Hello
My name is Gigi. It was in the lake of my heart and imagination that seeds of inspiration sprouted White Lotus Ballet. If you are looking for a quiet, creative atmosphere for you or your child to experience the joy of dancing, White Lotus Ballet and I are here to invite you. Set in a small, serene environment surrounded by natural beauty - or online -our classes of 3-6 students (never more) are an inspirational adventure full of personal attention and private quality instruction.
My Teaching Style
​My specialties are establishing foundational technique and nurturing creative self-expression in the beginning dancer, and private coaching to strengthen and refine both for the further developing or experienced dancer.
Lessons are rooted in ballet basics and enhanced with other dance forms from around the world. They are designed to draw out the unique dancer in each individual with respect for their own natural movement and style. What especially sets White Lotus Ballet instruction apart is the intuitive lens and energetic approach. Students learn not only the external steps but the subtle inner workings that empower elegance, balance, poise, execution, and confidence.
My Story & Experience
My relationship with dance began at the age of 3, when my mother enrolled me in my first ballet class with the hope that it would help me gain the confidence to come out from my hiding place behind her back. Not only did it encourage me to overcome my excessively painful shyness, but it grew an everlasting love and shelter for me.
I went on to receive the foundation of my training at Estelle & Alfonso Performing Arts and the Russian Ballet School of the Mid-Hudson Ballet Company. During my adolescent years, I became a teacher at the school and a performing member of the company. I also received the honor of performing in Harlequinade with the New York City Ballet, studying at the Craft of Choreography Conference on scholarship, and attending a variety of ballet, jazz, and modern dance classes by notable teachers in multiple schools and venues in the northeast.
In my adult years, I've enjoyed performing on many occasions, especially as a guest artist with Dog-Eared Dancers and in choreographic partnership with Anna Mayta of Anna Mayta Dance Fusion. I'm grateful to have expanded my modern dance and teaching experience with Laurie Sepe Marder, and to have studied Kuchipudi Classical Indian Dance with Kantham Chatlapalli, as well as ancient and modern Hula with Kumu June Tanoue. Under the mentorship of Barbara Thuesen, I received my certification in ballet teaching and choreography from Music in Motion, Inc. I was then accepted into the dance department at the West Australia Academy of Performing Arts but chose to remain close to home and open White Lotus Ballet in 2004 instead.
Since then, I have had the ongoing pleasure of teaching dozens of children and adults at White Lotus Ballet, as well as at preschools, daycare centers, yoga studios, and special events. My teaching style and content continue to evolve with the gathering of insight, compassion, and experience. I look forward to sharing it and the joy of dance with you.