2022 LDF SUMMER DANCE INTENSIVE
JUNE 20 – 25 – 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Train with Laguna Dance Festival this summer for an intensive week of daily in-person dance classes within a small cohort. This week-long intensive will prepare you for pre-professional opportunities, college applications and a professional career! Classes will include Ballet, Contemporary, Repertory, Composition, Improvisation and Seminars taught by world-renowned instructors. Registration is open to intermediate, pre-professional, and collegiate-level dance students. Class size is limited.
Tuition: $500 for the full week of classes.
Scholarships are available to qualified applicants. Apply here.
For questions, please email info@lagunadancefestival.org or call 949-715-5578.
DAILY SCHEDULE
10:00am – 4:00pm (Check-in begins at 9:30am)
FACULTY:
Jodie Gates (Ballet and Repertory)
Stephanie Dai (Contemporary and Improvisation)
Zippora Karz (Ballet and Repertory)
Will Johnston (Composition and Repertory)
Lex Ishimoto (Contemporary)

JODIE GATES
Jodie Gates has established a longstanding career as an artistic director, arts educator, choreographer, stager, curator and dancer. In January 2022, Ms. Gates was appointed Artistic Director of Cincinnati Ballet, where she will officially begin her new position in the summer of 2022. Her recent work has been as facilitator for the “Artistic Directors Coalition for Ballet in America”, a group of directors and educators who are addressing systemic racism and inequities within the culture of ballet. Read more…

ZIPPORA KARZ
Repetiteur, George Balanchine Trust
Zippora Karz is a former soloist ballerina with the New York City Ballet where she performed for 16 years on stage and in televised performances. She was featured in a variety of roles choreographed by George Balanchine and Jerome Robbins as well as works choreographed for her by such choreographers as Peter Martins and Lynne Taylor Corbett. Today, as a repetiteur for the George Balanchine Trust, Zippora stages Balanchine ballets for schools and companies around the globe. Diagnosed with juvenile diabetes at the age of 21, she is passionate today about motivating others to take care of themselves and live their dreams. She is the author of “The Sugarless Plum” as well as her children’s story “Ballerina Dreams”.

WILL JOHNSTON
Coming from the San Francisco Bay Area, Will Johnston received the majority of his training at A.K.A Dance Company under the direction of Kelly and Alex Velasquez. Will holds an M.F.A. in Dance from the University of California: Irvine as well as a B.F.A in Dance Performance, a B.F.A in Dance Choreography, and a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering. Credits include Clear Talent, Tayeh Dance, Still Motion, Soul Escape, Wade Robson Creations, So You Think You Can Dance, Dancing with the Stars, Dance Camera West, Glee, Son Lux, Sigur Ros, FARR, Deborah Cox, Jordin Sparks, X Ambassadors, Sofia Reyes, Katy Perry, Rita Ora, Khalid, and Ben Platt. Read more…

STEPHANIE DAI
Stephanie Dai is a freelance dancer and choreographer based in Los Angeles. Originally from Fremont, CA, she received her BFA from the USC Glorya Kaufman School of Dance in 2019 where she had the honor of working closely with choreographers such as William Forsythe, Sonya Tayeh, and Barak Marshall. Her distinct movement style grounded in hip hop and contemporary has led to a variety of performance opportunities: she has appeared in the music videos of artists such as CL, Porter Robinson, Julia Stone, and NIKKI, in Ryan Murphy’s The Prom, and in commercials for companies such as UNIQLO. Read more…

LEX ISHIMOTO
Lex is a professional dancer as well as a choreographer. He was born and raised in Irvine, California, and is considered one of the most versatile artists of our time. Most recently he is featured in a CLI Studio film choreography by William Forsythe “The Barre Project” with ballerina Tiler Peck, and was the winning finalist of the popular TV show “So You Think You Can Dance”. Lex has toured with prestigious dance conventions such as NUVO, 24 Seven, Jump, and The Pulse. Lex was inspired to start dancing by his sister and has been trained in jazz, lyrical, tap, hip hop, ballet, and contemporary styles. He was nominated for Outstanding Lead Actor at the Helen Hayes Awards for his role in Billy Elliot the Musical. Read more…
DATE
Monday, June 20 — Saturday, June 25, 2022
Dance Studio
625 Park Avenue
Laguna Beach, CA 92651
Intermediate, Pre-Professional, College/Professional
Ages 14+
Weekly Fee: $500