 |
Elrey C. Belmonti, also known as Starchild, studied theater for 11 years. After studying dance with Myra Bazell and attending a summer program at Philadanco, he changed his major to Dance in his sophomore year at University of the Arts. He has danced with Myra Bazell, Arche Dream, Anne-Marie Mulgrew and Dancers Co., Henry Roy, At Marah Dance Theater, and Charles O. Anderson. He has shown his own works at the Community Education Center’s (CEC) Glue performances, Le Cabaret Melange and The Philly Fringe Festival. Elrey is currently dancing with Kun-Yang Lin/Dancers and Dancefusion. This is his second season with Dancefusion.
|
| |
|
 |
Justin Bryant began his dance training at Pebblebrook High School in Atlanta Gerogia. He is currently working toward his BFA in Dance from the University of the Arts, where he is on a full scholarship. He has performed with Ruth Mitchell Dance Theater, Eleone Dance Theater, and The Philadelphia Civic Ballet. He has worked with American Idol Clay Aiken and country artist Wynonna Judd and was recently seen in the play “My Brother Marvin” directed by Clifton Powell. He has been awarded scholarships to Philadanco’s Summer Intensive, The Alvin Ailey School and The Rock School. Justin is currently a member and Associate Artistic Director of The Smoke, Lillies, and Jade Arts Initiative under the direction of Zane Booker. This is Justin’s third season with Dancefusion. |
| |
|
 |
Joe Cicala graduated from University of the Arts with a BFA in dance. He has danced with Group Motion, Ann Vachon/Dance Conduit, Convergence, Paradigm Dance, Body Language Dance Co., Trapezius Aerial, P3, Anna Sokolow Players' Project NYC, and Sokolow Now. He currently also dances with Anne-Marie Mulgrew and Dancers and SHARP. He has taught at various schools and and universities including Temple, Drexel, and Villanova. He has been a guest dancer with Buffalo Contemporary, Unexpected Dance in Seattle, and Mid-Atlantic Ballet. He is also very active in musical theatre having choreographed over 70 musicals. Joe is an original founding member of Dancefusion. Thanks to Lorry May for making this possible. |
| |
|
 |
Thayne Alexandra Dibble is an undergraduate student at the University of Pennsylvania. She started her training in classical ballet and jazz at the Children’s Ballet Theater in Philadelphia and the Joffrey Ballet School and studied modern dance at the Alvin Ailey School. Thayne also studied acting at the Walnut Street Theatre and Shakespeare and theatre in London. She has performed with the Pennsylvania Ballet and is currently a company member of Jeanne Ruddy Dance. Thayne danced with Dancefusion in 2006. This is her second season with Dancefusion. |
|
|
 |
Rachel Grisi started training with Carol Willson and Princeton Ballet School. She was awarded scholarships to Joffrey Ballet School, Alvin Ailey, The Martha Graham School of Contemporary Dance, and Steps on Broadway. She was a member of The Martha Graham Dance Ensemble, The Mantis Project, and Roxey Ballet and has worked with choreographers Pearl Lang and Ethel Winter. In 2007, Rachel received a cultural incentive grant from The Bucks County Community College to create a work. Rachel teaches throughout Bucks County and is the founding Artistic Director "The Nest," a community dance organization. Rachel joined Dancefusion this season. |
| |
|
|
Rachel Higgins grew up in Greensboro, NC and has trained and guest performed for many years with the Greensboro Ballet. Rachel is currently finishing her Junior year at the University of Pennsylvania where she is a member of Penn Dance Company. Rachel has also served as Co-Chair on the Penn Dance Board and is currently Chair of the Dance Arts Council at Penn |
| |
|
  |
Maya Johnson originally from Los Angeles California, Maya Johnson has trained with the Bolshoi Ballet's Yuri Grigoriev, at LA County High School for the Arts, Alvin Ailey American Dance School, and Alonzo King's Lines Ballet School, San Francisco, on full scholarship. A dancer, actress, and singer, Ms. Johnson was in numerous commercials, movies, and productions including The 63rd Academy Awards, Debbi Allen's The Bayou Legend, and the national tour of My Brother Marvin. Mentored by KaRon Brown-Lehman and Karen McDonald. She has received her BFA in modern dance, with an emphasis in choreography from University of the Arts. She is currently a member of Zane Booker's Smoke Lilies and Jade Arts Initiative and Dancefusion. |
|
|
 |
Rachel Kantra, holds a BFA in Acting from The University of the Arts (2003). Her training includes, the Gwendolyn Bye Dance Center, Central Pennsylvania Youth Ballet, Koresh School of Dance, and the Laban School for Contemporary Dance (London). She has worked with Enchantment Theatre Company, appearing in Cinderella, Pinocchio, and The Firebird. Currently, Rachel is on faculty at The University of the Arts as well as the Gwendolyn Bye Dance Center, where she is the Director of Dancefusion's junior company fusion2. Rachel also teaches and choreographs for Penn Dance at The University of Pennsylvania. Recent choreographic credits include: Hang On Little Tomato, Self-Portrait in Shoulder Stand, If we could forget enough to remember, we could get back to the beginning of ourselves, and Facing East. She is the recipient of a National Foundation for Advancement of the Arts award in Writing/Poetry as well as the Sylvia Caplan Memorial Award for Poetry from The University of the Arts. Rachel has been performing with Dancefusion since 2006. |
|
|
|
Heather Mahurin is a junior pursuing her B.A. in dance at Eastern University. She studied dance under Jane Bittner and Patricia Berrend, of the Washington Ballet. Heather has performed Mary Day's "The Nutcracker" and recently appeared in a performance at the American College Dance Festival. She has an internship with Dancefusion this season. |
|
|
 |
Sarah McCullough trained at the Gwendolyn Bye Dance Center where she was a member of Dancefusion’s junior company fusion2 In 2007 she received her BFA in Dance and Religious Studies at NYU's Tisch School of the Arts. She had many opportunities to perform and choreograph in New York, as well as through study abroad experiences in Austria and Vietnam. She currently teaches at the Gwendolyn Bye Dance Center and has also taught in Northern Ireland, where she lived and worked in a Peace and Reconciliation Centre for a year. She hopes to be entering into a graduate program next fall where she will study the role the arts can play in peace and reconciliation work within religious conflict. Sarah is always happy to be back in Philadelphia and is privileged to be working with Rachel Kantra and Dancefusion.$0 $0 $0 $0 $0 $0 |
|
|
 |
Janet Pilla received her BFA in Musical Theater from Syracuse University and her MFA in Dance from Temple University. She has toured nationally and internationally as a soloist of Ann Vachon/Dance Conduit (a company dedicated to the preservation of the José Limón Style). She has been featured in performances in Czechoslovakia as a solo performer and in England, Scotland and Taiwan as a company member of Terry Beck Troupe and Ed Groff/Jin Wen Yu Dancers. Janet has performed with numerous Philadelphia companies including, Group Motion, SCRAP Performance Group, Trapezius Aerial Dance, Kun-Yang Lin/Dancers and Melanie Stewart Dance Theater. She has performed reconstructions of the work of José Limón and Doris Humphrey, among others. Janet has been adjunct faculty at numerous Philadelphia area Universities and currently is adjunct faculty at Arcadia University. She has set Limón dances for the Limón Institute and teaches dance to students of all ages in the Philadelphia area. Janet is a company member of Jeanne Ruddy Dance, and Dancefusion. She is the recipient of a 2009 Dance Advance Grant. |
|
|
 |
Christine Taylor received her BFA from Florida State University. She joined Dancefusion in 1989 and has danced in classic works by Mary Anthony, Anna Sokolow, José Limón and Pauline Koner, as well as new choreography by Colin Connor and Kun-Yang Lin. From 1991 to 1996, Christine danced with Body Language Dance Company who participates extensively in the Young Audiences Program. In 1995 she was appointed Assistant Director of Dancefusion and from 1997 to 2002, was the Director of fusion2, a training company for young dancers. She has also worked with various local choreographers and in 1999, performed with Anne-Marie Mulgrew & Dancers at Toronto’s Fringe Festival of Independent Dance Artists. Christine was a soloist with Trapezius Aerial Dance, performing on trapeze, hoop, harness and giant aerial stilts and has been with Jeanne Ruddy Dance since its inception in 1999. Christine is currently completing her certification requirements for full certification in Pilates through Karen Carlson's advanced teacher training course. |
|
|
|
|
