Faculty
Kate Adams
Kate Adams is a Boulder native who began dancing at Boulder Ballet at the age of three. In Colorado, she had the chance to compete in the Denver Ballet Guild’s Young Dancers Competition where she received 2nd place in 2010 and 6th place in 2014. As she rose through the school, Kate also had opportunities to attend summer programs such as The HARID Conservatory, Pacific Northwest Ballet, Atlanta Ballet, and Texas Ballet Theater. After graduating high school, she moved to Georgia to study with the Atlanta Ballet. In her two years with Atlanta, she was given the opportunity both years to perform in the snow and flower corps alongside the Atlanta Ballet company in John McFall’s The Nutcracker. Kate returned to Boulder where she is now a company dancer with Boulder Ballet while pursuing a Health Sciences degree online through the University of South Dakota.
Ana Claire
Ana Claire has been the Artistic Director and School Director for Boulder Ballet. She was born in Boulder and grew up on a ranch near Fairplay, Colorado. At the age of eight she saw American Ballet Theatre perform Swan Lake and fell in love with the art of ballet. In an extraordinary gift of support, Ana’s mother drove her to ballet classes in Denver throughout her childhood. Ana has studied ballet with Maxine Williamson, Fernando Schaffenberg, Milenko Banovich, Barbara Demaree, and Larry Boyette. She has performed with Fort Worth Ballet, Fort Worth Opera, David Taylor Dance Theater, Aladdin Theater, Boulder’s Dinner Theatre, Jan Justis Dance Company, and 3rd Law Dance/Theater, among others. Ana was a principal ballerina with Boulder Ballet for many years, and was twice voted “Boulder’s Best” by the Daily Camera. For over 20 years she has produced, directed, and choreographed an annual Storybook Ballet for the Boulder Ballet School, each with original music, scenery, and costumes created in collaboration with local artists. She has also choreographed all productions of Boulder Ballet’s Nutcracker since 2001. Ana originated Boulder Ballet’s acclaimed outreach program Steps in Time which has been performed at numerous schools throughout the Boulder/Denver area. Ana studied dance pedagogy at Texas Christian University, attended the teacher training workshop with former New York City Ballet principal Jillana, and has 30 years of teaching experience. She is a passionate teacher, dedicated to helping students achieve technical excellence while nurturing their individual artistry, and many of her students have gone on to professional careers in dance. Honoring her contributions to ballet in Colorado, Ana was inducted into the University of Denver’s Carson Brierly Giffin Dance Library “Legends of Dance” in 2018.
Kelly Dornan
School of Ballet on scholarship under Kee Juan Han, Kristina Windom, Vladimir Djouloukhaze and Monique Meunier. After graduating, Kelly trained on scholarship at Texas Ballet Theater School under Ben Stevenson, Charmaine Hunter, and Kathy Warakomsky, where she performed in Ben Stevenson’s Dracula and Harald Lander’s Etudes with the company. In 2014, she joined Colorado Ballet’s Studio Company for three seasons, where she had the opportunity to perform roles in Christopher Wheeldon’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Balanchine’s Serenade, Derek Deane’s Romeo and Juliet, and Swan Lake. In 2018, Kelly danced with Georgia Dance Theatre. Favorite roles with Boulder Ballet include Clara in The Nutcracker and the Fast/Slow Duet in Paul Taylor’s Airs. Kelly joined Boulder Ballet in 2019.
Ross Freeman
Ross joined the BB faculty in April of 2022. His versatile training bring a wide range of offerings for his students including ballet technique, American modern dance, contemporary, improvisation, and choreography. He takes pedogeological inspiration comes from his dance mentors: John Magnus, formerly of the Cape Town City Ballet and Joffrey Ballet School of Chicago, Richard Chen-See, formerly of Oakland Ballet, ODC, and Paul Taylor Dance Company, and Matan David, formerly of Batsheva Dance Company. Ross hopes to help shape the following generations of dancers with knowledge, dedication and confidence that were given to him by the generations before.
Celia Grannum-Peranaud 
Celia completed a B.F.A. in Dance at New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts, and pursued a career as a freelance dancer, choreographer, actress and teacher in the U.S., the United Kingdo m, Japan, Switzerland and The Netherlands. She moved effortlessly between jazz, modern, contemporary and ballet styles, which allowed her to work with the likes of Tony award winning choreographer Wayne Cilento and Rafael Bonachela, Director of Sydney Dance Company, and be a founding member of London’s renowned ‘Ballet Black’.
Along her dance journey, Celia has also had the pleasure and honor of dancing for Antonia Franceschi, Irek Mukhamedov, Stephen Sheriff, Denzil Bailey, Sheron Wray, Union Dance Company and Kim Brandstrup in the U.K.; Sanne van der Put, Annabelle Lopez Ochoa and Jennifer Hannah in the Netherlands; Nishida Yukio in Japan; and Gus Solomons, Michael Mao and Monte/Brown Dance in the U.S..
Celia was the founder and director of, and choreographed for ‘The Movement Network’ in Amsterdam. Her choreography has also been commissioned for and performed at The Place Prize, Resolution!, the Bridewell Theater, National Youth Dance Wales and the HIP Dance Festival, in the U.K.; Biennale de Danse in Martinique; L’Artchipel en Danse in Guadeloupe; the Rode Loper festival, Open Ateliers Jordaan and Podium Mozaïek in the Netherlands; and Boulder Arts Outdoors in Colorado.
Celia’s dance career has been balanced by the study and practice of Thai Yoga Massage, regression therapy and Homeopathy and she brings her understanding of both physical and energy bodies and systems into the dance studio to inform her teaching style. Celia’s goal is to keep dancers grounded in their humanity and in sound technique, as they develop efficient movement patterns to support the discovery of new freedom and joy in their dancing!
Celia studied Pilates at N.Y.U. with Kathy Grant, Pilates Elder and Master Teacher, who was herself certified by Joseph Pilates. After leaving N.Y.U., Celia continued to train with several teachers in the US and Europe. Her mat work classes combine Pilates with kinesthetic awareness and somatic work, and are supported by her experience as a professional dancer and bodyworker.
Maddie James 
Lizanne McAdams-Graham
Ms. McAdams-Graham became a principal dancer with the renowned ODC/San Francisco, completing world tours including Russia, Southeast Asia, Hawaii, and Australia, along with Jacobs Pillow, Joyce Theater, City Center, Lincoln Center in NYC, and Kennedy Center in D.C. She has guest appeared for Los Angeles, Santa Fe, Pittsburgh, and San Francisco Opera Ballet Companies in “Faust”, “Die Fledermaus”, “La Traviata” “Orfeo Ed Euridice” and “Aida” and appeared on the PBS televised production of “Dance in America” and the major motion picture “The In Crowd.”
Ms. McAdams served on the faculty for Pittsburgh Ballet, Pittsburgh Youth Ballet, Point Park College, Carnegie-Mellon University, Drexel University, and San Francisco Institute of Dance. She set major ballets on Charleston Ballet, Ithaca Ballet, and Walnut Hill. She retired from performing in 1997 and has since taught professional level and company classes for Boulder Ballet, Cleo Parker Robinson, David Taylor Dance Theatre, Zikir Dance Ensemble, and Ballet Nouveau. She held professional classes at Colorado Ballet and has since relocated them to Denver Dance Center. She was the company teacher for Dawson/Wallace Dance Project and Ballet Director for Sweatshop in Denver, CO. the Director and Founder of the High Pointe Dance Academy, a pre-professional children’s school for 13 years. Currently, Ms. McAdams-Graham is the Ballet Director for Sweatshop in Denver, CO.
Emma Michaux
Emma Michaux is a Colorado native who has been dancing since the age of four. She trained with Colorado Ballet Society in Colorado Springs since the age of eleven and has also trained in various summer programs including San Francisco Ballet, Kaatsbaan Extreme Ballet, and Texas Ballet Theatre. Emma has had the opportunity to perform many wonderful roles onstage including Titania in A Midsummer Night’s Dream, the Snow Queen in The Nutcracker, the Pas de Trois from Swan Lake, and Dewdrop Fairy from The Nutcracker. She has also had the privilege of being awarded multiple scholarships from both the Denver Ballet Guild Young Dancers Competition and the Esther Geoffrey Scholarship Competition. Emma joined Boulder Ballet as an Apprentice in 2019 and became a member of the Company in 2021.
Georgia Michelle
Georgia Michelle is a professional performance artist, instructor, and choreographer currently living in Boulder, CO. Georgia has a lifetime of dance education and experience allowing her to create an array of authentic and evolutionary styles of dance. She started dancing at the age of 4, studying classical ballet, jazz, tap, modern and character. In Boulder, Georgia studied dance at Ballet Images under Sheila McKay from Joffrey ballet. She has performed in many ballets including Nutcracker, Sleeping Beauty, Coppelia and more. Having played 3 instruments she has a solid comprehension of music, providing her with precision and clarity in her teaching and choreography skills. Her childhood years were filled with rehearsals, performances and competitions nationwide. She has won many awards and scholarships in dance with solos from Giselle, Don Quixote and more. Georgia completed the American Ballet Theatre National Training Curriculum in Primary through Level 3 program, is a certified personal trainer & nutrition specialist, and is certified in several dance fitness programs. Georgia is a loving Mother of 3 and is passionate about the art of dance and teaching to the whole dancer.
Philip Perez
Philip Gabriel Perez was born in Colombia and adopted to New York City. At seven, he began classes at The JKO School of ABT, studying under Franco De Vita and Raymond Lukens. In 2010, Alexei Ratmansky cast him as the Young Prince in the company’s new production of The Nutcracker. In 2015, he continued his training at Boston Ballet School under Peter Stark and Margaret Tracey. He then joined Nashville Ballet II under Paul Vasterling and learned company repertoire, including Balanchine works. In 2017 he danced with Colorado Ballet’s Studio Company performing in company productions and learning Tharp’s Brief Fling and Tudor’s Pillar of Fire. At the 2019 Miami IBC, he was awarded the second-place silver medal. He enjoys teaching and guesting with local schools and companies across the country. Philip joined Boulder Ballet in 2018.
Laura Saylor
Laura began her formal ballet training at the age of 14 at Ballet Etudes of South Florida in her native Miami, under the direction of Susana Prieto. Laura subsequently studied at Butler University and Ballet Austin as well as in the Summer Intensive programs of Kansas City Ballet and Arts Ballet Theatre of Florida. She trained under internationally acclaimed instructors including Susana Prieto, Peter La Fox, Dagmar Moradillos, Rodolfo Rodriguez, Vladimir Issaev, Alla Osipenko, Jerry Schwender, William Whitener, and Gretchen Ward Warren. Laura danced professionally with Austin Metamorphoses Dance Ensemble, Ballet Etudes of South Florida, and Montgomery Ballet. She has performed featured roles in many of the classics and has originated several contemporary roles. Laura decided to take a hiatus from dancing and moved to Colorado in June of 2013.
Hunter Solomon
Hunter Solomon, originally from Brunswick, Georgia, began his training at Steps of Faith and Studio South Performing Arts Center. At 16, he also trained at Madeleine Walker Coastal Ballet with Gaye Baxley. After graduation, he joined Atlanta Ballet’s Conservatory program under the direction of John McFall and Sharon Story where he studied for two years. The following summer he attended Milwaukee Ballet’s intensive and was offered and accepted a position in the second company under Rolando Yanes. He performed in ballets choreographed and directed by Michael Pink such as The Nutcracker, Beauty and the Beast, and Dracula, as well as Bruce Well’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream. His favorite role to date with Boulder Ballet is Christopher Wheeldon’s The American. Hunter joined Boulder Ballet in 2019.
Rebeca Ramirez Vargas
Rebeca originally from Mexico began her classical professional ballet training at the National Ballet School of La Havana Cuba “Fernando Alonso” at the age of 15. During this time she had the opportunity to dance ballets like Don Quijote, La Bayadere, Raymonda, and more. After graduating Rebeca moved to New York City where she joined the Joffrey Concert Group, a small student-based company where she had the opportunity to dance Ballets like Valse Fantaisie and Serenade by George Balanchine and Suite Saint-Saëns and Light Rain by Gerald Arpino. After two years Rebeca and her now-husband Carson decided to join Cleveland Ballet where she stayed for two years and performed ballets like Alice in Wonderland by Margo Sappington and Coppelia by Ramon Oller. After moving to Colorado in 2019 Rebeca joined the Ballet Ariel in 2020 for one season. Rebeca is happy to come back to Boulder Ballet to teach all of the amazing students.
Makaila Wallace
Makaila Wallace started her training at Boulder Ballet and continued her full-time dance training at the Royal Winnipeg Ballet school. After dancing with the RWB company she traveled to join the Royal Swedish Ballet. There she had the opportunity to perform many lead roles, including Myrtha in Giselle(staged and cast by Natalia Makarova). She later returned to Canada where she was one of Ballet BC’s principal dancers for over a decade. Dancing nationally and internationally her personal performance highlights have included works by choreographers Johan Ingar, Crystal Pite, Twyla Tharp, Emily Molnar, Aszure Barton, Serge Bennathan, Jorma Elo, Jiri Kylian, and Medhi Walerski among others. Makaila was also honored to be a part of the Margie Gillis Legacy Project, working intimately with Ms. Gillis and performing alongside her in Florilege in the Sechelt Arts Festival in 2015.
In 2017-2020 Makaila joined Ballet BC’s artistic staff as a part-time rehearsal director (under the direction of Emily Molnar who was appointed the new artistic director of Nederlands Dans Theatre in 2020). As well as traveling to Tel Aviv, Israel to begin the Gaga teacher training. She has also acted as an assistant to world-renown Finnish choreographer Jorma Elo on a number of projects. Including setting his work First Flash on Ballet BC, coaching his pieces at the 2018 Prix de Lausanne, and helping to stage Trigger, Touch, Fade on Pennsylvania Ballet in 2019. In both 2016 and 2019, she had the pleasure of joining him as an assistant for his full-length production of Alice in Wonderland set on the Finnish National Ballet.
Most recently, Makaila joined Ballet BC as Lady Capulet in Medhi Walerski’s Romeo and Juliet and is currently an independent dance artist, teacher, and coach living in Colorado.
Dominic Walsh
Dominic Walsh, a former Principal Dancer, and Choreographer with Houston Ballet was born in Elgin, Illinois, and started his training at an early age with Lisa Boehm, Frank Boehm, Warren Conover, and Larry Long in Chicago. He joined Houston Ballet in 1989 and was promoted to soloist in 1993 and principal dancer in 1996. Walsh danced throughout Asia, Europe, and North America.
Walsh has performed all the major classics including Swan Lake, Giselle, Don Quixote, Romeo & Juliet, and Manon with international stars such as Nina Ananiashvili and Alessandra Ferri. He danced Houston Ballet’s entire contemporary repertoire, and Ben Stevenson created numerous roles for him, including Marc Antony in Cleopatra. In 1998, Walsh’s work Flames of Eros for Houston Ballet won the prestigious Choo-San Goh Award for Choreography. He won a second Choo-San Goh Award in 2007 for Amadeus for Anita, a 2008 Princess Grace Award for Mozart, and numerous other choreography awards.
From 2002 to 2014, Walsh directed his contemporary ballet company, Dominic Walsh Dance Theater. After the company’s debut in February 2003, Dance Magazine said, “At last Houston has a contemporary dance company on par with its symphony, opera, and ballet companies.” Since then, the company has accumulated honors and built a reputation for taking the techniques and skills of classical ballet into groundbreaking territory. The company’s repertoire features works by Walsh and such iconic choreographers as Mats Ek, Jiří Kylián, Mauro Bigonzetti, and Matthew Bourne.
Walsh has received multiple commissions to set and create works nationally and internationally. They include Teatro di San Carlo, Naples, Italy, Medea (2009) and The Sleeping Beauty (2011); American Ballet Theatre Studio Company, Alchemy (2004); London Studio Centre, Sub-Luminus (2010); and New National Theatre, Tokyo, Orfeo ed Euridice (2007) and Wolfgang for Webb(2010). Walsh also served as the Resident Choreographer for Sarasota Ballet of Florida, creating and staging Wolfgang for Webb(2008), The Trilogy (2009), and Time Out of Line (2011).
Walsh lectures and writes about dance, and travels throughout the U.S. and abroad as a guest teacher and coach for both companies and academies. Walsh also stages the works of his longtime mentor Ben Stevenson. Walsh made his film debut as a co-director at the Brussels Short Film Festival with Malta Kano, TX, and published his photo book titles Dominic Walsh Dance Theater in 2015 with company photographer, Gabriella Nissen.
