MICHELE MAJOR - ARTISTIC DIRECTOR

Miss Michele in the spring show when she was 3 months along with Mitchell!

Michele Major, Artistic Director of Ballet North West Academy, has experience both as a professional dancer, but more importantly, as a certified teacher of the Vaganova method.  She has written and copyrighted an 11-year training syllabus from Pre-Ballet to Pre-Professional. She has also choreographed two original full-length ballets designed for students of ballet which allows the students to be challenged and build a high level of self-confidence and stage experience. 

Ms. Major was also nominated to receive the San Diego Area Dance Alliance's award for Dance Teacher of the Year for her achievements as a dance educator and the creation of her syllabus.  Her syllabus, which is the core program at Ballet North West Academy has also been adopted by the largest dance school in greater San Diego.  It is based on the extremely successful Vaganova, or Russian method of teaching ballet.  Through the application of the science of kinesiology to the art of ballet, it is aimed at helping all students to achieve their potential through a step-by-step process of carefully thought out lessons.

Ms. Major's performing experience includes classical ballets Swan Lake, Nutcracker (Sugar Plum, Dewdrop, Marzipan Shepherdess), and Pas de Deux from Flower Festival in Genzano, and Grand pas Classique.  She has also performed neoclassical works including George Balanchine's Serenade, and she has originated lead roles in Robert Scevers' Septet, and Jaun Valqui's Dances and Airs of Ireland.  Her experience includes diverse repertory, such as Elaine Gardner's modern Celtic Creatures, San Diego Ballet's contemporary Dances of Love and Laughter, and musical theatre including Rodgers and Hammerstein's Oklahoma!, and theater repertory, Dickens A Christmas Carol.  She has performed for San Diego Ballet, Ballet du Soliel, Texas Musical Drama, Western Chamber Ballet, Peninsula Ballet Theatre, City Ballet, and Pacific Repertory Ballet and productions of the Southern Methodist University Dance Department.  She has also appeared with Pittsburgh Ballet.

Ms. Major has a BFA in Dance from Southern Methodist University where she attended with a full Artistic Merit Scholarship and graduated cum laude.  Her training includes the School of Ballet West, and the American Academy of Ballet which included an exchange program with the Vaganova Choreographic Institute in Riga, Latvia.  Ms. Major's training also included notable summer programs at Balletmet and the School of Hartford Ballet.  Ms. Major now brings her knowledge and experience, combined with a great love for dancing and teaching, to Ballet North West Academy.

Ms. Major's experience enables her to prepare some students of Ballet North West Academy for careers in the ballet and others for years of enjoying the love of ballet as educated audience members and joyous participants in dance.  Over forty of her students were chosen to perform with the renowned Moscow Classical Ballet when the company tours the west coast.  In addition, her students enjoy success at auditions for acceptance into the countries most prestigious intensive study programs including American Ballet Theatre (ABT), Oleg Briansky's Briansky-Saratoga Center, Houston Ballet, Boston Ballet, Nutmeg Conservatory and Burklyn Ballet Theatre.  Ms. Major provides only the highest quality lessons, facility, and customer service to the families of the Eugene /Springfield area, while at the same time providing artistic enrichment to the community through outreaches, performances, and workshops.