TARA MCCURLEY

Tara began her training at age 3 in Enola, PA, later dancing with the pre-professional Cumberland Dance Company and studying at the Central Pennsylvania Youth Ballet. At 15, she was invited to study on full scholarship at the School of American Ballet in New York City, where she danced principal roles in Allegro Brillante, Concerto Barocco, and Flower Festival for the school’s workshop performances, as well as principal roles in Symphonie Concertante and Serenade for the New York City Ballet’s 1993 Balanchine Celebration.

Tara went on to apprentice with the New York City Ballet, performing at Lincoln Center as well as the company’s summer home in Saratoga Springs. In 1995, Tara joined the Miami City Ballet under the artistic direction of Edward Villella, who chose her as the company’s nominee for the 1996 Princess Grace Award. During her 5 years with MCB, Tara danced works by George Balanchine, Paul Taylor, and resident choreographer Jimmy Gamonet de los Heros, including soloist roles in Who Cares?, Emeralds, Raymonda Variations, and Divertimento Espanol and principal roles in The Big Band Supermegatroid, Prokofiev Movements, and D Symphonies. She toured extensively with the company and performed at several festivals, including the 1995 Edinburgh Festival and the 1996 Olympics Arts Festival in Atlanta. Tara retired from professional dancing in 2000. She holds a bachelor’s in economics from Yale University and currently works at Emory University. She has been a regular student at Dance 101 since October 2012 and is excited to join the faculty and share her love of ballet technique with her fellow dancers.