EDUCATION

Mary-Kate Schmidt is the Director of the Axelrod Performing Arts Academy.  Mary-Kate graduated from Fairfield University where she double-majored in Music and Journalism. She graduated Summa Cum Laude from Montclair State University with a Master’s Degree in Educational Leadership. After half a decade at Random House, Mary-Kate left the publishing industry to pursue her true passion of working in arts education.

For over a decade, Mary-Kate served as director, music director, and choreographer at St. John Vianney High School. During her tenure, her productions were nominated for several local theater awards, including a Basie nomination for “Best Musical Direction” for their production of The Sound of Music. She was also the founder and director of the show choir, Lancer Harmonies.

Mary-Kate grew up surrounded by musical theater and dance from a young age and was fortunate enough to be a part of some of the best arts education programs. She is passionate about providing students with the same high-quality education that she received.

A founding member of AXCBT, Olivia graduated from Ailey/Fordham with a B.F.A. in Dance and English (2018). She previously danced with Ballet Hispanico's BHdos and has performed works by Alvin Ailey, Paul Taylor, Annabelle Lopez Ochoa, Colby Damon, Graham Lustig, and Riccardo de Nigris. She has performed at Lincoln Center and the historic Apollo Theater. Olivia has presented and performed choreographic works at Asbury Park Dance Festival, Ailey Citigroup Theatre, Dixon Place, Rider University, The Tank NYC, and Bell Works.

Jessica Totaro is a Contemporary, Choreography Skills and Hip Hop teaching artist from Neptune City, NJ.  She received her BFA in dance from Rutgers, Mason Gross School of the Arts and has been teaching and choreographing professionally for over a decade. Her movement vocabulary is deeply rooted in Limón Modern technique while integrating the Hip Hop fundamentals of Breaking, Locking, House and Popping. She is the founder and Artistic Director of the Movement Arts Project Dance Company. Jessica has presented original choreographic works at various academies and performing arts programs. She has recently expanded her dance composition class to dancers internationally. Her teaching method is to not dictate but guide each dancer deeper into their own creative ability and communicate authentically through movement. 

Juliette began her dance training at the age of two at Denise Daniele Dance Center under the direction of Denise and Richard Blackstone and was a proud member of their competition team studying every discipline they offered including ballet, contemporary, tap, and musical theater.

She also attended OCVTS Performing Arts Academy where she choreographed a piece that was selected for the Ocean County Teen Arts Festival, Ocean County Teen Arts Festival States, and A Salute to Ocean County. After graduating, she attended Georgian Court University and received a Dual Degree in English and Dance. During her time at GCU, she  performed in their yearly Winter and Spring Dance Showcase and attended the American College Dance Association several times where she presented her piece, “Perpetual Interlock”. Before graduating in 2023, she won the First Award in English and Most Accomplished Dancer.

Juliette has had the opportunity to work with some of the top dance educators across the country such as Albert Blackstone, Michael Minery, Katie Drablos, Silvana Cardell, Meredith Rainey, and Laura Peters. She was also the Rehearsal Director for The Nutcracker Ocean County NJ in 2019 and 2021. Juliette has taught dance for the past five years, specializing in mini & me, creative movement, ballet, pointe, jazz, lyrical, musical theater, modern, beginner-intermediate acro, and strength & stretch/conditioning. Additionally, Juliette has choreographed for DDDC’s competition team for the past three seasons including solos, small groups, and large group dances for ages six through fourteen. Currently, Juliette is a graduate student at Georgian Court University studying to receive her MA in Elementary Education with an endorsement in Teachers of Students with Disabilities, expected to graduate in Spring 2024.
 

Juliette loves getting to share her passion and love for dance with her students and feels great joy when watching her students find that same love for themselves. She feels honored to educate the future generations of the dance world and to have the opportunity to help shape them into not only fierce dancers, but kind people.