Instructors

	Erika Meyerson Smith is the Owner and Director of Lake Norman Performing Arts. She graduated from Douglas Anderson School of the Arts, Jacksonville, FL in 1990 with a concentration in Dance and additionally studied at The Florida Ballet. In the summer of 1990 Erika studied at The Martha Graham School in New York and was privileged to study the craft of choreography from the legendary dancer Pearl Lang there as well. Erika studied dance in college at The University of North Carolina at Greensboro. She graduated in 1994 with a BA in Speech Communication and a minor in Dance. Erika moved to the North Carolina coast and taught, choreographed and performed there locally. She taught Dance at West Brunswick High School in Shallotte, NC. In addition Erika traveled to schools K-12 in Brunswick County and worked with Special Education teachers to use Dance as a tool in their curriculum. Erika moved to the Lake Norman area in 2009 from Wilmington, NC where she was co-founder of The Dance Cooperative a non-profit organization dedicated to serving the dance community locally in Wilmington and throughout North Carolina. Erika was one of the founders of The Dance Cooperative and served in many capacities – as board President, Vice-President, Secretary, choreographer and dancer throughout the years. In 2009 Erika moved to Lake Norman and opened Lake Norman Performing Arts. Lake Norman Performing Arts is the premier Dance and Music school in the area. LNPA is also home to a full service professional recording studio. Additionally LNPA branched out into film production and produced a feature film in the Fall of 2011.
	Emily Green began her ballet training at the Calvert-Brodie School in her hometown of Columbia, SC. She later became a member of Ann Brodie's Carolina Ballet Company and as a senior company member performed such roles in the "Nutcracker" as Clara/Sugar Plum Fairy (Barishnikov version, partnered by Charles Askegard, Principal- NYCB), Snow Queen (partnered by Alberto Jiminez, Miami Hispanic Ballet), Dew Drop Fairy and Columbine. Other roles included Cinderella (title role, partnered by Alberto Jiminez, Miami Hispanic Ballet),Ramunda (title role), Tarentella (soloist), Sleeping Beauty (soloist), Pas de Quatre (soloist), and La Bayadere (soloist). Emily auditioned for the renowned School of American Ballet ("SAB") in New York City and was awarded a scholarship for SAB's Summer Intensive Program and continued to study there during the summers. Emily was awarded a full scholarship to SAB's Winter Residency program as well. While living in NY she was fortunate to study with such illustrious teachers as PeterMartins, Stanley Williams, Antonina Tumkovsky, Andrei Kramaresky, Jock Soto, Kay Mazzo,Suki Shorer, Susan Pilar and Katrina Killian - some of whom still teach at the school. While at SAB, Emily performed in New York City Ballet Spring Galas, in Nutcracker with Stamford City Ballet and in student workshops. She also attended summer workshops at American Ballet Theatre and Joffrey Ballet Company. Emily attended additional workshops/Master Classes with Gelsey Kirkland, American Ballet Theater, John Magnus, Joffrey Ballet, Edward Villella, Director, Miami City Ballet, Stoner Winslet, Director, Virginia State Ballet, Shamiel Yagudin, Ballet Master, Bolshoi Ballet, Kyra Strasberg, Boston Ballet Company, Ashley Tuttle, American Ballet Theater and Maya Plisetskaya, Bolshoi Ballet, Prima Ballerina Assoluta. Emily developed a love of musical theatre as a young child and performed the title role in a regional production of Annie at age 11. At age 18 she attended her first Broadway audition. A few weeks later she was a member of the touring company of Andrew Lloyd Webber's Phantom of the Opera and completed two tours with the show. Emily has performed in commercials, movies, and music videos in LA and NY and was a member of Cedar Lake Ensemble in NY for 2 years. Emily is passionate about teaching dance to students of all ages. In class, she helps students of all levels work on body placement, inner strength, proper technique and performance skills, and encourages them to progress at their own pace. Consequently her students learn to love dance, as well as appreciate how much work, time, and effort it can demand. Emily now resides in Huntersville with her husband, Alex, and their daughter , Sydney.
	Tom Suggs has been playing guitar for 19 years. His training began at 6 years old taking lessons from his Uncle, professional recording artist David "Ace" Suggs. His entire family is involved with music and have given him a phenomenal music education as well as a passion for the arts. In addition he has studied piano, bass, percussion, theory and composition. At 16 he started in the South Florida gigging circuit playing with bands such as No Limit Band, Rough Shot, Western Sky and Prospect Rd. At 17 he began working at J and C Sound and Music studios as a recording engineer. He has utilized such programs as Cakewalk, Protools, Reason, Cubase as well as many others. He attended Berklee College of Music (Boston, MA) studying intense guitar and music theory. Notably, Tom studied under Dave LaRue and Dave Martone exploring fusion style guitar playing and rock influences. He also studied Music Education at Broward Community College. Mr. Suggs has been teaching for 10 years in various schools, outsourcing projects and performing at venues and clubs along the east coast as the lead guitarist of the Chris Crouse Band. He has proudly served in the youth group music program for New Covenant Church and Calvary Chapel. Mr. Suggs has studied many different genres of music including R & B, Rock, Metal, Country, Jazz, Classical and Pop. His personal philosophy is that anyone can play an instrument- it just takes dedication, perseverance and a positive attitude.
	Robin Breeden has been a performing artist for over 15 years and is a member of the North Carolina Music Educators Association. She is a classically trained flautist, having studied Music Performance at Western Carolina University and UNC-Charlotte, with Eldred Spell and Mark Thomas, founder and honorary lifetime president of the National Flute Association. She has studied vocal health and performance in partnership with the Duke University Center for Vocal Care and Health. Ms. Breeden has been teaching private instrumental and voice lessons for over 10 years, and takes pride in the broad success of her students, both past and present. She has performed with the Lake Murray Symphony, UNC-Charlotte Flute Choir, Lake Norman Orchestra, Rock Hill Community Theater and other various groups. Over the last five years Robin has been teaching clinics for area school music programs on technical development, tone, and breathing technique. Robin approaches her private students with a whole-child approach, meaning that she is committed to teaching a well rounded base of information and technique that will lead to intentional and excellent performance, as well as a love for music that will serve the individual for the rest of their life. Ms. Breeden guides by positive reinforcement and celebrates success!

	Jessica Thomas gained her advanced training in ballet, pointe, tap, jazz, lyrical and modern dance under the guidance of teachers from the National Ballet of Canada, Atlanta Ballet, Washington Ballet, Jazz Dance Theatre of Atlanta, Kansas City Ballet, and Intercity Ballet Company where she performed as a soloist for 8 years. She spent 2 summers of ballet and theatre training with Gelsey Kirkland (NYCB, ABT) and Michael Chernov. In New York, Ms. Thomas took master classes with ABT and studied competitive ballroom dance with US Ballroom champion Giny Rae. Her jazz and hip hop training is rooted in her studies with dancers and choreographers from the stages of Broadway, Las Vegas and Los Angeles. With an emphasis on technique, Ms. Thomas teaches ballet, jazz, pointe, hip hop, lyrical and modern to young and adult students in Tennessee and North Carolina. She currently performs with JBP Entertainment in Charlotte, NC.
	PJ Barnes - Hip Hop & Acting