Stephanie Cantrell Dowds is a graduate of Winthrop University in Rock Hill, South Carolina and UNC Charlotte in Charlotte, NC. She received her Bachelor of Arts degree in Dance Performance in 2009 and studied modern, ballet, jazz, tap, and African dance under such names as Mary Beth Young, Bethany Tuffy, Meg Schriffin, Stephanie Milling, and Caroline Calouche. She also received a Masters of Public Administration with a concentration in Non-Profit Management in 2012.

Stephanie started her dance career at the age of three. She has extensively studied tap, jazz, ballet, lyrical, modern, clogging, aerial silks, and hip hop at Dance Dynamics in Tryon, N.C., Studio L in Hendersonville, N.C., and Ballet Spartanburg in Spartanburg, S.C. Growing up she competed in many regional, state, and national dance competitions and beauty pageants.

She has had the honor of performing with Martha Connerton’s Kinetic Works, The Charlotte Philharmonic’s Christmas Spectacular, and Caroline Calouche & Co.

Stephanie thoroughly enjoys working with young dancers and has teaching and choreographic experience with children of all ages at Dance Dynamics in Tryon, N.C., NXS Dance Studio in Boiling Springs, S.C., Studio L in Brevard, NC, Terri Teele’s School of Dance in Spartanburg, SC, Dance Masters of America Chapter #44, and Charlotte’s Cirque and Dance Center in Charlotte, NC.

She was previously the Director of Programming at Blumenthal Performing Arts in Charlotte, NC (2013 – 2021), and she currently works as the remote Programming Manager for The Bushnell Center for the Performing Arts in Hartford, CT. She has a thorough knowledge of the business side of the performing arts and works directly with industry agents and producers to connect shows with venues. Therefore, she uniquely has an experienced eye for quality dance entertainment.