About Us
Who we are
Coronado's premier dance academy since 1998
all instructors
Meet Our Staff
Miranda Giles
Creative Director & Instructor
(Jazz/Ballet/Acro/Lyrical)
Miranda Giles was born in Columbus, Ohio. She began her training under Shir Lee Wu at the age of three with Columbus City Ballet School, the recipient of YAGP outstanding school and teacher awards. Giles also worked to refine and diversify her training with frequent guest teachers Katrina Killian, Ethan Brown, Anna Reznik and Alexei Moskalenko. During the summers, she trained at The School of American Ballet, Pacific Northwest Ballet, Bolshoi Ballet and the Kirov Ballet under significant or full scholarships. Giles was awarded the YAGP “Hope Award” twice for outstanding promise performing classical and contemporary works choreographed by Christopher Flemming and Alexei Kremnev. Giles finished her academic years studying with the Joffrey Ballet in Chicago under full scholarship.
Miranda had always wanted to live in California so she moved west to join the Los Angeles Ballet for two years before moving to San Diego. She joined the Golden State Ballet in 2021 and was promoted to Soloist that same year. Miranda was then promoted to Principal Dancer in 2024. Her favorite role she has performed is “Dew Drop” in Jared Nelson’s “The Nutcracker”, The “Black Swan” Pas de Deux from Swan Lake and the “Sugar Plum Fairy” from ” the Nutcracker”. Her dream role is to dance “Juliet” from Romeo and Juliet. In her free time she loves to try Little Frenchie’s cronut of the month, work on her clothing line, Miranda Rose Designs, and of course explore beautiful Coronado.
megan Nicotera
Instructor
(Adult/Ballet)
Born in San Francisco and raised in Las Vegas, Megan began her training at the age of four with the Nevada Ballet Theatre. She officially became a member of the company at age eighteen, and danced professionally with them for two seasons. She later pursued her other passions within the arts in addition to dance, which ultimately led her to audition for a professional dance company in Southern California, and she was offered a contract which resulted in her relocating to San Diego. Since her arrival, she has danced with San Diego Ballet, City Ballet of San Diego, California Ballet, and also Golden State Ballet of whom she has recently retired with.
Shantel Mora
Instructor
(Ballet/DanceFUNdamentals)
Originally from San Diego, California, but raised in Mexico. Shantel trained in the art of classical ballet and danced in classical ballets such as The Nutcracker, Don Quixote, Swan Lake, Giselle, Paquita and Sleeping Beauty. She started her training in “Escuela de Danza Gloria Campobello,” and then received her BA in Dance Education with a focus on classical ballet from “Escuela Superior de Música y Danza de Monterrey,” in Mexico. While in Monterrey, she worked as the 1st grade teacher of the BA in Classical Ballet in the same school and as a ballet teacher in Freeman Dance Training, where she trained dancers for national and international competitions, such as the YAGP.
Besides her training in classical ballet, she has also trained in jazz, contemporary, modern, lyrical and Spanish dance. She has prepared in summer intensives with the Joffrey Ballet School in New York, Ballet Liszt Alfonso, and the National Ballet School of Cuba, in La Habana, Cuba. In 2019, she became a certified teacher by the American Ballet Theatre. In 2024, she got selected to attend a teacher training in the Opera of Paris. In present time, she dances with the Spanish dance company, “Real Flamenco,” and is pursuing a professional certification from The Flamenco School of Andalucia to become a certified flamenco dancer.
She has prepared with courses in administration such as a certificate in “Economics Administration for the Arts” by CONARTE and a diploma in “Organizational Analysis,” by Stanford University. Academically wise, she finished an Associate of Science in Business Management in May 2024.
Shantel grew up between a border and has been going back and forth between languages, different cultures and learning opportunities. She loves to travel and respect different customs and traditions. In her spare time, she likes to hike in nature or take a walk in the beach, admiring nature is a must in her day-to-day life.
Alli Zielinkski
Instructor
(Boogie Babies/Tutu Time/DanceFUNdamentals)
Alli Zielinski has been dancing for over 20 years, and is based in North County San Diego. She has trained in various styles such as tap, jazz, ballet, lyrical, contemporary, hip hop, and pointe. She began dancing at four years old, assistant teaching at the age of fourteen and started teaching her own classes at eighteen. Alli is a member of the tap company California Rhythm Project, performing at different events and venues in San Diego. She has also had the pleasure to dance abroad in Sydney, Australia with Issa Dance Company. In her years dancing in college, Alli was able to attend and perform at the American College Dance Association at Arizona State University, UC Irvine, and Cal State Long Beach. There, she was exposed to many different styles of dance, college dance professors, and all different types of people that shared their love and knowledge of dance. Alli was also a dance teacher for preschoolers through eight graders in the Vista Unified School District, Fallbrook Union School District, and elementary schools on Camp Pendleton. Dance became her first love and she’s excited to now share her love and knowledge of dance with all her students in Coronado!
Dawn Tyler
Instructor
Creative Director
Erica Tarasoff
Instructor
(Hip-Hop)
Victoria Jenkins
Instructor
(Ballet/Adult)
Victoria Jenkins is a native of San Diego, California, and a Professional Ballerina. Her journey in the world of ballet began at the age of 5, marking the commencement of a lifelong passion. At age 14 she attended the international ballet competition Youth America Grand Prix (YAGP) and received a scholarship to the Royal Winnipeg Ballet. There she was honored with the Prince Edward Award and graduated Cum Laude.
After graduating she accepted a contract with the Royal Winnipeg Ballet Company and toured the US and Canada until 2018. Victoria returned to her hometown, San Diego, where she joined California Ballet as a corps member. Later she joined Golden State Ballet. She was promoted to the role of Soloist April 2024. Along with Company life Victoria is also a freelance artist and enjoys working on multiple productions at one time. Victoria’s passion for movement and well-being extends beyond ballet. She has been teaching ballet since 2018 to the ages 3-adult. She is certified in Progressive Ballet Technique (PBT) and holds a 200-hour Hatha Yoga instructor certification.
Yoli yarbrough
Instructor
(Hip Hop/Acrobatics/Musical Theater/Tap)
As a San Diego native, Yolie Yarbrough (she, her, hers) began training at Southbay Dance Academy where she studied for Imperial Classic Ballet and Royal Academy of Dance exams. She continued her training in hip hop, jazz, and contemporary dance, in addition to cheerleading at Chula Vista High School of Creative and Performing Arts. After her time at her alma mater, she completed San Diego Circus Center’s Preparatory Program and then began her professional career as a movement based artist and is currently featured at the San Diego Zoo as a Puppeteer. As a choreographer, she is driven by story telling, while showcasing the strengths of her performers.
Yolie was awarded “Best Dancer” at San Diego Dance Theater’s Emerging Artist Showcase in 2022.
Sofia Restivo
Instructor
(Contemporary/Jazz)
Hi, my name is Sofia Restivo! I am from Northern California, and currently live down in sunny San Diego while attending University at San Diego State. I have been dancing since I was two years old. I have also danced competitively for ten years, along with performing at the collegiate level. I teach multiple genres of dance including lyrical, jazz, hip-hop, ballet, contemporary, tap, and acro/tumble. I absolutely love working with kids, and I can’t wait to help your dancer reach their full potential at CAD!
Kyle Stephens
Operations
Kyle, while not a dancer himself, is helping to support the studio with his other talents. After moving to Coronado in 2022, getting involved with the local community was something that he was very passionate about, and CAD has allowed him to do just that. Kyle has spent over a decade in the Real Estate Industry, and is both a Real Estate Broker and Managing Partner of his property management company called Evolution Management. His company currently oversees a few residential buildings right here in Coronado, and he is hoping to expand their firm’s management footprint on the island even further. Kyle has previously worked as Regional Director of Portfolio Management for a PropTech company based in the Bay Area, and has helped build/lead 10+ teams across the West Coast of America that led to an acquisition. Kyle supports and is responsible for CAD’s digital technologies, accounting, and general upkeep of the studio.
