Faculty

BETTINA MONTANO Founder/Artistic Director, Modern Dance Director

Bettina holds a BFA in Dance from Temple University. She has performed professionally with Philadelphia’s Sybil Dance Company and Dance Conduit, with choreographer Dawn Lane, as an independent choreographer and as a member of choreographer/film maker Laurie McLeod’s Victory Girl Productions with whom she has performed extensively throughout the Berkshires, New York, and abroad. Bettina’s passionate belief in accessible dance education led her to teaching and inspired the creation of The Flowering Child Performing Arts Program in 1995 which ultimately evolved into Berkshire Pulse in 2003. Bettina has been teaching classes in modern dance for students of all ages and levels throughout her fourteen year directorship of the program.

RUBY AVER Performing Arts Program Associate Director, Ballet Director

Ruby has been the Ballet Director and instructor for Berkshire Pulse since June 2005. She has performed extensively since 1973 in North America, South America and Europe. Ruby’s first ballet instructor, Ed Parish was Bronislava Nijinkska trained. At the age of 14, Ruby was the youngest dancer ever to place in the Chicago Dance Competition, judged by renowned dance historian Ann Barzel. In 1971 Ruby was awarded a full talent scholarship to the Harkness School of Ballet in Manhattan by Master Teacher David Howard, where she went on to become an apprentice with the Harkness Ballet Company. She performed as a soloist with the Chicago Ballet Company and Ballet De Caracas of Venezuela. She was principal dancer for Het Scapino Ballet of the Netherlands, where “Firebird” was set on her by choreographer Job Sanders, and where she performed annually for the Queen of Holland. During these years she taught and coached dancers in the above companies and school, as well as for the Hubbard Street Dance Company of Chicago. In addition to classical ballet, Ruby has performed contemporary ballet by Hans VanMannen and Nils Christie, Jazz choreography by Matt Mattox, and dance theater pieces by company members from Pina Bausch and Wuppertaal Tanzteatre. Other highlights of her performing career were working with the National Ballet of Canada for Rudolf Nureyev in his production of “Don Quixote. Ruby has been the Ballet Professor at Simon’s Rock College of Bard since 2004. Ruby’s artful and universal approach to the whole person ensures a well-rounded and fulfilling experience.

ILANA SIEGEL – Intro to Dance, Ballet & Ballet Foundations

Ilana began her dance education in Ann Arbor, Michigan with CAS Ballet Theatre School, the University of Michigan Dance Department, and the Ann Arbor Ballet Theatre. She continued her training at the Ailey School in New York City, as well as many other studios in a wide variety of disciplines. Ilana has been teaching Ballet since 1997, and taught in the Flowering Child Performing Arts Program from 1999 through 2003. In addition to Ballet, Ilana currently teaches Pilates and yoga to individuals and small groups in and around the Berkshires.

ANDREA BLACKLOW -  Modern

Andrea attended Interlochen Arts Academy in Northern Michigan and graduated from Bard College in 1992. While dancing and choreographing  at Bard College she taught creative movement and modern dance to children and teenagers at Bard’s  Youth Theatre/dance Programs. After graduating from Bard she performed and taught in Seattle, Albany and the Berkshires and danced with the Ellen Sinopoli Dance Company for nine years.

AIMEE GELINAS, M.Ed. – World Music Program Director
(Also In-School Program Faculty)

Aimee is a musician and environmental educator who has been performing, teaching, facilitating, and developing educational programs for more than 15 years. She co-founded and performs in the all-woman world music drumming and vocal ensemble Gaia Roots, the Berkshire based original rock band Sifer and the Latin group, Trio Candela.  Her educational business, Tamarack Hollow Environmental & Cultural Educational Programs, “Inspires environmental and cultural awareness, appreciation and stewardship” by providing drumming and nature programs for all ages. She has studied extensively throughout the Caribbean, Cuba, Mexico, Africa and the U.S. and co-produced her ensemble Gaia Roots CD entitled Mother Drum as well as the Afro-Caribbean Groove Dance instructional DVD with Live Drumming. Visit her website at www.tamarackhollow.com.

JOANNE DELCARPINE – World Music & Dance, Dances of Africa/Afro-Caribbean Dance

Joanne is a 1998 graduate of the University of Colorado – Boulder, College of Music. She holds a Bachelor’s of Music with high honors, with concentration in Voice Performance and Theater Arts. In addition, Joanne attended the Blue Tribe School of Music and Dance in Albuquerque, NM from 2001-03. There she studied West African and Zimbabwean dance, drumming, and song. Ultimately she became the lead singer for the troupe, and a drummer for the dance classes and performances. She has participated in numerous camps, workshops, and classes with master teachers from Zimbabwe, Congo, Ghana, Guinea, Senegal, Cuba, and Haiti studying song, drumming and dance. Her performance experience is extensive. Joanne has crisscrossed the United States playing venues ranging from 20 seat coffee shops to folk festivals attended by thousands.

KIM WATERMAN – Dances of Africa/Afro-Caribbean Dance

Kim has studied a variety of dance styles and has come to love the traditional dances of Africa. She has been studying, teaching, performing and sharing these dances with children and adults for over twenty years. Kim holds a Masters Degree in Education and her extensive classroom teaching experience makes her dance classes accessible to students of all levels. In addition to the Pulse, she currently teaches throughout the Berkshire public school system in grand funded programs. Kim choreographs traditional dance and performs with her students, and local talent, such as Gaia Roots and The Berkshire Bateria.

ANDREA BORAK – The Dancer Within

Andrea has a BFA and MFA in dance, is a Certified Laban Movement Analyst and Trager practitioner. In NYC, she performed with the Eleo Pomare Dance Company (8 years), The Phyllis Lamhut Dance Company (14 years), and with others including Lenore Latimer, Bertram Ross, and John Wilson. While in NYC, she taught at HB Studio, NYU School of Education, Lehman College, Clark Center for the Performing Arts and the Alvin Ailey American Dance Center. She taught in the Artists-In-Schools Residency Program and was movement specialist at The Little Red School House in Greenwich Village. Relocating to the Berkshires, she has taught dance in the Pittsfield Public Schools, presented workshops for teachers, has taught as part of the Berkshire Pulse Summer Intensives and, since 1999, has been on the theater faculty of Berkshire Community College. She has just completed her fifth summer as dance instructor for Elderhostel in the Berkshires.

MAXINE LYLE – Urban Step-Artistic Director of Soul Steps
(In-School Program Faculty)

Maxine began stepping at the age of seven in her hometown of Newark, NJ. She now performs, choreographs, and offers step instruction to youth and adults throughout the Northeast. She has extensively researched the local and international history of stepping. In 1996 she co-founded Sankofa, the Williams College step team, which celebrated its tenth anniversary in 2006 and is now under the official auspices of the Williams College Dance Program. She has been a creative advisor to college and youth step teams and taught at arts institutions, including the Youth Alive Step Team (Pittsfield, MA), the Manhattan College Step Team, the Westfield State University Step Team, the Vermont Arts Exchange, Berkshire Pulse, Eden Hill, and Simon’s Rock. Her choreography has been featured at the Massachusetts Museum of Contemporary Art (Mass MoCA). She is a Master of Fine Arts candidate in Theatrical Management and Producing at Columbia University’s School of the Arts.

PAMELA BADILA Folkloric – Artistic Director Diata Diata
(In-School Program Faculty)

The Percussion Ensemble of Diata Diata International Folkloric Theatre is led by husband and wife team André and Pamela Badila, accompanied by their children, who were raised on the stage in New York and France. Founded in 1985, Diata Diata presents folkloric dance of ancestral Africa as international theatre, including wildly popular performances at Hudson schools.

JENNIFER WEBER, Artistic Director of Decadancetheatre – Hip Hop
(In-School Program Faculty)

Jennifer Weber is a choreographer and director  currently living in Brooklyn,  NY.  She  began her career when she founded Strictly Funk while an undergrad at the University of Pennsylvania.  After graduating, she moved to NYC and started a variety of projects, including Decadancetheatre – an all female theatrical hip-hop company.
Trained in dance studios and nightclubs in NYC, Philadelphia, and London, Weber has always been a student not just of dance technique, but of the larger cultural meanings of urban movement.  As an artist, Weber seeks to explore hip-hop as the key emerging language of a global youth culture.   Since founding Decadancetheatre– in the Summer of 2001, Weber has choreographed six original, evening-length, hip-hop ballets.

LUCILE GRACIANO – Hip Hop

Lucile Graciano AKA B Girl Frak From Limoges, France, came to New York in 2007 to study dance at Steps on Broadway through the International Student Visa Program. Since the age of seven she was a competitive rhythmic gymnast for Limoges Team and ranked in the top 10 in the  2006 International Nike Women’s Hi-Hop Contest. Frak studied and performed with La
Manufacture, a professional dance school in Aurillac, France, directed by American dancer Vendetta Mathea.  Frak HAS also taught, performed hip-hop and battled in breakdancing with Brooklyn Khaos Connection Crew for the last 2 years in France and in the U.S.  Frak has been dancing with Decadancetheatre since 2008.

TAEKO KOJI – Hip Hop

Originally from Osaka, Japan, Taeko Koji danced frequently on Japanese television, as well as on Fox News and CNN in the United States.  She performed for Yoko Ono at the United Nations and made frequent appearances in leading US venues like Jacob’s Pillow, Joyce SoHo, World Financial Center, Ordway Center for the Performing Arts, and the Southbank Center in London. She has worked on behalf of major brands like Adidas, Reebok, Ocean Pacific, Brooklyn Industries and UFO Jeans, as well as the hit movie Coyote Ugly. In the process, She has earned attention from leading dance publications like The New York Times, New York Press, Dance Spirit Magazine, XXL Magazine, and DanceInsider.com, which described her as “bright and sparking” and “an exuberant force.”

TOM MASTERS – Creative Dance, Dance for Boys, Tap, Modern Dance Foundations for Men, & Private Wedding Chpreography

Tom Masters holds an MS in Special Education from The City College of New York and a BS in elementary education with a concentration in dance and movement for elementary school children.  As a performer he has danced with The Park Avenue Dance Company in Rochester, NY, The Alvin Ailey Student Ensemble in New York City, and with various musical theatre productions both nationally and internationally.  He has taught dance and creative movement since 1990.  Most recently he was on staff at the Center for Kinesthetic Movement in NYC as an educational tutor using dance to teach literacy, and using movement to increase the attention span of students with ADHD.

ANNABELLE COOTE – Modern Dance Explorations

Annabelle began dancing at a young age and throughout her life has studied, performed, created and taught dance.  Her background includes modern dance and ballet, as well as other forms of dance and movement. Her dance experience includes training and performance with the New Jersey Ballet, Whole Theater, Dance Place Dancers, Bard College at Simon’s Rock,
The Moving Company, the Brattleboro School of Dance and other venues.  She has taught children and adults in a variety of settings including dance programs, camps, community programs and schools.  Her love of dance combined with other interests led to an MA from Antioch University New England in Dance/Movement Therapy and Counseling Psychology, an
interdisciplinary degree in dance and movement studies integrated with psychology and counseling.  She currently uses her dance/movement therapy background working with college students in the counseling services at Bard College at Simon’s Rock, where she also teaches dance as an adjunct faculty.  Whether focusing on therapeutic or educational applications of
dance, Annabelle has a passion for making connections between mind and body and using the creative process and the arts to deepen and enrich discoveries about our life experiences.

LILY RUFFNER -Project Embade’ – A Body Research Workshop

Lily loves to share her passion for expression and creativity with diverse populations. A graduate of Bard College at Simon’s Rock (BA), her curiosities have most recently taken her throughout France and Spain where she has been pursuing experiential research in Contact Improvisation, Kundalini Yoga and Meditation, Grotowski based ensemble physical theater.
Lily is the creator/curator of Project Embody, a collaborative of performing artists and embodiment practitioners committed to the vision of sharing tools for embodiment through their practices in workshops for community populations. Currently living in the Berkshires, Lily facilitates workshops for children, college students, adults, and pre-professional actors
and dancers and continues to develop her creative work individually and in collaboration.

KATI GARCIA-RENART – Flamenco

Kati Garcia-Renart is a 1989 graduate of Bard College where she majored in dance and was introduced to Flamenco by Aileen Passloff. Kati spent nine years in Madrid, Spain, studying, teaching and performing Flamenco as well as modern dance.  She has taught and performed extensively on both coasts.  Kati has taught students of all ages and backgrounds for the past 20 years. She has been the flamenco teacher at Kaatsbaan’s Extreme Ballet Summer program since 2002 in Tivoli NY and teaches year round at the Kaatsbaan Academy of Dance. Kati holds monthly weekend workshop at the Cape Cod Dance Center in Falmouth, MA as well as in Hudson NY.   She  has been a visiting professor at Bard College and often incorporates her more advanced students in performances, workshops and lecture demonstrations.  She resides and teaches in the Hudson Valley and is a visiting professor at Simon’s Rock .

Summer Faculty

CHRISTIANNA KAVALOSKI – Ballet & Pointe Variations

Christianna is a former professional dancer with over twenty-five years of experience in performance, teaching and arts administration. She began her early training at Walnut Hill School for the Arts in Natick, MA then went on to study and work with both classical and contemporary dance companies including the Boston Ballet, Boston Repertory Ballet, Danny Sloan Dance Company, New York City Ballet, Joffrey Ballet, and the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theatre, among others. She studied technique and pedagogy with Finis Jhung and is trained in the Vaganova, Balanchine, Cecchetti, Royal Academy of Dance (RAD), Limon and Horton techniques, as well as Sutton dance notation. Her teaching experience includes beginning through advanced levels of ballet and pointe technique, lyrical, dance history, dance appreciation and company direction. She has been on the faculty of Wheaton College, Dean College, Boston Ballet, Albany Berkshire Ballet and continues to teach privately and offer master classes in the New England area. She is dedicated to bringing the joy, discipline and art of dance to students, helping them to develop strength, flexibility, musicality, confidence and artistic expression. Ms. Kavaloski holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Massachusetts, Amherst, and a Master of Science degree from Boston University.

LINDA REIFSNYDER JENKINS – Ballet & Pointe

Ms. Jenkins trained as a scholarship student at Joffery Ballet of New York, the Ruth Page Foundation and with Ed Parish in Chicago. She has performed as a soloist with Chicago Ballet, National Ballet of Peru, and Kiel (Germany) Ballet. Ms. Jenkins was the Director of Florence School of Ballet (Alabama), the Academy of Nevada Dance Theatre, and Jacksonville University’s Dance with Distinction program and Principal Teacher for School of Ballet Oklahoma. She held the position of Artistic Associate for First Coast Nutcracker for 5 years. Presently Ms. Jenkins is teaching at Douglas Anderson School of the Arts, Florida State College and DanceMania in Jacksonville, FL . A much beloved master teacher, Ms. Jenkins has produced principle dancers for major ballet companies throughout the USA.

MATT PARDO – Jazz

Matt is a native of Albany, New York, earned an Advanced Honors B.F.A. degree in dance from the University at Buffalo in 2007. While at UB, Matt was a member of the Zodiaque Dance Company and the Zodiaque Studio Dance Ensemble. His choreography was chosen to be presented at the Chancellor’s Celebration for Academic Excellence, for the Zodiaque Studio Dance Ensemble, the Young Choreographers Showcase, and for Dancers Workshop. During his studies at UB he also received full scholarships to study at the Boston Ballet and the Gus Giordano Jazz Dance Center in Chicago. Since graduation, Matt has gone on to dance for the Eisenhower Dance Ensemble, the Black Box Dance Company, and was the company apprentice for the River North Chicago Dance Company. He has also been a guest artist for numerous organizations across the country including Forum Jazz Dance Theater and the Schaumburg Dance Ensemble in Illinois, and the Greater Buffalo Youth Ballet and the American Academy of Ballet in New York. He has also been chosen to perform in Dance For Life held at the Harris Theater in Chicago for the past two years. Matt has also set numerous choreographic pieces at dance schools across the northeast and at choreographic festivals in Illinois over the past three years. In particular he was one of 5 chosen to set a new piece for Dance Chance:Redux, a choreographic competition held at Northeastern Illinois University. Matt has trained with and performed works by Laurie Eisenhower, Frank Chaves, Randy Duncan, Eddy Ocampo, Keisha Lalama White, and Michael Foley to name a few.

IAN SPENCER BELL – Modern

IAN studied at North Carolina School of the Arts and School of American Ballet. He trained and performed with Pacific Northwest Ballet and Pennsylvania Ballet. In 2001, Bell was awarded a project grant from the Virginia Commission for the Arts for his choreography. In 2003, he was an associate artist at Atlantic Center for the Arts, where he was mentored by David Parsons. Connecticut Ballet and New Chamber Ballet have presented his choreography. He was a 2009 choreographic fellow at Summer Stages Dance, in Concord, Massachusetts. Bell is a student at Sarah Lawrence College and a teaching artist for American Ballet Theatre. www.ianspencerbell.com.

Community Class Faculty

KATI GARCIA-RENART – Flamenco

Kati Garcia-Renart is a 1989 graduate of Bard College where she majored in dance and was introduced to Flamenco by Aileen Passloff. Kati spent nine years in Madrid, Spain, studying, teaching and performing Flamenco as well as modern dance.  She has taught and performed extensively on both coasts.  Kati has taught students of all ages and backgrounds for the past 20 years. She has been the flamenco teacher at Kaatsbaan’s Extreme Ballet Summer program since 2002 in Tivoli NY and teaches year round at the Kaatsbaan Academy of Dance. Kati holds monthly weekend workshop at the Cape Cod Dance Center in Falmouth, MA as well as in Hudson NY.   She  has been a visiting professor at Bard College and often incorporates her more advanced students in performances, workshops and lecture demonstrations.  She resides and teaches in the Hudson Valley and is a visiting professor at Simon’s Rock .

DEBORAH GERARD – Awareness Through Movement

KATHY & DAVID CROWE – Tai Chi and Qi Gong

ILANA SIEGAL – Gentle Yoga & Core Strengthening, Zumba & Bellydance

Ilana began her dance education in Ann Arbor, Michigan with CAS Ballet Theatre School, the University of Michigan Dance Department, and the Ann Arbor Ballet Theatre. She continued her training at the Ailey School in New York City, as well as many other studios in a wide variety of disciplines. Ilana has been teaching Ballet since 1997, and taught in the Flowering Child Performing Arts Program from 1999 through 2003. In addition to Ballet, Ilana currently teaches Pilates and yoga to individuals and small groups, in and around the Berkshires.

MICHAEL PULITZER, JR. – EarlYoga for Guys & EarlYoga for Guys & Gals

This ancient practice of YOGA has been a focus for Michael for over 7 years, from when he began in 2003, to study with Deb Lazer at Pretzel Logic to where he now teaches and practices. In November 2009, Michael completed his certification in the Kripalu 200 hour teacher training program, under the direction of Sudha Carolyn Lundeen, and Jurian Hughes. In addition, his studies include the Intensive and Energy work shop with Shobhan and Sudhir, at Kripalu and he has studied in workshops with Doug Keller and David Swenson. Michael taught classes in the Berkshire Kripalu Community, and at Village Yoga in 2010. “Yoga is a practice, the beginning to the end, the alpha to omega, all in one breath in the present, in a class. The beginner’s mind has many choices, the master but a few.”

JOANNE DELCARPINE – Afro-Caribbean Dance

Joanne is a 1998 graduate of the University of Colorado – Boulder, College of Music. She holds a Bachelor’s of Music with high honors, with concentration in Voice Performance and Theater Arts. In addition, Joanne attended the Blue Tribe School of Music and Dance in Albuquerque, NM from 2001-03. There she studied West African and Zimbabwean dance, drumming, and song. Ultimately she became the lead singer for the troupe, and a drummer for the dance classes and performances. She has participated in numerous camps, workshops, and classes with master teachers from Zimbabwe, Congo, Ghana, Guinea, Senegal, Cuba, and Haiti studying song, drumming and dance. Her performance experience is extensive. Joanne has crisscrossed the United States playing venues ranging from 20 seat coffee shops to folk festivals attended by thousands.

KIM WATERMAN – Afro-Caribbean Dance

Kim has studied a variety of dance styles and has come to love the traditional dances of Africa. She has been studying, teaching, performing and sharing these dances with children and adults for over twenty years. Kim holds a Masters Degree in Education and her extensive classroom teaching experience makes her dance classes accessible to students of all levels. In addition to the Pulse, she currently teaches throughout the Berkshire public school system in grand funded programs. Kim choreographs traditional dance and performs with her students, and local talent, such as Gaia Roots and The Berkshire Bateria.

Founding Faculty

CHRISTA MONTANO

Christa began her dance studies in Germany with Suzanne Kabitz, former assistant of Rudolf Von Laban. She continued her studies in Germany with Modern Dance innovators Mary Wigman and Herald Kreuzberg, and in the USA with Martha Graham at the Martha Graham Center for Contemporary Dance in New York City, as well as with other renowned choreographers/educators such as José Limón, Alwin Nicolais, Murray Louis, and Louis Horst. In 1962, Christa established a Modern Dance Department in a private high school in Windsor, CT. For many years, she taught Modern dance for students of the now Oxford Kingswood High School, as well as Creative Dance for children and adults throughout Hartford, CT, and NY. Christa has been a faculty member with Berkshire Pulse since 1999, teaching six and seven year olds.

Administrative  Faculty

DOLORES (D.) CURTO Administrative Director, Events/Facilities Manager

Dolores (known to many as D.) combines extensive administrative and production expertise, with a powerful commitment to the creative arts. D.’s life experiences are as diverse as choreographing dance and exercise programs for Health Spas, to service as a Flight Attendant for Continental Airlines, and caring for 900 goats at Coach Farm! Her background includes in-store presentation, fashion show and event production, floral design and window display for Tampa Bay Performing Art Center, Saks Fifth Avenue and Neiman Marcus, where as a Visual Presentation Manager and Senior Officer,  D. was repeatedly asked to serve as a motivational speaker for high school graduating classes. As a consultant, D. has taken on reception/customer service, operations/facilities management, marketing management and public relation positions, set in place to organize and lay the ground work for growth and innovation, in all types of businesses.