ABOUT

Kathryn is a Johnson City native who trained with Susan Pace White at the City Youth Ballet for 15 years before transitioning to college and teaching, which she has been doing for the past eight years. She received her Master in Education at Milligan University in 2019 and teaches at Science Hill High School.

In addition to her training with City Youth Ballet, Kathryn studied with the Radford University Ballet, South Carolina Dance Conservatory, and The Rock School in Philadelphia; and performed with the Milligan Dance Team for four years.

Kathryn specializes in pointe and classical variations for our upper level ballet students.

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Chloe grew up in Elizabethton, TN, and studied ballet at City Youth Ballet under Susan Pace White for 15 years. After high school, she went to Belmont University in Nashville, TN, where she graduated in 2019 with a BS in Neuroscience and minor in dance. While at school, she performed with the Belmont University Dance Company, assisted at Rejoice School of Ballet, and was recognized for Outstanding Achievement in Dance by Belmont's dance faculty.

In addition to teaching at Trinity, Chloe works at Quillen College of Medicine as a Laboratory Research Technician in the lab of Dr. Donald Hoover, where they are studying neuroimmunology. She is also active in her church community at Grandview Christian Church, where she served as the Cityview Childrens' Coordinator for two years after graduating.

Eva started dancing at age 3 and hasn't stopped since! Growing up she split her time training between Kingsport and Bristol with dance studios Centre for the Performing Arts and Bristol Ballet. Now Eva is happy to be a part of the dance scene in Johnson City, teaching modern dance at Johnson City Arts Center (Trinity) as well as dance classes for adults at Night Owl Circus Arts. With a classical ballet and modern dance background, Eva completed multiple summer intensives with Nashville Ballet and danced professionally as a dance ensemble member at Barter Theatre. In 2016 Eva graduated from ETSU where she minored in dance and majored in International Affairs. Since graduating, she has grown in her love of choreography. Eva has choreographed for Northeast State College, various local school programs, and independent performances. When she's not dancing, you can find Eva at Tri-Cities airport helping passengers and marshaling planes!

Lilly Anglin was born in Memphis, Tennessee and lived the first years of her life in Olive Branch, Mississippi. She has combined her love for teaching and children by actively teaching children at her church. Additionally, Lilly has helped in ballet classes in previous years, and this past summer, loved teaching the young dancers at Princess Ballerina Camp!

Lilly has nine years of dancing experience and has primarily been a student at Johnson City Arts Center, formerly Trinity Arts, where she has enjoyed tap, jazz, hip hop, ballet, and pointe. She is homeschooled and enjoys debate, 4-H, baking, photography, and is learning to play the harp.

Lilly considers it an honor to teach your children and hopes to encourage them to dance to the glory of God.

Olivia is from Knoxville, TN and has been dancing for about 12 years. She is a Spanish major at ETSU with minors in dance, linguistics, and Pre-K through 12th ESL education.

Tap has always been Olivia's favorite style of dance because it brings her the most joy! She also teaches at the McKinney Center in Jonesborough. She loves teaching students because it is amazing to see how excited they get when they finally understand what is going on.

Abigail Darlington is a college sophomore. She is currently pursuing a major in Early Childhood Development and minors in Music and Communicative Disorders. She has been dancing since she was 8 years old, studying ballet, jazz, hip hop, lyrical, contemporary, and pointe. She enjoys working with children and this is her second year teaching ballet. Abigail is passionate about balance in the studio. She loves working with the whole child, helping children to develop discipline and a joyful spirit from a young age as well as learning technique. She also strives to make ballet a weekly highlight and a wonderful experience, as well as giving the children a proper foundation for future years in Ballet.

Abigail has a large family with five siblings ranging from ages 7-17. In her free time you can find her studying, reading, listening to music, dancing, enjoying the outdoors, and hanging out with friends! 

Caitlyn is a Johnson City native and has been dancing ballet, hip hop, and jazz since she was young. She began taking lessons at Trinity Arts Center when she was ten and continued being involved in lessons and shows until she graduated high school in 2020.

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Caitlyn has also worked with children of all ages for many years. In addition to working at Trinity's Princess Ballerina Camp, she's been a babysitter, a nanny for children with autism, and a summer camp counselor at Pine Cove.

She's excited to be back to teach some of our early childhood dance classes this year, and can't wait to love on your kiddos!

A guitarist, flutist and dancer from an early age, Heidi settled in Seattle, Washington after attending Bennington College and Cornish Institute of the Arts to receive her Bachelors of Music in flute performance. She trained in the Suzuki Method of teaching young children and was faculty and department head at the Suzuki Institute of Seattle for 13 years, as well as maintaining a thriving independent flute studio in Seattle for 25 years. 

Since retiring in 2018 from her position as Assistant Director at ETSU’s Mary B. Martin School of the Arts, she has returned to more teaching and playing music, two activities she truly loves.Her eclectic, imaginative, and playful teaching approach bring a sense of fun to the process of acquiring skills and learning to play expressively. She welcomes students of any level and age, from beginner to professional, and age 8 to 80.

Jonathan Edens is a native of East Tennessee who has been playing music for most of his life. He received his formal education in music at North Carolina Central University in Durham, NC under the tutelage of Richard Banks for voice and Baron Tymas for guitar.

Jonathan has performed in ensembles of every size including stage operas, big bands, theater orchestra pits, jazz quartets, and solo gigs, playing his own original music.

Jonathan is known for his laid-back personality and patient style of instruction -- a super-power he puts to good use, bringing out the best in his students of all ages.

Rachel Ellison is a native of East Tennessee. She earned a Bachelor of Music degree from North Greenville University in South Carolina. While attending college, Rachel traveled and performed with the musical groups Joyful Sound and NG Singers.

Rachel then moved to Nashville and earned a Master of Music degree in Vocal Pedagogy from Belmont University. She taught music lessons at Belmont Academy in Nashville while earning her degree. After graduating, she taught as an adjunct instructor of voice at both ETSU and Milligan University. Her passion is helping singers free the voice through healthy vocal technique, which in turn, allows singers to be more artistic and expressive. She enjoys teaching many styles of music.

In addition to teaching music lessons, Rachel loves spending time with her husband and daughter, as well as leading worship at her home church in Elizabethton.

Eden has over 15 years of experience as a trained ballet, jazz, and contemporary dancer. She is entering her sixth year of teaching and choreographing with us and at other schools throughout the Tri-Cities. Eden has directed and choreographed several dance productions, including God With Us and Prodigal, as well as performed in and choreographed for musicals in the area.

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Eden has spent many summers training pre-professionally under ballet companies such as American Ballet Theatre and Gelsey Kirkland Academy. She was accepted to the year-round pre-professional program at Gelsey Kirkland Academy at age 14, and she is Cecchetti certified in levels 1-5.

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One of her favorite parts about teaching is seeing improvement in her students and helping them find their own unique style.

Tucker King is a junior at ETSU studying history and political science. One day Tucker hopes to be a lawyer or a teacher. Tucker is originally from Kingston, TN and is the youngest of 3. Tucker began his love for music when he started playing trumpet for his middle school band. That love for music grew when he taught himself how to play guitar, drums, and the ukulele in 2018. His hobbies include writing music, watching tv, gaming, and hanging out with his pals. On top of that, Tucker also is a youth leader at his church in Elizabethton where he loves on kids and families. Tucker’s laid back personality and passion for music allows him to be a patient music instructor, working at each child’s pace but pushing students to be their best! 

Kelsey grew up in Marietta, GA and was a competitive swimmer for 11 years, finishing her career swimming for Georgia Institute of Technology Varsity Swimming and Diving. Kelsey coached swimming throughout high school. Kelsey has a Bachelors of Science in Industrial Engineering and a Masters of Counseling. Kelsey currently works as a licensed professional counselor in Johnson City, TN.
 

Kelsey began dancing as an adult at Trinity Arts Center. In her time at Trinity she assisted, subbed, choreographed, and performed in a variety of dance and musical theatre productions. Since 2020, Kelsey has been dancing and training with Broche Ballet.

Kelsey believes that movement is healing, that all bodies are good bodies, and that every body is a dance body. Kelsey has a passion for encouraging dancers of all ages and levels to enjoy the art of dancing.

Dustin is a guitarist, producer and freelance media composer living in Johnson City with his wife Megan. 

Dustin’s musical training began at the age of 10 when he first picked up guitar and has covered a wide variety of genres and techniques in the years to follow. As a teenager, Dustin began to develop the craft of songwriting and arrangement. He went on to become a recording artist and live performer, releasing two original albums and honing his skills on stage. In recent years, Dustin has ventured into the world of electronic music/synthesis and has been laying the groundwork for his future as a producer. A growing network of friends in the filmmaking industry has also given Dustin the opportunity to create music for visual media. He has been working as a freelance composer since 2017, scoring for independent films, YouTube series and commercial advertisements. 

Isaac Ratliff is a musician and songwriter living in Jonesborough, TN, with his wife, Amy.

Isaac began classical training on piano at age 8, but started to learn by ear at age 13, aided by his aunt, a southern gospel church pianist. Throughout high school, and as a student of Appalachian Studies at ETSU, Isaac supported several ministries and music departments on piano and guitar while continuing his own music education in piano and music history.

His independent study of music, fueled by a love for the craft, has led him to learn the foundations of many American musical styles, from blues and jazz to old-time country and gospel. In addition to his independent learning, he has studied with jazz pianist Jonathan Huber.

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Isaac is a founding member of Sorrel, a band he formed with his brother Seth. He also writes and performs as a member of the bands Charlie Maples and Florencia & The Feeling.

Graci Summey grew up in Chilhowie, VA where, at five, she began taking piano lessons. Shortly thereafter, she transitioned to violin and, under the guidance of Kieth Hungate, studied and performed over the next 11 years.  

After graduating high school, Graci pursued a college degree in Music Performance. There, she was involved with the college level orchestra, participated in the ETSU Chamber Orchestra, and took private lessons from Dr. David Kovach. 

Outside Graci’s musical life lies a path defined by hard work and determination. Graci also acquired her Cosmetology license and is a practicing stylist at Hair Benders Salon in Kingsport. 

Graci is very excited to be teaching at our organization and cannot wait to help others find the joy of music in their lives. 

Christina has been dancing since she was four years old, eight of those years as a student at Trinity Arts Center. In that time, she has also trained with Bristol Ballet, University of North Carolina School of the Arts, and Millennium Dance Complex. Since 2020, she has enjoyed assisting, teaching, choreographing, and even designing costumes for her ballet and jazz students at Trinity and JCAC.

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When she's not teaching, Christina studies at ETSU for her BA in Theatre Production and Design and minor in Dance. In what time she has left, she trains in circus aerial arts. Her enthusiasm and creativity are a valuable addition to our teaching roster!

Makaila teaches ballet 1 and 2 for us on Tuesdays. She has been dancing since she was 3, and it has always been her passion. She's been teaching the last 2 years at Trinity, and getting to know her students is the joy of her week. She takes pride in all of her students and wants to cultivate their love of dance.

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She hopes her students can learn perseverance, sportsmanship, and discipline from her classes and be left with a lasting dance foundation.