Kids and Jr. Kids Hip Hop Jazz, Beginning Ballet

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From the east coast, Becky graduated CumLaude from Point Park University in Pittsburgh, PA, majoring in dance. She studied with the Hungarian Ballet in Budapest, Hungary, and was a principal dancer in the Chester County Ballet Company in Pennsylvania, the Hollywood Ballet Company, and the Donlavy Dance Company in Los Angeles. Becky is a member of the Screen Actor’s Guild and has appeared in numerous commercials, TV shows, movies, and music videos. She has performed as a professional dancer all over the U.S. and abroad in shows from modern dance to magic - and everything in between. In addition to dance and acting, Becky has enjoyed a decorated career as a choreographer, working in many different genres, from TV and Film to Musical Theater. Becky has been the recipient of several StageScene LA Scenie Awards, including Choreographer of the Year, Best Choreography, and Outstanding Choreography in Multiple Productions, and was honored by the Simi Valley Cultural Association as Ventura County’s 2016 Artist of the Year. Some of her favorite choreographic accomplishments are: The Southern California tour of Magic Redefined with Master Illusionist John Gabriel, Bandage!, The Rock Opera at the House of Blues in Los Angeles, Peter Pan, Seussical, and Shrek at the Norris Theater, Curtains, Hairspray (choreographer/co-dir.), In The Heights, The Drowsy Chaperone, Legally Blonde, Catch Me If You Can, and Billy Elliot for ARTS at the Simi Valley Cultural Arts Center. Her choreography has also been seen on television in Masters of Illusion and in one of the final episodes of ER. In addition, Becky has been a highly regarded dance teacher for 20 years, specializing in ballet, pointe, lyrical, jazz, musical theater, tap, and ballroom.

Pre and Beginning Ballet, Beginning Jazz

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Brandy grew up in Phoenix, Arizona where she trained and performed with Dance Motion Performing Company directed by Kevin and Meri Bender. Brandy became a professional dancer at the age of 18, when she was cast in the Las Vegas spectacular EFX! Since then, Brandy has worked with many stars such as David Cassidy, Tommy Tune, Rick Springfield and Debbie Gibson. She has also worked with Tony Award Winning Broadway choreographer Jerry Mitchell and has assisted Tony Nominated Actress Jane Lanier. Brandy is the high school musical choreographer at Campbell Hall School in Studio City, CA.

Intermediate Ballet & Pointe

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Elizabeth Highway . Native of Southern California received her formal ballet training from Rosemary Valaire and YvonneMounsey at the Westside School of Ballet in Santa Monica. Upon graduating High School she started her career at the Milwaukee Ballet and went on to dance with The PittsburghBallet Theatre, Indianapolis Ballet and The Buffalo City Ballet . Elizabeth is certified in Pilates through Core conditioning and Physical Therapy.

Beginning, Intermediate and Advanced Contemporary, Conditioning and Beginning Ballet

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Emmy’s love for dance bloomed after seeing her first ballet, after which she training at studios in the area where she danced roles such as Clara and Marzipan Queen in the Nutcracker, to name a few. Emmy’s passion for ballet continued as she continued to study dance at Santa Susana High School in Simi Valley. There Emmy was given the opportunity to explore her potential as a choreographer and create the school’s first opening production number in the Winter Dance Concert. Since graduating, Emmy has been training and working under Chehon Wespi-Tschopp at IAMFORCE in Los Angeles, and has had the pleasure of working with Tyce Diorio, Marguerite Derricks, Dani Vitale, and Jackie Sleight. Working towards graduating with a BFA in Dance, Emmy is beyond excited to bring her knowledge and wisdom to California Dance Academy and dance with you all. 

Intermediate and Advanced Ballet and Conditioning

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Jerry Kokich was born into a theatre family. His father, Kazimir Kokich, danced with the Ballets Russes de Monte Carlo, and on Broadway. Jerry's mother, Iva Withers, was in the original productions of Oklahoma!, Carousel, and many others. Jerry began his ballet training the week he graduated from high school after spending his formative years as a hockey player. Studying with Tina Youskevitch, Gabriella Darvash, Stanley Williams, Andrei Kramerevsky and Richard Rapp prepared him for the Joffrey II Dancers and eight years with The Joffrey Ballet. Jerry has danced ballets by Robert Joffrey, Gerald Arpino, George Balanchine, Agnes DeMille, Kurt Joos, Jiri Kylian, Margo Sappington, Laura Dean, Charlie Moulton, and John Cranko. Former students have danced with The Joffrey, San Francisco Ballet, Alonzo King's LINES, Dresden Ballet, Grand Rapids Ballet, Washington Ballet, Oklahoma City Ballet, and have advanced to the finals of the YAGP. Jerry starred in 39 episodes of the multi-award winning web series, The Adventures of Superseven, winning two Outstanding Actor awards. He is also a published author, with the pulp action/adventure novel, Monuments of Doom, and the upcoming sequel, Hell's Fury, along with the sci-fi detective story collection, Belt City.   

Permanent Guest Faculty

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Laurie LeBlanc, an alumna of Central Pennsylvania Youth Ballet, began her professional career with Pennsylvania Ballet (now Philadelphia Ballet). Later she danced, served as acting artistic director and was resident choreographer of Pacific Ballet Theatre, in Portland, OR, and was a founding company member of Oregon Ballet Theatre. Ms. LeBlanc danced with Ballet Arizona in Phoenix, AZ, before her transition into musical theatre, touring and performing on Broadway in Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Phantom of the Opera, touring with Nicholas Hytner’s Carousel, and in Papermill Playhouse’s production of Brigadoon. During her 26 years in the Los Angeles area, she held the position of CDA’s Associate Director and primary ballet faculty, and coached and choreographed for California Dance Ensemble. Her students and choreography have placed in the finals of YAGP, California Dance Classics, and ADC/IBC and her students are dancing professionally or participating in reputable dance programs in professional schools and colleges across the US and overseas. In 2021, Miss LeBlanc received the Award for Outstanding Teacher at the Youth American Grand Prix semi-finals in Los Angeles. She has been a guest teacher at Central Pennsylvania Youth Ballet, School of Berkshire Ballet, San Luis Obispo Movement Arts Center, Regional Dance America’s Pacific Region Festival, among others. She now resides in Southern Oregon and is on faculty of Studio Roxander Academy of Ballet but is looking forward to guest teaching often with California Dance Academy when she is in the Los Angeles area.

Intermediate and Advanced Ballet

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Nicole Harlan, a native of Northern California, received her advanced training and scholarships from the San Francisco Ballet School and Boston Ballet. She received the Natalie Lauterstein Miller award for excellence while at San Francisco ballet school. She was also a recipient of the Danskin scholarship for the School of American Ballet. Nicole has performed with the San Francisco Ballet where she danced in Swan Lake, La Fille Ma Garde, Stars and Stripes, Four Temperaments, and Sons of Horus. She then performed with Ballet Metropolitan and Cincinnati Ballet, where she danced featured roles in ballets such as the Nutcracker, Ben Stevenson’s Cinderella, John Cranko’s Taming of the Shrew, and Andre Prokovsky’s Love Songs. With the Los Angeles Classical Ballet, Nicole performed as Helena in a Midsummer Night’s Dream at the Ford Amphitheater and as the Dewdrop Fairy in the Nutcracker at the Shrine Auditorium. Under the direction of Placido Domingo, she played the role of Clo Clo in the Los Angeles Opera’s production of The Merry Widow and Orfeo’s Guide in Orfeo ed Euridice. She was faculty on LADF. She teaches internationally and taught at the EDGE Performing Arts Center in Los Angeles for 17 years. Her students have gone on to train, or be accepted, at San Francisco Ballet, ABT, Boston Ballet, Houston Ballet, Juliard, Suny Purchase, to name a few. She is also the proud mother of three wonderful children.

Beginning, Intermediate and Advanced Modern

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Ongelle Olivia Johnson is a Southern California native. Ongelle began dancing at 4 years old, and grew up in a studio where she learned a variety of techniques such as Ballet, Jazz, Contemporary, Tap, and Musical Theatre. As dance grew to be Ongelle’s truest passion, she made the decision to pursue the art as a career. Her dance training and dance knowledge grew beyond as she attended the University of California Irvine. From her time at the university her knowledge of Modern dance grew as she studied the Horton and Graham techniques. From the years, 2015-2017, Ongelle was apart modern dance giant, Donald McKayle’s Etude Ensemble. She had the opportunity to be apart of the last two works he choreographed; “Bittersweet Farewell,” and “Crossing the Rubicon: Passing the Point of No Return.” She also had the immense honor of being able to learn and perform his iconic solo “Angelico’s Negros.” Ongelle was the soloist to perform the solo before his passing in April 2018. Ongelle graduated from UCI in 2017 receiving a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Dance Performance. Following graduation, Ongelle began to chase after her dream of dancing in a professional dance company. In August 2018 she found a home in Lula Washington Dance Theatre and is a current principal company member. She had only traveled and performed nationally with the company until finally going international to perform for her first time in January 2023, in Toronto, Canada. She is also as a teacher of Ballet, Jazz, Modern and Tap for the dance school of Lula Washington Dance Theatre. As her passion for dance continues to shine brightly, Ongelle’s passion to teach and share knowledge to build up the next generations of dancers shines just as bright.

Beginning, Intermediate, & Advanced Ballet and Musical Theatre/Tap

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Trained in Dallas, Texas and moving on to a performing career with Boston Ballet, Joffrey Ballet under Robert Joffrey, New York City’s Metropolitan Opera, and numerous plays and musical theatre productions around the world, Randall Graham brings a wealth of knowledge and excitement to his students. After a long ballet career dancing principal and soloist roles across all dance styles, Mr. Graham began a close working relationship with Agnes de Mille’s long time associate, staging numerous de Mille productions of Brigadoon, Carousel and Oklahoma! across the country. In addition Mr. Graham performed for President Bush Sr. as the principal male dancer in Carousel for the Houston Grande Opera.

Audiences throughout the United States have seen Mr. Graham perform in Robert Goulet’s Camelot and shortly thereafter Mr. Graham was assistant director for Carousel with Shirley Jones in Boston. In 2000 he relocated from New York City to Southern California and quickly established himself training students who received scholarships and acceptances to the top ballet school in the nation. Mr. Graham recently taught for Ballet West's Summer Intensive 2012.

Hip Hop and Jazz Funk

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Udee has been a professional dancer & choreographer in the entertainment industry for over 15 years in Los Angeles. Udee trained in jazz, ballet and modern while living in San Diego but ultimately found her love in Hip Hop.  Her numerous television appearances include several episodes of the The Tonight Show, the ESPY, Video Game, American Music Awards, The Jimmy Kimmel Show, and Dancing With The Stars, amongst others. Udee is not only a veteran in film and television but has also danced on stage with artists like Snoop Dogg, Monica, Limp Bizkit, Bon Jovi and Mya, and in music videos with the legendary artist Stevie Wonder, the much missed Notorious B.I.G., Marcus Houston, Christina Aguilera and J.C. Chasez. 

Udee’s love for dance and music runs deep and she believes that both music and dance are therapeutic for your mind, body and soul.  She has been all over the world teaching and performing and loves to teach those who want to learn and give forth maximum effort.