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Sarah Suatoni, President, The Tween Scene LLC
Master Teacher, Tween Tribe
Sarah holds a BFA in Dance from the Julliard School and an MA in counseling Psychology from Pacifica Graduate Institute. She worked for many years as a choreographer and movement teacher in New York City. Her choreography combined storytelling and movement to explore psychological themes. She began working with psycho-therapy groups when she did her clinical internship at Goldwater Memorial Hospital, where she ran groups for people struggling with chronic pain and addiction. In addition to her MA, she is a certified Hellerwork practitioner, and has a private therapy practice on the Connecticut Shoreline and in New York City. Her mind/body therapy combines talk therapy, movement instruction, and deep-body tissue work. She treats adults and children for both chronic pain and emotional stress. Sarah lives in Killingworth, Connecticut with her husband and their two daughters, one dog and four cats. Their home is also the site of the Pondhawk Retreat Center.
Macdara MacColl, Executive Director, The Tween Scene LLC
Master Teacher, Tween Tribe
Macdara holds an MFA in Theater from the University of Alabama/Alabama Shakespeare Theatre conservatory program. After working in professional theater, she moved into publishing by serving as Managing Editor at Theatre Communications Group where she had the great pleasure of working with such playwrights as Tony Kushner, Athol Fugard, Edward Albee and Steve Martin. Her short stories have appeared in several literary journals and she has contributed theater reviews to several newspapers. She became fascinated by the possibilities presented by the Internet and moved to iVillage, where she spent four years. She spearheaded iVillage's interactive community development. Working to build early online communities, Macdara realized the profound need for community in the lives of over-scheduled Americans and became a leading authority on community programming. She has been a featured expert at many conferences and in many articles, including in Fast Company, Washington Technology and The New York Times. She was a keynote speaker at the White House in 1997, sharing the podium with then IBM CEO Louis Gersnter, President Bill Clinton and Vice President Al Gore. Later Macdara consulted with The Basex Group, serving as senior analyst in charge of community programming. In this capacity, she conducted industry-leading research in the area of virtual community building and its impact on business. She lives in Madison, Connecticut with her husband and their wonderful tween-aged daughter and twin boys.
Summer Northup, Tween Tribe Teacher
Summer has worked for years with children, combining dance, story and a deep belief in nourishing children’s spirit. She teaches creative movement classes to children, leads a fairy dance camp for young girls and tweens and serves as the stage manager for Starship Dance Theatre. In addition, she is a trained doula, helping women with birth and early child care. She also studies and teaches belly dance, exploring how dance can be a source of empowerment and self-expression.
Melinda Alcosser, Guest Teacher, Tween Tribe
Melinda has been playing percussion for over 20 years. She graduated from Antioch College with a self-designed major combining Anthropology, dance and ethnomusicology entitled "Movement, Rhythm and Culture." She currently is the conga player with Ubaka Hill and The Shapeshifters, recorded on Ubaka's newest CD release "Beyond the Edge." She also play congas with local Latin-Fusion band RJ Ruotolo and Speak No Evil. Her own group, Hands-On-Rhythm, offers classes and is available for musical birthday parties.