Faculty

Meet The Faculty

Sheree Reed TC, RTS, BS

Sheree is a Registered Teacher with the Royal Academy of Dance. She began her classical ballet training at the age of 7. She trained in the United States with the Washington School of Ballet and in Europe with Fana Galsky. She danced professionally with Ballet El Paso and the Tucson Community Ballet of which she was one of the founders. She has over 20 years experience teaching ballet and she loves passing on the knowledge and discipline of dance to her students.

Click here to read Sheree's complete bio

Vera Stephenson ARAD, RTS, TC, TD, BLS

Vera is an Associate and Registered Teacher with the Royal Academy of Dance, has choreographed and performed in over 40 professional and amateur shows as well as a National Tour of Canada, Annie, Brigadoon, Carousel, Swing, Anything Goes, South Pacific, and Anne of Green Gables, to name a few. She has vast experience in ballet, character, tap, jazz, music theatre, ballroom and her Russian heritage brings much experience to her teaching! She simply wants to share that life experience with everyone!

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Megan McDonald

Megan has been dancing since she was five-years-old and has studied through out the front range in Jazz, Tap, Lyrical, Hip Hop and Ballet. Megan has performed with many studios in numerous productions such as Jolly Follies, The Nutcracker, Cain: A Mystery, Alice in Wonderland, Hansel and Gretel and Suite de Ballet. She currently trains and performs with Kevin O’Keefe as a part of his True II Form Hip Hop Company. Megan recently graduated with honors from Longmont High School as co-valedictorian. She was an active member in many clubs throughout the school. Megan is currently working on degrees in both Journalism and Political Science at the University of Colorado. When she isn’t at school or on the dance floor, Megan enjoys working as a photographer at Sears Portrait Studio. Reverence was thrilled to have Megan join the 3^rd Annual Summer Intensive where she choreographed such fun and exciting pieces!

Kevin O'Keefe

Kevin has an extensive background in hip-hop, break dance, and house. Receiving training from the industry's pioneers, such as Clyde Evans, Eric Finn, and Quickstep, Kevin has begun to spread a fire about the history of hip-hop and a vision for where it will go. He has brought this unique flavor to many studios in Colorado, including CU

Boulder and CSU Ft. Collins. Kevin has been a guest artist at The Arena in Switzerland, The San Francisco Hip-Hop Festival, and most recently at the Colorado College Dance Festival. Kevin is a former member of Motion Underground's hip-hop company, EOM. Currently he is the artistic director of True II Form in Boulder.

Sarah Quillen

Sarah comes to Reverence well equipped with a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Theatre. Her training at Colorado Christian University gave her much experience in performance in shows like Godspell. She was a featured dancer in The Music Man with Arvada Covenant Church. Her choreographic experience includes Camelot, You’re a Good Man Charlie Brown, and Four Tickets to Christmas. Her ballet training is impressive and she has performed in Our Town, Firebird, Soaring, The Nutcracker (Snow Queen, Merliton, Flower Soloist), Inextinguishable and Meditation with Ballet Nouveau Colorado. With Youth Ballet Colorado she danced in Paquita, Giselle Act II, Swan Lake Act II, Les Sylphides, Aspects of Carmen, Let It Be For Naught, and The Nutcracker (Snow Queen, Merliton, Arabian, Flower). Presently Sarah is teaching Ballet and Jazz at Ballet Nouveau. Jazz 1 and 2 are fortunate to have Sarah’s energetic teaching talent, and we are fortunate add her expertise to the Reverence Faculty!

Katelynn Kennelly (Kate)

Kate, is a junior at CU studying to be a High School history teacher. She has been dancing since she was six years old when her Mom decided that she should have some grace because Kate is quite accident prone and a little spastic. She has danced and competed with the Niwot High School dance team, as well at the CU Buff Gold dance team. Kate loves all types of dance, and adores children. She also works for the YMCA in their after school program as well as working to bring dance to the local elementary schools in Boulder. Kate's latest jobs include teaching more dance classes with the City of Boulder at the three community recreation centers, and of course with the Reverence family.

Jenafer Herling

Jenafer has been studying various forms of dance for over 20 years. As a young dancer she studied with The Pennsylvania Ballet, and the Boston Ballet. She later graduated high school from Baltimore school for the Arts, and has a BA in modern dance from The University of Maryland. She has performed with such professional companies as Clancy Works, Doug Hamby Dance, and Phoenix Dance. She has also had the privilege of studying with respected artists such as Rebecca Wright, Nancy Stark-Smith, Joe Tramain, and Liz Lerman. Jenafer has been teaching children and adults dance for the past 10 years. She has taught at the college level, in private studios, and for D.A.R.E. dance in middle schools. She is also a certified Ashtanga yoga instructor.

Nicole Stephenson

Nicole has been dancing since before she was born. Mrs. Vera was pregnant with her when she did Anything Goes! Then, she started ballet, tap, and jazz when she was 5. Ever since that, she’s been dancing up a storm! She started competing in Tap, Jazz, and Ballet ever since she was 7. Nicole won several awards for tap! It is her favorite thing to do. In 2004, she went to Hollywood with a tap dance called “Are You Read?” Nicole and her group won gold! When she entered High School, Nicole landed a lead part in A Chorus Line, the role of “Connie.” She was thrilled and had a ball. Nicole has climbed the highest mountain in Colorado this summer learned how to do a wet exit in a kayak, and was voted Most Courageous Camper at a youth group camp in Kansas. She now looks forward to share her 11 years of tap experience with others.

Chelsie Hopperstad

Chelsie has been dancing since she was eight. Miss Sheree and Miss Vera have been her teachers from the beginning. She is trained in RAD and passed her Intermediate Foundation exam her senior year. She was on her high school dance team and senior year was a captain. Now a sophomore in college she can't deny her love for dance and is back at the studio after a year in Santa Barbara, California. She is majoring in International Affairs and loves CU.

Anna Roehr

Anna is a 16 year –old native of Colorado, has been dancing for ten years. She began her training at the age of 7 with Ballet Nouveau Colorado and transferred to Reverence Academy of Dance three years ago, where she love classical and worship ballet. She is currently in RAD Advanced Foundations, having pass Intermediate and Intermediate Foundation vocational examinations. She was a competitor in the Denver Ballet Guild in March, 2006 and participated in Colorado Ballet’s summer intensive in past July. A junior in High School, Anna also stays busy working in a jewelry store, being involved with her youth group at church, and enjoys snow and water skiing.

Gerry Stephenson

Gerry’s Ballroom and Latin Dance studies began in Toronto Canada where he trained under the direction of Barney Cruikshank, British Ballroom Champion and his daughter Mary – Latin aficionado. Gerry danced in Kingston and Toronto for the Polish White Eagle Dancers in Ontario, and traveled through Poland for intense training. While studying and obtaining his Associate Exam, he taught 6 nights a week for Peel Board, Oakville Parks and Rec., Toronto Schools, where on any given day - he would have 30 couples in a school gym, going the proper way around the floor - dancing a foxtrot or a waltz. The smiles always abound as Gerry prides himself in getting a couple together and even looking into each other’s eyes. This is couple therapy at it’s best. Don’t worry men – Gerry loves football and hockey. Vera, his partner on the floor and in life, is present only to demonstrate. Just try a session – you’ll like it!

Theonita Chavis

Theonita is thrilled to be back at Reverence Academy of Dance, after taking a couple of years off. "Miss Theo" has been wowing audiences since high school, where she won numerous disco dance competitions, captured the Junior Miss Pageant Colorado title and was a state gymnastics finalist. While studying dance and competing in gymnastics at the University of Colorado-Boulder, Theonita won an appearance on American Bandstand.

For the past 30 years, Theonita has choreographed jazz, modern, and liturgical and lyrical performances for college recitals, youth groups and church ensembles. She was also part of the national choreography team for Youth with a Mission’s King’s Kids national outreach.