DANCE INSTRUCTION. Expertise: Argentine Tango & Latin Rhythms. Folklore Argentino.
Licensed: Dxf coach, Groove Facilitator. Martial Arts, Shotokan Karate. Conditioning. Self-defense.
BAND
Louis Del Prete & His Band
Louis Del Prete is a talented musician and dancer. He is accomplished on drums, keyboards, and trumpet, and is a fantastic singer. Louis is also an excellent ballroom dancer and teacher.
Louis’s skills started at the age of 13, when he joined his talented mother and father, Rosann and Louis (also known as the “Perry Lane Orchestra”) at the former Island Squire Restaurant in Middle Island, where they performed for many years! His mom, Rosann, was a member of a popular all-girl band in the 60’s called the “Female Beatles”. His dad toured the United States with various bands as a trumpet player with a sound like Harry James.
When Louis is not playing music, he is dancing. He is accomplished in ballroom and Latin dancing, having an excellent lead, precise technique and smooth style. At one time, he taught dance on popular cruise lines. Now he teaches group and private lessons and runs many dance venues on Long Island.
DRUMMER & PERCUSSIONIST
TOM LARSON-Drummer & Percussionist
originally from Colorado, but has been living in Nashville, aka Music City USA, since 1996. He is an in-demand session player that has become a vital part of the diverse Music City scene. Besides an extensive discography portfolio, Tom also has studied Classical Percussion, and graduated from the prestigious University of New Orleans Jazz Studies Program.
Blues Drummer of the Year, 2001
Percussionist of the Year, 2001 & 2002
DJS
Ballroom DJs Michelle & Bob Friedman
have been part of the ballroom dance word for the past 30 years. As avid dancers they started with Ballroom Dance Lessons, and for the past 17 years as professional DJs – specializing in Ballroom Music. In 2001 they even won Top Couple in a Good Morning America 25 hour dance marathon. They have a comprehensive music library of over 40,000 tracks, which includes all types of Ballroom, Smooth, Latin, Rhythm, Hustle, West Coast Swing, Argentine Tango and other specialty dances. They are northeast coast DJ favorites spanning NY, CT, NJ, PA, & DE areas, and are regulars at the world famous Stardust Dance Weekends. They are equally at home playing their music for Ballroom Socials, Showcases, Competitions, and professional performances for some of the world’s most famous ballroom couples. While preferences in music certainly vary from person to person, what they use as their criteria when choosing music to play is really very simple - does it make dancers feel like they just have to get up and move, or doesn’t it? They get great satisfaction when they watch dancers who were heading for their seats at the end of a song turn around and pull each other back out to the dance floor time and again as a new piece begins.
Latin DJ Harry Trinidad
mostly known as DJ Harry T. is a well-known Salsa DJ/Promoter in the NY Tri-state area since the year 2000. He is one of the Co-founders of Salsa Warriors Radio(www.salsawarriors.com) started in June of 2014 that is still going strong, serving Salsa lovers worldwide. Salsa music is his specialty, but he plays other Latin genres such as Bachata, Merengue, Cha Cha etc. He is also a resident DJ on the world-renowned Salsa Cruise (www.salsacruise.com) that’s sails every year. He has deejayed in clubs in NY, CT, MA, FL and Puerto Rico. Harry also managed the Salsa in the Catskills weekend for 8 straight years (2010-2018). He currently plays throughout Connecticut where he lives and in New York.
Argentine Tango DJ Maia Martinez
is an Argentine Tango dance instructor & performer. Maia has been focusing on building the Tango community in the Hudson Valley for the last decade. In efforts to expand Tango, she started DJing for her own events where she found great joy and discovered a new exciting way to make people dance. For the last few years Maia has been exploring and learning about the magical world of Argentine Tango DJ’s. Maia takes DJing very seriously, which means she knows we must have fun. She brings an exciting selection of well known pieces with a few delightful and fresh tunes. A Milonga with Maia is a dance party!
WCS/Hustle/Country DJ Lou Brockman
a past national ballroom champion and the only ever National Dirty Dancing Champion, as seen on the Oprah Winfrey Show, has been a deejay for major dance studios and special events in New York City for more than two decades, including residencies at Dance New York and Dance Manhattan, bringing his championship dancer’s love to the sounds that make everybody want to move.
INSTRUCTORS
Nino DiGiulio-Dance Instructor
Owner and Executive Director of May I Have This Dance, one of the most popular social dance studios in the nation, Nino has created a unique curriculum and trained thousands of dance students and professionals. An expert in all ballroom and latin dances, he has won numerous top teacher awards and competitions in West Coast Swing and Hustle. He has been a featured instructor, coach, judge, and competitor at national events like Swing Dance America, World Hustle Championships, International Hustle & Salsa Championships, Swing City Chicago, Carolina Groove, NY Hustle Congress, and the Chicago Salsa Congress.
Amanda Doerr-Dance Instructor
A Master Instructor with the prestigious Chicago-based dance studio, May I Have This Dance, Amanda received her Bachelor of Arts in Theatre/Dance at the University of Wisconsin. She is an award-winning choreographer and talented social dancer. Student's love Amanda's ability to put everyone at ease and make learning even complicated steps easy and fun.
Maia Martinez & David Salvatierra-Dance Instructors
are Directors and instructors of Dojo Dance Company. They bring a refreshing touch to the dance community of The Hudson Valley, New York. Dojo dance company is a Dance school located in Hudson valley that performs and teaches Argentine Tango, Latin Rhythms & Martial Arts. Their main goals are to share cultural values, create community through dance and improve life style by inspiring people to move. Dance Company opens a new way for people to learn HOW to dance, HOW to connect with themselves and then to everyone else. They are truly committed to their students, and offer an unique style, original and organic of teaching/learning. They are able to connect your inner and outside music!!
Nicole Gifford-Dance Instructor
A Senior Instructor with the prestigious May I Have This Dance studio based out of Chicago, Nicole is known for making even the most difficult steps easy. Students adore her and flock to her social ballroom dance classes. She also has a degree in dance and has directed her own Modern dance company for over a decade.
Richard Givney-Dance Instructor
has a successful twenty four years’ experience in all aspects of the ballroom dancing industry through cultivating and achieving personal, professional and educational goals. He competed professionally in International Latin; has his teaching certifications in multiple syllabi, including both American and International dances, and franchised and independent curriculums. He continues to take lessons with top professionals for teaching and personal dance goals. Last year his ballroom dance program won the 2012 Best in Monmouth County, NJ Health & Life Magazine’s “Reader’s Choice Award”. Richard is available for private or semi-private lessons.
Heather Gehring-Dance Instructor
originally from Vermont, studied classical ballet with Boston Ballet, School of American Ballet and Hartford Ballet, becoming a professional at age sixteen. Besides the stage, Heather has danced on TV (MTV, Gossip Girls, Today Show, Tony Danza Show, Boardwalk Empire), and in movies and commercials (Enchanted, Little Manhattan). With her partner Lou Brockman, she has traveled the world teaching and performing their unique “Silver Screen Style” as well as performing in many infamous NYC venues including Town Hall (with Vince Giordano and the Nighthawks), 54 Below, Rainbow Room and Birdland. They have taught and performed at Jacob’s Pillow, Harvard University and NYU.
Linda Leverock-Dance Instructor
has been partner dancing for 30 years. She has traveled the northeast learning, instructing, and competing in Swing, Hustle and Country 2 step. Ballroom and Latin dance are a few more of her favorites. Linda has enjoyed performing and instructing for many years in the community of Oneonta and for the Ballroom U.S.A Dance Southern Tier Chapter and Southern Tier Swing Dance Society in Endicott, N.Y. She is registered with The World Swing Dance Council Points Registry in the Advanced Swing Division. She has won many first place prizes and made the finals in competitions leading and following in WCS, Hustle, and Swustle. She has taken numerous intensive workshops and hundreds of workshops and privates with Dance Pros and continues to do so as she goes to weekend competitions through out the Northeast. She has completed Global Professional Dance Instructors Association (GPDIA) beginner and intermediate courses and is now a certified GPDIA instructor. She has studied with: Skippy Blair, Mario Robau, Robert Royston, John Lindo, Robert Cordoba, Donna Desimone, Debra Hampton and many more top pro’s. Dancing is fun and creative also keeps the mind and body young. Dance is the sign language of music …so Let’s dance.
Lou Brockman-Dance Instructor
a Chicago native, began ballroom dancing when he was a young teen. He has lived in NYC for over two decades and has danced in films (Mona Lisa Smile, Disney’s “Enchanted”), and had featured performances on television (The Oprah Winfrey Show, Good Morning America, NBC’s Today Show, Michael Feinstein’s American Songbook, Boardwalk Empire), and on stages around the world (The Kennedy Center, Joyce Theater, Jacob’s Pillow) Lou was a member of the acclaimed American Ballroom Theater and is a highly respected choreographer who has taught master classes at Harvard University and NYU.
FITNESS INSTRUCTORS
Molly Gelsomino-Fitness Instructor
Molly will be having morning Stretch classes Saturday and Sunday at 9:00 am to get you ready to dance. Originally from Upstate, New York. She has a diverse background in the arts, including a BA in Dance from the University at Buffalo, over 15 years of performance and choreography in concert dance and 6 years as a Dance Educator in the Brooklyn Public Schools. Molly is a former professional cheerleader for the AFL, and spent 6 years in NYC as a Co-Artistic Director for The Movement Collective Dance Company. As a newer resident of Sullivan County, Molly found Zumba® to be the most exciting way to fuse her passion for dance. music and fitness. Molly enjoys inspiring her clients and encouraging her classes to feel the music, join the party and have a fun fitness experience upon stepping into the studio.
Marion Panos-Fitness Instructor
Belly Dance Instructor - In 2009, Marion joined our fitness staff and teaches Belly Dance classes at the weekends. Marion is trained in several styles of dance, including jazz, modern, Afro-Brazilian, African, Middle Eastern and Ballroom. She is proficient in American style ballroom and Latin and has also studied International Standard. She competed around the country at the pro-am level in American style ballroom and Latin for many years. She was a professional Middle Eastern dancer and has been teaching Belly Dance for more than 15 years.
ENTERTAINERS & INSTRUCTORS
Leo Mora & Christine Garced
Leo Mora: Originally from Costa Rica, Leo's desire to dance derived from his passion and admiration for the art, as well as his longing to hold a smoking hot chica in his arms at a salsa nightclub. Leo was a street dancer who started out social dancing however, he was quickly scouted out because of his natural talents. He started his professional career at Arthur Murray International over 10 years ago which is where he met his partner Christina. He is a certified and award winning instructor, sought after coach and full Championship Adjudicator with the NDCA. No stranger to the stage or screen, Leo was last seen as the featured dancer on David Tutera’s “CELEBrations”, dancing a salsa with Vanessa Williams.
Christina Garced: Studying dance by the age of three, Christina has a diverse background in the performing arts including many styles of dance (modern, jazz, ballet, lyrical and hip hop) and a Bachelor's Degree in English Theatre from New Jersey City University. However, growing up in her parents’ Arthur Murray Dance Studios, ballroom dancing has always been an integral part of her life. Christina decided to pursue her professional career in the American Style because of its boundless creative and uninhibited nature. Recognized not only for her choreography, Christina is also a certified and award winning instructor, as well as a full Championship Adjudicator with the NDCA. Leo and Christina decided to embark on their professional dance journey together in the American Style Smooth Division at the end of 2009. Their partnership reached instant success, and within their first year as a competitive team they found themselves in the Arthur Murray World Smooth final in addition to bringing home the title of Rising Star Smooth World Champions. Soon after, they decided to add on the American Style Rhythm dances to their repertoire which led them to many career highlights and successes.
As United States American Style 9-Dance finalists and 2X Arthur Murray 9-Dance Campions, Leo and Christina have had the honor of performing and teaching up and down the Northeastern coastline as well as numerous venues around the United States. Not only limited to the American Style, Leo and Christina are also known for excelling in the specialty dances such as Salsa, Bachata, and Hustle. Among their competitive ballroom dancing successes, they have also been cast as featured performers on major TV network shows such as: WE tv’s David Tutera’s “CELEBrations”, TLC’s Say Yes to the Dress and HGTV’s House Hunters.
Career highlights and awards: *United States 9-Dance Finalists *Millennium Dancesport *Ohio Star Ball 9-Dance Bronze Medalists *2X Arthur Murray 9-Dance Champions *2X Jesse Smith Memorial 9-Dance Award recipients *Arthur Murray World Professional Smooth and Rhythm Finalists. *Arthur Murray World Hustle Champions
Junior Cervila & Guadalupe Garcia
Junior Cervila was considered by New York newspapers “the Gene Kelly of Latin Dance”. Originally born in Brazil and based in Buenos Aires, where the tango got into his blood, has an extensive professional history that includes performances on Broadway (NY) at Gershwin theatre with “Tango Argentino”, also performed at Lincoln Center and Town Hall in New York, danced in the film “Tango” by Carlos Saura, film which was nominated for the Academy Award as Best Foreign Film.
Junior travelled the world with Julio Iglesias´Show. He filmed for the BBC with the prima ballerina of the Royal Ballet of London, Deborah Bull, and developed one of the leading roles in the successful musicals “Tanguera”, “Piazzolla Tango” and “Tangorama”. He was elected to a private tango show the Rolling Stones on tour in Argentina in 2007. He danced with the orchestra of Daniel Barenboim in late 2006 and in Buenos Aires at Luna Park, Gran Rex, Teatro Opera, Teatro Colon and the Nueve de Julio in a historic concert of “Tango Argentino” to 15000 people. Since 2001 Junior runs his own company “Latin Dance Company” in which fuses salsa, tango, samba and flamenco.He is considered by many as the best and most versatile dancer nowadays. He starred “Tanguera” in Amsterdam, London (Saddlers Wells), Basel, Munich, Paris (Theatre du Chateler), and traveled USA, Moscow and Italy with his own show. 2014 to 2016- He was the choreographer of “Piazzolla Tango” and “Tango Porteño”, two of the most prominent tango shows in Buenos Aires seasons. 2017- Performer and Choreographer of tango in Andrew Loyd Webber’s “Evita” directed by Josh Rhodes in USA.
2018 – Played The Gigolo at Grand Hotel, the musical at City Center (New York City) and part of the program Fall for Dance 2018 as a choreographer and performer.
2019 – Maestro at ATUSA, -Argentine Tango USA Official Tango Championship & Festival-, the official US branch of Tango Buenos Aires Dance World Cup.
Guadalupe Garcia started dancing when she was 5 years old with Argentine Folklore and at 12 she started with tango. When she was 18 she got the degree of Argentinean Folklore Teacher. 2004‐2010 ‐ Member of the UBALLET (Ballet de la Universidad de Buenos Aires), Mora Godoy’s Tango Company, Juan Corvalán’s Tangomalambo’s Company, and Roberto Herrera’s Company, with tours which travelled worldwide.
2005‐ 2006 ‐ Italy: shows “Tango Querido” (Barletta), “Noche porteña” (Matera) and “Patio Argentino” of Tango and Folklore (Roma) 2007‐2008 ‐ Greece: lessons, seminars, and dancer of the show “El Bandoneón”, Athens. 2007 ‐ until now‐ she has worked in local tango shows in Buenos Aires, such Complejo Tango, Michelangelo, Taconeando, Piazzolla Tango,Gala Tango and Tango Porteño.
2011 ‐ Misterio Tango Festival (Argentina).
2009 ‐ 2012‐ She traveled to various cities in South America, Europe and Asia, teaching courses and seminars (Greece, United Kingdom, Poland, France, Italy, Portugal, Dubai, Brazil y Chile).
2012 ‐ Korea (World Yeosu Expo), dancer of the show in the Argentina’s pavilion.
2014 ‐ Principal Dancer at the show Glorias Porteñas, partnering Juan Carlos Copes.
2015 ‐ Tango e Paixão’s Show (Brazil)
2015‐2016 Principal Dancer at the show Piazzolla Tango Tango Cabaret’s. Show‐ Teatro Avenida ‐ Buenos Aires. Classes and performances in New York, Washington DC, London, Moscow, St Petersburg (White Nights Festival) Los Angeles, Miami and Toronto (Canada).
2017- 2018 Official Judge at ATUSA Official Tango Championship and Festival, US branch of Tango Buenos Aires Dance World Cup.
2017: Cast of Loyd Webber’s “Evita”
2019 – Maestra at ATUSA, -Argentine Tango USA Official Tango Championship & Festival-, the official US branch of Tango Buenos Aires Dance World Cup.
