Robert has directed the Central Ohio Youth Ballet for 28 years. For the company, he has restaged a number of full length story ballets including La Fille Mal Gardée, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Giselle and The Nutracker and he has set dozens of shorter original ballets. Robert’s solid background in classical ballet gives him a solid foundation upon which to draw his ideas and to engage his skill in adapting these works to his young cast of dancers, while maintaining much of the character, story and movement of the traditional works.

Robert danced for five years with the National Ballet of Canada, considered one of the world’s top tier ballet companies. While there, he was fortunate to have worked under the direction of Alexander Grant and Eric Bruhn. While with the company, he toured throughout Canada, Europe and the United States performing numerous character and soloist roles. A few that he particularly enjoyed were Puck in A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Alain in La Fille Mal Gardée and The Short Guy (hamming it up) in Elite Syncopations.

Robert’s early training was in response to an ankle injury he sustained as a high school athlete. Upon the advice of his physical therapist, he began classes at Mary Lynn’s Ballet Arts (now California’s Riverside Ballet Arts), where he studied alongside noted dancers Darci Kistler and Kip Houston. Robert was a passionate student, finding that his athleticism and ability to perform blended into a field of study where he excelled. From his California base, he went on to train at the National Ballet School on a full scholarship and subsequently as a corps member of National Ballet of Canada.

Following his five years with the National Ballet of Canada, Bob turned his attention to develop his artistic skills as a photographer, as his foster father taught photography at the college level and was thrilled to mentor him. Robert worked professionally in photography for a few years, but was not quite finished with ballet and chose to go to New York to take a take a position with Dennis Wayne’s Dancers for a three month tour in Italy. Additionally, Robert has been a guest dancer with many regional companies and from 1994-2004, he taught ballet and choreographed numerous works for the Denison dance department.

Robert also founded The Ballet Academy in Newark, Ohio, a dance school that shares its home with the Central Ohio Youth Ballet, both emphasizing solid technique in primarily ballet and modern dance. He has continued his connection with the National Ballet School by periodically attending their summer teacher training sessions, working with neuromuscular specialist, Irene Dowd as well as the faculty at The NBS. Robert’s students have been accepted, many with scholarships, for further training at such schools as The National Ballet School, Julliard, Pacific Northwest Ballet, American Ballet Theatre, New York City Ballet, Boston Ballet, Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre, The Rock School, The Joffrey Ballet, The Kirov Academy, North Carolina School of the Arts, Alvin Ailey American Dance Theatre, the Gelsey Kirkland Academy and with David Howard. His students have also gone on to train, apprentice or dance professionally with companies including Munich Ballet, San Francisco Ballet, BalletMet, The Joffrey Ballet, Grand Rapids Ballet, Rochester City Ballet, Light of the World Ballet, and others.

In partnership with Robert Cole, Lisa Cole created the modern dance branch of the Central Ohio Youth Ballet. The intention was to create and offer a platform of solid training for dancers with specific interests; as a result, they could grow, develop, and thrive. With Lisa’s background in ballet and her breadth of training in Cunningham technique, Lewitzky technique and ballet, her vision for concert level work from the COYB dancers blended seamlessly with Robert’s.

Like Robert, Lisa’s ballet training base was mostly in California at Riverside Ballet Arts, with Bella Lewitzky Dance Company member Fred Strickler, and with UC Riverside faculty member Stephanie Gilliland. Like Robert, having come to dance late in life (her first dance class was at the age of 19), Lisa’s path in the field was unconventional. After training solidly in ballet and in modern dance, Lisa was accepted into the university based regional company Groundwork, directed by Stephanie Gilliland, where she danced for two years. From there, she began pursuing an MFA at Ohio State where she was thrilled to work with former Merce Cunningham Dance Company members Ellen Cornfield and Louise Burns. Lisa was encouraged to go to New York and pursue training at the Cunningham Studio, where she accepted a yearlong scholarship, and where she loved the intricacies and technicality of the work. Lisa’s path then led to teaching and choreographing for young dancers . She has choreographed dozens of modern pieces for The Central Ohio Youth Ballet which have been showcased in its spring productions. Other pieces were created for the Northeast Ohio Dance Festival and for the Ohio Dance Young Artists Showcase at The Capitol Theatre in Columbus. In addition to her dance training, Lisa holds a BS in Business Administration from the University of California Riverside where she graduated Phi Beta Kappa. Lisa also maintains full certification in Stott Pilates and maintains a studio in Newark, Ohio.

Kathleen's lifelong passion for dance began at the age of five, most notably at the Stamford City Ballet School of Dance where she trained with Allegra Kent. During her High School years, she studied at Walnut Hill School for the Arts in Natick, MA. As a senior there, she was invited to join Prometheus Dance for their tour to France. She furthered her training at New York University's Tisch School for the Arts, from which she received a BFA in Dance Performance. Following graduation, Kathleen accepted a position dancing with Prometheus Dance in Cambridge, MA. Kathleen loved touring and performing during her four years with the company. Their explorations using an adaptation of Jose Limon's technique suited her in many ways. Kathleen participated in many outreach programs with Prometheus, including integrated arts programming in the Boston area public schools. She also enjoyed teaching a modern dance class for boys at Walnut Hill. Kathleen is thrilled to be a part of the creative team for Central Ohio Youth Ballet. In her spare time, Kathleen enjoys skiing with her family of six, her herb garden, and practicing Yoga.

Michelle has a great interest in the execution, creation, and investigation of movement in bodies in the dance environment and in daily life. She was born in 1996, originally from Guadalajara, Jalisco, Mexico.

Michelle began her dance training with Irish Dance in 2012 and later trained in jazz and classical ballet at the same time as she was study3ing graphic design. Afterward, she began her degree in Contemporary Dance at Universidad de las Americas Puebla in Mexico. Michelle’s training specialized in practice, research, improvisation process, and creation. She has collaborated and participated in dance projects, performances, physical theater, musical theater, and international dance and video festivals with various international professionals in her artistic career.

Recently Michelle was married and moved to Mt. Vernon, where she currently resides. She is an affiliated scholar with the Department of Dance, Drama, and film at Kenyon College. She is also a teacher of Modern Dance at The Ballet Academy. Michelle is keen on creating and investigating original movement by having a dialogue with the body and soul instead of controlling it. She embraces her faith and believes it is a constant inspiration for movement.

Kylee has spent 15 years training in classical ballet, tap, jazz and modern dance at The Richland Academy in Mansfield. She is a recent graduate of Mount Vernon Nazarene University with a degree in criminal justice. She is thrilled to be teaching for TBA's introductory program this summer!