Photo above: Shir Lee Wu

Guest Faculty

Shir Lee Wu

Founder/Artistic Director, Springfield Ballet Workshop, 2004
In June Ms. Wu formed the Springfield Ballet Workshop, a mentoring and preprofessional Performing Ensemble for the Clark County communities providing year-round training, dance education, and outreach programs that introduce students to the many facets of dance. She will continue to bring internationally known guest teachers and choreographers to work with and inspire her students.

Founder/Artistic Director, Columbus Youth Ballet, 1984-2003
During her 19 years at Columbus Youth Ballet, Ms. Wu built a nationally recognized school and created the Columbus Youth Ensemble. Her thorough knowledge of the most current teaching methods and styles produced many professional dancers who have been accepted into major ballet companies and Broadway productions in the US and Europe. Her students have competed in International competitions. In 2002 one of her advanced students received the gold medal at the Youth American Grand Prix (YAGP) in New York, and another was a finalist at the 8th Concours International de Dance de Paris in 1998.

Ms Wu is a much sought after guest teacher and has taught master classes at many ballet schools, companies and universities both in the US and abroad, such as Taipei International Institute of the Arts, Beijing Dance Academy, China, the Jean Wong School of Ballet, Hong Kong, The Wright State University, North East Regional Dance Festival, the Sarasota Ballet International Summer School and the Oleg Briansky Saratoga Summer Ballet Workshop, among others.

She has received many awards for her vision and achievements. In 2002 Ms. Wu received the outstanding teacher award and outstanding school award at the YAGP competition in Chicago, and the outstanding school award again in 2003. Recently, she received the Artist Teacher award from the School of Dance from the Chautauqua Institution. Her accomplishments have been featured in articles in Dance Teacher and Dancer Magazines, Columbus Monthly, and major international newspapers. For 7 years Ms. Wu received grants from the Ohio Arts Council and was on the advisory board of OhioDance.

Prior Professional Experience
Ms Wu's extensive professional career includes principal and soloist roles in the classical repertoire such as Swan Lake, Don Quixote, The Nutcracker and Sleeping Beauty. In 1974 she was invited to dance the role of "Prayer" in Coppélia with one of the greatest ballerinas of our time, Margot Fonteyn. From 1972-75 Ms. Wu worked as a choreographer for R. TV, a British Television Company in Hong Kong. She was a guest soloist with Bridgeport Ballet and Kazurko Hirabajashi Dance Company in New York and guest principal with the Hong Kong Contemporary Dance Company. Ms. Wu has choreographed several works for the Taipei Theatre Ballet and has performed at the Taipei Opera House, Columbus Contemporary Dance Theatre and the North East Regional Dance Festival. Anna Kisselgoff, dance critic of the New York Times wrote, "thoroughly trained in classical ballet...a highly impressive slim dancer of instinctive grace, extraordinarily strong in her pointe work and has a fabulous extension line. She should be snapped up by an American ballet company."

Bom in Jakarta, Indonesia, Ms. Wu began her ballet training at the age of 5 with Dutch Master Teacher, Peggy Mayer of the Dutch National Ballet. At the very young age of 12 she was awarded a merit scholarship to the Beijing Ballet Academy and received her training in the renowned Russian Vaganova method and later studied at the English Royal Academy of Dance. She received honorary diplomas and certificates from both schools.

In 1975, Ms. Wu came to the United States to continue her training and received scholarships to the Joffrey Ballet, Martha Graham School of Contemporary Dance, and Alvin Ailey American Dance Theatre and was an apprentice with Dance Theatre of Harlem. Her training in the various classical styles and teaching pedagogy was enhanced by many great names in the ballet world such as Jorgen Schneider, formerly of American Ballet Theatre, Gilbert Mayer, Professor at the Paris Opera Ballet School, Jean-Pierre Bonnefoux, Arthur Mitchell, Artistic Director of Dance Theatre of Harlem, and Elsey Choek, former Ballet Mistress of the National Ballet of China.

Ms. Wu is married to Been Y. Kuo, MS, PE and has two sons.

Guest Choreographers and Teachers for the 2004-2005 Season
Christopher Fleming, Assistant Director and Resident Choreographer of The Rock School, Philadelphia, PA

Katrina Killian, Former Soloist of New York City Ballet, currently faculty member of the School of American Ballet, the official school of the New York City Ballet