Megan Tillman

Megan Tillman is from Carmel, Indiana. She began her pre-professional training with Suzann DeLay at the Central Indiana Academy of Dance. She then went on to earn her BFA in Ballet Performance from the Department of Ballet at the University of Utah. There, Megan was a member of Utah Ballet and Ballet Ensemble where she performed in various contemporary works and classical ballets, most notably as Russian Girl in George Balanchine’s Serenade, and Swanhilda in René Daveluy’s Coppelia. She also had the opportunity to travel with the University to Seoul, South Korea, to perform with the Korean Ballet Theater. 

Megan spent her professional career dancing with Ballet Arkansas, located in Little Rock, Arkansas. She had the opportunity to dance works by renowned choreographers such as Ma Cong, Kiyon Gaines, Yoshito Sakuraba, Mariana Olivera, and Chris Stuart, as well as in multiple works by George Balanchine and Gerald Arpino. She has also been featured in Michael Fothergill’s Chiaroscuro, Ink, Dracula, and most recently in the world premiere of Sleepy Hollow as Katrina. Classically, Megan was often featured in principal roles in ballet such as The Nutcracker, Coppelia, Cinderella, Swan Lake, Sleeping Beauty, and La Esmeralda. 

In addition to performing, Megan is a passionate dance teacher who has taught for many dance studios and schools throughout the country. Most recently, Megan was the Ballet Director at Rock City Dance Center, where she helped streamline the ballet curriculum at both the Little Rock and Conway locations. Megan also served as the Ballet Arkansas Junior Intensive Principal for two summers, and has taught at the Ballet Arkansas Summer Intensive for multiple years. Megan and her husband Paul Tillman also created their own elite ballet training program called Tillman Dance for students in the central Arkansas area, based out of Ballet Arkansas' main street studio.

Megan has enjoyed having the opportunity to choreograph for many dance studios in Arkansas. She has created works for ballets such as Sleeping Beauty, Beauty and the Beast, and The Nutcracker, along with other original shows while working at Blackbird Academy of Arts in Conway, Arkansas. Her most memorable project was co-directing and choreographing the full length ballet Peter Pan for Blackbird Academy of Arts with her husband, Paul.

Megan and Paul are elated to be the new Associate Artistic Directors of Tupelo Ballet. The future is bright, and they are ready to help the organization continue to grow and flourish.