Please join us in welcoming our new faculty members for 2019/20! We are incredibly fortunate to have these educators on board with us for the school year. A few faces may look familiar too!
Laura Montgomery joined us midway through last year teaching Pre-Ballet & Pre-Jazz; Meg Philbrook was a delightful addition to our preschool staff late last fall; Maegan Eichinger taught several dance/movement camps this summer; and Natalie Morton led the Beginning Contemporary Jazz summer dance series this August! Kate Fooshee and Kate Sonawane may be new to teaching at Arts Together but are not new to our community.
Maegan Eichinger, Dance Instructor
A North Carolina native, Maegan Eichinger started dancing at the age of three at Dance Productions in Charlotte. She danced on the competition team throughout high school until she graduated. A mountain lover, Maegan went on to attend Appalachian State University and was a member of the ASU Dance Team and the ASU Dance Ensemble. She attended the Alvin Ailey Contemporary Jazz workshop in 2009 and the American Dance Festival in 2011. After graduating with a Bachelor of Science in Advertising with a Creative Emphasis and a minor in Dance Studies, Maegan then danced as a Carolina Panthers cheerleader during the 2012-2013 season. She also continued to dance for ASU faculty, Sherone Price and Emily Daughtridge. Maegan is excited to be a dance instructor at Arts Together this year and is grateful to be teaching and dancing with the other instructors in this community!
SIGN UP for Maegan’s class: Pre-Ballet & Creative Dance (ages 5-7) on Saturday mornings
Kate Fooshee, Dance Instructor
Kate Fooshee grew up dancing from a young age and has studied classical ballet, modern, jazz, hip hop, pointe and choreography. She is certified in the Cecchetti Method of ballet and has danced with Tanya Rathbun, Florencia Guerrier, Ballet Magnificat and Charleston Ballet Theatre. She graduated from Longleaf School of the Arts with a dance endorsement and since then, has been working in an elementary school and as a camp counselor. A few years ago, Kate assisted the Creative Dance & Hip Hop class at Arts Together. She is excited to be back as an instructor, sharing her love of dance!
SIGN UP for Kate’s class: Hip Hop Kids (ages 7-9) on Saturday mornings
Laura Montgomery, Dance Instructor
A New Orleans native, Laura Montgomery is a visual and performance artist who loves the creative process. She has participated in numerous dance intensives and workshops nationally and studied Dance Performance and Choreography at Sam Houston State University. Laura holds a BA in Fine Arts from the University of New Orleans and will graduate the Spring of 2020 with an MA in Business Design and Arts Leadership through the Savannah College of Art and Design. Since moving to Raleigh, Laura has found her dance home at Arts Together, where she has been a member of Rainbow Dance Co. for four years and is now a dance educator. Recently, she embarked on a new career path in arts administration as a United Arts Council of Raleigh and Wake County graduate intern and fundraising gala coordinator, as well as an administrator for Black Box Dance Theatre. Through Black Box, Laura has also had the opportunity to perform and work with military, veterans, children and movers of all ages across North Carolina.
SIGN UP for Laura’s class: Beginning Modern Technique (ages 8-10) on Wednesday afternoons
Natalie Morton, Dance Instructor
Natalie Morton has been teaching various dance styles including modern, contemporary and jazz in the Triangle area for over 20 years and is currently on faculty at the Ballet School of Chapel Hill, Raleigh School of Ballet, Saint Mary’s School and Carolina Ballet’s Summer Intensive program. She is delighted that the 2019-20 school year will be her first full year as an Arts Together instructor. Natalie is also a founding member of Black Box Dance Theatre and a principal dancer with Black Irish. She received her BA in Dance/Theater from Meredith College and has performed over the years with Rebecca Amis & Whirlwind Dancers, Gerri Houlihan, Independent Dance Makers, Laura Dean and others. She is the mother of two teenage boys and two fur boys.
SIGN UP for Natalie’s class: Beginning/Intermediate Modern Technique (ages 11-15) on Monday evenings
Meg Philbrook, Multi-Arts Class Instructor & Preschool Assistant
Meg Philbrook is thrilled to be back at Arts Together for a second year as a preschool assistant, in addition to teaching her new afternoon class, The Art in Nature, for three-to-five-year-olds! She has spent the summer months working on a vegetable farm planning the curriculum for The Art in Nature, and her hope is to share her passion of sensory learning through exploration of the seasons. A Raleigh native who proudly claims the south as home, Meg feels most alive in motion, whether it be by foot or bicycle. She would never claim herself to be a poet but keeps multiple pen-pals nearby. Observing and exploring community settings brings her inspiration as well as wooded spaces, and on Saturday mornings, she is often found wandering local farmers markets. Meg graduated from Appalachian State University with a degree in Psychology and Dance Studies.
SIGN UP for Meg’s class: The Art in Nature (ages 3-5) on early Friday afternoons
Kate Sonawane, Preschool Assistant & Instructor
Kate Sonawane is the most recent addition to our preschool faculty but is definitely not new to Arts Together! After taking dance classes at Arts Together as a child, she was fortunate enough to have her own three children attend the Preschool for a collective nine blissful years. From an early age, Kate was drawn to creative pursuits such as writing, movement and visual art. After graduating from UNC-Chapel Hill with a degree in Women's Studies, she spent a few years working as a business consultant in New York City and Philadelphia before settling in Raleigh. More recently, she has served in a variety of volunteer positions at her children’s public schools in Wake County. Kate absolutely adores being around young minds, bodies and hearts, and is thrilled to be teaching at Arts Together.
Kari Martin Hollinger, Communications & Development Manager