Our Teachers

Alison Bawek is the owner and director of the Studio of Ballet Arts Ltd. She started dance at the age of four training under the Royal Academy of Dance. As a young child, she performed in various ballet companies and studied with the Vienna State Opera Ballet Company in Austria. She attended Montgomery College and Corcoran College of Art and Design where her focus was dance, theatre and art. Alison began teaching dance in 1993. She dedicates herself to nurturing the love of dance with all her students and teachers. Alison creates an inspiring and supportive environment in the studio and believes we were all born to dance. She encourages her students to pursue their dreams of becoming a dancer and performing on stage. She supports educational and community organizations and serves as Vice President of the Olney Chamber of Commerce and was a member of the Board of Directors at the Sandy Spring Museum. Alison received the 2014 Athena Award for Greater Olney-Sandy Spring, which recognizes women leaders. Alison is also a proud member of the National Dance Education Organization.

Angelette Anders is SBA’s Dance Team Coach and Choreographer. She is a native of Washington, DC and holds a BA in Communications from Howard University and an MA in Dance from Prescott College. She received her formal training in the Vaganova and Cecchetti Methods of Classical Ballet, Horton Modern Technique, Rhythmic Tap Jazz, and Lyrical. She was a featured performer with the Adrian Bolton, Katherine Smith and Body Moves companies and has performed extensively in the metropolitan area. In 2007, she was a guest artist and choreographer for the Amalfi Arts Festival in Maiori, Italy. As a certified Cechetti instructor, Angelette continues to train and perform with master instructors. She enjoys sharing the art of dance and its varied disciplines through teaching, choreographing and staging students of all ages throughout the region.

Alexandra Fellman is SBA’s Dance Team Coach and Choreographer. She began dancing at the age of 2, studying ballet, contemporary, jazz, tap, and hip hop. Throughout the years, she has enjoyed dancing in many community performances, dance competitions, and more recently in university performances. Alex has always had love for dance and passion for choreography and teaching. She began instructing at the age of 16, and since has taught a large variety of styles and abilities throughout the DMV, at some of the area’s best preschools and dance studios.  In 2020, Alex received her certification in Youth Protection Advocates in Dance Safety and Wellness.  Alex is very blessed to be a part of the Studio of Ballet Arts family and looks forward to sharing her love of dance with everyone!

Erica Molina Hudak was born and raised in the DC Metropolitan area. She studied dance at Maryland Youth Ballet and Washington School of Ballet and also has a strong foundation in modern, jazz, tap, flamenco and hip hop. As a young student, she danced at the Kennedy Center’s Opera House, with the American Ballet Theatre in their production of The Nutcracker and La Corsaire. She also performed with the Universal Ballet of Korea in their production of La Bayadere.

She attended University of North Carolina School of the Arts, where she was a contemporary major. While there she performed with Alonzo King’s Lines Ballet, Merce Cunningham Dance Company and with The Límon Dance Company. She pursued a professional career as a dancer after college in DC, where she joined DancEthos, as an original company member. Erica discovered her passion for teaching and choreographing at a very young age. She currently teaches and choreographs at several DC-area studios such as, Maryland Youth Ballet, Berrend Dance Center, Joy of Motion, Imagination Stage and Metropolitan Ballet Theatre.

Megan has been dancing since the age of 3 in all styles including jazz, ballet, tap, hiphop, and lyrical. She has enjoyed dancing in community performances and competitions. She then joined the Blake poms team and was captain her junior and senior year where she had the opportunity to choreograph routines which is where she truly found her love for teaching and choreographing. She is also zumba certified. She has a passion for teaching as well as helping others learn and grow their love for dance. She is so grateful to be a part of the Studio of Ballet Arts family.

Carlos Ulloa received his Associate of Arts Degree from Montgomery College and his Bachelor of Fine Arts in Dance at George Mason University. He was a Gus Giordano Dance School scholarship recipient, studied Afro-Cuban Dance with Ballet Folklorico Cutumba, American Dance Festival at Duke University and has received awards for his excellence at GMU and MC. He has been teaching and choreographing different dance styles in the DMV area for several years.

 

Keira Rifkin began dancing at the age of three, studying ballet, contemporary, jazz, tap and hip hop. She has been a competitive dancer for 9 years and more recently a member of the Damascus High School Pom Squad. Keira has a love for dance and teaching. She began instructing at the age of 15 assisting summer camps and dance classes. She is very excited to be a part of the Studio of Ballet Arts family as a student teacher.

Debbie Clark has been involved in Dance and Musical Theater for over 35 years. Debbie trained in Ballet and Modern Dance at Texas Christian University. She has danced with local dance companies including Virginia Ballet, DC Dance Theatre, Rincones and Company, and Capitol Movement. Debbie has performed professionally for: Princess Cruises, Cunard Cruise Lines and Royal Caribbean Cruise Lines; Harrah’s Casinos, Grand Casinos, Bally’s Casinos, Trump Plaza and Trump Taj Mahal. She has been on the dance faculty of Joy of Motion Dance Center, DC Dance Collective, Arlington Center for Dance, Poetry-N-Motion Dance Company as well as Musical Theater Center, where she also served as Director of Education. Debbie started DC Dance Company in 2012, offering classes in Ballet, Jazz and Lyrical. Debbie has coached the JCCGW Maccabi Dance Team for the past 7 years.

Crishon Landers’s (Guest Teacher) dancing experience dates back to the early 1990’s when as a child he would freestyle battle for respect and bragging rights at the Underground, located in downtown Atlanta where he grew up. However, his dance career began to take shape and evolve in the fall of 2005 when he joined Georgetown University’s hip hop dance team, Groove Theory, as a freshman. Since then he has had several opportunities to choreograph and perform as a member of multiple professional and pre-professional dance companies. Among these companies are Capitol Movement Dance Company, Culture Shock Dance Troupe, Joy of Motion’s DCypher Dance, and GU’s Black Movements Dance Theater. Notable credits include Mariah Carey, Rihanna, Rascal Flatts, The Band Perry, Saturday Night Live, HBO’s “Girls”, Stephen Colbert Show, Cirque du Soleil, and more. When Crishon is not dancing, he spends the majority of his time with his daughter, Ella. He also has a passion for fashion and has developed a clothing line, CRoME. He is blessed and grateful for the opportunity to pursue his love for dance and share his talent with others. He hopes to educate and empower new generations of students to follow their dreams bravely and unapologetically.

Robert Moses (Guest Teacher) been teaching dance for the past 20 years, as well as being an accomplished singer. He has performed in numerous dance videos and as a backup dancer for several artists.  He can even be seen on several seasons of Lifetime Television’s Dance Moms.  Robert made the transition to choreographer and Master class presenter and has spent the last 8 years touring the country teaching at studios and conventions.  He is well versed in all genres of dance, making him one of the most sought after judges for conventions and dace competitions.  Robert is also trained in fitness and nutrition, which allows him to educate dancers on the importance of being healthy.  Robert is a triple threat – singer, dancer and actor who know the importance of being a well-rounded performer.  His upbeat energy and style are contagious.  Robert joined the studio in 2017 as guest choreographer and assists with SBA’s Dance Team.

Ricardo “Cardo” WANZER JR.  is a dancer, choreographer, and screenwriter from Fort Washington, Maryland. Cardo began his training with the Capitol Movement Dance Company in Washington D.C. He has trained in New York, Los Angeles, and Texas with professional choreographers such as Laura Edwards, Sonya Tayeh, Andrew Winghart, Kyle Hanagami, Justin Giles, and Jenn Freeman.  He has also toured the convention circuit with Adrenaline Dance Convention and ReVive Dance Convention.  Cardo soon started his journey as an educator setting work for multiple companies in the DC Metropolitan area such as the Capitol Movement Pre-Professional Company, Sankofa Company, Towson University Dance Department, and many others; as well as teaching at several dance schools, studios and institutes. With a concentration in Contemporary, Jazz, and emphasis on Anime Techniques; his movement and choreography are centered on strength, power, and emotion, being described as original, challenging, and refreshing. Cardo has now taken his craft of creation into the realm of filmmaking and screenwriting to continue pushing the art of creating passed its’ structured spectrum.