Ballet | Jazz | Contemporary | Preschool
As long as Nikki can remember she always wanted to teach and work with children. Her other great passion in life is dance - she owes her success, in her senior years as a dancer, to her teacher Sonya Draper, who was a former dancer in the Royal New Zealand Ballet Company and is now an ISTD examiner.
Nikki is a second-generation teacher. She started teaching in her mother's dance school before moving to Auckland, where she became a registered primary school teacher through Auckland College of Education and taught in primary schools for many years while also teaching dance. Prior to directing Warkworth Performing Arts, Nikki spent five years teaching RAD ballet exam classes from preschool to advanced, in both Mangawhai and Warkworth, preparing students for exams and choreographing and teaching competition dances and gaining pleasing results from her students. She also teaches NZAMD classes in jazz, contemporary and ballet and has choreographed many original group dances for shows.
Nikki directed her own dance school in Wellsford for many years. It was there that she developed her skills and love for the preschool and junior age groups and has now had the privilege of seeing some of her first pupils follow vocational pathways in their dancing.
Alongside her dancing and teaching Nikki has had much interest in Sport Science and Coaching, including aerobics instruction training and nutrition. She has qualified and taught as a rhythmic gymnastics coach. She has also enjoyed Drama for Teaching and has taught this in several locations.
As director of WPA Nikki will encourage and foster an environment that values and respects each child as an individual and celebrates their success in an art they love. She wants children to realise that as they achieve each milestone, they are living their dreams, creating memories and expanding their horizons. Nikki is also committed to supporting students who show dedication and a desire to follow a vocational pathway with their dancing.
When not teaching Nikki is at home on a very quiet lifestyle block, working or resting with her husband. For leisure they often walk and rock-hop around local beaches. She enjoys catching up with her two daughters when they return from studies and work.
Latin Dance
Jam's dance journey began in the Philippines, where she discovered the love for ballroom latin and won the national title at the age of 16.
She became a Zumba instructor and won 3rd place in the worldwide Zumba dance video competition in 2012.
Jam also choreographed a Filipino Sinulog dance which won 1st place in the Auckland Cultural Festival in 2013. She restarted competing in Latin ballroom in 2017 and won two national titles that year.
She is a nurse by profession, a mum of two amazing children and a dance mum. Other than dancing, she also enjoys travelling, watching movies and listening to music. She is passionate about learning and loves experiencing new things.
In 2021 she started teaching latin dance and an adult class at WPA. She now has experience teaching via Zoom, necessitated through Lockdowns. Through the challenges she still enjoyed the dancing, which is what matters most! This year, she is looking forward to more latin dancing and supporting young dancers to shine and grow!