Faculty & Staff
Meet the Scarsdale Ballet Studio Faculty & Staff
Rosemary Saur
Owner and Director
Rosemary started dancing at the age of 7 and was accepted into the Conservatory at Bush Davies School by the age of 11, where she studied under the guidance of Noreen Bush. Her professional experience took her to Tel Aviv, Israel, where Ms. Saur performed with the Israeli Classical Ballet and later with the renowned modern company, Bat Dor. After returning to England she completed a teaching diploma at the Imperial Society of Teachers of Dancing in Bedford, before accepting a teaching position in Mainz, Germany. She also performed as a dancer at the Mainz State Theater. In 2010 Ms. Saur completed the Professional Dancer’s Teaching Diploma (P.D.T.D.) at the Royal Academy of Dance in London, England. She has been teaching at Scarsdale Ballet Studio since 2008 and took ownership in June 2023.
Diana White
Founder and Artistic Director Emeritus
Diana was a ballerina of the New York City Ballet under George Balanchine and Jerome Robbins. An internationally sought-after master teacher, she is also one of a select group of former dancers who have been chosen by the the George Balanchine Trust and the Robbins Rights Trust to stage their masterpieces on companies and schools world-wide.
Diana started dancing at age four and at age fourteen, became a member of the Lyric Opera of Chicago Ballet under the directorship of the legendary Maria Tallchief. There, she was seen by Balanchine, who awarded her a scholarship to the School of American Ballet. He invited her to join the New York City Ballet one year later.
Miriam Miller
Principal, NYC Ballet
Miriam Miller was born in Iowa City, Iowa, and began her dance training in 2001 at the University of Iowa Youth Ballet and School of Dance. In 2006, she began studying at City Ballet of Iowa. She attended summer courses at SAB in 2011 and 2012, enrolling as a full-time student during the 2012 winter term. Miller became an apprentice with NYCB in January 2015 and joined the Company as a member of the corps de ballet in January 2016. In January 2022, Miller was promoted to NYCB Soloist and to Principal in January 2025. Since joining the Company, Miller has performed featured roles in works by George Balanchine, Jerome Robbins, Peter Martins, Justin Peck, Christopher Wheeldon and Tiler Peck. She has also originated roles in works by Peck, Wheeldon, Lauren Lovette, and Pam Tanowitz. Miller is a recipient of the 2017 Princess Grace Award.
Yana Volkova
Ballet Teacher
Yukiko Matsubara
Ballet Teacher
Irina Lebedeva
Ballet Teacher
Irina Lebedeva received her professional training at the State Perm Ballet Academy and began her career with the Tchaikovsky Perm Opera and Ballet Theater. This institution carries a direct lineage to the Mariinsky (Kirov) Ballet of St. Petersburg, one of the most prestigious classical ballet traditions in the world.
She later performed as a principal dancer with the Leningrad Classical Ballet Company and the Moscow Festival Ballet, performing leading roles from the classical repertoire.
After relocating to the United States in 1990, Ms. Lebedeva continued her performance career with Eglevsky Ballet and other companies before transitioning into teaching. She has since trained dancers across the country and continues to coach and teach at a high professional level.
Sanford Placide
Ballet Teacher
Born in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, Sanford Placide began training in Afro-Caribbean and folkloric dance at age 11 before moving to the United States to study classical ballet. His extensive training includes Manhattan Youth Ballet, the French Académie of Ballet, and summer intensives with American Ballet Theatre and Dance Theatre of Harlem (DTH). Over a diverse professional career—including six seasons with DTH and engagements with Alberta Ballet, Ballet West II, and Charlotte Ballet—Placide has performed works by choreographers such as George Balanchine, William Forsythe, Nacho Duato, and Robert Garland, alongside frequent guest artist appearances nationwide.
Beyond the concert stage, Placide has been featured in international productions like Isadora at Moscow’s Stanislavski Theater, high-profile commercial campaigns, and print media. As the Founder and Creative Director of the Haitian cultural art collective UNI, launched in 2018 in partnership with the Consulate General of Haiti in New York, he has earned recognition for his dedication to preserving Haitian heritage while continuing to enrich the global dance landscape.
Emily Sarkissian
Ballet Teacher
Emily started dancing at age 5, and trained in Vaganova technique and contemporary ballet at Ballet New England, University of Utah, and Visceral Dance Center. She was a company member with Esoteric Dance Project, Kelly Anderson Dance Theater,
SilDance/AcroDanza, and a guest artist with Chicago Dance Crash, Elements Contemporary Ballet, the Fly Honey ensemble, and freelance artists in one-off projects.
In 2016, Emily choreographed and performed in the Emmy award-winning short film, Emergence, in collaboration with Potenza Productions, and in 2019 starred in the short
film, If The Mountain Comes via Quaronze Productions. Emily is based in NYC where she is both a company member of Lydia Johnson Dance, and freelance artist. She teaches ballet and creative movement for all ages.
Susan Sorota
Ballet Teacher
Susan is an experienced ballet instructor based in Northern Bergen County since 2007, offers classes for all levels, from young children to adults and pre-professionals, focusing on performance, competition, and audition preparation. She is an ABT Certified Teacher, trained in early childhood dance and children’s yoga, and currently pursuing Pilates certification. Sorota’s rich ballet background includes professional training at The New York School of Ballet and a B.F.A. in Dance from SUNY Purchase, alongside performances with several ballet companies. Before teaching full-time, she earned an M.S. in Computer Science and worked in software development, maintaining her passion for ballet through local productions. Residing in Northern NJ, Susan is a mother of three, with children who have pursued ballet through to professional levels.
Katherine Corp
Pilates Teacher
Katherine discovered Pilates while touring with The Magic of David Copperfield and used it to dance injury-free as a Radio City Rockette. She attained Pilates certification in 2000, and then co-founded Pilates Academy International in 2006 with her identical twin sister. To date, their program has certified thousands of instructors worldwide.
Vija Kemanis
Adult Ballet Teacher
Fronda Sobel
Adult Ballet Teacher
Rebecca Tschan
Ballet Teacher
Originally from New York, Rebecca Tschan is a professional dancer, rehearsal director, and educator who graduated summa cum laude from Butler University with a BFA in Dance Performance. Following her undergraduate studies, she trained in Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre’s Graduate Program, performing various corps de ballet roles in classical and contemporary repertory.
She is also fully certified in the ABT National Training Curriculum across all levels. Rebecca brings extensive experience teaching all ages and skill levels, from early childhood to pre-professional dancers and adults. Alongside her instructional work, she has served as Rehearsal Director for full-scale productions of The Nutcracker—managing rehearsal schedules, staging choreography, and liaising between artistic staff and families while performing principal roles. She is dedicated to fostering technical excellence, artistry, and strong administrative organization within every dance program.
Kayla Fields
Studio Admin & Ballet Teacher
Kayla began dancing at 4 years old and never stopped. She trained under Lisa & Peter Naumann at the New Paltz School of Ballet. At age 10, she was chosen to dance with the New York City Ballet in Coppelia. She later trained privately at Ballet Academy East with Tara Mora while taking class throughout the city as well as performing with the Dances Patrelle company in their Nutcracker. Kayla then moved to Boston to further her training at the Boston Ballet under the direction of Margaret Tracey. With the experience of learning from many different teachers, she started teaching and training dancers after moving back to upstate New York which led her to opening up her own studio. Kayla is now so excited to share her knowledge and experience with Scarsdale Ballet Studio!
Guest Faculty
Skylar Brandt
Gianna Vasquez Bartolini
Daniel Applebaum
He attended summer courses at the School of American Ballet (SAB), the official school of New York City Ballet, in 2000 and 2001, becoming a full time student that fall.
In October 2004, he became an apprentice with New York City Ballet and joined the corps de ballet in July 2005. Mr. Applebaum was promoted to soloist in October 2018.
Megan LeCrone
At age 14, she began studying with Melissa Hayden and Duncan Noble at the North Carolina School of the Arts in Winton-Salem. Ms. LeCrone entered the School of American Ballet (SAB), the official school of New York City Ballet, full-time in the fall of 2001, and in November 2001 she became an apprentice with New York City Ballet.
Ms. LeCrone joined the Company as a member of the corps de ballet in October 2002 and was promoted to soloist in February 2013.
Skyla Schreter
Daniel Ulbricht
He also studied at Les Jeunes Danseurs with Javier Dubraq and attended the Chautauqua Summer Dance Program, training with Jean Pierre Bonnefoux and Patricia McBride.
In 1999, Mr. Ulbricht was invited by the School of American Ballet (SAB), the official school of New York City Ballet, to continue his training during their Winter Program.
Sebastian Vinet
In 2009, he joined the Houston Ballet and then in 2010 the San Francisco Ballet. In 2017, Sebastián Vinet was the artistic director of the first international ballet gala to be presented at the emblematic theater in Chile, Teatro Oriente and founded his own non profit foundation to help develop ballet in his country. In 2018, he was mentioned in Dance Australia as one of the best performances of the night during the premiere of FORTE in Melbourne, Australia. Sebastián Vinet’s biggest artistic challenge and honor this year will be to direct artistically the 20th anniversary gala of Vogue in Mexico City, an event that is being considered to be the next Met Gala of Latin America.
Elizabeth Walker
Garielle Whittle
In 1969, Garielle was personally invited by George Balanchine to join the New York City Ballet. She danced with the company under Mr. Balanchine’s direction for 14 years, performing in over fifty ballets by Balanchine and Jerome Robbins.