CHRISTIE ZUKOR
Christie Zukor began teaching ballroom dancing in 1997 at the Towson Dance Studio under the instruction of the owner, John Patillo. She has taught numerous “Wedding Survival” classes, which include the basics of Swing, Foxtrot, and Waltz. In 2000, Christie and her partner, Christopher Ruppert, started competing professionally in the Rising Star category of the International Standard Division which includes International Waltz, International Tango, Viennese Waltz, Slow Foxtrot, and Quickstep. Together, they competed for several years in Maryland, New Jersey, Virginia, and New York. Through the Towson Dance Studio, Christie has also taught ballroom dancing to children, ages 6-10. During this time, she was frequently contracted to teach at private birthday parties, corporate functions, and various other off-site social events. After moving to Havre de Grace and leaving the Towson Dance Studio, Christie moved on to teach the non-credit ballroom classes at Harford Community College as well as the recreational classes at Aberdeen Proving Grounds. She enjoys teaching large groups but has also worked with many couples to choreograph their first dance for their wedding. Christie is qualified to teach the Bronze Syllabus of American style Waltz, Foxtrot, East Coast Swing, Tango, Cha Cha, Rumba, Salsa, and Merengue. After taking almost three years off to start a family, Christie is thrilled to be teaching again through the Havre de Grace Dancers and looks forward to spreading the joy of ballroom for years to come. Christie resides in Havre de Grace with her husband, Ken, and their four children.
Ballroom
Instructor
JULIE HUET
Julie started dancing at age 4, taking tap and jazz at Lisa Marie’s School of Dance in Pittsburgh, PA. She continued to dance under the instruction of Lisa Marie for 14 years. During that time, she studied tap, jazz, ballet, and lyrical. Her personal favorite was tap. Julie began dancing competitively at age 7 and continued to compete with her classes through high school. She was able to meet many great people and dancers through her experiences in these competitions. She also performed as a featured dancer in her high school musicals which includes her favorite performance as a dancer in Footloose! Julie moved to Maryland three years ago after graduating from Penn State University with a Bachelors degree in Elementary and Kindergarten Education. She teaches third grade in the county and enjoys spreading her love of dance at school by choreographing the schools’ musical productions! When she is not teaching, Julie enjoys spending time with family and friends and cheering on Penn State teams!! She has loved getting to know all of her dancers this year and is very proud of the work they have done! Julie hopes they continue to follow their dreams and dance through life! This is Julie’s third year teaching with Havre de Grace Parks and Recreation.
KRISTIN JONES
Kristin started dancing at age four, taking ballet and tap with the White Marsh Parks and Recreation Program. At age seven, she moved to Havre de Grace and continued her dancing with the Havre de Grace Parks and Recreation program for eleven years, taking tap and jazz under the instruction of Renee Mentzer and Terry Easter. She also danced for two years at APG Dance with Cris Jordan. Kristin began teaching dance in 2002. She adores the children and enjoys working with them. Kristin loves dancing because it is fun, and it allows her to express her feelings. Kristin took four semesters of dance at Towson University. For the past five years she danced at the Rage Box Contemporary Dance Center in Forest Hill and was in the Rage Box Noise Dance Company, a multi-generational percussive tap ensemble that blends rhythm tap, step dancing, and percussion. With this company she has participated in several competitions. Kristin has performed at Morgan State, the Hard Rock Cafe, the Baltimore Inner Harbor, and at Ripken Stadium. Kristin wants the kids in the dance program to know that if you work hard and are determined to reach a goal, then you can definitely achieve it. She loves watching the kids learn something new that they thought they could never do. Kristin graduated from college this past May receiving a degree in Early Childhood Education. She is the Pre-kindergarten teacher at Havre de Grace Elementary School. She loves her job and wouldn’t trade it for anything. Kristin also recently became engaged and is looking forward to an October 2011 wedding! This is Kristin's ninth year teaching with the Havre de Grace Parks and Recreation.
RENEE MENTZER
Renee’s love of dance started in New York at the age of three. Ballet was her first love, but she soon caught the tap bug. When Renee was eight her family moved to New Hampshire and she began dancing at the Nashua School of Dance and the New England School of Dance. She performed in productions such as Alice in Wonderland, Sleeping Beauty, Beauty and the Beast, The Wizard of Oz, and La Boutique Fantasque. She also played the part of Clara in the Nutcracker, as well as other parts as she got older. Renee was a member of the Royal Academy of Dance and received high honors on her examinations. At age twelve, Renee was asked to join an adult tap and jazz company, which performed around the state. Renee moved to Havre de Grace at age fourteen, and began teaching tap with Havre de Grace and Aberdeen Parks and Rec. She also took classes from Karen Muccioli with the Children's Dance Division at Towson University. Two dances she choreographed for Aberdeen won first place at a competition in Lancaster. She performed in the Nutcracker and as the lead in Pinocchio in children’s productions at Harford Community College. Renee has also done the choreography for the Havre de Grace High School productions of the musicals No No Nanette and The Music Man. Renee loves to see her dancers grow, learn and develop a love for dance. This is Renee’s eighteenth year with the Havre de Grace Dancers.
AMANDA VINCENTI
Amanda started dancing early at the age of three. After taking ballet at the New Paltz School of Dance in New York, she moved to New Hampshire with her family and continued dancing at the Nashua School of Dance, where she took ballet, tap and jazz. There she became a member of the Royal Academy of Dance. She performed in the Nutcracker as a mouse, a poly chenille and a party child. Amanda also found time for gymnastics and competitive Cheerleading. Her family moved to Havre de Grace in 1993. Since living in Maryland, Amanda has performed in Pinocchio at Harford Community College and assisted Renee in teaching some of her early classes with Parks and Rec. Amanda is very excited to see all her dancers perform in this year’s recital. This is Amanda’s eighth year teaching dance, and she is looking forward to many more years to come.
Creative
Movement, Ballet
& Tap
Instructor
Tap & Jazz
Instructor
Tap
Instructor
Jazz
Instructor
MEGHAN WHITEHURST
Meghan has been dancing since the age of 4 years old. She has received formal training in ballet, pointe, lyrical/modern, tap, and jazz. Meghan started training with the Havre de Grace Parks and Recreation Dance Program in 1990. While still active with Havre de Grace Parks and Recreation, at the age of 10, Meghan began performing in Harford Community College’s productions including Harriet’s Happiest Halloween (where she held lead dance roles), Canvases, and The Emperor’s New Clothes and Snow White and The Seven Dwarfs (the spring productions). In 2003, Meghan graduated from Havre de Grace High School, and went on to continue her education at Mount Saint Mary’s University. While in college, Meghan joined Mount Saint Mary’s Dance Team. She performed at home basketball games for all four years. In 2007, Meghan graduated from MSMU with a degree in Elementary Education. In 2008, Meghan was chosen to be a member of the Baltimore Ravens Professional Cheerleading Squad. She performed in front of 70,000+ fans for every Baltimore Raven home football game. In addition to performing Meghan made numerous appearances around Maryland in support of the Baltimore Ravens Organization. Since 2009, Meghan has choreographed for Havre de Grace High School’s spring musicals including Annie, Once on This Island, and Little Shop of Horrors. In her spare time, Meghan enjoys playing soccer, snowboarding, and spending quality time with her family and friends. She is excited to be back with the Havre de Grace Parks and Recreation group, not only as a dancer, but a jazz teacher!
Ballet, Jazz & Lyrical/Modern Instructor
