Gillian Finley

Gillian Finley is a Lecturer at the USC Kaufman School of Dance, specializing in Ballet, Pilates, and Wellness instruction. With over 25 years of teaching experience, she brings expertise from her professional dance career with companies such as Ballet Pacifica, Nevada Dance Theatre, and Eugene Ballet. She holds a B.A. in Dance from the University of California, Irvine (UCI) and an M.A. in Arts Management from American University. Currently, she teaches DANC 183a and DANC 183b, ballet classes for non-major dance students, and emphasizes clarity in movement, anatomy, and the intellectual foundations of ballet.

• B.A. in Dance, University of California, Irvine
• M.A. in Arts Management, American University
• Certified Stott Pilates Instructor

Finley’s teaching philosophy focuses on empowering non-major dance students to embrace physical and intellectual challenges, fostering passion and courage in their practice. She highlights the transferability of ballet principles to other dance styles, aligning with USC Kaufman’s hybrid dancer philosophy. Her experience as director of Ballet Pacifica’s elite Conservatory program and her work at institutions like Long Beach Ballet and Focus Dance Center further enrich her pedagogical approach. Despite being part-time faculty, she notes the strong support from USC Kaufman’s staff and faculty since joining in 2017.

Finley advocates for dance as a transformative perspective for students across disciplines, particularly engaging engineering majors through mechanics and anatomy. She encourages non-dance majors to continue dancing if they have prior experience, emphasizing the accessibility of dance at USC’s studios. Her courses, DANC 183a and DANC 183b, are designed to reintroduce foundational ballet concepts to young adults while integrating historical and technical context.