EDUCATION

Gabriel was trained and mentored by the legendary instructor, Maestro Hector Zaraspe, at his alma mater, the Juilliard School. Gabriel s a former dancer with American Repertory Ballet and he has taught in Argentina, Europe, and throughout the United States (Brooklyn Music School, Princeton Ballet, the Academy of Dance Arts and Gotta Dance in New Jersey). His work has been featured at Juilliard, the Manhattan School of Music, the Shakespeare Theater in Washington, D.C., Alice Tully Hall, the Clark Theater at Lincoln Center, MMAC, and the Lambs Theater. Beyond his Axelrod association, Gabriel is the Artistic Director for TranscenDanceGroup, whose TDG Holocaust Awareness performance has reached school students throughout the tri-state area. Gabriel has been honored by the Jewish Federation of Somerset, Hunterdon, & Warren Counties.

Ethan Andersen, a native New Orleanian, is a working composer, lyricist, and music director in New York City and across the county. As a music director and conductor, Andersen worked on the Saturday Night Fever national tour, as resident at Flat Rock Playhouse,  and  Elon University's Music Theatre program, one of the top MT programs in the country. Ethan is currently a member of the BMI Lehman Engel Musical Theatre Workshop and has been a rehearsal pianist for Mean Girls on Broadway.  He has composed original musicals, including HeadVoice, selected and produced by the New York Musical Festival; the children's musical, Rootabaga Express!, produced every summer at the Carl Sandburg Home National Historic Site; YOUlogy, which received an industry reading in May 2018; and mostly recently Letterland, a musical adaption of the popular children's phonics program used throughout the English-speaking world. 

Jolene Baldini is an alumnus of Joffrey Ballet, the Theater of Harlem, and Juilliard where she danced pieces by world-renowned choreographers such as Jose Limon, Paul Taylor, Martha Graham, and Ohad Naharin. After graduation, she joined the Cedar Lake Ensemble of New York City. During her four and a half years with the company, she was given the ability to tour the country and achieved soloist status. After fulfilling her life-long dream of becoming a professional dancer, she opened Dance Mixx Studio in Shrewsbury, NJ.

Tuiana Balzhieva, a professional ballet dancer, graduated from L.P Sakhyanova (2005-2013) in Russia after graduating from Ballet School and obtaining a professional diploma of "ballet dancer". It was then she was accepted to Buryat State Opera and Ballet Theater where she became a young soloist dancer. Tuiana has performed solo and principal roles in multiple ballets.  In 2008, she participated in the 7th Siberian International Dance Competition in Novosibirsk, where she took 3rd. She also took part in Ekaterina Maksimova's International Dance Competition in Perm, Russia. In 2015 she came to the USA with the Moscow Ballet company to perform Swan Lake and The Nutcracker spanning 30 states and Canada. In 2016-2017 she studied French technique at The French Academy of Ballet in NYC with director Francois Perron. She has instructed and created choreography at Gotta Dance, Mill Ballet, Debra Sparks, Dance Arts of Yardley, and Release Dance Academie schools. She also has Dance-Modeling experience for Pointe Magazine. Tuiana is currently dancing with Roxey Ballet located in New Jersey and The Axelrod Contemporary Ballet Theater.

Patty Gonsky is the conductor of the Bravura Youth Orchestra, an educator in the Piscataway school system where she conducts the high school orchestra, and a sought-after cellist. She performs with several orchestras and chamber groups.

Lindsay Jorgensen (Lawrenceville, NJ) received her dance training at Princeton Ballet School. She supplemented her training at summer programs like Miami City Ballet, American Ballet Theatre in New York, and Carolina Ballet, to name a few. After high school, she was a trainee with American Repertory Ballet, where she performed alongside the company. Lindsay graduated summa cum laude with honorable mentions in Dance from the Ailey/Fordham BFA Dance program, double majoring in Dance and English. She performed in school concerts, outreach, and various events including the Ailey Spirit Gala at Lincoln Center (2018). She performed choreography by Alvin Ailey, Karen Arcenaux, Robert Battle, Amy Hall Garner, Gabrielle Lamb, and Chuck Wilt.
Lindsay joined AXCBT last fall for Nutcracker ROCKS. She also apprentices with Buglisi Dance Theatre, where she has performed Jacqulyn Buglisi’s Moss and in weekly Table of Silence Project meditations, used to spread unity during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Olivia is a professional freelance artist in the NJ/ NYC area and has worked with choreographers including Graham Lustig, Seyong Kim, Colby Damon, Daniel Catanach, and Mari Meade.  Originally from Robbinsville, NJ, Olivia trained with Julie A. Caprio.  She went on to attend The Ailey School and Fordham University, graduating magna cum laude with a BFA in Dance and English (2018).  There, she performed classic works by Alvin Ailey and was selected to perform alongside Alvin Ailey American Dance Theatre at Lincoln Center (2017).  In 2016, Olivia accepted a contract with Ballet Hispanico’s second company (BHdos) under the direction of Nicholas Villeneuve and Johan Rivera.  She performed repertory by Annabelle Lopez Ochoa, Talley Beatty, and Eduardo Vilaro at the historic Apollo Theater. Olivia attended summer intensives at BalletX, American Ballet Theater, and Koltun Ballet Academy.  She currently teaches and choreographs for several schools in New Jersey.  

Gary Ramsey is an acting, voice/speech, and Alexander Technique teacher and coach. He has worked with many Broadway, television and film actors during his career including Ethan Hawke (Macbeth), Tom Skerritt (A Time to Kill), Colin Quinn (Long Story Short, directed by Jerry Seinfeld, and Victoria Clark, (The Light in the Piazza). He also is the head of Voice/Speech Dept. at the Neighborhood Playhouse in New York City.

Wendy Roman (BA in Fine Arts from Stockton University’s School of Arts & Humanities/Dance), a long time member of Monmouth County’s dance community, has been educating students for over 25 years. Wendy has extensive experience in dance pedagogy and is the founder of ACT OUT! – an arts education program for individuals with special needs.

Hallie Rumsey-Lasersohn began her dance training at the age of 13 in Media Pennsylvania under the direction of Anastasia Babayeva and Denis Gronostayskiy. She danced as an apprentice with International Ballet Classique for 2 years before joining Ballet Theatre of Maryland for a season, and then American Repertory Ballet where she currently dances. Her repertoire includes Arabian and Spanish lead from the nutcracker, Ricardo De Negris world premiere “Beyond the Normal”, Trey Mcintyre’s “Blue Until June”, and Myrtha from Giselle staged by José Manuel Carreño. 

Thomas "Ryan" Ward is a producing stage and film director, collaborative scriptwriter and playwright, award-winning multimedia designer, and featured actor in various feature films and web series. Since 2006, Ryan has produced over 30 theatrical, musical, and spoken-word projects for/with people who identify as having learning and/or physical differences. These projects have been generously funded by The Annenberg Foundation, The Kennedy Center, the SC Arts Alliance/Arts Access SC, Monmouth Arts, and the NEA. He most recently joined the staff of the APAC as head of marketing.

Based in New York City, Jason Wise has directed and choreographed over 20 productions around the world, including Off-Broadway productions and three seasons of  Lifetime's Dance Moms. As a performer, he performed in the international tour of Cats over 800 times. Jason has served on the faculty of The American Academy of Dramatic Arts (New York), The Joffrey Ballet School (New York), The Kent School (Connecticut), National Ballet School (Toronto), CAP 21 (New York) and The Pineapple (London).