Dance Staff Biographies

Marian Lennon
R.A.D. Teaching Dip. C.D.E. I.S.T.D.  P.E.A. N.C.E.F. Rommett Certificate

Marian has had a versatile career in Theatre, Cabaret, Television, and Film, working in Ireland and touring extensively throughout Europe, Africa, and the Middle East. Marian worked as an exercise consultant for Unislim and trained aerobic teachers for the Dance Institute in Athens. She returned to Ireland and completed her training as a Classical Ballet Teacher at the National Academy of Dancing and the Royal Academy of Dance in London. Marian also holds the PEAI Certificate in Exercise and Health Studies and the National Certificate in Exercise and Fitness. She is a certified Rommet floor barre teacher and is a tutor for the Imperial Society of Teachers of Dancing.

Marian is the Course Director of the Dance Studies Course at Inchicore College of Further Education. She runs her own Ballet School in Blanchardstown, and is Head of Ballet for the National Performing Arts School.
  

Linda Higgins
M.A., L.R.A.D., A.I.S.T.D. (MB) (CB), N.C.E.H.S., Rommett certificate

Linda began her training with Dublin Ballet School, studying under Ella Doran and Philip Cole. She continued her studies for three years at the College of the Royal Academy of Dance in London and gained her licentiate.

Upon graduation, Linda taught in Canada for a number of years, running two dance studios and winning numerous choreography and studio awards. Linda then returned to Ireland and completed an M.A. in dance. She also holds the National Certificate in Exercise and Health Studies. She was the first certified Rommett floor-barre teacher in Ireland and has undertaken further study in New York with Zena Rommett.

Linda took over Dublin Ballet School in 2001 and has five centers in North County Dublin.

In 2005, Linda qualified as a tutor for the Imperial Society of Teachers of Dance. She has also studied, on scholarship, with the Laban Guild in London under the Phoenix project from 2006 until 2007. She continues her research into Laban’s work in relation to classical ballet.
  

Louise Behan
F.I.S.T.D.

A native of Drogheda, Louise Behan trained at the Dublin School of Classical and Contemporary Dance. She joined the Dance teaching staff at Inchicore College of Further Education in September 1995.

Holding Fellowship status with the Imperial Society of teachers of Dancing, she has taught modern dance for DSCCD and the College of Dance. She established her own school for children in Drogheda in 1990. Louise is an ISTD Examiner in Modern Theatre Dance and is currently the main tutor for the FDI and CDE at Inchicore College.
 

Sophia Bailey
B.A. (Dance), A.D. Dip, A.B.S.

Sophia Bailey was born in Ireland, traveling to England at 14 to study Ballet. She then moved to Melbourne, Australia with her family where she trained at the Victorian College of the Arts and later at the Australia Ballet School for her teacher’s diploma. She moved back to Ireland five years ago, and runs her own ballet school in County Tipperary. She also teaches in Shawbrook and choreographed “The Red Shoes” for the National Youth Dance Company in 2004. She works, as an Artist in Residence for North Tipperary County Council, in local primary schools.
  

Adrienne Brown
B.A., M.A.

Adrienne Brown was born in Dublin, began her dance education with ballet classes and later at the London Contemporary Dance School, where she studied for three years. She founded New Balance Dance Company in 1987, with which she danced and choreographed for extensively. From 1991-1998 she attended the Martha Graham Center of Dance in New York, gaining first place in her teacher-training certificate in 1996 with A+.

She choreographed over 30 original works, which have been staged in Ireland, England and France. Her works draw on many stimuli: movement; narrative; text; musicality and compositional elements. She has collaborated with several composers in her work, and she has also worked with recorded music: Bach, Beethoven, Arvo Pärt, John Taverner and Ian Wilson. She has taken inspiration from the writings of Oscar Wilde, W.B. Yeats, Paula Meehan, Charlotte Mew and Beth Ann Fennelly. Adrienne is a founding member and current board member of the Dance Ireland.

Adrienne was the first Irish choreographer to be invited to take part in the inaugural "Righting Dance" project in 1997, at the Institute of Choreography and Dance, Cork. This was a mentored research project, which took place over three years under her chosen mentor, the international choreographer Kim Brandstrup of ARC Dance.  Following three years research, the Institute commissioned her to create the full-length dance work Colmcille, which premiered in 2000 and toured Ireland in 2001.

From 2002-2005 Adrienne completed a B.A. degree in University College Dublin, graduating with honors in Music and English, then a master degree in American Studies.  In 2006 she was awarded an Ad Astra Research Scholarship from U.C.D to undertake a PhD in Musicology. Her topic is the analysis and interpretation of late twentieth-century music and dance, focusing on the work of choreographers Merce Cunningham and Mark Morris.  Adrienne is currently Co-Artistic Director of the Core Dance Company at Inchicore College.
  

Mairéad Vaughan

Mairéad Vaughan is a chorographer, dancer and dance teacher. She graduated Northern School of Contemporary Dance, Leeds, with a degree in Performing Arts and then went on to receive an M.A. in Contemporary Dance Performance. As founder and choreographer of Shakram Music and Dance Company, Mairéad aims has been to bring life experimental dance and music to non-dance audiences, hence her many street festivals performances and residencies in other unconventional venues. Shakram have also performed her work in the Project, The Mermaid Arts Centre, Dublin Fringe Festival, Skibbereen Arts Festival and the Ilios Festival, Norway. Mairéad danced with Daghdha Dance Company over a period of three years and has received Arts Council travel awards to study Indian Classical Dance and Yoga in India. Mairéad is currently Co-Artistic Director of the Core Dance Company at Inchicore College.
  

Melissa Harman
B.A. [Theatre Dance], AISTD

Melissa was born in Hertfordshire, England.  She trained at the Sylvia Young Theatre School and at the London Studio Centre on a full Scholarship specialising in Musical Theatre during her final year.  She graduated with a BA Honours in Theatre Dance and ISTD Associate in Modern Theatre Dance and Imperial Ballet.

Professional Theatre Credits include Dot/Assistant Choreographer in ‘Honk’ Gordon Craig Theatre, Stevenage], Ensemble/Understudy Ali and Lisa in ‘Mamma Mia [Prince Edward Theatre, London] and Ensign Rita Adams/Dance Captain in ‘South Pacific’ UK Tour]

Melissa moved to Dublin in 2004 and completed the ISTD Certification in Dance Education in Modern Theatre and Imperial Ballet.  She is currently Ballet Mistress for the Irish National Youth Ballet Company and also teaches at the Dublin School of Classical and Contemporary Dance, Sallynoggin College, the Abbey Studios in Drogheda and at Inchicore College.
  

Mariam Ribon

Mariam Ribon, originally from Spain, moved to Dublin late 1995. As a professional dancer she has worked in Ireland with the New Balance Dance Company, John Scott’s Irish Modern Dance Theatre, MaNDaNCE, Daghdha Dance Company, Opera Ireland and at Cois Céim Dance Theatre.

In 2002 Mariam graduated with first class Honours with a Masters in Contemporary Dance Performance from Limerick University. Mariam also completed a Pilates Instructor Diploma in 2003.

In 2003 Mariam became the Artistic Director of the Dublin Youth Dance Company and the Irish Youth Dance Festival.  She is presenting the IYDF 2007 at the Pavilion Theatre on the 10th June and the cultural exchange between DYDC and Debla Danza from Spain at the end of June. Mariam choreographed for the third year Core Dance Company and she also gave workshops to the first and second year students at Inchicore College.
  

Jonathan Healy
B.A. [Hons] M.A. LLCM

Jonathan Healy studied piano at the Royal Irish Academy of Music with Gillian ~Smith and Brian Becket for many years while completing his Honours degree in music at Maynooth University. He then took to composing and finished his masters in composition and analysis also in Maynooth in 1997. He is currently works as an accompanist and composer giving recitals around the country while teaching piano at Kings Hospital School in Palmerstown. 
 

CLIONA O’BRIEN
RAD Teaching Dip, Ass. ISTD

Cliona trained in the Pauline McGrath School of Dance. She went on to
complete a three year Dance Studies Course at Inchicore College where she was
awarded her Royal Academy of Dance Student Teacher’s Certificate and Diploma in classical ballet. Cliona also completed the Imperial Society of teachers of Dancing Associate in Modern Theatre Dance.

Cliona is currently running her own Performing Arts School [Encorps Stage School] in Tallaght where she has classes in Ballet, Jazz Ballet, Tap, Hip Hop, Musical Theatre, Drama and Singing.

Cliona's choreography and performance portfolio includes supporting Mary J Blige in the Point Theatre, dancing at numerous Childline and Party in the Park Concerts. Her film credits include Tudors and Becoming Jane.
  

Adele Mealey
BA (Hons), M.Sc, RAD RTS, ISTD FDI

Adele Mealey graduated from Trinity College Dublin in 2002 with a BA (Hons) in Mathematics. She enrolled on the Dance Performance & Production Course in Inchicore in 2002 and graduated with Distinction in 2004.  While there, she successfully gained the RAD STC and converted this to a full TC in 2006.  In 2004, Adele commenced a Masters Degree in Applied Maths and Theoretical Physics, which she completed in 2007.  She has also completed the ISTD FDI in Modern Theatre Dance and is due to complete the CDE in 2008. She currently teaches ballet and modern for the Aideen O’Hagan School of Ballet in Carlow and teaches History of Dance in Inchicore College.