Pre-Pro Summer Intensive

Valerie Harmon (she/her) is from Lompoc, California, and danced with Smuin Ballet for three years before retiring from her performance career and completing her bachelor’s degree in Kinesiology from San Francisco State University. Valerie loves blending her education with her love of dance through ballet classes with a strong technical foundation. Her stretch and strength classes combine functional movements with strengthening exercises to promote a greater sense of well-being and body awareness by the end of class!  She believes that dance and movement are for any body, at any age, at any level, and enjoys sharing her love of dance and exercise with her students. In Valerie’s class you are sure to learn, sweat, and move your body!

Fave SF Spot: China Beach

Thing that most inspires me:  Hiking in all of the beautiful places near San Francisco

Best advice a teacher ever gave me:  Sometimes it takes corrections a bit of time to ‘sink in’ – be persistent and enjoy all of the little successes along the way!

Nicole Haskins, originally from Venice Beach, California, is a choreographer, coach, and mentor residing in the Bay Area. Her love of ballet and enthusiasm for choreography emerged during her training at the Westside School of Ballet in Santa Monica under the direction of Yvonne Mounsey and Rosemary Valaire. After a two-decade career as a professional ballet dancer with Sacramento Ballet, Washington Ballet, Amy Seiwert’s Imagery, Kansas City Ballet, and Smuin Contemporary Ballet,

Haskins retired from the stage to pass on her love for ballet and knowledge to the next generation of dancers. After a season as the resident choreographer for Mid-Columbia Ballet, Haskins was recruited to build, develop, and run Ballet Idaho’s Trainee Program as their inaugural Trainee Program Director. Through the program, she was able to help pre-professional dancers successfully transition from student to professional dancers by teaching them the tools and knowledge necessary to thrive within any professional company. She now takes her decades of knowledge and experience to provide dancers the tools, knowledge, and support necessary to thrive at any professional company through Keep Dancers Dancing.

Alongside these accomplishments, Haskins’ also developed a thriving choreographic career, with commissioned performed across the country including Sacramento Ballet, Richmond Ballet, Smuin Contemporary Ballet, Dayton Ballet, and Oregon Ballet Theater. Most recently she co-choreographed Sacramento Ballet’s brand-new production of The Nutcracker in collaboration with Colby Damon and Julia Feldmen, Haskins works have been presented at the Los Angles Dance Invitational, the McCallum Theater’s Dancing Under The Stars Choreographic Competition, and well as numerous Regional Dance America Festivals.

In 2017, she was one of the winners of Oregon Ballet Theatre’s Choreography XX competition, in 2010 she participated in the New York Choreographic Institute affiliated with the New York City Ballet, in 2011 received the Institute’s Fellowship Grant, and in 2017 she received the Institute’s Commission Initiative.

Terez Dean Orr (she/her) teaches Intermediate/Advanced Ballet on Wednesdays. Originating from the Hudson Valley of NY, Terez has danced with Smuin Ballet for fourteen seasons, sharing her passion for dance with the audience and her students. Terez’s classes dive into the elements of neoclassical technique, focusing on dynamic footwork, musicality, and the expansiveness of movement. Approachable, positive, and built to work up a sweat, Terez will help each dancer improve their strength, balance, and grace, all with a smile!

 Favorite San Francisco neighborhood: My vibrant neighborhood of the Castro: on any given day, you may find a cellist on her stoop, an Opera singer practicing in the park, or a colorful costume bestowing a queen. This area represents the artistic and eclectic beauty that makes up our unique city.

Thing that most inspires you: Traveling, discovering new architecture, food, and culture. 

Best advice a teacher ever gave you: “Always feel as if you are draped in the finest of jewels when approaching class or rehearsal. Don’t dance like a frozen fish stick.”

Cassidy Isaacson (she/her) is from Redmond WA and joined the Smuin family in 2019. Cassidy teaches Beginner/Intermediate Jazz and Contemporary on Monday nights. Start your Mondays off right with Cassidy’s high energy, fun, and fierce Jazz class. In her class you will work through all the classic Jazz steps one by one in order to learn a full combo over multiple weeks that you can show off as your favorite party trick. 

Cassidy’s contemporary class will help you expand the classical line and push yourself to move out of your comfort zone and through your emotional connection to slower and more controlled movements. If you want to learn how to strut your stuff in your favorite heels (heels optional)  then be on the look out for Cassidy’s Heels workshops! One of the reasons why Cassidy truly loves this art form is because it’s one of the only ways you can safely express any and all emotions without having to put them into words. It’s the perfect outlet to be 100% authenticity with yourself and grow as a person and as an artist.  

Favorite SF spot: Sutro Baths

Thing that most inspires me: My co-workers and their constant dedication and love for this insanely difficult but rewarding art form.  

Best advice I was ever given:  “Never Stop Learning” and “there is always more you can improve on.”