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Atlanta Ballet Insiders Virtual Event April 15th

Front & Centre: A Spotlight on Atlanta Ballet Centre for Dance Education

Atlanta Ballet company dancer Fuki Takahashi. Photo by Gene Schiavone.

Thursday | April 15 | 6-7pm EST

We are thrilled to spotlight some of the incredible staff and faculty that keep the Atlanta Ballet Centre for Dance Education up and running! As students prepare for their upcoming Spring Concert performances, enjoy this exciting opportunity to hear from the instructors and leaders who directly influence and inspire the next generation of artists – from our tiniest dancers to our pre-professional performers.

Join Atlanta Ballet Boutique General Manager Leslie Campbell Judge as she hosts a roundtable discussion with Centre Administrative Director Kelly Tonina Cooper, Buckhead Centre Principal Kate Gaul, and instructors Taylor Benion and Serena Chu.

Centre Administrative Director Kelly Tonina Cooper leads ballet exercises for young dancers enrolled in Atlanta Ballet Centre for Dance Education Student Division. Photo by Kim Kenney.

To learn a little something about all our panelists before the event, click here to view their faculty bios. To learn more about Centre Administrative Director Kelly Tonina Cooper, her 10 years with Atlanta Ballet and her path along the way, click here.  See below to learn more about the evening's host.

Host Leslie Campbell Judge studied ballet in Baltimore, Maryland, under the direction of Paula Callou of the Paris Opera Ballet. She received a Bachelor of Arts degree in theatre with a concentration in dance from George Washington University and taught ballet in the North Atlanta area through the late 1980's. Judge’s relationship with Atlanta Ballet began as a patron, later serving as a Board member on the Finance and Education committees from the late 90’s to the early 2000’s. In 1998, she became a Centre for Dance Education parent volunteer and founded the Atlanta Ballet Boutique stores. Judge served as president of the Centre for Dance Education Parent Association from 2000 to 2002. Her daughter Ashley Judge, was also an Atlanta Ballet company dancer from 2003-2006. A founding member of the Corps de Ballet, Judge currently serves as the General Manager of the Atlanta Ballet Boutiques.

Updated April 12, 2021