Our Millie Choreographer

We are very fortunate to be working with Nicole Aravena-Coates and Bill Coates as our choreographers on Thoroughly Modern Millie this year. Here is Nicole's bio:

Nicole Aravena-Coates started dancing 27 years ago at Dance Dimensions in Brookfield, Connecticut under the direction of Beverly Legge. She was the winner of many dance titles and high scores regionally and nationally including Teen Dancer of the Year Connecticut 1995, Teen Dancer of the Year Massachusetts 1996 and Miss Dancer of the Year Connecticut 1999. At the age of 16, she decided to head to the Big Apple to attend school. Nicole is a graduate of the NYC High School of Performing Arts (the Fame school). During high school, she was a member of the 1998 United States of America National Tap Team and traveled to Reisa, Germany to compete in the World Cup. The U.S.A. team ranked 2nd and Nicole ranked 15th in the world as a soloist that year. When the team got back to the United States, they were invited to the Town Hall Theater to perform amongst such greats as Buster Brown, Ted Levy, and Brenda Buffalino in the “Night of Choreographers”. Nicole performed in plays such as Wizard of Oz, Evita, and Gypsy at the Strand Theater. In addition she performed in a workshop production of A Chorus Line as a swing at Carnegie Hall and also performed in the world premier of Footloose.
After graduating high school Nicole studied drama at William Espers Studio in Manhattan, one of the most prestigious studios in New York City. While at the drama school, she judged both regional and national dance and talent competitions. Nicole was also a soloist member of the Peggy Spina Tap Company, a solo tap dancer for the Cincinnati Pops Orchestra performance of Talk to the Animals, as well as the choreographer of the hit off-Broadway show Broadway Baby, starring Jessica Leschnauer.
Nicole started her teaching career at dance schools in Connecticut, New York, and New Jersey. Some of her students were national competition winners. She then went on to teach at the world-renowned Broadway Dance Center with Germaine Salsberg, her tap mentor. There she discovered her true love, teaching children to dance. Nine years ago Nicole started her own studio. She is the owner/director of the Seven Star School of Performing Arts in Brewster, NY. She is also the director of the Seven Star Dance Company, which has won numerous awards over the years. Some of her most recent and proudest moment was to see her student of 8yrs, Gabriel Rush play the part of Michael in the Broadway show Billy Elliot.
This past October Nicole traveled with 4 of her students to Reisa Germany to compete in the Tap Dance World Cup. For the first time she was able to experience 3 of her students stand on the World Cup podium as Silver and Bronze medalists. As a choreographer Nicole most recently was awarded the Dutchie Award (Dutchess Community College Hudson Valley Theater Awards 2010) for her choreography in Brewster High School’s production of Oklahoma!. Other Brewster High School and Middle School productions that Nicole has had a great success with are West Side Story, The Wizard of Oz, Les Miserables, Beauty and the Beast, Once Upon a Mattress, Guys and Dolls, King and I, Suessical, Aladdin and Cinderella. Nicole is so excited to have the opportunity to be part of North Salem’s Thoroughly Modern Millie.