CHOREOGRAPHERS
Katy E. Cashin
Choreographer & Répétiteur
Katy E. Cashin is a freelance choreographer in New York City, creating works for White Horse Theater Company (WHTC) and The Tallahassee Ballet (TTB). Cashin’s WHTC productions include Tennessee William’s A Cavalier for Milady, Sam Shepard’s Eyes for Consuela, and WHTC Artistic Director Cyndy Marion’s world premiere, You Are Perfect, which was selected for the 2017 Toronto Fringe Festival and restaged in Los Angeles, CA in 2018. Cashin has created ten original works for TTB, including Rhapsody, Retour, Focus, Mainframe, and Rebonds B. She created works for “First Look” presented by Brooklyn Ballet and South Georgia Ballet’s FUSE: Boots & Ballet.
Cashin received her Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in dance performance and Bachelor of Arts degree in history from Southern Methodist University, where she performed soloist roles in masterworks by George Balanchine, Maurice Béjart, Arthur Mitchell, and Gerald Arpino. She trained with The Tallahassee Ballet (TTB) under the direction of Joyce Fausone as well as under Christina Paolucci (New York Theatre Ballet), Sheila Humphreys (Royal Ballet), and Richard Sias (National Ballet of Canada). At TTB, Cashin performed several principal and soloist roles in full-length ballets such as The Nutcracker, Coppélia, Cinderella, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, and Beauty and the Beast. Cashin received her Master of Public Administration degree from Columbia University’s School of International and Public Affairs in New York City. Cashin is an ABT® Certified Teacher who has successfully completed the ABT® Teacher Training Intensive in Pre-Primary through Level 3 of the ABT® National Training Curriculum.
Meagan Helman
Artistic Director and Choreographer
Meagan Helman has been with The Tallahassee Ballet (TTB) since 2015, first serving as a faculty member and later as School Director, Company Teacher, Ballet Mistress, and now as Artistic Director. She has a diverse array of professional experiences as a dancer and educator. Helman is an adjunct faculty member at Florida State University’s (FSU) School of Dance, where she has taught all levels of Ballet and Dance Technology courses, choreographed, and served as a rehearsal director. She performed professionally for over ten years as a principal dancer with Ballet Theatre of Maryland (BTM), where her repertoire included Swan Lake, Romeo and Juliet, Coppélia, Cinderella, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, The Firebird, Beauty and the Beast, Aladdin, The Nutcracker, Carmen, and The Scarlet Letter, among other classical and contemporary works.
Helman served as the Ballet Mistress for BTM from 2009-2014, where she also choreographed and taught for the company and school. Her choreography has been performed by BTM, TTB, FSU, Delaware Dance Company, Goucher College, and the American College Dance Association. Helman holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Dance from Goucher College and a Master of Arts degree in Dance from FSU. She also serves as the photographer for FSU’s School of Dance and the performance photographer for TTB. Her photographs have been published in Dance Magazine, Dance Studio Life, and Dance Teacher Magazine. She has served on the FSU Friends of Dance Leadership Council since 2017.
Helman is an American Ballet Theatre® Certified Teacher who has successfully completed the ABT® Teacher Training Intensive in Pre-Primary through Level 3 of the ABT® National Training Curriculum.
additional choreographers
Joyceann Bell Fausone
Originator of An Evening of Music & Dance & Choreographer
Joyceann Bell Fausone received her Bachelor of Science degree in Dance Education from the University of Georgia and her Master of Fine Arts degree in Dance from Florida State University (FSU). Before joining the dance faculty of the FSU School of Dance, she served as the Artistic/Administrative Director for The Tallahassee Ballet (TTB) for over twenty years.
During her tenure at TTB she produced several full-length ballets including TTB’s first Nutcracker in 1986 and the first Evening of Music and Dance program in 1990 under the music direction of Frank Kowalsky. During her tenure she also initiated several community outreach programs including DanceChance, the Ireland Cultural Exchange, and the Special School Performance Series for Leon County Schools.
Fausone’s professional development in teaching and pedagogy include teacher courses at the Royal Winnipeg Ballet, the National Ballet of Canada, Pacific Northwest Ballet, and a Seminar in Music and Dance in Marktoberdorf, Germany, as well as studying the Cecchetti method in Italy with Raymond Lukens and Franco De Vita.
Transitioning to FSU in 2004, Fausone received the Nancy Smith Award from the Florida Dance Association for Lifetime Achievement in the field of dance. Her position as the Coordinator of Special Programs and Events for the FSU School of Dance and the Maggie Allesee National Center for Choreography encompassed overseeing the teaching of the graduate students in the General Studies non-major dance program, organizing the annual Suzanne Farrell Young Dancer’s Workshop, and creating and directing the annual Summer Intensive Dance Workshop. As needed, Fausone also taught advanced ballet technique and pointe classes. Following her sabbatical in Paris, she initiated the first FSU “Dance in Paris” program in 2012 as part of the FSU International Study Abroad Program and served as both Program Director and faculty for five years.
Fausone retired in July 2016 and is delighted to be back in the studio setting Gershwin’s Songbook in collaboration with Meagan Helman and Katy E. Cashin.
Dr. Kathryn Karrh Cashin (1957-2023)
Choreographer
Kathryn (KK) Karrh Cashin, PhD, was a beloved former dancer of The Tallahassee Ballet (TTB) and long-time Resident Choreographer, best known for the brilliant choreography of our production of The Nutcracker.
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In addition to The Nutcracker, KK is known for numerous chamber works, most notably Boléro. Her full-length ballets include Beauty and the Beast, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Coppélia, Cinderella, and The Sleeping Beauty. She also choreographed several children’s ballets and shared her artistry with Florida State Opera, choreographing over 20 works, including The Mikado, Eugene Onegin, Orpheus in the Underworld, and Romeo and Juliet.
The Tallahassee Ballet will always be indebted to the countless hours, creative passion, high standards, and unwavering support of Dr. Kathryn Karrh Cashin. Her commitment to TTB was beyond reproach and her kindness had no bounds. Her choreography and influence will be seen in our performances and in our hearts for as long as TTB exists.
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Hope Eltomi
2025 EOMAD Choreographer
Hope Eltomi was born and raised in Vero Beach, Florida. She began serious ballet training at the age of 12 and attended University of North Carolina School of the Arts for her last two years of high school with a concentration in ballet. She attended Florida State University and graduated with her Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in dance in 2012. She began dancing for The Tallahassee Ballet in 2013 under Artistic Director Tyrone Brooks and enjoyed her career as a professional dancer with the ballet until 2024.
Eltomi is a mom to three beautiful children and owns a gardening and landscaping business with her husband. She has always enjoyed creating dances and is excited for this opportunity to choreograph for the ballet’s 2025 EOMAD. Eltomi finds inspiration for choreography in the experience of relationships; love, loss, joy and grief in the context of people connecting and disconnecting from each other, God, and the world around them.
Hope Eltomi
2025 EOMAD Choreographer
Sophia Lutinski, originally from Fredericksburg, Virginia, has been a part of The Tallahassee Ballet (TTB) since 2021 and is currently performing as a Soloist. Her repertoire with the company showcases a wide range of classical and contemporary roles, including standout performances as the Snow Queen, Marzipan lead, Coffee lead, and Chocolate Lead in The Nutcracker, Autumn Fairy in Cinderella, and the Violente Fairy in The Sleeping Beauty. She has also performed leading roles in contemporary works such as Rare Bird, Solitude, and Kythirian Dances under the direction of choreographers including Meagan Helman, Holly Borrelli, and Katy Cashin.
Lutinski holds both a Master of Arts and a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Dance from Florida State University (FSU). At FSU, she had the privilege of training with renowned artists including Suzanne Farrell, Kara Wilkes, Ilana Goldman, Meagan Helman, Caleb Mitchell, Donna Uchizono, and Jawole Willa Jo Zollar. While there, she performed in multiple notable works such as Divertimento No. 15 and Serenade by George Balanchine, both staged by Suzanne Farrell.
Lutinski made her choreographic debut in The Tallahassee Ballet’s 24-25 season with her piece Poppet. Her choreographic explorations investigate passion, theatricality, attachment and companionship. They also explore the darker aspects of love — such as, obsession, dominance, delusion, and mania. Sophia is incredibly excited to explore a new choreographic process with her TTB family.
