All WSBPA teachers are fully qualified and registered with the Royal Academy of Dance, London and with the Imperial Society of Dance, London. They are also Garda Vetted and fully trained in First Aid & are up to date with all current child protection policies
Suzanne O’ Leary
RAD, DIP, DEG, AISTD
Suzanne has choreographed, produced or directed over 200 shows to date. A lover of Musical Theatre and Ballets, she is most at home when working on the stage or behind the scenes. This is why she chose a career that leads her from one amazing project to another. Suzanne’s dance training began at the age of three with the Wexford School of Ballet and Modern Dance; by age ten she had started RAD major training in Dublin and at fifteen had moved to England where she completed her RAD Ballet, ISTD Modern and National Dance majors. While there she gained invaluable stage and TV experience performing with many well- known celebrities. Suzanne has received a RAD Ballet teaching certificate, an anatomy degree, a degree in the history of dance and an ISTD associate diploma, & 6 levels of Des. On qualifying Suzanne was asked to train Intermediate and Advanced RAD and ISTD in Italy and England. She did so in England for some time and then on her return to Wexford in 1988 continued this training in Wexford, with her students receiving the highest results in Ireland. Suzanne’s students also won many awards and scholarships, 3 of them travelling to the Kirov Ballet School in Russia. Suzanne’s past students have been accepted into English National Ballet School, English National Ballet Company, Rambert Ballet, Laine Theatre Arts, Doreen Bird, Performers, Arts Ed, PPA, Laban London, Elmhurst and many more prestigious colleges in London. Many of Suzanne’s students have written their own success stories, dancing professionally abroad and opening their own dance schools.
Suzanne has a passion for hard work and achieving only the best in the individual. A firm believer in discipline and preparation, but also a true believer in the love of stage and all the fabulous attributes it brings to a young performer. Suzanne runs the Wexford School of Ballet and Performing Arts in Wexford, Enniscorthy and New Ross.
Suzanne has been resident choreographer with Wexford Pantomime Society since 1989, and has received an honorary award for years dedicated to the Society. She is also an honorary and founding member of the Oyster Lane Theatre Group for which she has directed and choreographed numerous shows over the past 25 years. Suzanne is a nominated Aims award winner for her choreography of Hairspray the musical and also was an Aims Adjudicator for the year 2021-2022 when she travelling around Ireland adjudicating many wonderful musical societies. But her main focus is WSBPA and providing her students with a solid and disciplined dance training while witnessing them enjoy the many fabulous opportunities which are made available to them while forming lifelong friendships in the school.
Ann O’ Leary
RAD, ISTD – Child Liaison Officer
This year, Ann O’Leary will celebrate over five decades of tutoring aspiring young dancers with many of them going on to successful dance careers. Ann trained in Dublin and at The Hammond School London and then returning bringing ballet to Wexford for the first time. In 1965, there were just a dozen or so pupils and one teacher – Ann. In 1986, Ann was joined by her daughter, Suzanne, who had completed training in England. By 2005, the school had expanded to three centres, Wexford, Enniscorthy and New Ross. They have worked side by side ever since and not only have they a firm working relationship, but are also best friends.
“After all these years, my mother’s vast experience is overshadowed by her obvious love towards the children, the younger end of the scale being her forte,” Suzanne says. “One class after another grace her door weekly and all is rosy in the garden as long as Mrs. O’Leary is there.”
Emma Molloy
RAD, ISTD
Emma is a fully qualified Royal Academy of Dance ballet teacher and Imperial Society of Teachers of Dance modern dance teacher. She has been dancing since age four. Her dancing started with Wexford School of Ballet and Performing Arts. Emma did Ballet, Modern and Tap passing every exam with top marks. Any show from ballet school to Tops of the Town to Pantomime to the Opera, Emma was part of it. In Loreto Secondary School Emma was taking major dance exams and still passing with high results, and so decided to pursue her dream and take up dancing as her profession. Emma auditioned for dance colleges in London and was accepted for her first choice, Bird College of Performing Arts. She was one of thirty girls chosen from hundreds of applicants. Emma completed three years gaining a Diploma as well as many more examinations and plenty of performing experiences. When Emma left college she danced abroad with a dance troupe in Japan and Greece for many years. On her return to London she gained her teaching certificate at the Royal Academy of Dance. From there Emma was teaching in London at well established schools. The age range she has taught is from 3 to 20 years. On returning to Wexford Emma has been a teacher with the WSBPA and also freelances.
Sinéad Reck
RAD, ISTD, PBT
Sinéad started dancing at the age of 5 with Wexford School of Ballet and Performing Arts. During her training here she studied Ballet, Modern and Tap, taking her examinations in RAD Ballet and ISTD Modern with the school. On completing secondary school in Loreto, Wexford, she embarked on a Law Degree finishing with a BA Honours. She continued to dance throughout her studies, and finally decided to further her dance career. She successfully auditioned for Inchicore College of Further Education where she successfully passed her Diploma in Dance Instruction and obtained her Diploma in Dance Education both from the ISTD. Sinéad has also received a Certificate in Dance Education from the Royal Academy of Dance, London . Sinéad received a scholarship from the Leonardo Da Vinci Trust to attend an intensive dance programme in Vienna in the summer of 2011. During her studies in Inchicore, Sinead continued to work as an Assistant Teacher with WSBPA, while also performing and acting as Dance Captain with Wexford Light Opera Society and Oyster Lane Theatre Group, and Wexford Pantomime Society, where she has also acted as Assistant Choreographer. She has also worked with numerous dance and stage schools and is a qualified teacher of Progressing Ballet Technique (PBT) and is a freelance dance teacher for adults and children.
Jonny Smith
ISTD
Jonny joined the Wexford School of Ballet & Performing Arts at the age of 13 having caught the dance and musical theatre bug in Oyster Lane Theatre Group’s 2008 production of ‘Oliver!’. At the WSBPA, he studied Modern, Ballet and Tap, successfully achieving ISTD Modern exams and RAD Ballet exams.
On completing his Leaving Cert in St. Peter’s College Wexford, Jonny decided to pursue his hobby as a career. He began a tailor-made intensive course under the main tutelage of Suzanne O’Leary where he passed his vocational dance majors with flying colours. He then went on to further his dance education by studying with London-based examiner Linda Sweetzer and Dublin-based examiner Louise Behan where he achieved qualifications in Dance Instruction & Education with the Imperial Society of Teachers of Dancing.
Jonny is a multi-styled dancer, dance teacher and choreographer who works with numerous dance and stage schools around the South East, including the Wexford School of Ballet & Performing Arts where he recently choreographed for their performances on the Videopolis Stage in Disneyland Paris & “Perform” in the RDS, Dublin. He also teaches with the Corish-Wallace Performing Arts School, of which he is a past drama student. Jonny choreographed “Grease” for OLTG’s 25th Anniversary and more recently their 2022 production of “The Addam’s Family – A New Musical Comedy” in the National Opera House. He works and performs with many local groups such as Wexford Pantomime Society, Wexford Light Opera Society, Centre Stage School of Ballet & Performing Arts & Kilmore Variety Group where he choreographed their 30th Anniversary production of ‘Seussical the Musical’ in the National Opera House. He is the resident dance teacher and choreographer with Windmill Therapeutic. Recent choreography projects include “Annie” (Meanscoil Gharman), “Beauty & the Beast” (Presentation & CBS) and “Aladdin” (Wexford Pantomime Society).
Jonny also spreads his love of dance and the performing arts by teaching in many schools (both primary and secondary) and community groups around Wexford. He runs “A Slice of Summer” – Summer camps around Wexford. He believes dance is for everybody and offers ballet and modern fusion classes for adults (info on Facebook @JonnySmithDance), wedding first dances (as mentioned in RSVP magazine), one-to-one tuition and flashmobs. Jonny’s love and commitment to his students always comes first leading him to turn down performance opportunities with the likes of Disney, BBC and Netflix.
Sorcha O’Connor
BA Honours Trinity Laban
Sorcha grew up in Wexford and discovered her love of dancing at the Wexford School of Ballet and Performing Arts. She attended Inchicore College of Further Education in Dublin in 2009 to study ISTD Modern Theatre teacher training, RAD Ballet teacher training, Contemporary Dance, and Tap. She discovered her passion for contemporary dance there and joined the Dublin Youth Dance Company in 2010. She relocated to London in 2011 to pursue her BA Hons in Contemporary Dance at Trinity Laban London. Through Laban, she has performed for world-renowned choreographers such as Richard Alston and Rosemary Butcher. After returning home in 2016, Sorcha completed her ISTD Contemporary training with Ross McKim (Artistic Director of Rambert School of Ballet). She has worked as an assistant choreographer for the Wexford Pantomime Society (2019, 2020, 2021, and 2023), as the choreographer for The Loreto & St Peter’s school musical productions of “South Pacific” in 2019, and “Calamity Jane” in 2021, and as a teacher/choreographer at Wexford School of Ballet and Performing Arts. Her work has been seen in London, Dublin, Disneyland Paris, and on various Wexford stages, including The O’Reilly Theatre and the National Opera House. She has previously been performing as part of the dance artist’s residency program with Vivian Brodie Hayes, the Lir Academy’s Lighting Design for Dance with Liz Roche, and Horsemen of Eire. Sorcha has a strong interest in producing and teaching dance to the youth in Wexford.
Éilish Coady
RAD RTS
Éilish started her dance training at the age of 3 in RAD Classical Ballet, ISTD Modern & Tap, along with Irish Dancing. She progressed her classical training as a Royal Ballet School Associate from Junior to Senior level before gaining a scholarship to Bird College of Dance and Musical Theatre, London. After graduating in 2009, Éilish spent many years working for The Walt Disney Company, as a Dancer & Character Performer, including playing some of Disney’s best known and loved characters in Disneyland Paris, France and Tokyo Disney Resort, Japan. Her princess performing roles included: Cinderella, Ariel, Sleeping Beauty & Rapunzel.
Since moving back to Ireland, Éilish has performed in many shows with the Wexford Pantomime Society, Oyster Lane Theatre Group, New Ross Musical Society and the Wexford Light Opera Society.
Éilish has been part of the WSBPA teaching team since 2018, and is a qualified registered teacher with the Royal Academy of Dance having gained her ‘Certificate in Ballet Teaching Studies’.