Sharon Wehner, Owner/Instructor
Sharon Wehner is a dancer, teacher, and movement coach. She enjoyed a fulfilling 22-year career as a Principal Dancer with the Colorado Ballet and has had the opportunity to travel the world as a guest artist, working with companies and renowned choreographers throughout her field. She currently performs as a freelance artist and teacher and recently made Denver Dance Center the home of her Dance and Movement Coaching business. Sharon loves working with people of all ages and abilities to find more health, vitality, and joy in their bodies through modalities such as ballet, yoga, Dance for Parkinson’s disease and mobility challenges, and the GYROTONIC® and GYROKINESIS® methods. She runs a mentoring program for teen and pre-professionals to help aspiring dancers develop holistic mind-body practices that support their dance journeys. Sharon is also a certified sports nutrition coach and member of the International Association of Dance Medicine.
Since moving to Colorado in 1995, Sharon has enjoyed being an active member of the Dance and Arts community throughout Colorado. She is passionate about making quality dance opportunities available to all populations, which is why she is honored to take on the reins of Denver Dance Center in October 2023. She believes that DDC is an integral part of the Colorado dance community and is excited to carry the legacy that Kris Kehl began, forward into the future…supporting the dancers, teachers, and companies that call DDC their home.
You can learn more about Sharon Here:
https://sharonwehner.com/about-me/
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Kris Kehl, Founder
Seeing a need to make ballet accessible to those who had never danced as well as those who wished to continue to dance for the joy of it, Kris took over the struggling adult program when she became a company member of Colorado Ballet. Beginning with two students, Kris taught evening classes after full days of rehearsal. The program grew through two studio moves and twenty years as a result of Kris’ dedication. When she stopped performing in 1998, Kris focused on expanding the offerings for adult students. The program now covers a full range of ability from beginners to professionals/former professionals. In 2002 the Executive Director of Colorado Ballet at the time suggested that Kris take ownership of the adult program (run as a part of the academy until then) and run it as an independent business while remaining in the Colorado Ballet studio space. The summer of 2009 provided the opportunity to open and move her expanding adult program to a home of its own, Denver Dance Center. The space also provides a rental venue to other teachers and professionals to teach and create.
Coming to Colorado Ballet as a dancer in 1985, Kris performed as a soloist from 1988 to 1995. Favorite roles/performances include Marzipan in Nutcracker, Balanchine’s ballets Seranadeand Concerto Barroco, Pas de Trois in Swan Lake, dancing the Black Swan pas de deux in Joinville, Brazil; and performing Raymonda’s Act III variation in Rosario, Argentina. Her choreography includes children’s parts in the Nutcracker (for which she was Children’s Rehearsal Director for Colorado Ballet), Viola for Cleo Parker Robinson Dance Ensemble, andAmahl and the Night Visitors for Opera Colorado.
Kris’ teaching experience encompasses far more than the adult program at Colorado Ballet studios. She was company teacher for Cleo Parker Robinson Dance Ensemble and for David Taylor Dance Theater, and staff teacher at the Denver School of the Art, at Canyon Concert Ballet, and at Cherry Creek Dance. Most recently, she was invited to be a guest teacher for Opus Ballet Camaro Santiago Chile, for Aspen Santa Fe Ballet, and for the Vail International Dance Festival. Other guest teaching includes Festival de Danca Rosario, Rosario Argentina; Festival de Dancas do Mercosul, Bento Goncalves, Brazil; Xlll Festival de Danca de Joinville, Joinville, Brazil; Ballet Hawaii; Orange County Dance Center; and Ballet Charlotte.
Kris began her training with Larry Boyette and studied at American Ballet Theater, Joffrey Ballet, Houston Ballet Academy, New York Conservatory of Dance, and with Larissa Sklyanskaya, David Howard, Martin Fredmann, Elizabeth Douchard (Paris) and Sergei Kozadaev.
Kris teaches adult ballet at Denver Dance Center Mondays, Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays. See the main schedule for times.
