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Meet the Team

Tara McKeown (Marshall)

Tara has been dancing since the age of 11, training in Jazz, Ballet, Contemporary and Hip Hop Dance. Highlights include being a finalist in the 2002 NZ Nationals for Jazz, performing with Showbiz Christchurch’s Jesus Christ Superstar, Westend to Broadway and Beauty & The Beast and spending 3 years Dancing for Canterbury Crusaders. In 2012 Tara travelled to New York where she was part of a worldwide dance convention for Dance teachers. After her return Tara was nominated for the Malvern Young Achievers Award which is an award for achievement in a professional career. Tara won this award for 2012.  
Tara left school to complete a diploma in Commercial Dance at the Wellington Performing Arts Center and in later years attended the NZ Institute of Sport where she completed a Personal Training Certificate.
Tara is the Owner and Director of TM Dance World and has been offering dance
and fitness classes to the Malvern area for the past 6 years. TMDW Students
sit professionally recognised dance examinations each year, all students are
involved in a large end of year showcase and our elite performance teams frequently have the opportunities to explore national and international dance events & competitions with us.
TMDW has an excellent business support system with assistance from various professionals including a business mentor, specialist accountant and legal advice team. Tara is a registered teacher with NZAMD, APDA and Acrobatic Arts.
To create this new space in Darfield for our Malvern community is an absolute dream for Tara who believes the space will be an area
where students can grow, learn and become creative and inspired by the magical world of the Arts.

Frances Scott

RAD offers an internationally recognized portfolio of examinations and  assessments which is designed to motivate and encourage students of all ages and abilities, from beginners to those on the threshold of a career in dance.
Ballet is an art form that cultivates a love of classical music and it’s technique is the “foundation of all other dance forms”. It gives poise, posture, fitness and although very disciplined, is also an outlet for self expression.
Frances has been teaching ballet for 15 years in the Canterbury area.... nine years in Sheffield and Darfield as the Malvern Ballet School.
Frances is ably assisted by Saba Polderman- Charles who is currently undertaking a two year course of study with the RAD to obtain her Certificate in Ballet Teaching Studies (CBTS) and registered teacher status.
Frances has had a lifelong love of ballet. Recently she has become a Certified
Bootybarre Instructor which she intends to introduce to Darfield in the new TM
Danceworld Studios. This can be adapted for all ages.
Frances is also hoping to hold adult ballet classes with a new RAD Syllabus.
Frances is looking forward to working with Tara and is very excited about                                                                                                            finally having a purpose built dance venue to work from.

Vicky Peacock

Vicky has worked in the education sector for the last 18 years. Prior to becoming a primary teacher specialising in art (BA Hons Art QTS), Vicky was a music tutor in England.
From there she worked in several schools in New Zealand and was involved in schools arts curriculum development. In 2010 Vicky was employed at Clearview Primary as a foundation staff member and teacher in charge of music where she relished the challenge to develop a music department and implement a music curriculum across
the whole school. Over the last 6 years, Vicky has worked independently as an Art Educator and  currently offers a selection of after school art classes for both adults and children.

More recently she has become the founder of Primary Art Ideas – a web based platform for teachers to share their art ideas and
become inspired by others. It is growing rapidly in popularity and has been a great forum to connect and share with other creative minds. The opportunity to bring Vicky’s two passions together is a dream come true and she looks forward to increasing the classes
she offers in both art and music to a wider range of age groups in the Selwyn district.
‘Creative Sparks’ studios will be a purposely designed for art and music education. The art studio will be fully equipped with easels and top quality art equipment, while the music studio will be used for keyboard and piano lessons.
Vicky also looks forward to encouraging schools in the Canterbury district to use the new studio spaces for art enrichment
programmes for their gifted, talented students. More recently she has become the founder of Primary Art Ideas – a web based platform
for teachers to share their art ideas and become inspired by others. It is growing rapidly in popularity and has been a great
forum to connect and share with other creative minds.
Jade Collier

Jade began dancing at age 4 and has taken Jazz, Contemporary and performance classes. Jade has always had a passion for dance and is looking forward to becoming a qualified dance teacher for TM Dance World.

Jade has danced nationally with TM Dance World and is also a qualified Kids Bounce Dance Fit instructor. She was a part of the 2015/2016 Showcase team, held on the Gold Coast Australia, and was placed part of the top 10 Showcase Regional Champions in 2015.

Jade completed the NZAMD exams from 2012 to 2016 with achieving the highest award of distinction for both Jazz and Contemporary in 2015 and 2016. She was also nominated for the New Zealand association of Modern Dance scholarship which was held in Wellington in 2015 and 2016. In 2017, she was one of the two leaders of Stage Challenge for Darfield High School which they placed 2nd and is currently taking the beginner Hip Hop class for TM Dance World.

Jade has not only always loved dancing, but the people who are involved within the studio. She is very excited and happy to be given such a fantastic opportunity to work with Tara and her team at TM Dance World in 2018.

Robyn Cutler

Robyn started out as a competitive gymnast at age 5 in Christchurch. During this time she dabbled in ballet but ultimately decided that she needed to devote her time to gymnastics. She competed both nationally and overseas. She is also a qualified NZGA (New Zealand Gymnastics Association) judge and coach. After gymnastics, Robyn found that coaching competitive and recreational gymnasts rewarding, but missed the physical aspect of training and competing. Luckily, she went to school with Tara and Tara convinced her to give dancing a go. Robyn has danced both competitively and for pleasure since 2001. She has sat Jazz and Ballet exams passing both with distinction. In 2005 she run her local dance school while her teacher was on maternity leave.

 In January 2017 Robyn traveled to Brisbane with Tara to train and qualify as a certified Acrobatic Arts teacher and is now enjoying working with TM Dance World Students of all ages training in Acrobatic classes along with choreographing solos and troupes specializing in  broadway and musical theater. Robyn will also spend her 2018 year as a teacher at Darfield High School.
Saba Polderman - Charles
Saba began attending ballet classes at the age of 5 and fell in love with it immediately!
Saba has worked through the RAD graded and vocational exams under Frances Scott and Sharon Howells. Saba is currently dancing at an advanced level and is in her final year of the RAD Certificate in Ballet Teaching studies. Saba annually attends the New Zealand School of Dance Winter School, first as a dancer, and now as a teacher. Additionally she has studied music and performance at a tertiary level which gives her a greater understanding of musicality especially in dance!

Alex McGregor

Alex began dancing at the age of 7, and has trained in Ballet, Jazz and Contemporary classes. Over the years Alex has completed many levels of NZAMD exams in ballet, jazz and contemporary, and more recently APDA jazz and contemporary exams. Alex has also been competing various solos, duos and group dances at many competitions since the age of 11. Alex previously trained at the Anna Lee School of Dance and Dance Masters International in Christchurch, before joining TM Dance World in 2015. Alex was a part of the team that took part in the 2018 Hollywood Bound competition aboard the Explorer of the Seas cruise ship. At school Alex has participated in Stage Challenge/Showquest every year from 2013-2019, gaining a lead role in 2017, 2018 and 2019. In her lead role in 2019 she was awarded the Outstanding Rangatahi Award for the best overall dancer/performer. Alex is passionate about dance and has been for a very long time. She is excited to become a teacher at TM Dance World and see where it takes her.


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Jess Galletly

Jess has been dancing since she was 5 years old. Training in Ballet, Tap, Jazz and Contemporary, and has grown a huge passion for dance over the past 12 years.
Some of Jess's highlights has been involved in the Showcase performance team in 2015 and 2016, where Nationals were held in the Gold Coast. She has also been apart of the Hollywood Bound competition team where they performed on the Royal Caribbean 'Explorer of the Seas' Cruise ship. Jess was also named Teacher of the Year at TM Dance World for 2019. She has competed in Stage Challenge and Showquest at school and in 2019 was a choreographer in the team. In January 2020 Jess attended APDA workshops in Auckland for Tap, Jazz and Contemporary to further extend her dancing knowledge. In January 2020 she also completed in Showcase Finals in teams and solo work.
Jess also is heavily involved in drama, participating in productions as an actor and/or choreographer such as 'Bugsy Malone', 'The Wizard of Oz', 'Cheque Please', 'Witches of Eastwick' and most recently 'Grease'. 2020 will be Jess's last year of high school where she will be running Showquest alongside being Head of Culture and House Captain. After year 13 Jess plans to extend her performing arts knowledge and go into tertiary study. 

Lily Payton

Lily began dancing at the age of 3 and has taken jazz, contemporary, acro and performance classes. She has taken part in NZAMD jazz exams since she was 6 and also started the contemporary exams with APDA 2 years ago. Lily has been apart of the performance team since she was 6 and has competed in many different solos, duos, trios and group dances. Lily was apart of the team that went to the Gold Coast to take part in Showcase Australia 2016. She also went to the nationals in 2015 and won an award for “so much talent”. While Lily was at primary school she took part in the school jump jam and was a jump jam leader in 2016 and now at Darfield High School she has taken part in stage challenge/showquest since she started in 2017. Lily has a passion for dance and teaching dance. Lily has been a student teacher with TMDW for 3 years and she is super excited to be an official teacher on the TMDW team teaching the Shining Stars jazz class for 2020!