Kerry is a world-class dance teacher and movement therapist who has travelled quite literally, all over the world studying, teaching, performing, choreographing, and directing videos in Cuban Dance. What makes Kerry’s work very special is her detailed understanding of the body in movement, her education and experience with Dance for the Camera, and her depth of knowledge and research into Cuban Dance.

Her Background

Kerry’s formal training in dance includes a B.A. in Dance and a Postgraduate degree from The Laban Centre for which she attained a distinction in Movement Analysis.

She won the Lisa Ullman Travelling Scholarship in 1987 to research Latin movement and dance throughout Brazil and thus began her passion researching how the Latin body moves from the ‘Core’. After 12 months in Brazil she returned to the UK and taught dance at G.C.S.E foundation, BTEC levels and at Brunel University. Kerry also opened the first Latin club in the UK, ‘Club Brazil’, introducing Cuban Salsa, Brazilian Capoeira and Lambada onto the London scene.

Training

Her fascination with movement led her to undertake an in-depth seven year study of Body-Mind Centering™ and Physical Integration with the renowned Patricia Bardi and Lenora Grubinger in Italy. This study included the systems of the body i.e. the organs, fluids, glands, nervous system, skeleton,

muscles, and developmental movement which consolidated her deep understanding of the human body in movement.  Noticing how Body Mind Centering techniques brought her clients more effectively into their full movement potential, she decided to train as a Hellerwork practitioner. 

Hellerwork is a powerful educational process that incorporates deep tissue bodywork, movement education and verbal dialogue to align and balance the body’s structure and posture. Her two year Course in Structural Integration included a nine week full-time intensive programme in New Zealand, and an advanced training in ‘Trauma’. At the International Hellerwork conference in San Francisco, 2003, she was invited to teach alongside Joseph Heller and Dan Bienenfeld as a specialist in the movement of the pelvis.

Coaching

Her 121 coaching work includes teaching Movement, Dance, Hellerwork and Body Language. Kerry’s unique expertise is superbly profiled in her best -selling  video ‘Salsa from Within’ which details in a step by step process how to dance Salsa ‘Cuban Style’. Her private clients have included; Kylie Minogue, Rula Lenska, Frank Skinner and Bill Wrigley CEO of the Wrigley Company.

TV, Film, You Tube and Publications

Her work has been featured in many publications: The Observer, The

Evening Standard, The Times, The Telegraph, Time Out, Bella and ‘Animated’ publications. Recently she had an article in the Dancing times about Structural Integration for Dancers, and two articles published in Latin Life, both in November 2011. She has also danced alongside Madonna in ‘Evita’ and taught Cuban Dance in a six-part documentary ‘The Confidence Lab’ for BBC2, screened in September 2000. Kerry has also featured as the Movement coach in a documentary on well being for  ITV called ‘The 18- 30 Stone Club’ .She also performed as  a Cuban dancer in an episode of the T.V series  ‘Auf Wiedersehen  Pet’. Kerry was recently interviewed on Cuban T.V. (September 2011) regarding her dance videos and how they capture Cuban life and dance. Her video,  ‘Me Mantengo’  was also featured in the Los Van Van documentary by Havana Cultura, released world - wide in September 2011. More recently all her performance and chorographic work has been featured extensively on You Tube. Her performance with Master Juan Carlos Pacheco is the most popular Cuban Son performance on You Tube with 540,749 hits; see http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8NrhmpGg24I

Her video ‘Me Mantengo’ with Los Van Van has 48,776 hits; see http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W4vxMphA1R4 ,

and ‘Quien Mandar’ with Bamboelo 175, 147 hits; see http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y7ZrwNhm8-Y.

Choreography

1. ‘Erik’s not Pregnant’  showcased three dance theatre pieces at Sheffield Led Mill.
   

2. ‘Forrho de Corpo’ screened on T.V. Brazil in the Gran Teatro Terezina.
   

3. Resident choreographer for ten years for the Physical Theatre group  Might and Main.
   

4. Choreographer with her own dance Company for five years with performances at the ICA, Lillian Baylis Saddlers Wells, Festa Brazil, Islington Union Chapel, The Roundhouse, Granada TV,BBC1.
   

5. Movement Coach / Choreographic assistant to Geraldine Stevenson on the West End Hit ‘Temptation ‘ directed by James Roos Evans.
   

6. Recently choreographed and directed three dance music videos in Cuba .
   

Awards

1. First and major award Lisa Ullman travelling scholarship to research Latin movement in Brazil.
   

2. In 2003 she won the title of the Top UK Salsa teacher, at the British Salsa Congress.
   

3. In 2008 and 2009 she won the Top U.K. Salsa teacher at the top British Salsa congress GBSEX.
   

4. Presently nominated for; the Top U.K Salsa teacher and Salsa video by the Luca awards U.K. 2011.
   

5. Life- time Achievement Award for Contribution to Cuban Dance, from Ritimo Havana, Dubai.
   

6. Nominated for best Cuban Dance Video 2010 for Bambole’s ‘Quien Mandar,’ and in 2011 for Los Van Van’s ‘Me Mantengo’.
   

Her Current Work

Kerry offers a unique brand of Cuban Dance Training Programmes in London at The Place, and throughout the year at various events and congresses in

locations across the UK, Europe, and Cuba.

Co hosted, alongside Cressida Childs, the first Cuban Congress in the UK at Pontins. And was the Co founder of the first Cuba UK Congresses, inviting Alberto Valdes to Great Britain for the first time.

She offers Hellerwork for dancers, and Private 1-2-1 consultations in various clinics in London.

She is a regular visiting Cuban Dance lecturer at Limerick University on the Dance Masters course.

She is Managing Director and Founder of Key2Cuba Ltd; a specialist Cuban Dance holiday company since 2002.

She has produced, directed and choreographed videos with Los Van Van, Bamboleo and is presently editing a new video starring Maykel Fonts with the acclaimed orchestra, Habana de Primeira, in Cuba.

Kerry is presently working on the Movie Street Dance 2, as a Cuban dance and music consultant.

Five years ago she raised $20,000 with the Key2Cuba team and Martha Gavron to support Cuban Dancers and musicians in Cuba and the acclaimed Raices Profundas Dance Company.

What Inspires Her

For the past twenty ten years Kerry has focussed on her primary loves; 

teaching Cuban Dance, Structural Integration, Directing, Choreographing and Producing Cuban dance and music videos. She has travelled to Cuba extensively analysing the body language and movement of the Cuban people - how they sit, stand, walk, embrace, gesture and communicate, and how they move fluidly from the core of their bodies when they dance.

She has analysed and studied the movement make up of; Cuban Salsa, Son, Rumba, and Afro-Cuban Dance and has specialised in how to translate this through dance teaching to a non-Latin mover. She has also been deeply inspired by Cuban music through her close relationship with Los Van Van, Cuba’s leading Salsa orchestra and Clave Guaguanco (the leading Rumba Ensemble).

In all Kerry has led more than 65 Dance programmes in Cuba, teaching and studying alongside Cuba’s top teachers; including Juan de Dios - Director of Raices Profundas, Ildoylidia Ramos - principle dancer, and Borja Jimenz - Director of CNEART. Having gained six certificates studying at the Academy in Havana, and combining her Hellerwork and Body Mind Centering techniques, she is now able to open the door of Cuban dance to others with unique inspiring training which brings her clients to their full movement and dance potential.