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| Nicole Facio is the 17 year old daughter of Wilma Carrasquillo and Joel Facio. Nicole is a senior at Gila Ridge High school and this is her 5th year as a Ballet Yuma Company member. In the future she plans on going to college to study marine biology. |
| A senior at Gila Ridge High school, 17 year old Brook Frandsen is the daughter of Wendy and David Frandsen. Brook has been dancing for 13 years and this is her 6th year as a Ballet Yuma Company member. Brooke attended honors classes this past summer at the RDA/Pacific Festival she was also awarded a scholarship to attend Ballet Nouveau Colorado. Her future plans include finishing college and returning to BNC to audition for a spot in their company. |
| Ariane Guthrie is the 16 year old daughter of Kim and Maria Guthrie. Ariane has been dancing for over 11 years and this is her 4th year being a part of Ballet Yuma’s Company. In 2008, she won the Garden Club Poetry and Essay Contest and received a Sunrise Optimist Youth Appreciation award. Ariane has attended RDA festivals for the past 4 years including the National Festival in 2007. She aspires to be valedictorian of her graduating class and receive a scholarship to attend the University of Arizona.
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| An honor student at Gila Ridge High School, Nicolette (Niki) Tera Gutierrez is the 16 year old daughter of Louis and Marilyn Gutierrez. Nicolette has been a part of the Ballet Yuma Company for 4 years and this is her 13th year of dancing. She is very proud to have attended RDA/Pacific Festivals for the past 3 years. She received 2nd place in the city wide poetry contest and has been learning French for the past year. Nicolette’s hobbies include photography and music. She plans to continue dancing or enter a career in the medical field. |
| Andrea Kellie Hennig is the 15 year old daughter of Steven and Adele Hennig. This is Andrea’s 12th year of dancing and she has been a member of Ballet Yuma’s Company for 4 years. This summer Andrea was awarded a scholarship to take part in Utah Regional Ballet’s summer intensive program in Provo, Utah. She also attended Ballet West’s summer intensive program in Salt Lake City, Utah. Andrea’s main hobby other then dance is ceramics. Her future goals include joining a professional company and having the opportunity to choreograph. |
| Mara Mejia is the daughter of Jorge Mejia and Corena Garcia. Mara is 17 years old and a junior at Yuma Catholic High School. This is her 12th year of dancing and 5th year of being a Ballet Yuma Company member. Mara appeared as Little Bo-Peep in the 2008 Nutcracker, has been in Waltz of the flowers for 2 years, and in the Snow corps for 5 years. Mara was awarded an Academic Excellence award from her school in both 9th and 10th grade. Mara’s future plans include finishing college and becoming a ballet teacher. |
| Taylor Owens is the 16 year old daughter of George Owens. Taylor has been dancing for 13 years and is in her 5th year as a Ballet Yuma Company member. She appeared as Clara, in the Nutcracker, in 2004 and 2005. Taylor took honors classes at the RDA/Pacific Festival this past summer, and her future plans are to become a professional dancer and pursue a career as a physical therapist. |
| Jacey Sims attends Gila Ridge High School and is the 15 year old daughter of Whitney and William Sims. Jacey has been a part of Ballet Yuma’s Company for two years and has been dancing for 11 years. This year she participated in Pacific Northwest Ballet’s summer intensive program. Jacey also takes part in 4-H. She received the Grand Champion Swine Showman and a purple round robin. Jacey’s goals include becoming a professional dancer. |
| The sixteen year old daughter of Brian and Tracey Turner, Kacey Turner has been a Ballet Yuma Company member for 2 years and has been dancing for 13. This past summer Kacey had the opportunity to attend her fist RDA festival where she received a full tuition scholarship to Ballet Magnificat’s summer intensive program. Kacey’s future plans include pursuing a career in dancing. |
| Josephine Dispoto is the 15 year old daughter of Mary and Bruno Dispoto. This is Josephine’s 2nd year being a part of Ballet Yuma’s Company, and her 6th year dancing. Josephine has danced with other companies but says that none of them compare to Ballet Yuma. She is an Honor Roll student at Kofa High School and attended the all-state Junior Choir festival. Josephine likes singing, writing, and traveling. She is currently studying French, and has been playing the piano since she was 8. She hopes to go to a medical school and become a veterinarian. |
| 14 year old Dominic Gizzi is the son of Lonny Mercer and Pemi Gizzi-Mercer. Dominic has been dancing for 12 years and has been apart of the company for 2 years. He attended the RDA Pacific Festival in May and was awarded a scholarship to the Craft of Choreography Conference. In 2004, Dominic attended two dance competitions - Showstopper and Tremaine. He placed 1st in Showstopper and 1st, 2nd, and 3rd in Tremaine. He maintains Honor Roll every year. In addition to dance, Dominic loves to act, play the piano, and learn computer programming. In the future, Dominic plans to finish college and continue his dancing and acting. |
| Alexis Gresham, 15, has been a Ballet Yuma Company member for 3 years and dancing for 12. Alexis is the daughter of Steve and Victoria Gresham and is a freshman at Cibola High School. She has attended RDA Pacific Festivals in California and Utah, and maintains an A/B average. Alexis wants to continue to dance and study sports medicine and nutrition. |
| Carina Gresham is the 13 year old daughter of Steve and Victoria Gresham. She has been dancing for 10 years and a member of Ballet Yuma’s Company for 2 years. This past summer Carina was awarded a full tuition scholarship to attend Craft of Choreography. Carina feels honored that she was chosen for the role of Clara in Nutcracker in 2006 and 2007. Carina’s goals include continuing her dancing. |
| Daughter of Ana and Danny Urias, 14 year old Alex Urias has been a Ballet Yuma Company member for 2 years and dancing for 11. She has been an honor roll student since 5th grade and has appeared as Clara in Ballet Yuma’s The Nutcracker. Alex’s plans include continuing to dance, and relocating in Seattle. |
| Alexis Sanford is the 13 year old daughter of Marietta and James Sanford. Alexis has been dancing for 8 years and this is her first year as a Ballet Yuma Company member. Alexis attends Immaculate Conception and takes math honor classes at Yuma Catholic High School. She participated locally with the Moscow Ballet. Alexis believes her decision to dance at Ballet Yuma was a good one, as her goals include becoming a professional dancer. |
