CPAA

Ava Houle

Selena Ihasz

Karen Laham

Sara Lamonaca

Brittany Barbaro is the owner of The Cheshire Performing Arts Academy. She started formally taking dance lessons at the age of six, with the majority of her training at The Dancer’s Studio, under the direction of Sharon L. DiCrosta. There, she was part of the competitive dance program through her senior year of high school. Outside of competing, she has had a variety of experiences through her love of dance; among her favorites include a summer program with the Radio City Rockettes in New York City and performing as a dancer in Thoroughly Modern Millie at the Seven Angels Theatre in Waterbury, CT. For her undergraduate degree, Brittany attended Fairfield University, where she was a member of the dance ensemble. Outside of dance, she received a Bachelor of Arts in Organizational Communication and attended graduate school at Merrimack College, earning a Master of Education in Higher Education Administration. She has experience working in Communications Offices in academia, as well as the Young Artists program at Choate Rosemary Hall. She has been a board member for many organizations, including currently Kids for Kids, Dancing for Life, Inc., a non-profit organization which raises funds through the art of dance to children and families in need. Brittany is proud to spread her passion for arts and community collaborations and has been a supporter and an investor in arts programs. She is a longtime best friend and duet partner of the CPAA’s founder, Erin Brady.

Erin Brady was the founder and former owner and Artistic Director for CPAA. She started her dance training at the age of three. Her training began under the direction of Sharon L. DiCrosta of the Dancer's Studio, where she was part of the competitive dance team and remained until her senior year of high school. While dancing at The Dancer's Studio, Erin also attended the Educational Center for the Arts, an arts high school located in New Haven, CT, where she had the opportunity to further her dance training and had the honor to study under Willie Feuer and Susan Matheke, two former members of the Merce Cunningham Dance Company. During her high school career she had the privilege to learn and perform original works of the Merce Cunningham Company, Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, The Paul Taylor Dance Company, "ROOM's'" by Anna Sokolow and many more. After graduating high school Erin attended the University of the Arts, in Philadelphia, PA, for dance performance. While at UARTS, Erin was able to further her training with teachers from The Pennsylvania Ballet, Koresh Dance Company, Complexions Contemporary Ballet, BalletX, Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater and The Jose Limon Dance Company, just to name a few.

Erin was very grateful to share her love for dance with such talented young upcoming artists. Tragically, at 29 years old she was diagnosed with ALS, which she heroically battled for over three years until she passed away in 2022. There are not enough words to express our love for her, but she will be always be remembered for the incredible woman that she was. Her legacy will live on, between those who knew her and even those who didn't have the opportunity to meet her but will join the legacy of CPAA that she began for us all. She will be with us all in spirit for all the years to come through the beautiful art of dance and through the wonderful gift of friendship that dance can bring. In honor of her, we have The Erin Brady Memorial Scholarship. This new scholarship fund will allow Erin's legacy to live on by providing financial assistance to young dancers who otherwise may not be able to afford to practice their art. If you wish to donate to the scholarship fund, please make checks payable to CPAA, and note the Erin Brady Memorial Scholarship Fund in the memo section. Checks can be mailed to: CPAA, 1484 Highland Avenue, Unit 4A, Cheshire, CT 06410. It is also our dream that ALS is cured in our lifetime. Please consider donating to research to find a cure at https://www.als.org in honor of Erin.

Emily Branigan has been dancing since the age of three and has excelled in many areas of dance, though her true passions are musical theatre, jazz and tap. She was a fifteen year student of Ms. Sharon DiCrosta of The Dancer’s Studio of North Haven, Connecticut, and has also received training both in New York and Los Angeles in dance, on-camera acting and musical theatre. Emily began teaching at the age of sixteen utilizing the motto that she was taught at a very young age, “dance comes from your heart…not your feet!” For over 10 years, she has taught primarily in the Los Angeles area to a wide array of students with various ages and abilities in multiple genres. She also travels the country as a competition judge and guest teacher and is a part of Impact Dance Adjudicators. Emily is a Member of Dance Educators of America. She is also a Y.P.A.D (Youth Protective Advocates in Dance) certified teacher and program ambassador.  Her choreography and teaching style reflect her focus empowering her students to make a difference in their communities through their art. Emily has been seen on stage, screen, print and television both nationally and internationally. She has been fortunate enough to work in multiple areas of the entertainment industry. She’s worked both in New York and LA as a model, an actor and of course her first love and passion, a dancer. A few of her favorite credits include Nike, Macy's, Mercedes Benz, Loreal, Jimmy Kimmel Live and The Freeform Network. Emily has also been a volunteer with Kids for Kids, Dancing for Life, Inc., a non-profit organization which raises funds and support for sick and needy children primarily through the art of dance since the organization’s founding in 1994. Since 2005, she has served on the Board of Directors. Emily is the founder of The emPower MOVEment. A social platform, in studio workshops and classes, that offers support for the developing human spirit in young people through dance and related activities to promote positive growth of both mind and body. Emily is also the Director at The Studio at Guilford Center and teaches in many studios. After spending over a decade in Los Angeles, performing, and teaching, Emily could not be happier to be back in her home state of Connecticut sharing her passion for dance.

Emma Brockett has been dancing since the age of 7, training at a local studio in various styles including jazz, tap, ballet , lyrical, modern and contemporary and started dancing competitively when she was 13. Emma discovered a strong passion for ballet early on in her teens and was excepted into the Joffery summer program at age 16,  and a year later at 17 she was accepted into the trainee program at New England Ballet Theatre in Connecticut under the direction of Victoria Manning. Post-High School, she went on to join New England Ballet Theatre professional company as a Demi-Apprentice. With NEBT she got to dance in shows like “Cinderella” and “Fantastic Toyshop,” choreographed by Rachael Gnatowski, and guest pieces such as “Painted Lady” choreographed by Jacob Taylor, and has performed in NYC at the Alvin Ailey Theatre in Gnatowski’s piece “B-side” and understudied for Saki Morimoto’s piece “Focus Point.” Emma began teaching and choreographing at 15, and has continued teaching ballet classes and privates at both competition schools and New England Ballet theaters school program. She loves to work with kids and watch them grow as dancers each year and wants to continue teaching in her future and leading the next generation to greatness and is looking forward to continuing her dance career.

Maggie began dancing when she was 12 years old at Philadelphia Dance Theatre, under the direction of Joy Delaney Capponi. In 2019, at age 17, she moved to Sarasota, FL, and danced as a trainee with Sarasota Ballet for two years. While there, she had the opportunity to dance with the main company in The Nutcracker and their 29th Season Gala. In 2021, she moved to Phoenix, AZ, to join Ballet Arizona as a Studio Company member. She danced in Balanchine’s Stravinsky’s Violin Concerto, Frederick Ashton’s Les Patineurs, and in Artistic Director Ib Andersen’s World Premiere Guan Gabriel, among others. Her most prominent role was Juliet’s Cousin in Ib Andersen’s Romeo and Juliet. She joined Ballet Hartford as a Company Artist for the 2022/23 season and looks forward to her second season with them.

Cheri Forbush Cheri Forbush began her dance training in East Hartford, CT with her teacher Mary Morlock. Since then she has studied many forms of dance including tap, ballet, jazz, lyrical, African, hip-hop and musical theatre. She began competing at the age of 8 at many regional and national competitions, winning several awards along the way.  She was fortunate to often spend summers in NYC studying with amazing talents, such as Frank Hatchett, Gus Giordano, Henry Le Tang, David Howard, Joe Lanteri and Mia Michaels. She is a graduate of Elon University, where she majored in Broadcasting and minored in dance. While in North Carolina, she was a member of the Elon Dance Company as well as part of a Liturgical Dance Company where she performed with the Greensboro Symphony Orchestra.   Cheri has been teaching for over 20 years and has choreographed several musicals for local community theaters including the Thomaston Opera House and The Goshen Players. She lives in Durham, CT with her husband and three beautiful daughters, with whom she shares her love of dance. Cheri loves being a part of the CPAA family!

Ava Houle has been part of the CPAA community since its founding, at first as a student in our competitive program here who found a passion for the teaching side of dance as a classroom assistant where she excelled. She has volunteered countless hours at CPAA and other organizations. Due to her commitment, her creativity and her nature in and out of the classroom, we were very excited for her to join the teaching staff this year. Ava is trained in various styles including ballet, tap, jazz, lyrical, modern and contemporary. While she is not at all new to the CPAA community, we did not want to miss the opportunity to officially welcome her to this new position.

Selena Ihasz started dancing at the age of three. She received fifteen years of her training under the direction of Janet Bracale at Dance Unlimited in Hamden, CT. Selena began teaching while being a student at Dance Unlimited and continued to teach after graduating. Selena is trained in many styles including jazz, tap, ballet, lyrical and modern specifically in the Horton technique. However, her passion remains in lyrical and contemporary. Selena currently attends Dean College in Franklin, Massachusetts with a double major in Dance and Criminal Justice. While at Dean, Selena has the opportunity to work with amazing choreographers such as Todd Shanks, Kristina Berger, and Jill Silverman.

Karen Laham attended Jacki's Dance Factory in Danbury, CT and the Connecticut Conservatory in New Milford, CT to receive the majority of her dance training. Outside of dance, Karen attended Western Connecticut State University where she received her Bachelor of Science in Medical Technology with a minor in Chemistry. She enjoys continuing her dance training through workshops, conventions, seminars, and classes at Broadway Dance Center in NYC. She has had the privilege of taking classes from the legendary Master Teacher David Howard of the Royal Ballet at Ballet Academy East in Manhattan. Karen is trained in many styles including jazz, tap, contemporary, and her biggest passions of ballet, pointe and lyrical. Her teaching style incorporates both Vaganova and Cecchetti techniques with Balanchine influences. She currently teaches dance in New Milford and with her recent move to this area, is excited to be joining us here at CPAA.

Sara Lamonaca has always had a love for dance, music and the arts since she was young. At the age of 2 she studied music and violin with the Suzuki school in New Haven. She has two girls who currently dance on the competition team at our studio and have been a part of the CPAA family since its founding and she herself has been a dancer since she was little. She went to the Children’s Professional School in her younger years where she studied, tap, jazz, ballet and drama and also performed with the Bei Ling Ballet school en pointe as a teen where she also performed in the Nutcracker each year. She danced a year at UConn as well, where she also graduated with her Bachelors Degree in Human Services and Family Studies. She has been in many plays and sung in choir and has performed at Carnegie Hall in NYC and the Candlelight Processional in Walt Disney World. She’s managed many different retail stores and prior to becoming a stay at home mother she taught teenagers and young adults with cognitive disabilities at a school in New Haven. She lives in Wallingford, CT with her husband and two girls. 

Julia Leitao began dancing at age 3 at the YWCA School of Dance under Chris Kuzia in New Britain, CT. She was Captain of the Cane-ette kickline dance team in 2014 as well as student choreographer of all musicals during undergrad at Eastern Connecticut State University, where she double majored in Early Childhood Education and Performing Arts. In 2018, presented at NCUR and received a grant to create a main stage show at the university which was only movement based. Julia is teaches Kindergarten in New Britain and is so happy to be in the studio continuing to share her love of dance.

Britt Elise Lynch received her dance training at the School of Hartford Ballet under the tutelage of Alla Osipenko, Franco De Vita, Susan Brooker, Hilda Morales, Alla Nikitina, Peggy Lyman and Katie Stevinson-Nollet. Britt attended several notable summer programs, including those at Boston Ballet, Central Pennsylvania Youth Ballet, Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre, and Richmond Ballet where she was accepted as a trainee. She has originated roles in Kirk Peterson’s American Nutcracker and performed numerous ballets, character dances, and modern works including soloist roles alongside ABT II in Kirk Peterson’s American Nutcracker and soloist roles with the Lake Erie Ballet in PA. Britt graduated Magna Cum Laude from the University of Hartford’s The Hartt School and Barney School of Business, earning a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Dance under the direction of Stephen Pier, Bachelor of Science in Business Management, and Master of Business Administration. She is also a certified Pilates Mat teacher. Since 2009, Mrs. Lynch has taught ballet, pointe, Pilates, and dance conditioning for The Hartt School Community Division and other local dance schools with students ranging in age from three to 63! In addition, Britt has been a company teacher for Ballet Hartford (formerly Vivid Ballet) and Sonia Plumb Dance Company. She served on the Board of the Connecticut Dance Alliance from 2015 to 2019 and was a major gift officer for The Hartt School at the University of Hartford until the birth of her son in 2017. Britt resides in Southington, Connecticut, with her husband and two children.

Jillian McNamara has been dancing since the age of two and is proficient in all genres including ballet, tap, jazz, hip hop, contemporary, lyrical and acro. She received her training at Seven Star School of Performing Arts in Brewster, New York as well as at various intensives throughout the world, including the Dubrovnik Tap Festival and Sarah Reich’s Tap Music Project. Jillian’s passion for dance led her to achieve top honors at various competitions and conventions in the United States and abroad. She has been named IDO female Word Tap Champion on four occasions and was the first person ever to hold the title in all three age divisions. Jillian has also received the titles NUVO Breakout Artist, JUMP VIP, 24/7 Nonstop Dancer, ADA Regional Dancer of the Year, Kids for Kids Diamond Dancer and Hall of Fame Inductee. Jillian began teaching classes and private lessons while a student at Seven Star School and officially joined the faculty as a teacher and choreographer upon graduation. She soon joined the staff of several other studios in the New York and Connecticut area as well.  Her work has been recognized with multiple choreography awards and honors. While Jillian loves teaches all styles, her true passion is tap. In 2019, she was honored to organize and coordinate a group of over thirty dancers from the tri- state area who qualified to represent the United States at the World Tap Championships in Riesa, Germany. Collectively, the Team earned six medals for the United States. In early 2020, Jillian formed the American Dance Collaborative, an official member of the United States Dance Sport Competition Federation, to continue her efforts in bringing together dancers and choreographers to represent the United States at international events.

Sarah Zaczek love for dance began at the age of 2, where she trained in all styles of dance including ballet, tap, jazz, hip-hop, lyric, contemporary and modern. Her training began under Sharon DiCrosta and Alicia Monaco at the Dancer’s Studio in North Haven, CT. She continued her dance education at Gloria Jean’s Studio of Dance under Stacy Eastman and Amanda Castro. In her time as a competitive dancer, Sarah competed up and down the East Coast winning multiple solo and team awards. Among these awards are multiple titles and top score awards, including Kids for Kids Diamond Dancer, invitations to National Dance Teams, Highest Scoring National Solo, and more. Along with competing, Sarah was given the opportunity to perform in professional dance showcases. Amongst them was “Impressions”, an on-Broadway showcase of professional and upcoming professional artists, which Sarah was invited to at the early age of 18. Upon graduating college, Sarah decided to continue exploring her passion for dance by declaring dance as her minor at Curry College. There, she studied under Christine Bennett-Richard, Barbra Sholes, and Stephanie Madden Rainie. She was also a member and choreographer for the Curry College Dance Team. Between her dance program and the college dance team, she was given multiple opportunities to choreograph, compete, and perform. Among these opportunities was competing at the UDA Nationals held in Walt Disney World, broadcasted by ESPN. Sarah’s lifelong love of dance, her passion for teaching, her patience and natural ability to highlight strengths in her students are some of the many qualities she brings to the Cheshire Performing Arts Academy.

Assistants

We are so thankful for our classroom teaching assistants as well! They are each teen and preteen students who have taken special interest in working with younger students. They are so helpful in making sure classes with some of our youngest dancers run smoothly. They are role models in their dancing and beyond and we are so grateful to have them.