Our Teachers
Kennedy Elder
Kennedy Elder is a diverse performer who works commercially in Toronto, Ontario. Though she hails from Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Kennedy moved to Toronto at the age of 17 to attend the Ballet and Modern program at George Brown College. Upon graduating with honours, Kennedy’s career took off! Working in Jazz, Hip Hop, Contemporary, Tap and Jazz Funk, she has received countless opportunities to perform across Canada and the United States. Some of her credits include artists such as Keri Hilson, Feist, Francesco Yates, Carl Henry, and many others. She has appeared in performances and productions such as Army of Sass’ “Nightmare Before Christmas” (Lead Roll), Miss Continental & Miss Continental Plus (Chicago IL: Dancer), WE Day (Ryan Scheel), Dark Dance Company’s Production of “Timeless” (Lead Roll), Choreographer’s Ball (Scott Fordam & Jac Valiquette), Hollywood Jade’s Urbanesque, and more. Kennedy is also the director of the Saskatchewan based company: 306 Elite Dance Company. Her company is made up of elite dancers from all over Saskatchewan with the goal of elevating these individuals to new levels, while bringing together the Saskatchewan dance community. Kennedy is very proud of her dancers as many of them have went on to pursue successful professional dance careers.
Headshot © Rojo Sarmago
Jesse Fraser was born in Saskatoon, Canada. He trained at the Royal Winnipeg Ballet School and became a member of the Stuttgart Ballet in 2010/11 under the direction of Reid Anderson. There he danced in choreographies by Cranko, MacMillan, Spuck, Haydée, Neumeier, Béjart, Forsythe, Cherkaoui, Goecke, Clug, Volpi and Stiens. He created the choreographies Back and Forth and Second Self(ie) as a part of the Young Choreographers of the Noverre Society series.
He has been a member of the Ballett Zürich under the direction of Christian Spuck since the 2015/16 season. He has appeared as Paris in Christian Spuck’s Romeo und Julia, as Lewin in Spuck’s Anna Karenina, as Hilarion in Patrice Bart’s Giselle, in Marco Goecke’s Petruschka, in The Second Detail by William Forsythe, in Bella Figura by JiÅ™í Kylián and in choreographies by Jacopo Godani, Hans van Manen and Crystal Pite.
Headshot © Jos Schmid
Jesse Fraser
Cassandra Krisley
Born and raised in North Battleford, Saskatchewan, Cassandra trained at The Dance Connection in North Battleford and then furthered her training at Broadway Dance Center in New York City. In 2014, she was accepted into the two-year conservatory style Certificate Program at Peridance Center in New York City. While studying, Cassandra was fortunate enough to also perform at many events in New York City including the APAP Festival, Young Choreographer’s Festival, and Carnival Choreographers Ball. She has also worked on film, print, and music video projects
in both the concert and commercial dance scenes.
Since returning to Canada in the fall of 2016, Cassandra has transitioned into a teaching role, and for the past 4 years she has directed both the Ballet and Contemporary Programs at the Dance Connection in North Battleford.
Most recently she has graduated from the Royal Academy of Dance Certificate
of Ballet Teaching Studies Program and is now a fully certified RAD Teacher. She is also a student of the College of Kinesiology at the University of Saskatchewan. Cassandra is very excited to be a part of the growing dance community on the prairies, and hopes to continue developing strong, smart, and well-rounded dancers in Canada.
Headshot © Maegan Toews
Luke Opdahl
Luke is a triple threat performer originally from the prairies of Saskatchewan.
He graduated the Randolph College for the Performing Arts where he honed his skills as a triple threat performer. He grew up as a competitive dancer in Saskatoon where he also received his Canadian Dance Teachers Association Advanced Tap exam as well as his Royal Academy of Dance Advanced 2 Ballet Exam. He has also worked on the creative side choreographing and directing shows such as dance ensemble version of “Songs for A New World”. He also works as a guest teacher and workshop instructor for studios across the country and is a proud member of the Quick Ball Change Roster.
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He has worked for many Theatres across Canada including Drayton Entertainment (Elf, Thoroughly Modern Millie, Beauty and the Beast, The Drowsy Chaperone, The Little Mermaid, Aladdin: The Panto, Anne of Green Gables), Theatre Aquarius (Elf The Musical), Harold Green Jewish Theatre/danCap (The Jazz Singer), Capitol Theatre (Beauty and The Beast), Breakaway Entertainment/NextStage Festival (Anatomy of a Dancer) Theatre St. Johns (Mary Poppins)
Headshot © Lauren Vandenbrook
Keaton Leier
director
Keaton Leier grew up in the city of Saskatoon. His love of dance started at age of 7, when he took his first hip hop class. He continued studying dance with Brenda’s School of Baton and Dance for 9 more years. At 17 he auditioned for the Royal Winnipeg Ballet School where he was accepted into the professional division. After three years with the school he graduated with distinction. The next progression in his career was becoming a member with Houston Ballet II, taking his first step in the professional world. Keaton is currently dancing in his 4th professional season with the Atlanta Ballet (America’s longest running ballet company) and is continuing his passion for the art within the company. His most recent highlight was getting to perform the Nutcracker Prince at the Kennedy Center in Washington DC. Some more highlights include dancing Gurn in La Sylphide as well as the lead in Liam Scarlett's Vespertine. Throughout his career he has worked with many world class choreographers and teachers and has performed on stages all throughout Canada as well as the United States. Keaton is passionate about sharing his knowledge and love for dance with his home, Saskatchewan.
Headshot © leoma.us
Brooklyn marshall
director
​Brooklyn Marshall is a Canadian freelance dancer based out of Toronto. Originally from Saskatoon, she trained in all styles at Brenda’s from a young age. After completing her Advanced 2 RAD ballet exam with distinction, she trained in Toronto to participate in the Solo Seal Award. She has had the opportunity to perform in theatres and on screen, nationally, and internationally. She’s performed with Ballet Ouest de Montreal for the past three seasons, most recently for her soloist role of the Winter Fairy in their touring production of Ella. She has also performed on many TV shows, dancing in Titans, American Gods, V-Wars, Mary Kills People, and Reign. Other various performances include a special dance showing involved with the Toronto Symphony Orchestra, Brendan Fernandes’ art installation Reverence, MAC Cosmetics Nutcracker Campaign, and Harley Valentine’s sculptural art installation and performance. She has also been a backup dancer for artist Alice Glass, and for the HUM Awards. She is always excited to teach and to share her knowledge and experience.
Headshot © Hillary Gauld