kate kastelnik

Ballet Faculty

BIO
After retiring from a ten-year performance career with Nashville Ballet in 2009, Kate Kastelnik taught and choreographed at Franklin School of Performing Arts, Middle Tennessee State University and Classic Steps in Clarksville, Tenn. before returning to Nashville Ballet as a faculty member in 2015. She received early training with Pennsylvania Youth Ballet, where she still frequents as a guest teacher, before pursuing a bachelor’s degree from Point Park University’s Conservatory of Performing Arts. Kastelnik studied and performed with Laura Alonso’s Centro Pro Danza in Havana, Cuba in 1996 and joined Nashville Ballet in 1999 after completing her college degree. Throughout her career, Kastelnik was featured as a soloist in many classical and neoclassical roles including notable works by George Balanchine and Frederick Ashton. Additionally, she performed in over two dozen ballets by Nashville Ballet’s Artistic Director Paul Vasterling, many of which Kastelnik was a part of the original choreographic process and cast. As a result, one of her greatest passions is having the privilege to pass on choreography to the next generation preserving it for years to come as a stager and coach for Professional Division, NB2 and Nashville’s Nutcracker youth cast performances. Among her favorite memories as a school faculty member, Kastelnik especially enjoyed staging Swan Lake Act II for NB2’s Future Artist Showcase in 2017. She grew up in a family of musicians, so her love of and connection to music serve as a driving force in her career, too. As a certified Pilates instructor, Kastelnik also incorporates this practice into her ballet teaching. She encourages students to learn and grow each day, and enjoys the challenge of finding creative ways to help each student reach their goals and potential.