Want to sponsor this event? Email us at cdpcompany501c3@gmail.com for details on how you can support healthy dancers in Cleveland and gain exposure in the dance community, starting at rates of $50

Big thanks to our sponsors thus far: Cleveland Dance Project & Limelight Coworking

11:30am-12:15pm Energy Management with Theresa Holland

Energy refers to physical and mental readiness to take action. It is a natural biochemical resource that can give us the ability to perform incredibly well, but if it is mismanaged, it can actually disrupt our performance (ie- fear, anxiety, anger can lead to the "choking" phenomenon). It is essential for athletes and artists to learn how to conserve, manage, interpret, and maximize their energy in productive ways to augment their performance and overall wellbeing. Topics covered include identifying & reframing emotions to optimize one’s performance; increasing or decreasing arousal levels (psych up or calm down); managing stress/anxiety; increasing focus & attention to relevant tasks

Theresa (Bonvissuto) Holland began her training with Joanne Morscher and Ana Lobe at The Royal School of Ballet. She furthered her training in the Mercyhurst University Dance Department under the direction of Tauna Hunter, receiving a Bachelor of Arts in Dance. Her professional career began with Ohio Dance Theatre, continued with Neos Dance Theatre, Cleveland Ballet, and North Pointe Ballet. Theresa has danced principal and soloist roles in Paquita (Paquita), The Nutcracker (Sugar Plum Fairy, Snow Queen, Dew Drop), Peter Pan (Wendy), Raymonda (Soloist), and Ramon Oller’s Coppélia (Friend). Noteworthy contemporary repertoire includes Robert Wesner’s Searching for the Find, Dracula, Homage, A 1940’s Nutcracker, Joseph Morrissey’s Suite for Strings, and a featured tango in Ramon Thielen’s My Cycle of Love. Theresa has performed as a guest artist with The Lake Erie Ballet, City Ballet of Cleveland, Canton Ballet, Ballet Theatre of Ohio, Holmes Center for the Arts, Central Ohio Youth Ballet, and Dance Arts by Regina, appearing as the Sugar Plum Fairy and Snow Queen in The Nutcracker. Today, she continues to perform as a freelance artist and trains with the renowned instructor and former principal ballerina Pam Pribisco. Alongside her professional career, Theresa has been teaching and choreographing in the Northeast Ohio area for over fourteen years. She has had the privilege of judging at OhioDance Masters. In addition, Theresa was the Ballet Mistress at Artistry in Motion Dance Center for seven seasons and served as Ballet Mistress and Rehearsal Assistant for North Pointe Ballet. Her choreography has been presented in multiple avenues, including the prestigious OhioDance Festival, Kent State University’s Dance Concerts, Cleveland Dance Project’s Showcases and Community Collaboration Show, and Cleveland Dance Fest. Theresa is a part-time faculty member at Kent State University, where she earned a master's degree in educational psychology and now teaches Psychology of Coaching in the Department of Teaching, Learning, and Curriculum Studies. She serves as the Ballet Director at Center Stage Dance Studio in Northfield and is Artistic Director of their Ballet Training Program.

Anna Cerveny began her dance training under Joanne Morscher at the Royal School of Ballet at the age of 7. She received her BS in Chemistry from Carnegie Mellon University and her Doctor of Physical Therapy from Columbia University. During her 7 years of school, she spent much of her time dancing, choreographing, and directing her university's respective dance organizations and taking dance classes at Pittsburgh Ballet Theater and Broadway Dance Center. After graduating in 2013, Anna spent a year traveling internationally as the physical therapist for the Tony-winning Broadway play, "WarHorse", and taking dance classes around the world. Currently she is the founder and director of Cleveland Dance Project and works at University Hospitals as a senior physical therapist and the founder of UH's dance rehabilitation program, where she works with dancers from around the greater Cleveland area, including Cleveland Ballet and the Case Western dance program. Anna developed the pre-season baseline testing for the Cleveland Ballet, and has worked closely with the company in creating a cross-training program to keep the dancers performing at 100%. She also is the physical therapist for CDP Company, where she has taught injury prevention and cross training classes for local studios and dance companies, as well as developed their movement and mindfulness outreach. It’s her passion to help dancers prevent career-ending injuries, as well as give them tools to reduce the daily aches & pains that come with the high demands of dance, making their bodies the most efficient that they can be!

1:00-1:30 Energize your space with Michelle Trotta

Michelle Trotta is driven by her passion to assist others in minimizing exposure to toxins in their daily lives. A year before welcoming her first child, she dedicated herself to adopting healthier alternatives in beauty, food, and cleaning products. This deliberate shift ignited a fervent desire within her to share the knowledge she gained with others. Excited to guide individuals on their toxin-free journey, Michelle offers valuable tips on initiating this transformative process. Her insights revolve around fostering mindfulness towards ingredient lists, easing the transition to healthier alternatives, and ensuring it becomes an enjoyable lifestyle shift for a holistic well-being.

1:30-2:15pm Guided Meditation & Introduction to Reiki with Cathy Santori

This class will cover the benefits of meditation and Reiki, focusing on physical wellness, practice meditation and self-Reiki as a group, practice compassionate goal achievement, and give you tools to manage pain.

Cathy Santori is a Reiki Master Teacher, an American Nurse, and a Holistic Nurse Credentialed Board-Certified RN Life and Well-Being Coach with a Practitioner Certificate in Transpersonal Meditation and Imagery. She has been using Meditation in her practice since the 1980s.

Jessica Bennett’s dance career led to her curiosity in Yoga, because many choreographers were using the practice to warm up the mind and body for rehearsals and performances. Her yoga practice became a priority, for not just physical benefits, but for emotional and spiritual health as well. In 2014, she completed her 200 hr RYT at Yoga Vida NYC, a program grounded in Vinyasa with influences of Ashtanga. Jessica completed the Yoga intensive at Parmarth Niketan Ashram, where she was able to sharpen her skills and knowledge of yoga philosophy, pranayama, meditation, and chanting. Learning from lifelong yogis in the homeland of the practice was incredibly influential on her teaching. In 2017, she completed her Prenatal Yoga Teacher Training certificate through Blooma Yoga at Kripalu Center For Yoga & Health in Massachusetts. Her interest and passion for breath work was deepened because of its benefits for pregnancy, labor, and childbirth. She is currently completing her masters in Clinical Mental Health Counseling at the University of Akron where she hopes to integrate her passion for mindfulness and movement with her focus on mental health and becoming a licensed counselor. Jessica can be found teaching a variety of classes at Yoga Place, Yoga Central, CDP Studios and for private clients.  Jessica's classes are a movement meditation with an emphasis on alignment and breath. When leading a class, she hopes to meet each student where their body, mind, and soul are at! 

The Dancer Wellness Workshop, as a part of our Community Wellness Project, is supported in part by the residents of Cuyahoga County through a public grant from Cuyahoga Arts & Culture.