Liz Simms

Director

From studying classical ballet at The McDonald College of Performing Arts in Sydney, Liz moved to Europe where she trained with the Ballettschule Theatre Basel, Switzerland. Going on to perform widely around Europe and most recently as a soloist with the Vienna State Opera Ballet. Liz is infectious with her joy of dance.

Liz found her passion for teaching after having worked with world renowned ballet companies, dancers and choreographers, is excited to continue to enjoy and inspire everyday.

 Alexandra Cameron-Martin 

teacheR of pointe nation

Born in Hong Kong, Alexandra trained at the Australian Ballet School for 6 years, and was later privately coached before moving to London to dance with the English National Ballet, New English Ballet Theatre, Peter Schaufuss ballet.

Alexandra moved on to the Royal Swedish Ballet, then the Norwegian National Ballet, where she performed soloist roles in ‘In the Middle Somewhat Elevated’, ‘Le Coirsaire’, and ‘La Bayadere’ amongst new productions. More performances in her repertoire include works by Rudolf Nureyev, Marius Petipa, Jiří Kylián, George Balanchine, Serge Lifar and John Cranko.

Alexandra has been guest teaching throughout her career, including Adult classes at Danceworks, and at Danceworks international Ballet Academy where she was leading their summer school for adult ballet. Alexandra has taught ballet class in London, Stockholm and Oslo. We are happy to have Alix as a teacher at Pointe Nation.

Andy Killian

Former Principal artist with The Australian Ballet

Andrew, born in Melbounre, was a student of The Australian Ballet School, later joining The Australian Ballet for 21 years.

Andrew’s creativity has expanded his career, collaborating in many new works including Stephen Baynes’ Constant Variants and Tim Harbour’s Wa. He enjoys working closely with choreographers and travelled to Auckland, Tokyo, Shanghai, New York, Los Angeles, London and Paris to perform.

Pointe Nation is proud to have Andrew ‘Andy’ Killian as a guest teacher at our studio, sharing his passion, knowledge and expansive dance experience.

Annabel Shaw

Instructor and ballet Philanthropist

Annabel grew up in Nairobi, Kenya, her training has diversified to include Contemporary, Modern Dance, Technical Jazz, Commercial, Musical Theatre and Tap. She left Kenya in 2015 to train in the UK for four years with the Scottish Ballet Associate Program, The Royal Conservatoire of Scotland and then full time with Northern Ballet School.

She went on to attended summer intensives at The University of South Carolina across two years, and completed the RAD Advanced 2 ballet exam. Annabel later returned to Kenya joining the teachers of Dance Centre Kenya and the not-for-profit organisation Artists for Africa, where she grew her love for teaching.

In Melbourne, Annabel is a choreographer and teacher for the UniMelb club, Flare Dance Ensemble, a casual dance teacher for the Victorian College of the Arts and is currently completing a Master of Arts and Cultural Management. We are very excited for Annabel to be joining the Pointe Nation team!

Arianna Marchiori

Soloist with National Ballet of Ostrava

Whilst Arianna’s family hails from Venice she was born in Padua, Italy and began her training at Il Balletto di Castelfranco Veneto. At the age of 16, she moved to America continuing her training at the Boston Ballet School and graduating from the San Francisco Ballet School.

She then went on to work with the English National Ballet, New English Ballet Theatre, Ballet Dortmund and Ballet Ireland. In 2018, she moved to Estonia and started working at Teater Vanemuine, where she became a soloist in 2020. Here, Arianna performed principal roles in pieces by Chinese choreographer Wang Yuan Yuan and Czech choreographer Petr Zuska.

In 2021, Arianna joined the National Ballet of Ostrava as a soloist. During her time in Ostrava, Arianna performed works by acclaimed contemporary choreographers such as Ohad Naharin, Mauro Bigonzetti, and Krzystof Pastor. Throughout her time with the company she toured internationally to countries including Germany and Israel.

Cristiano Martino

Former Senior artist The Australian Ballet | Coach Body fit training

Cristiano was born in Adelaide before moving to Melbourne to join the Australian Ballet School. Christiano then joined the Australian Ballet where he danced for 10 years as a Senior Artist before retiring earlier this year to pursue other interests.

Cris is currently working as a Fitness Coach at Body Fit Training, and enjoys staying connected to ballet by teaching at Pointe Nation.

Catch Cris for a limited time, sign up for a class here.

Jess Thompson

Pointe Nation Teacher and Melbourne Freelance Dancer

Jessica Thompson is more than a ballet teacher—she’s a testament to the transformative power of dance. Her remarkable journey has taken her from the Australian Ballet School to stages around the world, including with the prestigious Sydney Dance Company.

Jessica’s career began at the Australian Ballet School, where she developed her craft before joining The Australian Ballet in 2004. Her talent took her on international tours, performing from London to Tokyo. In 2009, she joined The Royal New Zealand Ballet, where she left a lasting impression with her grace and artistry.

Returning to Melbourne, Jessica became a key member of the Melbourne Ballet Company before joining the Sydney Dance Company in 2012.

Now performing with M Collective, directed by Arianna Marchiori. Watch Jess in there upcoming production.

Kyle Davey

Certificate IV in Training and Assessment

Kyle’s dance training commenced at Dubbo Ballet Studio and continued at The Queensland Dance School of Excellence and The Australian Ballet School. His appreciation for expressive movement has been significantly influenced by his diagnosis of Ankylosing Spondylitis in his final year of training at the Australian Ballet School. Kyle believes managing A.S on top of an international dance career has been a unique and invaluable experience.

He is grateful to have worked in both contemporary and classical ballet disciplines with other talented artists from around the world. Collaborative and creative work with a foundation of technique has broadened his perspective of movement potential.

Soon after returning to Australia Kyle quickly discovered the benefits of GYROTONIC®. After 6 years of personal practise he decided to become a licenced GYROTONIC® instructor.

Kyle’s professional classical ballet expertise has been supported with the completion of a Graduate Diploma of Elite Dance Instruction through the Australian Ballet Schools Vocational Teacher training course.

We are very excited to announce the much anticipated welcome of Kyle Davey as a Teacher at Pointe Nation Adult Ballet Studios.

Madeleine Eastoe

Former Principal dancer of The Australian Ballet

Madeleine began dancing at the age of 6, in Perth Western Australia. She moved across to Melbourne to join the Australian Ballet School from 1994-1996, graduating into The Australian Ballet Company in 1997. She was promoted to Principal Artist in 2004, dancing the role of 'Giselle’ in Maina Guielgud’s production.
 
Experiencing Ballet as a performer opened Madeleine's world up to a most beautiful art form and it is through teaching and coaching students and dancers of the future that she hopes to pass on her knowledge and experience.

We are happy to have Maddie as a teacher at Pointe Nation.

Olivia Heyworth

Certified Australian conservatoire
International Character Dance Syllabus & PBT Instructor

Olivia trained at the West Australian Academy of the Performing Arts, receiving an Advanced Diploma of Performing Arts - Dance, and a Channel 7 Award for Technical and Artistic Excellence.

Prior to that Olivia attended the Miami City Ballet School studying Balanchine Technique, Bournenville, Jazz, Contemporary and Repertoire, and in 2010 received a Cert III, Cert IV and Diploma in Dance Performance from the Marie Walton Mahon Dance Academy, National College of Dance.

Olivia is a highly skilled and versatile dance industry professional. Working mainly in dance education, she values the benefits of a supportive, sustainable and rewarding practice in dance.

We are proud to have Olivia as a teacher at Pointe Nation.

Rachael McGowan

RAD Examiner

BA (Hons) Ballet Education, RAD RTS, LRAD (1&2), Cert IV Pilates (PAA)

Originally from England, Rachael graduated from the Bachelor of Arts (Honours) in Ballet Education degree program and the Licentiate of the Royal Academy of Dance at the Academy’s headquarters in London, England.

Whilst studying here, Rachael had the opportunity to work as an assistant alongside world-renowned Royal Academy of Dance Examiners and Teachers as part of the Dance School. Rachael has gone on to teach throughout the UK, Canada, America and now Australia, successfully preparing hundreds of students, both children and adults, for RAD examinations as well as training dancers for full time vocational schools, youth companies and associate programs.

Rachael specialises in teaching the vocational levels and teaching adults. Choreography, especially for large events, makes up a significant part of Rachael’s work and she has had the privilege of working with a live orchestra for both the 2011 and 2012 Proms in the Meadow. Rachael has also choreographed for festivals and eisteddfods, charity events and more recently full length classical productions as Ballet Mistress for a Canadian youth company.

Having sustained a serious injury, Rachael has since developed a passion for Dance Science and now also teaches practical based Anatomy and Physiology classes to her students. Rachael is a qualified Mat and Reformer Pilates instructor as well as a qualified teacher of the Progressing Ballet Technique program. Rachael regularly attends courses with Lisa Howell, The Australian Ballet and IADMS, strongly believing that as teachers, our responsibility is to prepare dancers not just for the current season but for a life time of dance. Rachael has been a member of the RAD Victorian Tasmanian panel since 2015. In June 2018 Rachael was appointed to the Panel of RAD Examiners, examining throughout Australia and internationally.

Rosemary Robenn 

RAD teaching certificate, examiner, registered teacher of the PBT Program

Rosemary is a passionate teacher sharing over 50 years of experience. Beginning when training with Pamela Shield in Sydney. In 1970 joined Qld Ballet Company on tour for Coppélia, which is where she met her husband, NZ Ballet dancer Waynne Robenn. Rosemary has extensive experience choreographing and producing several full length ballets.

In 2003, Rosemary was invited to teach at Kondo Ballet Studio in Japan for 6 months, which was an amazing experience for her. She has been back several times since to guest teach. After returning from Japan, Rosemary held the position of Senior Teacher at Elancé Adult Ballet School in Melbourne for 12 years, which included the development of a 12 month program for beginners as well as teacher training. Since 2016, she has been working as a freelance teacher, with the PBT program and all levels of ballet.

As part of her philosophy that the joy of ballet should be available to everyone, she is developing an innovative program for blind students and has found working with them an inspiration. She has RAD teaching certificate during the several years she taught for RAD examiner, Prudence Bowen in Sydney. Rosemary is also a registered teacher of the Progressing Ballet Technique program and finds it an invaluable complement to students’ ballet training.