Shari Smigo has been owner/director of The Mid Shore Dance Academy in Easton, MD since 1996 and is thrilled to have expanded to an additional studio location in Centreville, MD in 2013. She began her dance training with local eastern shore dance studios and continued her training through summer intensives in the RAD (Royal Academy of Dance) ballet exam syllabus program at the School of the Baltimore Ballet and Peabody. Double majoring in Psychology and Dance, she attended Jacksonville University and completed her studies at Ohio University, graduating Summa Cum Laude. University productions included the Royal Ballet version of the Nutcracker, works set by dancers with Martha Graham's dance company, and re-staging of classic works such as Pas de Quatre, and Doris Humphrey's Air for the G String. Following graduation, she returned to Maryland’s Eastern Shore, and worked in community mental health in Annapolis and danced professionally with Kinetics Dance Theatre in Ellicott City, under the artistic direction of Alvin Mayes. In addition to her studio work, Mrs. Smigo was also dance faculty at Queen Anne’s County High School, staged choreography for Centreville Middle School musical productions, assisted with aerial choreography for Peter Pan, and created liturgical dance for Our Mother of Sorrows Roman Catholic Church. After many years of service on the Board of MD Council for Dance as Secretary and Festival Registrar, she is now serving as the Executive Director, and hopes to further expand the scope of services the organization provides. When she’s not busy dancing, she enjoys spending time with her husband and four children, and renovating their turn-of-the-century farmhouse.