Faculty
Margaret Rose Kenrick - Benicia Ballet School Director, Benicia Ballet Theatre Artistic Director
Ms Kenrick began her dance training at the age of four with Riverside Ballet Theatre, continuing with Redlands Festival Ballet, and Pacific Northwest Ballet School in Seattle. She performed professionally for Pacific Northwest Ballet and Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre, traveling throughout the United States and appearing in major cultural venues, including the Kennedy Center, Washington, D.C. Ms Kenrick appeared in the Nutcracker movie, released by Atlantic Productions, 1987, and made her first guest appearance as the Sugar Plum Fairy for Redlands Festival Ballet. After completing a BA from UC Los Angeles and a MA from UC Riverside in biological sciences she moved to the bay area to begin a career in the biotech industry. Currently she is a Senior Research Associate with Genentech. In her spare time with her family by her side she has taught, choreographed and performed with Benicia Ballet Theatre, Valley Dance Theatre of Livermore, and the Community Youth Center in Concord. She was awarded two grants by Berlex Biosciences to sponsor volunteer work in this artistic endeavor, including an educational seminar on nutrition for dancers. After 12 years with Benicia Ballet Theatre and Benicia Ballet School Ms Kenrick steps into the role of Artistic Director with great excitement and pride in the community that now surrounds her.
Jeanie Pors - Founding Director of Benicia Ballet Theatre and School and RAD Program Director
Ms Pors began her ballet training at the age of five with Coleen Hope of Medford Oregon and later trained with Maria and Donald Dare of Portland, OR. At age of 17, she received a Ford Foundation Scholarship to San Francisco Ballet School where she trained with Lew and Herald Christenson. As a performer, Ms Pors danced as a member of Ballet Oregon and Alan Howard’s Pacific Ballet Company of San Francisco. She has received extensive classical ballet training in the Russian, Italian, and English (RAD) methods of ballet training and is a registered teacher with the Royal Academy of Dance. In 1986, Ms Pors founded Benicia Ballet School. Benicia Ballet Theatre she then founded in 1991 as a non-profit community dance company.
Dalene Waranietz - Administrator
Dalene retired from the corporate world after 26 years as an Administrative Assistant/Office Manager. She has been with Benicia Ballet School & Theatre for five years. Dalene is the voice on the phone; answers your questions and invites you to try out our classes. She also has 25 years of behind the scenes in Community Theater. Dalene is the liaison to the Benicia Arts and Cultural Commission and Benicia Chamber of Commerce.
Sally Babson - Faculty, Performer, and Choreographer
Ms Babson began dancing at the age of four with Lodena Edgumbs School of Dance in Vallejo where she studied ballet, tap, and jazz. As an adult she has studied modern dance, jazz, the dance of Isadora Duncan, ballet and Flamenco. She has performed throughout the San Francisco Bay are as a soloist and with several groups. She has performed a variety of roles in the Benicia Ballet Theatre Nutcracker and School Productions. Ms Babson is also the costume designer and seamstress for all of the Benicia Ballet performances.
David Fonnegra - Faculty, Performer, and Choreographer
Mr Fonnegra was born in Venezuela and was a principal dancer for the Ballet Nacionál de Caracas where he performed the leads in the great romantic ballets including Raymonda, Swan Lake, Giselle, and Don Quixote. After seeing Mr. Fonnegra on tour in 1995, Edward Villella invited him to join the Miami City Ballet where he danced many principal roles in their Balanchine repertory through 2001. He joined Diablo Ballet in 2004, where he has been featured in The Legend of Taj Mahal, Petrushka, Who Cares? and Stars and Stripes. In 2007, the Ballet Nacionál de Caracas presented Mr. Fonnegra with a National Culture Award in recognition of his success abroad in the field of classical ballet.
Katrena Cohea - Faculty, Performer, and Choreographer
Ms. Cohea was a student at Benicia Ballet school from ages 7- 17. She participated in annual BBT Nutcrackers and Showcases in her years with the school. She also participated in yearly RAD examinations and has passed her Advanced Foundation Exam, making her a member of the Royal Academy of Dance. She is also a trained Spanish and Flamenco dancer and was a company member of Carolina Lugo’s Brisas de Espana Flamenco and Spanish Dance Company for three years. She currently is the Head Dance Instructor at Community Youth Center in Concord and continues her dance studies with the San Francisco Conservatory of Dance.
Barbara Campbell - Faculty, Performer, and Choreographer
Barbara has had extensive training in ballet, modern dance and floor barre, bringing a great expansion to our training opportunities at Benicia Ballet School.
Barbara has studied ballet since the mid-1960s. She studied with Maria Vegh, formerly with Harkness Foundation, New York City, and with Alexi Ramov, formerly with Lehigh Valley Ballet Guild, Pennsylvania. She studied Floor-Barre(TM) with Zena Rommett in New York City. Barbara earned her MA in Dance from Mills College in Oakland, where her focus and research was on dance education. While there she studied modern dance with Mary Cochran, Molissa Fenley, and Anne Westwick. Barbara's focus as a dance teacher is to help each dancer develop healthy movement capability based on their individual strengths and to help each dancer expand their dance capabilities.
Jacquelyn Zilka - Faculty, Performer, and Choreographer
Mrs. Zilka began teaching at Benicia Ballet School in 2009. She was named Associate Artistic Director of Benicia Ballet Theatre that same year. Mrs. Zilka’s dance career began in 1986 at the age of 4 at Benicia Ballet School, the year Benicia Ballet was founded. She danced in the very first BBT’s performance of the Nutcracker and continued to perform annually in the Nutcracker and additional spring and summer performances. Mrs. Zilka also participated in yearly Royal Academy of Dance examinations. In addition to BBS, Mrs. Zilka attended summer dance schools in Canada and New York. She furthered her education at UCLA’s School of Theater, Film and Television, studying musical theater, and received her BS in Human Development from UC Davis. Mrs. Zilka is overjoyed to be a part of the Benicia Ballet family. She considers it her second home.
Charisse Garrett - Faculty, Performer, and Choreographer
Charisse Garrett "Saiedeh" started dancing at the age of 4 in San Diego. Her dance education included Tap, Jazz, Ballet, Modern, Hula/Tahitian, Gymnastics, Flamenco and Belly Dance. At the age of 16 she started teaching officially after many years apprenticing under her long time instructor, Leah Walker. Her dance has taken her on a vast and exciting journey, she is very happy her parents had the foresight to offer a well rounded education. She has now been teaching 44 years.
Charisse is the Director/Choreographer of Grateful Siren Belly Dance, formerly Sirens In Sanity. She and some of her students were the "Arabian Dancers" in Benicia Ballet's "The Nutcracker" in 2010 and 2011. She will be teaching Belly Dance Technique in Studio E, and this will be the new home for the Grateful Siren Belly Dance Company.
For further information, please call director Margaret Kenrick at (707)746-6757 or e-mail: info@benicia-ballet.org .