10/04/2026
✨ MEET THE FACULTY ✨
Get to know the incredible teachers who inspire, encourage, and help our dancers grow both in and out of the studio! 🩰💗
Swipe through to meet our faculty and discover a few fun facts about each of them! 👀✨
We’re so lucky to have this amazing team at Ballet Chesapeake! 🤍
Kait Weber - Executive Director & Principal
A fun fact about me could be that I am 87% Irish, with every relative I have from northwestern Ireland.
Sarah Brown - Managing Director
I’m obsessed with Harry Potter! My favorite book is the 6th one! Another Harry Potter fun fact: I went to the book release party at Barnes and Noble with my sisters when the 7th book came out.
Hans Nelson, DFCCA - Artistic Director
I have a collection of 58 books about ballet spanning texts from 1716 through the present, including the complete Bournonville days of the week, all of the Enrico and Grazioso Cecchetti manuals, a complete series of RAD syllabus books from 1935, and five Vaganova technique books. I have three books about teaching ballet technique generally and another three about teaching pas de deux, plus various biographies, books on ballet aesthetics, ballet dictionaries, etc.
I have a sweet 4 year old golden retriever who loves to dance with me!
Deborah Engerman - I’ve been a Vegetarian for over 25 years.
Clara Garcia - I really love to cook—to the point where I have entertained the idea of culinary school. But for now, I love being a home cook and learning different tricks and classic dishes, along with incorporating flavors and foods from my Puerto Rican culture.
Arianna Costantini
I play the piano. My favorite candy are almond joys. I visited family in Italy over the summer
Diane Brown
After my first ballet class when i was 4 years old, i immediately told my mom i wanted to be a ballet teacher when i grew up. Dreams do come true!
Sofia Tsanova
I’m fascinated by psychology, neuroscience, and human physiology! Learning all kind of things related to the human body has helped me grow as a human, a dancer, and a teacher.
Ashley Spears
I love cats, and have a Tabby named Chloe.
Emily Samuels
I’m a Ballet Chesapeake faculty member and a BC Company mom- I’ve had m