
Faculty & Staff
Caroline Calouche - School Director, CC&DC Company Director, Faculty (She/Her) has taught contemporary dance, Pilates, Gyrokinesis and ballet at UNC Charlotte, Winthrop University, The Belmont School of Ballet, Gaston Dance Theatre and The School of North Carolina Dance Theatre. Her dance and fitness teaching background has allowed her to become a sought after aerial dance instructor. Not only has Caroline developed a safe method and syllabus of teaching Aerial Silk, Sling, Trapeze, Lyra, Corde Lisse and Spanish Web, she is able to teach students how to incorporate floor work with their apparatus to seamlessly move from the ground up and back again. With her strong anatomy and physiology background, Caroline focuses on proper alignment in the air and on the ground to prevent injury and promote efficient movement. Caroline’s aerial and dance training is diverse. In the air, she has worked with Juliana Hane, Nicole Merman, Elsie and Serenity Smith, Christine van Loo, Caroline Wright, Jamie Hodgson, Tanya Burka, Cheetah Platt, Kevin O’Connor, Allie Cooper, Nancy Smith and Susan Murphy. While on the ground, Caroline’s influential teachers range from Leah Cox (Bill T. Jones/Arnie Zane Dance Company), Elizabeth Corbett (Forsythe Composition), Libby Farr (Ballet), Andrew Harwood (Contact Improvisation), Fernando Bujones (Ballet), Elizabeth Gillaspy (Ballet), Susan Douglas Roberts (Contemporary), Brenda Daniels (Modern Dance) to name a few on an endless list of amazing teachers!
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Special Teaching Skills: Understands ADHD (she has ADHD too)

Carlos Alexis Cruz - Faculty (He/Him or Ellos) holds an MFA in Physical Theatre (2007) from the Dell’Arte International School of Physical Theatre where he studied a range of movement techniques including Commedia dell’Arte, Laban, Lecoq-based theatre dynamics, Alexander Technique, as well as an extensive voice training in the Linklater voice method. As part of his thesis project, Cruz went on to train Circus Arts and Chinese Acrobatics under the tutelage of Master Coach Lu Yi at the San Francisco Circus Center. He specialized in the disciplines of Aerial Straps (Sangles Aériennes) and Acrobatic Rope(Corde Lise), and developed his thesis on the study of the convergence between Circus and Theatre. In the professional realm, he was a fulltime company member of the Do Jump! Dance Theatre, and Imago Theatre, touring nationally and internationally, and was awarded a Princess Grace Acting Fellowship prize in 2011 for his unique physical acting work with the Miracle Theatre Group, the premiere Latino Theatre Company in the Pacific Northwest. Cruz is the 2014 Arts and Science Council McColl Award winner with which he developed a community powered contemporary circus company/show, the Nouveau Sud project, from and about the city of Charlotte and the evolving concept of what is often referred to as the New South. The Nouveau Sud project had its debut production in April 2016, and it has been an ongoing initiative, with shows in 2017 and 2018.
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Languages: Fluent Spanish and conversational French
Sergii Kudriavtsev - Faculty (He/Him) is an accomplished acrobatic coach and circus artist specializing in Cyr Wheel and Aerial Straps. With a background in gymnastics starting at the age of 7, Sergii brings a wealth of experience and expertise to his teaching. He recently relocated from Ukraine to Europe and is eager to share his unique skills and insights with his students. Sergii's innovative approach to coaching aims to inspire and elevate the artistic and technical abilities of his students, helping them achieve their full potential.
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Languages: Fluent in Ukranian.

Jason Dawkins - Faculty (He/Him) Jason has trained, taught, & performed in various styles of dance & movement for over a decade. He’s been a lead choreographer in a hip hop crew, a contemporary ballet company dancer, African dance troupe member, backup dancer, a cheerleader, and even a show choir member.
Jason is thrilled to dance with you and help you find YOUR style!

Nicole Muse-Dennis - Faculty (She/Her) Nicole has worked with CC&DC for the past 3 years. She loves working with the students and faculty at the center. Nicole is originally from Queens, New York where she began dancing at the age of 3. Nicole has studied tap, jazz, ballet, modern/contemporary, pointe, and African forms of dance. Nicole’s teaching and choreography first began as a teenager where she was given the opportunity to choreograph & instruct a class of her peers at her high school. Nicole continued this into college where she was the principal dancer and choreographer for the Association of Rhythmic Talent on the campus of Winston-Salem State University. Nicole also served as the assistant to the director of The Artistic Studio in Winston-Salem, NC. She taught for the Performing Arts Center in Charlotte, NC. Nicole’s resume is full of guest teaching tenures at studios, schools, churches, and workshops. Her performance experience includes theatrical dance performances including being cast as Mary in the National Black Repertory Theater’s production of the Black Nativity and Chris Thompson and the Cultural Ensemble. Nicole is the mother of two daughters. She is a licensed teacher for the State of North Carolina. Her passion is in helping dancers reach new heights by actualizing the beauty and power that they have in themselves.

Matthew Sanchez - Faculty (He/Him) A Bboy from the Bronx NY that now resides in Charlotte NC. His classes are made to get you moving, build confidence, pass history, and to give students a new form of expression. He's been breaking since 2009 when he found his first community of dancers. He had rocked the floor before but it wasn’t until he met his first mentor that he learned the culture behind the dance. As he got older, he went on to compete, perform, and share the floor with amazing dancers across the country and even across the globe. In his journey, he found that sharing my love for the dance was just as exciting as the days when he first learned. So now his goal is to share that same feeling with the future bboys and bgirls of the world.

Sarah Small - Faculty (She/Her) has been performing with Caroline Calouche & Co. and teaching with Charlotte Cirque and Dance Center and others in the Charlotte area since 2012. Over the last decade, she has taken workshops from Tanya Burka, Susan Murphy, Amy Ell, and others from NECCA. She also attended Central Piedmont Community College for Dance Performance, taking ballet and modern dance instruction from Clay Daniel, Tracy Chan, and Katherine Horne and has taken dance workshops with Maria Caruso of La Roche University and the Bodiography dance company. Sarah started working with Elevate in 2015, traveling around the southeast to perform for corporate and private events on Silks, Sling, Trapeze, Lyra, Lollipop Lyra, and Stilts. She loves performing, sharing her love of aerial arts, and snuggling with her two cats.

Assistants
Mahalia Esposito
Aisosa James
Ella Mitchell
Anna Scaffidi
Sophia Maggio
Administrative Staff
Elaya Walker - General Manager (She/Her) Elaya Walker is a multidisciplinary leader with a BBA in Management and over a decade of experience in nonprofit programming, event production, and purpose-driven coaching. As a certified life coach and founder of Walker Creative Group, she has designed and facilitated transformative workshops, retreats, and community-based initiatives focused on self-awareness, wellness, and social impact. Elaya is also the creator of Thrive Within: A Journal for Radical Self-Awareness and Purposeful Living and brings a strong background in operations, partnership development, and mission-aligned strategy. She is passionate about creating spaces where movement, mindfulness, and community intersect.
Janae Dickerson - School Experience Manager (She/Her) Janae Dickerson is an emerging choreographer and dancer based in Charlotte, NC, whose creative journey is fueled by a passion for music and movement. From an early age, Janae felt a powerful connection to music, a love so strong that she felt compelled to express it in different forms. For her, dance is the ultimate fusion of two passions—music and expression through movement—and it is through this art that she channels her creativity. After receiving her Associate of Arts in Dance from Central Piedmont Community College, Janae continued to deepen her connection, earning a Bachelor of Arts in Dance from The University of North Carolina at Charlotte. Throughout her training, she immersed herself in a wide range of dance styles, from African and Afro-Brazilian to Ballet, Contemporary, Hip-Hop, Jazz, and Modern. She specializes in choreography within the contemporary and jazz funk genres. Most recently, Janae’s choreographic works were showcased in Under Construction, a student choreography showcase at UNCC. Having trained with many of Charlotte’s talented dance masters, Janae has also had the privilege of learning from industry pioneers such as Darrion Gallegos, Lauren Anderson, and Mestre Jelon Vieira. Her continuous pursuit of knowledge, creativity, and artistic growth drives her to inspire others and share the transformative joy of dance.
Hanna Atkinson - Production Manager (She/Her) is excited to join Caroline Calouche & Co. and the Charlotte Cirque & Dance Center as production manager. She has previously worked with Caroline Calouche & Co. as the calling stage manager for its 2023 production of Clara’s Trip and is looking forward to joining the company for its full 2024-2025 season. Hanna is a Charlotte native and attended the University of North Carolina at Greensboro, where she received degrees in Theater Design & Technical Production and Business Administration. Trained as a stage manager & theater electrician, she has worked with a variety of theater, dance, and opera companies across the country. Most recently she has worked with Toledo Opera, Opera Carolina, and the Chautauqua Opera Company & Conservatory.
When not backstage, you can find her spending time outdoors or with her nose in a good book!

Production
Valerie Wheeler - Stage Manager (She/Her) has served as a Production Stage Manager at opera companies and festivals across the US, including New York City Opera, Portland Opera, Opera Carolina, Toledo Opera, Opera Grand Rapids, Wichita Grand Opera, Wolf Trap Opera Company, Opera Cleveland, University of Southern California/Thornton Opera, Opera Santa Barbara and Chautauqua Opera. With over 25 years of experience in the field, among her additional roles and credits, she served as Production Manager for the Hawaii Performing Arts Festival from 2010-2017.
