The Harid Conservatory : Adjunct Faculty

Adjunct Faculty

Christine O’Shea
Adjunct Faculty - Dance History
Christine O’Shea studied dance with Betty Kovac in Raleigh NC. She earned her Bachelor of Science Degree in Dance Education from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro. In 1984, Ms. O’Shea joined Ballet Florida as a part-time instructor and was subsequently promoted to the position of principal teacher and director of education and outreach. She also served as a faculty member at Palm Beach County School of the Arts, where she taught ballet technique, dance history, and body conditioning, and at the Bak Middle School of the Arts in West Palm Beach. Ms. O’Shea has Florida Certification in both K-12 Dance and K-6 Elementary Education. Currently, she is a full-time teacher at Chancellor Charter School in Lantana, Florida.

Josée Garant
Adjunct Faculty - Modern Dance
Josée Garant has a BFA (honors) degree in Dance from York University and is a graduate of the National Ballet School’s Teacher Training Program in Canada. She developed the modern-dance program at Canada’s Royal Winnipeg Ballet School, established a choreographic workshop, and directed the RWB Company’s apprentice program. Ms. Garant has won choreography awards at the Youth American Grand Prix competition and at the International Choreographic Competition in St-Sauveur, Québec. In 1988, she was nominated by l’ADISQ for Stage Direction and Scenographer of the Year for her work with singer songwriter Daniel Lavoie. Her choreography has been performed at the Olympia Theatre in Paris, the New York Joyce Soho Theatre, the Festival of Women in the Arts in North Dakota, the Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra’s Du Maurier New Music Festival, and the 1999 Pan American Games. She has also created works for competitors at international dance competitions held in Tokyo, Jackson Mississippi, and New York City. Most recently (2008), Ms. Garant was awarded a Miami-Dade County Department of Cultural Affairs Choreographer Fellowship Award. She joined The Harid Conservatory in 2008.

Karen Gauci
Nutrition Instructor / Dietician
Karen Gauci has a bachelor of science degree in dietetics and nutrition (concurrent with the C.U.P program), and a master's degree in public health from Florida International University. Ms. Gauci has been recognized as "Dietetic Technician of the Year" by the Florida Dietetic Association and Broward Dietetic Association. She is presently a consultant dietitian for various centers and athletes in Broward, Dade, and Palm Beach counties.

Maria Konrad
Adjunct Faculty – Jazz Dance
Maria Konrad graduated from the Alexander W. Dreyfoos High School of Performing Arts, and then earned her BFA in Performing Arts from the University of the Arts in Philadelphia. Her performance experience includes the Barrymore Awards, the Philadelphia Fringe Festival, the Merriam Theater, and Project Dance. In the Philadelphia area, her choreography was featured in West Side Story, Hello Dolly, Annie Get Your Gun, Project Dance, The Philadelphia Fringe Festival, and at Trump Plaza in Atlantic City. As a faculty member at Koresh Dance Company, Ms. Konrad helped create an early-dance-education curriculum.

After returning to Florida, Ms. Konrad founded REACH—a dance-theater collective, South Florida's first modern-jazz workshop, which is the resident dance company at Atlantic Theater in Jupiter. In addition to teaching at HARID, she is on the faculties of Atlantic Arts Academy and Boca Ballet Theatre.

John Mahoney
Pilates Instructor / Physical Therapist
John Mahoney received his bachelor of science degree from Mercyhurst College and his master's degree in physical therapy from the University of Miami. He is a certified strength and conditioning specialist and a certified instructor of the Pilates Method of Body Conditioning. Mr. Mahoney, an officer in the navy reserve, has worked extensively with military personnel; professional, intercollegiate, and interscholastic athletes; and HARID’s dancers. He specializes in body conditioning and physical therapy.

Rosa Mercedes
Adjunct Faculty - Spanish Dance
Rosa Mercedes, originally from Barcelona, Spain, has received critical acclaim touring the United States, Europe, South America and Canada as a soloist and principal dancer with many of the world’s leading Spanish dance companies based in both Spain and the United States. She is in much demand for her innovative choreography, which has been featured by symphony orchestras, dance festivals and dance companies such as Ballet Español Rosita Segovia, Maximum Dance Company and Maria Benitez Teatro Flamenco, symphony orchestras and dance festivals throughout the United States.

Ms. Mercedes has also had both her dancing and choreography featured by many of the world’s most important opera companies, including the Metropolitan Opera, Opera di Roma, Michigan Opera Theatre, Baltimore Opera, Florentine Opera, Austin Lyric Opera and Florida Grand Opera. She has worked with renowned artists such as Renata Scotto, Placido Domingo, Luciano Pavarotti, José Carreras, Franco Zeffirelli, Denyse Graves, Charles “Honi” Coles, Gypsy Kings, David Bisbal, Sara Montiel and Savion Glover.

As Founder and Artistic Director of DUENDE Ballet Español, she has created numerous productions that include both traditional and innovative works born out of the various styles of Spanish dance. She is the recipient of the Choreographers Fellowship Award from Miami Dade Cultural Affairs. With over 25 years experience teaching professionals, students, singers, etc., Ms. Mercedes continues to give master classes and workshops throughout the United States and is a master teacher for the National Foundation for Advancement in the Arts.

Kim Smith
Adjunct Faculty - Kinesiology
Kim Smith has a bachelor of science degree in kinesiological studies from Texas Christian University, and a master of science degree in physical therapy from the University of Miami. She credits her interest in anatomy and human movement to the ballet training she received as a child, and she continues to take ballet classes regularly. Currently, Ms. Smith is the rehab coordinator for Cornell Rehab, a 28-bed inpatient rehab unit of Bethesda Memorial Hospital in Boynton Beach, Florida.

Bertha Valentin
Adjunct Faculty - Character Dance
Bertha Valentin began ballet studies at the age of six in her native Colombia. When she was twelve, she was sent to Russia to study dance and dance teaching. While there, she received a bachelor's degree in dance and a master of arts degree. Ms. Valentin has been teaching ballet and character dance in South Florida since she moved to Miami in 1984. She joined HARID in 1988.

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