach to life and her infectious personality which is quite simply amazing!

Teaching now for over 30 years she quite often finds herself teaching the younger generation of the older generation!

Offering the highest standard teaching, Carolyn's classes in Essex and Ipswich are highly recommended, and have an outstanding reputation which all staff are rightly proud of.

At Carolyn's School of Dance, we pride ourselves on providing a fun and safe environment to learn, develop or just exercise through dance, and the success of our classes is down to the quality of our tutors. If you'd like to learn more about the special people that deliver the special experience for our students, see their biogs below.

Meet the Tutors!

Kelly

I have been dancing with Carolyn’s School of Dance since the age of three, progressing to compete in area competitions as a solo, pairs and team dancer, winning several trophies in the process.

I also went on to compete in national competitions such as the Blackpool finals, and in my "spare" time was part of a majorette troupe for numerous years, where I was drum major. I completed my school work experience with Carolyn’s School of Dance, and progressed to gaining honours in ISTD and IDTA exams.

I then completed a BTEC National Diploma in Performing Arts (Dance) at Colchester Institute, where I was trained in Ballet, Jazz, Tap, Urban and Contemporary and advanced onto the BA (Hons) Dance in the Community Degree at University Campus Suffolk where the focus was Contemporary dance, although we touched on African dance and the classical Indian dance, Bharatanatyam.

Throughout this period, I gained lots of performing experience including dancing with Carolyn’s School of Dance at Her Majesty’s Theatre, along with being a children’s entertainer on board Stena Line Ferries. I was also part of an undergraduate dance company whilst at University, Forefront Dance Company, where we worked with professional choreographer Divya Kasturi and performed the work in a local theatre.

The future is exciting, and I am extremely proud and honoured to teach for Carolyn’s School of Dance, where I first started dancing.

I teach at a number of schools doing lunchtime and after school clubs, and also evening classes, along with a competition training class. I will soon be a qualified associate within the ISTD, once I have completed my professional exam.

Louise

Carolyn's daughter Louise trained in Ballet from the age of seven, whilst also attending nearly all the Freestyle classes run at that time.

Her dedication in both disciplines resulted in her progressing through the ISTD Medallist

Examinations and becoming an exceptional Freestyle Competition dancer, both as a Solo performer, and also in the highly successful Rhythm Nation team.

After leaving school, Louise continued to improve her considerable skills, gaining her Professional Associate Dance Teacher Qualifications and completing her level 2&3 Early Years & Childcare Education NVQ.

This experience has given Louise a great understanding of how best to teach dance, allowing her to get the most out of her lessons and her pupils and help them to achieve their goals.

Louise undertakes everything in a professional and logical manner, but most importantly has the necessary skill and personality to be able to encourage Dancers of all ages to enjoy their dance and develop their skills.

Harriet

I have been dancing since I was 4 years old, trained in ballet and tap and then found Carolyns school of dance at the age of 7.

I totally fell in love with the styles of dancing that we do here, and have now been dancing with the school for 20 years.

I am lucky enough to have entered and won many competitions, danced in the West End, taken numerous exams and now have the privilege of teaching within the Dance School.

We aim to have fun and we certainly do that. I am a bit crazy but that just makes the classes that more fun. I would encourage anyone at any age to try.

Dancing is a part of me and I would be lost without it!