 |
|
| Instructors |
Artistic Director/Owner |
Ms. Donelson Renda has over 33 years of dance experience. She also has been professionally acting for over ten years. She has trained at Broadway Dance Center, Steps, Dance Space Inc., and The Limon Institute. Her regional theatre credits include A Chorus Line (Connie/Diana), West Side Story (Rosalia), Fame (Carmen), and Hair (Tribe). Michelle has had the opportunity to perform in the International Fringe Festival and at the Access Theatre, The Henry Street Settlement, The Strand Theater, and The Count Basie Theater. Michelle studied acting at The Lee Strasberg Theatre Institute (NYC) with Irma Saundry and Nancy Franklin and H.B Studios (NYC) with William Hickey, Edward Moorehouse, and Joseph Daly in NYC. She has been a member of The Screen Actors Guild since 2000. Some of her film and television credits include Comedy Central’s final season of Strangers with Candy, A Beautiful Mind, The Street, and Finding Forrester. Michelle has had the privilege of working with Ron Howard, Russell Crow, Vivienne Cardone, Paul Betteny, Stephan Colbert, and Amy Sedaris.
|
 |
Kate Wray (TTC Dip., ARAD, ISTD) teaches Pre-ballet through Adult. Ms. Wray grew up in Gloucestershire, England, and trained for three years with course director Valerie Adams at the Royal Ballet School in London under the school’s director Dame Meryl Park. She was awarded her Teachers’ Training Course diploma in 1993 by Dame Ninette de Valois, founder of the Britain’s Royal Ballet. Along with her diploma, Ms. Wray received her teaching certifications for Cecchetti Technique and National Dance, both awarded with distinction, as well as for the Royal Academy of Dance Syllabus, Character, and Spanish Dance. She is also an ARAD-qualified instructor, and is able to enter pupils for examination for the RAD syllabus. She was among the first group from the United Kingdom to attend the Summer Training Course at the Kirov Ballet’s Vaganova Academy of Russian Ballet in Leningrad. Ms. Wray was a ballet instructor at schools in Gloucester and London and Assistant Ballet Mistress at the London Children’s Ballet Company before becoming an original cast member of the Basel, Switzerland production of The Phantom of the Opera. While being involved in creating that production, she worked with director Hal Prince, composer Lord Andrew Lloyd Webber, and choreographer Gillian Lynne. She performed in Basel for two years, and then returned to London to join the original production of Phantom on the West End for one year. After getting married in 1998 and moving to New York, she joined her husband as a cast member of the Broadway Phantom, and then went on to sing and dance the principal role of Meg for four and a half years on the National Tour of Phantom, performing in over 40 cities across the United States and Canada. In her 13 years of involvement with Phantom, Ms. Wray became the only person in the world to have performed in the Phantom companies of London, New York, Basel, and the National Tour. Now back in New York, Ms. Wray is nearing completion of a Bachelor of Arts degree from St. Mary’s College of California and is pursuing a Pilates teaching qualification. She is proud to be starting on the new adventure of being the mother of Liliana Grace, who was born May 10, 2008. |
|
Ms. Noble teaches tap. LeeAnet Noble is a phenomenally talented actor, dancer, drummer and singer whose unique style of mixing tap dancing and masterful drumming simultaneously, has won her critical acclaim from across the USA. She studied tap dance under and has worked with such artists as Tappers With Attitude, Dianne Walker, Savion Glover and The National Tap Dance Orchestra among others. She was featured in and choreographed Arts Alive (television series) with original Broadway cast members of Bring in Da Noise Bring in Da Funk. She performed leading roles in the New York casts of the international hit shows STOMP and DRUMSTRUCK. She was recently seen opening the star studded Black Ball at the Hammerstein Ballroom with a solo that received rave reviews from Rollingstone.com. She has been featured with such artists as Wynton Marsalis, Harry Belafonte, Hugh Masekela and Danny Glover among others. Her solo career has taken her from tapping at the Lincoln Center to every theater at The Kennedy Center. Her original choreography was featured in NATIVITY at The Public Theater with the Broadway casts of Lion King and Chicago and at the ANHM for an audience of thirty thousand at which she performed her critically acclaimed act with her mother, acclaimed vocalist and percussionist Lauretta Noble. She attended Howard University graduating Magna Cum Laude with a BFA in Theater. Ms. Noble has been featured on BET, ABC, FOX-NY, FOX-DC, CNN and Good Day New York. She has opened for such artists as Chaka Khan, Alicia Keys, Gwen Stefani, Bono and Sheryl Crow. Her critically acclaimed original spiritual choreography has been performed at such prestigious theaters as The Kennedy Center and in South Africa and Brazil. Her original one woman show 'KickN2theBeat' premiered December 14th at The Zipper Theater. LeeAnet currently performs throughout New York and Los Angeles. LeeAnet has been teaching tap for over ten years and currently teaches tap, step, gumboot dancing, Zulu dancing and percussion in the New York school system as well as Slammin workshops (alternative drumming and tap). |
|
Mandy Stallings teaches modern. Mandy Stallings is currently performing as a permanent company member of Pascal Rekoert’s Flexicurve Dance as well as the Cleo Mack Dance Project. She has worked professionally with Larry Keigwin, Nicole Wolcott, Neta Pulvermacher, Gerri Houlihan, Scott Rink, Brenda Daniels, and Sean Sullivan. Mandy has choreographed more than fifteen original dances and her work has been shown in venues such as Dance Forum, Peridance Center, HATCH, Cunningham Studio, SWEAT outdoors, Studio A.I.R and Galapagos Art Space. She teaches dance to children throughout the NYC Public school system and is also a registered yoga instructor, recognized nationally with the Yoga Alliance at the highest level. She is a graduate of the North Carolina School of the Arts and is very excited to be teaching at Hoboken Dance Academy! |
 |
LISA CAPPS teaches Musical Theater. Lisa is the only woman ever to perform all three leading ladies in the Broadway and National Touring Companies of Les Miserables: Eponine, Cosette and Fantine. She starred opposite Lea Salonga in the Philippine premiere of Miss Saigon (as Ellen) , and also appeared as Mrs. Walker in two National Touring Companies of The Who's Tommy. TV audiences best remember Lisa as 'Debbie' on the hit ABC series Growing Pains. As an instructor, Lisa has been a leading guest artist teacher for “Broadway Classroom” in New York City, headed by Broadway director Gordon Greenberg. In addition, Lisa and her husband, Don Brewer, have held musical theatre audition workshops at performing academy's in Michigan, New Jersey and Los Angeles. Having worked consistently in television and theatre, her “Business Lecture” class is highly requested and recommended. Lisa’s classes are motivating, challenging and informative. Students love the hands on business advice as well as the acting and singing techniques she offers from her own training with some of the best directors and teachers in New York City. Lisa is the co-founder and Co-Executive Producer (with Charles Bergell), of Broadway Sings – a concert production company featuring Broadway performers. (www.broadwaysings.com) . Last year, they reached a milestone by producing their first concert at Carnegie Hall. |
|
CHARLES BERGELL teaches Musical Theater. While in the Broadway and National Touring companies of Les Miserables, Charles had the privilege of performing the leading role of Jean Valjean. He appeared as Mssr. Andre in the 2nd National Tour of Phantom of the Opera, directed by Harold Prince, and was a member of the 2Oth Anniversary Tour of Evita. Other credits includeChildren of Eden at The Paper Mill Playhouse (original cast recording), Father Andrew in Neil Berg's hit Off-Broadway musical, The Prince and the Pauper, and Linda' Eder's Christmas Concert, seen on Bravo Television. Charles makes frequent concert appearances in the NYC area and around the country, often performing with his friend, composer Neil Berg, in Neil Berg's 100 Years of Broadway. Charles has received vocal instruction from some of the finest teachers in the world: Ryan Edwards of the Metropolitan Opera. Lorna Haywood of Covent Gardens, Katherine Hartgrove of the Lyric Opera of Chicago, and Dan Ballestrero of the San Francisco Opera (not to mention Aaron Bergell, his father). |
|
Annetta Engelman – Zaltzberg, a native Israeli, began teaching dance, choreographing for local schools and staging performances at the age of 18. While serving in the Israeli army, she participated in a tour of the U.S. and France with Hora Kinneret, an Israeli folk dance group. She received her Bachelor of Dance degree from The Jerusalem Academy of Music and Dance in Israel. In 2004 she came to New York as a visa student where she began to pursue her dream by dancing at the Broadway Dance Center and at Dance New Amsterdam, where she had the opportunity to study with several incredibly influential dance teachers/choreographers including Alexandra Beller, Earl Mosley, Brice Mousset, Richard Pierlon, Nia Love, Beth Goheen, Jeff Amsden, Slam, Gerald Casel and Peniel Gurrier. These experiences have truly shaped her dance artistry and her approach to movement. She also performed with Earl Mosley/Diversity of Dance and with Bliss, directed by Irene Ruiz. Annetta's choreography credits include: Assistant choreographer for the renowned artistic director and choreographer, Shlomo Maman, as well as many showcases in dance schools all over Israel. In New York, she choreographed for the Parparim Israeli Dance Ensemble, directed by Ruth Goodman, producing dances that were featured at Shea Stadium, The Israel Folk Dance Festival in NYC, Boston’s Israeli Folk Dance Festival, as well as in performances throughout the Northeastern United States and in Tampa, Florida. Annetta also choreographed and performed in her contemporary piece, Chameleon, at the PMT Fall Showcase and at Dance New Amsterdam. |
