Classes

Gibney Dance Center is proud to host classes with some of the best teachers in the city. We hand-select professional level offerings for our ongoing roster. See the current class schedule for information on dates, times, and cancellations. All classes are managed by the teachers themselves. Please see the teacher upon entrance to pay by check or cash.

Professional Level Ballet with Christine Wright

Christine Wright teaches a professional level ballet class emphasizing principles of functional anatomy and movement flow in combination with musicality and aesthetic expression. Though frequented by dancers of many levels, ranging from professional ballet and modern dancers to modern dancers not as familiar with ballet technique, Christine provides a lot of individualized attention at the level needed creating a relaxed, positive, and focused atmosphere for work. The barre is simple, slow, and thorough, while the center emphasizes musicality and flow.

$16/class, $160/ten-class card (must be used within two months)

Professional Level Ballet with Jackie Villamil

Jackie Villamil’s class focuses on clarity and efficiency of movement. Jackie is a ballet teacher, choreographer and Certified Movement Analyst. She currently teaches at NYU Tisch School of the Arts and has been on the faculty of the American Dance Festival (13 years), Bates Dance Festival, and Jacob’s Pillow. A recipient of Choreography Fellowships from the NEA and CAPS in NYS, she has made work for the concert stage and film. Jackie served as a Mentor/Editor for the Joyce Soho Residency Program, is a member of the Board of Directors for Ronald K. Brown/EVIDENCE, and is a Dance Program panelist for the New York State Council on the Arts. She also taught ballet for the Doug Varone and Dancers’ Summer Workshop 2001 through 2005.

$17/class

Ballet for Contemporary Dancers with Janet Panetta

Janet Panetta teaches a ballet class that is accessible to a range of different dancers. A veteran of the American Ballet Theatre, Janet has a broad range of experience in contemporary dance forms. She has trained dancers in many of the major American companies, including American Ballet Theatre, New York City Ballet, Paul Taylor, Merce Cunningham, Trisha Brown, as well as many European companies such as ROSAS and Pina Bausch/Tanztheater Wuppertal. This class is offered in partnership with Movement Research.

$17/class, $120/eight class card (must be used within one month)

Ballet with Giada Ferrone

Giada Matteini Ferrone’s class is rigorous and musical; her training program is curriculum-based and produces dancers with clean, unaffected technique and a strong work ethic. Giada has invested the past ten years in creating her own unique ballet training program, which combines her early European training with her most recent American experiences. Born in Florence and based in New York City, Giada believes in cultural exchange, artistic expression and that dance is as an essential tool in the adult health and child development. Her choreography has been presented at Purchase University, Saint Mark’s Church, Hofstra University, Theatre of the Riverside Church, Rose Theatre at Lincoln Center, Peridance, and the Construction Company. Ms. Ferrone is an adjunct dance professor at both Tisch School of the Arts and Hofstra University in Hempstead, NY and a guest teacher at festivals and universities across Europe.

The Playground (NYC)

Founded in spring 2010 by Artistic Directors Loni Landon and Gregory Dolbashian, The Playground (NYC) is an open forum where professional dancers directly engage with emerging and established choreographers. During seasonal “sessions” or workshops, classes are capped at 30 participants and admission into class is kept at a flat rate of $5 for professional dancers only. The Playground allows dancers to experience various choreographic styles and ideas, engage with a new community of dancers, and gather resourceful information and inspiration from the array of choreographers involved. In turn, established choreographers are paid for their creative investigations and given free space to explore new movement with professional dancers. The Playground (NYC) is proud to currently call Gibney Dance Center its home and produces around four seasonal sessions a year.

$5 for professional dancers, show up early (class is capped at 35)

Contemporary Modern Dance with Oliver Steele

Class begins calmly. A series of soft repetitive movements allows dancers to gently warm-up as they find the connection to the ground and a sense of how their bodies respond to the surrounding space and other influences. The next phase of class, “Stretch and Strength Study,” is Yoga-inspired and heavily influenced by Teri Lee Steele’s Steele-Pilates. Balance is achieved through actively opposing the overuse of certain muscle groups caused by dance training. Once the dancers feel present, open, and strong, the following exercises focus on the core and cultivate the proper use of gravity. Choreographic phrases range from intense and expressive to athletic, fluid, and musical, and their composition will always surprise. Through the maintenance of correct skeletal alignment and an evenly integrated muscular system, this technique ultimately grants a longer dance career. The ultimate goal is to achieve and maintain quality within each and every movement, crisp technique, and a clear mind while implementing one’s ability and knowledge into the choreography.

$17/class, $150/ten-class card