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THE ACADEMY

INSTRUCTORS / GUEST SPEAKERS

Teri Lea Acting Instructor at Ignite Per

TERI LEA

ACTING //  DANCE

Teri Lea has been in theater, film and video production for over 20 years.  She is an alumni of the Adelphi University Theater Department and spent 10 years in New York City in all aspects of the entertainment industry, including Producing, Casting, Set Design, Wardrobe, and Choreography.  
Her experience spans from Theater and Cabaret shows, to Film, TV and Commercials. Her acting credits include A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Nunsense, The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie, Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead, Baby with the Bathwater, Not Every Beginning is Beautiful, and Emma. 
She’s also written, directed, choreographed and performed in shows such as Yet Another Church Christmas Production, This is Not The End, The King Is Here, A Christmas Story: The Lost Translation,  Luminaire, and the hit comedy, A Star is Born.

Sarah De Groot for Ignite Performing Art

SARAH DE GROOT

ARTIST'S OPEN STUDIO  // GUEST DIRECTOR

Sarah was born and raised in Monroeville, AL, literary capital of the US. It was there that she fell in love with storytelling and pursued her dreams of becoming a film director at Full Sail University. Since Full Sail, she’s honed in on her craft by writing and directing stories that focus on aspects of family, mental health, and situations thrust upon us that sometimes we just can’t handle.  She's written and directed films such as "Daddy" and "Emma" and is currently working on set for the hit TV Show "Dynasty".  She has many more projects in the works and is excited to share them with you!

Christopher James for Ignite Performing

CHRISTOPHER JAMES

ACTING // HARMONICA

Christopher began his creative journey playing music.  Guitar, Drums, Harmonica, Keys, and anything else he could get his hands on. While music is his first love, acting and dance have quickly become passions as well.

His acting career began with a bang when he was thrown into a show 2 days before Opening Night.  He learned his lines in less than a day and learned his blocking during his costume fitting at the final dress rehearsal.  And he's never looked back...

When he's not teaching or performing, you'll more than likely find him on his surfboard in the middle of the ocean. 

Sarah Panayiotou Dance Instructor at Ign

SARAH PANAYIOTOU

DANCE AND MOVEMENT

Sarah Panayiotou is a dance artist originally from Denville, New Jersey and currently resides in New York City. She began her training at New Jersey School of Ballet and in 2016, Sarah graduated from Marymount Manhattan College with a BFA in Dance under the direction of Katie Langan. In addition, she completed a minor in Arts for Communities and is passionate about interdisciplinary work.

Sarah is driven by what is just, beautiful, and true, and translates the pain of injustice through her choreography and entrepreneurial passion.  Known for her use of raw content to drive her athletic movement to new levels, she aims to unite the world with a common language and devotedly believes that dance IS that universal language. As an emerging choreographer, she founded BABEL, a New York City based dance company that partners with nonprofit organizations to create dance films for fundraisers, conferences, and social media to increase the rate at which they make an impact.

Sarah manifests her visions through the use of dance film, live performances, and missions, to bring professionally trained dancers and captivating movement to the front lines of discussions. She loves collaborations, intellectual discussions, naps, and chocolate ice cream!

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NATALIE SHIPMAN

IMPROV

Natalie Shipman has taught, coached, and performed improvisational theatre for 20 years. She trained in Chicago at The Second City, iO Chicago, and ComedySportz theatres, and performed and wrote sketch comedy as a Second City Touring Company cast member.

She now resides in Las Vegas, and has continued to write and perform comedy as well as co-founded the Vegas Theatre Hub as an improv curriculum instructor and designer. She has taught and coached improv for the stage to hundreds of local students and applied improv to organizations of all shapes and sizes.

Natalie believes that improvisation is not just for fun, though it is extremely fun. The lessons learned in improv can and should be applied to every area of life – business and social, personal and professional. It has shaped her life and work, and she looks forward to helping it transform yours!

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RYAN NEUFELD

IMPROV

Ryan Neufeld is a Co-Founder of Vegas Improv Power as well as the Managing Director of Vegas Theatre Hub. Although he didn’t come from a theatre background, he jumped in with both feet once he experienced the magic of improv.

He’s trained and performed at ComedySportz Las Vegas, iO West in L.A., Vegas Theatre Hub, and Bovine Metropolis in Denver. In addition to performing with several teams, he’s brought in other skills to help in many roles including Musical Director, piano accompanist, Technical Operator and Manager (lights, audio, video), and Stage Manager.

But Ryan found his passion in teaching and coaching students, teams, as well as non-performers. He enjoys exploring ways that improv can apply both on and off stage, such as in our business and personal worlds, and how the skills can help people in all areas of life, from anxiety to public speaking.

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