Catherine Whitehair LISTD
Head of ISTD Modern and Tap
Catherine trained first at Performers College and then at The Centre of Performing Arts, where she gained her teaching qualifications in Ballet, Tap and Modern. After graduating Catherine went to work for Carnival Cruise Lines where she performed as dance captain and lead dancer for 7 years. Alongside Carnival she performed as part of the ensemble in the Pantomime ‘Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs’ at the Manchester Opera house for First Family and showcased in various music videos. She also performed as a tapper on the series of ‘Pineapple Dance Studios’ for Sky One.
Since arriving in Dubai Catherine has performed in many events including playing the role of Clara in the Nutcracker Ballet at Dubai Mall, numerous flash mobs, F1, and the promotional video for Fly Dubai to name a few. She also performed with the West End cast in the live show of Grease the Musical at Yas Island.
Catherine has assisted, choreographed and managed events across Dubai such as the UAE Innovation Opening Ceremony, National Days for both Dubai and Abu Dhabi, GSK shadow show in Egypt, corporate flash mobs for Henkel and Coca-Cola and choreographed the GMIS screen show in Abu Dhabi as well as a tap duet for McDonalds end of year event. Catherine managed and choreographed the children’s choir for Yahclick and managed, choreographed and emcee’d the Dubai Fitness Challenge at Motiongate for over 3,000 children.
Catherine has taught all over the UK, including colleges such as GSA. She has a wealth of experience teaching children of all ages from beginner to advanced in all genres of dance. Catherine has gained impressive ISTD results in Tap and Modern at Diverse over the past 5 years with 100% pass rate. Having gained her Licentiate in Tap the department is going from strength to strength with more and more children joining and achieving outstanding results in the genres. Nurturing the children’s love of performing arts and watching them progress in an exceptionally talented school is incredibly rewarding.
As well as teaching Catherine manages the children’s agency and all the Diverse after school programme activities across 7 schools in Dubai.
