Eryn Michlitsch - Artistic Director
Eryn began her 24 years of dance experience with Kay Englert, founder of Washington Contemporary Ballet, as the youngest member of the company at 12. In 1994, after auditioning, she was accepted to many professional summer programs: Pacific Northwest Ballet, San Francisco Ballet, Kirov Ballet Academy, North Carolina School of the Arts, Houston Ballet Academy, Hartford Ballet School, Oregon Ballet Academy, Pennsylvania Rock School of Ballet, and at that time chose to attend Pacific Northwest Ballet. She continued with Pacific Northwest Ballet until deciding to attend San Francisco Ballet School. Eryn has also received a Bachelors Degree in Business Administration, with a Concentration in Marketing from Bethany Lutheran College. After 12 years of teaching experience her instruction places a large emphasis on the history, terminology, and structure of true classical ballet.

Carla Bode
Our newest addition to the staff is Ms. Carla Bode as our new Modern and Jazz instructor. She carries with her an extensive background in dance and dance education. Previously she has served as dance adjunct faculty for Minnesota State University-Mankato and was the dance specialist for the Buffalo Arts Magnet High School. She has her degrees in Dance Education (K-12) from Minnesota State University-Mankato and Communication Arts and Literature Education from Winona State University. Carla is the co-founder of Rural Route Dance Company and also teaches for the Waconia Performing Arts Center.

Caitlyn Gerchak
Coming to us from Moorhead, MN Caitlyn gets her strong dance background from Trollwood Performing Arts School.  She has assisted and overseen the staging of many musical productions such as Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat.  Currently, Caitlyn is a freshman at MNSU and is working on a double major in Dance and Elementary Education.  Her 12 years of dance experience have given her a strong background in classical ballet and musical theater jazz technique.  Learning many new styles of dance has made it an exciting year for Caitlyn, and she is absolutely thrilled to be a part of Mankato Ballet Company.