Misako Aoki-Oda
Ms. Misako started dance training in Japan and received a scholarship to study at the Royal Ballet School in London for three years. From there, she went on to the Matsuyama Ballet Company, one of the
major companies in Japan. She toured in Europe and China with Rudolf Nureyev. She served as a jury for the West Street of London Ballet School Audition in Japan. She coordinated the exchange student program between the Japan Ballet and the Australian Ballet. She was the guest
teacher at the Dance Day of Royal Academy of Dancing Mid-Atlantic Division in 2000 and 2001. She was the rehearsal assistant for Moscow Ballet's Nutcracker from 2002 to 2004 and the Washington
Ballet's new production of Nutcracker (Hippodrome production) in 2004. She was a faculty member at Towson University Children's Dance Division from 2002-2004. She is currently teaching at the UMBC dance department. Misako has also worked at several local dance studios over the past 10 years. Past students include Ashley Canterna who won the Varna International Competition. Misako formed Misako Ballet
Company in 2007. In 2008, she served as the audition teacher at Maryland Council for Dance Festival.
Debra DeVoe
Debra DeVoe has taught ballet in Howard County for over thirty years. Attending the Royale Dance Theater in Buffalo, New York, she studied under Bernadine DeMike and many visiting guest artists, including Ballets Russes dancer Yurek Lazowsky, Michael Maule, and Francoise Martinet. She studied the Cecchetti and Vaganova ballet techniques, and character dance with the renowned Lazowsky. DeVoe became a teaching assistant when she was thirteen years old and discovered that she had a rapport with aspiring young dancers. After moving to Columbia, she had her own ballet school at Slayton House for over ten years. She has a Masters in Education, with an emphasis in Dance, from George Washington University. DeVoe is an ABT Certified Teacher, who has successfully completed the ABT Teacher Training Intensive in Primary through Level Three of the ABT National Training Curriculum.
Jessica McElvaney
Jessica graduated with a B.A. in Dance and a B.A. in Modern Languages and Linguistics from the University of Maryland, Baltimore County in 2003. She received her early training at MgM Dance Studio, Falls Road Dance Studio, and the Baltimore Actor's Theatre Academy. While at UMBC, she continued her training in Ballet and Modern dance and performed and choreographed for student dance concerts. She has also participated in workshops with Doug Varone and Dancers and Clancyworks and performed at the Dance Place in Washington D.C. with Doug Hamby Dance. Jessica has been teaching at Misako Ballet Studio since 2004.
Genevieve Ellis-Williams
Genevieve Ellis-Williams had early training at Carver Center for Arts and Technology in Towson. In 2003, she graduated from the University of Maryland, Baltimore County with a degree in Modern Languages and Linguistics and a minor in dance. She was an active member of the UMBC Dance Department, where she performed and participated in collaborative choreographic works and workshops.
Jessica Markiewicz
Jessica Markiewicz, from Severn, MD, received her early training from Barbara Willis and Mary V. Carter at the Carter School of Dance. She continued her training at the Ballet Royale Institute of Maryland. Jessica has attended summer programs at The Washington School of Ballet, the Kirov Academy in Washington D.C., and American Ballet Theater. She has also received her Cecchetti Intermediate certificate. In 2006, Ms. Markiewicz graduated magna cum laude with a B.A. in Dance from Goucher College, studying under Chandra Moss, Laura Dolid, and Glenna Blessing. Ms. Markiewicz has also received an M.A. in Dance Education with a concentration in ABT Ballet Pedagogy from New York University. Jessica is an ABT Certified Teacher, who has successfully completed the ABT Teacher Training Intensive in Primary through Level 7 of the ABT National Training Curriculum.
Currently, Jessica is a member of Misako Ballet Company. In addition to teaching in private studios, Jessica is assistant director of the Arundel High School Dance Company and serves as a guest choreographer for Anne Arundel County Public Schools.
Carey Ballinger
Carey Ballinger began her ballet training at the age of four at the Ballet Theatre of Annapolis (BTA). She became a junior company member with BTA in 1999 under the directorship of Edward Stewart. Carey graduated with a BFA degree in Dance from Jacksonville University in 2004. While in Jacksonville, she danced and choreographed with the Jacksonville University Dance Theatre and danced professionally as an Ensemble Member with the Florida Ballet. She has also trained with the Richmond Ballet, the Orlando Ballet, the Princeton Ballet, and the Charleston Ballet Theatre. Carey taught at the Ballet Theatre of Maryland School in 2007-2008. Carey lives with her husband, Rich, and their son, Evan. She and her husband currently operate their company, Capital Landscaping, LLC. Carey joined Misako Ballet Company in 2009 and enjoys performing with the company and teaching ballet.
Jodi Guzewich
Jodi Guzewich has been teaching dance for 12 years. She studied at Mid-Alantic Center for the Performing Arts and the Gniazdowski Studio of Ballet. She trained with private coach Dawn Verona. Jodi attended summer programs at North Carolina School of the Arts, Joffrey Ballet School, and Point Park University. In 2002, she earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from Point Park University with a concentration in ballet. After college, Jodi danced and trained in New York City and became certified to teach the Pilates method under master teacher Deborah Lessen. While in New York, she choreographed for and trained dance students in Connecticut, New Jersey and Maryland. In 2004 Jodi moved to St. Louis and worked at The Pilates and Yoga Center of St. Louis and did substitute work with Ballet Midwest. Jodi moved to Wuerzburg, Germany in 2005 and created a dance program for the children on a military installation. Fort Hood, Texas, was her next location, where she again created and maintained a reputable ballet program on base and also continued teaching Pilates mat work.
Cecilia Ituarte
Cecilia Ituarte has over 14 years of experience as a dance teacher. Cecilia holds an Associate Diploma in Ballet teaching and Advanced II degree in Modern Dance Theatre from the Imperial Society of Teachers of Dancing (ISTD). She graduated in Classical Ballet from the Royal Academy of Dance (RAD). As a dancer she has enjoyed performing in several cities in Mexico; in Trujillo, Peru and in Los Angeles, California in the U.S. with companies including: Mexico en Movimiento and Momentum Danza among others. She has choreographed pieces for her students. Cecelia is also a professional graphic designer.
Christine Williams
Joined Misako Ballet Studio in spring of 2004 as the Pilates Instructor. She became a certified instructor in 2003, after actively practicing for three years prior. She believes a healthy lifestyle can be incorporated into anyone's daily routine, and strives to assist students in obtaining their fitness goals. Christine also plays on a tennis team, enjoys kick boxing, yoga and spinning classes. Christine holds a B.S. degree in Psychology from Towson University and postgraduate work from Wharton.
Ronald Burton
Ronald Burton, a native New Yorker, started his dance career at the age of fifteen with a full three-year scholarship at the Alvin Ailey American Dance Center. Thereafter, he received a scholarship at The Clark Center for the Performing Arts and continued his studies in Ballet, Authentic Jazz, Contemporary Jazz, Horton, Graham, Dunham, Congolese, Senegalese, Brazilian, Haitian, Swing and Bharata Natyam yielding him membership to many dance companies in New York, Los Angeles and Brasil.
Ronald is a graduate in Dance/World Art and Cultures, from the University of California Los Angeles (UCLA) and was recently a Visiting Instructor in Dance/African American Studies at Wesleyan University. He has also chaperoned dance students to Brasil where he studied and performed at the Escola de Dança in Salvador, Bahia Brasil, and continues to participate in various Art and Education programs in the New York City Public School system.