OUR STAFF 2008 !!!!

FOREST HILLS DANCE ACADEMY RATED ONE OF THE TOP 50 STUDIOS IN THE US BY DANCE SPIRIT MAGAZINE…...2005

OUR PROFESSIONAL STAFF

TEDDI BURGESS (JAZZ, TAP) THE ARTISTIC DIRECTOR OF THE FOREST HILLS DANCE COMPANY. OVER 25 YEARS OF TEACHING EXPERIENCE. TEDDI HAS TRAINED 1000'S OF DANCERS OVER THE YEARS. MOST OF THE AREAS DANCE STUDIOS OWNERS AND TEACHERS HAVE BEEN TRAINED BY TEDDI. A HIGHLIGHT OF HER CAREER WAS TO HAVE HER WORK RECOGNIZED BY "DANCE SPIRIT" AND "DANCE TEACHER" MAGAZINE AS ONE OF THE TOP 50 STUDIOS TO TRAIN AT IN THE UNITED STATES. SHE WILL CONTINUE TO TEACH AND CHOREOGRAPH ORIGINAL AND AWARD WINNING ROUTINES. HER CLASSES ARE INTENSE AND CHALLENGING.

MICHAEL GOSNEY (BALLET, MODERN) MICHAEL HAS BEEN STUDYING CLASSICAL AND CONTEMPORARY BALLET FOR 15+ YEARS THROUGHOUT CHICAGO WITH MANY BALLET MASTERS. AFTER DANCING WITH SEVERAL BALLET COMPANIES HE NOW CONTINUES TO TEACH MASTERS CLASSES AND PRIVATELY COACHING PROFESSIONALS. HIS NEW COMPANY, ELEMENTS CONTEMPORARY BALLET (ECB), IS A LARGE FOCUS FOR HIM AND WILL BE SEEN IN CONCERT IN CHICAGO AND THE CHICAGOLAND AREA. MICHAEL IS A FAVORITE OF FOREST HILLS DANCERS AND HIS CLASSES ARE DESIGNED FOR DANCERS OF ALL LEVELS.

JOSEPH CARUANA (JAZZ, MODERN) JOE JUST FINISHED HIS 3RD SEASON WITH RIVER NORTH DANCE COMPANY. BEFORE COMING TO RIVER NORTH, HE PERFORMED WITH SD PRISM DANCE THEATRE, SPECTRUM DANCE THEATRE, AND THE PACIFIC NORTHWEST BALLET. HE RECEIVED TRAINING ON SCHOLARSHIP AT THE PACIFIC NORTHWEST BALLET SCHOOL, THE PERFORMING ARTS CENTER IN LOS ANGELES, AND FROM WORKSHOPS WITH THE BOSTON BALLET, JOFFREY BALLET, AND LINES CONTEMPORARY BALLET IN SAN FRANCISCO. HE HAS WORKED ON TELEVISION SHOWS SUCH AS "THAT 70'S SHOW" AND KTLA'S "THE LIVE SHOW". JOE ALSO RECEIVED HIS INITIAL TRAINING WITH FOREST HILLS DANCE ACADEMY.

AMIE BRANDON (JAZZ,TAP, HIP HOP) AMIE HAS BEEN DANCING SINCE THE AGE OF 3. A FORMER MEMBER OF THE FOREST HILLS DANCE COMPANY AND THE DANCE INSTRUCTOR AT ELLIS ARTS ACADEMY, AMIE IS A FAVORITE OF DANCERS OF ALL AGES. AMIE HAS BEEN CHOREOGRAPHING OUR HIP HOP TEAMS FOR THE LAST 2 YEARS. SHE RECEIVED TOP HONORS AS A COMPANY CHOREOGRAPHER IN HER FIRST SEASON AND WE ARE SO EXCITED TO HAVE HER AS A COMPANY INSTRUCTOR AGAIN THIS YEAR.

DAWN CROZIER (JAZZ, TAP, POM/DANCE) FOREST HILLS IS VERY EXCITED TO HAVE DAWN AS OUR NEWEST COMPANY INSTRUCTOR. DAWN HAS BEEN DANCING AND TEACHING ACROSS THE MIDWEST AREA FOR MANY YEARS. HER STUDENTS HAVE WON TOP HONORS AT MANY LOCAL AND NATIONAL DANCE COMPETITIONS. DAWN IS ALSO THE DANCE TEAM COACH AT GUILFORD HIGH SCHOOL WHERE SHE HAS BROUGHT THE TEAM TO TOP STATE HONORS. HER CLASSES ARE EXCITING AND CHALLENGING. DAWN WILL HELP TO BRING A NEW SPARK TO OUR STUDIO AND TO OUR DANCE COMPANY.

STEVE NECOLLINS - POWER TUMBLING AND TRAMPOLINE - ONE OF THE TOP TUMBLING INSTRUCTORS IN THE COUNTRY. STEVE HAS BEEN COACHING POWER TUMBLING AND TEACHING POWER TUMBLING FOR OVER 10 YEARS. AS A NATIONAL CHAMPION POWER TUMBLER HIMSELF STEVE KNOWS HOW TO TEACH EACH AND EVERY YOUNG TUMBLER WHAT IT TAKES. HIS CLASSES ARE AMAZING!!! HE HAS BEEN WITH FOREST HILLS FOR OVER 20 YEARS AS A STUDENT AND NOW A TRUE PROFESSIONAL INSTRUCTOR.

RACHEL HALL (BALLET, POINTE, PARTNERING) RACHEL HAS BEEN DANCING AT FOREST HILLS SINCE THE AGE OF 3. SHE HAS BEEN STUDYING BALLET ALL HER LIFE AND LOVES TO WORK WITH CHILDREN. HER INNOVATIVE BALLET PRODUCTIONS FOR THE YOUNGER DANCERS ARE INCREDIBLE. IN HER 3RD YEAR OF BEING THE ARTISTIC DIRECTOR OF OUR YOUNG BALLET DANCERS, SHE HAS MADE BALLET A FUN AND REWARDING START FOR MANY. RACHEL HAS BEEN TEACHING SINCE THE AGE OF 13 AND WAS A FOREST HILLS DANCE COMPANY TEAM MEMBERS FOR SEVERAL YEARS.

SAM RENZETTI (HIP HOP) ARTISTIC DIRECTOR AND FOUNDER OF EXTREME DANCE FORCE, SAM BRINGS HIP HOP TO A NEW LEVEL. HIS COMPANY CONTINUES TO REACH TOP NATIONAL HONORS WITH MANY OF HIS DANCERS ENTERING THE PROFESSIONAL FIELD. HIS CLASSES ARE INTENSE AND A CHALLENGE TO ALL. FOREST HILLS IS VERY FORTUNATE TO HAVE THIS AMAZINGLY TALENTED AND ENCOURAGING INSTRUCTOR ON STAFF.

STEVEN SAUNDERS (JAZZ) STEVEN IS AN OUTSTANDING DANCER AND HAS SO MUCH TO OFFER. STEVEN HAS RECEIVED TOP HONORS IN MANY DANCE COMPETITIONS AND SEVERAL SCHOLARSHIPS. STEVEN IS AN AMAZING ROLE MODEL AND THIS YEAR IS A FIRST TIME CHOREOGRAPHER FOR HIS OWN TEAM. JUST WAIT---IT'S GOING TO BE OUTSTANDING. WE ARE SO PROUD OF STEVEN AND WHAT HE CONTINUES TO INSTILL IN THE YOUNG DANCERS AT FOREST HILLS. EXCELLENCE!!!

KRISTINA LEWIS (BALLET) KRISTINA LEWIS JOINS THE FOREST HILLS DANCE ACADEMY IN THE SUMMER OF 2006. KRISTINA HAS HAD EXTENSIVE TRAINING IN ALL AREAS OF DANCE FOR OVER 19 YEARS. SHE WAS THE DANCE DIRECTOR AT THE DANCE SOURCE UNLIMITED AND HAS TAUGHT ALL OVER THE MIDWEST SINCE 1994. SHE HAS STUDIED AT COLOMBIA COLLEGE, ROCKFORD COLLEGE, AND IN LOS ANGELES. KRISTINA IS AN EXCELLENT DANCER AND HAS SO MUCH TO OFFER. WE ARE VERY EXCITED TO HAVE KRISTINA ON STAFF.

ROBERT LEWIS- (HIP HOP)

SPENCER BAUMGART (HIP HOP)

OUR INSTRUCTORS ARE EXPERIENCED, PROFESSIONAL, AND CARE ABOUT EACH AND EVERY DANCER…..

TEDDI WITH STUDENT PRESLEY CLARK

TEDDI BURGESS (JAZZ, TAP) THE ARTISTIC DIRECTOR OF THE FOREST HILLS DANCE COMPANY. OVER 25 YEARS OF TEACHING EXPERIENCE. TEDDI HAS TRAINED 1000'S OF DANCERS OVER THE YEARS. TEDDI HAS BEEN A JUDGE FOR SEVERAL NATIONAL DANCE COMPETITIONS THIS YEAR JUDGING "SHOWBIZ NATIONALS IN CALIFORNIA". SHE HAS RECEIVED SEVERAL CHOREOGRAPHY AWARDS THROUGHOUT HER CAREER AND WILL CONTINUE TO CHALLENGE HER COMPANY DANCERS WITH NEW AND EXCITING PIECES. A HIGHLIGHT OF HER CAREER WAS TO HAVE HER WORK RECOGNIZED BY "DANCE SPIRIT" AND "DANCE TEACHER" MAGAZINE AS ONE OF THE TOP 50 STUDIOS TO TRAIN AT IN THE UNITED STATES.

MICHAEL

JOE

JOSEPH CARUANA (JAZZ, MODERN) JOE JUST FINISHED HIS 3RD SEASON WITH RIVER NORTH DANCE COMPANY. BEFORE COMING TO RIVER NORTH, HE PERFORMED WITH SD PRISM DANCE THEATRE, SPECTRUM DANCE THEATRE, AND THE PACIFIC NORTHWEST BALLET. HE RECEIVED TRAINING ON SCHOLARSHIP AT THE PACIFIC NORTHWEST BALLET SCHOOL, THE PERFORMING ARTS CENTER IN LOS ANGELES, AND FROM WORKSHOPS WITH THE BOSTON BALLET, JOFFREY BALLET, AND LINES CONTEMPORARY BALLET IN SAN FRANSICO. HE HAS WORKED ON TELEVISION SHOWS SUCH AS "THAT 70'S SHOW" AND KTLA'S "THE LIVE SHOW". JOE ALSO RECEIVED HIS INITIAL TRAINING WITH FOREST HILLS DANCE ACADEMY.

AMIE

DAWN

DAWN CROZIER (JAZZ, TAP, POM/DANCE) FOREST HILLS IS VERY EXCITED TO HAVE DAWN AS ONE OF OUR COMPANY INSTRUCTORS. DAWN HAS BEEN DANCING AND TEACHING ACROSS THE MIDWEST AREA FOR MANY YEARS. HER STUDENTS HAVE WON TOP HONORS AT MANY LOCAL AND NATIONAL DANCE COMPETITIONS. DAWN IS ALSO THE DANCE TEAM COACH AT GUILFORD HIGH SCHOOL WHERE SHE HAS BROUGHT THE TEAM TO TOP STATE HONORS. HER CLASSES ARE EXCITING AND CHALLENGING. DAWN WILL HELP TO BRING A NEW SPARK TO OUR STUDIO AND TO OUR DANCE COMPANY.

SAM

KRISTINA

KRISTINA LEWIS-LEONARD(BALLET) KRISTINA LEWIS Kristina Leonard has 23 years of training in Ballet, Jazz, Tap, Modern, and Lyrical. She studied Ballet under Joy Xu, and Margaret Faust as a member of the Rockford Dance Company, and also with Sheri Gilpin at Columbia College, Chicago. Kristina’s Jazz, Lyrical, and Tap training includes local and national instruction from Ted Jackson as a charter member of the Mid-West Movement, Forest Hills Dance Academy, Marx Dance Academy, Beloit WI, and both Tremaine Dance Center and Madonna Grimes Studio, Los Angeles CA. Kristina’s Modern Dance background includes company membership at both Elgin Performing Art Studio, and With Out Shoes Modern Dance Company, Rockford. Kristina Lewis also attended Rockford’s Creative And Performing Arts Program as a student before attending College.

ROBERT

ROBERT LEWIS- (HIP HOP) FOREST HILLS IS VERY LUCKY TO HAVE ROBERT AS ONE OF OUR OUTSTANDING HIP HOP INSTRUCTORS. HE WAS RECENTLY SEEN ON MTV'S "AMERICA'S BEST DANCE CREW" WHERE HIS CREW XTREME DANCE FORCE GOT TO THE TOP 8. HE ALSO PROVED HIMSELF A FIRST YEAR COMPANY CHOREOGRAPHER. HIS 1ST HIP HOP TEAM RECENTLY RECEIVED 1ST OVERALLS AT SEVERAL COMPETITIONS THIS YEAR. ROBERT CONTINUES TO PERFORM AND STUDY WITH "XTREME DANCE FORCE" IN NAPERVILLE. ROBERT'S CLASSES ARE CHALLENGING AND FUN. WE ARE LOOKING FORWARD TO HIS WORK IN THE 2008-2009 SEASON.

SPENCER

SPENCER BAUMGART (HIP HOP) SPENCER HAS ALSO JOINED TOGETHER WITH OUR HIP HOP STAFF. HE ASSISTED AND HELPED CHOREOGRAPH OUR HIP HOP TEAM THIS YEAR. SPENCER HAS BEEN STUDYING DANCE ALSO WITH XTREME DANCE FORCE FOR 5 YEARS. HE HAS BEEN DANCING AT FOREST HILLS SINCE THE AGE OF 10. SPENCER IS LOVED BY HIS FELLOW DANCERS AND PROVES TO BECOME AN OUTSTANDING PROFESSIONAL DANCER IN THE FUTURE. HIS CLASSES ARE EXCITING AS WELL AS CHALLENGING.