Staff

Louise Nadeau
Kevin Kaiser
Ross Yearsley
Photo Credit: Ben Kerns

Kevin Kaiser
Photo Credit: Ben Kerns

Andi Bryndza
Ballet Mistress

Louise Nadeau
Ballet

Kisha Vaughan
Hip Hop

Danielle Wilkins
Ballet & Modern

Kevin Kaiser
Artistic Director

Kevin Kaiser started dancing when he was four years old, as one of five brothers who made up a professional tap dancing group. The “Kaiser Brothers” grew up outside of Seattle and toured the United States throughout the 1970s. Mr. Kaiser began his professional ballet career at age sixteen with the Pennsylvania Ballet under the direction of Barbara Weisberger and Benjamin Harkarvey. In 1980, Mr. Kaiser returned to Seattle and joined Pacific Northwest Ballet under the direction of Kent Stowell and Francia Russell.

For fifteen years with PNB he performed a wide range of repertoire including roles from such world-renowned choreographers as George Balanchine, Jerome Robbins, Paul Taylor, Kent Stowell, Marius Petipa, Anthony Tudor, Lar Lubovich and Glen Tetley. Mr. Kaiser’s diverse repertoire included Paul Taylor's Company B, George Balanchine's A Midsummer Night's Dream, Divertissement Pas De Deux and Serenade to almost every male role in Kent Stowell's The Nutcracker from the Prince to Drosselmeyer. In addition, Mr. Kaiser enjoyed dancing Anthony Tudors Jardin Aux Lilac, Mercucio in Kent Stowell's Romeo and Juliet and Glen Tetley's Voluntaries.

Retiring in 1995, Mr. Kaiser was appointed Ballet Master with Oregon Ballet Theatre and was later promoted to Associate Artistic Director, under the direction of James Canfield. While at the Oregon Ballet Theatre, Mr. Kaiser staged works choreographed by James Canfield, George Balanchine, Donald Byrd, Robert Joffrey, David Parsons and Val Caniparoli. Mr. Kaiser has taught extensively throughout the United States including Pacific Northwest Ballet, Pennsylvania Ballet, Oregon Ballet Theatre, Dance Educators of America, Tulsa Ballet, among many others. Mr. Kaiser's ties to the ballet world can be felt throughout the United States. His older brother Roy Kaiser is Artistic Director of Pennsylvania Ballet in Philadelphia. His younger brother Russell danced with New York City Ballet and is now a Ballet Master for Peter Martins with that company. Ken and Dan Kaiser are both Artistic Directors of ballet schools and regional companies.

Kevin has also choreographed several works with Evergreen City Ballet. “At the Club” with music by Etta James and Ray Charles, “Hmmm…” and “ Comporre Danza” with original music by Christopher Ferris and the solo, “Feminine Mystique” with music by Angelique Kidjo.

Andi Bryndza
Ballet Mistress
Instructor, Ballet

Andi has been part of Evergreen City Ballet for 16 years. She was also a dancer with the Company for 4 seasons. She loves to work with children and has volunteered in Special Education classrooms and worked with several Montessori based schools. Her experience has allowed her to blend these methods with ballet technique and integrate them into the studio. She truly enjoys teaching children and sharing her love of dance.

Andi had the opportunity to travel to Amsterdam and Salzburg, Austria, where she danced and performed with the Salzburg Ballet. She has enjoyed performing many featured and soloist roles. Her favorites include Andromeda in the original ballet Journey, the Sugar Plum Fairy in The Nutcracker, and the title role in Cinderella. Andi was also in both of Mr. Kaiser’s original works, Hmmm… and At the Club. In addition to performing, Andi had the opportunity to choreograph a classical piece titled Dawn, a contemporary ballet piece, Shine for You, and a contemporary ballet titled Fix You…to the music by Coldplay.

Instructors


	Ken Kaiser Instructor, Tap Mr. Kaiser began his dance training at age 4 and has studied ballet, tap, and jazz. He was "bitten by the bug" when he and his brother performed at the New York World's Fair in 1964. He and his four brothers performed with the Cleveland-based Singing Angels before President Nixon, Pope John Paul II, and appeared with Bob Hope. After moving to Seattle, they toured the Northwest with several variety groups, opened for Wayne Newton and appeared on the Kraft Music Halt Christmas Special on NBC in 1969. He also performed in off-Broadway productions of Showboat, Carousel, Music Man, Sound of Music, and Finian’s Rainbow.

	Deborah Kenner Instructor, Ballet Deborah is originally from Tucson, Arizona where she received a full dance and academic scholarship to the University of Arizona. Deborah had the opportunity to dance with Colorado Ballet, David Taylor Dance Theatre and the Threshold Dance Project. She has also performed with the Arizona Opera Company, Ballet Arizona, The International Theatre School Festival in Amsterdam, Holland and Redlands Music Festival with State Street Ballet. Deborah began teaching in Colorado and she was also the Assistant Director of the Youth Jazz Company and assisted with the Youth Ballet Company and Adult Programs in Tap and Ballet. During the 2008-2009 and 2009-2010 season, Deborah was Artistic Director of Tucson Regional Ballet. Deborah received her certification in Pilates in 2008. Currently, Deborah is on faculty in the Children’s Division at Pacific Northwest Ballet and Evergreen City Ballet.

	Wisten Klein Instructor, Ballet Wisten has been dancing with ECB for eight years. This is her second year as a company member. Last year she attended Washington State University and joined the Gamma Phi Beta sorority. She has attended ballet summer programs such as PNB, SAB, and SFB. She has danced in major roles including Dew Drop and Arabian in "The Nutcracker," and Carabosse in "Sleeping Beauty".

	Louise Nadeau Instructor, Ballet Louise Nadeau is from Long Island, New York. She trained at the Cantarella School of Dance in Pittsfield, MA, the Alexandra School of Ballet in St. Louis and the School of American Ballet. She danced with Basel Ballet and Kansas City Ballet before joining Pacific Northwest Ballet as a Soloist in 1990. She was promoted to Principal in 1992 and retired from the stage with a celebratory gala in June of 2009.

	Jeffrey Stanton Instructor, Ballet Jeffrey Stanton trained at San Francisco Ballet School and the School of American Ballet. In addition to classical ballet, he also studied ballroom, jazz, and tap dancing. He joined San Francisco Ballet in 1989 and left to join Pacific Northwest Ballet as a member of the corps de ballet in 1994. He was promoted to soloist in 1995 and was made a principal in 1996. He is originally from Santa Cruz, California.

	Erin Stevens Instructor, Ballet This is Erin's second year as a company member. Erin has been part of ECB for 15 years. She has attended summer intensives at Joffrey Ballet - New York, Ballet Austin and Houston Ballet in addition to ECB's Summer Intensive Program. Erin has had the opportunity to dance many featured roles including Cinderella in "Cinderella", Sugar Plum Fairy and Marzipan Lead in “The Nutcracker”, Italian Princess in “Swan Lake”, Princess Florine in Sleeping Beauty, and a soloist in “ Fix You” . Erin has also choreographed two works for the "Young Choreographers Showcase" program.

	Kisha Vaughan Instructor, Hip Hop Kisha Vaughan, born in Biloxi, Mississippi and raised in Sacramento, CA has been dancing in and around Seattle for the past 7 years. In her short time here she has had the opportunity to dance with Breaking Point Dance Company, In Effect Hip Hop, and Seattle Storm Hip Hop Squad. She also has appeared on Showtime at the Apollo and MTV’s Made. Kisha has performed at a number of venues and events in Seattle as well including Folklife Festival and T-Mobile. Kisha currently teaches hip hop at several area schools and dance teams.

	Danielle Wilkins Instructor, Ballet & Modern Danielle Wilkins is from Kentucky where she trained for ten years at the Louisville Ballet. She received her BFA degree from the University of Hartford Hartt School of Music, during which she performed at the Kennedy Center as a soloist in Jean Grand Maitre's Uroborus. Danielle has worked professionally in New York with Rebecca Kelly Ballet, Mary Seidman and Dancers, Mimi Garrard Dance Company, and Steven Koplowitz, and in Seattle with Marco Carrabba, Seattle Jazz Dance, and Spectrum Dance Theater; in which she performed in PNB’s Celebrate Seattle Festival at McCaw Hall and the Spoleto Festival in Italy. Most recently Danielle appeared in the 5th Avenue Theater's production of West Side Story and The Seattle Opera’s production of The Pearl Fisher’s. Danielle has danced with DASSdance for eleven seasons performing several times at Diane von Furstenberg-The Theater and in many Festivals including the D.U.M.B.O Dance Festival NYC and Dance Now at the Joyce Soho. Danielle has been teaching Ballet & Modern at Island Dance for 6 years and at Evergreen City Ballet for 5 years.