Holly Gannett is a dance educator with more than twenty years of experience as an instructor and choreographer at Kennebec Dance Centre. Holly is also the dance director at Snow Pond Arts Academy, Maine’s first performing arts charter high school.
Holly has been a guest instructor at Colby College, dance director at Thomas College and a dance educator at the University of Maine at Augusta in addition to other schools in Maine, New York, Massachusetts, New Jersey, Vermont, Indiana, and Wisconsin.
As master teacher and competition judge, Holly holds master classes across the country. Her concentration in teaching jazz and musical theatre encompasses much of her training in college from the techniques of: Luigi, Phil Black, Matt Maddox, Ron Lewis, Jack Cole, Bob Fosse, Gus Giordano and Tom Ralabate, Vaganova, Cecchetti, Limon, Taylor, and Balanchine.
For twelve years, Holly was the Fitness Program Supervisor at the Eastside Wellness Center in Augusta, Maine for MaineGeneral Medical Center. In this role, Holly performed duties as a personal trainer and instructor of Zumba, Cardio Kickboxing, and Pilates.
Holly began her dance training at Kennebec Dance Centre and with Andrei Bossov of the Kirov Ballet. Mr. Tom Ralabate recruited Holly to the State University of New York at Buffalo (UB) where she majored in dance. She is a 1999 graduate of UB with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in dance. As a member of the Golden Key National Honors Society, she graduated with honors achieving Magna Cum Laude status.
In Wausau, Wisconsin, Holly was employed by the Central Wisconsin School of Ballet to expand and develop the professional ballet school’s jazz, tap, and musical theatre programs. While in Wausau, Holly had the opportunity to choreograph for The Carnival of the Animals, which was narrated by actor Tony Randall.
Holly’s musical theatre performance and choreography credits include the roles of: Dance Captain for the US premier of Fame Forever, Carmen Diaz in Fame, Ariel Moore in Footloose, Marge in Suds, June (Squish) in Chicago, Adelaide in Guys & Dolls, as well as dancing ensemble roles in Cabaret, Oklahoma, Little Shop of Horrors, West Side Story, Man of La Mancha, and Working.