Meet Our Faculty

---

Vicky started her dance career at the age of 2. She has had a passion for dance all of her life. She graduated from Texas Christian University with a BFA in dance and minor in television. She is the proud owner of Dance and Arts Connection and Dance Variations Dance Company for the past 38 years. She has studied with numerous modern choreographers including Melvin Purcell and Alwin Nikolais. She has extensive training in Martha Graham technique and utilizes her contemporary modern background through out her studio. She was honored to have studied under Fernando Shafenberg while studying at TCU. After performing and touring for two years, Vicky decided to open a business where she could share the love of dance with anyone who wanted to learn. She is an award winning choreographer. Many of her students have gone on to dance at the collegiate & professional levels. Her values are an open door to anyone wanting to learn the art and passion for dance! Her goal as an instructor is to instill the passion of dance into others as well as self confidence to be strong forces in life. Her wish for others is to dance like no one is watching!! 

William Agliata received his early ballet training in his native home, Rome, Italy, at the Renato Greco Dance Studio and The Rome Opera School of Ballet, under the guidance of Victor Livtinov, Ivana Gattei and Anton Kalinov (Sophia Opera and Ballet). During William’s dance education and subsequent professional career, he studied with eminent artists, choreographers, directors and composers.

Some highlights from William's Italian resume:

William’s professional dance career began at the Rome Opera with roles in Raymonda and other full-length ballets, as well as in the ballets of Faust and Aida at the Rome Opera. He danced in the worldwide telecast of the World Youth Fair for John Paul II, the world premiere of The Seven Deadly Sins and Lindbergh’s Flight at the Arena Sferisterio of Macerata, commercials and variety shows for RAI, the Italian National TV Network, the private TV Network Channel 5, and Coppelia for the Rome Summer Festival.

William moved to New York permanently in 2004 to dance and deepen his ballet training, studying with great teachers in the American ballet tradition: Wilhelm Burmann, Nancy Bielski and David Howard.

Highlights from William’s New York Resume:

Dancing and stage combat in Otello and other operas at the Metropolitan Opera; The Saints of Bleecker Street at Di Capo Opera/New York City Opera, Rebecca

Kelly Ballet, the 20th Century Fox film, Little Manhattan, with Pat Birch, choreographer, he danced in Across the Universe, directed by Julie Taymor, In spring 2017, he danced in the Eightieth Anniversary Recital of Ballet Arts and continues to work with several contemporary choreographers in New York.

William strives to teach perfect posture and form to reveal each student’s maximum potential. In 2016-2017, he worked as Ballet Master for Di Capo Opera/New York City Opera.

He began teaching and coaching in 1991 and ceaselessly incorporates his comprehensive knowledge of dance and singing techniques into his coaching and rehabilitation work.

Since 2015, he’s been training Robert De Niro and Stings families. Breathing techniques, weightlifting and ballet floor and barre exercises helped them to achieve their goals rapidly. In 2016, he trained polio and cancer survivors to achieve greater postoperative strength and flexibility.

With William’s extensive stage experience, he’s also coached actors to prepare for their performing challenges.

Paige started her dance career at the age of two. She is a Dance and Arts Connection Alumni where she spent nine years mastering her craft. After graduating in 2018, she attend Mary Hardin-Baylor where she was a member of the dance team. She graduated in 2022 with a BS in Applied Psychology. After graduation, she found her way back to the studio and is excited to be a part of the team, doing what she loves.

Victoria began dancing at the age of two and began her classical ballet training at five with Anna Ward and world famous Prima Ballerina Mme. Nathalie Krassovska. Ms. Dolph was Krassovska's last protege and enjoyed performing many ballets while with Krassovska's Ballet Jeunesse including: Paquita, Les Sylphides, Chopiniana, La Bayadere, The Nutcracker, Giselle, Raymonda and Pas de Quatre. Most of these ballets were taught to Krassovska directly from the original choreographers and passed down to Ms. Dolph. While under the mentorship of Madame Krassovska, Victoria received the Nadine Nicolaeva-Legat scholarship to the Russian Ballet Society in Scotland. In Scotland, Ms. Dolph received extensive training in classical ballet, pointe, pas de duex, character danse, and modern. Ms. Dolph was also awarded full scholarship to attend the Ballet Magnificat summer intensive and was the 2001 Dance Council of North Texas' Nathalie Skelton Scholarship recipient for the Glenda Brown Choreographer's Conference in Austin. Ms. Dolph attended the Rockette Summer intensive in NYC and danced at Radio City Music Hall and Madison Square Garden. She has danced professionally with Krassovska's Ballet Jeunesse, Irving Ballet Company, Fort Worth/Dallas Ballet, and Contemporary Ballet Dallas. Ms. Dolph also performed as a guest artist with The Ballet Foundation XXI and partnered with Silver Medalist Norbert Nirewicz. Throughout her 25 years of teaching, Ms. Dolph has coached students for classical ballet competitions and each year her students have earned esteemed awards.. Victoria serves as an adjudicator with the Ballet Foundation XXI, World of Dance, ballet instructor with Beyond Belief Dance Company, and LV3 Ballet Conservatory

Since retiring from performing, Ms. Dolph began to study yoga and became a certified yoga instructor in 2009 through Gaia Flow Yoga. In 2013 she opened a yoga studio and created a successful healing school with yoga therapies. During the past 14 years Ms. Dolph has continued studying yoga therapy and text at Loyola Marymount University in California. Some of her teachers include Srivatsa Ramaswami who was the student of the grandfather of modern yoga, Krishnamacharya, Dr. Siva Mohan (Ayurveda), Dr Eden Goldman (sport's chiropractor/ yoga therapist), David Swenson (ashtanga yoga), Shelley Washington (ashtanga yoga and former professional dancer), Maria Villella (ashtanga yoga/Chinese medicine/former ballerina) and Kumar Pallana (yoga teacher and actor in Wes Anderson films). In 2017 Ms. Dolph became certified in progressing ballet technique.

Currently, Ms. Dolph is in her final semester to earn her Bachelors in Liberal Arts and then will go on to pursue her MFA in Dance/Choreography which she will begin summer 2025

Ms. Dolph is also a mother to one adorable daughter and both are active members in the dance community.

Julia started dancing at the age of 3. Her first 15 years were at the Ballet Conservatory of Saddleback Valley in Orange County, CA. She received  scholarships throughout the years allowing her to dance with American Academy of Ballet, where she received a silver technique medal, Virginia School of the Arts, Milwaukee Ballet and Ballet Chicago. Julia danced with the Modern African Fusion company, Deeply Routed in Illinois and with Backhausdance in California. She was a regular in Ballet Pacific’s annual nutcracker and danced in various roles. She graduated in 2010 from Orange Coast College’s prestigious dance program with an AA in Dance and Theatre. She was involved in the production side of over 12 shows and a touring group while at Orange Coast. Julia was the director of dance at Fort Hood Military base. She has over 20 years of dance teaching experience in California, Texas and North Carolina.