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Alexandru Glushacov (Artistic Director, Ballet, Character, Pas de deux) has over 20 years of experience as a professional dancer. He trained at the Academy of Ballet of Republic of Moldova. Upon graduation, he joined the National Theatre of Opera and Ballet of Republic of Moldova where he quickly became a first soloist dancer. He later moved to Moscow and joined the Russian Classical Ballet and then the Russian State Ballet. With these companies he toured extensively throughout Europe and the United States. Mr. Glushacov has danced around the country as a guest artist including with Colorado Ballet. His repertoire includes soloist and principal roles in ballets like Swan Lake, Romeo and Juliet, The Nutcracker, Sleeping Beauty, Giselle, Don Quixote and many others, as well as contemporary performances. As an instructor, with over 15 years of experience, he has successfully staged full length ballets and coached variations for competitions. His students have been accepted to major classical Summer Intensive Programs and to professional companies around the country. Mr. Glushacov has a degree in pedagogy in dance from the Academy of Music, Theater and Fine Arts, Moldova.
Melissa Zoebisch (Artistic Director, Ballet) grew up in Mexico and studied at the Chamber Ballet of Jalisco. She was awarded a scholarship to attend the Kirov Academy of Ballet in Ms. Sizova’s class, returning to Mexico to graduate in 2004. In 2005, Ms. Zoebisch joined the National Dance Company, where she danced soloist roles in ballets like Swan Lake, The Nutcracker, Sleeping Beauty, Carmen, and other performances. She was a finalist at the Korea International Ballet Competition in 2010 and the recipient of a Special Award KIBC. Ms. Zoebisch is currently a demi-soloist with Colorado Ballet, where she has performed roles such as Sugar Plum Fairy (The Nutcracker), Lilac Fairy (Sleeping Beauty), Myrtha (Giselle), pas de trois (Swan Lake), Wicked Witch (The Wizard of Oz), as well as contemporary choreographies by Jiří Kylián, Twylan Tharp, Edwaard Liang, among others. As a teacher, Ms. Zoebisch has over 10 years of experience in which she has successfully coached students that made it into the YAGP finals in NYC; 3rd place winner at the Denver Ballet Guild, and Emily's Inspiration Award recipient. She has also staged full length ballets including "Giselle", "Coppelia", "Sleeping Beauty", "Don Quixote" and "The Nutcracker". Many of her students have been accepted to trainee programs at major national and international schools, dance college programs, as well as professional companies around the country.
David Taylor (Artistic Director Emeritus, Ballet, Dance History) has been professionally involved in the Colorado dance community for the past fifty years. During the course of a twelve-year dance career, he began choreographing in 1976, and since then has created well over 100 original works. In 1979, he founded the David Taylor Dance Theatre, which, for thirty-two years, was recognized as one of the Rocky Mountain region’s most acclaimed dance organizations, and Denver’s original contemporary ballet company. Mr. Taylor has received three National Endowment for the Arts grant awards along with the City and County of Denver’s first Individual Artist Fellowship award for dance, and in March of 1997, he and his company were proud recipients of the State of Colorado’s Governor’s Award for Excellence in the Arts. He has been commissioned to create ballets for Opera Colorado, the Colorado Symphony, the Denver Chamber Orchestra, the Museum of Outdoor Arts and the Up Close and Musical Ensemble, the National Repertory Orchestra, the Colorado Wind Ensemble, and for the Dayton Ballet in Ohio. He has also staged works for the Aspen/Santa Fe Ballet, the Lone Star Ballet of Amarillo, Texas, Western Wyoming Community College, Colorado Mesa University and the Canyon Concert Ballet and his original and innovative productions of “The Nutcracker” and “Rainforest” garnered national critical recognition and were booked extensively across the United States for twenty years. Mr. Taylor has additionally served as a Board member for the Mayor’s Commission on Cultural Affairs, as the Vice President for the Colorado Dance Alliance, as a peer panel member for the Colorado Council on the Arts, and in 2008 received the Carson-Brierly Dance Library’s prestigious “Living Legends of Dance” Award. Currently, Mr. Taylor teacher for Denver Ballet Theatre, where he previously served as Artistic Director for eight years.
Christine Scott (Academy Registrar) has been dancing since the age of 5 and teaching dance for over 17 years in ballet, tap, hip hop and jazz. She started dancing in Columbia, SC. Her family moved to Denver in 2003 when she began her teaching career as a Dance Assistant with the Arapahoe Academy of Dance in 2004 and then moved to Foothills- Arts & Events Agency in 2007. She took over as the Arts & Events Assistant in 2010 managing the day to day operations, teaching classes and was the lead choreographer for all the ballet performances. After leaving Foothills, Chris managed the visual and performing arts classes, events, and performances for South Suburban Park & Recreation District for six years. She recently left that position to spend more time teaching and getting to be at home with her kids. Chris specializes in younger dancers by instilling a love of dance to last for years. She received her Bachelor of Arts in Psychology, Minor in Sociology and Dance from the University of Colorado at Denver.
Candice Barth (Contemporary, Ballet, Jazz) is a dancer, teacher, and choreographer from Denver, CO. She graduated Summa Cum Laude from the University of Arizona with a BFA in Dance and a minor in Business. During her time in Arizona, performed Sanguinic Principal in Balanchine's The Four Temperaments and was chosen by Anne Reinking to be her demonstrator for the Annual Jazz Showcase Dance Festival. She began her professional career in 2011 performing with Artifact Dance Project in a production that toured China. She was also a guest artist with Aspen Santa Fe Ballet’s The Nutcracker and performed jazz repertoire with Sam Watson at The Kiel Festival of Dance in Kiel, Germany. She was a founding member of Wonderbound in Denver, CO performing collaborative works created by Garrett Ammon. Upon returning to The University of Arizona to earn her MFA, Candice has had the opportunity to perform First Violin in Balanchine’s Concerto Barocco. She has also performed in contemporary ballet masterworks such as Darrell Grand Moultrie’s Boiling Point, Alexei Ratmansky’s Bolero, Jessica Lang’s Among the Stars, and Nacho Duato’s Na Floresta. Candice has been a dance instructor in the collegiate, studio, private and intensive settings, including the Vail Dance Intensive in Avon, CO. Through a learner-centered approach, she emphasizes teaching methods that allow her students to value their own bodies and minds in a safe and healthy way, ultimately fostering their own appreciation and passion for the art of dance. She is passionate about dance education and was invited to present her research on teaching Generation Z in the new era of dance education at the National Dance Education Organization 2018 National Conference. As a choreographer, Candice fuses her love of research with her creativity in dance to produce pure, informative, engaging, and sophisticated work. She appreciates the power of collaboration and strives to work with different artists and dancers throughout her creative processes.
Marcelina Lancaster-Gaudini (Preballet, Ballet) is originally from Miami, Florida where she began her training at the early age of four at South Florida Ballet. She continued her training at Miami City Ballet School and Colorado Ballet Academy. Marcelina has also spent summers at Miami City Ballet, Colorado Ballet, and Pacific Northwest Ballet. Upon graduation, she joined Ballet Ariel as an apprentice and was promoted to company dancer the following season. She has performed many soloist roles at Ballet Ariel including the Neapolitan soloist in Swan Lake and the Ballerina Doll in The Nutcracker. Marcelina is also a company dancer with Reformation Dance Company and performed with Zikr Dance Ensemble during their 2021 spring season.
Pam Gleave (Tap) has been teaching dance over 40 years. Specializing in tap, she teaches all ages and levels.
Growing up in Salt Lake City, she studied dance at the University of Utah, while pursuing a BA in Elementary Education at Westminster College of Salt Lake City. In her younger years, she remembers taking classes with the famous “Nicholas Brothers”. She worked with and was inspired by Mr Roland Dupree. She danced with Gus Giordano and took classes from a young Savion Glover. Today, she continues to educate herself. She is inspired by and takes online classes with Ayodele Casel.
She owned and operated her own dance school in Greenwood Village for 10-plus years. She’s had the opportunity to teach at multiple studios in the Denver area. It is her passion to share her joy of this fantastic art form! She is absolutely honored to be able to watch her students grow, pursue their own passion and THRIVE!
Growing up in Salt Lake City, she studied dance at the University of Utah, while pursuing a BA in Elementary Education at Westminster College of Salt Lake City. In her younger years, she remembers taking classes with the famous “Nicholas Brothers”. She worked with and was inspired by Mr Roland Dupree. She danced with Gus Giordano and took classes from a young Savion Glover. Today, she continues to educate herself. She is inspired by and takes online classes with Ayodele Casel.
She owned and operated her own dance school in Greenwood Village for 10-plus years. She’s had the opportunity to teach at multiple studios in the Denver area. It is her passion to share her joy of this fantastic art form! She is absolutely honored to be able to watch her students grow, pursue their own passion and THRIVE!
Beth Whitney (Parent-tot, Pre-ballet) started ballet at the age of 3, trained in the Cechetti method under a teacher from the Royal Canadian Ballet. Continuing to study dance throughout her adult life, she has had training in the Vaganova technique, studying under teachers with extensive dance backgrounds from the Royal Swiss Ballet, Colorado Ballet and David Taylor Dance Co. She received her bachelor’s degree in Art and Education. Beth has taught art for more than 30 years to both children and adults, which led to an opportunity to teach dance, which she has done since 2014. Her priority in teaching ballet is to instill a love of dance and movement!
