Mia began dancing at the Ballet Center at age nine and went on to dance with the company for many years before graduating in 2022. Some of her notable roles with the Ithaca Ballet include The Nutcracker (Coffee, Chocolate, Candy Cane), Snow White (Wicked Queen), and Maria Valencia-Alvarez’s Valkyries and Red Thread.

Mia has also choreographed Disconnect and Too Much, both of which were performed by Ithaca Ballet as part of Winter Dance. From 2023 to 2024, Mia was a trainee artist with Chevalier Ballet in New York City. Her notable roles with Chevalier Ballet include Giselle (Myrtha), Chopiana (Waltz Soloist), New York Stories (Various Roles), and A Dancer’s Christmas (Joseph’s Angel).

Mia is elated to be returning to the Ithaca Ballet this season.

Born: Ithaca, New York. Adelyn is currently 15 years old and has danced for 8 years. She’s been dancing at Ithaca Ballet for the past 6 years and is now a senior in the company. Adelyn attended Boston Ballet’s summer intensive in 2022 where she trained in many different styles of dance including ballroom, character and musical theatre. This past summer, 2023, she attended The Rock School of Dance for their summer program and learned from well known teachers such as Christine Shevchenko and Manish Chauhan. Notable roles include 1st Corps Snow, and side Candy Cane (The Nutcracker) and Pas De Trios (Swan Lake). Adelyn is a sophomore and will graduate from Ithaca High School in 2026.

Born: Ithaca, NY. Emi started dancing when she was 13, and has continued dancing since for 6 years. This is her third year in the Company and she is very excited for her first year as a Senior. 

Emi graduated from New Roots Charter School in 2024. 

Born: Seoul, South Korea. Claire has been dancing at Ithaca Ballet since age 8, and has been in the company for three years. Her favorite roles have been Party Teens, Rag Doll and Ballerina Doll in The Nutcracker; and Demi-soloist in Paquita. She will graduate Ithaca High School in 2025.

Born: Pensacola, Florida. Elliana had been dancing for 12 years, 6 of which were at Ballet Pensacola and the other 6 being at Ithaca Ballet. Elliana is a senior in the company and has been in the company since 2021. She has attended a handful of summer intensives including Kaatsbaan, where she received training from artistic director of American Ballet Theatre, Stella Abrera, Chautauqua Institution’s summer workshop, and Charlotte Ballet. Notable roles include Columbine, Demi-Soloist in Waltz of the Flowers, and Chocolate all in the Nutcracker.  She will graduate from Ithaca High School in 2026. 

Joseph is from Ithaca and has been dancing with the Ithaca Ballet for eight years. Notable roles include Candy Cane and Party Teen in Nutcracker and the Wolf in Peter and the Wolf. When he’s not dancing, he plays the French horn and leads the horn section of the Cayuga Chamber Orchestra Youth Orchestra. Joseph is a senior at Ithaca High School and graduates this spring.

Anna is a graduating senior this year, having danced with Ithaca Ballet since she was six. This will be her fourth year in the company, and second as a senior dancer. Notable roles include First Corps Snow, King of the Elephants, and Waltz of the Flowers corps, from Nutcracker and Babar, respectively. When she has free time, Anna enjoys reading and musical theater. She’s so grateful that the Ithaca Ballet is such a big part of her life, and hopes you’ll come to see our next show!  

Born: Davis, California. Abril has been dancing since she was 5 years old, all at Ithaca Ballet. This is her third year as a company member. She attended Kaatsbaan Summer Intensive in 2023, and received training from Paloma Herrera and Maria Kowroski. Notable roles include Clara, Demi-soloist in Waltz of the Flowers, and Chocolate in the Nutcracker. Abril is a junior at Ithaca High School and will graduate in 2026.

Born in Ithaca, NY. Hazel has danced for 10 years, all of those years dancing at Ithaca Ballet. Hazel has been in the company since 2022. Along with dancing at Ithaca Ballet’s summer camp she has also spent time with The Burklyn Ballet Theater summer intensive.  Hazel’s notable roles include Clara, and side Tea (The Nutcracker) and Celeste and Teen Babar (The Story of Babar). Hazel will graduate from Dryden High School in 2027.

Born: Ithaca, NY. Maria has been dancing at the Ballet Center since she was seven years old. This is her fifth year in the company, and third year as a Senior Dancer. Notable roles include Clara, Candy Canes, Tea, and Marzipan in the Nutcracker. She will graduate from Ithaca High School in 2026.

FIRST YEAR SENIOR DANCERS

Apprentice dancers

AUXILIARY DANCERS

Rebecca grew up in Radford, Virginia, where she graduated with a degree in Dance from Radford University. From 2008-2011, she performed various demi-character roles with Connecticut Ballet under the direction of Brett Raphael. Rebecca joined Ithaca Ballet as an Auxiliary company dancer for the 2011-12 season, has served on the Ithaca Ballet Board of Directors since 2013, and returned to the stage as a demi-character dancer in 2016.  Roles with Ithaca Ballet include Swan and Candidate Bride (Swan Lake), Stepmother (Cinderella), Actor/Reveler (A Midsummer Night’s Dream), and Clara's Mother (Nutcracker). Rebecca has a Masters of Education from the University of South Carolina.

Rainbow Dance Arts Co., Saga Ambegaokar and Dancers and others. Studied at the Boston School of Ballet with Tatiana Baboushkina, Boston Conservatory, American Ballet Center, Ballet Guild of Ithaca, and Village School. Choreographer and costumer designer for companies in Pennsylvania, Massachusetts, Texas, and the District of Columbia. Awarded scholarship to National Craft of Choreography Conference, and a residency at the Carlisle Project, funded by the Ford Foundation. Former faculty member, Ballet Center of Ithaca and the Seneca School of Ballet (Dundee, NY). Summer guest faculty, Central Pennsylvania Youth Ballet. Director of the Chambersburg Youth Ballet in Pennsylvania and teaches ballet at Wilson College in Shippensburg.

He was born in Maryland, United States.  Nick began studies in dance at the Greater Annapolis Ballet in 2020 under the instruction of Margaret Russell. He then auditioned and was accepted to the Rock School of Philadelphia on a full scholarship. There he studied from 2021 to 2023 under the instruction of Telmo Moreira, Bo and Stephanie Spassof, and Peter Stark. Nick competed in 2020 at the Youth America Grand Prix, finishing in the top 12 in classical dance and third place in contemporary. In 2022, Nick competed again at the Youth America Grand Prix and won third place in classical, contemporary, and pas de deux dance.  Repertoire includes: Laurencia , Diana & Actaeon, Flames of Paris , Don Quixote, Paquita , and parts of The Nutcracker such as Russian, Spanish, Arabic, Chinese, Doll, and in the ballet corps. In 2023 he became part of the Ballet Concierto of Puerto Rico.

Nick Hagelin is an award-winning singer/songwriter, actor and dancer trained at School of American Ballet at Lincoln Center in New York City. He has danced internationally with Carolina Ballet, American Ballet Theater, Atlanta Opera, and the Kirov.  Nick is best known for finishing Top 9 on NBC’s The Voice in 2016.

Nick is a seasoned performer, with a rich background in the performing arts.  Born in New York City with two professional singers for parents, he trained at School of American Ballet from age 9-18 while also pursuing his passion for music and acting.  He made his feature film debut at age 13 in The Emperor’s Club, and continued to balance his various pursuits in the arts until he graduated high school and joined Carolina Ballet in Raleigh, NC.  He would later move to Atlanta, sign to Interscope Records, and start a family.  

Since moving to Georgia, Nick has enjoyed a well-rounded and rewarding performing arts career.  As a freelance ballet dancer he has danced with some of the best companies and schools in the Southeast for over a decade.  He has toured the country with his band, and his original music has been featured on FX’s Atlanta, Saturday Night Live, The Nickelodeon Kid’s Choice Awards, and more.  As an actor he has been featured in various movies and television shows, including Sweet Magnolias (Netflix), Staircase (HBO),  The First Lady (Showtime), Law & Order: SVU (NBC), and the upcoming feature film Captain American: Brave New World and The Hunting Wives on Starz.

Brian Hall is a novelist who occasionally teaches creative writing at Colgate University. He is a former Ithaca Ballet parent and has played several character roles for IB in the past, including the Nutcracker Grandfather.

Elden has danced with Ithaca Ballet since he was eight years old. He graduated from Ithaca High School in 2024 and is a returning alumni to Ithaca Ballet. Notable roles include Snow King, Chocolate, Marzipan, and the Nutcracker in the Nutcracker, Swans in Carnival of the Animals, Lover in Haunted House, and excerpts from Paquita. Elden is currently a freshman at Tompkins Cortland Community College.

Danced with Ballet Repertory Co. (formerly ABT II) in New York City. Nutcracker at Arie Crown Theatre in Chicago for three seasons. Studied on full scholarship at ABT with Valentina Pereyaslavic, Leon Danilien, Patricia Wilde, also at the Joffrey School, Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre, with Larry Long in Chicago, Ballet Guild and Village School. Guest artist with Robertson Ballet (Binghamton) and Rainbow Arts Dance Co. (Corning). Conducted master classes at Elmira-Corning Ballet Co. and Cedar Arts Center in Corning. Guest adjudicator for Southern Tier Civic Ballet.

Rachel grew up in Ithaca, NY, where she trained at the Ballet Center of Ithaca and Ithaca Ballet. After receiving her BFA in ballet from University of Cincinnati’s College Conservatory of Music (CCM), she went on to dance professionally in Ohio and Kentucky, before returning to Ithaca. While dancing with Ithaca Ballet, she had the privilege of performing roles such as Aurora (Sleeping Beauty), Sugar Plum Fairy (The Nutcracker), and Cinderella (Cinderella). She is an active member of the teaching faculty at the Ballet Center of Ithaca as well as an Instructor of Ballet at Ithaca College. Rachel is also a Suzuki violin teacher, a trained life coach, and is currently pursuing further education in dietetics.

Courtney began working with the Ithaca Ballet in 2004 as a way to give back to the ballet while my daughter, Sarah Olsen, was dancing. She has been an athlete all my life, but being a part of the ballet was never something she thought she would be doing. In the beginning, she and her partner would volunteer their time to help backstage with props and sets and, over time, they have become more permanent fixtures of the Ithaca Ballet crew.

A longtime supporter of Ithaca Ballet, Amy is now doing marketing and promotion for the Ithaca Ballet. She brings marketing and publicity experience from her role at Larson Publications, the Preston Thomas Memorial Lecture Series at Cornell, and promotion for the Finger Lakes Chamber Ensemble and numerous arts events in the local area. As a piano teacher and lifelong lover of the arts, she is strongly committed to bringing more attention to arts activities in the Ithaca community. Her daughter was a student and company member of the Ithaca Ballet for several years.

Janet started volunteering with the ballet when her daughter Sarah Olsen began dancing. When Sarah moved on to college and then grad school Janet stayed with the ballet. Janet has been here long enough to see the little lambs grow up to become company members. She loves watching the dancers grow and develop, catching up with the parents and hanging out with “the crew”.Janet is grateful to Alice for offering her this opportunity and to Cindy for keeping her around.