Teachers

Anne Sutherland
Studio Director

  • Scottish Official Board of Highland Dancing Judges Panel, Scotland
  • Fellow, Examiner and Life Member, British Association of Teachers of Dance (BATD)
  • Past-President and Independent Member of ScotDance Canada
  • Past President and Honorary Life Member ScotDance Ontario
  • Artistic Director Celtic Dance Company of Western Ontario
  • BATD Western Ontario Regional Chairman
  • Charter Member and Professional Advisor, Western Ontario Highland Dancers' Association

Miss Ruth
Ballet Specialist

  • Fellow Member Cecchetti Council of America
  • R.A.D. Registered Teacher
  • Member B.A.T.D. (Ballet, Highland and Scottish Nationals Branches)
  • Vice Chair of B.A.T.D. Western Ontario
  • Vice Chair of Celtic Dance Company of Western Ontario

Miss Ruth began her training in the Cecchetti Method as a dance student under Mary Ellen Cooper in Grosse Pointe, Michigan, at the age of five. She completed her Cecchetti Advanced Teacher's Exam in 1995, and later became a registered teacher with the Royal Academy of Dance and the British Association of Teachers of Dancing after moving to Canada. She has been teaching ballet in London and the surrounding area since 1997. Always looking to further develop her teaching repertoire, Miss Ruth attended the Dance Teacher Summit in New York City on three occasions in recent years. As a dancer and a teacher, she spent many summers at the Cecchetti Council of America International Summer School in conjunction with Michigan State University, Hope College and the Cleveland-San Jose Ballet.

Although ballet is Miss Ruth’s passion ... contemporary, tap, and highland all come a close second, and she has studied them all. Her highland choreography has placed at many festivals and competitions across Canada and USA.

Miss Ruth is the proud mother of two, and she and her husband rejoice in the achievements of their two children. Their son, Timothy, is currently studying space engineering at York University and their daughter, Julia, studies forensic science at Trent University. She is looking forward to an exciting and fulfilling year of dance with Sutherland Studio.

Miss Carrie-Ann
Highland

  • Member ScotDance Canada
  • Member BATD Highland and Scottish National Branches
  • 25 Years Highland Dance experience, having trained with Sutherland Studio of Dance
  • Over 20 Championship and Runner-Up Titles Ontario Closed Championship, Canadian Championship, Commonwealth Championship and World Championships at Cowal Highland Gathering, Dunoon Scotland
  • Performed in the 2008 Edinburgh Military Tattoo in Scotland
  • Adult Trophy winner at SDCCS 2009 in Toronto

Miss Gwenyth
Assistant Teacher Highland

Gwenyth became interested in highland dance when she was 5 years old when she watched a children’s show and they talked about heritage and cultural dances. She asked her parents about it and they were all amazed to find out that Sutherland Studio was just minutes from their house. Gwenyth has two grandparents who were born in Scotland but no family members who had any experience with highland dance.

Gwen has been dancing for over eight years now and her first kilt was the Lime Cunningham in honour of her mother’s family name. She has travelled to competitions all over North America, including Michigan, North Carolina, New Hampshire, Wisconsin, PEI, Nova Scotia and New Brunswick. She has participated in three Canadian Championships in London, Moncton and Charlottetown and was selected to compete in North American Sadie Simpson Scholarships in Tennessee, Alberta and Virginia. Her favorite trip was to Banff in 2018 where she won first in the theory portion of scholarships. The dances that she most enjoys dancing are the Seann Triuhbas and the Irish Jig. One of her most notable moments was performing the throwback version of “Glasgow Cat’s” at Sutherland Studio’s Anniversary Show. Although she gets nervous, she does enjoy introducing dancers and explaining the history of the dances for performances.

She is looking forward to using all of the techniques and teaching methods that she has learned from Mrs. Sutherland and Miss Ruth and all the wonderful teachers who have fostered her growth as a dancer in order to support and help the younger dancers.