27 year member of Dance Teacher's Club of Boston/American Society, and graduate of their Dance Education Training Course, Donna has a long history in dance education. In addition to her thirty-year long career as a dance instructor, she has performed and choreographed several shows for local theater groups throughout the Greater Boston area. She helped to produce and was choregrapher for the Melrose Arts Festival in 1999, sponsored by Melrose Public Schools. Her professional credits include several roles with Melrose Youth Ballet, including Rehearsal Assistant, Ballet Mistress, Assistant Director, and Associate Director in 2001 and 2002. She currently serves on the Advisory Committee for the DTCB D.E.T.C. , held annually in Randolph, MA. Throughout this program she has had the pleasure of working alongside guest teachers such as E. Laura Haussman, Dianne Gudat and Tom Ralabate of Buffalo University in NY. Donna's career continues to focus on dance education in the classroom, and she remains active in the field of dance education through attending meetings and conventions annually. Her nurturing approach in the classroom brings her the reward of not only instructing her students in dance technique, but also of becoming a lifelong mentor and friend to them as they enter the professional and academic world.
Christina Leonard, Assistant Director
Christina started her dance training at a young age under the direction of her mother, Donna Leonard and the notable Miranda Sugarman. Studying all genres of dance led her towards a well-rounded career in dance education. She has worked with children of all ages in several studios and setting throughout the Boston area. Over the years, Christina has developed a unique creative-based curriculum for young dancers between the ages of 3 and 4. In addition, she works with intermediate and advanced level dancers between the ages of 5 and 18. She is the Assistant Director of Center Stage Dance Studio in Melrose, where she works alongside her mother in offering a well-rounded educational based approach to the art of dance. In 2000, Christina graduated from the Dance Teachers Club of Boston Dance Education Training Program. She was installed as a member of DTCB in 2001 and has remained an active teacher in the field of dance education through attending annual conventions and workshops throughout the Boston area. Christina holds a B.S. in Journalism from Boston University. In addition to her love of writing and philosophy, she performed throughout college with the tap team, BU on Tap, and the Dance Theatre troupe at the College of Fine Arts. She has choreographed for local theater productions, including Carousel in 2006 at Temple Beth Avodah in Newton. She is on staff as a ballet and jazz teacher at the Tony Williams Dance Center in Jamaica Plain; home of Ballet Rox and the Urban Nutcracker. Christina is also the Assistant Director for Melrose Youth Ballet's annual production of The Nutcracker.
Jaclyn Capozzi A native of Saugus, Massachusetts, Miss Capozzi began her study of dance at a young age under the direction and guidance of Donna Leonard. Jaclyn received her B.A. in dance from the University of Massachusetts Amherst in 2005. While studying at Umass she performed with many troupes including: Univeristy Dancers, Alive With Dance, Emerging Choreographer’s Series, The Multiband Concert in The Blue Danube Walze, and the American College Dance Festival of America. Her most notable performances were George Balanchine’s Serenade (under the direction of Victoria Simon) and Time (under the direction of Mark Davis). She had the opportunity to receive the highest level of training by participating in workshops and classes by renowned companies and choreographers such as: Paul Taylor, Hubbard Street Dance, Pearl Primis, and American Ballet Theatre II. In 2002, Jaclyn received the Chancellor’s Talent Award Scholarship given to a student who shows excellence and high potential in dance. In June 2000, Jaclyn completed the Dance Teacher’s Club of Boston Teacher Training Program. She was the recipient of the American Academy of Jazz Scholarship in her second year. She was installed as a member to DTCB in March 2007. Jaclyn has been an active teacher and choreographer for many years, currently at Center Stage Dance Studio in Melrose and the Kathy McCrohon Dance Center in Needham. She serves as a judge to several dance competitions throughout New England. This past summer she worked at Camp Pontiac in Copake, NY. Working as the Dance Director to the program, she staged full scale production involving girls from 6-16. Since 2005, Jaclyn has been the resident Artistic Director for Melrose Youth Ballet's annual production of The Nutcracker.
Elizabeth Leonard has been dancing since the age of three and has enjoyed the stage with her theatrical presence since a young age. Her dance training comes mostly from her mother, Donna Leonard at Center Stage Dance Studio in Melrose, where she is now a faculty member. Elizabeth also studied at the Boston Ballet School for three years and began dancing with MYB at age six. She is a graduate of the Dance Teachers Club of Boston's three-year teacher training program during which she worked with esteemed faculty members such as E. Laura Haussman, Diane Gudat and Tom Ralabate. She performed with Melrose Youth Ballet many times as a member of the Corps de Ballet under the direction of Alfonso Figueroa and again in 2006 with Jaclyn Capozzi. Her theatre credits include: The Sound of Music, The Importance of Being Earnest, Defying Gravity, various works of Shakespeare, and Fame in 2007 with Boston University. She was Choreographer of Melrose High School's 2006 musical production of Broadway: Our Time and Stoneham Theatre's 2007 summer production of Thoroughly Modern Millie. Elizabeth is an aspiring screenwriter and is currently attending Boston University. She premiered the role of Madame Drosselmeyer with Melrose Youth Ballet in 2008 and her unique approach to developing this one of a kind character has dazzled audiences for two years.
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