THE DIRECTORS
Lindsay Doris
Lindsay Doris began her dance training at the age of 7 in Scottsdale, AZ. She attended several dance studios across the country. It was through this experience that Lindsay was introduced to the many varieties and styles of dance that can be found between the West Coast and the East Coast. Lindsay’s dance training was unique as it included the opportunity to be a competitive dancer as well as a dancer trained in the classical forms of ballet and modern dance. This cross-section of dance
education inspired her to continue on in dance as a career. At the age of 16, she was accepted into the prestigious University of North Carolina School of the Arts (UNCSA) where she received her high school diploma and Bachelor of Fine Arts in Contemporary Dance. Her experience at UNCSA filled her with a deep knowledge base of the technical and performing aspects of dance as well as the foundations to be a solid dance educator. Her experience working with the choreography of such greats as Jose Limon, Lar Lubovitch and Alwin Nikolais have inspired her to bring her own unique voice to the choreography for her students. Following her graduation from UNCSA, Lindsay continued her dance education in some of the best training facilities in New York City including The Limon School, The Paul Taylor School, The Merce Cunningham School and the Peridance Capezio Center. It was through a class at Peridance that Lindsay gained her entry into the professional dance world and became a member of the Cleo Mack Dance Project. As a company member, Lindsay performed in both New York and New Jersey for several years. It was during her final year with the company that she decided that teaching dance was her true passion and she leapt into the world of teaching full force.
Dana Millette
At the age of 2 ½, Dana was diagnosed with a brain tumor that nearly caused her to lose her life. Although most of the tumor was successfully removed, her neurologists were concerned that what remained might continue to grow and affect her coordination. To offset that possibility, her parents were urged to enroll her in a physical activity and they chose dance. Thankfully she was able to make a full recovery and she continued dancing. From a very young age it was clear to Dana and her parents that dance
was a true passion. It helped all of them to overcome the obstacles of her illness and created an outlet for Dana to express her emotions. Since beginning her dance training at the age of 3, she has had the opportunity to study various forms of dance including jazz, lyrical, broadway-style tap and the ballet syllabus of the Royal Academy of Dance. At age 17, Dana was nominated for a presitgious Papermill Playhouse Rising Star Award for Outstanding Achievement in Choreography in her high school's production of "The Music Man". After graduating from high school, Dana continued her dance education and received her Bachelor of Fine Arts in Dance from the Rutgers University, Mason Gross School of the Arts, where she fell in love with Modern dance and discovered her passion for choreography. While at Rutgers, she was a member of University Danceworks which gave her the opportunity to work with many well-known choreographers and tour with the company bringing dance to schools throughout NJ and NY. She then went on to study massage therapy in order to increase her knowledge of anatomy and injury prevention. Dana is proud to be a Co-Director of PMDC and enjoys bringing the love and appreciation of dance into the hearts of young children. Dana believes dance to be a gift that she can share with children of all ages and abilities which can help them gain the confidence to conquer any challenges that they may face in life. Being a dance teacher and studio director has fulfilled one of Dana's life-long dreams.
The Faculty
Rachel Baird
Originally from Canada, Rachel began dancing at a young age training extensively in ballet and contemporary. She was awarded her RAD Advanced 2 Certificate with Distinction and spent summers training with Canada's National Ballet School and Ballet Austin. At the age of 16, she was accepted to the Joffrey Ballet School Trainee Division in New York City where she became a member of the Joffrey Concert Group. She toured the US performing works by choreographers Gerald Arpino, Brian McSween, Africa Guzman and David Robertson. Rachel then moved to San Francisco and completed the prestigious 2-year Alonzo King LINES Ballet Training Program under the direction of Karah Abiog.
Rachel has also had the privilege of learning under Chris Hale and Calen Kurka in the Pushing Progress Professional Development Program. She has been featured in Dance Magazine, Dance Teacher Magazine and DanceSpirit Magazine for her performing and choreographic endeavours. Rachel is now a freelance professional dancer working with several New York City based choreographers. She has taught ballet for the past 6 years throughout the US and Canada and is also currently teaching dance to children at Yale New Haven Children's Hospital through their Arts for Healing Program. Rachel is thrilled to be a part of Pure Movement Dance Center's faculty!
Mariel Harris
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Mariel Harris hails from Vancouver, WA where she first started her training in ballet, modern, jazz, tap, contemporary, and hip hop. She has performed and trained extensively throughout the nation and abroad. At age 16, Mariel moved to NYC to become a trainee at the Joffrey Ballet School. From there, she moved to San Francisco to train under Alonzo King in the LINES training program. She graduated cum laude with a BFA from New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts. While in school, Mariel had the opportunity to study abroad in Austria at the Salzburg Experimental Academy of Dance (SEAD) and at ImpulsTanz.
Some of her favorite past performance credits include works by Merce Cunningham, Bill T. Jones, Isadora Duncan, Gerald Arpino, and Pamela Pietro to name a few. Mariel has performed at major venues such as Lincoln Center, The Joyce Theater, Ailey Citigroup Theater, The New Victory Theater, and Skirball. Mariel currently dances for Seán Curran Company and is very excited for their upcoming NYC premiere at the BAM Harvey theater this October as part of the 2018 Next Wave Festival! Mariel is thrilled to join the PMDC team!
Ally Hern
Ally Hern is an actor, singer, dancer, and teaching artist originally from New Providence, NJ. Ally started training with the industry's best at a young age, attending CAP21 Musical Theatre Conservatory in New York City while still in high school. She went on to pursue a Bachelor of Music in Musical Theater at Westminster College of the Arts of Rider University, where she learned first hand from countless Broadway performers and directors. After graduating, Ally moved to New York City and has since then performed in numerous regional productions around the country.
Favorite credits and performances include The Little Mermaid, Xanadu, Dirty Rotten Scoundrels, The Full Monty, Little Women, Footloose, and Nine, among many others. She also has extensive experience in theater for young audiences, having toured New Hampshire performing for various schools and children's programs. Ally's dance career has come full circle, having started her training with Dana and Lindsay at age 12. She has since then studied at Broadway Dance Center and Steps on Broadway in NYC, as well as with the Princeton Ballet School.
Emily LeBoeuf
Emily LeBoeuf, from Basking Ridge, NJ began training with Lindsay & Dana at the age of 8, becoming a Pure Movement Dance Center Alumni in 2013. Emily then went on to receive her Bachelor of Arts in Dance and Media & Communication from Muhlenberg College in Allentown, PA. Beginning her dance training at age 3, Emily comes from a strong competitive background, training in ballet, modern, contemporary, and jazz. She has also trained with numerous artists including, Karen Dearborn, Jeffrey Peterson, Randall Anthony Smith, & Tracey Stanfield. Emily dances professionally with Introspective Movement Project, a New Jersey- based Contemporary Jazz company, under the artistic direction of Sonia James Pennington.
Emily continues to independently choreograph in New Jersey and presents her work at various showcases, conventions, & productions across the tri-state area. Returning for her fourth season at PMDC, Miss Emily is so excited to explore new ways to train its next generation of dancers!
Tessa Moody
Tori Mazzacone
Tori Mazzacone grew up dancing in Phoenix, Arizona. While continuing her dance training at Scottsdale College, she danced for many local companies and projects. Following Scottsdale College, she moved to New York City for Peridance Capezio Center’s Intensive Semester where she expanded her diversity in ballet, contemporary, hip-hop, Horton, and Graham techniques. After training and working as a freelance dancer in NYC, she transferred and soon after, graduated from the Alonzo King LINES Ballet BFA program, which is in association with San Francisco GYROTONIC®. There, she received extensive training in modern, ballet, contemporary forms, and GYROTONIC®. While training around the United States, Tori has been able to show her passion of dance through teaching modern, ballet, creative movement, jazz, contemporary, and tap for ages three through eighteen. She loves spreading her knowledge and watching young dancers grow. Tori is currently a freelance performer in New York City.
Elise Paccico
Originally from Charlotte, North Carolina, Elise Pacicco grew up training in ballet, jazz, tap, and modern technique under the direction of Melissa Coyle and Paula Mann. In 2013, she graduated magna cum laude from Wake Forest University where she received B.A.’s in both History and Communication and was the recipient of the Presidential Scholarship for dance and academics. Elise then received her M.F.A. in Dance at New York University's Tisch School of the Arts, where she studied under the brilliant minds of Deborah Jowitt, Phyllis Lamhut, Kay Cummings, and many more. She has performed in works by Bill T. Jones, Paul Taylor, Shannon Gillen, James Martin, Helen Simoneau, Juel D. Lane, Sean Sullivan, and Christina Soriano. She is a former member of Carolyn Dorfman Dance Company and has recently spent the past year touring around the world with Momix Dance Company. Along with teaching dance, Elise is a certified yoga teacher through MBD Yoga and also currently works as a historical research assistant. She is excited to be back at PMDC and working with our students.