Lisa Aldridge
Grades and Class Tests Examiner for the Imperial Classical Ballet Faculty

Lisa trained at Elmhurst Ballet School. She is currently Head of Ballet at Swindon College where she teaches on the Foundation Dance Course. She is Principal of Dance Point Studio, is a Classical Ballet teacher at Corraine Collins Dance Studios, and works part time at Elmhurst School for Dance and the Italia Conti Academy of Theatre Arts.

As a performer, Lisa has danced with the Ballet Company of Innsbruck, Austria, National Dance Council of Malta, Central Academy of Ballet, also in Malta, and in a film for the Portuguese Film Festival.

Jayne Cooper
Grades and Class Tests Examiner for the Imperial Classical Ballet Faculty

A Fellow of the Imperial Ballet Faculty, Associate of the Royal Academy of Dance and a graduate of the Royal Ballet School TTC, Jayne is currently a freelance teacher. She was Principal of her own dance school in the New Forest for 11 years but is now Head of Dance at Stonelands School of Ballet and Theatre Arts and is a teacher at the Royal Ballet School Junior Associate Centre in Poole. She also has pupils come to her for private tuition and enjoys guest teaching.

Jayne enjoys attending Classical Greek Dance competitions and events and was delighted to be invited to adjudicate their Choreographic Competition last year.

She is a Dance Adjudicator for the British and International Federation of Music, Dance and Drama Festivals and loves adjudicating Festivals around the UK.

Fleur Jones
Grades and Class Tests Examiner for the Imperial Classical Ballet Faculty

Fleur is a graduate of the Royal Ballet School Teacher Training Course and holds the Fellowship in Imperial Ballet. She is a highly experienced teacher having co-owned and directed Stonelands School of Ballet and Theatre Arts, working in the capacity of Head of Dance for over seven years. She has the ability to work with vocational pupils at all levels, having a particular skill of working with children through to professional students. She has a strong track record of obtaining excellent results.

Fleur, a former pupil of Bush Davies School and Royal Ballet School, has taught as a freelance teacher in Texas, Germany and London. She was the recipient of the ISTD Mavdor Scholarship in 1998 and is currently studying for an MA in Ballet Studies at Roehampton University.

Valerie Jones
Grades to Intermediate Examiner for the Modern Theatre and Tap Faculties

Valerie trained at the Merseyside Dance Centre, both as a junior and full time student. She has since achieved Fellowship status in Tap and Modern Theatre and Licentiate Diploma status in Imperial Ballet. She also holds the RAD Teaching Certificate and Diploma.

Valerie is an experienced dance professional who continues to combine both teaching and choreography. In the past she has taught in Herefordshire, Liverpool and Sydney, Australia. She currently teaches with a successful track record in choreography and teaching at an advanced level. She currently teaches at Merseyside Dance and Drama Centre and Liverpool John Moores University.

Choreographic work includes trade shows, regional theatre and regional tours.

Beverley Rand
Grades and Class Tests Examiner for the Imperial Classical Ballet Faculty

Beverley currently teaches at her own school in Fleet, Hampshire, formed in 1982, freelances in Southampton and is a member of the Ballet staff at Italia Conti in London. She teaches Ballet, Modern Tap and National, both Grades and Vocational.

Beverley began teaching at the age of three with Averil Piggott in Gosport, with frequent visits to Bush Davies, Romford. After A levels, she trained full time with Ruth French in London before dancing professionally with Ballet Minerva.

Last year Beverley achieved Fellowship status in Imperial Ballet.

Denise Rinaldi
Grades and Class Tests Examiner for the Cecchetti Ballet Faculty

Denise's early training was with Carol Garland. Through Ms Garland, Denise was introduced to Shiela Darby, who became her principal teacher for many years, entering her for most of her exams through to Fellowship. It was Mrs Darby who continually challenged and encouraged her to continue on and strive toward becoming an examiner.

Denise also studied at the University of California, Santa Barbara, where she received a degree in Theatre and had the opportunity to study with many fine teachers.

She was a soloist with Goleta Civic Ballet for ten years and performed numerous roles with the company. She also danced with many independent choreographers in Santa Barbara and Los Angeles. In 1983 she set her first choreography and was the winner of the NARB Monticello Scholarship to the Craft of Choreography Conference from the Pacific Region.

She is currently co-owner of the Santa Barbara Ballet Center and Artistic Director of the Santa Barbara Festival Ballet. She has served on the Western Committee of the Cecchetti Society USA for many years, has served as secretary of the Ceccehtti Society USA and is currently a member of the Board of Directors.

Linda Shipton
Grades and Class Tests Examiner for the Imperial Classical Ballet Faculty

For the last 30 years, Linda has been Principal of the Linda Shipton School of Dancing in Ipswich, a role she took over immediately after leaving college, the Bush Davies School in Romford, Essex. The pupil roll was then 100, but she has increased that total to 300.

She has had considerable success training students for professional careers and is proud to have had past pupils dancing in various parts of the world, including soloists and artists in the Royal Ballet Company, English National Ballet, West End and television productions.

She annually prepares pupils for the Imperial Ballet Awards and has enjoyed many successes, and has had students dancing with the National Youth Ballet since its inception.

In addition to her school, Linda is a Senior Tutor of the Suffolk County Ballet Scholarship Scheme, which offers talented children two classes a week as a supplement to their normal lessons. She is jointly responsible for the structure and development of the classes and annual auditions.

Linda is an ISTD Area Organiser for the East Anglian region, and has been since 1997, responsible for arranging the twice yearly day courses.

Catherine Smirles
Grades to Intermediate Examiner for the Modern Theatre and Tap Faculties

Catherine began her dance training at Tanwood School of Dancing, Swindon and continued at Hammond School, Chester. She later trained with Karen King at The Teachers Centre, Eltham where she achieved Fellowship status in Modern Theatre. Catherine is also a Fellow of the Imperial Ballet Faculty and is an Imperial Ballet Grades examiner, appointed in August 2000.

Since 2000, Catherine has been Artistic Director for the Opera Ballet School in Kristiansund, Norway, concurrently teaching first year dance at Atlanten Sixth Form College. Previous work experience has been with the Teachers Centre, Eltham, taking Major Ballet classes, Sarah Goffe Theatre School, Leighton Buzzard, where she taught Grade Ballet and Major Modern and Tap, and teaching all styles at all levels for the Opera Ballet School in Kristiansund.

Catherine has choreographed a number of works, including Sparkling Sinatra, a cabaret performed earlier in 2003, a modern Ballet created with composer Kari Beate Tandberg, as part of the Norwegian National Ballet's Ballet Laboratory, and several opera and ballet performances for the Opera in Kristiansund.

Tracey Wring
Grades to Intermediate Examiner for the Modern Theatre and Tap Faculties

Tracey began dancing at the Bristol School of Dancing at the age of 5. At 16 she studied at the Doreen Bird College of Performing Arts. Here, as well as holding the position of Head Girl, she studied Ballet, Tap, National and Modern and also trained in acting and singing.

Since leaving college, Tracey taught at East Herts College and is currently Head of Dance at the Broxbourne branch of The Jason Theatre School. She has also been a guest teacher at numerous summer schools, including The Bristol School of Dancing, Kingslocombe School in Cambridge and at the Morelia School of Dance in Mexico.

She has attained her Fellowship examinations in Tap and in Modern (with distinction), and also her Licentiate Ballet, Associate National and Licentiate Diplomas.

Tracey has also appeared in various productions, including pantomimes and summer seasons, fashion shows and cabaret.